Wen Jifei and the others spoke like that partly out of genuine concern, but there was also no shortage of teasing in their words.
After all, it went without saying that Great-Aunt could never perform this operation all by herself.
Since she could borrow an operating theater, she could naturally borrow medical personnel as well—and she certainly would. That way, when the time came, whether she merely supervised or actually operated with her own hands, someone would be right beside her keeping watch and ready to speak up.
Wu Xu, however, knew nothing of this. Furthermore, the device surgery he had undergone back in that isolated mountain village really had carried a terrifyingly high mortality rate—greater than seventy percent. So he took it entirely seriously.
To him, this moment felt surreal; things truly had come down to a matter of life and death.
His life rested in the hands of that elderly great-aunt not far away, currently trying to thread a needle with sheer willpower alone.
Wu Xu lowered his head in thought, then looked up. Tilting his head toward Han Qingyu, he broke the brief silence in his usual plain tone.
"Qingzi, you said I'd be really strong once I swapped out the apparatus."
It was half an assertion, half a question.
"Ah... you should be. I think so," Han Qingyu said, inadvertently growing tense under Wu Xu’s dead-serious demeanor.
"That's an absolute certainty!" Xin Yaoqiao chimed in from the side, looking somewhat exaggeratedly bewildered. "What, don't you guys know? We have data on every generation of the apparatus. It can all be calculated."
The expressions on the others' faces made their reply clear: *We're uneducated, we don't know, we need an explanation.*
"Leaving aside individual factors, the boost is nearly double," Xin Yaoqiao stated with complete confidence.
Nearly... double?!
All six of them were stunned on the spot, including Wu Xu himself.
Faced with a wall of sheer disbelief, Xin Yaoqiao even began to doubt herself for a second. She closed her eyes to recall and verify the figures, then opened them, looked around at everyone, and reaffirmed firmly, "It really is true! And the boost in combat strength is actually secondary. More importantly, once the apparatus is externalized, the wearer's internal organs no longer suffer direct shockwaves. In comparison, the boost in damage endurance is even greater—at least twofold to threefold!"
*That's... insane!*
"It's precisely because of this that even though Ne later betrayed Azure out of the blue and became a member of the Cleansing Faction, Azure's history still records his merits. Those veterans who crossed that era still feel deep gratitude for his contribution... As my grandfather puts it, one thing doesn't negate the other."
Xin Yaoqiao added another remark, because it was precisely Ne's scientific breakthroughs and contributions that had allowed the three-dimensional apparatus to make the evolutionary leap from internal biological connections to surface-level power infusion.
Right now, however, no one was in the mood to discuss history with her.
"*Sigh.*" Amid the silence, He Tangtang let out a long, wistful sigh.
Originally, he could console himself with the thought that Wu Xu had worn the armor for longer and that he would eventually reclaim a spot in the top three for combat strength. But now... that top three seemed to have vanished into the distance, leaving him eating their dust.
"I'm a Grade B+ after all," He Tangtang muttered wistfully. He turned his head and looked at Han Qingyu, Shen Yixiu, and Wu Xu in turn. "Dammit, none of you are human."
Holding back their laughter, Wen Jifei and Liu Shiheng slung their arms around He Tangtang's shoulders from either side, taking turns comforting him.
Liu Shiheng said, "It's fine, Tangtang."
"Yeah. Even though you don't rank in combat strength anymore," Wen Jifei chimed in, "when schools hold parent-teacher conferences, you can still pose as our dad."
Liu Shiheng nodded, then shook his head. "Wait, we don't go to school anymore."
"Oh. Then you're completely useless."
Wen Jifei pulled his arm back without hesitation.
"..." He Tangtang reached out, grabbed the two of them, and tossed them aside, caught between tears and laughter. "Get lost, get lost! At least I can fight better than the two of you!"
"That's right, Tangtang, don't be discouraged or anxious. You're actually stronger than the vast majority of people, and a squad isn't about just two or three people fighting," Shen Yixiu said earnestly. "Just like in that canyon in Nepal, if you hadn't been with us, constantly protecting Caixin and me, we might never have lasted long enough to make it out, let alone call for reinforcements. And then Qingzi might..."
"Might have died as well," Han Qingyu finished for her. Looking at He Tangtang, he said, "We have plenty of source energy blocks now. Use as many as you like—I won't pinch pennies on you."
He Tangtang said nothing, but nodded vigorously.
Meanwhile, Wen Jifei and Liu Shiheng sidled back over. Plague Chicken cracked a smile, then put on a serious face. "Jokes aside, jokes aside. What I'm really curious about right now is: after Wu Xu finishes his surgery, could he beat Qingzi in a fight?"
With that question, every eye turned to Han Qingyu.
Could he beat him?
