Since the start of the experiment. 428’s ‘schedule’ was very full. Of course, 428 did not cooperate with every experiment. Whether the researchers could conduct the experiment depended on 428’s mood.
Most of the experiments would fail if they were forced to carry it out when 428 was unwilling. These researchers did not realize it at the beginning, but later they discovered something was wrong. Before clocking into work, they would pray that this ‘master’ would be in a better mood.
Don’t want to redo the experiment, wuwuwuwu
Because of this, when Dawson came to borrow the slot, a certain took a look at the results of the experiment, and he lent it to him very cheerfully.
“Doctor, you majored in psychology, but 428 is not human. Do you plan to enter the field of non-human psychology? The researcher asked curiously.
Dawson: “Sort of. However, it’s more just to satisfy my curiosity.”
“Can I watch from the side?” The researcher asked in a low voice. “I promise not to disturb you. Or do you need to keep your conversation a secret?”
Dawson hesitated momentarily, but then he felt that there was nothing that other people couldn’t see. He said, “No, it’s not necessary. This is just my personal interest, you can come and have a look if you want to.”
Dawson, a foreigner, followed the researcher into 428’s observation room. At first glance, he spotted the rogue sitting in the corner. Although this time it was for the favor he owed to Xiao Bai, Dawson was actually quite interested in this experimental subject that was said to be becoming more and more human-like.
It was a professional interest. 428 was a mushroom by nature, but with genes from many different species. Would this have a psychological impact on him? He had evolved a human-like appearance and could talk in human language. Did this mean they have a channel to understand the mushrooms?
From the first moment he saw 428, Dawson couldn’t help but start analyzing it.
Sitting there… it really did look human. If Dawson hadn’t known 428’s identity and if he hadn’t opened his eyes, Dawson really would have thought a human was sitting in the laboratory area.
But as soon as 428 opened his eyes, Dawson didn’t feel the same way.
Those eyes were completely inhuman. Human beings couldn't grow eyes like this. Human beings couldn't look at people so coldly.
“Can he see or hear anything outside? Dawson asked softly.
“No. This is a single-sided glass with sound insulation. If you want to talk to him, you can press the broadcast button on the console.”
Dawson nodded. He sat down on the seat on the console, pressed the button, and then looked at the man inside the glass wall with a gentle smile. “Hello, nice to meet you. I’m Harry Dawson.”
“Harry Dawson…”
With Dawson’s surprised gaze, 428 repeated his name. “You all have a name. Do I only have a number?”
“Do you understand the meaning of human names and the difference between numbers?” Dawson’s breathing was a little rapid. “How do you know?”
428 looked at him quietly and did not answer.
Dawson didn’t expect an answer from 428 and said, “Did you hear what other researchers said, or did you discover the difference between the numbers and names yourself? Your intelligence is far beyond my imagination.”
“428… Do you want to have a name?”
Hearing this, 428 seemed to finally become interested. He raised his head and looked in the direction of the monitor.
“428,” Dawson said, “How about I give you a name if you answer my questions well and honestly? I can let other people call you by that name too. In our human world, your name will be meaningless if no one calls you by name.”
The man narrowed his eyes when he heard this, seemed to think for a while, and nodded in agreement.
“Then, let’s get started.” Dawson couldn’t wait to take out the music board that had been prepared. He waved it over to the researcher, asking in a low voice, “Is there any equipment here that will allow the screen to be shared inside as well?”
“Yes, just a moment.” The researcher went to the console and pressed a few buttons. A projection device appeared in the laboratory where 428 was located.
The test that Dawson took out was an intelligence test, his own Dawson Standardized Reasoning Test. It was a purely non-textual test. Because there was no text, it was all pictures, so it applied to any different race of people. There was no distinction between national borders.
The test could be applied to any intelligent life form. That being said, it was the first time he had used it on a real non-human.
428 looked at the questions in the picture and did them one by one.
After spending about an hour, Dawson roughly concluded.
He temporarily turned off the broadcast button. The researcher couldn’t help but ask. “What’s the result?”
“Smarter than I thought,” Dawson looked at the answer 428 had given. His expression became grave. “The standardized test scores are comparable to the intelligence of a human being around the age of 16.”
The researcher asked. “The result I did is higher than his, so it’s still good.”
Dawson rolled his eyes and said, “How many years you have been eating and what was his intelligence level a month ago? This is already scary. It’s like the experimental subjects you dissect regularly can think like a human being, but it hasn’t been paired with the appropriate experience yet.”
