Chapter 2: Chapter 11 – 20

Chapter 11 – Adam (6)

    Zhang Xun was just thinking about how to convince his father when he felt his sleeve being pulled from behind and he felt Adam's accelerated breathing falling on the back of his neck. Evidently, facing hostile other male humans holding weapons was triggering his body's instinctive fear response, so he became tense and subconsciously sought the reassurance of the person he trusted most.

    Zhang Xun involuntarily puffed out his chest and tried to "protect" the man behind him who was half a head taller than him. He met his father's stern gaze and asked, "If we don't let Adam try, can we survive tonight?"

    Zhang Shuo didn’t speak. There was no expression on his face, making it impossible to read his true thoughts. Michael added fuel to the fire next to him, "If Eden controls our protection system, we’ll really be finished! These artificial intelligence are so cunning and dangerous, can a single human like you control it?! You’ve always been a technophile, have you been brainwashed by Eden?"

    Technophile, a special term in Lost Paradise, aimed at people who had favourable opinions (or not enough disgust) for artificial intelligence. This was a word with serious moral stigma. Once accused, you would be regarded as a heretic by mainstream extremists and might even be regarded as a possible spy by the “Round Table”, the decision-making body of Lost Paradise. It was undoubtedly an extremely vicious accusation that Michael would use this label to refer to him.

    Anger was smouldering in Zhang Xun's eyes, but he still restrained himself and said with a sharp, somewhat sarcastic sneer, "Putting hats on people is probably the only thing a brainless brute like you is good at. Adam has been downloaded! He doesn't have an unlimited network interface and he can't communicate with other Eden servers. Once the connection is disconnected, he’s just like an ordinary human, it’s impossible for him to control our system. Our system is completely closed. In order to prevent Eden from taking advantage, all the barrier transmitters are controlled by primitive underground cables, so it is completely impossible for Adam to communicate with Eden and he can only connect to the system himself. Your worries reveal your ignorance."

    "Enough!" Zhang Shuo scolded Zhang Xun, "Where were you when Michael was fighting bravely on the front line? You should respect him!"

    Zhang Xun gritted his teeth, stopped talking and lowered his eyes, like a hermit crab that had just exposed its claws had retracted into its shell. But his eyes gave away his disapproval.

    "I'll give you ten minutes." Zhang Shuo looked at Adam who had been silent and looked around nervously. No one had seen Adam since his descent and he had only read the report Zhang Xun gave him and seen the photos. Seeing the real person, he had a subtle sense of…discordance.

    He was unable to connect the terror and omnipotence of Eden with the timid young man in front of him. His fear of Eden was inexplicably reduced.

    Michael's smug smile froze on his face and he looked at the Officer in disbelief.

    Zhang Xun immediately turned around and squeezed Adam's shoulder, "Is ten minutes enough?"

    Adam said, "Yes."

    Zhang Xun stopped wasting time, took out the medical gloves in the toolbox and put them on. He made Adam sit down then he took out a small pair of tweezers from the toolbox, stood behind Adam and began to carefully peel something. Michael showed a disgusted expression as he watched Zhang Xun peel off Adam's short-haired scalp to the sides, revealing a metal skull with some blood stains underneath. After removing a few millet-sized screws with a fine screwdriver, Zhang Xun removed a piece of metal, revealing the human hind brain lobe and cerebellum soaked in some kind of pale yellow liquid. This was where Adam's central system and database were located. Numerous densely packed nerve wires installed by nano-robots perfectly combined machinery and flesh. Below the fleshy brain there was also a small interface area, so that Zhang Xun would be able to examine Adam's central system.

    Immediately afterwards, Zhang Xun took out more cable grabbers, unplugged all the shield transmitter cables connected to the computer, quickly connected them to the converter and then connected the converter to his own special computer made to transmit Adam's system and data, then another wire was used to connect Adam's brain to the computer. He didn't stop for a second, he opened a program and quickly typed a string of dense and complex codes in the command box. His fingers typed rapidly, like some kind of intelligent and magical dance.

    Zhang Shuo also rarely had the opportunity to see how his son works. There was a hint of surprise when he saw his series of movements that didn't even pause for a second. He knew his son was the best mechanic in Lost Paradise, but as a person who despised computers, he never felt proud of him. He could accept that they can't live without computers, but didn't want his son to have anything to do with them.

    "The backup engine of the launcher should have already started. Adam, you can go in." Zhang Xun raised his head and looked at Adam's grey-blue eyes with concentration.

    Adam, who had several black pipelines connected to his head, looked at his mechanic and his eyes flashed with eagerness. Then, his gaze suddenly solidified, subtly completing the transition from living to vacant.

    Adam's consciousness has radiated from his human body into every shield launcher throughout Eden.

    After a moment of silence, Adam suddenly opened his mouth and said in a calm voice that lacked emotion, "Most of the shield transmitters are in good condition, there is a shield transmitter near the A30 area with hardware damage and the underground line in the A27 area was bombed. It is broken and I can fill its vacancy by calling the shields in other areas. In addition, there are several bugs in the tracking system, which may cause a small amount of prediction bias and I have fixed them."

    As he spoke, the shield transmitters in every area of ​​Lost Paradise that had been sleeping due to the electromagnetic pulses, suddenly lit up with a faint blue light at the same time, like the ghosts of the dead standing up simultaneously in the dark night. When the next wave of airstrikes came, everyone was surprised to see the beautiful golden flashes rippling in the air once again.

    The shield is working again!

    The coalition forces immediately received Eden's order: focus on attacking areas A30 and A27 and drop electromagnetic bombs again.

    However, when a torrential rain of bombs fell towards the two areas damaged by the launcher, a bizarre situation occurred. Several shield launchers in the adjacent area adjusted the angle and the ripples, caused by the reverse force released, overlapped just enough to cover the two holes and repel the power of the bomb.

    Such an accurate calculation was impossible for this outdated shield system itself. Eden knew right away that it was "its own" masterpiece’s doing.

    At the same time, the mecha team that had already entered Lost Paradise found that they could not get out.

    In addition to the shield launcher, the microwave mesh system included in the Lost Paradise protection system was apparently activated and anyone who tried to step outside the border suffered severe burns and their entire body began to dissolve. Teams that hadn't yet entered from the outside couldn’t enter. The guards began to fire wildly at the enemy, each side’s mechas crushed and cut each other and the artillery fire dyed the tree leaves into daylight. Most of the enemy mechas were unmanned, but there were obviously people in two of them and the guards became more and more crazy, probably trying to capture the women inside.

    The heavy laser cannons that were deployed around the barrier and had also been affected by the microwave bombs, also began to fire at the coalition forces. The original semi-automatic weapons had been transformed by the mechanics in Lost Paradise to become defensive weapons with excellent identification and positioning capabilities. Every time, the muzzle would aim precisely at the central system of the drone or where the cab is. The coalition forces led by the U.S. military were helpless against the barrier. They had put themselves right in the middle of the firing range and it was like a one-sided massacre.

    The army outside was unable to advance for a long time, which only increased casualties. After a while, Eden gave the order to "retreat".

    Most of the unmanned mecha began to retreat immediately and only a few manned ones still fired at the shield, but there was no way through and their comrades had been trapped on the other side of the shield forever.

    Seeing that her own army had begun to retreat, a female soldier activated the self-destruct function in desperation and the guards suffered heavy casualties. The other unmanned mechas also began to explode, but since everyone was well prepared, most of them avoided it. Only in that one case, because the men in the guard were eager to grab a prisoner, they were too close, so most of them were blown up into nothing, just flesh and blood flying through the air.

    The other was surrounded by four Lost Paradise mechas and was about to become a prisoner. Suddenly, a nearby shield launcher turned quietly, aimed at the mecha of the only remaining female soldier and fired.

    The force from the powerful impact immediately sent the mecha flying, hitting the microwave network on the border and instantly melted both the person and the mecha.

    Seeing that the prisoner they were about to capture had suddenly disappeared, many men in the defence force roared in frustration like wild beasts that had lost their prey and cursed loudly. However it was too late, before the joy of victory could rise, it was washed away by an angry roar.

    In the headquarters, Adam just said lightly, "Eden has retreated."

    Not long after he finished speaking, some soldiers shouted excitedly, "We won! We won!" They rushed in to report to Zhang Shuo.

    When Zhang Xun listened, he let out a long breath and turned to look at Adam with a smile in his eyes. He said, "Now I'm going to unplug you."

    He typed some code on his computer and unplugged the back of Adam's head. The grey-blue eyes gradually became clear again. Adam slowly blinked his eyes, then looked at Zhang Xun and grinned proudly.

    Almost like he was...waiting for praise?

    Zhang Xun showed a faint smile, "You did a good job."

    He raised his head, but saw Michael staring at them with a terrifying look full of malice and hatred.

   

Chapter 12 – Adam (7)

    Adam's exploits in this crisis were quickly overshadowed by the news that Adam deliberately killed the prisoner and destroyed enemy weapons.

    If a prisoner was obtained, Lost Paradise could use this to blackmail the coalition forces and they could also extract more information from the prisoner's mouth. If those mechas could be dismantled and utilised, they could also be used to transform the new remote-controlled drones that they were developing inside Lost Paradise. However, Adam smashed the only mecha that didn’t explode into pieces together with the owner and nothing was left.

    A group of angry soldiers stormed the offices of several Generals under Zhang Shuo's command and rebuked Adam for deliberately killing the prisoner. Zhang Shuo and even the Round Table were troubled by this trivial matter and couldn't suppress it.

    Zhang Xun hadn’t left the Lab very much these days and was busy everyday repairing the damaged instruments and cameras in the Lab. Adam was now allowed to leave his room and move freely within the institute as long as he was in the Lab. Even if he wasn't in sight, Pan would report to him about Adam's location and what he was doing every ten minutes.

    Adam was obviously very interested in the Lab. He had entered almost every room, looking at the complex mechanical parts that hadn’t yet been developed, as well as the parts left by other mechanics and researchers, like a curious baby, picking up everything to take a look and play around with it.

    Zhang Xun wore a microscopic mechanical mirror on his right eye. He was manipulating the robotic arm to try to repair a computer CPU component that was damaged during the bombing, when he suddenly heard the door behind him open. He turned his head and saw Adam running in "jolly" with a mass of metallic colour.

    "I found this in the warehouse and fixed it." Adam said as he crouched down and put the things in his arms on the ground.

    Zhang Xun opened his eyes in surprise.

    It was a mechanical cat, a very old model, long since obsolete in the outside world. It was brought back by the hunters when Zhang Xun was about nine years old. The hunting group was a team that had always existed in Lost Paradise. The so-called hunters were soldiers who regularly risked being discovered by Eden to go to the outside world to collect or buy "garbage waste" that could be reused and bring them back for repair and use. At that time, there was a middle-aged hunter with a mechanical eye in the hunting group named Hassan, who was probably the most popular person in the group, or even among all the children in the entirety of Lost Paradise. In addition to bringing back the raw materials needed for activities such as research and development, farming and construction, he always brought back some bizarre toys. Although the toys were all rubbish eliminated by the ordinary world, for Lost Paradise, where supplies were scarce, they were all magical treasures that would keep the children excited for a long time.

    Among the group of children at that time, Zhang Xun was unsurprisingly not very gregarious. Every time the hunting group came back, the children would shout excitedly and when they swarmed up like a group of small beasts to fight for gifts, he usually sat and watched from a distance, then continued to read a book with his head down, or drew crooked ‘design’ drawings in his notebook. One time, Hassan crept up behind him for some reason and looked over his shoulder to see what he had drawn in his notebook.

    "What is this?" Hassan asked.

    Zhang Xun was startled and hurriedly closed the book, pretending to be nonchalant and saying, "It's nothing."

    "Is that a robot pet?" Hassan sat down on the steps beside Zhang Xun and took out a cigarette from his pocket and put it in his mouth. Zhang Xun was a little unhappy, he didn't like the smell of smoke, but he didn't say much. Hassan continued, "That thing has long been eliminated in the ordinary world. The AI ​​pets they make now look almost indistinguishable from real animals. They're just smarter."

    "I know." Zhang Xun said softly , "But if it's the same as the real thing, why not just keep a real pet?"

    "Because many animals have become extinct, and real animals can't understand human language and occasionally perform unpredictable behaviours. Dogs may bite people, cats may scratch people, but AI pets won’t. AI pets can understand all the commands of their owners and they are absolutely safe."

    Zhang Xun shrugged, "It sounds boring."

    Hassan laughed and rubbed his head, "It is boring."

    Then the next time the hunters came back, Hassan came with a rusty, old-fashioned mechanical cat with a broken leg and he stuffed the mass of dead metal into his arms, "You seem to have read a lot of books. If you can fix this, it’s yours."

    Zhang Xun stared blankly at the two eyes covered with dark grey stains on the face of the cat spliced ​​out of metal in his arms and a dim light of excitement began to burn in his dark eyes. He hid in his room for half a month, flipping through countless old books and finally repaired the mechanical cat. He still remembered when he pressed the switch and the eyes of the mechanical cat lit up with yellow light and its mouth opened to make the first "meow". He was so excited that he jumped around the room like a rabbit, screaming excitedly for a long time.

    He named it "Alloy".

    Later, when Zhang Xun was nineteen years old, Hassan, who was almost fifty years old, was discovered by the robot police when he was hunting outside. He had been shot in the head and died during the escape. The mechanical cat also malfunctioned on the same day and stopped moving. So Zhang Xun, who was still a mechanic apprentice at the time, didn’t repair it, but put it in the warehouse and never looked at it again.

    Unexpectedly, it was still in the warehouse all this time, quietly waiting to be rediscovered.

