Necromancer, What the Heck Is Summoning an 055?

"Please help coordinate this! I need to know how much of this drug we have in stock! Is it enough to support animal testing, or emergency clinical trials on humans?"

"I want... to give Vice President Liu a chance!"

The person on the other end of the line asked a few questions, and Academician Li's voice grew increasingly subdued. "Yes, I led the team responsible for Vice President Liu's treatment plan. His condition... is already... beyond saving."

"Yesterday, he was conscious for less than two hours. He insisted that we give him a painkiller injection, and he also insisted on sorting through documents in his hospital bed. I think that if there's even a sliver of hope, I must ask you, Leader, to give him a chance!"

"All right! All right! I'll wait to hear from you!" Academician Li gripped the receiver so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

What followed was an agonizing wait.

A little over ten minutes later, Leader Steward Cangming called back.

"Comrade Yunhai," the leader said, his voice somewhat grave, "what you have on hand is all there is of this drug. We can't be sure whether we'll be able to obtain any more in the future. You'll have to decide for yourself whether the stock is sufficient for clinical trials."

"However, if you believe it can help treat Elder Liu, I authorize you to use it!"

Li Yunhai was silent for a moment, then said decisively, "Please grant me authorization, Leader!"

Authorization at the central leadership level was a rather complicated process. While waiting for it, Professor Li returned to the hospital's intensive care unit and sat silently by Vice President Liu's bed.

The old man lying quietly in the hospital bed, so thin he was almost unrecognizable, was the vice president of Eastern Xia State's Academy of Natural Sciences, an academician of the Academy of Engineering and Technology, and a giant of science who had devoted all his life's energy to Eastern Xia State's technological advancement.

He had lain in this intensive care unit for more than four months. Although Eastern Xia State had spared no expense in trying to save his life, the severe depletion of his cellular telomeres and multiple organ failure had inevitably brought the old man to his final days.

Li Yunhai clasped the old man's skeletal hand between both of his own. Feeling its faint coolness, he couldn't stop his eyes from stinging.

A knock sounded at the door.

Outside stood his disciple, Wu Mingzhe, followed by two soldiers in uniform with solemn expressions.

Wu Mingzhe was carefully holding a temperature-controlled lockbox, while the soldiers carried a sealed document pouch. Clearly, the authorization process had been completed, and the drug had arrived.

Li Yunhai took a deep breath and pushed through the door. "Come on, to the resuscitation room!"

Outside the resuscitation room, Vice President Liu's wife and children had already been notified and were waiting. When they saw Li Yunhai, who had been his attending physician all along, they hurried over. The old woman's voice trembled. "Director Li, what's happening? My husband, he... is he..."

"We've discovered a new, potentially effective emergency treatment! We need your signatures to authorize it immediately! There's no time to lose!" Li Yunhai explained at breakneck speed as he quickly scrubbed and disinfected his hands. Without looking back, he motioned for an assistant to give the family the informed consent forms.

The children exchanged looks, but under the assistant's repeated urging, they had no choice but to sign in a hurry.

The resuscitation room doors closed. Li Yunhai checked the dosage that the laboratory had calculated repeatedly once more, then gave the order in a slightly trembling voice. "Prepare 35 milligrams of Drug X and 10 milliliters of 0.9% sodium chloride injection. Let it stand for five minutes to hydrate and dissolve."

"Establish a dedicated, independent intravenous line in the right elbow!"

"Begin the infusion at 1.0 milligram per minute. Monitor the instruments closely!"

"Read it back!"

The assisting clinician and circulating nurse took turns repeating the orders. "Drug X, 35 milligrams; 0.9% sodium chloride injection, 10 milliliters; let stand to hydrate and dissolve..."

"Readback complete. Proceed immediately!"

Outside the resuscitation room, the children waited anxiously, arguing over one another.

"What the hell is this? We signed without even knowing what was going on!" The youngest son paced back and forth in agitation, his feet thudding against the floor.

The eldest daughter's eyes were red. "Didn't... didn't they say there was nothing more they could do, that we wouldn't put Dad through any more? Why does he still have to suffer like this..."

"They wouldn't even explain the treatment properly, just kept rushing us to sign..."

