Chapter 39
If it were possible to turn back time, Bai Hewei would definitely tell the meteor shower: “Just let me win thirty million yuan on the Powerball lottery overnight and get assigned to the most relaxing job without any hassle.”
He certainly wouldn’t choose to make a wish for something like the destruction of the world.
He had just been blowing off steam, that was all. What corporate drone who is utterly exhausted by endless overtime hasn’t thought about the world ending?
Who could have known that this kind of thing would actually come true?
Even as he finished speaking, Bai Hewei still had an indignant look on his face, his entire demeanor radiating sheer resistance.
However, the rest of the researchers, including Wen Zhiyi, fell into a collective silence.
Wen Zhiyi felt that he, too, should probably put on a face mask.
That way, at the very least, he wouldn’t have to force himself to maintain a straight face at a time like this.
Although they had theorized many potential scenarios for how Bai Hewei’s ability had awakened, hearing him nonchalantly assume that his status as the strongest in the world was merely due to a wish on a falling star left them somewhat unable to keep their composure.
So many people made wishes on shooting stars; why on earth did yours have to be the one to manifest?
If making a wish was all it took, what was the point of all the blood, sweat, and tears they had shed to stand here today?
If anyone other than Bai Hewei had spoken these words, the researchers might have assumed the person was deliberately trying to make a joke.
However, the team from the Central Research Institute had already dissected every shred of information regarding Bai Hewei. They recognized with absolute clarity that he was being completely genuine right now.
He truly believed it.
He genuinely believed that his sudden emergence as the world’s strongest Evolver—possessing an ability so overwhelming that even [Sage] Batu collapsed into a comatose state upon scanning it—was simply because he had made a wish on a shooting star?
For a moment, it was hard to tell who was more absurd: the person speaking this absolute nonsense, or the researchers who were seriously contemplating its statistical probability.
Over at the Special Operations Department, Huo Ling, An Tingyu, and several other tactical squad captains, along with the researchers back at the Central Research Institute in the capital, and even certain high-ranking leaders who frequently appeared on the evening news, were similarly struggling to hold back their expressions.
“What is the meaning of this? Does this imply that the only reason I missed out on becoming the strongest in the world despite awakening my power through brutal training is because I didn’t make a wish on a shooting star?”
“……I feel like Bai Hewei is joking.”
“But he sounds incredibly serious.”
“No, no, no. There’s highly probable to be zero correlation between the two. Bai Hewei is merely forcing a causal connection where none exists.”
A whole cohort of Evolvers within the Special Operations Department began questioning their own existence.
“Talk about an incredible explanation.”
“Let’s just wait for Wen Zhiyi’s diagnostic results to come out.”
“Bai Hewei…… must be exceptionally stable. Perhaps I overcompensated in my calculations regarding his strength.”
“If he were fabricating a lie, he certainly wouldn’t deploy a method this basic and transparent.”
“Several micro-expression specialists have independently arrived at the exact same conclusion: Bai Hewei is telling the absolute truth right now.”
The senior leaders, whose average age exceeded sixty-five, were entirely at a loss for words upon hearing this explanation.
They had anticipated that Bai Hewei might reveal something earth-shattering.
And it turned out to be earth-shattering in the most literal sense possible.
“Let me reiterate: Bai Hewei can be considered a gift given to us by this world,” Yuan Heqing, widely dubbed the “Iron Lady” and carrying the absolute expectations of the public, offered a gentle smile. “In terms of pure population base, we are not the number one in the world. In terms of forcing a brutal survival-of-the-fittest environment among Evolvers, we bottom out at near the very last. Yet despite all that, the absolute strongest Evolver in the world still materialized on our soil. Furthermore, he received our orthodox public education, shares our core values, and genuinely prefers the lifestyle engineered by us and our ancestors. This stands as the finest possible scenario beyond our wildest calculations, doesn’t it?”
