That evening, Shiller met Reed at the tavern again. Reed seemed extremely excited and said, "The United Nations has already approved my plan, even the most difficult Tony Stark affirmed my technical level, I must have a drink to celebrate. Hahaha!"
Shiller poured him a glass of wine and then said, "I talked with Tony, actually, he still has doubts. Precisely what I want to ask you."
"Go ahead and ask," Reed said, "I have answered all technical questions from Stark, he can't possibly find any faults."
"It's not about technology." Shiller also poured himself a glass of wine, sat opposite Reed, and then said, "I'm more concerned about societal and ethical issues."
"Oh, right, you're a psychologist." Reed shrugged and said.
"Aren't you worried about the technology being stolen?"
Reed was baffled by this question. He blinked and looked at Shiller, saying, "What do you mean by being stolen? Do you mean being stolen?"
"You should learn more grammar," Shiller said with some exasperation, "Yes, that's what I mean, being stolen."
Reed's facial expressions were quite vivid. He gestured in the air for half the day, and finally said, "Why don't you worry about 1+1=2 being stolen?"
"What?"
"You studied mathematics, didn't you?"
"In front of you, I wouldn't dare say I studied mathematics." Shiller shook his head and said, "I can only say I have heard a bit about it."
"Alright, but you know there are many theorems in math, right? Many formulas. You know trigonometric functions, don't you?"
"I have some understanding of that."
"Do you know the applications of trigonometric functions?"
"Uh, what aspect are you referring to?"
"All aspects," Reed said, "Essentially, these formulas are manifestations of universal constants. It's because 1+1=2 that trigonometric functions can exist. If 1+1 didn't equal 2, our existing mathematics would completely collapse."
Shiller nodded, he could understand this.
Reed was clearly racking his brain to explain the issue in more layman terms, and he said, "The technology we've developed actually doesn't exist; it's part of mathematics, just like 1+1=2 and trigonometric functions. It can be understood and learned, researched and applied, but no one can steal it."
"In fact, after applying the Antimatter Universe wormholes in the last war, I published the corresponding formulas and data. But obviously, besides mathematicians, no one cares. No one would steal such things."
"I seem to understand a bit," Shiller said, "It's a kind of knowledge, not some concrete existing blueprint."
"Blueprints certainly exist, but they are a result, not the origin. The origin of all mathematical problems in this world is 1+1=2. We know, and the Three Great Empires know. So why can't they do anything about my wormholes?"
"I was just about to ask. Since you've already published the formulas and data, why do they still want to interfere with the Teleportation Portal in the most traditional way rather than respond to your gateway?"
"Because they can't do it," Reed spread his hands and said, "Everyone in the world knows 1+1=2, but how many mathematicians are there? Mathematics requires inspiration. You will, in an instant, suddenly understand how the cosmos operates."
"So you understand, but they do not."
"Yes, but that's only the basics. I understood the operations of the cosmos when I was 6 years old," Reed waved his hand and said, "Understanding is just the first step, then you need to observe..."
"Is observation after understanding?"
"Yes. If you don't understand, you can't observe, accurately speaking, you can't observe the universe from the correct perspective. Only when you understand something and find that perspective can you learn more. Then you need to learn."
"But you already understand."
"Yes, so what needs to be learned is not those basic things, but higher levels. I call this 'creator knowledge,' simply put, it's researching how to be a creator."
Shiller truly had a head full of question marks. Everyone wants to be Lucifer's student, and you want to be Lucifer's parent.
"Every discipline is like this," Reed said very matter-of-factly, "Understanding, observation, learning are not the ends; the endpoint is application. All the efforts you put in, ultimately, aren't they for application?"
"That is irrefutable," Shiller said, "though it sounds somewhat crazy."
"In short, when you start studying how to compile this cosmos, you are continuously approaching God, walking the path of a creator. Everyone walking this path has different postures and directions. Me, Doom, or Stark, we're all human beings, but our paths differ completely."
"What about the Three Great Empires?"
"They're walking the wrong way."
Shiller looked at him with some confusion again, Reed thought for a moment and then said, "I can only be sure that The Supremacy is definitely walking the wrong way."
"Can you be more specific?"
"There's a room now, and inside the room, there's a treasure chest. Everyone wants to get this treasure chest, so they'll use various methods. Some seek the key, some want to pick the lock, some even directly smash the wall. That's all fine."
"What about Supreme Wisdom?"
"He took a key and walked away without looking back."
