Chapter 543 - 273: Division
It wasn’t long after he sent the message that Light Nest Company responded, informing Chen Chuan that their current technology could meet his requirements.
Light Nest Company now possessed grafting and implantation technology. Even a creature born without the ability to grow a Mutated Organization could be given a tough one.
Chen Chuan looked into the technology. It mainly involved taking a sample of biological tissue from the subject, grafting it onto similar or related Mutated Creatures, and then implanting the resulting Mutated Organization back into the original subject once it had been induced to grow.
The downside was that this technique was somewhat damaging to the organism and could potentially disrupt its entire circulatory system, requiring long-term recuperative services from the company.
Therefore, the optimal method was spontaneous inducement, allowing the organism to grow its own Mutated Organization, which could then be constrained and controlled with medication. This way, there was almost no damage.
Finally, they said he could send the organism over for servicing. Their company had advanced equipment and facilities to perform a comprehensive test and provide a solution that would satisfy the client.
After reading it, he thought for a moment and decided to check internally within the Defense Department later. He recalled glimpsing something on the platform last time, suggesting that the government was also conducting similar research.
He would decide which path to take after looking into it.
Since embarking on the path of Spiritual Cultivation, his perception of the world around him had become much sharper, and he had a nagging feeling that Chaoming’s natural lifespan might not be very long.
But it would be a different story if it had a Mutated Organization. If properly controlled, its growth process would increase the organism’s Life Force. Plus, giving Chaoming some combat ability would also allow it to help him.
If he could pull it off, it would kill two birds with one stone.
After logging out of the platform, he went to get the new Aromatic Medicine from Teacher Xue and began a new round of meditation. Just like the last batch, this stuff was time-sensitive and needed to be used as soon as possible.
He cultivated diligently this time, not stopping until the afternoon. Afterward, he got up to practice his striking, then sat down again to try out the God-Shaking Hammer and Hollow Seal techniques he had recently learned.
Around six o’clock, he emerged from his seated meditation, ate a few tubes of Nutrition Paste, washed up, and then sat on the sofa to browse the fringe channels while waiting for a message on his Realm Token.
A short while later, an avatar holding a scroll began to flash on his Realm Token. Seeing it was Fang Zhixin, he accepted the connection and said, "Assistant Fang?"
Fang Zhixin said, "Captain Chen, sorry to bother you. I need to inform you that Major Yu might be joining the training class tomorrow. He’s a rare talent, after all, and he has guaranteed that he won’t cause any more trouble for you or anyone else. We just hope you don’t mind."
Chen Chuan replied, "Assistant Fang, you’re being too formal. This is Teacher Chen’s training class. Who joins is, of course, Teacher Chen’s decision to make. I have no grounds to object."
He was quite indifferent as to whether Yu Lie made a fuss. If Yu Lie wanted to serve as a warm-up for him before each training session, he wouldn’t object. He just hoped Yu Lie would come looking for him again after he’d made some progress.
Hearing the indifference in his tone, Fang Zhixin secretly breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you for your understanding, Captain Chen. I won’t disturb you any longer. Farewell."
"Farewell."
After his call with Fang Zhixin, things were quiet until around seven o’clock, when Counselor Pei’s call came through.
Upon receiving it, he took the elevator down from his apartment. As soon as he exited onto the plaza, he saw Counselor Pei’s car waiting there, walked straight over, opened the door, and got in.
Once he was settled in the car, it turned onto an elevated highway. At that moment, he tapped his Realm Token and sent a report to Counselor Pei.
It was a record of his interactions with Chen Bitong over the past few days.
After looking it over, Counselor Pei said, "I’ve received the reports about you submitted from below at the Defense Department. I truly didn’t expect you to progress so quickly, Captain Chen. Of all the personnel who came for training, you’re the only one who has remained."
Chen Chuan said, "That’s only because the training was primarily for Fighters who lacked experience. The truly seasoned ones are probably all fighting on the front lines of the defense."
Counselor Pei smiled. "You’re being modest, Captain Chen. Even the most experienced young officers can hardly compare to Chen Bitong’s two decades of garrison duty. Everyone is learning the same things, and anyone with eyes can see who is superior. Continue to follow up on this mission, but I called you out today for another matter."
At this, his expression turned serious.
’Here it comes,’ Chen Chuan thought. He said, "I’m listening."
Counselor Pei’s face was grave as he said, "The Central Cities are all nodes of the World Ring, the very forefront of the collision between two worlds. Each Central City is built upon a massive Domain Creature. Our Jibei Dao Central City relies on the ’Fumu’."
"And as a living being, it undergoes a process of self-division and reproduction every fifteen years. When that happens, it will generate intense Domain fluctuations that could affect the entire Central City. And in another month or two—no more than a hundred days at most—it will be time for it to divide."
