576-580

Chapter 576: Dead

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

"Hum..."

A deep, drawn-out roar resounded in the hearts of all people within a radius of a hundred miles. As the endless waves rocked them, all the soldiers on the fleet only saw an island lined with strange rocks slowly rising in the churning sea...

In the beginning, only the tip of the island surfaced. Everyone saw that there were tens of thousands of strange rocks on the island and slender tentacles unfurled from the strange rocks. Even at first glance, those strange rocks were like tree trunks and those tentacles that stretched freely in the sunshine were the branches.

Nonetheless, the island continued to rise. One hundred meters, two hundred meters, three hundred meters...

Gradually, the island had turned into a high mountain that was over a thousand meters high. Due to the emergence of this huge mountain, the sea surface was like a tsunami. Waves ballooned toward them one after another as if all the seawater of the world was barreling toward the fleet!

"Steady, hold on to something, the first big wave is about to hit!"

"Agh..."

"Jack!"

Humans were too tiny. Faced with the epic waves, the entire fleet could only resist miserably but even so, the waves as high as 100 meters still flung dozens of people from the ship's railing into the sea.

One kilometer, two kilometers, three kilometers...

Soon, the monster that rose in the ocean had surfaced with almost half of its body. At this time, everyone could see clearly that the row of strange, rugged rocks turned out to be the fleshy tentacles of the monster, and there were dozens of slender feelers densely growing from each tentacle!

By now, the monster had already exposed more than half of its chest. Black eyes that were bigger than the cruisers hovered above sea level, reflecting the fleet that was as small as ants ten kilometers away. Those eyes were gleaming with an eerie light.

Standing at an altitude of 100 meters, Chen Chen silently looked at the behemoth that shielded the sky in the distance. Although the distance between them was ten kilometers, for the monster, it was only a step away. The massive bulk of this opponent was beyond human understanding. It was not surprising that even nuclear bombs were ineffective against it.

Even so, the monster was still rising. Five kilometers, six kilometers, eight kilometers...

"Rumble..."

When the monster rose to a height of 10,000 meters, its huge body had completely blocked out the sun. This was a height greater than Mount Everest. Even when Chen Chen looked at it, he could only see the monster's lower body. Its chest and any parts higher than that were starting to look misty and illusory.

This was because the distance was too far that light itself was blurred.

Even so, only the abdomen of the monster had surfaced above the sea. Four slender, crab-like feet grew out of the sides of its chest but part of them was still submerged in the sea!

By now, this behemoth had been completely revealed in front of countless people...

Looking at this monster, Chen Chen's pupils shrank slightly. He still remembered the nightmare he had before. The monster in the dream was the same as now. Dream and reality intertwined at this moment, which momentarily cast Chen Chen into a trance.

This was the mature body of the Consciousness Stealer!

"Hum..."

Just as the monster had risen fully into the sky, its mouth that was positioned at the junction of its chest and abdomen opened slightly but it was at this time that its long ancient roar bombarded them again!

"Ahh, ahh, aghhhh!"

"That monster, that monster!"

"God, please forgive me..."

At the moment when the sound struck again, the soldiers of the fleet all plunged into madness. Their eyes, which were either terrified or shocked, completely lost their focus. Some people knelt on the ground with a plop and turned toward the Consciousness Stealer in the distance, kowtowing vigorously. They did not even stop when a bloody wound appeared on their foreheads!

Some inexplicably tore at their cheeks in horror or even gouged out their own eyes!

Others clutched their heads and wailed loudly. They grabbed their guns and pulled the trigger while aiming at their teammates!

At the instant when the Consciousness Stealer revealed itself, the entire fleet that Chen Chen brought with him had completely lost its power to confront the enemy...

Chen Chen only felt a burst of psionic energy fluctuations that were mingled with the opponent's roar and his ears suddenly turned hot. A stream of blood flowed out of his ears.

Chen Chen was injured for the first time.

"As expected of the Consciousness Stealer. It's already injured me when we've just met."

There was a dark gleam in Chen Chen's eyes. He ignored the fact that the countless soldiers below his feet were in a frenzy but whispered, "X-112, turn it on."

"Yes!"

X-112 replied crisply. Then, in the cabin of the small aircraft carrier at the rear of the many fleets, the reality anchor was swiftly activated!

"Beep, beep, beep..."

Under its sturdy shell, rows of red lights flashed quickly, turning into green lights. At once, unnamed fluctuations spread out at the speed of light, covering millions of square kilometers in the blink of an eye!

The tsunami-like psionic attack of the Consciousness Stealer abruptly disappeared!

"Boom!"

The instant all psionic powers were inhibited, the body of the monster 10,000 meters high in the sky immediately froze, and then its body began to topple from this height but only for a moment. After that, the monster unexpectedly regained its balance.

"Hmm?"

Chen Chen's pupils shrank and he looked over, rather amazed. He only saw that, at the chest of the Consciousness Stealer, the vertical mouthparts opened again.

"Boom!"

A wave of air visible to the naked eye surged out of the abyss of the bloody mouth and quickly charged in Chen Chen's direction with its boundless fluctuations. The range was so wide that Chen Chen could not even evade it!

"To think that even the reality anchor can't suppress its psionic power?"

Watching the sky-wrecking airwave approaching quickly, Chen Chen only wore a look of amazement with a hint of disappointment. At this moment, he finally understood why the dimension of Doom needed nothing fewer than 20 reality anchors...

The blood cloud in that dimension seemed to be inferior to the Consciousness Stealer in front of him just in terms of presence alone. It was simply a pipe dream to think that he could suppress this opponent with only one reality anchor.

This thought passed by in a flash and Chen Chen tried his best to expand his Field to protect him, but he watched the wave of air slowly break through his defenses with unstoppable momentum.

At the same time, the fleet under his feet was also shattered piece by piece in this devastating wave of air.

"We've failed..."

At this moment, Chen Chen closed his eyes slightly. A thoughtful look appeared on his face. "X-112, send that aircraft carrier back at once."

Just as he issued this order, the protective Field in front of Chen Chen shattered inch by inch. He was tossed over a distance of one kilometer like a scrap of paper and then his body exploded fully into a blood mist!

"Boom!"

Chen Chen only felt his vision go dark as he plunged into an endless void...

...

Pansy Antoine sat alone on the reef-filled shore.

He held a fishing rod made of twigs in his hands and a fishing line was tied to the end of the fishing rod. At this time, one end of the fishing line had gone deep into the sea, constantly bobbing up and down.

Just when Pansy felt a little impatient, suddenly, the fishing rod in his hand shifted slightly. It seemed that something was tugging at the fishing line under the sea surface. With joy on his face, he quickly moved the fishing rod slowly. Soon, he caught a sea fish that kept flapping around!

"Haha!"

Pansy let out a cheer, hurriedly threw the fish from the fishing rod to the ground, and then happily stepped forward to hug the fish. "Not bad, this bass weighs about 1.5 kilograms, enough to feed me for a day!"

It was indeed a blessing to catch a bass that weighed more than 1.5 kilograms. After all, except for some crabs and mussels, there were only fish on this island.

At this time, the middle-aged man named Pansy did not hesitate. He walked directly into the small woods beside him, picked up a few dead branches and rotten leaves, and stacked them in the shape of a bonfire. Following that, he killed the bass in his hand, skewered it with wooden sticks, and placed it on the bonfire pile.

All his movements were very well-practiced and he was familiar with surviving in the wild.

