Shen Jie raised his hand and pinched the cheek of his younger self in the mirror.
It hurts.
There was also a slight red mark on the person’s face in the mirror.
He tilted his head slightly, pushing his hair to the side, and his hand covered the spot on his neck where Zong Lin had left a mark.
Although no red mark could be seen in the mirror, the tingling sensation from the bite still lingered there.
His soul was filled with Zong Lin’s presence, the other’s warm temperature pressing against him, surrounding him.
Like molten lava cascading onto barren land.
In fact, Shen Jie didn’t dislike this feeling.
Feeling a bit thirsty, he turned on the tap and carefully washed his hands, then splashed some water on his face.
Droplets of water slid down his cheeks.
He gazed at his reflection in the mirror for a few seconds, then his gaze shifted, slowly scanning the items on the nearby shelf.
Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and violet. Each color was vibrant.
However, he wasn’t currently wearing contact lenses with AR imaging devices, so logically, the world he saw shouldn’t appear this “normal.”
So he understood, this was the “him” in Zong Lin’s consciousness.
A regular person working at the research institute.
Hmm, there should be another modifier.
– Seven years ago.
This was Zong Lin’s consciousness space.
Human consciousness was complex, like a vast palace with multiple layers, and he was currently situated in a corner of Zong Lin’s consciousness space.
And what he needed to do was to find the core of Zong Lin’s chaotic consciousness, soothe the other’s soul, and stabilize the infection level.
The reasons for the out-of-control infection level in superpower users were different from those in ordinary people.
If we likened the infection to a viral invasion, with aliens and the mist being the pathogens, ordinary people were like virus receptors without antibodies. Once they came into contact with the infectious substances produced by aliens and the mist, contamination was inevitable.
However, superpower users were already carriers of the virus themselves. They would no longer be contaminated by aliens and mist of the same or lower level. They also had partial resistance to contamination by higher rank aliens. However, their superpowers were constantly transforming their bodies, pushing them towards the end point of corruption.
The way superpower users of different evolutionary categories underwent transformation varied.
For “Soul” superpower users, their transformation started from the depths of their consciousness.
Zong Lin’s infection level was already very high, and the degree of transformation of his consciousness world might exceed imagination.
He had to quickly find Zong Lin’s consciousness core to assess the situation and devise a plan.
Shen Jie wiped his face with a towel, drank a whole glass of water, put on the white research coat hanging on the clothes rack, and glanced at the clock on the wall as he left. It showed the time as 6:33 in the morning.
“Shen Jie, good morning!”
A voice came from not far away.
Shen Jie looked towards the source of the voice.
It was Steven.
His hair was still not dyed golden, black hair, black eyes, an ordinary face with a smile, waving at him.
“Let’s go, let’s go, we’ve been interns for so long, today is our first day as official employees, we have to perform well!”
The first day as official employees after the internship.
Shen Jie confirmed the time of the consciousness space now.
October 11, 2070. The second day he just arrived here.
He nodded and walked towards the research institute with Steven.
As he neared the gates of the research institute, he saw a helicopter parked at the entrance.
A group of fully armed soldiers were unloading a huge metal capsule from the helicopter, which was tightly sealed with chains on the outside, resembling the transportation of some large dangerous weapon into the research institute.
Shen Jie’s steps halted.
He knew what was inside wasn’t a weapon.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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Strictly speaking, this was their first meeting in this world.
The entrance was bustling.
A group of researchers rushed over, surrounding the metal capsule and moving it inside, like doctors and nurses surrounding a stretcher in a hospital emergency room.
Their badges showed high ranks, mostly A-level.
Steven clicked his tongue. “Such a big fuss, rare to see. But I guess it has nothing to do with us junior researchers.” Then, he turned to Shen Jie and said, “Let’s go, stop staring. We can’t afford to be late on our first official day.”
However, Shen Jie hesitated for a moment before withdrawing his gaze.
Perhaps due to the strong attraction generated by the soul mark, he couldn’t resist the urge to walk over, open the capsule door, and hug Zong Lin inside.
But with his current identity and position, he would be stopped by the soldiers before reaching the metal capsule.
And in Zong Lin’s consciousness, he was just an ordinary person.
But it didn’t matter.
He knew the opportunity would come soon.
