The night before the promotion

Chapter 95 Supersensory Experience
Zhou Si arrived at the Dream Pool of the Stone Fortress as quickly as possible. When he pushed the door open, the place had become a mess.

Medical staff came and went, carrying on stretchers operators who had already fainted. Their eyes were empty, their bodies were twitching constantly, and some had foam at the corners of their mouths, as if they were in shock from poisoning.

The catalyst virus broke through the high walls and large systems that protected human consciousness. Under information overload, the untrained consciousness was torn into pieces by the torrent.

Zhou Si watched all this silently. Based on his experience, even if these operators recovered later, they would no longer be suitable for the job of driving armed avatars, and some of them even had incurable mental illnesses.

Thankfully, when the information overload occurred, most operators disconnected from the armed avatars in time and did not continue.

If they rely on their own will to forcibly maintain the connection between consciousness and thoughts, there is a high probability that they will suffer irreparable damage to their mental will, just like Li Weiyu's fiancée Shi Tong, such as intellectual impairment, or become a vegetable or a breathing corpse.

"I'm already at the Dream Pool, and I need a suitable armed avatar," Zhou Si added, pressing the headset, "I mean... the most powerful one."

"Oh? Is that Zhou Si, Doctor Zhou?"

A strange voice appeared in the channel. Just when Zhou Si was feeling a little confused, Dong Yuan's voice interrupted him.

"This is the person in charge of Stone Castle."

Zhou Si nodded to the air, "Oh, he is the person in charge, that makes things much easier."

"There is indeed one most powerful armed incarnation in the stone fortress at present," the person in charge said worriedly, "but it has been sealed away for a long time. The reason is very simple. The load of operating it is very heavy. No one is willing to use it during normal duty."

"It is known that the other party has the ability to bypass the high wall and large system and overload the operator's brain with information. In addition, the load capacity of this weapon, are you sure you can do it, Doctor Zhou?"

Should I say he is worthy of being the person in charge? Even though Huo Daochuan and the others were almost reaching the bottom of the stone fort without any hindrance, he was still analyzing the pros and cons slowly.

Zhou Si asked back, "Are you worried about my personal safety?"

"No," the person in charge rejected it bluntly, "I just took a quick look at your resume. It's perfect, amazing."

"You have extraordinary willpower, right?"

"Yes," Zhou Si affirmed, "So I think only I can complete this task."

"But this also means that once you are in a desperate situation... I mean the collapse of information overload, you are unlikely to just lose consciousness and become paralyzed like other operators. You are very likely to go crazy and even attack anyone and anything indiscriminately."

The person in charge's serious voice was filled with worry. "To be honest, I'm not worried about your life or death, but I'm afraid that you will collapse further, which in turn will bring about an even more terrible disaster."

"It's okay. I'm not in the iron body. I'm just lying quietly in the dream pool. You can forcibly disconnect me at any time and drag me out of the dream pool, or just shoot me. There's nothing to worry about."

Listening to Zhou Si's extremely indifferent speech, the voices in the channel were quiet for a few seconds, and then the person in charge sighed.

"Then do it, Dr. Zhou. I will find a way to pave the way for you."

"Ah."

Zhou Si responded coldly and stood in front of the dream pool.

The Dream Pool in Stone Fort is shaped like a capsule, but also like a mother’s womb, a newly conceived embryo.

As long as Zhou Si lay down in it, after a moment, he would wake up in another steel body, just like the abnormal development of a living organism, completely distorting his self into a completely alienated existence.

A dull pain came from my mind, like a knife cutting a guitar string, making a harsh sound.

"Is this what is called fate?" Zhou Si murmured, "I have been running away for so long, but fate will eventually pull me back on track. I can't resist it."

"Are you scared?"

Ruan Linrui's voice sounded in the headphones. She was also in the channel, but had remained silent before.

"I do not know."

Zhou Si shook his head blankly, carefully experiencing everything in his heart, and concluded, "My emotions are very complicated, and I even feel a little happy, but I can be sure that there is no so-called fear."

"it is good……"

Ruan Linrui's voice was a little hesitant. She must have wanted to ask Zhou Si something else, such as the inexplicable words "I don't want you to die" that Zhou Si said when they just parted.

