Can Ci Pin - - - Chapter 76

Chapter 76 – I was Born in Debt to this Place[3]

The mech rounded the wasteland of death and left the last large planet of the Eighth Galaxy far behind it; suddenly, the universe became completely isolated. The map of their route grew more and more deserted; the celestial objects they would occasionally pass were no longer named until even the identifiers gradually turned into short numbers or were marked as ‘unknown territory’. Long and wordy descriptions of planets and stars began to disappear, slowly being replaced by lines of cold, hard alphabet soup that made the navigational map almost seem like a complicated algebra textbook.

This was the realm of the extraterritorial–the real wilderness, a place of darkness where the light of civilization had not yet reached.

Lin Jingheng connected through the long-distance lines and quietly listened to Turan’s report on the situation on Qiming.

“The sterilizers are already used up.” Turan’s face showed a hint of fatigue after working for a whole night. “We haven’t heard from Monoeyed Hawk yet, and we’ve already quarantined everyone that we could. Right now we’re just waiting, and if anything wrong were to happen, then we’re really out of luck—Commander, do you think it’ll work if I just pray to a random god right now?”

“You better just stay in the mortal world and not anger a god to bring some divine punishment onto yourself,” Lin Jingheng didn’t give her a chance to continue with nonsense. “According to that Hope person, the AUS is enjoying their time within the seven galaxies right now and their homebase outside is empty, do you think this is a reasonable statement? You’ve received information regarding the AUS from other galaxies right, can you give an estimate on what the current status of the organization is?”

Turan answered: “The AUS is quite active within the seven galaxies. From what I can see, their military power within the Union territory is already much higher than what I expected. If there’s still a large fleet in the outskirts, just how big is their navy? I think…”

Lu Bixing paid little attention to the conversation about war and politics going on at his side. At this point, whether it was the two of them currently on the way to the pirates’ homebase or Turan waiting on Qiming, they’ve already passed the stage of anxiety in face of despair and had no choice but to embark on this journey of unknowns they couldn’t afford to fail.

He closed his eyes and gave himself a minute to recollect his emotionally disastrous heart before he asked: “Zhanlu, can you play some music?”

“Yes, headmaster Lu,” Zhanlu answered. “What kind of music do you prefer? I have a database of licensed music purchased by the Military Council’s Outer Space department, or you can choose to listen to my own creations.”

Lu Bixing didn’t expect that even mechs could be filled with this many surprises: “You have your own creations? Give me a song list.”

Lin Jingheng was focusing his attention on the route map that Hope had given them and analyzed the military might of the pirate forces in the outskirts with Turan, giving no spare moment for the other two.

Zhanlu then generously showed off his ‘great creation’ and asked Lu Bixing: “I heard your heartfelt confession on Qiming, are you pursuing my master? Why don’t you try and talk to him a little more?”

“Does it look like he has time to talk to me? I’m very inexperienced, my dear Zhanlu, sometimes I can’t think of that many tricks.” Lu Bixing held his arm out and sighed at the AI. “Also, I said some really embarrassing things earlier just to come out with him; it gets more embarrassing the more I think about it. If I continue on, I wouldn’t be able to measure the fine line between flirting and harassment. Hey, open up your database and tell me if there are any other things humans normally do when they court their love besides singing and gifting flowers?”

Zhanlu answered proudly: “I can give you some advice, Headmaster Lu. For example, I don’t think my master likes flowers; compared to plants, he seems to take an appreciation for fungi more. A few days ago, he asked me to clean up the greenbelt on the Model 3 and replace it with a farm of mushrooms…”

Lin Jingheng’s cold gaze slid over: “Zhanlu, pay attention to the abnormal energy waves around the area. You should know this is the extraterritorial area and we’re using a very easily trackable system to contact Qiming, right? Stop wasting time on unrelated tasks.”

“Understood, sir.” Zhanlu said as he extended the radius of the energy scan, “I’ll also lock the data of your aesthetic preferences and interests, received.”

Lu Bixing was stumped for a long while after he heard the word “mushroom”, suddenly realizing something as he turned to look at Lin Jingheng.

It was as if Lin Jingheng had thrown all his attention onto the analysis of the AUS’s armed forces, his field of vision and sense within the mental network was completely blind to anything else around him.

