Chapter 23 | Forced Use While Emotions Hadn't Subsided

The accident happened the following evening.Li Xing had just finished packing up his tools and was about to close the gate and go home when he heard hurried footsteps outside.There was more than one person.Their voices were disordered and labored.When the door was pushed open, Uncle Liu practically burst in, his face pale and his hands covered in grime.“Xingzi, we have to go to Pokou.”He said it quickly, without explanation.Li Xing’s heart sank.He knew Pokou all too well. The dirt road, the gentle slope, the bends—a place prone to accidents when there were many vehicles.“What happened?”“The tractor brakes broke down.” Uncle Liu’s throat tightened. “The truck was loaded with grain, and people were blocking the way. It slid down a bit… If it dragged any further, it would really cause an accident.”This wasn’t about repairing a vehicle.This was a danger unfolding.Li Xing didn’t ask any more questions.He grabbed his coat and tools and followed him.The wind was cold on the road.But his mind was far from calm.The argument in the house yesterday, the lingering frustration, and the oppressive feeling of being pushed along by reality—all of it remained.He knew very well—this state of mind shouldn't be addressed with spatial access.But the slope was just ahead.He could already hear voices.A tractor was blocking the road, its rear wheel askew, the trailer low to the ground.Someone stood at the bottom of the slope, afraid to approach."Xingzi's here!""He knows this best!"The voices pressed down on him, layer by layer.It wasn't urging.It was handing him responsibility.Li Xing crouched down, inspecting the brake system.An old model, the parts severely worn.Relying solely on experience would leave too many points to judge.Time was running out.The sky was darkening.He knew that delaying would only make things more dangerous.At that moment, he made a decision.—Use only low-level access.—Just look at the structure.—Quick in, quick out.The space unfolds.Almost instantly, he sensed something was wrong.Low-privilege mode was still there.The interface was stable.But once the sensor connected, the information seemed to be subtly skewed by something.Not chaotic.It was off-center.The structural information was still there, but it was always a little off.At the same time, that lingering emotion was amplified.Not an emotional outburst.But a heightened sense of presence.Like background noise suddenly increasing.【State Synchronization Rate: Unstable】The words flashed by.Li Xing's heart tightened.He forced himself to look only at the brake structure.Pull lever, return spring, locking groove.The information was discontinuous, but still pieced together.The space's judgment was quick—the spring's stress point was abnormal, the mud and sand were stuck.This judgment wasn't wrong. Just as he was about to act, a layer of hesitation crept into his mind.Something was wrong.It was too smooth.It wasn't as smooth as the clarity expected in a low-privilege state.He stopped.He looked again.This time, the feedback from the space changed slightly.It wasn't a reversal.It was a correction.There was a slight discrepancy between the two judgments.If he followed the first approach, he could temporarily regain control.But after running for a while, the problem might reappear.In that instant, a chill ran down Li Xing's spine.He realized—This wasn't the space deceiving him.It was that, in the synchronized state, his judgment had been swayed by his emotions.The space was providing an answer that "seemed reasonable."Not the "safest" one.This was more dangerous than making a direct mistake.He made a decisive decision and immediately shut down the space.His consciousness returned to reality, his heart pounding erratically.“Move back,” he said, looking up.His voice wasn't loud, but it was steady.He relied entirely on experience for the next steps.Dismantling, clearing, adjusting the force.Each step was a little slower.But each step was under his control.After more than ten minutes, the brakes were restored.The tractor was stable.The crowd breathed a sigh of relief.Some patted him on the shoulder, others thanked him profusely.But Li Xing stood there, his palms icy.Because he knew—if he had trusted the space a little more,or hesitated even a second longer,the consequences could have been completely different.On the way home, he didn't say a word.The night wind made him clear-headed.For the first time, he realized something so clearly:Using space when emotions haven't subsided,it won't immediately harm you.It gives you an "almost correct" judgment.In reality, the most likely place for things to go wrong is precisely the place of "almost."Back home, he wrote a new line in his notebook:—When forced to use it, prioritize realistic judgment—Space is only for reference and can be discarded at any timeAfter writing, he closed the notebook.But he didn't feel relieved.Because he knew very well—next time, he might not be able to back down so easily.