Electric Flight

From the fragments of the mutated spider's memory that Xiang Kun knew that it had killed and devoured two mutated plants.

The first mutated plant was a tree that seemed to secrete a liquid from its trunk that attracted certain mammals. When those animals came to lick it, the plant would use fine thorns extending from its branches to pierce their bodies and suck their blood. Throughout the entire process, the animals that were having their blood sucked would remain unaware.

After the animal licked the liquid off the tree trunk, the blood-sucking process stopped, and then the animal could be seen leaving without noticing, but it was clearly very weak, dazed, and even staggering and stumbling. Although the mutated spider's memory fragments did not contain the final fate of these animals, Xiang Kun could tell that they would not live long.

From the mutated spider's memory fragments, Xiang Kun had seen three such scenes. It was clear that the mutated spider had actively sought out that tree, having secretly observed it for a long time before making its move.

The mutated spider's memory fragments did not reveal the specific process of how it dealt with the mutated tree, but at the end, one could see a tree heavily surrounded by a large amount of spider silk, with its branches being pulled and controlled. The mutated spider used its sharp, elongated proboscis to pierce the tree trunk and suck something out.

The other mutated plant is a vine that attracts other animals by bearing fruit. However, compared to the mutated tree, this mutated vine is not only more effective at luring and killing, but also much more capable of fighting.

Just like the corrosive liquid Xiang Kun had encountered, this mutated vine also possessed it, but it was clearly not as lethal as the trap the mutated spider had set for Xiang Kun. That must have been due to the mutated spider's later evolution and the addition of its own venom mechanism.

Even so, in the memory fragments that Xiang Kun saw, the battle between the mutated spider and the mutated vines was extremely fierce. Half of the mutated spider's body disappeared, leaving only its head and a pair of forelimbs tightly entangled with a bunch of vines.

Judging from those fragments of memory alone, he couldn't even tell who won or who had taken the drugs from whom.

Of course, the fact that these memory fragments came from that mutated spider is enough to explain who survived to the end.

From the fragments of memory of those mutated spiders, including what it saw of its own limbs and its reflection when it passed over the water, Xiang Kun could tell that before it dealt with the mutated tree, it was only half the size it was later, and its mouthparts had undergone significant mutations, but there were no green roots or anything like that on its body. When it dealt with the mutated vines, its body had grown to the size of a washbasin, but there were still no green roots on its body.

Xiang Kun deduced that the mutated spider must have dealt with the mutated tree first, and then devoured the mutated vines—those green roots growing on its body, those strange "Conversion Branch" and "Reconstruction Branch," were all mutations and abilities that occurred later.

During the battle with the mutated spider, Xiang Kun did not discover that it possessed any of the mutated tree's abilities, nor did he find that it had ever used them in the spider's memory fragments.

Therefore, it is likely that this mutated spider did not acquire the abilities of the mutated tree. However, after acquiring some of the abilities of the mutated vines, its body underwent significant mutations, such as the green roots extending from its body.

Therefore, Xiang Kun believes that for Mutated Creature to acquire the special abilities of other Mutated Creature through blood, unless they are of the same kind and have the same basic structure, their bodies must undergo significant mutations in order to adapt quickly.

It's like plugging a peripheral device into a computer, giving it a specific function.

After Xiang Kun drank the blood of a Mutated Creature, he essentially dismantled and sold it, using the money to upgrade his computer's configuration. As for the new functions, he would first need to understand their principles and then make improvements based on his own circumstances.

Functions that the hardware itself can perform are implemented by modifying the software; for functions that the hardware itself cannot perform, parts are gradually purchased and modified to achieve the desired functionality without significantly altering the form factor.

Undoubtedly, in terms of difficulty, the latter is much more difficult than the former, and the final actual functional effect may not necessarily surpass the former, or the functional performance may be different.

However, there is one aspect that the former cannot match: compatibility, and the possibility of deriving and expanding other functions based on known principles, as well as enhancing existing functions.

Just like Guo Tianxiang's "Fear Projection Through Eye Contact," Xiang Kun's approach evolved into "the Projection Manifestation." Although the forms of expression are different, the actual impact is stronger.

Xiang Kun speculated that the reason he hadn't yet acquired Guo Tianxiang's ability to hypnotize people directly with his voice was probably because his original physical structure and certain abilities conflicted with this hypnotic ability. Once he found out what the specific conflict was and resolved it, he should be able to master this ability, or perhaps develop other related abilities.

Returning to this mutated spider, after carefully studying its memory fragments and later research on spider flight, Xiang Kun concluded that its flight relied primarily on electric fields. He believed it was possible for the Xiang Kun to achieve this without altering its physical structure.

More than a hundred years ago, a few people discovered that "spiders can fly."

Sometimes, people find large numbers of spiders suddenly appearing on the deck of ships sailing at sea. These spiders are "blown over" by the wind. They can fly tens or hundreds of miles with the wind, moving from one place to another, or even "crossing the ocean to see you".

