Inside the "Kingdom of Electromagnetism," Brook had already set down his Feather Pen and was staring intently at the wave function equation on his manuscript paper. It was so elegant and concise, as if it contained all the mysteries of the microscopic world.
He harbored no doubts about a mistake in his derivation, because solving this wave function equation would yield a series of discontinuous solutions — quantized ones — and they matched data from several experiments. Moreover, he had received feedback from the true world, allowing his shattered, frozen cognitive world to once again nurture the spark of life, as if it might sprout and grow at any moment, beginning its reconstruction.
"Matrix mechanics, approaching from the angle of particles and discontinuity, can solve many problems of new alchemy. The wave function, approaching from the angle of waves and continuity, also looks promising. Could particles and waves truly be unified at a higher level, as Lucian suggested? Electrons, photons, and other microscopic particles are things we cannot yet construct a precise image of — we can only describe them through the properties we can determine, even if those properties are so contradictory and diametrically opposed."
Brook gazed at the formulas on his manuscript paper, his mind turning over a question of vital importance to himself. To truly grasp "wave-particle duality" and use it to solve the essential problem of electromagnetic waves — this was his hope of rebuilding his cognitive world, and perhaps even advancing further still.
After one blow after another and the dramatic reversals of the electron diffraction experiments, he had come to a certain degree of acceptance regarding Lucian's interpretation of the nature of electrons from a higher plane of thought. He was no longer so unshakably insistent on the wave theory.
*Ding* — a crisp bell sounded from the desk. Brook jolted back to awareness, a flash of lightning in his eyes, and heard Oliver's voice: "Brook, have you finished constructing the wave function equation too?"
"Yes. You too?" Brook guessed Oliver's situation from the mix of joy and confusion in his tone.
Upon hearing Brook's answer, Oliver broke into laughter: "So we finished at almost the same time. No wonder the feedback from the true world wasn't as great as I expected — a classic equation that should definitely rank among the top in the microscopic world actually couldn't help me break through my current barrier and touch the threshold of the legendary peak."
His tone carried unmistakable relief. The degree of true world feedback had made him rather doubt the importance — or perhaps the completeness — of this equation.
In principle, it is very difficult to judge a theory's absolute correctness from true world feedback alone, because as long as it is closer to reality than what came before, one receives a certain degree of feedback, and the difference is slight. The only exception is a theory that surpasses what came before by a wide margin, like Lucian's general relativity. And when using true world feedback to confirm whether a theory is correct, the cognitive world shifts accordingly. So if one tries several theories with internal contradictions, and the first attempt is not the one closest to reality, it is very easy to get one's head blown apart. The reason Oliver doubted this time was mainly that the feedback, divided between them, was far less than what he had experienced before.
"Perhaps there are other factors diminishing the feedback. We both probably started from classical theory, drew analogies, and then, without worrying about arcanic meaning or logical derivation, directly constructed a wave function equation — only afterward circling back to verify it and search for its specific arcanic significance. So before we fully provide an arcanic interpretation of the wave function, the true world's feedback will likely be correspondingly reduced." Brook analyzed the reasoning. He was rather proud of this wave function equation, but also remained calm and rational.
Oliver chuckled. "What other arcanic significance could there be? The electron is a wave — orbits and energy levels are merely variations in vibration. Of course, we can't make groundless judgments without evidence. We need to use the wave function equation to solve the current problems of new alchemy, to solve the problem of the hydrogen atom model, and to determine precisely what property of the electron the wave function represents..."
He was delighted and excited, but refrained from immediately asserting that his wave function equation was definitely more correct than Lucian's matrix mechanics or closer to reality.
"Since we derived it more or less independently at the same time, let's call this equation the Oliver–Brook wave equation," Oliver suggested.
Brook furrowed his brow, then smoothed it out. "That's fine."
What crossed his mind were the jocular remarks about such naming conventions from the "Truth of the World" channel a while back — "Take my surname, and crown it with your name" — and for a moment he found it somewhat peculiar.
After ending the communication, Brook tapped his fingers lightly on the desk. "Matrix mechanics, approaching from the angle of particles, can also solve the problems of new alchemy, and Hathaway has extended it to the broader domain of atomic models... Could this mean the arcanic meaning of the wave function may differ from that of an ordinary wave?"
"Regarding the wave function, I should write to Fernando, Hathaway, Helen, Vincent, and... Lucian to exchange ideas."
The reason he didn't mention Douglas was that he was confident Oliver would certainly write to discuss it with him, so there was no need for both. And he equally believed that Lucian — the one who had proposed the concept of wave-particle duality — would not be unable to accept the wave function.
……
Even after glimpsing the "celestial panorama," Lucian's approach to arcane research remained methodical and steady, measuring everything against experimental data and observed phenomena. Since he possessed broader prospects and could see further than other Archanists, why take reckless risks? Moreover, the most important thing was that such research was itself a process of learning and mastery. Lucian didn't want to reach the future unprepared, with an unstable foundation and no reference points to rely on.
Time ticked by until dinner. Natasha, her worries now at ease, looked splendid. She walked in carrying two letters. "Lucian, letters from Lord Brook and Lord Oliver. It seems they've made new research progress."
After the "Queen's work" concluded, Natasha frequently served as Lucian's "secretary," delivering his correspondence, fetching experimental materials, and the like. She could already judge certain things by the thickness of the envelope alone. However, when Lucian was conducting particularly delicate experiments, he generally did not let her into the laboratory — her track record was terrible enough as it was!
Lucian opened the letters and smiled the moment he read the opening lines.
"What is it? Something wrong with Lord Brook's results?" Natasha rubbed her chin and asked curiously. She lacked the ability to read wave function papers and was judging purely from Lucian's expression.
Lucian leaned back in his chair. Natasha wordlessly placed both hands on his temples, giving him a relaxing massage.
"Now *that's* the kind of strength a Golden Knight has," Lucian quipped.
Natasha raised her left eyebrow. "That's only because I wasn't using my full strength. If I were, your head would simply be crushed — red blood and white brains splattered all over the floor."