“Huff… I thought I was dead for sure once I got hit.” Feng Bujue put down his pen and slumped back in his chair. “Turns out… I wasn’t penalized for inactivity, and no monsters came to mess with me during those three hours…” He muttered, glancing at the papers in front of him. “Feels like… a blessing in disguise.”

Indeed, for Feng Bujue, who hadn’t written anything for days, the content he’d produced in the last three hours was a gift. With his memory, it wouldn’t be difficult to retype the manuscript offline, and he could even proofread and edit it in the process.

“Should I… take another look at ‘it’?” The thought occurred to Brother Jue.

However, after a moment’s consideration, he gave up on the idea.

The first encounter three hours ago had been unexpected, practically impossible to avoid. But if he were to go look at the statue again now, it would clearly be “intentional.” Brother Jue figured… if he did that, the second encounter would most likely trigger a penalty for inactivity.

“Well… I’ll leave it for now and explore the story.” Having made up his mind, Feng Bujue said, “Anyway, as long as I know the principle behind that * * * project, I can guard against it…”

Clearly, Brother Jue already knew the truth about the statue. When he saw the writing on the base, a piece of information from his memory palace surged forth…

…

[Item #: * * *-1011]

[Object Class: Safe]

[Special Containment Procedures: * * *-1011 is to be placed in Hall-07 of Site-45, with two guards stationed at the entrance at all times to prevent its removal. The monthly termination schedule for D-class personnel working at Site-35 is to be postponed until the organization fully understands the effects of * * *-1011. Substances produced during experimentation do not appear to possess anomalous properties; requests to utilize them for non-critical applications will be approved in accordance with Document Csg-0371-n.]

[Description: * * *-1011 is a statue, approximately 2 meters tall and weighing approximately 4200 kilograms, depicting a worker whose head has been replaced with various tools. The phrase “Talent is the most important thing in production” is engraved on its base, along with the year “1927.”]

[Material analysis indicates that the item is composed of ordinary scrap steel and contains 2.3wt% carbon.]

[The anomalous properties of * * *-1011 begin to take effect when viewed by a human test subject, who must then engage in at least three hours of productive labor after seeing the item; the effects gradually intensify with further exposure. Preventing exposure to * * *-1011 appears to be sufficient to halt the progression of the effects on the test subject.]

[The level of effect on affected subjects has been categorized into four stages:]

[In Stage 1, test subjects (designated * * *-1011-1) will exhibit increased morale and satisfaction, voluntarily working overtime and becoming more focused on work objectives. At this stage, * * *-1011-1 will cease all activities other than work, sleep, and basic physiological needs.]

[After approximately [DATA REDACTED] months, * * *-1011-1 will exhibit a reluctance to use personal safety equipment… such as helmets, gloves, or safety goggles; this indicates the onset of Stage 2. When questioned, * * *-1011-1 will state that these tools are “unnecessary” and “restrictive.” During this stage, * * *-1011-1 will gradually abandon the use of tools, preferring to use their own bodies to complete tasks… even if doing so carries the risk of minor injuries. This stage will last for at least another [DATA REDACTED] months.]

[Stage 3 can be identified by the onset of insomnia in * * *-1011-1. Test subjects will gather to gaze at * * *-1011 in lieu of sleeping, staring at the item for extended periods, averaging approximately 3 hours per day. The effects produced in Stage 2 will also intensify during this stage, evolving into a “complete abandonment of tools and machinery.” They will actively use teamwork to replace the work of machines, with humans replacing machines. During this stage, the bodies of * * *-1011-1 will begin to deform, becoming better suited to facilitate their work objectives, and they will develop a resistance to pain. The duration of this stage has not been determined.]

[In the only known recorded instance, a * * *-1011-induced situation progressed to Stage 4 – the final stage. During this stage, * * *-1011-1 will utilize one another as production materials, leading to a drastic reduction in the population of the affected factory. Despite extensive experimentation by the Foundation to identify potential triggers for this stage, attempts to induce the final stage among D-class personnel at Site-35 have been unsuccessful.]

[Recovery Log: On [DATA REDACTED] of [DATA REDACTED], 1947, at the [DATA REDACTED] steel mill (now Site-35) in the Bashkir_Assr (Bashkir Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic) of the RSFSR (Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic), USSR, an official inspected the factory as part of a major award ceremony to recognize its consistently high production output. It was at this time that * * *-1011 came to the attention of the Foundation. However, before the Foundation could attempt containment, agents of GRU Division “P” (Psychotronics) preemptively declared the entire factory area a restricted zone, and the Stage 4 phenomenon subsequently occurred.

Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, Foundation agents, acting under the guise of a Foundation subsidiary, purchased the closed and abandoned factory from the Russian Federation government for [DATA REDACTED] dollars and established Site-35 around it.]

…

Feng Bujue remembered the details of this * * * project very clearly. If he didn't remember it so clearly, this chapter would probably be a few hundred words shorter, which is something I would be very unhappy to see.

Alright… let’s pick up our integrity and get back to the story…

According to the detailed information on this * * * project (the above content has been modified and simplified by me), * * *-1011 appeared in that Soviet steel mill in late 1944. Earlier that year, the Wehrmacht had bombed the factory. After the bombing, the statue was discovered in the factory's old warehouse, but there was no record of its inventory, transport, or planned use.

Three years later… in a certain month of 1947, the statue was taken over by a Soviet intelligence agency. From that point until the end of the Cold War, its whereabouts were unknown.

Feng Bujue quickly went over this information in his head and immediately drew three conclusions: first, the script world he was in was the same universe as the * * *; second, the current era should be between 1947 and 1949; and third, the secret experimental base he was in most likely belonged to the former Soviet "P" organization, or perhaps… to a special agency he didn't know about.

