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Chapter 50
“The kind of relationship where I pursue him.”
The Nobel Evolutionist Peace Prize was established in the past two years with the sole purpose of encouraging racial harmony and peaceful coexistence, with nominations limited to within the ranks of evolutionists.
Brice Thorne, the “Bishop” of the Round Table, a prominent compromiser, has always called for restraint and tolerance among powerful evolutionists, urging them not to engage in any conflicts with humans. Although his reason for such calls was the belief that evolutionists were scarce in number and would be exterminated by humans if war were to break out, it objectively helped alleviate racial conflicts, making him a deserving recipient of the award.
The rather dark humor lies in the fact that this time the award was given by Nielsen—everyone knows Nielsen’s pronounced racist tendencies and extreme bias against evolutionists, often exploiting human interests, which was why he was impeached by the Security Council almost daily.
It was one hell of a joke to have a racist present a peace prize to a renowned compromiser, and one could only wonder what Nielsen’s feelings were.
“Senior, are you really sure you don’t need more backup?” Chen Miao personally drove Shen Zhuo to the military airport, wishing he could stuff the entire armed guard of the supervision office into the special plane. “Your gatherings of chief supervisors are hardly ever trouble-free. At the last charity banquet, the South Korean supervisor got into a fight with the South African supervisor, causing an earthquake, all because the latter was holding the sausage with two fingers while eating; at the previous award ceremony, the South Korean supervisor got into a fight with the Roman supervisor, causing an earthquake, all because the latter was holding the sausage with two fingers while eating; the time before that, a journalist went missing at the annual celebration of the General Administration…”
“Did the journalist hold the sausage with two fingers while eating too?” Bai Sheng joked.
“No, the victim was eaten by the Mexican supervisor, who is an S-class with cannibalism tendencies,” Chen Miao said. “He was later relieved of his position and sentenced to lifelong confinement, and we had to specially build a prison for him.”
Bai Sheng indeed recalled the incident. That Mexican S-class had a penchant for cannibalism even before evolution, which was considered a disgrace among the S-class. But the fact that he was caught eating someone at the international general administration’s celebration confirms Chen Miao’s words—the feng shui of the chief supervisor’s gatherings was indeed quite bad.
“No need; it’s just a two-day vacation,” Shen Zhuo said casually, braving the strong wind as he walked toward the private jet. “Besides, isn’t there a civilian volunteer?”
The civilian volunteer, dressed casually in a hoodie and jeans, turned back and courteously greeted the heavily armed guards.
At that moment, Shen Zhuo’s phone suddenly rang. Glancing at the caller ID, he answered and immediately handed the phone to Bai Sheng. “It’s for you.”
Bai Sheng: “?”
Without looking back, Shen Zhuo swiftly ascended the gangway and disappeared into the cabin at an unusual speed. The next second, Bai Sheng heard Chu Yan’s voice tearing through the phone:
“Why didn’t you neutralize the sulfuric acid?! Did you want to kill me by giving me such a big experiment without neutralizing the sulfuric acid?! Surname Yang, don’t come near me; I’m going crazy!! I can’t endure this labor reform for a day anymore; please let me go to jail! If you don’t let me go to jail, you’re forcing me to die—!!”
Immediately after, Bai Sheng’s phone rang too; it was Yang Xiaodao, his voice filled with fear:
“Dad, what should I do? I’ve repeated this experiment twenty times and still haven’t obtained the red precipitate. I suspect Chu Yan is about to have a stroke. Is there anything wrong with adding dilute sulfuric acid to the starch solution, heating it, and then mixing it with copper hydroxide? Could it be that the teacher gave us the wrong experiment?”
Bai Sheng: “…”
Bai Sheng lowered his voice, taking Chu Yan’s phone away and speaking earnestly into his own: “Son, listen to me. Our vast family fortune is likely to be squandered by eighty percent under your watch. The only hope we have left is your sister. Please don’t truly anger her, or you won’t even get a share of the dividends. Do you understand? Can’t you just find a brick and use your abilities to scrape off some red precipitate yourself?”
