Unknown Explorer, Transcendent Induction!

The fast checkpoint was not wealthy enough to station a containment team in every quarantine bay. More than ten minutes passed before the sliding isolation doors of Quarantine Zone A parted to either side. A team of eight stepped inside, all clad in off-white specialized hazard suits resembling modern bomb-disposal gear, with honeycomb shock-absorbing layers reinforcing the joints. So serious? Cheng Ye had expected something as bare-bones as Central Checkpoint, where people haphazardly shoved the infection source into a box and hauled it away. The sheer scale of this deployment caught him by surprise. At the same time, he noticed that their containment transport case had also been upgraded. Instead of the usual tempered-glass containers, they now carried a case crafted from a specialized ceramic-like material, its surface etched with fine, anti-permeation seals. "Duty inspector?" The containment team leader stepped forward, a flicker of surprise crossing his eyes when his gaze landed on Cheng Ye's face. What an exceptionally young inspector—he looked several years younger than even the freshest rookie on the containment squad! "That's me." Cheng Ye nodded and produced his inspector badge. The man took it and swiped it through the card slot of the defense comm on his forearm, then gasped, "You're still an apprentice inspector?" "Yes. Is there a problem?" "No, just caught off guard. Unknown infected entities are difficult even for Rank 2 inspectors to detect. More often than not, an outbreak occurs before we're called in to contain it." The containment leader quickly shook his head. "Inspector Cheng, greetings. I'm Qin Feng, a Level 3 Researcher with the Infection Source Research Institute." "The Infection Source Research Institute?" Cheng Ye paused, immediately pulling up the explanation of the term from his predecessor's memories. Happiness City had three major scientific research institutions. The Happiness Research Institute oversaw civilian technology, handling everything from nutrient paste formulas to water recycling systems. The United Arsenal specialized in weaponry and equipment, including the development of various armed vehicles. The Infection Source Research Institute, true to its name, held a complete monopoly over research on infected entities. While all three shared the same administrative ranking, their treatment differed like night and day. Because the projects at the Infection Source Research Institute directly affected the survival of humanity, their funding and allocation of resources were staggering, making them the widely recognized shadow boss among the three. A Level 2 Researcher there held an organizational status equivalent to a Rank 2 inspector—two whole tiers above an apprentice like him! "Since this is an unknown infection source, I need to take a brief research deposition for our subsequent comparative studies. Would that be all right?" "Ask away." "Please walk me through the entire process from initial discovery to neutralization. Ah, you don't need to explain how you saw through its disguise. I know every inspector has their own methodology. Just describe the entity's demonstrated abilities." "Well..." Qin Feng's respect for boundaries was remarkably refreshing. Cheng Ye pondered for a moment. Aside from the Rotting Vine's attack patterns, he made sure to highlight its deceptive ploy of feigning fear of fire, as well as its adaptive learning and evolution after taking bullet hits. "What?" Qin Feng had been listening with a somewhat wandering focus, but at this, his head jerked up. Beneath the transparent faceplate of his visor, his eyes went wide. "You're saying that after being struck by bullets, it sprouted denser fibrous tissue around the impact holes to resist penetration?" "I saw it with my own eyes," Cheng Ye said, nodding before adding, "Though I'm not certain whether that was conscious learning or an instinctive biological reflex." "Inspector Cheng, wait here a moment!" Realizing they might have stumbled onto a major discovery, Qin Feng immediately turned to his squad and gave a hand sign. "Get the specimen case ready! We need to verify this infected entity on-site!" Camouflage and learning were not novel phenomena; many infection sources exhibited similar traits. Yet an ability to start adapting the moment it took fire was something they had never encountered before. The eight of them hurried into the isolation bay. Cheng Ye instinctively opened his mouth to tell the guards to stay alert lest something happen to the researchers, but Raven beat him to it, whispering, "Don't worry, sir. Researchers are the Inner City's prized treasures. In those turtle shells of theirs, an infected entity could chew on them while they stood still and probably fail to breach the armor." "That tough?" Cheng Ye's brow twitched, interest stirring within him. The Collector had an item-search function, though he didn't know whether it could search out a suit of armor like that. If he could wear something like that out on field missions, wouldn't his odds of survival skyrocket? Unfortunately, his energy charge was entirely depleted, and he would have to wait until tomorrow for it to replenish. Still, there's no rush. I'll have plenty of chances later. As Cheng Ye weighed his options, nearly half an hour passed before Qin Feng led his team back out. When they had gone in, a single person had carried the containment case; now, four men hauled it together, showing the containment had been a success. "Inspector Cheng, congratulations. The quality of this infection source is exceptional—one of these easily counts as three!" As Qin Feng spoke, he removed his helmet visor, revealing a mature, square-jawed face. Seeing Cheng Ye's bewildered