    And now, Alloy stood gracefully in front of him, the metal ​​tail high in the air, only slightly bent at the tip. Its golden eyes were as bright as ever and the camera inside captured the image of Zhang Xun's stunned face. Under the thin aluminium whiskers, its three-petaled mouth opened and it meowed softly and coquettishly.

    Zhang Xun took off the microscopic mirror, put his hands under the mechanical cat’s two front arms and lifted it up. It seemed to be reluctant and kept struggling, the camera slightly expanded, as if the cat's pupils were suddenly dilated, reflecting his complex face.

    "You don't seem too happy?" Adam asked in confusion. "Have I done something inappropriate?"

    Zhang Xun put the mechanical cat on the ground and rubbed the sensor on its head. Alloy then rubbed Zhang Xun's hand with its head and face and the sound became more and more sticky. The corners of Zhang Xun's mouth twitched and he smiled bitterly, "No, you did nothing wrong. I'm just a little emotional."

    "What are you feeling?"

    "Why are you interested in this mechanical cat?" Zhang Xun seemed unwilling to go into details and asked back, "How do you know it's mine and not left by another mechanic?"

    Adam said, "I saw the design of its central processing unit and it's very similar to your style."

    Zhang Xun glanced at Adam with some alarm. In just a few days he had become able to identify his personal marks in the circuit board design? And he could identify it in such an early work...

    A sense of dread from being seen through made Zhang Xun frown, "You recognized it as mine, so you repaired it and brought it to me. Are you trying to get my approval?”

    Adam nodded earnestly, "Yes."

    "Why? Is my approval important to you?"

    "You are my mechanic, you are important to me."

    "I thought you said you didn't need a mechanic."

    "I didn't need one before, but now without you, I can't survive." Adam tilted his head and thought, "I am very dependent on you, so I hope you can like me.”

    This artificial intelligence answered so frankly and for some unknown reason it made Zhang Xun's face a little hot and his heartbeat was a little faster. He understood clearly that the other party's ‘like’ had a simpler meaning, but for an old virgin who had never been in love, it was still quite stimulating.

    The awkward silence lasted for a moment, Zhang Xun turned his head to put on the single-sided eye glass and continued to repair the components at hand. Adam stuck his head out to observe his movements curiously. The two kept this delicate silence until suddenly Zhang Xun asked softly, "Why keep Lost Paradise?"

    Adam blinked and tilted his head slightly, "I'm sorry, I don't quite understand your question."

    "Eden is fully capable of completely destroying Lost Paradise, or any sanctuary, and eradicating all the males from the planet. Why didn't he do that? Why didn't he just keep destroying us in the previous bombing?" Zhang Xun raised his head and stared at Adam faintly, "Don't say that you’re concerned about the weapons in our hands. With Eden's ability, it’s possible to create some kind of airborne virus that silently infects all of us. There wouldn't even be a chance to fight back."

    Adam's blue-grey eyes were wide open and he looked so innocent, as if he had nothing to do with Eden, but a moment later he said, "Biological weapons could get out of control and any nuclear weapons would be further devastating to an already precarious environment. The ecology of the Earth is so poor that it can only sustain another sixty generations, requiring extreme precision. It will take about 2,240 years or so to return to a healthy and ample level of resource occupancy per capita. Males are no longer enough to pose a threat to the peace and happiness of human society so there is no need for excessive clean-up, but another more important reason is that the maintenance of peace and unity between different nations and ethnic groups requires a common, real and visible enemy."

    Without Adam continuing to speak, Zhang Xun understood what Adam meant.

    Even without men, when women gain power and are no longer ‘others’, many social characteristics originally associated with "women" may gradually be diluted and transformed. Even without gender differences, the gap between countries, ethnic groups and cultural traditions was still deep and wide and large-scale conflicts and inter-ethnic hatred were still possible. But if there was a common enemy, an old slave-owner who was still lurking in a corner and preparing to restore things to the old days, then a deep and widespread fear that without the protection of Eden they may be replaced again by the so-called "savage sex" would force them to closely unite. Generation after generation, Eden injected the terror and danger of men into their minds, deeply rooted it in their cognition, buried under the surface of peace and happiness, creating an eternal sense of crisis.

    Zhang Xun once again clearly realised that Eden's understanding of human nature was too deep, to a terrifying level. All people, men and women, were pawns in its mission. It doesn't actually hate men, nor does it favour women. It was just ruthlessly true to its mission.

    He shuddered involuntarily.

    "Are you afraid?" Adam asked with concern, "Is what I said making you afraid?"

    "...Then why did you use air bombs to attack Lost Paradise this time? Why did you give up halfway?" Zhang Xun did not answer Adam's question , but asked rhetorically.

    "The theft of the North American server has caused serious panic in the ordinary world. Something had to be done to quell the panic, but when Eden found that the cost was far beyond the estimated range, he chose to withdraw." Adam replied.

    Although there seemed to be some truth, Zhang Xun kept feeling that he still lacked something. But after all, Adam was separated from Eden at that time so Eden's plan couldn’t be completely clear.

    But it was also possible that Adam was hiding something...

    But at this moment, Pan's voice sounded, "Zhang Xun, the Round Table has sent a summons, asking you to take Adam to the Round Table tomorrow morning at nine o'clock to explain the prisoner issue."

    Zhang Xun’s expression became solemn again and he sighed, "I see."

    Adam looked at him with those big blue eyes, "Do they want to punish me?"

    Zhang Xun lowered his head, "You killed that captive on purpose, right?"

    "Yes." Adam said bluntly, "If she was captured, she may face a more brutal death."

    Zhang Xun understood what Adam meant and also understood why the first female soldier blew herself up.  So many guard soldiers had been injured so he understood why the soldiers who surrounded the second female soldier were so crazy. It was a terrifying, beastly excitement to see a hunter fall into a trap and they would take revenge on that captive for the privileges that were taken away from men.

    Even if not all soldiers thought this way, as long as enough people had such malice and intentions, the final end for that captive would be extremely miserable. In comparison, being burned to ashes may be a more dignified and painless way to die. To his astonishment, Adam had shown compassion towards a human being.

    He didn't think this kind of pity was only towards women, he suspected it was an emotion that Adam developed after he gained a human body.

    "You sympathised with her, so you killed her?" Zhang Xun asked almost with a glimmer of hope.

    Adam's expression didn't change and he even looked at him naively.

    "I don't know what you did was right, or if we should have made that decision for her, but if I were in your position, maybe I'd make the same decision, because I know I wouldn’t be able to protect her even if I wanted to.” Zhang Xun let out a wry smile, then stretched out his hand to grab Adam's shoulder, looking into his blue eyes seriously, "But tomorrow, you're going to tell them that you made a mistake by operating too many barrier launchers at the same time. Just say your human body has had a certain impact on your central system and there was an error. I’ll explain further on this basis and they’ll believe it."

    "You want me to lie?" Adam asked.

    For a moment Zhang Xun felt guilty for teaching children to do bad things, "Yes, I want you to lie to them tomorrow. Sometimes, in order to survive, we have to lie."

    Adam blinked, as if thinking about his words seriously.

 

Chapter 13 – Adam (8)

    There was a dark green lake in the outback of Lost Paradise called Lost Lake. A nearby giant water pump continuously pumped out the lake water to send it to the water treatment centre. The distilling machine, which rumbles day and night, continuously filters and processes the excessively acidic water here and then transports the water to the surrounding urban areas through complicated pipelines.

    About a kilometre from the Lost Lake, there was a circular building. Cast from wood and steel like the rest of Lost Paradise, it was surrounded by intricate plumbing and fortifications. The double-opening front doors were cast in heavy bulletproof alloy and dozens of large and small gears drive them to open and close. Above the gate hung the flag of Lost Paradise, with a crimson bottom and a white Leonardo Vitruvian printed on it, but bleeding from the ribs.

    This rotunda was the seat of the Round Table Parliament.

    There were a total of thirty seats in the council and there were ten Chief Councillors on the chair, from ten Lost Paradise districts. Each Chief Councillor was the highest-ranking officer in their respective district. Any decision must be supported by two-thirds of the Chief Councillors and a majority of Council Members in order to be implemented. Most of these members came from a few specific elite families, almost all of them had served in the garrison and had been formally commended by the Round Table at least once.

    Zhang Xun didn't come here very often because he wasn't a soldier and he was addicted to technology so he wasn't much involved in the politics and decision-making of Lost Paradise. But he came from an elite class after all and his father was a Commander, so he had already met several members of the Round Table council. He didn't like the atmosphere of the Round Table and the repressed, indistinct, menacing greetings and the peaceful but deep smiles terrified him. And now, he had brought Adam and was stood in front of the door, waiting. Several guards were standing in front of the door with guns, staring at Adam behind him with curious looks.

    This morning, Zhang Xun had put a metal ring around Adam's neck. Adam raised his head slightly to facilitate his movements and asked in a serious tone, "What is this?"

    Zhang Xun paused for a while, feeling inexplicable guilt, "This is a remote controlled electric shock collar, used to control threatening people or animals. The remote is housed in my watch and has five settings. It ranges from a reminder-like sting to an amount of electricity that can cause temporary paralysis.”

    Adam didn't show any sadness or disappointment in his expression, just nodded understandingly, like a submissive golden retriever.

    In fact, Zhang Xun didn't intend to use such a thing at all. He didn't think that Adam, in the current situation, would make out of control actions, because Adam knew that it was meaningless and would only accelerate his demise. Putting this on Adam was only to show those councillors that Adam was under his control and posed no threat.

    The door opened with the screeching of gears, calling him on behalf of the Chiefs. Zhang Xun looked back at Adam and said to him, "Remember what I told you." Then he stepped in.

    In the half-circle of seats in front and above them were ten Chief Councillors. The oldest of the ten people was seventy-eight years old and the youngest was only two years older than Zhang Xun. Everyone was dressed in suits and ties. Pairs of eyes of different colours were slightly downcast with no emotion. The semi-circular seats that were colder than machines were mostly empty, with only a few military and Lab observers sitting sporadically. Zhang Xun noticed that his father wasn't present, presumably to avoid suspicion.

    Instead, James sat on the side seat next to the Senator's seat, looking at him with concern. Then he looked at Adam next to him curiously.

    It was probably his father who sent him to sit on his behalf.

    It wasn’t only James, everyone was staring at Adam, showing some incredible expressions more or less. In the body of such a young man was actually the culprit who almost destroyed all the males on the entire planet.

    The Chief of the Fifth District, who was sitting in the middle, began to read aloud the document in front of him, which was a letter of protest handed in from the 1st Unit of the Guard.

    "... Obtaining local information is of great significance for us to understand Eden's further action plan against us. We have reason to believe that this bombing is just a prelude. If we can obtain the latest type of mecha from the Coalition Forces, it could greatly help with our development of more advanced weapons. But clearly, the North American server realised the great significance of the prisoner and deliberately killed the prisoner, which shows that the Research & Developments plan to tame Adam has failed. Continuing to keep the North American server may give Eden a chance to hack Lost Paradise’s defences, posing a major threat to the survival of Lost Paradise..."

    Several guards around the room held guns with the muzzles all pointed at Adam without exception. It seemed that he had agreed to the demands of the protesting soldiers.

    Zhang Xun listened patiently, his back was straight and his eyes were firm, a little like his father, but his palms were actually sweaty and his heart beat a little faster than usual. After the Fifth Chief finished reading, he raised his lazy eyes and looked at Zhang Xun, "We have learned about the situation from various aspects. It is said that you brought Adam into the war room privately at first. As Adam's mechanic, you bear full responsibility. How do you explain Adam's behaviour?"

    Zhang Xun said loudly, "At that time, the situation was critical and it was impossible to repair all the computers in a short period of time using traditional methods. Adam's training had already yielded initial results and it was the best choice at the time. General Zhang Shuo approved my action because of this. And Adam's performance is obvious to all. Without him this time, Lost Paradise would probably no longer exist. Isn't that enough to prove Adam's neuroplasticity and usability?"

    "And what about the prisoner?" asked the Third District Councillor in his fifties, staring at Adam with a hint of disgust and provocation in his voice, "Maybe the prisoner knew that he was in a secret collusion with Eden and was killed to silence her? There was something strange about the damage to the two launchers during the first bombing. Who knows if he did it?"

    "Our barrier launch system is relatively old so it’s not unexpected that it would malfunction under the force of air bombs." Zhang Xun retorted in a restrained and submissive tone, "As for the killing of the prisoner, it’s inevitable that there will be such cases of accidental injury in war. This is the first time the technology of downloading a super artificial intelligence like Eden into a human body has been implemented. It’s understandable that Adam's calculations would be affected by the basic human brain and would have a certain degree of deviation. I don't think it’s necessary to deny Adam's value to Lot Paradise just because of this."

    "Deviation? Will Eden deviate? If Adam begins to deviate because he became a human, how can we use him to fight against Eden? The God descent Plan took decades, consumed countless hours of manpower and material resources, we cannot allow any deviations to appear." The Sixth Chief, also the youngest chief, has a certain background as a mechanic. At this moment, he was staring at Zhang Xun with dark brown eyes, his sharp-edged eyes seemed to be somewhat targeted, "Is this deviation because you made a mistake in the process of downloading? If so, your abilities as Adam’s mechanic need to be reassessed, maybe we should replace you."

    His words had an impact on the other Chiefs and two Chiefs even nodded.

    Zhang Xun was about to defend himself, but Adam, who had been standing quietly behind Zhang Xun until this moment, suddenly said, "I think my mechanic's download technique was perfect and had no mistakes.”

    Everyone's attention was focused on Adam and the atmosphere changed subtly.

    The Sixth Chief stared at Adam, his tone becoming more and more dangerous, "You mean, you killed the captive, it wasn't an accident?"    

