Legend of the Cyber Heroes
Chapter 136 - 136 56 s Doubt

136: 56 chapters Doubt 136: 56 chapters Doubt “Cui, have you recently felt anything unusual about your spine?”

When Xiang Shan asked this question, he actually felt a bit nervous.

Today, he had felt something odd about his own neck.

Specifically, when he flipped that behemoth that descended from the sky with a punch, he felt a stabbing pain in the back of his neck.

This was unusual.

The sensors on the outside of his spine had been stripped away, and even if there were a sensation of pain, it should have been “phantom pain.”

But when his fist collided with the sole of that giant’s foot, he indeed felt pain in the back of his neck—a pain that was very different from “phantom pain.”

After all, the giant’s weight exceeded five tons.

No matter how clever his force was, there was bound to be a rebound force.

And it was normal for this rebound force to permeate through the shock absorption system and act on the biological parts.

Yet, to feel “pain” was truly abnormal.

After all, Xiang Shan had no nerves that could feel pain.

This made him wonder if there might be some issue with his own spine.

However, he clearly remembered that the spot where he felt pain was not the part connected to his spine, but a higher area.

This led Xiang Shan to speculate whether his spine itself might be damaged, or perhaps…

his surgical skills were actually subpar.

Indeed, Xiang Shan remembered that he had passed a qualification exam.

But lately, he had remembered more.

In order to obtain “the authority for independent decision-making and a massive budget,” he and others, including Yawgmoth, had established a company.

That company later became a super giant that determined the direction of human technology and had partnerships with various major countries.

He was a top scientist and a super-wealthy individual.

But in a sense, here lay the problem.

Obtaining a medical qualification usually required an undergraduate or higher degree in medicine, and a year of work under the guidance of a professional physician in a medical institution.

But unfortunately, these conditions were…

fairly simple for him in the latter half of the 21st century.

First, at that time, he was one of the world’s leading scientists, the leading figure of a super major project, a frequent recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, and a close friend of the “Father of New Age Biology.” In such circumstances, with various accolades to his name, as long as he did not make any outrageously nonsensical statements, any medical university would be happy to grant him a degree.

Many famous scholars have many different degrees, but those were mostly honorary degrees granted by universities after they had become famous, to honor their contributions.

Those big shots didn’t have the leisure to take tests and defend their theses one by one.

“Achieving high academic accomplishments” or “significantly advancing the field in ways other than academically,” could earn one an honorary degree.

And for Xiang Shan, simply going through the motions to get an ordinary degree was also quite simple.

As for proof of work in a medical institution…

Unfortunately, he had medical institutions under him…

Xiang Shan’s organization had established collaborative projects with many hospitals.

To be precise, it was not “he worked in a medical institution” but rather “medical institutions worked under him.”

Now that he thought about it…

there might be something fishy here!

This process might have some issues, but in front of his other identity—”top tycoon”—it seemed not to be a problem.

Given the taxes he paid annually and his status in the academic community, the organizations that issued certificates were willing to turn a blind eye.

Xiang Shan felt that, according to his personality, as long as he had passed the final exams through genuine ability, he probably wouldn’t mind too much about the process.

But, but…

What if this “possibly slightly questionable” process had laid hidden dangers in his medical techniques?

For instance, he might not have gone through the necessary “phase of identifying and fixing deficiencies” or something…

This needed to be clearly addressed!

That’s why Xiang Shan had asked this question.

But Cui Hai was unaware of the implications, saying, “Senior’s skills are exquisite.

I was experiencing some phantom pain a few days ago, but it has healed recently.

The post-surgery results are truly excellent.”

Xiang Shan asked, “When you exert yourself, do you feel…

a stabbing pain or anything like it?”

“A stabbing pain?” Cui Hai questioned, “How could there be a stabbing pain?

Senior must be joking.”

Xiang Shan breathed a slight sigh of relief, “That’s what I thought.

It doesn’t seem to be an issue with my skills.”

Cui Hai questioned, “Senior, do you have any unusual sensations?”

Xiang Shan nodded, “Today when I went out, I had a minor conflict with a gang and encountered an enemy weighing several tons.

Although I used finesse over brute force…

theoretically speaking, moving that ‘great force’ with ‘finesse’ was still a solid punch for me.

I think my spine might have been affected, causing a stabbing pain.”

“A stabbing pain?

That shouldn’t be right…

I don’t feel anything like that at all.”

Huang Ouguang said, “As a junior somewhat proficient in Traditional Chinese Medicine, I’ve heard of similar symptoms.

If Senior doesn’t mind, I could have a look for you.”

This, however, required trust.