Hearing this, all the previous clues clicked into place for Chen Chuan. ’No wonder everyone in Central City is treating this with such gravity,’ he thought. ’When it involves the Fumu, they have no other choice. The city’s entire information Domain is built upon the Fumu. If something were to happen to it, the Domain would certainly become unstable, and all communications in Central City could face major problems. But that’s secondary. There’s an even more serious situation to consider...’
Counselor Pei said in a low voice, "Information transmission is crucial, but the City Government and the major corporations all have their own independent, active Consciousness Bodies. Even smaller companies and departments are equipped with some Domain Creatures, allowing them to maintain a degree of independent operation in the absence of strong interference."
"And in the ninety-five years since the founding of Dashun, these creatures in the Central Cities have divided every fifteen to twenty years. We have ample experience in dealing with it."
"But times have changed. A breach has appeared in the World Ring, and its primary location is right here with us."
"The World Ring isn’t perfect; breaches appear from time to time. As long as the Central City stands, as long as the Domain Creatures that form the nodes still exist, they can always be repaired with a bit of time. However, this time it coincides with the Fumu’s reproductive division, and that changes everything."
Chen Chuan asked, "Counselor Pei, what consequences will this lead to?"
Counselor Pei sighed. "It will inevitably widen the existing breach. In a more severe scenario," he took a breath, "it could cause the Rifts that were previously contained to spread, and the world on the other side will draw closer to ours as a result."
Chen Chuan’s expression tightened. This situation was indeed extremely dangerous. If those Rifts were to spread, anything could happen.
Setting aside the two-world passages themselves, the anomalous phenomena and events they would trigger alone would affect not just the entire Central City but the surrounding cities as well.
Counselor Pei said, "Considering this situation, the higher-ups have already made preparations. Neighboring Central Cities will dispatch support, and we will do our utmost to contain the Rifts within the Central City’s limits and respond to any unexpected incidents."
"There is, however, one unavoidable problem. In the past, we’ve guided and modified Domain Creatures like the Fumu so that when they divide and reproduce, the resulting pieces aren’t too large, minimizing the impact. But as a trade-off, there will be a certain number of them."
"These fragments will possess some of the Fumu’s characteristics, including the ability to travel between the two worlds. If we don’t control and restrain them in time, it’s very likely some will end up on the other side."
"And besides that, we also need to be on guard against the various foreign corporations in Central City."
"Across all of Dashun’s many Central Cities, there are only nine progenitors like the Fumu. All other Domain Creatures are the result of division and reproduction from these progenitors. They are the crystallization of Dashun’s most advanced Domain creature technology."
"If a crisis occurs in the Central City, these corporations will definitely make a move. They may have already prepared for this very moment."
He said with utmost seriousness, "If they get their hands on the Fumu’s fragments, it would, to some extent, leak our technology and modification methods. Therefore, we need to capture every last one of them."
"Under safe conditions, this process would be no problem. But the appearance of the breach on the other side means that everything is now fraught with uncertainty."
Chen Chuan felt the truth of those words profoundly.
’And working backward,’ he reasoned, ’it’s probably no accident that the breach appeared at this specific time. Those with ulterior motives definitely won’t just stand by and do nothing when the time comes.’
Counselor Pei rubbed the bridge of his nose. "And that’s not all that’s giving me a headache. Since the breach appeared, we’re not sure how many beings from the other side have slipped through. We’ve confirmed two so far. You eliminated the one from Fusion Boundary Company, Captain Chen, and the Defense Department took care of another. But there’s no guarantee there aren’t more."
"If there are others, they must be hiding somewhere right now. If the Fumu undergoes its change and the two worlds draw closer, they will definitely surface. And that will be yet another problem."
"We don’t know their type or strength right now, but a large portion of our main forces must be dedicated to guarding against this potential crisis."
"So, Captain Chen, start preparing now. If the situation goes south, you’ll be needed on the front lines. Also, regarding Chen Bitong, the higher-ups haven’t decided how to handle him yet. You need to pay extra close attention to his every move in the near future."
Chen Chuan nodded. "I understand."
Just then, he looked outside. The car was driving through the canyons between towering skyscrapers. Lights of all colors flickered and drifted in the sky and in the distance, but even the most brilliant lights couldn’t erase the pervasive shadows.
And beyond the multicolored neon glow was the boundless, deep night sky, which seemed to be faintly encircling the entire Central City.
"Also, there are many other highly unstable factors, but I won’t go into them one by one."
Counselor Pei tapped his Realm Token. "This is a detailed briefing on the Fumu and the Central City’s situation. This information cannot be copied and will self-destruct in five hours. Captain Chen, remember to review it carefully when you get back."
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