Chapter 44

Success makes kings, failure makes criminals—Ye Nan had always adhered to this belief, thinking that the defeated have no right to argue.

Like Qin Shi Huang, like Tang Taizong, even Zhu Yuanzhang—countless lives perished under their hands; as the saying goes, killing one is a crime, slaughtering ten thousand makes you a hero; slaughter nine million, and you become the supreme hero.

In the pursuit of power, someone must always sacrifice; if you don’t want to sacrifice, then work harder, climb over others to rise—after all, every path is paved with bones, differing only in quantity.

Take nuclear energy, for example: the Little Boy atomic bomb destroyed Japan, and Ye Nan rejoiced, wishing he could drop two more—but when the Rexue faded, he couldn’t help but reflect: is it truly good for nuclear weapons to exist in this world?

It’s like the Sword of Damocles hanging over all humanity, ready to explode at any moment and kill everyone—but why does it still exist?

People have many reasons, but ultimately they all boil down to power: the atomic bomb is power, a deterrent. No matter how many crimes it has committed or how many lives were lost in its development, no one is willing to abandon it.

So when Ye Nan watched Dr. Ma Xiu conduct experiments on living humans and saw the hatred in the faces of those transformed into monsters, he felt not the slightest urge to quit—perhaps he had once considered it, but he quickly discarded the thought.

To Dr. Ma Xiu, Ye Nan was never the only partner; yet Ye Nan needed Ma Xiu’s power. Between them, there was never equality—if Ye Nan walked away, Ma Xiu could simply find someone else, and the sins wouldn’t decrease. So Ye Nan would not let go.

“Dr. Ma Xiu, I’ve seen what you showed me. I’m not satisfied—but I’ve brought you two things.” Ye Nan opened the box in his hands and pulled out a motherboard. “This is the motherboard of the Flame Empress—an artificial intelligence program.”

“Artificial intelligence!” Dr. Ma Xiu’s expression flickered slightly. Though he was merely a biologist, he understood AI well. Given the current technological displays of all nations, AI still existed only in fantasy—yet Ye Nan had produced it, leaving him stunned.

But he knew well: the power displayed by nations was never the true technology. Take cloning: on the surface, cloning technology seemed immature, but in reality, it had long been widely applied and modified.

Just like him—he extracted Godzilla Jr.’s cells and injected them into humans, triggering bodily mutations, while simultaneously replicating Godzilla Jr.’s cells so experiments could continue even after separation from the original.

Ma Xiu pressed a button beside him, and immediately a man in black special forces gear entered. Ma Xiu ordered, “Install this motherboard into the central host.”

“Yes.” The man responded without asking a single question, picked up the motherboard, and turned to leave.

“A fine man—strong character,” Ye Nan remarked, watching his every movement with clean, efficient precision.

Soldiers must be masculine, formidable, and commanding—every step must radiate power, instilling a sense of security. Ye Nan greatly admired him.

“His name is Ham. He’s a member of the U.S. Marine Corps, assigned to me by the U.S. government,” Ma Xiu said calmly, neither pleased nor angry.

Ye Nan’s face stiffened, darkening instantly. Though this research facility was built by Ma Xiu, Ye Nan had invested considerable effort himself, and Godzilla Jr. had always been housed here under his care—he’d always assumed it was secure. Yet now he discovered an agent of the U.S. government was here…

“Normal. No need to be angry,” Ma Xiu smiled as he saw Ye Nan’s expression. “Every major research facility is monitored by the U.S. government. No one escapes. But their security personnel are indeed formidable. As for data leaks—the Lianbangzheng Prefecture wouldn’t be so crude. Even if they tried to steal, they wouldn’t get anything real. The mix of true and false data is a nightmare.”

As Ma Xiu spoke, a sly glint flashed in his eyes—he had multiple copies of the research data, all carefully placed by himself. Only one was real; the rest were fakes. Only someone deeply familiar with the research process and fluent in technical terminology could tell which was which.

If they truly stole one, Ma Xiu could guarantee the Lianbangzheng Prefecture’s fools would cause themselves a massive mess.

“System connecting… Permission transfer… Ownership protocol initiating… Primary owner—Ye Nan… Authorized user… Dr. Ma Xiu… System acquiring highest permissions… Success… Complete.”

A cold voice echoed, and suddenly a girl-like figure appeared on the nearby computer screen. “I am the Flame Empress.”

“Flame Empress, how is control over the entire base?” Ye Nan asked.

The Flame Empress was a copy of the AI Angela, also known as Simila—stripped of emotion, equivalent to a subprogram of Simila. Ye Nan called her the Flame Empress.

“All base permissions have been fully transferred,” the Flame Empress replied coldly. As a subprogram of Simila, Ye Nan had been her master since her creation—a core program embedded beyond alteration by anyone.

Hearing this, Ye Nan was overjoyed. He had poured much effort into this base, yet always felt excluded, uneasy. Now, with the Flame Empress in full command, he could safely venture out on adventures.

Ye Nan suddenly remembered he still had something else to give Dr. Ma Xiu. “By the way, Doctor, this is my second gift to you.”

Ye Nan pulled a syringe from his bag. Inside was a full vial of blue liquid, glowing faintly—beautiful beyond words.

“This is the T-virus, developed by Umbrella Corporation. When injected into a human, it reduces cellular activity but eliminates pain sensitivity and grants immortality.”

“But it has a major flaw: infection and immortality. Those injected become immortal but lose their will. Moreover, it spreads through air, liquids, and physical contact—extremely dangerous. Please take care, Dr. Ma Xiu.”

“Also, this is Dr. Axi’s research findings, detailing applications and future prospects of the T-virus. I hope you’ll keep it well.”