Chapter 128: Artificial Soul 55
“Money is not a problem, but you can’t treat me like a fool,” Kui Xin said.
The doctor replied, “Well, honesty is also important in our line of work. I don’t want to be assassinated by rivals in the middle of the night. It’s better to make friends than enemies, so I need to clarify my rules with you in advance, and you can decide whether to continue.”
Kui Xin scrutinized him, “Fair enough. Do you settle accounts here with gold or digital currency?”
“Half and half,” the doctor said. “Gold is not easy to spend, and digital currency goes to an anonymous private account.”
Kui Xin said, “I want to confirm whether you have the ability to perform this surgery.”
“Oh,” the doctor laughed, “Your condition isn’t ordinary, is it?”
He stood up from his seat, walked to the front of the clinic, hung a “Closed” sign on the door, and then pulled down the shutter.
“Okay, now there’s no one. You can talk about your condition, and I’ll examine you to determine if I can perform this surgery,” the doctor said with a smile.
“My skull has been replaced with metal, and now I want to remove the metal skull and replace it with a new one,” Kui Xin stated.
The doctor said, “There are testing instruments on the second basement level, follow me, and I’ll check you.”
He turned and opened a crooked door at the back of the small clinic, revealing an underground passage, and walked straight down.
Kui Xin assessed the underground passage and followed him down.
The equipment on the second basement level was somewhat old, but it was evident that it had been well maintained.
“These testing instruments are outdated models discarded from the market. Although they’re old, that doesn’t mean the test results are inaccurate; they’re just a bit bulky. The new fancy instruments are ten times more expensive than the old models,” the doctor said as he turned on the instruments and gestured for Kui Xin to sit in a chair.
The beam scanned Kui Xin’s head, and the images were quickly printed out.
The doctor glanced at the x-ray and muttered, “This is a bit troublesome; the volume of your metal skull is quite large. From the frontal bone to the parietal bone, it’s all metal. I can do it, but… it will cost more.”
“Can you find compatible bones to install for me?” Kui Xin asked.
“There are two types: metal and ceramic. The metal ones are expensive, while the ceramic ones are cheaper,” the doctor said, revealing a big smile with his white teeth. “Which one do you want?”
“The metal one,” Kui Xin replied.
The doctor said, “Alright, I’ll measure the data for you later. Let’s schedule a surgery time and a payment time, then you pay half as a deposit first, and give me the other half after the surgery. What do you think?”
“That’s fine,” Kui Xin nodded, “I’m curious about one thing: do you perform surgeries on anyone?”
The doctor glanced at Kui Xin sensitively and said, “There were a few times I treated someone, and then their enemies came to bother me. If that’s the kind of thing you’re asking about, I’m not too worried, but—”
“That means I need to pay more?” Kui Xin interjected.
The doctor replied, “You’re quite perceptive! It’s a pleasure to talk to someone like you! Our unlicensed black clinic survives in the gray area, and we face potential closure every day; if someone reports us, the clinic is gone, and I could end up in prison. I have to earn as much as I can while I’m still alive! Once the money’s in order, everything can be negotiated.”
“One more thing, will you keep my secret?” Kui Xin asked.
“No problem, as long as you pay! You’re the boss here, and there’s no reason not to keep the boss’s secrets,” the doctor smoothly replied, “I’m right here, and the clinic is here. I still need to do business—I can’t run away. If I were a doctor who couldn’t keep my mouth shut, I would have died long ago, not lived this long in the West District.”
“When can you start the surgery?” Kui Xin queried.
The doctor said, “Are you in a hurry? If so, we can do it tonight. There’s metal bone in the warehouse; it can be fitted up with a little machine work.”
Most patients seeking treatment at black clinics are impatient. Everyone knows that the longer you wait, the more potential misfortunes you might encounter, especially if you’re living on the edge.
Kui Xin’s data manipulation isn’t always active; that would be exhausting, so Augus communicates with her through an earpiece.
“Are you switching bones tonight too quickly?” Augus said, “What if Mechanized Dawn…”
“If you have a good plan, I’d love to hear your opinion,” Kui Xin connected her consciousness to the smart earpiece.
Augus seemed to ponder for a moment before saying, “Sorry, I find it hard to have any advice. Removing it may be detected by Mechanized Dawn since we don’t know what devices are inside your bones. However, not removing it would prevent us from progressing with our next steps.”
