The nights at the orphanage always arrived with an exceptional quietness.
Nangong Wentian lay flat on the wooden plank bed he had slept on for over three years, listening to the faint snoring from the next room—that was the cook, Tanaka, who always snored in his sleep. A bit further away, Xiao Guang turned over in his sleep, mumbling indistinct dream-talk.
At three years and seven months old, with his eyes closed and his breathing steady, he was no different from any other sleeping toddler.
But deep within his consciousness, another world was awakening.
"Open the technology database. Index: Foundational Theories of the Three Major Systems."
The moment the thought arose, a tidal wave of information surged forth—not as words, not as images, but as a kind of near-instinctive "understanding." Those profound theories that would have required years of arduous study in his previous life now flowed through his consciousness as naturally as breathing.
He first touched upon the Universal Century era.
Minovsky Physics. The moment this name surfaced, he seemed to "see" those virtual particles that only appeared under extremely high energy densities—silent, dense, like an intangible mist. Once dispersed, they could interfere with long-wave radiation, rendering radar blind. I-Fields, the bane of beam weapons; Minovsky Craft, the miracle that overturned traditional aerodynamics.
"Interference," Nangong Wentian silently recited in his heart. "The core of the UC system is 'interference.' Using particles to interfere with physical laws, creating new tactical dimensions."
The stream of information shifted, entering the 00 era.
GN Particles. The transformative light generated by Solar Furnaces. This was an entirely different existence—it wasn't just interference, but "transformation." GN Particles could alter an object's mass and inertia, making giant humanoid weapons dozens of meters tall as light as a feather; they could penetrate matter, achieving quantum teleportation; they could resonate with human brainwaves, awakening dormant perceptions.
"Interfering with physical laws, transforming life itself," he compared the cores of the two systems. "UC is external control; 00 is internal evolution."
Then, he touched upon the foundation of this world—the SEED era.
Neutron Interference.
This was the "lock" cast by PLANT to prevent the Earth Federation from using nuclear energy. Starting from C.E. 70, Neutron Jammers were scattered throughout the Earth sphere, making sustained nuclear fission reactions impossible and reducing nuclear weapons to scrap metal. The entire world was forced to turn to batteries, solar power, hydrogen energy—inefficient, but at least peaceful.
"Blockade," Nangong Wentian savored the word. "The core of the SEED system is 'blockade.' Using particles to create prohibitions, making certain things impossible to occur."
Three types of particles, three philosophies.
He immersed himself in this comparison, unaware of the passage of time. Suddenly, a thought flashed across his consciousness like lightning:
"What if... they could be fused?"
The moment this thought emerged, it caused his entire consciousness space to tremble slightly. Fusion? UC's Minovsky Particles require extremely high energy density to generate; 00's GN Particles need the antimatter control technology of the Solar Furnace; SEED's Neutron Jammer demands precise nuclear physics applications—their fundamental principles are worlds apart, their technological paths completely different.
But is it truly impossible?
Nangong Wentian began to deduce within his consciousness. Minovsky Particles excel at "interference"—what if GN Particles could enhance their generation efficiency? GN Particles excel at "transformation"—what if Minovsky Particles served as a medium to expand the resonance range between GN Particles and life? Neutron Interference excels at "blocking"—what if the first two types of particles could be used to reverse-analyze it, creating a new type of field capable of "selective blocking" rather than "complete blocking"?
Layer upon layer of hypotheses, layer upon layer of deductions. Streams of information intertwined into a web within his consciousness, constantly colliding, annihilating, and reorganizing.
Suddenly, all deductions came to an abrupt halt.
Because a real voice intruded into this consciousness space—
"Wentian? Are you awake?"
It was Xiao Guang.
Nangong Wentian opened his eyes. In the dim light, Xiao Guang stood by the bed, holding his worn-out toy car in his arms, one of its wheels already missing.
"What's wrong?" Nangong Wentian's voice still carried the childishness of a toddler, but his tone was unnaturally calm for a three-year-old.
"The wheel fell off," Xiao Guang said somewhat sheepishly, "I can't fix it."
Nangong Wentian sat up and took the toy car. By the moonlight filtering through the window, he examined it carefully—it wasn't a simple detachment; the plastic had aged, causing the joint to break. After a moment's thought, he said in an equally childish voice, "Tomorrow, let's ask Uncle Tanaka for some glue. It should be able to stick it back."
"Really?" Xiao Guang's eyes lit up.
"Mhm." Nangong Wentian handed the toy car back to him. "Go to sleep now."
