Chapter 2124: Ultimate New World (Part 3) _1

It's not to say that good-looking people are always arrogant, but the notion of unaware beauty doesn't really exist in this world. Humans are aesthetic creatures. If one grows up beautiful, they definitely realize their aesthetic advantage.

If such an advantage is sustained from childhood to adulthood, their experience in leveraging it is vast. They understand how to attract peoples' attention, and how to use their looks to achieve their desired outcomes better than others.

Bruce didn't come to this conclusion just because he himself was one of those good-looking individuals. Rather, in the circles he moved in, especially among the opposite sex, those who have held a aesthetic advantage since childhood are plentiful. Otherwise, they wouldn't be able to infiltrate the circle of the world's wealthiest.

The cues from such people extend beyond winking or making faces. They know how to utilize every asset of their bodies– thick, glossy blonde hair, long eyelashes, even slender fingers and a warm body temperature.

According to Bruce's experience, the subtle cues from the waitress earlier were too subdued. If he wasn't watching closely, he would've thought she had something in her eye.

This wasn't necessarily her being intentionally tactful, but rather that was all she could manage. However, her modesty and reserved demeanor did not match her appearance at all.

Same goes for the white police officer. Bruce noticed that his smile was somewhat forced. While he was trying hard to express his goodwill and sympathy, the way the muscles on his face moved just didn't seem quite right, as if it wasn't a natural fit for his face.

Given his profession, he was not the type to require cosmetic surgery. Besides, Bruce didn't believe that anyone could flawlessly transform themselves into Schwarzenegger. Even if one's face could look somewhat similar, the body would still require hard work, wouldn't it?

The policeman didn't exude the sunny disposition associated with regular physical exercise or, to put it plainly, the scent of testosterone. His lack of masculine stature didn't quite match his good physique either.

The cases for the others were similar. They gave Bruce the impression of shop mannequins coming to life, appearing somewhat unaccustomed to the grace of their limbs and bodies.

Bruce took Aisha home and she obediently went to nap in her room. Meanwhile, he seized the opportunity to find a job.

Jobs requiring professional skills were out of reach because he lacked certificates. He couldn't work under the table either. No shady boss would dare to hire a typical rich white man who might be undercover or filming a reality show.

So the only path left was to perform physical labor. Big cities offer a wide range of job opportunities. As long as you're a white person with no history of drug abuse, significant illnesses, and good credit, it's highly probable you can find a job in manual labor.

Soon, Bruce found a job at a construction site indicated in an advertisement. The work was not difficult. Essentially, he had to transport materials in a wheelbarrow– anything from cement, steel pipes, to rubble.

The pay was modest, raising the minimum hourly wage by only two dollars, but it was paid daily and didn't have strict workload requirements. It was simply a regular manual labor gig.

Upon setting foot on the construction site, Bruce noticed something odd– no one questioned his appearance.

Which is actually unusual, because Bruce typified the look of a well-off Caucasian– his skin was not an unhealthy white but rather a slightly deeper light brown. His thick black hair stood tall, his eyes were clear without any red blood vessels, and he exuded the aura of someone with a healthy lifestyle.

People like him usually aren't one economic downturn away from unemployment, forced to perform physical labor. Rather, they are the fat cats raking in big bucks when everyone else is unemployed.

People like him would normally be discouraged to work on a construction site. People would think, "Oh, look, another big shot here to experience life, either to experience hardship or scheme tax evasion methods."

Workers worldwide share the same sentiment. They know exactly who is exploiting them. Ordinarily, they just vent online without any personal interaction. But, if these exploiters come to their faces asking whether their shit smells good, they won't hesitate to start a fight.

Hence, Bruce was already prepared for a showdown. He even brought an extra jacket, just in case his clothes got dirty.

But surprisingly, neither the job recruiter nor his coworkers showed any surprise at his appearance. It definitely wasn't feigned, they simply seemed to find it normal.

Upon entering the site, Bruce was even more surprised. Standing there, he was not considered outstanding in terms of appearance.

The workers moving in front of him ranged from looking like Tom Cruise to Brad Pitt if they were white, and Charles Davis or Will Smith if they were black.

What they all had in common was their explosively muscular bodies, towering stature, wide shoulders, long legs, slender waists, and even the perfect curvature of their hair.

Bruce even found it hard to look straight at the site supervisor, who looked a lot like Nicole Kidman, up close, explaining the job details to him.

Bruce felt slightly lost. Is it possible that humans in their universe are not just the weakest but also the ugliest among all the universes? Does that even make any sense?

Of course, it's also possible that in the evolutionary process of this universe, the human race developed a divergent path, which is everyone looking more aesthetically pleasing. But what's the deal with those bodies?

