Though the consciousness within the young girl still felt strange about its surroundings and remained wary of Zhang Chen, it diligently completed the task assigned by the Pluto Mushroom.
"Just wait a minute. This equipment looks like it hasn't been started for a few years; it needs a self-check!"
The girl reached out and patted the thick layer of dust on the device.
Suddenly, her expression froze!
As she looked down, she noticed the shape of her pectoral muscles seemed unusual. She cupped them gently with her hands.
They felt heavy and perfectly fit within one hand...
"This... this doesn't seem to be mine... How did I... become a woman?!"
The girl walked over to the glass and gasped as she saw her reflection vaguely mirrored within it.
However, she quickly accepted this reality.
Perhaps the Pluto Mushroom had communicated something to her again, and this communication was likely forceful.
"What's his name?"
Zhang Chen asked.
"My name is Li Tieniu. I'm a lab maintenance worker,"
Li Tieniu, inhabiting the pure young girl, replied憨憨 (hān hān - earnestly/simply).
"Uh..."
Zhang Chen was speechless for a long time.
The contrast was ridiculously extreme!
It was clearly a young girl with a pure and lovely face, but inside was the consciousness of a rough man.
Now it was Zhang Chen's turn to feel unaccustomed.
"Master, the equipment has been restarted. Is there anything else you need me to do?"
Li Tieniu stood obediently to the side and asked.
The Pluto Mushroom commanded obedience from the consciousness, and the consciousness, in turn, obeyed Zhang Chen. Although, in principle, it was mediated through the Pluto Mushroom, the outward result was that Li Tieniu directly addressed Zhang Chen as "Master."
"I want to know what experiments have been conducted here, and what those things are in the observation rooms next door – the cat-eared people, the horned people, and so on?"
Zhang Chen inquired.
"Understood, Master. You want to retrieve the experimental data, correct!"
Li Tieniu rapidly operated the equipment with his delicate fingers.
As he manipulated the controls, the content on the interface changed quickly.
Before long, an experimental record video appeared on the screen.
A rather plump woman appeared on screen, wearing black-rimmed glasses, braces on her teeth, and with several pockmarks on her face.
"This is Chubby Girl. She's our most formidable researcher in the lab, and one of the few senior researchers."
"She's very passionate about genetics, even though... her own external genes aren't that great..."
Li Tieniu said with a hint of jest.
From his demeanor, it was evident that despite the woman's high research standing, she was a target of teasing in the lab due to her appearance.
In the video, the plump woman continued her monologue. Her fleeting gaze and her tendency to look away from the camera revealed her lack of confidence, even a degree of inferiority complex about her appearance.
If it weren't for the requirement that the experimental record video had to be filmed by the project leader, she would have gladly passed on the opportunity.
"Currently, through our research, when we integrate the strong combat genes of mutated creatures into human genes, the human body undergoes characteristic changes in its external appearance."
"Similarly, when human genes are fused into mutated creatures, the same applies."
"However, humans with mutated creature genes appear more like mutated creatures, while mutated creatures with human genes look more human."
"All the knowledge we previously possessed about chromosomes and gene fragments seems to have been overturned in an instant."
"In other words, as bio-energy changes the world, it also alters genes. We have to re-examine the structure and function of these genes."
Following this, two sets of comparison images appeared on the screen.
On the left was a lizard-like monster covered in scales, but its face vaguely showed human contours.
This was the result of fusing mutated creature genes with human genes.
Although it possessed human cognitive abilities, its monstrous appearance meant that few humans could endure it, either going mad or dying in a frenzy.
On the right was a cat-eared person, the corpse previously lying in the laboratory. It had cat ears, claws, and a tail, but otherwise, it was entirely human in features.
At first glance, it was essentially a human.
This was the opposite outcome, the result of integrating human genes into mutated creatures.
Therefore, the experimental subject here exhibited more animalistic instincts; put simply, it only looked human on the outside.
The videos played one after another, highlighting those with significant turning points and key events.
Soon, another video started playing.
In the video, Chubby Girl looked somewhat disheveled, her hair oily, as if she hadn't cared for it in a long time.
"The esteemed members of the council rejected all our proposals, even though I explicitly stated that through the Pluto Mushroom, we could develop consciousness transfer equipment."
"By extracting and eliminating the consciousness of those humanoid creatures, and safely transferring human consciousness into them, humans could gain formidable physiques. Coupled with technological advancement, we could conquer the apocalypse..."
"But they actually found the strange ears and horns of these humanoid creatures unappealing..."
"This is the best result we've been able to research, and it's also the most perfect solution for human survival."
"Yet they were still so picky..."
"These people have been inside the high walls for too long; they seem to think everything is a given."
"If only I had the chance to let them know how terrifying the outside apocalypse truly is, how many people we sacrificed to collect sufficient materials, how many sleepless nights we pulled through to meet deadlines..."
"And in the end, they dismissed us with a mere 'it's not good-looking.' It's simply irrational!"
Chubby Girl complained indignantly.
Just then, a tall researcher in a white lab coat, with a smile on her face, walked over.
She placed the cup of tea in her hand in front of Chubby Girl and said in a gentle voice:
"Don't be too angry. Those esteemed gentlemen have been arrogant for more than a day or two. After all, we've already made significant breakthroughs, and the consciousness transfer experiment has been successful."
"Next, as long as we researchers successfully transfer our consciousness and appear before those gentlemen with powerful abilities, perhaps they will change their minds!"
The video only showed the woman's chest area.
At this moment, the woman suddenly leaned forward and looked into the screen.
A familiar face to Zhang Chen appeared on the screen.
It was Xu Ruina!
How could she be here?!
She wasn't supposed to be in the laboratory in the air-raid shelter beneath Tianyang University?
And during the attack on that place, Xu Ruina had also transformed into a Weeping One due to using the wrong potion...
Who is this woman?!