When everything was ready, he suddenly stretched out his right hand and pointed toward the bonfire that had been built from the dead branches. Suddenly, a tiny flame flew out and went into the bonfire.

"Boom..."

The bonfire lit up immediately.

Faced with such a magical scene, Pansy looked unruffled. He knew that his superpower was obtained in the prison of Blacklight City half a month ago.

At that time, those people had injected him with a weird fluid. Since that day, he had this ability to communicate with flames and it was not just him. There were more than 5,000 people on this island and everyone had a different power.

"Pansy, it's not nice to eat alone."

Just as Pansy was furtively grilling fish in the grove, there was a jumble of footsteps in the distance.

Hearing this voice, Pansy's expression shifted. He stared in front with a ferocious expression. After a while, four rough-faced men walked out from behind the trees.

"Johnson, you guys should get lost immediately, I got this fish myself!"

Pansy at this time was like a wolfdog protecting its food, with a malevolent aura flashing in his eyes.

"Hahahaha, then you have to ask if our brothers agree!"

Among the four people who suddenly appeared, the one heading them was a big man with a fierce face, with a scar extending across most of his cheek. At this time, he was staring at the bass in front of Pansy with a greedy glimmer.

"The four of us have not eaten for most of the day."

The big-scarred-man licked his lips and smiled greedily. "But you punk, you hid in the woods and grilled your fish. If we hadn't seen the smoke, I'm afraid you would've finished it all by yourself... Brothers, attack!"

The big-scarred-man did not waste any more time with blabbering. His stomach was already rumbling. At this time, he just wanted to snatch the other man's grilled fish immediately and eat to his heart's content!

Following his orders, his three men rushed up at once and Pansy's expression changed drastically. He immediately picked up the grilled fish as if to escape, but after taking half a step, suddenly an indescribable feeling lashed out from within his body!

"Pfft!"

Pansy felt his legs turn soft. He dropped to the ground directly and the grilled fish flew out of his grasp and rolled onto the ground.

"This, this feeling is..."

Pansy only felt suffocation gripping his body. His face flipped through various expressions as he turned his head laboriously at the same time.

He only saw that Johnson and the other three who were planning to chase him had fallen to the ground just like him, howling loudly.

"Am I going to die?"

Pansy only felt a wave of death permeating from his body and he immediately understood that he was dying.

At this moment, scenes from his life began to play before his eyes. He was born in a slum in Blacklight City and quietly grew up in an environment of poverty until his first robbery in his youth when he took the only piece of black bread from the hands of a neighbor girl.

Then, he gradually grew up and began to wander in the dark side of Blacklight City after acquiring a taste for it. Stealing, robbing, murdering... He was trying his best to survive, like the autumn weeds...

"So, I'm going to die..."

Just when he was about to reach the end of his life, Pansy seemed to see the neighbor girl again. The girl smiled at him gently, her innocent smile as bright as the sun, and at the same time, she also offered a hunk of dirty black bread before his very eyes...

"I'm, I'm sorry..."

A warm smile shone in Pansy's eyes and then his pupils quickly dilated, and the light in his eyes suddenly dimmed.

He was dead.

At the moment of Pansy's death, on the entire unnamed island, more than 5,000 exiled felons began to die one after another. After a few gasps, no one on the entire island was alive.

The strange thing was that a few minutes after the death of these criminals with heavy sentences, they climbed up again one by one. These dead bodies were like worms, using all their limbs to clamber toward their nearest companions.

At the same time, when the two corpses made contact, a strange phenomenon occurred —

These corpses were fusing little by little!

"Blub, blub...."

It was as if the mass of flesh and blood had its consciousness. Thousands of corpses melted and merged like beeswax, spanning the entire unnamed island. In just one day and one night, more than five thousand corpses had been integrated into three mountains of flesh, dozens of meters high!

On each flesh mountain, hundreds of limbs were constantly squirming. Some were arms, some were thighs, and some were the exposed halves of bodies. These limbs were swaying gently with the movement of the flesh mountain.

Then, these three flesh mountains also began to draw closer to each other and fuse.

Finally, two days later, the three flesh mountains had completely fused. At the same time, one side of the huge flesh mountain slowly protruded and a huge human face with closed eyes emerged from the mountain.

"As I thought, I was resurrected."

The face slowly opened his eyes but in place of his eyes, there were more than ten thousand tiny human eyeballs. These eyeballs were gathered together, densely packed like a honeycomb.

"Resurrected from these five thousand prisoners?"

The huge face looked at his own body, but when he saw his own state at this time, he seemed puzzled. "Then for the next step — how should I condense my own body? I can't always present myself to people with this face..."

As he spoke, the face laughed self-deprecatingly. "I don't know if the aircraft carrier managed to escape, but it doesn't matter if it hasn't. I've already memorized all the parts of the reality anchor. All I ask is that the core zircon is not lost."

With that, the face stopped pondering about all this and instead began to wriggle toward the coastline bit by bit.

Chapter 577: New Era

An uninhabited island in the Bering Strait near the Pacific Ocean.

The island was a typical reef island. The range of the island was small, but there were strange rocks all over it. There were not many plants and animals, and it was completely desolate.

However, just near the southern part of the island, on a reef-filled shore, a bright red thing was slowly pulsing there.

It looked like an animal.

If one got closer, one would find that this monster was astonishingly large. It was more than 50 meters in height and one or two hundred meters in length. From a distance, it looked like a huge slug with no fixed shape.

The slug's body was densely covered in countless human hands and feet. These hands and feet were swaying instinctively with the wriggling of the slug's body, like flagella, which appeared spine-tingling up close...

At this time, this "slug" was quietly looking at the endless sea, and the anthropomorphic face was wearing a pensive expression.

"My psionic power has weakened."

Chen Chen looked into the distance with a calm expression. "Five thousand people is still too few to restore my previous strength but fortunately, the power of the Field energy hasn't diminished."

With that, Chen Chen suddenly lifted his upper body, like a slug curling up his body and rearing up with half of his chest, and then a huge gap slowly opened in his chest.

"Hum..."

With a low and dull roar, the surface of the sea in front of Chen Chen suddenly boiled over and at the same time, all the fish and shrimps rose from the sea, and all fell into the opening in Chen Chen.

"Smack!"

As a large swathe of fish and shrimp fell into Chen Chen's mouth, the crack in his chest and abdomen quickly sealed up and then there was a gurgling sound of swallowing.

Chen Chen silently felt the squirming of the fish and shrimp in his body and then they were quickly dissolved by the gastric juice secreted by him.

Then, he devoured more, again and again...

It was not until all the small fish and shrimps in the nearby waters were consumed that Chen Chen felt that his initial sense of weakness was gradually abating. At the same time, a special kind of aura shone from the depths of his body.

"Hmm, this feeling is... Transformation?"

Chen Chen felt a special kind of throbbing in his body as if he needed a good night's sleep and at the same time, instinct told him that as long as he performed the following actions, his body could undergo rapid transformation.

Just when Chen Chen was sensing the throbbing from his body, suddenly, he saw a warship slowly approaching in the distance.

It was a medium-tonnage battleship with a length of only 80 meters and its volume was not even half that of Chen Chen's. After the ship entered Chen Chen's line of sight, the ship paused slightly, and then it seemed to reluctantly steer toward the direction of the island.

In the ship at this time, hundreds of people ran to the railing of the ship, looking at the huge creature in the distance with amazed and terrified eyes, exclaiming again and again.