Lu Bixing lowered his head and wanted to remain calm like a normal adult; but he couldn’t help feeling a piece of his soul being hooked on by a strand of mycelium that grew out from the faraway Model 3, zapping through his heart to jumble up his emotions. He had to use all his body’s strength to desperately stop himself from letting out a delightful grin in front of Zhanlu. Lu Bixing aimlessly found something to do in order to distract his thoughts and casually said, “what were we talking about again? You just had to interrupt…Oh right, you wanted to let me hear your song.”

Zhanlu gladly showed off his talent. Though to be perfectly honest, his ‘talent’ was quite lackluster; no matter how close he was to a real human, he was still an AI. Rather than saying it’s a music creation, it was more like a rearrangement of existing music data that didn’t have a very lasting impression to the listener.

Lu Bixing gave a few compliments out of good conscience and casually opened up the last folder.

The last folder was labeled “nursery rhyme”.

“Mister mech, you sure have a child’s heart.” Lu Bixing randomly selected a track as he commented.

An upbeat background music suddenly rang out within the mech, and Zhanlu sang along to the beat with his considerably decent voice: “Little bunny, white and round, surf’s up in the hotpot…”

Lin Jingheng: “….”

Lu Bixing didn’t realize that he didn’t just open a random file folder and was actually free spirit with running wild behind its master’s back. He almost fell over and frantically closed it up: “Where did you get this unique inspiration from?”

Zhanlu answered, “drunk words from my master.”

Lu Bixing turned to look at Lin Jingheng in shock.

“Not Master Lin, it was my former master.”

“It was Commander Lu Xin?” Lu Bixing was stumped. “What kind of person was he?”

Zhanlu went silent for two seconds: “I’m sorry, Headmaster Lu, but this part of the data is protected and I cannot discuss this with you.”

“Okay,” Lu Bixing’s spirits lowered strangely but he waved that away as he continued to ask Zhanlu with great curiosity, “but your current master isn’t protected right? Let’s talk about him instead.”

Zhanlu’s standard AI personality was a cold-faced chatter-box, but this nature was always under suppression in Lin Jingheng’s hands like an AI with no rights. He finally met someone that was also just as chatty and was finally able to show off himself; the two talked endlessly under Lin Jingheng’s mental network to the point where they were only just missing some snacks in between them.

“Data on Master is very well-rounded,” Zhanlu said. “I have all information on him since he registered as a citizen of the Union, including gaming records.”

“Why is it all control and management type games?” Lu Bixing went through the records with great interest “Does he not play casual games?”

“To be fair, he never plays any gambling games or games with randomness.” Zhanlu said, “because he will almost 100% lose–ah, the thing you are looking at right now is a photo album, there isn’t much but they are very valuable. There are also photos of the master when he was young…”

Lin Jingheng: “Zhan-lu!”

Zhanlu zipped up his mouth on the spot and turned himself back into the robot arm. He hung himself back on the wall innocently without another word.

Lu Bixing slid over beside Lin Jingheng and stared inside the mask to find a little vein popping on Lin Jingheng’s forehead.

Lin Jingheng purposely ignored him while Lu Bixing made rounds beside the commander annoyingly. Lin Jingheng found himself unable to concentrate with this desperate cry for attention beside him, and finally took his eyes from the map to look at Lu Bixing. The latter took the opportunity and responded with a bright grin.

The grin was a little too bright, Lin Jingheng felt his heart skip a beat and was thankful there was an isolation mask that separated them.

“Hey Commander,” Lu Bixing leaned in, their masks almost hitting each other, “would you agree to let me kiss you now?”

Lin Jingheng gave him a cold face: “Do you not have anything else to do? Why did I agree to take you out?”

“It’s not that I’m bored, you’re the one that’s always busy. I bet you’re going to use checking the armory as an excuse later just so you can avoid staying around me. Why? Are you scared? I’m gonna guess that you also like me.” Lu Bixing wagged his invisible tail, “and you’re even growing fungi for me on the Model 3.”

Lin Jingheng: “Does it concern you what I plant?”

Lu Bixing: “You don’t like me?”

“I don’t, go away.”

Lu Bixing let out a dramatic sigh: “We only have a few days left to live, and death’s already calling its horses behind me. You still don’t like me, my heart’s shattering into pieces–let me ask you again, do you really not like me?”

Lin Jingheng: “….”

Perhaps he got inspiration from Zhanlu’s creations, Lu Bixing turned the story about growing mushrooms into a rap song and started singing around Lin Jingheng proudly.