Two hours later, everyone from the suppressor docking team would be summoned by their superiors to attempt wearing the suppressor on Zong Lin.
When the time comes, he will be able to see Zong Lin.
He and Steven parted ways at the entrance of District Seven of the research institute, then he stepped into the gate of District Seven.
District Seven was the area of the research institute responsible for suppressor research, consisting of three groups: the Suppressor Research Group, the Suppressor Experimental Group, and the Suppressor Docking Team.
The first two groups gathered most of the senior researchers and specialized laboratories in District Seven, while only the Suppressor Docking Team was located in the outermost corner. In the long and narrow corridor, there were densely packed small rooms. From 0 to 100, they represent 100 suppressor docking coordination researchers on daily duty.
“Welcome to the Suppressor Docking Team,” Professor Xu, who looked much younger than reality and had a thick head of hair, smiled warmly at him and several newcomers.
Actually, before researchers were confirmed, they had been interning here for at least a year. After confirmation, the only difference was that they get their own exclusive office.
The office assigned to him was Room 77.
There was a desk in the office. A bookcase. A chair. Behind the desk was a window, with beige curtains drawn, letting in some scattered sunlight.
He opened the bookcase and found that the books inside, including their arrangement, were surprisingly no different from those in reality.
This was Zong Lin’s constructed consciousness space, which meant that Zong Lin was very familiar with this place.
Since Zong Lin came to him every time after completing a mission to have the suppressor re-worn, it was understandable that he was familiar with this place. But he didn’t expect Zong Lin to observe so carefully.
On top of the bookcase were anthropological research books that he usually read, including “Human Anatomy Research,” “Thirty-Six Nourishing Dishes for Lovers,” “Love Guide,” and so on.
He opened the book, and even the content inside was accurate. Just then, he felt a gust of wind behind him. Turning around, he saw the beige curtains being blown open, revealing the golden autumn scenery outside. Several birds chirped on the lawn, and one even flew up to the windowsill.
A very beautiful and harmonious scene.
Just…
Shen Jie recalled.
– When he entered, the window should have been closed.
The soul mark in his body suddenly began to heat up.
He strode to the window, his hand resting on the sill, leaning out.
The morning sun was gently intoxicating, and there was no one outside the window. The playful birds were still hopping around.
But the soul mark grew hotter.
Logically, the closer he and Zong Lin’s consciousness were, the more pronounced the reaction of the mark would be.
But now, Zong Lin should still be in the Gene Therapy Center in District Two, far away from him…
His pupils contracted slightly, seeing his shadow on the lawn being overshadowed by an even larger shadow.
The shadow was cast from above by the sunlight, which meant that something was behind him at this moment—
He abruptly turned around, but there was nothing behind him.
The office door was closed, and the small room offered no possibility of concealment.
But this was the consciousness space.
In this distorted and transformed consciousness space, all sorts of strange situations were possible.
“…Zong Lin?”
Shen Jie spoke softly.
But the room remained silent, with no one answering.
A sense of being watched suddenly arose, as if some ferocious beast was lurking and coveting him.
“Ding ding ding—”
The communicator on the desk suddenly rang. This meant that the institute had an urgent task and needed to summon specific area researchers to gather.
Shen Jie pushed the door and walked out.
Professor Xu was assigning tasks, “The coordination of this suppressor is very special, so you must be extra careful.”
Several experienced coordinators nodded confidently.
“Xiao Shen, Xiao Zhou, Xiao Luo,” Professor Xu looked at them, “Your experience is not enough, so just assist on the sidelines. Don’t be impulsive; safety comes first.”
He rarely emphasized things so seriously.
Shen Jie knew why.
At this point, Zong Lin was close to degenerating.
Seven years ago, suppressor technology was not as advanced as it is now. Once the infection value exceeded the limit, it basically pronounced the death penalty for the superpower user.
However, the city’s high-level officials demanded that Zong Lin’s degeneration be stopped at all costs. For this, the entire strength of the research institute was mobilized, allowing the use of all imaginable measures, regardless of whether they were prohibited.
Shen Jie followed the crowd to District Two.
He saw Zong Lin at a glance.
There was a huge display screen hanging there, with countless researchers crowding around, all watching the scene on the screen.
Inside was a metal-built cell, the chained metal capsule already opened.
