Chess Mage of Faerûn

Chapter 529 Experimental Ideas
"The original owner of the arm was transformed into a death golem long ago, and this severed arm has given me some new ideas."

As soon as he finished speaking, Tyrantir curled his fingers into a hook-like grasping motion, and the limb that had been lifeless on the table suddenly arched, while the metal prosthetic hand also made a grasping motion in sync.

"The north was frequently embroiled in war, and limb injuries were common. We considered using prosthetics to replace them, and the experiment was successful, but..."

The Grand Master shook his head as he spoke.

"Cost issues?"

"It's not just the cost, but also the burden of using the magical prosthetic limb itself, which exceeds the ability of ordinary people to bear it."

As he spoke, the archmage pulled out several screwdriver-like tools from somewhere and quickly removed the outer shell of the prosthetic hand, revealing its complex internal structure.

The metal metacarpal structure is surrounded by a gemstone core that emits a faint glow, and several probes extend from the wrist joint to insert into the broken end of the arm, intertwined with the flesh and blood.

"Leaving aside the material cost of this strange artifact, the fact that it needs to be recharged regularly is extremely inconvenient for non-spellcasters,"

Tyrantir then extended his finger and sent a tiny bolt of lightning striking the other end of the severed arm, followed by a scene common in biology class in his previous life.

The severed arm shuddered violently, and the metal prosthetic hand twitched as well.

The arm remained alive thanks to the necromancy, and the presence of nerve reflexes was understandable. However, the fact that the prosthesis also reacted accordingly speaks volumes.

The technology has been secured!

"Don't be too happy yet,"

The high mage, noticing his disciple's obvious delight, immediately poured cold water on him:

"Leaving aside whether your subordinates can withstand the negative energy erosion caused by the necromancy used to drive the arm, the nerve connection alone is a difficult problem."

Neural interface?

Zhang Yuan was immediately speechless. Where would he get the black shell technology? He couldn't possibly skip all the prerequisite technologies and develop it out of thin air, could he?

Or maybe it was sheer luck; she dug up some lost technology from an ancient magical civilization while shoveling into a grave, and it just so happened to be in that very direction.

Forcing them to mount would be unrealistic, since they are all flesh and blood. However, the difference is that Münster and his group are living, breathing people, not the mutilated bodies in front of them. Implanting metal muscle fibers into their bodies would not be as simple as just putting on a vest.

The complicated implantation procedure means that it is difficult to remove easily, and the recipient has to endure long-term inconvenience in life, possible physical rejection, not to mention the erosion of negative energy.

Wouldn't this become a cursed armor?

No matter how unwilling he was, Master Zhang wasn't so heartless as to be completely insane.

"That brainwave... I mean, is a mental connection feasible?"

Although the hope was slim, Zhang Yuan still wanted to give it a shot.

“Good idea. Using mental or psionic energy to manipulate the body is undoubtedly the most perfect way. It is convenient, reliable, and provides rapid feedback.”

Tyrandeur offered a string of seemingly impressive praises, then abruptly changed the subject:
"Then only one small problem remains:"

"So when are you planning to have your men take on part-time jobs as mages or psionicists?"

Zhang Yuan rolled his eyes inwardly at the old man's damn lame joke. Feeling somewhat helpless, he simply described the nineteenth modification surgery of the Astartes in his previous life's setting—the Black Carapace Disc—hoping that his teacher might have some ideas.

"Implanting near-permanent neural sensors under the skin as connection hubs to equip devices for controlling external devices,"

The high priest lowered his gaze, his fingers tapping rhythmically on the table.
"It's undeniably a pretty good idea, but this kind of systemic implantation surgery is not as easy as it sounds. It also involves connecting to the nervous system, which is equivalent to giving the recipient an extra set of organs." Tyrantir revealed the truth in one sentence. The reason why Astartes is called Superman and the Emperor's Angel is precisely because of a series of almost miraculous and forbidden modification surgeries.
Extraordinary organs create extraordinary power. If it were that easy, everyone could be a canned food, so why bother with compromise products like force feedback armor?

Finally, the archmage broke the silence:
"It's not impossible, but it will take time to verify. Or perhaps you can bring some tissues or organs from psionic creatures, which might be helpful."

Psionic beings...which psionic species is easy to mess with?
"For example?" Zhang Yuan asked, forcing himself to speak.

"The tentacles of a mind flayer, the long whiskers of a benthic fish, a complete specimen of a Gith Yankee..."

"But we're not going down the psionic drive path, are we?"

"Who can predict the future? Even I'm not sure if I can pull off the kind of fantastical thing you're talking about. We always need to have a backup plan, so we can change course if things don't work out."

"Really? It sounds pretty feasible."

"Sounds feasible?"

Tyrandeur frowned upon hearing this:
"Tell me the truth, does this technology actually exist in your world, or is it merely a conceptual idea? Or is it simply a pipe dream from the bards' mouths?"

Now it was Zhang Yuan's turn to feel uneasy. Lying? He didn't have the guts to do that in the Mage Tower, so he could only offer a tactful explanation of what it meant to make reasonable forward-looking predictions about future development based on the current situation.

"But we have indeed achieved the feat of transmitting neural signals from the body to external devices, such as chip implantation and neuro-prosthetics."

I briefly described the relevant concept to the teacher, who then thought for a moment and spoke:

"This won't solve the immediate problem. According to you, you haven't achieved true neural connectivity. This kind of signal simulation is insufficient in terms of synchronization, reaction speed, and perception accuracy to support high-intensity combat."

. . .

Now Zhang Yuan really had no choice but to remain silent and, following suit, also began to knock on the table.

Tap tap tap…

"Right now, we can only rely on experiments to explore and verify. I need a certain number of live samples. Those gnolls roaming around Xikai are a menace if left unchecked. Go and capture a few alive."

Tyrandeur made a decision.

One cannot disobey the teacher's words, especially for one's own project. Without hesitation, Master Zhang teleported to Xikai Town that very day, recruited a group of pawns to begin suppressing bandits, and captured a sufficient number of samples while eliminating harm for the people. He then drove the dragon chariot back home.

The efficiency was so high that even the Grand Mage was somewhat surprised.

"You may return to your territory."

? ?
“I think I can participate as an assistant.”

"Are you sure? This experiment can't be completed in a short time,"

The Grand Master raised an eyebrow and looked at his disciple:

"You're not going to keep messing around with your little corner of the world anymore?"

"Anyway, there's a teleportation array for travel, so going back once a week is enough. It's not easy to encounter a problem that even you, teacher, are struggling with, so how can I, as your disciple, just stand by and do nothing?"

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(End of this chapter)