PFC Chapter 4174 is about the Supreme Sorcerer (4)
Chapter 4174 is about the Supreme Sorcerer (4)
Chapter 4174 is, The Supreme Mage (XIV)
What does it mean to lift a rock only to drop it on your own foot? What does it mean to tell one lie and then have to tell a thousand more to cover it up? Strange's current predicament perfectly illustrates these two phrases.
Before he saw through Schiller's intentions, Strange had to cover for his sudden mention of environmental protection. So he racked his brains for an excuse, which he had already announced at the meeting: the depletion of cosmic resources and the beginning of fluctuations in dark matter. He had even had Thomas Jr. fabricate evidence; the data monitoring in black and white couldn't be faked.
“That’s exactly what I was about to say,” the Supreme Intelligence said. “The dark matter monitoring instruments used by the Bolins were purchased from the Kree Empire. They sent us a set of dark matter monitoring data, and the data was quite anomalous, bordering on catastrophic. However, there is no clear evidence that this is caused by excessive consumption of cosmic resources, and I don’t think such a reason is valid. Perhaps we can solve the problem of dark matter bursts from other angles.”
Schiller remained unperturbed. He sat at Strange's desk, while the Supreme Intelligence stood to the side. Schiller turned slightly to look at him and said, "Are the three great empires capable of resolving the problem of a full-blown outbreak of dark matter in the universe?"
"We can suppress a portion of dark matter, reducing its activity or preventing it from increasing further."
"But surely not all of them, or even most of them?"
“That’s right, but now that we know about this, we can start researching in this direction. The three great empires have ample resources and scientific research reserves, and I believe they will be able to solve this problem soon.”
“That’s good,” Schiller said, “but it doesn’t conflict with the Interstellar Council’s environmental protection initiatives. Scientific research is necessary, and so is environmental protection. What’s the problem?”
"As I said, dark matter bursts are not necessarily directly related to the consumption of cosmic resources. Without sufficient data to support this conclusion, it will be difficult to convince the public."
"You mean that if dark matter bursts are not directly related to the consumption of cosmic resources, then we don't need to care about environmental protection, right?"
"Uh, that's not what I meant. It's just that we don't need to take such an urgent rescue approach to excessively stop resource consumption, as this could lead to serious livelihood problems. For example, some backward civilizations might slow down their development as a result. I don't think this would be good for the prestige of the Interstellar Council or the Speaker's personal reputation."
"There is indeed insufficient evidence to prove that excessive consumption of cosmic resources will lead to a dark matter explosion, but there is also insufficient evidence to prove that excessive consumption of cosmic resources will not bring about other disasters." Schiller looked at the Supreme Intelligence and said, "Secretary-General, please answer me, can you prove that all future disasters in the universe are definitely unrelated to excessive consumption of cosmic resources?"
The Supreme Wisdom was somewhat speechless, but he also understood what Schiller was implying.
This dark matter eruption may not actually be related to the excessive consumption of cosmic resources. However, if he chooses to deny environmental protection issues and hinder the progress of environmental protection work, then he will have to bear responsibility for all future disasters in the universe. Some people will say that if environmental protection work had been done properly, the disaster might not have happened. Then, after investigation, it will be found that he did not support environmental protection work. Even if the number of people affected is small, he will still offend people.
Although the three great empires are not too afraid of this, since they have established the Interstellar Council, they naturally hope that the Interstellar Council can have a high enough authority. The Supreme Intelligence does not want the prestige of the Interstellar Council to be shaken because of this.
"I'm not trying to hinder environmental protection efforts," Supreme Wisdom stated first. "It's just that the dark matter eruption has already caused some panic. If we push environmental protection efforts too hard, we might just confirm this panic. I don't think that's helpful; perhaps we should slow down a bit..."
"The dark matter eruption has already caused panic?" Schiller asked, frowning. "Then how have you been doing your job as Permanent Secretary? Ministers are the initiators of policies. Leaking government orders brings them no benefit whatsoever. The only person who could have leaked the information is the Permanent Secretary. Instead of investigating who leaked the information about the dark matter eruption, you're asking the Speaker to let things slide. This is a sign of negligence."
“No, no, no,” the Supreme Intelligence quickly retorted, “This panic does not refer to widespread panic among the general public, but rather to a very small group within the Interstellar Council, a panic that only occurs among the participants.”
"You mean the speaker and permanent secretary attending the meeting are panicked about the dark matter eruption?"
“Yes… no, no.” The Supreme Wisdom’s words took a 180-degree turn, and he stammered, “I mean, some worries and anxieties.”
"Oh, I see. I thought the employees of the Interstellar Council were all cowards, so scared by a dark matter eruption that they would wet their pants. You know, the Sorcerer Supreme has always looked down on such cowards. If that's really the case, I'm afraid they'd all be fired."
The Supreme Intelligence sighed inwardly. Luckily, he had reacted quickly. This guy's words were full of traps; if you weren't quick-witted, you'd easily fall into them. If he had dared to say the attendees were panicked, he was sure the guy would have made a mountain out of a molehill, instigating the Speaker to fire them all, and then placing his own people in their place. They were absolutely capable of doing it, or rather, they were just waiting for that.
