Chapter 2942: Special Projects (1/2)
Ever since the exploration team exited the research lab that housed Project Cain, Dr. Avalon Perris had become a lot more subdued.
She no longer maintained a curious and wondrous demeanor to all of the experiments taking place around her. She saw everything in a different light now that she had been confronted by one of the skeletons in the Supreme Sage's closet.
Ves felt that Dr. Perris was too naive. From what he had encountered after interacting with many different biotech experts, the knowledge they accumulated over the course of their careers always had a darker side to them. There was great potential in what they could do with their acquired expertise, but the most promising of them always demanded a sacrifice in some form or another.
The temptation to perform forbidden research grew stronger as the scientists grew older. The prospect of exhausting their mortality was so great that the normal values they held no longer mattered as much.
If this could happen to a Senior or Master of the Life Research Organization, then the Supreme Sage was definitely not immune to these considerations!
Ves had already entered the pinnacle lab with the expectation that he would stumble upon some shameful deeds. It was unfortunate that the citizens of the LRA were so inured by state propaganda that they never considered the possibility that their greatest leader possessed a darker side!
”Stop moping.” He told her as they moved to another research lab. ”The Supreme Sage is not a god, nor a saint. He's a human just like you. Everyone is flawed, and someone who has lived for several centuries like him has accumulated a lot of sins. That doesn't diminish any of his accomplishments. The contributions he made to the LRA and its citizens are all real.”
Dr. Perris frowned behind her faceplate. ”I can't get over it, sir. Project Cain is so opposite of what scientists should be engaging in. The LRA is very firm about that and has always cracked down on those who break the rules. If biotechnology can ever enter the mainstream, then it is vital that those who represented it put their best face forward. If the Supreme sage's deeds become known, then the LRA's cause will suffer an immense setback!”
Ves huffed. ”You don't have to worry about that. The LRA is a massive state with lots of people who don't want to see that happen. Even if someone leaks the news on the galactic net, the story will gain no traction because it is too outrageous to be true. Not even providing hard evidence will change anything because any electric file can be falsified. Besides, even if the LRA and the local biotech industry incur a lot of damage, it's none of our business. Don't forget your new identity. As a member of the Larkinson Clan, you should put our interests first. It makes no sense for us to sacrifice ourselves for the good of a foreign state.”
That reminder caused her to fall silent. Obviously, she still identified herself with her former state. Though it was easy enough to change the citizenship in her record, it was a lot harder for her to erase all of the affection and emotional attachment she acquired during her upbringing!
From what Ves had experienced, he found that biomech designers and other biotech experts were especially bad when it came to adjusting to their new loyalties! The LRA clearly invested more attention in instilling loyalty into their heads.
Ves didn't waste too much time on Dr. Perris. Once she shut up, he gleefully entered another research lab and began to access the terminal.
”Let's see what the Supreme Sage was up to in this lab.”
As long as any research project he encountered during his exploration was relevant to him, he had no qualms of copying all of data in order to make use of it all! While Ves did not possess the expertise to make use of it all, he could simply hand his bounty over to Dr. Ranya Wodin and his fast-growing collection of biotech experts.
”Damn, it doesn't look as if I can get something useful here.” He spoke after he figured out what the Supreme Sage was studying in this lab.
As far as he could determine, the Supreme Sage sought to develop a means to relieve extreme pressure and density for heavy organic machines. This was an important requirement for Special Project 'U'.
The subsequent labs he visited were also related to Special Project 'U' in one form or another.
One research project sought to develop an enhanced version of high-density blood.
Another research project sought to develop an efficient way to lighten the mass of large organic products.
The most peculiar project he encountered in the last half hour was a way to accelerate regenation by supplying lots of raw and dense nutrients regardless of the quality and composition.
When Dr. Perris encountered Project Ammit, she finally dropped her apprehension and revulsion towards the Supreme Sage's research activities.
Compared to Project Cain, Project Ammit was a lot more innocuous. The Supreme Sage saw no need to cross any lines in order to develop a specific means of to increase the self-repair function of a specific organic machine.
”This… this is fascinating!” Dr. Perris practically had stars in her eyes after studying the valuable research data. ”The progress I have made in the study of high-speed regeneration is practically child's play compared to what the Supreme Sage has accumulated. One of the greatest problems that I'm grappling with is developing a viable means to fuel the regeneration process in the field. According to the results of Project Ammit, the Supreme Sage refined a very easy means to enable regeneration without being too picky about the input materials.”
The nuances and implications of Project Ammit were great. Ves and Dr. Perris didn't have the time to delve too deeply in this project.
Dr. Perris already began to correlate what she learned with her existing knowledge. She began to see her chosen specialty and research direction from an expanded perspective. She realized that she had overlooked way too many variables that the Supreme Sage meticulously took into account.
Even her understanding of existing variables had changed after getting enlightened by the Supreme Sage's knowledge. Her nascent design philosophy experienced major shifts as she became flooded with brand-new insights.
Though the comprehensiveness and rigor of her newly-developed theoretical framework was doubtlessly better than her old framework, Ves wasn't sure that was a good development. Low-ranking mech designers weren't expected to get in touch with all of this high-level knowledge from the beginning.
In fact, knowing too much might become a hindrance to their quest to advance to Journeyman. Apprentices needed to develop an inquisitive mind and develop a strong willingness to plunge into the unknown and perform original research.
No Apprentice ever managed to advance to Journeyman by relying purely on acquired knowledge!
Still, Ves didn't to remind Dr. Perris. Every mech designer was different and it was not impossible for her to find another promising research direction in light of what she learned.