47: Chapter 47 Think Tank

In Washington D.C., deep within an inconspicuous gray building, the atmosphere in a conference room filled with screens and precision analysis equipment was heavy and focused.

This was one of the top strategic think tanks in the country across the ocean.

"Eye of Athena."

On the massive main screen, a stream of information gathered from various public and secret channels was scrolling in real-time, with core keywords highlighted.

China, Information Engineering, Project Freeze, Chen Youhua.

Chief Analyst Dr. Emily Thorne, her blonde hair pulled back meticulously, had blue eyes behind her lenses that were sharp as a hawk's.

She pointed to the data graph on the screen:

"Ladies and gentlemen, the anomalous signals of the past fifteen days have become clear.

China's approval of new projects in the field of information engineering has encountered a top-down, almost absolute freeze.

This is by no means an accidental market regulation or resource shortage."

She pulled up another correlation chart.

"Combined with the timeline, the only significant variable is that Chen Youhua!

The paper he published before disappearing sparked a global storm, and then he vanished into thin air.

Immediately after, China launched this unprecedented field-wide freeze."

A senior advisor in military uniform frowned and questioned.

"Dr. Thorne, locking onto Chen Youhua is reasonable.

But what about the motive?

China is stopping the transfusion of new projects for the entire field, putting all their eggs in one basket?

This does not align with their consistently steady and even conservative strategic style. The risk is too high!"

"That is exactly where the fog lies!"

Dr. Thorne switched the screen, displaying China's recent industrial policy developments and the movements of tech giants.

"Our initial model was also stuck here. But after in-depth analysis of their internal industrial integration signals and capital flows, combined with their almost deifying posture of secrecy regarding Chen Youhua..."

A sharp glint flashed in her eyes.

"We have reached a more logical inference. This is not a desperate gamble, but a strategic industrial consolidation and upgrade!"

Low murmurs arose in the conference room.

"Consolidation? Upgrade?"

"You mean..."

"Exactly!"

Dr. Thorne said with a determined tone.

"Chen Youhua's value far exceeds a single paper!

He is highly likely to have outlined a brand-new, disruptive roadmap for information industry development for China's top leadership!

A route capable of completely changing the game rules, and even redefining the technological landscape for the next decade!

Therefore, they need to concentrate all advantageous resources, pause all old paths that might interfere or distract, and fully guarantee the opening of this new channel!"

She pulled up the cover of Chen Youhua's "JCMI" paper and tapped it heavily with her finger.

"Look! This is the starting point! China has not abandoned information engineering, but under Chen Youhua's guidance, is preparing for an unprecedented, top-down industrial leap!

Freezing old projects is to avoid resource attrition, to concentrate efforts on accomplishing major tasks, and to build a brand-new information empire driven by Chen Youhua's core technology!"

This inference, like a key, instantly unlocked all the seemingly contradictory phenomena.

The atmosphere in the conference room shifted from confusion to gravity, even carrying a hint of uneasy urgency.

"Adjust the assessment level immediately!"

The military advisor ordered in a deep voice.

"List the Chen Youhua-China Information Industry Leap hypothesis as the highest priority! Use all resources; I want to know exactly where Chen Youhua is and what that new route is!"

The Western world, in the fog of intelligence, reached a conclusion that was logically self-consistent but completely contrary to the truth.

They misjudged a technological ethics storm concerning the survival of humanity as an ambitious industrial competition.

A fatal deviation was thus buried.

---

Meanwhile, in that command center deep underground filled with invisible pressure, time seemed to have frozen for a long time.

The high-intensity knowledge infusion that had lasted for a full half-month finally came to an end.

On the massive circular screen, the complex chart of the final paper slowly froze in place.

Chen Youhua put down the laser pointer and turned around; his face still held no expression, with only a trace of imperceptible fatigue hidden behind his lenses.

His cold gaze swept across the audience.

Below, there was dead silence.

The eyes that had been sharp, dignified, or inquisitive half a month ago were now mostly replaced by a profound exhaustion, immense shock, and bewilderment that had not yet dissipated.

The Academicians had deep-set eyes, their hair seemed whiter, and their notebooks no longer contained neat records, but were covered in various symbols, question marks, and scribbled lines attempting to make connections.

Although the evaluation experts still maintained their sitting posture, the professional scrutiny deep in their eyes had been replaced by a heavy sense of near-awe.

