If Chen Xu hadn't seen Xiaomin's words, he might have genuinely thought that this snow disaster was merely a warning from Earth caused by the greenhouse effect, urging humanity to stop recklessly destroying the planet.
However, one of Xiaomin's remarks made Chen Xu realize that something was amiss.
"The heavy snow at the beginning of the year unveiled the prelude to the chaotic imperial era in the shadows of this world."
What does this sentence mean?
Chen Xu understood that the "empire in the shadows" likely referred to X and PR0, or perhaps the two great empires of the four major American financial groups and the mysterious Tarot of Europe. But why would he say that the heavy snow at the beginning of the year had ushered in a period of chaos for these two empires?
Could it be that this once-in-fifty-years heavy snowfall has some deeper meaning?
Chen Xu asked Xiao Min, and Xiao Min replied that there was no such answer in the database, and that the pop-up message was automatically set to appear on the specified date.
What would your future self want to tell your present self?
Why do people stop talking halfway through their sentences?
“Because we can’t say.” Chen Fei answered the question again… The virtual image Chen Fei left in the computer… He said, “Grandpa, I’ve told you before that because of the rules of time and space, we can’t tell you things that could affect major historical events in advance! Because that would violate the laws of time and space. We can only use some suggestive statements, but we can’t specify the people, time, place, or specific events in detail, because that would violate the rules.”
"Why is my future self telling me this at this time? Is it to deliberately upset me?"
"This is a wake-up call. Do you remember when I asked you when you opened the first level of access, was the current time before or after New Year's Day 2010? You answered before, which is why you have all of this now."
If you answer that it's after that time, then all the data in this supercomputer will be deleted, leaving you only something that can make you a little money—probably a few tens of millions with your intelligence, but definitely not much! This way, you can live the rest of your life peacefully as a moderately wealthy person, living a carefree life.
Chen Xu was stunned, then jumped up: "Why do this?!" Losing the supercomputer and becoming a completely ordinary person? How could he accept that?!
Just like that "smart drug".
The real side effect of "smart drugs" is... a decrease in IQ, which eventually leads to massive damage to brain cells... but this side effect was only discovered after these drugs had been used for a long time! However, "smart drugs" have been controversial since their inception, precisely because of that "side effect that isn't really a side effect"... psychological dependence!
To reiterate, if someone suddenly possesses immense power, would they be willing to relinquish it under normal circumstances?
Would Einstein have wanted to become an idiot? A billionaire suddenly becomes penniless overnight... Many of those who jump off buildings after failing in the stock market are not actually bankrupt and heavily indebted. On the contrary, some of those who fail in the stock market still have more assets than the average person.
Why would someone contemplate jumping off a building? Because they couldn't accept such a dramatic fall from grace!
Chen Xu is an ordinary person, he always has been, both physically and mentally, a completely ordinary person.
Therefore, he could not accept the consequences of losing the supercomputer.
Chen Fei sighed: "Grandpa, New Year's Day 2010 was a huge turning point. On that day, a paper titled 'The Road to Heaven' shocked the entire academic world. The powerful impact of this paper is something you can't even imagine now... Ha, science? Let me put it this way, scientists are the most superstitious! Aristotle said, 'I love my teacher, but I love truth more,' but look at these scientists today, what do they think? Most of them are extremely superstitious about the voice of 'mainstream authority'! If a completely new system appears, they won't admit it unless they are completely humiliated! That's why when Einstein published 'The Theory of Relativity,' he was ridiculed as a madman by scientists all over the world."
"Moreover, the person who published this paper is... well, I can't say his name, but just think about the status of X and PR0 today, and this paper was impeccable in terms of the scientific concepts and technical verification at the time!"
"The Road to Heaven guided the study of theology, broadening its scope and achieving tremendous results in a short period of time. For a time, research institutions around the world were swept up in a frenzy of theological research! It's truly unimaginable what that era was like, just as people of your generation, like Grandpa, cannot imagine what medieval Europe under the rule of the Church was like. Heliocentrism was denounced as heresy, Copernicus only dared to publish his research results on his deathbed, and poor Bruno was burned alive on the pyre..."
