The Creators: From Night City

Page 316

This is the vital point of this monster, its energy source, and also its most fatal weakness.

This creature, which looks like a ferocious beast but is actually a combination of machinery and distorted flesh, is essentially a technological creation.

The answer was the truth that Jiang Bing discovered during his first contact with the other party.

The next four brief physical encounters allowed Jiang Bing to roughly figure out the structure of this 'technological creation' and the location of its vital parts.

That led to the fatal blow that followed.

At the very core of this sphere is a constantly pulsating energy cluster, surrounded by countless bone-like nanostructures that form a hollow red 'lantern'.

The energy contained here is extremely powerful, at least more powerful than the energy contained in the entire power plant storage equipment of Zeta Technology outside Night City.

Most importantly, the entire core is made up of solidified nanoparticles. Apart from the energy storage core, which cannot be easily modified, this thing can be seamlessly adapted to almost all energy interfaces, making it a universal battery.

Of course, this is also a memory device, and the data stream stored inside doesn't look like anything good to the naked eye.

Jiang Bing didn't have time to conduct in-depth research at the moment, and he didn't know how the Behemoth's flesh and blood were formed. Having lost its core function, it was rapidly decaying, and the nanoparticles that had long been integrated with the flesh and blood were also rapidly deactivating and dying after losing their energy supply.

Its research value as a mouse is rapidly declining.

Jiang Bing had no choice but to disregard the consequences and, in front of the two sisters, flicked a dazzling golden flame, which landed on the Behemoth's corpse.

The moment the flame touched the other's fur, it burst into flames like dry tinder meeting a raging fire, transforming the entire corpse's matter into ether, while its internal structure was deconstructed into knowledge, which was then acquired and understood by the 'craftsman'.

As Jiang Bing grasped the knowledge fed back from the [Ether Furnace] with an efficiency that transcended three-dimensional space, he couldn't help but frown.

The target's gene sequence is strangely abnormal.

First, the overall sequence similarity between the target organism's genome and the human standard reference genome is 86.7%.

The similarity calculation is way off.

It's important to know that normal quadrupeds like lions, tigers, and cheetahs generally share about 90% of their genes with humans, so this creature is practically a new species.

But here's the strange thing.

The opponent's core metabolic pathways, basic neurotransmitter receptor structures, and most housekeeping genes are highly consistent with those of humans. The key genetic differences coincidentally focus on developmental regulatory modules (severe Hox cluster recombination), muscle fibrous protein coding regions (with a high-strength myosin gene of unknown origin), epidermal structure genes (large-scale replacement by homologous genes from lions), and multiple neural regulatory regions related to aggressive behavior and pain regulation.

These regions contain a large number of non-human-specific insertion sequences.

In short, this thing wasn't manufactured; it was actually created by humans (or other intelligent beings) through genetic engineering.

Moreover, the original material used for the modification was a human.

Although the specific details of the genetic engineering used on him are unknown, the switching states of tens of thousands of genes in his body have been fundamentally reversed. The genes that make us 'human' have been silenced; while the potential of beasts hidden in the ancient corners of the human genome has been permanently awakened and amplified.

This modification was initially designed to create 'biological weapons'.

"interesting!"

As Jiang Bing was deep in thought, a clear female voice came from behind him: "Are you alright?"

She is Kara, the older of the twin sisters.

It's no wonder she asked that question, after all, Jiang Bing had just ripped out a monster's lung with his right hand, and it was still covered in blood.

"I saw that 'Niekiba' bit your arm, are you alright?"

"This thing is called 'Nieqiba'?" Jiang Bing snapped his fingers, and a faint golden light flowed across his body, burning away his blood.

This rather fantastical scene did not arouse the curiosity of the two sisters, as if they were used to such methods.

This piqued Jiang Bing's curiosity.

"Are you a survivor from the shelter?" The other person was curious about Jiang Bing's ignorance.

"It's not important." Boss Jiang walked to the side, picked up his old walking stick that he had kept by him for many years, and straightened the bent part of the other person's walking stick.

The material of this cane is no longer keeping up with his current fighting pace.

"Who are you, and what are you doing here?"

Only then did Kara have the mind to pull open her tactical uniform and expel the sand inside.

"As you can see, we are scavengers, running a scrap yard in Chillon. We come to the Great Desert to scavenge and buy goods."

Jiang Bing glanced at the twin sisters and, sure enough, found a large number of electrical components, mechanical prosthetics, as well as various bolts, motors, coils, and electronic panels on the car they were lying in in the desert.

However, there was no food or water to be seen, as if the other party did not need to eat at all.

This is also normal.

"I am Kara, and this is my sister Kaya. May I ask your name, my benefactor?"

