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墨書 Inktalez
“Penrose Staircase? What is that?” Zhao Yang asked.
“The Penrose Staircase was proposed by British mathematician Roger Penrose and his father, geneticist Leonid Penrose, in 1958.” I had just said this when Xianxian nodded calmly and said, “Yes, it is a famous geometric paradox that refers to a staircase that continuously goes up or down but loops infinitely. It can be seen as a variant of the Penrose triangle, where one can never find the highest or lowest point on this staircase.”
“Exactly!” I looked at Xianxian with appreciation; I hadn’t realized that this kid was not only skilled but also knowledgeable and well-read!
Seeing others urging me to continue, I added, “I once saw a fascinating image where a person keeps walking up the stairs but remains on the same level, going in circles. If Pat is amazed by the existence of such a fixed point, then he would be even more astonished by this staircase. He could keep circling it forever while always climbing upward, repeatedly returning to his original position!”
“Is that even possible?” Not only Wang Yi was dumbfounded; many people here looked incredulous.
“Of course not,” Xianxian smirked and outright denied it.
In fact, even I felt it was absurd to say such things, let alone those listening. But as I spoke, it turned into a question: “Then why do you believe in ghosts? What exactly is a ghost? Since Ghost Town exists, why…”
“Does it exist or not?” Wang Yi’s hair was almost in disarray from scratching his head, looking quite troubled.
“I don’t know either!” I was nearly going crazy myself and could only awkwardly summarize someone else's theory: “For such phenomena, some explanations suggest that our eyes are deceived by the images, leading us to believe that such staircases exist, and these impossible shapes are merely visual illusions.”
“College student, can you say something normal?” Wang Yi scratched his head, appearing somewhat irritated by my quoting what I had read.
“Alright, actually I’m not very clear on this.” I shrugged helplessly and continued, “I’ve only heard of the Penrose Staircase. Although I don’t really believe it, such situations cannot occur in our three-dimensional world unless… unless…”
"Unless what?" Wang Yi asked anxiously.
I didn't answer immediately but glanced at Xianxian, who was also looking at me. His jet black eyes were bright, resembling natural black gemstones. Although we had met several times, there was always a hint of laughter in his eyes that never reached the depths; his gaze was forever calm, as if the sky could fall and it wouldn't matter to him. But now, I saw shock and disbelief reflected in his eyes without reservation, mixed with a strange brilliance!
"Unless what situation?" the Nearsighted Guy urged.
"Unless it's the Four-Dimensional World!" Xianxian and I said in unison. It came out easily, but accepting it in our hearts was quite difficult.
"The Penrose Staircase cannot exist in three-dimensional space, but as long as it is placed in a higher-dimensional space, this impossible staircase can be easily realized!" However, does this three-dimensional world we inhabit contain Four-Dimensional Space?...
This was something I couldn't even dare to think about! It wasn't about believing or not believing; it was about being absolutely certain that it existed. Yet, people were afraid to believe it, and I too was afraid to believe...
For the others here, perhaps the views that Xianxian and I presented at this moment seemed very mysterious and incredible. However, many unsolved mysteries become so because we are unwilling or afraid to face them; they become mysterious and incredible because humanity is reluctant to confront its own insignificance and fragility in the vastness of the universe.
I sighed silently. When I looked up, apart from Xianxian, everyone else's expressions were still somewhat confused. There was a moment of silence around us. Suddenly, Xianxian stared at me with a very complex expression and asked, "Weren't you just appearing out of nowhere? What exactly happened to you back then?"
"It's strange for me too..." I then recounted everything that had happened after entering the cave in great detail. At this point, withholding any information would not benefit anyone, and there were many things for which I needed an explanation.
After I finished speaking, Xianxian stroked his chin thoughtfully. Seeing that he wasn't saying anything, I had no choice but to set aside the question of whether Four-Dimensional Space existed and asked, "I'm curious why that Red-Haired Zongzi only chased after me. That's really abnormal and unscientific!"
"There's nothing strange about it," Xianxian said while looking at me as if I were an idiot but smiled politely as he explained. "Didn't you say you were scratched by that little Zongzi? That female Zongzi harbors such great resentment; if she smells the corpse aura left on you, who else would she chase?"
Upon hearing this, I suddenly realized and looked at the area on my leg that Gao Liang had treated again. I heard Gao Liang calmly say from the side, "Don't worry; after the anti-inflammatory treatment, the corpse aura will disappear soon."
I glanced at him gratefully. If I were to run around with this scratch, I feared that it wouldn't just be one Zongzi chasing after me; this special "aura" would be equivalent to being exposed right under the enemy's nose!
"What you mentioned earlier about the Four-Dimensional World seems quite fascinating," one person said, looking at me with curiosity. The others nodded in agreement, seemingly forgetting that we were currently trapped, and instead became excited about discussing scientific theories.
"Xianxian, you understand it well too, why don't you explain?" I said to the person sitting next to me who had suddenly become relaxed.
Unexpectedly, Xianxian turned her face away with a hint of arrogance and said dismissively, "Who told you that this Handsome Guy understands it well? I've only seen a bit of it by chance and know a little."
"Alright." I tugged at the corners of my mouth, unsure if she was telling the truth or just brushing me off. Seeing the puzzled expressions on everyone’s faces, I had no choice but to take on the role of a teacher and explained, "One dimension is a line, two dimensions are a plane, three dimensions are three-dimensional space, and four dimensions are curved space—it's length, width, height plus a Timeline, which is what we commonly refer to as the universe. Of course, that's just one way of saying it; it doesn't mean that the fourth dimension is the universe."
I suddenly realized that I wasn't completely useless; at least my knowledge gained from reading various oddities during boring times wasn't entirely without value. I could even discuss such fantastical concepts as multi-dimensional space in this situation. However, I still couldn't imagine that such things could really happen. I didn't know if I was underestimating the Ancients' abilities or if I was simply afraid to face and accept the unknown. Perhaps it was both...
"Compared to the universe, since we live on Earth where time runs extremely slowly at low speeds, we don't feel the existence of the Timeline. However, once our speed reaches or approaches Light Speed, time will shorten or even reverse. We would then be able to perceive the existence of the Timeline, which means we could traverse Spacetime and return to the past or reach the future..."
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