Legend of the Cyber Heroes
Chapter 266 - 266 46 Decision

266: Chapter 46 Decision 266: Chapter 46 Decision That night, Tao Enhai suffered from insomnia.

He tossed and turned, unable to sleep, his mind filled with images of the trembling white mouse from the video.

That little mouse began to show signs of recovery the day after being injected with XHD126, and it started moving again after seven days.

Though it moved with the unsteady tumbling akin to late-stage Parkinson’s, it was indeed moving.

“XHD126, a biochemical agent that, in theory, could reverse the life cycle of nerve cells, causing them to revert and regrow—of course, the specific components and approach are confidential,” the somewhat flippant man had described it as, “If used correctly, it might even heal neurological trauma previously thought beyond repair.”

Speaking of which, that man named “Xiang Shan,” as a businessman, might not have been particularly competent.

Throughout the whole introduction, he didn’t discuss Tao Enhai’s compensation, the projects he could work on, or even his salary, glossing over those with a mere “all that is negotiable.”

It seemed almost like a scene out of a major scam.

If it had been any other supporting material, Tao Enhai might just have pondered, “What foolishness is this capitalist up to now?”

But the conditions that man had offered…

Tao Enhai silently rose from bed, gently closed the bedroom door, and the hallway’s automatic sensor lights turned on.

Amidst the dismal white light, he pushed open the bathroom door, sat on the toilet, and lit a cigarette.

He rarely smoked, so he coughed.

Tao Enhai buried his face in his hands.

It was only when he slept that he took off his gloves.

His hand bore numerous ghastly scars that cut across his palms.

Even among those who lived rough lives, such horrific scars were rare to see.

The incident had happened at the beginning of the year.

The cause traced back twelve years when a colleague of his had dared to perform neurosurgery on an old man.

Such surgery was highly risky, and the recovery for elderly patients was poor at best.

Moreover, they were prone to neurodegenerative diseases, making it easy to find fault with the procedure.

Many neurosurgeons would opt for conservative treatment whenever possible.

However, that Old Senior had gone ahead with the surgery.

The recovery was positive at the time, and the results of the operation were quite clear.

Having just joined the hospital, Tao Enhai heard of the case and was deeply moved.

Twelve years passed, and the old patient had died a natural death.

For someone of that age, it was a demise free from ailments.

However, the old man’s son was convinced that the death was a delayed consequence of the surgery from twelve years earlier.

He didn’t believe the hospital’s autopsy report, thinking, “All hospitals are in collusion.” He sought “revenge for his mother” and, armed with a knife, infiltrated the neurosurgery department of Ditan Hospital.

Tao Enhai’s clinic was next to the old doctor’s.

So Tao Enhai was stabbed multiple times.

Afterward, Tao Enhai had also despondently wondered if he had lost his ability to judge the situation.

When the knife came at him, he actually used his hands to block it.

A kitchen knife would struggle to penetrate the skull as long as it didn’t hit the carotid artery on the neck.

A few cuts on the face and head wouldn’t be fatal in a hospital—perhaps even the scars wouldn’t be too noticeable if the surgery was skilled.

But the hands…

His hands, which had performed countless surgeries, and his self-proclaimed well-honed skills, were sliced to shreds.

No wonder that guy was so sure that he would join the company advocating Transhumanism.

“I heard about your situation from a colleague at another neuroscientific research institute.” Xiang Shan said, “I admire your medical ethics, Doctor Tao.

I think as a doctor, you shouldn’t just end things this way.”

—Come help us, and heal yourself.

That was the man’s underlying message.

There was precedent for this.

Abroad, a genius in the academic field, plagued by a rare genetic disease, had foreseen his own death early on.

Yet, he didn’t simply give up on himself or seek solace in the “Other Side.” Instead, the genius devoted himself to the medical field, researching his own condition, extending his life repeatedly.

He struggled until his death.

“Heal myself,” Tao Enhai pondered.

At that moment, the bathroom door was knocked upon, “Honey, are you awake?”

Tao Enhai quickly tossed the cigarette butt into the toilet and turned on the exhaust fan with a voice command.

At the same time, he opened the door with an apologetic look, “Sorry, did I wake you?”

The woman shook her head, “What’s going on with you today?

You seem restless?”

Tao Enhai shook his head, “It’s nothing… forget it.

It’s about what happened this morning.”

“The person you met in the parking lot this morning?

Was he there to poach you?” His wife tidied her disheveled hair, “Isn’t that a good thing?”

Tao Enhai nodded, “It might be a good opportunity.

It’s just that I’m a bit worried… What if the company offered me this chance out of pity?