The researcher thought about it and stopped talking.
Not only him, but Dawson also felt that things were a bit tricky. Obviously, the intelligence level of 428 recorded in the Bader’s project was not much higher than that of the beast. However, how long had it been since then? He was already at the mid-to-high level of human intelligence in reasoning test!
Or was it the same as Tang’s guess? Was the intelligence of the mushroom really an acquired superposition? So would his IQ increase with growth?
Thinking of this, Dawson was fine. However, the researcher couldn’t help but reveal a trace of fear on his face.
This hint of fear was captured by the mycelium that silently extended from the walls, invisible to the human eyes.
“Okay. Let’s continue.” Dawson regained his composure, pressed the broadcast button, and said gently, “Thank you for your cooperation. The next test is the last. I’d appreciate it if you’d be honest with me.”
There was a hidden excitement in his voice.
The intelligence displayed by 428 could already be tested at a basic level. If the results were available, a wave of shock would surely come over the scientific community.
So far, humans have proved that mushrooms have intelligence. Some mushrooms were even as intelligent as humans. They had their own language and civilization, but they were basically unable to communicate due to language barriers.
Would the emergence of 428 break the current situation?
What were the similarities and differences in the psychology and spirituality between the two intelligent races on Earth?
Dawson wanted to know about this, not only because of its significance to human civilization but also because as a psychologist, he might be able to write the first research paper on non-human psychology in human history.
Dawson directed the researcher to project another set of tests on the projector.
The researcher did as he was told, and then couldn’t help but ask in a low voice. “What kind of test is this?”
Dawson didn’t answer directly but stared at the reaction of the man in the laboratory. The researcher couldn’t wait, so he quietly searched for this set of test questions on the Internet with his bracelet.
The Alec Image Test was a test paper that used specially designed images that were meaningless and unexplainable. These images were presented to the subjects, asking them to imagine themselves based on the images. They then reported verbally, analyzing their psychological and mental state based on the content of their report.
The Alec Image Test was concerned with the ways, reasons, and contents of the participant’s perceptual process of the image. If the participants’s perpetual way was consistent with the process of constructing the image, it meant that the participants’ psychological mechanism was intact and normal; had a good sense of reality and a good understanding of the image. Otherwise, the subject’s psychological mechanism was incomplete, or in other words, underfunctioning.
The researcher took advantage of the situation and began to search for the images that Dawson had produced. This was not difficult, because as long as he opened the Third Eye’s library, he could know that Dawson had recently written several papers based on this set of test images, mainly debating the dangers of mentally unstable people.
The researcher suddenly realized that Dawson wanted to test 428’s psychology through his subconscious answers.
But was it necessary?
428 was silent for a long time this time. Dawson said softly, “Don’t be nervous, just answer normally.”
Tiny mycelium slowly crawled up the researcher’s clothes until he could see the screen of his bracelet clearly.
Finally, 428 spoke.
“A bat.”
“Butterfly…”
“Flower.”
The pictures were skimmed one by one. 428 answered extremely slowly every time as if reading corresponding thoughts from the brain. The researcher looked at the paper for comparison, breathing a slow sigh of relief.
Fortunately, it seemed that 428 was not that aggressive.
Thinking about it, after all, there had been no attacks on researchers in any of 428’s experiments. From the beginning, they couldn’t help but feel timid and fearful when conducting experiments on 428, scared of something happening. However, 428 just acted like a lazy mushroom most of the time, poking and prodding. It gradually made people feel relieved.
According to the observation, 428 didn’t have a sense of pain, so it must not be very painful… right?
After the entire test, Dawson turned his back to the researcher and said that the test was over. His tone had changed. The researcher relaxed and said to Dawson with a smile. “What’s the result?”
“The results show the mental state of a normal human.”
“It seems that you are worrying too much. 428 is very safe.” The researcher said cheerfully.
“...You’re joking, right?” Dawson turned his head.
The researcher discovered that, at some point, Dawson’s forehead had been covered in cold sweat. The usual gentle expression on his face had disappeared without a trace. His facial features were stiff, his rows of teeth clenched tightly, and he was even trembling unconsciously.
The researcher suddenly realized something.
A non-human monster, taking a human psychology test, and concluded that he was a normal human?
