Chapter 9: Monitoring (Part 1)_1

The Right Hand issued the command to assemble a computer, and Chen Yang moved to follow the order. But suddenly, his right hand stretched out seven or eight meters, dividing into over a dozen tentacles, each picking up the necessary components and began assembling them.

As Chen Yang looked on in shock, one tentacle grabbed the computer case, while another inserted the power supply and motherboard, securing the CPU with a clip. The rest of the tentacles grabbed the graphics card and memory stick and placed them in the appropriate slots.

Once that was done, another tentacle, which had been waiting its turn, swiftly applied thermal grease to the bottom of the fan, in the next moment, with a "pop", the four support legs of the heat sink were securely screwed into place.

After these steps were completed, the final phase involved screwing the motherboard in place, securing the optical drive and the hard disk, and connecting all the data and power cables, as well as the case jumper. The assembly sequence, which normally had to be done one step at a time, was executed by the Right Hand almost simultaneously with remarkable finesse. Chen Yang, his eyes glazed over in a stupor, his mind blank.

In just one minute, not only was the computer assembled, but the desk, chair, and even three side-by-side monitors were also set up. Chen Yang's mouth fell open, stunned into silence.

Should he say, it was indeed impressive for an Alien? As they have some techniques that earthlings couldn't compare to.

Chen Yang had become thoroughly numb. Witnessing his own right hand turning into such a horrific entity, and feel indifferent, the pain he suffered from defies elaboration.

In any case, after assembling the computer at an unprecedented speed, the Right Hand plugs it in, then boots it up and loads the System disk.

In this idle period, Chen Yang obediently refrains from any extraneous motion. He is somewhat puzzled; he already has a computer at his home, why did the Right Hand buy and assemble another one? And what about those other electronic devices and numerous tools on the floor, what are they meant for?

Chen Yang is left baffled. With insufficient information, and his knowledge level not yet advanced enough to infer a whole part from a fraction, the best he could do was to obey the Right Hand's instructions for the sake of his own survival.

How would you train a hyperactive, anxious, and obstinately undisciplined jerk into the most disciplined man? If such a person could experience the pain Chen Yang underwent—direct stimulation of the nerves of pain, making him feel as if being cut with a knife, burnt with fire, or breathless. Even the most stubborn and ferocious criminal would willingly obey commands, dismissing the so-called human dignity and the barest hint of hope in their heart, if they had to endure even a third of the pain Chen Yang felt.

Therefore, without a prompt for the next step from the Right Hand, even if he is feeling sore and tired from standing, he couldn't take a break and have a cup of tea. He allows the cold sweat to roll down his forehead, dampening his cheeks.

"It's done, Host, go sit in the chair."

Having stood for ten minutes, Chen Yang finally receives instruction from the Right Hand. He drew the chair quickly and sat down.

"Too primitive, too primitive, the hardware level is too primitive..."

The operation system has been installed, but the Right Hand isn't satisfied. The system that took over ten minutes to install, both in software and hardware aspects, were extremely primitive in its view.

This feeling was akin to being accustomed to using a thousand-megabyte fiber-optic line for a country, and then being forced to use a 2G network. The hair-raisingly slow download speed was enough to drive one mad.

This modern computer, where all instructions and data are represented in binary, and information is stored and processed by semiconductor-controlled integrated circuits, seems no more advanced than a primitive counting rope compared to quantum computers that control atom states to store and process information. Still, it was at least comforting that there was as basic as a "counting rope," if we were still during the evolutionary process from marine to terrestrial organisms, it would be a real tragedy...

Although it despises the hardware, it has even less esteem for the software, especially the instruction set of this machine's core chip, which neither fully exploits the capabilities of the chip nor allows for further enhancement of the chip's performance.

But that's okay, it just needs to spend a little time writing some special software in accordance with the instruction set of human hardware. Then it will be able to cope with the ensuing needs.

As the Right Hand mulled over, dozens of tentacles continued their actions. These finger-thick tentacles fanned out, each touching a key on the keyboard. There was no need to move to select different keys, much like having a hammer for each hole in a game of whack-a-mole. Whenever a key was needed, it would press directly, otherwise it remained floating; this resulted in a terrifying speed that was incomparable to humans.

All Chen Yang could see was the command prompt on the monitor constantly refreshing, with the entire page going through ceaseless open and close cycles, which made it impossible to discern what Right Hand was doing.

Well, whatever it was doing or trying to do, this situation only lasted for over a minute before Right Hand issued another command.

"Host body, get the monitor out."

A monitor?

Chen Yang was taken aback, where did he get a monitor from?

Inevitably, his gaze turned to the clutter on the floor and sure enough, he found three security cameras and a bunch of lines.

"Now, Host body, listen carefully. I need you to install the three monitors in the following locations: the inside doorway of the basement, the main door of the basement, and the rooftop."

What's the point of setting up the monitors?

Chen Yang was confused and filled with foreboding. However, having experienced excessive punishment, he would neither openly oppose this unknown entity, nor would he question the reason for these actions. He decided to complete the task first, and then raise his questions when Right Hand was in a good mood.

This was the smart move, and also a clever strategy to adapt to circumstances.

In fact, Chen Yang didn't think that much. He was simply afraid of pain and didn't want to incur punishment, what a pitiable boy.

Once Right Hand had accurately indicated the target locations, Chen Yang planned to take action. Setting up security cameras wasn't difficult. The most challenging part was probably about tidying and laying out the lines––getting the lines properly set up was what Chen Yang had to think through.

"You have three hours. If you don't complete the task, you'll face punishment."

After issuing the commands, Right Hand returned to its original state and seemed to fall asleep as if it had expended all its energy and needed to rest. It was at this moment that Chen Yang felt a slight sense of liberation and breathed a sigh of relief. Having this unknown entity, Right Hand, residing inside of him exerted a constant pressure on him, making him tense all the time. Prolonged stimulation made his spirit extremely exhausted.

The moment Right Hand drifted into sleep, Chen Yang wiped the cold sweat from his forehead with a tissue. He then squatted down, picked up the tools, lines, and security cameras, and walked towards the door.

Modern security cameras come with both wired and wireless transmission methods. In comparison to wired transmission, wireless transmission can utilize wifi local network and does not require lining. However, it can be affected by buildings and various electronic appliances. Importantly, opting for wireless transmission will cost twice as much or even more. Given Chen Yang's financial limitation, Right Hand chose wired transmission for the installation.

That was indeed a troublesome task for Chen Yang. He looked at the instruction manual for quite a while before starting reluctantly. He began by installing the indoor security cameras, which should not be lower than 2.5m in height. He brought over a small stepladder, climbed up to the top of the door, drilled a few holes first, and then installed the metal bracket.

After investing a lot of effort, Chen Yang managed to secure the bracket. He then began connecting the lens to the camera's lens port without pause. He examined whether it was firmly installed and could move flexibly. Once everything was in place, he started setting up the signal line and the power cord.

To avoid strong magnetic interference, the signal line and the power cord couldn't be installed together and had to be at least half a meter apart. This really troubled Chen Yang. The power cord wasn't an issue since its outlet was nearby, but the signal line didn't have a pre-set interface line, and to keep the installation convenient, it had to be laid from the ceiling of the basement.

By the time he finished installing the first camera, Chen Yang looked at the time. No wonder he felt so tired. He, with no experience, had been working for over an hour. Now it was already 7:15 in the morning.