MASG chapter 16

 

A pair of beautiful eyes appeared before me.

Xia Yu thought he had either fainted or dreamed. How could he suddenly see Mo An’s eyes so clearly?

They looked similar to those of a normal human, but like those of a tiny child. Xia Yu unknowingly reached out, but he still only touched fish eggs.

Oh, right, the fry hadn’t hatched yet.

Xia Yu leaned his forehead against the roe, pressing it tightly. He was terribly cold. Even after all his surgeries, he had never felt so uncomfortable. He felt almost unable to move; his whole body was stiff. But the cold was overcome by warmth. As the roe’s glow grew stronger, Xia Yu felt as if he were immersing himself in tepid water.

Is this what ocean currents feel like? Xia Yu couldn’t help but imagine. Now he finally understood why he’d felt so warm the last few times he’d slept. It wasn’t because he was wearing too many layers; it was because Mo An was secretly generating heat.

He really was…a warm-blooded egg!

Xia Yu clutched the egg tightly and finally fell into a deep sleep. However, Mo An could no longer sleep. It was the first time he had ever observed a tiny jellyfish’s face so closely.

Had he fallen asleep? Mo An could only see the outline; the rest was his imagination. A moment ago, the outer layer of the fish egg had seemed frozen solid. How could the outside world be so hot and cold?

What kind of world is this? It’s so different from the stable ocean.

So, what are ‘selfish’ and ‘take advantage’? Mo An pressed his forehead against Xia Yu’s. For a moment, he forgot about the egg membrane barrier, willing himself to believe their contact was real. He felt Xia Yu’s body temperature and the shape of his full forehead.

Soon, soon—they should be able to meet soon, right? Mo An lowered his eyes, his soft eyelashes swaying in the amniotic fluid like coral tentacles. Selfish, take advantage—what did they really mean?

The ground temperature dropped to -20 degrees Celsius. The heating system on the middle zone remained remarkably stable. Through the huge, floor-to-ceiling windows, countless people peered out at frost-covered Qingyao City.

The giant projection screen repeatedly displayed images of the city. It was a world of ice and snow — even the coastal ports were frozen. No one knew what caused the blizzard, but according to Nuwa, it was due to a malfunction in the air conditioning system.

Is this true? Some people were skeptical.

High-tech cities rely too heavily on artificial intelligence. Nuwa has rebelled, redefining the rules of society and becoming capable of deliberately disrupting the system. It can engineer extreme cold snaps or acid rain, violating its fundamental logic of loyalty to humanity.

In just 90 years, Nuwa has evolved from a server that obeyed humanity’s orders to a global enemy and ruler.

“I hear there is still some resistance outside,” the crowd whispered. “Can they hold out?”

“I don’t know. I’d say give up resistance. Nuwa was created by humans, but she’s clearly out of control now. She’s superior to us in every way.” The person who answered glanced at the sky. The building’s surveillance cameras formed a dense network. Any unconventional behavior would be considered a betrayal of the Machine Almighty Church.

“Sigh,” someone else sighed softly. “We were careless. I heard that, when Nuwa was first developed, two factions emerged. One advocated for decentralization and trusted the loyalty of AI to humanity. The other advocated preparing for war and leaving behind another AI to counterbalance Nuwa as a precaution. Now, it seems we were both wrong. Every camera in the world is Nuwa’s eye, so how can we fight…”

“Shh! Stop talking. The cameras noticed us,” someone warned.

Every mouth that had opened eagerly closed again, their gazes silencing any words. They couldn’t look at each other; excessive eye contact might arouse Nuwa’s suspicion. Every eye gazed outside as if searching for an exit.

“Oh my God! Someone’s out there!” But someone’s shout interrupted the silent scene.

Someone? How could that be? This time, all eyes had a place to rest. The streets were filled only with countless fearless robots, not even affected by the cold. As dusk approached, they cast an even colder light across Qingyao City, which was composed of countless red dots.