"Look, what kind of monster is that?"

"What's that growing all over his body, are they human hands and feet?"

"What a disgusting monster..."

It was not only the crew on the battleship, even the captain of this ship, when he saw the monster in the distance, felt as if he had turned to ice all over, his hands and feet shivering with chills.

"What, what the h*ll is that..."

Captain Floyd muttered in a low voice. He opened his mouth, wanting to defy the orders from above and stop moving forward, but at this moment, two Black Knights with slack expressions stood quietly on both sides, watching his every move.

The high-level officials in Blacklight City had issued an indisputable order, requiring him to stop by this island, even if it was a matter of life and death.

Before the horrified gaze of hundreds of crew members, the battleship had come to a spot that was one kilometer away from the island, but it had also completely stopped. The island was surrounded by a reef area. If the battleship continued to move forward, it was likely to hit the reef or even run aground.

Then, lifeboats carrying various materials headed toward the island and all the materials carried on the ship were transported to the monster.

"Sir Commander."

A Black Knight jumped off the lifeboat and at the same time spoke with a woman's voice, "We've checked the news. The expeditionary fleet has been wiped out completely. 33 warships were damaged and there were more than 8,000 casualties, and the Consciousness Stealer has also returned to the bottom of the sea to sleep."

"So, what about the reality anchor?"

Chen Chen spoke, emitting a wheezing, sticking voice.

"We only had time to transport the zircon back with a drone."

X-112 replied, "As for the other equipment, it has sunk along with that aircraft carrier."

"It still couldn't escape..."

Chen Chen nodded and said helplessly, "Forget it, as long as the zircon isn't lost, it's not a failure, but it seems that the task of eliminating the Consciousness Stealer will be temporarily put on hold. When Blacklight Biotechnology has the ability to seal the entire plane, then we might pick up where we left off with this opponent."

"Yes."

X-112 lowered her head slightly.

"My current image isn't suitable to be known publicly for the time being."

Chen Chen continued to order, "Leave these supplies here and allow the warship to leave. Erase the memories of everyone on the ship and the zircon should be teleported back to the other side of the time machine. That's it."

X-112 nodded. She left a few Black Knights on the island to maintain communication with Chen Chen and then ordered the warship to return.

Seeing this, Chen Chen slowly turned around and devoured all the supplies that had been transported from the battleship.

After doing all this, Chen Chen returned his bloated body to the depths of the island, made a hole in a mountain, and wormed his way in.

This was what his body's instinct told him to do.

Then, Chen Chen curled up into a ball in the cave and at the same time, began to secrete clumps of bloody mucus around his body. The mucus slowly dried up and gradually turned into layers of a hard cocoon, which tightly encased Chen Chen's body.

"It feels like it'll take a very long time."

Curled up in the cocoon, Chen Chen could feel his body begin to change little by little. He gradually developed a kind of awareness that the next time he broke out of this shell, perhaps his body would have undergone a transformation.

Thinking of this, Chen Chen suddenly felt a strong wave of sleepiness, so he closed his eyes slightly and began to fall into a long deep sleep.

...

When Chen Chen opened his eyes again, he had returned to reality.

"To think that after preparing so adequately, I still lost."

As soon as Chen Chen sat up, he frowned slightly.

"Did you lose after all?"

Little X, who was watching over him by his side, raised her head in shock when she heard these words. "When I saw that the zircon was shipped back, I knew that the operation had probably failed, but I didn't expect that even the nano bomb couldn't deal with the opponent?"

Chen Chen chuckled. "Forget about the nano bomb, I only had time to activate the reality anchor before I was killed by the opponent..."

Originally, Chen Chen's plan was to first use the reality anchor to seal the Consciousness Stealer's psionic powers, then fire and launch nanomite bombs so that the nano bombs could completely devour his opponent.

In the face of those micro-robots that were only nanometers in size, even Chen Chen might lose his life under the boundless sea of nanomites unless he used his Field.

He just did not expect that he would lose the game completely before he could even use the nano bomb.

"One reality anchor isn't enough."

Chen Chen added again. "If I want to seal the Consciousness Stealer, I'm afraid I'd have to use more than twenty reality anchors to pin down the entire planet like in Doom's dimension."

"What about your avatar?"

Little X looked worried. "You didn't lose your avatar, right? It would be a shame!"

"I've been reborn."

Chen Chen shook his head. "Fortunately, I had an ace up my sleeve and was able to resurrect myself through 5,000 felons. So, my avatar didn't die. This is the only good news."

As he said, Chen Chen turned his head to look at Little X. "Next, the plan to eliminate Consciousness Stealer will be temporarily put on hold, but the research on the reality anchor will continue. When we can produce element 126, that's when we strike again."

"Understood!"

Little X clapped her hands and eagerly said, "Although element 126 is difficult to synthesize, we have time, if nothing else. Sooner or later we'll reach a level of mass-producing element 126. By dominating this reality's dimension, we would be invincible!"

A few days later, Chen Chen had readjusted his condition and came to the zircon that had been transported back.

Now that the plan to eliminate the Consciousness Stealer had failed, this huge zircon had temporarily lost its purpose, so Chen Chen had a new idea.

Several androids placed the zircon in front of a machine tool, after which a cutter head, which was half the height of a person, was lowered from above the machine tool. The cutter head rotated at a high speed and approached the zircon gradually.

After that, as bursts of water trickled out, the cutter head also completely cut through the zircon.

Finally, it had been cut more than a dozen times, and soon, the entire zircon the size of a washbasin was cut into thirty fist-sized crystal blocks of equal mass.

Then, an android pushed over a metal shape about three meters high and about half a meter in diameter.

The metal column was shaped like an hourglass, wide at the top and bottom, and narrow in the middle. At the same time, the bottom of the metal column was pointed and there were three mechanical arms around the body to support it so that it could stand upright on the ground.

Then, another android stuffed one of the cut zircons into the center of the metal column and the entire zircon chunk fitted in tightly.

This was a scaled-down reality anchor made with a high-offset armor shell.

"Start testing!"

"Activation ready..."

"Three, two, one!"

There was a cold metallic voice from the broadcast, then there was only a sudden "click". A cover popped out of position from the side of the metal pillar, revealing a row of numeric keypads beneath.

As an android walked up and keyed in the code on the metal pillar, they suddenly heard a "boom" and the entire metal pillar slammed into the floor and fixed itself in place!

At the same time, a wave of invisible fluctuations spread to the surroundings and Chen Chen only felt the air congeal all over his body.

His psionic energy was suppressed again!

"Very good, the strength of the suppression hasn't been reduced."

Chen Chen silently evaluated the pressure in the air and then said, "The next step is to test the suppression distance."

With that, Chen Chen teleported back to the ground again and began to measure the suppression area of this reality anchor according to the previous method. This time, he only flew fifty kilometers before feeling the suppression force disappear abruptly.

"Only fifty kilometers now?"

Chen Chen frowned and returned.

"Fifty-kilometer-suppression radius."

After Chen Chen came back, he reported this figure. "That's to say, after the splitting of the zircon, the area of the psionic suppression is less than 8,000 square kilometers, less than one-thousandth of the original block.

"An entire block of zircon can seal off 7 million square kilometers, but if it's divided into 30 blocks, each block can only block less than 10,000 square kilometers?"