“The timeline since the emergence of Evolvers is too short—barely five years—yet they have already completely revolutionized the global landscape,” another leader noted with a grim countenance. “Five years down the line, what will this world turn into? Will these ability users continuously evolve to the point where they no longer belong to the same biological species as us? Or conversely, will they vanish into thin air just as abruptly as their massive initial appearance?”
“It takes eighteen years to raise a human being to adulthood. But terminating a human life requires a mere eighteen seconds, which is more than enough. Heqing, I comprehend that we must place our trust in our Evolvers, and trust your Special Operations Department. But no organization or administrative unit can ever be granted absolute, unquestioning trust. Absolute trust is merely the precursor to absolute betrayal; a one-hundred-percent guarantee ultimately amounts to nothing more than empty prose. Continuous skepticism and relentless supervision are the only mechanisms to sustain long-term stability.”
“I firmly maintain my stance of absolute caution; this is an absolute necessity for national security.”
“Ahem, let me pitch an observation,” another leader couldn’t help but interject. “If—and I stress if—what Bai Hewei says is true, and he genuinely gained this power because he was forced to choose between passing his exams and the destruction of the world…… then if he successfully clears his public exams, will he still remain the world’s strongest?”
“Absurd, that’s completely impossible.”
“Why should it be impossible? An Evolver’s deep-seated obsessions routinely exert an influence on their supernatural awakening.”
“Let me borrow the phrase just uttered: caution is a baseline attitude. Even if a statistical probability is one in a hundred million, it must still be factored into our calculations.”
“This variable…… perhaps we should observe it a bit longer.”
“How about we put the special recruitment initiative on hold for the time being?”
“Naturally, we cannot allow an asset who works this dutifully to suffer either. Let’s find a way to have Bai Hewei’s parents win another lottery prize, and have a healing-type Evolver quietly travel over to thoroughly restore his family’s physical health.”
“Ahem, regarding the exact boundaries of this arrangement, Heqing, you’ll have to expend some effort to handle it as you see fit.”
“We don’t comprehend these Evolvers very well.”
Yuan Heqing’s gaze swept across the room, discovering that these old friends of hers all carried mild smiles on their faces, though their eyes remained slightly cold.
“I will be having a formal face-to-face meeting with Bai Hewei shortly, and I will weigh all variables,” Yuan Heqing stated softly. “I will leverage my own judgment and Bai Hewei’s answers to determine whether to specially recruit him directly into the Central Special Operations Department.”
“As for anything else, I surmise we must still wait for Zhiyi’s diagnostic report to clear.”
Inside the Research Institute.
“……Let’s run a baseline physical examination first.” Wen Zhiyi was truly someone who had weathered massive macro-political storms; even at a juncture like this, he perfectly maintained his composure, ensuring nothing showed on his face.
He proactively broke the silence, beginning to walk Bai Hewei through the fundamental items of the physical exam.
Phlebotomy, urinalysis, blood pressure metrics—these were the absolute baseline.
Bai Hewei listened with absolute focus.
The surrounding researchers cast highly complex glances toward Wen Zhiyi, deeply realizing that for Wen Zhiyi to securely hold the position of Chief, his psychological threshold alone was something ordinary people could never match.
A full suite of CT scans, electrocardiograms, and MRIs had to be ground through.
Even samples of Bai Hewei’s saliva, hair, nails, and skin cells had to be completely harvested for retention.
Furthermore, a researcher handed Bai Hewei a small plastic cup, gesturing for him to head into a private room for a brief moment while flashing the exact look that any grown man would instantly comprehend.
Forcing down his sense of pure shame, Bai Hewei comforted himself with the thought: A medical examination carries zero shame; I am merely a block of organic material right now. He stepped inside anyway.
Just grinding through these basic procedures consumed nearly a full hour.
“Thoracic CT is normal; zero structural shadows located.”
“Cranial CT is normal; an exceptionally healthy brain.”
“Electrocardiogram reads normal as well.”