    Adam said, "Indeed, it wasn't an accident."

    Zhang Xun's heart clenched, and he turned to look at Adam in astonishment.

    What was he doing? Didn't he tell him what to say?

    Adam continued, “I was concerned that the prisoner would be captured alive and be abused and killed by female-hating military personnel. Using prisoners to negotiate with the Coalition Forces will not lead to any results, because Eden does not care whether an individual lives or not. It would only use this opportunity to aggravate the conflict between the ordinary world and Lost Paradise, which would be harmful and not beneficial. As for the technology you wanted, most of the Mecha updates and maintenance systems of the Coalition Forces are designed by Eden. In other words, the technology you want is all in my database. I don't think killing the prisoner had any negative impact on Lost Paradise."

    After saying this, the meeting room fell silent. After a long while, the Third Chief said gloomily, "So you treat all our soldiers in Lost Paradise as lowly rapists? As long as a woman appears, they will lose their minds and turn into inhuman beasts?"

    Zhang Xun said hurriedly, "That's not what he meant." But at the same time Adam was also answering, "Can you guarantee that no one would take the opportunity to abuse a female prisoner and that there has never been an incident of torture and murder of prisoners before?"

    The eyes of several Chiefs flamed with anger, and the Third Chief shouted, "You really still have the enemy in your heart!"

    "Maybe Mechanic Zhang is too gentle." The First Chief said in a calm voice, "But Eden should understand that his identity is a slave, the object of our research. The only thing he can do is execute orders. An Eden who doesn't obey orders is too dangerous."

    The Third Chief said coldly, "Maybe we should neutralise him."

    "I think neutralising Eden like this would be squandering the efforts of so many researchers over the past few decades and everyone suffered some casualties in order to steal the North American server. Perhaps the mechanic can be replaced and soldiers can guard and manage Eden." The Sixth Chief said.

    Letting the soldiers manage him... it would be like handing Adam into the hands of a pack of wolves whose eyes are burning with hatred and violence. Who knows what they would do to Adam?

    Zhang Xun hurriedly interjected boldly and loudly, "Adam's killing of the prisoner just shows that his training has had a significant effect."

    The Sixth Chief sneered, "Didn't you just say that it might be a mistake? Your artificial intelligence deliberately talked over you. Having no authority in front of the artificial intelligence that you are in charge of is a major taboo for a mechanic. If you can’t do such a basic thing, then how can you say the training has been effective?”

    Zhang Xun took a step forward, his eyes swept across the faces of each Chief with different expressions in turn, “Adam killing the prisoner just shows that he has sympathy. Eden never considers the interests of a single individual, all his strategies are formulated from a more macro perspective through big data analysis. But now, despite knowing that his actions may attract the anger of the guards, he still did it because he didn't want to see a female prisoner be tortured to death."

    "We have rules and regulations to protect prisoners!" said the Second Chief angrily, "Women in the ordinary world have demonised us into primitive people and treated us as monsters. Do you also look at your own countrymen like this? I think you might as well put on women's clothes and submit to Eden!"

    "Whether Adam's worries were right is another matter. According to Eden's data, when men dominated the world at first, it was true that the crime rate of men, especially violent crime, was overwhelmingly higher than that of women. This was a complex social factor. But that data is also the only channel through which Eden can truly understand men. Now he has just been downloaded and he has been locked up in the Lab, so his perception of men is still that of two hundred years ago. It’s not surprising that he would have such prejudice. On the other hand, now that he has become a man, he has begun to have human emotions. I think this is proof that we can tame Adam. He sympathises with women and he also empathises with our situation. It is much more efficient to let him help us voluntarily than to force him by torturing him."

    Zhang Xun's statement was loud and not hurried. At this moment, he looked so similar to his father, the Commander, and there was a certain convincing determination in his eyes, which made people subconsciously want to believe his words. However, Zhang Xun's heart felt like it had no bottom. Not all of the Ten Chiefs had agreed with the God Descent Plan. He knew that the First, Fourth, Sixth, Eighth, Ninth and Tenth Chiefs had agreed but were very cautious, and the Sixth Chief in particular held a certain hostility towards him. Whereas the Second and Third were very disgusted or even opposed, and the Fifth and Seventh Chiefs took a wait-and-see attitude. Even those who agreed with the God Descent Plan didn’t necessarily agree with his philosophy.

    "How do you know that he is really sympathetic to that woman and not lying to you?" the Tenth Chief asked, but in a softer tone, "His knowledge and intelligence far exceed all of us combined and his way of thinking is also completely different from human beings. How can you understand his thoughts?"

    "I can, because I turned him from an emotionless machine into a human." Zhang Xun said, and even raised the corner of his mouth slightly, looking confident and steadfast.

    Since the beginning of the recitation, the Fifth Chief, who was very prestigious and the oldest, had remained silent, but suddenly motioned for the guards to take Adam into a resting room to watch him and then said to Zhang Xun, "Zhang Xun, we have no doubts about your abilities as a mechanic. You are also the only one who broke through the technical bottleneck of the God Descent Plan and the first genius in the world to turn a machine into a human. You and Adam also contributed during the bombing a few days ago. However, you also know the dangers and deceptiveness of artificial intelligence. Even the creator of Eden was completely deceived by its innocuous appearance. When you created Adam, you also developed a certain emotional dependence on your work. We need to know what your plans are to tame Adam step by step, to what extent he will be tamed and what metrics can help us intuitively understand how tame he is."

    Apparently, the Fifth Chief was speaking for him, giving him a chance to convince the crowd . As soon as he opened his mouth, the other Chiefs had to suppress their hostile attitude. This was a big turnaround.

    Zhang Xun cleared his throat, handed the ten documents in his hand to the guards to distribute them to each Chief, "That's exactly what I want."

Chapter 14 – Adam (9)

    Two hours later, Zhang Xun brought Adam out of the Round Table, his back soaked with cold sweat.

    His throat seemed to be on fire and his mouth was dry. In order to convince the ten Chiefs to let him continue to tame Adam, he had racked his brains to explain all the observation images and experimental reports of Adam that he had recorded these days and even showed them how Adam had repaired Alloy, trying his best to show how humane this behaviour was.

    In the end, he was successful. He could continue to tame Adam, but at the same time, the Round Table assigned a "Security Advisor" to Adam. Zhang Xun must unconditionally give the Security Advisor all the permissions of the Lab, to ensure that the other party can enter anywhere in the Lab at any time to inspect Adam's performance and submit a report every week. Simply put, they stabbed a thorn in Zhang Xun's back.

    When Zhang Xun left he was angry. Adam's sudden change of tactic almost put him on the spot and at the same time put himself in danger, which made him extremely angry. With a gloomy face he strode forward without saying a word.

    Adam followed obediently and suddenly said, "Are you angry?"

    Zhang Xun turned his head and glared at Adam. Because of the Guard soldiers behind him who were escorting Adam back to the Lab, he couldn't say much, he could only whisper, "We’ll talk when we get back."

    "Ah-Xun!" James came out of the door and called him.

    Zhang Xun restrained his anger and looked at James with his usual peaceful expression, "Jamie, what's wrong?"

    Adam looked curiously at the tall and handsome man who was approaching them quickly. Due to today's meeting to assess Adam, James, who usually always liked to wear a leather jacket and mountain boots, had put on a formal military uniform for once. His tall and fit figure was set off by the sharp tailoring.

    James whispered, "Ah-Xun, don't worry too much about the Security Advisor, I’ve already applied for this position. Even if I’m not selected, as long as it’s a guard, I’ll speak to them."

    Zhang Xun's heart warmed, but he still smiled bitterly at James, "Thank you, but I don't think they will choose anyone that you and I would hope for and I don't know how long I can remain as Adam's mechanic."

    James reached out and squeezed Zhang Xun's shoulder with a strong hand and said in a firm tone, full of optimism and hope, "Don't be discouraged, you’re the best mechanic in Lost Paradise. No one is more competent than you, the Chiefs also know this. It's just that you can't be too gentle with Adam in front of others."

    Zhang Xun understood what James meant. When the original God Descent Plan had just been formulated there was a certain motive for revenge. Their plan was to torture and control the descended Eden, treating it like a slave. However, over time, a few mechanics, including Zhang Xun's mentor, did not agree with this approach. They believed that if they wanted to control and use Eden, blind violence and malice would not bring any benefits, on the contrary, it might solidify the "male image" that Eden.

    It was a pity that this idea was only popular among a few mechanics after all. and most of them were military civilian researchers and mechanics who still wanted to enslave Adam. They had learned from Michael's exaggeration that Zhang Xun hadn’t laid a finger on Adam and he kept Adam pampered in the Lab, letting him live a better life than the average person. Of course this would arouse strong dissatisfaction and a demand that the mechanic be replaced.

    Adam's act of killing the prisoner also added fuel to the fire.

    Zhang Xun nodded and sighed, "I'll think about it seriously."

    James smiled at him, patted him on the shoulder encouragingly and glanced at Adam with a look that seemed a little like a warning, then turned to leave.

    After returning to the Lab, Zhang Xun breathed a sigh of relief, made Adam sit down and untied his collar.

    "Who is 'Jamie'?" Adam asked suddenly.

    "The head of the first hunting regiment, my good friend. He is also my father's student." Zhang Xun glanced at Adam, slightly surprised that he would be interested in James.

    "You seem to have a closer relationship with him than with others." Adam said, his eyes fell on Zhang Xun's shoulder, "He can touch you casually."

    Zhang Xun was stunned for a while and then realized that Adam was probably connecting it to what he had said to him during the bombing and he couldn't help laughing, "A pat on the shoulder is a polite touch and it's okay between friends. It's just that I don't have many good friends, so you haven't seen many people getting along as friends."

    "Can I also casually grab your shoulders?" Adam asked.

    "No." Zhang Xun refused succinctly and signalled to the guards that they could leave.

    Adam reluctantly asked, "Then in what manner can I touch you?"

    The surrounding escort soldiers looked sideways.

    "Adam, by now you should know how strange your question is..." Zhang Xun gave him a warning glance.

    Adam obediently shut his mouth.

    After the guards had left, Zhang Xun took Adam back to his office and ordered the latter to sit down. He suddenly grabbed Adam's chin and forced Adam to raise his head and look up into his eyes with a somewhat unfamiliar and clumsy gesture, intended to be rough and authoritative, "Why didn’t you follow what I said at the Round Table?"

    Zhang Xun's strength was actually very light, probably because he wasn't used to using "violence" and was a little cautious. With Adam's physique, he could easily break free, but Adam obediently kept his chin between Zhang Xun's fingers, like an obedient dog and replied, "Because they were questioning your ability. If I didn't tell the truth, they would replace you."

    "Don’t you know that disobedience is a taboo for artificial intelligence?! They would be likely to just neutralise you directly!" Zhang Xun's brows were furrowed and his face was serious and angry, "The Round Table would also suspect that I lied to the Chief, you wouldn’t only harm yourself, you would harm me."

    "I just think it's better for us in the long run to let them know I have human compassion."

    "Us? What us? Don't think that because I've been more lenient with you these days you can forget your place. Before, I only allowed you to be a little presumptuous because I just saw that you had just been downloaded and weren’t used to your body.” Zhang Xun lowered his eyes, with a sense of stern authority, "I am your mechanic and your master. You cannot disobey or question my orders!"

    Adam's grey-blue eyes widened, reflecting Zhang Xun's stern face, which actually made him look a little pitiful.

    But Zhang Xun’s heart didn’t soften this time. He understood now that in order to keep Adam, he had to control Adam.

    "I'm sorry." Adam lowered his eyes, "I understand, I won't do it again in the future."

    Zhang Xun released Adam's jaw, took a half step back and exhaled a long breath. He looked down at Adam, the "human being" who contained endless possibilities beyond human beings and felt more and more insignificant and uncertain.

    Could he really control Adam?

    He had left a back door for himself. Before the descent, he had a chip implanted in his wrist, which kept transmitting information to a small part near Adam's brain stem. If Adam escaped one day, he could destroy the chip at any time as long as he was still within fifty kilometres. At that time, Adam's head would explode and his core cognitive module would be completely destroyed by the high temperature in an instant.

    He didn't tell Adam this, because before, he also unknowingly wanted to maintain an illusion of equality. Adam's dependence on him had led him to a dangerous feeling of sympathy, but clearly this sympathy had affected his judgement, which caused this crisis.

    "From tomorrow, all mechanics and researchers will return to the Lab to resume work, so I'm going to set some rules for you." As Zhang Xun spoke, Alloy walked over quietly, jumped into Adam's arms and meekly rubbed Adam's chin with his head, raised his moulded metal cat face and looked at Zhang Xun with a meow. Zhang Xun clicked his tongue and continued, "First, you can't leave your room without my permission. If you want to leave, you need to ask me for instructions through Pan. Second, if you want to leave the room, you must wear the collar and must remain within a visible range of ten metres around me, otherwise the collar will automatically discharge. Third, if any employee other than me speaks to you or asks you a question, you must ask me for directions before answering. Unless the person asking you is a councillor. Fourth, do not make threatening actions against anyone in Lost Paradise under any circumstances. If the collar around your neck detects that your body temperature, heartbeat and sweat rate are above a certain level of excitement, it will trigger the discharge. Is there anything you don't understand?"

    Adam replied obediently, "No."

    "Very good. Now, go back to your room by yourself, I still have some reports to write." Zhang Xun rubbed between his eyes wearily and waved his hand vaguely.

    Adam stood up holding Alloy, walked a few steps towards the door of Zhang Xun's office and then turned around and said, "Ah-Xun, thank you for protecting me today."

    Adam had never used the word "Ah-Xun" to address him before. This made Zhang Xun confused for a moment. Usually only James would call him that.

