Chapter 311 Hera's Request
Dark Star Base No. 2, how come it has become so large?
Yang Ming stood on the bridge of the Dongfeng, looking at the metal buildings spread out on the ground below, which looked like moss attached to a stone surface, and couldn't help but turn his head to look at Lu.
"Are all the newly added buildings your mastermind?"
"Yes, boss," Lu smiled gently, "You promised me that I could use 80% of the previous profits to expand my hardware. I did everything according to your requirements."
Yang Ming crossed his arms and smiled, "Is the pressure so great?"
"What pressure?"
"Your senior gave it to you," Yang Ming said with a smile, "As expected, pressure can make people mature quickly. You have become more and more mature recently."
Lu rolled his eyes, followed Yang Ming's example and crossed his arms, saying calmly:
“I didn’t feel any pressure.
“On the contrary, it is you, the boss, whose strength as a companion mechanical thinking body is closely related to the amount of resources controlled by the host.
"I have the advantage of technological advancement and latecomer advantages. The gap between me and that senior is much smaller than the gap between you, boss, and Levi Sherman."
There were several black lines on Yang Ming's forehead.
That guy is a 'historical figure' from tens of thousands of years ago.
If they were in the same era, he might not necessarily lose!
Of course, this is not certain.
"I'll go arrange the welcoming ceremony and maintain my father's dignity," Lu disappeared in a flash.
Yang Ming: …
She was still angry.
Yang Ming yawned and looked at the ground outside the window which was getting closer and closer. The outlines and structures of the newly added buildings became clearer and clearer. The metal buildings were empty everywhere, with only some robots operating independently.
The Dark Star Base No. 2 is located in the central position of the Luofeng Empire's territory. Currently, twelve information highways have been built, which can radiate to the entire Luofeng territory through the Dark Star Base No. 2.
Later, Luo Feng only needs to formally establish an alliance with the surrounding small countries and sign an information exchange agreement. Lu will be able to instantly control all the network resources of those small countries and complete the expansion of Yang Ming's power.
But then again…
Lu's mood seems to have been not very good.
Yang Ming intuitively felt that Lu seemed to be under some kind of tremendous pressure, a pressure that was difficult to explain.
Someone gently pulled his trouser leg, Yang Ming put away the thought and looked down.
A cute little girl was staring at him with a pair of clear, bright eyes and said crisply, "Hold me."
Yang Ming lowered his head and picked up the little Po Suo, smiling and said, "Are you bored? Have you played all the games on the ship?"
"Not yet," Posa looked out the window, "Is this your base?"
"one."
Yang Ming said slowly: "This is also the foundation of my existence. I will continue to work hard outside, and the resources I obtain will be used to fill in here. When it develops to a certain stage, it will be able to feed back to me."
Posha asked, "Are you doing all this in order to become the emperor of mankind?"
"No, you should understand me," Yang Ming said with a smile, "I have my own goals. Of course, if becoming someone like Levi Sherman can help me achieve my goals better, I will not deliberately suppress my ambition and desire for power."
Posa nodded thoughtfully and whispered, "These are all meaningless."
"Why?"
"Once you obtain the Ancient God Cell Cluster, you will have a ticket to enter a higher-dimensional civilization. The next step is to accumulate energy, improve yourself, and perfect your genes."
Po Suo reminded:
“You should put all your energy into these areas.
"I don't need to do anything now, because you are here to help me. When you obtain genes of the same level as mine, I can attach myself to you and complete the energy leap."
Yang Ming smiled and said, "You have made a good plan."
“So, it’s an investment.”
The little woman suddenly nodded forward, and her forehead lightly touched Yang Ming's forehead.
A warm force spread across Yang Ming's forehead, and the cells in his body seemed to have experienced a short but refreshing bath.
Yang Ming was stunned for a moment, and wondered: "You gave me energy again?"
