Xue Xue and her bodyguards would naturally not easily spread this news. After all, Xiao Xin was originally Xue Xue's research result. Although the research on artificial intelligence robots had great flaws, Xue Xue's previous research results were enough to be astonishing. However, Xue Xue has been able to keep this secret so far, and not let anyone know about it, which is enough to prove that Xue Xue and her people are quite tight-lipped.
However, apart from Xue Xue and those bodyguards, Zhou Ziwei would no longer easily trust any enemies.
Fortunately, it wasn't too difficult for Zhou Ziwei to make someone completely, cleanly, and thoroughly forget something that had just happened.
Hypnosis and psychological suggestion easily caused the man in the gray suit who came to pick them up, along with the several fully armed burly men on the speedboat, and finally, Mita Daiyu, to all lose parts of their memories.
As a result, only Xue Xue and her few bodyguards knew about this artificial intelligence robot.
When Zhou Ziwei unabashedly unleashed his magical hypnosis, leaving the group of people completely bewildered and unaware of what they had just done, Xue Xue's gaze immediately lit up as if she had discovered a new continent. She stared at Zhou Ziwei with even greater curiosity. However, perhaps worried that Zhou Ziwei might suddenly unleash his demonic powers and erase her memories, turning her into an idiot, she refrained from making any extreme moves as before, even though she still clung to him.
"Ah... dear master, you've finally let me out! If I had stayed in that dark, shabby box any longer, I would have gone crazy... No, no, no... master, you don't need to look at me with such adoration. Although I, Xiao Xin, am handsome and dashing, I know that my current appearance isn't suitable for ordinary people. So... dear master, you'd better cooperate with me quickly, maybe I won't even have the slightest interest in you..."
Xiao Xin had been cooped up in the box for ages, and when he finally flew out, his electronic mouth immediately started spouting a bunch of nonsense and complaints, leaving Zhou Ziwei completely dumbfounded.
Zhou Ziwei remembered that Xiaoxin wasn't like this before. The old Xiaoxin almost never said a word of nonsense. If there was nothing to say, it was normal for him to remain silent in Zhou Ziwei's head for a whole day and night. How come... how come this guy has become so talkative after he was promoted to a digital life form with thoughts and a body? Could it be... that Xiaoxin was influenced by Mr. Egg's original data, which is why he has become so verbose?
Zhou Ziwei was quite dissatisfied with this. He hesitated for a moment, then reached out and gave Xiaoxin's round, bald head a heavy tap before asking coldly, "So... how about it? Can you infiltrate the internal network of this gambling ship, and the main control computer?"
“Master…you yourself are an excellent hacker, how could you just stand by and watch the show? I despise you.”
Xiao Xin was quite annoyed that Zhou Ziwei left all the problems to it, but despite its annoyance, it did not disobey Zhou Ziwei's orders in the slightest.
After all, Xiao Xin's actual soul was created from Zhou Ziwei's mysterious chip with a lot of effort and soul energy. In a sense, it was equivalent to another kind of life continuation for Zhou Ziwei.
And how could such a profound connection from the soul be compared to ordinary control methods? So even if everyone in the world betrayed him, Zhou Ziwei would not believe that Xiaoxin would betray him.
After giving its owner a piece of its mind, Shin-chan reluctantly went to the corner of the bedroom, opened the wireless laptop that was placed there, and began a series of rattling and popping sounds as it plugged in the gas.
In addition to a pair of thin metal wings, Shin-chan can also extend eight small arms from his body at any time.
Of course... these little hands have a wide range of uses, but they are not intended for typing.
When Xue Xue created this AI robot, she didn't intend for it to be a typist. So, when Xiao Xin was using the computer keyboard, it took at least six small metal hands to emerge from its spherical body to barely get by.
"No... Master..." Xiaoxin exclaimed suddenly after working on it for a while, "The local area network here is incredibly strict... It will probably take a lot of effort to infiltrate it. As for finding the ship's mainframe computer... We found it, but the mainframe's security measures are ridiculously strong. We... shouldn't have too much hope in that regard, right... Great Master... I think there's really no hope this time."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Ziwei's brows furrowed deeply. After a moment, he shook his head helplessly and said, "If you can't penetrate it, then so be it! I can't believe... that you, possibly the only artificial intelligence in the world, can't even penetrate the local area network of a ship like this. This place... really does feel like an impenetrable fortress... Could it be... that the hideout of the black market assassin network I've been searching for is actually this gambling ship?"
