Master of Kaidan
Chapter 403: Real and Fake (Part 1)

Chapter 403: Chapter 403: Real and Fake (Part 1)

Looking at Old Li’s "I’m still a baby" expression, Feng Xue had the urge to pull out a filter. After all, giving him a virtual skin cover would at least be more pleasing to the eye than watching his old face act cute.

Of course, this was just a thought, and after a few seconds of awkward silence, he changed the subject,

"So, let’s talk about another issue, such as why do True Objects I bring back from other worlds turn into Pseudo Artifacts?"

"Oh? That’s actually quite rare."

Old Li’s curiosity was piqued upon hearing Feng Xue say this, and he immediately pressed further,

"Did it become a Pseudo Artifact in the Infinite City, or in the real world?"

"Although I didn’t check everything in the Infinite City, considering that some were still True Objects there, it must have become a Pseudo Artifact in the real world." Feng Xue spoke in an ambiguous tone, and upon hearing this, Old Li nodded,

"While it’s relatively rare, it’s still a common situation, hmm, that’s a bit confusing to say. Anyway, just be cautious in the future. If a True Object turns into a Pseudo Artifact after arriving in the Infinite City, it means that the world has only just connected to the Infinite City, and the circulation of rules is not yet perfect. You should avoid using the powers of that world outside its native world, but you can use fictional items."

"So what you’re saying is, real world’s True Objects turning into Pseudo Artifacts is also due to imperfect rule circulation?" Feng Xue caught on quickly and immediately asked.

Old Li nodded at this,

"That’s exactly it. Though we generally call them Pseudo Artifacts, if you really wanted to talk about it, there are some subtle classifications. However, these classifications don’t have much to do with ordinary Awakenings or Kaidan, so although there is such a concept, it doesn’t have much practical significance."

Seeing that Feng Xue didn’t say anything, Old Li went on to explain,

"Pseudo Artifacts can be roughly divided into two types—one that was a Pseudo Artifact from the beginning, and the other that became a Pseudo Artifact later on."

"How so?"

Feng Xue was somewhat speculative about the creation of Pseudo Artifacts, but he was curious when he heard that there were things that were Pseudo Artifacts from the start.

"There are many, many worlds, but they can generally be divided into two categories: Baseline Worlds and Fantasy Worlds. Baseline Worlds are worlds that evolved and came into being through natural factors on their own, and as for how they evolved, no one knows. You can think of it as something akin to an axiom. Of course, some say that so-called Baseline Worlds are also the Fantasy Worlds of others, but that’s like the "brain in a vat" problem—without the possibility of falsification, it lacks significance to discuss.

"And so-called Fantasy Worlds are worlds constructed from the information woven together by the beings in Baseline Worlds. Because the amount of information needed to build a Fantasy World is typically huge, it usually requires an actual civilization. So you could also regard Fantasy Worlds as worlds derived from the fantasies of intelligent beings in Baseline Worlds."

As Feng Xue pondered over Old Li’s answer, he found it somewhat similar to the theories he’d often used when writing novels in his past life. His expression turned subtle as he said,

"Does that mean, if I wrote a fantasy novel, the information in it could construct a fantasy novel world?"

"It’s possible, but not certain." Old Li shook his head,

"No matter how small a Fantasy World might be, the amount of information it requires is enormous. Unless it’s a world-renowned work, it’s almost impossible for a single piece of work to construct a Fantasy World. However, the reverse is true—if many people base their creations on certain default rules, or by coincidence, they create works with similar underlying frameworks, the information generated by these works would become entangled and eventually form a Fantasy World. Sometimes, coincidental thoughts that happen to synchronize between two Baseline Worlds can also become entangled, constructing a shared Fantasy World between the two worlds."

"Ah, so you’re saying that a book that bombs doesn’t have enough information, but a series of works based on a shared setting could? Like fantasy novels constructed around a Sword and Magic framework might together build a Fantasy World with magical rules? Or if a novel gains a large fanbase of derivative works, that might create a Fantasy World based on that novel’s setting?"

At this point, Feng Xue’s mind didn’t conjure up "Naruto World," "Pirate World," "Mysterious World," or "Infinite Flow World," but rather "Carp Flipping World." After all, the impact of a work is always limited, but sensual emotions are universally shared. And what would a Fantasy World based on Carp Flipping and Eastern Country action movies look like?

Old Li clearly didn’t know what Feng Xue was pondering. He just nodded nonchalantly and then abruptly changed the topic,

"So, what do you think distinguishes between Pseudo Artifacts and True Objects in the landfill area of Infinite City?"

"Uh..." Feng Xue was caught off guard by Old Li’s sudden question and spent a while contemplating before finally making a guess based on Old Li’s previous answers—

"Those from Baseline Worlds are True Objects, and those from Fantasy Worlds are Pseudo Artifacts?"

"There’s no problem with that explanation." Old Li’s reply was equivocal. He paused for a moment, as if organizing his thoughts, and only after a new pot of hot water was ready and he began to steep a fresh batch of tea did he continue,

"Let me put it this way, do you think a Fantasy World can become a Baseline World?"

"It should... probably?" Feng Xue wasn’t completely sure, but following Old Li’s lead, it appeared that it should be possible.

"The answer is both yes and no." Old Li sounded like a riddler, and Feng Xue almost wanted to punch him to make him rephrase his language more clearly, but Old Li didn’t leave him hanging. After uttering that bit of nonsense, he immediately explained—

"You, who have seen so many gates, should understand that real people and material substances turn into information upon entering Infinite City, and when they leave, they revert back into ’material’ form. Since information and material can convert into each other, what then is the difference between a Baseline World built with material and a Fantasy World constructed with information?"

"Then why do you say it can’t become [a Baseline World]?" Feng Xue frowned. According to this theory, even something like Infinite City, which parasitizes on a planet in a Baseline World, can perform the conversion of information and material. Why can’t a Fantasy World become a material world?

"It’s because there’s not enough information." Old Li’s response was straightforward—

"Just as two islands may have the technology to build a bridge between them, in reality, they can’t build it because they do not have enough materials combined to cover the cost of the bridge.

"Similarly, while data can transform into material, the amount required is simply too large. The information that spills over from one or two worlds is not enough to turn a Fantasy World into a Baseline World."

"So, the difference between True Objects and Pseudo Artifacts is also in the amount of information? But that doesn’t make sense either. If it’s just that, there’s no reason why True Objects would be edible and Pseudo Artifacts wouldn’t!"