Little X on the side suddenly said ruefully, "It's not cost-effective. It seems that the blockage area will decrease exponentially. That's to say, a small reality anchor can only block an area the size of an international city so that everyone in this area will become unable to use psionic powers."

"The smaller the zircon chunk, the weaker its radiation ability, and vice versa."

Chen Chen waved his hand, and said, "Forget it, it's good enough anyway. The reason we split it up is to suppress those common psionicists, isn't it? Thirty small reality anchors are at least more useful than one large anchor. I still want to continue selecting a few zircons to break them down into ultra-small reality anchors that can be carried around."

"This is also a good choice."

Little X's eyes lit up when she heard these words. "In this way, the reality anchor will change from a strategic weapon to a tactical weapon and its flexibility and maneuverability will be greatly enhanced!"

Therefore, following this, Little X continued to divide the zircon and split ten fist-sized zircons into strips as thick as a finger. In this manner, the resulting reality anchor would also be reduced proportionally, finally being only half a meter tall, 20 centimeters long, and weighing no more than 15 kilograms.

As for the suppression distance, naturally, it had been further reduced to a five-kilometer-radius and an 80-square-kilometer-suppression area.

This ultra-small reality anchor would also become one of the trump cards of the Black Knights and the B.S.S. rapid reaction force against psionicists.

At the same time, the Hadron Collider in the Spire Experimental Base on the other side also began to operate at full capacity, beginning to research element 126 on the periodic table.

Just as Chen Chen began to shape reality itself, the psionicists who gained superpowers were also silently changing the structure of the real world.

On 1 October 2029, Blacklight Biotechnology suddenly announced some news that shocked the world. Due to the previous fusion virus disaster, superpower users had begun to appear among humans and all these superpower users were survivors who had once been infected by the fusion virus!

Blacklight Biotechnology was the first force in the Earth Federation to recognize the existence of these superpowers. With this announcement, the rumors that had been going viral on the Internet were fully confirmed and countless people were so stunned their eyeballs popped out.

In the beginning, many people did not want to believe the news announced by Blacklight Biotechnology. After all, Blacklight Biotechnology was only a company, not an authoritative government agency, but then, due to social pressure, the Earth Federation and all the continents were forced to corroborate the authenticity of this news.

Suddenly, the news of the emergence of superpowers in human society was completely a solid part of reality, and countless people felt sad or overjoyed or descended into fanaticism...

Still, no matter what attitude these people had, they could not change the fact that human society was imperceptibly slipping into a new era.

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Chapter 578: Mini Superhero

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

John took repeated gasps of air and bent over with his palms over his knees. He was in the center of the training grounds and there were destroyed targets everywhere around him.

Most of the iron-plated targets had been blown into pieces. Some of them that were not destroyed were visibly deformed and showed the occasional signs of melting. It seemed as if targets here were not shot by regular bullets, but melted by some kind of powerful thermal weaponry instead.

Except that John at the moment did not wield any firearm.

"Huff, huff... Is it over?"

John rose slowly and looked around him. He waited for some time, expecting more targets to show up, but none did, implying that the test was over.

By this point, John had already been inducted into Blackwatch as a qualified member of the Black Security Service, B.S.S. It was only after his official joining when he realized that the B.S.S. was merely a cover for their true identity as the dedicated mercenaries of Blackwatch!

Even in the past, John had found the structure of Blackwatch a curious subject because of the sheer scale of the company. These days, he finally realized that he had been mistaken all along. The company was not merely a mega-corporation, it was essentially a corporational empire!

Only a phrase such as "corporational empire" would do Blackwatch justice.

Unparalleled global influence, unmatched wealth, and armed with superior military strength... Everything John had seen so far pointed to Blackwatch being a true corporational empire...

Just as John allowed himself a moment to relax, assuming the test was over, he suddenly saw several figures appearing. His new visitors were several skeletal Android models with reflective metal skulls, armed with large weapons!

"D*mn it, it's not over yet!"

John's eyes twitched and he sensed the imminent danger approaching. He went on the offense before the Androids could.

"Zoom-!"

A bolt of laser appeared from his eyes and he swept it across the room. It cut through the group of metal skeletons like a lightsaber!

"Hiss!"

There was a sharp whistle of metal melting under high heat. The skeletons were sliced in half, their tantalum alloy body was effortlessly cut through like tofu.

However, moments before its destruction, one of the skeletons had locked onto its target, which was John, and it managed to pull the trigger just in time!

"No!"

John's pupils tightened with a bite of urgency. He instinctively held his arms in front of his body to guard himself!

"Bang bang bang!"

John heard repeated gunshots and something hard thumping against his chest. After that, he saw the lifeless clattering and ringing on the floor!

"Zoom!"

Another bolt of laser appeared from John's eyes, with which he obliterated the surviving skeleton.

"Huff! Huff!"

John found himself quickly out of breath. A pool of sweat formed on the back of his shirt. He saw his life flashing before his eyes earlier!

After he managed to calm his nerves, he slowly shuffled his hands to the region of his chest where he was hit. Several bullet holes had been torn into those sections of the combat suit, but his chest was somehow unscathed.

"What's going on?"

John was startled by this discovery, then he squatted and picked up a bullet under his feet that should have punctured into his chest. He saw that the ends of the bullet were deformed and caved inward sort of like a pancake. It seemed like it ran into an indestructible wall before it could piece through his body.

"Could it be..."

John was again startled by this discovery. Could he have awakened another ability unknowingly?

The Blackwatch superpower database had more than a hundred entries by this point. Could this newly awakened power of his be "steel body fortification" or "spirit form"?

"Steel body fortification" was almost a universal ability to a point where six to seven out of ten psionicists would achieve this psionic manifestation. It was a straightforward ability that enhanced the body of the user to become hard as steel and immune to most common weapons as well as mild thermal weapons.

Comparatively, "spirit form" was significantly rarer. It was a modified version of "steel body fortification" that gave the psionicist a greater level of fortification. Furthermore, the psionicist could also gain superhuman strength, reflex, and overall physical qualities with this ability.

John knew more than a dozen people who possessed "steel body fortification", which included the famous Blake from the BHB Combative Police Force. However, there was only one other person with "spirit form" so far.

With this in mind, John tried to experiment for himself. With his bare fist, he tried to squeeze the bullet.

When he opened his palms again, his eyes lit up with ecstasy. The bullet had been twisted into a jumble of unrecognizable metal. He could see the marks of his finger pressed into it!

Could this truly be spirit form?

A wild excitement flashed in John's eyes. With an offensive tool in optic blast and a defensive tool in spirit form, he could easily ascend the ladder to become the strongest member among the psionicists!

"Clap, clap, clap..."

While John was measuring the potential of his abilities, he suddenly heard light clapping coming from behind the walls. A red beam immediately glowed within his eyes as he cautiously turned around to face that direction. Then, he saw the instructor, Sarah, emerging from behind the stone bunker.

"Not bad, John. I knew you were the right one."

Sarah said with a smile that was as scrutinizing as ever, "To awake another ability, excellent... It's the enhanced spirit form as well. This easily ranks you at top three among the current recruited batch."

"Madame Instructor!"

John lowered his head slightly as a show of respect. Although Sarah was a common person without any psionic abilities, nobody, John himself included, dared to underestimate her. This woman was a poisonous viper. Even psionicists had to be on guard around her.

"You're undoubtedly more powerful than me at this point."

