The Mech Touch novel Chapter 2753

Chapter 2753 - Mutated Beasts

It turned out that genetic loyalty programming was very controversial in many parts of human space. People were deeply afraid of having their freedom robbed without even knowing it because their genes made them this way.

Abuse of this tech occurred in the past. Trisha was quite transparent about that as they walked past the dragon pit.

"During the Age of Conquest, a number of star nations rose up that stood out for their absurdly loyal populations. When other nations investigated, they eventually found out that the people who lived there were genetically instructed to give their loyalty to certain rulers."

"What happened once this became known?" Ves asked.

"The controversy generated near-universal indignation from other humans. The star nations in question were wiped out." Trisha straightforwardly answered. "The rulers were hunted down to the last man while the rest of the population were cleansed in its entirety."

"What?! They killed all of those poor citizens who didn’t know any better?!"

"That is correct, Mr. Larkinson. While we have developed means to counteract genetic loyalty programming, at the time it was still too new. Extensive debates took place between biotech researchers and various leaders. Eventually, they came to the conclusion that it was too dangerous to let any human who possessed the tained genes to propagate any further. They chose the lesser of two evils by erasing them from existence while they were still contained."

"They really killed everyone?"

"Yes, Mr. Larkinson. Every star nation in the vicinity even extended their search into starsh.i.p.s and their own territories in order to catch and eliminate any tainted humans who had traveled away from their home states. The hunters spilled a large quantity of human blood in those days, but no one voiced any protest. No matter how wholesome these genetically-altered individuals behaved, their lineage could not be allowed to spread!"

Though Ves initially felt horrified, he slowly settled his emotions after realizing that it was probably the best decision to make at the time. By acting decisively, the death toll was kept to the lowest possible level. It was the least-bad choice out of a selection of several awful options.

Another mitigating factor was that genocide and wiping out trillions of humans at a time was not that big of a taboo back then. While slaughtering so many people was certainly frowned upon, the ones responsible this time had a righteous cause backing them up. Ultimately, the people involved in this massive operation were celebrated as heroes. This was a pretty good indicator that a lot of people supported this extreme measure during this period.

"In the Age of Mechs, the use of genetic loyalty programming is even more restricted." Trisha said as she guided Ves to a forest dome where various feathered and unfeathered birds flew among and over the tree branches. "For example, the designer birds that are residing in this biome are still wild. They hold no affection for humans and it will take many generations to tame them through selective breeding alone."

A careful mix of small-sized exobeasts and genetic beasts lived in a single enclosed space that was several square kilometers in size. Ves noticed that the temperature inside was kept hotter than usual. The strange energy screen that covered the entire space was not strong enough to block attacks from mechs, but it was more than sufficient to keep the beasts inside while also regulating the local climate.

"Meow."

Lucky looked rather interested in the birds. His tail swished excitedly at the thought of hunting a couple of them down.

"What purpose do these birds serve?"

"They are not designed to serve a singular purpose." Trisha answered. "The birds in this specific biome are kept as ’wild’ as possible to meet the needs of clients who dislike signs of artificiality in their own menagerie. Our customers may choose them to enrich their gardens, hunt down challenging prey, put them on display or fill their stomachs. Some species are more suitable for certain purposes than others, though. We can provide you with detailed advice and recommendations if you are interested."

"Hmmm. I’d like to keep looking. These birds look interesting, but they seem a little.. dimwitted for my tastes."

"Avians generally aren’t known for their intelligence. Oh, they can be smart, but the incidences of intelligent and sentient avian creatures is actually quite low compared to other types. The lack of articulating limbs of most bird species means that they are not as stimulated to perform complex actions."

Ves had been staring into the enclosed forest for over ten minutes without detecting any hint of a spiritual mind. It was clear that he needed to be more specific in order to encounter a creature that might meet his needs.

"I hold a particular interest in sentient and near-sentient lifeforms. Could you guide me towards the exhibits that feature more intelligent beasts?"

"Why certainly." The attendant nodded and began to walk deeper into the expansive park. "We feature a broad mix of exobeasts and designer beasts that are capable of higher forms of thought. Do note that the intelligence of the species we host are limited. Beyond a certain range, an exobeast stops being a very clever brute and starts becoming a sentient alien species that is capable of developing a civilization. The former is classified as humanity’s prey while the latter is regarded as a competitor of the human race."

Any alien race that could threaten humanity’s dominance in the universe had to be wiped out or restricted as much as possible! This was a universal rule in human space that everyone abided by. Even the LRA abided by this restriction!

This was why even highly-sophisticated designer pets like Clixie were so cat-like despite their high potential. Rubarthan Sentinel Cats were made to be smart enough to protect and provide emotional companionship to their owners, but they were not capable of performing math, writing speeches or designing mechs!

A cat must be a cat. If any of them acted like a human, then they were no longer no longer pets, but potential threats!

Since the distance they needed to traverse was a little further away, Trisha guided them to a transparent platform that speedily transported them tens of kilometers deeper inside the expansive park territory.

Several different biomes flitted past. Ves kept his senses out for any unusual presences, but he failed to detect any spiritually strong lifeforms comparable to Zeigra or Qilanxo.

He knew that this search was a bit of a long shot, but he was determined to look anyway. It wasn’t as if he had any other option if he wanted to gather the ingredients he sought.

If Wexel Park wasn’t able to provide him with any useful prizes, then Ves would just visit the other venues that sold various beasts.

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