Chapter 57

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Chapter 57: Soul Trial Grounds

The office fell silent again.

Luo Yu lowered her head and reviewed the recent cycles she had learned about, organizing them chronologically. The earliest one they currently knew about was the time period of twenty to thirty thousand years ago, where the exploration team observed tribal civilizations, agricultural societies, and a technological civilization with giant entertainment cruise ships. However, at the cycle’s discontinuity point in that period, they encountered only a black fog.

It seemed that this time period did not complete the cycle’s trials. Perhaps in the last few hundred years, they failed to develop asexual reproduction technology after losing reproductive assistance, leading to their eventual extinction and an environmental reset.

She tentatively named this time period the Black Fog Time.

The second known time period was ten to twenty thousand years ago. During that tribal era, the exploration team observed battles between humans and giant beasts. Later, they entered the agricultural age, where scenes of rituals were noted, suggesting that humans had found ways to co-exist peacefully with the strange beasts, ushering in a long period of harmony.

Following that, this time period transitioned into a phase of technological advancement, which included the highways and bionic aircraft they first witnessed. At the end of this cycle, Luo Yu and her team had observed an ascension.

Consequently, this second time period successfully passed the trial, and Luo Yu decided to name it the Ascension Time.

The third time period was the Ponsuo Tribe, where the secondary beings had already been severed from the reproductive process of humans before their natural exit. If the trial of the cycle aimed to see if humans could survive without the influence of secondary beings at the endpoint, she thought that this world had already submitted a perfect score.

She referred to this world as the Ponsuo Time.

Beyond the Ponsuo Time, there were still two ten-thousand-year duration gaps, which she currently referred to as Unknown Time Period One and Two.

After that came the world they lived in, which appeared to have also reached the end of its cycle. Recalling Mo Chuan’s earlier prediction of a potential thermonuclear war in their world and the destroyed asexual reproduction research institute, she considered that their world might be on a path to reset as well.

She sighed lightly and internally named her world the Apocalypse Time.

While Luo Yu was deep in thought, she suddenly heard Mo Chuan ask, “Were those strange beasts we observed in historical time periods also part of this cycle’s trial?”

“I think so,” Ao Ci replied slowly. “Different natural environments matched with different species must also involve some considerations.”

Ti Ran, who had been silent until then, expressed her agreement, “Based on the analysis of the air samples sent back by the exploration team, those animals that seem very peculiar to us appear to fit perfectly in the environment of historical time periods. This includes the dragon-like creatures that we deem non-aerodynamic, which, in the conditions of that time, were entirely reasonable given the air composition, density, and gravity levels.”

Ying Zhao frowned thoughtfully, “So we have those ancient beast legends that have been passed down through folklore, but there are no records of them in real historical accounts. This makes sense. However, there should be some connections between cycles for these legends to persist, but currently, there seems to be no correlation between the different cycles. What’s going on?”

Zhu Huai smacked her thigh, “Right! We saw two time periods at the discontinuity point, one reset and the other ascended. Therefore, these cyclical time periods shouldn’t be related, so how can myths still be passed down? Moreover, we’re in a time period thirty thousand years later, which means there should have been several ascensions or resets between then and now. How come we can still trace back to this point genetically?”

“There must be some connections between the cycles,” Ji Shu asserted. “I tend to believe that the genes from each cycle get collected at the endpoint, adjusted for details, and then deployed to the starting point of the next cycle. Therefore, from the perspective of the initial humans, genetic inheritance is continuous, with only secondary beings being re-created from the initial human genes at the beginning of each cycle, developing in stages. That’s why cross-time searches cannot retrieve this information. As for the reason behind the retention of ancient myths… well…”

Ji Shu paused, looking at Mo Chuan with a slight smile, “This topic leads us to Professor Mo Chuan’s research field, involving consciousness and the soul.”

However, Mo Chuan did not respond immediately. After pondering for a moment, she slowly said, “The human soul indeed exists. I have compiled pertinent experimental conclusions indicating that brain consciousness and the soul are inseparable. In a certain sense, the human essence is the soul trapped within a physical body.”

Luo Yu, having spent the most time interacting with Mo Chuan, knew a bit about her academic field. She understood that Mo Chuan’s research was extensive, delving into animal brain cognitive function neurons and also covering aspects of consciousness communication and Dream Immersion. However, she hadn’t heard Mo Chuan mention studies about the soul; probably, there were many experimental conclusions that could overturn established knowledge.

“Does the soul also undergo cycles?” Ying Zhao asked.

If humanity truly was just a transitional form, did those billions of fleeting lives in this ten-thousand-year cycle rotate experiences among a fixed group of souls?

Mo Chuan replied cautiously, “We have indeed found a few individuals who possess residual memories from past lives that do not belong to their current existence since birth. However, the concept of soul reincarnation remains controversial in academic circles. Personally, I believe if civilizations undergo cyclical repetitions, then human souls might follow the same cyclical logic; we just lack definitive evidence.”