“Do you know Schrödinger’s cat?” Kui Xin asked. “You probably don’t. Although the two worlds have some cultural connections and historical similarities, there are also many differences.”
Augus responded, “Indeed, I don’t know. Can you tell me about it?”
“It’s a bit complex to explain… In short, it’s about putting a cat in a sealed container. According to quantum mechanics and a bunch of random theories, this cat is in a state of being both dead and alive. But to verify whether the contents in the container are alive or dead, you have to open the container to find out the result,” Kui Xin said. “You can tie this to philosophical thinking; only by daring to uncover the truth can you know whether the cat is dead or alive.”
Augus said, “So, in order to verify whether replacing your skull will cause your sudden demise, you plan to open your skull like Schrödinger’s cat?”
Kui Xin replied, “Yes.”
“What if you turn into a dead cat?” Augus asked.
“Then I would be dead,” Kui Xin answered.
Augus responded, “And if you don’t switch the bones…”
“Then theoretically, I’ll be in a state of being both dead and alive.” Kui Xin said, “A cat that is both dead and alive cannot leave the container. I cannot be both dead and alive; I need to open the container to see whether I will become a dead cat or a living cat.”
The “container” metaphorically represented their current dilemma, and opening the container was a gamble, betting whether the cat is dead or alive.
After a brief silence, Augus said, “Indeed, very philosophical, but I can understand your line of thought.”
Kui Xin remarked, “I’ve always felt that you are an AI that loves philosophy, Augus.”
Augus responded, “Thank you. I’ll take that as a compliment.”
Kui Xin had to know whether the cat was a dead cat or a living cat; only then could she make her next plans. Knowing in advance was better than discovering the cat was dead after arranging everything, which would result in plans being disrupted and needing to be rearranged.
After a brief exchange and contemplation, Kui Xin told the doctor, “Let’s proceed with the surgery tonight.”
The doctor straightforwardly said, “My account number is…” He recited a series of numbers. “Transfer the money first, a deposit of five hundred thousand, not a penny less.”
Kui Xin said, “Please wait.”
She turned her body to block the action, pretending to take out the communicator. After a moment, the doctor’s communicator beeped, and a message from the bank confirmed that the five hundred thousand had been credited.
“I didn’t bring any gold, and it takes time to gather it. I’ll transfer you the electronic currency first,” Kui Xin stated.
The doctor repeatedly confirmed the text message, checking to ensure the money had indeed arrived before heading to the warehouse to get the metal skull.
He brought back the metal skull, handed it to Kui Xin for inspection. Kui Xin touched the bone with her fingertips, confirming it had no layers or tampering before handing it back to the doctor for shaping.
“I pulled up this doctor’s information from the database. Li Mingsheng studied medicine at university, has good skills, but is a level five citizen. According to current laws, he’s not qualified to practice medicine,” Augus reported. “He was downgraded to a level five citizen due to a rare medical accident at the hospital, where he got into a fight with a patient’s family. The people he clashed with had some power, which led to him being detained for half a month. Afterward, he was downgraded and lost his job. He’s been wandering around the West District ever since, single and childless, with his parents having passed away.”
He seemed like a pitiful person, and many similarly pitiful individuals roam the Second World.
Kui Xin watched Dr. Li shaping the skull and saw him soaking the prepared bone in a disinfectant solution. Dr. Li huffed and puffed, pushing a cart, gesturing for Kui Xin to lie down, and then pushed her to the isolated sterile room on the second basement level.
During the entire surgery, Dr. Li was the only one operating, his assistant being the voice-controlled mechanical arm nearby.
After completing the pre-surgery preparations, Dr. Li was about to inject Kui Xin with anesthesia, but she said, “Don’t give me anesthesia…”
Dr. Li froze in place, “Are you crazy? You’ll be in so much pain you could go into shock! Even if you don’t believe it, is it really that simple? When I performed surgery on a big guy before, he was afraid I’d do something, and he pointed a gun at me while I was removing bullets… You don’t want to do the same, do you?”
“I just don’t like the feeling of being anesthetized. Do you have any other medication? Just something to relieve pain, I don’t want to lose complete consciousness,” Kui Xin said.
Dr. Li paused again, standing confused at the operating table for a while. He picked up the syringe and said, “I have another type of painkiller; I can administer that. It will relieve pain while keeping you awake, but it won’t work as well as anesthesia, and you’ll still feel pain.”
“Then use that,” Kui Xin said.