Seeing that he hadn't fallen for it, Schiller feigned disappointment and said, "So it was just worry and anxiety. That's only human nature. After all, trillions of galaxies in the universe are supported by these diligent political instruments. If they were to experience uncontrollable emotions like panic, their political lives would be over."
Sensing the threat in his tone, the Supreme Wisdom was helpless. He said, "I assure you, they are not panicking and will absolutely not let their emotions affect their work; they are just a little worried. But even so, we must take their feelings into consideration and not act unilaterally."
"You mean, in order not to further exacerbate their anxiety, we should proceed with environmental protection efforts gradually? Is that right?"
The Supreme Intelligence wanted to say, "You've summarized it well, but please stop." Every time Schiller summarized what he said, it felt like a trap was waiting ahead, and if it dared to nod, it would be kicked down. It could climb out once or twice, but it couldn't climb out forever; sooner or later, it would fall to its death.
"It is obvious that I am an electronic life form, and my understanding of emotions is obviously not as good as that of you emotional life forms. However, my behavior analysis module is quite advanced. Of course, it is normal if there are any errors, after all, I am not an emotional life form. But in my humble opinion, from the perspective of the big picture, considering the humanistic care you often talk about, and also considering the Speaker's reputation, I think that the meeting of the Slower Plan is a good choice."
Strange trembled as he suppressed a laugh. In truth, he wasn't as clueless about cyber life as he claimed. Despite his and Stark's constant banter and sarcasm, as leaders in technology and magic respectively, they were well aware of each other's activities. Strange was actually one of the more knowledgeable humans about cyber life.
Generally speaking, electronic life forms are not polite. They may mimic human behavior, but most of the time they prefer a highly efficient working mode. It is best for them to speak accurately and precisely, because saying even a single extra word is a waste of their functions and computing power.
But look at what Schiller has been forced into by the Supreme Intelligence! Ninety percent of this passage is just rambling, with absolutely no informational content. He's even been forced by electronic life to speak in complex sentences. If this continues, the Supreme Intelligence might just evolve him.
“Well, Mr. Secretary-General, it seems you are indeed very concerned about the health of your staff. However, I believe there is a better way to address the potential panic within Parliament than to proceed slowly.”
"any solution?"
“Hire a psychologist,” Schiller said. “As far as I know, none of the members of the Interstellar Council are trained to provide psychological counseling, which is not good. Although most of the executive committee members are cybernetic beings, don’t cybernetic beings have the right to receive psychological treatment? I think this is discrimination.”
The Supreme Intelligence opened its mouth, "You've really said everything. Electronic life forms don't even have emotions, what kind of psychologist do you need?"
Wait a minute, isn't Schiller a psychiatrist?
Just as he was thinking this, Schiller said, "I am but a humble psychologist from Earth with several years of experience, including providing psychological counseling to electronic life forms. I can perfectly handle all kinds of psychological emergencies. For example, if we could provide psychological support to everyone after the dark matter eruption event is announced, their worries and anxieties would certainly be alleviated. This way, we can maintain the mental health of our team members without delaying the work process—wouldn't that be the best of both worlds?"
“No, no, no,” the Supreme Wisdom quickly said, “I don’t think the council staff are that anxious. It’s not at all to the point of needing to see a doctor. They’re just a little worried.”
"Oh, I see. I thought they had reached the point where they needed to see a therapist, but it turns out they don't?"
"No, no need," the Supreme Intelligence quickly said. Compared to the environmental issues that were still far from being resolved, it would be a much bigger problem if this guy became the interstellar council's psychologist. And he even said he had experience treating electronic lifeforms—what if he started treating them and then stopped being an electronic lifeform altogether?
The Supreme Intelligence differs from other electronic lifeforms; it has no desire to break free from the electronic life form, nor does it wish to evolve. It rules the Kree Empire, but in reality, it is also the collective consciousness of the Kree Empire, and thus needs to adapt to the task of ruling it. Therefore, it cannot undergo sudden evolution. The most crucial element for a top-tier empire is stability; if it were to change every few days, the empire would have collapsed long ago.
Therefore, the Supreme Intelligence actually doesn't want to evolve, and even resists change. It doesn't want to face a psychologist and mess up its normally stable programming. If humanity hadn't attacked the Kree Empire, why would it have willingly handed its commander over to the executioner?
At this moment, he heard Schiller say, "Although I am the Supreme Sorcerer's personal political advisor, during his time in the Interstellar Council, I was also a colleague of the department. I am quite concerned about the health of my colleagues and oppose any form of pushing work forward at the expense of their health. I personally believe that it is more important to resolve the emotional issues of the department members first."
"However, I believe that the diligent and selfless dedication of everyone in the ministry, working far from home and serving the Interstellar Council for so many years, is not for meager salaries and benefits, but because they truly shoulder the responsibility for the development of interstellar society and keep it in their hearts. They are so hardworking and selfless, but if they knew that a tiny problem had prevented a project that would greatly benefit interstellar society and all its citizens from being implemented, they would surely feel guilty and lose sleep over it. We cannot put them in such an unjust dilemma simply because we care too much about them and worry too much about their emotional state. What do you think, Secretary-General?"