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Chapter 436: You Can't Fool Me, I Don't Trust You
2022-10-19 Author: Great Demon Spirit
In the basement of Tony's Manor was his private laboratory.
At this moment, Clark's body had been placed here. Shockwave and Knock Out were also specifically called over by Tony to act as assistants, bustling about the laboratory and making preparations to extract the Codex of Life ahead of schedule.
During this time, Clark regained consciousness several times. Dazed, he would subconsciously reach for his head. He felt as if he were trapped in a nightmare where some detestable fellow was repeatedly hitting him on the head—the instant his consciousness gathered, he was knocked out by Tony again.
In the dim basement, devoid of sunlight, Tony continuously used magic to weaken Clark, suppressing his self-healing abilities.
On the operating table, just as Tony knocked Clark out once more, a soft laugh echoed beside him.
At some point, the little girl had appeared, sitting on the edge of the operating table. Her two small, bare feet dangled and swung back and forth, while her innocent yet bewitching face casually surveyed the basement.
"I don't get you guys. You always make simple things so complicated."
The little girl said, covering her mouth with a light laugh.
Tony ignored her. After a flat glance, he returned his focus to observing every single cell within Clark's body.
These cells, like truly independent life forms, breathed in and out with a steady rhythm.
"Shockwave, activate the extraction apparatus. Knock Out, you're responsible for transferring the cells. Remember to keep them separate from the one-third that was previously extracted," Tony ordered.
The Allspark pulsed faintly, and countless Allspark particles began to pour out. Each particle was like one of Tony's eyes, observing the world in a different way.
In an instant, the entire microscopic world was filled with countless of Tony's eyes. The vast number of various particles existing in this space were all seen by Tony.
These Allspark particles seeped into Clark's body, gently pulling at the unique cells within.
That's right, not every cell in Clark's body contained the Codex of Life. Even the cells that did possess the Codex of Life also had a self-replication ability, which included leaving a backup of this portion of the Codex.
After the original cell died, those backup cells would spontaneously activate their internal information, restoring the lost part of the Codex of Life.
This scene was constantly playing out inside Clark's body. For every part of the Codex of Life, there were countless cells acting as backups.
This was a massive undertaking.
The medic, Knock Out, was rather talkative. He exclaimed in amazement, "So that's how it is, truly miraculous. The Codex of Life has actually fused itself into every single cell of this Kryptonian... I was just thinking, if he got injured and bled one day, wouldn't he be spilling the Codex of Life all over the floor?"
"That's why we have to find a way to ensure the extracted cells don't die. If even one dies, it will trigger a cascade failure, and we'll have to start from the beginning," Shockwave said in a low voice, the red light from his single eye reflecting off Clark.
Even if they managed to preserve all the cells containing the Codex of Life, they had to merge them back into the complete Codex as quickly as possible. Otherwise, over time, the backup cells in Clark's body would spontaneously restore his own Codex of Life, and the cells they had obtained would become useless.
Even if Tony's abilities could effortlessly complete the most complex task of finding and separating the cells containing the Codex of Life, fusing the Codex was still a massive undertaking.
This was a genetic summary of a billion people. Different combinations of genes would lead to far more than a billion different gene chains—an astronomical number. The amount of effort required to piece together the complete Codex of Life bit by bit was unknowable.
And they had to ensure not a single one of these cells died.
"Let's begin. We need to hurry. With the computational power of our central processors, it won't be as difficult as you imagine," Tony instructed.
The massive instrument began to operate. Tony's expression turned solemn as he used the Allspark particles to search for the cells that contained the Codex of Life.
Which were the code cells and which were the backup cells—distinguishing between them was an impossible task for an ordinary person, as they looked nearly identical.
But for Tony, who could peer into the deepest parts of a cell, it wasn't difficult.
The cells containing a large number of the most complex and precise dormant gene fragments were the code cells, while the ones with only some illusory projections were the backup cells.
"Is this thing that important to you? Kryptonian genes are just about absorbing sunlight; that's nothing to you, right?"
The little girl watched with curiosity for a while, then seemed to lose interest and spoke up.
"That has nothing to do with you. Either shut up or leave," Tony said coolly without raising his head.
"Are you always this grumpy?"
"At least, towards you, I am. I'm not a fan of people who get familiar so quickly."
...
The movements of Shockwave and Knock Out paused for a moment, and they looked towards Tony.
Tony was talking to thin air.
Knock Out had a look of astonishment. Could there be something wrong with the Creator's neural network? He was about to speak, but his considerable intellect made him shut his mouth immediately. He exchanged a silent glance with Shockwave.
A problem with his mind? That was impossible. This was the Creator, not a mortal.
Shockwave's large, single eye flickered for a rare moment, indicating that his inner thoughts were not calm.