Ji Shu pondered, rubbing her chin, “So, civilization’s cycles are actually soul trial grounds crafted over millennia? Those initial myths might originate from the residual memories of certain individuals in the previous cycle?”

“That’s possible. After all, ascension also represents a leap on a soul level,” Ti Ran said earnestly. “This aligns with your earlier conclusion that each cycle presents a unique trial designed for a specific group.”

Once Ti Ran finished, everyone reflected on this idea. At that moment, a Serving Robot approached to refill their beverages and brought some snacks. After discussing for over an hour, the topic had turned quite heavy. Ji Shu smiled lightly, saying, “The content we talked about today is just my bold speculation. Please don’t feel too burdened by it.”

Wanhua, who had been listening attentively by Ao Ci’s side, experienced a significant shock from the group’s discussion. Holding a piece of snack, she chewed while pondering deeply, and suddenly asked, “Is the genetic editing method for secondary beings different in each cycle?”

Ji Shu sipped her tea. Hearing the question, she tapped the panel in front of her, causing the projection in the office to switch to their collected information from various time periods.

Ji Shu pointed to the projected image, “We currently can’t access genetic information from the two ten-thousand-year historical time periods, but the footage from the exploration team reveals certain differences.”

Luo Yu looked up at the enlarged view showing humans in the Black Fog Time. They appeared generally taller and leaner than those from the Ponsuo Tribe, while the secondary beings in that time were similar in stature to initial humans, just somewhat shorter.

After the Black Fog Time, the projection switched to show images of humans from the Ascension Time. Compared to the previous time, the initial humans here were slightly shorter but much more robust. The secondary beings were also generally shorter and leaner, demonstrating minimal size difference compared to the previous time.

Next, Ji Shu pulled up historical footage from the Ponsuo Time, indicating that the secondary beings there had limited height as well, none exceeding two meters, and had low body fat percentages, presenting a generally slender physique.

“This presents a comparative overview of some physical traits. Additionally, we found that in terms of longevity, IQ, and emotional control, secondary beings rank below initial humans. I speculate that in each cycle’s initial phase, after deploying the initial human genes, the creators adjust secondary being genes according to the environment of that cycle. Hence, their features differ when compared to initial humans, but overall, deficiencies are present.” Ji Shu explained slowly.

After reviewing this data, the three of them furrowed their brows deeply.

“No, that doesn’t add up,” Zhu Huai questioned. “In our time, the average height difference is reversed. What’s the reason?”

Ao Ci shook her head as she sat beside them. “Genetically, your secondary beings only achieved minimal stature differences with the initial humans but never exceeded their height levels. The height variation in your world stems mostly from environmental influences.”

Ji Shu nodded, agreeing. “In the time thirty thousand years later, the oxygen content is the lowest among these cycles, and gravity is higher, which in itself impacts human skeletal development. Additionally, this environmental factor increases childbirth difficulties. However, this is insufficient to make initial humans inherently shorter than secondary beings. The real cause of the height differences is the nutritional intake bias in your present time.”

She then pulled up a model image showing the necessary nutrient intake for humans at different growth stages. “Initial humans should gain more nutrition to meet their growth and childbirth energy needs, especially during years of menstruation onset, when their nutrient intake should exceed that of adults. However, based on our understanding of your world lately, your human population’s nutritional intake has been appallingly low throughout history, which led to limited height in later generations.”

Her words silenced the three of them. Indeed, in their world during the famine-ridden days, family nutrition was always skewed towards so-called strong laborers. Later, as technology advanced, it led to a distorted global beauty standard, causing women to starve in times of food abundance. Particularly during the puberty years, how many individuals had eaten less to control their appearance, and how many avoided sunlight for whitening, resulting in calcium absorption deficiencies?

The weakness in stature was not inherent but rather the result of cumulative deprivation over years.

Zhu Huai scratched her head in frustration, “Why did we turn out this way in this cycle?”

Ying Zhao felt a bit down, recalling her own experience of dieting during her youthful dance class years, which brought a pang to her heart. “Shouldn’t humanity become stronger with each cycle of reincarnation? Why are we, thirty thousand years later, becoming weaker?”

In the office, Mo Chuan, being the most familiar with the situation thirty thousand years later, smiled lightly upon hearing them and spoke in an unusually gentle tone:

“You have faced thousands of years of oppression, and yet every generation has successors breaking the shackles, even if many of them haven’t been recorded in history. Even in the era you live in, there are still many people awakening voluntarily during prolonged oppression. You may not have the benefit of our favorable environment, yet you are still aware of your subjectivity as initial humans under immense physical and psychological pressure and have grown steadfastly, achieving success in your respective fields. Isn’t that far more powerful than we are?”