Legend of the Cyber Heroes

"Mozi was a man," Xiang Shan nodded, "You need to know that Mozi was a very intelligent, very capable person, but he was just one person. During those dark times, to say that the world was 'incorrect' and to preach 'love each other mutually' was a remarkable thing. However, after him, many others appeared in the world who were just as smart or even smarter. He was born too early; many truths discovered by those who came later were unknown to him."

"In fact, the philosophy of the Heroes was born much later. During this process, a lot of the wisdom from later intelligent people had already been integrated. Yet, for the Heroes, the saying 'love each other mutually' is something that must be remembered."

Yuki furrowed his brow, "That's hard, man. That jerk Neville always mocks me, saying I should love him like I love my mom..."

"No, you don't have to go that far," Xiang Shan shook his head, "Of course, you can love someone specific more, or dislike a specific person. The Hero's concept of 'love each other mutually' simply means that you should strive for 'making life a little better for everyone.'"

"For the freedom of all mankind, I shall guard sincerely..."

"Tsk... Whose memory is this... Who said these words... Was it me? Was my past self this melodramatic?"

Xiang Shan quietly set a reminder in his notebook, resolving to procure a tactile artificial tear gland when conditions allowed.

Yuki, perplexed, nodded, "That doesn't sound too bad, right?"

"Indeed, it is good. But... tsk, there are indeed certain problems on the implementation level. Mr. Mozi's teachings did not put an end to the chaos of that era. The power that ended the dark and chaotic times in that land came from another force— the power of law and order."

In history, although the Followers of Mozi tried hard to stop wars, they could only patch things up temporarily and couldn't solve the root problems of chaos.

The power that ended the chaotic times rose from the western regions, the power of the Legalists.

"Order and law are good things. To put it in terms you'll understand, because of the 'Dyson Principle,' everyone knows damaging a biological brain has consequences, so people avoid doing such things. And that deters those who would commit evil, protecting the good people. Often, laws play such a role. Most of the time, laws are a protecting power. If possible, I would not think of disobeying the laws, abandoning the sanctuary guarded by them."

"If there's a choice..." Yuki looked puzzled again. The words Xiang Shan spoke today were truly profound.

"There may indeed be some who, craving violence and desiring to vent their inherent malice, become Heroes. But not everyone is like that. At least, I don't want to willingly disrupt this protective power. But unfortunately, the law is not just a force that protects the people."

"The essence of law is the embodiment of the ruling class's will."

"Classes..." Yuki felt dizzy. Another difficult term.

"Know what a staircase is? Stairs are stepped. Generally, a staircase won't have two steps at the same height. So, the so-called 'classes' refers to groups of people who are in different positions within social relationships, where one group sits above the others due to their social status. Laws express the will of this 'uppermost group' and primarily protect the interests of this top tier."

Holding his head, Yuki thought for a moment and grew angry, "Doesn't this mean the uppermost group are the 'strong'?"

"The uppermost group, the ruling class, are the 'strong.' And among humans, it's quite easy to see the 'strong oppressing the weak' phenomenon," he added.

"Humanity's 'default settings' hinder the advancement of human civilization..."

"Damn... Whose words were those again?"

Xiang Shan felt an explosive pain in his head.

Yet his tone remained steady, "There will always be the strong who want to trample the weak, to humiliate the weak—they'll find ways to rip flesh from the weak... Ah, sorry, perhaps for you I should say 'remove parts?' They will always seek to exploit the weak. Perhaps at that time, a more progressive force will rise from the weak to the strong, replacing the previous powerful ones, and creating a fairer world. However, this growth is both inevitable in history and has its own contingencies—it may be snuffed out by the strong before it can grow."

"At that time, another kind of force is needed. This is 'the weak's resistance.' The power of 'love each other mutually' cannot change the world, cannot sweep away the old darkness. It can only serve as the desperate resistance in the hands of the weak."

Yuki looked surprised but could not hide his disappointment, "I thought Heroes were very strong! The way you put it, they seem so pitiable..."

"As 'individuals,' Heroes are undoubtedly strong, but what they have to fight against is the collective of the strong. The power of an individual is negligible on this level—the purpose of Martial Arts is to be the sword in the hands of the weak, to deter the strong," Xiang Shan explained.

If a gentleman must rage, two corpses will he leave, blood will stain five steps, and the world will be draped in mourning.

Martial Arts is such a power. It won't allow one to overthrow the collective of the strong but can provide the weak with a chance to deter the group of the strong.

Almost within reach, everyone is an enemy nation.

Even if one possesses a nation, they cannot let a tyrant defeat a Hero within arm's reach.

Under limited conditions, strength and weakness had reversed.