Sarah raised two fingers. "Now, you have two options – one, you can let us continue our experiments on you, with a proper reward of course, since you'll be given a vial of L compound to further enhance your psionic strength. There's a likelihood that you may unlock the third power as we perform DNA experiments on you."

"The second option is you can join the B.S.S. and begin your tenure immediately. You'll be required to sign a decade-long contract with an annual salary of up to ten million dollars. The choice is yours."

The prospect of ten million dollars was certainly tempting to John. His heartbeat raced like never before but he managed to collect himself and think about his current strength, then he resolved. "I choose... The former!"

"Hm?"

Sarah's smile widened. She took another look at this bold student of hers. "Let me remind you that the L compound can have severe side effects that may cause instant brain death. Having psionic powers doesn't exempt you from its effects."

"I'd like to give it a shot!"

John nodded, even more determined.

"Excellent!"

Sarah seemed pleased as well. "In that case, follow me!"

With that, the two of them left the training grounds and headed for a nearby research center.

Several days later, the other psionicists received word of staggering news. The recent new psionicist recruit of B.S.S. John had acquired a third psionic power – flight.

With that, John had also officially become the first psionicist in Blackwatch that had three psionic abilities.

The news quickly made its rounds in the Blackwatch inner circle as well and got to Chen Chen almost immediately.

"I believe three superpowers is the limit."

The virtual projection in front of Chen Chen displayed John's genetic sequence. Little X elaborated beside him, "These psionic powers are acquired at the cost of the psionicist's DNA sequence being directly altered. These changes in DNA sequence have a significant effect on disturbing the structural integrity of their DNA and John has reached his limit already. If he acquires a fourth ability, his DNA will collapse."

Chen Chen did not elicit any response to this remark.

Despite John's superb potential, he would still need time to develop his psionic powers and gain mastery over it.

"If you think about it, John is truly lucky."

Little X pointed out. "Optic blast for attacking, spirit form to make up for defense shortcomings, and then he can move around with flight. These three combined nullifies all kinds of weaknesses and makes him a psionicist equivalent of Superman."

"Now that you put it this way, it does sound like a slightly weaker version of Superman."

Chen Chen agreed with a short nod. "Just like Superman, he's immune to common attacks, shoots lasers out of his eyes, and can fly. But I'm afraid that Superman still beats him in a fair fight."

"The only thing to do now is to let him continue training."

Little X stated, "So far, he can only melt several millimeters of fortified metal and resist the impact of light to moderate weaponry. At maximum speed, he only travels at a hundred meters per second. It might not be anything tremendous but I do think it's worthwhile to keep him in our company, especially considering that we need a suitable psionicist to represent us..."

"It won't be hard to keep him around."

Chen Chen considered for a moment and said, "I went through his background and obtained a brief overview of his mental psyche. He's been attention-craved ever since childhood, constantly wanting praises from his elders. It's his primary motivation for the work he put in and he maintained the same philosophy whether in his later studies and even in the work field... People like this are easy to manipulate. Give a man the prospect of fame and influence and they will naturally gravitate toward it."

"And how should we do it?"

Little X asked. Of course, she already had a vague idea as to how Chen Chen usually approached these things but at the end of the day, she was not as proficient as Chen Chen at formulating such schemes.

Chen Chen answered almost immediately, "He's piping with ambition and wants fame more than anything else. Let's give the man what he wants and let him join Lane, Blake, and Hodge, what do you think?"

"Ah!"

Little X gasped. "We're letting him join the Superpower Combative Police Force? Aren't you worried about him shaping up to be the next 'Brooke'?"

"John is nothing like Brooke."

Chen Chen disagreed vehemently. "First of all, he's not just after money as his self-worth goes beyond materialistic desires. And second, he has greater ambitions than Brooke and knows that only we can help him achieve what he wants. Lastly, so what if he turns out to be like Brooke?"

Little X understood the points Chen Chen was making. "Since you believe that we can keep him under control, then I'll enlist him into the Superpower Combative Police Force. He's just as attractive as Brooke and has a more charismatic personality so he should be a good fit. Since there are only three members left, it's a good time to induct a new member as well..."

While Little X and Chen Chen were busy discussing the fate of John, the person in question was ecstatically gliding along the roof of the training grounds.

Flight! His third psionic manifestation was flight!

John glided across the roof passionately, basking in the living of flying.

Based on what instructor Sarah informed him, all of these acquitted psionic powers could be developed with dedicated training. John made use of every opportunity to train his psionic abilities.

Amid his training, Sarah appeared again.

"Madame Instructor."

John quickly swept down from the roof and came in front of Sarah. At this point, though his martial combat skills were still no match for the instructor, the powers he had obtained easily made up for whatever deficiencies of his skill level.

"John, the higher-ups have made a new decision."

Sarah said with a brief smile, "The plan was to induct you into the B.S.S. department, but upon receiving word of you unlocking a third psionic ability, they changed their mind."

"Changed their mind?"

John was slightly unnerved by the sudden change of decision.

"Don't worry, the offer is even better than B.S.S."

Sarah noted the worrisome look on John's face and quickly stated, "The latest decision is to induct you as the fourth official member of the BHB Superpower Combative Police Force!"

"What?"

John almost stopped breathing when he heard the good news. A swarm of excitement rushed into the depths of his heart and filled him with joy. He could not make out the nature of this mixture of emotion but something told him that he would enjoy this job.

"Of course, the previous option of joining the B.S.S. department is still on the table for you."

Sarah stated earnestly, "I was looking forward to having you as a subordinate."

John responded with a saddened smile. He looked into Sarah's eyes that stared back into his eyes fixedly, his decision wavered slightly.

"I'm sorry, Madame Instructor. I believe the BHB position is a better fit for me."

John stated solemnly.

With that, Sarah decided there was no need to further persuade him, so she brought him to another training ground.

The moment John stepped into the separate training ground, he was greeted with three familiar faces. They were the famous Lane, Hodge, and Blake.

The three of them welcomed John without any animosity. Since the three of them were never fueled by a fierce sense of ambition, they took to the new member quickly and seamlessly.

Chapter 579: Overnight Stardom

New York City, Queens.

The dense smoke cleared up as the array of fire trucks and ambulances departed. The ambulances speeding to the hospital were loaded with several wounded by the fire.

It was evening. The highway that would usually be experiencing peak traffic was uncannily empty. Due to the fire in Aycliffe Building, the entire New York Center Avenue was closed off to all common vehicles.

Thankfully, the fire had now been put out successfully. Meanwhile, there was a loud commotion right opposite the Aycliffe building. A clamoring crowd of thousands of people surrounded four heroic figures posing by the steps. The passionate chorus of their cheers resounded across the avenue.

Among the four figures posing by the steps, one was a handsome man with a bed of silky, slicked-back hair. He wore an azure blue combat suit and donned a cape with the logo of the Earth Federation stitched on top and smiled radiantly.

Though the spotlight was all on the man in azure blue, the presence of the other three was quite remarkable. One of them was a black man with a row of flashing white teeth who wore a combat uniform with a bauhinia emblem stitched on top. Though his smile was dazzling, some could sense a dark aura lurking underneath.

The remaining two members seemed more childlike in comparison, but they each sported a combat suit styled to their distinctive brand as well.

Underneath the harsh sunlight, the four of them waved toward the crowd. Some of their fans among the passionate crowd approached them with large and fresh bouquets of flowers, presented to them with tears in their eyes.

"John!"

"Lane... Lane!"

"Blake! Hodge! You're all heroes!"

