Chapter 234 – Human Nature

The Interstellar Portal silently appeared beside the Forbidden Forest on the floating castle.

Several trailers carrying sleeping animals were then pushed through the portal by numerous workers.

“I’ll be working here from now on?” a female zookeeper muttered as she walked out of the portal and glanced at the Forbidden Forest’s environment. She then turned to look at the magnificent castle complex nearby, excitement surfacing on her face. “I’m going to be living in a castle?”

“Congratulations on being selected,” one of the woman’s colleagues said. “You finally get to become a princess, and not the type seen on KTVs.”

The female zookeeper: “…”

“A prince is living on this castle,” the colleague said as she secretly pointed at Chen Yu, whom the many government officials were currently fawning over. “I heard he’s a sexy uncle. Little girl, make good use of this chance!”

At this time, the floating castle had already arrived at the Pacific Ocean’s equator, and its altitude had been reduced to just 4,000 meters above sea level.

Even so, many of the animals couldn’t adapt to the environment at this altitude.

Helpless, Chen Yu had no choice but to lower the castle’s altitude to 1,000 meters.

For the animals that still couldn’t adapt, he had no choice but to keep them within the castle complex’s courtyards.

As for the two giant pandas he “captured,” he arranged for them to stay in the central courtyard, which was the largest courtyard available. The pandas would be cared for by two zookeepers at all times, and Chen Yu also had Hermione regulate the temperature in the central courtyard.

In the end, Chen Yu had busied himself for over half an hour before he completed all the necessary arrangements.

Excluding the several dozen birds, there were a total of 27 animals on the floating island. It wasn’t a huge number.

The 10 zookeepers that would care for these animals were also full-time employees of the zoo.

These zookeepers could be considered to be the floating castle’s first batch of residents.

Aside from these 10 zookeepers, a zoo executive claiming to be in charge of managing the zookeepers also desperately tried to stay behind. The executive claimed that he could help Chen Yu “manage” his employees. However, Chen Yu had kicked the executive back to Beijing without hesitation.

The amount of food required to feed 10 people and several dozen animals was significant.

To save himself some trouble, Chen Yu had the zoo bring over enough supplies for a month.

As for what would happen a month later… By then, his plan would’ve already been implemented, and he would no longer have to worry about the castle residents’ supplies.

After saying goodbye to the talkative government officials, Chen Yu disconnected the spatial link and led the 10 zookeepers into a classical conference room inside the castle complex.

Taking the seat of honor, Chen Yu straightened his mask and smiled. “Firstly, I would like to officially welcome you into the floating castle’s family. No need for applause. Let me finish speaking first.”

Everyone hurriedly lowered their hands.

“Among you, there are real zookeepers, and there are those with special status. While I don’t care about your actual identities, but since you’ve joined as a zookeeper, you must do your job. Once you’ve finished your work, you are free to stroll around the entire island under the premise you don’t break anything.”

After saying so, Chen Yu raised two fingers. “However, there are two places you cannot approach. One, the Headmaster’s Tower. Two, the library. As for your accommodations, Hermione will arrange dorms for you.

“Lastly, let’s talk about the animals. Because of an experiment I’m conducting, they are currently in an unconscious state. I need you to observe their conditions and take notes.

“That’s all I have to say. Everyone, applaud.”

Clap, clap, clap…

“Meeting dismissed!”

After waiting for the zookeepers to leave, Chen Yu looked toward Hermione and asked, “Do you have knowledge regarding the human body?”

“Aside from being an assistant robot for the floating castle’s operations, I also have a parenting module installed,” Hermione said, smiling. “I am knowledgeable about basic science.”

“What is the microbial bacteria, then?”

“It is a special strain of bacteria developed by humans at the end of the 21st century. Its main function is to regulate the balance of bacteria in the human body and prevent the occurrence of diseases.”

While saying so, Hermione waved her staff and summoned a series of images in the air. She then explained in detail, “This is one of mankind’s greatest inventions. Its history can be traced back all the way to 2003. After completing the Human Genome Project, mankind had identified all of the human genome’s genes and understood the functions of all human gene fragments.