Cao Mo formed alliances, and Returning to Lu invaded territories. Zhuan Zhu delivered fiery remonstrations, and Pacifying Wu seized power. Brother Zhang cried in the market, seeking justice for his lord. Suicide by cutting one's own throat, acted with concealed intentions; Tyrannical Qin seized souls, increasing the coward's vitality.

Yuki seemed to understand but didn't, nodding his head, yet new questions arose, "Can't the bad people also learn Martial Arts?"

Being able to question was a very good sign. Xiang Shan indeed felt that the child had good "qualities."

"This is the core design concept of Martial Arts—it is an Assassination Technique. It allows the weak, at a minimal cost, to have an opportunity to strike at the powerful. And for those who impose tyranny on the people, this kind of technology is exactly what they fear most," he said.

"Huh?" Yuki did not quite understand, "Doesn't it also harm good people?"

Xiang Shan wanted to laugh, "That can't be denied because Martial Arts is just a 'technology.' 'Technology' lacks its own will and it can be used by anyone. However, the design concept of this technology is precisely based on game theory against society."

"What we call 'tyranny' is the few in control of resources oppressively ruling over the majority who lack resources. And what 'tyranny' fears most is assassination targeted at its leaders—because it indeed relies on the 'legitimacy' stolen by a few. And those who truly offer their loyalty from the heart are not many. As long as these 'few' are killed, 'tyranny' naturally perishes."

"In a modern management system, people gathered together by a grand ideal are not afraid of such assassinations. In that society, no matter which individual is assassinated, another will stand up to fill his void. They acquire legitimacy not through divine grace or ancient bloodlines but through the people—the people underwrite their legitimacy."

"Rather, if there were no injustice felt, why would the weak need to strike at the strong? If within the four seas there were neither the lonely nor the aggrieved, how could there be Heroes choosing to draw swords? At that time, the chivalry would naturally wither away. Even if a few madmen existed, they would fall in the overwhelming tide of the people—the weak would naturally oppose them."

"You have already learned about the Turing Machine, understood 'Inner Strength.' And this is the second fact you need to know to become a Hero—'External Martial Arts Techniques' are essentially 'Assassination Fist Techniques.'

Cyber Martial Arts that match Cybernetic Limbs are not from ancient Martial Studies historically passed down. If the origins are to be pursued, they evolved from the Sharpshooter Tactics developed in France after rifled flintlocks entered the battlefield, then further absorbed modern fight theories.

Rifled flintlocks, due to having 'rifling,' had a range and penetration much stronger than the previous generation of firearms. Hunters were the earliest beneficiaries of these firearms. During the English-French wars, France recruited hunters to penetrate behind enemy lines, executing 'guerilla' and 'sniping' warfare. From this, the word 'Sharpshooter' was born in French, and even into the twenty-first century, 'Sharpshooters' remains a name for French elite forces.

This was a 'Tactic' enabled by technology, using individual power to create the most considerable impact in warfare.

'Tactics' and 'technology' influence each other. Perhaps due to increasingly complex technology, or perhaps because some weapons are designed to be possessed only by the 'powerful'—allowing the powerful to grow stronger, and the weak, weaker. For a long time, individuals' influence on the course of war was actually continuously diminishing.

Until...several young people created Cyber Martial Arts.

This type of Assassination Technique was the culmination of all generations of 'guerrilla,' 'sniping,' and other 'special combat' theories. Due to the infinite possibilities of Cybernetic Limbs, Heroes could always enter within five steps of tyrants, astonishingly close.

Most importantly, the essence of Martial Arts was indeed the hardest to erase.

'The essence of Martial Arts' was algorithms.

It transformed numerous physical movements and combat strategies into a game theory model, encoded into programming language, encapsulated in secret methods, making it unrecognizable by artificial intelligence search.

Then, stored on the network in the form of blockchain.

As long as information technology still exists, the intelligence of 'Martial Arts' cannot be erased.

As long as information technology exists... as long as the 'network' exists, then tyranny cannot fundamentally eliminate Heroes.

—Yes, I remember now...

Xiang Shan stood up, taking the old parts Yuki had brought, "Do you understand? Yuki, this is a blade designed against tyranny. Indeed, it could be turned to strike at the weak, but its damage to tyrants is inherently greater—it has a damage bonus against oppressors."

"But this 'damage bonus' then falls upon 'Inner Strength,' upon 'information technology.' Without understanding blockchain's decentralized storage, 'Martial Arts' would also be monopolized and obliterated by the powerful. The weak would never have a chance to access it. As long as Internal Martial Studies exist, chivalry will live forever."

"So next, you will start learning about Inner Strength!"