“!” Yang Xiaodao was suddenly enlightened, repeatedly agreeing before hanging up.
Bai Sheng immediately switched to another phone, his voice dripping with affection. “Daughter, listen to Dad. Life is like a play; if you get sick from anger, there’s no one to replace you. For that red precipitate, why don’t you just find a brick and beat up Yang Xiaodao a bit? When Dad comes back, he’ll buy you a zoo, and you can raise whatever animals you like, okay?”
Chu Yan: “? What did you say? Are you even listening to yourself?! I’ll &@#￥%#… “
Bai Sheng quickly hung up the phone, and found an article titled “The Great Liberation Sutra of Guan Sheng Emperor” to send to Chu Yan, then promptly blocked both of them. He sighed with relief, adjusted his hairstyle in the reflection of the window, ensuring he looked tall and handsome, and entered the cabin feeling refreshed and clear-headed.
***
Purori Island was a renowned tourist destination, famous for its abundant sunshine and lively atmosphere. It was a place where all supervisors would gladly spend a few days— if there was no Nielsen.
The International General Administration booked the largest five-star hotel on the island for the awards ceremony, but the formal banquet wouldn’t start until the next evening.
Shen Zhuo arrived a night early but didn’t head straight to the hotel. Instead, he pondered over a map for a while, specifically found another hotel on the farthest end of the island’s beach, and booked two rooms under his secretary’s name.
“What’s the deal?” Bai Sheng wrapped his arm around his shoulder from behind, his legs stretched out arrogantly: “Why are you so shay,sleeping in separate rooms?”
Shen Zhuo thought to himself that I wouldn’t fall into that situation where I wake up with sore hands and can’t even hold a pen properly again. He closed the map and casually handed it to his secretary, saying, “Most supervisors arriving tonight will likely opt for a discreet hotel, and nobody would willingly start work early. Based on past experiences, places like nightclubs, bars, beaches, and motels are prime spots for running into colleagues. We should avoid arousing suspicion.”
Bai Sheng thought that if you want to avoid suspicion, go ahead. But tonight, when you go to sleep, you’d better lock yourself behind an iron door. Otherwise, you’ll surely wake up in my arms in the middle of the night.
“Oh, by the way,” Shen Zhuo suddenly remembered something: “I didn’t do anything strange to Chief Supervisor Amatullah during my two-day dementia episode, did I?”
“…” Bai Sheng smiled slightly. “I don’t know, what’s wrong?”
“I sent her a memo yesterday, informing her that the fiscal budget for the city of Shanhai is substantial and we cannot provide any economic assistance to the Egyptian jurisdiction. Then she replied to me with this email.”
Shen Zhuo lifted his phone, showing a picture on the screen instead of text.
A small kitten wearing a pink princess dress sat on the ground, wiping tears from its eyes.
“Pfft—” Bai Sheng almost burst out laughing but managed to hold it in.
Shen Zhuo checked the work records, and both his secretary and Shui Ronghua firmly confirmed that everything was normal during the video conference that day. However, he furrowed his brow, rubbing his chin in puzzlement, feeling that Amatullah must have intended to convey some form of mockery, although he couldn’t quite grasp the point of the mockery.
“Perhaps she couldn’t resist sharing a cute picture with her colleagues,” Bai Sheng suggested understandingly.
***
Shen Zhuo chose a hotel located at the other end of the island, as far away from the venue rented by the International Supervision General Administration as possible. By the time they arrived at the hotel, it was already past five o’clock. The local beach was bustling with activity, filled with people in beach shorts and bikinis; big cups of beer were thrown all over the floor with sizzling barbecues on iron racks.
