Chapter 45: Dimensional Transmission

After sending Yao En away, Qin Mo began preparing for the dimensional transmission experiment.

The dimensional transmission device was transported to the experimental site, a newly excavated underground chamber beneath the fortress. In the vast cavern, two cells were built into the far corners. The subject for the experiment was already locked in the left cell. He was not a rebel bishop but a criminal, convicted for attempting to dismantle logistics machinery for profit.

After Grot had sent Yao En on the transport ship, he hurried to the experimental site, ready to assist Qin Mo.

"Put this on the test subject," Qin Mo gestured to a metal backpack on the table.

Grot immediately grabbed the backpack and entered the cell. The prisoner dared not resist and obediently strapped it on. After Grot left, the prisoner even took the initiative to close the cell door behind him.

"Is that a gravity backpack?" Grot asked curiously.

"No, it's a protective device," Qin Mo explained as he activated the dimensional transmission machine. "The backpack contains a locator, a soul tether, and a shield generator to ensure he is transmitted intact."

"Sounds... complicated," Grot muttered, his gaze shifting toward the transmission device.

It was a cubic object, two meters tall and wide, forged from an alloy. Energy patterns shimmered across its metallic surface. As Qin Mo raised his hand, thick cables pierced through the walls, connecting to the device.

"The first experiment begins," Qin Mo said, placing his hand on the device and activating it with his mind.

Grot quickly turned to watch the prisoner. The man's body began to warp and twist, his agonized screams echoing through the chamber. The backpack emitted a glow, and above the prisoner's contorting form, a humanoid energy figure began to materialize. This figure attempted to grab at the physical body but could not touch it, instead bound by the energy field, fixed securely to the physical form.

"That's his soul," Qin Mo remarked.

"It doesn't seem like the backpack is working," Grot quickly pointed out.

"It is, just not fully," Qin Mo continued observing for a few more seconds before raising his hand again.

At that moment, the full array of the backpack's systems activated. A shimmering oval barrier enveloped both the prisoner's body and soul. In the next instant, the prisoner appeared in the opposite cell. The barrier slowly dissolved, his soul and body merging once more as he collapsed to the ground, gasping in pain.

"Are we planning to use this device to escape the underhive?" Grot asked, his voice laced with concern.

"Of course. This transmission device is only the first step. In the future, we'll be traversing across star systems with it," Qin Mo nodded.

Grot paled as he looked at the prisoner, thinking the device seemed more like a tool of torture than a means of transport.

"If the protective mechanism is activated before the transmission starts, he wouldn't feel any pain," Qin Mo said, approaching the cell and asking the prisoner, "What did you see during the transmission?"

"Before it started... I saw many lines... Everything in my vision became transparent... After that, I seemed to see many things... but also nothing at all," the prisoner muttered, his words a confused jumble.

Qin Mo listened quietly and came to a conclusion. The prisoner had briefly entered another dimension during the transmission, but as a human with limited sensory abilities, his perception was too weak to comprehend much of it. No matter — the transmission had succeeded.

"You're lucky. I thought you might end up stuck inside the wall," Qin Mo chuckled.

"What?" The prisoner looked up in terror, only now realizing how narrowly he had escaped a likely death.

Qin Mo turned back toward the transmission device, not starting the next experiment but instead falling into deep thought.

The principle of dimensional transmission was straightforward: use enough energy to open a dimensional pathway and send someone or something through to the other side. If you imagine the material universe as a chessboard, a piece moving from one side to the other must take one step at a time. But dimensional transmission allows someone to lift the piece and place it directly at the destination.

When the transmission starts, the main control intelligence calculates the data between the wearer of the protective device and the target location. However, if there isn't a locator at the destination, these calculations inevitably result in some error. The deviation could be a meter or two, or even ten or a hundred meters. For a ship, that doesn't matter much, as long as it doesn't end up on a planet. But for a person, even a few meters of error could mean being embedded in a wall or fused with debris...

The solution was simple: allow the main control intelligence more time to calculate, ensuring greater precision. Once one person was safely transmitted, they could place a beacon at the destination, and future transmissions would have an error margin of less than a meter.

"New Kato just experienced a power outage! The cause is still under investigation!" Klein burst through the door, interrupting Qin Mo's thoughts.

"I used New Kato's power grid for the experiment," Qin Mo replied.

The downside of dimensional transmission was its immense energy consumption. But that wasn't a problem for Qin Mo — he could charge the device using lightning. This time, he had used New Kato's electricity to test how far a person could be transmitted using the city's power grid.

The result was clear: transmitting the prisoner between two cells less than a hundred meters apart had been enough to blackout New Kato. Any further distance was out of the question.

"How did the experiment go?"

Klein's voice trembled as he waited for the answer, dreading the possibility of failure.

"Success."

"That's great! So, we can now leave the underhive freely?"

"Of course. In five days, once I've mass-produced the protective devices, we'll be able to move freely in and out of the underhive."

Klein was overjoyed, after all these days of waiting, the result was finally within reach. Soon, he could leave the underhive and return home to see his family.

"Mobilize all the troops in three days and prepare for large-scale transmissions."

Klein froze, unable to comprehend the order. After a moment, he stammered, "But... the rebels in the underhive are all dead, aren't they?"

"Yes, but those who betrayed us are still alive. I don't plan to start a war, but we must be ready to fight if anyone tries to oppose us once we leave the underhive," Qin Mo explained.

"Understood..." Klein nodded slowly, deep in thought.