50: Chapter 50 The Bet on Compatibility

May 22nd, 7:00 AM.

In the Underground Room, the system panel projected a complex 3D genetic puzzle model.

Yan Zheng sat on a folding chair with a cup of hot water, his gaze behind his gold-rimmed glasses jumping between the nodes of the model.

"The assembly of an Undead Knight requires four core materials."

"First, the main skeleton."

He pointed his finger at the glowing skeletal structure in the center of the model.

"It must use reinforced bone; ordinary human bone cannot withstand the rejection reactions during the fusion of multiple genes."

"The reinforced bone of The Hand ninjas has high density and good toughness, making it the best choice for now."

"There are eight in stock, so taking the best one for the main skeleton is no problem."

Yan Zheng: ( ˘ ꒳ ˘ )

"Second, basic superpower genes."

He rotated the model ninety degrees, pointing to a layer of translucent gene chains wrapping the outer layer of the skeleton.

"At least two Mutant genes are needed for fusion injection."

"For the first one, I choose Epidermal Keratin Strengthening."

"This is a gene extracted from that Hardened Skin Mutant. It's of good quality with a clear function, giving the Undead Knight a layer of physical armor."

"The second one is the key."

Yan Zheng's finger stopped at the very core of the model, where a golden orb of light was slowly rotating.

"Photon Absorption and Release."

"A rare-quality ranged attack gene, the only one in my Undead Creation legion."

"If successfully integrated into the Undead Knight's skeleton, it will be able to release Photon Rays from its eye sockets and phalanges."

"An Undead Creation that can both tank damage and provide ranged output."

He took a sip of water, his gaze falling on a line of data at the bottom of the model.

"Third, catalyst."

"Occult material, blood of the black sky, the one seized from The Hand ninja."

"Its role is to act as an adhesive during the assembly process, reducing the rejection reactions between different genes."

Yan Zheng switched the model to the compatibility simulation interface, where the icons of the four materials were arranged in a diamond array.

"System, run compatibility simulation, use the default optimal combination for parameters."

The progress bar on the panel ran for about thirty seconds, and finally, the numbers popped up.

[Compatibility simulation result: 78.3%.]

[Estimated assembly success rate: 78.3%.]

[Failure consequence: All invested materials are scrapped, irreversible loss of the operator's Mental Power (approximately 5% permanent loss).]

Yan Zheng: ( ꐦ ˘ ͈ ꈊ ˘ ͈ )

"Seventy-eight point three."

"Just three percentage points above the passing line."

He put down the water cup, crossed his fingers on his knees, and stared at that number for a full minute.

"If it succeeds, my legion will have its first rare-grade creation starting today, my ranged attack capability will go from zero to one, and my overall combat power will more than double."

"If it fails, the photon gene will be scrapped, my Mental Power will permanently shrink by five percent, and I won't even be able to maintain my current troop strength."

"Seventy-eight point three to twenty-one point seven."

"Four-to-one odds."

Yan Zheng stood up and paced the Underground Room twice.

"Is there any way to raise the compatibility by a few more points?"

He sat back down and repeatedly adjusted the combination order and injection ratio of the materials on the panel.

First round of adjustments: Reduce the injection amount of the Epidermal Keratin Strengthening gene from one hundred percent to eighty percent, filling the freed-up capacity with the self-repairing properties of the ninja bones.

[Compatibility simulation result: 79.1%.]

"Up by zero point eight, not enough."

Second round of adjustments: Change the catalytic timing of the blood of the black sky from "simultaneous injection" to "staged injection," injecting half first to stabilize the skeletal structure, and then injecting the other half to catalyze gene fusion.

[Compatibility simulation result: 81.2%.]

Yan Zheng: ( ✧ ‸ ✧ )

"Eighty-one point two."

"Up by another two points."

"Can I squeeze out any more?"

Third round of adjustments: He turned his gaze to something in the material library that hasn't been used yet.

High-temperature energy residue.

A byproduct extracted from that High-Temperature Physiology Mutant who died by spontaneous combustion, labeled as "auxiliary grade," with the function described as "micro-thermal field, can accelerate the folding and locking of gene chains during the assembly process."

"This thing has no value on its own, but what if, in the third stage of assembly—the critical moment when the photon gene is injected into the skeleton—I use it as an auxiliary 'welding torch'?"

