Chapter 8: The Truth?

“According to Federation standards, you should be at level C. But Yang Bo, don’t take this level too seriously. Equipment makes a big difference.”

“Brother Wu, why are you still using a wristwatch at level C?”

“Yang Bo, don’t believe those guys’ nonsense. Biological Chips are absolutely safe. Let me tell you a fact: 90% of the big shots you see online don’t have one implanted.”

“As for the remaining 10%, it’s either because their abilities are too weak, or they’re just puppets.”

Yang Bo opened his mouth wide. Although he had already suspected this, hearing Wu Bing say it out loud still shocked him.

“Of course, for the average person, implanting a Biological Chip has no downside. In fact, it even has benefits.”

“Why’s that?”

“Because, as an ordinary person, you don’t have anything worth noticing. Actually, many years ago, when the internet first started, personal privacy was already gone. Everything you say, your health, your family, your savings — all of it — if they want to know, they will.”

“Will you listen to my advice?” Wu Bing asked again.

“Brother Wu, go ahead.”

“First, buy yourself a house. Second, unless you feel something wrong with your body, avoid medical checkups. In my whole life, I’ve only gotten a few checkups when I was young. Third, change your wristwatch.” After Wu Bing finished, he waited for Yang Bo’s response.

Yang Bo thought for a moment: “I don’t have that many credit points.”

“I can lend you some. But you must promise not to tell anyone about what happened today. In our industry, the impact of these things can be huge.” Wu Bing was already scheming. If this kid bought a house and had a mortgage, then he’d have to keep working. Once he experienced some freedom, he’d have to work even harder to maintain it.

Wu Bing didn’t ask how Yang Bo discovered this gene-evolved creature.

“Brother Wu, I need to think it over.” Yang Bo actually wanted more information about genes.

“Alright, give me an answer by tomorrow. Let’s leave now.”

“But we haven’t finished handling things yet.”

“It’s over. Our task was just to clear this place and neutralize any remaining threats. The rest will be handled by lower-level cleaners. When you do missions in the future, remember to be more cautious.” Wu Bing shook his head.

Yang Bo understood. His mind was filled with questions, but he wasn’t a young and gullible boy anymore. He wasn’t completely trusting of Wu Bing. He’d lived many decades in his previous life, dealing with people who wore one face in public and another in private all the time.

Wu Bing took Yang Bo back the way they came. The two didn’t say much. Wu Bing handed over their bags to the staff, retrieved their wristwatches, and they headed back by car.

When they returned to the Company and submitted their report, their afternoon was free.

Yang Bo sat on a park bench, watching the lake. Most of the people here were alone; there were very few couples. To Yang Bo, these people felt… how to put it… as if they had no souls. They all had the same expression: a bit lazy, indifferent, even their walking postures were similar.

Occasionally, only the couples had smiles or extra expressions on their faces.

Yang Bo thought about a lot of things but didn’t dare look anything up online. What if looking up certain things caught someone’s attention?

This was far more advanced than the technology of the internet era. In his previous life, if you mentioned wanting to buy something, the shopping app would push it to you. Now, it was much more intense.

“Today I acquired the ability ‘Camouflage’. What does ‘Camouflage +4’ mean? The previous times it was only +1.” Yang Bo thought again about his abilities. He really wanted to understand how gene evolution worked. What powers did it give? What were the initial signs?

“Huh?” As Yang Bo pondered, a middle-aged man passed by, inadvertently glancing at him. Yang Bo immediately sensed something was off.

“Did that guy deliberately look at me?” Yang Bo had a feeling that this person had walked past just to stare at him.

When Yang Bo carefully observed others passing by, even when they turned to look in his direction, none gave him the same feeling.

“Could this be an ability from Camouflage +4?” Yang Bo wondered internally.

“Who’s watching me? The Company? Someone else? Or maybe it’s related to the original host’s death?” Yang Bo’s face remained calm, but his mind was spinning.

Back at the Company, Wu Bing and Liu Zhijie were still in one of the rooms.

“Hehe, this kid seems to have something interesting going on.” Liu Zhijie said with great interest after Wu Bing explained everything in detail.

“Yeah, Yang Bo might have some hidden abilities. If that Shovel hadn’t been thrown into the Fish Pond, I wouldn’t have noticed anything. I wonder what kind of Gene Serum the kid received back then — could it be some company’s experimental drug?” Wu Bing nodded.

Liu Zhijie rubbed his forehead: “It’s hard to check. If the other side knows, it could be a problem.”

“What I’m worried about now is whether someone is watching Yang Bo. After all, if he’s really an experiment subject, it’s impossible no one’s paying attention to him.” Wu Bing shared his thoughts.

Liu Zhijie chuckled: “That’s even better. Experimental gene injections are usually made from rare or newly discovered materials. Once he’s with our company, he’s one of us.”

“I’m worried Yang Bo might not want to join us. Right now, he’s technically still a temp worker.”

“It’s fine. Once a guy like Yang Bo starts working, he definitely has his reasons. He won’t go back to living like a carefree pig again. I’ll try to find out which Gene Serum he got back then.” Liu Zhijie said.

“Should we bring him in again tomorrow morning? If not, I’ll start making other plans.”

“Ask him tomorrow morning and see what he thinks. Then proceed. Sorry to waste your time these past few days.”

“Don’t mention it.”

“If not, I’ll have another chat with him tomorrow.”

“Okay.”

Yang Bo reluctantly returned to the so-called home. He felt like he was in a movie, ‘The Truman Show.’ He didn’t know how many people were secretly watching him. He kept reminding himself, ‘I’m just an ordinary person, just an ordinary person.’

“Master, it’s recommended you schedule a checkup with your family doctor.” As soon as he walked through the door, the room’s smart speaker came to life.

…

In an unknown location, in an office, someone was watching Yang Bo as he entered the door. After the smart speaker chimed, they said, “Supervisor, the target’s response is abnormal. According to our past big data, there’s an 80% chance the target will immediately request an appointment after the system prompts. Another 12% might say ‘okay’, and the remaining 8% won’t respond. Plus, the target’s signal has been lost for over twenty hours.”

“Did you find anything?” A bald middle-aged white man, watching the virtual screen, noticed Yang Bo entering the bathroom and asked.