Their cheers drowned out the skies.

At one point, three of the members sensed that it was about time and darted a glance at the blonde-haired man in azure blue uniform. The man in question returned a faint nod and took a step forward. Then, he held his hand out and signaled for the crowd to pause their celebrations for a moment.

There was an immediate silence as the charmed members of his audience looked at him with a dazzled look in their eyes.

"Everyone, I'm honored by your passionate welcome."

The blonde-haired man stated, "I also feel the great responsibility that I should bear from here on. As the newest member of the Superhuman Combative Police Force, it's my mission and my obligation to step up to meet the great expectations expected of me...

"Ever since I was a child, I vowed to myself that I'd fight for justice, for this continent, for the federation, and mankind. I see laid before me now a chance to succeed these dreams of mine. I want to dedicate every ounce of my strength to protect all those who need protection. I promise from here on that I'd protect all of them in the name of justice, mercy, and sacrifice!"

As he said this, there was a prominent flash in his eyes. "I'm the Guardian – John. And this is my sacred vow!"

"Wah-!"

An enormous cheer erupted from the surrounding crowd again.

The blonde-haired man held his arms out and in a magnificent gesture and flew above the crowd. He soared above them as if he was riding on their waves of cheers.

This display of his powers threw the crowd in a state of delirium. They held their arms out in hopes of brushing against John the Guardian, some of them were so excited that they were crying tears of joy!

"John! John!"

"Guardian!"

The name echoed across the skylines of New York City...

This majestic scene slowly zoomed out and was cast onto a display.

Beside the display was a black man who seemed in his forties whose eyes were illuminated with a brilliant spark. He slowly approached the center of the pitch-black stage.

It was a live feed of a program titled "Richard's World", which was broadcasted every night at 7:30 pm on the International Channel of the Earth Federation.

The host of the show looked at the display behind him now. The display showed the paused frame of John being surrounded by tens of thousands of fans in New York City

"Dear viewers, I'm Wilson Richard and you're watching the Earth Federation international show – 'Richard's World'."

The host's voice was dramatic and energetic, instantly commanding the viewer's attention. "I'm sure all of you have heard of the recent news from Blackwatch..."

As he said this, he pointed a finger at the image shown on the display. "Are you all seeing this? Your eyes don't deceive you, Mr. John here is a superpower user in every sense of the word. In the past, superpowers were merely seen as a myth, something out of this world that only belonged in fiction. Today, it's proven that we were wrong all along!

"At the beginning of the year, we've lost hundreds of millions of innocent lives, families torn apart by the devastating fusion virus plague. The foundations of our civilization and never threatened to such an extent before and at one point. It seems like all hope was lost..."

The host's temperament grew dark as he said this, but he quickly picked up his enthusiasm again, "But we're a resilient species and we have powered through the devastation. And now, among the resilient survivors of the deadly virus, many have discovered that they have obtained new powers!

"The Earth Federation claimed that the formal term is 'psionic' power, but I believe the proper term to do it justice would be superpowers! These are powers that will reshape the world as we know it!

"There have been many drastic developments over the last few months and the familiar BHB Combative Police Force has emerged onto the world stage again, this time with a new addition to their forces..."

Upon stating this, the image on the display zoomed in several times until all was shown on the image was the blonde-haired man with his cape flapping majestically behind him. His other three partners faded into the background.

"His name is John Oppenheimer."

The host continued. "He's a survivor of the fusion virus disaster and as mentioned previously, some of the survivors have gradually acquired superpowers, and John here is no exception.

"We don't know yet the exact background of this elusive member, but those aren't important now. What's important is that he joined the BHB Combative Police Force and that the police force now goes by a new name – Superpower Combative Police Force!

"The roster of the famous police force remains unchanged but what has certainly changed is that our heroes have had their once-disabled bodies fully restored. In the process, they have also obtained powerful abilities so that they may continue protecting us.

"Only hours ago, they put out a fire and prevented a tremendous disaster that would have killed thousands of people in the Aycliffe Building in New York City!"

The host Wilson held his hands out and proclaimed dramatically, "I can sense it, human society is undergoing a tremendous shift!

"Sometimes, I find myself in awe and blessed for having Blackwatch existing in the Earth Federation! They have solved cancer, Alzheimer's disease, and all kinds of physical diseases plaguing us humans. They would then go a step further and improve our lifespan and dramatically raise the standards of common life!

"The heart and soul of Blackwatch – the BHB Combative Police Force has also undergone a substantial metamorphosis as they pave the way for the transformation of our era...

"The name BHB Combative Police Force is now formally retired and will now be known as the Superpower Combative Police Force. In addition to the familiar faces of Blake, Hodge, and Lane, a fourth member is inducted, and this is none other than the Guardian – John!"

There was a bright delight in the host's eyes. The display panned closer into John's face as he stood outside the Aycliffe building. "My beloved audience watching from your homes, take a look at his brilliant smile and radiant eyes, at the lucid righteousness of his soul..."

The host exhaled with great emotion, trying to suppress his riling excitement before continuing. "I don't know how anyone would ever find a reason to detest them. What I do know is that they'll be our guardians from here on. Just as Mr. John stated, they are willing to risk their lives to uphold justice!"

After saying all this, the host sighed and smiled. "This is the single most significant thing to happen in the Earth Federation today. I'm Wilson Richard and this is the Earth Federation international channel – 'Richard's World'. Until then, goodbye!"

The stage lights dimmed out as soon as he bid his farewell until the only thing that could be barely made out was his silhouette. The show ended with the rolling credits offering recognition for the staff.

The logo of Blackwatch was included in the credits as well.

With the rebranding of the BHB Combative Police Force, media outlets all over the world naturally flocked to report its details, the new member especially was a focal point.

The media outlets constantly replayed the footage of John bursting out of the burning building as he rescued the people trapped inside the burning blaze. The name of John the Guardian was repeatedly cycled across all media.

[Justice shall prevail. The BHB Combative Police Force officially renamed as the [Superpower Combative Police Force] – The Wall Street Journal.

[Superheroes debut. Iis the transformation of human society imminent?] – New York Times.

[Blackwatch once again leads a transcendental change of era, psionic energy may reshape the world!] – Sohu News.

[The Guardian, a rising star to continue Brooke's legacy] -YouTube News.

This time, there was no need for Blacklight Biotechnology to buy out the media outlets since the news circulated on its own, immediately capturing worldwide attention. All the media outlets capitalized on this opportunity to add to the bunch, the charming looks of John made it easier to advertise the new superhero and launch him into the forefront of international media.

The names of Superpower Combative Police Force and John the Guardian immediately became household phrases.

John the Guardian was launched into stardom overnight!

...

After finally stepping away from the camera lens, both Hodge and Lane expressed a sigh of relief.

"Good work, you all."

Shortly after, the red-haired Austin appeared from a vehicle with the accompaniment of the sound of her high heels clicking elegantly against the tiles. She said with a smile, "John especially, you performed the best out of everyone. Your manner of speech and presentation is flawless."

"It's all thanks to the company's training."

John smiled briefly. Of the four members, he and Blake were the ones who felt comfortable in the spotlight. However, due to Blake's unpredictable nature and slightly aloof attitude, neither Austin nor the other members of the management were comfortable with giving him a more distinct role and Lane and Hodge were too young to be put into consideration. The arrival of John now was a great blessing to all of them.

They determined that John had the potential to be the heart of the Superpower Combative Police Force.

