Silicon-Based Lifeform

The world was shrouded in darkness.

As though the universe had yet to be born.

Cheng Qi could feel neither his body nor his own existence.

Then two points of light suddenly appeared before him.

The two lights expanded, growing larger and larger.

At last, they formed two magnificent, mysterious, intricate structures before Cheng Qi.

One was a magnificent double helix glowing with azure light.

It was the foundation of countless millennia of human reproduction. If humanity was the most ingenious and intricate creation in Earth's ecosystem,

then this was the chief architect of that creation.

The two spirals resembled ladders to the heavens, with base pairs forming rung after rung between them.

Within it lay an immense amount of genetic information.

As Cheng Qi gazed at it, an inexplicable sense of awe and reverence arose within him.

Beside the human DNA was a structure shimmering with purple light.

It, too, looked like some kind of DNA.

Yet its structure was a rhombic dodecahedron.

Twelve rhombic faces formed its top, bottom, front, and back.

Every face was densely covered in sequences that resembled the code of the universe.

Those were probably something like base pairs, likewise carrying vast amounts of information.

Judging by its volume alone, this rhombic dodecahedral structure seemed to contain far more information than the human DNA double helix.

"Is this the DNA of a silicon-based lifeform?"

Cheng Qi had no idea how he had produced a voice. He only sensed it echoing through the empty space.

"What we call silicon-based life"

"is life founded on the element silicon."

Another voice suddenly rang out in the darkness, deep and ancient, as though it came from the depths of history.

Cheng Qi felt a sense of peace and comfort.

For some reason, he felt neither resistance nor doubt and quietly listened to the voice.

"There are enormous differences between us and carbon-based life."

"From our appearance to our internal structure and the systems at the core of our functioning, we are entirely different."

Just then,

a body slowly emerged over the silicon-based DNA structure ahead. It was a translucent outline roughly three meters tall.

Cheng Qi quietly watched this extraordinary lifeform. It remained motionless, its limbs extended, looking more like a holographic model.

Its body consisted of hard crystalline structures, like siliceous gemstones shining with an otherworldly light.

Those gemstones followed a certain pattern, displaying a high degree of order and symmetry, with hard lines and sharply defined edges.

Its appearance could only be described as breathtakingly beautiful.

"We do not need to rely on water and organic molecules to sustain our vital functions as carbon-based organisms do."

"Our skin is a translucent siliceous membrane that filters and refracts light, producing a dazzling array of colors."

Before Cheng Qi's eyes, the silicon-based lifeform suspended in the air rotated slightly, radiating an even more brilliant, dazzling light.

"We do not move through muscular contraction and relaxation as carbon-based organisms do. Instead, we change position through electromagnetic forces or the growth and contraction of crystals."

The silicon-based lifeform moved its arms slightly, producing a crisp scraping sound.

"We possess 'eyes' that are extremely sensitive to electromagnetic waves, allowing us to perceive energy across various frequency bands directly, including radio waves, infrared, and even X-rays."

"Our 'ears' may be able to detect minute electromagnetic vibrations, allowing us to perceive information from afar."

"We communicate by transmitting information through electromagnetic waves at specific frequencies. This method is swift and efficient, capable of conveying vast amounts of complex information in an instant."

"We can also produce sound by vibrating the siliceous crystals on the surface of our bodies, across frequencies audible to many kinds of organisms. This ability allows us to communicate freely with other lifeforms."

At that moment, several purple beams burst from the facial features of the silicon-based lifeform model.

The beams were sharply defined and stretched far into the distance, as though they could reach the heavens.

"Thanks to the properties of silicon, our bodies remain sufficiently stable in high-temperature environments and do not break down from heat as carbon-based organisms do."

"We use high temperatures to drive the chemical reactions within our bodies, sustaining our vital functions by absorbing and storing vast amounts of thermal energy."

"Our siliceous structures can also resist radiation damage and even convert radiation into usable forms of energy."

"We have always lived in environments of high temperature, high pressure, and intense radiation, such as the scorching surfaces of planets close to stars, or the interiors of planets filled with radioactive materials."

Raging flames suddenly erupted within the holographic model.

There were even phenomena resembling solar prominences, but these extreme temperatures could not harm the silicon-based lifeform at all. Instead, they made his gemstone skin shine all the more brilliantly.

Throughout the entire process,

Cheng Qi felt as though he were immersed in a wondrous journey.

Through some means he could not understand, he had learned about an extraordinary form of life unlike anything he had ever seen.

Silicon-based life.

Cheng Qi did not know how to sum it up.

Calling it a superhuman did not seem accurate, either, because it was not remotely "human" in the conventional sense.

It was born with such wondrous and powerful abilities, and the same was true of its entire species.

Yet he had to admit that if a silicon-based lifeform suddenly descended upon human civilization,

some of its traits would be nothing short of godlike.

Cheng Qi's mind gradually cleared a little, and he voiced his question into the empty space around him. "Who are you?"

"I am not anyone."

"I am not an individual, nor a living being."

"I am the genetic information within silicon-based lifeform DNA."

"As you can see, silicon-based DNA contains far more information than carbon-based DNA. It records not only the blueprint for a lifeform's growth, but also a piece of information such as myself."

"Whenever a new silicon-based lifeform is born,"

"I explain the essential basics to them."

"You may think of me as 'inheritance' itself."

Cheng Qi's awareness grew hazy again. "Inheritance? For whom?"

"For you."

The mysterious voice spoke its final words. Those two words struck Cheng Qi's heart like the toll of a great bell.

He felt the entire world ripple, and vortex after vortex appeared in his vision.

Suddenly,

Cheng Qi shivered.

His vision rapidly cleared.

He saw the underground shelter's magnificent spherical ceiling.

He saw the glass test tube raised in his hand.

He also saw the single drop of Genetic Serum falling inside the tube.

Drip-

The drop of serum finally fell into Cheng Qi's mouth, and he felt a sweet, cool sensation on his tongue.

Cheng Qi shook his head, his eyes filled with confusion.

I've been sitting here the whole time?!

Then what was everything I just saw and heard? A hallucination?

But in the next instant,

Cheng Qi's body stiffened slightly.

He saw that his right arm, which held the test tube aloft, was no longer human.

It was an arm that reflected dazzling light, like a magnificent diamond.