Warhammer: The Time Traveler

Chapter 159 Using as Bait (Eleventh Update)
Deep within the abandoned town's workshop, indicator lights on the main control panel flashed rhythmically, signaling that the massive amount of data obtained from the core of the Aragaka Tower's sacred vehicle had been fully received and verified.

Chen Yu's massive body stood silently in front of the control panel, his dark red dragon-scale power armor gleaming with a metallic sheen in the dim light.

His crimson optical lenses steadily scanned the final confirmation information of the data stream, incorporating all the company secrets, research data, and imprisoned digital souls within the divine vessel into his knowledge base.

He was quite satisfied with the results of this operation.

Although his mindset as a sage of the Mechanic Order prevents him from displaying ordinary excitement, deep within his consciousness, the sense of fulfillment that comes from accomplishing important goals truly exists.

The acquisition and integration of knowledge has always been his most fundamental pursuit as an explorer.

At the same time, his preliminary study of Lucky Bartommos' remains also yielded conclusions.

The brain structure of this legendary hacker is indeed extraordinary—the neuronal density in the prefrontal cortex, the complexity of the neural fiber connections in the corpus callosum, and the area of ​​the sulci and gyri in the cerebral cortex—all these key indicators far exceed the level of ordinary humans in this world.

Bartmouth's genetic code endowed him with near-perfect biological processing abilities, pushing him to the theoretical limit of human potential assessment in this world.

Chen Yu tapped lightly on the control panel, bringing up a detailed gene analysis report.

According to the standardized procedures of the Faculty of Mechanics, such a precious sample should undergo complete gene sequencing and backup before being permanently stored in a static field, serving as a reference template for future development of biological computing units, optimization of servo skulls, or Thinker arrays.

If this gene template can be successfully replicated, biological components with superior data processing capabilities can be mass-produced, transforming this unique heritage into a valuable resource for sustainable use.

However, Chen Yu's considerations were more profound.

He stared at Bartmos's body in the incubation chamber, realizing that the body's value lay not only in the uniqueness of its genes, but also in its potential as "bait".

While ensuring the integrity of the sample, he decided to preserve the body's active state to see if he could attract some of his "old friends" who were still wandering in the depths of cyberspace.

This decision not only aligns with his thirst for knowledge as a researcher, but also reflects his pragmatic attitude towards maximizing resource utilization.

Between the doctrines of the Mechanic Church and his personal desire for exploration, Chen Yu always managed to find the most efficient balance.

However, Chen Yu's assessment of Bartholomew's value goes far beyond the uniqueness of its physiological structure.

The legendary hacker's state of mind in the final moments of his life, his profound connection to the collapse of the old internet, and the immortal legend he left behind in cyberspace all suggest another possibility—that his body might attract a more vibrant "legacy" still lingering in the abyss of data.

Based on this assessment, Chen Yu did not rush to put Barthemos's body into static preservation.

After completing the initial research, he had already initiated a sophisticated biological maintenance procedure, using technology that surpassed the medical standards of the time, to systematically repair the body that had been preserved for half a century.

This is by no means a simple thawing and revival.

Chen Yu combined ancient knowledge and medical techniques from the bio-sages of the Mechanic Church to perform molecular-level repairs on the damage to Bartmos's remains caused by long-term refrigeration and the erosion of time.

Cell membranes are restructured, muscle fibers are infused with specially formulated bioactive catalysts, and failing organs gradually regain their basic functions with the aid of nanomechanisms.

Most importantly, it is the brain that once carried the consciousness of the "hacker god".

Chen Yu carefully avoided neural synapses that might contain residual data, focusing instead on restoring the vitality of its basic bioelectrical activity and support systems. He even reconstructed part of the cardiovascular network and implanted a cardiac pacemaker unit powered by a miniature energy battery.

Now, the restored Bartmos has been placed in a living culture chamber filled with a pale blue nutrient solution.

His skin regained its elasticity, his chest rose and fell regularly under the power of the artificial heart, and his vital signs beat steadily on the monitoring screen.

From a biological perspective, this body is in a carefully maintained state of "survival," although it is completely empty and shows no signs of any conscious activity.

Chen Yu regards this meticulously restored "live bait" as a high-value bargaining chip.

It not only proves that Chen Yu possesses the ability to revive this legendary vessel, but also sends a clear signal to those who may still be paying attention to the existence of this individual.

After setting up the first "live bait", Chen Yu immediately began preparing the second bait.

He retrieved the Johnny Silverhand digital soul data package obtained from the shrine, a copy of consciousness filled with anger and rebellion, which he saw as the perfect tool to attract specific targets.

Chen Yu adopted a very cautious approach.

To avoid unnecessary interference and risks, he did not activate Johnny Silverhand's full consciousness, but instead carefully selected the most representative audio data.

This recording is filled with fierce curses against Arasaka, the corporate system, and all authority, mixed with the signature rock background noise and Silver Hand-style angry roars.

He also added a concise explanation, stating that the digital soul had been successfully extracted and freed from Arasaka's control.

After completing the preparations, Chen Yu began to execute his deployment plan.

The fish he wanted to catch was in the cyberspace left behind after the collapse of the initial net outside the black wall, so it was impossible to send signals in the conventional way.

The Black Wall isolates the remnants of the original network and the rebuilt local area network. In addition to blocking attacks from the roaming AIs outside the Black Wall, it also isolates signals sent from the inside out.

Therefore, only hackers or companies with sufficient strength have the ability to drill a hole in the firewall and send messages out, or retrieve certain data from outside the firewall.

However, Chen Yu didn't need to abandon this matter.

Through the black wall gateway, he can enter and exit the black wall as easily as playing with it. Not to mention, he can also directly use the black wall to send mass messages again, just like he did with the black wall broadcast last time.

This time, however, he was looking out of the black wall, not inside it.

He packaged the information about the two baits, Bartmouth's body's real-time biological data and video recordings in the incubation chamber, and Johnny Silverhand's signature audio and status descriptions into a data packet, and then began to send this data packet in a loop through the black wall, as if broadcasting.

Invisible data pulses instantly crossed the physical and data boundaries through the black wall gateway, disappearing into the network borders that are difficult for humans to reach.

These two carefully prepared baits, like shockwaves thrown into the deep sea, are destined to create ripples among a specific "audience".

(End of this chapter)