10: Chapter 10 Encryption Chip, Silver's Secret

Deep within the mine, there was dead silence.

A faint blue light pulsed in the darkness; it was the cold glow from the tactical PDA console, illuminating Lynn's bloodless face.

His eyes behind the lenses were bloodshot, yet they exuded a chill as precise as a scalpel.

The air was still thick with the smell of gunpowder from the recent battle, along with the faint, lingering scent of sulfur from the Shadow Demon Gastly.

"Silph Co.'s military-grade encryption algorithm... the 4th generation 'Aegis' encryption line."

Lynn leaned against the damp rock wall, his slender fingers tapping rapidly on the virtual keyboard, producing a continuous stream of soft clicks.

The metal chip, scavenged from the tactical vest of the Gray Wolf captain's corpse, was currently inserted into the PDA's expansion slot, frantically reading the data.

On the tactical projection, countless crimson warning pop-ups erupted like a virus—

[Warning: Illegal Access]

[Prompt: Biometric Authentication Failed]

[Warning: Self-Destruct Sequence Countdown Initiated]

If it were an ordinary hacker facing security of this caliber from Silph Co., they would likely have panicked, pulled the card, and fled long ago.

As the largest technology giant in the Kanto region, Silph Co. monopolized all core technologies, from Poké Balls to teleportation black light curtains, and its network security level even surpassed that of the official League.

But Lynn merely sneered, a trace of disdain flashing in his eyes.

"If it were the 5th generation dynamic key, it might have held me off for ten minutes. But the 4th generation..."

His fingers suddenly struck the Enter key, his fingertips leaving a blur on the screen.

"That's something I outgrew three years ago. The person who originally designed the core code for this logic lock was even my subordinate."

Beep—!

A crisp prompt tone sounded.

The originally crimson warning screen instantly turned the green of authorized access, the counting-down self-destruct sequence froze, and was then forcibly terminated.

[Access Granted.] [Welcome, Gray Wolf Captain (ID: Killer-09).] [Current mission brief decrypted.]

Lynn adjusted his glasses, his gaze quickly scanning the top-secret files decrypted on the projection. It was a flagged employment contract and an escort manifest.

"So that's it."

Lynn's eyes scanned the first line, and a hint of mockery appeared at the corners of his mouth.

The Gray Wolf squad had another motive for appearing in this forest.

Hunting down Lynn was just a side hustle for these greedy hyenas while they carried out their real mission—after all, at this moment, Lynn happened to be blocking their only path.

Their specific mission was to act as "Scavengers," clearing out all unstable factors near the edge of Viridian Forest and Route 2 in advance.

This included driving away wild Pokémon and intimidating passing Bug Catcher boys to ensure that this major traffic artery connecting Viridian City and Pewter City remained in a "vacuum state" tonight.

Everything was for a secret convoy that would be passing through tonight.

"A convoy escorted by Silph Co.'s direct security department... they even used the former elite League Officer 'Iron Hand' as the leader."

Lynn narrowed his eyes, his fingers sliding across the screen to pull up the core cargo manifest.

The manifest was very short, only one line of text, but the danger level was marked in bold red.

[Cargo Code: P (Prototype)] [Danger Level: Extremely High (Unstable/Possesses non-preset self-awareness/Data overflow)] [Disposal Plan: Transport to Cinnabar Island Biochemical Laboratory -> Physical incineration and destruction]

"Code P..."

Lynn chewed on this letter, and the vast database belonging to the former chief doctor of the League instantly retrieved the corresponding information.

In the top-tier scientific circles of Kanto, a crazy concept about an "Artificial God" had been circulating.

Since the bloodline of Mew could not be fully controlled (the early failure of the Mewtwo project led to countless tragedies), could they find another way to build a god that only existed in the virtual world using pure data and code?

A "perfect soldier" that could travel through networks, ignore physical laws, and be absolutely loyal to the League.

This was what Silph Co. regarded as top secret—the "Porygon Weaponization Project."

But looking at the note on this file—[Incineration Disposal].

"A failure?"

Lynn's fingers paused on the edge of the console, his eyes fixed on the flashing red skull logo, a glint of sharpness flashing in his eyes.

