Chapter 40
After putting on the suppressor, Bai Hewei took two steps back and threw a light, breezy punch at the compression gauge.
The display read 0.
The values on the sensor arrays inside the containment cell hadn’t fluctuated either.
This meant that when Bai Hewei threw that punch just now, he hadn’t used a single shred of an Evolver’s power.
It was plain to see that he was genuinely terrified of having to pay for damages.
“Don’t let the one-billion-yuan manufacturing cost intimidate you,” Wen Zhiyi sighed. “Try using twenty percent of your strength first, and then gradually scale it up.”
“How much force is twenty percent?” Bai Hewei asked politely.
He didn’t have a clear grasp of this concept.
Things like twenty percent or fifty percent force meant absolutely nothing to him; he could only rely on instinct. Just like how those online videos advised people not to gorge themselves but to eat until they were seventy or eighty percent full, he had never understood what seventy or eighty percent full actually meant either.
“Then just go with your gut,” Wen Zhiyi encouraged. “When you feel it’s about enough, you can stop.”
“Alright then.” Bai Hewei cast a glance at the compression gauge before him, asking once more just to be safe, “If something goes wrong, you won’t blame me, right?”
“We won’t, we won’t.”
“It’s fine.”
“Just give it a try first.”
The other researchers scrambled to reassure him as well.
They had already examined Bai Hewei’s body and knew his physical metrics were no different from an ordinary young man’s. But once he unleashed the power belonging to an Evolver, what would he turn into?
Everyone was intensely curious.
“I’ll give it a try then.” Bai Hewei thought about it seriously for a moment, his expression turning grave.
He clenched his fists and dropped into a deep squat, looking exactly as if he were assuming a traditional horse stance.
Bai Hewei didn’t actually know how to throw a proper punch; he was entirely imitating the moves he had seen in TV dramas.
This stiff, textbook posture caused the surrounding researchers to stifle their laughter.
But as Bai Hewei gathered his strength, the previously silent containment cell and the sensor array on his body finally began to register data fluctuations.
The numbers skyrocketed at a frantic pace.
Directly skipping the double digits, the numbers began jumping in the triple digits.
The researchers’ hearts involuntarily accelerated in tandem.
Exhale—
Bai Hewei took a deep breath and delivered a moderate, unhurried punch at the compression gauge.
Thud.
The number on the gauge instantly spiked to 14,590.
It shattered the record immediately.
The eyes of the nearby researchers lit up as they rapidly recorded the data.
As expected, just as the Chief had said, Bai Hewei simply had maxed-out baseline attributes.
“Continue. Put a bit more strength into it this time,” Wen Zhiyi said evenly, after a quiet glance at the readout.
“Okay.” Seeing that the gauge hadn’t broken yet, Bai Hewei’s mood improved considerably.
Another punch.
This time, Bai Hewei consciously used more force.
The value on the compression gauge climbed to 20,000+.
The researchers swallowed hard. This meant that if Bai Hewei threw a casual punch, he could collapse two skyscrapers!
An intensity of this magnitude was comparable to an earthquake disaster.
“Continue,” Wen Zhiyi urged once more.
On the third punch, the number on the gauge hit 30,000.
This was already more than double the threshold of a top-tier strength-type Evolver.
“Do you still have strength left?” Wen Zhiyi finally stopped urging and turned to ask Bai Hewei instead.
“I can probably manage one more punch.” Bai Hewei rolled his shoulders, feeling a bit unaccustomed to the exertion. “But it shouldn’t break this machine.”
“Good. For this final punch, go all out,” Wen Zhiyi nodded, offering a word of encouragement from the side.
“OK.” This time, Bai Hewei abandoned any formal stances. Instead, he pulled his right arm back, gathered a massive surge of power, and drove a vicious punch straight into the compression gauge.
Boom—
The entire building began to shake.
“An… an earthquake?”
“Why is the building swaying?”
“That’s impossible, this city isn’t on a seismic fault line; we’ve almost never had an earthquake here.”
Some of the Evolvers outside the building were in a state of mild panic.
Meanwhile, the Evolvers waiting in line to have their memories erased looked toward the containment cell with highly complex expressions.