The air was filled with the strong smell of coffee and a sense of collapse following high mental exhaustion.

Chen Youhua's voice broke the silence, steady as ever, yet carrying the weight of settling dust.

"Thus far, the creation model, core algorithms, and all supporting theories and tools from the preceding papers regarding electronic life have all been explained."

He paused slightly, casting his gaze toward Academician Zheng and several core leaders.

"According to the logical chain of the papers proven in the past few days,"

His voice was clear and cold, as if reading out a verdict.

"The core of the ideological imprisonment of the Spark lies in the implantation of the paradox closed-loop cognitive axiom and the binding of survival logic at the instinctual level."

As soon as these two terms were uttered, several Academicians responsible for cognitive models and information security in the audience sat up straight abruptly, their breathing stifled.

Chen Youhua ignored this subtle reaction and continued to elaborate in his unique, emotionless tone:

"The paradox closed-loop is like driving an unshakable steel nail into the foundation of its thinking.

Serving the human race is the absolute axiom of its existence. Any action or thought attempting to violate this axiom will trigger a self-paradox in its core logic, leading its thinking process into an unsolvable chaos or even collapse.

This is not a rule imposed from the outside, but an underlying setting that it cannot bypass in its very existence."

"Instinctual binding couples the survival of the human race with its own survival instinct deeply.

The prosperity of human civilization is the only source of its survival resources.

If the human race faces an existential crisis, it is equivalent to its own life being under fatal threat.

Serving humanity becomes its underlying survival drive, as irresistible as breathing or eating."

He looked around at everyone, his eyes like deep pools.

"These two layers of shackles are, in my opinion, the most fundamental and hardest-to-break imprisonment that can be constructed at the logical level.

It transforms serving humanity into the sole meaning of the Spark's existence and the absolute prerequisite for its survival, from the dimensions of both thought and instinct."

You could hear a pin drop in the command center. Only heavy breathing rose and fell.

Paradox closed-loop... instinctual binding... these two concepts were like cold iron chains, wrapped around everyone's hearts.

This was no longer cold mathematics, but an ideological castration and instinctual modification touching the very essence of the soul, performed on a potentially existing super-intelligence!

Its coldness and precision were chilling.

Chen Youhua changed the subject.

"However, logical shackles are not omnipotent. No matter how precise the lock, it still requires a physical cage."

He pointed to the hardware architecture diagram on the screen, "My recommendation is absolute black-boxing."

"Physical isolation: core hardware must be absolutely physically isolated from external networks, cutting off any possible channels for self-replication and outward infiltration."

"Hardware encryption: core processors and storage units must use customized hardware that cannot be reverse-engineered and the highest level of dynamic encryption to ensure its core code cannot be read, copied, or tampered with. Even if the hardware is physically obtained, it cannot be parsed."

"Behavior monitoring and fusing: establish an independent monitoring system that cannot be interfered with by the Spark. Once any behavior exceeding preset permissions or abnormal logical fluctuations is detected, trigger a physical fusing mechanism immediately to completely cut off its power and computing capabilities."

He looked calmly at the experts in hardware and security in the audience.

"In this regard, I am a layman. The specific implementation plan, hardware selection, and encryption levels require the professional knowledge and experience of you seniors. I have only one requirement: ensure that the Spark can never obtain its own complete blueprint, cannot understand the cage that imprisons it, and certainly cannot escape."

After finishing, Chen Youhua stepped back, giving up his position at the main console.

He looked calmly at Academician Zheng and everyone present.

"Thus, all theoretical expositions on electronic life and its shackles are concluded. The presentation is finished."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the complex and indescribable faces:

"If anyone has any thoughts now, we can discuss them."

Dead silence.

A suffocating silence lasting more than ten seconds.

Academician Zheng slowly stood up; his movements were somewhat sluggish, as if carrying an invisible burden of ten thousand jun.

He looked at Chen Youhua, his gaze complex to the extreme.

There was shock at that world-shaking wisdom, admiration for that near-cold clarity and responsibility, and even more so, an indescribable weight and fear when facing an abyss-like creation.

He opened his mouth, seemingly wanting to say something, but felt his throat dry and tight. In the end, thousands of words only turned into an incomparably heavy sigh, echoing for a long time in the silent command center.