"The improvement of your own energy is still too slow due to the limitation of genes. When the creatures I control can surpass you, I will not be able to resist attacking you."
The little woman struggled for a few times, and Yang Ming loosened her legs. She jumped to the ground nimbly and waved at Yang Ming.
"I'm going to play and get the cell group early."
Yang Ming was a little stunned as he looked at the little guy's back as he ran away happily.
Wow, she is her own investor now?
He wouldn't mind taking out more loans.
Outside the porthole, the ground slowly cracked open, as if a giant beast from the abyss had opened its mouth.
"Boss, we are about to enter Maintenance Dock No. 6. Miss Hera is waiting for you in your exclusive lounge. We have conducted detailed tests and her physical data has not changed. We have activated the planet-wide biological shielding equipment."
"Yeah," Yang Ming nodded, feeling inexplicably uneasy.
The worst situation should never happen.
…
Yang Ming's exclusive lounge stands out for two things: comfort and luxury.
The inverted pyramid metal frame embedded a thousand meters underground resists the squeezing pressure from all directions. A panoramic simulation system is deployed inside to construct a simulated town with a living area of more than 200,000 square meters.
This is the 'lounge'.
The huge room with four transparent walls is surrounded by lush green plants and enjoys the illumination of starlight brought down from the ground using super-sensitive optical fibers.
When Yang Ming walked out of the elevator, the first thing he saw was a thin figure standing in the corner of the floor-to-ceiling window.
Hera.
He felt an inexplicable surge of heat in his heart.
026 followed Yang Ming with little Po Su in his arms, and looked curiously in the direction of Hera. He subconsciously held a finger in his mouth and muttered softly:
“It looks delicious.”
The corner of Yang Ming's mouth twitched slightly.
But it seems that there is no danger lurking in Hera.
The shuttle bus took them directly to the entrance of the room. Yang Ming gestured to 026 to take Po Su for a stroll, and he pushed open the door and walked in.
Hera had turned around, her big eyes were like a calm lake, and as Yang Ming called, the lake began to ripple slightly.
"You're back?"
Yang Ming sighed and opened his arms.
Hera wanted to remain reserved and took a few slow steps forward, but she ultimately failed to suppress the impulse in her heart. She rushed towards Yang Ming, bit her lip and jumped into his arms. She hooked her slender legs around his waist and lowered her head for a kiss.
Yang Ming gave her a warm response.
If Yang Ming had not turned his head and seen 026 and Posa staring at the room with wide eyes at the corner of the glass room, he would definitely not have slammed on the brakes.
Yang Ming temporarily pushed Hera away, the latter was already breathing rapidly.
026 quickly covered her big eyes and turned to run to a room a little further away.
"So, your child?"
Hera asked with a frown, then realized that it was too indecent for her to hang on Yang Ming, so she lowered her head and jumped down.
"She," Yang Ming sighed, "In a sense, I am her child, but only part of her genes... She is the Valkyrie."
"I heard Lu talk about it."
Hera's face showed realization, then she squinted her eyes and looked at Yang Ming, then reached out and hooked her hands around Yang Ming's neck.
"Can't this be made opaque?"
"Of course," Yang Ming snapped his fingers.
In the thinking space, Lu muttered "Galaxy Prodigal Son", "Playboy", "This is human beings", and changed the glass room to full block mode.
Half a day later.
Yang Ming and Hera lay on the cushions in the swimming pool, with a bath towel draped over their bodies.
Hera yawned tiredly and whispered, "You don't have any female companions recently?"
"Yes...why do you ask?"
"I'm almost exhausted," Hera muttered, "Although I'm an adult woman with normal physiological needs, your physical strength is a little too good."
Yang Ming didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "Aren't you the one who insisted on going crazy?"
"Pah, I'm a lady."
Hera turned sideways, supporting her cheek, her wet hair sticking to her face, and her eyes were filled with deep attachment.
"Ming, I missed you."