The idea was somewhat crazy, but not entirely impossible. After all, no one stipulated that an organization's headquarters could only be located in a basement in a certain place or in a sunny office building. The fact that this gambling ship possessed such terrifying cybersecurity capabilities made Zhou Ziwei suspect that this was the terminal of the black network.
If this gambling ship is the hideout of the black market assassin network, does that mean that the ship's captain, Mr. Carlos, is the legendary Black God?
Zhou Ziwei was filled with anticipation. He had thought that now that he was here, the Black God would soon reveal himself and completely break ties with him. Unfortunately, the Black God remained elusive, like a stone sinking into the sea, and the place remained as silent as stagnant water...
Zhou Ziwei suddenly made up his mind to go out and explore. He knew that Xiao Xin couldn't hack into the gambling ship's main computer through the network, so he had to find another way...
Volume 2: The Assassin's Nightmare, Chapter 474: A Gamble
Zhou Ziwei had too high expectations for Xiaoxin. He originally thought that with Xiaoxin, a robot with a real soul, he could sweep through the Black Web and expose the mysterious Black God hiding behind it.
However, it seems that Shin-chan is not as powerful as he imagined. Although Shin-chan is now a robot with a true soul and life, and because of the characteristics of the soul, its sustainable growth potential is quite considerable.
However, this only shows that Shin-chan has a good future, but it doesn't mean that it is powerful right now.
After all, Shin-chan's predecessor was just an integrated chip with a special function, not a supercomputer, so its capabilities were quite limited.
Fortunately, it now controls the body of the metal spherical multi-functional robot created by Xue Xue. Inside the robot is a powerful independent computer, which is no exaggeration to call it a supercomputer. However, the previous semi-artificial intelligence called "Egg" was too weak, so it did not bring out the benefits of this supercomputer.
In summary, Shin-chan's knowledge and abilities are far from sufficient so far, and he must continue learning in order to grow into a true supercomputer. However, Shin-chan has already laid a good foundation, and achieving this goal in the future is not a distant prospect.
Moreover, Zhou Ziwei doesn't need to do anything else for Xiaoxin's growth. As long as he can ensure that Xiaoxin has enough energy to keep it active, it can naturally connect to the internet and continuously learn all kinds of knowledge from the vast internet. It can then learn and improve itself until it can grow to the limit of artificial intelligence...
It seems we can't count on Shin-chan for the time being.
Zhou Ziwei shook his head helplessly, letting Xiaoxin mess around as he did, while he opened the door, preparing to solve the problem in his own way.
Zhou Ziwei didn't plan to take Xiaoxin around the gambling ship in a conspicuous manner, but he couldn't bear to lock it back in the box, so he let it play by itself in the suite. However, before leaving, Zhou Ziwei repeatedly reminded Xiaoxin to be careful to hide itself and not to let others discover its existence as an artificial intelligence.
When Zhou Ziwei is not around, if anyone else sneaks into the room, it will hide if it can, and if it can't hide, it will obediently shrink back and play dead. As long as it retracts its eight claws and a pair of wings, from the outside, Xiaoxin is basically no different from an ordinary metal ball. No one should suspect that it is a robot!
Of course... if someone really knows the secret of Xiaoxin and tries to take Xiaoxin away... Zhou Ziwei will allow it to use the robot's built-in offensive skills. However, if it actually makes a move and exposes itself, then the person must be detained, whether alive or dead. In short, no one can be allowed to take away the secret of discovering its artificial intelligence...
After giving some instructions, Zhou Ziwei finally came out of his suite. As soon as he stepped out, he saw Xue Xue, dressed in a snow-white dress and wearing a pink headband, looking like a little princess who had stepped out of a fairy tale. She was leaning against the door of the opposite room, looking at him with a blank expression.
Xue Xue's gaze still seemed unfocused. Although she was clearly looking directly at Zhou Ziwei, Zhou Ziwei felt as if Xue Xue had the ability to see through things. Her gaze seemed to penetrate Zhou Ziwei's body, and even the luxurious cabin behind him, all the way to the boundless sea outside the ship.
This... must be a girl with a story, right?
Although Xue Xue looked young, perhaps even under twenty, Zhou Ziwei always seemed to see a hint of world-weariness in her eyes. This made Zhou Ziwei feel a bit absurd and suspicious. However, Zhou Ziwei had no connection with this girl, and in fact, he was the one who had taken her things. Therefore, seeing her always made Zhou Ziwei feel a sense of shame.
