The Record of Unusual Creatures

Two red spheres floated on the crystal platform, while red glow surged under their rough, knotted skin. They looked like a pair of weird lava lamps. Some crystal clusters were suspended above the platform and light from the crystal clusters were scanning the electrical signals in the spheres as well as carrying out some harmless, simple stimuli tests.     

Y'zaks looked at the incredibly strange brain with interest—strictly speaking, they were just a part of the brain. "Why did the First Born leave behind the seed and not the brain when it died?"     

"Because the brain is the seed!" The MDT seemed to suddenly discover. It switched on a series of holographic projections, which not only displayed the images of the First Borns in Container No. 1 and No. 2. The holograms also showed the First Born remains they brought out from Y'zaks' hometown, part of the tentacle structure they scanned on the surface of Tannagost, as well as a large number of strange tentacles and living organs. They were simulations of the various forms of the First Born in different stages of growth. "I've surmised the findings of the First Borns, and conducted a simulation of their growth. We can consider the First Born on board the shipwreck an infant, the one on Holletta a youth, and the one on Tannagost an adult. Through the comparison of these three stages, I've made a surprising discovery: perhaps the First Born was only a 'brain nucleus' at the beginning, and as its size increased, it bred other brains in the body. These brains rely on neural networks to form a whole consciousness. That would be the stage that's been scanned in Container No. 1 and No. 2. But after a certain period of development, the First Born splits, whereby the brain nucleus splits and grows into a new body. It could also be that only the brain nucleus left, because the red spheres contain a lot of structures that aren't related to neural activity, and they may develop into embryos. In short, the First Born's brain is the seed, and its reproduction is extremely interesting. It's an extremely advanced life form, but it reproduces by adopting an approach to cell division. Each descendant is a complete copy of its predecessor, from the body to the thoughts, all of which are identical. Only after the neural connection is broken can they develop separately. The sample from Holletta should be in the middle stage of its growth, meaning the old body has divided, and the new body is growing a compound brain. The First Born that withered 200,000 years ago died at a young age. So, there's only one First Born and three brain nuclei atop the wreckage..."     

The more Hao Ren listened, the more surprised he was. He could not help interrupting at this moment. "So, there are three First Borns on Holletta? And they're all results of division?"     

The number of First Borns on Holletta had always been a great concern, because after they came into contact with the First Born in Y'zaks' hometown, Hao Ren discovered that the Seed of Origin would only give birth to one individual. Also, the extremely sophisticated "detector" created by the goddess of creation could not possibly be without the ability to identify another of its own. This meant that theoretically, a compounded Seed of Origin would not land on a planet (it would be a waste). Hence, why were there three First Borns on Holletta?     

Hao Ren always thought that there was a defect in the Seed of Origin. However, that did not seem like it was the case now. The First Born reproduced through division.     

"Then why didn't the First Born on Tannagost divide?" Lily snapped as moved forward. "It's so huge! It's covered the entire planet!"     

"That isn't clear yet," the MDT admitted. "I can only infer its physiological form based on the actual data available. I'm unable to figure out the judgment mechanism behind its actions. Perhaps Tannagost was a special experimental venue, so the First Born chose to continue growing there, or maybe, Holletta was very special, and it led to the First Born there dividing into three. The samples we have on hand are too few. Without comparison, we can't come to a conclusion. "     

"Let's put the First Born's reproductive problem aside for the moment." Vivian suddenly waved. "And let's talk about these two spheres. They could create a projection of Helcrown in the form of a dream?"     

"Calling it a dream is just a metaphor." The MDT shook itself a little. "Maybe it's some kind of neural activity. These two brain nuclei functions are impaired, so they could be severely affected by external stimuli. When Helcrown used one of the brain nuclei as its energy source, a large amount of energy was extracted, but in the process, its 'sensor' also spread throughout the city via Helcrown's power grid. Due to the existence of the city shield, its scan of the city was thorough. Under a certain condition, it began to dream. It dreamed of its 'new body', and the projection of Helcrown appeared. Do you also remember what you saw at the top of the atmosphere? In the illusion, Helcrown looked the way it was before it was brought to Aerym. There was no bridge next to the city. So, it's an afterimage."     

Lily opened her mouth long and wide, marveling as she dipped her ears. "As a novelist, my imagination isn't as good as a brick.... I could never have imagined that!"     

"This isn't my imagination. They're hard facts and reasonable derivation!" the MDT said, pretending it had a big wolf tail. "I've collected the electrical signal patterns of the red spheres and made deductions after comparing them with the neural structure of Sample No. 1 and No. 2."     

Hao Ren scratched his chin in deep thought. He suddenly said, "If this is the brain of the First Born... does it mean that we have the opportunity to talk with a normal First Born?!"     

"I'm trying to make it happen." The MDT beamed its light onto the crystal cluster near the two spheres. "But, all communication methods have failed so far. The brain's response to external signals is very weak and there is little logic. Reading by force will not work: the stability of the brain's nucleus begins to decline after a certain amount of signal stimulation. Perhaps that's why it blew up when Y'lisabet first tested the reactor."     

Hao Ren glanced at Y'lisabet in an odd manner, amazed by the little girl's guts to use the First Born's brain to power the entire of Helcrown for more than half a year! The mere thought of it sent chills down his spine.     

Even Y'zaks had cold sweat trickling down his bare forehead. He patted his daughter on the head and said, "Luckily, nothing happened back then."     

Y'lisabet had no sense of danger of the First Born. She was holding Lil Pea, and both of them just giggled.     

Vivian shook her head helplessly. "There's a reason why they both have the same name—they're both not afraid of death!"     

Lily looked at the two kids, and then at the red spheres again. She sighed regretfully. "These two brains are too badly damaged and there's no way to communicate with them... Can we cure them?"     

"Previous attempts to cultivate the Seed of Origin and the primitive organs have failed. The first creations of the goddess of creation are not ordinary lives. If the goddess' divine information can't be decode, there's no way to artificially cultivate or repair these primitive lives," the MDT said regrettably. "For now, we can only hope that they will slowly self-heal. We can provide them with sufficient external nutrients—such as soaking them in the lifeblood, but other than that, there's nothing much we can do."     

"So, we can only let them sleep?" Vivian hugged herself. "Or, will they dream again? Perhaps their dreams may reveal something."     

Suddenly, Lily lunged forward and carefully patted one of the red spheres. "Sleeping beauty, it's time to wake up!"     

Everyone was stunned speechless.     

"Not working." Lily scuttled back to Hao Ren. "Or, do you want try it yourself?"     

Vivian stepped away, trying to keep her distance from Lily. "Do you think it's alright to do that at all?"     

"Why don't we let Mr. Landlord try and see if he can read the brain's thoughts. Can't he sometimes connect with the consciousness of strange creatures? He used to connect with the gigantic brain." Lily rolled her eyes. "You can't be prejudiced against me simply because I'm a husky."     

The girl had admitted that she was a husky without blinking an eye.     

On the other hand, Hao Ren found Lily's suggestion seemingly plausible, so he stepped forward. "In that case... let's try it out."