Matrix Survival: I Get A Random Chest Every Day

Chapter 966 674: Balanced Genetic Chain, Astonishing Adaptability!

Early the next morning, Mirel prepared breakfast before waking Li Zheng.

After breakfast, they both headed straight for the Gravity Research Institute.

Since he arranged the rental of the Gravity Room yesterday, Li Zheng now had free access to the Gravity Research Institute, and to facilitate his comings and goings, he was even given operating privileges for the elevator.

In the same Gravity Room as yesterday, only Rothschild was waiting there; Feng Yue was likely still handling the matter of the weighted equipment for Li Zheng, so he hadn't arrived yet.

Rothschild, who was originally in the control room, saw Li Zheng arrive and said to him, "I examined your genome yesterday and have good news for you."

"My genetic chain is incomplete?" Li Zheng immediately guessed what Rothschild wanted to say.

Rothschild nodded, "That's right, your genetic chain is indeed incomplete, which means you are not a perfect gene right now! Not only that, but I did some special research last night and made another astonishing discovery: your genetic chain has surprisingly reached a balance point, retaining future potential and also repairing the genes to an unusually solid state."

"This is the main reason why you can quickly adapt in the Gravity Room."

Li Zheng, intrigued, asked, "Many people in the Outer City use Genetic Potion, right? Has no one ever discovered this so-called balance point before?"

"No," Rothschild answered, "Every race's genes manifest differently. Take you and me as examples: your genes form a spiral chain with neatly arranged connections in the framework, whereas our Morlo Lizard Race's genes form a dot matrix, composed of dots according to certain rules. The more perfect and harmonious the dot matrix, the more solid the genes. In the future, it becomes harder to shake and even harder to enhance power."

"Mm-hmm," Li Zheng listened, half understanding, and asked, "I've heard of a super limit Genetic Potion appearing in the Outer City, where taking it causes any race to grow a lot of body parts and turn into some bizarre monster. What's the principle behind it?"

"That one?" Rothschild's expression hardened, "I've researched a case on that and can tell you about it."

"Strictly speaking, there's a limit to the perfection of genes for each race. Initially, the Genetic Potion in the Outer City evolved to the Super God level, stepping just into the Basic Level threshold, and then reached its limit. At this level, the gene map is completely filled in, achieving the most harmonious, complete, and perfect form."

"At this point, using conventional methods to enhance power becomes very challenging."

"This is when most Outer City residents chose the Spiritual Power route to complement their combat techniques and enhance their combat strength."

"However, some people refused to give up and continued to research the Genetic Potion, attempting to go further."

"Then the Overlimit Potion was developed."

At this point, Rothschild sighed, "I'm not sure if the potion's development took a wrong turn. Those people, when finding it impossible to insert new fragments into the gene map, came up with the method of grafting—grafting gene fragments from other races externally onto the genetic sequence, ultimately leading to genetic alienation and development in an uncontrollable direction."

"In research on unknown fields, there are both risks and opportunities," Li Zheng pondered, "The Overlimit Potion seems to have had only a first version which was confiscated and destroyed by the Terminal. It doesn't necessarily mean that gene grafting is entirely unworkable; perhaps some gene matches among various races could succeed in grafting."

In the pursuit of science, success is often found through countless failures. Many useful inventions that benefit humanity emerged from certain research processes' detours, unexpectedly proving quite useful.

"Indeed," Rothschild, being a researcher, understood such reasoning well. "But with the Outer City facing crises, we don't have the luxury of time to take detours, nor do we have the foundation to find the right path amidst countless wrong ones. So we support the Terminal's decision to confiscate and destroy those unstable things."

"Including those scientists who were dealt with?" Mirel suddenly asked, "If those scientists who researched chaotic things weren't dealt with, with their insatiable thirst for knowledge, wouldn't they continue to secretly develop prohibited items?"

