Chapter 26
“It’s feasible, but once it’s classified as a work-related injury, I’ll definitely have to be hospitalized or go home to recuperate. I won’t be able to hide it from my parents.” Bai Hewei thought about it carefully and noticed a few logistical loopholes.
“The state-owned enterprise where your parents used to work is organizing a company-funded vacation over the next couple of days, and family members can tag along.” Knowing how deeply Bai Hewei cared about his family, An Tingyu had made arrangements well in advance.
If they were sending Bai Hewei out to do field work, how could they not properly settle his family first?
“Excellent. Let’s do that, then.” Bai Hewei hadn’t expected An Tingyu to consider things so thoroughly, and a wide smile broke across his face.
People who made it to the rank of director at such a young age were truly impressive. Look at how meticulously Director An planned everything! She had resolved every single lingering concern for him. If he didn’t do a flawless job for her, he would feel entirely guilty!
People always said good leaders were hard to find within the system, but Director An was an exceptional one!
Of course, things weren’t easy for An Tingyu either. Within the Special Operations Department, every single operative was a highly capable Evolver. To climb the ranks and become a leader, relying solely on an impressive supernatural ability was useless; one had to master interpersonal skills and know exactly when to employ both carrots and sticks.
In other departments, many leaders loved pushing responsibilities away while hoarding all the credit for themselves.
But that kind of behavior wouldn’t fly in the Special Operations Department.
Evolvers were all highly capable individuals. If a leader couldn’t balance relationships properly and triggered a major incident, no one’s official position would be safe.
Therefore, even if someone didn’t start out as a good leader, spending enough time in the Special Operations Department would inevitably mold them into one.
In this department, field missions genuinely risked people’s lives. If a leader dared to pocket someone else’s hard-earned credit, an Evolver wouldn’t hesitate to raise absolute hell without a single care for the consequences.
Those Evolvers embedded within the Discipline Inspection Commission kept their eyes glued to their department every single day.
Come to think of it, over his years of employment, Bai Hewei truly hadn’t taken many sick days. On the rare occasion he caught a mild cold, he would take a half-day off at most, and a single afternoon’s rest was usually enough to fix him up.
Hearing that An Tingyu had such a method prepared, Bai Hewei agreed without a moment’s hesitation.
He wasn’t trying to take unfair advantage of the organization; on the contrary, he was embarking on official state business, so he didn’t feel a single shred of guilt.
An Tingyu also let out a sigh of relief.
Finding a way to let Bai Hewei legitimately leave the city to assist with operations within the boundaries of regulations, all while ensuring neither Bai Hewei’s nor the organization’s interests were compromised, stood as a monumental test of her coordination and organizational skills.
Fortunately, everything was proceeding flawlessly.
As a grassroots contract worker, Bai Hewei’s salary was meager. But while grassroots work was bitter, exhausting, and lacked a clear upward trajectory, the silver lining was that everyone maintained excellent relationships, making the environment far more compassionate than certain higher-level organs.
To ensure absolute certainty, Bai Hewei staged his “fall” at a spot barely one hundred meters away from his unit.
The classification of work-related injuries was strictly delineated by law, though many non-compliant private corporations frequently fabricated all kinds of excuses to dodge these claims. The government system, however, was completely different. While labor unions couldn’t do much when staff worked heavy overtime without extra pay, their capabilities were fully maxed out when it came to certifying work-related injuries and sick leave.
Furthermore, Bai Hewei had recently received a massive bonus for reporting spies. Both the district leaders and subdistrict leaders harbored an excellent impression of him, so why would anyone make things difficult for him?
Even if someone tried, the Special Operations Department was not a force to be trifled with.
Holding this level of certainty, An Tingyu could naturally clear all obstacles on Bai Hewei’s behalf.
The manhole cover in question had been neglected for years and was already on its last legs. Bai Hewei merely exerted a tiny bit of force with his foot, and it instantly rolled right out of place.
The Evolver possessing the [Injury Transfer] ability immediately channeled his power onto Bai Hewei’s body.
Bai Hewei’s baseline physical conditioning was simply too exceptional; even though he had intentionally allowed himself to take a tumble, his minor scrapes healed almost instantaneously.
The firefighters waiting outside were already figuring out a way to haul Bai Hewei out of the sewer line on their backs.
Yet Bai Hewei felt a sudden itching sensation in his right leg.
Lowering his head to look, he discovered that the wound on his leg was already knitting itself back together at frantic speed!
Holy crap, this won’t do.