“Your physical weight tilts slightly toward the scrawny side, your body fat percentage is elevated, and your cervical and lumbar vertebrae carry minor structural strains—this is a textbook presentation of a sub-healthy state,” the researcher handling the orthopedic sector noted, staring at Bai Hewei’s scans. “Young man, you consume way too much milk tea and coffee. Furthermore, I noticed that the absolute second you laid onto the examination bed, two strands of hair shed from your scalp; you clearly log heavy late-night hours on a regular basis.”
“Additionally, although your blood sugar readings are within the normal spectrum, compared to your physical checkup reports from two years ago, the metrics have still experienced a minor spike. Do not assume you can coast along just because you are young; the absolute second a man crosses the twenty-five-year mark, his physical conditioning begins to head downhill.”
The baseline evaluation data and reports of Bai Hewei naturally landed entirely within Wen Zhiyi’s hands.
“Chief, judging strictly by these standard physical metrics, Bai Hewei is identical to any regular young person nowadays. Far from transforming into a superhuman, he actually presents with a trace of sub-health. If he sustains this exact lifestyle, by the time he hits his forties, he’ll highly probable have to seek out those Evolvers who possess hair-regeneration capabilities for treatment.” As the researcher spoke, he ran a hand over his own thick, full head of hair, looking thoroughly triumphant.
In all fairness, although the emergence of Evolvers had brought an immense mountain of chaos down upon the world, the single advantage of being able to guarantee “zero hair loss” was more than enough to earn the absolute gratitude of a vast crowd.
The agonizing riddle of hair loss that plagued young people across the entire globe had finally been perfectly resolved following the appearance of Evolvers.
“This stands as excellent news for Bai Hewei. At the very least, when he successfully clears his public exams to enter the establishment down the line, he won’t have to worry about failing his physical evaluations,” Wen Zhiyi placed the reports to the side. “Didn’t we already uncover this reality back when we analyzed the contents harvested from his household trash? A standard physical suite will only ever detect an ordinary version of Bai Hewei, nothing more.”
“Moving forward, the actual testing commences.”
“Escort Bai Hewei to execute the one hundred and three ability diagnostics. Are the corresponding Evolvers fully in position?”
“Barring sensory-type ability users, all one hundred and two Classifications of Evolvers are fully assembled. This includes twenty specialized-type Evolvers, bringing the total cohort to exactly one hundred and twenty individuals.”
“The sensor arrays have been perfectly calibrated as well.”
Within a few short hours, a cohort of exactly one hundred and two distinct classifications of Evolvers had been successfully gathered from every corner of the country. Each individual represented a completely separate ability track, demonstrating a terrifying level of state mobilization and administrative coordination.
Looking across the global landscape, the absolute number of nations capable of executing a play of this scale was virtually zero.
“Group them into clusters of ten separate tracks to execute simultaneous testing alongside Bai Hewei.”
“I will personally escort Bai Hewei inside to guide him through every single loop,” Wen Zhiyi rose from his chair. “Ensure all data streams are meticulously logged.”
“Understood, Chief.”
The absolute most basic, direct, and time-efficient path to diagnosing an Evolver’s capability was simply having ability users of different tracks stand right before them to release their powers. By tracking the real-time readings of the sensor arrays pinned to both individuals, researchers could observe the activation profiles of their internal evolutionary particles to deduce whether they shared a classification.
The old adage “kings do not meet kings” held absolute weight here. If two Evolvers of an identical track engaged in combat, it routinely triggered structural destruction far more catastrophic than a clash between different classifications, and almost always resulted in a mutual downfall.
If two matching sets of evolutionary particles vibrated too perfectly in sync, not only would it violently attract any nearby Forbidden Zones, but it would simultaneously trigger an absolute loss of control within their internal energy frameworks.
For an ability user, doing everything possible to avoid locking horns against a fellow Evolver of an identical track was an absolute baseline piece of common sense.
Furthermore, ability users of matching classifications would experience a trace of instinctual resonance when placed within close proximity to one another.
What Bai Hewei needed to execute right now was simply to stand before a cluster of ten different tracks to experience their supernatural abilities.
