I’m Trapped in a Cube - Chapter 237

“Humans are a very persuadable race, and the alchemists weren’t fools either. Soon no one asked about immortality anymore.”

“That Chali tribe member spoke very clearly, immortality has an unbearable cost for humans, just like humans can’t change the positive and negative aspects of divination.”

“Although humans are stubborn, they won’t oppose the rules.”

“Living better in the crisis-filled Abyss is what matters most.”

Bai Zhou spoke slowly.

“But the secret of immortality has always remained with the Chali tribe, never changing. Can you mermen bear that kind of cost?”

Bai Zhou’s words plunged Jeff into a long silence.

His face still wore that calm and composed expression, without a trace of struggle, as if these matters couldn’t stir any waves in his heart at all.

He just silently looked ahead, his gaze reaching deeply past Bai Zhou toward the endless Abyss.

After a long while, Jeff broke the silence and said to Bai Zhou, “You go busy yourselves. These two prisoners are useful to me.”

Jeff didn’t answer Bai Zhou’s question, but after saying this to Bai Zhou, turned and left.

“You follow me.”

“The Cube tribe member should come too.”

Mo Ling didn’t know why Jeff would call him along as well, but since he could continue gathering information, he naturally wouldn’t refuse.

After exchanging glances with Bai Zhou, the two followed Jeff and walked outside the prison.

Once they left the prison, the two prisoners quickly attracted many mermen’s gazes, but after seeing that Jeff was the one leading them, these gazes quickly withdrew, afraid of drawing attention.

Jeff didn’t explain anything to the other mermen—just a simple sentence made those mermen consciously leave.

Jeff led the two swaggeringly to a flight of stairs and slowly walked up.

A blinding flash of light passed, and the three had already stepped up the stairs, arriving at a spacious platform.

Only then did Mo Ling see clearly that they weren’t on the ground.

But high in the sky at an unknown altitude!

Beyond the protective shield were thick clouds, and the platform they stood on was traveling at high speed through the clouds.

Platform above, clouds and mist drifted, and wind howled.

Jeff extended his hand, and all the runes on the platform began to tremble and glow. An invisible protective shield rose out of thin air, instantly dispersing the surrounding clouds and mist, and the original strong wind also instantly disappeared.

With the protective shield opened, Mo Ling looked back and realized that this thing flying in the sky wasn’t some building, but a winding, twisting aerial fortress!

Or rather, this was an elongated mechanical dragon!

A mechanical dragon composed of those strange runic components!

The dragon traveled nimbly through the swirling clouds and mist, not appearing clumsy despite its heavy and massive body, but rather very agile, twisting lightly.

Beyond its streamlined contours, star-like runes sparkled in the clouds and mist.

When bright, they were like majestic dragon scales flashing with golden light.

When dim, they were like the eyes of some unknown creature hiding in the clouds.

Section after section of the body appeared and disappeared in the clouds, driving the white vapor to disperse, like steam sprayed from within the dragon’s body.

Outside the body were many individual components traveling at high speed. They were like birds circling around the dragon, or like golden flakes that had fallen from the dragon’s body, slowly rotating along the edges.

As the protective shield opened, these components quickly gathered nearby. They arranged themselves in an orderly fashion, with the runes’ light breathing-like, scanning and standing guard on the platform.

When Jeff waved his hand again, these sentinel-like components slowly drifted away, returning to their original patrol routes.

Jeff walked to the platform’s edge, looking down at the continuously retreating clouds and mist.

“I don’t know why, but both of you give me a familiar feeling,” he suddenly said. “Maybe it’s just an illusion.”

“How did you learn about our mermen race’s limitations?” Jeff asked calmly with his back to the two.

“Earlier in the prison, people talked about it,” Bai Zhou quickly answered.

“This isn’t a secret. How much do you know?”

“Not much.” Bai Zhou thought for a moment. “They said the mermen race encountered developmental limitations, their power was restricted and couldn’t break through, so they’ve been constantly invading…”

Saying this, Bai Zhou stopped and looked at Jeff cautiously.

“Continue.”

“So they’ve been constantly invading other races, plundering other races’ knowledge and power, using the most brutal methods to maintain strength.”

Bai Zhou gritted his teeth and spoke his complete thoughts.

However, hearing such an offensive evaluation, Jeff showed no displeasure, only shaking his head lightly.

“It’s not like that.”

“You think too simply. That kind of limitation can’t be broken through simple invasion and plunder.”

Jeff didn’t seem to mind Bai Zhou’s wording. He seemed to think Bai Zhou’s understanding wasn’t deep enough.

“It’s an extremely targeted limitation. We generally call it a racial lock…”

The development of any race must choose a path, either physical strength, technological research, or something else…

And the mermen race chose the path of technology.

Their runic components could achieve any function, even replace the effects of Relics.

It could even be said that every component manufactured by the mermen race was a Relic.

These components covered various aspects with incredibly powerful abilities.

But when this powerful race developed their component technology to its peak, a strange phenomenon appeared:

Whenever they researched a new component function, an old component function would be forgotten.

It was complete and utter forgetting.

Initially, the mermen race didn’t notice, until once they lost the function of controlling component armor movement, causing the entire mermen race to halt. Only then did they realize this bizarre phenomenon.

“No one could remember how to manufacture or control that type of component. Its principles completely disappeared from the mermen race’s minds and recorded materials.”

Soon, they discovered this wasn’t just a phenomenon of knowledge, it was a limitation covering every aspect of the mermen race.

Whenever the mermen race learned a new skill, such as synthesizing a certain metal, they would randomly forget another skill, possibly even something as simple as fishing or making fire by rubbing sticks.

Although they no longer needed such primitive skills as fishing and fire-making, the fact that they could forget these things meant the influence of this limitation was extremely terrifying.

“What if one day they forget how to sleep, eat, or breathe?”

After conducting in-depth research on this phenomenon, the mermen race found an appropriate description to explain it—

Their skills had “slots.”

Just like skills in a game, ten slots meant ten slots. If you wanted to add more, you had to replace the original skills.

Adding one skill would randomly displace another skill, this was complete replacement.

Perhaps originally the mermen race had many “skill slots,” which allowed them to keep adding.

But now the slots were full, and aside from replacement, there was no other way…

Jeff’s fish eyes gazed into the distance, flying components circling around him, rotating continuously like satellites.

He, who had never expressed much emotion, actually revealed a hint of despair and helplessness in his words when describing the mermen’s limitations.

“The mermen race… has been locked…”