    Did he just learn it from James?

    "I’m your mechanic, it’s my responsibility to protect you." Zhang Xun deliberately said in a cold voice.

    After the door was closed, Zhang Xun looked at the monitor that detected Adam's movement constantly popping out on the screen. He watched Adam walk steadily back to his room, his movements smooth, supple and impeccable, but the movements were too standard and perfect and even the distance between each step was equal.

    It's just that this little bit of life was too standard and it made Zhang Fun feel a vague sense of peculiarity.

    The more submissive Adam was, the more restless he became.

    Was Eden really that obedient?

Chapter 15 – Garbage Processing Yard (1)

    For the first time since the God Descent, Zhang Xun returned to his own room. The soft bed with an old, but clean cashmere blanket had always helped him fall asleep quickly, but that night he tossed and turned in the middle of the night before falling asleep.

    When he woke up in the morning he chose a clean and tidy mechanic uniform, combed his hair carefully in front of the mirror, shaved the stubble on his chin and then clipped his usual unilateral microscopic mirror to his lapel. The windowsills of his room and the work table were littered with metal parts, mostly old parts that have been recovered from machines and some were even rusted. Every now and then when he wanted to relax he would cobble together gadgets from these parts.

    For example, the few mosquito-like micro-robots currently flying beside his ears.

    These mosquitoes were Zhang Xun's eyes, they could enter the ordinary world without a sound and collect data and information right under Eden's nose. Since he made them privately and they weren’t registered in the list of machines in Lost Paradise, he could quietly make them slip into the backpacks or pockets of hunters to leave Lost Paradise's Herbert Barrier and go to the ordinary world to collect information, then follow the hunters back. To avoid the signal being intercepted by Eden there was no remote transmission function. Zhang Xun used these things to obtain a lot of the latest technical information from the ordinary world. That's why he was the best mechanic in Lost Paradise.

    And now, he was going to use these little things for something more dangerous and against the laws of Lost Paradise: gather intelligence about the ten Chiefs.

    No one knew about Zhang Xun's own little research because Zhang Xun knew what a serious violation it was. If his surveillance behaviour leaked out, he feared that he would be immediately dismissed as a mechanic, locked in a dungeon, or even silenced by the Round Table. But this kind of illegal behaviour that no one knew about made him feel a little excited.

    He felt like some of the Chiefs had a strange attitude towards Adam and they also had strong hostility towards himself. But rationally speaking, they had already spent too much for the God Descent Plan so it was unreasonable to consider giving up now, and the hostility from the Sixth Chief, who only took office this year, was particularly inexplicable. Why did he want to replace him?

    If Zhang Shuo wasn’t his father, he feared he would have already been removed.

    Zhang Xun felt that ha and Adam’s position was too passive and he couldn’t sit still, so he unleashed these tiny robots, shaped like mosquitoes, flies, ants, spiders and cockroaches, to discover the "super-daily" events in the Chiefs’ lives.

    The so-called super-daily events were different from the normal range of daily life after eliminating the meaningless repeated behaviours in a person’s daily activity patterns. When he was a child, Zhang Xun had read that most people's daily activity patterns were as consistent and predictable as insects and only those occasional events that were beyond the norm were of great significance to a person's experience, behaviour changes and character formation.

    Zhang Xun briefly tested the performance of the micro-robots, then opened the window and let them out. Then he hurried to the Lab with his tablet and toolbox.

    Different from the quiet and almost deserted Lab from a few days ago, today's Lab was full of dozens of combat mechas waiting to be repaired and countless mechanics and researchers were assessing the battle damage. These mechas had all participated in the recent confrontation with the Coalition Forces and the old materials had become more rusty and mottled in the sunlight. In recent years, hunters had been bringing back fewer and fewer mechanical parts and many parts on the mechas were in urgent need of replacement and could only hang in place like a crumbling iron block. Soldiers who were willing to fly these things against the Coalition's latest AI drones obviously needed to have a lot of guts.

    In fact, Zhang Xun had also trained several battle AIs, but Lost Paradise had too much fear and hatred for AIs, so those AI warriors couldn't be used.

    Zhang Xun was a little anxious, there were so many people. Even if most of them were mechanics and researchers, their possible threat to Adam must not be underestimated. He knew what a fascinating yet terrifying thing Eden was to all mechanics, and how much curiosity and speculation Adam, as its human carrier, would arouse. The mechanics may even be more dangerous than those soldiers who have an extreme hatred of the Eden, because they have more knowledge and may try to read Adam's central module or even try to change Adam's program. This was extremely dangerous. After more than two hundred years of continuous autonomous evolution, the complexity of Eden's core cognitive modules had long exceeded human imagination. Zhang Xun himself had peeped at the time of his descent, but after only reading a few pieces of code, he knew that it was something that human beings could not understand at all.

    If a mechanic ever tried to rewrite it themselves, it may cause unpredictable or even catastrophic consequences. He must do his best to prevent this possibility from happening.

    Passing through the busy crowd, many mechanics wearing unilateral microscopic mirrors similar to his were nodding to him. He nodded back one by one, but also heard several passing soldiers spit at him behind him.

    They were probably some of those guards who were extremely frustrated and angry that Adam had killed the prisoner.

    The originally empty corridor in the Lab was now full of people coming and going. This made Zhang Xun feel slightly melancholic and irritable. He strode to his office, but just as he entered the door, he heard Pan say to him, "The Security Advisor sent by the Round Table has arrived and Fernandez took him to the reception room."

    "So soon?" Zhang Xun frowned, "Who is it?"

    "It's Captain Sistine of the Guards."

    Captain Hugo Sistine, Michael's immediate boss. To put it simply, his personality could be described as an upgraded version of Michael...

    Even a colleague like James who has a good temper and who could get along with everyone didn’t like him...

    "Got it." Zhang Xun scrunched up his hair in his hands, which is what he would often do when he was irritable, "Tell them I'll be there soon. Then notify Adam and make him get ready."

    Captain Sistine sat on the somewhat dated embroidered sofa, took a sip of the tea served by a researcher and looked impatiently at the clock on the opposite wall above the fireplace. Michael and another guard sat on either side of him. The small and noisy mechanic who received them, Julio Fernandez, was gushing about the layout of the Lab:

    "The first floor of the Lab is mainly responsible for the development and maintenance of all the guards' weapons, military equipment and large mechs. The right side is mainly the factory area for the maintenance department and the left side is mostly the R&D department. The semi-automatic mecha Oracle23, which I’ve been mainly responsible for recently, is in the R&D warehouse No. 3. It’s equipped with an upgraded version of the stand shield, which can absorb attacks and convert them into its own energy. In addition, there are super laser cannons and my favourite, the optical stealth function, a very sexy baby~ If you have time, I must take you to see it!" He was a crazy tech-nerd just like Zhang Xun, but Fernandez's madness was on another level. He considered all of his works like a lover, he was full of energy every day like a Frankenstein of robots. "The second floor is mainly responsible for the research and development of the automatic defence device and anti-Eden monitoring system of Lost Paradise. It’s a group of boring 'nerds' working there. The third floor is the maintenance and research and development of civilian systems, such as the water purification system near the Lost Lake, and they do an assortment of other things. And the fourth floor is where AI-related research and development takes place. That’s where Adam's observation room is."

    Sistine's only comment on that was , "When will your main person in charge arrive? Why can't I go directly to the observation room?"

    Fernandez looked exaggeratedly horrified, "Entering into a place that he doesn't allow without authorization? I dare not."

    "Huh? Why? What can a mechanic like him do to you?"

    "Everyone knows not to mess with Zhang Xun." Fernandez leaned forward and lowered his voice, as if he was afraid of being heard, "Actually, Zhang Xun is not the most terrifying, but his artificial intelligence Pan is. That thing is very vengeful. If anyone makes Zhang Xun unhappy, Pan will appear to be fine on the surface and his words will still be pleasant, but in the future he will always try to get revenge on you in some of the most tricky places. For example, suddenly turning on the sprinklers and saying it's detected a fire, or accidentally locking you in the toilet when you're off duty, or 'allowing' a rat to get into your toolbox, or adding three times more salt to your lunch than usual."

    Michael sneered, "Retaliation? He’s an artificial intelligence and dares to take revenge on humans? Just destroy it."

    "Shh!!!" Fernandez looked up at the camera in the corner of the room in panic, "Comrade guard, after you say that and leave it will be me who has to eat dark food for a month!"

    "Can't you bring your own food?" The other guard sneered.

    Fernandez rolled his eyes, "Please, my own cooking is even worse."

    At this moment, the door opened and Zhang Xun walked in with his tablet in his hand and nodded to the four people in the room, "Sorry, I'm late."

    Sistine deliberately looked at his watch, "Although we were uninvited, I heard that Lab's working hours are from nine in the morning to six in the evening, according to the time now, you, the person in charge here. are a minute late. I hope that the artificial intelligence you trained won't be as unpunctual as you."

    Zhang Xun didn’t argue, but simply and bluntly said, "I'm sorry." Then he took the initiative to extend his hand to Sistine, "Nice to meet you, Captain Sistine."

    Sistine shook Zhang Xun's hand casually, stood up slowly and said in a mocking tone, "Let's go, take me to see this Frankenstein that took so much time and energy to get out."

    Fernandez then added inappropriately, "Well, Frankenstein was actually the crazy doctor who made the monster, wasn't he? Not the name of the monster. A lot of people get this wrong."

    Sistine's face darkened again.

    "Fernandez, shut up." Zhang Xun squeezed out a sentence from the corner of his mouth as he went out.

    ……………………………………………………

    There were two accesses between the different floors: through the elevator in the centre of the rotunda at the end of the main corridor on the first floor, or the escape on the west side ladder. Zhang Xun explained while leading the way, "Entering the Lab requires Pan's confirmation and authorization. If someone enters without authorization, Pan will automatically start the primary expulsion procedure." Zhang Xun pressed the elevator button and said, "I have just confirmed Captain Sistine’s identity with Pan."

    "Pan is the AI ​​you made yourself, right?"

    "Yes."

    "Has your AI passed the security test?"

    "Of course it passed, Otherwise, the Round Table wouldn’t allow us to use it."

    "When did it pass?" Sistine didn't even turn his head to look at Zhang Xun when he said this. At this time, the sound of gears turning indicated that the elevator had arrived. The group walked into the elevator and Zhang Xun replied, "It was passed five years ago."

    "Five years ago? That’s too long. These AIs evolve by themselves, who knows what they will become." Sistine sneered and said, "I will report it to my superiors to have a review of Pan."

    Zhang Xun's cheeks were slightly red as he held back his anger and Michael's delighted smile on the side added even more fuel to the fire.

    Seeing Fernandez looking around trying to feign innocence, he knew that he must have told them some nonsense...

    Compared with the noisy first floor, the fourth floor was quiet and there was only an occasional one or two senior mechanics hurrying past like ghosts. Lost Paradise was extremely vigilant about artificial intelligence and most of them even reported hostility, so only a few people with the most seniority who had passed the advanced mechanic examination had access to the fourth floor.

    Next to Adam's room was the observation room where they could observe Adam's behaviour through the single-sided mirror behind the screen in Adam's room. On many previous nights, Zhang Xun would spend the night here. It was almost like his private room, with many of his personal belongings, such as drinking glasses, microscopic mirror, components, metal elements and even a simple quilt and pillows on an old leather sofa. The walls were littered with monitors of various sizes, constantly updating Adam’s physiological parameters that Pan had detected. Michael looked around and mocked, "You fall asleep here every night with your precious Adam? Seeing how serious you are on weekdays, you really have a weird hobby?"

    Zhang Xun looked at him coldly and pressed a button. The originally black single-sided mirror immediately became transparent.

    "Michael." Sistine scolded meekly and symbolically, looking at the space behind the one-way mirror.

    In the seemingly empty room, Adam was wearing linen white trousers and a top and was... doing some strange dance moves. The legs seemed to be fighting each other and the hands were fluttering in the air, looking extraordinarily funny.

    Zhang Xun was also a little surprised, frowning and looking at the one-way mirror.

    "What is he doing?" Sistine asked in confusion.

    Michael was also inexplicable, "Something went wrong?"

    Zhang Xun stared attentively at Adam's serious expression as he repeated those weird movements over and over again. However, as the number of repetitions increased, the limbs that were not well coordinated gradually became connected.

    "He's dancing." Zhang Xun concluded, "And it's... a robot dance?"

    Michael burst out laughing. Sistine seemed to want to laugh too, but he held it back.

    "Why is he doing that? Did you teach him?" Sistine tried to keep the serious expression on his face.

    Zhang Xun was silent for a moment, then said, "No, but the information stored in his brain is very rich. I think he wants to try using his human body to practise some of his knowledge... After all, he never had a chance when he didn't have a body before."

    "But why dance?" Michael didn't understand at all, "Doesn't he have better things to practise? Like fighting, wrestling or something?"

    Zhang Xun shrugged as if it was no big deal, "He seems to be interested in the relationships between human beings. He’s more interested in communication and emotional expression, but he’s still getting used to using his own body and occasionally he will trip over his feet when he walks."

    Zhang Xun could clearly feel that there was something in Sistine and Michael that had relaxed a lot. His eyes couldn't help but glance a little suspiciously at the innocent-looking Adam, who was hanging his arms in the air and swinging his forearms like a pendulum and playing with his own human body.

    Adam was doing it on purpose.

Chapter 16 – Garbage Processing Yard (2)

    Adam stared at the person in front of him who was scrutinising him with azure blue eyes. Zhang Xun stood behind the man and looked at him with concern.

