Apocalypse: I Build A Doomsday Train-Chapter 807 - 349: Right Here!
Corpse warehouse!
Hundreds of colossal transparent cultivation chambers stretched from the ground to the ceiling, arranged densely like large oil storage tanks in a factory. Each chamber was piled with hundreds or thousands of corpses, both men and women, mostly appearing to be between 20 and 40 years old. They all wore the same Deep Red World work uniforms, with brain machines embedded in their skulls, yet all were devoid of memory units. A multitude of white mycelia spread and grew inside, like spider webs. Some chambers seemed to have been left for a long time and were already overtaken by mycelia, while some were empty, with shattered glass scattered on the ground, trailing dried brown stains. The specimens closest to the entrance were liquefying, their skin melting like wax to reveal the dark red muscle tissue underneath.
"These must be the replicants that came in and are considered ’normal wastage’..." Qian Suxun said calmly, "Keeping these corpses must serve some other purpose for the Deep Red World, otherwise, there’d be no need to store them separately."
The footage was relayed back to the bunker center, and Mochizuki Masashi’s voice also came through.
"Corpses have their uses too. Those incoming replica researchers were themselves experimental subjects."
"Huh?" KIKI frowned at these words, "Even if they are replicants, they possess independent consciousness and aren’t robots. Would they really be so obedient and fanatical?"
Seeing this footage, Shi Zhi silently followed along in the middle of the group, occasionally using the Power of Purification to assist others, careful not to look too much.
"There must be some individuals exhibiting cowardice, but Deep Red World surely has measures to address this," Qian Suxun said.
"For instance, the memory units they input are certainly the latest versions of those heavily brainwashed, during their most fanatical phases, to reduce the likelihood of rebelliousness and cowardice among the replicants. It’s like genetic screening, using versions of the consciousness of the most fervent and staunch researchers in the organization for replication. They can even categorize and sequence these; if any person’s replicant has a high likelihood of rebellion, even their original would inevitably be implicated. For them, managing these is as straightforward as managing code,"
KIKI shook her head, "It’s unimaginable. If my consciousness became a program that could be mass-produced, would I still be me? Is digital life still life?"
Upon hearing this, Qian Suxun looked at her with interest, seemingly wanting to say something.
Just then, Mochizuki Masashi’s leisurely voice came through, "The programmability of digital life and the exploration of human DNA programming are essentially the same. Reducing errors and minimizing genetic diseases, replicating excellent cognitive programs, and replicating excellent scientists, athletes, and artists—what’s the difference? Philosophical discussions about the essence of life hold no meaning, as human civilization hasn’t reached that stage yet. Advanced civilization models grow simpler; chaotic entropy increase is the beginning of destruction. But of course, now is not the time to discuss this issue."
"Earlier, I already checked with ACS that the transport ship can start normally; afterward, you can use it to evacuate," Mochizuki Masashi said, returning to the main topic.
Lin Xian remained silent, knowing that people in Silent City were themselves ardent supporters of digital life, but the issue KIKI raised was one of the reasons Mochizuki Masashi’s digital life plan had been halted before the apocalypse—namely, the question regarding the ethical essence of life.
However, he didn’t have the time to discuss this now with Mochizuki Masashi. Quickly, the group moved forward. As a large door opened, Dancer No.1 stood in the center, waiting for Grace and Lin Xian’s group. Immediately, the two robots began clearing the path and scouting for them.
Qian Suxun was right: beneath the sewage treatment plant were automated research facility programs. There were virtually no living areas here. Each lab received allocated energy and water via automatic transmission channels; they were completely sealed off. Personnel communicated through holographic means, with no private space nor personal activity paths. Each test area was segregated, possessing an eerie cleanliness as if a prison filled with experimental instruments.
"A distributed lab, differentiated from my automated lab by the presence or absence of people—they block any communication beyond work,"
In the bunker control room, Mochizuki Shinji analyzed while watching the relayed footage, "If you disregard the humanitarian angle, in a certain sense, they’ve preliminary constructed a societal production model of an intermediate civilization..."
"If only they didn’t treat other survivors as expendable replicant materials," Lin Xian coldly responded.
"Ironically, their technological advance is indeed faster than ours," Qian Suxun sighed.
Lin Xian was slightly silent, opting not to continue the discussion and instead deploying 25 Thunder Falcon Drones: "Grace, take over the drones for comprehensive search."
[Understood]
Whoosh~
Under Grace’s mighty computational control, the 25 Thunder Falcon Drones instantly flew out at high speed in all directions. Meanwhile, the 25 transmitted images processed by Grace’s quantum computer were compiled into concise information for Lin Xian.
This was currently beyond Lin Xian’s capability; if he produced 100 or 1,000 drones, he could only rely on Grace as an assistant. Hence, for Lin Xian, Grace would definitely become an essential tool in his mechanical superpower and must be valued more highly.