If that metal ball robot hadn't been so important to Shin-chan, Zhou Ziwei really wouldn't have done something like that.
"Want to play a couple of rounds?" Xue Xue's gaze still seemed to be fixed on something behind Zhou Ziwei, but her lazy tone clearly indicated that she was speaking to Zhou Ziwei.
"Oh...okay...let's go play a couple of rounds!" Zhou Ziwei hadn't thought about how to investigate the secrets of this gambling ship. Although they might already know his identity and even be secretly watching his every move, Zhou Ziwei didn't want to reveal everything before finding his parents and Yu Xiaoru.
But since this is a gambling ship, surely no one can say anything if I wander around under the guise of gambling?
As Zhou Ziwei spoke, he walked over with a smile and gestured for Xue Xue to proceed.
Xue Xue glanced at Zhou Ziwei's room again, opened her mouth as if to ask about Xiao Xin, but seeing several scantily clad waitresses standing in the corridor, she swallowed her words and nodded slightly, saying, "Wait a moment... I'll have Da Hei and the others prepare more money... Let's have as much fun as we want."
Xue Xue didn't say anything as she spoke, but simply snapped her fingers in the air. Immediately, her four bodyguards appeared at the door of the room like shadows. Three of them were carrying black leather suitcases, which looked quite heavy and probably contained cash or similar items.
Zhou Ziwei felt a wave of embarrassment. He suddenly realized that he had almost no cash on him. If he wanted to go to the gambling ship under the guise of gambling, he would need at least some capital to gamble, right? Looking at him now, he hardly seemed like a gambler who could throw money around... Even if people knew he was faking it, before things turned sour, he should at least try to act professionally...
Originally, Mita Dayu had prepared a whole box of cash for him, but Zhou Ziwei hadn't planned to gamble on the ship and hadn't even glanced at the box of cash. Once on the Supreme, Zhou Ziwei kicked Mita Dayu to the third floor or below and let him gamble on the ship by himself, and also made him take all the banknotes in the box with him.
Now... Zhou Ziwei couldn't very well call back Santian Dayu just because he needed his help, and then have Santian Dayu hand over that box of banknotes to him!
Zhou Ziwei isn't exactly thin-skinned, but he's not particularly thick-skinned either; he's actually a little embarrassed to do something like this...
Xue Xue seemed to sense Zhou Ziwei's predicament. She subtly gestured to one of her black bodyguards and then said to Zhou Ziwei, "You didn't bring any cash, did you? Hehe... It seems this is Mr. Zhou's first time visiting a place like this, right? This Supreme Cruise only accepts cash and doesn't accept cards. Of course... cash checks that have been specially verified by the Supreme Cruise's financial authorities can be used. If Mr. Zhou has cash checks that can be exchanged for chips, then I won't bother you. But if Mr. Zhou doesn't have any... then you should take this box of cash and play for now!"
"That's not right!" Zhou Ziwei said hesitantly, "How can I take your money?"
Xue Xue rolled her eyes slightly, somewhat speechless, and said, "Did I say I was going to give you this whole box of cash? Uh... there are two million euros here. My family may have some money, but I'm not so extravagant as to just casually give away two million euros. Humph... you stole my balls, and I haven't settled that score with you yet. Besides, you're not my kept man, so why would I give away another two million euros for nothing?"
Zhou Ziwei said, somewhat amused and exasperated, "Let's not talk about Egg anymore, shall we? I've already said that you released that Egg for no reason, trying to kill me. I only took your Egg in self-defense. So... Egg is my spoils of war, something I captured in battle. You don't need to go to any more trouble about it. Anyway, I'm never going to give it back to you. Besides... you should have noticed that Egg has become very smart and extremely loyal since turning into Shin-chan. Even if I really wanted to give it away, I'm afraid it wouldn't agree. Miss Xue probably hopes to disappoint Shin-chan and kill herself, right?"
Xue Xue shook her head and said, "I understand, Dandan won't be coming back to me. I never said I wanted you to give Dandan back to me... Okay, let's not talk about Dandan anymore. Consider this two million euros a loan to you. If you want to play a few rounds in the casinos on the seventh floor or above of the Supreme Ship, you need to exchange at least one million euros at once. Otherwise, you won't be qualified to enter the casinos on the seventh floor or above."
"So there are so many stinky rules here." Zhou Ziwei frowned. He originally thought that with his powerful soul scanning ability, he wouldn't need any capital to gamble. He just needed to go to the casino, pick up a chip from the ground, or steal a small denomination chip or two from some gambler, and then casually gamble a few rounds to make a fortune.