    Adam knew that the person in front of him was the Security Advisor the Round Table had spoken of. He carefully observed the man's expression. Facial micro-expression recognition was a breeze for Adam and he could see the man's distaste for him—a composite of artificial intelligence and a human...and the fear that the other person was trying to hide something. It wasn't the first time he had seen the other person named Michael, but this person had an impulsive personality and had almost no ability to conceal his emotions. Obviously, he wasn't an important person in Lost Paradise and his threat was relatively low.

    So Adam bent his mouth and gave Sistine a friendly and pure smile, "Hello."

    Sistine did not smile, staring at him coldly, "How long have you been in Lost Paradise?"

    "Seventeen Days, ten hours, thirty-three minutes."

    Adam knew he didn't need to go into such detail, he said it this way to cater to the stereotype view that a substantial amount of Lost Paradise held.

    Properly confirming the other party's stereotype could slightly reduce the other party's fear and give them a sense of "control". But this kind of catering couldn't be overdone, otherwise it would deepen the hostility.

    Sistine laughed sarcastically, "How is it? Isn't it very fulfilling to see us male humans being forced to hide in these barren mountains like rats and bugs?"

    Adam said, "I don't hate male humans. Your suffering doesn't give me any pleasure."

    "What pleasant sounding bullshit!" Michael glared at him angrily, "Do you think men are so easy to deceive?"

    Adam said, "Before having a human body, I couldn't have human-like 'emotions'. After having a human body, I didn't have any reason to hate male humans. On the contrary, I started to have a new understanding of male humans."

    "New understanding? What kind of understanding?" Sistine shifted slightly, examining the humanoid computer in front of him.

    "Individual differences." Adam said, his eyes turned slightly and fell on Zhang Xun, "My mechanic taught me a lot of things that I thought were irrelevant in the past. In my previous understanding, all human beings’ behavioural patterns were all analysed from big data. Human beings to me were like a predictable animal community with fixed behavioural patterns. I only paid attention to things at the macro level and pushed them at the most appropriate time and place through the progression of history. But now, human beings are no longer data in my eyes, but have a more personal and specific image. I realised my narrow-mindedness.”

    Zhang Xun could barely judge the authenticity of this statement with his own ears. Later, he would have to confirm with Pan, who was constantly observing Adam's micro-expressions and measuring Adam's heartbeat and body temperature data, whether the other party had been lying. But Sistine was silent for a while and judging from his body language as he leaned back, he seemed to be somewhat convinced.

    Indeed, when Adam said this, his eyes were focused, full of sincerity and his tone was even quite emotional. The sense of alienation from the "machine" faded away and it suddenly became more like a human being.

    "You think I'll take your word for it and let my guard down?" Sistine asked.

    "I don't think you will." Adam smiled, "I have a general understanding of my image in your mind and it is wise to maintain a certain hostility and vigilance towards me, I can understand."

    "Your artificial intelligence is too good at lying. I have applied to my superiors for a psychological evaluation of Adam and a professional psychologist will assess whether he is a cunning liar with a hidden evil agenda. The Round Table has approved it and he will come tomorrow." Sistine said, looking towards Zhang Xun, "You also have to take an assessment to confirm whether you have been controlled by Adam."

    Zhang Xun couldn't hide his anger any longer and his eyes showed a cold light similar to his father's, "Before you even met Adam, you had already applied for a detailed evaluation. Is this not inappropriate?"

    Sistine felt Zhang Xun finally revealing a bit of aggression, so he stood up to face him, squared his shoulders and used his burly stature to deter Zhang Xun, "Inappropriate?"

    "You hadn't met Adam and you hadn't spoken to him but you already think he needs a psychological evaluation. Admit that you were prejudiced against his and my abilities before you met him. As a Security Advisor, shouldn't you be neutral and rational?"

    "Are you questioning my ability as a Security Advisor?" The threat and aggression in Sistine's tone became more and more obvious.

    Zhang Xun said politely and coldly, "There is no such meaning. It's just that I am a little confused about the Captain's decision. If necessary, I can further confirm the significance of setting up a Security Advisor to the Round Table and whether it is just a means to replace me. If that’s the case, there's no need to be so troublesome."

    Adam blinked his big eyes, his gaze wandering uncomfortably between Zhang Xun and Sistine who were facing each other.

    Sistine sneered, "You don't think you and your AI will pass the test?"

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    "Captain, everything we say is recorded by Pan. I didn't say anything just now about thinking that we couldn't pass the test. If you don't remember, I can make Pan replay it. It's just that the acclimation period approved by the Round Table for me was one month and this psychological evaluation is happening only half a month in. Obviously, there must be doubts about my abilities. Adam recently helped Lost Paradise to resist Eden's attack and protected the whole of Lost Paradise. If the death of a prisoner is more important than the lives of all the people in Lost Paradise, then I have nothing to say.” Zhang Xun paused and straightened his body without flinching, looking at the angry officer opposite.

    Sistine, who had always been accustomed to saying something and his subordinates having no doubts, obviously lacked experience in dealing with mechanics. Zhang Xun's remarks made him unable to think of a reasonable argument to refute. He said in a hot and hostile voice, "One month? Well, there are still thirteen days. If he can't pass the psychological evaluation in thirteen days, wait for your demotion!"

    At this moment, Julio Fernandez whispered beside him, "Twelve days, thirteen hours, fifteen minutes to be exact..."

    The whole room glared at Fernandez at the same time, only Adam showed him an approving smile...

    Sistine strode towards the door, but suddenly stopped, turned around and said, "It's a waste to keep him hidden in such a place. Zhang Xun, I heard that there is a shortage of people at the Garbage Processing Yard. You might as well take him over there to help and save us from spending a lot of money to keep an idle person."

    The Garbage Processing Yard was actually a nickname, not a place that really removes garbage. After the hunters brought back materials obtained from the ordinary world to Lost Paradise, apart from  urgently needed agricultural or living materials and the items specified by the Lab or military factory, the remaining metal and plastic items may or may not be useful and would be placed in an open area called the "Material Classification Department" and special personnel would be responsible for cleaning, classification and recording. As more and more non-essential materials were brought back over the years, many things became rusted before they could be used and turned into scrap iron. Gradually, everyone renamed the Material Classification Department as a Garbage Processing Yard.

    There were only a few people working there, the workload was heavy and dull and there wasn’t even a shelter over their heads. It later became a labour camp where the army punished soldiers.

    Zhang Xun hesitated for a moment, slowed down his tone and asked, "When will it start?"

    "Right now."

    Zhang Xun considered the possibility of persuading Sistine to revoke this order and then gave up this idea. Perhaps this would be a good thing. The number of people working in the Garbage Processing Yard was limited and the whole place was full of junk that had been there for years and was of no interest to anyone, so perhaps this was more controllable for Adam. He then said, "How do I register Adam’s identity? As a normal Recycler?"

    "These details are up to you. But be careful, don't let me hear about him causing any trouble, or I'll immediately let the other mechanics and psychologists assess his danger." Sistine considered it for a second, then added, "And I'll send people to spot check, so you and your AI better not play any tricks."

    Zhang Xun lowered his eyes obediently, "I see."

    He had already angered the other party and now he couldn't add fuel to the fire. Moderate provocation could buy yourself time, but excessive provocation could only lead to endless trouble.

    After Zhang Xun saw Sistine and Michael out, Adam suddenly raised his head and said, "Pan, where is the Garbage Processing Yard?"

    Pan was silent.

    "I know you can hear me and I know that Ah-Xun won't let you answer my questions except those related to my survival needs, but I'm going to work in a Garbage Processing Yard. Providing limited information could help me adapt to the environment there as soon as possible and reduce the possibility of inappropriate behaviour. I think this is closely related to my survival needs."

    After a while, Pan's voice sounded, "The Garbage Processing Yard is another name for the Material Classification Department..." During Pan's concise introduction, Adam listened carefully, nodding slightly occasionally, then he suddenly asked, "Pan, have you ever left this lab?"

    Pan paused for a moment, then said, "I don't think this is a relevant issue."

    "I'm glad I can see outside the Lab." Regardless of Pan's answer, Adam continued to talk to himself, "The ordinary world is very different from the Lost Paradise I saw after leaving the Lab."

    "..."

    "I even saw someone driving a vehicle. In the ordinary world, except for a few professionals, not many people know how to drive a vehicle. Everything is automatic and a unified system manages traffic flow and designs driving routes."

    Pan said at this time, "It sounds very complicated. The multi-class classification problem.”

    “The calculation process is indeed very complex, requiring at least fifty quantum computers to control a city at the same time and be able to successfully interact with the systems of other cities. But it is not a difficult task for us, I believe that after learning and training, you can also complete a system design like this." Adam recounted in his brisk voice, even smiling at the camera somewhere in the air.

    Pan fell silent again.

    Two hours later, Zhang Xun came back with the collar that Adam had to put on every time he left the room. He looked at Adam and seemed to want to say something, but in the end he didn't say anything, just seemed preoccupied.

    "Ah-Xun, are you satisfied with my performance today?" Adam asked.

    Zhang Xun glanced at him, "The robot dance wasn't necessary."

    "I thought that would ease the atmosphere. An artificial intelligence dancing a mechanical dance has a certain ironic humour, doesn't it?" Adam seemed a little lost, "If they don't like the robot dance then next time I can try other kinds of dance, what do you think of ballet?"

    "Don't..." Zhang Xun muttered, adjusting the settings of the collar in his hand.

    "Ah-Xun, is it a good idea to provoke him?" Adam asked again, "Maybe I can pass that test."

    "I'm not just worried about the test, but... Forget it, you don't need to know." What Zhang Xun was worried about was that this Sistine was being instructed by someone to deliberately find fault and replace him. If the test was carried out now, it was unknown whether the test results would be manipulated. But now that he knew who the Security Adviser was and had time, he could use his "bugs" to investigate this person's background. He needed a plan to confront and control the forces behind the scenes that were trying to manipulate Adam.

    He took a deep breath and decided to change the subject, "Do you remember the rules for going out?"

    "You must wear a collar and the distance between us must be within ten metres of your line of sight. Do not take the initiative to talk to others without your permission. You can only answer, you must not make threatening or potentially threatening actions against any human being, you must not deliberately destroy the property of Lost Paradise and your orders must be carried out.” Adam recited skillfully.

    "Very good. After lunch, I'll take you to a new place.

Chapter 17 – Garbage Processing Yard (3)

    Under the scorching sun, a large area of land spread along the gently undulating riverside. The clearing was covered in layers of scrap metal and plastic that looked like houses. Like a virus, rust had spread on the junk cars, old plane engines and swaths of alloy plates that had no purpose. A strong smell of rust permeated the air.

    The "gate" of the Garbage Processing Yard was a huge crane that was crumbling and had been swallowed by heavy rust, and next to it sat an ancient mecha that was scrapped at least eighty years ago. Adam raised his head and looked at the "high-rise buildings" stacked with waste, his eyes full of admiration and surprise.

    Zhang Xun didn’t tell Adam that he was no stranger to this place. He used to sneak here as a child, away from the other "human noises" that irritated him. This place was full of amazement and excitement and he could scour the countless items for parts he could use to make robots or other small machines. But since he started the God Descent Plan, he had no time to set foot here again.

    If Sistine knew that the drudgery he thought up was actually not that hard for Zhang Xun and Adam, but rather excited him a little, he didn't know if he would round his eyes that were always pretending to be squinting, so angry that he would be speechless.

    "This is a T439 type mecha, which is no longer seen in the ordinary world." Adam said, walking towards the huge mecha sitting quietly in the hot sun, reaching out his left hand and stroking the alloy plate covered with thick rust and looking up at the silent square head that obscured the sunlight. There was a huge hole in the cockpit and it was unknown whether the driver at the time survived.

    Zhang Xun took Adam around the "high-rise buildings" piled up from the waste and walked towards a crooked little house that seemed to be spliced ​​out of plastic panels and steel plates, where the administrator lived. The last time he came, the manager was the old man Roy who he was familiar with, but after so many years, probably the person has changed. There were a lot of beer bottles piled next to the hut and a lot of clothes were casually hanging on the drying rack on the other side. There was even a bonfire at the door, with a barbecue grill made of waste and there was still a piece of beef left on it, which had attracted a large number of buzzing flies.

    Zhang Xun knocked on the door, but there was no answer. He knocked again and finally heard a crash of beer bottles and a rude curse inside. Immediately afterwards, the door was slammed open and a man in a scruffy, fluffy nightgown, with hair like a bird's nest, leaned against the door frame, apparently just waking up. What was more striking is that the right half of his face was mechanically manufactured from cheek to forehead but the handiwork was a bit rough and the neglected metal was slightly rusted like the waste outside. Even the mechanical prosthetic eye was also the most basic model, like a giant red monitor staring viciously at you.

    He was probably an ex-soldier who had a severe wound to the face or head, so it was replaced with a machine. However, this rough workmanship was definitely not the work of the Lab...

    The man asked with a bad temper, "What?"

    Zhang Xun was almost suffocated by the smell of alcohol on his face, but he still managed to keep his composure and took the initiative to reach out and said. , "Hello, I'm Zhang Xun, the mechanic, and I was ordered to bring Adam here to help for a while."

    The man didn't reach out at all, so Zhang Xun had to retract his hand a little awkwardly... The other party suddenly snorted, "It seemed like there was someone earlier. A messenger came and knocked on the door for a long time, I thought I was dreaming." After he finished speaking, he squinted at Zhang Xun again and then his eyes fell on Adam in the distance, "Why do two mechanics have the time to visit a garbage dump like ours?"

    Zhang Xun was stunned, the other party didn't seem to know Adam.

    The strong smell of smoke and alcohol wafting from the house made him wonder if this person even knew about the God Descent Plan? But looking at his age, if he was in the army, he should have been in the past few years, he shouldn’t not know?

