Zhou Yi stepped out of the elevator and arrived outside Building No. 2.
The onlookers hastily scattered.
After a while, when they saw that the chairman didn't seem displeased with them, the residents of Mao Valley Town cautiously gathered around again to watch the excitement. Sand rats poked their heads out as well; some perched on people's shoulders, others climbed onto their heads for the best view.
Zhou Yi saw all of this.
The partnership between the sand rats and the townspeople of Mao Valley seemed to be progressing well.
He turned his attention back to the front.
Outdoor surgery, though it sounded strange, was actually surrounded by a cordon, and there was a vehicle about the height of a person patrolling back and forth.
It had a large square screen on its top and emitted periodic electronic beeps, "Surgery in progress, please do not disturb, thank you for your cooperation."
It seemed to be Da Vinci's assistant.
Da Vinci was all white with a wide black base, beneath which were wheels that could change direction.
A thick pillar rose from the base, atop which was an umbrella-like structure reminiscent of a lampshade, and it also had a square screen on top.
Fixed to the pillar were four metal arms with multiple joints, capable of moving flexibly within a 540-degree range.
Each of the Mechanical Doctor's arms held surgical tools, and at this moment, it was focused on operating on the Hunter, moving its arms back and forth as it inserted a slender pair of tweezers into the opened cavity.
The wide shade on top effectively blocked the snow wind, casting down green light rays.
Zhou Yi asked the drone Red Kestrel beside him, "Over in Recursive City, have they imposed any other sanctions on Da Vinci?"
The drone replied, "Recursive City only prohibited Da Vinci from practicing medicine within the city limits, downgrading its individual credit rating, making it unable to enjoy certain rights and difficult to get hired by formal medical institutions there. In fact, it is still a legal citizen of Recursive City, just unable to hold a medical position and related jobs."
"The highest punishment for residents in Mechanical City is indefinite dormancy."
Zhou Yi frowned, "No death penalty?"
"If you mean the complete destruction and elimination of signs of life, no."
Red Kestrel continued, "Electromechanical life is different from flesh-and-blood life; they are born with corresponding functional labor attributes and order program constraints. Mechanical City establishes group order to ensure citizens' abilities are used for creation, not destruction."
"Even those dedicated to war as electromechanical life can also serve as city guards and exert their strength."
Zhou Yi understood this point.
Unlike humans, electromechanical life has an initial social division of labor upon awakening; some electromechanical beings are born as farmers, workers, warriors, or doctors.
And they take this for granted.
Abilities in themselves are not inherently good or bad; it's all about how they are used.
Recursive City defines the way of use through rules.
Maintaining a stable social structure is as natural to them as sleeping and eating are to humans.
This made Zhou Yi think, "Does that mean Recursive City is holding... dormancy for electromechanical beings with serious criminal behaviors?"
It seemed Red Kestrel understood his partner's meaning, "Zhou, don't think about bailing out these dangerous individuals. The forced dormants, those who have had accidents, are completely different from Da Vinci's case."
"Those in dormancy have breached their own program constraints mechanism and it's unpredictable what actions they will take. Perhaps they will remain harmless for a while, but having lost their protective mechanisms, they will all eventually lose control due to the overflow of power; their end is inevitable."
"Most of the dormants have been moved to '404 City' for centralized management."
Zhou Yi asked, "Where is this city?"
Red Kestrel said, "404 City is built below the sea floor of the Dead Sea and sealed through special technology, an electromechanical city that is impenetrable even by Death Light."
"It's also completely closed off and long isolated from the outside world, which makes it safe enough."
"Dormants with great destructive power and danger are all placed in 404 City. They will sleep there indefinitely until the day a method to solve their problems is found."
This underground prison puzzled Zhou Yi.
"Is such an enclosed city built just to house the dormants?"
Red Kestrel said, "There is no information on that. The only connection other cities have with 404 City is sending dormants there."
While Zhou Yi and Red Kestrel were discussing 404 City, they realized the surgery had ended.
Lie Hai started to hover slowly, then suddenly accelerated after a low flight, its body aglow with bright lights, turning into a Flying Star disappearing into the sky.
Seconds later, it dove down from high above, bringing a loud and piercing sound burst that scared the onlookers into running for cover.
"Is this my full state? I've got all my strength back!"
The Hunter cackled as it spiraled.
