Chapter 1688: X
When they were almost at the entrance, the masked player handed Xu Huo a business card.
It was a very ordinary card, with only the address of a guesthouse and the owner's name on it.
"This is a guesthouse I run. I usually only use it to entertain some like-minded friends. If Mr. Xu is willing to grace us with your presence, my humble establishment will surely be honored." Zong Lan Zhi took off his mask, revealing a face that was hard to distinguish as male or female. His brows and eyes held a smile, making him appear even more sincere and non-threatening.
Xu Huo nodded and accepted the card, then saw the group off.
"Cousin, there's no need to risk your life for people who have nothing to do with you. Don't you dare sacrifice yourself for others. Neither our Xu family nor our Yu family were born with the genes of saints. Don't take risks just because of a few nice words from the Special Defense Department," Yu Qingqing earnestly advised.
The two super evolvers beside her kept glaring at her. As if they couldn't tell she was clearly hinting that Xu Huo should drive a hard bargain.
"Stop being cheeky." Xu Huo glanced at Yu Qingqing. "When you go out, tell the people outside that the next session will be in two hours. Also, after you leave, you and Zhou Ning should both go home."
Although she didn't understand the meaning behind his words, Zhou Ning still nodded, indicating she would leave after going out.
Knowing Yu Qingqing wasn't one to follow orders, Xu Huo specifically repeated himself, "Go home, understand?"
She met his gaze for two seconds, let out a long breath, and said, "I understand. It just so happens I want to go back and see my mom too."
"Brother Xu, do I need to leave?" Wang Chaoqing felt there was a hidden meaning in Xu Huo's words and cautiously asked.
"Up to you." Xu Huo didn't even spare him a glance, dismissing him with three words.
The people waiting outside had long been anxious, especially since no news had come out after they went in. Now that they saw Zong Lan Zhi appear, the Special Defense Department and military personnel immediately rushed over. Before they could even ask how things went, the super evolvers who had gone in with the Special Defense Department also came out, two of them supporting one.
Medical staff came over to take over, escorting the three super evolvers, along with Jing Qing and Wang Chaoqing, away.
"My brother said the second batch of people can go in two hours later," Yu Qingqing informed the Special Defense Department head. After finishing, she loudly demanded they arrange for someone to escort her and the members of "Capricious" back to Jing City.
The Special Defense Department didn't obstruct them on this matter and immediately arranged for cars and planes to send them off, including Zhou Ning.
Zong Lan Zhi, having put his mask back on, exchanged a few words with his traveling companions before leaving on his own.
A few minutes later, news of the Special Defense Department player's successful evolution spread. Yu Qingqing and her group certainly wouldn't keep it a secret. Additionally, the Special Defense Department head's irrepressible smile clearly indicated the success of this trip.
In short, the Special Defense Department was feeling triumphant.
Regardless of who it was, someone's success meant everyone had a chance. So after the first batch came out, the atmosphere here improved significantly. Since the selection was done personally by Xu Huo, there was no arguing over who would go in first. The only thing that made the Special Defense Department a bit uneasy was Xu Huo's instruction for Yu Qingqing and the others to leave.
They couldn't imagine that an advanced player was tracking him. They only thought the space might be unstable and could encounter problems at any time. Therefore, on top of the existing security measures, the Special Defense Department doubled their personnel and equipment, continuously expanding the scope of protection.
And with the intervention of player organizations, news about the evolution site gradually spread.
Naturally, for most people, super evolution was something they could only dream of, and there was no need to join in the excitement. But it still gave a glimmer of hope to those with stronger initiative. So after identity verification by the Special Defense Department, the number of unofficial players entering the primeval forest gradually increased.
"At a time like this, we must take a long-term view. Whether they are our internal personnel or not, they are all compatriots. If one compatriot becomes stronger, the nation becomes stronger by one point."
With the highest leader having spoken, this matter was made public under the tacit understanding of both sides—neither kept low-key nor deliberately concealed.
"Find one person and just keep milking him dry," Wang Chaoqing, who hadn't been able to leave, muttered while sitting at the tent entrance, cracking sunflower seeds and complaining.
As a fellow member of the Special Defense Department, Jing Qing didn't have this detached attitude. Instead, he felt somewhat ashamed. "It's because we're too weak. This should have been our responsibility."
Wang Chaoqing turned around in surprise. "Did your brain undergo special evolution?"
Jing Qing stared coldly at him.
Wang Chaoqing cleared his throat lightly. "Forget I said anything... But compared to those ruthless and vicious ones, you're a good person."
It was hard to say about other players in the Special Defense Department, but those of them who had undergone special trait evolution had participated in special training. So they were aware of the accidents that could happen to players involved in mental evolution training. Prolonged exposure to mental interference or excessive brain use could cause unexpected damage to those with highly developed brains. According to some rumors, there had been cases within the Special Defense Department of players whose brains had been rendered useless.
What exactly "brain rendered useless" meant wasn't a very concrete concept for Wang Chaoqing and the others. It was probably either becoming an idiot or going crazy.
Wang Chaoqing was someone who took things as they came, so he was quickly excluded from the secret training. "I'm not stupid. If something goes wrong with me, who's going to support my family? What about my new girlfriend? When it comes to living, you still have to be a bit selfish."
Jing Qing found they had nothing in common to talk about and simply said, "One day, I'm going to write a book, specifically to record these unsung heroes."
Hearing this, Wang Chaoqing's eyes suddenly lit up. He immediately pulled out his phone and started tapping away. But within two minutes, he sighed and said, "Don't bother thinking about writing a book. Someone's already done it for you."
Jing Qing leaned over to look. It was a post on the Vanguard Forum, with a very flashy title:
"X — The Man I Would Call a Legend."
Jing Qing scratched his arm uncomfortably and took out his own phone to read the post.
The content of the post was about this evolution site incident. For players without access to information channels, this was still explosive news, especially the description of "X," the man who single-handedly shouldered the hopes of the entire nation.
Although the content didn't go into detail about super evolution, Wang Chaoqing and Jing Qing had been inside the chaos space, so they could tell at a glance that this was definitely the work of someone from their trip.
"The Special Defense Department definitely wouldn't do something like this. It's probably Yu Qingqing. She's Brother Xu's cousin, so she'd naturally look out for her own people," Wang Chaoqing speculated.
"I don't think so." Jing Qing frowned. "Yu Qingqing's mind is a bit off. She acts on impulse and definitely wouldn't write something like this. I wonder if someone is targeting Mr. Xu."
Wang Chaoqing immediately read the post again. "No way? I see it's constantly being updated with more of Brother Xu's deeds. It seems more like building momentum."
(End of Chapter)