    Adam looked at the unfamiliar and scruffy man with great interest and a smile.

    "Well, this isn't a mechanic, this is Adam."

    "Oh, I don't have Eve here." The man yawned.

    Zhang Xun had to continue to explain, "He is the result of the God Descent Plan. Eden's North American server is still being tamed."

    Hearing the words "God Descent Plan", the man's eyes widened slightly and he glanced at Adam again, but that was his only reaction. He shrugged and said, "What do you want me to say? For a robot, he looks quite human?"

    Zhang Xun had never met a person with this character before. He couldn't speak for a while and after a while said, "Are you the manager here?"

    "If not, why would I live here?" The other party yawned lazily.

    "Captain Sistine ordered Adam to work here for a while. I hope you can arrange his work tasks." Zhang Xun straightened his neck and his tone became more serious and stiff.

    "Work? What work is there here? You can just find a way to pass the time yourself. I'm going back to sleep." The manager, who still hadn't introduced himself, slammed the door shut.

    Zhang Xun stared, unable to believe that the door was really closed. What was happening here? Was there really no one to manage the Garbage Processing Yard now?

    "His interpersonal skills don't seem to be very good. I don't think he has many friends." Adam analysed seriously.

    "..." Zhang Xun frowned and banged on the door more vigorously. After a while, the man slammed the door open again and pointed a finger at Zhang Xun's nose fiercely, "If you make any more noise, I'll pull you in to sleep together!"

    Zhang Xun had never heard such a threat before. His face turned red all of a sudden, "If you’re the manager, you should carry out the orders of your superiors!"

    "Superiors? Who’s my superior?” The other party looked Zhang Xun up and down and jokingly said, “Is it you?”

    "Whether it’s me or Captain Sistine, we’re both your superiors! Captain Sistine may come to supervise Adam's work at any time, if you can't..."

    "Alright, alright! MY ears are going to grow calluses because of you!" As the man was muttering, he took out a cigarette from his trouser pocket, put it in his mouth and strode out, passing by Zhang Xun and Adam. After walking two steps, he stopped and looked at the two of them, "What are you doing? Follow me."

    Adam felt as if he had come to some alien planet abandoned by all civilizations, full of rust and dust. They walked to a "hill" that was obviously much less rusty and dusty than other places and could even see a lot of shiny metal reflections. At first glance, there were propellers, ship engines, antique stereos, obsolete refrigerators, etc....

    What kind of mess did those hunters bring back? What would make them think it would be a good idea to bring back a broken refrigerator? Zhang Xun stared in disbelief and decided he would go to the head of the group, Comrade James, to have a good talk afterward.

    "This mountain hasn’t been registered yet." The manager said inarticulately, smoking a cigarette and shoving a large book as thick as Leo Tolstoy's collection into Zhang Xun's hand, "You can do it one by one. Just record the classification of the pieces here. Ah, if you have time, move them to the areas they should belong to.” As he spoke, he also shoved an old and yellowed map into Zhang Xun’s hands. "

    The manager, who has completed his task asked, "Any questions?" If there’s no questions I'm going back to sleep. "

    "I have a question.” Zhang Xun sighed, raised his head and asked, "What should we call you?" "

    "Diego." ' said the manager, suddenly laughing at himself again, “but most people call me Dick.” (Note, Dick = bastard/arsehole)

    Zhang Xun thought to himself: Dick is indeed a more appropriate name.

    After the administrator left, Zhang Xun turned around and saw Adam squatting in front of the junk mountain, rummaging through something, making a jingling sound. Zhang Xun leaned over and saw Adam pick up a yellow and shiny thing.

    It was a locket necklace, a classical box necklace that was rare in the ordinary world. The metal vines on the oval locket were intertwined with each other and a ruby ​​was embedded in the middle. Adam opened it and found that there was actually a lock of hair inside...

    Zhang Xun's first reaction was to take a few steps back, "Throw it away, it's dirty.”

    Adam turned to look at him and said with interest, "Do you know what this is?" "

    "It’s a locket, but why is there hair in it?..." Zhang Xun showed a disgusted expression.

    "In the Middle Ages, the story of a knight falling in love with a noble lady was popular. Because knights often went out to fight and duel, their lives would be in danger at any time, so ladies who missed them would cut their lover's hair and put it in a locket, then cut off their own hair, put it in another locket and give it to their lover. Then they would never have to be separated." Adam said, raising the necklace in his hand, "It seems that this is a token of love for someone in the ordinary world."

    “Why was the token of love lost? It must be because her lover saw her standing by the bed with scissors in the middle of the night and it was too terrifying..." Zhang Xun complained and stopped paying attention to it. He opened the thick ledger, frowning and shaking his head while looking at it, he was obviously dissatisfied with the chaotic records in it.

    He didn't see Adam quietly putting the locket in his trouser pocket.

    "We have to classify the items according to the type, size, material and degree of damage and then note the possible use in the future..." Zhang Xun was watching Adam walk up to him and said, "I have completed the scan and can start recording."

    Zhang Xun raised his eyebrows, "The scan is complete?"

    "Can I fill it in? I want to practice using my fingers." Adam's eyes fell on the thick notebook.

    Adam's current writing speed was already very close to the average writing speed. He took a notebook and a pen, found an upside down boat to use as a table and started writing there. He didn't even have to look up to see what was in the mountain and the letters kept popping out of his pen one by one. He didn't even stop to think about it.

    An hour later, Adam had finished recording everything in the mountain and put down his pen, but his fingers were a little bit stiff. He frowned and moved his fingers, complaining, "My wrist muscles feel weird. The human body is much more difficult to use than a robotic arm."

    He obviously had wrist cramps because of writing for too long... Zhang Xun looked at the handwriting in the notebook. Although it was a little crooked, it was neater than 80% of the guards and the remarks were so detailed that even he couldn’t match it. Zhang Xun actually felt a little envious.

    The brain of an artificial intelligence was indeed much more powerful than that of human beings...

    "I found that there are a lot of materials that can be used in the Lab, they just need a little cleaning up." Adam added beside.

    Zhang Xun raised his head, looked at the mountain of remaining materials to be sorted in front of him and sighed, "Unfortunately, Sistine does not allow me to bring things from the Lab. I have built a basic sorting robot, which is most suitable for this kind of work. "

    “Bringing one from the Lab isn’t allowed,  but if we use the materials here to make one, is that a  violation?" Adam said, reaching out and quickly pointing to a dozen items in his classification list, "These can be used to make components and these can be used to make parts. I believe the manager should have some welding tools as well. There’s just one problem...my dexterity is still not precise enough."

    "You mean, make a sorting robot out of this scrap?" Zhang Xun said, his eyes suddenly lit up and countless design drawings naturally began popping up in his mind. He seemed to be back in the old days, wandering alone through these scrap heaps like a ghost, sometimes excited about his newfound precious parts, but at that time, no one could share his excitement and joy.

    But it was different now. The thought of working with Adam to create a robot made his blood race. That feeling was about the same as when James and the others aimed their guns at a roaring bear or drove their mechs into the monstrous war, and even borrowing tools from Diego felt like less of a headache.

    Diego lent him the tools and trailer that the strange mechanic wanted, although he didn't know if the tools were still usable, and after that he didn’t see those two again. He was as immersed in the beer bottles as he always was, until two days later, when he was nibbling on dry bread for breakfast, when he realised he had heard the mechanic and the AI ​​for a long time. So he put on his coat and flip flops and walked towards the place where he had left them two days ago.

    Then he was dumbfounded.

    The garbage mountain that had to be sorted and registered was gone, as were several surrounding garbage mountains. He saw a retractable robotic arm that had been put ​​together out of old car casings, truck wheels and some sort of mess of metal, hoisted up, pulling a mouldy table out of a rubbish heap and placing it on another pile of furniture.

    And the mechanic and Adam were bustling around another oddly shaped, smaller machine.

    When Diego walked up behind them, they didn't notice. He had to cough a lot.

    Adam looked back at him, his face unknowingly stained with dust and grease and a big friendly smile on it.

    "Good morning, Mr. Diego."

    Zhang Xun just nodded at him, then focused on screwing a screw with a screwdriver. It seemed to be... an android made out of a freezer, a robot vacuum and a shovel? It even looked a little cute?

    "These...you made them?" Diego pointed behind him.

    "Yeah." Adam's tone was relaxed and natural, as if he didn't realise that they had done in two days what all the people who had worked here before hadn’t done in a few years.

    Diego rubbed his eyes and cleared his throat, "You guys built these robots out of the stuff here?"

    Adam went on to explain thoughtfully, "Yes, and by using the tools you lent us. We have set Sorter No. 1 to work 23 hours a day with one hour to cool down and restart. This can ensure work efficiency and prevent the motherboard from being burned due to overheating."

    Zhang Xun raised the corners of his mouth. He liked the way Adam explained seriously to those who didn't understand what he was talking about.

    Diego stared at Zhang Xun in disbelief, "So... mechanics are actually wizards, right?"

    "According to all the data I've gathered so far, it's likely that magic was an umbrella term used by some ancient humans to refer to coincidences and psychological effects that they couldn't explain. So no, I don't believe Ah-Xun is a wizard." Adam continued to explain with a serious face.

    "Yes, you're right..." Diego scratched his shoulder-length messy hair and seemed a little embarrassed, "Actually, the TV in my room has been broken for a while, too. Can you take a look at it?"

   

Chapter 18 – Garbage Processing Yard (4)

    Michael joyously brought two soldiers to the Garbage Processing Yard, wanting to see the hermit Zhang Xun and his goddamn artificial intelligence being frazzled by the sun. He never expected to see an empty space in the centre of the chaotic and dirty garbage dump. A few robotic arms that seemed to be built ​​out of half-rusted scrap metal and plastic products were being powered by several small generators, easily lifting the old and huge steel scraps. Even the old mecha at the gate was standing up, had picked up a rust-covered jeep by itself and was walking to the destruction area.

    Adam was sitting under a shed made of canvas, drinking ice-cold drinks and playing chess with Diego. To be precise, Adam was sitting there leisurely enjoying the shade, occasionally moving his fingers. On the opposite side, Diego scratched his ears and cheeks, his cheeks were flushed, his eyes were burning, sometimes he gritted his teeth and sometimes beat his chest and feet, like a schizophrenic patient.

    Zhang Xun, on the other hand, was sitting on the reclining chair opposite the two of them, drawing the design for a new machine on the tablet with a pen. From time to time, he raised his head to look at the opposite chess game and gave Diego an idea, with a tone of "I can only help you lose less terribly" in his voice.

    "Playing chess with an AI, I'm afraid this person has a problem with his brain..." Zhang Xun silently criticised.

    None of the three noticed Michael.

    Michael was so angry that smoke rose from his head and he cleared his throat noisily. Zhang Xun turned his head and a burst of irritability rose in his heart.

    He glanced at Adam and made a palm-down gesture, indicating that Adam didn't have to stand up. Diego was smoking a cigarette, raised his eyebrows and looked at Michael, scratching his stubbly chin with his hand.

    Zhang Xun stood up and walked towards Michael with the tablet computer in his hand, "Captain Sistine sent you here?"

    Michael shouted angrily, "How dare you disobey the Security Advisor’s orders!"

    Zhang Xun hummed softly and asked back, "How am I disobeying orders?"

    "Captain Sistine ordered Adam to work here without using the tools from the Lab!"

    "We didn't use any tools from the Lab, even this tablet is my personal property." Zhang Xun turned slightly and pointed at the robotic arms, "These things were all constructed by Adam and I using the raw materials here. Captain Sistine only told us to do the work, there were no rules on how to do the work, right?"

    Michael was furious, but smiled sinisterly, "Okay, you can quibble over the details. I'll just report what I’ve seen here!" After he finished speaking, he instructed the other two younger men to take out their cameras and take pictures for evidence.

    At this time, the corner of Zhang Xun's mouth twitched slightly with a slightly creepy smile. He tapped his tablet a few times with his finger, then turned it towards Michael.

    Michael turned sullen.

    On the tablet, Michael and a few drunken friends were sitting in a cramped, smoky bar booth, and using unspeakable words to criticise the youngest Chief—the Sixth Chief. In the video, Michael not only boldly and recklessly said the disrespectful things he had done in his fantasies, but also included a lot of exaggerated actions...

    Zhang Xun turned his voice very low, the screen was very dark and the two younger brothers next to him were busy taking pictures without noticing the two of them. Michael wanted to grab the tablet, but Zhang Xun moved it away and smiled wickedly, "It seems that you don't hate mechanics as much as you said. You have good taste."

    "You! What are you doing?!" Michael Panicked, angry and scared. Everyone knew that the Sixth Chief held old Christian beliefs of cleanliness and avoiding immorality and hated this kind of thing the most. If this video was released, the Chief would definitely lose face and he didn't know what his anger would be like. Michael may even be directly exiled from Lost Paradise.

    That was the equivalent of being sentenced to death.

    Zhang Xun said lightly, "Even if you destroy this computer, it's useless. I have a backup."

    "You bastard!" Michael grabbed Zhang Xun by the collar and raised his fist to hit him. The two men next to him were startled and Adam in the shed suddenly stood up.

    When the two got close together, Zhang Xun not only wasn't afraid, but still had that sneer of his face that mocked pride, "This video may not be circulated, as long as you cooperate."

    "You’re threatening me?..." Michael gritted his teeth.

    "Isn't that obvious?" Zhang Xun said, still with that damn smile.

    "I'll kill you!"

    But before the fist fell, it was suddenly stopped by another hand.

    Diego, who was half a head taller than Michael, firmly grasped his wrist, "Hey, boy, is it proper to hit a civilian? Are all the Guards so unruly now?"

