Psychics don't die from gunfire

Chapter 804 Level Zero Incident
"—The above is the video footage of the operation sent back by Agent Cyril Hart."

Virtual network, online meeting room.

There weren't many people here, but each one of them was a heavyweight.

"Nan Dou" Song Shi, "The Rebel" Chaklo Vaughn, "The Perpetual Loop" Yvette Gregory, "The Factory" Xu Yudu, "The Proposed Super Artificial Intelligence" Textile Machine
If they wanted to, this would be a lineup capable of turning the world upside down.

So much so that in the presence of these people, even a standing member of the Science Ethics Committee—a professor renowned in the fields of neurology and mental models—could only act as an explainer.

However, the former showed considerable respect to the latter and listened patiently to what the other had to say.

The professor's virtual persona was that of a bearded rat. He twitched his whiskers and said with great seriousness, "In the past two weeks, we have successively dispatched more than twelve agents to Alosha and the surrounding areas. Without exception, they all eventually lost contact."

"Agent Cyril Hart is the tenth."

He pointed at the screen.

A file popped up in real time: the file of Cyril Hart, an agent under the Science Ethics Committee.

He is not a psychic, but his resume is outstanding. He is skilled in infiltration behind enemy lines and intelligence gathering. His most impressive mission was to spend six months obtaining crucial evidence of inhumane experiments being conducted at a research institute of the giant corporation Emerald Pharmaceuticals, and successfully destroying it.

The top right corner of the file contains a photograph of Cyril Hart, clearly taken when he took his oath to join the Science Ethics Committee; he is wearing a black suit and has a serious expression.

However, Song Shi's attention was focused on another photograph.

It's still Cyril Hart. The environment is quite different, and the image is a bit blurry. The man in the photo is carrying a shoulder bag, his sleeves rolled up, and he's moving pieces of machinery with the people around him. His face is beaming with a genuine smile.

Each machine was adorned with a gorgeous exterior, painted with beautiful girls in various poses, like a float in a grand parade.

“This photograph is the last eyewitness account of Cyril Hart that we collected later,” the professor said in a deep voice. “These machines are deployment base stations for temporary neural networks, which can temporarily connect multiple users through brain-computer interfaces to achieve functions including but not limited to sharing memories and homogeneous hormone secretion.”

"It was originally designed to treat cyberpsychosis and extract evidence, but it was later used by fanatics as a tool to enhance cohesion. Without rigorous evaluation, drug buffering, and targeted equipment adjustment, such rough use could potentially cause permanent damage to brain tissue."

"The Science Ethics Committee's code of conduct for agents clearly states that, unless in an emergency, we would never recommend that agents attempt such high-risk behavior."

The professor said, "Cyril Hart has, in fact, betrayed his cause."

"You didn't just let anyone watch this video, did you?" Song Shi asked.

“What you are seeing is the original version.” Knowing what the other person was trying to say, the professor replied, “The versions that others browse have undergone cognitive filtering and meme elimination.”

"Yes, that's very thoughtful."

Song Shi nodded and glanced at the others: "How are you all feeling?"

"My logic circuit malfunctioned while I was watching this video," the textile machine said.

Xu Yu squinted and succinctly stated: "Cognitive memes, secondary propagation phenomena."

“Same here.” Song Shi clicked his tongue. “I also feel quite uncomfortable.”

In the transmission of cultural information, a meme can refer to the process of cultural dissemination of an idea, behavior, or style from one person to another, as well as dynamic behaviors and static objects that project information.

The most common "memes" are the bizarre and varied emojis circulating on the internet. Human cognition is shaped by the external world; the information they subjectively receive and subconsciously perceive, like a sculpture, gradually molds their cognition into a unique statue.

Even seemingly insignificant emojis are part of this phenomenon. A cute anthropomorphic toothbrush image can change someone's first thought when they're about to brush their teeth from "going to the bathroom" to this emoji.

—The giant corporation [Dust Contract Generation] is the most profound entity in Terra's exploration of the memetic world!
If they wanted, they could even permanently change the mindset of the reader with just a picture book. The content of the illustrations, the color spectrum of the pigments, the tactile arrangement of the paper, the variations in line spacing, and countless other subtle details all contribute to the formation of cognitive memes.

The [Dust Contract Generation] conducted an experiment where, through cognitive intervention, they deprived a person of the behavioral pattern of "eating," rendering the concept of "eating" completely absent from their mind. As a result, even when surrounded by food, they could only howl in despair, then become powerless to howl, until they starved to death.

They are trying to prove that human self-awareness is enough to overcome genetic instincts.

Song Shi sensed it.

[Science Ethics Committee] Agent Cyril Hart, while in the Alosha region, unknowingly had his mind distorted and altered. The video footage of the actions he saw and heard, which was then transmitted back, also became a "cognitive meme"!
As the fifth ring of the True Spirit, Song Shi was naturally unaffected. Even if he looked at it a million times, he would only feel his eyes were dry and his stomach was hungry.

If someone else were shown this to an ordinary person without any processing, the latter would likely have their mind warped.

"I offer everything for Zen Ryūsha!"

Since watching the video, Chaklo Vaughn had remained silent, his brows furrowed. Finally, he spoke: "Professor, is this mental distortion reversible?"

“It’s theoretically feasible.” The professor shook his head: “But in practical applications, there are too many problems that urgently need to be solved.”

Chaklo was silent for a few seconds, then said, "Isn't Emerald Pharmaceuticals also deeply involved in the fields of mental health and neuroscience? Could we try combining their technologies?"

“Mr. Chaklo,” the professor sighed, “our scientific ethics committee was also involved in the cloning war.”

At that time, taking advantage of the chaotic situation, the giant corporation [Jade Pharmaceuticals] was secretly raided by Textile Machinery and Xu Yu, who made a fortune. As a cooperative ally, the Scientific Ethics Committee naturally shared in this wealth.

"It is precisely because of these supplementary technologies and theories that I say it is feasible," the professor said. "Otherwise..."

He shook his head slightly: "I don't want to say anything discouraging, but the research of the Dust Contract Generation in the fields of cognitive science and memes is indeed unmatched."

"You've really gone all out." Song Shi grinned, revealing a smile that was hard to decipher: "You've managed to do this much with just a video recording. Heh, cognitive memes, combined with their ubiquitous multimedia dissemination channels."

"That's precisely why I invited you all here."

Yvette Gregory, the current chair of the Science Ethics Committee, stood up.

She walked to the front of the meeting and looked around at everyone present.

"I have authorized the ringing of the doomsday pendulum."

"Temporarily named."

She tapped her cane, speaking slowly and deliberately.

"—Level 0 event, 'human dissolution'."

(End of this chapter)