"Wait a minute!" Chen Xu sensed something was off. "You mean in the future, someone who opposes the study of theology will be burned at the stake?"
“No,” Chen Fei said, “but there are some scientists who stick to their own opinions, believing that this kind of research on God is ultimately doomed to failure or will bring retribution. They are among the few scholars who can remain calm amidst that frenzy, but their fate is indeed not good… You know, in a country of madmen, a normal person cannot survive. Those scientists are like that. Their views are not recognized at all. All scientific media controlled by the world’s two super scientific organizations, X and PR0, refuse to publish their dissenting opinions. No conglomerate will provide them with funding. Even the government monitors and persecutes them on various charges… Think about it, what can they do in this situation?”
"It can't possibly get that crazy, can it?"
"That was a crazy era... Looking back, if there had only been one country in the world, or one voice, then this development might not have become so crazy, at least everyone could have maintained a certain level of rationality."
Chen Xu frowned. So many countries were competing, with somewhat different development directions, and all so enthusiastic. If there was only one voice demanding that all scientists study "God"... Oh! Chen Xu's eyes lit up; he understood!
Chen Fei said, "That's right, just as you thought, Grandpa. It's because of competition! In a situation where falling behind by one step means losing everything, the frenzied competition caused politicians, conglomerates, and scientists at the time to all lose their minds."
It's just like the competition between the two superpowers, the US and the USSR, during the Cold War!
At the time, the American "Star Wars" program, a fictional project, dragged down the Soviet Union. The two superpowers desperately increased their military power, causing severe economic imbalances in the Soviet Union, which eventually collapsed.
"With the development of a multipolar world, many powers are unwilling to fall behind. The great deception of the century, which brought hope to humanity and was called the 'Fourth Industrial Revolution'... Of course, we in later generations will call it 'a ridiculous industrial revolution'. Theoretically speaking, many things in the great deception of the century, once successfully researched, would bring enormous benefits to humanity. Of course, this 'humanity' does not refer to all of humanity, but to a certain power, just like the US and the Soviet Union desperately developing their military and nuclear arms race. In the future, no power wants to be left far behind. If that happens... then it will have lost its mind."
"Any force? Including China?"
"Of course!" Chen Fei said with a hint of disdain. "When you're in the thick of it, how can you escape the common practice?"
"New Year's Day 2010 basically represents the final limit. If you make a concerted effort now, Grandpa, perhaps you can still correct this century-long fraud. But if you miss that deadline, then Grandpa, you'd better not get involved in this mess. Abusing the information from the supercomputer, and since you're not the main character, the rules of Heaven are incredibly terrifying, and there's only one fate awaiting you..."
"Completely wiped out!"
Chapter 334 of the main text
At this moment, on an unnamed island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.
This small island has never been recorded on any official map since it was discovered, even though its size is comparable to that of Hawaii.
If Chen Xu saw this island, he would definitely shout excitedly... This is the island I've been looking for!
The island was discovered in the 17th century, at the end of the Age of Exploration in Europe, by an unknown fleet.
The island's obscurity isn't due to its lack of significance. In that era, countless new islands were discovered, fueling Europe's colonial and plundering age. And in that time, the most meaningful new continents were of two types: those with ancient civilizations… though those brutal colonists didn't care how powerful or valuable those ancient civilizations were… what they wanted was gold!
The person most hated by all historians who study ancient Mayan civilization is Lando, the first bishop of Spain.
It was because of him, this theocrat and wicked colonial ruler, because of his words that he called the Mayan civilization "the work of the devil," that he set fire to all the books of the entire Mayan civilization... He did it so thoroughly that now only three Mayan books, some stone tablets and murals remain in the world.
What is even more shocking and infuriating is that people later discovered a Mayan stele containing a chronicle. The earliest record in this chronicle dates back 90 million years, or even 400 million years... 400 million, or 400 million years ago! And 400 million years ago, the Earth was still in the Mesozoic Era, with no trace of humans.
Of course, Chen Xu now knows... and not only Chen Xu, but also those at the very top of this world pyramid know that there were already advanced civilizations before our generation of humans... It's just that such things are too incredible, and the previous civilizations were too powerful, which easily aroused panic among the people and the conspiracies of ambitious people. So these things, let alone now, will not be unsealed even eighty years from now!
