Genius Club

Chapter 1044: Chapter 1 No.9_4

Copernicus laughed and said:

“From the very beginning when Jask entered the Genius Club, he never concealed his identity. He directly told everyone who he was, what he wanted to do… Tell me, except for Turing, who else has the same boldness as Jask?”

The lean Gauss took a deep breath and said slowly:

“So… uh… they both died…”

“Shut up, Gauss.”

Copernicus’s mask had a cold gaze:

“Do not interrupt me.”

Then, he scanned the audience again:

“You all think that Jask is dead, but only I firmly believe that he is still alive. I believe in Jask’s methods more than any of you.”

“Whether he is dead or not, can’t you just look back at the news or Twitter? Jask is such a high-profile person; if he isn’t dead, perhaps you can see him hopping around on TV right after this gathering ends.”

…

Copernicus spoke with grandiosity.

But Lin Xian felt that not a single person present believed him.

Even though one could not see everyone’s faces, the atmosphere was palpable.

Clearly…

All members of the Genius Club disliked Copernicus.

Disgust.

Contempt.

Scorn.

Especially Newton—if it hadn’t been for Jask’s sudden disappearance, he probably would never bother to engage with Copernicus, let alone start a conversation with him.

This could be inferred from his words.

He and Copernicus were among the original members of the Genius Club.

This could also be guessed from the seating arrangement—Copernicus was No.2, Newton was No.3, Galileo was No.4, Da Vinci was No.5…

Without exception, they were all of old age; in the current year of 2024, they were at least in their sixties.

Presumably, in the last century, they had already started wearing Masks and began offline gatherings.

Newton had mentioned earlier that he had thought about having a real-life contest with Copernicus, but his conscience and legal awareness stopped him.

From this point, Lin Xian also concluded.

Although everyone in the Genius Club was undeniably a genius, being a genius does not mean having good character or high moral standards; in this regard, it was a mixed bag.

However.

He didn’t understand anything at the moment, was totally unfamiliar with the Genius Club, and there was no need to jump to conclusions in haste.

Especially since this was his first attendance.

It was better to just listen quietly, like an onlooker enjoying the show.

The process of exploring dreams for a long time had formed a good habit in him… not to act hastily, to listen to everything he could, to gather all the intelligence he could, and to only act after understanding more about more people.

So…

Bring on the fight!

Lin Xian silently cheered on the geniuses in his heart.

Hurry up and start the fight!

Make the debate fiercer!

This way, he could gather more information and intelligence.

However…

Einstein did not give Lin Xian much of an opportunity to enjoy the spectacle.

He stepped forward, and immediately everyone stopped discussing.

“Genius Club Charter, Article Three.”

His voice was hoarse and authoritative:

“Please make sure to pay attention to personal privacy and avoid identity exposure.”

The entire place became silent.

No one spoke.

Einstein glanced at Jask’s mask that had fallen on the chair, then looked at the Turing model, which was as motionless as a wooden chicken, and continued:

“A friendly reminder often lacks sufficient weight. The reason why the Genius Club meetings shifted from offline to online is primarily to protect the lives of all members.”

“Resources are limited, time is limited, and the path to the future is also limited. Especially when it comes to the one and only opportunity for humanity to move towards the future.”

“I never intervene in your conflicts, in any of your ideologies; I recognize the need for sacrifice, as well as the unnecessary ones; I recognize ethical means, as well as unethical ones.”

“Please remember, while exercising the powers granted to geniuses by history, you are also burdened with obligations, risks, and a fate as precarious as walking on thin ice.”

“History is written by the victors, and the future will be the same; only the victors have the right to write history, and only the victors… have the right to determine the future of humanity.”

…

Einstein’s words ended, and the crowd was utterly silent.

This was the absolute authority and status of Einstein in the Genius Club.

However, the meaning he expressed was also quite reasonable.

The third article of the Charter had already told you to hide your identity, avoid exposure… And yet, Jask was so arrogant, Turing also didn’t mind others knowing he was Kevin Walker, quite arrogant too.

Therefore, in Einstein’s view, the deaths of these two were not worth sympathy.

Good words are tough to persuade a doomed ghost.

No wonder the sluggish Gauss mumbled that the two who exposed their identities were dead… Who asked for their refusal to heed advice?

By now.

Lin Xian could roughly guess what sort of organization the Genius Club was.

In terms of its starting point, the hunched old man wearing the Einstein mask, as the president of the club, probably had good intentions, hoping to use the wisdom of the most extraordinary geniuses of various eras to grant humanity a better future.

But as he said.

The Earth’s resources are finite, the number of talents and scientists is finite, time is limited, opportunities are scant.

Because time cannot be rewound, humanity has only one chance to tempt fate.

Under such circumstances…

Geniuses, with differing philosophies, beliefs, methods, and plans, would inevitably conflict and clash for various reasons.

Just like Turing’s self-binding Cocoon Plan and Jask’s Sea of Stars Plan, they were entirely conflicting, whether in terms of the direction of technological development or the method of resource utilization.

It seems there are irreconcilable conflicts between Copernicus and Newton as well.

Considering Copernicus’s previous killing of scientists.

Could it be that Newton’s plan…

Is actually to advance science?

Lin Xian watched silently, listening to everything that was happening.

He didn’t know how the geniuses communicated.

He also didn’t know if their plans would be laid out openly,

He was even more clueless about how the Genius Club’s president, the man wearing the Einstein mask, would run this genius game,

However.

No rush.

These questions might all be answered in the upcoming agenda of the meeting.

The real drama…

Has just begun!