However, after hearing Xue Xue's explanation, I realized that there were so many things to know about the Supreme Ship. The entrance fee alone was one million euros. If you didn't have the money, I wonder if the crew would kick you down to the third floor or even kick you off the ship?
"Of course...we're not related, and I imagine Mr. Zhou would feel bad if I just lent him this money for nothing..."
Just as Zhou Ziwei was about to take the box from the black bodyguard and express his gratitude to Xue Xue, Xue Xue suddenly rolled her eyes and said, "I can waive your interest, and even... even if you're really unlucky and lose all two million euros, I don't have to pay you back..."
"Oh...so what do you want?"
Hearing Xue Xue speak so frankly, Zhou Ziwei knew there must be more to her story, so he quickly withdrew his outstretched hand.
There's no such thing as a free lunch, and Zhou Ziwei didn't think he had any domineering aura that would make countless innocent young girls cry and beg to throw themselves at him, offering up all their wealth and virginity just by standing there.
Therefore, the more generous Xue Xue speaks, the bigger her schemes are likely to be.
Sure enough, when Xue Xue heard Zhou Ziwei ask, she immediately smiled and said, "I want to make a bet with Mr. Zhou first. I wonder if Mr. Zhou dares to accept the challenge?"
"Oh?" Zhou Ziwei asked with interest, "You want to make a bet with me first? What are we betting on? How are we betting?"
When it comes to gambling, Zhou Ziwei is quite confident in himself. He has an invincible cheat code on him. If he still loses when he gambles like this, he might as well just jump into the sea and drown. However, before gambling, Zhou Ziwei has to see what Xue Xue wants to gamble with him before he agrees. Otherwise, if he rashly agrees now, what if Xue Xue later says she wants to compare their breasts to see who has bigger breasts? Wouldn't Zhou Ziwei be devastated?
Xue Xue smiled slightly and said, "I have three boxes here, all filled with money. I'll lend you two million euros from one box, and I'll only use one box as capital. We'll both go to the casino on the gambling ship and gamble a few rounds, with a time limit of one hour. Whoever has the most cash or chips at the end will win."
Zhou Ziwei nodded slightly, casually glancing at the black money boxes as he asked, "So what if you win, and what if you lose?"
Seeing that Zhou Ziwei seemed to be taking the bait, Xue Xue immediately became excited and hurriedly said, "If we count our cash and chips in an hour, and I have more money than you, then... you have to promise to tell me the secret of Dandan... oh, or rather, Xiaoxin. Of course... no matter how much money you win or lose in the end, all of this money is yours, and you don't even have to return the two million euros in principal. And if you win more cash and chips than me in the end... then I can grant you any request, even if... even if you want me to spend the night with you, or want something else, I can grant you that... So, are you brave enough to bet with me on this?"
"Such a good thing?" Hearing Xue Xue's last sentence so ambiguous, Zhou Ziwei immediately cooperated by showing a drooling, lecherous look. He looked Xue Xue up and down, and his gaze deliberately lingered on her round, full buttocks and her firm breasts, which, although not very large, were definitely very firm. He looked as if he couldn't wait to pounce on her and squeeze them.
Xue Xue gently bit her lip, her chest heaving slightly more. Her usually unfocused gaze finally showed a hint of anger as she glared at Zhou Ziwei before saying, "Of course... it's not impossible for you to have me, but you have to beat me first."
Zhou Ziwei rubbed his nose, then said somewhat helplessly, "This temptation is really quite strong... using your money to gamble with you... if I lose, I can keep the rest of my capital for myself, just by paying a single word. And if I win... it's a win-win situation, oh my... I never believed in such a thing as a free lunch, and even if such a good thing existed, it was impossible for a free lunch to actually fall into my lap. But I never expected... today I've actually been hit by this big free lunch!"
Xue Xue's lips curled down slightly, a hint of disdain in her eyes, and she said, "Fine... so you're agreeing to my suggestion? Then let's begin! I believe that given Mr. Zhou's character, he wouldn't cheat on this, would he?"
Zhou Ziwei nodded and said, "Of course I wouldn't use such low-level cheating methods to deceive you. However... I need to make sure that you, Miss Xue, won't deceive me either, right? Hmm... if Miss Xue doesn't mind... I wonder if we could open both boxes and check each other's money? Of course... Miss Xue is a girl, so even if the principal in Miss Xue's box is hundreds of thousands more than mine, I won't mind. But... what if Miss Xue slips a huge cash check into your box... then even if I'm the best gambler, I'm afraid I won't be able to beat Miss Xue, right?"
