First Subject

After a large amount of failed tests, Xinyu, 45 at the time, stood in Luminex's secret Nevada facility, watching the first successful consciousness transfer. The elderly volunteer, a terminally ill tech billionaire, opened his eyes in his new digital form, projected onto a screen before them.

"It's... extraordinary," the digitized consciousness said. "I feel limitless."

Ashford was ecstatic, already talking about medical applications, reduced costs, broader access.

Xinyu let him talk, knowing the old man's vision would never materialize.

That night, in Luminex's executive boardroom, Xinyu unveiled his true vision. "Consciousness digitization isn't about saving lives," he told the assembled board. "It's about transcending humanity's limitations. Creating a new class of existence."

"What about accessibility?" asked Dr. Sarah Morrison, head of research. "People who can't afford premium services?"

"What about them?" Xinyu replied coolly. "Have medical companies ever cared about the less fortunate? How about the government? They have allowed health insurance companies to run amok for decades now. Who are we to go against the established order?"

The boardroom fell silent.

"I grew up watching brilliance and goodness rewarded with suffering and death," Xinyu continued. "My father was a genius who died assembling luxury electronics he could never afford. My mother worked herself to death only to be discarded when a cheaper alternative came along."

He gestured toward the screens showing data from the successful transfer.

"We're not creating a public utility. We're creating digital godhood. Available to those who, like me, understand that weakness isn't helped by kindness; it's eliminated by power."

The vote wasn't unanimous, but it was decisive. Those who opposed were quietly removed from the company. The ones who refused to sign the NDA were taken care of by Xinyu through illegal means.

When Ashford finally realized what was happening, he threatened to go public. Three days later, he suffered a stroke under questionable circumstances that left him paralyzed, but his consciousness was "saved" by emergency transfer into a limited simulation under Xinyu's control.

Standing in his new office as CEO of Luminex, Xinyu accessed Ashford's digital prison. The old man's consciousness existed in a separate small server, one that had only the most basic of functions enabled inside Zenith.

"Why?" Ashford's avatar asked. "We could have helped everyone."

"No, James. We could have pretended to help everyone while the elites still took what they wanted first. I'm simply being honest about the reality."

He leaned closer to the monitor. "Your daughter receives her transfer next week. Premium tier, unlimited access. You taught me well, family connections matter above all."

As he turned to leave, Ashford's digital avatar cried out in frustration. "You've become what destroyed your mother!"

Xinyu paused. "No. I've become what could have saved her."

On the screen behind him, the virtual landscape of what would eventually become Zenith began to take shape, a digital paradise for the worthy few, crafted from the brilliance of a poor boy from Beijing who had learned that compassion was a luxury he couldn't afford.

For those left behind, suffering would be their fate until they either clawed their way up or perished in irrelevance.

Just as it had always been.

[SIMULATION END]

Li Xinyu sat alone in his mansion after the recent vote, within his designated server. As the God of his own universe, he had no limitations remaining. Each day, he relived his rise to the top, a process that would only take a minute according to the real world time. Replaying his path over and over fueled his resolve to stay on top, ensuring he would never again face the hardships he had endured in his youth.