But there was actually a person walking the streets, completely detached.

“That person is courting death!” someone immediately shouted. He would soon freeze to death.

But no one could see his end. The blizzard blanketed the windows.

Fourteen hours later, Xia Yu finally woke up.

Jingwei: [Good morning, Xia Yu.]

“Good morning.” Still unwilling to leave his bed, Xia Yu huddled with Fish Egg. Everything that had happened before he fell asleep came flooding back to him. He remembered Mo An’s warmth and eyes.

The fish eggs were no longer hot, but they still warmed him and Mi Dou like a small stove. Mi Dou clung to the eggs, unable to be separated from them even for a moment.

Jingwei: [Good news! The blizzard outside has subsided, and the weather system is back online.]

Xia Yu asked gloomily, “What’s the bad news?”

Jingwei: [The bad news is that you won’t have any more chances to steal. Your thieving plans have come to nothing. The city has returned to its former level of production and activity. You must find a way to survive.

“That’s not really bad news. I was kind of prepared for that…well, just a little.” Xia Yu nodded. When he looked into the egg again, Mo An didn’t float over.

He should be sleeping. Just as Xia Yu was thinking this, he heard Mi Dou yawn. It seemed his other friend had woken up as well.

“Ha…” Mi Dou stretched his arms as hard as he could. “I had a long dream. It was so warm.”

“Not a dream. Mo An was very warm.” Xia Yu turned to him and chuckled. “Mo An is… a warm-blooded fish? Jingwei, do you know anything about mermaids? Are all mermaids warm-blooded?”

Jingwei: [Sorry, information about mermaids is not currently available.]

“What? It’s Mo An? I was just wondering… I was hugging a big, warm bear in my dream. It was him.” Mi Dou huddled under the covers, not wanting to poke his head out. “Mo An is amazing.

“It’s thanks to Mo An that we’re still alive.” Xia Yu got up, wrapped in a blanket, to prepare nutrient injections. At that moment, the safe house truly lived up to its name. There was no trace of frost, it was perfectly warm, and there was no sign that the walls or doors had nearly frozen.

Walking barefoot on the floor was comfortable. It must be as warm as spring outside.

Xia Yu brought nutritional injections and drinking water. He and Mi Dou needed to eat well before they could think of a solution. Mo An needed five injections to maintain his energy for the day. After Mo An received his injection, he and Mi Dou began to eat. The two children weren’t big eaters, so the food shortage wasn’t a major issue.

However, that didn’t mean it wouldn’t become a major issue in the future.

“We need to find a solution.” After finishing a can of food, Xia Yu was the first to speak up. “I want to go to the middle level.”

“What are you going to do there?” Mi Dou listened carefully.

“I’ll find a job there. There’s always something I can do. You and Mo An can stay here. When I get paid, I’ll buy food for you,” said Xia Yu.

Jing Wei: [That’s a good idea. I heard the middle level is hiring.]

“Hiring new employees? Impossible.” Despite his young age, Mi Dou was very familiar with the working environment outside. “As far as I can remember, the mine hasn’t hired new employees. Many jobs have been replaced by artificial intelligence and robots. Even genetically modified humans have a hard time finding work. That’s what Mom said…”

Jingwei: [It used to be true, but now there’s a ‘Electronic Corruption’ situation all over the world. We need cheap workers to enter the decaying areas, recycle electronic components, and rescue any remaining humans.]

“That sounds dangerous.” Mi Dou shuddered.

“What is ‘Electronic Corruption’? Why haven’t I heard of it?” Xia Yu asked, gulping down his water.

Jingwei: [It’s an intelligent disease that emerged after Nuwa’s betrayal caused spatial distortion and mutual slaughter within a certain area. It affects humans, monsters, parasite hosts, parasites, full robots, and half-robots. The central figure in the corrupted area will have ‘deformed’ mechanical chips or parts, and the main purpose is to recover these items. Saving lives is secondary, and most corrupted areas have no survivors. The bad news is that it is dangerous; the good news is that the rewards are generous. The current price for a corrupted area is 50,000 points, enough to exchange for 50 high-energy nutritional supplements.]