But Ruan Linrui knew that this was not a good time to get to the bottom of the matter, even though her heart was extremely eager to know the answer.

"See you soon."

Zhou Si said as he lay down. The soft material around him felt very comfortable, much better than those hard iron frames.

The medical staff and workers nearby also received news from the person in charge. Although they didn't know who Zhou Si was, they still cooperated and assisted Zhou Si when the enemy attacked.

The neural connector on Zhou Si's head slowly descended, pressing against his brain. Along with the humming sound of the motor, it was as if several iron nails pierced through Zhou Si's skull, fixing his head firmly in place.

Different types of avatar bodies require completely different neural connection systems. When Zhou Si operates the Bt-24, he only needs a few simple commands, but when controlling the armed avatar, Zhou Si needs to immerse himself more fully.

Closing his eyes, Zhou Si let the darkness envelop him, and a strange feeling of drowsiness arose spontaneously.

It was a hazy feeling mixed with strangeness and familiarity, like a lost soul returning to a familiar body after a long absence, but this body was no longer the familiar one it once was. Its interior was covered with thorns, and the tighter the connection, the more it would prick your nerves and cut your wounds.

"You will be using an experimental armed avatar named 'Sword Dancer'. It comes from Shenwei Technology and uses the latest generation of telepathic network protocol. It is classified as a fifth-generation avatar shell."

The person in charge's voice echoed in Zhou Si's mind with a strange sense of reverberation, like an ethereal whisper coming from the horizon.

“It has extremely strong mobility and armor-piercing capabilities, but due to its outstanding performance, many operators’ consciousness cannot keep up with the speed of mechanical response, so it has been shelved for some time.

I hope it helps you, Dr. Zhou.”

The sound stopped, and Zhou Si wandered aimlessly in the long darkness, thinking.

Consciousness can't keep up with the speed of mechanical response? This sounds a bit strange, but Zhou Si can understand it. It's like a drunk driving a speeding sports car. He has seen the obstacle in front of him, but his slow consciousness still doesn't have time to react... No, even if he is conscious, he can't avoid it, because the sports car is too fast, so fast that it exceeds the speed of nerve reaction, so fast that it changes in an instant.

This is a manifestation of information overload and sensory imbalance. Fortunately, Zhou Si has received mental training. Even in the face of obstacles, he still has a sense of destiny.

Zhou Si did not dwell on this matter for too long, but remained calm, enjoying and feeling it.

Until a dazzling light appeared in the darkness.

Zhou Si opened his eyes, and at the moment he opened his eyes, the supersensory experience that was almost completely forgotten by Zhou Si came upon him, and distorted and contradictory senses came over him completely.

His body seemed as heavy as a thousand tons, but he moved as light as the wind. All kinds of chaotic "sounds" echoed in his mind. They were the echoes of various electromagnetic bands in space.

Zhou Si blinked hard, trying to see everything around him clearly... To be precise, Zhou Si did not blink, but the thoughts in his mind were translated and converted by the mind recognition system and reflected on the actions of the armed incarnation.

The excellent visual system clearly imprinted the surrounding images into Zhou Si's mind. It can even be said that as long as he had the idea of ​​"gaze", the image would be cropped and enlarged, so detailed that even the scratches on the metal surface were clearly visible.

He blinked again, and the screen switched information. Countless floating labels were located above various objects. The auxiliary system analyzed the identity and threat level of the target, and even intelligently warned Zhou Si of possible dangers and the direction from which the danger would come.

Zhou Si did not enjoy this superhuman sensory experience for long. After taking about thirty seconds to adapt to it all, waves of sharp pain spread deep in Zhou Si's mind.

Zhou Si is a patient with severe cognitive impairment. Previously, he had controlled his condition very well, but with the outbreak of this series of events, Zhou Si's consciousness had already been shaky, not to mention that he had to control this advanced sword dancer armed incarnation in this state.

In an instant, intense feelings of fatigue and pain filled Zhou Si's mind, but Zhou Si still remained absolutely sober and forced himself to act.

