Preparing the Transfer

Sure enough, when Zola saw the smile on Nick Fury’s face, he could not help but shudder all over. He paused before continuing forward, his round face still carrying a faint look of terror.

"I won’t introduce him. You know him already." Nick Fury pointed at Alex and casually said to Zola, "The question is, can you do it?" Earlier, Nick Fury had briefly explained Alex’s situation to Zola, emphasizing the issue of the energy body. However, Zola had not given a definite answer at the time, saying he needed to think it over.

Seeing Nick Fury being so direct, Zola did not dare stall. He looked Alex over from head to toe and said solemnly, "With Alex’s level of consciousness, he can undergo the transfer at any time. There is no need for further preparation." After a slight pause, he pushed up his glasses and said hesitantly, "As for the energy body, I need to examine it before I can determine whether it is feasible."

Alex secretly used telepathy on Zola and found nothing unusual. Only then did he nod and summon the Flame Spirit. Ever since he had condensed the Flame Spirit with the Black Queen’s help, Alex had kept it by his side. Although it required constant control, Alex did not find it tiring and simply treated it as training for his Energy Control.

Sure enough, after only a few days, Alex found that his Energy Control had become far more proficient.

Once the Flame Spirit appeared, Zola ignored Alex completely. He eagerly crowded around the Flame Spirit, looking as though he wished he could stick his eyes directly into its body. Fortunately, Alex had prepared for this and kept a layer of flame-isolating energy barrier around the Flame Spirit’s surface. Otherwise, with Zola’s body, he would have been roasted into a dried corpse the moment he drew near.

As his observation continued, Zola’s expression gradually became solemn. After a long while, he raised his head, looked at Alex, and shook it. "An energy body does not possess the capacity to receive consciousness or spirit. Therefore, transferring consciousness and spirit into it is not feasible."

Alex was somewhat disappointed. After remaining silent for a while, he suddenly recalled what Nick Fury had said earlier and asked, "Then can my consciousness and spirit be transferred into a machine?" Transferring into another body was absolutely unacceptable to Alex. He could only settle for the next best thing and choose a computer, which would at least be easier to bear.

Instead of answering Alex’s question, Zola asked, "Forgive my impertinence, but this energy body is controlled by your Psionic Power, correct?"

Alex immediately became wary. He scrutinized Zola for a long moment, and only after confirming that he had no ulterior motives did he nod. "Yes. It is under my control."

"Then that’s perfect!" Upon hearing Alex’s answer, Zola suddenly laughed. His round face scrunched together, his eyes narrowing into slits as he said excitedly, "I invented a container that can store consciousness, called the Consciousness Register. We can first transfer your consciousness into the Consciousness Register, then embed the Consciousness Register into the energy body."

Alex clapped his hands and laughed in delight. "There’s an extra step in the middle, but I can accept that!" Transferring his consciousness into a computer was only a last resort. Unless he had no other choice, Alex did not want to take that path. Although Zola’s method sounded somewhat cumbersome, Alex found it more suitable for himself.

However, when Alex agreed without hesitation, Zola became hesitant instead. After wavering for a long time, he finally said, "The Consciousness Register is still only a theoretical product. It has not been experimentally verified…"

"You were messing with us!" Before Zola could finish, Nick Fury’s face turned livid. He grabbed Zola by the collar and lifted him up, a fierce, icy gleam flashing in his single eye.

Zola obediently straightened his body without struggling and hurriedly explained, "Although it is only theoretical, I can guarantee that it is absolutely safe." As if to make his words more convincing, Zola paused before adding, "If you had not come to me, I would have transferred my own consciousness into the Consciousness Register before long."

Nick Fury said nothing, but his expression gradually relaxed, though he still retained some suspicion. Emma and the other women exchanged looks. Alex had already told them about Zola, and they could not bring themselves to trust him in the slightest. They too fell into hesitation.

Alex was far more straightforward. "What’s the big deal? Let’s try it." Seeing that everyone still looked serious, he added with a smile, "If it really doesn’t work, I’ll just transfer into a computer. It’s not that big a deal."

Nick Fury was still uneasy, but he set Zola down. "Can we test the Consciousness Register first and see whether it works?" Nick Fury did not want Alex’s life to become Zola’s experiment. Anything involving Alex required the utmost caution.

"Separating consciousness from a body is child’s play, but it requires extensive preparation beforehand. At the very least, it will take one or two months. If it fails, it could take even longer." Zola shook his head helplessly. "Not everyone has Psionic Power as powerful as Alex’s and can transfer at any time."

Emma made no attempt to hide what she was doing. She directly used telepathy on Zola, searching through his memories as thoroughly as if digging three feet into the ground, but ultimately found nothing. Even so, Emma did not trust Zola because of it. Telepathy was mysterious enough that many people had learned to guard against it, and all kinds of methods to prevent telepathy had appeared in the world.

"Zola, if you dare harbor any ill intent, the millions of mutants will never let you go!" Abandoning her telepathy, Emma slowly approached Zola. Her face was cold as ice, and her deep voice sounded like a devil’s whisper from hell, eerily terrifying.

Cold sweat poured down Zola’s face. He raised a hand to wipe the bead-sized drops from his forehead and said tremblingly, "I wouldn’t dare. Absolutely not!"

After that round of threats, the matter was settled just like that. Preparations for the experiment began immediately, and Alex and the others finally saw the supposedly miraculous Consciousness Register.

As they looked at the object Zola solemnly took out, which resembled an urn, Alex and the others could not help darkening their expressions. This thing was the Consciousness Register? Wasn’t this a little too casual?

"You’re sure this thing can store consciousness?" After seeing the so-called Consciousness Register, even Alex, who had originally been certain and confident, became somewhat doubtful. The way he looked at Zola also turned strange, carrying a trace of wariness.

Noticing Alex’s gaze, Zola hurriedly nodded and said with complete certainty, "Yes, it can!"

"You’d better pray that it works!" Nick Fury stepped closer and threatened him again, even pulling out his gun. "Otherwise, my gun doesn’t have eyes!"