Yan Zheng dragged the High-temperature energy residue into the combination array on the panel.

[Compatibility simulation running...]

The progress bar ran slower than before; after about a minute, the numbers popped up.

[Compatibility simulation result: 84.7%.]

Yan Zheng's breathing stopped for half a second.

Yan Zheng: ( ✦ ᴗ ✦ )

"Eighty-four point seven."

"Six and a half percentage points higher than the initial plan."

"The success rate is close to eighty-five percent."

"Do I gamble or not?"

He closed all simulation plans, leaned back in his chair, rested his hands on the armrests, and his gaze passed through the dim ceiling of the Underground Room, as if looking at a very distant place.

"The question is not whether to gamble or not."

"The question is when to gamble."

"Assembly takes four hours, during which I cannot control other Undead."

"This means that within four hours, Mr. Brute will be offline, the Skeleton Soldiers will be offline, and I will be nothing more than an Antique Shop owner with no power to truss a chicken."

"Kingpin's people are searching the whole city for The Hand, The Hand's Shadow Eyes are searching the whole city for me, and satellite infrared could turn over at any moment."

"In this environment of being besieged on three sides, I need to find a four-hour window where I absolutely will not be disturbed."

Yan Zheng closed his eyes and began to deduce in his mind.

"The conflict between Kingpin and The Hand is escalating. According to Old Jack's intelligence, the first wave of direct confrontation may break out within three to five days."

"On the night the confrontation breaks out, everyone's attention will be drawn to the battlefield."

"Kingpin's thugs will be fighting, Wesley will be commanding, and the technical team will be processing battlefield intelligence."

"The Hand's Shadow Eyes will be dealing with the full-scale encirclement, having no spare energy to continue tracking me."

"If Mr. Burns's satellite is still overhead, then a large-scale thermal anomaly at the level of an underworld war will also divert most of the computing power."

Yan Zheng opened his eyes.

Yan Zheng: ( ˵ ≖ ω ≖ ˵ )

"The night Kingpin and The Hand go to war."

"That is my window."

"When everyone is watching the fireworks, no one will notice the person quietly playing with blocks in the corner of the back row."

He stood up, walked to the workbench, reopened the Undead Knight's blueprint, and locked the parameters of the final optimization plan one by one.

Ninja reinforced bone, optimal quality, locked.

Epidermal Keratin Strengthening gene, eighty percent injection, locked.

Photon Absorption and Release gene, rare quality, full injection, locked.

blood of the black sky, staged catalysis plan, locked.

High-temperature energy residue, auxiliary welding, third-stage input, locked.

[Undead Knight assembly plan saved. Final estimated compatibility: 84.7%. Waiting for operator to start.]

Yan Zheng turned off the panel and walked up the stairs back to the first floor.

He stood behind the counter, picked up a rag, and began to wipe that imitation blue and white porcelain bowl, his movements so slow it's like doing Tai Chi.

"Wait for the war to come."

"Wait for the moment the guns fire."

"Then bet all the chips and trade for a new hand."

Yan Zheng finished wiping the bowl, put it back on the shelf, and looked back at the secret door leading to the Underground Room.

"Mr. Brute, Skeleton Soldiers, work hard for a few more days."

"Once the Undead Knight is assembled, you will have a new colleague."

He turned around, facing the empty Antique Shop, the corners of his mouth curving into a gentle arc.

Yan Zheng: ( ˵ ꐦ ✧ ᗜ ✧ ˵ )

"A new colleague who can tank, fight, and shoot lasers."

"I hope that on his first day of work, he can catch the liveliest night in Hell's Kitchen."

The doorbell jingled.

A figure in a gray trench coat appeared outside the glass door.

Not Burns.

Wesley.

The rag in Yan Zheng's hand paused for a beat, then he continued wiping the counter, his voice and expression unchanged.

"Good afternoon, sir. Is there any antique you would like to look at?"

Wesley pushed the door and walked in, the smile behind his gold-rimmed glasses exactly the same as last time in the boxing ring's private room—not a bit more, not a bit less.

"Mr. Yan, we meet again."

His gaze slowly swept around the shop and finally landed on the blue and white porcelain bowl that had just been wiped clean on the counter.

"I didn't come to look at antiques this time."