As expected, Ling Yun answered honestly, "I don't know, sir. I can't remember anything about that time. I have no recollection of it at all."
Luo Panxi smiled slightly: "Alright, you've worked hard, Ling Yun. Please go and rest in the quiet room next door. We still have some things to discuss, and we'll call you when we need you."
Ling Yun stood up, bowed deeply to everyone, and then turned and left.
The second floor of the octagonal building was divided into many rooms, with the conference room being just one of the corner rooms. Ling Yun walked to the quiet room next to the conference room, quietly went inside, and as soon as he closed the door, he found that all outside sounds were cut off. Apart from being able to see the scenery outside the octagonal building through the window, he felt nothing else.
This small building is also a hub for the control of the barrier, and each room has its own function. Moreover, the separation of the rooms serves to isolate the barrier. Although it is only separated by a wall, even superhumans cannot hear what the people in the conference room are saying. If they were to use secret techniques to eavesdrop, they would be discovered immediately by all the powerful individuals.
The quiet room was indeed peaceful, with only a sofa placed near the corner. Ling Yun walked over without ceremony, sat down on the bouncy sofa, and then lay down, slowly closing his eyes. Since leaving the core space, he hadn't had time to process the information he had received or experience the strange sensations brought about by his body being crystallized by energy; this was a good opportunity to rest.
In the conference room, Luo Panxi slowly looked around: "Regarding the issue of Skynet going out of control, everyone has already heard Ling Yun's experience. So, what are your thoughts now? You can speak your minds directly."
A silence fell over the crowd, everyone frowning in deep thought. The meeting had been going on for so long without any progress. Although Ling Yun had revealed the truth about the interior of the barrier, almost no useful information had been obtained. Based on this, it was extremely difficult to determine where the Skynet had gone wrong.
After a long silence, Tie Li turned to Fang Taiping and asked, "Taiping, how is the control of Skynet going?"
Fang Taiping said, "The Skynet is back to normal now. Just now in the control room, Instructor Zhou Mulong and I entered seventeen stereoscopic light diagrams in succession without any errors. The Skynet faithfully executed these instructions, and we checked the consoles that are authorized, and everything is fine."
Tie Li frowned: "You mean? Skynet is working perfectly? There haven't been any problems at all?"
"Yes, sir," Fang Taiping replied succinctly, "I didn't find any problems, and the inspection revealed nothing."
"What's the deal with the lightning appearing on the outer perimeter?"
"I don't know, sir!"
……………
"Forget it, don't ask anymore, Lao Luo." Luo Panxi shook his head and said, "I don't think discussing this matter will yield any results. Besides, apart from President Tang, no one else has the authority to enter the core space to investigate from the inside out. This itself limits our routine pruning of Skynet. I guess there's something strange in the core space, otherwise Skynet wouldn't suddenly have this problem. Let's wait for President Tang to come back before we deal with it."
Everyone nodded. They had hoped to glean some insights from Ling Yun's experience to determine the problem with Skynet, but Ling Yun had separated his consciousness throughout and knew nothing, leaving everyone greatly disappointed. Moreover, all the parts that could be checked had been examined, and Skynet showed no issues. Only access to the core space remained, awaiting the return and decision of the head instructor.
"Now, let's talk about Ling Yun." Luo Panxi's expression suddenly turned serious. "I think you've also noticed something unusual about this young man."
“Indeed extraordinary. For a young man, such strength is already very impressive.” The long-eyed deputy chief instructor sitting to his right, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up. His voice was very disproportionate to his age; it was not only magnetic but also sounded very young. Judging from his voice alone, he should be a handsome and tall young man. Who would have thought that he was actually a dignified deputy chief instructor?
The instructors looked at each other, somewhat confused about what their two superiors were talking about.
"It's not just his strength that's impressive; Ling Yun's background is truly extraordinary," Luo Panxi said slowly. "It seems necessary to tell everyone about this young man's origins. There's something even more astonishing that perhaps even our introducer hasn't discovered."