After quickly taking a shower, Bai Sheng, leaving his sturdy upper body bare, put on a pair of beach shorts and a pair of plastic slippers that didn’t look like they cost five figures. He knocked on the door of the neighboring room: “Shen Zhuo! Shen Zhuo!! Shen Zhuo—”
With a whoosh, Shen Zhuo opened the door and met with Bai Sheng holding a lollipop in his mouth, smiling brightly. “Hey, where did this handsome guy come from? Let’s go have a drink.”
Shen Zhuo changed into a white linen shirt and slightly loosened the neckline to reveal his slender neck and a section of his collarbone. Perhaps due to the temperature of over thirty degrees outside, he unusually didn’t put on long pants, revealing his slender legs beneath loose shorts.
“…”
His gaze swept over Bai Sheng’s muscular chest and abdomen, as well as the blood-red S hastily covered by a temporary tattoo below his left collarbone, and he uttered a few words, “Speak properly and put on your clothes.”
Bai Sheng, with his tall stature almost reaching the door frame, innocently scratched the back of his neck. “But isn’t this how the locals dress on the beach?”
Shen Zhuo said coldly, “The locals on the beach are all wearing swimsuits or bikinis. Why don’t you put on a thong for yourself?”
Bai Sheng sighed helplessly, “Form is emptiness; emptiness is form; all phenomena are empty of inherent existence. Your senses are so impure, my benefactor.”1色不异空，空不异色” is a phrase from Buddhist philosophy, specifically from the Heart Sutra (心经), a revered Mahayana Buddhist scripture. It’s commonly translated as “Form is emptiness; emptiness is form. Then he pointed to his lips and said, “Kiss me. Just one kiss, and I’ll do as you say.”
Most hotel guests had gone to the beach, leaving the corridor deserted. From afar, cheerful Spanish songs and the sounds of people laughing and splashing beer could be heard.
Shen Zhuo lowered his eyelashes, seemingly amused, then tilted his head up and lightly brushed Bai Sheng’s nose with his nose.
The next moment, the kiss descended from above, covering him comprehensively, invading and sweeping through. the subtle sound of water stirring deep into the throat, forcefully pushing back all other sounds.
Creak—
The door of the room behind them opened, and three women came out, chatting and laughing.
“How can that waiter’s butt be so perky?” “Seriously, much perkier than Nielsen’s!” “Can we please not mention Nielsen on such a nice day?” “Do you think I should slip that waiter two hundred bucks tonight—”
All sound ceased abruptly.
Across the corridor, two groups of people stared at each other, both looking as if they had seen ghosts.
Shen Zhuo stood frozen in place, with Bai Sheng’s arm tightly around his waist. He tried to pull away, but not fast enough. Bai Sheng tensed his shoulders, instinctively trying to cover his bare upper body in front of the ladies, but it was futile, and the twisting motion only accentuated his well-built and perky butt.
On the other side of the corridor, three women clad in bikinis, carrying beer bottles and surfboards, used temporary tattoos to cover the conspicuous “S” and “A” marks on the backs of their hands. No one walking down the street would ever recognize these three as among the top ten global supervisors.
But Bai Sheng could.
Because one of them he had just seen a few days ago, the second-ranked supervisor globally, Amatullah.
“…”
After a petrifyingly long silence, Amatullah finally forced a laugh, “Hey, handsome, giving kisses out here?”
***
The hotel elevator slowly closed, beginning its descent.
The atmosphere inside the elevator was as stiff as death, with everyone unconsciously looking up at the decreasing numbers from left to right:
Shen Zhuo, Bai Sheng, Amatullah, the third-ranked S-class female supervisor Margot, and the fifth-ranked A-class female supervisor Celine.
Everyone remained motionless, not a single sound escaping their lips.
Ding!
The slowest elevator in history finally reached the ground floor, and the noise of chatter and music rushed in.
Shen Zhuo agilely stepped out of the elevator in a manner completely opposite to his usual demeanor. His face appeared nonchalant, but he disappeared in an instant.
