Chapter 373: Unsettling Evaluations

He didn’t know Doctor An that well yet, but she seemed pretty friendly.

So, after promising to do his best work and consider deeper cooperation with them, Lu Xin felt that advising her to focus on inner beauty was just a kind gesture, right?

Besides, Lu Xin got the feeling she’d understood his well-meaning advice.

With that, Lu Xin left her office feeling relaxed.

Meanwhile, Chen Jing seemed to have gotten some important intelligence from Xia Chong. She was waiting for Lu Xin outside. Without much conversation, she and Xia Chong left the Research Institute, got into the Jeep parked by the entrance, and headed back the way they came.

Their destination was Satellite City Seven, specifically the hotel Xia Chong had arranged for them earlier.

Staying in Second Main City, where the Research Institute was located, wasn’t really convenient. Besides, word was that something was happening in First Main City—both the military and the Security Hall had been mobilized.

“Team Leader, are you alright?”

Settling into the Jeep, Lu Xin noticed something seemed off about Chen Jing.

Her face was unusually pale, and she seemed to be trembling slightly. He leaned in and asked quietly.

Hearing Lu Xin, she looked up, a puzzled expression on her face. “They didn’t tell you?”

“Tell me what?”

Lu Xin was a little confused by the question.

Chen Jing hesitated, glancing at the driver up front before looking over at Xia Chong.

After Xia Chong nodded, Chen Jing turned back to Lu Xin and said softly, “The Abyss.”

“Oh, right, they mentioned it…”

Lu Xin recalled the world he’d entered with Xia Chong and nodded. “It was pretty terrifying.”

Chen Jing frowned slightly. “Then why are you so…”

She paused, searching for the right word. “…Calm?”

Lu Xin didn’t quite get it at first. “But I said it was terrifying, didn’t I?” he asked curiously.

Chen Jing was momentarily speechless.

Beside her, Xia Chong didn’t ask anything, but she also gave Lu Xin a suspicious look.

Under the scrutiny of the two female leaders, Lu Xin felt a little uneasy.

Chen Jing took a moment to compose herself, slowly regaining her cool. She glanced at Xia Chong. “Such a huge secret, something so serious… why did you keep it hidden from everyone? Weren’t you worried that the monsters from the Abyss might…”

“I’m just a team leader from Satellite City Seven. I don’t understand the decisions made by the Research Institute’s leadership.”

Xia Chong’s expressionless reply left Chen Jing at a loss for words.

She paused before continuing, “But I do know one thing. Revealing the secret of the Abyss before we’re ready won’t solve anything. It’ll just cause even greater chaos… People have grown wild since the Red Moon incident. Rebuilding civilization, even just gathering populations within the high-wall cities, is already full of challenges. If we add widespread panic to that…”

Chen Jing listened, taking a moment before slowly nodding.

She suddenly caught the crucial point in Xia Chong’s words. “So, you’re saying the Research Institute *is* prepared now?”

Xia Chong fell silent for a moment before responding, “I’m just guessing. But the Research Institute wouldn’t send the major high-wall cities to deal with S-level forbidden zones unprepared. Without powerful Ability Users and weapons capable of handling them, everyone would just be marching to their deaths.”

Chen Jing breathed a sigh of relief. “In that case,” she said softly, “I need to get back as soon as possible.”

“I need to discuss with Professor Bai and Mr. Su how we should handle… the Happy Town situation.”

…

“Happy Town…”

Hearing the name, Lu Xin let out a small sigh.

“Right…”

Only then did Chen Jing seem to remember something. She looked at Lu Xin. “What did they talk to you about?”

She quickly added, “You don’t have to tell me if it’s inconvenient.”

Hearing Chen Jing’s question, Xia Chong showed no outward reaction, but her ears visibly perked up.

“Oh, it’s nothing inconvenient,” Lu Xin quickly replied with a smile.

“She mentioned something about ‘steps,’ then also brought up the Abyss. Finally, she invited me to join some ‘Advanced Talent Club’ and wanted to discuss deeper cooperation.”

“Hmm?”

Chen Jing’s sharp senses picked up on several important points in Lu Xin’s casual statement.

The mention of ‘steps,’ the ‘Advanced Talent Club,’ and ‘deeper cooperation’ all left her deeply shocked.

Given her position, she might not know all the secrets, but she knew enough to understand the significance of these terms.

Her expression turned serious.

After a moment of silence, she asked gravely, “And… how did you respond?”

“I said I’d discuss it with you first.”

Lu Xin clarified, “I didn’t agree to any further cooperation yet.”

“Oh!”

