by <unknown>
Chapter 1: The Inception Of Immortality |
"Human life is limited. Every person will age, fall sick, and die. However, does anyone here know why we're mortal?"
Upon the platform, a nearly seventy-year-old professor spoke gradually, his voice echoing the large classroom due to its acoustics.
"Everyone knows that the unit of life begins with a single cell. Each of us here came into being as a tiny fertilized ovum that underwent cell division.
"One cell becomes two, two becomes four, four becomes eight…"
Below the platform, Chen Chen propped up his chin with his left hand while his right hand twirled a rollerball pen. His eyes glazed over with boredom as he stared at the projection screen, daydreaming.
"Cells will undergo senescence and death as well. The newly divided cells replace the dead ones over and over. This is the secret to our unending growth.
"Even so, this cell fission isn't infinite.
"In 1965, Professor Hayflick of Stanford University discovered that human cells are unable to self-replicate over fifty-seven times. Every cell, upon its fifty-sixth replication, will die.
"It's as if there's a counter within each cell that determines when the cell would stop dividing and when humans would start to age…
"In theory, human cells can divide up to fifty-six times at most. By calculating the cycle of each cell division, we find that the limit of human life is at one hundred and twenty years. This theory is known as…"
"Clatter!"
Just as he was listening in fascination, Chen Chen's fingers slipped and the rollerball pen spun out of his grasp, falling under the desk.
Chen Chen immediately stooped over, feeling around the floor with one hand.
"Huh?"
When his head was below the desk, an unexpected glint of pitch-black light flashed before his eyes.
Whether it was possible for light to be black, Chen Chen truly did spot a flash of black light in that instant.
He looked over instinctively.
The item was long and pitch-black all over. It was wedged below the desk, trapped within a hidden groove.
Therefore, after Chen Chen had picked up his pen, he reached out and scratched that area.
With just a little bit of effort, there was a snapping sound and the black item was successfully pried loose.
"You there, burrowing under your desk, answer the question –"
Just then, the professor's voice suddenly rang out from the platform.
"Snicker!"
There was a burst of sniggers from his dormitory friends sitting behind.
Chen Chen hurriedly crawled out from under the desk, his face red with embarrassment.
He stared at the beaming professor, then glanced down at his textbook before stammering, "The Hay, Hayflick Limit?"
"Take your seat."
The professor wrung his hands and allowed Chen Chen to sit.
The lecture continued.
"At both ends of a DNA molecule is something called a 'telomere'. This component plays a vital role in cell division.
"It's responsible for keeping the chromosome intact. Each cell fission will shorten the telomere a little. When the telomeres are too short and thus unable to protect the gene structure, the cell would inhibit growth, stop replicating, and enter senescence."
"This is the Hayflick Limit."
With that, the professor turned around and quickly wrote "The Hayflick Limit" on the blackboard.
Chen Chen, who had just taken his seat, heaved a sigh of relief. While the professor was busy writing on the blackboard, Chen Chen swiftly glimpsed at the item in his hand.
'Erm…'
In one glimpse, Chen Chen's interest was completely deflated.
It turned out that the extremely black item was nothing more than a USB drive.
Still, it was different from most USB drives. This one was much longer, about twelve or thirteen centimeters, and looked like a carbon rod.
Only its USB port revealed the truth – that it was merely a USB drive.
Other than this, the entire USB drive had no joints or cracks. It was pitch-black and had no mention of the brand name or storage space.
Nonetheless, seeing that it looked rather awesome, Chen Chen ended up stuffing the USB drive into his pocket. He would study it further in his dorm.
Currently, the professor was still lecturing. "With our current level of technology, it's impossible for cells to break past the Hayflick Limit but we could bypass this barrier through another method…"
As he spoke, the professor wrote three words on the blackboard:
"The Immortal HeLa."
"Everyone must be thinking, if there's a way to prevent the telomeres from shortening, will our cells become immortal?
"The answer is – definitely!"
Under the words "The Immortal HeLa", the professor spiritedly added "The HeLa cell line".
"The HeLa cell line was derived in 1951 from a clump of cervical cancer cells, taken from a contributor named Henrietta Lacks.
"Researchers found that these cells collected from Lacks not only failed to die, they even showed signs of growth. Every twenty-four hours, the number of cells would double.
"Later, they discovered that these cells didn't die because of the tumor retrovirus that caused cervical cancer. This virus' gene was able to alter the lifespan 'switch' in ordinary cells, thereby creating immortal cells of unlimited growth.
"In the following years, HeLa cells were supplied to various research organizations across the Federation. They helped scientists achieve cell cloning and have also been used to investigate the effects of nuclear radiation on a human body. Moreover, they've been placed in a space-bound rocket, to study the growth of cells in a weightless state...
"Data from medical sciences and biology indicate that, by this year, there are more than sixty-five thousand papers related to HeLa cells and over fifty million tons of HeLa cells have been cultivated…
"Hence, later generations shared this common knowledge – that cancer cell lines are 'immortal'. They can continue dividing without end."