So, in the dim cabin, the half-kneeling sword dancer slowly stood up. It had been sealed in the dust for too long, and the surface of the black armor was covered with dust, with an indescribable sense of vicissitudes.

The sword dancer's appearance is similar to that of a human, and its height is about two meters and five. Among all the armed incarnations, its size is far from being tall, and the external equipment it carries is also pitifully small.

The Sword Dancer's main weapon configuration is all melee armor-piercing type, and the auxiliary equipment also tends to be highly mobile. In addition to this, there are a small number of projectile weapons, which is far from being fully armed.

After reviewing it, Zhou Si found a familiar name in the pitifully small list of weapons. Zhou Si repeated the familiar word and swung his arm. A narrow blade flashing with arcs of electricity stabbed out... This was no longer a narrow blade. Compared with the size of the Sword Dancer, this Shattering Sword could be called a giant sword.

"Doctor Zhou, the map has been loaded and we have marked the target location."

The person in charge's voice sounded again. At the same time, a 3D map was projected into Zhou Si's field of vision. The complex structure of the stone fortress was clearly visible, and in this three-dimensional maze, four targets flashing red light were moving quickly.

"okay, I get it."

The sword dancer's feet flipped out of the tires, as if he was stepping on two large balance bikes. The heavily armed incarnation moved at high speed and advanced along the wide corridor.

In today's era, the design of buildings is no longer just to satisfy human peers, but also to serve many tall incarnation bodies, so most areas in the stone fortress have enough space for armed incarnations to move forward.

Zhou Si stared with his eyes wide open, trying to suppress the imagined dryness and fatigue in his mind, while observing the map at high speed.

"Zhou Si, your physiological index has fluctuated."

Ruan Linrui's concerned voice was heard in the channel. At this moment, she was chasing the enemy's real body in the online world, while saving her energy to observe Zhou Si's physiological indexes.

"It's nothing, it's just that I haven't controlled the armed avatar for too long," Zhou Si comforted again, "It's a normal reaction."

"Doctor Zhou, you are getting closer and closer to your goal. Be prepared for interference."

Li Weiyun interrupted the conversation. While Ruan Linrui was paying attention to Zhou Si's physiological indexes, he was paying attention to the ever-changing three-dimensional maze.

"I know...I'm ready."

Zhou Si rushed into the interference range without hesitation. On the 3D map, the blue beacon representing Zhou Si almost overlapped with the red beacon.

In an instant, Zhou Si felt that he had stepped into a chaotic and noisy environment. The high walls of his consciousness that protected his self collapsed one by one, and he let the flood of information wash over his mind.

It washed over and over, filling Zhou Si's brain with endless useless information until it wiped out all memories, personality, self, logic, and everything else that could make up a person's thinking.

Zhou Si's progress gradually slowed down. He was clearly walking in an empty courtyard, but he seemed to be stuck in a quagmire. All his sensory systems were out of control and crazy, and all the commands released from Zhou Si's brain were confined to a narrow space.

Until Zhou Si stopped completely, half-kneeling on the ground, like a petrified sculpture.

"Zhou Si! Zhou Si!"

Ruan Linrui was shouting in the channel, but her voice could not reach Zhou Si's ears and was drowned out by the endless noise.

A moment later, John was the first to walk through the corridor and appeared in the courtyard. As a patient with cognitive impairment, he was also suffering from the interference of the catalyst virus.

It can be said that even if Ruan Linrui did not locate their real position in the online world in time, John and others' brains would be roasted into a ball of smelly charcoal as time went by.

From the beginning they had never intended to leave alive, in every sense of the word.

"Oh? There's another armed avatar here," John noticed the fallen sword dancer, "It's a model I've never seen before."

"Never mind it, time is running out," von Neumann warned. "I'm already seeing hallucinations, and who knows how long I can maintain my sanity."

"Okay, got it..."

John had just said half of his response when suddenly, he saw a sword blade flashing with arcs of electricity piercing out of his chest, and then it was pulled to one side suddenly, splitting his chest completely.

Iron filings and sparks flew.

John's perspective fell to the ground, and then he saw only half of his armed avatar left, and the sword dancer leaping like a tiger.

It drew its deadly shattering sword and pounced on von Neumann.

(End of this chapter)