Bai Hewei consciously reigned in his internal energy, forcing it to stop repairing his body.
He could handle this minor sting!
On the other end, the Evolver standing beside An Tingyu almost collapsed straight to the ground. It was only because An Tingyu quickly supported his arm that he managed to remain upright.
“…The evolutionary energy inside Bai Hewei’s body is too overwhelming; my ability can barely exert an influence on him.” The operative spoke through a heavy sheen of cold sweat. He was a B-Class Evolver himself and currently enjoyed the rank benefits of a section chief.
An ability like his was fiercely coveted within the field squads. Plenty of private Evolver hospitals outside had even offered him million-yuan salaries to lure him over!
Just imagine—if a field agent and an illegal Evolver were locked in a brutal stalemate, a sudden deployment of [Injury Transfer] could instantly cripple the enemy while fully restoring the agent. What a staggering advantage that would be!
Or if an ordinary citizen were on the brink of death after a car crash, transferring those critical injuries onto an Evolver doctor with rapid-regeneration capabilities would be equivalent to bringing them back from the dead.
But after weighing his options, he had still chosen to remain dutifully within the Special Operations Department.
The salaries offered by private Evolver hospitals were astronomical, but he terrified of medical disputes. Furthermore, his [Injury Transfer] carried strict limitations. For one thing, he couldn’t sustain the deployment of his ability over long periods; with his current conditioning, managing three transfers a day pushed him to his absolute limit. Moreover, if the target of the [Injury Transfer] was also an Evolver, his internal evolutionary energy would drain at an accelerated rate.
Hospitals encountered an immense volume of emergencies every single day. If he saved three people, what was he supposed to do about the rest?
Additionally, structural damage such as severed limbs or missing organs could not be transferred, nor could physical ailments caused by regular organic diseases. To make matters worse, the internal trauma of many patients wasn’t visible on the surface initially; without a professional medical background, attempting a blind transfer could easily end up killing someone.
Furthermore, the duration of the injury transfer carried constraints as well, varying anywhere from one hour to twenty-four hours, but it could never exceed the twenty-four-hour mark. The longer the duration, the heavier the physical toll on his own body.
In an extreme scenario, he might deploy his ability one second, only to perish the next because the gap in energy was too vast or the transferred injury was instantaneously lethal.
An ability that appeared immensely useful on paper actually possessed vulnerabilities that were just as prominent as its strengths.
It was much safer to stay within the Special Operations Department. If an emergency truly occurred, the sea of elite Evolvers within the department could surely preserve his life. But if he went out into the private sector, his personal safety would be completely up in the air.
The Evolver had mapped out his thoughts with absolute clarity.
It was just that the disparity in strength between himself and Bai Hewei today was simply too vast. The ability he had forced onto Bai Hewei’s body couldn’t even hold out for a full minute before it threatened to be overridden by “rapid regeneration,” causing cold sweat to pour down his face.
“Xiao Bai, dial it back a bit. The operative on our end can barely sustain the injuries anymore,” An Tingyu’s voice suddenly echoed directly inside Bai Hewei’s mind.
Feeling a bit guilty, Bai Hewei reached out to press a hand against his chest, ordering the “dark clouds” inside his body to stop moving around at random.
Otherwise, if he arrived at the hospital only for the doctors to find he hadn’t even scratched a layer of skin, wouldn’t that completely ruin the plan?
Very quickly, Bai Hewei’s “injuries” stabilized, looking suitably alarming on the surface.
Once the ability deployment wrapped up, the operative was drenched in sweat, looking thoroughly exhausted.
“Director… Director An, I feel like I’m on the verge of death,” the operative wheezed, looking remarkably weak, pitiful, and helpless. “The moment I forced the injuries onto Bai Hewei’s body, I could sense a colossal force relentlessly repairing the trauma. If I tried a stunt like this against him during actual combat, I would have faced a one-hundred-percent chance of a fatal backlash.”
Thank goodness he wasn’t an enemy of Bai Hewei; otherwise, the moment he threw a punch, he’d be the one dying.
“Hang in there a bit longer. Bai Hewei has already been rushed to the hospital. Once the diagnostic certificate is issued, you’ll be free,” An Tingyu offered a few soft words of encouragement.
“Director An, can I apply for work-related injury leave too?” the operative tried to squeeze out a benefit.
“The moment Bai Hewei’s diagnostic certificate is printed, you can clock off early for the day,” An Tingyu answered.
“…That works too.”
Although he couldn’t secure a paid injury holiday, getting off work early was an acceptable alternative.
