After leaving the Biology Building, Fu Shiwu asked Tang Xuhai, "Do you want to go for testing?"
Tang Xuhai thought and replied, "Let's head back first. Testing the ability levels is something everyone should do together."
Previously, Miao Jia had searched online for information about Source Molecules, but at that time, there wasn't much specific content available.
When Tang Xuhai and the others returned, it was still early. So, after parking the car, Tang Xuhai left the courtyard No. 7, mentioning that he wanted to check in with the military.
At home, only Liu Peiqi and Fu Shiwu remained.
Fu Shiwu contemplated preparing lunch. "Liu Peiqi, what would you like for lunch?" After a moment of pondering, Fu Shiwu stood at the kitchen door, asking Liu Peiqi.
Initially, Fu Shiwu was about to enter the kitchen, uneasy with the idea of Liu Peiqi helping. After all, as the team leader, it didn't seem right for him to lead and have his subordinates leisurely waiting for food.
That wouldn't be fair!
Liu Peiqi stood up, rubbing his hands together, cautiously responding to Fu Shiwu, "Anything is fine, Team Leader. Actually, no one is picky right now. You can make whatever you want."
Previously calling Fu Shiwu "Mr. Fu," now with the establishment of formal positions within the group, Liu Peiqi cleverly addressed Fu Shiwu by his title.
Fu Shiwu didn't mind this address. He was self-aware, knowing he didn't have the same approachable image as Tang Xuhai or Wen Zhaoming, making it unlikely for everyone to address him by name in a friendly manner.
Despite having rice, flour, and oil, now that they were back in the city, they were uncertain where to get groceries.
It was quite a dilemma.
Fu Shiwu tentatively instructed Liu Peiqi, "Take the car and check nearby markets. Then, when Olande or Zhuoming returns, we can go buy groceries directly."
Liu Peiqi nodded, saying, "Alright, Team Leader."
Without further ado, Liu Peiqi took the car keys and left courtyard No. 7.
After a while, Wen Zhaoming returned.
"Why are you alone?" Fu Shiwu asked as Wen Zhaoming walked in, noticing that he was accustomed to seeing Wen Zhaoming always sitting in the wheelchair. His current height seemed a bit unusual.
"We met Liu Peiqi at the entrance, and Miao Jia went with him to drop off the car. Before we came back, we asked around. There are several markets in the Eastern Development Zone, all supplied with vegetables from the outskirts of Pei Cheng," Wen Zhaoming explained.
"Is it expensive?" Fu Shiwu inquired as he settled onto the couch.
"It's decent; the prices aren't too high. After all, most of the vegetables and food now are grown by plant-based ability users, reducing the costs significantly compared to before," Wen Zhaoming said, sitting down, taking a deep breath, then remembered something and straightened up, pulling out a card. "This is your ID. It contains work points and public trust points. Most of the public trust points settled from the arrest order of Shi Zheng are on the Legion card. I've transferred some into everyone's IDs for daily use and expenses."
Fu Shiwu took a look. The card had his ID photo, not much different from his original ID, except for a few extra green stripes.
"The green signifies ability users, the mutants have orange, and regular people use the original IDs," Wen Zhaoming explained, placing the other IDs on the living room table.
"What about Olande's?" Fu Shiwu asked. "Is it complicated?"
After all, among them, Olande was the only one with a different identity as a foreigner. Moreover, they were using the Huaxia resident identity system. Who knew how foreigners dealt with this?
"It's fine; he's got a temporary resident ID. After all, passports can't be used for transactions, so it's a special case," Wen Zhaoming said. "Later, when we can return to the capital, find their embassy and transfer the public trust points from the temporary ID to the native one."
Fu Shiwu picked up Tang Xuhai's ID from the table. Tang Xuhai's photo looked rather awkward, just like most of theirs.
Fu Shiwu sat on the sofa and recounted his and Tang Xuhai's experiences at the Academy.
Wen Zhaoming nodded. "Then this afternoon, let's go to the Academy. I'm curious about my ability's current level."
Chatting for a while, they sighed at the ease of life in Pei Cheng, feeling detached from the chaos outside.
Mid-conversation, Liu Peiqi and Miao Jia returned.