Zong Lin was sitting next to the metal capsule, bowing his head, his white hair disheveled in an unusual manner.
He was covered in bloodstains, with huge white bone wings extending from his scapula, clearly in an uncontrollable and irreversible state.
There were many scattered bone fragments and bloodstains on the ground, and even a pile of wing fragments in the corner.
The data screen beside recorded his condition.
“Attempt to inject suppressants.”
“Number of attempts, six.”
“The maximum dosage of suppressant injection cannot alleviate.”
“Attempt at infected site excision surgery.”
“Number of attempts, ten.”
“All areas have been attempted, but infection value has not been effectively reduced.”
“Attempt at human gene compilation replacement.”
“Number of attempts, one.”
“Failure. Patient’s symptoms undergo irreversible changes.”
…
“Attempt to wear the suppressor.”
“In progress.”
A tall man stood at the forefront of the crowd, his appearance as sharp as a surgical knife.
He was the director of the institute, Shi Chen.
Shi Chen stared closely at the situation on the monitoring screen and asked, “Is the suppressor coordination team ready?”
Several experienced coordinators exchanged glances, and one of them stepped forward.
“Let me try first.”
Shi Chen nodded. The coordinator put on protective clothing and went in with the suppressor.
“Zong Lin, can you hear me?” Shi Chen spoke into the microphone, “The coordinator has entered. Please control yourself.”
On the screen, Zong Lin didn’t look up.
The monitor showed an infection value of 96, indicating that he still retained his human consciousness.
This is also the final stage of his human consciousness.
Therefore, when the researchers went in to perform the surgery to remove the mutated parts just now, he didn’t resist.
The coordinator entered the room with the suppressor and scalpel, grabbed Zong Lin’s arm, and tried to put on the suppressor.
However, the bone armor was too hard, and his strength was insufficient. He struggled several times before finally opening it. Seeing the wound rapidly healing to the naked eye, he hurriedly pressed the suppressor up—
Connection failed. The wrong current stimulated Zong Lin.
Zong Lin’s arm trembled uncontrollably.
The coordinator flew back more than ten meters directly, spitting out a mouthful of blood.
Shi Chen said, “Rescue team.”
The rescue team immediately entered, dragged the person out, and sent him onto the stretcher that had been prepared long ago.
Shi Chen: “Next.”
The second coordinator swallowed hard. Nerves made his hands shake unnaturally, adding one more person to the stretcher.
Soon, even the most experienced coordinators ended in failure.
When it was the last coordinator’s turn to enter, he screamed, “I won’t go! That’s a monster! He should be in a nitrogen chamber, not a lab!”
His voice echoed into Zong Lin’s ears through the microphone in front of Shi Chen.
Zong Lin’s hand twitched, but he still didn’t raise his head.
Soon, guards dragged the screaming coordinator away.
Shi Chen stood on the platform, expressionless.
“Is there anyone else willing to try?”
The crowd fell silent, with no one daring to speak up.
With the visible bloodshed, who would dare to try?
On the surveillance screen, Zong Lin suddenly spoke.
“Enough. Don’t let anyone else in,” his voice extremely hoarse.
He moved his injured hand behind him.
Shen Jie wanted to kiss him, to pull him into his arms and bandage his wounds.
He took out a pair of rubber gloves from his pocket and put them on.
“Shen Jie—!” Professor Xu saw his actions, realizing something, and pulled at his clothes, whispering.
Shen Jie felt there was nothing to hesitate about.
The first time they met, he chose to help Zong Lin.
Now, in Zong Lin’s consciousness space, the other was giving him another chance to choose.
As expected, the outcome remained the same.
Amidst the silence, he moved through the densely packed crowd and approached the surveillance screen.
“Can you hear me?” he asked.
“Let me be your coordinator and try again,” he pleaded.
Zong Lin slowly lifted his gaze.
His blood-red, beast-like eyes seemed hollow, showing no response to his voice.
Of course.
Zong Lin didn’t even recognize him now.
Shen Jie’s voice remained calm.
“Mr. Zong, I promise, this will be the last time.”
Thanks for the chapter! (≧◡≦) ♡
So cute. Thanks for the chapter
Oh~~ that’s how they met!
Zhong Lin : No baby.. this is the start ~