He could grit his teeth and push through a bit longer.
Bai Hewei was rushed directly to the hospital. After completing the scans, the orthopedic surgeon swiftly printed out a diagnostic certificate, encasing Bai Hewei’s leg in a thick layer of plaster and splints, advising him to rest strictly for two to three weeks and refrain from moving around needlessly.
Only when the faux trauma was completely concealed beneath the plaster did the operative secretly dismantle his ability, collapsing straight onto the floor.
Man, he needed an injury holiday far more than Bai Hewei did.
By evening, personnel from the subdistrict labor union, along with several close colleagues and his supervising director, brought over comfort gifts to visit Bai Hewei. The HR lady especially bustled about to handle all the paperwork for his work-related injury certification.
Bai Hewei merely instructed his colleagues who knew his parents and grandmother not to blab about his fractured leg to his family to save them from needless worry, claiming he would be perfectly fine after a few days of quiet rest.
Once all preparations were locked in, Bai Hewei processed his discharge papers to request home recovery. Then, under the cover of the Special Operations Department, he quietly slipped away from his residence and headed to their headquarters.
With Bai Hewei preparing to embark on a field mission, the Special Operations Department naturally had to provide corresponding technical support.
Originally, given her excellent rapport with Bai Hewei, An Tingyu could have been deployed as his handler and partner.
But as the Office Director of the Special Operations regional branch, An Tingyu had numerous eyes tracking her movements. The moment she departed the city to appear by Bai Hewei’s side, it would inevitably trigger unnecessary suspicion.
They had initially considered assigning an Evolver to shadow Bai Hewei to help manage operations, but the idea was ultimately vetoed entirely by Wen Zhiyi.
Following extensive discussions, they finally locked down the operational blueprint for this mission.
They provided Bai Hewei with a custom-built micro-robot, barely the size of an infant’s fist. It could simultaneously function as a communication device, a first-aid kit, an information shroud, and a sensor array. It stood as the absolute latest high-tech product engineered by the Research Institute, capable of guaranteeing communication links even within a Forbidden Zone, and carried an astronomical manufacturing cost.
Upon learning that the cost of this tiny robot could easily purchase a luxury villa, Bai Hewei became exceptionally cautious with it.
“Don’t worry, even if I get hurt, nothing will happen to the robot,” Bai Hewei promised solemnly.
“This robot can double as a phone accessory on a regular basis; it won’t look weird if you loop it onto your phone.” Before his departure, Huo Ling and An Tingyu met with Bai Hewei one final time.
“Originally, we intended to assign a partner to accompany you, but since your exact ability remains unverified to this day, rashly anchoring a partner to you might hinder your movements instead. Thus, we engineered this robot for you.” Huo Ling rested his hands on the desk, speaking in a thoroughly professional tone. “If you encounter an issue you cannot resolve, simply address the robot with ‘Call human services,’ and someone will step in to clarify your doubts.”
“This robot even comes with a customer service agent?” Bai Hewei was startled; this treatment was simply too luxurious.
“Furthermore, you’ve actually partnered with this customer service agent in the past. Back during your first time inside a Forbidden Zone, didn’t the two of you chat quite amicably?” Huo Ling smiled.
“Ah, it’s Phone Bro!” Bai Hewei cheered instantly. “Is it him again this time? What’s his name? How should I address him?”
It was Wen Zhiyi, of course, but they couldn’t blab about it.
“Let him reveal that to you himself when the time comes.” Huo Ling wouldn’t dare make a choice on Wen Zhiyi’s behalf without his authorization. “This Robot Serial Number 001 is currently the flagship product of the Research Institute. They wish to observe exactly how much utility this unit can demonstrate during an Evolver’s field mission. Once data collection wraps up, they might roll it out on a massive scale.”
“Then won’t permanent posts within the establishment shrink even further in the future?” Bai Hewei caught onto the underlying implication instantly.
To think that the entity stealing an Evolver’s rice bowl wouldn’t be ordinary humans, but actual robots!
“Looking at the long-term trajectory, yes,” Huo Ling answered with absolute sincerity. “Many human-staffed service counters have already been entirely replaced by automated systems. Even the current global arms race leans heavily toward high-tech automated warfare, and now we have to factor in Evolvers as well.”
Bai Hewei felt that those rogue Evolvers claiming he was the strongest in the world were completely unreliable.
These guys who could mass-produce robots were the true powerhouses of the world, okay?