“Bai Hewei, I have already explained the mechanics to you previously, but let me reiterate the critical parameters requiring your attention. First, we are executing this diagnostic suite inside the Research Institute’s absolute containment cell. The chamber itself functions as a colossal sensor array, so you must learn to rigorously rein in your power. Second, every single Evolver assigned to assist with your testing will have their memories completely purged afterward; this clause has been explicitly written into their non-disclosure agreements, so you have zero need to worry about an invasion of privacy. Third, and most crucially: when they release their abilities toward your position, you must merely experience the energy; under no circumstances are you to launch a counter-strike. Otherwise, given your caliber of strength, it will be highly difficult for them to exit this chamber alive.”
Although every single line and clause phrased it as an administrative for Bai Hewei, in reality, it was an absolute mechanism to safeguard the other Evolvers.
Staring at Chief Wen before him, Bai Hewei’s evaluation of the man ticked up significantly.
How malicious could a leader be if he treats human safety with this level of extreme gravity?
Even though he was the absolute subject of this testing sweep, the man was prioritizing the safety of others above all else.
The trace of mild frustration Bai Hewei had harbored regarding the immense volume of testing melted away completely at this juncture.
A whole army of fellow Evolvers traveled thousands of miles, braving substantial risks just to assist with my diagnostics; what right do I have to complain?
“The first cluster of ten Evolvers consists of the Strength track, the Amplification track, the Speed track, the Manipulation track, the Telekinesis track, the Telepathy track, the Optical track, the Auditory track, the Vitality track, and the Hair-Regeneration track. This essentially represents the most widespread and numerous classifications of Evolvers globally.”
After all, an Evolver’s supernatural awakening carried an absolute correlation to their deep-seated obsessions. Wishing for personal health, joy, a full head of hair, and robust physical conditioning stood as the most basic and common human desires.
Consequently, these abilities anchored to the physical frame itself carried the absolute highest absolute number.
And the “Hair-Regeneration track,” due to its sheer, staggering numbers, had been entirely struck from the broader “Healing track” classification to anchor its own independent category.
Wen Zhiyi escorted Bai Hewei into the absolute containment cell, where the ten ability users had already fully donned their body-mapped sensor arrays.
Bai Hewei stepped forward, allowing the staff to pin a sensor array to his person as well.
“Commence testing,” Wen Zhiyi took several steps back, opening his mouth to direct.
The ten separate Evolvers unleashed their powers simultaneously, directing their abilities straight toward Bai Hewei’s sensor matrix.
The strength-type Evolver delivered a direct, heavy punch squarely against the array pinned to Bai Hewei’s chest.
Bai Hewei held out his hand, implementing a baseline block without launching a counter-strike.
The speed-type Evolver transformed into a blurry fragment of an afterimage, attempting to seize Bai Hewei’s form.
As if possessing eyes on his back, Bai Hewei reached out and cleanly captured the operative, whose movement was virtually invisible to the naked eye.
“Now, mobilize your internal evolutionary particles to project your capability data straight into Bai Hewei’s frame,” Wen Zhiyi directed immediately.
The ten Evolvers halted their physical movements, executing Wen Zhiyi’s command implicitly.
Through his vision, Bai Hewei merely watched ten tiny dark spots floating lazily toward his coordinates.
He remained completely stationary, accepting these “dark spots.”
Bai Hewei merely felt a trace of an itching sensation rack his frame, but he forced down the instinctual urge to scratch.
The ten Evolvers sustained their ability release for a duration approaching a full minute.
“Cease operations,” Wen Zhiyi cast a glance at the dense, complex data streams materializing across the containment screens and the sensor readouts, shaking his head. “You may depart; have the second cluster step inside.”
The ten ability users immediately filed out through a small side door, and the second group entered in an orderly line.
“This way, colleagues,” Wang Ren smiled gently, waving his hand. Sitting before the desk was none other than Wang Yan.
The Evolvers understood the administrative protocols perfectly, sitting down obediently to have their memories cleanly erased and overlaid with a fresh block of data before departing the premises.
