The World's Upgrade and One Person's Pain (Six Thousand Words)

The true concept of a singularity, and...

... Is this world deceiving us?

Xiao Qi sat quietly, watching the two people slowly disappear into the speeding train, his expression slightly somber, without uttering a word.

The two most powerful figures from the most mysterious organizations came to this high train where he was, just to give him a warning and then leave?

The train beneath their feet rumbled and continued to run through the deep flesh and blood. If Xiao Xiao wished, this train could reach Black Gate City instantly. In fact, this train shouldn't have a concept of time. It should have arrived at City of Rest Black Gate City. It was only because these two mysterious and powerful figures entered the train that the process was prolonged. Now that they have left, Xiao Qi could make the train arrive at Black Gate City immediately, but he subconsciously slowed down the speed.

Thinking about what those two people had said, he slowly opened his palm, downloaded the mail disk containing Old Man An's memories, and quietly placed it in his palm.

These two people didn't force me to do anything; they just gave me subtle reminders and even promised to save me a seat.

It seems that they are convinced that once they have seen Old Man An's memories, they will automatically abandon the Noah Project and join their side.

This certainty made Xiao Xiao hesitate, a vague worry settling over his heart.

It's like when you're having a great time, someone brings you a mail tray and says that after you see what's inside, you'll definitely be unhappy.

Whatever it may be, it's bound to make people feel somewhat resistant.

But you're supposed to watch it anyway...

Xiao Qi sighed helplessly and slowed down Gao Lie's pace. He really needed to look at the memories left behind by Old Man An.

Moreover, he did indeed intend to see this before returning to Black Gate City, just as those two had suggested.

"Ruan Ruan, can I borrow your computer?"

Sitting in the empty carriage, Xiao Qi slowly let out a sigh of relief and said to Ruan Ruan, who was pretending Ruan Ruan be a well-behaved girl next to him.

"Ah?"

Ruan Ruan was both flustered and somewhat unwilling, but Xiao Qi's solemn expression seemed to indicate that this matter was very important, and she couldn't refuse.

He could only reluctantly hand it over, carefully saying, "You can use it, but don't rummage through it..."

"I promise I won't flip it..."

Xiao Qi readily agreed, while wondering to himself, "What's so interesting about a little girl's computer?"

"A single dog who's been single for decades has a lot of treasures on his computer."

"The longer you're single, the more precious your computer becomes!"

"..."

After taking the pink computer, Xiao Qi took a deep breath and inserted the mail disk into the computer.

After a long silence, he pressed the Enter key.

The next moment, Old Man An's memories began to play on this computer.

Xiao Qi can read this memory in any way he wants. He can treat it as a first-person video and play it on a computer screen, or he can turn it into a piece of text. He can use the ability of the Insightful One to enter his memory and observe it as an observer, or he can directly enter his memory.

From the moment Old Man An opened his eyes and saw the world for the first time, this memory recorded everything about him.

Whether it's his growth, his understanding of the world as a child, his babbling process, or all the ignorant and shameful things he did.

For example, peeping at the neighbor's aunt taking a bath when I was a child, peeing in other people's cups when I was in elementary school, and rewarding myself with different things every day during puberty.

Xiao Xiao could even see who was on his mind when he rewarded himself...

... Old Man An is quite sentimental. He peeked at the aunt next door when he was seven years old, and he was still thinking about her when he was seventeen.

This also served as a warning to Xiao Qi.

This is extremely important; I need to be careful if I encounter someone with similar abilities in the future.

Memory is the most private thing a person has, recording all of their ignorance and shame. Once you see it, it can be a real nightmare.

Xiao Xiao even estimated that once all the memories were exposed, probably more than half of the people in the world would immediately not want to live anymore.

Although he wanted to look at more, Xiao Qi wanted to save time, so he started skipping quickly, browsing at ten times, twenty times, a hundred times, a thousand times the speed. Later, in order to quickly switch to the useful parts, he was scanning the various messy images flashing on the screen at nearly ten thousand times the speed...