Human strength carried limits, but assembly lines could pump out hundreds of thousands of robots in a fraction of a second.
“But at least for the next few decades, robots should remain strictly in an auxiliary role. Especially for powerhouses like you, the utility they can manifest remains constrained,” Huo Ling chuckled. “For this trip to the border, we’ve forged a fresh cover identity for you, purely to protect you and your family.”
Bai Hewei nodded, indicating his agreement.
“As for the exact parameters at the border, our branch is too far removed, so many classified updates will likely only become clear once you arrive on-site. However, the official red-headed document has already been fired off under Director Yuan’s personal signature. The Special Operations branch at the border will absolutely coordinate with your operations.” Huo Ling sat up straight, turning a serious gaze upon Bai Hewei. “I harbor zero worries regarding anything else; I know you will absolutely abide by the law. However, if the border branch tries to recruit you to join their permanent establishment, you must refuse. The climate over there is terrible, and their entertainment and dining facilities can’t compare to ours. You must turn them down.”
Huo Ling wasn’t worried about anything else; he only terrified that Bai Hewei would be poached by another regional branch.
He had even considered personally escorting Bai Hewei to the border just to ensure no one intercepted his prize halfway.
He had already sacrificed so much for Bai Hewei; he absolutely couldn’t allow a fellow branch director to reap his harvest.
Bai Hewei chuckled. “Don’t worry, Director Huo. My parents are still rooted here.”
But if the benefits offered by the other party were genuinely spectacular, Bai Hewei wasn’t entirely opposed to considering it.
After all, it was all service to the state, so he naturally had to weigh the terms offered by different employers.
Huo Ling shared a few more instructions, finally urging Bai Hewei to complete the mission quickly and return safely before reluctantly escorting him onto the helicopter.
Yes.
For this specific deployment, Bai Hewei was escorted via a specialized autonomous helicopter.
Taking high-speed rail or regular flights required purchasing tickets for reimbursement, which would leave physical tracks within transit databases. The Special Operations Department would certainly never allow Bai Hewei’s identity to be exposed.
This was Bai Hewei’s very first time riding a helicopter, and he was bubbling with pure excitement, desperately wishing he could snap photos with his phone to show off on his Moments feed.
Everyone had ridden in autonomous cars, but who had ever experienced an autonomous helicopter?
Bai Hewei peered left and right, itching to document every single inch of the interior.
But ultimately, he held back.
Instead, his robot automatically booted up, crawling along his phone onto his arm before settling squarely onto his shoulder.
“Why did you turn on by yourself?” Bai Hewei watched the tiny unit nestle smoothly onto his person, instantly experiencing a sensation akin to raising a small pet.
“Plotting route parameters for you.”
“Autonomous helicopter navigation array linked. Commencing guidance protocols.”
“Phone Bluetooth connected.”
Following a sequence of synthesized mechanical alerts, Bai Hewei saw a crystal-clear transit map materialize on his phone screen, detailing their current altitude, external temperature, meteorological variables, velocity, and estimated time of arrival.
Pure high-tech!
Bai Hewei’s eyes were practically gleaming.
A low drone of atmospheric displacement echoed.
Shortly after, the robot resting on his shoulder emitted a human voice.
“Long time no see, Bai Hewei. I will be coordinating this mission alongside you.” A male voice vibrated from the robot’s chassis.
Hearing this familiar voice, Bai Hewei was thoroughly delighted.
“Phone Bro! It’s you! Ah, wait, I probably shouldn’t address you by that name anymore.” Although he had already learned from Huo Ling who would be servicing his deployment, actually hearing Phone Bro’s voice still gave Bai Hewei a small rush of excitement.
“You may address me as Number One,” Wen Zhiyi said softly.
He had intended to reveal his actual identity directly, but worried it might induce psychological pressure on Bai Hewei.
Judging by Bai Hewei’s behavior toward Huo Ling and An Tingyu, the higher the rank of a leader, the more formal and deferential Bai Hewei became, entirely ruling out the possibility of an equal, casual conversation.
And Wen Zhiyi’s current rank happened to sit slightly above Huo Ling’s.
“Deal,” Bai Hewei agreed smoothly.
“We have roughly three hours of flight time remaining before arrival,” Wen Zhiyi said, conducting diagnostic checks within the Research Institute while maintaining the link with Bai Hewei. “Current intelligence indicates a considerable assembly of foreign Evolvers near the border. They intend to leverage this opportunity to apply pressure on us to secure concessions. The individual stirring up the most noise is an Evolver codenamed [Sage], who has allegedly accepted backing from several shadowy syndicates and organizations, which includes access to the third-generation Evolver Potion.”