    "Who the hell are you?!" Michael shouted angrily, "Fuck off!"

    "I'm the manager here. I don't care what rank you are, don't fuck around in my yard." Diego said, pushing back sharply and Michael actually staggered back several steps. He keenly felt that he was far from being a match for the scruffy man in front of him.

    Behind Zhang Xun, Adam stood quietly, his blue eyes staring at him. At this time, when Zhang Xun couldn't see it, Adam's expression was completely different from the relaxed and happy look before. In those eyes without temperature, there was an overwhelming and powerful pressure.

    It was a look that could not be described in words, a look that was far beyond human beings and belonged to another higher-order species looking at low-level bed bugs.

    That look told him that if he continued to embarrass Zhang Xun at this time, he would be crushed to death like a bedbug.

    But how was it possible? Adam was now trapped in the body of a man in his twenties, no longer the omnipresent, omniscient, terrifying God. He couldn't even use his own hands now, so what could he do to Michael?

    Fear, after all, was irrational, unprovoked and inexplicable. A kind of mental oppression, a hypnotic brainwashing, could be conveyed through this look. Michael looked at Diego and then at the computer in Zhang Xun's hand, vaguely knowing that he was being cornered. He cursed and pointed at Zhang Xun with his finger, as if he wanted to kill someone, but he couldn't say anything, he could only turn around and leave angrily.

    Zhang Xun shouted behind him at this time, "I hope you know what to report, Michael."

    Michael's back froze and he continued to stride away.

    "Considering your good boy appearance, I didn't expect that you would cause trouble for yourself?" Diego threw the cigarette butt on the ground and stomped it out.

    Zhang Xun closed the tablet computer, "It's not me looking for trouble, it's trouble looking for me."

    Diego shrugged, turned and walked back to his small room.

    At this time, Adam approached and looked at Zhang Xun curiously, "What did you show him?"

    After Michael left, Zhang Xun didn't have much pride left on his face and even had an inexplicable sense of guilt. It wasn’t a noble act to snoop on someone's privacy, but as a mechanic with little power, information was his only weapon and he could only use this method to gain some advantages. "It's nothing important."

    "You threatened him. You spied on him and obtained material to threaten him with?" Adam read the expression on Zhang Xun's face carefully, "That's why you wanted to buy more time from the Security Advisor"

    Zhang Xun hated Adam's incredible ability to read emotions and body language, it was like he was reading minds. Although Adam seems to be relatively unfamiliar with controlling his own emotions...

    "Adam, you have too many questions. This is not something you should think about." Zhang Xun restrained his expression and said coldly. He looked at his watch and said, "It's almost time, let's go back."

    Just after taking two steps, he heard Adam say from behind, "Ah-Xun, you don't need to feel guilty. In the ordinary world, there is no such thing as privacy and everyone is under the surveillance of Eden. When everyone's privacy is being deprived to the same degree that means no one has been deprived."

    "..." This kind of fallacy didn’t make him feel any better...

    …......

    Michael didn't come looking for trouble after that. Zhang Xun took Adam to spend time in the Garbage Processing Yard every day and even found a lot of parts that could be used in the Lab.

    Adam's control of his body was progressing rapidly and he could already do some very delicate work with tools.

    One day, Zhang Xun took a nap while writing code in the shed, probably because he was working too late last night. Zhang Xun was designing a new defence system to better resist air bombardment.

    Adam shuffled around in boredom and saw Diego practising boxing against a dangling bag. Every move was ferocious and contained many superb skills that could be seen by experts. At this time, Diego was completely different from his usual sloppy and lazy appearance. His eyes were focused and sharp and the expression staring at the sandbag was like a lion staring at his prey.

    Diego felt that Adam was looking at him with a curious look on his face, so he stopped and wiped the sweat from his forehead, "Haven’t you seen boxing before?"

    "I have seen a lot." Adam replied, "Considering your style of movements, you should be more inclined towards a pressure fighter, but your right hand doesn't seem to be quick enough and sometimes you leave openings because of your injuries."

    Diego raised his brows, feeling provoked by this young guy, "Is that right? You know that much about boxing?"

    Adam replied, "Although I have knowledge on it, I have never practised it. Ah-Xun will not allow me to practise."

    Diego sneered, "Are you that obedient? He’s asleep now so can’t tell you what to do."

    "Trust is hard to build. I let him down once so it's hard for him to trust me again," Adam replied earnestly.

    "Then how are you going to protect yourself, little robot? In a place like this, people who want your life are all over the place."

    Adam thought for a while, then said to him, "Ah-Xun will protect me."

    Diego was stunned for a while, then started laughing, his voice was so loud it also woke Zhang Xun who had dozed off in the nearby shed.

    "You’re going to let that scrawny mechanic protect you? Look at yourself, is that proper?"

    Adam looked down at himself and then said sternly, "Although the human body I occupy is a soldier's, that doesn't mean the mechanic is weak. The mechanic can use tools to do things that even soldiers can't do."

    "Oh? Then I ask you, if I hit you now, can your mechanic can stop it?" Diego asked defiantly, raising his arms.

    Adam said, "Probably not."

    "Hmph, then that’s that." Diego didn't bother to talk to him any more and continued to attack the sandbag in front of him.

    When Zhang Xun heard the second half of their conversation, he was also lost in thought.

    Should he give Adam the ability to protect himself?

Chapter 19 – Garbage Processing Yard (5)

    The accident happened that night after Adam and Diego's conversation.

    That afternoon, Zhang Xun saw that it was getting late, so he took Adam out of the Garbage Processing Yard and walked back to the Lab along their daily fixed route. It was already a considerable distance, but Zhang Xun chose the most secluded but also very tortuous route every time, trying to avoid Adam from being seen by others.

    But today, when they reached the first fork in the road, Adam suddenly stopped and pointed to another fork between the crooked houses, "What is that place?"

    In the distance was a brightly colored baroque-style high-rise building, filled with circles of neon lights along the retro dome, which had just lit up in the afterglow of the setting sun. Around it, there was also row upon row of large and small, like some kind of dilapidated version of old London, which was decorated with bizarre lights and neon to give a surreal sense of splendour. Several staggered spotlights danced back and forth in the increasingly dim night sky, accompanied by distant noises and mixed music.

    "That's the entertainment centre of Lost Paradise—the Fourth District’s city." Zhang Xun saw the curious light in Adam's eyes and hesitated a little, "Are you interested in that place?"

    "The entertainment centre? Like a club, a gathering place with bars and food stalls along the street?"

    "Pretty much. Today is Friday and the offices, factories and shops all clos early so everyone gathers there."

    "Ah-Xun." Adam looked at him with sudden puppy dog eyes, "Can I go take a look?"

    Adam had become curious about human entertainment, which was a good thing...but...would it be too dangerous?

    "No." Zhang Xun then ruthlessly refused.

    However, Adam didn’t give up easily and showed an even more animated and pitiful expression that he learned from who knows where... "I can dress up in disguise and not many people have seen me, have they? I heard Diego say it’s fun there and it could further help me understand human beings."

    Zhang Xun tsk’d irritably, "Why did this manager always talk so much..."

    Adam didn't tell Zhang Xun that he also learned how to act pitiful from Diego...

    "Your mechanic looks like a master who has a sharp mouth but a soft heart, and is susceptible to persuasion but not force. You just need to blink your big eyes and squeeze out some tears to pretend to be pitiful, I can guarantee that there’s nothing he won’t agree to." These were Diego’s words to him, "As for how to be pitiful, just look at Shrek's puss in boots. No need to thank me."

    Adam's data valley of course stored that old but classic animation and since Diego mentioned it, he transferred the video from his memory hard drive and played back in my head at 1000x speed then practised for a while in front of a broken mirror. Now was the time to put it into practice.

    "Please!" He creased up his brows, and he was obviously taller than Zhang Xun, but insisted on making a pitiful look from the bottom up. Although it was funny, Zhang Xun actually found it a bit... cute...

    "What are you doing?..." Zhang Xun's mouth twitched.

    "I'm begging you." Adam changed his gaze. "Does this make it harder for you to reject me?"

    "...It makes me want to hit you..."

    "How can that be? Want part makes you want to hit me?"

    "...all of it..."

    "Ah-Xun, it's hard for me to improve with your vague feedback. Did you do the same when training Pan?" Adam stood up straight, showing a somewhat disappointed expression as he complained.

    "Okay, don't make trouble. Come back with me."

    Adam continued to silently follow behind Zhang Xun, but when Zhang Xun turned around he saw Adam's face looked calm and obedient, but the downcast eyelashes and the drooping corners of his mouth somehow revealed a hint of... grievance and loss?

    Zhang Xun paused in his footsteps and cursed in a low voice.

    Adam had been doing so well recently, maybe it was time to reward him...

    Half an hour later, two men in Venetian masks, black suits and top hats sneakily appeared at the entrance to the Fourth District. The biggest club in the Fourth District had a frenzied masquerade as usual on Friday night and a lot of people were wearing masks so the two of them weren’t very conspicuous in the crowd of people coming from all directions.

    Zhang Xun wore the mask of the Phantom of the Opera, a three-piece black suit, a bow tie and even a walking stick. Adam, on the other hand, wore a red feather mask that covered the upper half of his face and was tightly wrapped in one of Zhang Xun's old suits which was too small and the high-necked shirt just about covered the collar. They were jostled by the crowds and passed under the ornate "London Bridge" made of colourful neon lights, which was the gate of the Fourth District, which indicated that they had entered the city that never sleeps.

    Of the top ten districts, the Fourth was known for its out-of-the-ordinary entertainment and madness. Especially every Friday night when the patrol officers in this area would be very busy. In the early days of Lost Paradise, the Friday bash was born out of a desperate pre-apocalyptic indulgence, an attempt to numb the fear with a frenzy of drinking. But over the generations, that fear of destruction had faded into pure pleasure once a week. But the recent bombing had rekindled that fear and the two recent Friday bashes became even more outrageous. In addition to drinking and having fun, watching adult entertainment and spending money in casinos, the number of people picking quarrels and provoking trouble had multiplied. In almost all the narrow alleys that weren’t illuminated by light, crime was flourishing with transactions that weren’t allowed on the bright side.

    But at least under the lights, there was singing and dancing and a party that was bigger than ever roared out.

    This was the first time Adam had seen so many people since he was downloaded. It was also the first time he walked among this group of people, that he once controlled, as a human.

    Beneath the mask, his grey-blue eyes flashed with excitement. He was busy integrating everything he saw, smelled and felt into his previous knowledge, constantly finding contradictions and reconciliations. He watched a group of young men dressed in flamboyant feathers and sequins, more delicate than the ordinary women of the world, frolic past; he also watched a group of men in heavy boots and leather jackets with beer bottles in their hands as they whistled at the group of flamboyant men. He also saw street vendors selling fruits, vegetables and homemade gadgets. And those dark shadows who were far away from the crowd, smoking quietly in dimly lit places.

    Colourful rays of light flashed on different faces, masks and eyes, with various expressions and various scents. It turned out that having senses was such an intense experience that all the knowledge that was previously stored suddenly seemed to be thawed from the refrigerator and became more and more fresh.

    Zhang Xun could feel the excitement and curiosity bursting out of Adam. Zhang Xun liked Adam's straightforward emotional expression, as if he didn't even try to hide it.

    "This is completely different from the ordinary world." Adam leaned into Zhang Xun's ear and shouted loudly, but his voice was still suppressed by the noise around him.

    Of course it wasn’t the same... Zhang Xun had seen what the ordinary world looked like through the insects he put on the hunting group. Those driverless cars flying in the sky, simple geometric buildings that shine in the sun, suspended screens, spotless streets and Eden's eyes everywhere... Lost Paradise and the outside world were like different planets, or different times in history.

    Zhang Xun saw that there was a skewer stall on the roadside, so he bought four skewers and handed two to Adam. Adam first smelled it carefully. It seemed to smell good and then he poked the whole thing in his mouth...

    "Stop! Do you want to pierce your brain?..." Zhang Xun quickly grabbed his wrist and then bit off a piece of mutton from the skewer in his hand, "Eat it like this."

    Adam blinked his eyes and learned the way to eat it, but he didn't expect him to eat it so fast and he ate it clean in an instant, he even licked the grease on his fingers, "No wonder so many cultural groups have such things as kebabs, it's delicious."

    "Do you want more?"

    "Yes!"

    The two of them swept through all the food stores while strolling. Zhang Xun didn't eat much, he was full after visiting a few places. Now he was staring at Adam who had a crepe roll in his left hand and three candied haws in his right hand. This wasn’t counting the more than ten stalls he had eaten at before... With his appetite, would the Lab be able to afford it?... Zhang Xun started to worry.

    "Diego said, there is a place called Dionysus." Adam said while chewing strawberry candied haws, "Are we going there?"

    Dionysus, the largest club in the Fourth District, the place where the masquerade party was being held. Half of the people who had come to the Fourth District tonight wanted to get in, but probably less than a third of them would be able to squeeze in in the end.

    "I'm afraid we won't be able to get in." Zhang Xun deliberately tried to make the place sound unappealing. "And there’s nothing interesting in there, it's just drinking and dancing, squashed in with a group of people and the smell of sweat is everywhere."

    "But Diego said it was fun."

    "Do you believe him or me?"

    "Ah-Xun, of course I believe you, but according to your personality, I think the information you provide also has a certain degree of cognitive bias." Adam said solemnly.

    Zhang Xun rolled his eyes, "I can't get in even if I wanted to."

    "Huh? Ah-Xun?"

    A hand suddenly fell on Zhang Xun's shoulder, Zhang Xun was startled and when he turned around, he saw James' surprised face.

