by <unknown>
Chen Chen continued his explanation. "Later on in Alien: Covenant, David explained the usage of black goo again. The nature of the black goo is like an invasive AI, it disrupts substances and provokes unique reactions in each cell. From it, it reconstructs a new life form, its potential is immeasurable…
"Do you understand now? The terror of the black goo doesn't lie in its ability to create aliens, but in its ability to create a new life form. If a new advanced life form able to reproduce and evolve independently, this is a wonder unable to be replicated by any current technology."
It was only after Chen Chen finished when he unplugged the USB drive and disinfected himself thoroughly before exiting the isolation room.
An hour later, when Chen Chen returned the USB drive to the control center and returned to the Spire Experimental Base, the Black Knights had already taken the jar of black goo to a level-4 biosafety laboratory.
After going through the processes of disinfection again, Chen Chen put on the positive pressure protective suit properly. He then proceeded to step into the highest-grade biosafety laboratory that had been sealed till now.
Based on international standards, biosafety laboratories were divided into four grades. Level-one laboratory had a defined specialization and was proven not to cause disease such as measles virus and mumps virus.
A level-two laboratory researched microbial substances related to some common human diseases such as influenza virus, with a moderate degree of risk.
The three-level biosafety level laboratory researched high-risk microbial substances such as Yersinia pestis, rabies virus, and HIV. Biosafety laboratories of this level should already be equipped with advanced protective facilities.
The highest grading was the level-four biosafety laboratory. This class specializes in extremely dangerous microorganisms such as Ebola. Even the slightest drop of water or puff of air produced from the laboratory had to be decontaminated thoroughly before allowed to be disposed of outside the laboratory.
Meanwhile, Chen Chen had trumped the list with an even higher, level-five biosafety laboratory. Protective features, rate of contamination, all of the related features of this laboratory were several times higher than that of a level-four biosafety lab. Raising aliens in this place should not be worrisome.
The reason that the level-five biosafety laboratory was never officially put into operation was that no substance had ever passed the need for a biosafety laboratory above level-four. Even the BE-006 Blacklight virus that came close to wiping out the entirety of Africa was not subjected to a level-five biosafety laboratory.
Today marked the day for the very first time the level-five biosafety laboratory that had been vacant all this time was put into operation. There was no ceremony whatsoever. Not a single staff member of the Spire Experimental Base was informed of this, just like how it was with the T-virus which Chen Chen was modifying in the secret laboratory.
Entering the laboratory, Chen Chen first did a visual sweep of the environment. The level-five biosafety laboratory was not located on the top floor of the Spire, but on the unknown-to-public bottom floor.
Chen Chen had an isolated space excavated deep below the Spire Experimental Base that could sever the connection with the Spire above at any time. Covering an area of 5,000 square meters, there were a total of 13 laboratories all with different functions, and two sets of living rooms with four rooms and a hall. The implemented security measures were dialed up to maximum.
At the present, only four Black Knights tasked with the research operation entered with Chen Chen. Each one of them carried an identical disinfected cage made for mice. There were four groups of mice in total that would soon become the first subject for the black goo.
There was no need for Chen Chen to micromanage as the Black Knights displayed discipline above that of professors and started the experiment following all standard protocols.
One of the Black Knights approached a biosafety cabinet. Beneath the thick glasses of the cabinet, the jar of black goo could be seen sitting idly.
The level-three biosafety cabinet was designed for usage in level-three and four biosafety laboratories. They were suitable for use in extremely high-risk biology research. The cabinet was completely enclosed. The only way for the researcher to interact with the substance was by using the pair of built-in gloves joined to the inside of the cabinet. This was the reason it was also named the glove box.
The black knights swiftly reached in with his hands padded with protective suit material and began fixing the jar of black goo inside the biosafety cabinet.
Based on an observation of David in the movie, it could be seen that the jar was easily opened. The Black Knight only barely twisted the lid before the jar opened.
"The jar seems to be made of silica, hard and brittle, but not dangerous."
Little X provided a live narration of the angle of observation from the Black Knights' eyes.
Chen Chen remained silent and stepped forward. He immediately met a jelly-like substance inside the jar. There were four popsicles in the clump of jelly.
"This jelly-like substance should be a buffer, helps buffer and shockproof its contents."
Following Little X's mention, the Black Knight promptly removed the four popsicles. The popsicles miraculously popped out immediately, their surface completely unstained.
"The buffer solution appears to consist of nanomaterial, they are very silky and don't easily attach to the surface of objects." Little X made further observations.
Chen Chen had a good look at the popsicle-like objects as well. It was referred to as popsicles because the shape of the object closely resembled a popsicle, with split sections in between. The popsicles took on a semi-transparent form with mild green liquid inside.
The only difference was that the outer shell of the popsicles was made of glass material. Apart from a large portion of its contents being the green liquid, there was a small residue of black substance at its bottom.
