A typical prairie man, dressed in simple yet solemn gray formal wear, but astonishingly tall, over two meters, with a rough and honest face, making him appear to be a good person at first glance.
Jiang Ye stood up, "Hello, Mr. Gong Bili Ge, right?"
"Esteemed Commander Jiang," Gong Bili Ge smiled and extended his hand.
The two shook hands in the air, their movements completely out of sync, but no one cared; it was just the gesture that mattered.
"Mr. Jiang, you are more handsome than I expected. In my days as a physical being, or before my physical body died, the rulers of various planets were all stern-faced individuals who exhaled chilling energy from their nostrils," Gong Bili Ge sat down. "But you appear very approachable."
"My position was obtained without much hardship; I'm a nouveau riche, so I don't put on airs," Jiang Ye made small talk. "Besides, I can still manage my planet. Some planetary governors and commanders have territories that are too vast and too many trivial matters, so they naturally become cold-faced. Perhaps I'll become like that too someday."
Gong Bili Ge looked around again.
"The architectural styles are also different from our time," he exclaimed in wonder.
"This might be a bit presumptuous, but in what year did you become an entity of consciousness?" Jiang Ye asked.
"It was so long ago, I can't quite remember," Gong Bili Ge tilted his head back in thought. "Around... five hundred years ago, maybe five hundred and ten to five hundred and twenty."
"That's truly a long time," Jiang Ye was surprised.
"Although I've been an entity of consciousness for over five hundred years, I can't compare to you."
Jiang Ye blinked, thinking, how young am I?
He immediately realized, however, that he was an ancient person, having spent centuries in cryo-sleep, and in his physical body at that. He was indeed much older than Gong Bili Ge.
Why did he suddenly feel like some prehistoric old monster?
"Your time is precious, let's get down to business," Gong Bili Ge interrupted the pleasantries. "To be frank, the people of Solaris are not actually concerned about the ownership of Bi Rong Star."
Jiang Ye's expression remained unchanged, only a smile.
"After all, we are all entities of consciousness. Territory, scenery, resources, they don't mean much to us," Gong Bili Ge continued. "Going to Bi Rong Star is merely a way to relieve boredom during our long and tedious years."
Jiang Ye's expression suddenly changed.
He thought of something.
"I just thought of something," Jiang Ye said. "What does it feel like for you Solaris people, as entities of consciousness? Do you miss having a physical body?"
"The feeling of being an entity of consciousness is hard to describe. We exist in different software and different scenarios, and the experiences are completely different. For example, in the early consciousness cities, the graphics were very low, the taste of food was strange, and the simulation of hormones was not accurate. With centuries of technological advancement, these problems have been solved. It's like we've come back to life in the mortal world, and we can even do many things in virtual space that we couldn't do before death." Gong Bili Ge suddenly stopped, frowning. "However, frankly speaking, if we could have a physical body and live again, many entities of consciousness would do so without hesitation."
"I think... Jiang Ye Star might be able to help you return to a physical body," Jiang Ye said.
Gong Bili Ge's expression was shocked, "What?"
"Return to a physical body," Jiang Ye blinked. "If you are willing, Jiang Ye Star can accept you as citizens. Of course, if you revert to being human and find Jiang Ye Star unsatisfactory, you can always immigrate to other planets."
"How can this be achieved?" Gong Bili Ge asked. "Our physical bodies were not preserved."
"Create a new physical body," Jiang Ye said. "Now that artificial humans can be created, it's merely a matter of creating a physical shell and injecting your consciousness into it. This shouldn't be technically difficult, right?"
Gong Bili Ge was stunned, as if contemplating the feasibility of this matter.
"This matter doesn't seem very simple," Gong Bili Ge said cautiously. "As far as I know, no entity of consciousness from Solaris Star has returned to the human world through this method. Some souls cannot bear to live in the virtual world and even self-delete, hoping for reincarnation. But whether there is reincarnation or not, we truly don't know; it might just be permanent deletion."
"Perhaps no one has ever thought of it before. Maybe I'm the first to try," Jiang Ye said. "Do you know what aspects are not simple?"
"From a technical perspective, although artificial humans exist now, the core technologies are different," Gong Bili Ge explained. "Artificial humans are created with direct brain structures, and consciousness is induced step by step during the creation process, with consciousness modification. However, injecting consciousness into a physical body requires creating brain tissue that perfectly matches the consciousness. Consciousness is developed by the brain. The brain of higher animals is one of the most complex things in the universe, with billions of neurons, each with different protrusions, and countless connection networks. It's extremely difficult."
"I'm not clear about the technical aspects either," Jiang Ye said. "I know some planetary governors who have technologically advanced laboratories and companies there. I'll ask them, and perhaps it can be done."
"Besides the technical hurdles, there are also legal ones," Gong Bili Ge said. "The return of consciousness to a physical body, in ancient terms, is like a soul inhabiting a borrowed corpse. This matter has huge practical implications behind it."
"First, the social ethics. Can a region, or even the entire universe, accept people walking on the streets whose souls are hundreds of years old ghosts?"
"If all the deceased were resurrected through such technology, and everyone became immortal, what kind of immense impact would that have on society? If there are no restrictions and everyone is resurrected, can this overpopulated galaxy accommodate such a large population?"
"Also, industries that preserve youth and grant longevity are currently making enormous amounts of money. If the cost of returning consciousness to a physical body is low, it will inevitably face fierce obstruction from those industries. This resistance will be very significant, and it might even trigger conflicts among the high-level powers, which neither you nor I can contend with."
Jiang Ye listened with a solemn expression.
This matter was indeed not simple.
He looked at Gong Bili Ge again, his gaze having changed. In such a short time, Gong Bili Ge could articulate so many practical obstacles to resurrection, indicating that he must have considered this issue countless times. He wondered what his inner feelings were when he came up with these answers, certain that he could never be resurrected.
"I still plan to try this," Jiang Ye said. "I believe there might be a way. If there's any progress, I'll let you know."
Gong Bili Ge's expression was complex. He didn't believe it could be done, but he held a sliver of hope. "Thank you! If it can really be done... I would be immensely grateful."
He suddenly slapped his forehead. "After saying so much, I've strayed off topic. Let me be direct: I intend to lead the people of Solaris Star to surrender to you."
"To be precise, this isn't surrender; it's a battlefield uprising," Jiang Ye said with a satisfied smile.