Chen Jing subconsciously let out a sigh of relief, but then her expression shifted to surprise, her eyes widening as she looked at Lu Xin.

“Discuss it… with me?”

…

Chen Jing’s reaction surprised Lu Xin. He paused, a bit taken aback, before replying, “Yeah? Of course, I need to discuss something like this with you.”

Beside them, Xia Chong also turned her gaze towards Chen Jing.

Her expression rarely changed, but her eyes betrayed a hint of surprise.

For a moment, Chen Jing looked like she had a lot to say, but the words seemed caught in her throat. What finally came out was very simple.

“Why?”

…

The question seemed to stump Lu Xin. He looked at Chen Jing, confused.

“You’re my team leader, aren’t you? You recruited me. You arranged my initial training and supervised my first cleanup operations. Even though the Research Institute is technically the headquarters for all the Special Pollution Cleanup Departments in the high-wall cities—a higher authority—I couldn’t just agree to their arrangements without asking you first…”

He turned slightly towards Chen Jing. “Did I do something wrong?”

Chen Jing quickly shook her head. “No.”

But after saying no, she seemed to want to add something but couldn’t find the words.

Lu Xin looked slightly embarrassed and smiled. “After this whole trip, I still think Qinggang is better. You’ve always looked out for me, Team Leader. And this time, the moment you heard I was in trouble, you dropped everything and rushed to Central City to help…”

He paused briefly before adding, “I really appreciate it, Team Leader. I trust you the most.”

“Ah…”

The expression on Chen Jing’s face grew complicated.

A faint blush touched her cheeks, but overriding it was an undeniable mix of happiness and confidence.

She didn’t speak for a moment. Then, she quietly rolled down the window and took out a slender cigarette. Lu Xin quickly leaned over with his lighter. Chen Jing let the wind blowing in calm her for a second before saying softly, “You did the right thing. This is a serious matter, so I’ll discuss it thoroughly with Professor Bai and the others when I get back.”

Lu Xin smiled. “Okay.”

Xia Chong had been staring coolly out the opposite window the whole time, though her ears remained attentive.

Only then did she suddenly mutter quietly, “Our Central City is very good too!”

…

…

As Lu Xin, Chen Jing, and Xia Chong left the Research Institute, up on the thirty-first floor, Doctor An sat quietly on her desk for a long while. Arms crossed over her white coat, feet clad in slender high-heeled leather shoes. Suddenly, she looked up, let out a soft chuckle, and stretched lazily before swiveling back around into her desk chair.

Popping a red soft candy into her mouth, she made a call.

“Results are good. The subject recovery is pretty much complete.”

Once the call connected, she chuckled softly. “There were a few surprises, sure, but overall, it went smoothly.”

“Heh, I told you this method was the most suitable.”

“Research is about solving problems. A bunch of researchers resorting to violence at the drop of a hat? Wouldn’t that be a joke?”

“One last question…”

“Previously, the bounty offered by our Moon Eclipse Research Institute was for anyone providing clues about the Escaped Lab. A generous reward. But now, I’ve basically handled the entire subject recovery for the Institute myself.”

“So, asking for a hundred million isn’t excessive, right?”

…

“Too much?”

“Heh, honestly, I think I asked for too little. Because I really…”

Her voice trailed off, then returned tinged with a strange mix of fear and exhilaration. “…I almost wet myself I was so scared.”

“What? Watch my language?”

“For a stunning woman like me—face unscratched, legs intact, smooth skin free of scars—wouldn’t admitting I almost peed my pants be *worse* for my image?”

Whatever was said on the other end, Doctor An’s expression gradually turned cold.

After a pause, she spoke again, her tone serious. “I need to say something upfront. Consider it a warning, and also a supplement to the report on Subject Nine’s recovery. I don’t know what exactly Professor Wang Jingyun did, but I’ve assessed him my own way. The conclusion? The part of him that’s still human… it should be over fifty percent, at least…”

“Don’t celebrate just yet.”

“Because, right at the end of my assessment, I suddenly realized… Or rather, *he* made me realize. It felt like an intentional warning.”

Doctor An slowly, deliberately delivered her conclusion: “…He might possess an extremely strong ability to disguise himself!”

“The following is personal, off the record.”

“Our Recovery Plan looks successful, yes. But how do you know he didn’t *let* himself be recovered?”

“Remember, *he* was the one who approached *us*!”

“A lamb trembling before the power of the Research Institute.”

“Versus a monster hiding among the sheep, watching us with amusement, trembling with suppressed excitement…”

“Superficially, they’re very hard to tell apart!”

…

“So, personally? Rather than trying to research him like walking a tightrope… I’d honestly rather just sleep with him!”

“That’s all!”