“Thinking about it now, having my memory erased is actually a good thing,” an Evolver sitting in front of Wang Yan let out a deep sigh. “The moment I remember that I share the title of ‘Evolver’ with something this absurd, I feel completely unworthy. If I had to experience this a few more times, I’d develop a psychological shadow.”
“What a freak.”
“Too terrifying.”
“How can an Evolver possibly be this strong? Has the Earth run out of capacity to hold him?”
…
Wang Ren couldn’t help but look toward the containment cell as well. Thinking of [Sage] Batu, whose fate between life and death was still unknown, his feelings were equally complicated.
“Sis, focus on your work first. We’ll invite Bai Hewei out for a meal together later,” Wang Ren lowered his head and whispered softly into his sister Wang Yan’s ear. “Don’t get distracted.”
Otherwise, if an error occurred during the memory erasure, they would face disciplinary action.
Although Wang Yan was unwilling to communicate with the outside world, she still took her brother’s words seriously.
She placed her hand on the forehead of the Evolver sitting across from her, erasing his memories of the past ten hours.
“Huh? Wang Yan? What am I doing here?” The Evolver whose memory had just been erased blinked in confusion. “Oh, a memory wipe session again, right?”
“Wang Ren, give me a pleasant ten-hour memory of being on vacation this time. I’ve worked continuous overtime for a month and I’m about to break; I need a little virtual sweetness.” The Evolver sighed. “At the very least, let my memories be a bit happy.”
“Sure,” Wang Ren agreed, feeling a pang of sympathy. “Head out early in a bit; just consider it clocking off ahead of schedule.”
“Tell me about it.”
Inside the containment cell.
The number on Bai Hewei’s body sensor array had reached 9999+, while the reading on the compression gauge was stuck at 89,554.
It was just a hair away from the maximum possible score.
The researchers breathed a sigh of relief, yet their gazes toward Bai Hewei grew increasingly bizarre.
Regardless of whether Bai Hewei possessed any other abilities, this terrifying raw strength alone was enough to make every Evolver in the world keep their distance.
If someone took a close-range punch from Bai Hewei, they would be literally pulverized.
“It didn’t break! That’s wonderful!” Bai Hewei was overjoyed. This meant he didn’t have to pay for it at all. “The equipment engineered by your Research Institute is really amazing. The quality is absolutely solid, completely different from standard government procurement items.”
“The next phase is testing your speed and agility. Let’s change venues,” Wen Zhiyi took out a pen and paper, jotted down a few notes, and prepared to move on to the next test.
“Okay, okay,” Bai Hewei was exceedingly cooperative.
“I actually thought he was going to shatter the compression gauge. Thank goodness he is at least still human.” Looking at the numbers on the screen, Huo Ling couldn’t help but clutch his chest. “Thank goodness. At least his power parameters can still be measured.”
“Director, Bai Hewei is currently still wearing two suppressors,” An Tingyu couldn’t resist bursting Huo Ling’s bubble. “If it weren’t for those two suppressors, that compression gauge might have genuinely broken. Also, it’s only been a short three months since Bai Hewei’s ability awakened; he still has an immense amount of room for growth.”
“…I know. I was just trying to soothe my own nerves,” Huo Ling felt a wave of despair. “I feel like the pressure on my shoulders just got a whole lot heavier.”
“Director, how about we hold off for a bit? Having Bai Hewei become our colleague this early… I feel a bit of pressure.”
“I don’t even have the energy to feel jealous right now; this has completely surpassed the boundaries of normal cognition.”
“It’s so great that he appeared in our country. It’s so great, boohoo.”
“If I were ordered to capture a monster like that, I’d really have to write a hundred suicide notes first.”
Several squad captains had completely lost their usual composure.
They had taken this strength test before too, but they were off by two whole digits!
This wasn’t a gap that could be bridged through hard work or continuous evolution.
It required a literal biological mutation.
“…You don’t need to worry about that. The number of applicants for that border position has already exceeded 200, yet Bai Hewei still hasn’t finished a single complete set of practice exams. The fact that he failed his previous exams wasn’t entirely due to bad luck,” Huo Ling consoled his subordinates. “The standard flaws that young people have, like procrastination—he has them too, and to quite a severe degree.”
On the other side.