In an instant, it was like a basin of ice water poured down from the top of his head. Although the heating in the laboratory was supplied 24 hours a day and the room temperature was just right, the researcher broke out in a cold sweat.
Looking at 428 again, they didn’t know when he had walked to the glass wall, twitching the corners of his mouth, revealing a standard bright smile, showing his teeth.
It was as if he was mocking them for their lack of abilities.
As he left the observation room, Dawson still felt a shiver run down his spine, not only because of the test result but also because of what was behind the test result.
428 was pretending. How did he do it? How did he deduce the meaning of this test question?
How did he find the correct answer?
Was he also pretending in the previous test? Had he actually evolved an intelligence far beyond that of humans, so that he could predict the meaning behind each question and accurately find answers that meet ‘human’ standards?
The more he thought about it, the more Dawson felt waves of coldness sweeping across his back. He gripped the tablet tightly and quickly left the experimental area.
“Hey, Dr. Dawson?” Tang Xiao saw Dawson hurrying out of the observation room and called out to him, but Dawson did not reply, or perhaps he was too busy to hear.
Tang Xiao stood in place, squinting at Dawson’s back.
“Tang? What’s wrong?” Lodge asked curiously.
“It’s alright.”
Dawson went straight to Xiao Bai’s office, forgetting to even knock on the door. He walked straight in.
Xiao Bai raised his head. “What’s wrong? You’re in such a hurry.”
Dawson didn’t know what to say for a moment. Xiao Bai saw that his chest was heaving and cold sweat breaking out on his forehead. He immediately stood up and gave Dawson a bottle of warm water. “Drink some water and rest.”
After drinking a glass of warm water, Dawson’s mood finally eased a lot. He said slowly, “I just went to see 428…”
“Did you find something? Xiao Bai asked.
Dawson nodded and then told the entire story.
“Don’t you think it’s scary? He is consciously hiding his danger. His level of intelligence may be far beyond human expectation.” Dawson couldn’t help but stand up and walk around the office. “This is very dangerous.”
Xiao Bai looked a little hesitant.
“What’s with your expression?”
“Alec… I seem to remember he was your mentor’s mentor?”
“Yeah. Ph.D. in psychology, tenured professor in The Alliance.”
“I think this kind of test question has more subjective elements.” Xiao Bai said as tactfully as possible.
Dawson paused and looked at him in disbelief. “Do you question my professionalism?”
“No. I didn’t say that.”
Xiao Bai thought in his heart. It was an indisputable fact that although Alec’s test questions were very popular in the Alliance, its objectivity had always been questioned.
“That’s what you mean! Ha! I know that you guys in the natural sciences have always felt that our humanities and social sciences are not impressive enough.”
Xiao Bai was silent.
“What do you want to say?”
Xiao Bai wisely skipped this topic. “You can submit the results, but I guess the higher-ups won’t agree to terminate the project. At most, the supervision will be stricter.”
“...”
Dawson was a little depressed. Even without thinking about it, he knew that what Xiao Bai had said was the best possible outcome. It was more likely that the group of science guys were dismissive of his speculation.
But 428’s smile still lingered in his mind. The smile was weird and stiff like a wolf wearing sheep’s clothing and blending with the sheep’s herd.
As long as he wanted, he could tear off his skin and rush into the sheep’s herd to kill.
Seeing that Dawson was still a bit nervous, Xiao Bai changed the topic. “After you met 428, what do you think about his relationship with Tang Xiao?”
“What do I think? I see with my own eyes.” Dawson sighed. “I still think your guess is impossible.”
“Even if 428 already has wisdom?”
“It is because of his wisdom that I’m even more determined that this kind of monster can’t be driven by humans.” Dawson said slowly, “If he did, then he is undoubtedly a madman, burning himself to death. That kind of thing is beyond human control. This is my judgment.”
Xiao Bai fell into deep thought after hearing this. In fact, he was not very satisfied with this result.
Deep down, he might expect Tang Xiao to be able to control 428, not because of any gossip or nonsense. In addition to his own curiosity, he also thought that it might represent a… possibility?
More than a hundred years ago, before mushrooms started to go on the rampage, the relationship between mushrooms and humans was actually quite harmonious. Mushrooms provided humans with food in the form of fruiting bodies. The number of mushrooms grew exponentially in comparison to the wildlife era as a result of human sustenance, and mushrooms being indispensable to the world’s well-being in crafts, such as bread and beer.