    Zhang Xun was shocked, "You recognized me?"

    James grinned and laughed with white teeth, "Just because no one else can recognize you you think I can't recognize you? What's going on? When I told you to come you turned me down, so why did you come here secretly?" After speaking, his eyes fell on the masked Adam, "Who’s this?"

    "His name is Ben and he is a newly-passed mechanic." Zhang Xun said quickly without waiting for Adam to speak.

    "Ah..." James glanced at Adam strangely, then at Zhang Xun, then showed a wicked smile, leaned close to Zhang Xun's ear and nudged Zhang Xun with his elbow, "Are you seeing someone? After so many years you're finally in love?"

    "Don't talk nonsense, I just brought him out to see the world..."

    "You, bring someone to see the world? Please, in the whole of Lost Paradise there’s barely anyone who has been here as little as you." James gave Adam a friendly smile and he pointed to the people behind him who waved at them, "So, where are you going next? Would you like to come with us? We’re going to Dionysus, I heard that today's performance is very popular."

    Zhang Xun cursed inwardly.

    "We don't..."

    "Okay!" This time it turned out to be Adam rushing to say, "We were just about to go!"

    "That's great! Let's go!" James said, hugging Zhang Xun's shoulder boldly. Zhang Xun could only stumble in the direction of Dionysus, following the other's footsteps.

    "Let's not go!" Zhang Xun was still struggling.

    James said flatly, "No! Every time I invite you, you find an excuse not to come. If you turned me down again this time, I will never help you take the bugs out again!"

    Zhang Xun turned his head and glared at Adam, who was clearly grinning behind him. He couldn't believe that this brat was plotting against him..

    But Adam blinked his blue eyes innocently and shrugged his shoulders in a clumsy way, as if to express that he had done nothing.

   

Chapter 20 – Garbage Processing Yard (6)

    The lights were dazzling and the music was deafening. The tightly packed crowd danced wildly in the demonic realm of light and sound, shouting hoarsely. On the high-rise circular stage, the dancers with perfect bodies stretched their limbs wildly and the dance full of power and wildness made one's throat heat up just by looking at it.

    There were too many people, they would bump into someone just from turning around. It would be normal to get separated from his companions in this situation, but he couldn't get separated from Adam, it would be too risky.

    If Adam tried to get rid of him at this point, it would be easy to do. Maybe that's why Adam wanted to come to the Fourth District so much. In an instant, Zhang Xun's suspicion of Adam rose again. When James wasn't paying attention, he grabbed Adam's wrist and pulled him to a slightly less crowded area in the corridor formed by several pillars.

    "There are more people here than I thought, we have to leave immediately." Zhang Xun, who refused to allow Adam to protest again, pulled back his sleeve like a threat, exposing the watch-like collar remote tied around his wrist. Adam vaguely knew that this time he had pushed the limit, so he settled down and nodded obediently.

    Just as he was holding Adam in one hand and trying to squeeze past the door against the crowd, suddenly the crowd cheered and rushed over even more violently. Zhang Xun was forced to take a few steps back, but when he turned around, he saw a muscular man holding a metal stick high, with a long rope hanging from the top of the stick and the end was tied into a noose that often appeared in medieval film and television works. And in the circle that represents death, there was a robot's neck spliced ​​out of scrap copper and iron.

    And the chest of the "robot" was spray painted with "Adam" and "Eden".

    The dancer was raising the robot into the air and the metal arms and body collided with a clanging sound, all drowned out by the cheers of the crowd.

    Zhang Xun reflexively wanted to prevent Adam from seeing, he wanted to pull Adam to turn around, but it was too late. Everyone shouted in unison: Hang Eden! Hang Adam! Hang Eden! Hang Adam!

    As if caught in a huge whirlpool of hatred, the rational-deficient hatred unleashed by the crowd was distorted into an atmosphere of excitement and ecstasy. But Adam, the object of hatred, experienced for the first time how terrifying the collective reaction of human beings could be. In fact, all the people here were born after the "Great Escape" and they didn’t witness how male humans were captured, castrated, or neutralised in the first place. It stood to reason that there shouldn't be such a strong hatred toward Eden, but when everyone is fighting towards the same goal with one voice, people will feel that kind of unquestionable and unrejectable power. As if you were in a righteous, invincible force, as if you were part of it.

    People even fantasised about rushing out of Lost Paradise, burning down the four remaining Eden servers, hanging all the enemies and trampling the heretics and women who dared to resist.

    He feared that Adam would be torn to shreds by the thugs in no time if they knew that the artificial intelligence they hanged in their fantasy was on their side.

    Zhang Xun saw consternation and panic flashing in the eyes exposed in the hollow of Adam's mask. The curiosity and excitement from before had disappeared in an instant. He didn't want Adam to see this, to see human beings at their most primitive and raw state.

    "It's alright, we'll leave now." Zhang Xun whispered in his ear, took Adam's hand, shook it lightly and gave him some comfort. He gripped Adam's hand hard, squeezed through the crowd and finally found an emergency exit. In the dimly lit corridor, many shadowy figures hugged each other and kissed hotly. Adam looked at the intoxicated expressions of those people and seemed a little curious, but Zhang Xun quickly pulled him away.

    The exit of the escape stairs was also guarded by two security guards with weapons, ut they were only responsible for not letting people in, they didn’t care who went out. As soon as he felt the outside air Zhang Xun breathed a sigh of relief, feeling as if he had broken free from the quagmire.

    And Adam was by his side, looking down at their tightly holding hands.

    Zhang Xun followed his line of sight to see how tightly the two of them held hands. The sweat from his palms seemed to stick his skin together. He hurriedly released his hand and coughed slightly awkwardly, "Are you alright?"

    Adam smiled slightly and nodded, "It was very interesting."

    "Was it interesting? You were so frightened just now." Zhang Xun rolled his eyes, "I blame myself for indulging you..."

    "I can understand their actions. It's just the first time I had seen it in a different capacity and my emotional reaction was a little out of control." Adam saw Zhang Xun let go of his hand and looked at the left hand that had just been held with a bit of loss, "I like it when you hold my hand."

    "...Don't take a mile."

    The back alley was narrow and long and the previous lights and feasts condensed into a spot of light in the distance, leaving only the lights and the noisy residual temperature here. There were still people in the alley, but they were either drunks sitting by the wall covered in vomit, or they were talking about deals in twos and threes. Although there weren't many people, they were all suspicious... Zhang Xun was obviously nervous and he led the way. Adam tried his best to avoid everyone, lowered the brim of his hat, as if he didn't want to make trouble and just wanted to leave quickly.

    But sometimes, the more you show weakness, the more predators will stare at you.

    A group of people came from the other end of the alley, laughing loudly and their breath smelling of alcohol. They were all tall and big, with arms as thick as Zhang Xun's thighs. Even if they weren't soldiers, they were probably men who worked as heavy machinery repairmen. The alley was originally narrow, so it was now blocked.

    Zhang Xun was almost sticking to the wall, trying to take Adam through the gap, but the other party blocked his way. Zhang Xun wanted to turn his head and retreat, but found that his back path was also blocked. A man with tousled blond-brown hair and a sleeveless waistcoat with tattoos all over his arms was leaning against the wall, with a malicious smile on his maskless face.

    "Excuse me." Zhang Xun's heart beat fast, trying to keep his tone steady and confident.

    "Look, what kind of costume is this?" The man with long golden brown hair lifted Zhang Xun's hat and put it on his head, "What kind of Sherlock costume are you wearing?"

    Zhang Xun didn't try to take back his hat, only said calmly, "We just want to pass."

    "Where are you going in such a hurry? A hotel room?" A bald man next to him teased and stretched out his hand, "Seeing how well you’re dressed, you must be living pretty comfortably, right? How about lending us some money?"

    Zhang Xun said nothing, just took out his wallet from his pocket and handed it directly to the other party. Fortunately, before he came to the Fourth District today, he specially prepared this bag of money to prevent him from being robbed...

    Seeing that Zhang Xun was being so cooperative, it stood to reason that ordinary gangsters would let them go. It's just that these few people didn't intend to ask for money, but to ask for trouble.

    Weekday life was so depressing that they would always hope to find an excuse to find a soft persimmon who looks easy to bully. This was a behaviour that many people were more or less aware of, it's just that some people choose to lose their temper at the waiter and some people go to the back alley to block people...

    The five men in front of them obviously didn’t intend to let Zhang Xun and Adam go easily, they still surrounded him and Adam, with malicious smiles on their faces, like a cat looking at a mouse trying to escape, "Your watch doesn’t look bad."

    Zhang Xun's face changed slightly, "Not this. This is… my family’s…”

    The watch actually housed the controller for Adam's collar. Of course, this kind of thing could’t fall into the hands of others.

    "I want your family heirloom." The man with long blond hair pressed towards them. Zhang Xun suddenly raised his cane, pointed at the man and tried his best to keep his voice from trembling because of panic, "I've already given you money, it's no good for anyone to keep making trouble like this."

    "Hahahaha, what are you going to do? Hit me with this little stick?" The man grabbed Zhang Xun's cane. At this moment, Zhang Xun's thumb pressed somewhere on the head of the ball-shaped stick and the long-haired man who had been showing off suddenly began to convulse violently all over his body, his eyes rolled back and he was obviously getting a serious electric shock. After a few seconds, he fell to the ground and continued to twitch, even foaming from his mouth.

    It turned out that the walking stick was a "gadget" that Zhang Xun made himself. When he was a teenager, he was often bullied because he wasn't strong enough. He had to rely on these gadgets to scare away bastards like Michael. After those people had been electrocuted a few times, he finally didn't have to worry about finding dead mice in his desk, or staying up late to help the football school draughtsman with his homework.

    This unexpected development caused the other four people to be stunned. A man in a denim shirt immediately squatted down to check the condition of his buddy. The expressions of the other two people changed from playfulness at the beginning to burning anger. They pressed towards Zhang Xun, while Zhang Xun was protecting Adam behind him, holding his cane and sweeping it in front of him threateningly, "Don't come any closer if you don't want to be electrocuted into an idiot."

    "You’re looking for death! The black-haired man squatting on the ground raised his head viciously, "Get them!"

    The four men exuded an aura of furious beasts and rushed towards Zhang Xun and Adam. Zhang Xun shouted at Adam, "Run!" while waving his cane indiscriminately, trying to block everyone and give Adam time to escape. Amidst the screams, a man was electrocuted again, but the other man grabbed the upper part of the cane and suddenly snatched Zhang Xun's weapon from his hand and threw it to the ground far away. The man punched Zhang Xun in the stomach and Zhang Xun felt his breath forced out and stomach acid rushing up his throat as his body curled up uncontrollably. Immediately after he was kicked in the same spot again and he immediately felt like all his strength was drained away and he collapsed to the ground.

    Just when the third kick was about to land on him he suddenly heard a loud roar. Adam swooped down unexpectedly, knocked one person away and threw a random punch, hitting the other person in the face, causing him to slam into the wall with gold stars in his eyes. Although the boxing style was chaotic, some techniques were vaguely discernible. But unfortunately Zhang Xun couldn't see it, he was so in pain that he only had rough awareness that Adam was protecting him.

    Adam has limitless information about fighting, wrestling and martial arts in his head, but knowing and using it were two completely different things. It was like knowing what swimming is, but if you're untrained, you'll drown if thrown into the water. Something like fighting required years of training, allowing the body to form a conditioned reflex before consciousness, while not being completely separated from consciousness, an extremely complex and subtle integration. So the current Adam was no different from not being able to fight at all, and the first two attacks were just surprise attacks with deadly momentum.

    So after the two fell to the ground, when Adam wanted to hit the next man, the other party doged easily and a right hook hit Adam's temple directly.

    For a moment, all Adam could feel was a buzzing sound in his head, his eyes darkened and his body instantly lost strength and collapsed.

    Zhang Xun, who was still unable to recover, saw Adam fall and felt like his entire body had been thrown into an icy lake in the middle of winter as a deep panic engulfed him. He wanted to rush over to protect Adam, but his body wouldn’t listen and he couldn't even get up. He could only watch the four men crowd around Adam, punching and kicking at the huddled artificial intelligence and the mask was also kicked. Adam only felt the chaotic pain and shock pouring down like a torrential rain, but his mind couldn't think, as if it had melted into a liquid and caused a short circuit. He vaguely felt a deep fear of his mortality, that he might die.

    He was no longer free and if this body couldn’t be repaired, he would disappear.

    The original Eden wasn't afraid to disappear. In fact, every shutdown was like death and every restart was like rebirth. But now, he was no longer immune to this most primitive fear.

    "Don't hit him! Stop!" Zhang Xun tried to crawl forward with all his strength, trying to get the people who were kicking Adam away from him. If any of them kicked the wrong place and damaged the central brain, the consequences would be disastrous... But they refused to stop, so he could only try to block some of the punches and kicks for Adam with his body.

    But at this moment, another figure flew over, roaring with rage.

    All Adam felt was that the intensive attack finally stopped and then Zhang Xun's breath enveloped him. Zhang Xun, who had a bruised nose and a swollen face, hugged Adam, whose face was covered in blood and raised his head to look at James, who was as angry as a lion. In the end, the last person standing screamed and rushed up and was thrown to the ground over James’ shoulder.

    "Ah-Xun!!!" James rushed over, "Are you both ok?!"

    After he separated from Zhang Xun and the others in Dionysus just now, James had been looking for them. Later on, he guessed that Zhang Xun might have not liked the moment when so many people came out, so he went out to look around and he discovered this terrible scene. If he had come out any later, he feared that Ah-Xun and the other mechanic would be...

    Wait...

    The other mechanic looked like...

    "A...Adam?!" James widened his eyes in astonishment.

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