Bai Sheng, now properly attired in a black short-sleeved T-shirt, turned to the ladies with an awkward cough.
“…I have a question.”
Amatullah replied honestly, “Because this hotel is the farthest from the venue on the entire island, minimizing the chances of running into colleagues.”
Bai Sheng thought that it was absolutely right; that’s how we feel too.
“Hey handsome, let’s make a deal.” Amatullah sighed, pushing her chestnut curls back behind her ear and patting Bai Sheng’s shoulder in concession. “Let’s just pretend what happened earlier never happened—no kisses, no waiter, no Nielsen’s butt; and no photos of you two cuddling in the office during that video conference, okay?”
Bai Sheng thought for a moment, then confirmed, “You haven’t shown those photos to anyone else, have you?”
The gazes of the two female supervisors behind Amatullah shifted nervously. “I haven’t.” “Me neither.” “Really, we haven’t!”
“…”
Bai Sheng firmly declared, “Deal!”
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Bai Sheng waved over the waiter with the perkier butt in the whole bar and ordered a drink for each of the three women, along with two hundred dollars each for the waiter to do a lap dance, then slipped away into the crowd.
Shen Zhuo wasn’t in the bar. Given the chief supervisor’s temper, he should probably be discreetly blending in somewhere, pretending to be just an ordinary bystander as if nothing had happened.
After searching the bar fruitlessly and seeing that it was almost seven o’clock, Bai Sheng left the bar and stepped out onto the beach. He took out his mobile phone and scrolled through his call records. He found a call from a few days ago, around three in the morning, and sent a text message in English:
[I’ve already arrived on the island. Can we meet for a chat? Bai Sheng.]
Soon, a reply came from the other side, reflecting in Bai Sheng’s eyes.
[Look to your right.]
Bai Sheng raised his hand to shield his eyes and looked to his side.
His gaze pierced through the emerging lights and the bustling crowd. A cool breeze swept along the coastline, and in the distance, where the dusk enveloped the horizon, the silhouette of an elderly man sat in a wheelchair, peacefully gazing toward the dim blue sky and the last remnants of twilight.
With one hand in his pocket, Bai Sheng walked step by step along the long beach without using his abilities. He smiled and said, “Bishop.”
The aged bishop of the Round Table was very ill. The dark circles under his wrinkled eyes indicated his obvious fatigue, and the back of his hand was bruised from too many intravenous injections. Despite the sweltering weather, he was draped in a woolen sweater.
“Mr. Pardes,” Bai Sheng said, turning to the stern-looking elder with silver hair neatly combed and bowing respectfully.
Pardes was the bishop’s younger brother, but their personalities were completely different. Pardes had always disliked Bai Sheng’s closeness to humans. Last time, he vehemently opposed the bishop’s decision to call Shen Zhuo and provide a method to break the daydream, but to his surprise, Bai Sheng was indeed saved and now stands here smiling. Pardes merely snorted and turned away, pretending not to have seen anything.
Unperturbed, the bishop waved his hand at Pardes and smiled at Bai Sheng. “Young man, isn’t this sunset beautiful? Would you push me for a stroll?”
The gentle waves lapped at the shore, and the noise from the distant bar faded away behind them.
“The last time I managed to escape from that mental ability, it was all thanks to you, Bishop. I haven’t had the chance to thank you in person.” Bai Sheng pushed the wheelchair, strolling along the endless coastline, his voice carried by the wind with a hint of laughter. “If it weren’t for your timely intervention, I might have really suffered.”
The bishop shook his head and said, “No, I didn’t do anything. It should be thanks to Supervisor Shen.”
When Shen Zhuo’s name was mentioned by someone from the Round Table, Bai Sheng’s smile faded slightly, and he remained silent.
The bishop wasn’t surprised.
From the very beginning, he had seen through this affable, cheerful, always-smiling young S-class, who was actually a wolf with deep city roots and meticulous thoughts.