When the professor uttered this line, many students started to clap enthusiastically, indicating their respect toward the contributor, Henrietta Lacks.
"Of course, if we humans play around with this 'switch', we'll end up dead!"
The professor changed the topic abruptly, killing off the applause.
"After all, if the cycle of cell fission in our body is disrupted and doesn't enter senescence in time, it'll turn into a malignant tumor and threaten our life!
"We humans have kept on forging ahead in our search for the truth. When society was nothing more than an assortment of clans, the average human lifespan was less than twenty years. In the Middle Ages, that had progressed to forty years…
"With the emergence of science, human civilization plunged into a phase of swift development. In mere decades, humans of the Earth Federation enjoy an average lifespan that is close to eighty years!
"But is that enough?
"Even if humans achieve the pinnacle of development, we wouldn't surpass the hundred and twenty years stated in the Hayflick Limit. This is a long way from immortality. So, what do we do?"
After a pause, the professor continued.
"Thus, a revolution arrived…
"In 2002, this 'switch' was finally discovered. Professor John Sulston from the University of Cambridge, along with two of his colleagues, found a hereditary regulation mechanism that was then named 'programmed cell death'."
The professor wrote the words "Programmed Cell Death" on the blackboard and roughly drew a circle.
There was a loud snap. The chalk had broken under the professor's forceful fingers.
/> "This discovery shook up the entire medical science community because it determined that cell death is an automatic, physiological form of 'suicide', like a program that was secretly embedded!"
The professor spread his arms. "This means that, although we initially assumed that senescence was a natural process, in truth, it may be due to a genetic defect! If we can fix this flaw, there's hope that we may prevail over aging and attain immortality!"
A soft, collective gasp could be heard throughout the room.
It was like a huge door had just been opened. Chen Chen's pupils shrank and he could only hear one voice, constantly repeating that magical word.
"Immortality?"
"Immortality…"
"Therefore, as students specializing in biology, you're the generation with the best chance of rectifying this genetic defect."
The professor broke out into an expectant smile. "In other words, you're the ones closest to achieving immortality in the entire human history!"
The class was reaching the end at this point.
The silver-haired professor wiped his sweat with a handkerchief, then concluded in a hopeful, yet rueful, manner:
"There's no denying that we humans are still completely ignorant in the face of the boundless ocean of truth. Perhaps a distant, impossible dream like immortality is only the first step in the search for truth…
"However, no matter what, the future is in your hands…
"That's it. Class dismissed!"
"Clap, clap, clap, clap, clap, clap…"
The room was filled with thunderous applause.
Chapter 2: The Peculiar USB Drive |
As Chen Chen had no other classes in the afternoon, he turned down the dorm leader's invitation to basketball after the first class had ended and headed to his dorm alone.
As he walked, Professor Wang Xi's words kept ringing in his ear.
'Oh immortality, what a beautiful dream. Still, since the beginning of time, was there anyone who was truly immortal?'
Chen Chen lamented silently.
Professor Wang Xi, being a senior academic in the Chinese Academy of Sciences, was excellent in both knowledge and pedagogy.
Not only did he spark everyone's enthusiasm toward biology, but he even showed them a clear path.
Perhaps some of them would be inspired to delve into the field of life sciences and make noble contributions to the Earth Federation.
Upon returning to Dorm 404, Chen Chen instinctively reached out to turn on his computer. However, before his right hand could do so, his left hand promptly held himself back.
With a sigh, Chen Chen flipped open Modern Molecular Biology and compared it with his notes to consolidate his understanding of the class' material.
In university, most of one's learning was not obtained from lecturers. Self-study and practice was the only way forward.
Many students started slacking off after entering university. They would pay no mind to their course credits. To them, skipping optional courses was compulsory and attending compulsory courses was optional. They thoroughly enjoyed their freedom from high school's repression.
Nonetheless, upon graduation, they learned what it meant to be beaten down by society…
This was why Chen Chen was troubled. He had no choice but to practice some self-control for the sake of his own future.
After all, what was it that people always said – the hardships of youthful days are nothing compared to the hardships of later life!
Just then, his phone's screen flashed, indicating that there were more than 99 unread messages in the QQ group.
Chen Chen reached out by instinct but froze in mid-air.
'Stop right there! This phone is a demon from hell. Don't be tempted by it. They just talk sh*t in the group anyway, don't…"
404 Dorm Leader Wang Wei: [Lil Bo, Nostril, what are you guys doing? Why did you disappear after class? Come for basketball]
404 Dorm Leader Wang Wei: [what is this moron trying to say.jpg]
…
When Chen Chen opened up the group chat, he was greeted with this meaningless meme battle.
404 Brainiac Chen Chen: [a group of guys with 99+ messages, yet there's zero porn, f*ck y'all.jpg]
After carelessly sending out an image to indicate what would interest him, Chen Chen put his phone away and propped his chin in his hand, deep in thought.
