Chapter Eighteen: Teammates

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Aboard the helicopter, Mo Wen, aware that the company helicopter’s speed meant the entire journey would take only a few minutes, carefully stored away the Dream Maker Model II for future use and gazed down at the endless yellow sands below.

It wasn’t just near Xisode City; it seemed that almost all areas outside the cities had suffered ecological collapse during the past corporate wars, leaving the environment struggling to recover.

Beside him, Ren Sisi, like a curious child, kept firing questions at him. “Did you really just switch to military-grade prosthetics? No personal modifications at all, incredibly plain, yet you operate them so skillfully.”

“What’s your psychic ability? Super acceleration? Is it like the speedsters in comics, or is it some form of time acceleration?”

“Why don’t you carry any equipment? Also, I scanned a large amount of biological tissue inside you. How do they coexist with your prosthetics? Is this new technology or your psychic effect? What’s that 20-centimeter strip inside you? It looks so unusual!”

Faced with this barrage of questions, Mo Wen, like the Phantom beside him, chose silence.

The Dragon Sword Ninja took over and did what he wanted to do himself; he knocked heavily on Ren Sisi’s head, this time hard enough to make her cry out in pain. “Stop scanning! You’re invading personal privacy!”

Still, he truly hadn’t expected the newcomer to be one of the reproductive purists, which was rare even among the cyborgized old humans.

For the new humans, technology and civilization were the true heritage. They had already overcome genetic flaws to some extent, and reproductive worship had become a thing of the past. They no longer suffered from the old human mating seasons.

Although some new humans still engaged in sexual reproduction, their numbers were few. After all, such primitive behavior was less efficient than gene splicing and artificial gestation, and less pleasurable than empathy and direct neural stimulation—merely traditional.

Once fully upgraded with military-grade prosthetics, they cared even less about such useless things.

Thinking this, he turned his head just in time to see Mo Wen opening his abdomen. “You mean my psychic root?”

What kind of term was “psychic root” anyway? Don’t just expose such things in front of a girl! The Dragon Sword Ninja wanted to scold Mo Wen loudly, but seeing the strip inside his abdomen—looking like biological tissue yet possessing a metallic quality, continuously producing fibrous material that entwined everything around—it stopped himself.

That thing was truly extraordinary, no wonder Ren Sisi wanted to examine it.

No, this kind of specialized personal modification was irrelevant!

“Forget about that. Let’s talk about the mission first.”

“This mission is very simple. A client close to Dream Maker Entertainment will hold an event on the outskirts of a contentious city, culminating in a public speech. At that point, he expects to be attacked by a mob.”

“You, the newcomer, probably haven’t been to other cities before. The psychological suggestion devices in contentious cities are far less effective than those under Dream Maker Entertainment. While they can generally keep people calm, they cannot enforce near-mandatory peace.”

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“This client plans to deliver some extreme remarks about old human values. Although it’s widely accepted that new humans have replaced old humans, radical elements still lurk in certain areas.”

“To some extent, this client is baiting with himself as the lure.”

“If a riot breaks out, the company will have justification to intervene deeply, installing devices under the pretext of promoting peace and reducing violent behavior. If there’s an assassin, all the better—they’d have caught a big fish.”

The Phantom added, “However, a certain probability of problems means that most likely, nothing will happen.”

“The meaning of this mission—‘company maintaining order’—is far more important than the actual act of ‘company sending out military-grade cyborgs to maintain order.’”

“On the contrary, if during ‘company maintaining order’ the newcomer loses control and strikes too decisively, smashing someone before things escalate and turning the scene into a bloodbath, exacerbating the situation—that’s a bigger problem.”

“But you, newcomer, don’t seem like someone who can’t control their power.”

“Compared to that, have you thought about what equipment you want to use in the future? The captain and I specialize in humans, skilled at hunting other military-grade cyborgs. Ren Sisi specializes in electronic warfare—due to her psychic ability, she can directly interfere with disconnected machines.”

“Our team lacks heavy firepower units. But usually, we don’t need such specialization. Even if a war breaks out, it’s likely the domain of drone operators or giant war machine pilots.”

Mo Wen pondered briefly and decided to be honest. “I don’t think a four-person squad suits me very well. I’m more of a lone wolf.”

The Dragon Sword Ninja was indifferent. “No problem. Fight how you like. Actually, the squad system isn’t that necessary. Just keep in touch with us, give a heads-up before missions, and have some reason for it.”

“In the field department, it’s not unusual for four people with different styles to work separately, but openly refusing under the rules is disruptive.”

Ren Sisi, however, grew serious. “Do you have an innate genetic defect?”

New humans excelled in many areas compared to old humans, but surviving alone didn’t mean they liked solitude. Differences in style didn’t mean they weren’t friends.

Yet this newcomer, after brief contact, gave her a clear sense of distance.

The Dragon Sword Ninja sighed helplessly. “Ren Sisi, didn’t you read the newcomer’s background? He’s not a new human.”

In the next moment, Ren Sisi’s carefully serious expression dissolved into one that was hard for Mo Wen to describe.

Perhaps a mixture of maternal love and pity?

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“I see…” She lowered her head and was silent for a few breaths. When she raised it again, it was full of fighting spirit, even her artificial eye’s brightness increased. “Don’t worry, we will definitely help you integrate into society and enjoy a real life!”

“Right now, you’re no longer a homeless person without work or value.”

Girl, what exactly are you thinking?!

Mo Wen said earnestly, “There’s no need. I think it’s fine as it is.”

“If you really want to help me, just recommend more ways to ‘quickly learn knowledge’ and ‘enhance personal combat ability.’”

Ren Sisi was unwilling to give up. She was visibly annoyed, clearly wanting to say more and correct Mo Wen’s mindset, but Mo Wen wasn’t keen on arguing.

“The helicopter has stopped. We’ve arrived at our destination. Let’s get down and start the mission.”

With that, Mo Wen leapt down.

In the helicopter, the three exchanged glances.

After a moment, the Dragon Sword Ninja couldn’t help but ask, “Do you understand why he jumped down directly instead of waiting for the helicopter to land?”

The Phantom guessed, “Can’t stand someone?”

“You might as well just say my name!” Ren Sisi was slightly annoyed, but after her anger, she seriously speculated on Mo Wen’s reason. “Maybe he thinks it looks cooler to land like that?”

The Dragon Sword Ninja blinked. “So, do you think you should be responsible for the repair costs caused by his impact on the ground, or should he pay?”

“The field department can cause damage during combat, but damaging public property without cause comes with hefty fines.”