Shockwave did not generate emotions like surprise, fear, or boredom. All of his thoughts were based on mathematics and logic. In his cognition, he judged matters in only two ways: "logical" and "illogical."
Without a doubt, Tony's current behavior was severely illogical.
Shockwave's optic flickered. He possessed the innate ability of all-ray perception. In that instant, he mobilized a massive amount of his processing power to scan the electromagnetic spectrum, X-rays, infrared, and the chaotic mess of radio waves, but there was nothing around Tony.
Tony was just talking to himself.
"You're very noisy."
"If you don't want to watch, then leave."
"I have no interest in what you're talking about."
Tony conversed with the air, seemingly engaged in a serious dialogue with someone.
The red light in Shockwave's eye grew brighter as countless theories flashed through his mind.
Consciousness body? Projection? Soul?
Shockwave took a deep look at Tony, who was still muttering to himself, then kicked the dazed Knock Out beside him and continued with the task at hand.
He was a smart mech and knew what to do in any given situation. At the same time, he put his entire body on high alert, ready to act at a moment's notice, waiting only for Tony's signal.
After a continuous seven hours, Tony finally extracted all the cells, gathering them together to begin the even more critical work of reassembly.
The process was incredibly tedious, but fortunately, no one standing here was simple-minded. Their powerful computational abilities and machine-like efficiency allowed the process to advance rapidly.
Another twelve hours passed. Using the Allspark particles, Tony spliced the final gene segment, at last restoring the complete Codex of Life.
It was a mass containing a vast and complex, yet clearly distinct, gene pool.
"Do as I say, and I can make you even more perfect. There's no need to get hung up on these boring gene fragments. Even if you wanted to transplant these Kryptonian genes, they'd be of no use to you now. They would only tarnish your purity."
After the little girl finished speaking, she saw that Tony was still giving her the cold shoulder. She didn't get angry, still smiling sweetly.
She was very patient. If one day wasn't enough, then a year. If a year wasn't enough, then ten years, a hundred years. She had all the time in the world.
But this time, Tony finished the work at hand. Ignoring Shockwave and Knock Out who were watching him, for the first time, he looked directly at the little girl.
This was the first time he had looked at her face-to-face.
"Tempted?" The little girl's eyes curved into slits as she smiled, her little feet swinging leisurely.
"Don't waste your time. I don't trust you." Tony looked at her seriously, studying her cute face, and suddenly said in a low voice, "Is this how you tricked Thanos back then? Guiding a well-intentioned being, step-by-step, into a twisted monster."
(end of chapter)
2022-10-19 Author: Great Demon Spirit
In the basement of Tony's Manor was his private laboratory.
At this moment, Clark's body had been placed here. Shockwave and Knock Out were also specifically called over by Tony to act as assistants, bustling about the laboratory and making preparations to extract the Codex of Life ahead of schedule.
During this time, Clark regained consciousness several times. Dazed, he would subconsciously reach for his head. He felt as if he were trapped in a nightmare where some detestable fellow was repeatedly hitting him on the head—the instant his consciousness gathered, he was knocked out by Tony again.
In the dim basement, devoid of sunlight, Tony continuously used magic to weaken Clark, suppressing his self-healing abilities.
On the operating table, just as Tony knocked Clark out once more, a soft laugh echoed beside him.
At some point, the little girl had appeared, sitting on the edge of the operating table. Her two small, bare feet dangled and swung back and forth, while her innocent yet bewitching face casually surveyed the basement.
"I don't get you guys. You always make simple things so complicated."
The little girl said, covering her mouth with a light laugh.
Tony ignored her. After a flat glance, he returned his focus to observing every single cell within Clark's body.
These cells, like truly independent life forms, breathed in and out with a steady rhythm.
"Shockwave, activate the extraction apparatus. Knock Out, you're responsible for transferring the cells. Remember to keep them separate from the one-third that was previously extracted," Tony ordered.
The Allspark pulsed faintly, and countless Allspark particles began to pour out. Each particle was like one of Tony's eyes, observing the world in a different way.
In an instant, the entire microscopic world was filled with countless of Tony's eyes. The vast number of various particles existing in this space were all seen by Tony.
These Allspark particles seeped into Clark's body, gently pulling at the unique cells within.
That's right, not every cell in Clark's body contained the Codex of Life. Even the cells that did possess the Codex of Life also had a self-replication ability, which included leaving a backup of this portion of the Codex.
After the original cell died, those backup cells would spontaneously activate their internal information, restoring the lost part of the Codex of Life.
This scene was constantly playing out inside Clark's body. For every part of the Codex of Life, there were countless cells acting as backups.
This was a massive undertaking.
The medic, Knock Out, was rather talkative. He exclaimed in amazement, "So that's how it is, truly miraculous. The Codex of Life has actually fused itself into every single cell of this Kryptonian... I was just thinking, if he got injured and bled one day, wouldn't he be spilling the Codex of Life all over the floor?"
