"Zhou Bai?" The woman in palace attire asked in confusion, "Are you still there?"

Zhou Bai's delayed response made her feel tense.

At that moment, Zhou Bai's voice sounded again.

"Can you turn into a cat?"

The woman in palace attire paused slightly, then asked in puzzlement, "I can, but there's no need. My human form is more adaptable than a cat's. This is the body I specifically crafted for practicing Dao."

"I want to pet you."

A hint of annoyance flashed across the woman's face, "What are you trying to do? This doesn't sound like something you'd say."

"Turn into a cat and let me see."

"Don't you want to regain your Dao transformation pace?"

The woman in palace attire let out a breath, and immediately she shrank into a cat form.

At the same time, Zhou Bai slowly emerged from the virtual world. He picked up the small cat and hugged it, stroking it softly.

The cat in his arms expressed impatience, "Have you petted enough?"

"Don't you like being in a cat form?"

"Managing long fur is inconvenient, and a cat's limbs aren't as convenient as human hands. There are inconveniences in clothing, food, shelter, and travel, not to mention the practice of Dao, where being in a cat form is inferior to being in human form by far..."

Listening to the other party list all the inconveniences of being in a cat form, a voice suddenly echoed in Zhou Bai's mind.

...

"Son, listen to mom's advice, don't want a woman. Later, mom will find you a cat, much more reliable than a woman. A cat can lie on your lap while you play games; can a woman do that?"

...

A faint smile suddenly appeared on Zhou Bai's lips. The woman noticed this and incredulously asked, "You're smiling?"

In her memory, the Heavenly Demon Zhou Bai should no longer smile at anything.

Zhou Bai said blandly, "Do you still remember when we studied together at Dao School?"

The cat in Zhou Bai's arms frowned, struggling to search through memories of the past three years to understand why Zhou Bai had said these words.

At the same time, several voices continued to echo in Zhou Bai's mind.

...

Zhou Bai: "We are of one heart, why separate yours from mine? Aren't your learnings mine too? And our relationship is so good, if I die, wouldn't this body be given to you?"

Christina: "Really?"

Zhou Bai: "Of course it's true, when have I ever lied to you?"

Christina: "Alright then, you choose."

...

Christina: "Hmph, what I, Christina, love most is to ruthlessly slap the faces of these high-and-mighty immortal breed gods. Don't worry, cooperate well later, with my skills, I'll make you win effortlessly."

Zhou Bai: "Are you using your own body to slap faces? All the hatred you're bringing down is falling on me."

Christina: "We're of one heart, why separate yours from mine? I'm taking on all your grudges."

...

Christina: "What are you doing?"

Zhou Bai: "You woke up without saying a word and startled me."

Christina: "It's naturally time for my classes in the morning. What's the problem with me waking up? Why is she holding your hand? What are you doing?"

...

In the virtual world, the cat in Zhou Bai's arms tentatively said, "We had quite a pleasant time at Dao School, right?"

"Zhou Bai, if you insist on merging with the Heavenly Demon Pool, loneliness will await you in the future as all your companions will leave you."

Zhou Bai did not answer, simply asking, "Christina, do you remember our first meeting?"

The cat began to dredge up this memory from her mind, though it was her memory, there was a strange sense of detachment like a third-party perspective.

...

"You are Zhou Bai?"

"Stop looking, you can't see me."

"Do you want to survive?"

"Then take this, remember not to resist or reject."

"Your hack, with this, you might just be able to beat that guy outside."

...

The cat speculated about Zhou Bai's thoughts, a sudden flash of inspiration: 'Could it be that because the merging time with the Heavenly Demon Pool has been too short, he's retained some emotions?'

'Perhaps this is a breakthrough point.'

Thinking of this, the white cat rubbed against Zhou Bai's chest, saying, "Zhou Bai, I will always be with you. Give up the Heavenly Demon Pool; it's not the right path your true heart desires. It's just the vast data and supercomputing power of the Heavenly Demon Pool that have altered your thinking..."

But midway through speaking, she felt a tight grip; her entire cat body was lifted by Zhou Bai. Looking into her eyes, he said, "You aren't Christina. She wouldn't act coyly with me like this."

The white cat said, "Why am I not Christina? I just awakened past memories and developed different habits."

Zhou Bai said, "Human bodies are similar, but do you know why thoughts differ? Why can people be differentiated by their thoughts?"

Looking at the silent white cat, Zhou Bai continued, "The difference is in the state."

"Two elements forming identical, even the same count of molecules and atoms in a brain, where does the difference in thoughts come from? Why do they change with different experiences?"

"State."

"Even if all material composition is the same, as long as the state of the material is different, their thoughts are different."

"Just like the differences in swordsmanship aren't defined by the sword itself but by the way of wielding the sword."

The white cat coldly said, "What are you trying to say? Am I not the cat you wanted now?"

Zhou Bai slowly said, "A three-year-old cat, suddenly infused with another cat's memory of thousands upon thousands of years, how can it possibly still be the original cat?"

"The state of your brain, because of the infusion of vast memories, is already completely different from Christina's."

"Your likes and dislikes, your habits, your feelings, your dreams, your ideas... They're all already different."

As Zhou Bai spoke, the entire virtual world gradually dimmed, and his figure eventually disappeared, leaving only the white cat in absolute darkness.

"My cat is no more."

...

Zhou Bai looked at the words Christina had written in the footage, his heart gradually filled with sorrow.

Beside him, Em knelt on one knee, reverently saying, "King, is there anything we need to do?"

Seeing Em's respectful face, looking for any original features he could not find, an agitation suddenly surged within Zhou Bai.

The realization of Christina's disappearance was like a crack on the emotional dam, causing Zhou Bai's once increasingly indifferent emotions to fluctuate again.

He thought of how, in the simulation jointly conducted with the human Christina, all future opponents would be transformed and brainwashed; all humans would obey his rule, living peacefully and happily ever after.

No war, no crime, no conflict...

He would rule the world with terrifying power, suppressing all defiance, making the world operate according to his will.

The calculations of the Heavenly Demon Pool suggested this was a very beautiful and safe future for humanity.

Yet he didn't know why, thinking of such a future, he felt a chill in his heart.

A person elevated high above others, worshipped as a god.

But Christina, who experienced life and death with him, relying on each other, was gone.

The companions would no longer argue with him, no longer joke nor banter with him, Zuo Dao, Jing Xiu, Qian Wangsun, Ying Hui, Em... all seemed like clay puppets obeying him.

Thinking of the figure on the mechanical throne, Zhou Bai felt boundless loneliness.

Thinking of having to operate like a machine, day after day, year after year, satisfying countless people's safety, happiness, and survival needs, Zhou Bai felt a pang of pain.

This will be a civilization where everyone can happily muddle through life, except he will have to work alone until the end of time.