Rothschild glanced at Mirel, saying, "They weren't dealt with... or to be straightforward, they weren't killed by the Terminal but had certain related memories erased. In the research field, if someone wakes up to find a memory gap, they assume they crossed a line with a project and stop pursuing it."

Then he revealed a piece of news that startled Li Zheng, "I once saw my name on a research project list named the Red Mercury Plan, but I have no related memories. It was after that I transitioned to the Gravity Research Institute and shifted to a different research type."

Li Zheng wondered, "Aren't you curious about what was being developed in the Red Mercury Plan?"

"Of course I'm curious. No one wouldn't be curious about what they did in the past," Rothschild said. "But since the Terminal erased that part of the memory, it signaled a line was crossed. Delving deeper would only result in the same outcome, adding to the burden."

Seeking answers would inevitably lead down the same old path, only to have one's memory wiped again.

It's better not to pursue it, saving time and energy, and focusing on other projects to achieve results.

At that moment, Li Zheng suddenly realized that the pillars of the Outer City might not just be the residents willing to risk their lives venturing into the Sin Domain or the Wilderness for training.

There were also those inventors who, though seldom leaving the Outer City, continually produced new inventions that bolstered the Outer City's foundation.

Among these inventors, some might seek fame and fortune, but Li Zheng believed that most, like Rothschild, quietly worked on research projects, wholeheartedly dedicated to the scientific field.

"Let's stop the idle talk here," Rothschild checked the time and, seeing Feng Yue hadn't arrived yet, decided not to wait for him, "Are we going with the same Gravity Amplification coefficient as yesterday?"

"Yes, let's warm up first." Li Zheng patted Mirel's hand wrapped around his arm, giving her a reassuring glance, and headed to the Gravity Generation Field.

"The Gravity Amplification to thirteen times can't be activated all at once. It needs to be gradually added, giving your body time to adapt," Rothschild spoke into the intercom, "Let me know when you're ready."

Without speaking, Li Zheng simply made a hand gesture, then sat cross-legged on the ground.

Buzz!

The Gravity Amplification started, beginning at three times. Li Zheng's blood flow stagnated for a moment before returning to normal.

Rothschild closely monitored the data from Li Zheng's body, noticing minimal changes, and began increasing the gravity one step at a time.

Soon it reached ten times gravity, and Rothschild compared it to yesterday's data, finding it surprisingly optimized further.

This indicated an improvement in Li Zheng's "comfort level" under ten times gravity.

In combat terms, it's equivalent to Li Zheng today being able to defeat yesterday's self.

At ten and a half times, Li Zheng still felt no strain.

Next was eleven times, eleven and a half times, twelve times, incrementally increasing.

At thirteen times, Li Zheng felt as though a mountain was suddenly pressing down on him, though somewhat lighter than yesterday.

"Strange," Li Zheng mused to himself, "I don't recall feeling this light yesterday when I left, but I didn't do anything special, only glanced at the Hundred Flowers Painting last night."

"Could the Hundred Flowers Painting enhance Physique?"

This effect didn't seem to manifest in Mirel, who only gained some benefits in Spiritual Power.

After adapting to thirteen times gravity for two hours, Li Zheng felt slightly more relaxed and began to try moving his limbs, eventually daring to attempt standing up.

Crack, crack, crack...

A series of abnormal sounds emanated from his joints, the compressing joint gaps reducing the distance between bones, causing slight pain with each movement.

"Beyond ten times, each increase in gravity is worlds apart," Li Zheng trembled, unable to fully straighten up yet not forced back into a sitting position by the gravity.

Rothschild, intently observing the data from Li Zheng's body, was amazed, "Incredible! Every cell in his body is striving to adapt to the current gravitational environment. I estimate in another eight hours, he'll be able to barely manage walking under a thirteen times gravity coefficient."

This terrifying progress surpassed Feng Yue's by at least dozens of times!

Feng Yue, the most adaptive person Rothschild encountered, took ten days under thirteen times gravity before daring to attempt standing.

And Li Zheng...

It had only been a mere three hours!