Chapter 16 Evolution_1

These young wealthy elites, from families with money or power, often act with a degree of arrogance. But the United Protection Bureau doesn't care about your family background, they don't deal in favors, nor do they deal in money; they are a group of staunch "data" defenders.

Survival is a global concern. The creation of the "Sixth Database" is for the purpose of ensuring longer-term survival. The United Protection Bureau, serving the Sixth Database, occupies a moral high ground, has policy support, power in their hands, and they won't give you any face.

Even the local bigshots don't dare to confront such a group of people head-on.

Anyone they catch who shouts "My dad is XX" will only get a cold response, "Great, call your dad over to have a talk too."

So, wisely choosing to admit weakness is also a smart choice.

Of course, the United Protection Bureau doesn't have the time or energy to pay attention to those who just talk big but, if someone is overheard bragging foolishly, they would still receive a bit of a warning.

The five helicopters that drew everyone's attention landed on the helipad near the administration department of Yue Mountain.

The United Protection Bureau came with a total of eight people this time, and the aircraft were mostly loaded with equipment related to data collection.

The leader was tall and thin, in his forties or fifties, with a cold and stern face not given to smiles. He walked briskly into the building and took the investigation summary from the head of Yue Mountain's administration department.

The head said, "Captain Yuan, we compared the DNA sequencing results with several target sequences in Qing Dragon Breeding Center's database. This snake is genetically related to some of the individuals at the breeding center."

As he spoke, he handed over another document, "We also found that five years ago, a smuggling ring near Yue Mountain was busted, and this ring had once stolen a snake egg from the Qing Dragon Breeding Center."

"One?"

"Yes, only one snake egg was lost from the breeding center. According to the record at the time, the snake egg fell off a vehicle during the chase, and no one knew where it had rolled off to. It seems now that this young Qing dragon could very well have hatched from that egg."

Yuan Qie's brow furrowed slightly as he looked at the investigation report in his hand, which only recorded partial information due to the short time frame.

"So, is it possible that this snake naturally hatched in the wild and has been living in the Yue Mountain Reserve for five years?"

"That's the information we have collected so far. Currently, the artificial hatching rate of young Qing dragons is high, and the survival rate of juveniles has greatly increased. Their numbers are much better than before, but those are all bred in captivity, and attempts to release them back into the wild have been unsuccessful. It's not just the Qing dragons, other animals from key breeding bases have slow progress on their release programs, and some have even shown signs of regression.

"Ecological chains have been distorted, and even with the climate returning to normal, adaptation is still quite difficult for many animals. The young Qing dragon found alive in the wild today may have developed multiple beneficial mutations in its genes, a type of evolution that allows it to adapt better to the wild environment. A definitive conclusion will have to wait for further research; there hasn't been enough time for many tests to yield results."

Yuan Qie asked further, "What about Feng Yi?"

The head replied, "I've already asked him. He said it was his first time catching a snake, and that it was purely a gift of talent. Hah, do you believe that?"

"I believe it." Yuan Qie flipped through the report on Feng Yi in his hands, "Some people do possess such talent."

The head was stunned, quite surprised to hear such words from Yuan Qie.

"Where is Feng Yi? I'd like to ask him a few questions," Yuan Qie said.

"...He's having dinner."

Feng Yi and his party had cooperated with the various departments of Yue Mountain, said everything they had to say, and thought they would leave soon, but were told that people from the United Protection Bureau were coming to ask them a few questions, and that they would be free to go afterward.

Alright, there wasn't anything to fear really; it was just repeating answers they'd already given.

After dinner, Feng Yi was approached by the questioner. The badge on the visitor's chest indicated his identity.

"United Protection Bureau, Yuan Qie. I'm currently in charge of investigating the Qing dragon incident on Yue Mountain." Yuan Qie sat down opposite Feng Yi.

"Hello." This was Feng Yi's first time having a close conversation with someone from the United Protection Bureau.

Feng Yi had anticipated the other party might ask again about his precise snake-catching skills, but Yuan Qie did not raise this and instead talked about the origin of the snake.