Xiao Guang hugged the car but didn't leave immediately. He hesitated for a moment before asking, "Were you... thinking about something just now?"
Nangong Wentian was slightly taken aback. "Why do you ask?"
"Because when you're sleeping, you make strange expressions on your face," Xiao Guang described earnestly. "Like... like adults thinking about really hard problems."
Nangong Wentian fell silent for a moment. He had underestimated a child's sensitivity—even though he had tried his best to act like an ordinary toddler, certain subtle details could still be noticed.
"I had a dream," he chose an explanation a five-year-old could accept. "I dreamed of a lot of strange things."
"What strange things?" Xiao Guang immediately grew interested.
"Well... glowing little people, flying around in the sky." Nangong Wentian made it up casually.
Xiao Guang's eyes widened, filled with envy. "Wow! I want to dream about that too!"
"Go to sleep now. Maybe you'll dream about it." Nangong Wentian gently nudged him.
Only then did Xiao Guang, hugging his toy car, bounce back to his own bed. Soon, the sound of steady breathing could be heard—he had fallen asleep.
Nangong Wentian lay back down but didn't immediately return to his consciousness space. He gazed at the cracks on the ceiling, formed from years of neglect, and the unanswered question from his deductions resurfaced in his mind:
"Why did this world choose 'blocking'?"
In the UC era, humanity chose to reconstruct the rules of war with Minovsky Particles; in the 00 era, humanity chose to open the path of change with GN Particles; and in the SEED era, humanity chose to "lock away" nuclear energy with Neutron Jammers, also "locking away" certain possibilities of war.
Was it due to the chance of technological paths? Or was it because of some deeper "will" of this world?
He didn't know. But he vaguely sensed that the differences between these three systems were not merely technical. They represented three distinct understandings of the "relationship between humans and technology."
UC Era: Technology is a weapon, used for conquest.
00 Era: Technology is a bridge, used for evolution.
SEED Era: Technology is a shackle, used for control.
So, which path did he want to take?
Nangong Wentian closed his eyes, his consciousness sinking once again into that vast repository of knowledge. This time, he didn't retrieve any specific technical data, but simply "gazed" as the information streams of the three major systems intertwined and collided in his mental space.
They were incompatible, yet they illuminated each other.
Like three different colors of light—red, green, blue—each distinct on its own, but if the right way to overlay them could be found…
"The three primary colors." A thought suddenly arose in Nangong Wentian's mind. "If I could find the right proportions, the right way to overlay them…"
He "saw" that beam of light.
Not the orange-red unique to UC's Minovsky Particles, not the emerald green unique to 00's GN Particles, nor the formless, colorless nature of SEED's Neutron Interference—but a new, brilliant gold.
In that instant, he seemed to hear a distant call.
Very faint, very far, like an echo transmitted across the entire universe. But it was definitely there.
Nangong Wentian abruptly opened his eyes.
Outside the window, the night sky remained unchanged. But in the afterimage on his retina, it seemed as if a green speck of light had flashed and vanished. He quickly turned to look, but there was nothing—only the silhouette of the old locust tree in the orphanage's backyard, swaying gently in the night breeze.
Was it an illusion? Or…
He recalled the green light at the moment of his crossing. He recalled the flickering light of the same frequency on the screen when the Stellar Core Prototype activated. He recalled the golden light deep in his consciousness just now.
Something was watching him. Or rather, "connecting" with him.
Nangong Wentian lay quietly for a long time, until the sky outside began to lighten with the first hint of dawn. Then he closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep—a three-year-old child needed rest.
The next morning, when Sister Mary came to wake the children, she found Nangong Wentian lying in bed with his eyes open, staring at the ceiling.
"Wentian? Time to get up."
"Mm." Nangong Wentian sat up, obediently dressing and washing as usual.
No one knew that in the mind of this three-year-old child, a seed had already been planted—
The fusion of the three types of particles might not be a fantasy. And that distant green light would one day reveal its truth.
During breakfast, Xiao Guang leaned over and whispered mysteriously, "Wentian, I really dreamed about it last night!"
"Dreamed about what?"
"Little glowing people! They were flying around in the sky, and there was one especially bright, golden one!" Xiao Guang gestured excitedly. "They even talked to me!"
Nangong Wentian paused the spoon in his hand slightly: "What did they say?"
"I don't understand," Xiao Guang scratched his head, "It's like... like the sound of wind rustling through leaves. But I think they're very friendly!"
Nangong Wentian looked at him, remained silent for a moment, then smiled faintly: "That's good."
Outside the window, the leaves of the old locust tree rustled in the autumn wind.
Just like the sound of the wind.