Old Man An did not come from a wealthy family. When he was a child, his family could only live in a narrow house, without even running water or a flush toilet. However, his youth and middle age coincided with the years of rapid development in the world. Technology advanced rapidly and resources became extremely abundant. So, following this era, Old Man An finally got to use a flush toilet and moved into a new-era centralized residential area that was not large but had a very reasonable layout, with running water and a fast food delivery system.

It seems that some of the wishes he had as a child can be easily fulfilled as time goes by, but Old Man An still feels very poor.

Why?

Old Man An was also thinking that he was living a life where he could easily get by every day, which was much better than when he was a child. In particular, he had heard that his father's generation and grandfather's generation had even gone through times when they didn't have enough to eat. Compared with their past lives, he was living a life like Paradise now.

Why do I still feel poor?

Soon, Old Man An realized that his poverty was probably a poverty of dignity.

Sometimes, poverty is not an objective thing; it is not reflected in whether one can have enough to eat or how tired one is every day.

It is more specifically reflected in the right to choose a spouse and the right to make choices.

Therefore, no matter how the world develops, poverty will always exist.

Because of this, Old Man An, who had always been in poverty, always harbored a dream of striving for success.

He had worked as a delivery driver, a street vendor, and a factory worker, but none of these jobs could lift him out of poverty. So, at the age of twenty-six, he encountered what he considered a great opportunity at the time, and decided to seize it to truly escape poverty...

That was a job posting for a drug trial participant from the Black Forest.

In the era when Old Man An grew up, everything related to the Black Forest represented endless business opportunities and a status that people looked up to.

Even being a trial participant represents a substantial reward.

So, the strong and healthy Old Man An signed up and, after a series of complicated tests and physical examinations, successfully entered that secret laboratory.

For the rest of his life, Old Man An never knew whether that choice was a blessing or a curse.

In this laboratory, there are many young and strong men like Old Man An, as well as many women and medical staff.

Their drug testing processes were also quite varied.

At first, I would simply take a certain pill and then report whether I felt dizzy or weak.

Later, Old Man An's physical indicators remained in good condition, so he was selected through multiple rounds of screening and eventually made it to the bottom floor of the laboratory.

The pay here is so generous that Old Man An felt that as long as he could get through this month, he could squeeze into high society.

But here, their drug testing process also began to seem bizarre.

They were faced with a strange injection. After staff in white protective suits carefully injected a tiny dose into their bodies, they were strapped with strong restraints, and various instruments were attached to their bodies, precisely and meticulously monitoring everything about them.

Old Man An had seen many people like himself who died from convulsions after coming into contact with this drug, or who screamed in terror.

But he was lucky; he passed the first hurdle and then began to undergo various tests.

Strangely, the tests were incomprehensible; for example, asking him to lift a 1,000-kilogram barbell.

For example, a playing card is facing away from him, but he is required to identify its suit and number.

For example, you could have Old Man An enter an empty warehouse and order them to hide within thirty seconds. After thirty seconds, a group of people would come in looking for him.

Once found, they'll... hehehe...

... That damned warehouse was empty, with only a few broken boxes and overturned cabinets. How could we hide there?

Old Man An was initially confused by these unreasonable tests. He suffered a lot because he failed to meet the standards, but because his body did not experience any major problems despite not completing the tests, he was given the opportunity to undergo further tests and be injected with a larger dose of medicine...

After going through three stages, Old Man An was still unable to understand why this test had to be conducted.

Until the fourth trial began, he was surprised to find that he seemed to have developed some incomprehensible abilities.

During that period, his mental state had deteriorated due to the numerous drug trials. He was in a daze every day, unresponsive to his surroundings, and often forgot where he was. Even the medical staff said that he was ruined and they were preparing to transport him back to Earth. But at this time, some irrational phenomena began to appear in Old Man An. For example, he would often lose himself and sit blankly in the lobby for a whole morning because he forgot where he was.

But it was only when the nurses were counting heads afterward that they discovered him; no one had realized he had been there all morning.

Old Man An seems to have developed the ability to blend into his surroundings.

The side effect is that one often forgets oneself, one's identity, and what one was just about to do.