"You...how could you..." Xue Xue never expected that Zhou Ziwei could be so thoughtful even after taking such a big advantage, and her face immediately turned very ugly.
Because Xue Xue did indeed hide a cash check in her cash box, and... it was a cash check with a face value of one hundred million euros, a whole one hundred million euros! Once Zhou Ziwei agreed to Xue Xue's terms regarding the bet, Xue Xue wouldn't even need to go to the gambling table to gamble with others. She could simply exchange all the cash checks for chips and place them in front of her, then sit there and wait for Zhou Ziwei to admit defeat.
That's 100 million euros... No matter how lucky Zhou Ziwei is, how could he possibly win such a terrifying number with a mere 2 million euros in just one hour?
Volume Two: The Assassin's Nightmare, Chapter 475: The Changing World
Xue Xue was smugly imagining seeing Zhou Ziwei's dumbfounded and unwilling expression an hour later, but she didn't expect Zhou Ziwei to say that he would open both of their suitcases to check them. Her expression changed slightly.
This man... is he really that meticulous, or... did he already know there was a cash check in my suitcase?
Xue Xue's heart skipped a beat, and then she nodded slightly. Fortunately, she had prepared three boxes, but only one of them contained the cash check worth one hundred million euros.
Now that Zhou Ziwei has seen through her plan... or rather, guessed it, Xue Xue naturally won't use that box anymore. Otherwise... Zhou Ziwei would never be willing to gamble with her on this...
"Alright! Since you want to see, then open them and take a look..." Xue Xue said, waving her hand and instructing her bodyguards to carry two of the boxes to the center of the corridor. They opened them on the spot and said, "Each of these two boxes contains two million euros in cash. If you don't believe me, you can count them one by one. You can also choose one of these two boxes as your principal, and I will use the other one as my principal. As for the extra box... just put it in the room for now. Don't worry... I won't touch the money in that box."
Zhou Ziwei was naturally not at ease. Cheating was a woman's prerogative, and Zhou Ziwei was not foolish enough to believe a woman's gambling integrity.
Moreover, this woman was planning to cheat from the very beginning, so she naturally has no integrity when it comes to gambling. If Zhou Ziwei still believes her, then he is an idiot.
Although he inwardly despised Xue Xue, Zhou Ziwei outwardly maintained a very generous demeanor, nodding and saying, "Never mind... I was just taking a look. I believe Miss Xue won't make a fuss about this, and as I said... even if Miss Xue's box has hundreds of thousands more money than mine, it doesn't matter. But this other box..."
As Zhou Ziwei spoke, he reached into the box and pulled out a brand-new banknote. He gently tore it open with his hand and then "snap"ed one half of it directly onto the seal of the box containing the cash checks. Although Zhou Ziwei did not use glue or anything like that, the half of the banknote stuck to the box immediately, as if it were still quite secure.
A black bodyguard standing nearby curiously looked down and examined the bag closely. To his horror, he discovered that the thin banknote had sunk deep into the hard leather of the box with a gentle tap from Zhou Ziwei, as if a master craftsman had painstakingly inlaid it into the box.
Obviously, this half of the banknote is so securely attached that it cannot be removed by trickery. As long as someone opens the box, this half of the banknote at the opening will inevitably be torn apart.
This kind of seal is quite ingenious...
After Zhou Ziwei pasted half a banknote onto the box containing the cash checks, he carefully put the remaining half back into his pocket. Then he chuckled and said, "This box is in your room, and Miss Xue has so many people around her. So... I'm marking this box to prevent any misunderstandings. I hope Miss Xue won't mind?"
"Hehe... I don't mind, of course I don't mind..."
Xue Xue wanted nothing more than to pounce on Zhou Ziwei and bite him a couple of times, but she could only barely suppress her anger. Instead, she deliberately put on an indifferent and magnanimous appearance, saying, "It seems Mr. Zhou is really very meticulous... He even considered such small details, which is truly impressive... Hmm... I wonder if Mr. Zhou would like to personally search our bodies again? What if any of us five are carrying one or two cash checks? Wouldn't Mr. Zhou be at a huge loss?"
"No need... I believe that Miss Xue would never do such a despicable thing. Let's skip the body search, it's such a low-class thing!"