Suddenly, the doors to the resuscitation room swung open.

Two nurses pushed a hydraulic stretcher out. Their masks concealed their expressions, but their eyes were as wide as saucers, and they kept glancing at the stretcher.

It had been far too quick-too quick to have been a surgical procedure. A terrible unease rose in the family's hearts.

The youngest son, the most impatient of them, rushed forward, his voice thick with tears. "Doctor! My dad... how is he? Is... is he still..." The word "alive" caught in his throat, and he couldn't get it out.

Before the doctor could answer, Old Liu, lying on the stretcher, suddenly raised his head slightly. His voice was a little hoarse, but strong and full of vigor.

"You little brat! Stop cursing me! I'm perfectly fine!"

"Bring me my computer. I still have work to finish!"

Chapter 35: Skill Level Assessment Office

If Chen Mo had to name the most useful local device he had seen since coming to this world, he would have voted for the enchanted self-cleaning "toilet" without hesitation.

Without this thing to dispose of his bodily waste, Chen Mo figured he would have had a hard time staying cooped up in the room for so long.

Three whole days.

Early on the fourth morning, as the mist outside the window dispersed and sunlight had just climbed onto the window frame, Chen Mo finally received the express package from his distant homeland.

First, he read the letter.

The letter opened by thanking Chen Mo.

[Hello, Comrade Chen Mo. I have read your letter, and Donghuang and I are both delighted that you successfully resolved the trouble you faced in the previous stage!

First, I must share some important news with you. The healing medicine you sent this time saved the life of a renowned scholar celebrated throughout Blue Star, a pillar of both of Eastern Xia State's academies, and an outstanding scientific giant. You have made an immense, unparalleled contribution to the country.

On behalf of Eastern Xia and all its people, I extend our highest respects and heartfelt thanks for the precious items you went to such lengths to send across the vastness of the stars!]

At that, Chen Mo felt his emotions getting the better of him. He gave a low cry and flung himself onto the inn's wooden bed, hugging the quilt as he rolled over several times in excitement!

This feels way too good. No, I have to hold it in.

I can't!!!

Where am I supposed to find more medicine now?

Where's that young lady who gave me the medicine? Just you wait! Once I'm done with all this, I'll cross mountains and ridges to find you right away!

After his thoughts had churned wildly for quite a while, Chen Mo finally forced himself to calm down and continued reading the leader's letter.

[The many supplies you sent have all been turned over to the country's laboratories for study and analysis, with remarkable results!

I have instructed the Stargazing Group, which is specifically responsible for coordinating with you, to register in your name all findings, value generated, and technologies derived from the analysis of the items you sent.

As for the subsequent allocation of patent rights, the laboratories that put the results into practice will share 51%, while the remaining 49% will temporarily be held in the state's name but recorded as belonging to you personally. If one day you are able to return safely, I trust you will no longer need to worry about financial matters.

The technical department has used the data you collected on various aspects of the Starry World to produce a complete set of environmental analysis reports, with supplementary tables attached. Some information is still missing and can be supplemented when it is convenient for you in the future.

Regarding the questions you raised, we have tentatively offered some suggestions, but please be sure to note that the plans are for reference only. They must be applied flexibly according to the specific circumstances and events, not followed mechanically.

The leader of Eastern Radiance and I have both felt your sincere devotion deeply. But you are alone out there, so do not seek quick gains or try to accomplish everything at once. Your own safety must always come first.

Please take the utmost care. From afar, I wish you all the best!]

Chen Mo read the letter back and forth several times, and his mood gradually settled.

There was still plenty of time, and a long future ahead. Hard work was what mattered!

Next came the most important part: opening the package.

First, of course, was a fresh supply of bullets for Chen Mo. There were no magazines, just gleaming brass cartridges that gave off a faint scent of gun oil. He gently picked up a handful, and the pleasing, enchanting clink of metal came from between his fingers.

His supply of each type of grenade had also been replenished by two. The cold weapons of violence greatly eased the anxiety Chen Mo had felt after using up so much of his supply.

The Eastern Xia people's fear of insufficient firepower was inborn, terminal, and beyond cure.

