Legend of the Cyber Heroes
Chapter 249 - 249 29 A Ray of Hope

249: Chapter 29: A Ray of Hope 249: Chapter 29: A Ray of Hope Xiang Shan realized a critical point.

The prosthetic eyes he was using now were the same pair that had disappeared with Martial Ancestor Xiang Shan during “The Only Defeat.”

At the end of the Sublimation War, under the assistance of “someone”, Martial Ancestor Xiang Shan attacked Yawgmoth’s Space Fleet, employing Decapitation Tactics.

However, he ultimately lost due to being outnumbered.

It was said that only the Protectors witnessed that scene.

There were legends in Jianghu that in that battle, Yawgmoth’s flagship even fell.

This was the closest encounter to success among the Martial God’s Eleven Defeats.

Of course, some believed that the subsequent assassination attempt “right before the Throne” was closer to success.

However, Martial Ancestor’s “The Only Defeat” was witnessed only by the Protectors.

There were no video records.

Yawgmoth and the “Kings” promoted later who participated in the support only stated that Xiang Shan had indeed been executed.

Now, the pair of prosthetic eyes that had disappeared with Martial Ancestor Xiang Shan had appeared again.

But this still couldn’t prove anything.

This “Xiang Shan”, even if he possessed these eyes, Martial Ancestor Xiang Shan’s DNA, and even memories, cannot definitively be identified as Xiang Shan.

Rather, it may be more likely that he “is not Xiang Shan.”

Since these eyes had disappeared with the fall of the Martial Ancestor, it was very probable that they ended up in the hands of the Protectors.

Xiang Shan pondered for a moment and asked, “So… did Xiang Shan also donate DNA data?”

“All of us—the subject recipients of the internal prototype modifications—donated our genetic data for research,” Tao Enhai said to Xiang Shan, his tone devoid of emotion.

“Aha.

Indeed, cloning isn’t difficult then,” Xiang Shan nodded.

“Using Xiang Shan’s genetic material to clone stem cells, then inducing them to differentiate into a nervous system, continuously uploading Martial Ancestor Xiang Shan’s memories, cultivating a personality close to Xiang Shan, and then extracting the memory storage disk.

Finally, assigning these prosthetic eyes.

An almost perfect replica of the original Xiang Shan would be ready.”

The reason Tao Enhai had just asked “if any Internal Strength was used amidst Iron Dust’s encirclement” was probably to confirm whether this Xiang Shan was under remote control.

Apart from the Forbidden Technique “Little Brother”, under popular understanding, a Pseudo-personality Mask couldn’t possibly exhibit Internal Strength.

But this wasn’t absolute.

If a Pseudo-personality Mask had a backend interface that could send data to a synchronously orbiting Internal Strength Master on standby, then simulating Internal Strength techniques wasn’t impossible.

However, such a concocted “Internal Strength Master” would give itself away in areas like Iron Dust or other electromagnetic signal-shielding locations.

So Tao Enhai urgently confirmed this point.

If it weren’t for Xiang Shan’s action during the assassination of Balbo, Tao Enhai probably wouldn’t have let it go.

“This should only indicate that I am not a Pseudo-personality Mask, and doesn’t prove that I am now safe, right?” Xiang Shan said.

“What if I still have other backdoor programs in my body?”

Although Xiang Shan remembered having a biological brain, this could also be a disguise.

The active part might not be the biological section of this brain but could be a chip hidden within the biological brain.

Or, that chip might seize control of the prosthetic body at a critical moment, delivering a fatal strike to the Hero.

To Tao Enhai, considering his expertise, this was not a far-fetched idea.

“Your Internal Strength, though somewhat outdated in idea, is still highly skilled.

If we really let such a person enter an electromagnetic signal-shielding area, the possibility of losing control isn’t small.

As long as you have this awareness, you will do everything to remove backdoors from your body—besides, according to your memory, when you awoke, there were no electronic devices on your body at all,” Tao Enhai scoffed.

“If such backdoor programs really existed, you would have already removed them yourself.”

“So, is it possible that I am indeed the original Xiang Shan?”

“Absolutely not!”

Tao Enhai immediately denied.

No matter how one thought about it, it was very strange.

How could a person who was executed over two hundred years ago appear out of nowhere?

How could Xiang Shan possibly escape just by a head—a head with no power?

Besides, even if he really had escaped from death at that time, how had he survived these two hundred years?

—No, that’s not right…

Tao Enhai suddenly realized something.

The realization struck him like flint, sparking a series of “ecstasies” in his heart—although they were insignificant compared to the darkness.

But… but…

—Think about it carefully…

think about it carefully…

Tao Enhai looked at Xiang Shan.

—The reason a corpse decays is because of the mass of bacteria within the human body…

When humans are alive, bacteria are controlled by the immune system.

