Chapter 2122: Clues on the Starship
The boy remained silent, while Xu Huo projected the information he had just looked up in front of him. "Zone 008 was able to precisely screen and edit genes a hundred years ago. Of course, gene editing goes against ethics and has never been recognized, but gene screening became very common. Traits that parents didn't want in their children, such as laziness, naughtiness, or violence, could be screened out. Many people thus obtained an 'ideal next generation.' So within just twenty years, gene screening was legislated and gradually perfected. The most added category was elimination genes. An energetic, naturally optimistic, loyal next generation could maximize benefits for Zone 008."
"However, ten years after strict genetic screening was implemented, a rebellion broke out in Zone 008. You can look up the details yourself, but the result was that the Zone 008 government was forced to abolish the relevant gene screening regulations and ban most genetic screenings, only retaining checks for major disease genes."
"In other words, a hundred years ago, a drama queen like you would most likely never have been born."
"It's the same now. Since you were born, it means you didn't inherit some kind of irreparable or unsalvageable gene. That's why you're locked up in a special school to study."
"Since gene screening didn't filter me out, why lock me up?" the boy asked accusingly after hearing this.
"Do you still need to ask me such a simple question?" Xu Huo said flatly. "The people responsible for you also have to be responsible for others."
The boy let out a strange laugh. "Then why not lock everyone else up?"
"If you can do it, feel free." Xu Huo didn't deny his idea.
The boy fell silent again. After a moment, he said, "Why? Why am I judged as an anomaly, and you're not?"
Xu Huo let out a soft laugh. "Why do you think you're an anomaly? You're just an ordinary person."
"Extreme good and extreme evil are both hard to achieve. You're just an ordinary person stuck in the middle. There's no need to see yourself as so special."
The boy, as if catching hold of some advantageous point, immediately stared at him. "You're trying to convince me, to make me think I'm no different from those hypocritical people out there!"
"Do you think you're different from them?" Xu Huo countered.
The boy fell completely silent, pressing his lips tightly together and refusing to continue the conversation.
Xu Huo had no intention of dragging things out with him. He stood up and said, "Today's counseling session is over. Go back to class."
After walking out of the counseling room, he said to the surveillance camera in the hallway, "I'm going out for a walk."
A woman's voice quickly rang out. "I'll notify you when there's a class. You can arrange your other time freely."
Xu Huo walked out of the school building, circled the campus once, and then headed toward the warehouse of Rabbit Ear Paradise.
When he got close, he could see workers coming and going. He found a suitable opportunity to place the Painting Woman, who had turned into a painting, into a transport vehicle, letting her follow the vehicle into the starship.
He found a nearby small park and sat for an hour. Then the Painting Woman sent him a message. From several staff members, she learned that Rabbit Ear Paradise had originally booked another starship. It was almost fully set up, but Haiyun Technology had borrowed it at the last minute. That's why Rabbit Ear Paradise had to switch to this starship and was now rushing to set it up.
"They said there's inside information that Haiyun Technology will have to pay a huge compensation because they damaged the starship."
"Thank you for your hard work. Come out now," Xu Huo replied.
The Painting Woman quickly mixed in with a garbage truck and left the starship. Because he had instructed her in advance, she maintained her painting form when she came out.
Xu Huo retrieved the painting and reassured her, "There are too many surveillance cameras in this zone. Once you're spotted, it's hard to get away. We're here on serious business this time, so we need to hurry."
Zone 008 didn't have Super Players, but the overly dense surveillance and targeted monitoring instruments here made it too easy to expose traces. It was highly likely that the Game Government had set up a backdoor in this zone. Even if there were no Super Players in this zone, it didn't mean Super Players from other places wouldn't come. So the less the Painting Woman showed herself, the safer it was, and it also saved him trouble.
The painting paper trembled slightly and then calmed down.
Finding a nearby portal, Xu Huo arrived near the headquarters of Haiyun Technology.
Technology companies had a different level of security compared to ordinary companies. From a distance, he could see the environmental follow barrier enveloping the company building. It was almost impossible to spy on the situation inside from the outside. Almost every staff member entering and leaving here wore an emotion monitor. This wasn't just to monitor employees' psychological states to prevent internal accidents; it was also an alarm. In an emergency where there was no time to call for help, the instrument would quickly decide whether to contact the nearest armed organization based on their emotional state.
So it was very difficult to sneak in or cause interference in the workplace.
However, because Zone 008 had higher moral requirements for ordinary people, to avoid backlash, the emotion monitor wasn't mandatory during off-duty hours. In addition, psychotherapy was a very common industry here, and people didn't discriminate against those seeking psychological treatment.
Xu Huo waited outside for several hours and followed two women who were going to see a psychologist together to a psychotherapy institution.
The two had made appointments in advance. One had booked machine therapy, and the other had booked a psychotherapist. When the latter entered the treatment room, Xu Huo, already sitting in a chair, looked up and invited her to sit down.
"Isn't Dr. Jiang working today?" the woman asked as she sat down. "Are you a new doctor? You're quite handsome. Can I come to you from now on?"
Xu Huo gave an apologetic smile. "I'm not a regular employee yet, so I don't have a fixed work schedule. But whether I can stay on the job depends on how satisfied the guests are."
The woman smiled charmingly. "Then let's begin."
The woman's file showed she had some psychological issues and was unwilling to communicate with machines, so she always met with a psychotherapist. After lying down, she first stated her request. "I've been through some things lately, and I can't find peace of mind. I haven't had a good night's sleep in days. I want to go home and sleep well tonight."
Xu Huo asked her to close her eyes and lean back in the recliner. He moved his chair closer to her but still kept a distance of two meters. He said gently, "Inner secrets may be hard to speak out loud, and of course, they don't necessarily have to be spoken. The only way to find inner peace is to balance your personal emotions."
"I'll preset an environment for you. First, try to see if you can find the scale within your heart."
"Imagine you are on a ship. The size and scale of the ship, the layout on board, the environment it's sailing in, and the people on the ship—all of it should be restored one-to-one according to your current imagination."
"Once you've done that, you can start imagining your state on the ship." (End of Chapter)