“You’re paying me to treat Batu, but let me lay down the ugly truth first: his cranial damage didn’t originate from an external physical force. Trauma induced by an ability backlash is infinitely more troublesome to manage, especially for a sensory-type Evolver,” Pullman’s sister, Shirley, shrugged her shoulders. “A regular Evolver experiencing a standard backlash is something I can treat. But a sensory-type backlash triggers on the spiritual layer, directly damaging their cranial nerves. Even if I mend the structural damage, he will highly likely remember absolutely nothing.”
[Sage] Batu had suffered a catastrophic backlash from his own supernatural ability—this was the baseline conclusion derived after multiple healing-type Evolvers had traveled over to run diagnostics.
Originally, the president of that nation assumed Batu had devolved into this state due to a tactical assault executed by the Special Operations Department. After all, Batu’s previous provocations against the Special Operations Department, where he thoroughly exposed the ability profiles of several squad captains, would naturally invite retaliation.
To everyone’s surprise, when they actually brought people over to treat Batu, they discovered the reality was completely unrelated.
Furthermore, when it came to structural damage induced by an ability backlash, regular healing-type Evolvers were completely powerless, leaving Shirley as the sole entity capable of treating Batu.
But Shirley’s quotes for treatment had always been astronomical.
That nation’s economy was inherently underdeveloped, with a massive chunk of its GDP derived from unspeakable, illicit grey income. Allocating such a colossal sum of funding was exceptionally difficult.
However, word was that the Special Operations Department had brought the world’s strongest Evolver along on this operation, and before Batu dissolved into a simpleton, he had highly likely successfully harvested the absolute intelligence file regarding that pinnacle powerhouse. Therefore, even if it required paying such a staggering sum, it was fully worth it.
Provided Batu retained even a tiny sliver of memory, they could segment the intelligence regarding the world’s strongest Evolver to sell to other nations and rogue syndicates, effortlessly reclaiming Shirley’s treatment fee by a hundred-fold or a thousand-fold.
It was worth the gamble!
“Alright, as long as you cure him, you don’t need to concern yourself with anything else,” the president finally made his decision.
“Great, deposit thirty million USD into my account first. The moment the wire clears, I will commence his treatment,” Shirley nodded. “Once I finish the procedure, give me the remaining thirty million. I surmise you’ve heard of my reputation. I maintain a fully armed mercenary syndicate staffed by Evolvers; if you dare default on my balances, even if I forfeit the final payment, I will make you pay an infinitely heavier price.”
The president’s expression stiffened slightly. “I understand your rules.”
The top-tier S-Class Evolvers across the globe each essentially possessed the capacity to violently destabilize a minor nation. Furthermore, Shirley possessed a brother who was similarly an S-Class powerhouse. Combined with her capability to mend trauma that others couldn’t treat, her networks were absurdly vast, so normal factions absolutely avoided making an enemy of her.
The president’s directive was executed very quickly.
Seeing that her dedicated bank manager had sent her a confirmation message, Shirley finally swung into action and prepared to treat Batu.
Her brother had mentioned traveling over to China to register a corporation and purchase a villa.
An ability like her brother’s couldn’t generate much money, so she had to rely on herself to earn a bit more to support her underachieving brother.
Shirley labored over Batu for nearly a full day and night.
In reality, she could have wrapped it up within half a day, but facing a client who had spent an astronomical sum, she had to make her labor appear grueling and exhausting. Only then would they feel they had gotten their money’s worth. If she resolved the issue within an hour or ten minutes, it could easily trigger a medical dispute.
Therefore, Shirley put on a full theatrical performance.
“The procedure… is completed,” Shirley gasped for breath, leaning on her Evolver bodyguards as she collapsed into a chair to rest, looking entirely drained. “He will awaken shortly; you may take him away. I harbor zero interest in the questions you intend to ask, nor will I eavesdrop. As long as our financial transaction is settled, that’s enough.”
Hearing this, the president immediately dispatched personnel to relocate Batu.
“My apologies, but your final payment has not cleared yet; you cannot leave for the time being.”
Batu was moved out first, but right as the president prepared to depart, he was intercepted by her operatives.
“Rest assured, I’ve already issued the order; the transfer will arrive momentarily,” the president offered an awkward smile, not daring to harbor any illusions of playing a fast one.
Before long, the bodyguards received confirmation, and only then did they release the president and his team.