Chapter 188 The Meeting at the Superpowers Headquarters (Part 2)
"Commander Luo, what's so special about Ling Yun?" Fang Taiping couldn't help but ask. Luo Panxi's tone didn't seem particularly happy; instead, it carried a hint of warning, suggesting he had some reservations about Ling Yun. Fang Taiping couldn't help but worry. He had a good impression of this young man; he was measured and not arrogant. Besides, Ling Yun had saved everyone, and regardless, Fang Taiping always felt grateful to him.
"Actually, when Xia Zhen recommended Ling Yun, the investigation team secretly launched some investigations into Ling Yun," Luo Panxi continued, seemingly answering Fang Taiping's question, yet also speaking to himself. "This isn't a matter of suspecting anyone; at the very least, we must ensure that every superhuman entering the Superhuman Headquarters has a clean identity, and is not a spy for any organization or a victim of some ulterior motive. Everyone here will also undergo investigation when entering the Superhuman Headquarters."
A moment of silence fell over everyone. Although they were reluctant to admit it, it was the truth. Although the Superpower Headquarters was regarded as a military combat unit, it was still very different from the army. After all, superpowered individuals weren't like cabbages; you couldn't just grab any one and send them to headquarters. Moreover, each superpowered individual had their own background, either from a family of superpowered individuals or a descendant of an organization.
Because superhumans possess various extraordinary powers, they also have a great capacity for deception. This inhuman power can even steal secrets through unpredictable channels, and the ability to deceive also allows superhumans with advanced powers to mislead the public, with very serious consequences.
Yu Xinglong, the leader of the sixth group of the Superpower Headquarters, is a living example. He was killed by Tan Zhen of the Tianyan Society and then impersonated. Even the two instructors, Fang and Zhou, and other superpowered individuals did not notice. As a result, he suddenly turned against them when the Zhou Tian defensive array was formed. If Ling Yun had not appeared out of nowhere, he would have almost wiped out all the superpowered individuals left behind at the headquarters.
Therefore, investigating the background of new members is an essential task when accepting them into an organization, unless it's a tribe like Old Black's that only wizards are willing to join. Although this may involve the privacy of the individuals involved, for the sake of the organization's overall security, the investigation is still carried out secretly and thoroughly, just trying to keep it from the new members. Some private organizations even require new members to undergo deep hypnosis by psychic beings before joining, and only after passing a test can they be accepted.
Although the proportion of people with superpowers is extremely small compared to ordinary people, their numbers still exceed several thousand given the vast population. It's impossible for them to form a circle where everyone knows each other. Therefore, investigating new members is necessary and essential. Only ancient families with established superpower lineages like the Xia family, whose previous generation served and retired from the Superpower Headquarters, will have a simplified investigation process. The smaller the superpower organization or the more unclear their origins, the more detailed the investigation will be.
“I have seen some shocking facts,” Luo Panxi continued, a strange light appearing on his face. “Perhaps you will not believe it, but Ling Yun is a superhuman with acquired abilities.”
With a deafening boom, Luo Panxi's words were like a bombshell, instantly filling the conference room with gasps of surprise and buzzing discussions. Since the investigation team was under Luo Panxi's command, even Tie Li and the long-eyed deputy chief instructor were unaware of the truth. Hearing Luo Panxi's words, they were all taken aback, turning to look at him. The instructors sitting in the two rows wore expressions of disbelief. Could there really be people with acquired superpowers?
“When I first received this news, I was just as surprised as everyone else and thought it must be fake,” Luo Panxi said slowly. “It is common knowledge that acquired mutations are inherently unstable. So I specifically asked the investigation team to investigate again, but the facts were the same. Although we do not believe it, we must acknowledge the reality: Ling Yun is indeed an acquired mutated superhuman, and he is very likely the only acquired mutated superhuman in the world.”
The conference room fell silent. Everyone was captivated by Ling Yun's extraordinary experience, unable to resist listening intently. The inevitable result of acquired genetic mutations is eventual collapse—a fact well-known in both the scientific and supernatural communities. Although for centuries, countless madmen and geniuses have attempted to transform ordinary people into superhumans, all these attempts have either turned people into monsters or resulted in their deaths. Over time, no one dared to attempt such dangerous feats, making it a forbidden zone for superhumans. Today, it's common knowledge, as simple as believing that the speed of light equals 300,000 kilometers per second.
