Chapter 760: Balrog Experimental Subject
Xia Xiu stood in the core area of the laboratory, staring calmly at the display screen in front of him.
With the assistance of [Adam], the data stream unfolding line by line on the instrument was quickly loaded, and the light of the screen reflected in his golden pupils, reflecting a cold luster.
【Loading completed——】
【The Balrog Project is being launched——】
【Loading completed——】
As the data unfolded, a massive document appeared on the screen, detailing an anomalous property called "The Balrog."
Xia Xiu put his hands in the pockets of his windbreaker, leaned forward slightly, and studied the information carefully. .
【The Balrog Project is being launched——】
【Axis Abnormality I: Balrog {Shrink-}】
[Abnormal characteristics of the Axis: The Balrog is suspected to be a conscious creature composed of flames created by the "Holy Spark".
(Note: The information provided by Mr. Marshall in MC&D pointed out that Sparks always like to leave messages on their creations or where they have stayed, but there is no Spark message on this anomalous item or another item, so it is unclear whether it belongs to Sparks. Creation is doubtful )
The exact composition of the Balrog has not yet been determined, but it is known that its core structure is invisible and cannot be detected by any known means, and can only take form through its external flames. 】
【Main features:
I. Morphological changes:
In his most basic form, the Balrog is just a small flame, similar to a lit match.
As it acquires more fuel, it grows in size and intelligence, eventually forming a humanoid form made of fire.
II.Intelligent improvement:
A Balrog's intelligence is proportional to its size and amount of fuel.
When it reaches a certain scale, it will display complex behaviors, such as using flames to burn words on the wall to communicate, or using high-temperature and high-pressure air and flame blasts to "speak".
III.Self-replication:
When the Balrog's size and fuel amount reach an unknown threshold, it will split into two new individuals. If there is enough fuel, it can "split" after becoming larger, creating more fire monsters, and eventually forming a group of fire monsters. Legion.
However, these individuals are hostile to each other and often seek to eliminate each other, especially when fuel is limited.
IV. Behavioral characteristics:
The main goal is to get more fuel to continue growing.
As its size increases, its intelligence also increases, showing the ability to learn and imitate. At the same time, it is insatiable for fuel - "it wants to burn everything, and it dares to burn anything." 】
[Axis Anomaly II: The Immortal Magic Candle/Eternal Burning Fire {Shrink-}]
[Abnormal characteristics of the axis: a 157mm tall white candle, apparently made of standard butter.
It has a diameter of 33 mm, a conical top and a wick length of 7 mm. In a non-oxygen-free environment, the wick will continue to burn, producing a stable flame approximately 24 mm high. This flame can be temporarily extinguished by traditional methods, such as removing oxygen, immersion in non-flammable liquid, or blowing with a strong air stream.
However, once these inhibitory factors are removed, the flame immediately reignites, similar to a "magic candle."
The tallow loses very little during the burning process.
Even during its longest period of uncontainment (lasting several weeks), its butter concentration and overall height remained unchanged.
In addition, any flammable or semi-flammable substance will ignite once it comes into contact with the flame of a candle and cannot be extinguished by conventional means until it is completely burned out. 】
【Main features:
I.The eternal flame:
Its flame can be extinguished by blowing on it, pouring water on it, or submerging it entirely in water, but the flame will reignite as soon as the disturbance is ceased. The flame will continue to burn even in places with no air at all (a vacuum environment) or in extremely cold places.
II.Eternally burning fire:
If you use the flame of an eternal candle to ignite other objects (such as paper, wood), those objects will also become the flame fuel of the "eternal fire". This is another abnormal mechanism.
This kind of flame that has left the candle is useless no matter whether it is poured with water, sprayed with a fire extinguisher, or even covered with flame retardant materials. It will not stop until the fuel is completely burned out. 】
Seeing this, Xia Xiu already had a bad feeling.