This discovery excited the entire laboratory.

They increased Old Man An's contract, moved him to a deeper underground location, and provided him with more medical staff and better medical and material conditions. Of course, there were also more heavily armed security personnel around him, and a dedicated person in charge of the experiment was assigned to coordinate with Old Man An.

"You have developed a previously undiscovered characteristic, which is a very valuable thing."

The person in charge of the experiment said to Old Man An, "As long as you cooperate with us to complete the experiment, you will own an apartment in the city center!"

Old Man An was very happy.

Having not received much formal education as a child, he initially did not understand what this meant.

But as he cooperated more, he gradually came to understand:

This group seems to be trying to amplify their ability to blend into their surroundings by adjusting the dosage of different drugs, while simultaneously suppressing the side effect of frequently forgetting themselves. Are they trying to transform themselves into superhumans who can seamlessly integrate into their environment without being noticed by others?

That's fucking amazing...

If I had that ability, wouldn't I be able to hide in the bathroom and openly peep at the aunt next door...?

... cleaning the bathtub?

Old Man An Mingming felt that all of this was beyond his understanding of reality, but because he had been participating in the drug trials for some time and was mentally prepared, and because the conditions here were so good and the promises he made to himself were so tempting, he persevered little by little. During this time, he also saw that even in this level of the laboratory, people were often transported to unknown places because of their madness or mental derangement.

On one occasion, he even saw someone locked in an iron cage whose body suddenly melted and turned into a pile of flesh and blood.

Why is this happening?

Having become quite familiar with the lab director, he would occasionally ask such questions.

Everything in the laboratory was undoubtedly confidential, but because they had spent so much time together, or perhaps to allow the test subjects, or rather, the drug trial participants, to understand the principles, which would help the experiments proceed, the person in charge once explained to him with a smile, "Physical resonance. The human body needs to follow the laws of reality, but mental power does not. However, some special mental powers can resonate with one's own body, giving that body the ability to temporarily detach from reality..."

Actually, Old Man An had no idea what this thing was.

However, he understands that the more experiments he participates in and the more injections he receives, the more successful his experiments are becoming.

He could now enter an empty warehouse, surrounded by a squad of heavily armed soldiers, some even wearing infrared goggles, and secretly take the apples that the soldiers were protecting behind them. He could stand right in front of these men, yet they couldn't see him, and he hadn't forgotten his mission at all.

"You have tremendous potential."

Even the person in charge excitedly told Old Man An, "Your trait compatibility with the mother's body has reached over 70%, which means you are a Level 2 high-quality trial subject."

Old Man An asked, puzzled, "Is there anything better?"

"Certainly."

The person in charge laughed and said, "There are also Level 1 high-quality trial participants, whose compatibility rate can reach 90%, but those are very rare."

Old Man An imagined whether those people could earn more money from him, and couldn't help but ask:

"What about 100%?"

"..."

"It does not exist."

The person in charge laughed and said, "It only exists in theory, but in reality it is impossible to find."

"Moreover, these legendary Level 0 test subjects are undetectable and can only be tested once as a gamble."

"If we fail, we will suffer a mental breakdown, and it will be a terrible sight."

"..."

Old Man An couldn't imagine what that would be like; preoccupied with the thought of a big house, he subconsciously asked only one question, "What if it succeeds?"

"If it succeeds..."

Even the person in charge was taken aback for a moment, then shook his head and said with a wry smile, "I don't know."

After all, he was just an experimental subject, and Old Man An had no right to ask too many questions, and besides, he wasn't very interested.

All he knew was that the experiment he was cooperating with was getting closer and closer to success, and this seemed inevitable. With the continuous adjustment of the dosage, he would eventually reach a perfect state. However, he did not expect that at this moment when he was closest to success, the progress of his drug trial would unexpectedly slow down.

What are we waiting for?

I was thinking of leaving here as soon as possible and moving to a big house in the city center...

But faced with Old Man An's complaints, the person in charge was also disappointed. "I'm even more anxious than you are, but there's been a problem with the collection of the mother's body."

"There isn't enough raw material, so less is allocated to us."

