I, the Rock King Emperor with 21 billion in power, have joined the chat group.

[Red Iris Immortal: Therefore, I always feel compassion for those living in a post-apocalyptic world.]

[Red Iris Immortal: My desire to help them is genuine, but I won't sacrifice everything for them. I have different approaches to the end of their world and the end of my own. For my world, I can sacrifice everything, even become someone repulsive, but I can't do that for someone else's world. After all, my world has only recently regained peace, the Honkai has been defeated, humanity has ushered in peace, and everyone is happy. I wouldn't sacrifice my life on such a day; that would be too foolish.]

[Red Iris Immortal: Zhongli, you won't look down on me, will you?]

Zhongli had lost count of how many times he had fallen silent. He felt that the Fu Hua before him was vastly different from the Fu Hua he had first met, the one who was cold and seemed to have completely sealed her heart inside her body.

The Fu Hua of today, speaking these words, stirred up distant memories for him.

Those are memories from two thousand years ago.

Qingli said something similar back then.

She wore a serious smile then—"Mortals suffer so much, I always feel compassion. We demon gods, free from worries about survival, can help mortals... Hmm? You said there's a possibility of conflict with other demon gods, leading to your own demise?... Sigh! Don't worry, don't worry. I'm not such a selfless demon god. I only help mortals when I'm safe and have the strength to spare. However, I'm a little worried about you, Zhongli. You might get carried away in battle and injure yourself."

These were the words, but Zhongli knew them.

Even if someone says they wouldn't risk their life for ordinary people, when faced with real danger, a person with a heart to help them wouldn't run away alone in the face of crisis.

Qingli was like that back then, and Fu Hua is definitely like that now.

Zhongli considered his words carefully before responding in this way.

[Future Promising True Lord (Zhongli): Fu Hua, do you want to know what I'm thinking?]

[Red Iris Immortal: Zhongli, what are your thoughts?]

Zhongli paused naturally, and after a few seconds, he expressed his thoughts perfectly without any expression.

[Future Promising True Monarch (Zhongli): I'm wondering if it was a bit hasty of me to provide services worth thousands of points to the newcomers in the group so simply, and whether it was a contract that couldn't achieve an equivalent exchange. After all...]

[Zhongli, the Promising Future Lord: After all... from a universally rational perspective, what I offer is not equivalent in value to what the new members can offer. This violates my personal principle that contracts must be fair.]

[Red Iris Immortal: I don't think we need to worry. Zhongli, your personal principles shouldn't be limited to just the fairness of the contract.]

Zhongli's thoughts suddenly stopped.

[Zhongli, the Promising True Lord: ....]

[Red Iris Immortal: Hmm? Am I mistaken? Although Zhongli, you always talk about contracts, what you care about most is fairness between the two parties. A contract is not a one-sided act of giving or receiving, but rather something that both parties should uphold.]

[Red-Robed Hermit: And isn't your concern for the fairness of the contract because, at the very beginning of Liyue's founding, it was established as a nation of merchants? To prevent this nation from becoming a place of deception and swindling, where anyone would stop at nothing for money, you are so attentive to the fairness of the contract, aren't you? Ultimately, isn't the reason you want Liyue to develop normally, and for its people to live fairly and honestly?]

[Red-Robed Immortal: The essence of a contract is fairness, and the essence of fairness is to bind the strong and help the weak. And at a deeper level, it's to protect the humans of Liyue under your command. Therefore, isn't it perfectly normal for you to provide life-saving points to those friends in your group who are in a post-apocalyptic world?]

[Red Iris Immortal: How about that? My prediction was right, wasn't it?]

Zhongli was stunned by Fu Hua's words.

His mind raced, and in just a few seconds, he recalled the many national policies established when Liyue was founded.

That was the national policy that Qingli and he developed together. That must have been Qingli's idea back then!

He inherited Qingli's life and continued to live on, while also protecting Liyue, but he had almost completely forgotten the purpose of the contract he made with the Liyue Kingdom back then.

"It's really wrong of me. How could I have forgotten? Why did I think that contracts and justice were my ultimate principles and goals?"

Zhongli muttered to himself, the sound reaching only his own ears.

His brain seemed to be overloaded, spinning rapidly. Memories from the long years were self-divided and compressed into different memory neural units, and at this moment, all these memory units were working frantically.

Long-forgotten memories returned to his mind once again.

These memories belong to him, and also to Qingli.

---Whew!

As Zhongli slowly exhaled a long breath, she felt as if a long-lost stone slab in her heart had been wiped clean of the dust that had settled on its surface, bringing her a sense of relief.

He looked at the transparent private chat page with Fu Hua in front of him and quietly typed in his thoughts.

[Future Promising True Lord (Zhongli): Yes, you're right. I never expected you, Fu Hua, to see so deeply.]

[Red Iris Immortal: Is that so? It's just routine observation. Everyone in the group should know about Zhongli's behavior.]

[Zhongli, the Promising True Lord: .....? ? ? ]

[Red Iris Immortal: Although you appear cold and your calm demeanor hides no emotion, Zhongli, you have consistently helped the group members complete various tasks that were originally quite difficult. Therefore, the group members trust you implicitly and feel reassured by you, seeing you as a respected elder brother figure in the chat group. As long as you are there, the group members will not fall into despair.]

[Red Iris Immortal: To use an idiom, he would be described as having a cold exterior but a warm heart.]

[Zhongli, the True Lord with a Promising Future: .....]

[Future Promising True Lord (Zhongli): Okay, I understand. Alright, that's all for today. Let's talk again next time.]