"Being able to hatch in the wild and survive is indeed not easy. But five years have gone by, and the internal parasitic infection is severe. A month later, and I doubt it could have been saved," Yuan Qie spoke evenly, giving no hint of emotional fluctuation.

After hearing this, Feng Yi actually felt the snake's fate carried a hint of legend. It was truly fortunate!

Yuan Qie then asked, "Why do you think it left the natural reserve and invaded the human activity zone? Was it chasing prey and strayed in?"

"Self-rescue, I guess," Feng Yi said, which was his first thought upon hearing about the incident.

Yuan Qie nodded, "Makes sense."

Seeing Yuan Qie appeared to accept his suggestion, Feng Yi hurriedly said, "I was just speaking off the cuff, don't take it seriously!"

Yuan Qie looked at him, "What you said must be the first thing that flashed through your mind."

Feng Yi: "…Yes."

"It's still very valuable as a reference. I will record it exactly as you said," Yuan Qie said expressionlessly as he wrote down Feng Yi's words and then stood up to leave.

Feng Yi was dumbfounded.

That's it?

It's over?

So the United Conservation Bureau, which doesn't give face to anyone and only talks about evidence and data, is being hasty?!!

Seeing the other person about to leave the room, Feng Yi raised his voice, "I really was just blabbering, don't be so rash!"

Yuan Qie, with his back to Feng Yi, let the corners of his mouth curve slightly upward, then quickly smoothed them back down.

After Yuan Qie left, Feng Yi and the others were told they could leave and were provided a vehicle to take them back to the farmhouse resort.

Because Feng Yi had covered up so well during the daytime photos, and Wu Ji and Qian Feiyang hadn't attracted much attention afterwards, their return to the farmhouse didn't draw the attention of the other tourists.

After a day filled with shocking and harrowing experiences, they returned to the farmhouse in the evening. Wu Ji was pulled aside by his parents for questioning, while Qian Feiyang went back to his room to rest.

Feng Yi called the old butler to report the day's events, including the encounter with Yuan Qie from the United Conservation Bureau.

Upon hearing the name Yuan Qie, the butler said, "Oh, Little Yuan from the United Conservation Bureau. Haven't seen him in a long time, must be over ten years now."

Feng Yi: "Little... Little Yuan? You know him?"

The old butler: "Not well. More than ten years ago, Madam Feng assisted the United Conservation Bureau in investigating a case of poaching and eating protected wild animals. Back then, Little Yuan must have just joined the United Conservation Bureau, not quite steady, got his face slapped many times by Madam Feng."

At that time, having just joined the Conservation Bureau, Yuan Qie encountered a major case, and he was full of youthful zeal. Facing the "I guess" attitude and exceptional snake-catching skills of old Madam Feng, Yuan Qie always remained skeptical.

After getting his face slapped repeatedly, Yuan Qie had to admit that this old Madam Feng's guesses were incredibly accurate—far more precise than the conclusions they reached after days of analysis!

Latterly, Yuan Qie accepted reality. Some people indeed have that talent, not only catching snakes as easily as eating, but also possessing unimaginably accurate intuition!

Feng Yi suppressed his irritation, "So, is he trying to get back at me for the slaps he received back then?"

The butler chuckled and soothed, "Hey, it's a trivial matter, you shouldn't mind it. He was just joking with you. They're really busy, running around like robots all day, busy saving all living beings, being guardians of the earth—they don't have time to bother with you."

The butler continued, "Your body is undergoing changes and will emit certain scents. The little green dragon might have approached you because it smelled this scent—compared to other humans, it may be friendlier to you. This is also a choice it made for self-rescue."

Feng Yi: "…So it really came on its own? For self-rescue?"

The butler said, "Most likely, though it's not important. What is important is that you might undergo changes in the next couple of days."

Feng Yi exclaimed in surprise, "So soon! The weekend isn't even over yet, and the adaptation period is already ending? Am I about to start… changing?"

The butler's tone became serious, his voice slightly lower, "Evolution, every step forward gives you more of an advantage in survival. The process of evolution is accompanied by pain. No one can help you through this process, I can't intervene; you have to bear it on your own. Get prepared mentally."