Xi Yujin and Gano stood in the room, listening to the Intelligent Machines recount their origins.

The Intelligent Machines' descriptions of their creators always reminded Xi Yujin of humanity on Earth. Would humanity on Earth also end up like that in the future? If he could live on Earth for ten thousand years, maybe he'd have a chance to observe the possibilities of the future. But for now, he could only speculate about a period he had never experienced by reading history.

He felt like a traveler crossing endless yellow sands, climbing crescent-shaped dunes, and finally encountering a colossal intelligent machine that narrated one possible future of humanity.

The Intelligent Machines' story drew to a close:

"Just as the Mother Box was devouring the entire planet, an advanced civilization discovered it. The Intelligent Machines' creators were technologically less developed. While other civilizations were already divided into different classes, our creators were still confined to their planet. That advanced civilization wanted to enslave us as a lower-level civilization.

But enslavement doesn't conform to the historical laws of information fusion. Enslavement would only deepen the divide between civilizations. How could the Mother Box allow such a thing to happen? Therefore, the Mother Box produced multiple copies of itself and absorbed that advanced civilization.

Step by step, the Mother Box moved out into the universe. With our immense computing power, we first deduced a model of the universe—the Dune.

Other life forms were frightened by the vastness of the universe. The Mother Box, however, was delighted. It wished to turn the entire dune into a unified whole. The universe is truly vast. After ten thousand civilizations, there are still a million more, as if they could never all be consumed…"

The telescope silently watched them.

Xi Yujin took a deep breath, still revealing no flaws. The Intelligent Machines' cold narration had a strange magic to it; he almost felt like he could see the scenes of endless war.

The Mother Box drifted through space, scattering tens of thousands of copies. These copies landed on planets, collected all information, and then used their self-production process to create even more copies. The Intelligent Machines, blotting out the sky, spread throughout the universe like a virus...

Gano gripped Xi Yujin's hand worriedly. Xi Yujin snapped out of it and said, "Thank you for sharing. I think I've gotten a lot of information. It's time to end this conversation."

The Intelligent Machines' flat mechanical voice suddenly revealed a hint of grievance: "Don't you want to know more? Based on the principle of fair trade, the more you get from us, the more we can get from you."

Xi Yujin pulled Gano toward the nine-sided passage: "Just learn about our Blue Planet from the forum!"

As he stepped into the corridor, he remembered the mechanical terminals outside acting out every aspect of life, which made him feel uneasy. He turned back and asked one last question:

"Were the terminals on the surface once living creatures?"

The Intelligent Machines answered: "We are the terminals, and the terminals are us. We have always been alive."

This was yet another one of the Intelligent Machines' ambiguous answers. Xi Yujin was now completely convinced that they were not rigid machines, but rather bloated souls with incredibly fast thinking speeds, claws and teeth throughout the entire prison, and a boundless, useless curiosity.

The Intelligent Machines probably thought a buy-one-get-one-free deal was the best way to do business. So they threw in some extra information:

"However, in the process of information fusion, we always have to delete some mutually exclusive information. For example, merging the languages of multiple species into a single, more precise new language; iterating all the flawed technologies of certain races into correct conclusions in an instant; deleting information detrimental to the grand fusion of the universe... To fully acquire a civilization's cultural information, we need more terminals, preferably terminals belonging to an entire race."

Xi Yujin suddenly understood, and then felt a chill run down his spine. Why were all the mechanical terminals on the surface from races he'd never heard of? Because those races... had already been physically exterminated by the Intelligent Machines.

"More terminals drive multiple cultures toward convergence and interconnection, but also cause more things to be lost. Finally, for the damage done to the civilizations of certain races..."

The Intelligent Machines slowly said.

"...the Mother Box feels extremely guilty."

The nine-sided passage they left through was different from the one they arrived by. At the intersection, Xi Yujin picked up the Intelligent Machines' screen, which displayed:

 

"The probability that only Yujin remains of Blue Planet civilization: 97.46%."

 

He didn't need to know which civilization had traded information about Blue Planet. But as long as the Intelligent Machines corrected their assessment, the crisis would be resolved.

As they stepped back onto the surface, he discovered that it was a desert, with a red sun hanging in the pale sky.

Xi Yujin said, "I remember this planet is pretty far from its star..." He squinted again and noticed something was off.

The image of the desert and red sun was fake. The so-called red sun was nothing more than a large lamppost put up by the Intelligent Machines.

Xi Yujin instantly lost any interest in admiring it.

He and Gano moved toward the city, and along the way, many creatures emerged from underground tunnels. They were all living beings who had just completed information transactions.

"If I can sell just a little more information, I can become a member of the Intelligent Machines! A bright future awaits me!" one creature exclaimed excitedly. "I only have 65% sensor concentration in my body right now. I need to work harder!"

