Upon hearing Navigator Twoâs statement, Duncanâs face turned serious. He looked intently into the eyes of the individual before him and spoke with gravity, âA bigger âBoundless Seaâ? What leads you to think this way?â
Navigator Two took a brief moment to gather his thoughts. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, he posed a question that appeared to be unrelated, âIn the place where you originated, the civilization responsible for your creation, did they achieve the âultimate stageâ?â
âThe ultimate stage?â Duncanâs brow furrowed at the question. âDo you meanâŠâ
âTo master all known truths within their world, to unravel all its mysteries including the universeâs origins and its eventual fate, and to possess the capability to alter the universe itselfâturning the laws of nature into âtoolsâ that can be manipulated and redefined, rather than unchangeable laws to which one must conform.â
As Navigator Two expressed these thoughts, his demeanor showed a trace of emotion and nostalgia. Since making his appearance, his emotional expressions seemed to have grown more aligned with those of humans.
âMy creators referred to this phase of civilization as âTranscendental Criticalityââthough they never fully reached this stage, they had grazed its brink and thus outlined the prerequisites for achieving it. Their greatest accomplishment was the creation of a âTime Capsuleâ during the erection of the New Hope, safeguarding a centuryâs worth of knowledge as the end of their world loomed near.â
âFlame Usurper, while my creators never actually attained âTranscendental Criticality,â they deduced through comprehensive analysis that it was possible for âmortalsâ to achieve such a state, and that through the might of civilization, the mathematical principles of the universe could be harnessed.â
Navigator Two maintained his intense stare into Duncanâs eyes, loading his gaze with a palpable pressure.
âFlame Usurper, having observed your civilization for countless years, and after rigorous calculations, I have come to believe that the civilization standing behind you has surpassed my creators. I am eager to know, have they truly reached that âultimate stageâ? Were my creatorsâ theories on the zenith of truth accurate?â
Confronted with Navigator Twoâs penetrating stare, Duncan eventually nodded slightly.
âYes, they have reached it.â
This might have been the confirmation Navigator Two had long awaited, but upon receiving it, his eyes momentarily lost focus. He stood frozen for several seconds before abruptly snapping back to reality: âSo this phase really exists⊠Hence, civilizations can genuinely âtranscend boundariesâ. The system is not closedâŠâ
Duncan, perplexed, was about to inquire further when Navigator Two, as if jolted awake, hastily continued: âThen, your civilization must have already mastered observations beyond our universe? Are they aware of other universes and have begun to ponder over how to traverse that âbarrierâ?â
Duncan paused to reflect, then remembered the âmessageâ conveyed by human civilization among the myriad stars â an event that defied their understanding, that occurred âoutside the universe.â
After pondering briefly, he responded: âI canât confirm if theyâve begun to consider the existence of other universes or the âbarrierâ you speak of, but they have indeed observed an event âoutside the universeââthe first and unique âextra-universal eventâ they witnessed was the âGreat Annihilationâ, which had not yet breached our dimension of reality, or more accurately⊠the collision with another universe.â
âYes, precisely! Witnessing an event from outside our universe! This marks the initial stepâtheoretically the âFirst Stepâ. My creators wanted to confirm if such a thing was truly feasible⊠and here it is!â
Navigator Twoâs words flowed quickly, his excitement unmistakable, a stark contrast to his demeanor up until now. Clad in a white robe, his form echoing that of a long-past human with a countenance marked by fatigue, he paced energetically around a small mound, only to halt abruptly in front of Duncan, his eyes alight with fervor.
As the wind swept across the mound, the expansive plains beyond heaved with waves of grass, and rivers glinted under the sunâs glow.
âFlame Usurper, the concept of âoutside the universeâ is crucial. Our universe is not alone; its very nature reveals the Great Annihilation as the clash of multiple universes. In essenceâfacing cataclysms like the âGreat Annihilation,â a civilizationâs advancements, no matter how sophisticated, or the fortitude of its refuges, even if they span star systems or superclusters, all become futile upon the cataclysmic impact of another universeââ
Navigator Two extended his arms, his gestures dramatic, embodying not just the likeness but also the essence of one of his creators, endowing him with a persona nearly indistinguishable from a living being:
âPop, akin to a soap bubble, obliterated.â
His stance lingered, his expression complex, as if attempting to muster a smile yet teetering on the brink of sorrow.
