"How do you know?" Cassia asked, puzzled.
"Because twenty-four inhibitory tubes have already been implanted in your body, and the neural tissue inside them was all taken from me. I must say, it's a miracle," Sukalyus said with awe.
"Even human tissues have rejection between individuals. You can imagine how strong the rejection would be between different species, right?"
"I know that," Cassia replied, listening attentively.
"The function of the inhibitory tubes is to suppress your body's rejection reaction to dragon tissue. Everyone who undergoes the surgery has these tubes. Only after completing all five assimilation stages can the tubes be removed. The number of tubes is related to how long you've been in the dream. Usually, someone who wakes within a day has only two tubes, increasing day by day. For those asleep longer than eight days, sixteen tubes are implanted. In your case, over fifteen days, according to military academy records I obtained, you should have been eliminated. Yet you were implanted with twenty-four tubes. Clearly, there is a powerful force supporting you; otherwise, the academy would never give you such an opportunity," Sukalyus said thoughtfully.
"Eliminated? So the inhibitory tubes have another significance?" Cassia asked.
"Of course. 'Eliminated' means erased. Once sixteen tubes are implanted, it indicates an extremely unstable, dangerous individual. You, with twenty-four tubes, are even more extreme. If someone with two tubes is like a precise heavy sniper rifle, a sixteen-tube patient is like a bomb ready to explode. Sixteen tubes mean the body's rejection is so strong that it's like hot oil—if it touches water, it explodes. The force unleashed is enormous, surpassing even a heavy sniper rifle," Sukalyus explained.
"So a sixteen-tube patient is stronger than a two-tube one?"
"Correct. The explosive power is far greater. But can you control hot oil once it's boiling? Cover it, and the force is contained. Remove the lid, and it's uncontrollable. There's no way to partially release it safely. So this power is like a bomb: the first to be harmed is always the user. According to military academy records, no one has successfully controlled it. Thus, mild and controllable is preferred."
He continued, "Even if you could control it, imagine your body as a vessel, constantly under explosive pressure. Sixteen-tube patients are either tightly controlled by the tubes, preventing any contact with water, or they allow the explosion to release, quickly consuming their life force until death."
"So there is a solution?" Cassia asked, sensing hope.
"Of course. That's one of my bargaining chips. I can teach you to control the power, like letting the oil explode or calming it at will. But life force depletion cannot be solved unless I'm physically there to suppress your rejection, or you reach the fifth stage of assimilation, allowing your own body to restore itself fundamentally. Otherwise, any other methods only relieve the symptoms."
"Relieving symptoms still leaves room to maneuver?"
"Exactly. That's the second chip. Our dragons' evolution and survival are brutal. We gain strength by devouring others, acquiring Perfect Evolutionary Substances. Applied to humans, it repairs the body damaged by rejection—simply put, it restores life force. Likely because your evolution level cannot properly handle such substances."
"Any other chips?"
"Two more. First, biophysical induction fields. I cannot assist you here; do not question it. Once you sense something unusual, hold onto it—it's important. Your strong rejection may make these fields appear earlier than in anyone else. Second, I can help you exit the dream. Alone, you may die in the dream. Outside help is useless, aside from adding inhibitory tubes while you sleep."
"Biophysical induction fields?" Cassia was intrigued; it was a completely new concept.
"I can't explain it. You must explore it yourself. Pay attention to it," Sukalyus said seriously.
"I will. So to exit the dream, I must agree to your terms?" Cassia smiled.
"Not exactly. Even if you refuse, I will still give you all the chips—I have no choice. I considered using the third chip to leverage you, but deceit doesn't suit my situation. Time is limited; a sincere, contract-like trade suits me better," Sukalyus said quietly.
"Alright, one last question. Why me? There are countless patients. Is it just because my dream lasted so long?" Cassia asked.
"Cassia, our encounter in the mental realm was a miracle. Do you know how many purebred dragons your empire keeps? Over five hundred thousand. Your surgery, including corneas, muscles, and blood extractions, came from them. But perhaps it's a divine joke: all substances injected into you came from me. Even the neural tissue in twenty-four tubes came from me. The odds of all this converging in you are astronomical—a divine joke. And that is why our minds can connect," Sukalyus said excitedly.
"And it's not even counting your arrival here, activating the analyzer. Without it, we couldn't communicate. I know I have only one chance in my life, favored by a dragon god—I cannot waste it. Does that make sense?"
"Alright, if what you say is true, I admit it is a divine joke. Then, what is your request?"
"Simple. Save me, get me out of this cage," Sukalyus said, the electronic voice hissing.
"Surely it's not that simple," Cassia smiled.
"Friend, if it were simple, our dragon kind would have already escaped. But I must admire the geniuses among humans: one who invented the white matter removal surgery, another who designed the first generation of analyzer cores. Because of them, powerful dragons like us were enslaved," Sukalyus sighed.
"How does your empire manage dragons? Not with iron chains, but like caging monkeys and apes. But unlike the apes, all dragons have their cerebral cortex removed, leaving only the brainstem and hormone-secreting parts. Under precise surgeries controlled by the analyzer, over five hundred thousand dragons are completely powerless—they cannot think. Even with great strength, they lack the key to activate it."
"Then what about you? How can you think?" Cassia asked quietly.
"Dragons' strength lies in limitless evolution. Over billions of years, Perfect Evolutionary Substances accumulate in our blood. Coupled with the empire's breeding strategy, I evolved a second brain. Even without my primary brain, I can think. But even with thought and power, the confinement is so strict I could not escape alone," Sukalyus explained.
"So you are not the only dragon in this situation?" Cassia realized.
"Possibly, but evolving a second brain requires miraculous conditions. Among dragons I know, none are like me."
"Alright, I agree to your terms. Trade complete." Cassia ceased questioning.
"How do I save you? My current condition is poor. And I don't know who is behind me, so I cannot call on forces."
"Saving me requires more than support—it requires absolute strength. I am a dragon. Even as one among five hundred thousand, every nation treats dragons seriously," Sukalyus said.
"Finally, I will help you exit the dream. How to save me, and where I am imprisoned, will only be possible once you reach the fifth assimilation stage. Only then will you have the basic strength to rescue me. At that point, you can freely enter this dream, and we will communicate via the analyzer. If the analyzer does not respond, it means I have been eliminated, and the trade need not be fulfilled. Hopefully, one day, we can converse again, whether you or I," Sukalyus' tone was bleak, even his hope fragile.
"The password card will pop out. Remove it to exit the dream, and the methods I mentioned will be written into your memory, though the process will be unpleasant. Remember our trade," Sukalyus instructed.
The electronic sound of the radio vanished, and the world fell silent again. Only the shipwrecks moaned.
Cassia felt disoriented, as if the conversation were a dream within a dream. Only the password card ejected by the analyzer confirmed that the dream had truly existed.
He reached out with his rough hand and touched the card.