Ch 136: TGCIR

When the screen’s brightness returned to normal, Shen Cheng’s eyes finally adjusted, and she could clearly see the scene in front of her: the environment hadn’t changed, but she had.

Her status was marked as ‘Abnormal Condition,’ and all of her skills were displayed as sealed.

She couldn’t use any of her skills at all. Shen Cheng checked and saw that the only skill left unsealed was ‘Shapeshift’—likely because it was a racial ability, so it hadn’t been sealed.

With her shapeshifting ability still available and remembering how strong her bear form’s physical power was, Shen Cheng didn’t panic too much.

Although she was anxious, when Xia Jinshi approached, she feigned a frightened expression, letting out a small, scared squeal, “What do you want? What did you do to me?”

Xia Jinshi crouched down, reaching out with his finger to poke Shen Cheng’s cheek—a gesture that was clearly inappropriate, yet his gaze was focused and serious, with less of a teasing expression and more of a curious one.

Shen Cheng was angry, but she wanted to see what he was planning, so she didn’t resist right away. The only thing her bear form could rely on was its brute strength, and if her other skills were still sealed, it was best to confirm her situation before acting.

She let out a low grunt, turned her head away, and endured without resisting.

Xia Jinshi grabbed her chin.

Perhaps because he was confident in his ability to keep her in an ‘abnormal condition,’ Xia Jinshi didn’t apply any further restraints. Instead, he rubbed his fingers together, feeling the texture of her skin, which didn’t differ much from that of an ordinary human. He adjusted his glasses, his face showing a curious and interested expression.

A man who had been waiting outside, holding a tray of tools, stepped in.

Xia Jinshi said to him, “Bring me the knife.”

Shen Cheng’s face displayed an appropriate mix of anger and humiliation.

She opened her mouth, glaring angrily at the man in front of her.

Xia Jinshi wasn’t in a hurry.

He studied her face, then spoke to another person who had just lifted the tent flap, carrying a notebook, “There’s no difference in touch, energy levels, or cognitive function from an ordinary human.”

He then raised Shen Cheng’s chin, carefully examining her pupils, and remarked calmly, “The soul seems to be within this body. I suspect this body might just be a form of energy projection.”

Xia Jinshi’s hand holding the knife moved steadily as he made a small incision on Shen Cheng’s skin, extracting a tiny amount of blood, which he then began analyzing for its components and properties.

“This energy…” As they conducted their tests, Xia Jinshi’s face showed increasing delight. “It’s perfect. Record this.”

His expression was one of fascination, and even though Shen Cheng was just a Q-version avatar, seeing this kind of chilling expression made her shiver with discomfort.

She had been waiting for a flaw, even the smallest one.

With another world within reach and his research finally showing progress, Xia Jinshi’s thoughts wandered for just a second.

His lips curved slightly in a rare display of joy.

But in that instant, Xia Jinshi suddenly felt a chill down his spine. He heard a ripping sound as the woman he thought he had completely under control suddenly burst out of her clothes, transforming into a giant bear that swung a massive paw right at him!

This swipe was powerful and fast, and Shen Cheng knew that she might only have this one chance.

Just a moment ago, she had seen Xia Jinshi’s attention flicker towards the data on the instrument, and in that brief moment of distraction, she instantly activated her shapeshifting ability and lunged at him.

Unfortunately, Xia Jinshi’s vigilance was high. His immediate reaction was to dodge slightly, so instead of hitting his throat as intended, the paw tore a large gash in his clothes. But what Shen Cheng saw on the screen made her eyes widen involuntarily: beneath Xia Jinshi’s neatly tailored shirt was a cold gleam of steel and iron!

A sharp “crack” was heard, and when Shen Cheng looked at her bear paw, she noticed one of her claws had broken.

What kind of defense could reflect the force of a blow that could send an adult flying and even break one of her claws?

In an instant, she recalled what Fu Yanzhou had once said: “Senior Brother modified himself to gain more power.”

His words echoed in her mind, and she realized that beneath Xia Jinshi’s seemingly impeccable exterior, how much of him was still human?

He no longer had a human heart or even maintained a human appearance.

Shen Cheng’s mind raced: there’s an old saying that “those who are not of our kind are sure to have different hearts.” Even if all the researchers at the academy were loyal to Xia Jinshi, what about the others? Once they saw Xia Jinshi’s “secret,” would they still follow him so blindly?

Moreover, Xia Jinshi lacked basic human empathy and had modified himself to this extent. How could he convince the world that he was still human?

In just those few moments, Shen Cheng had already formulated a plan. Xia Jinshi’s face had darkened the moment he realized his back had split open. He never expected that after all the moves she had made earlier without showing any abnormalities, the bear’s swipe was actually a signal to strike!

And the giant bear before him roared to the sky, seemingly unaffected by any of his skills!

At this moment, Shen Cheng quickly typed into the ‘base’ channel, and everyone in Noah’s base heard the broadcast over the radio: “Xia Jinshi is a machine! Spread the word to everyone!”

While she was typing, Xia Jinshi’s arms began to click and whir as they moved, producing mechanical sounds. Shen Cheng immediately noticed a tremor in the screen.

Xia Jinshi looked at the massive bear, a small smile forming at the corner of his mouth. “So, that’s all you’ve got? Continue.”

The bear clawed at the ground, raising a cloud of dust, and with a “roar,” the giant bear’s head charged at Xia Jinshi like a car braking to a halt.

Even though Xia Jinshi feared the power of the bear, he had already braced himself with a defensive energy. However, just as the seemingly clumsy and slow bear was about to reach him, it suddenly veered towards the tent’s pillar.

