Chapter 161 Painted Body Swallowing Charcoal (10)
Lucico generously told her that after the victory in the War of Intoli, Pigne would control the superhumans, and the worship of superhumans would become a thing of the past. In its place would be a new generation developed using Pandora's weapons, and Pandora would occupy a more important place in human life.
Who would resist water? Resist food? Resist everything needed to survive?
Once they obtain Intori, Intori's 'Peo' will no longer be a mystery. At that time, everyone can freely become a superhuman through 'Peo,' and the conflict between superhumans and natural people will no longer exist—that's what they naturally thought.
Support what is beneficial to oneself and eliminate what is a threat to oneself.
Now, even before the war is over, these politicians have already begun to divide up the spoils of victory.
Lu Ling stared at her longingly, ignoring all her work.
Shu Ningmiao handed her the documents: "These have already been organized."
Before being transferred, she had to go back to the office to tidy up her workstation and finish up some other tasks.
Lu Ling felt like she was dreaming, and also a little sad: "Why did you leave so soon? I'll miss you."
"They're still in the same building." Shu Ningmiao glanced at her from the screen: "They're not that far apart."
The current Minister of the Army, Kovina, is on Lucicolai's side and went through the fast track. Her identification documents were processed quickly. The system for the operatives is not complicated, only divided into officially designated operatives and candidates. The candidates are similar to the reserves like Lux, and their overall rights are not much different. They are already at the top of the pyramid of Pinnechian ability users.
Lucico was willing to grant her such great favors mainly because only those in power could legally carry weapons inside the Union Building.
In order to ensure that the procedures are legal and compliant on the surface, she must join the system of agents. After the handover is completed, she will soon be seconded to the team she represents to be responsible for protecting Lucico's safety.
Lu Ling still found it unbelievable: "How could joining an Actor be so simple? You're still in school, aren't you?"
Sun Chongqing didn't seem surprised at all. He tapped Lu Ling's head with the folder and said with dissatisfaction, "You should try harder too, stop slacking off here."
Shu Ningmiao greeted her former boss. She hadn't brought much with her, so she quickly packed up all the documents and restored the desktop to its original state. When she saw Sun Chongqing's scrutinizing gaze, she looked away without saying a word.
Given how thorough she was when she first arrived, and how she would say a few polite words to thank him for taking care of her, Sun Chongqing was a shrewd person and could tell that Shu Ningmiao was somewhat displeased with her scheming.
Sun Chongqing sighed: "This is also giving you an opportunity. Just seize it."
Shu Ningmiao responded to her words with a normal expression and left the city planning office. The elevator went up to the top floor, which was the rest room for the operators, but she didn't go to the top floor—anyway, Lucico had given her a convenient identity, and she was more free now, so she might as well make the most of it.
She turned and walked openly into Weston's office, where he berated her mercilessly.
His face darkened further, and his first words were: "What did you promise Lucicolet?"
She was immune to Weston's attacks, letting them go in one ear and out the other. Weston grabbed her ear: "How could he transfer you to his side?"
"How did you know?" Shu Ningmiao leaned back on the sofa, lying on her side and pressing down on the cushions.
“The entire council knows.” Weston sat down beside her, his tone laced with sarcasm: “Who do you think Lucicolai is? And what kind of place is the Envoy? Shu Ningmiao, this isn’t a campus anymore… Do you even realize how dangerous he is? Use your almond-sized brain to think about it. The danger of people is never just about force.”
Shu Ningmiao closed her eyes and refused to look at him: "Any research carries risks, so you're not going to do any research?"
"Don't argue with me like that!" Weston gritted his teeth and spat out the words. He was annoyed by her feigned death and reached out to tug at her cushion. She pulled it back and curled up on the sofa, not moving an inch.
He took a deep breath and crossed his arms: "I've already started looking into it for you. I've made some discoveries in the experimental data from previous years about the Lanxi you're looking for."
Shu Ningmiao opened her eyes instantly, pressed her hands against the pillow and stared at him. Weston only glanced at her, and his anger subsided by half.
He tossed the terminal key to her, strode to the other side, and Shu Ningmiao reached out to take the electronic key and skillfully activated the terminal.
A huge full-screen advertisement popped up when the terminal was turned on, and it stayed for seven or eight seconds without being able to skip it. This seemed to be a new addition to all of Pinhe's desktop terminals. She also had it on the terminal in the city planning office. It featured a photo of a silver-haired man and was equipped with conscription and donation hotlines. Although he was wearing a uniform military uniform, it seemed to look better on him. People are always more forgiving of good-looking people.
To be honest, she was already tired of seeing Zhao's face. There were posters of Zhao hanging in the elevator, and every day on her way home, she could see large advertisements of Zhao outside the window. The idol-like man showed a charming smile, attracting boys and girls to fantasize about becoming like him. The fact that an active-duty soldier had national-level popularity and fans was a morbid phenomenon unique to Pinheis.
Weston, with his arms crossed behind her, also looked at the terminal screen and scoffed, "A nation of idiots idolizing an idiot hero."
Shu Ningmiao tapped the keyboard: "Did you find any trace of Lanxi?"
“Start with the report you got.” When talking about his field, Weston’s eyes became focused: “Although this person’s existence has been deliberately erased, I pulled up the data from all the research centers over the years, traced the source through the encryption of this report, and conducted a large number of screenings and comparisons, and found thirty-nine similar reports.”
