174: Chapter 174 Actual Testing

New York-Presbyterian Hospital, intensive care unit.

Anderson had a glob of bloody phlegm stuck in his throat, and the ECG monitor emitted a frantic, piercing scream.

The emergency nurse kicked open the door and rushed into the room to prepare for resuscitation.

Anderson stared fixedly at the tablet computer on the bedside table, its screen completely black, his eyes bloodshot.

His body jerked violently, his hands tore out the IV line, and then they dropped limply to the edge of the bed as he completely lost consciousness.

At the same time, the circuit breaker alarms on Wall Street had not stopped all night.

Jiangcheng. Underground Level 3 clean room at Chenguang Factory.

The quantum gravity smelter emitted a low rumble. High temperatures reaching five thousand degrees rolled behind the explosion-proof glass, casting a blinding red light on the surroundings.

Wei Jianguo was wearing a heavy radiation suit, sweating profusely. He gripped the edge of the control console tightly, his eyes locked on the fusion data running across the monitor.

The slice of amethyst ore dug up from the deep pit in the Great Northwest was soaking in the same furnace as the metal spinal remains of the hive monster.

"Old Wei, is it working?" Da Biao walked over shirtless, holding half a bottle of mineral water.

"What's the rush?" Wei Jianguo didn't even turn his head, his hands typing frantically on the keyboard. "This is a cross-dimensional fusion of biological nerves and mechanical signals. I've spent half my life in research and have never seen code that defies the laws of carbon-based life like this. If the parameters are off by even a little, the furnace will explode and we'll all be blown to the sky."

"The blueprints the boss gave us can't be wrong." Da Biao tilted his head back to gulp down a mouthful of water, crushed the empty bottle roughly, and tossed it into the trash can in the corner.

"Ding..."

The hydraulic door of the smelter made a soft sound. The indicator light changed from red to green.

Wei Jianguo took a deep breath and pressed the discharge button.

A precision robotic arm slowly extended from the side of the chamber. The gripper at the front held a heat-resistant metal tray.

On the tray sat two microchips, each only the size of a fingernail.

The edges of the chips were covered with extremely fine alloy barbs, and the central area emitted a faint, deep blue glow.

This was the bridge between biological nerves and mechanical hydraulics that transcended the era.

"It's out."

Wei Jianguo took off his fogged goggles and swallowed hard. "Miniature sensor chip. Once injected into the central nervous system, biological electrical waves connect directly to the hydraulic pump. Theoretically, it can reduce the mechanical delay of the Exoskeleton to absolute zero."

Steady footsteps came from behind.

Lu Chen pushed open the glass door and walked into the clean room.

He still carried the scent of nicotine from the data control room upstairs.

He walked to the control console and glanced down at the chips on the tray.

"Field test," Lu Chen said in a flat tone.

Da Biao didn't hesitate. He walked over, pulled up a cold, hard metal test chair, and sat down heavily.

Then he raised his right hand, roughly tore off the medical bandage on the back of his neck, exposing the thick skin underneath.

"Brother, stop talking nonsense. Shove it into my spine." Da Biao thrust his neck forward, the muscles on his back bulging.

Wei Jianguo was startled and stepped back twice.

"Are you crazy!" Wei Jianguo waved his hands repeatedly. "Da Biao, do you know any common sense? This is a physical hard connection. You're not even using anesthesia; the nerve pain will literally kill you. This is suicide."

Da Biao looked at him sideways. "Do I need you to teach me what pain is?"

"Boss, we have to follow the rules."

Wei Jianguo was anxious and red-faced, blocking the control console. "This thing hasn't undergone biological safety verification. If there's an incompatibility error, Da Biao's brainstem will be instantly incinerated. There won't even be a chance for resuscitation. We need to find some live pigs to conduct basic incompatibility tests."

"We don't have time to play house."

Lu Chen stared coldly at Wei Jianguo, his gaze unquestionable. "Two thousand sets of Exoskeletons are waiting for this upgrade. Can testing on live pigs reveal the complex feedback commands of human neurons? Do it. Cut."

Cold sweat broke out on Wei Jianguo's back. He looked at Lu Chen, then at Da Biao on the metal chair.

Da Biao shoved Wei Jianguo, who was blocking his way, aside.

"You intellectuals are just so nagging. If the boss told me to die, I wouldn't even blink." Da Biao roared, "Bring the knife!"

