Murphy's memory contained quite a bit about systems, being relevant to his field. He was supposed to learn from books on Windows system programming and had browsed some on network architecture, but he mostly skipped classes when he could, never really grasping the lessons. Now, he had nearly forgotten everything.
Recalling even a bit of this could help Bob and his team.
However, the effects of the intelligence enhancer were diminishing, requiring longer recovery times after each use of Total Recall. He thought it best not to delve too deeply this time...
With this in mind, Murphy returned to the Potion Research Institute's medical monitoring room.
After the last incident, it was recommended that any potentially dangerous spells Murphy cast on himself be done here.
Once the medical staff activated various monitoring devices, Murphy used Total Recall on himself again.
This time, he successfully unearthed some content on network protocols.
A week later, he repeated Total Recall, uncovering some technologies related to system architecture.
Handing these findings over to Bob Henderson, he was told they could save about a month's time.
A month?
Murphy was somewhat disappointed. The precious information, hard-earned and sparingly retrieved every week, could only save them a month?
No, he had to dig deeper.
But before he could use Total Recall again, Furness stopped him.
"Director, we've studied the changes in your brain and found possible demyelination... brain white matter loosening..."
"Have you experienced symptoms like forgetfulness, slowed reactions, or difficulty concentrating?"
"Are you suggesting Alzheimer's? Am I getting dementia?"
Murphy was startled; indeed, he had been forgetful and suffering from insomnia, though he could recall the things memorized via Total Recall clearly. He thought it was just because his brain was tired and didn't pay much heed.
"Even intelligence enhancers can't fully repair this," Furness said.
"The potency of Total Recall is too strong for our brains to handle such intense information influx in a short time, leading to degenerative changes..."
"The more you use Total Recall, the faster your neurological decline."
"Unless you want your mind to become as muddled as a person in their seventies or eighties, you must stop using Total Recall."
Well, okay.
He was creating chips to become stronger.
Making himself dumb before that defeated the purpose.
But without his help, the desktop system wouldn't be ready anytime soon.
And without a suitable system and application environment, his chips would be nothing more than metal lumps, advanced yet unsellable.
Perhaps, relying on advanced process technology, he could turn his chip manufacturing into a foundry, subcontracting for Intel or other manufacturers to survive.
But then, his investments in instruction sets, IP cores, and desktop systems would be wasted, and his advanced process technology would merely benefit others.
Survival or ideals, it was time to choose.
...
"What do you think I should do?"
Murphy and Patrick sat by the lake, watching a hawk-like bird suddenly dive into the water, snatch a fish, and fly back into the forest.
"I don't want to make wedding dresses for others, but continuing might cost me my entire umbrella. Maybe cutting losses is the wiser choice."
"I entered this industry too hastily, spread myself too thin from the start, wanting to solve all problems at once..."
Murphy reflected, "Just being a chip foundry with advanced processes would have been great. I should have started there, then gradually progressed to chip design and software systems..."
"If I had stretched this process over two more years, everything would have been simple..."
"But I was too impatient, lacking the patience..."
Patrick remained silent for a while, then asked again, "So, why are you in such a hurry?"
"The Umbrella has just started, and there's a long road ahead. You're young, with plenty of time for anything you wish to do."
"Yet, you act as if the world is ending next year."
Why indeed?
Murphy lay back, gazing at the distant lake, forests, clear skies, and clouds, directly into the sun.
After a while, he closed his eyes.
Because... he couldn't wait.
But why the rush?
Murphy furrowed his brows, pondering the source of this inexplicable pressure.
Suddenly, Racine's face popped up again, saying, "Magic is power!"
Yes, magic is power...
His urgency stemmed from feeling too weak...
Omniscience and omnipotence were far-off dreams, so distant he sometimes doubted their attainability.
He needed something tangible, coordinates to keep pursuing his dream.
Those powerful wizards in his mind were those coordinates.
Dumbledore, Voldemort, Grindelwald, Snape, and others.
Yet, he knew he was still far from those truly powerful wizards, even Quirrell's stats were much higher than his! Even though his magical power had increased to be almost on par with most Aurors, and he could easily defeat an Auror captain, he wasn't particularly happy.
That was no longer his goal; such minor improvements no longer mattered.
Compared to the benchmarks he had set for himself, they were meaningless.
This sense of loss made him feel as though he had been on this journey for a long time but hadn't left the newbie village.
Hence, he felt anxious.
"It seems you've understood," Patrick said.
Murphy nodded.
"So, have you decided what to do?"
"Yes," Murphy thought, "I never really had much choice."
The dream was too vast and lengthy, and he was not a patient person.
Life is too short to wait for eternity.
Betting everything on a single course, relentless until the goal is achieved, was his style.
"If you've decided, then go ahead."
Murphy was surprised, "Why aren't you trying to dissuade me this time?"
"I've always known, you're a madman determined to change the world."
Patrick snorted, "No one can persuade a madman."
"Such a madman only has two outcomes: either be completely defeated by reality and self-destruct, or defeat the world and become a deity."
Murphy glanced at Patrick, noticing his gaze not just on him but seemingly looking beyond, at something far away.
"Are you sure about this? You've staked everything on me. Aren't you leaving anything for yourself?"
"Ha," Patrick laughed, "So you better get going before I regret it."
"Hmph, too late for regrets now. Let little Ares start working out, good for moving bricks later," Murphy retorted.
"Don't you dare plan for my son!"
After a few jokes, Murphy suddenly asked, "Aren't you going to ask what exactly I plan to do? Aren't you curious?"
"I'm just a mortal, neither self-destructing nor becoming a deity, unable to understand a madman," Patrick accepted.
"But you still help me," Murphy looked at Patrick, "Why?"
"People tend to have self-destructive tendencies. Us mortals are always drawn to madmen, like moths to a flame. Though we can't do it ourselves, we still hope someone else can achieve some miracles for us."
Standing up, Patrick patted Murphy's shoulder, "So, go create your world, become a deity, young man."
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