After all, the external armor of cybernetically enhanced people could block X-rays and other inspection techniques that relied on different frequency bands, so to perform a simple examination, the external armor had to be removed.

What Sister Huang suggested examining was the spine, which for benchmark men was also considered a “vital” area.

If they were restricted hastily, the combat effectiveness of the prosthetic body would decrease by at least ten percent.

Xiang Shan quickly switched his prosthetic body to remote mode, then said, “This is going to be troublesome.”

Remote mode not only slowed down the efficiency of information transmission but also made it susceptible to techniques targeting electromagnetic waves, such as aerosolized metal particles.

Xiang Shan was confident, however, that if someone were to throw in a piece of Iron Dust while he was being examined, he would be able to react quickly and kick it out the window.

The external armor of Xiang Shan’s prosthetic body was divided into many individual armor pieces, each capable of moving independently.

His back armor opened in sequence, revealing a metallic-looking spine.

Sister Huang extended a finger and gently touched the upper part of Xiang Shan’s cervical spine, “May I ask, Senior, do you feel anything?”

Xiang Shan was silent for a moment, then asked, “Does your finger have any special functions?

Like emitting electromagnetic waves or something?”

Sister Huang shook her head, “This prosthetic hand is of poor performance and doesn’t have such effects.”

“Then…”

“That shouldn’t be, should it?”

Xiang Shan said so.

He indeed had a “sense of touch.”

But this was abnormal.

Because he should not have had any sense of touch.

All non-central nervous tissue had been removed from his body.

Not every nerve cell is sensory; typically, only those differentiated into “receptors” can generate nerve signals based on stimuli.

He should not have had tactile senses.

Yet, Sister Huang said, “Well, this is just a normal regenerative abnormal proliferation of the nervous system, leading to a small amount of nerve cells adhering to the spine—not a significant problem…”

Xiang Shan exclaimed, “What?”

Sister Huang startled, “Did I say something wrong?

Senior…”

“No, no, no, you didn’t say anything wrong…

I just didn’t expect to have this issue.” Xiang Shan said, “Take a picture immediately and send it to me…”

After Sister Huang completed the photograph, Xiang Shan quickly closed his external armor and carefully examined the photo sent by Sister Huang.

Due to the limited capabilities of Sister Huang’s prosthetic eye, the photograph didn’t capture a clear cellular structure.

But Xiang Shan indeed saw tiny proliferative tissue on the surface of a signal receiver attached to the side of his cervical spine.

Sister Huang continued, “Indeed, this condition is quite rare, only gaining attention decades ago.

It is said that some heroes experienced this abnormal regenerative proliferation due to non-standard gene therapy.

Over the course of decades, such proliferation accumulates and leads to this condition.

It’s not a significant problem, really, as long as you clean it carefully and prevent the nerves from covering the signal receiver…”

“Wait a minute, Sister Huang…” Yuki suddenly stood up and asked, “You mean…

how long would this take?”

Sister Huang replied, “Decades of accumulation, I guess?

Before the Sublimation War, those old seniors seemed unaware of this issue, only discovering it after the war, when the first generation of old heroes noticed it.

However, randomly soldering nerves and circuits together can cause trouble, so it’s generally treated as a disease.”

At this, the Heroine couldn’t help but look at Yuki with envy.

The credentials of this old senior were more profound than imagined.

This young man being under the tutelage of such a Great Hero was indeed a great fortune.

Yet Yuki looked at Xiang Shan suspiciously.

Decades?

No, absolutely not.

Yuki was very aware that just a few months ago, Xiang Shan only had a head left.

That neural signal receiver was also installed in the organization Z base.

If it were really a normal regenerative abnormal growth, it wouldn’t have manifested so soon.

However, Yuki remained silent.

Over these days, he had come to understand why Xiang Shan had chosen to conceal his real name from Cui Hai and the others.

Just like the master had said a few months ago, perhaps the master was indeed the most formidable hero in the past, one so dangerous that even mentioning his name could be hazardous.

If it were not something arranged by Xiang Shan himself, Yuki would not casually reveal these details.

But Xiang Shan thought even more.

He became aware of more dissonance in his own body.

For instance, his brain needed only a minimal supply of water and energy to operate long-term.

Yet, when he was just unearthed by Yuki, he had consumed quite a lot of Copper Candy and other nutrients.

He hadn’t realized it at the time, but now, upon reflection…

this might have been determined by the abnormal functions of his nervous system.

He needed more nutrients to repair nerve damage.

From Sister Huang’s words, he could conclude that even among heroes, this anomaly was rare.

However, at the same time, Xiang Shan inevitably thought of another force.

Demon Sect.