The flame of the candle cannot be extinguished, and the Balrog cannot satisfy his greed for fuel.
Put the two together and it's a disaster destined to be unstoppable.
He stretched out his hand and gently touched the edge of the instrument, feeling the temperature of the metal surface.
He whispered to himself:
"It seems that the Kailasel family wants to use these two anomalies to create an army that cannot be extinguished."
He rubbed his temples vigorously, took a deep breath, and continued to lock his eyes on the content scrolling on the screen.
[MC&D Company combined two anomalies and proposed a weaponization concept that combines two anomalies in the Marshall Recovery Plan - the Balrog Humanoid Weaponization Experiment Concept - and combined with the support of the think tank provided by the Hermes Foundation, we will begin The first generation of weaponization experiments——]
[Experiment code name: Project Pyrokin]
【"Control fire in flesh and blood, turn destruction into weapons."]
Xia Xiu's brows gradually tightened, and his expression became more serious.
"It's the Hermes Foundation again, and this time there is an additional MC&D company... It seems that they have never planned to give up the human gene editing technology."
His eyes looked at the records of the experimental targets.
【Experimental goal】
[Combining the flame anomaly of the Balrog and the biological potential of the human carrier, develop a weaponized humanoid individual with abnormal flame control capabilities. 】
[By combining the regeneration and resistance properties of "Eternal Burning Fire", we try to solve the problem of the Balrog's high corrosiveness to the carrier and the human body's unbearable heat. 】
"Sure enough, the final result is still here..."
The fourth sword holder in the Kingdom of Heaven said with a calm voice and an inexplicable tone.
His eyes continued to scan the information.
[The following is the theoretical and technical framework:
I. Balrog core embedding:
Use secondary abnormal anchor technology to limit the flame core of the Balrog within the body of the experimental subject, limiting the spread of the flame and preventing loss of control.
II. "Eternal Burning Fire" regeneration support:
The skin of the experimental subject is fused with the Eternal Fire Regenerative Parasite to provide the human body with continuous repair capabilities, allowing the skin and organs to continuously regenerate, providing a steady stream of fuel for the flames, and at the same time increasing the resistance of the organs and skin against flames.
III. Dragonborn Gene Enhancement:
Genetic modification based on the "dragon seed" bloodline gives the experimental subject scaly skin and internal dragon organs, improving resistance and high temperature tolerance, allowing its fuel value to be fully utilized. 】
Xia Xiu's assessment from the perspective of pure abnormal weaponization experiments can be seen that these researchers are trying to create a "force" that can ignore physiological limits in high temperature and high pollution environments through the dual transformation of genes and abnormal characteristics. The perfect weapon."
And this kind of weaponization must sacrifice part of something that is sometimes very important to humans, but sometimes not so important-humanity.
His eyes continued to move downwards, landing on the lab report.
"Pain suppression..." he whispered to himself.
"Depriving the sense of pain? Abandoning even the most basic self-protection mechanism of living things, and really planning to engrave 'destruction' into the genes."
[Failure Case Report 01: Pain Suppression System Test]
[Experimental Subject Number: Experimental Subject-Yan Fist-05]
[Background: In order to ensure that the experimental subject can withstand the dual abnormal fusion of Balrog and Eternal Fire, the project team designed a pain suppression system based on nerve blockade. This system attempts to reduce the severe pain caused by the regeneration of the Eternal Fire and the burning sensation caused by the erosion of the Balrog's fire. 】
[Experimental process: Experimental subject-05 was implanted with an improved pain suppression device, which worked in conjunction with the regenerative ability of the Eternal Fire.
After part of the Balrog's flame core was injected, the subject's skin began to be abnormally charred, and the scale system regenerated rapidly but accompanied by large-scale burning.
The pain suppression system successfully blocked the experimental subject's pain feedback, and the experimental subject showed an extremely calm state. 】
[Result: In the early stage, the experimental subject showed significant high temperature tolerance, but soon the system feedback showed that the nerves in the body were severely damaged.