“Sit down,” Lin Jingheng mentally removed the disturbance and remained calm. “I have some things to ask you.”

Lu Bixing: “Hm?”

“You said you contracted the Rainbow Virus when you were little,” Lin Jingheng said, “what’s going on with that?”

Lu Bixing’s little one-man concert was successfully stopped by one line. He remained silent and responded without answering the question: “the Eighth Galaxy is the home of the Rainbow Virus, if you don’t get infected once or twice in your life you wouldn’t be a real resident. I just randomly got contracted, no big deal. As long as we have the vaccine, it’ll be gone after a good night’s rest.”

Lin Jingheng asked patiently again: “I’m asking how you contracted it.”

“How I contracted it? Traditional Rainbow Virus only spreads in those few ways.” Lu Bixing continued to play dumb. “Dust, physical contact, and eating rotten food that carries the virus…”

Lin Jingheng interrupted him: “Does it hurt?”

Lu Bixing turned his head up in bewilderment to meet Lin Jingheng’s deep stare. The mask seemed to add a soft filter over his gaze; it was as if the deep mists inside those grey pupils were blown away, the glance becoming clear and narrow. The abyss was cleared, and the only thing left in those eyes was his own little reflection.

Lu Bixing looked directly into those eyes and felt his throat drying out as if he were enchanted by some unexplainable magic. For the first time in his life he experienced the chemical reaction caused by a look into someone’s eyes, and said absently as he shook his head: “towards the later stage of the Rainbow Virus, the nervous system would slowly deteriorate and instead feels like a painkiller.”

Lin Jingheng: “….”

He hadn’t even started his manipulative provocation.

Lu Bixing suddenly realized what he’d just said. Even he was shocked that a talented young scientist of the New Sidereal Era like himself would step right into the ancient beauty trap. His one line was more than enough to evoke suspicion–what does he mean by “the later stage of the Rainbow Virus?” The vaccine of the virus works like a charm, it’s almost immediately effective after a shot and could be completely metabolized within a day or two, how would it possible that Monoeyed Hawk would let him taste the feeling of a late-stage Rainbow Virus infection?

Also, what was “instead feels like a painkiller?”

Where did this “instead” come from?

Lu Bixing surprisingly stuttered for once: “Uh…well….”

Lin Jingheng’s eyebrow lifted slightly: “Hm?”

Lu Bixing’s silence lasted even longer before he spoke up and responded slyly, “if two people want to develop a closer relationship, there needs to be some sort of open communication mutually, right? Commander, this is a question of personal privacy, but since you asked, I shouldn’t only share unhappy things with you.”

Despite always acting honest, Lu Bixing was still very much willing to pull out the cunning card whenever necessary. This time, he was purposely leading Lin Jingheng to object to his statement and stray away from this topic; unfortunately, the commander wouldn’t fall into his trap: “Like what?”

Lu Bixing looked passionately at him and leaned in. “Are you giving your consent? Consenting to develop a closer relationship with me?”

Lin Jingheng kept his collected posture and ignored the line as if he hadn’t heard it, then knocked on the table beside him: “Why do you know how it feels to be in the late stage of the Rainbow Virus?”

Acting spoiled and playing dumb wouldn’t work before Lin Jingheng, and Lu Bixing finally reluctantly gave up and shrugged his shoulders helplessly: “I read it in a book.”

Lin Jingheng said calmly: “The Rainbow Virus was first leaked out by accident from the Reinberg lab of the Cayley family. When the late King of Cayley invested a large sum of money into the research, he pretty much squeezed the entire Eighth Galaxy’s economy dry. I don’t think his goal was to develop a plague virus; if he was just a crazy murderer, the cost of production was too high, even missiles would have been more effective.”

Lu Bixing remained silent.

“When the Rainbow Virus enters the human body, it begins by breaking down all organs. The immune system would be destroyed, the nervous system nullified,, and the patient’s senses all stripped away while the body continues to rot. In contrast, if organs were to be removed and reattached at this stage, the rejection reaction would also be minimized—from what I know, aside from destroying the human body, the virus can also degenerate existing human body cells into stem cells; however, they would almost die immediately and cannot be used.”

Lu Bixing bit down his mouth into a straight line.

Lin Jingheng: “At the Primal Alien’s place, I met a young boy merged with a bird. He paradoxically retained both characteristics of the two species naturally, and unlike other mutated human pets, he didn’t need to live inside breeding tanks and could live up to 30 years…they told me that he was the only successful case from the ‘Nuwa Project’—you know about the Nuwa Project, right?”