“These reports come from various research sites in Pinhes, including smaller sites that have been shut down, such as A197, and Pingyi,” Weston analyzed. “The reports from Pingyi are the most numerous, indicating that his experiments were most successful there. I suspect it might be because the people of Pingyi generally have awakened psychic abilities and have the best tolerance for his experimental agents.”
Shu Ning pondered, "The substance he's injecting will have a psychological effect on people..."
An answer was about to emerge in her mind.
"So after his experiment failed, it created something called 'Contaminant'?" She frowned. "The course of the disease in these experimental subjects changed from death to mutation, and they also differentiated into two types that are of the same origin but show different manifestations: 'Manra Disease Patients' and 'Contaminants'. Because it is impossible to conduct large-scale human experiments, 'Contaminants' are currently mainly other organisms."
What kind of mad scientist is Lanxi? In the memories of Wei Shengqianheng and Edwina, he seemed like a normal person, not like the crazy Wei Shengqianheng. He didn't seem to be developing biological weapons. His original intention was to crack Pandora and Manra disease, so why did it turn out like this?
"Smart, but that's not what I'm talking about. In short, whatever his purpose was, his experiment has failed. Manla's disease has not been alleviated at all, and the contamination has led to even more serious consequences."
Weston said, "Assuming he's still alive, as you say, where would he be now?"
Shu Ningmiao curled her fingertips and pressed them against her temples: "I don't know."
If she knew where Lanxi was, she would have arrested him long ago. She couldn't do anything about Weisheng Qianheng, so could she not do anything about Lanxi either? There has to be a breakthrough, right?
“Pingyi,” Weston said with certainty. “He must be in Pingyi.”
"Why?"
“Because he’s a researcher, and so am I.” Weston tapped his temple. “If it were me, I wouldn’t accept such a failure. As long as I’m alive, I’ll find a way to clean up the mess I’ve made. He will definitely go back to Pingyi, and he can only go back to Pingyi. Since the mental resilience of the people of Pingyi allows his experiments to yield results several times greater than before, he won’t stay anywhere else; that wouldn’t be efficient.”
"What's this, some kind of mutual appreciation between mad scientists?"
"That's called putting yourself in someone else's shoes."
Shu Ningmiao leaned back in her chair and spun around in front of Weston, clearly having a headache.
That's the real problem.
If she were in Pigne, things would be easier; she could hire someone to investigate. But in Pingyi, it wouldn't be so simple. The war in Pigne had caused half of the shipping routes to stop, and Pingyi was still an unstable region. Most importantly, the current situation did not allow her to leave Pigne at all costs.
"Never mind." Shu Ningmiao made a decisive decision. Reality didn't allow for a choice between the two. If she ran away now, she would definitely be blacklisted by Lucico and Pinheis: "I'm going upstairs to report for duty?"
"Wait a minute." Weston was at a loss with her: "Be careful, weapons made of insulating crystals have already begun to be deployed. The research center's biggest research project right now is insulating crystals, and their power is incomparable to that of the experimental ones."
Shu Ningmiao raised an eyebrow slightly, her expression frighteningly calm.
She certainly knew about this, and she also knew something Weston didn't: the Stone Weapons had already been used in actual combat in Gab. From Yu'an's description, she could deduce that it was at least a high-explosive Stone Weapon. Yu'an's power was fire, and he was also fire-loving; an ordinary explosion couldn't have left such irreversible marks on his skin. It could only be corrosion caused by the Stone.
The larger the weapon's strike range, the harder it is for ordinary people to dodge.
The insulating crystal, also known as the foundation stone, is currently the only weapon capable of suppressing superhumans, and its implementation is inevitable. When it comes to the specialized research and development stage, it is impossible to bypass Weston, who is, after all, one of Pinnechs' top researchers.
"You're also going to participate in weapons development?" Shu Ningmiao frowned.
“I’m just an honorary advisor. After all, I’m a congressman now, not entirely part of the research center,” Weston said sarcastically. “There’s a dedicated weapons department that sends me about two hundred emails a week with questions.”
Weston picked up an irregularly shaped, transparent blue stone from his desk with his fingertips. The stone, about the size of a fingernail, refracted the sunlight that streamed in, like a beautiful ornament: "This is an insulating crystal ornament that the research center gave to all the members of parliament. This is the focus of Pinheis's next development."
Shu Ningmiao rested her chin on her hand and examined the insulating crystal from behind. It was beautiful, but also dangerous: "If the insulating crystal is mined in large quantities like Pandora, will there be any side effects?"
If Manla disease is related to Pandora, what would be the consequences of destroying the foundation stone?
“How would I know?” Weston smiled sarcastically. “People won’t stop digging until they’ve dug all the way to the Earth’s core. The good news is we won’t live to see that day.”
Shu Ningmiao wanted to say something more, but was interrupted by the vibration of the terminal.
She opened her terminal and saw a message from Erici, containing only three excited exclamation marks, the meaning of which was self-evident.
You An acted faster than she expected; perhaps he had been hiding some of his abilities on that day in Jingshan.
Shu Ningmiao put away the terminal and simply gave Weston a goodbye gesture.
The elevator went up and stopped at the top floor.
Hmm... the executive lounge, the council meeting room, the representative's office, Shu Ningmiao kept sketching out every corner and entrance of the floor in her mind.
The secretary from the administration office took the initiative to come over and guide her in that direction, stealing a glance at her out of the corner of her eye: "Your Excellency, the Administrator."
Shu Ningmiao gave her a complicated look.
Fate is always unpredictable. When she told Yelüqi with unwavering resolve in Cornunus that she did not want to be the executor, she could never have imagined that today would come.
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