Through observation, people have discovered that some small spiders climb to high places, raise their abdomens, and shoot out spider silk. Then, the wind "pulls" the silk, dragging the spider into the air. It is believed that the spider's flight behavior is a utilization of airflow, with the spider silk acting more like a parachute.

However, last year, researchers at the University of Bristol, Erica L. Morley and Daniel Robert, used artificial electric fields to prove that spiders fly not only by utilizing airflow but also by utilizing the Earth's electric field.

They placed the spider in a sealed container isolated from airflow and external electric fields, and then applied an electric field inside, with the intensity consistent with that in the natural environment.

They then observed that the spiders could still fly even without airflow, and that they could control their flight speed by adjusting the electric field strength.

Through further observation and experiments, they discovered that spiders' leg hairs should be able to sense electric fields, and then "shoot" spider silk into the air at the appropriate time. At this time, the tips of the spider silk carry a large number of negative charges, and fly by using the environmental electric field, thus traveling by electricity.

However, this is only possible with very small spiders, since the lift generated by using spider silk to leverage an electric field is actually quite limited.

That mutated spider was definitely not among the "small spiders." Its body tissues were not lightweight enough, so the force required for it to fly was many, many times stronger than that of an ordinary small spider. It couldn't be lifted up by simply sticking out its rear end and shooting out some silk.

Therefore, when the mutated spider was being chased by Xiang Kun, it couldn't take off directly. It had to run to the edge of the cliff, take off, and then find a way to use the electric field to help it glide.

However, when a thunderstorm occurred that night, the mutated spider found an even stronger source of power.

The electromagnetic loop between the Earth and the ionosphere is called the atmospheric potential gradient. Normally, this electric field is 100 V/M, but during thunderstorms, it can reach 10,000 V/M or even higher.

The mutated spider must have evolved a special structure that allows it to "recharge" itself during thunderstorms, enabling it to carry enough charge on its body surface and then use it to lift itself up. The powerful charge ionizes the surrounding air, causing it to glow and look like a UFO.

Moreover, judging from its flight behavior, it is clear that it can control its flight direction and status with great precision.

Although the mutated spider's memory fragments obtained by Xiang Kun also showed scenes of it riding on electricity, the specifics of how it "charged," controlled its flight, and how this ability evolved remain unknown for the time being.

However, Xiang Kun knew that the two most important things for flying were sensing the electric field in nature and "charging" himself to obtain enough charge so that he could take off.

Furthermore, compared to the weight of that mutated spider, Xiang Kun's current weight of over 100 kg requires much more force to fly, and naturally, he also needs to carry a much larger electrical charge.

The first step is sensing electric fields. In the materials Xiang Kun read, spiders sense changes in electric fields by changing the orientation of tiny hairs on their legs. Assuming the mutated spider uses the same method, how can Xiang Kun imitate it?

Just as he thought of this, he rolled up his trouser leg and examined his crooked leg hair, then looked at his well-behaved hand hair. Although they were both body hair, their structures and functions were completely different. Spider leg hair was one of their sensory organs, but his hand and leg hair did not seem to have mutated or changed. He did not receive any sensory feedback through his leg and hand hair.

He felt it was necessary to understand the principles behind the mutant spider's flight, because certain "energy" he had acquired was the root of those mutations. However, to imitate and reshape those abilities, it was not necessarily necessary to completely replicate their original structure. Just as internal combustion engines can be used to create two-wheeled motorcycles, four-wheeled cars, tracked tanks, or even airplanes.

So after the most recent blood-drinking incident, Xiang Kun first built a cognitive model of "flying by electricity" in his mind based on his experiences of witnessing the mutated spider Electric Flight, and the reasoning behind its implementation.

Then, apply this cognitive model to yourself to see what's missing and what details need improvement.

It's like setting a goal and then presenting a series of tasks for you to complete.

When he tried to create a cognitive model of his specific situation, everything went black and he instantly lost consciousness.

This brief fainting spell was actually very short, lasting only a fraction of a second, so while he was standing, he didn't even fall but only slightly lost his balance.

But this feeling made him realize that to build a comprehensive cognitive model for himself, the amount of data would be too large, and just having this thought was enough for his brain to protectively say no.

Perhaps when he has this ability, he can directly control his mutation and even find the root cause of his mutation.

Therefore, Xiang Kun could only start with the established cognitive model of "Electric Flight" and gradually perceive the parts he needed to improve based on the required conditions.

At the same time, efforts are being made to establish a cognitive model of the electric field between heaven and earth.

Then there's the part about "recharging" himself. Xiang Kun had previously touched an electrical outlet at home to test his sensitivity to electricity, and he was quite certain that if he were to directly touch an electric shock, he would just die; he wouldn't actually "recharge." (※Do not imitate this stupid behavior)

Therefore, he still pinned his hopes on his new cognitive model, attempting to build a cognitive model that would "recharge" him.