The suppression of pain caused the flame erosion of the Eternal Fire to go out of control, and the experimental subject was completely carbonized without the conscious response in time. 】
[Conclusion: Although the effect of pain suppression is significant, it makes the experimental subject unable to detect physical crisis and ultimately unable to resist the erosion of the eternal fire - this plan needs to continue to be optimized. 】
Xia Xiu looked away from the screen, and when he turned around, the triple jade-like halo behind him exuded a soft but heart-stopping brilliance, reflecting a faint halo in the hot air of the laboratory. His cold eyes swept across the scorched walls and melted instruments in the laboratory, and finally settled on [Experimental Subject-05] in the center again.
He now understood where the other person's features came from, and what the strange expression on the other person's face meant.
Xia Xiu slowly approached the experimental subject, his eyes staying on the other person's face.
There, the facial features that originally belonged to humans have been squeezed by thick scales until their shape is almost invisible, and only a pair of deep-set eye sockets are vaguely visible.
The eyes in his eyes were empty and lifeless, as if he were staring at reality or staring at nothingness. On that almost completely alienated face, Xia Xiu read complex emotions - fear, pain, and a strange calmness that could not be described in words.
It's like giving up completely after struggling to the limit, and it's also like a silent prayer for death.
He stood there in silence for a moment.
The so-called Balrog experiment, to put it bluntly, is to let the flames burn on human skin, while relying on the power of resurrection to resist it.
Burning and resurrecting.
The cycle goes on endlessly...
Then, let the experimental subject "live".
The crazy stacking of scales is a reflection of the experimental subject's struggle.
When the flames raged, the skin of the experimental subjects was charred and peeled off, and the power of resurrection allowed them to grow back.
Once, ten times, a hundred times... every rebirth is a continuation of the disaster, and every rebirth provides new fuel for the flames.
What bullshit Son of Fire!
This is not the power that allows humans to control the flames, but rather turns humans into slaves of the flames, a body of fuel that can never be extinguished.
These experimental subjects are not even alive. At best, they are just containers of fire. They are what they call 'weaponized humanoid individuals'.
Xia Xiu slowly stretched out his hand and lightly touched the experimental subject's scale-covered arm with his fingertips. There was a strange touch on the surface, which was both like stone and hot metal.
According to the report, this experimental subject was tortured to death.
Even though he had endless regeneration power, the endless pain still caused his will and soul to completely collapse.
Looking at the experimental subject, Xia Xiu didn't say much.
He stretched out his hand and lightly traced [Experimental Subject-05]'s face that was almost covered with scales with his fingertips, finally resting on the pair of empty eye sockets.
His fingers slowly exerted force and stroked gently. The scales covering the eyes of the experimental subject shattered and peeled off, causing the eyes that were originally open to close.
"RIP."
The low voice echoed in the silent laboratory, with an imperceptible sigh.
Then, he turned and left, his footsteps echoing in the laboratory.
The corridors of the underground laboratory are dark and narrow, and the walls are engraved with strange runes and heat dissipation patterns. More horrific and bloody experimental reports are waiting to be revealed.
Here, Xia Xiu collected more information and saw more failed experiments.
In front of a dilapidated experimental cabin, Xia Xiu's eyes fell on the creatures in the cabin.
It was a twisted body, with a thin layer of scales covering the surface of its skin, but the edges of these scales protruded irregularly, like rotten tree bark. The test subject's limbs have completely atrophied, and only the chest cavity is abnormally enlarged, like some kind of alienated tumor.
A line of records is displayed on the screen next to the internal file:
[Experimental subject number: C-12. Gene mutations lead to excessive regeneration of subcutaneous tissue, eventually leading to muscle fiber rupture, nervous system imbalance, and the experimental subject completely losing control. 】
Xia Xiu looked at it silently for a while, without stopping for too long, walked away and continued to move forward.