But now, an exception has finally appeared in the world. From any angle, Ling Yun appears to be a normal superhuman, and seemingly quite powerful. Everyone naturally assumes he's a born superhuman and hasn't even considered asking about his background. Suddenly, a strange feeling arises in everyone's heart. Ling Yun is indeed an extraordinary young man.
Only Luo Panxi's voice continued in the conference room: "The investigation team's findings show that before Ling Yun was admitted to Jinghua University, and even until a month before the college entrance examination, he was an ordinary person, just as everyone can see, an ordinary young man with only average academic performance. Moreover, from childhood to adulthood, Ling Yun has never shown any special qualities."
At this point, his tone suddenly became more serious: "It needs to be explained that his parents, relatives, and all people within three generations of his family are all ordinary people, none of them are superhumans. The investigation team also conducted the most professional paternity test based on hair samples left by Ling Yun and his parents, ruling out the possibility that Ling Yun was adopted."
"How did he become a superhuman? Did he gain superpowers from a dream?" an instructor couldn't help but ask.
“That’s possible.” Luo Panxi smiled faintly. “No matter how we investigate, we can’t find out the reason for Ling Yun’s mutation. Although we can confirm that the mutation occurred a month before the college entrance examination, we know nothing about the cause, process, and result of the mutation. This situation has frustrated the ability users in the investigation team. They have never encountered an inexplicable problem before.”
“Perhaps he’s a superhuman carrying a hidden gene?” another instructor couldn’t help but say, but then realized, “His family and parents are all ordinary people.”
"So what if he's a superhuman with acquired abilities? The world is vast, anything can happen, and Ling Yun is just an exception," Zhou Mulong suddenly said. "As long as his character is trustworthy, we can accept him."
The instructors all nodded in agreement.
Luo Panxi glanced at Zhou Mulong without showing any emotion: "Instructor Zhou, perhaps you don't know this, but not only is Ling Yun's background unknown, but the source of his power is also unknown. Since he was born into an ordinary family and suddenly acquired superpowers, have you thought about where his special abilities and current power come from? Not only that, everyone saw Ling Yun's performance just now. He is only eighteen years old, which is essentially still a child. But under the watchful eyes of us strong people, does he act like a child? Even experienced superpower users might not be as calm as him. What does this mean?"
Everyone immediately tensed up, recalling the moment just now. Ling Yun had indeed behaved as Luo Panxi had said. Although one could consider the young man to be profound and steady, from another perspective, one could also think that Ling Yun's behavior was somewhat abnormal.
Zhou Mulong had nothing to say, but slowly shook his head: "I don't believe Ling Yun has anything else hidden, at least he saved us all."
Luo Panxi said coldly, "Even he himself said that everything was in the process of drifting along with the separation of consciousness. Saving you was just an unintentional act. If you don't understand the facts, don't remember to express your own opinions."
"Yes, sir." Zhou Mulong remained silent for a while before stammering out his reply. Fang Taiping, seeing this, patted him on the shoulder reassuringly.
Luo Panxi ignored him and continued, "The investigation shows that in Tongjiang City, Ling Yun met Xia Tian and Xia Zhen. At that time, his strength was the weakest among the three, and he didn't know any special abilities, which is consistent with the identity of an acquired superhuman. But now, everyone can see with their own eyes that Ling Yun's strength should far exceed Xia Zhen's. In just a few months from before the students' college entrance examination until now, his strength has improved so rapidly. Who was responsible for teaching him his special abilities? This is also inexplicable."
Everyone fell silent again, quietly pondering and digesting the shock brought by Luo Panxi. They never expected that this seemingly ordinary young man would have such a hidden background and experience.
"An even stranger thing happened back then," Luo Panxi said solemnly. "Ling Yun, Xia Zhen, and Xia Tian worked together to kill a psychic soldier from the Tianyan Society in Tongjiang City. After they left, Xia Tian set up a barrier to leave behind the psychic's remains, asking the investigation team's ability users to analyze them later. However, when the investigation team arrived, they found that not only had the barrier been destroyed, but the psychic's remains had also been completely cremated, leaving nothing behind. Later, after a thorough investigation, the investigation team discovered that the Tianyan Society's actions in Tongjiang City were actually just to track down one person!"
"Who?" The crowd, almost completely absorbed in the conversation, couldn't help but ask in unison.