"Me too," Yang Ming sighed, looking at the starry sky projected on the ceiling, and whispered, "Don't leave now that you're back."
"I have to go back later. My research work is not yet completed."
Hera bit her lip lightly, then simply lay back down, and reached out with her right hand to hold Yang Ming's left hand.
She whispered, "I'm sorry, I lost my mind last time because of my father's death."
"I understand."
"Aren't you going to ask me why I came back?"
Yang Ming smiled and said, "You need money, ships, equipment, and robots. Don't worry, I will prepare them all for you. It's because I was poisoned by you."
"No, it's not that. For my current research, the instruments that humans have at this stage are no longer useful," Hera groaned for a few seconds, "Let me first report my current research direction, Boss."
Yang Ming cleared his throat and said, "Go ahead."
"I have been in continuous communication with the queen. Last time, before the queen led a swarm of tens of billions of insects to invade the New Federation, she tried to devour my consciousness."
"Devouring consciousness?"
Yang Ming immediately sat up and looked at Hera with a frown.
Hera hurriedly said: "Don't worry, I am still Hera, human Hera. The queen chose to give up at the last moment."
Hera sighed softly and began to recount her experience at that time.
At that time, she rejected the Queen's conditions, and an abyss of consciousness appeared before her eyes, which swallowed her up.
“Different species have different perceptions of the universe and different interpretations of the concept of death.
“At that time, the Queen wanted to assimilate my consciousness and make me an inconspicuous part of her huge consciousness, but she soon discovered that I was still a human being.
"The Queen has determined that if my consciousness is assimilated, her huge consciousness will become diseased, similar to being affected by human cognition.
"Of course, the Zerg's understanding of the universe and space is closer to the essence. They are not afraid of human culture and civilization. What they are worried about is..."
"What is it?" Yang Ming asked.
Hera said: "Human pleasure."
"What the hell?" Yang Ming's expression was full of confusion.
Hera laughed and said softly, "Space Zerg are high-dimensional creatures. The first-order Zerg to the sixth-order Zerg are all the larval stages of the Zerg. What must be said here is that the only individual recognized by the Zerg is the queen itself."
Yang Ming said: "I have understood all of this."
"What is pleasure?"
Hera asked herself and answered:
“Pleasure is a relatively primitive self-reward mechanism for low-dimensional cosmic creatures, such as us humans, based on the body’s hormone secretion and neuronal circuit structure.
“To simplify the rules of biological evolution, when an organism completes a behavior that is beneficial to survival, in order to remember this behavior, the brain will form a pleasure circuit, driving itself to repeat it.
"For example, the happiness brought by continuous positive interactions for reproduction, the satisfaction of getting food after being hungry, the sense of relaxation gained by letting oneself rest after being extremely tired, and the pleasure of realizing a dream that one has been thinking about day and night can also bring pleasure.
“Pleasure is the reward mechanism that the body produces when desire is satisfied.
"So, not completing these behaviors and directly stimulating the brain to produce biological signals to gain pleasure is essentially the self-degradation of the individual life."
Yang Ming nodded: "You mean, the Zerg don't have a pleasure mechanism?"
Hera's eyes lit up: "Yes, the mother insect eggs exist in low dimensions, and the adult state of the mother insect exists in high dimensions. In the high-dimensional world, reproduction has lost its meaning, and they have abandoned the pleasure mechanism in their evolution.
“I observed the mating process of male and female insects under extremely limited conditions, but of course it was not the giant sixth-order female insect.
"That's just a behavioral stimulus, allowing the queen to gain more biological energy and produce more 'self-protective' pseudo-insect swarms. They don't feel pleasure, and they are afraid of pleasure.
"Excessive satisfaction of pleasure will have a counterproductive effect and will also lead to diminishing marginal utility.
"Insects without desires have no weaknesses, but as long as we give them pleasure circuits, they will have weaknesses."