Or to use me as a figure to boost their corporate image?”

The incident of his assault was a significant social event that drew a lot of media attention.

He had these concerns.

The company hiring him might not be interested in the contributions he could make in research but rather in his value for publicity.

His wife yawned, “If they have ill intentions, just reject them.

Even if the terms are good, we can’t collaborate with a dishonest company!”

Doctor Tao shook his head, “He said, ‘The terms are negotiable.’ I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or not.

But…

the company is not that closely related to the field I used to work in.

There are many talented people there.

I feel…

they don’t really have a reason to specifically seek me out.”

His wife shook her head, “That company?

Are they that impressive?

Who’s there?”

According to common knowledge, scholars in academia are generally considered three notches more noble than those in the industrial world.

“Vigette,” said Doctor Tao.

“The research department is led by Vigette.”

“Vigette…” His wife’s sleepiness flew away instantaneously, “Are you talking about Vigette?

Yawgmoth Voigt?”

For people at the end of the 21st century’s third decade, the name “Yawgmoth Voigt” was akin to “Albert Einstein” at the end of the 1940s.

Doctor Tao nodded, “That’s what the information says.

So I’m a little worried that if I join such an impressive company, I might just end up warming the bench for a long time.”

According to what Chairman Xiang Shan introduced today, “XHD126” is a technology that works at the cellular level.

Additionally, this technology seems to still be in an “unusable” state.

After nerves are restored, they do not revert to their previous state but have to regrow.

This growth process is also difficult to control.

Furthermore, it involves quite a pronounced phenomenon of abnormal proliferation.

There’s still a long way to go before it can be applied to humans.

But as Doctor Tao saw it, this process was clearly more on the molecular biology level.

It had little to do with neurosurgery.

Even if he joined the project, he might at best be able to lead a small group.

Or merely serve as a senior technician.

He still very much hoped to shine.

“What on earth are you thinking about!

Yawgmoth Voigt!” His wife covered her forehead, “If the project group is related to him, that’s textbook material for sure!

It’s a great opportunity…

no, a once-in-a-lifetime chance!”

Doctor Tao’s mouth moved slightly.

A small fable he had read when he was very young seemed to stick in his chest.

A group of stranded fish, and a child throwing small fish back into the sea.

“This little fish matters.”

He still remembered.

He didn’t really want to warm the bench in a big company.

Only, the other party really, truly hadn’t discussed “what projects you could bring with you after joining.”

Seeing Doctor Tao so troubled, his wife sighed, patted his face, and said, “Just do whatever makes you happy.

Husband…

as long as you’re happy with what you do, no one will blame you.

Don’t put too much pressure on yourself—and smoke less, it’s bad for your health.”

Doctor Tao poured himself a glass of water in the dining room.

That man hadn’t discussed “what could be done after joining,” nor had he made any promises about position.

He had also asked why.

“Why approach me?” Doctor Tao had asked confusedly at the time, “I don’t feel I could contribute much to a project that is primarily about molecular biology.”

Xiang Shan had smiled and said, “Doctor Tao, are you familiar with ‘Transhumanism’?”

“Transhumanism believes that the human body is adapted to a hunter-gatherer lifestyle.

Moreover, most of human culture and beliefs have only stayed at the onset of the agricultural era.

Whether it’s the brain or the spirit, the speed of evolution has been vastly overtaken by the industrial revolution.

We should, based on reason, make use of science and technology to compensate for the imperfections of the human body and mind, allowing human civilization to transcend past boundaries.”

“As you’ve seen, if XHD126 can enter clinical trials, it will represent a major innovation for neurosurgery and neurological medicine, making many old things meaningless.

We are building a new kind of medicine—and in this process, we believe that we might need experts related to medicine for guidance.”

“Additionally, XHD126 is just one project in our company.

In fact, we have many more.

Gene therapy, brain-machine interfaces, prosthetic bodies…

These are all within the scope of our company’s business.

Any technology related to the human body you can think of, we are involved in.

We believe you can shine here.”

It sounded full of pie-in-the-sky promises and unreliability.

But…

if it were true…

Doctor Tao remembered watching a movie when he was still in school.

The protagonist was a surgeon, who, due to a car accident, had both hands rendered useless.

That surgeon tried every conceivable method to recover his hands.

In the end, he even turned to witchcraft and magic.

Fortunately, in the fictional world of the film, magic really did exist.

In the past, Doctor Tao had thought that the surgeon lacked a materialist spirit and was resorting to desperate measures due to his illness.

But now, after feeling empathy…

“A magic of life,” he murmured softly.