There was a miniature button camera no bigger than a thumb, with audio recording capability. Chen Mo had specifically requested it, hoping to document more of this world.

Next came a huge surprise.

Within the limited carrying capacity, Xia State had packed a sophisticated Skylark light drone and its control gimbal!

The instruction manual clearly listed its powerful functions: automatic tracking, automatic cruising, danger alerts, autonomous recharging... It was practically tailor-made for the otherworld Chen Mo was in, where there was no satellite navigation!

Once launched, this little aerial sprite could faithfully patrol within a radius of 1,600 meters centered on the control gimbal, providing him with a valuable view for reconnaissance and early warning like a tireless airborne sentry.

In extreme mode, the Skylark could be directed using automatic controls and video transmission, flying to the connection limit of the current pocket-sized gimbal, a maximum distance of eight kilometers.

By sacrificing some flight time, it could even carry a directly attached, patch-style remote-controlled bomb, combining reconnaissance and attack.

Chen Mo's eyes lit up. He couldn't bear to put it down, turning it over and over in his hands. "That's so thoughtful!"

In fact, Eastern Xia had not been idle since their last contact. The Compassionate Navigation Project Command Office had issued special-function design briefs to more than a hundred manufacturers, operating on the principle that if he needed it, they would have it ready.

The Skylark was just one of the specialized pieces of equipment that had resulted.

At the very bottom of the package were more than a dozen pressed pieces of pure gold engraved with different designs, along with a bag of freshly minted Qiyue gold coins, their composition and designs copied flawlessly.

They had even had someone age them.

With money and a gun, there was nothing to fear. His mom back home really had worried herself to pieces.

He took out the attachments one by one and read through them. The one that interested him most was the feasibility report on survival and development prepared by the team of experts.

For the feudal, fantastical world Chen Mo was in, with its relatively backward relations of production and significant differences in individual abilities, the experts had tentatively analyzed its social structure while offering Chen Mo several suggested courses of action according to different boundaries and priorities.

They had also sent Chen Mo a small tool to use in conjunction with them, one with an extremely peculiar function.

After reading it, Chen Mo felt greatly inspired.

He suddenly came to a realization: guns and money alike were only temporary aids. Having a top-tier brain trust behind him, providing support-that was his greatest cheat!

Humming a badly off-key tune in a leisurely fashion, Chen Mo pushed open his door with a creak.

Little Josie, who was sitting on the corridor floor, sprang to his feet. "Master Chen, are you done?"

"Mm, I'm done. Where's Little John?"

"He's resting. We're taking turns standing guard, and he's on night watch today."

Chen Mo waved a hand. "Wake him up and pack your things. We're leaving for Clear Marsh City!"

"Hurry!"

Clear Marsh City was the largest city on the west bank of the North Foothills River in the Clear Marsh Plain area. Of the three mage towers Chen Mo had visited before, two were on the Clear Marsh Plain, and the other was not far away either.

Although mage towers were self-contained estates, human society ultimately still had a need for basic division of labor and exchange. Whether it was everyday necessities such as food, clothing, and other goods, or spellcasting materials, spirit plants, and medicines, the estates could not be entirely self-sufficient and had to rely on the markets of large cities for trade.

For instance, some products or materials might need to be transported from the Northern Continent thousands of miles away. Merchants could hardly be expected to deliver them to a mage tower's doorstep for the sake of the small quantities it used. So no matter how detached from worldly affairs a mage tower was, it still relied mainly on a city's supply chain for provisions.

And Clear Marsh City was the largest trading market within a radius of more than a hundred kilometers.

According to the experts' analysis, mage towers traded frequently with cities. At the same time, the annual selection of mage tower students during the so-called spring season also took place in large cities. Thus, based on Chen Mo's earlier descriptions of his surroundings, and assuming that human nature in Starry was not very different from that on Blue Star, it could be inferred that there must be an interest group in the nearby city with deep ties to the mage towers.

Looking for a breakthrough there would have a much better chance of success than making inquiries at the foot of a mage tower.

It was like going to a major corporation to discuss business: without an appointment, the security guards and receptionists would certainly turn you away. But if you found the right person to put in a word, that tightly shut door might open.

That was more or less what it meant to take a winding path to a secluded destination!