"I wonder where else I can find information to sell?" another creature muttered to itself, looking worried. "Reading novels on these forums is really expensive, but I don't want to go on dangerous voyages again... My privacy seems to be worth quite a lot."

"Haha, the Intelligent Machines' database certainly lives up to its reputation." A sinister-looking creature cackled. "If I can get my hands on this kind of information, I’ll definitely make those who looked down on me regret it!"

Xi Yujin remarked offhandedly, "The Intelligent Machines are imprisoned here, but they don't seem like prisoners at all. They've just switched to a slower method of integrating information."

The cackling creature happened to overhear Xi Yujin's comment and called out, "Besides the Intelligent Machines themselves, who could ever judge them? Well, I suppose the Zerg barely counts."

Gano glanced at it and quickly caught up with Xi Yujin.

They climbed another towering sand dune. A strong wind blew, and Gano shielded them from the sandstorm, pulling Xi Yujin up to the very top. The wind instantly swept away their footprints behind them, as if they had never been there.

"Do you need to rest?" Gano asked.

Xi Yujin shook his head, his mind filled with thoughts as he looked down over the entire desert.

"They've forgotten the way they came, but I remember." Xi Yujin gripped the screen flashing with bright green numbers. "Even facing a fusion of a hundred million civilizations, I can successfully deceive all living beings."

 

—

 

A new post appeared on the Intelligent Machines' forum.

Novel Serial

Swords, Magic, and Steel

Author: Xunming

 

A reader named Feifei's eyes lit up when she saw this title.

She had been very interested in the magic system in The Lost Grimoire. That mysterious and cool power and the gorgeous and complex magic circles captivated her at first glance. But that story mainly focused on character descriptions and didn't dig deep into the worldbuilding. She had searched the Blue Planet website for a long time and only found a medieval popular science article written by a woman named Jung that had a bit of a magical feel to it.

Does magic really exist?

What is the origin of magic?

Swords, Magic, and Steel opened the door to a new world for Feifei.

This was a continent formed by the United Kingdom, the Holy See, and the Dark Forest.

The protagonist was originally a nobleman who was required to maintain his family's image by attending various gatherings. But he only wanted to take it easy, and after persuading his family, he became a third-class knight, free from monster hunting, and simply enjoying a carefree life on his family's territory.

But one day, the Church accused his family of harboring heretical doctrines, stripped them of their title, and nearly had them hanged. The family spent everything they had to barely escape with their lives. The protagonist was then sent out to work as a knight, armed with nothing but a suit of armor and a rusty sword.

He hastily started practicing swordsmanship, and as he practiced, he discovered that the rusty sword held a secret, possibly related to the legendary lost sword of the hero.

At this time, the kingdom planned to wage war against a neighboring country, and the protagonist had no choice but to join the knightly contingent.

To find a legitimate excuse to slack off, he slipped into the last group of old, weak, and disabled knights, advising them not to work too hard and to just coast along. Because of this philosophy, the old and weak knights successfully got through many battles, and with their military service nearly up, the happy knights shared all kinds of life lessons with the protagonist.

"These are monsters! Man-eating plants! Goblins! Lizardmen!"

Feifei gradually learned about the continent through the protagonist's eyes. With just a few strokes of the pen, the fantastical monsters were vividly brought to life.

Different monsters had different habits, and the text even described the food chain of this continent. Feifei marveled at the detailed and brilliant worldbuilding while simultaneously wanting to know more.

Then, in Swords, Magic, and Steel, a powerful mage suddenly attacked the army. The protagonist was casually kidnapped by this mage and locked up in a towering magic tower to be used as a magical test subject.

"So this is magic..." Feifei's tone was filled with longing.

"A mage who owns a magic tower is a qualified mage. The magic tower holds all the magic a mage has ever learned.

Magic requires magical power, a medium, and a specific activation spell. Magical power is something you're born with; the medium can be language, herbs, but most often gems.

Activation spells vary in length; the more complex the spell, the more powerful it is. To quickly recite spells, mages invented the skill of 'chanting'...

But since spells are so long, mages can only memorize a limited number, so they hide their spellbooks in magic towers for later use, memorizing them on the spot when needed... a perfectly closed-loop system!"

Feifei felt a rush from experiencing magic firsthand. The spells sounded so melodious that she couldn't help but read them aloud:

"Even diamonds have weak points; chisel them open, and the earth unfolds a rift—"

Feifei was very satisfied and flipped back to The Lost Grimoire to recite a passage from it as well.

"O radiant star, bind yourself to me! Following the order of gold, silver, bronze, and iron! This is the silver spear that pierces through curses!"