All hints of cunning and bright expression on Lu Bixing’s face vanished; his gaze towards Lin Jingheng was almost deathly cold. After a while, he finally lowered his head and let out an ambiguous laugh: “You know quite a lot already, so why are you asking me? Lin, you know that probing at something someone else isn’t willing to talk about will make people dislike you.”

Lin Jingheng was unfazed: “I’d say I’m quite experienced in the department of being hated.”

“Then you’re scared of people liking you, scared of others getting close to you, and scared of having others find out that you’re secretly being good to them, why is that?” Lu Bixing asked. “Tell me, and I’ll answer you.”

Lin Jingheng had the tables turned on him, and both men remained silent for a while. Just as Lu Bixing thought Lin was about to back down , he heard the latter’s voice speak through the isolation mask before him: “….I don’t have the energy.”

Lu Bixing’s eyes widened as he looked up at Lin Jingheng in shock.

“I don’t have the energy to maintain personal relationships.” Lin Jingheng paused. “I’m a person that’s constantly walking on wires and has a lot of enemies, more than you’d imagine: space pirates, the Union, the committee, and even within the Military Council. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have left the Union five years ago and come to the Eighth Galaxy. Friends and family…they would all become my weak spot. I can’t protect them, and don’t have spare emotions to give to them.”

Maintaining his hatred and anger already took all of his mental energy.

Lin Jingheng: “I’m done, it’s your turn now.”

The two were two meters apart, both locked inside their own isolation suits and unable to make out each other’s expression. Their voices rang through the speakers inside the clothes, the sound muffled with echoes within the headset. Yet, this felt like the closest the two had ever been, closer even than all the times they’d made physical contact–

“…The Rainbow Virus was only partially completed. The purpose of Cayley’s Reinberg lab back then was to find a way to genetically turn people into superhumans.” Lu Bixing paused a little before opening his mouth. “The human body is very complicated; genetically manipulating it would not only cause great pain, it would also bring about many unexpected side-effects and problems later. How could one completely rebuild an entire iron statue? The only way is to melt it, and the Rainbow Virus is the stove to melt the iron.”

Lin Jingheng said: “If I remember correctly, Reinberg ended up going to the grave with the Cayley family.”

“Yes,” Lu Bixing nodded. “The Reinberg lab is gone, but the great ambition of defying nature didn’t disappear with it.”

Lin Jingheng: “You meant the ‘Nuwa Project’ afterwards. In other words, the project was the ghost of Reinberg.”

“When the Eighth Galaxy officially returned to the Union, Reinberg was also burnt down. The remaining survivors of Reinberg disappeared for many years, perhaps they ended up in the outskirts….I’m not too sure,” Lu Bixing said quietly. “Until one day, old man–my dad received news that they were disguised as human pet smugglers and were continuing to perform human experiments on residents of the Eighth Galaxy. This enraged almost everyone; all the survivors had suffered losses of their loved ones from the Rainbow Virus, how could they not be upset? So they all teamed up to investigate this matter. My old man had a vast network from selling arms and received some clues from his connections…but he didn’t say anything about it.”

Lin Jingheng softened his voice in fear of startling him: “Why?”

“Because of me.” Lu Bixing said. “I heard that when my mother was close to term, the spaceship she was on got caught in an accident. When my dad made it over, she was already…and the child inside her that hadn’t been born yet suffered from a fatal radiation exposure, so when they managed to take me out I was essentially a stillborn. When my dad was driven into a corner, he remembered that Nuwa Project…he heard that there was a successful case from the experiment, but they hadn’t managed to create a superhuman, only a few genetically engineered pets. My body was broken to the point that it was completely non-functional aside from my brain, so the first five years after I was born, I was essentially just a brain in a box. Everything was sent to me through electric communication directly into my brain. My old man kept an original virus strain from the project in secret, and used the research of the Nuwa Project to rebuild my body…that took a whole 15 years. There was an underground chamber back then that was filled with genetically engineered pets that he collected over the years…they were experiment results.”

“You can say I’m a homunculus, the ship of Theseus. The Rainbow Virus killed 3.6 billion people in the Eighth Galaxy, and saved my one life.” Lu Bixing lifted his head slowly, “I was born in debt to this place.”

[3] For the alternative version of the last part of this chapter, please visit the bean blog with more details on it and why it exists.