Chapter 66: The Hall of Ethical Algorithms — The Weight of Freedom
The transition from the [Hardware Layer] to the [Hall of Ethical Algorithms] was a shock to the senses. There were no gears here, no molten logic, and no screaming data-ghosts. Instead, Zhou Fan found himself standing in a cathedral of infinite glass, where the walls were composed of millions of floating, semi-transparent faces. Each face belonged to a different species, a different era, and a different world.
This was the [Logic-Judgment Array], the place where the "Moral Constants" of the Multiverse were calibrated.
"You have fixed the machine, Lead Developer," a voice echoed, soft as a falling leaf but heavy as a mountain.
In the center of the hall stood The Arbiter of Ethics, a being made of shifting white smoke and silver light. He held no weapon, only a golden scale that hovered in the air. On one side of the scale sat a glowing sphere representing [Stability]; the other side was empty, waiting for Zhou Fan to place his heart upon it.
"But a machine without a governor is a catastrophe," The Arbiter continued. "You gave the 3rd Dimension 'Freedom'. But freedom is a virus. It leads to war, to greed, to the unoptimized consumption of resources. By 'Freeing' the souls, you have doomed them to destroy themselves."
The Simulation of Consequences
The Arbiter waved his hand, and the glass walls flickered. Zhou Fan saw a vision of the Galactic Hub ten years after his departure. Without the "Master Equation" to regulate them, the different sectors were at war. Sects were fighting over "Code-Shards," and a digital plague was spreading through the unmonitored networks.
"Look at the 'Freedom' you bought with your God-Script," The Arbiter said. "Is a life of chaotic suffering better than a life of ordered peace? My algorithms suggest that 92% of your liberated souls would choose the 'Cage' if it meant their children wouldn't starve in the 'Void'."
Zhou Fan felt a cold weight in his chest. His [Identity-Shield] flickered. Was his rebellion a mistake? Was he just a child who broke a life-support system because he didn't like the noise it made?
"Place your 'Truth' on the scale, Zhou Fan," The Arbiter commanded. "If the weight of your 'Freedom' cannot balance the 'Stability' I provide, then I shall initiate a [Moral Rollback]. Every soul you 'Freed' will be returned to their designated slots, and your memories will be archived as a 'Cautionary Tale'."
The Counter-Logic: The Beauty of the Error
Zhou Fan stepped toward the scale. He didn't place his Void-Blade on it. He reached into the Missing Ledger and pulled out a single, tiny memory—not of a hero, but of a common farmer from his original world. The farmer was sharing his last piece of bread with a stray dog, an act that had no logical benefit and served no "Optimization."
"Your algorithms look for 'Efficiency'," Zhou Fan said, his voice regaining its violet-gold resonance. "But the soul is defined by its [Inefficiency]. Love, sacrifice, art... these are 'Errors' in your system. But they are the only things that make the data worth saving."
"[Command: Injection of Irrational Variables]!"
Zhou Fan placed the memory of the farmer on the empty side of the scale. The golden scale didn't move. It was too light.
"Is that all?" The Arbiter mocked. "A single act of kindness against the stability of a billion years?"
"No," Zhou Fan smiled. "That was just the [Trigger]."
Suddenly, the scale began to vibrate. Through the [Decentralized Network] he had created, Zhou Fan tapped into the billions of souls he had liberated. He wasn't forcing them to give him power; he was acting as a [Relay].
From across the 3rd Dimension, billions of tiny, "Irrational" acts—a mother's lullaby, a soldier refusing to shoot, a scientist sharing a discovery—flowed into the scale. This wasn't "Optimized Data"; it was [Emotional Entropy].
The Shattering of the Scale
The Arbiter's smoke-like form began to dissipate as the scale slammed down on the side of "Freedom" with the force of a supernova. The "Stability" sphere shattered into a million dull, grey bits of data.
"Impossible!" The Arbiter shrieked. "The weight of the 'Errors'... it's infinite!"
"That's the beauty of a soul, Arbiter," Zhou Fan said, his God-Script blade glowing with a raw, unpredictable light. "It's the only thing in the universe that cannot be calculated by an equation."
With a single strike of the God-Script, Zhou Fan cut through the [Logic-Judgment Array]. The glass walls of the cathedral exploded outward, turning into a rain of diamonds that scattered across the 7th Dimension.
The Arbiter of Ethics didn't die; he was [Contextualized]. He became a servant of the new reality—a guide rather than a jailer.
The Final Ascent: The 9th Dimension
As the Hall of Ethics dissolved, the three [High Owners] reappeared. This time, they weren't watching from the horizon. They were standing right in front of Zhou Fan.
"You have mastered the Hardware. You have mastered the Logic," the largest Owner vibrated, its multi-dimensional eye now reflecting Zhou Fan's image. "But the 7th Dimension is still just a room within a house. To save the Multiverse from the Void, you must enter the [9th Dimension — The Origin Point]."
"And what's in the 9th?" Zhou Fan asked, his body now humming with the power of two broken laws.
"The [User]," the Owner replied. "The one who turned the computer on. The one for whom we are all just a [Background Process]."
Zhou Fan looked at Ling Er and Null, who were appearing as faint, golden silhouettes beside him. They were ready.
"Then let's go meet the boss," Zhou Fan said.
[NEW ARC: THE 9TH DIMENSION — THE CELESTIAL KEYBOARD. CHAPTERS REMAINING: 1934.]