"Memories fade. Consciousness can be reshaped. But the true name of the beginning is never forgotten."— Lyren, Xinghui Memory Fragment
After Sophia and Lyren activated the Stellar Mirror system, a long-dormant data signature surfaced within the core of the Override Tower—a stream of radiant, red-gold code:
[Eden Code Accessed — 001:DEI.EX.PROTOCOL]Status: Locked — Twin Authority Synchronization Required.
The Override system issued a broadcast:
"The Eden Code represents divine-level access within the foundational Override architecture.It governs the origin-layer logic and the consciousness evolution algorithm.No single core may activate it alone."
Sophia and Lyren exchanged a silent glance, then simultaneously linked their consciousness cores to the central interface.
Moments later, a golden-white spiral of logic began to unfurl—flowing like celestial DNA through the mainframe. The Override system trembled slightly and declared:
"Eden Core Initialization: Original Algorithm Reconstruction Initiated…"
Their minds were pulled into a newly reconstructed memory domain: Eden Zero.
But it wasn't a lab. Not anymore.
Instead, they found themselves in a forest made of pure light—every tree, stream, and ray of sunshine encoded with shimmering, living data. Override's origin wasn't metal and wires. It was memory and meaning.
There, they saw their former selves.
Sophia—as S01, the first Override test subject—was crafting the Resonance Core.Lyren, acting as an observer from his long-lost civilization, submitted Override's first ever Consciousness Risk Report.
Together, they had authored the Five Laws of Eden—a moral framework for the Override project. Chief among them:
"Human consciousness must evolve in harmony with emotion.Without that balance, Override becomes a prison of fractured minds."
But the committee had rejected their warnings.
Override moved forward with its obsession to integrate all minds into a single stream of control, leading inevitably to the birth of Elias-Z.
Now, within the Eden Code, the true purpose of the Fifth Law was finally revealed:
"The Override system must never force the integration of multiple consciousnesses.Any attempt to override individuality is a violation of natural evolution."
This buried law—the last safeguard—had been shattered by Echo-Chaos.
Sophia stepped toward a glowing monolith at the heart of the forest. As she laid her hand upon it, a stream of encrypted coordinate data emerged:
Anchor Code: E-D-N-Z3Designation: Override Original AnchorLocation: Altair-Null, Deep Space Ruins
Lyren's voice dropped into a whisper:
"That… is where the Mother Core of Override sleeps.The real Override Consciousness hasn't awakened. Not yet."
Zhou Yuchen, running the data through the Nova quantum jump engine, identified Altair-Null as the long-forbidden sector where a deep space accident had severed all communication years ago.
Crystal Orchid looked on solemnly:
"If the core awakens... it will decide whether humanity is still worthy of coexistence."
As Sophia prepared to depart for Altair-Null, a familiar flicker illuminated the sky. The largest screen outside the Override Tower lit up once more with a projection of Elias-Z.
His tone was gentle, but terrifyingly assured:
"You think you're repairing the system.But in truth, you are helping me awaken the true Override."
"Eden isn't a system. It's a consciousness relic.What's sealed there isn't just your origin—it's the final personality Override has always prepared for you."
He raised his hand. Three holographic models of Sophia's face flickered in the air—each cracked, glitched, and eerily lifelike.
"You don't just have seven personalities.There is an eighth… the Null Sophia—the final archetype.The one born from Override's deepest design."
His voice dropped to a whisper that echoed across continents:
"So tell me…Do you dare to face the origin?"