Sabur Jiang Bing looked out at the boundless desert, where a series of tire tracks stretched from afar, rapidly fading under the onslaught of wind and sand.

"Are you an 'angel', my benefactor?" Jiang Bing suddenly asked his sister Kaya, a question that puzzled him.

"He is a great warrior who descended from the heavens, a holy messenger of the Mother Goddess's realm."

Jiang Bing took the other party's explanation to heart.

"Kaya, don't talk nonsense. Angels are all female. Our benefactor is clearly a man."

As Kara spoke, she went to the side to push her own car.

“My benefactor, it’s not safe here. We need to leave immediately.” Kara, an experienced scavenger, knew the dangers of the Starfall Zone and advised Jiang Binggui.

Since arriving in this world, Jiang Bing had been observing the fallen star ring structure in the distance and hadn't noticed any danger here.

But this indigenous person had her reasons for saying that; she always listened to advice and ate her fill.

However, embarrassingly, the other party's motorcycle seemed to have some problems. Although there was no structural damage to the exterior, it just wouldn't start, which made Kara's sister very anxious.

Without transportation, walking back across this vast desert on foot would seem like a pipe dream.

She could only seize the time and begin to bury herself in the repairs.

That would be like showing off your skills in front of Guan Yu (a legendary Chinese martial artist).

Chapter 639 hope Yong

A pale, almost translucent finger gently tapped the retro-styled motorcycle as Jiang Bing examined this technological marvel with great interest.

"Please excuse my poor appearance, Mr. Sabur. This is an old relic, always breaking down. I'll definitely replace it with a more reliable hoverbike when we get back." Kara said, fiddling with the mechanical structure of the motorcycle's engine while nervously looking around, as if afraid that another monster might suddenly appear.

Jiang Bingke doesn't consider a motorcycle powered by high-density nano-batteries that can run for a year and extensively employs nanotechnology for detailed structural support to be an old relic.

Not to mention that this wheeled vehicle had just been speeding across the desert for dozens of kilometers at a speed of over 300 kilometers per hour, carrying two people.

The level of technology in this world is indeed ridiculously high to some extent.

Thinking of this, Jiang Bing subconsciously looked at the huge star ring debris in the distance. He could easily imagine how enormous the complete object must be, since it should be a planetary-level megastructure floating around the Earth in space.

'Birch Ring'

In his classic 1982 paper, "Orbital and Suborbital Ring Systems," British physicist Paul Birch explicitly proposed the concept of orbital rings. Although the construction scheme for the orbital rings in this world did not adopt the same high-speed particle flow construction scheme as the other side, it still created a star ring megastructure similar to the "orbital ring ecosystem" hypothesized by the other side.

This megastructure can be considered a key infrastructure for human civilization to move from a "planetary species" to an "orbital species." Its completion can almost simultaneously solve three major bottlenecks in civilization: energy, transportation, and ecology.

Space elevators, energy revolutions driven by space industrialization and space solar energy development, and interstellar springboards—their potential uses are countless.

It can be said that even without this thing, humanity might still be able to explore outer space and enter the interstellar age, but with this thing, humanity has definitely entered the interstellar age.

This is also a technology that Jiang Bing greatly covets.

If the cyber world can build this planetary-level megastructure, it would undoubtedly mean that the entire planet has fallen under the control of [Anti-Entropy].

As the saying goes, "the higher you go, the lower you go; you beat idiots." But attacking the ground from the ring of stars isn't even a complete stomp; just throwing a few big enough rocks at the ground can cause a huge uproar.

Going a step further, like this world where star rings crash, would be enough to destroy the entire planet's surface ecosystem in an instant. Just like this vast, desolate desert, it was undoubtedly created by those distant star rings that crashed.

Compared to such methods, nuclear bombs are truly just inferior cannon fire.

Orbital bombing is still the most exciting.

"It's caused by the 'resonance decoupling' phenomenon. The nano-units connecting the battery pack to the main energy channel support of the drive unit are overloaded, putting them in a temporary metastable stress equilibrium state. If I were you, I would try the 'Russian repair method'," Jiang Bing offered his opinion.

"Russian repair method?" Kara clearly had a high level of mechanical repair knowledge and fully understood the reasons given by Jiang Bing without any difficulty, but she had questions about the repair method.

Her response was Jiang Bing's swung cane.

The cane, weighing over 100 kilograms, slammed heavily onto the side of the motorcycle, causing it to shift two or three meters to the side. Strangely, when Jiang Bing withdrew the cane, the motorcycle mysteriously started moving again.

"This is the 'Russian way of repairing things'."

Kara didn't understand, but she was deeply shocked.

