"According to the Federation's standards, I should be at C-class. But Yang Bo, don't pay too much attention to these ranks. Equipment makes a massive difference."
"Brother Wu, if you are C-class, why do you still use a smart wristband?"
"Yang Bo, don't tell me you believe their nonsense about Biological Chips being absolutely safe. Let me tell you another fact: ninety percent of the big shots you see on the internet would never implant a Biological Chip.
"As for the remaining ten percent, they only do it because their own abilities are too weak, or they are simply puppets."
Yang Bo's jaw dropped. Although he had already formed his own suspicions, hearing Wu Bin say it out loud still shocked him.
"Of course, for Ordinary people, implanting a Biological Chip has no downsides. In fact, there are benefits."
"Why is that?"
"Because as an Ordinary person, you have nothing worth paying attention to. Actually, many years ago, ever since the dawn of the internet, individuals stopped having secrets. Every word you say, your health, your family, your savings, absolutely everything—as long as they want to know, they will find out.
"Do you want to hear my advice?" Wu Bin continued asking.
"Brother Wu, please go ahead."
"First, buy a house of your own. Second, as long as your body feels fine, avoid medical checkups as much as possible. I've only had a few checkups in my life when I was young. Third, get a new smart wristband." After Wu Bin finished speaking, he waited for Yang Bo's reaction.
Yang Bo thought for a moment. "I don't have that many Credit Points."
"I can lend them to you, but you must promise not to tell anyone about what happened today. In our line of work, the fallout from this kind of thing is massive." Wu Bin figured that if he got the kid to buy a house, he would have a mortgage and need to work. Once the kid tasted the joy of freedom, he would have to work even harder to maintain it.
Wu Bin also didn't ask how Yang Bo had discovered this Genetic Evolution creature.
"Brother Wu, I need to think about it carefully." In truth, Yang Bo wanted to know more about genetics.
"Alright, give me an answer tomorrow. Let's go..."
"But we haven't finished cleaning up here."
"It's already done. The mission this time was just to inspect the area and neutralize any potential threats. The rest of this mess will be handed over to other Low Level cleaners. Basically, you'll still need to be careful when you take on missions by yourself in the future," Wu Bin said, shaking his head.
Yang Bo understood. He had many questions swirling in his mind, but he wasn't truly a naive teenager, nor did he completely trust Wu Bin. Having lived for decades in his previous life, he had seen plenty of people who acted like saints to someone's face while plotting like demons behind their back.
Wu Bin led Yang Bo back the way they came. Neither spoke along the way. Wu Bin handed the sack to the staff, and then the two retrieved their smart wristbands before taking a car back.
After returning to the company and submitting the mission, they had the afternoon off.
Yang Bo sat on a park bench, gazing at the lake. Most of the people here were alone; couples were a very rare sight. The impression these people gave him was—how to put it—as if they had no Souls. Everyone wore a similar expression: somewhat sluggish, somewhat apathetic. Even their walking postures were practically identical.
Only occasionally did a passing couple show a smile or display any extra emotion on their faces.
Many thoughts crossed Yang Bo's mind. However, he didn't dare go back and look things up online. Searching for certain topics might just draw the attention of certain people.
Technology here was far more advanced than the internet era of his past life. Back then, if you just mentioned wanting to buy something, opening a shopping app would immediately recommend it to you. The surveillance in this era would only be infinitely worse.
"The ability I gained today is Disguise. What does this Disguise +4 mean? The previous times it was always +1," he thought. Yang Bo turned his attention back to his abilities. He desperately wanted to know exactly what this Genetic Evolution was all about, what abilities existed, and what their early symptoms were.
"Huh?" Just as Yang Bo was pondering these questions, a middle-aged man walked past him. The man seemingly glanced at him unintentionally, but Yang Bo instantly sensed something was wrong.
"Is this person looking at me on purpose?" he wondered. Yang Bo had a distinct feeling that the man had walked past precisely to observe him.
Yang Bo observed carefully. When other people walked past him, even if they turned their heads to look in his direction, he didn't get that same feeling at all.
"Could this be the ability brought by Disguise +4?" Yang Bo muttered to himself.
"Who is keeping an eye on me? The company? Someone else? Or does it have something to do with the original owner's death?" he thought. Yang Bo's expression remained perfectly normal as his mind raced with possibilities.
Meanwhile, at the company, Wu Bin and Liu Zhijie were still in the same room.
"Tsk, tsk. It seems this kid actually has some substance to him," Liu Zhijie said with great interest after listening to Wu Bin's detailed explanation.
"Yeah, the kid might have some hidden ability. If the shovel hadn't been thrown into the fish pond, I wouldn't have noticed anything. I just don't know what kind of Genetic Potion he injected back then. Could it be some experimental Potion developed by one of the corporations?" Wu Bin nodded.
Liu Zhijie massaged his temples. "That's going to be hard to look into. If the other party finds out, it'll be a mess to deal with."
"What I'm wondering now is whether someone is watching him. After all, if he really is a test subject, it's impossible for him to go unnoticed," Wu Bin said, voicing his thoughts.
Hearing this, Liu Zhijie chuckled. "Isn't that even better? Generally, the raw materials for experimental Genetic Potions are definitely rare or newly discovered. As long as he joined our company, he is our company's man."
"I'm just afraid that Yang Bo doesn't want to officially join us. In terms of status, he's still a temp."
"It's fine. Once someone like him steps out to work, he definitely has his own ambitions. He won't go back to being a blissful, ignorant pig. I'll find someone to test the waters and see if we can find out which company's Genetic Potion Yang Bo injected back then," Liu Zhijie said.
"Should I take him out on a job again tomorrow morning? If not, I'll plan my schedule in advance."
"Tomorrow morning, ask him what he thinks, and then you can go. Sorry for holding you up these past few days."
"Don't mention it. We're closer than that."
"If it doesn't work out, I'll talk to him again tomorrow."
"Mhm."
Yang Bo braced himself and returned to his so-called home. He felt as if he were living in the Truman World, a movie he had once watched. He had no idea how many people were observing him from unknown locations. He kept warning himself, "I am just an Ordinary person. I am just an Ordinary person."
"Master, it is recommended that you book an appointment with your family doctor for a medical checkup." Just as he walked through the door, the smart speaker in the room rang out.
Meanwhile, in an office at an unknown location, someone was watching Yang Bo as he entered his apartment. Once the speaker sounded, a voice reported, "Supervisor, the target's reaction is abnormal. According to our historical big data records, after the Intelligent System prompts him, there is an 80% probability that the target will immediately issue a booking command, a 12% probability he will reply 'okay,' and an 8% probability he will not answer at all. Furthermore, the target's signal has recently been lost for a total of over twenty hours."
"Have you found anything?" a bald, middle-aged Caucasian man asked, his eyes locked on the holographic projection as he watched Yang Bo walk into the washroom.