Li Yuan floated in silence after leaving the astonishing octopus community.
As he continued his upward journey towards the surface, his thoughts kept returning to what he had just witnessed. An organized bioluminescent city. A complex communication system. An efficient division of labor. Education for the young ones.
All of it seemed like proof of high intelligence, a sophisticated society.
But then, through his Water Understanding in the Wenjing realm, Li Yuan began to hear a different story from the water around him.
The water carried a longer memory. Memories of how the octopus community was actually formed. And the truth Li Yuan heard fundamentally changed his perspective.
"Tell me about how that city began," Li Yuan asked the water that had been a witness for thousands of years.
The water whispered in a silent language that could only be understood in the Wenjing realm.
"No one planned that city. There was no design, no architect. What happened was extreme survival pressure."
Li Yuan listened carefully as the water continued its story.
"Hundreds of years ago, there was an environmental catastrophe at this level. Volcanic activity from the seafloor changed the currents and temperature. Food became extremely scarce. Predators from deeper levels rose to this area."
"Individual octopuses that were normally solitary began to die one by one. Only those who happened to be gathered in a certain area survived—not because they decided to cooperate, but because they happened to be in the same place when the catastrophe occurred."
Li Yuan felt a different understanding begin to form.
"Those who survived were the ones who instinctively gathered when there was a threat. This behavior was then passed down to their offspring—not as a conscious decision, but as a genetic predisposition."
"What about their communication system then? The division of labor? The educational system?"
The water continued patiently.
"What you saw as a 'communication system' were instinctive responses that have been refined through generations. The bioluminescent patterns are automatic reactions to certain stimuli—food, danger, mating opportunities."
"The division of labor you observed is the result of individual octopuses following their natural inclinations. The larger and stronger ones automatically gravitated towards perimeter defense. The smaller ones naturally gathered in the center with the young ones. There was no conscious planning."
"And the educational system?"
"Young octopi learn through imitation and trial-and-error, just like all animals. They observe the behaviors of the adults and copy the successful ones. There is no curriculum, no intentional teaching."
Li Yuan felt a kind of deflation within himself. The miracle he thought he had witnessed—an advanced society with culture and cooperation—turned out to be the result of instinct and natural selection, not intelligence and conscious choice.
"But they seemed so intelligent when I communicated with them."
"They are responsive to environmental changes, yes. They can adapt behaviors based on immediate circumstances. But this is reactivity, not true intelligence. They are not capable of abstract thinking, long-term planning, or understanding the consequences of their actions beyond immediate survival needs."
Li Yuan pondered the conversation he had with the elder octopus. What he had interpreted as wisdom and philosophy now felt different when reframed in this context.
"So when the elder told me about 'ancestors' and 'passing down knowledge'..."
"That is genetic memory expressed through instinctive behaviors. There is no conscious historical awareness or intentional knowledge transmission. They do not understand the concepts of the past or future in a meaningful way."
Li Yuan felt a humbling realization wash over him. As a conscious being who had lived for thousands of years with the capacity for abstract thought, planning, and self-reflection, he had projected human-like qualities onto creatures that operate in a completely different mode of existence.
"They are beautiful in their simplicity," the water continued. "A perfect adaptation for survival in a specific environment. But they do not possess self-awareness or the capacity to transcend immediate needs and instincts."
Li Yuan continued his ascent with a revised understanding of what he had witnessed. Not a diminished appreciation for the remarkable adaptations of the ocean creatures, but a realistic assessment of the nature of animal cognition.
Animals—even those that appear most intelligent—operate primarily through instinct and automatic responses that have been refined by evolution. They are not capable of true reasoning, moral considerations, or conscious choices in a way that humans or spiritual beings like Li Yuan could understand.
"There is nothing wrong with this," Li Yuan realized. "They are perfect for what they are. But I must not romanticize or anthropomorphize their behaviors."
This understanding gave Li Yuan a clearer perspective on his position in the cosmic order. As a conscious being with the capacity for true choice and moral reasoning, he had responsibilities and possibilities that did not exist for creatures that operated purely through instinct.
"An appreciation for the natural world does not require attributing human-like qualities to it," Li Yuan concluded. "The beauty and complexity of biological systems can be admired for what they truly are—remarkable products of evolutionary adaptation, not pseudo-intelligent societies."
With this new clarity on the distinction between instinctive behavior and conscious intelligence, Li Yuan continued his journey to the surface levels where he might encounter beings with an actual capacity for reasoning and moral choice.
The journey was not only geographical—from the deep sea to the surface—but also philosophical, from romantic idealization to a realistic understanding of different forms of existence in the cosmic hierarchy.
"Every level of existence has its own beauty," Li Yuan realized. "But to truly appreciate them, I must understand them based on what they actually are, not on what I project them to be."
With this more grounded wisdom, Li Yuan continued his ascent, ready to encounter whatever forms of life awaited him at higher levels, with a realistic appreciation for their capabilities and limitations.