“The second cluster consists of the Gustatory track, the Olfactory track, the Sensory track, the Localized Manipulation track, the Stature Alteration track, the Facial Alteration track, the Gender Alteration track, the Endurance track, the Flexion track, and the Full Metamorphosis track.”
Human imagination was boundlessly diverse, so the awakened abilities were equally vast in spectrum.
Tracks like Stature, Facial, and Gender Alteration could technically be consolidated under a broader “Metamorphosis track” classification. However, the vast majority of metamorphosis users could only focus their transformation on a single variable, whereas a Full Metamorphosis user commanded a synthesis of every single capability mentioned previously. Grouping them together into a single category would be entirely inappropriate, so they were classified under the broader Metamorphosis class and further subdivided into specific sub-tracks.
Sure enough, this cluster yielded zero results as well, primarily serving as a mechanism for elimination.
As the volume of personnel entering the chamber piled up, rare and unique classifications of Evolvers slowly began to surface.
Bai Hewei carried an excellent trait—he asked whenever he encountered a technicality he didn’t comprehend.
“What exactly does an Avatar-type Evolver imply?” Bai Hewei was intensely curious. Was it exactly what he was imagining?
“An Avatar-type Evolver can simultaneously manifest five identical physical forms of themselves. These five entities share a single consciousness, yet are capable of executing separate tasks simultaneously. This perfectly aligns with the common desire among young people to master a cloning technique. However, in reality, the absolute number of Evolvers possessing this track is remarkably small,” Wen Zhiyi noted evenly.
“Spectacular! That means one avatar can sit for public exams, one can work the shift, one can lounge at home, one can go out on dates, and one can focus entirely on playing video games. Invoking a play like that is equivalent to experiencing five separate lifetimes—no different from living for four hundred years, right?” Bai Hewei was so envious he was practically drooling.
Possessing an ability like that meant one would never have to spout prose like “one cannot romanticize the path not taken” ever again.
Because you could simply take every single path simultaneously.
Life would suddenly carry a limitless cushion for trial and error.
“But more often than not, Evolvers of this track present with profound psychiatric complications—the exact profile that can smoothly clear the criteria to secure a disability certificate from a mental institution,” Wen Zhiyi cast a glance at Bai Hewei, ruthlessly shattering his magnificent fantasy.
Uh, never mind then.
Although Bai Hewei was envious, having worked at the grassroots level, he had dealt with those mentally disabled individuals countless times. Establishing normal communication with them was completely impossible; a single conversation left a person more exhausted than pulling a two-day shift of heavy overtime, making one realize that sane individuals were scarcer than giant pandas.
“A Parasitic-type Evolver can flawlessly anchor themselves onto another ability user, siphoning the evolutionary particles inside the target’s frame to sustain their own consumption,” Wen Zhiyi continued to walk him through the profiles. “This individual stands as the absolute trump card of our neighboring province’s Special Operations branch. When encountering a formidable adversary, he is the premier resource to deploy; provided he is afforded a sufficient window of time, he can drain an enemy until they are completely exhausted.”
At this juncture, Wen Zhiyi stole another glance at Bai Hewei.
Given the sheer, colossal density of Bai Hewei’s energy variables, he suspected the entity who would be drained to death would highly probable be the Parasitic Evolver instead.
There was also a Vitality-type Evolver, capable of temporarily infusing an inanimate object with a trace of living consciousness—for instance, she could make a refrigerator address you with: “You shouldn’t constantly cram piping-hot food inside my shelves.”
Bai Hewei was profoundly staggered, thoroughly shocked by the sheer spectrum of human imagination.
A mountain of Evolver tracks whom he had never even caught a trace of on the news filed into the cell sequentially.
Bai Hewei was dazzled by the display.
He even encountered an Effigy-type Evolver whose capability shared a classification with the border branch’s First Squad Captain, Guan Yan.
It was just that Guan Yan’s capability was optimized to curse a doll within a hundred-meter radius while overriding other variables, whereas this specific Evolver could only curse an individual provided they made physical contact with the target’s blood, making their respective ranges of utility entirely distinct.
