Mu Yiran gently patted Ke Xun's back to help him relax, and spoke slowly, "I think your example of antivirus software is quite apt. There is indeed a segment of humanity that is a cancer on this planet.
They pollute the air, the land, the oceans, and freshwater; they deforestation, slaughter animals, and disrupt the food chain; for power and profit, they manufacture chemical and biological weapons, leaving the lingering effects of war for centuries; for desire and pleasure, they produce drugs and engage in promiscuity; they lack responsibility and morality, leading to frequent public health and safety incidents, causing the deaths of countless innocent children and adults.
I think this is perhaps what the artist Abel wanted to express in his painting. Environmental pollution, ecological destruction, and infectious diseases—humanity has not only ravaged this planet, but is also sending its own species down the path to destruction.
The artist Abel is likely an environmentalist and a humanist thinker; this painting is full of irony and critique." The title 'Reboot' also reveals his anger and weariness. He hopes to cleanse the Earth through a 'bloodbath,' killing all human viruses active in the Earth's system, and then reboot it, making the system brand new and restoring it to normal and high-quality operation.
"Actually, the most unexpected thing about this painting is the artist's name, Abel. I think it might be a pen name, and this pen name is actually a very important clue. Abel is a figure in the Bible, transliterated as Abel, which I think you must have heard of. In Hebrew, the word Abel means breath and life.
"So, when we first see this painting and its artist's name, we actually already have our first clue."
"If we connect this to the Bible, then a second clue emerges. The Book of Revelation in the New Testament describes a story about the 'Last Judgment.'
The gist of the story is that at the end of the world, the 'Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse,' riding white, red, black, and gray horses, will descend upon humanity, bringing plague, war, famine, and death to those facing final judgment. At that time, the heavens and earth will be in chaos, the sun and moon will change color, and then the world will be destroyed.
In this light, the 'Last Judgment' in Revelation shares a similar theme with the 'Earth Renewal' in Mayan prophecies and the 'Rebirth of Heaven and Earth' in
the *Tui Bei Tu*. Abel's painting *Reboot* also conveys this meaning. The plague, war, famine, and death represented by the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse are essentially the environmental pollution, ecological destruction, and infectious diseases we just discussed. The chaotic state of the heavens and earth depicted in Revelation is also quite similar to the disordered and haphazard vegetation in the forest in *Reboot*."
"So now, all the clues we listed earlier have basically been explained. The hot climate and smog mean environmental pollution; the disordered vegetation in the forest means ecological destruction; the Ebola outbreak in the residential area means a plague; and finally, there's infrasound.
"I hadn't figured out what infrasound meant here, but when the clue led to 2012, and then from 2012 to the end of the world, that finally stopped being a mystery.
"The 2012 doomsday prophecy comes from the Mayan prophecy—of course, it's just a rumor, but that doesn't stop artists from using it as a theme for their art. The Mayan prophecy says that the Earth has five cycles of destruction and rebirth, each cycle called a 'Sun Age.' The rumor claims that 2012 was the end of the world, after which the fifth Sun Age would begin.
"And just as the end of the world arrives, the Earth's poles will reverse, causing drastic changes in the magnetic field—this might also explain why there are both tropical and cold-climate plants in that forest." The artist intended to use this technique to suggest the chaos and imbalance of Earth.
"Intense magnetic field changes could trigger geomagnetic storms, which in turn generate infrasound.
" "So far, all the clues we've gathered are actually hints from the artist. From the artist's name to every seemingly chaotic and ambiguous detail, everything clearly points to the painting's theme—'reboot,' a profound and complex thought process, filled with anger, sorrow, fear, and longing.
"If the artist were a true anti-humanist, perhaps the way to complete the game would be as you fear, requiring the death of everyone, or leaving one person to trigger the 'reboot' mechanism, obtain the signature, and then leave the painting alone.
"But I don't think Abel is. Whether considering the meaning of his name or the subtle details he subtly incorporates, he doesn't want humanity to disappear from the earth in such a hopeless way." As Luo Jing said, the coincidence of finding water-rich vines in the forest, which he knew of, might be the glimmer of hope for humanity's survival that Abel left in his paintings.
"The primal predicament that Shao Ling spoke of shouldn't perhaps be called a predicament. When all man-made products capable of polluting and destroying this earth disappear, humanity returns to its most primitive and natural state, living honestly like other species in the food chain.
"Therefore, Abel preserved all the animals, including wild beasts, insects, and snakes, in that forest. This proves that his intention was never to destroy the earth, or even to kill humanity. He preserved the forest and other species, preserving a most primitive and natural food chain. Within this food chain, he always reserved a place for humanity. He hoped that humanity would return to their original place, reintegrate into this primitive food chain, and, in the most natural way and according to its laws, thrive on this earth alongside other species."