expression, Qin Feng slapped his own forehead. "Look at my memory! You're still in your apprenticeship, so you wouldn't know about this yet." "What do you mean, Team Leader Qin?" "Hand me your identity badge. The checkpoint branch has endless red tape, but our institute doesn't care about that. There's no rule barring apprentice inspectors from knowing." Qin Feng's explanation was cryptic, leaving Cheng Ye at a loss, but he handed over his badge nonetheless. Qin Feng swiped the badge across his own defense comm again, tapped the screen a few times, and handed it back. "Try it. Hold it against your defense comm, and you'll see." "My comm can read it too?" Only devices with special authorization could scan an identity badge. Cheng Ye had tried his inspector defense comm before, and it hadn't responded at all. Following Qin Feng's directions, he tapped the badge against his comm. The defense comm's screen flickered, automatically redirecting to a brand-new interface. [Module: Happiness City Infection Source Research Institute Task Board] [Assignee: Cheng Ye (Apprentice Inspector)] [Current Authorization Status: Unlocked] [Current Unlocked Task: Unknown Explorer (S)] [Unknown Explorer (S): Submit 100 new infection source samples to the Infection Source Research Institute. Current Progress: 3/100 Milestone Rewards: 25 (Rank D Contribution Qualification); 50 (Rank C Contribution Qualification); 75 (Rank B Contribution Qualification) Completion Reward: 5 ml "Transcendent" Inducer (Standard Model, 20% probability of assisting human awakening)] ... "What?" "A transcendent inducer?" Looking at the words displayed across the screen, Cheng Ye nearly cried out. In this instant, milestone rewards and contribution qualifications faded into utter insignificance. What was he looking at? Transcendent? Holy crap, am I seeing things? He checked the words on the screen again and again, confirming that it was indeed the "transcendent" he knew. A rush of blood surged straight to Cheng Ye's head, his fingertips trembling with uncontrollable excitement. Yet alongside it came realization, confusion, and a tempest of tangled emotions churning in his chest. Whether in the records of the Survival Library, the word-of-mouth tales passed between commoners in the Buffer Zone, or even the wasteland stories Liu Bi occasionally shared with him... Transcendents, without exception, belonged entirely to history. Ever since the dawn of the New Era, there had never been a single documented record of a newly awakened transcendent. And yet... "No need to be so shocked. You'll learn all about it once you finish your apprenticeship. Keeping it locked away for now is a form of protection. Some people don't know their limits and get blinded by greed into taking fatal risks. Your checkpoint branch has seen plenty of that..." Having anticipated Cheng Ye's stunned silence, Qin Feng looked completely unsurprised and offered an understated smile. "The checkpoint organization sits on the same administrative level as our institute, so they have similar tasks of their own." "Otherwise, why do you think inspectors come to a fast checkpoint? This isn't some cozy posting. The fatality rate stays high year-round, to say nothing of field missions that take people into dangerous territory..." "The checkpoint has similar tasks?" Catching the critical detail, Cheng Ye blurted out instinctively, "Happiness City has transcendents?" "Of course. Every shelter city has transcendents. How else would we withstand massive infection tides?" Perhaps because Cheng Ye was young and had displayed abilities far beyond those of an ordinary apprentice inspector, Qin Feng proved uncharacteristically patient in explaining. "There's no reason to let commoners understand this too clearly. In their eyes, the devastation of S-4 has never ended. Transcendents aren't heroes to them—they're plagues that bring curses." "If you're interested... well, all S-rank tasks and above offer inducers as rewards. The harder the task, the larger the dose and the higher the purity." "Has anyone ever completed it?" "Of course..." Qin Feng chuckled. "Nine years ago, someone from your checkpoint finished it. Unfortunately, he didn't manage to induce a transcendent awakening." Nine years ago? It sounded like an eternity. Cheng Ye refrained from pressing further, sensing the sheer difficulty from the timeline alone. "And these contribution qualifications?" "For purchasing supplies. Many strategic controlled items require them. For example, if you want to buy an energy storage battery for personal use, or retrofit a combat vehicle, you need contribution qualifications." "Any other questions?" "No." Cheng Ye shook his head lightly, his mind still working to digest the massive flood of information. "None?" Qin Feng raised an eyebrow, a flicker of admiration gleaming in his eyes. "Out on the wasteland, only those who can rein in their inner desires can survive, and only they earn the right to finish tasks like these." "The standard rewards will be credited to your personal account in a couple of days once verification is complete. Be sure to check it." "My defense comm ID is 16571. If you discover any unknown infection sources down the road, or new leads connected to them, you can contact me directly. I'll settle with you at ten percent above standard rates." "Thank you." Cheng Ye pulled out his defense comm and added the ID to his contacts. Yet even as he watched the eight figures disappear down the corridor, he remained lost in thought. He had assumed the transcendent qualitative leap triggered by S-3 was a distant relic to modern humanity, never imagining it was so close—openly offered on the table as a reward. That seemingly unreachable realm of the transcendent... was actually right beside him?