Chapter 823 — Three Stages

Verodai heard Amber's words, yet as a Defier she offered no rebuttal or warning. She merely listened quietly, her gaze calm and still, as though sunk in thought.

Gao Yang, meanwhile, narrowed his eyes slightly, his thoughts surging and falling within.

The development of mortals... in a sense had gestated the poison that pollutes the gods and sown the hidden peril of humanity's own extinction—and yet development itself was the only resistance mortals could offer when facing this cold, hard world.

These cold rules were truly unkind, but neither humans nor gods had any choice.

...

Magical Technology Research Institute, Druid Research Center.

Byron, his hair streaked with gray, stood in an unobtrusive open space, nervously watching the technicians nearby bustle around the platform, adjusting equipment. He strove to appear composed, and so stood ramrod straight where he was—yet those who knew him well could discern, precisely from that composed stance, the deep nervousness within this Imperial general—

The normal Byron rarely stood at attention like this.

Pea sat quietly in a chair beside Byron, glanced up at her adoptive father with some helplessness, then lowered her head and picked up the writing board she never let out of her sight. She scribbled a line of text on it with a flourish, then poked Byron's elbow with her pen and handed the board over:

"Dad, relax. You're going to affect everyone."

Byron glanced down at the writing board and pulled out a somewhat stiff smile. "I... I am quite relaxed..."

Seeing this, Pea sighed helplessly and turned her gaze toward the great mass of machinery and technicians not far away.

Pi Yun stood amid a crowd of assistants and researchers, an expression of rare seriousness on his deeply wrinkled face.

The crystal resonance device buried beneath the experimental platform emitted a pleasant hum; above the projection crystals set into the front of the platform, a complex and distinct three-dimensional image took shape. His gaze swept across the spine-like view, confirming every detail, attending to every change.

"There should be no problem now. The response matches the last test; the artificial nerve cord is in good condition, and the signal transmission is clear," one assistant said. "Next we'll see whether the new cranial base contacts perform as expected..."

"At last, the moment of acceptance..." Pi Yun murmured with a soft sigh, then carefully—as though cradling a treasure—lifted the oddly shaped silver-white device resting at the center of the platform.

It was a "serpentine device" less than half a meter long, composed of segment after segment of silver-white metal joints, its whole form resembling a flattened spine. One end bore a triangular structure that seemed able to fit against the nape of the neck; the other extended several "tendril"-like terminals. The entire device looked precise and uncanny.

This was none other than the improved "Neural Thorn."

Holding the triangular structure of the Neural Thorn in one hand and supporting its terminal node from below with the other, Pi Yun came over to stand before Byron and Wandou.

"Is it ready to use?" Byron asked at once.

"It was ready to use from the start," Pi Yun said, rolling his eyes. "We just went over it one more time for safety's sake."

That explanation did little to put Byron at ease; he could not help frowning and confirming once more, "If something should go wrong..."

"First of all, this is a non-implanted neural cord. It establishes a connection with the brain through contact points at the base of the skull, and those contact points have a built-in fuse mechanism. The moment the user's brainwave disturbance exceeds the safety threshold, the contacts disconnect on their own. Secondly, there are this many experts watching, and the laboratory has prepared the most thorough emergency equipment. You can put your heart back where it belongs and let it keep beating there for a few more decades. Stop working yourself up over nothing."

Byron opened his mouth as if to say something more, but Wandou had already risen from her chair and, without a word, quietly pushed him aside.

Pi Yun glanced at Byron. "Wandou is braver than you are."

Byron's lips moved twice; he seemed to have a great deal more to say, but in the end he closed his mouth.

In a situation like this, one does not keep questioning the professionals, nor make trouble for the experiment—even a half-made knight of mercenary origins understood this simple principle.

"Wandou, sit down in this chair," Pi Yun said, leading the girl to a nearby chair. She had tied up her hair before leaving the house that day, baring the smooth nape of her neck. Holding the world's first "Neural Thorn," Pi Yun brought it slowly toward the back of Wandou's neck. "It will be a little cold, then you will feel some tingling, but it will pass quickly. After that the tray will adhere to your skin to ensure an effective connection with the contact points at the base of the skull—the 'Adhesion Spell' holds very firmly, so if you want to take it off later, remember to press the buttons on the back in order first, otherwise it will hurt..."

Pi Yun explained the precautions with great care, and only then did he finally fit the silver-white device against the back of Wandou's neck.

A very faint clicking came from the silver-white metal joints. The device—assembled from magical conductive materials, lightweight metal, and biomimetic substances—sensed the brainwaves and seemed at once to come alive. The triangular tray adhered to the back of Wandou's head, and between the neatly arrayed metal "nodes" a dark red current of light swiftly flowed. The runes within started up one after another; the entire Neural Thorn contracted once, then unfurled.

Wandou's neck twitched with a start, but no discomfort showed on her face.

Pi Yun straightened up, glanced at Byron, who had stepped forward in his nervousness, then turned back to look at Wandou.

"We have installed a small speaker in your Neural Thorn—you can try to 'speak' now. Concentrate, and bring what you want to say clearly to the surface of your mind. It may not be easy at first, but I believe you will get the hang of it quickly..."

Wandou turned her head hesitantly, as though still adjusting to the strange sensation at the back of her neck. Then, frowning, she did her best to concentrate in the way Pi Yun had instructed, shaping in her mind the words she wanted to say.

A strange, indistinct burst of noise came from the Neural Thorn behind her head.

Then came a second burst, in which some broken, jumbled syllables seemed to be mixed.

Wandou tried several more times, and at last the syllables began to come together, and the noise gradually subsided.

She drew a deep breath, concentrated once more, and then fixed her eyes steadily on Byron beside her.

A halting yet clear voice reached the ears of the knight, now nearly half a century old: "...Dad... thank you..."