The moment he learned this [Sage] had accepted the potion, Wen Zhiyi knew he had to monitor this deployment personally.
These days, short-sighted Evolvers were truly a common sight.
Even with an exceptional supernatural ability, they remained entirely blind to the macro-political reality.
To have the audacity to inject that kind of toxin into their own bodies…
But the more foolish the enemy, the more advantageous it was for their operations.
Once Wen Zhiyi mapped out the logic, he actually felt a trace of relief that his adversaries were all simple organisms on par with paramecia.
“The third-generation Evolver Potion?” Bai Hewei wasn’t very clear on the details.
“It stands as the most cutting-edge biological formulation currently produced abroad, capable of elevating an Evolver’s strength by nearly a full grade. However, the side effects are stark—if a candidate consumes the formulation without continuously purchasing the corresponding neutralizing antidote, a fatal backlash triggers immediately,” Wen Zhiyi delivered a concise summary of the potion’s profile. “If possible, our primary objective this time is to secure some samples of that antidote. That way, we can launch a massive reverse-engineering initiative to provide a superior avenue of survival for those Evolvers who have already been shackled by the medication.”
At the border, a considerable number of Evolvers who had consumed the formulation were bound to surface.
“Understood. I will definitely keep a close eye out,” Bai Hewei had never anticipated that behind his back, the international landscape had already devolved into such a state.
Leveraging medication to shackle Evolvers, terminating them if they stepped out of line.
This familiar corporate playbook… truly a recurring theme in human history.
He rejoiced that he had been realistic and established an excellent rapport with the Special Operations Department early on. He just needed to wait until he successfully passed an exam to formally become their colleague, which would make everything even more legitimate.
“If you manage to secure the antidote samples during this deployment while neutralizing those criminal elements, it will be logged as standard merit,” Wen Zhiyi added suddenly. “If your accumulated merits reach a certain threshold, you could easily bypass the exams via a special recruitment track…”
“No, no, no, let’s stick to the regular exams,” Bai Hewei cut Wen Zhiyi off instantly.
“I wouldn’t dare touch any backdoors right now,” Bai Hewei stated with absolute sincerity. “Look at how many officials in our city have been ousted lately. If someone doesn’t climb the ranks through completely legitimate procedures, there’s no telling when everything they’ve built will collapse overnight. Besides, I am an Evolver; if I secure a promotion or a raise in the future, what if someone keeps tabs on me and files a malicious report? I feel that examinations remain the most equitable and universally acknowledged path.”
Hadn’t plenty of retired military personnel earned tremendous merits in the past?
Yet once they transferred to civilian roles, due to age constraints and other variables, they frequently hit a ceiling in their advancement.
Bai Hewei still preferred a perfectly stable, unassailable path of promotion, ensuring he could secure a larger pension upon retirement.
He was barely twenty-six years old, with his prime years still stretching out before him!
Furthermore, he knew he was classified as something like the “strongest in the world,” which was already a massive magnet for attention. It was entirely thanks to the Special Operations Department’s assistance in masking his files that he could continue enjoying his quiet life.
If he used a backdoor to enter the establishment, how many people would turn green with envy behind his back?
Bai Hewei could bet that the moment he entered the establishment via special recruitment, an endless stream of anonymous reports targeting his profile would flood the offices. Even if the investigations ultimately couldn’t find a single flaw, having to draft endless performance clarifications was enough to thoroughly disgust a person.
And he had his family to consider; his parents and grandmother had to be factored into his calculations.
Furthermore, he had to think about the leaders and colleagues he would be working with in the future; he couldn’t bring unnecessary trouble to his unit.
And now that the age limit for the civil service exams had been extended to thirty-eight, he still had a full twelve years of eligibility remaining.
Was it statistically possible that twelve years would pass without him managing to clear a single exam?
Absolutely impossible!
Wen Zhiyi was completely left without a retort by Bai Hewei’s rapid-fire refusal.
He understood now—Bai Hewei possessed the desire for a permanent post, but lacked the audacity to cut corners. He desperately wanted an official slot within the establishment, but the prerequisite was that it had to be entirely compliant, carrying zero regulatory flaws or hidden vulnerabilities before he would willingly accept it.
Otherwise, he would rather pass on the opportunity and continue waiting.
It was truly mind-boggling that the strongest Evolver in the world could be this law-abiding—or perhaps, exceptionally prudent.