"I must have committed some sin to end up with you lunatics." Wei Jianguo grumbled, but he didn't dare disobey Lu Chen's order.

Wei Jianguo gritted his teeth and stepped forward, activating the precision cutting robotic arm nearby.

The cold mechanical metal clamps extended, securing Da Biao's head and shoulders. A beam of blue laser knife was aimed at the back of Da Biao's neck.

"Da Biao, if you can't take it, just scream. It's not shameful." Wei Jianguo gripped the control handles with both hands.

Da Biao gripped the edge of the metal chair tightly, his ten fingers leaving deep indentations on the steel plate.

"Less talk, cut!" Da Biao ordered.

The laser knife cut down.

The flesh parted instantly. There was no bleeding. The high temperature of the laser immediately cauterized the subcutaneous blood vessels. The smell of burning flesh spread through the chamber.

Wei Jianguo controlled the precision tweezers, picking up the micro-sensor chip emitting a faint, deep blue glow.

He steadily inserted it along the incision, placing it directly onto Da Biao's cervical nerve center.

The alloy barbs on the edges of the chip instantly expanded, digging firmly into Da Biao's nerve bundles.

"Ugh..."

Da Biao let out a low grunt. The veins on his forehead instantly bulged, and the blood vessels on both sides of his neck stood out and twisted.

Large beads of sweat streamed frantically down his chiseled, muscular lines.

"Connect it, initiate the basic hydraulic mount component test." Lu Chen watched the frantically jumping heart rate curve on the large screen next to him.

Wei Jianguo immediately pressed the confirmation key.

A set of semi-finished heavy-duty mechanical right arms placed in the corner lit up with a red light. A black data cable connected to the sensor chip on the back of Da Biao's neck.

The moment it connected, an incompatibility crisis erupted.

Da Biao's body suddenly began to twitch violently and uncontrollably. His biological brainwaves and the servo motor parameters at the bottom layer of the chip collided destructively.

The metal chair legs made a piercing friction sound on the stainless steel floor.

Da Biao's eyes instantly became bloodshot and red. A beast-like roar erupted from his throat as he broke free from the mechanical clamps and stood up.

The mechanical mount connected to his right arm went completely out of control. The hydraulic pump surged, and Da Biao turned and swung a heavy punch.

"Boom."

Half of the load-bearing wall in the corner of the clean room was smashed directly. Special steel bars snapped, and rubble littered the floor.

The piercing red alarm light on the ceiling flashed frantically.

"Incompatibility reaction." Wei Jianguo scrambled in panic to grab the power-off switch. "The values are two hundred times over the limit. The brainwaves are going to overload and burn through. Cut the power. Quick."

Lu Chen grabbed Wei Jianguo's wrist.

"If you disconnect, he's finished." Lu Chen's gaze remained fixed on the rampaging Da Biao.

Lu Chen turned and strode to the main control panel of the quantum furnace. He raised his hand and pulled down the red backup switch marked with a skull.

The air in Underground Level 3 instantly became extremely scorching.

The micro-fusion reactor emitted a roar. A stream of pure Source Energy followed the special cables buried underground, forcing its way directly into the mechanical mount of Da Biao's right arm, pushing back into the chip at the back of his neck.

"Use the Source Energy to suppress it. This is the power of the monster's core. Fight poison with poison." Lu Chen's voice was steady.

The massive torrent of energy directly crushed the incompatibility oscillation.

The deep blue glow on the sensor chip flashed three times, then finally stabilized and shone steadily.

Da Biao's body shuddered. He knelt on one knee, gasping heavily. The sweat that had dripped off him pooled into a small puddle on the floor.

The red alarm light above extinguished.

"It's suppressed..." Wei Jianguo's legs went weak, and he collapsed into his chair. He felt like he had just lost ten years of his life.

Da Biao slowly stood up, supporting himself on his knees. He twisted his neck. His cervical vertebrae made a few crisp bone-grinding sounds.

That heavy, violent mechanical right arm hung loosely at his side.

Lu Chen looked into Da Biao's eyes.

"Tell me how it feels," Lu Chen asked.

Da Biao lowered his head, looking at the metal right arm with hydraulic tubes. He spread his fingers open, then instantly clenched his fist with force.

A low roar of motor humming came from the air. There was no lag at all.

"No feeling." Da Biao grinned, revealing bloodied teeth. "Feels like this hunk of iron grew on me in the first place."

Lu Chen nodded.