“However, at that time, humans, including academia, had yet to realize the huge role of this plan. It is no exaggeration to say that this plan is the backbone for mankind to build an increasingly prosperous civilization.”

“Continue.” After hearing the secrets of modern and future times, Chen Yu’s curiosity was immediately aroused.

“In 2003, after humans completed the genome project, they found that these genomes couldn’t explain all phenomena that occurred in the human body. Hence, they subsequently started up a follow-up project called the Human Microbiome Project.

“And after decades of research, mankind finally determined a truth that shocked the world.”

“What’s the truth?”

“Humans are actually composed of microorganisms.” In a steady tone, Hermione said, “Although there was a similar saying in the biological world at the end of the 20th century, this truth remained unconfirmed until the start of the 21st century.

“There are 60 trillion cells in the human body, but the number of bacteria present is close to 2,000 trillion. They form a stable symbiotic relationship with the human body, and they control the physique, disease, lifespan, and even habits and thought process of humans.”

“This… How is this possible?” Chen Yu was taken aback by this revelation.

“For example, some people liked to eat beef, some liked seafood, and some liked sweets. Mankind once thought that this was a result of their own thoughts, but they weren’t aware that their appetite was actually being controlled by a part of the bacteria in their bodies.”

Pointing at a projection of a bacteria strain with her staff, Hermione continued, “These bacteria induce various chemical reactions in the intestines, which affect the host’s thinking logic and causing the host to only eat what the bacteria liked and were adapted to. Take humans who prefer to eat beef for example. If these humans eat seafood, there is a high possibility that it would result in the intestinal bacteria to feel uncomfortable. While ‘torturing’ the host, the bacteria would stimulate biological enzymes and cause the host to become averse to seafood.

“Preference for movies, games, sports, gender…

“Most of these so-called individual behaviors result from the chemical reactions caused by various bacteria strains in the body.

“There have been many instances of a person’s personality changing after undergoing an organ transplant, and these cases have been proven to be caused by a change in bacteria strains in the body…

“And this, is only the tip of the iceberg of the influence bacteria possess over the human body. As research into the subject deepened, mankind discovered that the so-called individual is actually a symbiotic body composed of bacteria, viruses, parasites, and a small number of cells.

“This discovery led to a subversive revolution of human culture. In medicine alone, after shifting their focus from cells to microorganisms, mankind has successfully overcome many diseases, viruses, and cancers that would’ve been fatal initially.

“With the help of various bacteria strains, mankind has also successfully increased their average lifespan past the theoretical limit of a telomere.”

Dismissing the projections, Hermione looked at Chen Yu. She concluded, “Meanwhile, the microbial bacteria is one of the greatest artificial bacteria strains mankind has invented.”

“That…” Excitement flashing across his eyes, Chen Yu asked, “When did the Human Microbiome Project you mentioned end?”

“Led by America’s National Institutes of Health (NIH) in 2007, with the participation of China, Japan, Britain, and other countries, the original plan was projected to reach completion in 2025. However, due to a breakthrough made by the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Shanghai Jiao Tong University, the project was able to reach completion four years ahead of time.”

“In 2021? This year?” Chen Yu abruptly stood up.

“Yes. In 2019, the academic community recognized the dominance of bacteria in the human body. In 2021, the Human Biome Project was officially completed, and the results began to be slowly applied to human society. In 2035, the first artificial bacteria was successfully developed, and mankind was able to rid themselves of 90% of the diseases that previously plagued them.”

“So…” Chen Yu instantly recalled the news he had seen before. “The prophecy made by some professionals on the internet stating that people could become healthy with just one vaccine shot…”

“They are referring to the artificial bacteria.” Hermione nodded. “By relying on the microbial bacteria, they can selectively target internal diseases by balancing the body’s bacteria strains.”

“I see… I see…”

When he connected this information with the plan he was about to initiate, Chen Yu felt an inexplicable sense of coldness sweeping through his body…