118: Research

Lu Jianchuan rode his motorcycle, carrying the Rabbit King and the sealed sample, returning to the GUPA Base at top speed. He headed straight for the Biological Research Department and found the person in charge.

"I found this in the wasteland on the outskirts of the city," Lu Jianchuan said, handing the sealed bag to a Researcher in a white coat, his tone solemn. "They were preying on animals and... completed division after feeding, going from three to four. Their regenerative ability is extremely strong, and ordinary physical attacks are very ineffective. I had to use electric currents to completely deal with them."

The Researcher took the sealed bag and looked at the charred but still visibly twisted lump of meat inside. His expression immediately turned serious. "Division? Regeneration? I see; the situation is indeed quite bad. We will perform an anatomical analysis immediately. We must figure out its biological mechanism and Origin as soon as possible."

"About how long will it take to get preliminary results?" Lu Jianchuan asked.

"That depends on its complexity," the Researcher said, pushing up his glasses. "If it's fast, we might have preliminary findings in an hour or two; if it's slow, it might take longer for deep analysis. We'll notify you as soon as there's news."

Lu Jianchuan nodded. "Alright, we'll wait outside."

After saying that, he held the Rabbit King, walked to a bench in the waiting area outside the research department, and sat down to wait silently. The Rabbit King also curled up quietly in his arms, its red eyes occasionally scanning the closed laboratory door.

【Consciousness Space】

Han Chengyu's consciousness was immersed in the design of the exclusive vehicle, constantly adjusting the paths of the energy conduits and the exterior lines in the 3D model.

Just then, the System's prompt sounded: [host, I have a suggestion. I wonder if you are willing to listen?]

"I'm listening, of course I'll listen." Han Chengyu temporarily minimized the design interface. "What kind of suggestion is it?"

[Logical deduction shows that the probability of stabilizing the survival of civilization during the global 'Great Upheaval' with only one set of armor is extremely low. If multiple combat Units can coordinate, the success rate will significantly increase.]

[Currently, GUPA Researchers are attempting to replicate this Unit. Although limited by this civilization's technological level and Materials, the prototype they have created has huge flaws and cannot be perfectly replicated, but this happens to provide an opportunity.]

[I can intervene in this process. Simply by bringing the completed prototype they manufactured close to the combat Unit currently worn by Aptitude Holder Lu Jianchuan, I can remotely connect to and perform a deep modification on it, transforming it into a usable, simplified second Transformation Device.]

"That's great! This is a good thing!" Han Chengyu's spirits lifted. "One more comrade-in-arms means one more portion of strength! I absolutely agree!"

[But it must be clearly stated to you that due to the inferiority of the raw Materials and the huge technological gap, the Unit modified by me will be a 'castrated version' with severely limited functions.]

[It will likely be unable to support form switching, have low energy output efficiency, and a short duration of use.]

Most importantly, to ensure basic operation of the Unit, some 'safety valves' used to protect the host's safety—such as energy overload protection and emergency cutoff mechanisms to prevent excessive overdrawing of the life Origin—may not be fully installed. The risk of use will be much higher than the original version.]

"I understand." Han Chengyu's excitement slowed slightly, but his determination remained unchanged. "A castrated version is fine; having one more is better than nothing. After all, what we lack most right now is time and manpower. So, what exactly needs to be done?"

[The operational process is simple: ensure the prototype manufactured by GUPA is in a completed state. Then, let it make physical contact with Lu Jianchuan's armband. At the moment of contact, I can activate the remote modification protocol to reconstruct it into a usable second Transformation Device.]

"I see..." Han Chengyu understood. "Fine, then when Lu Jianchuan rests tonight, I'll tell him about this idea and have him find an opportunity to cooperate."

He paused, suddenly remembering something, and asked with anticipation, "By the way, System, didn't Lu Jianchuan take out those four disgusting Splitters earlier? Our newly unlocked collection function should have received some evo factor, right? How much?"

[Of course.] The System interface immediately popped up a prompt, [Successfully recovered evo factor remnants from four individuals. After purification and conversion, the current inventory is: 3.7 standard Units.]