During this period, Xiang Kun frequently came to the rooftop to experience his body and the surrounding environment more thoroughly, and to try to improve several related cognitive models.

Through tonight's gathering at Tang Baona's house, Xiang Kun gained more experience in how to handle a relatively complex cognitive model—when there are many variables and a lack of accurate data, it can be divided into several relatively simple cognitive models. Then, by influencing the more familiar cognitive models, the operation of the entire large system can be driven, thereby collecting data and improving other cognitive models.

For example, tonight's chat scenario involving ten people can be categorized into a single cognitive model. Xiang Kun can further subdivide the other nine people (excluding himself) into nine cognitive models, and then further subdivide each person's taste in food into new cognitive models. He can use food to influence them as an entry point, and then further influence the entire chat through a few people he knows well. Each link can be continuously subdivided and rebuilt.

Using this method, Xiang Kun, standing on the rooftop, also vaguely discovered his way of perceiving the electric field between heaven and earth—sight, smell, and hearing. A single sense cannot clearly establish a detailed cognitive model of the surrounding electric field. But this does not mean that these sensory information have no feedback about the electric field.

As mentioned before, you are actually receiving a lot of information all the time, but you can't truly understand it when you don't have the corresponding "decoder".

Now, thanks to the blood of the mutated spider, he is gradually integrating a comprehensive electric field cognitive model by establishing cognitive models of electric fields through various senses, based on the new cognitive modes he has gained after this mutation and evolution.

The weather forecast predicts light rain tonight. Although thunderstorms are rare in their city at this time of year, the electrical potential will still change significantly. Xiang Kun believes this is a good opportunity to make a breakthrough in cognitive models.

At Tang Baona's home.

Before leaving, everyone tidied up a bit together, even washing the dishes and chopsticks, so there's not much to clean up now except for taking out the trash.

Yang Zhen'er lay on the sofa, bragging to Lao Xia via voice message: "Wow, Chef Xiang's crispy pork knuckle tonight has improved so much! The taste was amazing, tsk tsk, not a single piece was left! Did you see the bones I just took a picture of? They were all clean, hehe, everyone who's tried it says it's fantastic! My dear little sister, Merry Christmas!"

"You're acting so unlike a proper older sister!" Tang Baona said casually Xiang Kun had brought today and prepared to go back to her room.

"It's a bag!!" After sending the voice message, Yang Zhen'er jumped up from the sofa, moved closer to Tang Baona, and looked into the bag. "What's that? I noticed before, there was a wooden box in the bag Chef Xiang brought! Could it be a Christmas present?"

"Hehe," Tang Baona said, and walked into the room.

"What the hell are you 'hehe' for?! Stop right there! Chef Xiang only gave you a Christmas present?!" Yang Zhen'er quickly followed him inside. "Is there no justice in this world? Is there no law?"

"He said he didn't realize it was Christmas, and he didn't have time before, so he only made this one. He'll make yours later. Also, isn't your birthday coming up soon..." Tang Baona said as she took a wooden box out of the bag.

"Christmas presents are Christmas presents, and birthday presents are birthday presents, they can't be mixed up!" Yang Zhen'er leaned over and asked curiously, "What did you get this time?"

The wooden box was clearly handmade by Xiang Kun. When Tang Baona opened it, she saw the wooden carving lying inside.

"Why?"

"Huh?"

Tang Baona and Yang Zhen'er looked at the wood carving with somewhat surprised expressions.

Because that tiny wooden carving, though it looked like a cute chibi-style cartoon character, was clearly a chibi version of Tang Baona!

"Hahahaha! It really does look a bit like it! What are those glasses made of? Wood or plastic? Wow, Chef Xiang is amazing! Oh my, I'm dying of laughter, come on, let me take a picture!" Yang Zhen'er said, laughing uncontrollably as she picked up her phone to take a picture.

Meanwhile, in Citong City, after listening to her cousin's smug voice message, Xia Libing replied with "Merry Christmas, you've gained five pounds," then indifferently exited WeChat, opened the previously recorded "video," and slowly watched it.

Thanks to the new helmsman Tianzhicangcangqizhengsexie, and thanks to the following book friends for their donations: Aierkeng, 20190508193533364, Dao Initiation, Wu Yilin, Breathing Freely, Friend Fengjunzi, Shouwucuntie de Yifangdaya, Dao Initiation, Yunlinqiu, 20190601162356914, Burudao, Burudao, 20190921205425636, Dao Initiation, 100tiannaituankaoyan, Tangyang, 20180928104452907, Ziyuemao, Qidian Reading iOS, Ziyuemao, Qidian Reading iOS, Nianpitou de Xiaohai, Shumoliang, Friend Fengjunzi, Wuxian Tesla, Hell Mingshi.