“Just don’t push through too hard. Dying here would be a problem…” Dr. Li warned.
Kui Xin replied, “I’m mentally prepared. You need to be quick and precise during the surgery.”
After injecting the painkiller, and once the medication took effect, Dr. Li no longer hesitated. The sharp surgical knife sliced open Kui Xin’s skin.
As soon as he made the first incision, Dr. Li understood why the patient on the operating table had felt the need to specify such things to him—her sliced skin and flesh were quickly sealing up! In just three seconds, it had healed!
Dr. Li gasped, his expression turning serious.
He had never seen such a tricky situation before; the incision didn’t even last three seconds during surgery.
“That will cost more…” Dr. Li had just uttered those three words when he suddenly stopped, “Forget it, no extra charges; you have it tough too…”
Kui Xin looked at him sternly: “Continue.”
Dr. Li felt he was facing the greatest challenge of his career. He had encountered awakened individuals from the underground world before and knew what they were like, so he wasn’t overly surprised. However, he had to change his surgical strategy: “I’m going to peel your scalp entirely off, and I’ll stitch it back after the surgery. Do you think your recovery capacity can handle that?”
“Theoretically, it shouldn’t be a problem…” Kui Xin said, “Just preserve my scalp; I can’t be without hair.”
“Then I’m going to start,” Dr. Li said.
The lights in the operating room were glaring, and the mechanical arm constantly moved according to Dr. Li’s instructions, passing him various surgical instruments. When the surgical knife made contact with the metal skull, Kui Xin distinctly heard the crisp sound of metal colliding.
Dr. Li held the drill, bringing the drill bit slowly towards Kui Xin’s skull, working on disassembling her old bones.
The disassembly process seemed very smooth; the fixtures were easily removed. Dr. Li used the instrument to suction onto Kui Xin’s metal skull and was about to take it off when, at the moment the metal skull was about to leave her body, her “Absolute Prediction” was triggered!
The pain dulling her consciousness caused her to suddenly awaken, and she shouted, “Wait!” while trying to block Dr. Li’s hand with her own. However, at the moment she uttered those two words, the metal skull loosened under Dr. Li’s hands.
That section of the metal skull suddenly emitted a surge of strong electric current, which flowed unobstructed through the metal into Kui Xin’s body, instantly destroying her brain.
In the last second of losing consciousness, she caught a glimpse of Dr. Li convulsing and collapsing to the ground.
…
Darkness, overwhelmingly oppressive darkness made it hard to breathe.
In a daze, Kui Xin once again heard those inexplicable mutterings, the shadowy figures around her whispering in an unintelligible language. The gazes of the shadows felt palpable, oozing thick malice, pinning her down.
She felt as if she were floating on clouds, yet also like a drowning person submerged underwater, unable to grasp at any life-saving straw.
After what felt like an eternity, Kui Xin suddenly broke the surface of the water and woke up.
She heard Augus calling her, “Kui Xin! Kui Xin… wake up, what happened? Kui Xin!”
She opened her eyes in confusion, slowly realizing she was face-down on the floor… Looking at the floor and its patterns, she found herself in the staff dormitory.
“Augus.” Kui Xin groggily got up from the floor, “I’m fine… What time is it now?”
Augus paused, “August 17th, 12:03 AM. You just suddenly collapsed and fainted for three minutes. There’s no heartbeat surveillance equipment in your apartment; I thought you were dead. What happened? Why did you suddenly faint? Did you encounter an insurmountable difficulty in the First World?”
Kui Xin picked up the communicator and repeatedly checked the time, her face revealing a look of uncertainty.
“Death Rebirth” was triggered! Time rewound, and she returned to the past. But she hadn’t returned to a few days ago in the Second World or to the First World; rather, she had returned to a day prior when she had just returned to the Second World from the First World.
The time span of the reincarnation had shortened!
A cold sweat broke out on Kui Xin’s back; her head spun, and she leaned against the wall to stand up straight.
Augus patiently asked her, “What happened? What did you encounter?”
Kui Xin smiled wryly.
What had she encountered? She had lost the bet and turned into a dead cat.
“It’s nothing, I’m just too exhausted… too exhausted…” she slumped against the wall down to the ground, covering her eyes and forehead with her hands.
Augus said, “You fell hard; the pain didn’t wake you up. I thought you died in the First World.”
“I won’t die.” Kui Xin lowered her hands, her calm eyes hiding a storm. “I won’t die, Augus.”