In the next experimental cabin, a corpse was fixed on a metal experimental platform.
Its chest was completely opened, and the internal organs were completely charred. The remaining scales were burnt black, but still exuded a trace of burning heat.
The screen next to it records a failure report:
[Experimental subject number: P-08. The attempt to seal the flame core of the Balrog failed, the flames went out of control from the body, and the experimental subject was burned to death in just 10 seconds. 】
There is also a chart next to the experimental table, labeled - [Fusion experiment mortality rate - 98.68%]
Xia Xiu continued to walk forward, and his footsteps stopped in front of a broken experimental cabin. Through the broken observation window, he saw a completely deformed metal experimental platform.
There were no bodies on the table, but there were a lot of charred marks on the entire laboratory wall, like marks left by some kind of flame conflict.
The text on the screen coldly describes the final result of the experiment:
[Experimental subject number: F-14. Try integrating Balrogs with other Eternal Fire anomalies.
Result: A strong rejection reaction occurs between the flames, causing internal high-pressure flame entities to attack each other. The explosive reaction destroyed the core area of the laboratory and the experimental subjects disappeared. 】
These are just the tip of the iceberg. Deep in the laboratory is a purgatory of despair.
Xia Xiu walked along the way, and every record told the cruelty and madness of this experiment:
[Insufficient scale coverage and failure of regeneration. 】
In the experimental cabin, an experimental subject was torn apart due to uncontrolled scale production, and its whole body was covered with blood holes and incompletely grown scales.
[Pain suppression leads to overload death. 】
Another report described a subject who was unable to detect flame erosion due to complete loss of pain feedback, and was eventually charred.
[The flame projection is out of control and lacks accuracy. 】
The body of one subject remained in an aggressive stance, but records indicate it burned itself in an out-of-control flame.
[The experimental subject lost control of his emotions and went berserk in flames. 】
Deeper in the experimental cabin, some corpses were completely devoured by the remaining flames, as if they had experienced the most extreme madness before death.
Xia Xiu stood in front of the last laboratory and was silent for a long time.
His hand gently pressed against the wall, and a complex light flashed in his golden pupils.
"The Kailasel family..."
[Sisyphus] quietly appeared behind him, the purple-gold light reflecting his sculpture-like body.
He didn't say much, he just raised his powerful right fist.
During the accumulation of power, the surrounding air was compressed to the extreme, making a low trembling sound.
A moment later, a terrifying impact exploded with his fist, hitting the thick metal valve hard.
"Boom——"
The entire laboratory was shocked. The metal valve was torn apart instantly, as if it had been chewed by a giant beast, and the fragments flew inward.
A piercing alarm sounded, the red warning light flashed, and a strong heat wave rushed from behind the valve, carrying a scorching breath and a suffocating sense of oppression.
Xia Xiu slowly raised his gaze, looking through the rising firelight into the depths of the laboratory.
There, a "girl" stood quietly in the burning void.
Her eyes were as dazzling as amber, but as fierce as a beast and full of animality.
The blazing flames surrounded her, highlighting her blond, slightly curly hair.
Under the flames, her hair miraculously survived, and these hair glowed with a cold metallic luster under the firelight.
Small and sharp decorations appeared on both sides of her head, like the horns of wild beasts, faintly exuding an oppressive aura of power.
Although the face is covered with scales, the delicate outline can still be seen through the layers of coverage.
However, this face became so ferocious due to the reflection of the flames.
Behind her, a huge flame entity slowly emerged.
Its outline is like that of a ferocious beast, ferocious and crazy, with flames condensed into huge eyes and fangs like cracks.
Its body burned and twisted, and black and red flames formed its muscles and limbs, like an evil spirit crawling out of the depths of hell.
When he saw the huge outline of the flame beast, the "Delight of Fire" on Xia Xiu's shoulders was beating extremely actively.