When it flew up to Zhou Yi, who watched indifferently, it abruptly braked as if calming down all at once.
"Chairman...I'm better,"
"I can do more for the company. Just give me a little time, and I can fully recover the strength that a B-grade lifeform should have!"
Zhou Yi said expressionlessly, "Don't you have someone to thank?"
The spherical Hunter immediately turned to the four-armed mechanical doctor, "Thank you so much, doctor, you're simply amazing!"
On Da Vinci's head screen, a waveform appeared, emitting a synthetic sound with a metallic texture, "The suturing has just finished. Make sure not to engage in high-intensity exercise recently to avoid further injuring the Guangna organ and prolonging the healing period."
"Yes, yes, understood!"
Lie Hai carefully flew to Zhou Yi, "Chairman, then...I'm off to patrol."
The Hunter soared into the sky.
Reaching a high altitude, Lie Hai could only see Jade City on the ground the size of beans, his heart still racing with fear.
Uncle just now had a murderous intent.
It is the absolute leader here. For a leader, public damage to prestige is more serious than injury. It was so close, maybe I'd have been slaughtered for a show of power... With such a boss, you really need to be careful at every step.
Zhou Yi also breathed a sigh of relief.
If that kid went berserk, dealing with it would also be a hassle.
Fortunately, it's timid enough.
Zhou Yi's gaze moved forward to the new talent he had introduced.
"Hello, employer sir, I am very grateful that you are willing to help me solve my huge debt. I am Doctor Da Vinci, and for the next hundred years, I will do my utmost to serve you."
The waveform on Da Vinci's face fluctuated continuously.
Only then did Zhou Yi notice, behind that patrol vehicle, there was a standalone device resembling an operator's room, about the height of a person.
"Allow me to introduce."
Da Vinci gestured with its four arms, "I am the Da Vinci XI model surgical doctor, comprised of three parts of machinery." Official source ıs ⓝovelFire.net
It pointed to the nearby patrol car, "This is the video imaging system, also called the imaging car. It's an image processing device that can magnify the surgical field by 10 times with an endoscope and perform three-dimensional anatomical modeling to improve the precision of surgery. It's very useful for diagnosis."
Da Vinci then signaled Zhou Yi to look towards the standalone console in the back.
"This is the main surgical control console, or control car,"
"The main surgical control console, as a signal transmitter and receiver, can conduct remote consultations with other doctors and collaborate on surgery in sync. Each doctor has their strengths, and it's common to seek assistance from one another or to act as an assistant."
"You can also see the detailed conditions of my body on it, including energy reserves, body damage rate, etc. You are the chairman, and all permissions are open to you; you can check anytime."
Finally, it folded its four arms, "The third part is this body with which I am speaking to you, also known as the surgical car or the mechanical arm interaction system. It is also my core body used for surgeries and detailed examination of patients."
So it's all Da Vinci's body.
The Mechanical Doctor said, "As you have lent me a helping hand, I hope to fulfil my mission for you without a moment's rest. I've noticed there are many sub-healthy humans here. Based on my preliminary scans, I've identified ailments such as tooth loss, low-temperature hypertension, bacterial infections, asthma, rheumatism, and so on."
"If you do not object, I would like to perform individual checks on them immediately and provide treatment plans."
Da Vinci started working at full capacity as soon as it arrived.
Zhou Yi asked, "Is there enough medication?"
"Rest assured, I've brought all the medicine I had stored in Recursive City here with me; it's all in the imaging car's medicine box. Based on the number of patients in this area, if it's basic diseases, this medical supply should suffice."
With Zhou Yi's consent, Da Vinci immediately got busy.
Its imaging car also called out to those around it, "Patients feeling unwell, please line up for consultation."
At first, no one dared to try.
It was the company employees Ajin and Gong Zheng who led by example. They each underwent a physical examination, treated oral ulcers, and foot pain respectively. Then the residents of Building No. 2 followed suit and began to queue up to receive medical services.
Red Kestrel had already told Zhou Yi about this situation.
"Da Vinci needs to treat a large number of patients to enhance its medical skills unique to its medical position, namely 'Diagnosis and Treatment' and 'Surgery.' The stronger the skills, the higher the success rate of treatment."
For a Mechanical Doctor like Da Vinci, treating illness is akin to leveling up by fighting monsters.
The more patients there are, the stronger the doctor you can nurture.