Legend of the Cyber Heroes
Chapter 772 - 18: The Final Treatment Method

Chapter 772: Chapter 18: The Final Treatment Method

Jeanne sat on the edge of the building, looking at the syringe in her hand, "Do you mean I have to inject all of this Restoring Enzyme at once?"

One-Word Hu, Old Xiang Shan, stood beside her, nodding towards the vast land in the distance, "Yes, it has to be this much."

Jeanne looked down, "I think we have been getting along normally."

"Don’t forget, the network of neurons that carries my consciousness is no longer a regular one—those re-differentiated cells are not neurons in the conventional sense, but a new form of nerve cells. Their proto-oncogenes are in an active state—they will grow, they will drill into your glial cells, they will compress your original neural network. And their growth will also change my consciousness—I don’t know what consequences their growth will bring. In the worst case scenario, it’s possible that my personality could drastically change after a while."

Xiang Shan stood with his hands behind his back, gazing at the dark red sunrise, "I would also hope to find an effective treatment, Jeanne. But I am just a computer engineer, not a genetic engineer. I don’t possess the talent of Yawgmoth or Niyaguti. You still have some time left, but I don’t know how much longer our harmonious time can last. I can only find a way to handle the worst case scenario in advance and ensure that I don’t harm you at the most critical moment."

The light from Jeanne’s Prosthetic Eye flickered continuously, with a frequency close to "frantic breathing." Anyone could see that she was very angry at this moment.

"You’ve got to be kidding me!" Jeanne roared, "Restoring Enzymes, these large biomolecules, aren’t something that just enter cells through osmotic pressure! They rely on the active acceptance of the cell membrane! The rate at which this happens is limited! It’s not possible that it only affects you and not me!"

Superman Enterprise had chosen Restoring Enzyme instead of other simpler signaling factors initially for this very consideration.

The rate of Restoring Enzyme absorption by cells was restricted, which meant the duration it lasted on an individual cell was relatively easy to control.

Only after entering the cells does the Restoring Enzyme take part in that complex chemical reaction, "lighting up" many previously non-existent pathways, then generating signaling factors, imposing a series of commands into the nerve cells.

The 18:3 Potion used to reverse the life cycle of the immune system, on the other hand, could be directly mixed into the signaling factors.

Since the absorption rate of Restoring Enzymes is limited and controllable, Superman Enterprise had chosen this particular potion.

But now, this upper limit of absorption rate had become an obstacle that Jeanne must confront.

Or rather... it was impossible for her to exceed.

"Why not divide it into multiple doses?"

"Because if it’s less than this amount, there’s no guarantee that it would erase me in one shot," sighed Xiang Shan. "Are you trying to compete with me in a battle of willpower, girl?"

"What’s the difference?"

"If the injected amount is too little, then it’s just normal Internal Strength Cultivation. I would only get stronger because of it. Or a slightly larger amount, each time the impact on me would be much greater compared to ’cultivating Internal Strength’—in such a situation, you will inevitably be affected as well," Tumor Xiang Shan explained. "To use a game analogy, it’s like causing five points of damage to me, and then one point of damage to you."

"Is that bad?"

"But my recovery rate is three points each turn, while yours is one point every two turns. My total HP is several times... many times yours." Tumor Xiang Shan continued, "At first, I might indulge you, allowing the Restoring Enzyme to take effect without directing the reconstruction of the neural network. But the Restoring Enzyme will make me forget ’why I should indulge this girl.’ The instinct for survival will surely lead me to start actively guiding the construction of Soth Divine Realm—on this point, I far surpass you, child. By then I might end up controlling your body, modifying the medication process, allowing more Restoring Enzyme to act on you. By that time, I will have forgotten the current matters, driven only by the instinct to survive."

Jeanne sneered, "Just like when you were clamoring to take over my brain in the beginning?"

"Correct." Tumor Xiang Shan did not shy away. "Using surgery to physically destroy the part that belongs to me carries another kind of risk—we are now sharing part of our brain’s neurons. It could also potentially damage your cognitive ability. The only way is to inject a sufficient dose of Restoring Enzyme at once—a one-time adequate amount. Even if the Restoring Enzyme makes me forget the present and the reasons for yielding, the outcome cannot be reversed. Only by doing this will you have a chance."

Jeanne, bewildered, clutched the potion bottle and then stared at Xiang Shan, suddenly realizing, "You want me to be discouraged and back down, don’t you?"

Xiang Shan shook his head.

"It has to be that way. You’re trying to convince me that even if I get rid of you, I won’t survive anyway..." Jeanne said excitedly, "But, come on! Come on! You don’t think you’re the only one in the whole world who can rival others in willpower, do you? Come on!"

"No, just in terms of willpower, there must be many people in this world far superior to me. I think the Fourth Martial God must be an extraordinary person, even stronger than the original me. Perhaps any random Hero who survived from two hundred years ago could outdo the current me. Even ’Xiang Shan’ is not some amazing guy. At critical moments, Xiang Shan will waver and want to escape as well," Xiang Shan said. "But the person who can overcome Xiang Shan with willpower isn’t you, now, Jeanne. You have no belief in anything, you affirm nothing—you lack conviction."

"To hell with conviction!"

"Convictions and beliefs aren’t something you’re born with. Xiang Shan, no matter what, has struggled for nearly a hundred years with the realization that ’I carry the fate of billions of people in the world’. You might become stronger than me if you went through such training, but not now." Tumor Xiang Shan said, "I hope that you can become that strong... but at the same time, I hope you never have to become that strong."

Jeanne felt her legs go weak. A sensation she had never, ever experienced before began to seep from the depths of her heart. It was as if a spring of water was welling up from the sand.

This alien feeling...

"We now share part of a neural network."

Jeanne rested her arm on the rooftop’s genetically-modified plant and whispered, "So, these are your emotions..."

"Just as you can sense what I’m thinking now, Jeanne," Tumor Xiang Shan said. "This is a matter of emotional depth... The sheer volume of data or the absolute length of psychological age is not a necessary standard. On this level, you can’t defeat me."

Jeanne nodded. "There truly is no hope in this world... How can there be such... such..."

"It’s not that I’m strong, so I’ve accomplished those things. It’s because I’ve done those things, so I’ve become strong." Tumor Xiang Shan said, "Xiang Shan has faced many choices. Many times he didn’t know what to do, many times he wanted to give up... Even the first step on this path, he was pushed by someone else. But with the help of many people, he came a long way. You may not remember the names of those people now, but they are also a part of this will, Jeanne."

"It is precisely because Xiang Shan has surpassed so many choices, that there is me standing here... er, growing here. If there had been any deviation in those choices, the me you see now might not be like this."

Jeanne said, "The nodes of history are once in a lifetime, there will never be another you."

"There isn’t just one kind of strength in the world. In terms of emotion, ’the love for humanity’ might not necessarily be stronger or nobler than ’the nostalgia for childhood’, ’the pursuit of skill,’" Xiang Shan said. "If you want to defeat me on the level of willpower, you can start from now—remember every choice you make."

Jeanne was silent for a moment.

—Alright then, at this stage, I still need the power of the Martial God to escape pursuit...

Jeanne stood up, "So, what should we do now?"

"I think, this should also be your decision to make," Tumor Xiang Shan said.

"Why?"

"Firstly, this is a fundamental exercise, child. You must learn to make choices and bear the consequences," Xiang Shan said. "Then, it is certain now that I am the product of an evil plan. Perhaps any decision I make is within that Black Hand’s consideration. At this time, it should be you who leads me to decide, Jeanne."