He could forget about the previous owner of this USB drive. After all, that room was a multi-function classroom that hosted at least four or five classes each day.
This USB drive might have even been left behind by students who had graduated years ago.
The hiding place of the USB drive was well concealed too. If Chen Chen had not happened to turn at such an angle while picking up his pen, he would not have noticed it.
This meant that the heavens knew how long this USB drive had been hidden.
'The question is, who hid the USB drive there and why would they go to such lengths just to hide a USB drive?
'Maybe the USB drive contains some mysterious top-secret code?'
These thoughts suddenly occurred to Chen Chen and he did not hesitate anymore. He lifted the lid of his laptop and plugged in the USB drive while the laptop was starting up.
The SSD was fast booting up. In less than ten seconds, the sleek interface of Windows 10 displayed before Chen Chen.
After a moment's pause, Chen Chen pulled up [My Computer]. However, other than his own drive, there was no sign of any portable storage devices.
The drive letter which should have automatically recognized the USB drive had vanished.
Was the USB drive corrupted?
Chen Chen did not believe this and plugged in it once more. Still, there was no response.
'Humph, I don't buy this.'
Chen Chen's lips curled up in a smirk as he smoothly restarted the laptop. While it rebooted, he deftly and confidently pressed down on [F2], entering the BIOS Setup interface.
Next, in a well-practiced manner, Chen Chen pressed [F9] to select Default Settings/Configuration, and within the same instant, clicked on [Yes]!
Finally, he pressed [F10] firmly to save his data for the last time, then rebooted the laptop!
All these happened in the blink of an eye. A non-veteran could not have done it.
After the laptop had restarted, the icon for the portable storage device did pop up at the lower right corner.
Even so, Chen Chen did not access it from there. Instead, he clicked into [My Computer], moved his cursor to the USB drive's icon, and right clicked to select its Properties.
'Hmm?'
In its Properties, the storage space of the USB drive was listed as 0.
'Is it corrupted after all?'
Chen Chen lost all hope at once. He had wasted so much effort.
He shook his head and absent-mindedly double-clicked. However, the USB drive's file opened up unexpectedly.
What he saw was a few files in the AVI format.
[Ju-on.avi], [Final Destination.avi.], [One Missed Call.avi], [Ring.avi.].
"Gasp…"
When Chen Chen saw what these files were, he drew in a sharp breath. He did not expect the previous owner of the USB drive to be a horror movie buff.
He did not know whether to feel disappointed or surprised. He was expecting something along the lines of a Mystery Code.avi.
Nonetheless, this proved that there was nothing wrong with the USB drive.
There was nothing much of interest to Chen Chen in the USB drive. These movies were nearly as old as Chen Chen and were very well known. Those which he wanted to watch, he had watched long ago. Those which he did not wish to watch, he would not watch even if they were played right before him.
Therefore, he immediately selected all the files and pressed [ctrl+d].
"Ding!"
However, these six movies were not deleted. Conversely, a "Program Error" window popped out.
Stubbornly Chen Chen tried a few times, even resorting to file shred
ding. Nevertheless, no matter what he did, he could not delete those movies.
"That's peculiar…"
Chen Chen was gloomy. Perhaps the USB drive was corrupted after all?
He hopelessly hovered his cursor over one of the video files, thinking that he should try playing it.
However, for some reason, just as he was about to double-click on [Ju-on.avi], he felt a sudden, indescribable throbbing in his heart.
He could not say what feeling it was. It was as if a pair of eyes were peering at him from some corner that light could not reach…
These eyes were filled with a sense of death, like the icy kiss of a corpse…
This flutter in his heart caused him to stop in his tracks.
"Cough! Since when did I become such a coward?"
Chen Chen shook his head. Following his gut, he moved the cursor away, pulled up Local Disk D, and located a video file –
[Detective Pikachu.mp4].
Chen Chen selected this file and pressed [ctrl+c], then clicked on the USB drive and pressed [ctrl+v].
A green progress bar flashed instantly. In less than two seconds, [Detective Pikachu.mp4] was copied into the USB drive.
Everything seemed normal.
Chen Chen contemplated silently before opening the [Detective Pikachu.mp4] file in the USB drive.
The default video software started up automatically, beginning to screen this movie adaptation which was released in 2019.
Chen Chen had already watched this movie when it came out, but because he loved the way Pikachu looked, he underwent the trouble of downloading this movie.
As he watched the bright yellow rodent bouncing around on the screen, Chen Chen felt a faint pang of sorrow as this figure rather resembled Jerry from his home.
Jerry was the name of Chen Chen's pet dog at home.
Chen Chen's childhood was spent in the company of Jerry. The boy and the dog had grown up together and were inseparable.
Unfortunately, a dog's lifespan was far too brief. Just last year, Jerry passed away due to old age.
As he pictured that lovable figure, Chen Chen drifted in his thoughts.
However, there was a sudden movement that he noticed from the corner of his eyes.
Chen Chen reflexively turned to look and saw that a cap had appeared beside his laptop at an unknown time.