If a symbiotic microorganism invades the body, or if their numbers are too great, the immune system will react.

However, when a human dies, the immune system ceases to function.

Therefore, the human body becomes a large breeding ground made up of proteins and fats.

Which in turn attracts a variety of scavengers.

But…

Benchmark Men are not considered native organisms of Earth’s biosphere.

The native bacteria of Earth are unable to decompose the bodies of Benchmark Men.

Decomposers that can break down metal-based organisms are mostly products of genetic engineering.

Tao Enhai remembered that the various metal-based decomposers now surviving in the wild were the result of the domestication of microbial systems in civilian biological resource recycling systems—the same things once used by Yuki to process deceased’s brains.

These things were born long after the Martial Ancestor Xiang Shan’s “The Only Defeat.”

As for parasites targeting Benchmark Men, or other metal-based wild animals, they too have only come into existence in the last hundred years.

Initially, Martial Ancestor Xiang Shan himself was a fully modified Cybernetically Enhanced Person with very few symbiotic microorganisms in his body.

Those symbiotic microorganisms could not decompose the brain.

Therefore…

—If it were two hundred years ago, a brain would not easily decay…

—But before that…

cells would decompose on their own…

a dead person’s brain would be broken down by enzymes into ordinary proteins…

the deceased’s own enzymes would also decompose their own.

That’s how it should be…

When humans die, the first wave to decompose the body isn’t even microorganisms, but the enzymes native to the human body.

Although these enzymes soon lose activity due to the body’s death and only play a minor role in the decomposition process, they are still terrifying enough.

—At the instant of death, the brain would be lysed by lysosomes…

ah…

wait a second…

Suddenly, Tao Enhai felt like laughing.

He really wanted to laugh.

Just now, he had desperately searched for phenomena following the natural death of a Benchmark Man.

Then, he discovered a hilariously tragic fact.

So far, among the test subjects of gene modification surgery, not a single individual has died a natural death.

Everyone—whether from here or there—everyone is either still alive and fighting, or died a violent death, blown to pieces without a trace left.

He didn’t know what process a Benchmark Man’s brain undergoes after natural death.

This process might likely differ from that of regular organisms.

Because…

Their enzyme systems have been artificially overhauled.

“Cracking the enzyme system” was Yawgmoth’s greatest accomplishment in his lifetime.

A few Nobel Prizes for it were just icing on the cake, it’s a feat only “history” is qualified to evaluate.

He overhauled the human enzyme system.

Naturally, this artificial enzyme system contains bugs.

Early metal-based experimental animals, as well as the prototype Benchmark Men, all had one bug or another.

“After cell death, it’s possible that lysosomes fail to properly decompose the cells” could happen.

For a Natural Person made entirely of flesh, this is a very malignant bug.

It means their entire body’s tissue is nearly like cancer cells, with apoptosis programs failing.

However, the metabolic rate of the brain’s nervous system is very slow.

Yes, that’s right.

Later documents have described the generation of new neurons within the human brain and the brain’s certain self-healing ability.

But generally, the trend is that the number of brain cells in the brain is decreasing.

Unused neurons naturally degenerate while frequently used neural circuits are encapsulated by specialized myelin sheaths, forming efficient circuits.

In other words, this bug is of no consequence for a fully modified Cybernetically Enhanced Person!

Tao Enhai’s hand trembled slightly.

—If that’s the case…

If this skull truly lay there more than two hundred years ago—regardless of how it got there, let’s assume it was just there—then it indeed might have been in suspended animation for more than two hundred years!

There’s a type of tardigrade on Earth, commonly known as “water bear.” In certain environments, they can completely halt their metabolism and enter into a prolonged cryptobiosis state.

This state is known as “cryptobiosis.”

Cryptobiotic tardigrades are actually very fragile.

Hundreds of degrees of temperature, mechanical damage, and similar factors can truly kill them.

But if there’s no external disturbance…

Tardigrades are not decomposed by their own lysosomes…

Because their enzyme system has stopped working…

If conditions are right, tardigrades can revive—the current record being cryptobiosis for 120 years.

—If one really had to say, would the final enemy be oxidation then?

Metal-based proteins, due to their chemical properties being similar to metals, are easily damaged by oxidation reactions.

—Wait a minute…

When Xiang Shan awoke, there were large charred areas inside his cranial cavity, resembling electronic products melted under high temperatures.

This was a memory shared by Xiang Shan.

This layer of melted area nearly covered the entire brain-machine interface.

—Could that have possibly blocked oxidation…

—But no…

if the area around this head was sufficiently enclosed, and air didn’t circulate there…

after oxygen was exhausted, oxidation reactions couldn’t continue…

Tao Enhai looked at Xiang Shan again.

—Is this possible?