By now, people living at the bottom had become dissatisfied with mushrooms. Mushrooms had become synonymous with death, disaster, and disease. Only scientists such as Xiao Bai could still find in some journals the remains of mushrooms from a hundred years ago and how they coexisted harmoniously with humans.
Human beings still didn’t know what caused the King of Mushrooms to go on a rampage, prompting the entire kingdom of Mushrooms to invade nature.
Seeing that Xiao Bai didn’t seem satisfied, Dawson said helplessly, “I still insist on my point of view. The look in 428’s eyes you mentioned may be closer to hostility or appetite. In short, it’s not that kind of dog-bloodied emotion, but if you are really confused, why don’t you try to find out.”
“How?”
Dawson said, “What you’re afraid of is simply that Tang Xiao has the power to control 428 and can easily kill other people in the organization, right? He is an unstable factor.”
Xiao Bai hesitated for a while and nodded.
“Then the matter is very simple. I have read Tang Xiao’s medical records before. It’s an indisputable fact that 428 once attacked him and he was on the verge of death for the last time. If he really does not have that kind of relationship with 428, he should have only fear 428 deep down with no other emotions.”
“Sometimes when the unexpected event comes, a person absolutely can’t hide his inner true thoughts, especially when faced with an existence that may threaten him.”
……
Tang Xiao followed Lodge out of the conference room, but the back of the previous psychologist flashed in his mind.
What happened while he was in there?
Tang Xiao was a bit concerned, so much so that he was distracted during the experiment, and accidentally knocked over a flask.
Lodge couldn’t help it anymore. “Tang, you can’t work overtime tonight.”
Tang Xiao looked at him with an expressionless face.
Lodge resisted the temptation to give in. He even showed a bit of toughness when he kept a straight face.
Yu Ming and the others noticed the somewhat stiff atmosphere between Lodge and Tang Xiao, thinking that they were quarreling. They hurriedly came over to try to persuade them.
“What’s wrong with you guys? Please talk if you have something to say.”
“That’s right. Let’s talk about it and find a way to solve it.”
Lodge ignored them and said seriously to Tang Xiao, “I don’t know what you are anxious about that you have to stay here every night. This is not how scientific research is done. Not only will you not be able to achieve good results, but you will also drag down your body. You can’t continue to work at night!”
Yu Ming and the other were a little surprised with a somewhat commanding tone. Their impression of Lodge was probably that of a follower who followed Tang Xiao, the bottom of the team, a confidant, etc. In short, on the surface, Lodge was completely centered on Tang Xiao. They didn’t think that he would one day speak to Tang Xiao in such a commanding tone.
Several Level 1 scientists couldn’t help but look at each other. Some of them couldn’t understand what was going on.
What was Lodge doing? Tang Xiao was at least a mini-boss now. Did he want to die?
Yu Ming, Andy, and the others had even thought about how to persuade if a fight broke out if Tang Xiao was angry, but to their surprise, Tang Xiao was not angry.
“Sorry.” Tang Xiao said, “I made you worry.”
Yu Ming and the others were so shocked that their eyes widened.
He actually bowed his head…
At this moment, Yu Ming and the others’ impression of Tang Xiao was quietly changing in their hearts. Tang Xiao was still a genius, but it seemed to be… he was not so inhuman?
Tang Xiao really didn’t work the night shift today. He clocked out after work with Lodge and had dinner. When he stepped out of the laboratory, the researchers around him were shocked.
The sun came out from the west today. Was the king of the night shift actually stopped?
Tang Xiao and Lodge didn’t care about this. Their relationship had not changed as the outside world thought. They still got along as before, they just got along as usual.
They went to the dormitory, said goodbye to each other, and then went into their room.
However, Tang Xiao didn’t go offline to rest. He sat in bed for a long time, hesitating, and finally tried to whisper. “428?”
Judging from the information obtained from Babbitt’s death and 428’s exploration, the scope of 428’s activities might have exceeded the laboratory, but Tang Xiao was not sure how big it was.
His voice fell, and there was no response in the room for a long time.
Tang Xiao didn’t know whether to be relieved or disappointed. After thinking about it, he went to get new clothes and pajamas and then walked into the bathroom.
As soon as he walked in, mycelium quietly came from the corner of the bathroom door, where the tiles were joined.
Tang Xiao found out very early that he could take a shower in the game. Occasionally, he would take a shower in the game if he got interested, but rarely.
