Humans Shrunk 100 Times

Chapter 156: Rules

"Du Jiajia successfully handled the two kittens, giving each of them a hug and telling them to be good. Then, she watched the two cats hop away.

At the end of her sight, Xiaohuang couldn't help but give a little swipe at the white cat.

As Du Jiajia returned indoors, she was warmly welcomed by everyone because most people realized one thing: if she could really gather around ten cats and have them take turns coming over every day, perhaps the security problem in Qiming could be completely resolved.

"Do we need to give the white cat a name too?" He Ying said with a smile.

"It's easy, just call it 'Xiaobai' (Little White)!"

This name was so fitting and natural.

Thus, Du Jiajia had Xiaohuang and Xiaobai, two powerful warriors, making her days busy and joyful.

...

Dong Junwei spent much more time arranging the items on the second cardboard box compared to the first one because there were quite a few things inside, none of which were related to kitchen utensils.

Two tape measures;

One computer mouse;

One iron box of tea;

One large roll of electrical wire;

Two hot water bags;

Several foam plastics used for cushioning.

This cardboard box seemed to contain some personal belongings, very messy and assorted. Objects like tape measures and electrical wires, without being separated, even Wei Dalei wouldn't be able to move.

But amidst the trouble, there were also surprises.

Especially for Chen Mu, who was very interested in some of the materials.

Firstly, it was the foam plastic.

This stuff was lightweight, so it should be relatively easy to control. However, the problem was that foam plastics were also known as porous plastics, with countless tiny holes in them, which was extremely unfriendly to Chen Mu.

Yet, after reaching out and trying it, Chen Mu was pleasantly surprised to find that the difficulty of control was much lower than he had imagined.

Tang Jing pondered for a while and said, "This type of foam plastic has a density of about 0.1g/cm³, but structurally, it probably isn't suitable for you to use."

"But it's much easier than I expected," Chen Mu replied.

Chen Mu separated a piece of foam plastic that was two to three times larger than his own body and instantly turned it into a long sofa.

Dong Junwei and the others felt their eyes blur, the speed was unbelievable.

He Ying touched the pure white sofa with her hand and then took the lead in sitting on it.

Wei Dalei sat down too and said with joy, "It seems not as soft as the previous foam plastic."

This was the first time Chen Mu made a sofa, and its appearance was quite lifelike, but the size and dimensions were not very accurate. It was basically enlarged by more than double, especially the height of the seat cushion, which was almost reaching the height of a barstool.

Wei Dalei and the others were tall enough, so they had no problem sitting on it. However, Zhao Xiaoyan and Du Jiajia had to jump a little to get on.

The most troublesome was Gu Yinglang. She chose a spot right beside Wei Dalei, and Wei Dalei didn't notice at first. Later, he felt someone tugging at his clothes and turned around to see Gu Yinglang struggling to climb onto the sofa. He then lifted her up with one hand.

"Maybe it's because we are too light now, so the foam plastic doesn't feel as soft as before," Du Jiajia pressed the surface with force.

"It seems like this stuff can be used to make many things," Tang Jing said.

"Build a house?"

"That won't work, it's too fragile."

"Indeed, hardness is a problem. Its lifespan won't be very long. In that case, it seems not very useful."

"It still has some uses," Tang Jing smiled. "But it depends on Chen Mu's abilities."

For the time being, Chen Mu didn't consider the practical use of foam. Instead, he was puzzled by how easily he could manipulate it.

Tang Jing added, "Looking at it this way, the concept of surface area alone is not enough."

"What do you mean?"

"Actually, if you think about it, materials like cement also have a lot of internal cavities, but using them isn't that difficult for you. It seems to still match the density setting."

"That's right."

"From this perspective, it seems like our understanding of dense materials may be a bit off." Tang Jing pondered and then continued, "Perhaps we also need to consider the issue of an object's adhesiveness."

"Hmm?" Chen Mu was puzzled.

Tang Jing said, "Cloth material and the foam in front of us are different. Although the latter has a large surface area, it still belongs to a cohesive whole. On the other hand, cloth is not the same. Even though a single cotton thread is composed of countless cotton fibers, it's artificially spun together and can be separated at any time. It's like knitting a sweater with yarn, and the sweater can always be unraveled back into yarn. The two can be continuously converted between each other."

"But foam and cement are different. Their overall forms are composed of intermolecular forces. Once artificially separated, they cannot be reassembled in reverse," Tang Jing explained.

"I understand," Chen Mu nodded. "This is also why it's more difficult for me to manipulate liquid and gaseous substances."

"Exactly, the intermolecular forces in liquids are stronger, while gases are already hard to define as a cohesive whole. You think you are exerting your ability on the air, but in reality, you are interacting with individual molecules..."

As Tang Jing spoke, she suddenly stopped, and Chen Mu couldn't contain his realization any longer. They exchanged a knowing glance.

Then, simultaneously, they exclaimed, "Conductivity!"

"I can't believe we solved two problems at once."

The happiest one was, of course, Chen Mu. Until this moment, he had only gained a slightly deeper understanding of the essence of his abilities.

Tang Jing said, "Let's make this assumption: from the perspective of changing the characteristic of an object's shape, the range of influence of your ability can only extend to the molecular level. Therefore, the stronger the intermolecular forces are, the easier your ability can be conducted. For this reason, solid objects are the easiest to control, while gases are nearly impossible to manipulate."

"But on the other hand, the greater the molecular mass, the more difficult it is to control. Because under the same conditions, the larger the relative molecular mass, the greater the density. Thus, we have always believed that density is affecting your ability."

"These two factors simultaneously influence your ability. So, the conclusion is..."

Chen Mu took over, "The effect of the ability is inversely proportional to the relative molecular mass and directly proportional to the intermolecular forces."

"Perfect!" Tang Jing clapped her hands.

"Uh...what are you guys talking about?" Wei Dalei, sitting on the foam-made sofa, looked puzzled as he listened to the increasingly louder discussion between the two.

Dong Junwei and the others basically understood.

He Ying asked, "Do you think all abilities that affect the properties of objects have this characteristic?"

"That's a good idea, very scientific thinking," Tang Jing smiled. "Here, among us, currently only Lu Liangliang and Lu Shanshan's abilities belong to this category. Based on my previous observations, it does seem to fit this pattern."

"Does this count as summarizing some rules of abilities?"

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