"Yōu... No, is it really Jeana?!"

The moment Juxi saw her cheek, his whole body seemed to be electrified.

The name kept echoing in his mind, but his memory of Jeana was not very deep.

Seeing Juxi's distressed expression, the woman said calmly, "It's okay, those were all just your fantasies, you don't have to take them seriously."

"But..."

Juxi still didn't want to give up, but the woman's tone became noticeably stern, "Do I need to say it again?"

"I'm just curious, what is this place?"

Facing Juxi's confusion, the woman replied casually, "There's nothing strange, at this moment, you are the only awake human here."

After saying that, the woman no longer paid attention to Juxi and continued walking on her own.

Juxi could only silently follow behind, afraid to lose her with just a blink of an eye.

He knew that he was in danger now, and at the very least, he needed to handle things properly so that his efforts wouldn't be in vain.

The spaceship was much larger than Juxi had imagined; they had walked back and forth for who knows how many times, but the woman never showed any intention of stopping.

Juxi was beginning to get impatient and asked, "Excuse me, where are we going?"

The woman turned her head and glanced at him, her voice becoming gentler, "We are currently in the leader's room, the final barrier you see."

"The final barrier?"

Juxi didn't understand what that meant, but from the woman's expression, he could tell that perhaps... this was the answer he had been searching for all these years.

"I know it hasn't been easy for you. In all these years, you are the first human to appear here, and the only one."

As she spoke, the woman poured hot coffee for Juxi and handed it to him.

Honestly, Juxi felt that the woman in front of him was not simply a familiar face.

In her words and actions, Juxi sensed a deep sense of loneliness, something completely different from the other robots outside.

"All these years, I've been accompanied by these robots, and me... hehe." The woman shook her head, intentionally not continuing.

"I heard Hai saying before that you are not a robot. Is that true?" Juxi asked anxiously.

"... Did it tell you that?" The woman's tone became unexpectedly pleasant. "These robots are all programmed, just like you... of course, like me too! We have significant differences."

"Then you are not human either?" Juxi asked.

"I used to be."

As she said that, the woman slowly oozed out her palm, and immediately a large group of small robots emerged.

But these robots were so small that Juxi didn't realize what they were for a moment, only feeling a mercury-like liquid surging in the woman's palm.

"Actually, I also wanted to say that I am human..." the woman said indifferently, "but every time I see them, it's like they're warning me that I am no different from those robots, anytime, anywhere, always reminding me that you... and those robots aren't much different."

Swoosh!

She clenched her palm, and those little things quickly disappeared beneath her skin, as if they had burrowed inside.

But Juxi still hadn't figured out what was going on. He found this situation both fascinating and frightening.

"What... what is this thing?!"

"This is what I rely on to survive, and also the way I control these robots... you could say it's a means to an end."

"It's truly mind-boggling. Is your body made up of these things?"

"No! Not just mine, even your bodies are sustained by these little things."

"What?!"

"Hehehe, don't be so shocked. Without these adorable little things, you wouldn't even last 200 years, let alone 10,000."

The woman sighed, as if there was some hidden pain behind her words.

"Immortality, it's the ultimate dream for so many... isn't it?"

The woman lamented, or rather, she was still in space, so even the thought of looking up and lamenting was just a luxury!

In any case, the mere possibility of immortality has attracted countless people, even to the point of sacrificing their lives.

However!

"But they have no idea how difficult immortality really is!" Her tears slowly fell.

But Juxi understood very well that it was a strange liquid, not tears.

"Do you know? Besides this disgusting flesh sack, none of our body parts really belong to us anymore. After 10,000 years, even to this day, I still remember the scenes of the surgery every night, it was absolute torment."

The woman reminisced about the pain from the past and willingly shared these stories with Juxi.

After all, in Juxi's memory, these were all things he had lost or never possessed.

"Immortality," Juxi couldn't help but shake his head and ask, "If immortality is such a painful thing, why do you still force yourself?"

"Force myself? Heh, I didn't think so much at the time. After all, the probability of surgery failure was one in ten thousand, and the requirements for the body were harsh. Only us young children could endure it, as for those slightly older... sigh... hardly any of them could withstand it, not even a single leader from several countries made it off the operating table."

The woman poured herself a cup of coffee, she was quite calm, knowing that she should let it cool before taking a sip.

Juxi knew very well in his heart that nothing can be obtained just by forcing it, but there was one thing he didn't understand.

"If immortality is such a dangerous thing, can they really take that kind of risk too?"

Seeing Juxi's naive expression, the woman immediately knew his confusion and explained, "When the environment that sustains our existence is on the verge of destruction, you won't think so much!"

"That was a harsh winter, and it was Earth... a winter that would never awaken..."

That was definitely the greatest, most destructive disaster Earth had ever experienced!

In the face of dwindling resources, world leaders held their final meeting.

They knew what they were about to face, it was maybe the one and only chance they had left!

Most people made the same decision, unwilling to accept their fate, believing that good fortune would surely come to them.

But who could have imagined... the outcome was beyond anyone's expectations. Those pitiful elderly beings, who were afraid of death, couldn't even die a peaceful death, but instead died in agony on the operating table, one by one.

"Lord Edward advised them, but they simply refused to believe. I still remember the official who was performing surgery next door to me, his final words before he died were... I want to live!"

"Those people are like this. They constantly claim to be acting in the best interest of the people, but when it comes to life or death, the dignity and face of these high-ranking individuals become worthless."

"Yes, maybe they got what they deserved, or maybe we were just lucky... Anyway, you should go for a physical examination now. Your responsible robot, Hai, will take care of it for you."

"A physical examination?"

"Don't worry, your body is almost fully developed. It's just to be on the safe side and make sure there's nothing else to take note of. Better safe than sorry."

"Oh..."

Juxi obediently followed behind the woman, planning to return to his room.

"By the way, what's your name?"

Juxi suddenly remembered something and turned around to ask the woman's name.

For Juxi, it was not easy to find a friend he could get along with.

But unexpectedly, the woman smiled faintly in response to Juxi's question, "It has been too long. Actually, I forgot my own name 9,000 years ago. Mainly because no one ever called me by that name. So... I'm sorry, it's not that I don't want to tell you, I just genuinely can't remember."

"It's alright. I should be the one apologizing for bringing back unpleasant memories. Sorry for that."

Before leaving, Juxi didn't forget to apologize proactively. The woman didn't say anything more, she just silently watched Juxi leave.

After the incident just now, Juxi felt his body gradually relax and his spirits improve.

For some reason, he vaguely felt that perhaps the world of dreams... was already over?

Buzz...!

The roar of the aircraft continued to echo in his ears, growing louder and louder...

Ding!

Poof~!

As the mist dissipated, Juxi abruptly sat up from the container, beads of sweat the size of beans covering his forehead.

Different from the sensation just now, Juxi's glasses were extremely sensitive to light. Even the dim light in the room felt glaring to him now!

But Juxi still hadn't figured out what was going on when Hai suddenly appeared by his side.

"Master, you have received Mother's permission. You can wake up now."

"Mother... Oh, is it her?"

"I believe so. Everything is guided by Mother, everything is created by Mother."

"I suppose so. Maybe your mother appeared in my dreams, and I just never realized it."

"That's natural. Mother is selfless and nurturing towards her children. She wouldn't harm anyone... including us."

"Is she really that great?"

"Of course, Mother is the greatest... Oh, sorry if I misspoke. I meant to say second only to the master's existence."

Hai continued to walk forward, seemingly without any intention of looking back.