Chapter Twenty-Five: Progress at Last

Day Two.

Inside an armored vehicle.

"Hey, buddy!" Qi Xi showed not the slightest hint of fear as he handed a cigarette to the American soldier driving up front.

Some readers might be puzzled—why is Qi Xi speaking Chinese, and why can this American soldier understand him without any language barrier, calmly heading to the United States? In reality, what Qi Xi just said wasn't Chinese at all, but English. If I wrote it out in English here, it would be tiresome to read and would unnecessarily pad the word count, so I've replaced it with Chinese for convenience—for both you and me.

Perhaps another question arises: does Qi Xi really speak English? That's simple—being a professional traverser, English is a required course. Even if he didn’t speak it, he could simply exchange with the gods for a minor skill like "Universal Language" and be able to communicate in any tongue.

The American soldier reached over with one hand to take the cigarette, glancing at Qi Xi with mild surprise. He said, "Thanks, man. You sure look relaxed. Aren’t you curious about anything? We’ve picked up quite a few of you these past days, and usually it’s non-stop questions—oh my God, some don’t speak a word of English, just jabbering away in Chinese. I don’t understand a thing. It’s a headache. If it weren’t for the mission, who’d bother explaining things over and over, feeding them, and keeping them safe?"

"Curious?" Qi Xi smiled, lighting a cigarette of his own. "Of course I have questions. For one, how did our value get discovered?"

At this, the black soldier in the passenger seat turned around and looked at Qi Xi. "Hey, we’re not authorized to know that, and even if we did, we couldn’t tell you. That’s a tough one, man."

"Damn, so you really don’t know," Qi Xi rolled his eyes.

Truthfully, Qi Xi was puzzled. How did these Americans manage to come all the way from across the globe to China just to collect these highly capable individuals? How did they possess such technology—or was it intelligence? The more he thought about it, the more uneasy he felt. Could the cause of this apocalypse be tied to America’s League of Heroes?

Qi Xi furrowed his brow, pondering these questions.

In the back, Watermelon napped calmly, while Xiao Fengyu, Qiu Xiaoyan, and Li Feidao wore expressions of suspicion and unease, glancing around restlessly.

They whispered among themselves in Chinese: "I didn't expect what Xi Hongchen and Qi Xi said to be true. Someone really came to pick them up."

"Then their plan must be real too. If that’s the case..."

"Damn it, Xiao Fengyu, you can speak English, Feidao, you can manage a few words, but I can’t speak a bit! It's so unfamiliar here, it's just awful."

"Don't worry. According to Qi Xi, once you evolve into a gene-human, if you study hard, you can master a foreign language in less than a month."

"Let’s hope so."

The vehicle drove for most of the day before finally arriving at the airport.

There, over a hundred Chinese nationals were gathered.

As soon as they arrived, they heard the crowd debating: "What are these Americans really up to?"

"Why are they taking us away?"

"They say it’s international humanitarianism, that’s the official line."

"Humanitarianism, my foot. Who knows what other schemes are involved?"

"You people are too much. They risked their lives to rescue you, feed you, give you water, and you still badmouth them! Such poor manners!"

"Watch your mouth, kid! Watch what you say!"

"Quiet down, unless you want those American soldiers to rough you up!"

"Everyone, settle down."

Qi Xi and his four companions stayed in the corner, not joining the discussion.

They spent another five days at the airport before boarding a plane for a transoceanic flight to the United States.

The plane landed at a key League of Heroes base in Los Angeles. Upon disembarking, specialized personnel immediately conducted disinfection, health checks, and a series of medical tests.

While waiting, many boasted loudly, vowing never to yield to the Americans, insisting they be treated with dignity, declaring they would never become slaves to a foreign nation. Yet, once the tests began, every one of them fell silent, not daring to utter a word.

Such attitudes are common among ordinary folk—bold in speech, but when their own safety or interests are at stake, more cunning than anyone.

Qi Xi was well aware of this and had no desire to get entangled; unnecessary connections could only bring trouble.

Soon, Qi Xi’s test results came back. The bald professor scrutinized the report over and over, adjusting his glasses in disbelief.

"Somebody! Jason! Jason, get over here!" the professor shouted impatiently.

A young man quickly hurried over. "Professor Flarey, what is it?"

"What is your testing department doing? What is this? Advanced gene-human? Damn it, did you mix up some officer’s blood sample in the tests?" Flarey slammed the desk repeatedly.

Jason grabbed the paper, reading it again and again, his face equally astonished.

Qi Xi was quickly pulled in for another round of tests.

"The first result was correct. I really am a gene-human," Qi Xi explained patiently.

"Oh, what are you saying? Do you even know what a gene-human is? Don’t joke around, buddy. Just let us test you, OK?" The technician pressed down on his hand impatiently.

"Damn it..."

The same happened with Li Feidao, Xiao Fengyu, Xi Hongchen, and Qiu Xiaoyan—all were required to retest.

The long line of Chinese nationals saw Qi Xi and his group cutting in for another round and couldn’t help but grumble, "Where’s your manners? Don’t cut the line!"

"Shut your mouths!" ordered one of the staff, and instantly everyone fell silent.

Qi Xi felt the unfriendly stares but could only offer a wry smile.

The results soon came out again—identical to the first. Professor Flarey, the bald-headed elder, adjusted his glasses once more, muttering, "Oh my God, what is going on here?"

"These results are utterly baffling. Guards! Guards!"

Soon, Qi Xi and his companions were taken to separate rooms for interrogation.

Interrogation was the right word—they were suspected of being spies from the Red Army.

Yet the interrogations yielded nothing. Qi Xi’s outlandish lies nonetheless perfectly explained why they had become gene-humans or evolved humans.

Flarey’s superior, upon hearing of this, had the intelligence department verify everything again. The conclusion remained unchanged—nothing was amiss.

Under the arrangements of the authorities, the three—Li Feidao, Xiao Fengyu, and Qiu Xiaoyan—were directly advanced to gene-humans using special equipment. Watermelon had already evolved during those five days at the airport and thus needed no further assistance.

Residing now in the Los Angeles base city, fifteen days flew by. Only five days remained until the world was to be destroyed by nuclear fire—and finally, there was progress.