Chapter 36
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Chapter 36: Night Visit
After undergoing an even stricter series of tests, Wang Xiao received his third ability assessment report.
【Ability: High-Speed Regeneration
Rarity: High
Growth Potential: Medium
Overall Rating: C
Ability Description: A relatively rare Rapid Healing ability that consumes less energy than similar abilities and offers better sustainability.】
Just as he thought!
Wang Xiao withdrew his left hand, which was still writhing as it healed, and began reading the revised Ability Description.
This assessment report was a significant improvement over the first one. Just this piece of paper granted him the eligibility to reside in the inner city.
A C rating is a hurdle that countless superpowered individuals struggle to cross in their lifetime.
In simple terms, ability levels can be improved through training, but if each level up does not lead to a transformation of the ability, then that person’s potential is essentially capped.
This is the rationale behind the "Growth Potential" section in the ability assessment report.
The Growth Potential rating is based on the development results of similar abilities recorded in the database over the past few decades.
Once the ability test was concluded, a guard stationed at the door placed a form in front of Wang Xiao.
"If you are interested in joining the headquarters’ direct superpowered group, please fill out the information within three days and submit it."
Wang Xiao clutched the paper as he left the testing room.
As he exited, two researchers quickly turned their attention to the flesh and blood that had been cut away by the circular blade.
They observed that in a glass jar filled with nutrient solution, the flesh cut from Wang Xiao’s hand was writhing erratically.
Upon closer inspection, the boundaries between skin and muscle were gradually blurring, and there was a tendency for the multiple pieces of cut flesh to merge together.
One researcher looked at his colleague and asked,
"Given this ability, it should definitely be rated C+, so why…?"
"Why worry about it? Is the decision from above something we can guess?"
The other researcher dismissed the concern. After sealing the glass jar, he began packing up the deployed ability assessment kit.
"Do you think he will join the direct superpowered group?"
"Isn’t that obvious? Even if they are all slaves of Hope City, the slaves in the inner city are a bit more privileged; who wouldn’t want better food and living conditions?"
"That’s true."
—
At dusk, El walked along the streets of the Eastern District near the Sea.
A gentle breeze blew through, carrying only the salty scent of the sea, without a hint of fishy smell.
The majority of fish in the Sea had transformed into extraordinary beasts that devoured one another, and the few that still resembled their pre-disaster forms were not safe to eat.
Long before the disaster, the ocean had already been polluted to a certain extent, not to mention the current state of distortion.
Livestock such as pigs, cattle, and sheep can still be raised through underground pastures, utilizing gene banks and biotechnologies for fine-tuning to ensure stability, but fish have already disappeared from the human menu.
El walked unevenly along the road, pausing and resuming. This area was the most familiar to him.
Whenever he wanted to ponder some profound questions, he always came here.
This time was no exception.
Upon learning that his next target, Dr. Bard, had died an untimely death, El felt as if he had fallen into a vast web.
Especially considering Zhuang Mian’s few words, it was clear that the methods used were mimicking his own.
El did not believe anyone would consider him an idol; he felt like a colossal burden was about to be placed on his shoulders.
If the perpetrator was imitating his actions, didn’t that mean everything he had done before was what those people wanted to see?
Thinking of this made El shiver with fear.
He had no family left in this world; the only ones who treated him decently were a preacher disguised as a psychologist and a hidden assassin.
There was also a god high above.
El recalled the words Dr. Lin had said before he left the clinic.
If he truly found himself at a dead end, he might have to seek help from others.
However, he already owed too much to that person, and El concluded he needed to rely on himself.
With this determination, the silver-haired boy decided to investigate personally, ready to seize any new clues that might emerge.
El arrived at the residential building where Dr. Bard used to live and found a shadowy spot nearby where he could observe the room.
He carried a dark backpack, filled with three days’ worth of food, planning to stake out here for a while to see if any suspicious individuals returned to the crime scene.
Even if not, after dark, he intended to sneak around to investigate, hoping to uncover something valuable.
—
The night in the outer city was always filled with barely audible exchanges.
Whether it was flesh trading, gray market dealings, or coercion and temptation, El had long grown accustomed to it.
Night fell.
After putting on gloves, El crept into Dr. Bard’s residential unit.
Bard’s home was on the fifth floor. El gently held onto the stair railing and climbed one step at a time.
With the energy shortage, friendly voice-activated lights were absent, so El relied on his decent night vision to observe his surroundings.
As he reached the midway point of the third floor, El noticed something flicker in his line of sight.
He quickly stopped, took two steps back, and mimicked the earlier movement in an attempt to reproduce that sensation.
Sure enough, after a few flashes, El discovered the reflective source of his concern—
A broken vial hidden around the corner of the staircase.
Growing up in the outer city, El relied on sheer will to deal with his childhood illnesses, so he was unfamiliar with what it was.
He only knew that this thin glass was not something one would typically find in such a place.
However, his keen intuition led him to pocket the item; he was unaware, but someone knew—Dr. Lin from the eastern district was famously well-informed, and he could let him examine it later.
El wanted to continue observing but suddenly heard a faint noise coming from the unit door below.
The residents of the outer city generally lacked manners; if the downstairs door closed normally, it would produce a very loud sound.
But now it only released a slight friction noise, as if stirred by the wind.
Excluding the possibility of the visitor being a rare, cautious saint from the outer city, only one explanation remained for the current situation—
An explorer like El.
The newcomer slowed his pace as he climbed up, and El carefully synchronized his movements from above.
The man reached the third floor and suddenly turned on a dim flashlight, beginning to search for something on the ground.
El, watching through the stairwell gap, immediately understood the stranger’s target and tightened his grip on the vial.
Using the floor’s minimal reflection, El tried to catch a glimpse of the person’s face.
Perhaps the excessive silence alerted the visitor, or El’s heartbeat had surged to a level that could betray his position.
The individual seemed to sense something. After staring at the ground for a few seconds, the flashlight abruptly shone upwards.
El instinctively recoiled, but his gray hair stood out glaringly in the dark, and the person still noticed his presence.
After a momentary stand-off, El fled.
The other quickly reacted and began chasing after him.
The staircase of the residential building was not very wide, and the edges were always cluttered with leftover cardboard boxes from certain residents.
As El ascended the stairs, he attempted to topple the nearby illegal structure of boxes, but the pursuer was tall and limber, and his efforts proved minimal.
He was still just a child!
El reached the fifth floor, turned a corner, and ran toward Dr. Bard’s room.
Since he had scouted the area beforehand, it felt somewhat familiar to him.
The pursuer, relentless, was right on his tail.
The two of them entered Bard’s apartment, which was marked with caution tape, one after the other.