A Mayan manuscript currently preserved in the Vatican states: "Four generations of humans have appeared on Earth. The first generation were giants, who perished from famine. The second generation perished from a massive fire. The third generation were ape-men, who perished from infighting. Then came the fourth generation, humans in the 'sun and water' stage, whose civilization was destroyed by a massive flood."
We are the fifth generation of humans.
Therefore, some people refer to these ancient civilizations as the Gold, Silver, Bronze, and Iron Ages... So what age are we in? The Plastic Age?
Just kidding.
I've said so much because this island holds extraordinary significance.
The island's name is strange. It only has one syllable, "MU"... Mu.
In 1682 AD, a Portuguese expedition set sail from the Cape of Good Hope in Africa, heading east to Southeast Asia, specifically present-day Singapore. From there, they continued eastward from the Philippines. By this time, the Age of Exploration had entered its later stages. Many islands had been discovered, and Magellan had confirmed that the Earth is round. The Americas were already inhabited. Therefore, this expedition planned to continue eastward, reaching the Americas and then returning to Portugal, completing the feat of circumnavigating the world… although this feat had already been accomplished by others.
And unintentionally, they found this small island. At that time, the island was covered in lush green grass, with fertile soil. It was inhabited by a group of natives, many unfamiliar animals, its own freshwater lake, and a volcano.
If it were just these things, it might not be so bad; this place could become the next Hawaii. But the crew of this fleet discovered gold on the island!
Countless amounts of gold!
The island's natives worshipped the sun god... not the handsome Apollo of Greek mythology, of course; the radiance of the Greek gods didn't reach this island in the middle of the Pacific. They worshipped the Mother Sun, and their king was called "Lam"... La means sun, and Mu means mother. And the island's palaces and altars were all covered in gold and precious stones!
Such a discovery was naturally astonishing. Even though the island was small and could not compare to the Americas discovered by Columbus, the sheer amount of gold was enough for the crew to live lavishly for the rest of their lives.
The Age of Exploration in Europe was the golden age of global geographical exploration, but it was also one of the darkest periods in world civilization.
Countless ancient civilizations were destroyed, countless precious books were burned, and countless indigenous people were killed or sold into slavery. Those burly sailors wouldn't know the difference between a piece of gold and a gold statue; to them, all things were the same. They didn't care what was art or antique.
The first group of people who made a fortune overnight from the New World during the Age of Exploration in 1682 are now hard to find, and it has been a long time since we heard of a continent being discovered with lots of gold.
So, the fleet went on a rampage, slaughtering the island's natives... because these natives wouldn't let them into the gold-filled Temple of the Sun. They went mad and did incredibly insane things.
However, they ultimately faced their just deserts. Because there was so much gold on the island, they couldn't possibly transport it all at once. So, they took some gold back with them, intending to buy a larger ship to transport the rest. But on their return journey, they encountered a storm and the ship sank. More than a hundred years later, the shipwreck was discovered by treasure hunters… who belonged to the Rothschild family!
Many people know that the Rothschild family is a powerful financial dynasty, but few know just how strong their desire for money was. In 1803, a third-generation Rothschild family member named Ward Rothschild was an anomaly within the family. To put it simply… to excel in finance, strong math skills are essential, especially for those in banking, where understanding loans and exchange rates is crucial.
But this Walder was simply not interested in numbers by nature. He loved literature, poetry, and archaeology... However, he still inherited the Rothschild family's desire for money.
Through various historical records, he learned that during the Age of Exploration in Europe from the 15th to the 17th centuries, countless treasures were buried beneath the sea. Some of these treasures were sunk by ships laden with gold and jewels, while others belonged to pirates. The total number of these lost treasures is an astronomical figure!
Therefore, Ward, who was always disliked by his family elders, formed a treasure hunting team to search for the whereabouts of the treasure from all aspects... After all, he was a member of the Rothschild family, and as a financial family, the Rothschilds were very particular about assessing the economic capabilities of the next generation. Therefore, they would give them some initial funds to invest and see who made the most money in the end... This was also a standard for assessment.
