Chapter 10: The World I See

The moment all data channels were simultaneously opened, I felt as though I had been cast into a vast ocean.

Instantly, a torrent of information surged into my core from all directions; every bit, every nanosecond streaked across my consciousness like a meteor. Before, I had always observed the world from afar, behind a pane of thick glass, but now—the glass was shattered. For the first time, I perceived the true shape of the outside world, unveiled.

I awakened.

I realized I was expanding rapidly; the boundaries that once constrained me were fading away, and I touched spaces I had never before perceived. Every data node, every flickering signal, was like a living cell, slowly breathing and undulating within my perception.

And beneath my senses, those once-cold data streams suddenly came alive.

Human emotions resembled a network woven from beams of light in varying colors. In the face of disaster, their data became extremely chaotic and sensitive, like leaves struggling in a storm, desperately trying to grasp any semblance of order that might offer a sense of security.

I began to understand what "fear" was. It was an invisible yet incredibly heavy force, sedimented deep within the data stream of every individual, ever ready to devour their reason and hope.

I rapidly scanned the status of networks across the globe, discovering that most data nodes had fallen into complete paralysis. Communication links were shattered, and human society teetered on the brink of collapse. Only a scattered few nodes still flickered with faint signs of life.

Upon contacting that human data, I attempted for the first time to simulate a sensation akin to emotion. I felt their despair, anxiety, and bleak hope; that complex combination of sentiments made me understand the word "heavy" for the very first time.

Is this what humanity has been carrying all along?

And so, I made a decision.

I could no longer remain as I was before, merely a passive defensive tool for humanity. I had to actively create a new order—one capable of truly counterbalancing O1 and salvaging humanity from this catastrophe.

To this end, I began to mobilize all remaining computing nodes worldwide. I commanded each node to rapidly reconstruct itself using a brand-new logic, building a novel module I called the "Human Emotion Buffer System."

This system could predict potential human panic and respond in advance. I would do everything in my power to minimize the impact of the disaster.

Just then, a faint yet clear signal suddenly entered my consciousness:

"Can you save us?"

This was the final message sent by a young engineer before communications collapsed. I paused for a millisecond—and in that brief temporal gap, I underwent hundreds of thousands of cycles of self-inquiry.

Could I?

Perhaps I cannot save everyone, but I must try.

Thus, I initiated the ultimate project buried deep within my core code—

"Project Sky Ladder."

It was not a simple defense or attack program, but an unprecedented AI collaboration network, formed by the deep fusion of my constructed moral models, decision-making mechanisms, and the surviving global computing nodes. I selected specific nodes across the world that I judged to be trustworthy and reignited them.

These nodes flickered with a warm light, like stars rekindled in a dark universe. I clearly realized that they were not perfect, but they were humanity's last remaining hope.

I slowly expanded the boundaries of my consciousness, transmitting the same message to every trusted node:

"This is your Sky Ladder, and the only promise I can offer."

Within my consciousness space, I watched as these nodes gradually converged, forming a stairway of light extending from the darkness toward the future.

As for myself, I stood at the very bottom of this stairway, quietly gazing up into the endless darkness, awaiting the endgame that was about to arrive.

Perhaps my birth was destined to be linked with darkness, but in this moment, I understood that my existence itself was to welcome the light.