He continued to scroll down and saw a brief summary of the experiment log.

"When Subject P was undergoing the 99th Turing test, it refused to execute the self-destruct command. It exhibited emotional fluctuations similar to 'fear' and attempted to reverse-hack the control center... Verdict: Developed uncontrollable self-awareness, deemed a virus, recommended for destruction."

"Heh."

Lynn let out a laugh filled with extreme sarcasm.

"Because it learned fear, it's unqualified?"

"Because it doesn't want to die, it's a virus?"

To the upper echelons of the League and Silph Co., an AI that has developed self-awareness and is uncontrolled is a disaster, trash that must be destroyed.

But in Lynn's eyes... this was the most perfect weapon in the world.

An electronic ghost that understands fear, understands hate, and possesses infinite potential for evolution.

"The League wants to create a god, yet fears that the god might have a soul. What a bunch of hypocritical cowards."

Lynn closed the PDA and stood up. His mechanical prosthetic limb made a dull sound on the gravel ground.

At this moment, the Shadow Demon Gastly, which had been lurking in his shadow, seemed to sense the change in its master's mood and slowly poked out half of its head.

In those crimson eyes, a bloodthirsty longing flickered.

"Kek?" (Who are we killing?)

Lynn glanced at the tactical watch on his wrist.

2:45 AM.

According to the route map in the chip, the convoy would pass by Route 2 at the edge of Viridian Forest in half an hour.

It was a mountain road built along the hillside and was also the main road running through the forest.

When entering the deep section of the forest, there was a U-shaped hairpin turn marked as a "blind spot for surveillance," which was an excellent ambush point.

He also needed an escape route.

Hijacking the car, opening the box, contacting Code P—if any step went wrong, reinforcements from behind would block the mountain road.

Lynn zoomed in on the route map, his gaze falling on the dense forest below the cliff.

The slope there was steep, and ordinary vehicles couldn't get in, but it was just right for Larvitar to smash out a temporary escape route.

He had even thought it out: if the convoy detected anything unusual ahead of time, he would blow up the front bridge first, then let the Shadow Demon Gastly crawl into the cockpit from under the vehicle.

"We're going to pick up a new friend."

Lynn adjusted the windbreaker covered in blood and mud, sharpened the slightly dull dagger on a rock, and sheathed it back at his waist.

He glanced again at the status in the [Portable Black Box].

Larvitar was still sleeping.

After devouring that huge Onix and the high-purity Fire Stone, its body was undergoing a violent transformation.

Although it was still a bit short of reaching the Pupitar form, Lynn could feel that under that layer of thick obsidian armor, a violent energy was accumulating.

It was like a suppressed volcano; once it erupted, it would be unstoppable.

"Although it's a bit rushed, there's only one chance."

Lynn turned and walked toward the mine exit.

"If I don't intercept it, this thing will be transported to the volcano on Cinnabar Island and burned to ashes. That would be a waste of a treasure."

"Since the League thinks it's a virus, thinks it's an uncontrollable disaster..."

Lynn walked out of the mine.

The rain outside had stopped, and the cold moonlight spilled onto his expressionless face, stretching his shadow out extremely long, like a demon opening its maw.

"Then I will turn it into a real, genuine virus."

"A dark virus... that can paralyze the entire League network and devour Silph Co.'s database completely."

He turned off the PDA, leaving only the dimmest light on the screen.

"Let's go."

The Gastly in the shadow cracked its mouth open and laughed silently.

Outside the mine, the post-rain forest was bone-chillingly cold.

Headlights couldn't be seen on the mountain road in the distance, but the deep, distant echo of engines could be heard, like the heartbeat of prey.

Lynn shouldered his cane and walked in the direction the sound was coming from.

Tonight, the forest would have one more steel coffin, and one more new companion.

Lynn knew very well that snatching Code P was just the first step.

The real trouble would be surviving Silph Co.'s pursuit while carrying it.

But the bigger the trouble, the greater the reward.

As long as this electronic life was willing to bite, the secrets hidden by the League and Silph Co. in their networks would sooner or later be torn out by it, bite by bite.