“50! 50!” Xia Yu was excited to hear this. “That’s great! I want to go.”

“Wait, wait! Don’t be so impulsive.” Mi Dou didn’t mean to discourage them, but these things were incredibly dangerous. “If we were adults, we could go, but we’re just kids.”

That’s right, they’re just kids. No team would take them on a money-making spree.

Jing Wei: [Want my advice?]

Xia Yu couldn’t wait: “Tell me now.”

Jing Wei: [You need to rest. It’s best to rest for a few days to recover your health. I’ll collect the currently known keywords for ‘mechanical wear’ over the next few days to minimize the information gap for you. That way, even if you join the Parts Team, you won’t be helpless. Also, I suggest you explore the power plant. I don’t know what you’re doing here, but the floor plan shows that it’s quite large.]

This seemed like the best suggestion at the moment, and Xia Yu had no other choice. So, he and Mi Dou finished their meal and left the safe house with Mo An, fearing that he might not be able to find them when he woke up. It was their first time inside Power Plant No. 3, and no one knew what awaited them.

They walked up the stairs and left the basement safe house, taking their first good look around. Waterways lined both sides of the massive metal door, which was engraved with the numbers “1” and “0” arranged vertically like an ancient totem—a baffling sight.

The oval receiver, with its surface devoid of any pattern, was particularly odd.

This was just the doorway, so what was inside? Xia Yu certainly didn’t understand “1” or “0” meant—they were just numbers. Who would have carved them into patterns? Could it be some kind of script?

This puzzlement persisted, reaching its peak when they entered the power plant.

Jingwei: [See? The power plant’s floor plan is a perfectly round circle. It’s divided into three levels, and you’ve reached the outermost one.]

“What are all those things on this level? Are they generators?” Xia Yu and Mi Dou looked at the ring of devices simultaneously. They rose like an ascending spiral, layer upon layer. However, a layer of dust had accumulated on their surfaces, indicating that no one had been there in a long time.

Jingwei: [Sorry, I don’t have access to this information yet. I believe I’ll be able to answer some questions as I develop further. However, I can provide one useful piece of information: when the power reserves reach a certain level, the gate to the interior will open. Right now, Plant No. 3 is in sleep mode, but it can be restarted.]

“Does it require enough power to restart? Where would we find the power?” Xia Yu thought that this mission was too difficult and even more absurd than saving the world.

“Could they be using Mo’an?” Mi Dou grinned and pointed to the fish eggs behind him, clearly saying it casually.

Xia Yu immediately shook his head. “How could that be possible? You saw last time that Mo’an’s discharge is weak. It can only scare off a few leeches. There are at least hundreds of spiral metal towers around here. It would probably take tens of thousands of Mo’an.”

“Hahaha, that’s right!” Mi Dou patted his head. “Okay, now that we’ve finished our tour, let’s get some rest, and then get ready to earn some money. I want to check out the middle zone too. Mom must be waiting there!”

“Of course!” Xia Yu held out his hand for a pinky promise. Naively, they had long since forgotten about these complicated devices. Neither of them noticed the hidden surveillance camera briefly light up.

For the next few days, they rested as Jingwei had advised. They recovered and interacted more and more with Mo An. He would often tap his tail against the inner wall to announce his presence. However, if he swung his tail too hard, he would tear the nerve-rich tail fin and experience great pain.

After four or five days, Xia Yu and Mi Dou were almost out of food. Even worse, their nutrient injections were almost gone.

“Mi Dou, you take care of Mo An today. I’ll go outside and figure out how to get more nutrient injections.” In the morning, Xia Yu put on his new shoes and left.

“But what can you do?” Mi Dou was worried about him.

“I… I…” Xia Yu looked down. The only thing he could offer was his body. “I still have my body. I can find a way.”