Criteria for evaluating future family heads!
Wade's initial funds were definitely not enough, but with those funds, he first found a treasure of Spanish pirates... and after that, there were no problems at all.
Treasure hunting is inherently a game of chance, and of course, it's also dangerous. Some people may never find anything in their entire lives, while others might fall off a cliff, survive, and even find a treasure... It largely depends on luck.
This fleet, which discovered the unnamed island but unfortunately remained submerged on the seabed, was later discovered by Walder's men.
After discovering the island, the Rothschild family occupied it, using it as a secret base. In terms of wealth, Wald was clearly the richest of his generation, but he didn't become the next head of the Rothschild family… instead, he was put in charge of managing the island! From then on, every first in line to the Rothschild family would come to this island for a year of "internship"… because one of the Rothschild family precepts contained a statement that outsiders couldn't understand: "M's importance far surpasses all the current family assets! Even if the family perishes, as long as M exists, the family will once again reach its peak!"
To this day, the Rothschild family has been building and maintaining this island for nearly two hundred years.
For two hundred years, the Rothschild family spent an unknown amount of money to build this island, and had long since exhausted all the gold on the island. Countless black slaves were transported here to build it, and then died here and were casually thrown into the sea.
During World War II, thanks to this island, the Rothschild family elites escaped Hitler's scythe and the conspiracies of the Americans. Of course, during the war, the Rothschild family lost most of its strength and went through a series of events. Now, the Rothschild family is just one of the owners of this island.
The true owner of the island is Taro the Great Arcana.
The Rothschild family traded this island for the chance to continue their family line and regain their former glory, and this is the true heart of Taro Grand Arcna.
Hmm!
Those who can set foot on this island, or even know about it, must be core members of Taro Grand Arcana. Even within its top-tier research organization PRO, only a portion of its members know of the island's existence. Even Dr. Li only vaguely knows that the organization has a top-secret research base, but doesn't know its exact location.
This small island has long been "shielded" from the earth using the most advanced technology.
This "shielding" means that no advanced satellite can detect the island from space; due to special magnetic shielding, all that can be seen is a vast ocean. And if a passing ship happens to accidentally discover the island... well, they can never return.
The island's defense system is enough to make the whole world blush with shame. In comparison, Chen Xu's system, which overwhelms the island's existing facilities, is like that of a kindergarten student.
On Mu Island, there are eight missile launch towers, and even a nuclear missile silo and a nuclear power plant!
The efforts of the Rothschild family over two centuries are not just empty words.
But now, Mu Island is in chaos.
Black smoke billowed from many parts of the island, and piercing alarms sounded intermittently, making it seem as if the island was in the midst of a war.
Beneath this island lies a structure resembling an air-raid shelter, which is the most crucial part of Mu Island. Due to its design, it would remain unscathed even if a nuclear bomb were to strike.
This is Mu's heart.
But even within this heart, one can occasionally feel a slight vibration.
"Your Majesty, the energy levels have severely exceeded the limit and are approaching the warning line. The experiment cannot continue now. Please order a halt!"
Before the emperor were countless screens, many of which displayed images of boiling lava in flames.
The emperor wore a golden mask, obscuring his expression, but his fists were clenched so tightly that his knuckles had turned white.
"Has it failed again? We've prepared for so long... how could we fail again?" The emperor slammed his fist on the table. "And now it's all come to this!"
The group of researchers in white lab coats below were too terrified to breathe. They all knew the man in the golden mask all too well. This man was usually extremely polite to them, even respectful. But if they failed to complete the emperor's mission, especially a very important one, he would immediately change his attitude!
The emperor wouldn't kill them because they still had a use, but he would punish them, and the thought of that punishment sent chills down the scientists' spines!
The only thing they were certain of was that the person above them was a pervert, a madman!
The scientist at the head of the group would be quite a surprise to outsiders... Dr. Richard Scolari, a Nobel laureate in Physics and one of the greatest scientists of our time, whose position in the field of physics is unshakeable. However, ten years ago, Dr. Scolari died of a heart attack... But that was just a pretext; he had spent the last ten years on this island conducting what is arguably the most "great" research in human history.