Except for a small detail.So yes, fact: The Relic chip, when slotted into a body, starts to alter and change the body to become an appropriate host for the construct on the Relic. The Relic changes the neural pathways, the body's DNA, the body's tissue, and the body's phenotype.
The body has to be dead for the chip to start its work, as both Viktor and Hellman explicitly stated in 2:42.