When the Black Knight gave it a gentle shake, the black substance immediately fused with the green liquid, transforming the popsicle into pure black color.
This was the true nature of the black goo.
Chapter 274: Prion? |
When Chen Chen saw this, his eyes grew solemn. In the movie, David had only added one small drop into a drink to infect a human adult, who had transformed into a humanoid monster within ten hours.
It was evident that the black goo was not a bacteria or a virus, but a very stable polymer compound. Otherwise, it would not be able to withstand the damaging effects of alcohol so easily.
At this time, the Black Knight was copying David's actions in the movie. He broke off the tip of the popsicle, then inserted a syringe from one side and extracted a very small amount of liquid black goo from the popsicle.
Some of the Black Knights immediately placed a part of the black goo under the microscope for analysis and observation while others injected the fluid into a white mouse that had been prepared in advance.
Soon, Chen Chen saw that the mouse injected with black goo had begun to develop fever and convulsions.
In no time, this little white mouse started to shed its fur everywhere and the pink skin under the fur was exposed to the air. However, at this moment, the other white mice seemed to perceive this abnormality and they all surrounded the sick little white mouse.
Nonetheless, this heart-warming scene was immediately subverted. The sick mouse suddenly leaped up, lunged ferociously at one of the mice, and began tearing it apart with its teeth!
At once, the white mouse that was bitten was bleeding all over!
"After being infected with the black goo, one will lose all sense of reason and become very aggressive."
Chen Chen observed silently. Quickly, the infected mouse easily killed the other mice in the cage. Chen Chen continued to note down. "After being infected with black goo, the host's strength will suddenly increase and it can easily kill others of the same species, as was shown in the
movie…"
After recording all these changes, Chen Chen noted that the body of the mouse in the cage was turning from bright red to grayish-white. At the same time, it began to consume the flesh and blood of its own kind, seemingly to accumulate energy for the next mutation.
Soon, this little white mouse's body gradually grew a layer of stratum corneum, which began to blacken. Meanwhile, beneath the blackness, there were glimpses of crimson flesh.
In the end, a fine and dense layer of needle-like spikes came out of its body, replacing the original white fur. What was even stranger was that these spikes were still growing in and out endlessly. It was a chilling sight…
"This is a new species."
Chen Chen was astounded. He summoned a Black Knight, who then stepped forward, put on thick protective gloves, and extended the needle into the cage. As the Black Knight gently held the mutated mouse, he extracted a blood sample.
After it was caught, the white mouse began to struggle violently while unleashing a strange piercing scream.
This sound was beyond the normal vocal range of a typical white mouse. It sounded harsh and savage. This mouse had undergone essential changes in both its genes and body structure.
Nonetheless, although this little white mouse had mutated so terrifyingly, the difference in size still existed. No matter how hard it struggled, it could not break free of the Black Knight's grasp.
Still, before the blood of the mutated mice had been fully analyzed, the analysis of the black goo was completed.
When the composition of the black goo was determined, Chen Chen gasped in shock.
"Are you sure there's no mistake?"
As Chen Chen stared at the test report in his hand, he displayed a befuddled look. "You mean, this black goo is a protein composed of more than 20 amino acids?"
"Yes, it's a protein molecule that can infect a variety of carbon-based life."
Little X replied, "If the facts weren't right before our eyes, even I wouldn't believe that there's such a strange protein molecule in the world."
"In other words, is this something similar to a prion?"
Chen Chen inhaled sharply. "Then how does it infect people? Is it the same as prions?"
"Yes, based on the blood test of the mice, we've gotten a rough answer."
Little X said again, "But unlike other prions, this protein doesn't sediment in the brain and damage the brain of organisms. Rather, it directly alters the human genetic chain."
After hearing these words, Chen Chen understood it completely.
A prion was not a virus because in international textbooks, viruses were categorized as organisms. However, prions were not considered organisms but a system composed only of proteins, with traits of self-replication and infectivity.
Still, prions were filterable, infectious, and pathogenic, like conventional viruses, but they were much smaller than the smallest known conventional virus. The structure of their virus particles thus could not be observed under the electron microscope and they would not present an immune response.
As Chen Chen continued reading, he instantly understood why the black goo was a type of prion.
This was because when the prion protein of the black goo entered the host's body, the normal PrP protein of the human body would be easily assimilated by the prion protein of the black goo. The proteins with normal configuration would take on the molecular structure of black goo, which increased exponentially and expanded rapidly.
Even so, if that was all, the black goo would at most be a new type of prion that was rapid and infective. However, what was more surprising was that the prion protein of black goo not only had the ability to assimilate proteins in the host's body, but also the ability to disassemble nucleic acids in the host!