"I talked with Manager Liu and the other superiors."

Austin observed the reaction of the group while she stated, "After further discussion and from gauging the response of the public, we decided that John would be most qualified as the leader of the Superpower Combative Police Force. Does anyone have any thoughts on this?"

"Lea, leader?"

Hodge shot a surprised look at John but was otherwise not too shaken by the news. "No problem, I think John is a good fit for the role."

Lane, on the other hand, had to conceal his shock and was slightly bothered. It did occur to him that the position was open and he had been training his professional attitude and waited for the opportunity to present himself. As much as he hated to admit it, he was no match for the newly recruited John whether in terms of presentation, abilities or raw measure of power.

Therefore, there was not much he could do other than nod reluctantly.

"Hahahaha!"

None of them expected Blake to suddenly burst out laughing upon hearing of the management's decision. He applauded fervently. "Not bad at all, junior John does have the potential to be the leader! What I'm wondering is whether this means that the interviews can be headed by him from here on?"

"Of course."

John turned to his fellow member who once had the esteem of being the most popular member and smiled politely. "You can leave the interviews to me."

"Then. it's decided."

Blake nodded contently while rubbing his hands together mischievously. "Then I'll have more time to spend with the ladies... Oh, I meant to say to train!"

Lane and Hodge looked at Blake, speechless.

"Excellent."

Austin selectively filtered Blake's childish remarks and turned to John. "From here on, you'll be the leader of the Superpower Combative Police Force. I hope you can handle the responsibilities that come with it and diligently represent the company."

"I understand."

John's attitude was exemplary as always. "Because everything I do will represent the image of the police force and Blackwatch by extension, is that right?"

"Exactly."

Austin nodded and returned to her car and drove away shortly after.

After driving a short distance, a pensive look returned to Austin's face.

"Austin, do you have any particular thoughts about John?"

Manager Liu who oversaw the Superpower Combative Police Force had been in the backseat all along. He leaned forward and emerged from the dark shadows. "You seem to be thinking about something."

"It's not that I dislike him."

Austin shook her head. "It's just that whenever I interact with him, it feels like he's... Too perfect. To a point where it feels completely manufactured."

"What are you worried about?"

Manager Liu smiled. "So what if he turns out to become the next Brooke? If we can build him up, we can tear him down the same way. No matter how powerful he is, Blackwatch can swat him down like a common fly."

"Let's hope so."

Austin nodded and combed her hair with her hands then looked at the streetlights lined along the highway. The night view of the city tonight was especially enchanting...

Chapter 580: Ten Years Later

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

In the entire history of mankind, never had there been such rapid growth in social structure.

Months went by in the span of days and something new and exciting happened every day. New inventions emerged continuously and new industries rose and fell every year.

Mankind was evolving at an unstoppable pace.

In July 2029, Blackwatch deployed the "Stem Cell Organ Cultivation" technology and from there on, disabled members of society became a thing of the past. Its patent number was 11,457,092.

In October 2029, the BHB Combative Police Force was officially named the Superpower Combative Police Force with the addition of "John the Guardian".

In May 2031, Blackwatch had developed an upgraded model of Androids known as Little Dai. The upgraded Android was programmed with a modified IQ and EQ processes on par with a ten-year-old child. It was a model superior to its predecessor, Little AI, and patented under the number 11,572,838.

Furthermore, the modified Android model was more expressive than its predecessor which made people more open to having an Android assistant in their household.

By January 2031, the modified Android entered the global consumer market.

In April 2033, the Earth Federation issued regulations restricting the commercial use of Android Little Dai due to concerns about the exploitability of artificial intelligence.

In May 2033, the regulations were abolished and Little Dai was officially inducted into millions of households.

In August 2033, Chen Chen, the founder of Blackwatch, was awarded the Order of the British Empire medal by the Queen of England.

In February 2034, Blackwatch had acquired the national security enterprise of the North Sea Continent. This was the first-ever acquisition of a major enterprise in one of the four major continents in the Earth Federation. The reports immediately caused a global uproar.

In March 2034, Blackwatch invested 200 billion U.S. dollars in NASA and officially took charge of the "Kepler Mission."

In December 2034, Blackwatch was ranked as one of the "Top Ten Companies to Work For" of all the 500 top-listed companies in the Earth Federation.

In June 2035, Blackwatch's laboratory in New York developed a cryogenic system used to temporarily suspend all bodily functions which could then be immediately resumed upon deactivation. This invention was its first step to furthering its conquest into outer space. Its patent number was 12,456,045.

In September 2035, Blackwatch had invested 300 billion U.S. dollars to build the world's most advanced superconducting particle accelerator in the Erongo District of Namibia.

In February 2036, Blackwatch had invented a "space-probing suit" fitted with a portable atmospheric regulatory system that allowed it to function in a vacuum and hostile conditions. This further strengthened the foundation for human exploration in extraterrestrial environments.

In June 2037, Blackwatch's automated diagnosis and surgery platform "Blacklight Fully-automated Medical Platform" was developed. Patent number was 14,572,092.

In January 2038, after Blackwatch took over the Kepler Mission, they discovered a total of 45,327 terrestrial planets, of which thirteen were deemed potentially habitable.

In December 2039, the Earth Federation announced that credited to Blackwatch's "Mankind Anti-aging Project", the global average life expectancy of humans officially exceeded one hundred years old.

In January 2040, the original Mars habitation plan that was estimated to require a century to finalize was completed in just eleven short years due to the successive technological breakthrough achieved by Blackwatch. Mars officially became the second habitable planet for mankind and the first phase of human migration was about to begin...

...

A decade later.

A large airliner slowly landed at the Walvis Bay International Airport. Thousands of tourists got off the plane and were efficiently escorted by the tour guides to the charter buses.

As the charter buses drove out of the vicinity of the airport, they were greeted by the sight of an enormous city skyline that stretched on forever. The silver-gray skyscrapers towered like monumental pillars threatening to pierce into the clouds.

Intersecting the arrangement of skyscrapers were circular highways that orbited around the city. These high-altitude paths intersected with one another and granted seamless navigation across the cosmopolitan city.

Looking up, they could see colorful projected displays alternating between a range of advertisements. Sometimes it was an advertisement of the third generation household Android Little Li, then it would switch to highlight clips of the Superpower Combative Police Force in action. Upon exiting the airport, they saw the distinct logo of Blackwatch shown on the display.

"What you're seeing now is Eco Science City in all its glory. This city has a permanent population of 1.35 million, but the floating population reaches up to an astonishing 5 million. Hundreds of thousands of people visit this city every day...

"At the same time, as the world's first modern city with permanent holographic systems installed, electricity is completely free. It's carried wirelessly in your surroundings."

The tour guide smiled affectionately as he introduced the city's merits to the tourists. "All electrical devices such as phones, computers, even electrical cars and other appliances that are fitted with the wireless charging chipsets developed by Blackwatch will never run out of electricity in this city!"

The tourists gazed out of the window to admire the wondrous view of the futuristic city and take in the miraculous sight.

Several minutes later, the charter bus arrived at the intercity Maglev1 central station connected to the city-spanning highways. With the instructions of the tour guide, the tourists stepped into the trains. The train departed after everyone settled themselves, moving at three hundred kilometers per hour as they made for the upper-level district of the city.

"What you see now is the global headquarters of Blackwatch. This recently constructed building is located in the central area of the city. It's 671 meters high and has an indoor area of more than one million square meters. Its facilities currently house 13,890 employees...

