“And then?” Cheng Shengnan had initially thought Shen Ge was spinning a sci-fi tale, but found herself unexpectedly drawn into the story.
A ten-year-old child, thrown into a corrupt asylum where patients endured inhuman torture, forced to sleep amidst nightly screams—the psychological torment alone was chilling to imagine.
And all this, orchestrated by his own family.
Shen Ge continued, “Eventually, my friend realized life’s like a package tour. You never know if you’ve booked a scam trip or if you’ll be strong-armed into shady shops. But since you’re already here, why not stop and enjoy the view when you see something beautiful?”
“Nobody gets a rehearsal in this world. No need to accommodate anyone. If you ruin my mood, I’ll return the favor.”
“After that, my friend adopted a simple philosophy: when in doubt, set it on fire. Burn away the troubles, greet tomorrow with a smile. Life’s too short for grudges. Cross bridges when you come to them—tomorrow’s problems are for tomorrow.”
“You’ve already left your past behind. No point clinging to it. If it still bothers you, just light a match.” Shen Ge grinned.
Cheng Shengnan’s expression turned odd. After a long pause, she muttered, “Your friend… is remarkably carefree.”
“Right? Free-spirited, happy-go-lucky. The world has good and bad people—men and women alike. No need to paint everyone with the same brush. Wait…” Shen Ge feigned offense. “You do still see me as a man, right?”
“Obviously.” Cheng Shengnan kept her eyes on the screen, refusing to entertain his nonsense.
Miraculously, they’d picked one of the few decent films in the Lunar New Year lineup. The humor lightened the mood considerably.
After the movie, they headed to Old Dragon Pot for hotpot. At 7 PM, the entrance was packed, but Cheng Shengnan had reserved a private room. As Shen Ge held a slice of tripe up to the light, their server fought the urge to roll her eyes.
Handsome, but clearly unhinged.
“Sir, all our ingredients are rigorously inspected for freshness,” she said with practiced cheer.
“I’m not worried about freshness. I’m worried about it gaining sentience,” Shen Ge mused, examining the tripe.
Cheng Shengnan dismissed her with a smile. “He’s joking. We’ll handle the cooking ourselves.”
As Shen Ge boiled the tripe, he remarked, “Ever since we confirmed eerie creatures mutate from animals, I double-check every piece of meat. Eating one’s fine—I just don’t want tentacles waving ‘hello’ from the pot.”
Cheng Shengnan froze, the plate of squid tentacles in her hand suddenly less appetizing.
With a sigh, she opted for vegetables—until Shen Ge added, “Remember the pork tenderloin at the Western restaurant? That came from an eerie boar. Looked like a pig-octopus hybrid. Regrew meat as we sliced it.“
“…” Her chopsticks hovered over the beef.
Shen Ge, meanwhile, ate with gusto.
“You’ve survived this long without being punched only by sheer luck,” Cheng Shengnan said flatly. “Not everyone can stomach dinner talks about mutants.”
“Nonsense! You’re far prettier than any mutant. This doesn’t count.”
He slid tripe into her bowl. “Kidding! Just toughening you up. In a few years, we might actually be eating mutant meat. Though honestly, aside from their looks, they might not even be toxic.”
That sounded less like reassurance and more like a doomsday forecast.
Shen Ge pivoted to critiquing the movie, joking about hypothetical workplace reforms if he became manager.
“Mandatory qipaos for women, Zhongshan suits for men.”
At least the conversation stayed mutant-free long enough for Cheng Shengnan to resume eating meat.
Post-meal, Shen Ge had leftovers packed—enough to feed an army—and delivered them to the Special Response Department.
Deng Yuqi’s office light was still on at 10 PM. Shen Ge knocked, announcing, “Delivery!”
Inside, Deng Yuqi massaged her temples. “If you’ve caught another mutant, could you not haul it around in a plastic bag?”
“Relax, it’s actual food.” He unpacked the hotpot, flooding the office with aroma.
Deng Yuqi, who’d skipped dinner handling the cat café mutants, perked up instantly. “You brought takeout from a date? Employee of the year. But this is enough for five—mind if I call Xiao Zhang and the ‘123 Trio’?”
The trio—Li Yi, Qian Erqin, and Hu Shanshan—were nicknamed for their names’ numerical homophones.
Soon, the group demolished the feast. Shen Ge returned to his dorm, sated.
The system had resumed weekly/daily rewards in Shen Ge’s second post-hospital week. Early tasks were simple (e.g., consistent training). Weeks 2–3 required capturing three Tier-1 mutants—a quota he easily exceeded.
Week 4 brought another promotion task: kill a Tier-3 mutant. Despite scouring the city, he only found a Tier-2 (and a “future” one at that). The failed attempt cost him a week’s rewards.
Meanwhile, the [Logs] showed no major events. His future self continued double-agent work between the department and “Sakura,” failing repeatedly against the Tier-7 “Formless.”
Between training, mutant hunts, and occasional meals with Cheng Shengnan, Shen Ge also began studying Baji Quan under “Master’s Wife” (Chen Ke’s spouse). A month of grueling basics barely scratched the surface, but boosted his strength to 1.4x human average.
His free points went to Psychic Energy, now at 287%. Surpassing the Tier-2 threshold (278%) auto-promoted him, granting a Trait Enhancement Point—confirming that promotion tasks were merely shortcuts.
Now, the dilemma: where to allocate the point?
“无声” (Soundless) and “不动” (Stillness) lacked Eerie Domains, while “Formless” and “Non-Egress” were equally tempting. Neglecting the former meant they’d never evolve.
As Shen Ge trained, Xiao Zhang rushed over: “Director Deng needs you now!”
Chen Ke, wheeling over, was told to stand down—a first. Puzzled but compliant, he returned to drills.
In her office, Deng Yuqi cut to the chase:
“Two years ago, North Korea contained a high-tier mutant. South Korea stole the corpse during U.S.-DPRK tensions, weaponizing it into a Tier-4 Eerie Artifact.”
“Though Seoul kept it secret, U.S. pressure extracted research files—some of which China acquired, advancing our artifact tech. The original research team included two Chinese scientists who defected.”
“Six months ago, I sent elite agent Lin Yin to infiltrate Seoul. After half a year, she found an opening—then vanished.”
She met Shen Ge’s gaze. “The Asian Anti-Mutant Conference is in Seoul soon. HQ wants Li Xiang to negotiate for the research, abandoning Lin Yin. I won’t. I need you to pose as his bodyguard, then break off to find her.”
“This is my request, not HQ’s. Your choice.”
Shen Ge asked, “What does the Tier-4 artifact do?”
“According to Lin Yin, it seals high-tier mutants.”
The same tech “Sakura” used.
This just got interesting.
“Deal. But if I bring Lin Yin back, I get full access to the brain in the basement.”
“Agreed—though Li Xiang transferred it to R&D weeks ago for your ‘new artifact.’ You didn’t know?”
Shen Ge bolted for the lab, howling internally:
My trait! My grilled brains!
Li Xiang, you’d better not have eaten it all!