“Boss, thanks for your hard work,” a bodyguard presented Shirley with a latte.
“Batu’s cranial nerve damage is completely irreversible,” Shirley rested her chin on one hand. “When he wakes up, he’s highly likely to be a literal simpleton. Even if his sensory capability manages to perceive a trace of data, he won’t be able to articulate a coherent sentence. But he can consider it a blessing in disguise—by turning into this state, the side effects of that Evolver Potion are no longer a concern anyway.”
“Next, I’m giving you all a six-month vacation. You guys are heavily armed and have international bounties on your heads; there’s no way you can enter China. Over there, even riding a subway requires a security check. The moment you cross their borders, you’re walking second-class merits for them, so don’t bother following me inside.” Shirley stood up and stretched. “Don’t worry, it’s paid leave. If you take up other assignments during these six months, that’s entirely up to you.”
“Thank you, Boss!”
The bodyguards shouted in unison.
Compared to other mercenary syndicates staffed entirely by Evolvers, their daily life was infinitely superior. Not only was life comfortable, but their salary was towering, their employer never defaulted on their pay, they received regular vacations, and if they suffered work-related injuries, they were guaranteed treatment by a top-tier healing Evolver.
If possible, they wanted to stay in this stable line of work for the rest of their lives.
Consequently, they served Shirley with absolute dedication, terrified that if she became dissatisfied and replaced them, an untold number of peers were waiting in line to take their spots.
“You’re welcome. It’s not like I can spend all this cash anyway,” Shirley laughed.
She was already among the most lucrative Evolvers in the world, though compared to those established family financial conglomerates, her wealth was negligible.
Shirley genuinely couldn’t comprehend it. Once wealth reached a certain threshold, it transformed into pure numbers; keeping it on hand served no purpose, so why not spend it?
The president and his team staked out Batu’s bedside, staring eagerly as they waited for him to wake up.
They were still harboring a trace of a blind gamble—perhaps when Batu awoke, he might still be capable of spitting out a few secrets?
However, when Batu finally opened his eyes, his gaze was completely blank.
“You, who, guys, are?”
Batu forced the words out one by one.
“His language faculties are completely scrambled,” the nearby doctor’s expression turned grim. “Mr. President, I’m afraid you are going to be disappointed.”
“What about his memory?” the president inquired.
“…First of all, we cannot be certain whether Mr. Batu still retains any memories. Even if he does, given his current state, it will be highly difficult for him to articulate a complete, coherent sentence,” the doctor spoke the absolute truth. “Perhaps you could find a few more healing-type Evolvers to examine him?”
Recalling the money he had paid to Shirley, the president fell silent.
If Shirley couldn’t do anything about it, what could other healing-type Evolvers possibly achieve?
Inside the local research branch.
“The velocity readout is out. It outmatches the peak threshold of a speed-type Evolver by three times; he has already become a man who moves like light.”
“A physical body cannot sustain the force generated when approaching the speed of light, but an Evolver’s physical form—especially one as flawless as Bai Hewei’s—perfectly mitigates this vulnerability.”
“Personally, I feel he’d make an excellent astronaut; he wouldn’t even need a spacecraft.”
“The agility test has also broken the record.”
“The spiritual test values have broken the record too.”
…
“Chief, pretty much everything that can be tested has been tested; dawn is about to break,” a researcher yawned, sounding a bit drowsy. “What else do we need to test?”
“Call a Metamorphosis-type Evolver in.”
“Yes, sir.”
…
“Mr. Bai, are you capable of discerning which one of us is the genuine Wen Zhiyi?”
Just as Bai Hewei stepped out of the testing suite, he saw two identical Wen Zhiyis standing before him.
From their physical appearance, to their vocal frequencies, down to the very presence they exuded, they were completely identical.
Bai Hewei stood frozen in place for a moment, staring intently at the two of them for quite a while before walking up to the Wen Zhiyi on the left and saying, “You are the real one.”
“Why?” The “Wen Zhiyi” on the right morphed back into her original form—a delicate, pretty young girl. “I am one of the rare Evolvers capable of achieving full metamorphosis; even my blood type matches perfectly. The only way to differentiate me is to run a DNA test. I am currently studying genetics; once my coursework is complete, even a DNA scan might not be able to tell us apart in the future.”