“The Round Table didn’t save you, child. The Round Table saved a young, powerful, and precious member of our kind. If it were any other member, we would have helped just the same. But Supervisor Shen is different.” The bishop leaned back in his wheelchair, speaking casually. “He saved you, and only you.”
“So no matter what choices you make, I completely understand. I also agree with any judgments you make about Supervisor Shen.”
The salty wind howled toward the sea, and after a while, Bai Sheng’s low voice finally sounded above the wheelchair:
“…Bishop, when I left the United States to return to the City of Shanhai, I once promised the Round Table that I would do my best to get close to Shen Zhuo and gather the information the Round Table needs…”
“I understand,” the old man calmly interrupted. “Words hold no weight. You don’t need to carry any psychological burden. Just stay firm on the path you believe is right in the future.”
Bai Sheng stopped in his tracks, walked to the side of the wheelchair, half-knelt down, and looked into the old, wise eyes. He earnestly said, “Thank you.”
The old man smiled and patted Bai Sheng’s shoulder, his hand already cold and wrinkled.
As the sunset dipped below the horizon, a swath of lingering light spread across the sea, transitioning from blood-red to orange-yellow and then to deep, boundless navy blue. The majestic scene was reflected in the cloudy pupils of the bishop, who exhaled slowly.
“There is only one thing I want to ask your opinion on,” the old man straightened his cashmere coat and hoarsely said, “Because my time is running out, this should be our last meeting.”
Bai Sheng furrowed his brow, knowing the old man’s words were not empty. There was no point in saying empty platitudes like “you’ll live long and healthy.”
The old man turned his head to look at Bai Sheng. “Would you be willing to become the next Bishop of the Round Table?”
“…”
Rather than immediately refusing, Bai Sheng asked, “Why?”
In the distance behind them, Pardes stood with his hands behind his back, gazing out at the sea. The bishop withdrew his gaze and let out a bitter smile.
“My brother and I have always had different ideologies. He’s too radical. What evolutionists need most right now isn’t rapid proliferation to increase numbers, but rather extreme restraint, patience, and even subjecting oneself to unjust treatment to maintain a delicate balance. Only a few evolutionists in the world possess these qualities, and unfortunately, Pardes isn’t one of them.”
“Many of Pardes’s ideas are actually similar to those of ‘Odin’s Wolf’ Nielsen, which will lead the group to a dangerous precipice.” The bishop shook his head slowly and continued, “I don’t see a bright future for the Round Table under Pardes’s leadership, just as I don’t see a bright future for ‘Odin’s Wolf’ Nielsen. The International Supervision General Administration will inevitably face a major upheaval.”
Bai Sheng’s eyelid twitched heavily.
The bishop’s ability was prediction. Although it was only a B-class ability and not as accurate as the S-class “Foresight” of Mrs. Harpa from Iceland, it was still a form of prophecy.
“Are you willing to return to the Round Table?” The bishop looked into Bai Sheng’s deep eyes and asked again, this time with a heavier tone.
“…”
After a few minutes of silence, Bai Sheng finally spoke, his tone earnest and gentle:
“I promise you, no matter what difficulties the Round Table may face in the future, I will do everything in my power to help, even if as an outsider.”
The bishop didn’t seem too surprised; he just sighed and nodded. “I guessed as much.”
Seagulls cried out as they flapped their wings, and under the twilight, the sea stretched out in a long line of rising tides. Bai Sheng stood up, brushing the fine sand off his legs casually, while the bishop hesitated to speak but couldn’t hold back: “Is your decision related to Supervisor Shen?”
“Yeah,” Bai Sheng replied casually, “because I like him.”
The bishop choked for a few seconds before cautiously asking, “So…, what kind of relationship do you have now?”
What kind of relationship?
Bai Sheng chuckled briefly, devoid of any emotion. “The kind where I pursue him. I’ve sworn to protect him forever.”
