Chapter 186: Chapter 153: New Biomaterial Fusion Chamber
Huai Yu walked out of the clinic door in a daze. Taking two steps around the corner, she discovered another room tucked further inside: [New Biomaterial Integration Room].
For some reason, just looking at the name made her feel inexplicably nervous. She knocked on the door, but no one answered. After a moment of hesitation, she quietly twisted the doorknob and pushed it open.
The layout inside was similar to the previous clinic. The difference was the various prosthetic models displayed near the entrance, all of which had different plant specimens entwined around them, giving off a bizarre vibe.
She then looked toward a transparent glass enclosure. It appeared fully sealed, with walls noticeably thicker and more secure than those in the previous room. Because of this, even though there were people inside, they didn’t hear the commotion outside, and Huai Yu couldn’t hear any sound coming from within either. The glass was made of soundproof material.
Inside, two doctors were taking notes on their tablets while another stared fixedly at the monitoring data on a screen.
As Huai Yu stepped closer, she saw a familiar figure strapped firmly to the flat examination bed in front of them with heavy restraint belts. He wore a specialized hospital gown. On his right leg, only the area below the calf was visible. His body trembled and twitched slightly—as if he were enduring immense agony.
His taut muscles, the bulging veins on his arms, his tightly clenched fists, and the rigid state of his uninjured leg—he looked exactly like he did when he was briefly taken out of the medical pod and ravaged by the neurotoxin once again.
And in the spot where a prosthetic should have been attached, there was instead a green foot and lower leg. The prosthetic was a glossy green tinged with brownish-red, looking as though thousands of fine vines had been woven together to extend upward. Unfortunately, the upper portion was blocked by the doctors, so Huai Yu couldn’t see anything else.
She instinctively held her breath, pressing her palms against the glass door. The sound from inside was completely blocked, so she pressed even harder against the glass, accidentally pushing the door open just a crack.
The gap was tiny, but it was enough to break the soundproof barrier. The conversation inside suddenly became crystal clear.
"Heart rate and blood pressure are at critical levels."
"Integration progress is at 72 percent."
"Pain threshold has exceeded Level 13."
"Zhou Qian, stay awake. The integration material requires your neural responses to be as conscious as possible."
"Hold on just a bit longer. When it reaches 75 percent for the phase-three deep integration, the pain threshold will briefly drop to Level 8."
"Estimated time remaining is three minutes—should we swap out his bite block for a new one?"
"When the pain levels drop in a moment, we can take it out for a bit."
"Prepare for muscle massage. Crossing 75 percent might trigger cramping..."
"Zhou Qian, hold on! This new biomaterial is extracted from a mutated creeper vine. Every climbing stem has adhesive claws that can firmly latch onto your nerves... Good! This is the first time the adaptation progress for this mutated creeper vine has exceeded 60 percent!"
"Yes! Keep holding on! This material comes with an additional 3,000 Contribution Points. Combined with the original 2,800-point allowance and your Defense Army subsidy, you’ll be set for life when it comes to basic needs."
"It’s at 75 percent!"
"The integration progress is so fast!"
A collective, heavy sigh of relief echoed in the room. The doctors performed a series of adjustments with their backs to Huai Yu. She could see that Zhou Qian’s body was no longer as rigid, and one of the doctors quickly began to massage his limbs.
A moment later, Zhou Qian’s hoarse, slurred voice sounded. "What time is it?"
The doctor paused, instinctively glancing at the screen. "It’s 2:10 PM. We expect to finish before three o’clock—after all, the final 25 percent of deep integration will be a bit slower."
Zhou Qian gave a faint grunt, falling into an exhausted silence.
"Please tell the nurses," he said after a while. "If Huai... if my sister comes by, have her wait for me in the ward. Don’t let her know I’m here—URGH!!!"
BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP!
The screen in front of them suddenly began to blare with frantic alarms. The integration progress was skyrocketing, and the pain threshold spiked rapidly along with it. The two doctors instantly sprang into action.
"Put the bite block back in, hurry! Don’t let him bite his tongue!"
"Why is the deep integration happening so fast? The sedative hasn’t even been fully administered yet!"
"My god! The creeper vine material is fusing with his nerves incredibly fast!"
"Look at his vitals! These numbers are even more stable and stronger than before he was injured! If this can be rolled out on a large scale, disabled personnel won’t have to retire at all!"
"Stop thinking about that nonsense! Retirement isn’t just about physical factors. The nation is also trying to prevent them from suffering psychological trauma due to continuous combat..."
"Zhou Qian! Are you still awake? Can you hear me? Your vitals are excellent! If this match is successful, your physical stats will allow you to handle any normal job!"
"Look at this data—many Superpower Users with enhanced Five Senses can’t even reach this level!"
"His mind is taking too much strain—Quick! Administer more sedatives—"
At 2:45 PM, the door to the soundproof adaptation area was pushed open. The quiet, spacious office outside remained still.
Wiping the sweat from his forehead, the doctor wore a satisfied smile. As he pulled the outer door open, he saw a young girl sitting obediently on the chair by the entrance.
Seeing him come out, she looked up and asked, "Is the prosthetic fitted?"
She had a small face and pale skin. The slight redness and swelling around her eyes made them appear even larger. When she quietly watched someone, it was with absolute, undivided attention.
The doctor was taken aback for a moment before nodding. "Yes, it’s done. It went perfectly. You’re Zhou Qian’s family, right? How long have you been here?"
Huai Yu paused, then answered slowly, "I just got here."
The doctor secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He then pointed toward the inner room. "The patient is still undergoing some basic cleaning. You can go in and see him in a little while."
Huai Yu nodded and silently hugged her woven basket to her chest, not saying a word.
About ten minutes later, the other doctor came out. Seeing Huai Yu waiting by the door, he also instinctively asked, "Zhou Qian’s family?"
Huai Yu nodded. "Mhm!"
The doctor’s expression suddenly became complicated. He seemed to want to say something but forcefully swallowed his words just as they reached his lips. Then, he pointed at the door. "He’ll be wheeled to the ward a bit later. Go wait for him there. After resting for the night, he can get out of bed and practice walking tomorrow. If all goes well, he’ll be able to go home in a week."
Huai Yu nodded silently, put her basket back on her back, and returned to the ward.
Back at the ward, medical staff soon arrived, swiftly pushing a gurney to bring Zhou Qian back to his room. The two doctors, having participated in a milestone biomaterial integration today, dutifully followed them. They gave a long list of instructions before finally leaving in satisfaction.
Afterward, leaning against the nurses’ station, one of the doctors looked as though he wanted to broadcast his achievements to the whole world. "Having a family member like Zhou Qian, his sister must trust him deeply and be wonderfully doted on, right?"