Ch 185: The Cannon Fodder Won’t Play Along Anymore [QT]

That sentence meant that the higher-ups had completely believed what Mu Xing said and had decided to start preparations ahead of schedule.

By the timeline, there was still a month and a half before the large-scale awakening of ability users described in the original plot.

A month and a half was more than enough for such a massive state apparatus to mobilize, put all measures in place, and be ready for any sudden developments to come.

Mu Xing bit into an apple, sweet juice filling his mouth.

He smiled with crescent eyes. “Trust me, you won’t regret this.”

He recalled scenes from his dreams. “Major, I think you should also prepare in advance. If my dreams aren’t wrong, both you and Yu Wei will awaken abilities too.”

It was unlikely that the headquarters of Organization Zero would send just a team of ordinary people to launch an attack.

Gu Zhao nodded. “Don’t worry.”

“Oh, right.” With the biggest matter already settled, Mu Xing remembered his enemies. “Those two foreigners who tried to kidnap me—did you catch them?”

Yu Wei got angry at once. “Don’t mention it—just barely missed them! They had accomplices helping, and the IDs they left behind were all fake.”

Gu Zhao looked at Mu Xing thoughtfully. “You’re bringing them up specifically. Do you have information? And why would they target you for kidnapping?”

After all, aside from Mu Xing, no one else should have known about awakened people yet.

Mu Xing didn’t reveal the original plot. Half-truthfully he said, “I know why. They’d heard about something unusual in me and got interested.”

“As for their identity, when I was lying in bed, they didn’t realize how sharp my hearing was. I overheard them chatting at the elevator.”

Mu Xing continued, “I heard them mention ‘Organization Zero,’ wanting to take me for research.”

“Organization Zero? You didn’t mishear?” Yu Wei was shocked. “How dare they reach this far!”

Mu Xing was surprised. “You know about them?”

Yu Wei made a disgusted face. “Of course. That group is nothing but maniacs and criminals, they’ve caused trouble in many countries. The whole organization is on the international most-wanted list.”

He looked at Mu Xing worriedly. “Our country’s control is strict, and their main activities have never been here. Who would have thought they’d set their sights on you.”

Mu Xing shook his head. “I’m not afraid of them anymore.”

The original him had suffered because he’d let down his guard and was caught during the dangerous awakening period, giving them the chance.

But things were different now.

It wasn’t overconfidence—Mu Xing truly felt his strength had become outrageous.

Not only had his body’s overall qualities been enhanced several times over, but with his spatial ability and plant ability, in one-on-one combat even Gu Zhao wasn’t his match.

How had they been testing Mu Xing’s abilities these days?

Besides instruments, the special forces team had basically taken turns acting as punching bags, training with him so he could get used to his powers faster.

Still, Mu Xing could feel that since that day, Gu Zhao and Yu Wei had started treating him with noticeably greater caution.

But Organization Zero never came back for him again. They didn’t know the truth—at first they’d targeted Mu Xing only because of what Xu Hui said, finding him “interesting.”

Once Mu Xing disappeared and the police were alerted, retreating early was the only wise choice.

That day, Mu Xing had just arrived at the research institute to run tests with his familiar Dr. Lin, when an elderly man wearing glasses suddenly walked out from the side.

Dr. Lin immediately showed deep respect. “Scholar Zhang.”

Mu Xing didn’t know him, but seeing Dr. Lin’s attitude, he obediently followed suit. “Scholar Zhang.”

Scholar Zhang smiled warmly at Mu Xing, his gaze so affectionate that Mu Xing almost thought he’d been reunited with a long-lost grandson.

“Xiao Lin, how much longer will this check take?”

Dr. Lin said, “Today we’re just comparing Mu Xing’s physical and ability data with yesterday’s, it’ll be quick.”

By now there was little need for blood tests, but they still recorded his powers and body data in real time. They needed a clear conclusion: did awakening abilities transform the body all at once, or did they optimize it continuously over time?

As Dr. Lin led Mu Xing inside, he casually pulled a piece of chocolate from his pocket and handed it over.

“Thank you, Dr. Lin.” Mu Xing thanked him politely, so sweet and well-behaved that Dr. Lin couldn’t help but ruffle the soft hair on his head.

