Although Huang Liang still didn't quite understand why they weren't using more advanced equipment but instead opting for the ancient method of acupuncture, he stopped asking questions and simply began to give Dickinson acupuncture treatments as instructed by the professor.
More than sixty silver needles were inserted into Dickinson's back, running down her spine like the bristles of a wild boar. Dickinson lay there motionless with her eyes closed, whether enjoying it or enduring the discomfort, it was unclear.
Situ Yuli took many delicate little clips and clamped them to the ends of the silver needles. The thin metal wires on the clips were connected to a device. Then, she attached a sensor to Dickinson's head, similar to the one commonly used in hospitals for electroencephalography (EEG). The sensor was connected to another device.
After being powered on, the two instruments began to hum, not loudly, but clearly audible in the quiet underground laboratory. Many patterns of different colors and curves appeared on the black screen. Huang Liang determined that one of them should be a brainwave diagram, but he couldn't understand the others.
Then came the crucial moment: Huang Liang had to use a silver needle to prick the empty interface on the chip in Dickinson's neck. This would be a true test of his dexterity and his judgment as a doctor.
He had already seen the enlarged chip structure diagram that Mei Yiqiu had given him and memorized the location of the interfaces. Fortunately, he could hypnotize himself and rely on his subconscious to reinforce this memory.
He touched Dickinson's neck, carefully feeling the hard lump at the back to determine the chip's exact location and size. By comparing it with the chip image that had been enhanced in his subconscious, he could see the chip as if he had X-ray vision.
This is a fundamental skill for a surgeon. An excellent surgeon has the entire human body's muscle tissue, blood vessels, nerves, and bones in his mind. Even if each patient is different in height and weight, he can see everything clearly as if he had X-ray vision, and accurately insert the scalpel into the desired location.
However, just to be on the safe side, he conducted a small-scale, realistic simulation in his dream. Back when he was still Zhao Pengcheng, he often simulated surgery in his mind. This was a method taught to him by his mentor when he was in school. When analyzing medical cases before surgery, he would conduct a complete simulation in his mind, simulating all the worst possible scenarios, which could reduce the probability of surgical failure and allow him to calmly deal with any unexpected situations.
Later, he developed lucid dreaming abilities and began simulating them in his dreams. This was much more effective than relying solely on imagination.
Today's simulation, however, gave him a wonderful experience he had never had before.
He hypnotized himself, creating a dream replica of the scene before him, and then performed acupuncture. Because the dream contained the chip structure diagram, by overlaying the diagram onto the hard lump behind Dickinson's neck, the interfaces could be clearly seen.
He inserted the needle. Logically, he was just dreaming at this moment, but when he exited the dream, he found that the silver needle in his hand was already stuck in Dickinson's neck, and Mei Yiqiu watching him very nervously, holding his pipe a centimeter away from his mouth, not moving at all.
Huang Liang was unaware that he had unintentionally mastered the technique of creating Real-Scene Dream. Creating a Real-Scene Dream is not difficult, such as sleepwalking in ordinary people. However, consciously controlling a Real-Scene Dream, influencing the real world through the subconscious dream, feeding back real-world events into the dream in real time and keeping them synchronized, and then using the subconscious to control both worlds to develop in the direction one desires, is extremely difficult.
Even among the Awakened, this is an extremely advanced technique, difficult to master without the guidance of a master. The Alliance was once cautious about this dream control ability because of its significant impact on the real world; it's completely different from hypnotizing someone and doing something to them in their dream.
Huang Liang was stunned for a moment, but then he understood what had happened. He remembered what Qingmu had told him about Mental Power and dreams. Those things were too profound for him, and Qingmu hadn't explained them clearly, only telling him that he would understand when the time came. Now he understood; it was a natural progression. However, the progress was still beyond his expectations. If Qingmu were here, he wondered if it would have been just as unexpected.
He glanced at Mei Yiqiu and asked, "Is that right?"
Mei Yiqiu put the pipe in his mouth, took a puff, and said, "Not bad, not bad!"
Huang Liang wanted to ask if he had made a mistake, but after asking, he found it ridiculous. How could the professor know if he was right or wrong when they couldn't see the chip inside the flesh? However, the professor's answer was even more laughable. What did he mean by "wrong"? Did he mean the placement was right, or his technique was right?
He smiled slightly, then lowered his head to continue administering the acupuncture.