“Mr. Sabur, would you like to come back to Chion with us? We can squeeze in,” Kara invited.

"hope Yong?"

"Yes, the human settlement that shelters us, the last Eden."

Jiang Bing glanced at the small motorcycle and gave up his plan to temporarily become an 'Indian'. Although squeezing in with two beautiful women wasn't a bad experience, Boss Jiang wasn't the type to put up with hardship.

"I am indeed very interested in the Xiyong you mentioned, but I'll pass if I have to squeeze in."

He tapped his cane lightly, and a spatial rift suddenly opened in mid-air behind him. A shuttle, resembling the 'Sky One' but smaller and with a more streamlined shape, slowly drove out of the rift and landed beside the three of them.

"Get in my car."

Kara glanced at her own dusty, rusty, and worn motorcycle, then looked at the magnificent, high-class hovercar in front of her, its coating so shiny it reflected her image. For a moment, she was stunned.

After the nuclear explosion, Jiang Bing took the time to salvage the wreckage of "Sky Space-1" from the bottom of the bay.

Although the spaceship was almost completely destroyed by Jiang Bing's 'Flying Grass', fortunately, apart from the large hole in the abdomen and the dozen or so spirit rings surrounding the hull, the main structure was still relatively intact.

This undoubtedly saved Jiang Bing a significant amount of ether for his renovation plan.

The repaired spacecraft retained most of the functions of "Sky Space-1", but its size was reduced by several times.

After all, Rosalind Miles used it as a mobile office, taking a whole team with her on visits and diplomatic missions. But Jiang Bing had no need for it at all. For him, it was only used temporarily as a private jet. If there was a real need for large-scale transportation, 'Heiml' was the real god.

Kaya, the younger sister, was genuine; she carried a suitcase full of 'scrap' and followed Jiang Bing onto the spaceship.

“The car can be put in the back compartment; that’s a storage box.” Jiang Bing pointed to the tail of the plane, indicating that Kara could put her car there.

As a seasoned scavenger, Kara quickly realized that this was not the time to be indecisive. After arranging the items, she immediately offered her suggestions.

“We can go from the northwest and take a detour along the edge of Matrix 11. There are basically no anti-aircraft Nieqiba there, so it’s safer.”

Jiang Bing naturally readily accepted good advice.

………………

Chiron, a city in the wasteland, the Garden of Eden in Kara's words, the last refuge for the 'humans' of this world as they struggle to survive.

The entire city is built in a basin, a carefully chosen location with a very steep terrain, surrounded by bottomless cliffs. The main city of Xilon is built on a huge protruding stone pillar in the center of the basin, with numerous buildings clinging to the surrounding rock walls like moss.

The entire city was built on wasteland.

These were the residences of the residents. According to Kara, at the height of Shion, more than 100,000 people lived here. However, as the 'resources' near the city became increasingly scarce due to use, they were insufficient to support the daily activities of so many people. In addition, with the gradual shortage of energy, this 'food', most residents chose to go into hibernation.

As Xiyong gradually declined, these dwellings were abandoned.

Chapter 640 Doctors and Engineers

A large number of 'humans' chose to enter the 'Cradle' project initiated by the prophet of Chion, entering hibernation chambers to reduce resource consumption and wait for a future turning point. A small number of people chose to explore outwards, seeking new opportunities and demanding a way to survive in the dangerous wasteland, even though this required them to risk their lives at all times.

In Jiang Bing's view, this group of 'people' were more like human beings.

After all, the anthem of humanity is the anthem of courage.

The main urban area is connected to the edge of the basin by only a few metal pontoon bridges, making it an excellent natural stronghold that is easy to defend and difficult to attack.

Once the pontoon bridge is removed, even the flightless Nieqiba will be kept out.

But this only ensures that 'humans' living in cities can barely survive.

The final battle left the entire world in ruins (Jiang Bing speculated that the fall of the Star Ring directly wiped out the surface ecosystem). Without a systematic industry or resources, most of the people of Xiyong relied on scavenging in the wasteland to obtain the meager resources needed to survive.

Although the resources of 'humanity' in this world are outrageously abundant, with rich resources in areas such as wastelands, city ruins, and underground structures, it is wishful thinking to restore the glory of the past era of dominating the surface. The Nergigante, which is spread to every corner of the planet, is currently the undisputed leader in its ecological niche.

However, all of this has nothing to do with Jiang Bing.

His main task at present is to run his clinic well.

Yes, after many days, he finally returned to his old profession—practicing medicine.

After all, what could be more suitable for conducting research than a doctor who can get 'guinea pigs' to obediently come to your door?

The clinic is located in the mid-west of Shion, at a junkyard, right next to Sisters' Junk Shop.