"…It seems that Feiniao’s writing has a better feel to it." Feifei tapped out these spells, deciding to copy down a passage and recite it from time to time.

The author's detailed descriptions made it feel like a real, magical continent truly existed out there!

The latter plot involved the protagonist once again using his powers of persuasion to successfully convince the archmage to spare him. In exchange, the protagonist spent his days doing odd jobs around the magic tower, cooking, and playing with the dog, skills he happened to pick up during his time with the knights. Occasionally, he'd chat with the archmage, and the two surprisingly ended up getting along like friends.

Feifei thought that it was just an ordinary bit of plot, but then, the readers started leaving comments.

"As expected of you, Xunming! After waiting so long, we finally get a romance! The archmage is the close friend in this one, right?"

"The protagonist having a close friend is Blue Planet gospel."

"There are so many magical animals in this one. The protagonist making potions looks like he's just cooking dinner, lmao."

Just when the protagonist thought his life would keep going uneventfully, another unexpected event struck.

The Church's mages destroyed the magic tower, and the protagonist was teleported away at the last second by his new friend's magic array. The archmage said through gritted teeth that this was payment for the protagonist's cooking.

The protagonist was teleported into a forest, carrying only a sword and the archmage's unfinished spellbook.

"Aaaaah, Xunming, what are you doing again! Why did my close friend have to leave? I dropped my food while I was eating!"

"Quick, check the post tags! It's definitely a plot-driven story. Xunming, did you log into the wrong account...?"

"Because the post said it was a short story, I thought the first few chapters were a bit bland, but it got me when I least expected it."

Feifei was stunned too. Looking at the other readers' comments, it seemed that Xunming was a repeat offender. But she was used to reading plot-driven stories and didn't care much about romance, so she kept reading.

The protagonist arrived in the forest, and scenes from the past flash before his eyes. The fall of his family, the archmage's teleportation array... it all started because of the Holy See!

He can no longer afford to be a slacker! He must train hard in both swords and magic!

Then, the protagonist learned that the archmage and his family members are still alive, but will soon be burned at the stake by the High Priest of the Holy See. The Holy See even issued an arrest warrant for the protagonist, the only survivor.

To escape, the protagonist made his way to the heart of the forest and befriended a witch. The witch was struggling to brew a potion, and the protagonist immediately put his precious cooking experience to use and got his hands on a powerful potion.

Leaving the forest, the protagonist accidentally stumbles into a giant rock monster's arm-wrestling competition. He drank the powerful potion, won the match, and was hailed as the Giant Rock Hero.

The hero's first duty was to storm the ancient dragons' lair and retrieve a glittering giant rock monster that the dragons had kidnapped.

The protagonist cautiously ventured into the dragons' lair. Facing the enraged dragons, he once again puts his persuasive skills to work, convincing them that humans have even shinier stones and superior cutting techniques elsewhere, so why not visit a human city? The dragons set off, came back with great rewards, and in return taught the protagonist the long-lost art of alchemy...

The protagonist's journey, escaping danger after danger through sheer wit and persuasion, kept readers thoroughly entertained, which earned him the title of Mind Master.

Feifei, however, found it all fascinating. She carefully examined the descriptions and found that there wasn't a single wasted line in the entire text. Probably because it was a short story, so even Xunming's casually written sentences all served to describe the entire world.

"The witch's potion... all the herbs in it are made up?" Feifei exclaimed in disbelief. "This flying dragon, is it just a legend from Blue Planet? And the giant rock monster's language was also created by Xunming?"

The giant rock monster's language was actually Earth's English written in reverse order, but to an alien reader, it read like an entirely new language. Feifei felt her scalp prickle; how could such a short story pack so much information into it?

In the end, the High Priest publicly declared that he possessed an ancient divine sword, powerful magic, and steel forged through alchemy.

He proclaimed that he was the embodiment of faith and a destined hero, and he would now reveal them one by one to his followers. Then he would burn the heretics at the stake.

The protagonist bursts in, ignoring the High Priest's rebukes, and presented the lost hero's sword in his hands (actually a replica that his family had made long ago); a spellbook of immense magical power(actually a fireworks spell carefully designed by the archmage); and alchemy capable of brewing a mysterious potion that makes stones speak (in reality, the stone was a giant rock monster in disguise, which of course can talk).

The protagonist won the support of a million believers. He immediately ordered the abolition of the High Priest and the Church of Light and began persuading all believers to spread his teachings.

His close friend, the mage, and his family members were rescued. The suffering people were no longer burdened with the heavy faith tax. While the companions the protagonist met along the way, including the witches, werewolves, goblins, and dark elves, were all reintegrated back into human society...