A lot of things happened recently. Tang Xiao felt a bit tired, went into the bathroom, took off his clothes, and walked in when the hot water in the bathtub was full. He felt that his pores were open.
The tactile system of this game was really amazing… This feeling could be perfectly replicated.
The young man’s eyes were closed. The feeling of being in the hot water was so comforting that he felt like he was about to lose consciousness.
Half asleep and half awake, he seemed to have seen something red, but he was too sleepy. Tang Xiao leaned against the edge of the bathtub and his body couldn’t help but slide down until half of his head was submerged in the hot water.
“! Xiaoxiao!”
Suddenly, the weight of another adult was thrown into the bathtub. Tang Xiao still remembered to hold his breath. He gasped directly, chocked two mouthfuls of water, and his legs were suddenly picked up by a force.
He opened his eyes and saw a dark-skinned man holding him and getting up from the bathtub. He asked innocently, “Xiaoxiao, are you okay?”
Tang Xiao: ……
If he didn’t come, then he should be fine.
Then, Tang Xiao suddenly realized that something was wrong.
The straitjacket on 428’s body was soaked with hot water. A thin layer revealed the shape of the muscles underneath, and Tang Xiao was not wearing anything. His glistening white skin still glowed with the pink color from soaking the hot water.
428 watched the pink turn red at a speed visible to the naked eye.
“How did you get in?? Put me down!”
428 subconsciously responded and put Tang Xiao into the bathtub.
“Get out!”
“Why?”
Blue veins burst from Tang Xiao’s forehead. His eyes seemed to be smiling but not smiling. “I don’t want to say it twice.”
428 looked at Tang Xiao’s face and walked out obediently.
It was just that the scene he saw before flashed through his mind more than once.
After Tang Xiao put on his clothes, he walked out of the bathroom and saw 428 sitting on the ground, still wet.
“How did you get here? Have you been discovered?” Tang Xiao pressed his temples, threw the towel he had just wiped on the bed, and looked for a new one.
428’s eyes followed the towel. When Tang Xiao wasn’t paying attention, he quietly stretched out the mycelium to collect the towel. “It won’t be discovered.”
Tang Xiao took out a new towel and threw it on 428, saying, “How did you do it? Is it using mycelium?”
Tang Xiao had been thinking about this since Babbitt’s incident. Finally, he found the possibility from the characteristics of the mushrooms.
If 428 could control the size and hardness of the mycelium, it would be possible to move by drilling into the floor or other places. At this point, he felt that 428 had formed a network in the organization.
However, he still felt that it was too exaggerated. At least, this base could no longer stop 428.
428 nodded and admitted Tang Xiao’s guess.
“So, you can spread the mycelium all over the entire institute. Is the mycelium… equivalent to your eyes and sense of touch? It can also move at any time.” Tang Xiao fell silent as he spoke. Although hew knew that 428’s ability would definitely soar after evolution, he was too fast.
If he wanted to destroy this place, could humans stop him?
428 didn’t know what Tang Xiao was thinking about. He grabbed the bath towel on his body but didn’t use it. The temperature of his body started to rise, white steam was emitted all over his body. His body dried up in less than a few minutes.
Another unknown ability.
Tang Xiao was a bit tired of watching and didn’t bother to think about how strong 428 was now. Since the last evolution, it seemed that he was improving every day.
It was even a little hard to figure out the reason 428 remained in the Third Eye.
It couldn’t be because the food here would be delivered to his mouth quickly and conveniently, right?
#Hell’s joke#
“Forget it. You came just in time. I have something to ask you.” Tan Xiao withdrew his divergent thoughts and returned to the topic. “That Mr. Dawson went to the observation room today, right? What did he do?”
Hearing this, 428 silently put the towel on his head again. His eyes darted left and right.
He almost wrote the words ‘I’m sorry’ on his face.
Tang Xiao narrowed his eyes and pulled down the bath towel. “What did you do? You’re not going to kill or sneak up on Dawson, are you?”
“No, no killing…”
After the kiss in the toilet last time, Tang Xiao agreed with 428 that he could not kill people in this organization without permission. Before taking any big action or discovering something related to him, he would tell Tang Xiao. If he ‘helped’ Tang Xiao, he could get a reward.
428 didn’t care about other things, but he remembered the food very well.
It was just that Dawson injured Tang Xiao in the laboratory. 428 was very angry and scared him a little.
Would that make Xiaoxiao angry?
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