Naturally, these capabilities similarly triggered zero resonance within Bai Hewei’s body.
A total of eleven clusters processed through the chamber, and the final group contained a full twenty individuals.
These twenty people were all classified as Specialized-type Evolvers.
Yet by the time this final group filed out of the containment cell, the evolutionary particles inside Bai Hewei’s frame remained completely devoid of a single ripple.
“Even the Specialized track yielded zero results?” Wen Zhiyi massaged the space between his brows. Previously, they had theorized that if a single classification out of these one hundred and three tracks could establish a link with Bai Hewei, it could highly probable only be the Specialized track.
Generally speaking, if an ability failed to align with the preceding one hundred and two classifications, it was systematically consolidated into the Specialized track.
The abilities of Specialized-type Evolvers were often completely unique, yet they shared a common baseline parameter: the evolutionary particles inside their frames consistently resonated according to a uniform pattern. Consequently, despite their abilities manifesting in a vast array of separate forms, they were still grouped under the Specialized class. Some Specialized Evolvers appeared identical to other regular tracks in their early stages, but slowly differentiated over time.
Therefore, the team had calculated that this track was Bai Hewei’s most probable ability classification.
Yet even this section had cleared with zero results.
Wen Zhiyi coordinated with his fellow researchers for a brief moment, resolving to append a temporary sequence of extra testing items for Bai Hewei.
“These one hundred and three Classifications—barring sensory-type Evolvers who cannot make close physical contact with your person—stand as the global standard compiled by research facilities after cataloging ability users worldwide. However, this matrix is by no means set in stone.”
“Bai Hewei, let me congratulate you: starting from this exact second, you have officially anchored the one hundred and four hundredth Classification of Evolvers in the world.”
“But unfortunately, because your track is completely unique, we currently possess zero mechanisms to find an identical Evolver to execute a deeper diagnostic suite on your profile.”
Bai Hewei scratched his head, feeling as though he had traveled all this way for nothing.
“But since you’ve already come, we won’t let you leave empty-handed.” Wen Zhiyi escorted Bai Hewei out of the containment cell, guiding him up to the absolute penthouse floor of the research facility.
“Let’s shift our strategy to testing your raw baseline metrics instead.” Wen Zhiyi and his cohort of researchers abandoned trying to track the evolutionary particles inside Bai Hewei’s frame, choosing instead to directly scan the absolute thresholds of his physical capabilities.
If he wasn’t an Evolver on paper, let’s see where the absolute limit of his maxed-out physical capabilities lay.
“This is a load-cell compression gauge,” a researcher noted, pointing to a colossal cylindrical instrument. “Its structural tolerance is measured by the metric ton. Even the premier strength-type Evolvers or superhuman-type ability users have zero way of destroying its chassis; it can clearly display the absolute value of your physical force. As a side note, for a regular human being—even a world heavyweight boxing champion delivering a maximum-force strike—the machine’s readout will merely display 0. The absolute peak of an ordinary human’s force cannot even brush the baseline cutoff of a strength-type Evolver, which is precisely why ability users are strictly barred from participating in standard athletic competitions. This machine was custom-engineered using specialized materials specifically to test strength-type Evolvers. The highest value ever recorded by a top-tier powerhouse stands at 13,421. A strike of that scale can violently collapse an entire office building.”
“Can I genuinely go all out?” Bai Hewei looked down at his palms.
“……Put on another suppressor first.” Wen Zhiyi handed Bai Hewei an additional Evolver pendant. “The manufacturing cost of this compression gauge is exceptionally steep; the material components alone cost a full one billion yuan.”
Hearing the words “one billion yuan,” Bai Hewei nimbly and dutifully put the pendant around his neck immediately.
Author’s Note:
Wen Zhiyi: Terrified of a catastrophe, let’s add an extra suppressor to test his waters first.
Bai Hewei: One billion yuan?! Dutifully putting it on.