"Great!" Han Chengyu felt a surge of excitement. "It's not much, but at least we've started! This energy should be enough to give his motorcycle a first small-scale enhancement, right?"

[Theoretically feasible.] The System interface displayed analytical data.

[The current 3.7 Units of energy are sufficient to activate the vehicle's preliminary biological symbiotic interface and slightly improve its basic performance.]

[However, this System suggests reserving a portion of the energy and converting it into pure life energy for emergencies. For example, to provide an emergency supplement when the Aptitude Holder suffers severe depletion. It is recommended to reserve at least 1.5 Units.]

"That makes sense," Han Chengyu calmed down and agreed. "I can't just spend everything as soon as I get some income; I have to keep some 'savings' for emergencies. Then let's convert 2 Units for the motorcycle modification and save the remaining 1.7 Units."

[Command confirmed. 2.0 Units of energy have been allocated to the vehicle enhancement project, and the remaining 1.7 Units have been deposited into the emergency reserve.] The numbers on the System interface shifted accordingly.

[Once more energy is collected in the future, a more comprehensive upgrade plan can be initiated.]

"Good, let's leave it at that for now. When we've saved up enough energy, we'll give his ride a real major upgrade!" Han Chengyu looked at the small number in the storage bank, his heart filled with anticipation for the future.

【Real World】

Outside the laboratory, Lu Jianchuan and the Rabbit King in his arms sat silently for a while, with only the occasional sound of footsteps in the corridor breaking the silence.

Lu Jianchuan looked down at those calm red eyes and found a topic to break the silence: "Speaking of which... you mentioned before that you're from the 'New Federation', right? The 'New Federation'... what kind of organization is it exactly?"

The Rabbit King's ears twitched slightly, and a thought came through: "What, are you trying to fish for information from me?"

"It doesn't matter to me," Lu Jianchuan shrugged, his tone relaxed. "If you don't want to say, that's fine too. I just felt it was too quiet and wanted to chat."

The Rabbit King was silent for a moment, seemingly weighing its options, then its thoughts sounded again, carrying a hint of faint mockery and helplessness: "There's no harm in telling you. Anyway, I don't have any sense of belonging to that place. Essentially, I was forced to join."

"A weak rabbit like me, even after completing evolution and gaining wisdom, still hasn't escaped the fate of being at the bottom of the food chain in front of those lions, tigers, bears, and other similarly evolved beasts."

"In their eyes, my clan and I are nothing more than useful... cannon fodder and tools."

The Rabbit King's thoughts continued to come through with a touch of sarcasm: "I think you should know what our slogan is. We believe that the era of humans as the overlords of this planet has lasted too long."

"To use your words, it's 'the emperor's throne is taken in turns; next year it'll be my house'. The purpose of most of the animals that joined together is to overthrow you, become the new overlords of this planet, and start a new civilization of our own, a new era to replace your old civilization."

It paused, the mockery in its tone deepening, yet also showing more helplessness: "But, heh, the slogans are shouted loudly, yet we are still a mess of loose sand internally. The Law of the jungle is even more naked than it was in the wild. Especially after the last large-scale encirclement and suppression by you humans..."

Lu Jianchuan took over: "I heard Golden Bone mention that you were once on a cleanup list and were targeted for suppression."

"Yes, we were encircled and suppressed." The Rabbit King's thoughts were as calm as still water. "Those who were once in the New Federation, who truly fought for that goal and were capable and threatening, were basically cleared out in that operation."

"Although I don't know why you humans specifically left a portion... probably because you felt that keeping a severely weakened old rival you know well is easier to control than letting it disappear completely and having more unknown, brand-new hostile organizations pop up?"

"Maybe it's more convenient to manage us by keeping us around? Regardless, the current New Federation is just a collection of remnants who were lucky enough not to be cleared out last time, plus some members like me who are newly evolved but very weak and were forcibly pulled in to make up the numbers as cannon fodder."

"In fact, I don't know much about this so-called Alliance; internal core intelligence wouldn't trickle down to a low-level member like me. Just as I told you at the beginning, I and my clan were only forcibly pulled in as cannon fodder because we were weak."