"The final judgment, Earth renewed, universe recreated—this painting criticizes humanity's destructive actions against the Earth and the harm and harm inflicted upon its own kind. What it seeks to renew and recreate is a pristine, natural Earth. And pristine humanity should have a place on such an Earth.
"So, it seems that finding the signature doesn't require the complete annihilation of humanity on this planet, but rather a fresh start after receiving punishment and lessons from nature." As
Mu Yiran finished speaking, before Ke Xun could react, they heard a rustling sound behind them. Turning around, they saw everyone had woken up and gathered around. Even Wu You stared at Mu Yiran with wide eyes, a look of shock and astonishment on her face.
"Brother-in-law…you're amazing!" Luo Yu rubbed his eyes and sat down next to Ke Xun. "Brother, can I hug my brother-in-law's leg? Just for a moment."
"How long have you all been asleep?" Ke Xun looked at the group, who were still in poor spirits. "
I couldn't sleep well, I was worried about Brother Qin," Wei Dong said in a low voice, his face filled with deep concern.
Ke Xun glanced into the distance and saw that Qin Ci had already turned over and lay on his side on the ground, his back to them, and it was unclear whether he was asleep.
"Did you all hear Yi Ran's analysis just now?" Ke Xun asked.
"I heard most of it," Shao Ling said, "but that's enough. I agree with his reasoning, but I think Abel has some rather extreme primitiveist ideas. Protecting the ecological environment does not mean regressing to a primitive state of life. A superior standard of living is still necessary, but what humanity urgently needs to do is to make every aspect of life as environmentally friendly as possible. Achieving this will be a long and arduous journey." However, it's normal for art and literary criticism works to have sharp viewpoints; otherwise, they wouldn't be able to pierce the hearts of the numb and cruel. Besides, there are behind-the-scenes forces exaggerating and intensifying the artist's resentment—these are not important for now. What's important right now is how to find a signature based on Mu's inferences and the theme of 'reboot'.
"The emergence of AIDS, Ebola, and other rainforest pathogens is an inevitable result of the destruction of the biosphere. Some believe that the Earth is like a sophisticatedly designed computer, seemingly defenseless against acts of destruction, but in reality, it possesses self-protective capabilities." Mu Yiran looked up at the distant, gray sky and the primeval forest standing silently beneath it. "The art of checks and balances is not only human wisdom but also the wisdom of the universe. Nature has its own means to balance all things. When the destruction inflicted on the Earth causes an energy imbalance, then this 'computer' of the Earth will activate its self-defense mechanism.
"Some believe that the Earth has an inherent immune function against humans, or rather, a 'detection and elimination function.' When it detects human 'invasion' and destruction, when this destruction has exceeded the Earth's tolerance limits, then this function will activate, attempting to eliminate the infection of this parasitic organism, humanity, in its own way."
"This perspective aligns perfectly with the theme of this painting. Earth is like a computer system, and all of nature on Earth is like system files. When the human system, like a running program, is infected with a virus and begins to wreak havoc on other system files, Earth's defense and antivirus functions are activated accordingly.
"And now, we've reached the final step of the antivirus process: scan complete, restart the computer. What we need to find is this restart button, or the checkmark next to this option.
"As for where this place is, I have a somewhat absurd hypothesis," Mu Yiran said, meeting everyone's gaze, "When we want to download computer software, what type of software are we more likely to focus on and prefer?"
Just as everyone was about to ponder, Zhu Haowen answered, word by word: "Green software."
"—Green antivirus software!" Several people immediately exclaimed in unison.
"Tropical rainforests are the deepest reservoir of species on Earth, and also the largest reservoir of viruses." Mu Yiran nodded slightly. "It is said that the Ebola pathogen originated from the tropical rainforest. So, can we understand that the Ebola virus is the execution program used by the tropical rainforest, this 'green antivirus software,' to kill viruses like this in humans? Then, is the 'restart after antivirus complete' option located within that 'green antivirus software'?"
Everyone immediately became excited. "Go to the forest! Go to the forest and look! No wonder the forest is also part of the painting!" Wei Dong said, looking at Fang Fei. "Girl, you're right to suspect it. The existence of the forest in the painting is indeed very important!"
Fang Fei nodded at him.
"Hey!" Luo Yu suddenly slapped his thigh. "Brother-in-law's conjecture is not absurd at all, because—green is the color of environmental protection!"