I can upgrade the shelter

Because the mobile base is powered by a nuclear reactor, it doesn’t need to stop for refueling like conventional vehicles. Moreover, the passenger cabin inside the mobile base ensures that even at night, the base can continue moving forward without the need for personnel to rest, which would affect its operation.

However, despite it being nighttime, Chen Xin still hadn’t rested.

On one hand, the vibrations and sounds emanating from the vehicle made it difficult for him to sleep. On the other hand, he was preoccupied with the matter of Lucia discovering the ancient virus.

The existence of ancient viruses had been confirmed by scientists long ago.

These viruses, sealed away underground for tens of thousands of years, are fundamentally different from the modern viruses facing humanity today. The key point is that various conventional antibiotics used by humans are ineffective against ancient viruses.

Perhaps some might think modern viruses are more formidable than ancient ones; today’s viruses have evolved through the challenges posed by antibiotics. If modern viruses struggle against humans, what threat could ancient viruses possibly pose?

Moreover, viruses have specificity and evolve uniquely based on their hosts, making them incompatible with humans. How could they possibly infect humans?

Worrying about ancient viruses might seem like undue concern.

However, these views are completely mistaken.

The reason humanity isn’t afraid of viruses today is that we have constructed a complete defense system using antibiotics and modern medicine to keep viral threats outside the human body.

In reality, without the protection of the modern medical system, without the immune system built by a vast array of antibiotics and vaccines, humanity would be nothing but pitiable weaklings in the face of various natural viruses.

A pre-catastrophe COVID-19 pandemic already exposed humanity’s frailty when confronting viruses; without the protection of the modern medical system, frail humans would struggle to combat highly lethal and contagious viruses, forced to gamble on the one-in-ten-thousand chance of herd immunity.

Even with the protection of modern medical systems, achieving victory against unknown viruses remains challenging.

The battle between humans and viruses is merely a race against death. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

The mutation capability of viruses is their most powerful weapon. Although modern medical technology is rapidly advancing, virus mutations have never stopped.

Humans can develop vaccines for a specific virus, but new viruses continually emerge. In this war between humans and viruses, humans remain on the defensive, forced to react passively.

Ancient viruses represent a new enemy humanity has never faced.

Fortunately, the extreme cold environment of the post-apocalyptic world limits virus spread, and the great distance between the Flame Country and Lucia physically blocks the virus from entering Flame Country, allowing it the time needed to respond calmly.

However, this is only temporary. The prior meteor collision that caused global fires affected the ice caps in the North and South Poles, the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the Siberian Plateau, and other regions, releasing ancient viruses buried under ice and snow for millions of years. It’s only a matter of time before their threat and impact manifest.

Currently, the Flame Country hasn’t experienced epidemic outbreaks, but this doesn’t mean it can rest easy.

Thus, Chen Xin’s current consideration is how to prevent potential epidemics.

Defending against virus invasion isn’t overly difficult. The official shelters under construction were designed with the filtration of harmful airborne substances in mind. In unforeseen circumstances, viruses cannot enter the shelter through the air.

Strictly adhering to hygiene regulations and implementing rigorous prevention measures can sufficiently guard against infections.

But passive defense doesn’t solve the problem: having a shield requires an offensive spear as well!

For this, Chen Xin isn’t a medical expert or a virus research specialist, but he knows that the most effective means of combating viruses is vaccines!

Vaccines are automatic immune agents made from attenuated, inactivated, or genetically engineered pathogenic microorganisms (such as bacteria, rickettsiae, and viruses) and their metabolites, used to prevent infectious diseases.

Vaccines retain the ability of pathogens to stimulate an animal’s immune system. When an animal encounters these non-harmful pathogens, the immune system produces protective substances such as immune hormones, active physiological substances, and specific antibodies.

Thus, when an animal is exposed to the pathogen again, its immune system recalls its memory to produce more protective substances to prevent harm.

To manufacture vaccines, the original virus strain is essential, followed by processes like attenuation, filtration, animal testing, and human trials.

Under normal circumstances, developing a vaccine typically takes three to five years, or even more than ten years, before it can be clinically used.

Thus, finding efficient ways to develop vaccines quickly and shorten the research cycle is crucial in fighting viruses.

Under normal conditions, even with significant investment, the process can’t be hastened—the necessary steps cannot be skipped.

However, for Chen Xin, with system support as a backing, he might consider crafting equipment capable of rapidly manufacturing vaccines and scaling up production.

This isn’t a particularly difficult task for Chen Xin.

Besides, this matter has also shifted his focus to the medical field.

Perhaps he should develop some effective medical equipment?

Chen Xin thinks this should be put on the agenda.

He took out a small notebook he always carried, filled with various ideas and plans. Some were already implemented; others had changed, with some yet to be achieved.

Writing down the tasks of developing medical equipment and vaccine preparation devices for viruses in the notebook, Chen Xin also pondered what kind of medical equipment he should create.

For Chen Xin, manufacturing medical equipment isn’t challenging; even an automated surgical chamber or a nanobot capable of entering the body to eradicate cancer cells isn’t tough to produce.

However, he believes that rather than therapeutic medical equipment, a portable, compact, and precise diagnostic instrument should be prioritized.

After all, often the challenge lies not in treatment but in timely detection and diagnosis.

As for what kind of diagnostic instrument to create, Chen Xin thinks the Three-Record Device commonly used by McCoy in "Star Trek" is a bit of a fine choice.