“…” The bishop pondered for a moment before letting out a short, contemplative laugh, somewhat filled with emotion.
When Bai Sheng joined the Round Table years ago, all students had sworn allegiance, except him. With maturity and smoothness beyond his years, he skipped the swearing-in process with laughter and jokes. At that moment, the Bishbishoplized that this young S-class had an unparalleled loyalty to oaths.
The Alpha Wolf’s oath was too precious; he would only entrust it to the person he cherished most in his life, the one he would never betray.
“I actually had a premonition…” The old man smiled wistfully, holding onto the wheelchair’s armrest, “It’s not surprising; after all, he’s Shen Ruzhen’s son.”
Hearing Shen Ruzhen’s name from the Bishop’s mouth, Bai Sheng couldn’t help but pause for a moment. However, he quickly realized something — the bishop was a former physics professor at a university in England before his evolution. In their era, academia was interconnected, and it was highly likely that he knew something about the past.
Bai Sheng’s mind stirred slightly, but he didn’t show any sign on his face, only raising an eyebrow inquisitively and smiling, “Shen Ruzhen? Who’s that?”
“A controversial yet outstanding female scholar who unfortunately passed away very early.” the bishop sighed. “If my speculations have been correct all along, she should be Supervisor Shen’s mother.”
Bai Sheng looked genuinely surprised, “Controversial?”
The bishop let out a hoarse chuckle.
“Even today, when people see the immense power wielded by Supervisor Shen, the first thing they discuss is those sensational rumors, and it was no different for Shen Ruzhen. Because human nature has always been like that.”
Pausing for a moment, he continued slowly, “But controversies surrounding Shen Ruzhen aren’t limited to that aspect. The real topic worth discussing is that she was the first to propose the Genetic Darwin Theory, which has been fully confirmed over thirty years later today.”
“…” Bai Sheng narrowed his eyes, “What do you mean?”
“The process of theory verification is very complex,” the bishop pondered for a moment. “In simple terms, under the influence of certain intense radiation, some individuals may change the nucleotide sequence of their DNA, resulting in genetic mutations that trigger tremendous potential capable of altering the laws of micro-particle motion. Of course, these genetic mutations can be heritable, but in the process of intergenerational transmission, they may trigger different hereditary traits.”
“That’s essentially implying that some humans evolved due to radiation from meteorites, right?” Bai Sheng frowned.
The bishop nodded, “Yes, but it was a very pioneering idea over thirty years ago. Shen Ruzhen faced tremendous controversy because of this, resigned from her tenured professorship, and returned to her own country. Since then, apart from her remarriage, there haven’t been any academic updates about her.”
Bai Sheng thought to himself that during that time, she probably laid the foundation for the highly classified HRG project, which was even more impressive than being a tenured professor. Suddenly remembering something, he casually asked, “What about Shen Zhuo’s father?”
The bishop shook his head.
“That’s not very clear,” the old man recalled, his memory somewhat blurry due to years of illness. After a moment, he continued, “I vaguely remember hearing… He seemed to be an astrophysicist.”
—An astrophysicist.
Bai Sheng’s pupils slightly contracted.
The research direction of the first-generation HRG wasn’t just limited to the Genetic Darwin Theory; it apparently also involved astrophysics and extraterrestrial civilizations?
And ten years after it was terminated due to a “research accident,” it was precisely a meteor shower from outer space that triggered human evolution!
Was there some kind of causal relationship between the meteorite, the source of evolution five years ago, and the first-generation HRG?
“…” Bai Sheng’s mind was in chaos, and he subconsciously opened his mouth but couldn’t articulate anything.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Just then, rapid gunfire erupted from a distance. Bai Sheng’s brow furrowed, and he turned to look, even causing the bishop to turn his head from his wheelchair.
Chaos erupted over a kilometer away, with faint screams echoing—unmistakably coming from the beach bar.
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