Han Qingyu knew that if he were in the state he had entered back in the canyon, with life-converted source energy overflowing, Wu Xu wouldn't be his match even with the new apparatus.
However, if they relied solely on their three-dimensional apparatuses and liquid source energy, he really wasn't certain he could beat Wu Xu right now, just as he wasn't certain he could beat Rusty Sister.
In fact, he would very likely be at a disadvantage.
Quietly comforting himself with the fact that he had only worn the armor for five months, Han Qingyu smiled and admitted magnanimously, "Most likely, Wu Xu would hold the upper hand."
"Whoa!" The others gasped in shock.
Han Qingyu chuckled. "That's a good thing, isn't it?"
Shen Yixiu nodded as well. "It is."
She knew Han Qingyu had a special state that could be triggered, and she estimated that her own current strength compared to Wu Xu's—after he refitted and adapted—would be about neck and neck.
However, she could never match Wu Xu's battle intent and sheer grit. His mindset of living for battle, fighting to exist—and even once being manipulated into becoming a numb weapon that knew only slaughter—was something she couldn't replicate.
So in a real fight, Shen Yixiu felt she would most likely lose.
Besides, Wu Xu's source energy supply over the years must have been severely lacking... In the future, he would only grow stronger.
Thinking this through, Shen Yixiu felt genuinely happy.
"In any case, our squad's overall strength is taking another massive leap," Wen Jifei summarized in conclusion. While delighted for the squad and for Qingzi, he temporarily cast aside his own gloomy frustrations about being a mere 'Dice.'
Only after the heated discussion wound down did everyone realize something: Wu Xu himself hadn't said a word the entire time.
All eyes shifted toward him.
Noticing their attention, Wu Xu pulled himself from his thoughts. He looked up, his gaze finding Han Qingyu. "When can the surgery be done?"
He asked with utter seriousness and resolve.
Everyone could sense it. Wen Jifei deliberately matched his solemn tone. "You've made up your mind? What if... aren't you afraid of dying?"
Wu Xu fell silent for a moment, then shook his head. "It's fine. It's just... that would be a bit of a pity."
What would be a pity? *A pity that I haven't fought shoulder to shoulder with you guys yet,* Wu Xu thought to himself. But saying something like that aloud was far too embarrassing; the words simply wouldn't come.
At this point, Xin Yaoqiao, who knew Wu Xu the least, finally grasped what was going on. Feeling both helpless and anxious, she said, "Actually, it's really not that serious! Great-Aunt probably just forgot to put on her reading glasses. And way back during the era of the Great Refit, the technology was already mature and highly reliable."
"Her forgetting is still terrifying enough on its own," Wen Jifei chimed in.
Amid chuckles, Xin Yaoqiao continued her earnest explanation, clarifying that Great-Aunt's students and apprentices—at least four outstanding doctors from the research institute—would be present to assist during the surgery. Only then did everyone truly set their minds at ease.
Wu Xu let out a breath of relief as well, though feeling a bit embarrassed, he became even quieter.
They entered the house.
"Great-Aunt."
"Great-Aunt."
"Hello, Great-Aunt."
The group greeted her one after another.
"Great-Aunt, your glasses."
Xin Yaoqiao found the reading glasses on the windowsill, walked over, helped Great-Aunt put them on, and then turned to introduce everyone one by one.
"Ah, good, hello children."
Following Xin Yaoqiao's introductions, Great-Aunt looked over each of them, lingering noticeably on Han Qingyu, then on Wu Xu, and finally on Shen Yixiu.
"You must be Commander Shen's little girl, aren't you?" Great-Aunt asked Shen Yixiu out of nowhere.
Having retired long ago, she had never taken part in the research on Shen Yixiu, but as an eminent senior in the field, she naturally knew about the research project and case concerning Shen Yixiu from years past.
Shen Yixiu nodded. "Yes, Great-Aunt."
"Miraculous... Still alive. But being alive is better than anything else, good child." The old woman sighed with emotion, reaching out to take Shen Yixiu's hand and gently patting her palm.
A moment later, Great-Aunt turned and whispered a few words to Xin Yaoqiao.
Then she turned back and looked at Han Qingyu again.
"Young Han?"
"Yes, Great-Aunt."
"I really want to dissect you, you know."
Han Qingyu: "..."
A sudden chill ran down his spine.
Behind Great-Aunt, Xin Yaoqiao frantically waved her hands, explaining, "Don't get the wrong idea! Don't misunderstand! Great-Aunt only heard me talking about you, so she's probably just curious how you can be so strong and advance so quickly despite being a recruit. She's a doctor, so that's just how she expresses it!"
"No, I'm not," Great-Aunt said, shaking her head in annoyance. "I just want to see why on earth his brain is made of solid wood."
Chapter 159