Chapter 290
, Second Brake: All Defaults Deleted
The fingerprints belong to Lin Jibai, who was nine years old.
It wasn't signed by the father on his behalf, nor was it copied from the system. The edges of the paper strip retain the fine broken lines unique to a child's palm print, and the angle of pressure is exactly the same as the physical examination record from that year.
Nantianmen announced: "I have agreed to inherit Repairman 07."
The second slot is then locked halfway.
Lin Jibai stared at the fingerprint, but had no corresponding memory of it. He didn't know why he, at nine years old, had pressed it, nor did he know if his father had explained the consequences.
Zhou Heng, leaning against his oxygen mask, said, "This time, no one made the decision for him."
"A child's consent should also be based on what they know," Xu Wangshu said.
On the back of the paper strip was a line of crooked little words: Press your handprint and Dad can come home.
Lin Jibai felt as if he had been hit in the chest.
Of course, he could press it at nine years old.
As long as his father can come home, he'll do anything, even if it's just one or ten pieces of paper, let alone inheriting the position. He might even ask where else he needs to put the paper.
This fingerprint is genuine.
The inducement was real.
"Who showed me this sentence?" Lin Jibai asked.
Lin Wangchuan shook his head with all his might. He didn't know. The narrator in question 07 had already voluntarily abandoned childhood codes and related old memories, and therefore couldn't answer either. Luo Xu found a blurry surveillance screenshot in the original test file; the person handing over the paper only showed their cuff, and was wearing a Tian Shu verification mark.
Zhou Heng neither admitted nor denied it.
"Even with the inducement, you made a choice at the age of nine," he said.
"So the record must be kept." Lin Jibai put the paper tape back into its individual slot, "but it can't replace my agreement at twenty-two."
Nantianmen requires him to prove the continuity of the current person's identity with that of the nine-year-old child. If he cannot prove it, the current revocation is invalid; if he proves continuity, the old consent will automatically continue.
It's yet another cycle of sealing off the exit.
Lin Jibai did not provide evidence.
He pressed his current palm print next to his old fingerprints. The two prints were similar, but completely different due to wounds, age, and calluses left from long-term maintenance.
He wrote under his new palm print: I admit that was the choice I made; I now retract it; I am not responsible for the consequences of the past that I did not know, and I do not seek freedom by denying the past.
The second slot is unlocked again.
Lin Wangchuan released the stop button.
Xu Wangshu questioned the people present one by one. Luo Xu agreed to stop the default history, but requested that the original records be retained; Lin Wangchuan agreed to cancel the continuation of the old position, but did not request the restoration of the relatives' return of eligibility; 07 self-narrator agreed to stop similarity completion and refused to be classified into any existing identity; Zhou Heng refused to execute the second grid.
His refusal was fully documented.
However, they cannot continue to bear the consequences for the 6,472 records.
"You still didn't listen to me," Zhou Heng said.
"We heard you," Xu Wangshu replied. "Hearing you doesn't mean you have the right to veto everyone."
Qin Lan reinstalled the actual controller in the second slot. The seven cities' narrowband data reports arrived with their final statuses: three cities continued processing, two cities suspended local processing, one city remained blank, and one city only confirmed receipt. There was no unanimous approval.
But the second rule should stop there: "When opinions differ, the old rules will automatically continue to be used."
If there is no uniformity, Nantianmen will no longer be authorized.
Lin Jibai gripped the handle and pushed it past the first tooth.
Luo Xu revoked the batch signing of historical records using the first template.
The second tooth.
Lin Wangchuan's position as a repairman was automatically passed on to his descendants.
The third tooth.
07 The narrator's jade rabbit strikes once, refusing to complete the subject matter with similar memories.
Before the final tooth, Zhou Heng activated the remaining circuit of Seat Zero once more. The ninth fragment briefly lit up, aiming at Lin Jibai's back.
Lu Chengong did not combine his bows.
He crossed the two broken strings behind Lin Jibai, using them to block but not to fire. The crimson light struck the point of intersection, and both broken strings simultaneously cracked open, causing blood to flow freely from Lu Chengong's hands, but he did not allow them to close.
"pull!"
Lin Jibai pressed down on the handle.
The second square ends.
The name layers of Buzhou Mountain suddenly scattered. The 6,472 records no longer displayed "processed," but were all changed to their own independent "pending verification." They were not resurrected, not declared dead, and did not flood into the human database; only the source gaps and exit points remained.
The recording shields behind Zhou Heng all fell off.
Seat Zero has lost his authority to act on behalf of Tian Shu. He is still alive, still able to speak, and his oxygen supply has not been interrupted, but he can no longer use other people's names to shield himself from the light.
The old file from nine years ago on Lin Jibai's shoulder finally peeled off and fell into its own slot.
The stability level remained at 19.
He didn't think of his father, but he remembered what he had just withdrawn.
The third braking stage has only one step left: permanently disconnect the Nantianmen interface.
Just when everyone thought they had finally seen the end, the third section flipped over from the inside of the threshold.
The handle is inside the door.
There are no operating ports on the outside.
A line of old text lit up along the door crack: Those who execute permanent disconnection must remain inside the door until the interface is reset to zero.
Zhou Heng looked at the words and, for the first time, didn't laugh.
Lin Wangchuan slowly raised his hand and pointed to himself.
The wrecked Yutu rabbit, dragging its broken fuselage, crawled one step into the doorway.
The last slot at the South Heavenly Gate still only accepts one person to stay.