Chapter 141 Nash Deterrent Equilibrium_1

2 weeks later.

In the biting cold wind, a figure made his way through uneven snow, each step taken with careful exploration.

Beneath the snow lay the ruins left by the storm, hiding countless dangers. A misstep might send one plunging into a hidden crevice or pit, or result in wounds from sharp protrusions.

The path was incredibly difficult; in fact, there was no path at all. The terrain of the earth's surface had completely changed, leaving only broken walls and ruins—a sight of utter desolation.

Even the snow was a dark brown hue, resembling a battlefield strewn with dried-up land soaked in blood—the "blood" of a crippled civilization.

The only consolation was that the ground was now frozen solid. The mixture of ice, dirt, and gravel formed a kind of permafrost which was, to some extent, also secure.

Should the climate warm, melting the permafrost, the entire land would turn into an endless swampy mire, or even create thick mudslides—a secondary disaster in the wake of the storm.

Contact between Underground Cities was almost entirely cut off, with even the transportation of food posing the greatest challenge for everyone.

The figure was none other than Xiang Gaofeng, the madman who faced the storm alone.

All the terrain had changed, but thankfully satellite navigation was still working. He was making his way step by step towards the nearest large shelter.

Feng Zi hadn't closed his eyes for two days. His journey had been extremely arduous; the cold wind cut like knives, and a layer of frost even formed at the corners of his eyes.

At the outpost of the shelter, a sentry spotted someone approaching from a distance, thinking it was the return of a scouting team. It was strange, though, that there was only one person.

Upon closer inspection, he realized that the person's clothes were completely different from those of the scouting team; it was just that the figure was so covered in snow he hadn't seen clearly at first.

Just as the sentry was about to speak, Feng Zi removed his mask and goggles and managed to croak, "Any water?"

The sentry saw the man's chapped lips and the traces of blood that followed his first words, and the deep black circles under his eyes. He said, "Wait here!"

He signaled to his companion to be alert and hurried back to the outpost, quickly returning with a kettle of warm water.

Feng Zi took the kettle, moistened his lips, and once they felt somewhat better, he began to sip the water slowly.

All along the way, he could endure everything except the lack of water. His own water bottle had frozen solid early on, forcing him to endure all the way to the shelter.

When Feng Zi seemed a bit better, the sentry asked as usual:

"Please show me your ID card."

The shelter was extremely strict in managing personal information to maintain stability; it was a necessity.

Feng Zi: "I never entered the shelter before the disaster; I was lucky enough to survive by hiding in a cave."

The sentry's eyes widened in disbelief and he asked:

"You mean to say you actually survived that devastating storm? It's incredible!"

"Wait here, I'll report to our team leader."

Feng Zi's deed was reported up the chain and widely spread, and soon most people knew that there was a survivor at the epicenter of the brutal storm.

At this moment, as all of humanity was devoted to building a new home, the deep trauma caused by the disaster was still indelibly etched in the depths of everyone's hearts, hard to erase.

In the face of such absolute natural forces, humanity seemed so insignificant and powerless. Our centuries of hard work were destroyed overnight by this catastrophe on Earth.

This reality made many people begin to doubt whether we could still hold on to hope and keep our convictions when faced with even greater disasters in the future or threats from the Trisolarans?

Humans hadn't given in to complete despair, but the confusion and helplessness that loomed over them were hard to dispel.

The "survivor's" story brought light to everyone. The strength and wisdom of humanity are far from as fragile as we imagine.

Feng Zi, the survivor who tenaciously endured through the unprecedented storm, had now become a hero in everyone's heart.

He tirelessly told people about his harrowing experiences during the storm, inspiring many and gradually gaining considerable fame.

One day, Feng Zi contacted the shelter manager; he wanted to meet with Wallfacer Lin Sen.

That was why Feng Zi sought fame—to achieve his goals, one needs both name and influence.

Feng Zi needed to confirm his thoughts, and Lin Sen might be the only person who could potentially know the answers.

When Lin Sen learned that the person who had survived the disaster alone wanted to see him, he was somewhat surprised.

I too would like to meet this person who survived such a storm. There must be something exceptional about him, and sometimes I even wonder if he might be the one I've been waiting for.

One day later.

Lin Sen met with Xiang Gaofeng in his office, and his first impression was that the man was as sturdy as a steel tower.

Lin Sen, "Mr. Xiang, it is a pleasure to meet you.

"I have heard of your deeds. Surviving such a cataclysmic disaster is a miracle you created.

"Your story has also inspired many, you are a hero of our time."

Xiang Gaofeng, "Mr. Lin Sen, you can call me Feng Zi.

"I am just an ordinary ex-military man, not a hero. I was just lucky to find a place to hide."

Lin Sen, "To be alive is a miracle itself, isn't it?

"You must have approached me because there's something you wish to ask, right?"

Xiang Gaofeng, "Yes. When I was hiding in the cramped Cat Ear Cave, I couldn't see anything in the pitch darkness.

"At any moment, I could have lost my life. During that time, I thought a lot about many issues.

"There are many issues I haven't thought through, and there are a few questions I would like to ask you."

Lin Sen, "Please, go ahead."

Xiang Gaofeng, "What I understand is military strategy, but I'm not familiar with sociology.

"Military strategy is really about achieving political goals through reconnaissance, analysis, attack, and defense--a negation of the negation--to eventually reach a state of Nash equilibrium deterrence.

"Could this concept be applied to our civilization's strategic game with the Trisolarans? Can the moral attributes of a civilization be its greatest obstacle?

"Do we ... have many?"

Lin Sen was surprised. Being able to raise such a question indicates he had truly touched upon the concept of the Dark Forest. The elite of this era were truly unexpected.

Xiang Gaofeng summarized the relationship between civilizations from a military perspective in just one sentence, and the issue of civilization's moral attributes is also the biggest factor in the chain of suspicion.

In the original work, Logic's understanding of the chain of suspicion was only a superficial narrative. The distances in the universe indeed pose the greatest barrier to communication, but they are not absolute.

The Trisolarans can realize instant communication through Sophons, and information transmission isn't limited by the speed of light.

"Do we ... have many?" This elliptical question was asking if there were many civilizations in the universe and how they reached a state of Nash equilibrium.

Xiang Gaofeng naturally understood some things couldn't be said outright and could only be implied in his questions.

Lin Sen immediately became serious, promptly ordering everyone to leave and clearing the room of all listening devices, including the security personnel's transponders. The following conversation could be heard by no one except the Trisolarans.

Seeing Lin Sen's actions, Xiang Gaofeng was moved. Indeed, Wallfacer Lin Sen knew the answer; it seemed he had come to the right place.

However, this might be the very answer he least wished to receive.

After confirming that no one else could hear their conversation.

Lin Sen, "Feng Zi, I shall call you that now.

"Since you have raised this issue, you must also have your own understanding of it.

"Could you share how you came to think of this question?"

PS: The state of Nash deterrent equilibrium refers to a non-cooperative deterrence game balance, stemming from the Nash equilibrium in game theory.

It's somewhat different from the Nash equilibrium in the prisoner's dilemma. It is, more accurately, a stable strategy configuration under the combined effects of the prisoner's dilemma and the chicken game.

Additionally, regarding the chain of suspicion, Liu Cixin clearly did not take into account the bug in the existence of Sophons, where instant communication is theoretically not feasible.

This book is said to have remedied this bug through higher dimensions. Yet, with the emergence of new issues, if communication is unlimited, the chain of suspicion is not absolute, or exposure leading to destruction becomes a high-probability event.

The essence of the chain of suspicion arises from the moral attributes of a civilization, that is, the ideological society of a civilization.