“Since it's the Foundation universe, that makes sense…” Brother Jue sat in his chair and adopted his habitual thinking pose—tapping his forehead lightly with his finger and sliding it down the bridge of his nose. “In my ‘real world,’ the ‘Soviet Sleep Experiment’ and ‘* * *’ fall into the category of horror or fantasy literature, but in this universe, these somewhat realistic literary creations are all real…” His finger slid to his chin, and he rested his chin on his fist. “But… the problem follows.” He tilted his head and glanced at the Head-on-a-Stick on the bed, thinking, “This universe has more than just ‘black technology.’ Things like fantasy, science fiction, magic, religion, and supernatural settings… are all present here. It's hard to judge what exactly I have to deal with in this script.”

With that thought, he stood up, diverting part of his attention to "derivative reasoning" and focusing the rest… on searching the room.

Let's tentatively call this third room the "operating room." There are quite a few things in this operating room. Besides the props that can be used to injure people, there are also many supplies such as alcohol swabs, hemostatic bandages, anesthetics, syringes, tweezers, and rubber tubes. Feng Bujue sorted these things out and selected what he thought was useful. He put the things that were easy to carry directly into his pockets and the things that were not easy to take into a toolbox.

Then, he began to examine the paper documents in the room, trying to find some useful information.

“Hmm… this could be useful.” Before long, Feng Bujue found a stack of bound documents in a drawer.

The title of the documents was: [vno-9]

Looking at the first half of the document, one might think it was a "medical record," but flipping through it would reveal that it was more of an "experimental log" than a medical record.

[October 21st, Test Subject e107 was sent to the experimental area. Cancer cells have spread extensively throughout the test subject's body, and the amputated right foot has also developed infection and lesions.]

[October 22nd, e107 received an injection of vno-9, with a dosage of 10 milliliters. The test subject reported some relief from physical pain within minutes of receiving the injection.]

Seeing this, Feng Bujue was basically certain that vno referred to a type of drug, and the meaning of "-9" was worth pondering; usually… it meant that there were eight previous failed formulas.

[October 24th, Third day of quantitative injection. There were no significant changes in e107's vital signs.]

[October 25th, The dosage was increased to 50 milliliters. e107's performance after receiving the injection was the same as before.]

[October 26th, The injection volume was increased to 100 milliliters. e107 went into shock after the injection and fell into a coma after resuscitation.]

[October 27th, Test results showed that the concentration of vno-9 in the test subject's blood was trending upwards, and the color of the blood had also changed significantly.]

[October 29th, e107 woke up from the coma and expressed surprise and joy at his physical condition. According to his own account, he felt that he had recovered his health, and physical examination results also showed that the diseased tissue in his body had mostly healed.]

[October 31st, e107 received the sixth injection of vno-9, with a dosage of 100 milliliters. There was no abnormal reaction after the injection.]

[November 1st, e107 accidentally cut his finger and showed panic and anger after seeing his blood. Three minutes later, he used brute force to break free from the straps on the bed, attacked two experimental personnel and guards, and attempted to escape the facility. Twelve minutes later, e107 was subdued, with gunshot wounds to his left abdomen, right knee, and right shoulder.]

[November 2nd, e107's wound recovery was far beyond that of ordinary people. Approximately sixteen hours after receiving surgical treatment, the three gunshot wounds on the test subject's body had basically completely healed.]

[November 3rd, Seventh injection, dosage increased to 150 milliliters. e107 did not show any resistance; fourteen minutes later, the previously closed amputation incision on the test subject's right foot suddenly ruptured, but e107 did not show any pain reaction.]

[November 5th, e107 grew a brand new right foot.]

[November 6th, Eighth injection, dosage increased to 250 milliliters. In view of e107's physical condition and his obvious attempt to escape, the injection site was moved to "Experiment Room No. 1." The injection will be carried out under the supervision of six armed guards.]

The record ended there. After reading it, Feng Bujue walked to the Head-on-a-Stick and showed the paper in front of the latter, then asked, “Are you e107?”

The Head-on-a-Stick looked agitated as he stared at the paper. After Brother Jue finished speaking, he waited five seconds before blinking once.

“So today is November 6th?” Feng Bujue asked again.

This time, the Head-on-a-Stick kept his eyes wide open and didn't blink for ten seconds.

“You can't be sure, can you?” Brother Jue quickly understood what the other party meant and asked casually.

The Head-on-a-Stick blinked once, indicating that he was right.

“Hmm…” Feng Bujue thought for a while, then said, “Wait a bit… I suddenly have an idea.”

Before he finished speaking, he had already turned around and started cleaning up the items on the trolley next to him…

Five minutes later, in the corridor.

Feng Bujue pushed the emptied trolley with one hand and blocked his sight with the other as he passed the room containing * * *-1011.

After passing the doorway of that room, Brother Jue didn't have to worry about catching a glimpse of the statue out of the corner of his eye, so he lowered his hand and whistled casually.

He was whistling the classic whistling interlude from *Twisted Nerve*, and the eerie but humorous melody sounded particularly jarring in the empty corridor.

Just as Brother Jue was whistling the third verse, he had returned to the original room, the doorway of "Experiment Room No. 1."

At this time, the metal door that he had unlocked was now fully open, obviously opened by the Barefoot Brother when he went in to search.

After entering the room, Feng Bujue did not turn on the lights. He pushed the trolley next to e107's body and used the rope he had prepared in advance, along with the straps outside e107's straitjacket… to firmly secure this headless, footless body to the trolley.

Then, Brother Jue adjusted his breathing, gripped the handle, and pushed the trolley at top speed, rushing into the corridor…