He turned and walked to the workbench nearby. He pulled a black-gray pistol from his coat pocket.

This was the 9mm standard-issue pistol that the military colonel, Lone Wolf, had left on the table before retreating earlier.

Lu Chen pulled the slide back, chambering a round.

"Turn around, close your eyes," Lu Chen ordered.

Da Biao didn't say a word of nonsense. He turned his back to Lu Chen, stood straight, and kept his eyes tightly closed.

Wei Jianguo had just caught his breath, but seeing the gun in Lu Chen's hand, his eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

"Boss, what are you doing? Those are live rounds!" Wei Jianguo shouted out.

Lu Chen didn't even look at him.

Lu Chen held the gun with one hand, his wrist raised level. The dark muzzle was aimed directly at the back of Da Biao's head.

His finger rested on the trigger. There was no warning. Not even a shout of warning.

Lu Chen's finger pulled the trigger all the way back.

"Bang."

A deafening gunshot exploded in the enclosed clean room. A blinding orange-red flame erupted from the muzzle.

The 9mm full metal jacket bullet tore through the air at a speed of 360 meters per second, heading straight for the back of Da Biao's head.

Time seemed to stand still at this moment.

There was no turning back. No opening of eyes to track it. Vision was meaningless at this speed.

Da Biao's right shoulder made only a simple lifting motion.

Immediately following, a dark gray metal afterimage sliced through the air with a piercing whistle. A reaction limit of 0.01 seconds.

"Clang."

A crisp sound of metal impact rang out in the air.

Da Biao was still standing firmly with his back to Lu Chen. His titanium alloy mechanical right arm was bent backward behind his head.

His thick metal index and middle fingers were firmly pinched together.

Between the two cold metal fingers, a bullet head, still emitting wisps of smoke and bearing high-temperature spiral marks, was tightly clamped.

The bullet was less than a centimeter away from the scalp on the back of Da Biao's head.

Wei Jianguo was completely dumbfounded. He opened his mouth wide, making unconscious noises in his throat.

Da Biao slowly lowered his mechanical right arm.

That standard-issue bullet head was forcibly crushed between his two fingers by two tons of hydraulic force. It was forcefully turned into a shriveled, twisted piece of scrap copper.

Da Biao flicked his thumb.

The copper piece fell onto the stainless steel floor, making a crisp sound.

"Old Wei, your tower of physics has collapsed." Da Biao turned around, looked at Wei Jianguo, who was sitting on the floor, and grinned wildly.

Mechanical delay was reduced to absolute zero.

Strength, explosive power, and biological neural reflexes were perfectly fused at this moment.

"Catching a bullet with bare hands... this is work for gods."

Wei Jianguo held his head with both hands, pulling his hair tightly. "This is impossible. Humans cannot do this."

Lu Chen tossed the pistol onto the workbench. It made a clattering sound.

He walked over to Wei Jianguo, pulled a plastic lighter from his jacket pocket, and tossed it to Da Biao. Da Biao caught it steadily with one hand.

"I don't believe in gods. What I want is the power for mortals to slay gods."

Lu Chen looked down at Wei Jianguo, his tone cold. "Only by unleashing this kind of monster can we crush the skull of Wall Street."

Wei Jianguo trembled all over and slowly climbed up, supporting himself against the table corner.

Lu Chen raised his wrist and glanced at his chipped Casio watch. The hands pointed to 5:45 AM.

There were no windows in the basement. But the heavy rain outside had stopped. The horizon was turning a fish-belly white.

"The mass production process is cleared." Lu Chen put his hands in his pockets and issued the final order. "Old Wei, you can't stop this work today. Install connectors on all two thousand sets of Exoskeletons upstairs. By daybreak tomorrow, I want to turn the entire Jiangcheng into an iron bucket that not even a mosquito can fly into."

Wei Jianguo gritted his teeth hard and nodded heavily.

Jiangcheng's territory was now firmly secured. But Lu Chen knew clearly that those capital hyenas who controlled the global economic lifeline would never watch him swallow the semiconductor supply chain with folded arms.

Freemasons' biochemical weapons had already been defeated. The Manhattan basement warehouse had been massacred.

Wall Street would definitely play their final trump card. A strangulation storm sweeping through the global real economy was about to crush down on the doorstep of Chenguang Factory.

Meanwhile, in Beijing. In a secret underground conference room of the Red Flag Department, a middle-aged man had just received the latest encrypted battle report transmitted back from Jiangcheng.