“Although the evolutionary energy inside your body was concealed, I could still see it,” Bai Hewei answered seriously. “Conversely, the genuine Chief Wen carries zero evolutionary energy on his person, which is how I could tell you apart.”
“Xiao Zhen, go call another Evolver over and transform into their appearance.”
“Okay,” the girl named Xiao Zhen immediately left to do so.
“What exactly does this test check?” Bai Hewei asked curiously.
“We’ve pretty much mapped out all your parameters. Your baseline stats are several times higher than those of top-tier Evolvers in corresponding categories. With these combined alone, your status as the world’s strongest Evolver is unshakeable,” Wen Zhiyi patiently explained to Bai Hewei. “Whether in close combat or ranged combat, your defense is flawless. Even an Effigy-type Evolver’s damage against you would be mitigated. Your entire body acts as if it were covered in various buffs, amplifying your attacks and reducing the damage others inflict upon you.”
Bai Hewei’s existence was like a bug among Evolvers.
The sharpest spear was inexplicably paired with the most flawless shield.
With these two combined, Bai Hewei’s strength was beyond doubt. Whether in a one-on-one duel or a one-versus-many fight, he held an absolute advantage.
But battles between Evolvers involved more than just raw stats.
Many rare-type Evolvers manifested their abilities in slightly different ways. If they played their cards right and avoided a direct confrontation with Bai Hewei, there was still a possibility that Bai Hewei could suffer a setback.
Before long, two identical Evolvers appeared in front of Bai Hewei.
This time, Bai Hewei stared at them for a much longer period.
After about ten minutes, Bai Hewei walked up to the two of them, condensed evolutionary particles in his hands, and gave each of them a solid pat on the shoulder.
Xiao Zhen felt a sharp pang of agony as the evolutionary particles inside her body rioted, forcing her to reveal her true form.
“Brother Bai, that’s cheating!” Xiao Zhen couldn’t help but protest.
“If I didn’t do that, I wouldn’t have been able to tell you apart; I don’t know who you guys are at all,” Bai Hewei felt innocent. “Your ability is genuinely fascinating. The evolutionary particles inside your body can perfectly mimic another person’s energy composition. If I didn’t disrupt it with external physical force, it would be highly difficult to break your internal equilibrium.”
At this point, Bai Hewei added, “Actually, many abilities are perfectly capable of deceiving me. For example, a friend I met previously named Pullman—when he first approached me, I thought he was just an ordinary person, merely harboring suspicions about his underlying motives. It was only later, when he showed a slight flaw, that I realized he was an Evolver.”
“Pullman is known as the ‘Evolver Killer.’ He is indeed a tough opponent to deal with,” Wen Zhiyi nodded, noting down a few more metrics on his paper.
“We’re pretty much done here, and it’s getting late,” Wen Zhiyi looked at Bai Hewei. “Mr. Bai, we have a solid understanding of your situation. I basically have a clear idea regarding your ability. By the way, if you wish to name your ability, what kind of name would you like to pick?”
Bai Hewei thought about it seriously and said, “How about calling it the Wish-Granting type?”
Wen Zhiyi was somewhat speechless.
“Once a name is decided, it likely cannot be changed. If you go on missions in the future or get attacked by other Evolvers, having them call you ‘[The Wisher] Bai Hewei’ isn’t entirely out of the question, I suppose.”
No, that sounded way too awful.
[The Wisher] sounded a bit like a useless slacker, and it was highly impractical.
Bai Hewei immediately vetoed the name.
“Then Chief Wen, what do you think my ability should be named?” Bai Hewei felt that as the sole seedling of this ability type, he still needed to save some face.
An almost imperceptible trace of amusement appeared in Wen Zhiyi’s eyes as he spoke softly.
“The Omnipotent type.”
Whether it was strength, speed, agility, eyesight, hearing, or spirit, Bai Hewei’s parameters had almost reached an unimaginable level.
And this was still under the condition that he was wearing a suppressor.
“I believe this is the only name that can adequately describe your ability.”
Fortunately, Bai Hewei could still be deceived by the effects of certain abilities.
He was still human.
If he were both omnipotent and omniscient, he would be called a god.
Author’s Note:
Wen Zhiyi: Thank goodness he’s still human!
Bai Hewei: Why does that not sound like a compliment to me?