Huang Liang was always cautious and shouldn't normally reveal his mental abilities in public. However, today Mei Yiqiu had shared so many secrets with him and stated that he was someone he could trust, which slightly eased his tense nerves. He felt it wasn't a test or a scam, but simply a form of hypnosis, a technique many doctors use. As for his signature skill—the scalpel forged from Mental Power in his dream—he wouldn't reveal it.
He re-entered the Real-Scene Dream. This was a rare opportunity; if he didn't seize it now, he didn't know how long it would take to enter such a state again. He had a premonition that this was an opportunity for his Mental Power to break through again, but he didn't know what level he would reach after the breakthrough.
The people with the strongest Mental Power he had ever met were Qingmu and the old lady he met on Sea Cucumber Street. Sometimes, he really wanted to try and see just how big a dream he could create by fully releasing his Mental Power.
When he inserted the silver needles into Dickinson's nape again, he found he could incorporate even more elements into the dream. If he wished, he could now use the laboratory as a testing ground for Real-Scene Dream. For a moment, he almost lost his mind and was about to do it; a voice seemed to urge him from the depths of his mind and dreams. But he ultimately restrained himself; he couldn't possibly hypnotize both Mei Yiqiu and Situ Yuli!
After a few tries, he was able to steadily touch the chip's interface with the silver needles. He took seven silver needles and inserted them into the chip's location with extremely fast movements, his mind aligning the tips of the needles with the seven small holes on the chip's structural diagram.
He gently twisted the needle a few times with his hand to make the needle tip make deeper contact with the core hole, ensuring that the current could pass through, and then released his hand. This is where the advantages of silver needles become apparent, because the needles are soft, not easy to break, and thin and light, so they won't fall out even if inserted shallowly.
Huang Liang then took seven more needles and inserted them into the seven pairs of cervical nerves in Dickinson's neck. This was relatively easy; as long as one was careful not to injure the nerves, it would be fine.
Then, he took a thin guide wire made of some unknown metal, about the thickness of a hair, which the professor had prepared beforehand. He wrapped the guide wire around the end of the silver needle and connected it from the silver needle on the chip to the silver needle in the neck, pairing them up in twos. This was equivalent to connecting Dickinson's remaining seven pairs of cervical nerves to the chip as well.
This is a very meticulous task, and only someone with Huang Liang's steady hands can do it.
After the last guidewire was successfully connected, he heard Situ Yuli's joyful voice:
"Signal detected!"
"Are you sure it's a signal from the chip?" Mei Yiqiu asked.
"Confirmed, the signal remains in the KU band, which is very different from the L band we used in our initial experiment," said Situ Yuli.
"The Ku band? That's suitable for communications, but it's probably not something one or two satellites can cover." The professor, pipe in mouth, gazed at the ceiling. "How about some wave spectrum analysis?"
"It matches Mr. Dickinson's brainwaves."
"Alright, then let's see which satellites in the sky are providing support for the chip. Following the trail, we might find Laboratory No. 19 or someone else." Mei Yiqiu took his pipe from his mouth and picked up a walkie-talkie. "Prepare to monitor satellite data, focusing on the Ku band."
"Okay, Professor," came Mei Ziqing's voice from the intercom.
"Now shut down the radio jamming and send it a test signal," the professor said, turning to Situ Yuli. Then he shouted into the communicator, "Pay attention to the satellite's feedback. We only have one chance. Once they detect it, they won't transmit any more feedback signals."
"Clear!"
"Professor... seems a bit... strange!" Mei Ziqing said on the other end of the intercom.
"What's the matter?"
"Theoretically, there are 132 satellites above our area that can receive the chip's signal, including 27 Ku-band communication satellites. However... 129 of them are sending feedback to our test signal! This means..."
"This means that, apart from our own quantum satellite, almost all satellites, whether civilian or military, are providing signal support for the chips!"
Mei Yiqiu picked up his pipe again, but his eyes were staring blankly into the distance, lost in thought.
"Wait a minute, Professor... it seems there are two signals," Situ Yuli suddenly said.
"What?" The professor turned around in surprise.
"Besides the Ku-band signal being continuously transmitted, a 70kHz long-wave signal was just detected, emitted by the chip immediately upon receiving the satellite feedback signal."
"That's strange. Transmitting long waves requires a very long antenna. How did this chip manage to do that?"
"Perhaps it utilizes the human nervous system. If you treat nerves as antennas, you can convert brainwave signals into long-wave transmissions."
Mei Yiqiu nodded, then muttered to himself, "But why are there two signals? Logically, it shouldn't be necessary! And long waves only propagate on the Earth's surface; satellites can't receive them. The two sides can't exchange information... Could it be that there are two... on the back of the chip?"