At first glance, this appeared to be another anomalous product from the stars.
But to Luoshu, it was an extremely dangerous object—all because of one word: telomerase.
As a triple-threat genius engineer (mechanical, chemical, and biological), Luoshu understood the implications immediately.
To grasp why telomerase was alarming, one had to first understand telomeres.
Telomeres are DNA-protein complexes at the ends of eukaryotic chromosomes, forming a protective "cap" that maintains chromosomal integrity and regulates cell division cycles.
In simple terms, telomeres determine a cell's lifespan and replication limit.
Different human cells have varying lifespans and division capacities, but collectively, they roughly align with the maximum human lifespan.
For example:
Brain and nerve cells can last 110–185 years but cannot regenerate after full development. Hence, brain death is irreversible.
Intestinal villus cells, with a lifespan of just 2–3 days, have the highest regenerative capacity.
These traits are all dictated by telomeres.
The telomere sequence (50–200 nucleotides) shortens with each cell division. Once depleted, the cell can no longer replicate and dies.
So how can telomeres be extended?
Enter telomerase.
Cells with active telomerase can repair their telomeres, granting theoretical immortality—unlimited divisions!
Does that mean SCP-CN-420, with its telomerase-based tech, is an immortality tool?
Absolutely not.
It's a death trap.
In normal humans, telomerase is suppressed—only active in stem cells, germ cells, and hematopoietic cells (which must divide continuously).
If telomerase activates in other cells, triggering uncontrolled growth, the result is inevitable: tumors.
This explains why the 7th use of the hand-axe has a 37% deformity rate.
Abnormal cell proliferation manifests as:
Internal tumors (if inside the body).
External deformities (if on the surface).
Luoshu suspected the official 37% figure only accounted for visible deformities, ignoring internal tumors. If both were considered, the true mutation rate might be 74–77%!
And tumors are just the beginning.
The real nightmare? Cancer.
With persistent telomerase activity, tumors will become malignant.
In fact, all cancers are linked to telomerase dysfunction.
Cancer cells are the ultimate beneficiaries of telomerase—dividing indefinitely, regrowing from even a single surviving cell.
Far from granting immortality, telomerase accelerates death.
(Author's Note: Seen the movie "A Little Red Flower"? The female lead dies from recurring brain cancer. The film notes that younger cancer patients have higher relapse rates—this is telomerase's fault. In minors, telomerase isn't fully suppressed, leading to aggressive recurrences.)
In short:
Each use of SCP-CN-420 = telomerase activation = higher cancer risk.
This "ability" was best avoided entirely.
It made sense—on ████, this was a logging tool, never meant for mammals.
Plants don't care about deformities or tumors. Their growth is flexible, with no fixed organ counts.
But mammals? Every organ and limb follows strict biological rules. Telomerase chaos destroys that precision.
Beyond cancer, Luoshu suspected other risks:
Genetic mutations.
Consciousness damage.
Regrowing a full human from a pinky?
Pure telomerase tech couldn't achieve that. Telomerase doesn't transform cell types.
Intestinal cells stay intestinal. Neurons stay neurons.
This hinted at another technology: cloning.
Only cloning could reprogram stem cells into diverse tissues.
And ████'s cloning was far superior to SCP-2000's—growing a full body from a finger in minutes.
But here's the real question:
If Luoshu died and was "rebuilt" from a finger—would he still be himself?
Would he end up like Big Jack—a clone with borrowed memories?
After mastering SCP-035's mental enslavement, Luoshu knew: Consciousness is the true self. The body is just a shell.
If the mind isn't preserved, the body's identity is meaningless.
Conclusion: This wasn't a reliable "extra life." At best, it was a last-resort gamble.
He had no desire to spend his final years ravaged by metastatic cancer.
The Bigger Picture
More than its flawed ability, what truly concerned Luoshu was SCP-CN-420's origin.
This was his 7th extraterrestrial anomaly.
Which raised a glaring question:
If the Foundation has contained so many alien artifacts—where are the aliens themselves?
Why hasn't Earth been invaded or dominated by civilizations with far superior tech?
Under the Dark Forest logic (from The Three-Body Problem), Earth should've been annihilated by now.
How could the Foundation single-handedly suppress all these alien threats?
Unless...
The Foundation itself is alien-made?
Possible, but unlikely.
Despite his hatred for the Foundation, Luoshu couldn't deny: Its overarching mission is to protect Earth and humanity.
If aliens founded it, their motives would be even more baffling than their absence.
Is Earth the galactic equivalent of a panda—worthy of secret alien conservation?
Luoshu wasn't buying it.