"However, you don't need to worry. The people above are trying to find a way to increase the amount of data collected..."

"We should have results soon."

"..."

Old Man An waited and waited, but unexpectedly, it took more than two months.

The waiting time had even exceeded the time he had come to test the drug. Faced with this prison-like life, he became increasingly irritable and urged the person in charge several times, but the person in charge was even more irritable than him. He only said that the higher-ups were trying to find a solution, but he had not received the injection for nearly two months.

But he still reassured Old Man An, saying that several new plans had been proposed and would be implemented soon.

The incident occurred without warning in the middle of the night. Old Man An, who had been fast asleep, suddenly awoke with a start, feeling pain all over his body. He felt as if countless insects that did not belong to him were crawling inside his body, tearing at his internal organs. He even began to experience hallucinations, with images that were not his own constantly switching between his own vision and occupying all his senses. Countless eerie sounds frantically burrowed into his ears...

Could this be the culmination of all the consequences I've suffered since starting drug trials?

Things that don't belong to you have entered your body. They had been lying dormant for a while, giving you the illusion that they would be at peace.

But now, they've started causing trouble, and it's time for them to pay the price?

Old Man An was agonizing over all of this when the nurses and doctors who noticed his abnormal test results rushed over and tried everything they could to stabilize him. However, the hallucinations and illusory voices that Old Man An experienced continued to appear and intensify, eventually causing him to see another strange perspective.

He "saw" himself being suspended in the center of a huge pool of blood, the churning blood reflecting his appearance.

He saw a huge instrument connected to countless tubes attached to various parts of "his" body. The largest tube was connected to the back of his head, where the bone seemed to have been removed, exposing the soft brain. This tube was embedded there like an interface, and every now and then it would extract something from his body. This liquid was then injected into rows of test tubes through even more complex instruments.

Old Man An looked at the familiar test tube and suddenly understood what it was.

This is what the person in charge refers to as the "mother body".

The medicines he used for experiments were all made from substances extracted from her body.

But why can I see her?

As he pondered this, the conversation of the people around him suddenly made Old Man An understand. Someone in a sharp suit looked indifferently at him, who was now hanging in mid-air. "At least a dozen experimental projects have stalled, or even failed unnecessarily, due to insufficient supply of the maternal body..."

"Therefore, we must find a way to increase her production supply."

"That's why I came here personally to supervise!"

"..."

The elderly man with white hair beside her looked worriedly at the woman hanging in mid-air. "Pain..."

"The only way to effectively stimulate her to increase production and supply, and even amplify various traits, is pain."

"It's not just physical pain, but also mental pain..."

"All kinds of pain can stimulate her, and providing enough raw materials can also amplify the power of certain traits..."

"..."

The man in the suit said coldly, "Since you know, why aren't you doing it?"

"But..."

The elderly woman with white hair hesitated, conflicted. "But she's been through so many experiments; she's become very fragile..."

"Her now..."

"..."

Look around you!

The man in the suit shouted, "Haven't you seen how this world has changed?"

"The influence of the Black Forest has begun to spread throughout the entire world. This world is undergoing an unprecedented iteration, and all of this is driven by the Black Forest. We have brought unimaginable power to this world. We are realizing the upgrade of our world, and you are still hesitating?"

"..."

"Upgrade..."

The elderly man with white hair trembled, and his eyes, as he looked over, seemed to hold a trace of reluctance and regret.

"Yes, the world is upgrading..."

"But the advancement of our world is built upon the suffering of a woman..."

"..."

But undoubtedly, his hesitation was of no use.

"Now, we have obtained enough products, and the expert group has conducted multiple tests and discussions. Its potential is almost exhausted."

The man in the suit said coldly, "Now, all we need to do is have her supply enough."

"Just help us finish the last batch of projects, and you can end her suffering."

"As for now..."

"..."

The man in the suit spoke with unwavering authority, "I need you to obtain all the raw materials we require, at any cost!"

Is it painful?

"That's good. What kind of pain can a madman feel?"

This part is a bit difficult to write; it's the key point, so I need to think about it carefully.