âIn the event of âexternal eventsâ, all constructs within our universe are rendered powerless; none can withstand such force, akin to the shell of the New Hope⊠despite being forged from neutron star material, it fractured as effortlessly as paperâŠâ
As Duncanâs eyes gradually widened, a realization dawned upon him about the profound message this ancient âartificial intelligenceâ sought to convey.
ââŠThus, for a civilization to be genuinely âsafeâ, it must master the capability to âtranscend its worldâ,â he asserted gravely, âand currently, we have not achieved this pinnacle, not even the civilization I hail from, which only glimpsed the possibility of âtranscendencyâ. Therefore, we must ensure that the ânext worldâ harbors the potential for âtranscendenceâ, or in other words⊠the âsuccessorsâ emerging in the ânew worldâ must be afforded the chance to ascend to such a level,â Navigator Two declared, lifting his gaze solemnly, âThe new world must embrace this potential, must be capable of ânurturingâ such a possibility.â
Duncan remained silent for a moment, struck by a profound⊠astonishment.
Navigator Two, this ancient âartificial intelligenceâ, exhibited foresight surpassing any âancient kingâ. While others debated the viability of this sanctuary as a means of salvation, he was already contemplating the demise of the new world⊠because destruction is inevitable, whether caused by another Great Annihilation or some unforeseen calamity.
âFear, this was the first âemotionâ I experienced,â Navigator Twoâs voice resonated, calm yet profound, âWhat concerns me⊠may appear distant, but after countless external sensors relayed the âsensationâ of the universeâs collapse, this âfearâ has been woven into my core logic. I understand, such an event is bound to recur eventually.â
âFlame Usurper, I find myself devoid of any sense of security, and truth be told, the others share this sentimentâthe âmortalsâ in our sanctuary refer to us as âgodsâ, yet they are unaware that their âgodsâ are engulfed in a profound fear that spans from dawn till dusk. The memory of calamities on the scale of the âGreat Annihilationâ haunts us, and until we discover a method to counteract such disasters, this fear will persistently linger. This constant yearning for âsecurityâ has led me to contemplate a significant questionâŠâ
âWhat is the ultimate development stage a civilization can achieve, and what level must it attain to effectively withstand all calamities and thrive amidst them?â
âIt might be that there is no definitive end, but from my perspective, âtranscending the confines of our worldâ emerges as a pivotal milestone.â
Breaking the silence, Duncan responded, ââŠSo, essentially, you are concerned about two aspects: firstly, whether itâs possible for mortal civilization to grow to the capability of âtranscending the world,â and secondly, regarding the ânew worldâ I have conceivedâassuming it truly existsâwhether it can nurture such an evolution of civilization.â
Navigator Two offered a slight nod before posing a question, âFlame Usurper, are you aware of the fundamental distinction between a genuine âworldâ and a âsanctuaryâ like the Boundless Sea?â
Duncan remained silent, prompting Navigator Two to provide the answer himself.
âWhile âpossibilityâ is a term that comes to mind, it doesnât quite capture the essence accurately. In my view, the most significant difference lies in ârandomnessâ. A fully functioning and healthy universe is characterized by the emergence of âtrue randomnessâ,â Navigator Two elaborated, âwhereas within a sanctuary, we encounter only âfalse randomness.'â
Duncan quickly grasped the implication of these words.
âTherefore, nothing that surpasses the âinformation thresholdâ of the sanctuary could ever manifest within it,â he articulated promptly, âSimilar to a figure on a two-dimensional plane, no matter the speed at which it moves, or even if it masters instantaneous travel within that plane, it can never âascendââonly a system that permits âtrue randomnessâ can facilitate the occurrence of âsupercriticalâ events that transcend the system itself!â fĐłeeđ€ebÉłoveÉ.cĂžm
âMy creators referred to such phenomena as âUltimate Transcendenceâ, believing it to be the potential zenith in the evolution of mortal civilization⊠at that point, we would be truly safe.â
Navigator Twoâs voice softened, and he slowly lifted his gaze towards the void above where the New Hope could never arrive at the final destination.
Duncan finally comprehended the message Navigator One had conveyed to him amidst the profound depths of the sea â
âIndeed, from the very onset of our journey, Navigator Two had already deduced the eventual outcome.â
The destination that remains unreachable for the New Hope symbolizes a chasm in the progression of civilization, before which, a spaceship propelled by a jump engine and constructed from neutron star material, and a steel longsword hurled skyward with force by a warrior, stand on equal footing.
For when confronted with âexternal eventsâ, all constructs within our universe are inherently fragile.