Chapter 1362: Chapter 515: Sun Ai’s Gift, Ren Zhong’s Lifespan (Part 2)
Ren Zhong asked, "Is this the good news you mentioned?"
"Of course not, this is merely a byproduct of the bad news. The real good news is that I’ve finally deciphered part of the mystery of your genes."
"Oh? The mystery of my genes?" Ren Zhong’s interest was piqued.
"Uncle, your current focus is quite dispersed, making you possibly the most knowledgeable researcher in the entire Red Blade Clan, but in each specialized field, there’s always someone who delves deeper than you, right?"
Ren Zhong nodded, "Of course. That’s exactly what I hope for."
Sun Ai said, "But I believe that if you could set aside numerous distractions and choose one professional field that interests you most to advance fully, you still have the chance to reach the pinnacle of the Red Blade Clan’s scientific Pyramid, or even meet the selection standards of the Imperial Royal Academy of Sciences. You possess top-level intelligence and creativity, which are the ultimate traits of humans in the Mechanical Empire, and the perfect talent the Imperial Family desires most."
Faced with Sun Ai’s unreserved praise, Ren Zhong did not bother with modesty. He understood well that he indeed could achieve this. However, now being the leader of civilization, some trade-offs must be made.
"Next is the crucial issue I want to discuss. A long time ago, I told you, Uncle, that I was working on telomere-directed extension and controlled infinite division technology. You remember, right?"
Ren Zhong replied with a hum, "Of course, I remember, but hasn’t the First Rank achievement already been applied to me? My theoretical lifespan of one hundred ninety-two years is a result of your project."
Sun Ai chuckled, "You also know that’s just the First Rank achievement. The real good news today is that I’ve advanced these two technologies to a new height, perhaps even the ultimate height. I utilized my father’s research results, refining some subtle changes that neither my father nor you noticed when he was creating my body. Now, I’m crafting an instrument. Once it’s completed, it can modify and reorganize the genes of every cell in your body while in a state of cryogenic slumber, engraving your cancer cells’ infinite telomere genes into each cell. These genes are originally yours, so there won’t be any immune rejection reaction. If successful, Uncle, you could gain the ability of immortality. But if it fails..."
As he spoke, Sun Ai became somewhat hesitant.
"Just tell me directly what happens if it fails."
"It would result in physical death. The only hope is to permanently freeze your body and, like me, transfer your consciousness into the Virtual Space. Your mind has this potential because there is already an existing data channel in your mind’s quantum entanglement spiral."
Upon hearing this, Ren Zhong pondered for a moment and sighed, "It’s a difficult choice to make."
"Indeed. But risk and reward coexist," Sun Ai also sighed, "so you have to make this decision yourself. I can only provide you with the information. Besides immortality, the new genes will completely change the carbon-based life characteristics of you, Uncle, further transforming your physique. This transformation will have similarities to Enhancers, allowing your muscles, bones, tendons, blood vessels, organs, and every cell composing these organs to possess strengths that far surpass the theoretical limits of carbon-based life. But you are different from Enhancers; the gene mutation of Enhancers always floats on the surface, while your modification involves the depth of information flow."
"By then, there won’t be major changes to your appearance, your body composition will still be hydrocarbons, but your ’carbon’ will be fundamentally different from others’. In short, your reproductive isolation from ordinary humans will increase by at least a billion times on the current basis. Now, there might still be some possibility for you to have descendants, but after the modification, it will be absolutely impossible."
"I understand." Ren Zhong contemplated for a moment and then asked, "What’s the probability of the modification failing?"
"Fifty-fifty."
"Fifty percent? I see, let me think about it first."
After saying this, coincidentally, Ren Zhong’s cryogenic recovery ended. He stepped out of the cryogenic chamber, put on a coat, sat on the chair, and took out a notebook.
The notebook filled with numbers had been destroyed by him personally, the numbers on it permanently halted at 7740.
He switched to a new notebook.