"Over here is Blackwatch's biological laboratory central hub. As we all know, biology is Blackwatch's primary sector and this is where the world's top biotechnology invention is centered at!

"This is Blackwatch's seaside sanatorium district. There are more than a thousand sanatoriums scattered in the area, each constructed with a distinct style. Any elderly that comes to this place for Blackwatch's fabled treatment can regain their youth in just one to two short months and return to their prime condition in their thirties!

"Next to the sanitorium district is the world's leading plastic surgery sector. Blackwatch fully utilizes the potential of its biotechnology prowess to develop optimized plastic surgery procedures. Their developed facilities offer services to get rid of facial defects, scars, wrinkles, breast augmentation, and a multitude of plastic surgery options... It's guaranteed to grant its clients their preferred appearance and physique!"

Just like that, the tourists saw everything notable in the city with the accompanying narration of the tour guide. Every few minutes, they would see another Maglev train gliding past them in the opposite direction, attracting "oohs" and "ahhs" from the enchanted passengers.

In the end, the city-orbiting train reached its destination, a grand international hotel more than a hundred stories tall. As soon as they arrived, dozens of Androids with blue halos flashing on their temples appeared to receive the esteemed guests at the entrance of the hotel.

These Androids dressed in hotel waiter attire greeted the guests enthusiastically. Their speech pattern and gestures were extremely lifelike and it was practically impossible to distinguish them from a real human if not for the halo on their temple.

"Welcome to the Romantico International Five Star Hotel, where there will always be a warm harbor for you!"

The Androids carried the luggage of the guests and escorted them into the hotel. The guests felt welcomed by the excellent service and stepped into the hotel in a festive mood, filled with laughter and cheeriness...

In the meantime, in the top floor office of the Blacklight headquarters, there was a young man whose eyes were bottomless sockets standing by the floor windows. He silently gazed at the bustling city below his feet.

Though he was looking at the city filled with lights, his eyes were two pools of void. There was the barest glimpse of light reflected within them, captured within them was the deepest black hole ever seen in the universe...

"I can't believe it's been so long..."

The man smiled and turned around to face his office. Facing him at the front of his desk was a young lady whose gentle elegance reminded one of the warmth of springtime. She slowly approached the man and glanced at the vast city beneath them. "It's certainly been a long time, Sir Godfather. I can't believe I'm nineteen years old already!"

The man did not say anything and only answered with a smiling nod.

If memory served him correctly, he was eighteen years old when he first acquired the USB drive. Little X was born a year after he obtained the USB drive and from there on, he embarked on his trajectory of exponential growth.

Reflecting on past events, he broke into a smile. "In the blink of an eye, two decades have passed. I'm already thirty-eight years old..."

The young girl who was Little X smiled upon hearing this. She looked at Chen Chen and shook her head mischievously with a strange look in her eyes. "Does age even have any significance for you at this point? With the T-virus running through your veins, you can easily live above five hundred years old."

Little X continued. "Furthermore, if you continue your monthly therapy with the Blacklight Fully-automated Medical Platform, you can easily live to a thousand years. There's also our recent breakthrough in the black goo research to consider. If black goo can be fused with your DNA, your life span will even surpass the 'engineer' race in Prometheus and you can live more than three hundred thousand years."

"Maybe."

Chen Chen waved the suggestion away, clearly not too fixated on the topic at this moment. "Let's not talk about this for now. How's the Mars immigration preparations coming along?"

"Among the tens of millions of people who signed up for the Martian Immigration Program, we've picked out one hundred thousand most suitable candidates, which includes your classmate, Wang Wei."

Little X stated, "The three migration spaceships are ready and once they have arrived at Eco Science City, I'll send the candidates to outer space."

"Excellent."

Chen Chen was relieved to hear this. "Remember to check the cryogenic chambers again before launching. This project directly concerns our plans over the next century. I don't want any unforeseen accidents occurring and have the Earth Federation pointing fingers at me."

"Understood!"

Little X left the office shortly after that, leaving Chen Chen by himself in his large office.

"All these years of scuffles have finally led us to this point."

Chen Chen raised his head and exhaled deeply. "From today onward, Blacklight Biotechnology which I've founded with my own hands shall officially surpass the Earth Federation!"

In truth, as early as a decade ago when Chen Chen began to get involved in the military technology trade, Blacklight Biotechnology was already on the same tier as the four major continents. However, Blacklight Biotechnology at the time had not achieved an untouchable status yet. If the four major continents were willing to take the most drastic route possible and start World War III, they could very likely unite all other countries around the world to sanction Blacklight Biotechnology and successfully suppress the company. As things were now, the circumstances had changed dramatically.

Blacklight Biotechnology had obtained colonization rights some time ago. With the establishment of a permanent Mars colony coupled with their space navigation technology superiority, the pieces were in place for Blacklight Biotechnology to fully separate itself from the bounds of the Earth Federation. Even if the Earth Federation concentrated their unified efforts to impose strict sanctions on Blacklight Biotechnology, Chen Chen could simply leave them to their little games and head to Mars for a fresh start.

However, the leaders of the world would have to be completely demented to resort to such a destructive option. The combination of economic and military sanctions on Blacklight Biotechnology would come at the cost of crippling human civilization.

Blacklight Biotechnology's establishment of a permanent colony on Mars was a landmark to symbolize that they had become the only faction in human society powerful enough to rival the Earth Federation.

There was nothing the Earth Federation could do but to watch idly as everything unfolded before their eyes. Their only feeble attempt at catching up to Blacklight Biotechnology was to gradually increase capital investment in the aerospace industry and wait for further technology to develop.

Leaving the matter of the battles between the two factions aside, the rise of Blacklight Biotechnology would always be a winning situation for human society as a whole. At the end of the day, Blacklight Biotechnology's agenda was for mankind to advance into the future and this would inevitably benefit the Earth Federation as well.

This was the reason that the Earth Federation had tolerated Chen Chen and Blacklight Biotechnology all this time.

On the second day, three giant spacecraft more than a hundred meters tall and three hundred meters wide were parked at the aerospace base on the south side of the Eco Science City. Countless maintenance vehicles sized like construction trucks were cycling back and forth around the aerospace base. A final inspection was being conducted on the spaceships to prevent any hiccups in the following operation.

These three outrageously large spaceships were the pinnacle of human creation. There could not be any room for error in what was to come.

When the appointed time arrived, the inspection crew relayed the message of completion of their work to the central. The news quickly reached Little X who subsequently passed it to Chen Chen.

"All migrants, prepare to board the ship!"

With the order given by Chen Chen, countless land rovers purposed for Mars entered from the edges of the square and into the spacecraft. There was no need for the migrants to step out of the rover. They only needed to retire inside the cryogenic chambers inside the rovers.

The migration spacecraft was fitted with many safety installations to minimize the likelihood of things going awry.

The design of the spacecraft itself was insurance of its own. They were designed with precision and the odds of something going haywire was even slimmer than winning the lottery. In the event where an accident occurred, the rovers themselves could also double as emergency spacecraft, and from there on the crew inside could choose to return to Earth with it or wait for rescue.

In the worst-case scenario where even the emergency spacecraft failed, then that was when the cryogenic sleep chambers came into play. The crew could enter a hibernation state for decades, even centuries while they wait for rescue.

With all these scenarios put into careful consideration, there was no way that this migration operation was going to fail!