Chapter 1795: Chip Number
"You should listen to the doctor." Xu Huo, seeing that his condition had indeed improved significantly, then asked about the progress on cracking the chip.
"A little. Not sure if it'll be useful to you." Meng Cun pulled out paper and pen and wrote down a line.
"CKX8911?" Xu Huo looked at him. "A number?"
"The chip itself has no external number or identifying features, and the materials are common in the game. The truly important content on the chip hasn't been cracked. This number should be a remnant from an overwrite."
"The person who operated it didn't completely finish the overwrite, so the content is incomplete," Meng Cun said. "Since it was taken from a Xenomorph, it might have been recycled and reused. Perhaps some clues can be found from this old information."
"Is this all?" This combination of letters and numbers had no distinguishing features.
"I checked on the Message Collection Terminal, but information like this definitely won't be made public. You could ask a professional." Meng Cun was referring to Dr. Deng. "He's not exactly honest, but he has to rely on you to survive now, so he should be willing to help you with this."
Xu Huo had Mr. Dong go fetch Dr. Deng.
Dr. Deng arrived quickly, as if he had already forgotten the earlier incident in the laboratory. He rambled on about how he had just changed clothes and was ready to work, telling them to speak quickly if they had something to say.
Xu Huo pushed the paper in front of him. "Take a look at this."
Dr. Deng glanced at it casually. "Very ordinary. Nothing special."
"It came from an embedded chip in a Xenomorph from some pharmaceutical lab." After Xu Huo finished speaking, he clearly caught the sudden change in Dr. Deng's expression. "Looks like you know something."
Dr. Deng, seeing that the expressions of the two people in front of him hadn't changed at all, hesitated for a moment before saying, "I definitely can't hide it from you, but I'm not sure if this number is the one I know. I've just happened to see something similar."
Xu Huo waited for him to continue.
"It should be from a C-level wormhole point. I went to survey the area nearby during my work, but by then that district was already mostly destroyed. The natural environment was extremely harsh, and more people died from illness and starvation than during the Xenomorph tide outbreak."
"This number belongs to a Xenomorph test subject. That district had a large number of Xenomorph research institutes. Xenomorphs captured for experiments were all numbered and used for research on antidotes, degeneration, diseases, and so on." Dr. Deng briefly explained and added, "I saw numbers like this on preserved Xenomorph specimens. The numbers were carved into the bones."
"It sounds like the purpose of these Xenomorphs was different." Meng Cun's expression darkened. This chip came from a Xenomorph that fell from the sky in District 017, definitely not the kind of research beneficial to humanity that Dr. Deng was talking about.
"Such a deep impression?" Xu Huo asked.
"At that time, it was my first time entering a semi-destroyed district for a survey. Seeing Xenomorphs made into specimens was quite impactful, quite impactful..." Dr. Deng looked a bit embarrassed and quickly moved on. "But it's been too long. I don't remember which specific lab it was. The location should be the tenth district of wormhole point C33."
"You'll have to look into the specifics yourself."
"Do you remember anything else about this district?" Xu Huo asked again.
"It was a pretty tragic district." Dr. Deng said. "Not much better than E27-017 from a while back. The only thing slightly better about C33-010 was that it had been in the game for a long time. Otherwise, it might not have even left a spark. I just don't know if anyone is still alive there now."
Xu Huo searched for tickets corresponding to that area and gave a positive answer. "There are tickets of various levels."
Dr. Deng sighed with some emotion, but it only lasted a few seconds before he returned to his previous attitude—as if nothing mattered except his own research.
"Other than that, I don't remember more details. My colleagues and I collected what we needed and left. We didn't interact with the locals."
After Dr. Deng left, Xu Huo looked at Meng Cun, who was suppressing his emotions. "Many of your people are still alive."
The number of people he and other players had sent away was also considerable, but it was certainly not a large portion of the entire District 017.
"I know. Thank you. I will live well." Meng Cun calmed himself down and asked, "Are you going to C33-010?"
"Even if you go there, it's unlikely you'll find new clues. The traces of intelligent Xenomorphs have definitely been cleaned up thoroughly."
"In fact, finding them is both difficult and simple. Picking apart the chip thread by thread only yields scattered clues, which may not be true or useful."
"But to achieve this level, is it possible without the support of the game?"
"So you think it's related to Stellar Pharmaceuticals?" Xu Huo looked down at the number on the paper.
"Is it unrelated?" Meng Cun countered.
Using an entire district as an experiment, setting aside the moral and psychological pressure required to carry it out, just the cost alone would be unbearable for an ordinary district. So many Xenomorphs, one transmission channel, two sources—all of this says a lot.
Many high-risk districts and places where trains pass have large numbers of Xenomorphs. Are these Xenomorphs something ordinary districts could even come into contact with? Besides, the Xenomorphs near the tracks are also part of the player screening process.
"I can't just go and attack Stellar Pharmaceuticals Group, can I?" Xu Huo said calmly. "Large-scale breeding and storage sites for test subjects are generally not located in relatively prosperous multi-instance districts where players frequently visit. The labs on the surface probably won't have these dirty dealings. Without specific clues, where would I even look?"
Meng Cun wasn't a Super Evolver, but he was different from others. His brain had undergone a special evolution, so he could see the players' predicament more clearly than ordinary people. Now that the threat of death was temporarily removed, he had lost the courage to take a desperate gamble and had instead become pessimistic.
"Even if you find them, what then? The tragedy of District 017 might be repeating itself somewhere right now. As long as the game exists, this kind of thing will never stop."
Xu Huo took the paper from the table and slowly folded it. "Human history is like a spiral, right and wrong intertwined. If you pursue pure beauty, then it's impossible to achieve, whether in the game world or the non-game world."
"Because humans are just highly intelligent animals."
He lightly tapped the table and added, "Take good care of your health. The future of humanity is not yet your concern. Focus on the present instead. At least you'll have the chance to meet the people who care about you in the future."
Meng Cun looked up at him. "Can I still leave this place?"
"What do you think?" Xu Huo smiled and walked out of the room.
As soon as he closed the door, the Painting Woman flashed in front of him and whispered secretly, "I saw Meng Cun secretly chatting with someone, and Dr. Deng too. He also quietly sent something out."
(End of Chapter)