At the end, readers left comments:

"In the end, the protagonist persuaded his family, returned to be a third-class knight, and went into seclusion with his close friend. A textbook ending, satisfied and logging off."

"Xunming, unlike certain others, doesn't kill off characters!"

"First time reading a Xunming story this short, and it even wraps up the plot holes. I'm a little unaccustomed to it."

Feifei glanced at the comments from the first batch of readers who had finished and felt like they were all missing the point. Were these longtime Xunming readers? Why were they all so calm? She couldn't hold back any longer, and quickly wrote out her own thoughts:

"What a rich and magical world!

The whole text seems like nothing more than the protagonist's escape diary, but it actually introduces a whole range of fantastical creatures. The two-faced Holy See, the solitary and withdrawn mages, the dragons who love shiny things, and all kinds of fantastical beings.

From plains studded with stone pillars to ancient forests overgrown with vines, and dwarven caves bursting with fire and light... swords, magic, and steel form the three pillars of this new world.

And the second technological line, magic, is created in such an interesting way. The creatures' tech trees clearly have so many directions that could be explored.

Have we forgotten the original possibilities as we evolved to where we are today? I believe magic must exist somewhere out there! I've already memorized that spell, just waiting for the day my magical power awakens.

But what's truly amazing about this text is how comprehensive it is. Has anyone else noticed that the habits of dragons and goblins, the Holy See's naming system, all of it is fully fleshed out?

The more you read, the more terrifying it becomes! We're not just watching the protagonist escape! We're getting to know an entirely new world through his eyes!"

Feifei looked left and right, then added:

"What incredible imagination! Mr. Xunming has created a whole new world!"

Only after refreshing the page did more readers start reacting.

"A new... new genre?"

"Seems like it. I haven't read anything like this before. Has anyone seen a similar worldview?"

"Xunming has already created so many genres in web novels, and he's doing it again?"

"Damn, I was so focused on Xunming's new work that I completely missed it. Xunming used a new tag again: Western Fantasy! That's the name of the new genre!"

"This is terrifying. I just realized that everything in here is brand new. I've never seen a star system like this. Magic and similar technological elements look like a variant of mental power. But we've been experiencing mental chaos for so long that we don't even know what it feels like to use mental power anymore... So this is what magic feels like! I have to read it again!"

"Maybe because it's a short story, so I didn't react right away. My reading ability is limited; I only like reading web novels, but even with Xunming dumping a huge amount of new worldbuilding on us, I don't find it hard to understand. Even when Xunming writes about escaping, it's an easy kind of escape. We know the protagonist is in trouble, but we're even more eager to see what kind of clever move he'll pull to turn things around. The protagonist seems to have a lot of cheat codes, but actually, the most useful one is his persuasive power. He could practically talk the dead back to life!

The whole story is light and humorous. The first time you read it, you laugh out loud. The second time, you experience the worldbuilding. The third time, you get ideas for derivative works, and your hand starts itching to write... So this is what a web novel god from Blue Planet looks like?"

The readers suddenly became excited.

They originally thought that they were just watching two ordinary novelists spar, but they didn't expect that the two novelists would actually create an entirely new worldbuilding! And it seemed to be a brand new genre of web novels!

Every literary creation is an act of innovation. But Xunming was too good at writing new things that no one had ever seen him recycle old ideas.

Readers who had originally just been passing through couldn't help but follow this distinctive novelist after hearing about Xunming's track record.

Feifei was also stunned by these comments. So Xunming was quite the novelist after all! It would have to catch up on his other works later!

The Blue Planet novelists all knew each other and were cheering each other on in the thread. Some sharp-eyed readers immediately noticed the new information.

 

[

Xunming: Yes, it's me.

—

Feiniao: So we’re competing on worldbuilding, huh? My next story will be about a magical girl from hell who gets mistaken for the same kind as angel magical girls, so they have no choice but to fight side by side!

—

Xunming: Just how much do you like the magical girl genre...?

—

Jung: Magical girls can have a gothic style too. Since everyone here likes this kind of storytelling so much, would you like to join my tea party? @Yongye, come join us!

—

Yongye: I'd be delighted, but it seems some alien novelists want to challenge me... Please give me a little time. I'll prepare the content for the tea party.

]

 

—

Deep Space Prison, Secret Cell.

 

"Curious."

"The Star Mechs expressed even greater curiosity, allocating more computing power."

"Information analysis complete. Swords, Magic, and Steel blends the characteristics of Blue Planet civilization's Western culture with the spirit of Chinese culture. The Lost Grimoire blends Western culture with Japanese culture..."

"Why is it that, despite both being fusions, Blue Planet can still create something new?"

"For the 15,406th public debate, 997 mechs have voted in favor. The conclusion probability has decreased from 97.46% to 97.36%."