This metaphor is vivid, and Shiller immediately understood that Supreme Wisdom was pursuing a path closer to the origin power. It wasn't about emotions or societal structure, but the key needed to open that room. Not the end, but the beginning.
It's undeniable that when you get the key, it's easier to open that door. However, how big the room is, where the treasure chest is, whether all treasure seekers can truly touch the chest are unknowns that require ongoing exploration.
But Supreme Wisdom chose to take the key and leave, thinking the key itself was the treasure, thus moving further away from the room with the treasure.
"Let's get back to the issue of passage technology," Reed said. "The theory used by this technology is part of the creator's knowledge, which you could also call Cosmic Construction Science or Universe Compilation Science. Considering the position of this technology as the endpoint, the initial understanding of universal constants is probably far on the other side of the Milky Way, with too many steps in between."
"How many people can understand it?" Shiller asked.
"In terms of understanding, quite a few people," Reed considered and said, "Besides me, Doctor Destruction and Iron Man, people like Franklin, Scarlet Witch, Little Thomas, and that person named David, they can actually understand. They're naturally equipped with the key. Of course, some carry hammers, others carry excavators."
"What about the steps after that?"
"Only three." Reed gently tapped the table and said, "Me, Stark, and Doom."
"Does Strange not count? Or is it because he's a Mage?"
Reed shook his head and said, "Technology and magic lead to the same destination; there's no difference. Strange doesn't count because he's not interested in the creator. He doesn't want to compile the cosmos and doesn't study in this area. If you insist, he can understand and observe but doesn't learn, let alone try to apply. Doom privately revealed to me that the Supreme Magician thinks it's evil."
"I see," Shiller said.
"Actually, I can understand him too. We're so daringly exploring knowledge related to the creator, betting that the creator doesn't care. But whether the creator cares or not, nobody really knows."
"I think whether he cares depends on how exactly you're researching. Someday, if you really blow a hole in his house, he's definitely going to care."
"Let's not talk about that," Reed said. "If, as you say, someone could steal this technology, then we should be happy. After all, if they have the skill, they could erase the entire human race and bring them back. Not a big issue."
"But how do you make him bring the human race back? What if he's a very evil person who just wants to destroy humanity?"
"Then punch him," Reed said. "He can't erase you; just go straight up and beat him up, force him to restore humanity, right?"
Shiller was at a loss for words. He said, "Are you sure?"
"Of course. I knew you the first day you came here," Reed said surprisingly, "I witnessed you compiling the cosmos in low Earth orbit before appearing in New York."
Shiller broke into a cold sweat because he suddenly realized that, at that time, Stark was still immature and caught in anxiety disorder, preventing him from realizing his full potential; Strange wasn't even a Mage, just a surgeon.
But Reed Richards, known as the smartest man in the entire universe, was already complete at that time.
If what he said is true, he understood the entire cosmos at the age of six, began observing and learning, and might have started compiling, then his action of crossing over at that time certainly couldn't escape his observation.
Unexpectedly, Reed spoke another puzzling sentence: "The color of this capsule is somewhat like a Poké Ball."
Shiller instantly stared at him without blinking.
"You saw those medicines on the table when you landed, the capsule being red on top and white below, reminding you of something called a Poké Ball. I don't know what that is, but it seemed wise to find something familiar to you while monitoring your movements."
"Pikachu??!!!"
Reed nodded and said, "Actually, I don't have Mind Reading Technique; I can only observe your process of compiling the cosmos, and your thoughts are included. But since the compilation process was too short, I couldn't capture too many thoughts, yet after you thought of a Poké Ball, that yellow rodent appeared in your mind."
Shiller couldn't help but cover his eyes. "But you... I mean... even without reading my memory, how could you recreate it so well?"
"It's not me who recreated it," Reed said. "It was you. To be precise, I perfected your compilation. After you stopped, the Energy didn't retreat immediately, so I wrote a program, which got executed unexpectedly."
Shiller understood now. It's a programmer meeting a hacker. Wait, perhaps he was the hacker himself.
So the process back then probably went: Superego used the System Energy left by Anatoli to compile the Individual Universe they're in. But Reed Richards, who was already complete at that time, observed this compilation action and intervened slightly, materializing a series of associations triggered by Shiller seeing the capsules into reality.
He now also better understands how Superego created his identity back then. According to Reed's theory, this is actually a kind of universe compilation technique, directly modifying cosmic data to turn virtuality into reality.
And obviously, Reed Richards is more advanced than he appears; Superego was likely detected in the moment of action, and his compilation speed couldn't match Reed's decryption speed, so eventually, part of the Strength became accessible to him, creating Pikachu.