Chapter Twenty-Four: Communication Silence

The room they had just left was akin to a foyer; following the man’s lead, the room beyond was the true surgical theater.

"Did you come on your own, or were you referred?"

During the conversation, the man casually mentioned his name: Amikaba.

"Does one need a referral? You’re quite well-known, after all." Song Shi replied, "A licensed cybernetic surgeon isn't exactly a common sight in the Deep Moss District."

Palose falls under the territory of Emerald Pharmaceuticals, a massive behemoth that monopolizes nearly seventy percent of the entire Corporate Alliance’s medical industry. Setting aside everything else, their annual patent licensing fees for medical engineering and bioscience technologies alone reach astronomical figures. Under such circumstances, passing the physician qualification exams spearheaded by Emerald Pharmaceuticals to obtain a medical license in a relevant field is incredibly difficult.

The field of "Cybernetic Medicine" is the most cutthroat of them all, second only to "Cognitive Neurology" and "Comprehensive Clinical Medicine." After all, in this day and age, who isn't sporting a cybernetic implant?

Once passed, becoming a qualified cybernetic surgeon means never having to worry about survival again. Should one be fortunate enough to enter a large hospital and secure an office of one's own, it is nothing short of a leap in social class.

"Most of the back-alley doctors around here learn their skills through trial and error or quick crash courses. If they’ve even used a 'Basic Implant Surgery Guide' technical memory chip, they’re considered highly skilled."

Song Shi shrugged. "I have no desire to undergo a botched surgery and die on the table from massive hemorrhaging, bacterial infection, rejection syndrome, or whatever else. That would be a slightly ridiculous way to go."

Amikaba hummed in response to the young man’s words, neither confirming nor denying.

Song Shi had spent some time online earlier to find this information. It hadn't been difficult. As he had said, Amikaba was somewhat famous in the Deep Moss District. He had arrived in Palose five years ago, and thanks to his solid skills, he had gradually accumulated a fair amount of goodwill and a reliable supply chain. Even the various gangs showed him some respect; no foolhardy characters ever gave him any trouble. Therefore, Song Shi had simply joined a local underground anonymous forum in Palose, quickly learned these details from discussions, and after weighing the information, decided to come here for his enhancement surgery.

His time was not exactly abundant; if he wanted to increase his strength in a short period, purchasing equipment and undergoing enhancement surgery were the fastest routes.

As for why a surgeon with a legitimate medical license like Amikaba would choose to come to the Deep Moss District to work as a semi-black-market doctor... well, who in Palose doesn't have a story? And who had the spare time to care about the stories of others?

***

Stepping into the back room, everything changed abruptly, as if entering another world.

The faint scent of disinfectant, the seamlessly fitted ceiling, pure white shadowless lamps, a surrounding array of complex equipment, an immaculate large surgical table, several data display screens open around it, and bottles and jars piled high, covered in labels.

*I’ve come to the right place.* Song Shi thought to himself upon seeing this scene.

An "Akas" integrated tool control tower, a Type-7 comprehensive monitor, a high-frequency minimally invasive electric scalpel... just the few devices he recognized were worth nearly a million credits. And the surrounding environment—this was far more reassuring than the usual back-alley doctors who pulled second-hand cybernetics out of bathtubs filled with disinfectant to force them into their patients.

Song Shi’s gaze swept across the room and finally settled on the wall.

Hanging on the wall was an exquisitely framed oil painting of a golden figure in a cassock, sitting on a lotus, with a bare forehead, thick eyebrows, and a solemn, majestic expression—completely out of place among the various pieces of high-tech equipment.

Seeming accustomed to it, Amikaba tinkered with the equipment and said without looking back:

"That is a portrait of Jivaka. In the past, when Jivaka studied medicine, Sakra observed that if this person succeeded in the medical arts, he would surely make offerings to the Buddha. Thus, he manifested within Jivaka. After seven years, his medical path was perfected, and he became the 291st of the Five Hundred Arhats, the Great Physician Venerable."

"That is... a myth of the Vanlan people," Song Shi said softly.

"Aye, though few people know that nowadays. I only learned it because someone told me."

Amikaba finally finished adjusting the equipment. He sat down heavily in his chair, wiped his thick beard, and cleared his throat. "Kid, I do have what you’re looking for."

—*But?*

Song Shi withdrew his gaze from the painting and looked at the man.

"The White Armor Type-III power bracer has been off the market for several years. I can get my hands on one, but it will likely be second-hand. You can rest assured, though, that after I tune it, it won't be much worse than a new one. Of course, the associated neural interface surgery is included; I won't charge extra for that."

The latest product in the White Armor series is the Type-V. The Type-III had once captured a significant portion of the market due to its cost-performance ratio, but now that "value" had become an eyesore. In order to push the latest products, Southern Territory Heavy Industry had terminated the Type-III product line and update protocols, declaring it discontinued.

"That’s the first point." Amikaba held up his index finger, then raised his middle finger.

"Second point, communication silencers are being checked strictly lately. I can't get ahold of the 'Hard Biscuit' model from Santa Industrial anytime soon. If you’re in a rush, I do have another option."

Before Song Shi knew it, Amikaba had produced a black box about the size of half a palm.

***

Seeing this black box, Song Shi was slightly startled.

The design, plus the blue ring-shaped logo on top that had been half-erased, leaving only a fragment...

"Hmm, you actually recognize this?"

As a well-funded cybernetic surgeon, Amikaba himself had many things implanted, including a "Peripheral Enhancement System" that greatly heightened his five senses. He had caught the fleeting shift in Song Shi's expression the moment he saw the box.

On the surface, he remained calm. But deep down, Amikaba was truly surprised.

The "Atat Studio" was a small studio that focused on special vertical fields and had been acquired and restructured by "Zero Network" ten years ago. Their products were niche—so niche that even he had only obtained this item by chance. How could this kid in front of him possibly recognize it?

Still, it wasn't a big problem. The next moment, Amikaba suppressed these thoughts. He was a cybernetic surgeon, and that was all he was. Anything unrelated to business was none of his concern. Never digging for the truth was a survival strategy proven by countless experiences.

"I’ll take it!" Song Shi said decisively.

"Hey, hey, I haven't even told you the price yet..."

"No matter the cost, I’ll take it!"

Song Shi did not hesitate. He had recognized the true identity of this black box device.

Ten years ago, it was the product that contained the talent and heart’s blood of those few founders at "Atat Studio," the main reason Zero Network had reached out and chosen to acquire them.

A superior alternative to a communication silencer.

—A full-frequency band jamming interceptor: [The Atat Ring]!