Everyone at the institute liked Mu Xing. The kid was simply too good.

And as one of the few who knew about his identity and unique powers, they were deeply moved when they learned that after awakening, Mu Xing had been the one to proactively contact the authorities and volunteer to cooperate with research—hoping the state could prepare early to prevent social unrest.

That level of awareness—many of them, even after living most of their lives, might not be as clear-headed and rational as this young man in his twenties.

Not to mention, with his naturally smiling face and the way he politely called everyone uncle or elder, who wouldn’t like him?

After finishing the tests, Dr. Lin escorted him out. Before he could say anything, Scholar Zhang—who was supposed to be drinking tea in the reception room—suddenly popped out from the side and grabbed Mu Xing’s hand.

“Xiao Mu Xing, are you free right now? Come take a walk with Grandpa Zhang?”

Mu Xing: “?”

Though surprised, Mu Xing liked the aura of integrity and calmness surrounding Scholar Zhang, so he didn’t refuse.

As they walked, Scholar Zhang chatted with him. “Xiao Mu Xing, a few days ago, didn’t a lot of plants suddenly appear in your house? We brought back many samples for research. Among them were several fruits. We don’t know how your ability managed to merge so many different plant species, but one of the fruits we analyzed had nutritional value higher than any plant currently known in the world.”

Mu Xing looked at the fruit and realized it was from the top of that mutated rose tree that had grown several meters tall.

He finally understood why Scholar Zhang had called him over.

They wanted to cultivate this new variety. But since the fruit was too complex, they couldn’t figure out how, so they had brought Mu Xing to see if he had a way.

Mu Xing: “…”

He said awkwardly, “At that time, I was in deep sleep. It must have been uncontrolled leakage of my ability that caused it.”

In other words, he had no idea how those plants had fused so perfectly and borne fruit so quickly.

Scholar Zhang wasn’t too surprised. If such a high-quality, valuable new species appeared easily, now that would be strange.

Still, this gave Mu Xing inspiration.

He began trying to apply his plant powers in a completely new direction.

Soon, everyone knew: the famous Mu Xing was now practically squatting at the Agricultural Institute every day.

For the first time, Mu Xing discovered new ways to use his plant abilities.

He could freely fuse multiple plant species together, making them perfectly integrate and produce brand-new fruits or flowers.

After many experiments, he found that fusing only two species had the highest success rate, and the resulting fruits or flowers were usually “high quality.” With three or more species, the chance of a viable product dropped.

As for preserving seeds and ensuring they could reproduce—that became the Agricultural Institute’s responsibility.

Mu Xing became addicted. He even requested his own special test field at the institute, spending all his time experimenting.

When Gu Zhao came to find him, Mu Xing was crouched on the ground digging something up, with a basket beside him holding three or four green-skinned tubers.

Gu Zhao squinted—hmm, sweet potatoes?

Mu Xing saw him, dug out two more from the ground, and without caring that his hands were muddy, asked, “Major, what brings you here?”

He lifted the basket. “These are my new treasures. I’ll send them to Grandpa Zhang later for testing.”

Gu Zhao already knew what Mu Xing had been up to. In fact, everyone who knew his identity paid special attention to his whereabouts.

They all wondered: what would such a powerful ability user want to do? With strength like his, surely he wouldn’t be satisfied living like an ordinary person.

But Mu Xing was.

He was even more down-to-earth than most ordinary people.

He fell in love with farming, running to the Agricultural Institute every day—almost moving in there.

Seeing him like this, many people felt reassured.

Because no matter how friendly such a powerful, extraordinary person appeared, it was hard not to feel uneasy.

The fact that Gu Zhao, Qin Ying, and the others never relaxed in their “protection” of him said it all.

Mu Xing knew what they were thinking, but he didn’t mind.

He understood ordinary people’s wariness and fear of the unknown.

Besides, it was only temporary.

Right now, he was the only one like this in the whole world, so of course everyone’s attention focused on him.

Once it all began, once thousands, tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands of ability users appeared—his existence would no longer be anything special.

Gu Zhao’s tone was tense. “We’ve found the first person showing recurring fever symptoms.”

Mu Xing’s spirit jolted.

By his calculation, it was true. Nearly two months had passed since he had first contacted Gu Zhao.

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