The Record of Unusual Creatures

The factories in Black Street operated day and night; the dense black smoke from the towering chimneys shrouded the entire city. When standing at a higher point in town, one could even see the haze descending slowly from the sky like a veil. The smoke left a coat of gray and black soot in the neighborhood. That was one of the things that gave Black Street its name. In the modern world of the Nanomachine Swarm, many heavy industries were still unable to get rid of traditional production methods due to technical limitations.     

In Black Street, large machinery and arms factories were the biggest industries.     

Hao Ren exited the crowded slum and saw the towering factory buildings lining the streets. There were giant reactor towers and pressure vessels in the urban areas. He could hear the roar of the machines coming from the nearby factories as he walked along the street. Meanwhile, people were hustling along the sidewalks on both sides of the road. Most of them were the poor, emotionless and dressed in shabby clothing. They had just finished their synthetic food, and they were now flocking like ants to the factory—the mechanical beast, which engulfed and kept them alive at the same time. Some people used rags to cover their faces to protect themselves from the dust in the air. But the dirty rags were not any cleaner than the air they breathed. The atmosphere was slowly contaminating and irreversibly destroying their lungs. They had to rely on the Nanomachine Swarm to prolong their lives after the age of 30 or 40. After that, they would quickly die.     

"Since the Nanomachine Swarm's still in use, why hasn't anyone thought of using them to solve the pollution problem in the city?" Hao Ren murmured to himself.     

A loud, low voice came from the side, "Solve the pollution? The people who thought about it have all died decades ago. Now, it's an era where people only live day to day."     

Hao Ren turned his head and was surprised to see Ulyanov behind him. "Hey, when did you come here?"     

"This is where I often come. I know the slums very well." Ulyanov looked up at the factories not far away. "Yesterday, someone reported that after you left the base, you disappeared into the alleys of the slums. Nolan allowed me to come and collect your body. It's a surprise to see you on the main street. Well, it looks like you've survived your first night in the dark alleys. What are you so interested in over here?"     

"Nothing, I'm just mooching around." Hao Ren knew that Ulyanov was still suspicious of him, so he answered casually, "I've told you before; I can't always stay with you guys, I need to find a place to stay. Don't worry; whatever I do, I'm not an enemy of Gray Fox."     

"Nolan couldn't care less. I'm just being a busybody here," Ulyanov said. "It's better not to come to this place. Many people here are not fans of Gray Fox. You'll get yourself into trouble."     

Hao Ren gestured with his hand as if to say that he understood. "Tell me, is there any additional cost in solving the urban pollution with the Nanomachine Swarm? Is the thing not self-sufficient?"     

"The Nanomachine Swarm is indeed self-sufficient, but the control center is costly, and the bigger cost involves them..." Ulyanov said, raising his hand and pointing at the poor people from the slums. "The factories don't need healthy men to operate the machines. The city doesn't need the elderly. The mission of these slags is to work in the factory until they're 45 years old. The owners of the factories don't like strong and smart workers; it'd be best if the workers are illiterate and have no retirement needs so that there's no need for them to live too long. As for the factory owners and warlords, they have their own ecological houses, isolated from the outside world. I heard there'll be a meadow soon, cheap and quick to build, for the people to enjoy."     

Hao Ren listened on, wide-eyed. As an earthling, he could not understand such reasoning. "Maintain this status quo? Isn't it a little too short-sighted?"     

"Short-sighted? What's your long-term vision?" Ulyanov laughed hoarsely. "To improve the environment and recreate a vibrant, sustainable society? I remember many people having the same thinking decades ago. But it turned out that no one could live long enough to accomplish these goals. Someone said that every regime in the world could only last an average of four and a half years. No one will invest in a business for a period that's longer than this cycle."     

As Ulyanov finished, he patted Hao Ren on the shoulder. "Short-sightedness is necessary because most people cannot live beyond what they can see."     

Hao Ren blurted out, "But you've lived long enough..."     

"Because I'm just trying to keep myself alive." Ulyanov turned. "Since the injury, I can no longer bleed. I can only discharge electrolytes and nutrients. My goal is simple—to stay alive. A person like me would live long enough."     

Hao Ren was speechless. In a world of chaos, thinkers and enlighteners were likely the first to die because they used the energy for survival in other things, such as their reams. The MDT suddenly mumbled in his mind, "This is why grass can transcend into immortals while fruits and vegetables don't even have the chance dream: they make wishes in the morning, but people stew them in the afternoon. Who can have dreams when they can't even live long enough to see their dreams come true?"     

Let us give credit where credit is due; as b*tchy as the MDT was, it did make a pretty good conclusion.     

Hao Ren followed Ulyanov back to the Gray Fox base. While they were turning into a corner and nobody was looking, he reached into his Dimensional Pocket and quickly yanked out a silvery-gray gadget. The tiny device looked like an inconspicuous metal toad, but it landed quietly on the ground and quickly slid into a dark corner. It was a beacon transmitter, which Hao Ren had produced in the onboard factory of the Petrachelys in the morning. The beacon would automatically find the weakest spot to unfold itself and transmit a powerful navigation signal into space. As long as Zorm was in the Plane of Dreams, the drone clusters would be able to pick up the signal and find it.     

Even it was tens of billions of light years away.     

However, things would get more complicated if the distance was not purely physical. And it did seem so.     

He had no problem contacting CARS and the drone clusters from the planet of Zorm, which meant that the data link was stable. But the problem was, he could not trace the exact location of the signal like it was hiding its IP address to stay anonymous. Meanwhile, CARS and the drone clusters were unable to resolve its anonymity unidirectionally. Hence the reason Hao Ren had to plant an active beacon transmitter on planet Zorm. He had also considered the failure of the beacon. In case that happened, he would consider releasing a probe from Zorm to see if it could navigate its way through space and reach the regular universe. If so, at least that meant space was continuous. If not, he could figure out the extent of the distortion. It was one of his backup plans.     

After he left the factory district, Hao Ren looked back at the towering black buildings. "This place is depressing."     

"Maybe. At least people can still live on here. The factory's the only choice for most people; the wasteland outside is worse." Ulyanov seemed to be sighing, or maybe he was laughing silently. "The only hope for the 'slags' here is becoming cannon fodder for some of the mercenary groups. As long as they can survive for a few weeks, they'll be able to live like normal human beings; all their diseases would heal. You know, it's simple to cure their lung and blood diseases—as simple as a tube of Nanomachine Swarm and 30 minutes. But the Swarm's the most precious resource in Black Street. There are limited rations. Everyone in the slums is willing to trade for this treatment opportunity with all they have. So I'm still very curious about the reason behind Khiton's treachery. When Nolan pulled him out of the ghetto, his lungs were almost gone; his blood had accumulated 40 years of toxins and failed due to inferior Nanomachines. A typical slug, without being selected as cannon fodder, Nolan gave him the opportunity to live, yet he turned out to be a traitor."     

Hao Ren remembered Khiton's diary, which he had seen. He whispered, "Probably he was brainwashed or something."     

"The Rangers brainwashed him? Ulyanov laughed. "Yeah, maybe. He was simpleminded."