After saying this, Zhongli didn't hesitate much before ending her chat with Fu Hua.

Sitting at the bluestone table in his courtyard, he shook his head slightly with a wry smile.

"I never imagined I could see things as clearly as others... No... if Fu Hua is Qing Li, then she understands me better than I do. Logically speaking, that's perfectly normal."

"Ha! That's true."

A gentle breeze stirred the clear, fine wine in Zhongli's cup.

The wine is raised and brought to the lips.

Zhongli drank it all in one gulp.

"We must not slack off."

He restrained himself in this way.

Chapter Six: Variables and Possibilities

Zhongli downed the drink in one gulp, narrowed his eyes, and made a decision regarding what Fu Hua had just said.

He revealed his true feelings and understood his own thoughts.

It has nothing to do with Qing Li, and nothing to do with the contract.

He is a "good person" who cannot ignore tragic events.

This has been confirmed.

He immediately reopened the chat group page, but this time he didn't go to the chat page; instead, he called out to the customer service page in the chat group's system store.

[I need to speak with you in the Multiverse Chat Group.]

A moment later, just as he expected, things turned out exactly as he had anticipated.

Suddenly, bold, black text appeared, perhaps visible only to him.

【Hello, great user of an undetectable level life form, I am Alpha-6, the main chat group system. It is my pleasure to serve you.】

This is the third time we have met.

【How can I help you?】

Without the slightest hesitation, Zhongli immediately typed it into the screen.

I need your computing power.

The chat group system seemed to hesitate for a moment, pausing for half a second before the bolded text reappeared on the screen.

[Hmm? Computational ability? May I ask what you mean?]

Zhongli continued, "Of course, we need your computing power. As an entity spanning seventeen world civilization clusters and thirty-nine void world clusters, having experienced thirteen times seven to the power of 563 updates and thirteen rises and falls of silent tides, the computing power possessed by your chat group should have long since reached an unbelievable level."

[Even the Tree of Imaginary Numbers or the Sea of ​​Quanta are probably not as powerful as your computing capabilities, right?]

The main chat system Alpha-6 paused again. Although it wouldn't normally pause as a machine, its status as an intelligent life form made it hesitate.

However, it only took half a second to perform calculations in the overall chat group system and then draw a conclusion.

With a 99.78654% probability, telling the truth is more accurate.

So it replied to Zhongli's system: "Of course, Your Excellency, we are merely a chat group. As a chat group among many worlds, our central system's computing power is inherently strong. At least it's stronger than world groups like the Imaginary Tree or the Sea of ​​Quanta, which lack independent self-awareness."

Zhongli nodded slightly in satisfaction at the answer.

Therefore, I need your computing power to help me with some calculations and deductions.

The consciousness of Alpha-6, residing within the system, began to inquire.

Could you please explain in more detail?

Zhongli responded: 【Of course.】

[Although I don't know how you categorize beings that transcend the river of time and can exist directly in the void, I've made some calculations about their future paths based on my own experience.]

For me, there are several possibilities for taking another step forward at this stage.

One method is to extend one's existence to the very beginning of time in the world of Teyvat, replacing the original, non-existent creator god and becoming the creator of this bubble. Then, encompassing the future from the source, until the inevitable end of the world, one would take control of all possibilities, all futures, and all existence within this world.

If I truly reach that level, I will be able to reduce the dimensions of the Teyvat world to achieve my new form. At that point, my status should also grow to the same level as the Quantum Sea and the Imaginary Tree.

This is also the path that the Ocean of Quanta and the Tree of Imaginary Numbers have already traversed.

After hearing what Zhongli said, the chat group screen shook slightly, and a few seconds later, Alpha-6's voice came through again.

Indeed, based on my calculations using 80% of the entire chat group system's computing power, Mr. Zhongli, even without any inspiration or progress, you would only need 3468941200 standard hours to reach this level. The success rate would be a staggering 91.2341%.

[Based on this premise, our chat group can already congratulate you on your transcendence and spiritual ascension.]

Zhongli nodded slightly: "Thank you. However, I do not intend to continue down this path."

Alpha-6 immediately and without hesitation asked: "Why? Mr. Zhongli, you may not know that not everyone can resist the predetermined reconciliation of the world by stepping out of this world and into the river of time. Many demons, once they reach this point, are unable to find the next path."

As someone who has crossed this threshold, capable of altering and overturning history, and qualified to go further, you are extremely rare. Not all demons can become a long serpent crawling along the timeline.

To this question, Zhongli responded quickly: "Of course I know."

However, if I were to become something akin to the Ocean of Quanta and the Tree of Imaginary Numbers, then the things I do would likely be quite similar to what they do.

[To throw myself into a world under my control, to undergo a trial like the Honkai Impact 3rd, to destroy the environment in which intelligent life exists, to destroy countless individuals of intelligent life, just to seek a sliver of possibility—I cannot do it, or rather, I do not want to do it.]

[Alpha-6, you may not know the inside story—but this inside story is only what I've come up with recently based on my own progress.]

Zhongli paused for a moment, carefully considering his words.

Why would the Tree of Imaginary Numbers unleash the power of Honkai within its own world, causing the death of countless intelligent beings and the destruction of countless civilizations, all for the sake of advancing civilization?

Ultimately, the reason is simply a lack of "variables."

The future of the world is ever-changing, and its tributaries are virtually endless. However, as a long river creeping along the horizon of time, after covering the entire world, including the future and the past, the world will be reduced in dimension. To mortals, the world remains endless, but to ascended demons, such a completely controlled world is utterly useless.