"That's why we have to find a way to ensure the extracted cells don't die. If even one dies, it will trigger a cascade failure, and we'll have to start from the beginning," Shockwave said in a low voice, the red light from his single eye reflecting off Clark.
Even if they managed to preserve all the cells containing the Codex of Life, they had to merge them back into the complete Codex as quickly as possible. Otherwise, over time, the backup cells in Clark's body would spontaneously restore his own Codex of Life, and the cells they had obtained would become useless.
Even if Tony's abilities could effortlessly complete the most complex task of finding and separating the cells containing the Codex of Life, fusing the Codex was still a massive undertaking.
This was a genetic summary of a billion people. Different combinations of genes would lead to far more than a billion different gene chains—an astronomical number. The amount of effort required to piece together the complete Codex of Life bit by bit was unknowable.
And they had to ensure not a single one of these cells died.
"Let's begin. We need to hurry. With the computational power of our central processors, it won't be as difficult as you imagine," Tony instructed.
The massive instrument began to operate. Tony's expression turned solemn as he used the Allspark particles to search for the cells that contained the Codex of Life.
Which were the code cells and which were the backup cells—distinguishing between them was an impossible task for an ordinary person, as they looked nearly identical.
But for Tony, who could peer into the deepest parts of a cell, it wasn't difficult.
The cells containing a large number of the most complex and precise dormant gene fragments were the code cells, while the ones with only some illusory projections were the backup cells.
"Is this thing that important to you? Kryptonian genes are just about absorbing sunlight; that's nothing to you, right?"
The little girl watched with curiosity for a while, then seemed to lose interest and spoke up.
"That has nothing to do with you. Either shut up or leave," Tony said coolly without raising his head.
"Are you always this grumpy?"
"At least, towards you, I am. I'm not a fan of people who get familiar so quickly."
...
The movements of Shockwave and Knock Out paused for a moment, and they looked towards Tony.
Tony was talking to thin air.
Knock Out had a look of astonishment. Could there be something wrong with the Creator's neural network? He was about to speak, but his considerable intellect made him shut his mouth immediately. He exchanged a silent glance with Shockwave.
A problem with his mind? That was impossible. This was the Creator, not a mortal.
Shockwave's large, single eye flickered for a rare moment, indicating that his inner thoughts were not calm.
Shockwave did not generate emotions like surprise, fear, or boredom. All of his thoughts were based on mathematics and logic. In his cognition, he judged matters in only two ways: "logical" and "illogical."
Without a doubt, Tony's current behavior was severely illogical.
Shockwave's optic flickered. He possessed the innate ability of all-ray perception. In that instant, he mobilized a massive amount of his processing power to scan the electromagnetic spectrum, X-rays, infrared, and the chaotic mess of radio waves, but there was nothing around Tony.
Tony was just talking to himself.
"You're very noisy."
"If you don't want to watch, then leave."
"I have no interest in what you're talking about."
Tony conversed with the air, seemingly engaged in a serious dialogue with someone.
The red light in Shockwave's eye grew brighter as countless theories flashed through his mind.
Consciousness body? Projection? Soul?
Shockwave took a deep look at Tony, who was still muttering to himself, then kicked the dazed Knock Out beside him and continued with the task at hand.
He was a smart mech and knew what to do in any given situation. At the same time, he put his entire body on high alert, ready to act at a moment's notice, waiting only for Tony's signal.
After a continuous seven hours, Tony finally extracted all the cells, gathering them together to begin the even more critical work of reassembly.
The process was incredibly tedious, but fortunately, no one standing here was simple-minded. Their powerful computational abilities and machine-like efficiency allowed the process to advance rapidly.
Another twelve hours passed. Using the Allspark particles, Tony spliced the final gene segment, at last restoring the complete Codex of Life.
It was a mass containing a vast and complex, yet clearly distinct, gene pool.
"Do as I say, and I can make you even more perfect. There's no need to get hung up on these boring gene fragments. Even if you wanted to transplant these Kryptonian genes, they'd be of no use to you now. They would only tarnish your purity."
After the little girl finished speaking, she saw that Tony was still giving her the cold shoulder. She didn't get angry, still smiling sweetly.
She was very patient. If one day wasn't enough, then a year. If a year wasn't enough, then ten years, a hundred years. She had all the time in the world.
But this time, Tony finished the work at hand. Ignoring Shockwave and Knock Out who were watching him, for the first time, he looked directly at the little girl.
This was the first time he had looked at her face-to-face.
"Tempted?" The little girl's eyes curved into slits as she smiled, her little feet swinging leisurely.
"Don't waste your time. I don't trust you." Tony looked at her seriously, studying her cute face, and suddenly said in a low voice, "Is this how you tricked Thanos back then? Guiding a well-intentioned being, step-by-step, into a twisted monster."
(end of chapter)