When the black goo's prion protein encountered the host's nucleic acid chain, it seemed to trigger a certain program to begin disassembly of the host's DNA nucleic acid chain and recombine it into a new form.
After the nucleic acid chain was recombined, the black goo's prion protein would also envelop this new nucleic acid chain to form a new virus structure.
At this point, the prions in the black goo had successfully evolved into a complete virus by plundering the DNA of organisms. This virus would work with the black goo to carry out a second transformation of the host's body.
All of this had happened with that little white mouse's body…
After reading the report in his hand, Chen Chen looked even more troubled. "It's no wonder that the black goo can be extracted through the USB flash drive. I didn't expect it to be a prion-like substance. But based on this report, I think that the prion protein of black goo is more like an artificial protein robot…"
"I thought so too."
Little X echoed, "The black goo is hundreds and thousands of times more amazing than prions. It cannot be defined as a prion at all.
"After all, it's the supreme creation of the Engineer civilization."
Chen Chen nodded and said with emotion, "Still, at this point, I finally understand the precious value of the black goo. Compared to the black goo, the T-virus is like a cheap toy. Most organisms infected by the T-virus suffer from unstable disadvantages such as zombies. Only products that are infected at the stage of being fertilized eggs can become healthy mutant creatures.
"However, the black goo is different. It can be used directly on adult life forms. Any organism can directly mutate into a new species after coming into contact with it. What's more remarkable is that this new species has the ability to reproduce. It's completely possible to form a new population independently, unlike the T-virus that can only mutate on an individual basis without any way to continue."
"Doesn't that mean that the black goo can accelerate the evolution of life?"
Little X asked.
"No, there's still a disparity between this and evolution."
Here, Chen Chen paused and shook his head. "What is evolution? Only the transformation through constant adaptation to the environment can be called evolution. This isn't the case at all with black goo. From the fate of the little white mouse, we know that the changes caused by this black goo are better understood as uncontrollable mutations.
"Moreover, the direction of this mutation is uncertain. It may be in a good direction or a bad one. Even humans are likely to lose the characteristics and intellect of high-level creatures after infection, just like in the movie…"
"Ah, if the black goo is so dangerous, then why do you still want to examine it?" Little X suddenly turned puzzled.
"Although the black goo is dangerous, there are two sides to everything."
Chen Chen smiled. "After all, it's a biological weapon that is dozens or even hundreds of times stronger than the T-virus. It's useful. Besides… The Engineer race could live for more than 300,000 years and humans were created from the combination of Engineers and black goo. In that case, is it possible that we can uncover the secret of the Engineers' longevity from the black goo?"
Chapter 275: New Way of Thinking |
The reason Chen Chen had extracted the black goo was ultimately to use it as a longevity technology.
Why was Chen Chen obsessed with longevity? In other words, why did human beings pursue longevity?
It was because this was an inevitable phenomenon.
As science and technology became more advanced, mankind was bound to be unwilling to live for only a brief one hundred years. Compared to the span of time measured out in hundreds of millions of years, a hundred years was like the twinkling of an eye, almost meaningless.
Furthermore, with the development of science and technology, the accumulation of knowledge became increasingly difficult. In ancient times, people could inherit the wealth of knowledge accumulated by civilization in just ten years of diligent study.
However, in modern times, a nine-year compulsory education could only build a mere foundation. Human knowledge had been divided into hundreds of branches. One person could only obtain achievements in a few branc
hes in one lifetime.
The accumulation of civilization's sum knowledge would only grow more abundant. Did it mean that in the future, a person would have to undergo compulsory education for decades?
By the time someone had painstakingly acquired the knowledge of a field, would they be near their deathbed then and be cremated and buried in just a few years?
Clearly, no one wanted this. If human civilization were to move forward, the need for longevity would become more urgent. This was a general trend that would not be shifted by anyone's will.
According to what Chen Chen knew, there were probably three options for human beings to attain immortality.
Number one: keep their bodies and undergo genetic evolution.
It was true that the conventional means of human evolution employed reproduction as a way to make different groups evolve simultaneously. However, this did not mean that humans could not choose more efficient ways of evolution such as genes.
Humans could use genetic technology to strengthen themselves, putting humanity ahead of the pack. Evolution would occur in advance, thereby extending life.
This was the most ideal path.
Why so? As the human body was a sophisticated and complicated machine, it was composed of organic matter, not steel.
Perhaps this body was extremely fragile that a bullet or a sharp knife could terminate human life, but human beings also had the ability to multiply and evolve. They were capable of thought, consciousness, creativity, and personal agency.
All this was made possible by that fragile body.
The human body was a jewel born through a process of evolution that took millions of years, the most magnificent miracle of nature.
As long as human beings had complete bodies, there were unlimited possibilities.
Number two: Flesh was out, machines were in.
Although the potential of this path was not as great as the first option, it was a path that more readily promised longevity and even something close to immortality.