Even if each one of them was extremely self-disciplined, working out day and night just to have a good figure, anyone with a bit of fitness knowledge would know that there's a limit to natural bodybuilding.

The best outcome most fitness enthusiasts can achieve with a limited time is definitive, but the muscle mass of these people in front of me, if not enhanced with any drugs, then they must all be natural bodybuilding prodigies. Some could even challenge the bodybuilding world, which is clearly impossible.

While working, Bruce noticed more anomalies.

Theoretically, while a lean person may not necessarily be weak, a muscular man is definitely strong. There is no such thing as 'dead muscles' in this world. As long as muscles exist, they always bring strength.

It's even more impossible for a muscle man who works out daily and is all muscles and tendons to lose to a skinny man, even if the muscular man's muscles were developed in a gym.

Even those who use drugs for bodybuilding, the muscles they develop while the drugs are effective are real, and the power they can possess is definitely not small.

The growth of human muscles is a gradual process. Muscles trained properly become familiar with the way force is applied over time. Therefore, there's really no such thing as being large but inflexible, or not agile enough.

In reality, muscle memory is much stronger than humans can imagine. If a person can develop himself into a big guy full of muscles, he would have already adapted to the existence of those muscles during training and can use them freely. In fact, due to the sufficient muscle power, he would become faster.

However, Bruce observed that the construction workers he was observing have an incoordination sense consistent with someone who just adapted to their newly developed limbs, as if they're not used to their muscles.

Bruce's muscles were also developed in the gym, but the first time he had a real fight, he may not have had enough combat experience, but he certainly didn't go through the phase of needing to readapt to his muscles outside of the gym.

But hey, these guys pushing wheelbarrows at the work site are all over the place, falling head over heels.

Some squat and thrust with both arms, surprisingly launching the wheelbarrow filled with just two bags of mortar. Others, attempting to correct a slightly tilted wheelbarrow, end up accidentally dumping their load. The main issue seems to be overexertion.

As Bruce shifted bricks and observed these people, he grew more uncomfortable. So, taking advantage of a break before the next batch of goods arrived, he decided to strike up a conversation.

"Hey buddy, I'm new here. I'll be straight with you, my bills are giving me a headache lately. So, I'm wondering how long this job lasts? I'm hoping to get my daughter a gift for Thanksgiving."

The two men, leaning against the excavator, looked at Bruce, then said: "Didn't the foreman tell you? They're building two new water plants here. It's going to take at least six months to lay all the pipes, so there'll be a lot of work."

Bruce's eyes widened slightly. He looked around, noticing that this wasn't a suburb. Why build water plants here?

Even if they were to build water plants, wouldn't it be better to connect them to the existing pipes, rather than digging up the old pipes and replacing them with new ones? Or was it that this neighbourhood wasn't connected to the water supply at all?

The two men seemed to notice Bruce's confusion. They gestured and said: "We don't exactly understand the details either, but it seems that the water pipes here are too thin and narrow, prone to blockages. So, they want to replace them with wider pipes."

Bruce was even more puzzled. He may not be at the same level as those prodigies, but it's not like he didn't go to school. The efficiency of water supply and pipe diameter are unrelated. Besides, no one plans to create artificial waterfalls at home. Why would such a large water supply be needed?

Bruce felt that there was something strange in this universe, but he could not pinpoint what it was. However, he decided to focus on earning today's wages first. After having dinner and refuelling his car, he didn't have much money left. He still had three meals to worry about for tomorrow.

Bruce worked until the evening, and since he only came for half a day, he could only receive half-day wages. But he didn't complain as he queued up to get his money. While standing in line, he noticed a few individuals walking around the area where they had been moving things earlier in the day.

The others acted like they hadn't seen this, or they simply didn't care. Bruce, still adjusting, was shocked. Wasn't the city's people's vigilance quite poor? What if they were there to plant a bomb? What if they were going to poison something? At the very least, what if they were trying to steal something?

Hailing from Gotham City, Bruce had a basic sense of alertness. He decided to check the place again later in the evening after the work site was closed. If they were indeed planting a bomb or planning something big, he might be able to spot it and solve the problem in advance.

Being a novice has its advantages. This Batman knew that defeating the Ultimate Iron Man right from the start was an impossibility. Even if he had a whole year to prepare, he might not even get close to encountering the Ultimate Iron Man, so he had no plans to head directly to the Boss room. He'd first take care of the minor enemies.

As a result, he really stumbled upon something. As dusk was setting in and the light was starting to dim, the people who had been wandering around during the day, joined by a group of people who clearly weren't physical laborers and looked more like scientists, arrived at the place they'd been loitering during the day.

Meanwhile, Bruce was hiding behind a simple security booth, watching them take several test tubes out of a box. Bruce, with his sharp eyes, noticed that a series of numbers were engraved under each test tube.