A high-albedo dust curtain caused by a close stellar ejection entered the earth's orbit, blocking sunlight and impacting the power grid. The global average temperature dropped by ten degrees in three months. Humanity was forced to enter the era of low-energy insulated cabins and connect to the virtual universe through the brain-computer interface. This is known in history as the "Gray Curtain Age." The two superpowers China and the United States were forced to terminate the AGI competition and turned to joint research and development. They announced the AGI mastermind that mankind has not yet perfected - POLARIS. It will update a game every year for everyone to participate in, and the annual settlement will be made. The annual game results are directly related to the energy distribution of each country's people;
This is the cold start of civilization. This is the first year of algorithmic rule. This is the starting point of the second history of mankind.