Yang Ming: …
"No, can you deal with the swarm by studying this topic?"
"Not yet."
Hera sat up and licked her lips gently:
"But I wonder what would happen if the bugs in the galaxy today could understand what pleasure is, especially the queen who is about to ascend to a higher dimension, and let her bring the pleasure mechanism to the higher dimension world? This would definitely be very interesting!"
Yang Ming scratched his head.
Hera put away her smile and said seriously:
"Ming, my current research direction has nothing to do with protecting humans.
"Honestly, I'm numb to this topic. I've done everything I could, and I don't owe the human race anything.
"As for the New Federation, I no longer have any sense of belonging to this country. Refusing to become an emissary of the Zerg and destroying them is all I can do.
"Now, I live for only two things - to improve humanity's understanding of the Zerg and to satisfy my own thirst for knowledge."
Yang Ming pointed at himself.
"You are my lover," Hera immediately added, "You are a part of my life, this is different, and because you fund my research, I will share , so that you can gain an advantage when facing the Zerg."
Yang Ming couldn't help rubbing his eyebrows.
The good news is: Hera has made the adjustment and she is back to those two years of happiness.
The bad news is: Hera has independently completed the change in self-cognition and has recklessly embarked on the path of a paranoid scientist.
"I'm a little worried about your mental state," Yang Ming said in a deep voice.
"I'm fine, Ming." Hera turned around and jumped into the pool, spinning her body a few times. "I feel great now. You don't have to worry about me at all."
Yang Ming stared at her beautiful body and reminded her, "We have known each other for several years, and your skin condition is getting better and better. This is actually the effect of those microorganisms."
"This is nothing to me, but it can be considered a reward for you?"
Hera laughed softly, swam to Yang Ming's side, raised her hand and stroked Yang Ming's chin.
She said softly, "I am not a qualified lover. Most of my future actions will be for scientific research. But Ming, I love you."
Yang Ming smiled and said, "So, what do you want me to do now?"
Hera blinked and whispered:
"I have a crazy plan that may require your cooperation...
"How about we travel to the New Federation? We can go to the vicinity of Ram Planet, or to the vicinity of the Zerg forces in the Milky Way, but this is quite risky.
"I want to restore our lives of those two years without any biological shielding devices, but I will not spend my time working every day, but spending it with you.
"I want to continuously generate pleasure, and transmit this pleasure to the galaxy's insect swarm through the network of information exchange between individual queen insects.
"The last time the Queen sent people to attack us, it was not because she felt humiliated. The Zerg do not have as complex social cognition as humans. It was because the interaction between us stimulated the Queen. She is on the verge of ascending to a higher dimension and cannot withstand this part of the stimulation.
"Our most advantageous weapon against the Zerg is not our ships, but our raw bodies."
Yang Ming was a little bit incredulous: "Is that all?"
"Yes! This is it!" Hera's facial capillaries were slightly congested. "Is it okay?"
"I'm just quite busy and don't have much time," Yang Ming thought carefully, "Will this stimulate the Zerg to engage in a direct battle with human civilization?"
Hera said: "It's possible, but if the experiment is successful, it might be able to change the Zerg... Believe me, the human civilization in the Milky Way has enough chances of winning against the Zerg here!"
Yang Ming pondered for a few seconds and continued to consider.
He could contribute to human civilization just by doing this or that with Hera, and he would definitely not refuse. The problem was... this... I always felt like I was being spied on by that big queen...
It would be better to take a long-term view, and he doesn't have that much time now.
"Hera..."
Buzz, buzz!
The watch by the pool suddenly vibrated, and Lu Nan jumped out without any hesitation.
Hera subconsciously covered her chest and squatted into the pool.
"Boss!" Lu looked at Yang Ming with shining eyes, "My main brain on the Dongfeng has just received a huge amount of information! Just like last time! Just like the time when we beat Po Suo!"
Yang Ming cheered up.
Faya!