Miao Jia exclaimed, "Wow, the market here is huge! They have various vegetables, just not much meat."
"Of course, it's a point-based system now. Those ordinary people who can't take up high-paying jobs can only sell vegetables or do small businesses," Liu Peiqi said, following behind Miao Jia.
Both had some vegetables in their hands.
"Actually, I think with Liu Ge around, we can just buy seeds. No need to purchase vegetables at all. Saves money," Miao Jia suggested.
Wen Zhaoming scolded, "You want to work him to death? Constantly planting, not doing anything else?"
"I don't plant! I aspire to be a powerful ability warrior!" Liu Peiqi protested.
With Liu Peiqi and Miao Jia's help, the three managed to put together a meal.
When Tang Xuhai returned, he had a grim expression. No one dared to ask him about it, so they just arranged for him to join the meal.
Olande, Wang Dan, and Zhen Zi were nowhere to be found.
It was evident that accompanying two women for shopping in the past meant they wouldn't return by lunchtime.
"Don't wait for them; let's eat first," Wen Zhaoming said helplessly.
Tang Xuhai remained silent with a grim expression, creating a heavy atmosphere that made everyone's lunch feel burdensome.
After finishing the meal, Miao Jia and Liu Peiqi rushed to wash the dishes, leaving only Fu Shiwu and the others in the living room.
"What's wrong with you?" Fu Shiwu couldn't hold back anymore, asking, "Your face is as dark as the bottom of a pot."
Tang Xuhai sighed heavily, saying, "I just found out that the place where my unit was stationed was long destroyed by aliens. I have no idea if my comrades are alive or dead."
Hearing this, neither Wen Zhaoming nor Fu Shiwu knew what to say.
"Don't worry, with your skills, your teammates must be strong too!" Fu Shiwu earnestly looked at him. "If you could survive with injuries while carrying two people, they must be fine!"
Tang Xuhai chuckled at that, "Honestly, you two are no deadweight, you both pack quite a punch
."
Tang Xuhai sighed, finally putting aside thoughts of comrades whose fate was uncertain. If they were alive, there might be a chance to see them again.
After resting for a while and letting their meal settle, the five of them drove a small van to the Academy.
It was the first time for Wen Zhaoming and the others, and they marveled at the facilities inside the Academy.
The compound had several buildings, resembling a university campus at first glance.
"The Biological Ability Science..." Fu Shiwu murmured, looking at the guiding sign while hunched over it.
"It's here," Tang Xuhai stood beside him, pointing at the map.
They were standing quite close, and Fu Shiwu could even sense the warmth emanating from Tang Xuhai's chest as he leaned against his arm.
Despite the lingering autumn heat, Fu Shiwu, naturally feeling a bit cold, didn't mind this contact.
This building was larger than the others they had seen earlier. Looking up, they could even see its silhouette from the front gate.
Fu Shiwu felt uneasy; after all, his ability wasn't really an "ability." Was it time for everyone to know about it?
Would Tang Xuhai and the others shun him because of this?
With this apprehension, they made their way to the far end of the building.
"Hello, do you need any assistance?" The receptionist at the entrance noticed them, her eyes lighting up as she warmly greeted them.
"Where can we test our levels?" Tang Xuhai turned and asked.
"Testing the ability levels? Please take these forms here, then go to the second floor for blood collection. Results will be available in two hours," the receptionist handed them five forms.
"I'll pass; after all, I'm not an ability user," Miao Jia pushed the form back.
"Even if you're not an ability user, you can still contribute by providing samples of the source molecule cells in your body. The more blood samples we collect, the more beneficial it is for building our country's blood sample database," the receptionist said with a charming smile to Miao Jia. "Could you support scientific development?"
Perhaps it was the receptionist's overly sweet smile, but Miao Jia, who wasn't great with girls, hesitated, dazedly holding the form, and followed the others, feeling dizzy as they walked away.
In a corner of the first-floor lobby, there was a row of counters with the same fixed neutral pens seen in front of bank counters. They grabbed pens and leaned on the counter, starting to fill out the forms.
"Name, age, gender, ethnicity, ability attribute..." Fu Shiwu was puzzled. What should he fill in for the ability attribute?
Metal, wood, water, fire, earth, lightning, wind. He didn't belong to any of these.
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