With a “crack,” the sturdy tent pillar snapped under the bear’s impact. Xia Jinshi hadn’t anticipated this move, and as his vision darkened, he realized he had been tricked by tactics similar to his own. The tent, which had been reinforced with strong materials, now became a complete obstruction, leaving him trapped and unable to break free quickly.

Shen Cheng’s vision, however, remained clear.

The game’s perspective was essentially an omniscient view, allowing her to clearly see Xia Jinshi’s health bar and position. Shen Cheng’s eyes gleamed with determination: if Xia Jinshi usually kept up a polished appearance and maintained a human facade, it meant he knew that his modifications could not be known to others!

She had already sent the message to the base, and now, to turn them against Xia Jinshi, all she needed was to reveal what he didn’t want others to see.

The Druid’s abilities were still sealed, and in battle, the shop was unavailable. Shen Cheng scanned the unused items in her inventory and suddenly spotted one she hadn’t used yet: an incendiary device.

She activated it without hesitation!

As others rushed over, what they saw was a fearsome giant bear paw slamming down on the trigger of the device, sending a stream of flames straight into the tent. Those who witnessed this scene were stunned: Xia Jinshi was still inside the tent!

But he was supposed to be humanity’s savior, the only hope for ending the apocalypse, and their best hope for the future!

Could he be taken out just like that?

Some people collapsed to the ground, crying bitterly, while others stared blankly at the flames, mumbling, “It can’t end like this.”

The health bar in Shen Cheng’s view suddenly surged, turning from yellow to red. A wave of energy rippled across the area, and everyone standing nearby, including Xia Jinshi’s subordinates, were knocked down by the blast. If Shen Cheng hadn’t noticed the telltale signs of an incoming skill and dodged in time, she would likely have been the first to fall in this situation!

When the others looked up, they saw an iron-clad figure with massive transparent wings, floating in the air—a monster.

That’s right, it had angel wings, but everything about it was monstrous.

Shen Cheng stared at the screen in shock: perhaps it was the stark contrast to Xia Jinshi’s previously handsome and refined appearance that made this moment so jarring.

Someone so obsessed with power could do this to their own face?

Xia Jinshi’s entire facade had been burned away, revealing his chest, where the skin had split open, exposing various energy cores and glowing sources inside. Beneath what was once human skin was a still-beating heart, connected to all these components by steel and synthetic fibers. His arms were devoid of any flesh, and embedded screens continuously displayed various parameters.

This was his modification!

“What kind of monster is that?” someone on the ground exclaimed in disbelief.

The others from Noah’s base had already arrived.

Upon hearing these doubts and whispers, Shen Cheng saw someone from Noah’s base shout, “He’s a machine! That’s why he has no humanity! His nuclear bomb isn’t for destroying zombies—it’s to wipe out humanity along with them!”

Xia Jinshi’s expression turned cold.

He glanced at the giant bear on the ground, his wings slowly flapping twice: “It’s a pity that even now, this is the best threat you can come up with.”

He could simply kill everyone present, and his secret would remain safe. After all, when one reaches a certain level of power, all public opinion can be contained at the level of mere whispers.

At that moment, another voice cried out in anguish from the ground.

Shen Cheng followed the sound and saw another person from the base sobbing on the ground.

Pointing angrily at Xia Jinshi’s butterfly-like, semi-transparent wings, they shouted, “Those are my powers!”

As this cry echoed, others who were familiar with the wings began to remember.

There had been a child with flight abilities who loved to show off. Despite the apocalypse, the child maintained a desire to look good, often flying around outside with those wings that many people had seen.

So when they saw the wings on Xia Jinshi’s back, some had already found them familiar, but it wasn’t until that cry that they realized where they had seen them before.

Xia Jinshi merely gazed coldly at the ground, showing no remorse or guilt for the anguished cries. Instead of regret, his face only grew colder. Shen Cheng saw his expression become resolute and icy as he raised his arm and began adjusting his settings.

A thought flashed through Shen Cheng’s mind.

That flash of insight suddenly hit her.

As Xia Jinshi’s wings accelerated, Shen Cheng suddenly realized what had been bothering her earlier: she had seen Xia Jinshi’s “nuclear bomb,” but when she got close to it, there was no health bar.

If the nuclear bomb was an “enemy structure,” even as a weak device, it should have displayed a health bar!

After all, if this mission was to dismantle the nuclear bomb directly, the health bar should have been visible.

But when she saw the bomb, although it was labeled as a nuclear bomb, it had no health bar at all!

The name of that thing was clearly a misdirection!

Perhaps Xia Jinshi did it deliberately, fully aware of the situation!

This also explains why Xia Jinshi was so busy fighting and now adjusting things—because the nuclear bomb was something else, something within himself!

Xia Jinshi had modified his own body to contain the components of a nuclear bomb, installing a system within himself that could be activated by discarding parts of his body when needed!

Therefore, the only condition left to complete the mission was to place the task item and disrupt the detonation of the nuclear bomb.

Shen Cheng’s gaze accurately locked onto Xia Jinshi’s display screen.

Even though she didn’t fully understand how the system operated, seeing the values on the screen nearing critical levels, Shen Cheng knew it was time and shouted, “Director Xia, tell me how to restore Fu Yanzhou to his normal state! Tell me what our world is like! Don’t you want to know? Don’t you want to see it?”

Xia Jinshi was evidently intrigued by the idea of another world.

Shen Cheng knew this was her strongest bargaining chip: a new world. It might also be the only thing Xia Jinshi would be interested in.

She just needed to get close enough, just enough to reach him and complete the mission.

A cold glint flashed in Shen Cheng’s eyes as Xia Jinshi floated in the air, seemingly caught in a moment of indecision. He neither denied nor confirmed her words, simply hovering silently as if hesitating between staying and leaving.

But he was only stalling for time.

🦋🦋🦋🦋🦋