Chapter 106: The Origin of the End Times

Inside the enclosed yet spacious cabin, Lin Qing lay back on a soft, comfortable sofa seat.

To his left sat Zhao Jiayi, half-asleep; across the aisle, two seats held Xu Qiu and Yuan Anping.

Though the rows ahead and behind were empty, a dozen or so people sat scattered farther away.

Most present were regional inspectors or inspection officers from the Jiangnan area—either selected by headquarters and signed up for the Elite Inspector Training Contract, or newly emerged gene-awakened individuals.

Others were their assistants or relatives.

The Inspection Headquarters permitted each inspector to bring one assistant or relative along.

“Welcome, new inspectors.”

Suddenly, the ultra-thin full-screen display ahead lit up, revealing a smiling, clean-shaven bald man—it was the inspection officer assigned to escort them.

No one knew his name, only that his surname was Zhuo.

“We’ll arrive at headquarters in about half an hour.”

Inspector Zhuo smiled. “This batch of new inspectors from Jiangnan is larger than usual—eleven of you, whereas in past years there were only a few.”

Eleven? Lin Qing thought it over—it did seem about right.

With over ten million people in Lin’an alone, only one person was chosen by headquarters every two or three years; Jiangnan’s three provinces, totaling roughly two hundred million, produced only a handful per half-year.

Yet this time, Lin’an alone produced three.

“Still, the total number of new inspectors recruited globally this time is slightly lower than last year—Jiangnan seems to be an exception.”

Inspector Zhuo shook his head with a smile. “Our work at headquarters is still about patrol and investigation, but our jurisdiction is far broader—all regions outside urban zones and the three forbidden zones fall under our responsibility.”

“Of course, individual cities are still managed by branch offices; headquarters only dispatches inspectors or senior inspectors to assist based on regional needs.”

Inspector Zhuo smiled warmly. “But all of you are potential candidates to become ‘Elite Inspectors.’ If that day comes, your assigned patrol zones will differ—but this touches on secrets of Earth’s civilization. I won’t elaborate until you become Elite Inspectors.”

Secrets of Earth’s civilization? Lin Qing’s mind stirred.

He had asked Chen Guang, but she knew little too—she could only access the headquarters’ global information database, and core data was strictly controlled by the AI lifeform; any unauthorized intrusion would trigger detection.

He’d have to wait until he reached headquarters to learn more.

“Before we arrive, there are three things you must know.”

Inspector Zhuo smiled. “First, from this moment on, forget your titles of Inspector or Senior Inspector—in headquarters, there are only two tiers: New Inspectors and Elite Inspectors.”

The new recruits weren’t surprised.

After all, their initial contract was the Elite Inspector Training Agreement.

“By protocol, all new inspectors arriving at headquarters are assigned to the Training Division.”

Inspector Zhuo said. “You have three years to train—within that time, you must transform from New Inspector to Elite Inspector—meaning you must earn a Level-One Permission. Otherwise, you’ll be expelled.”

“Even if you earn Level-One Permission, you remain a peripheral member of headquarters—you may stay at most ten years before being required to leave.”

“Level-One Permission…”

Lin Qing had heard of this from Chen Guang.

The rank system was primarily used outside headquarters, in regional areas.

At headquarters, the most elite inspectors from across the globe were gathered—all could be called elite, and their authority differed from before.

Thus, Elite Inspectors were judged solely by permission level.

Minimum: Level One. Maximum: Level Five.

It was said that Inspection Officers, as division heads, held Level-Four Permission; Level-Five Permission was reserved exclusively for senior division heads.

“Obtaining Level-One Permission isn’t difficult.”

Inspector Zhuo said. “It follows our system’s longstanding tradition—merit and strength!”

“For merit, you must earn three First-Class Merits.”

“For strength, you must reach the standard of a typical Senior Inspector—that is, the baseline of a gene-awakened individual.”

“If your genes haven’t awakened, you must master the original combat techniques and undergo certain gene optimizations.”

Inspector Zhuo said. “Then you become a Level-One Elite Inspector. As for Level-Two Elite Inspectors, almost all are gene-awakened—wait until your genes awaken to learn more.”

Lin Qing pondered.

Chen Guang had assessed his current strength—he was already a Level-One Elite Inspector.

Though among the strongest in that tier, he still fell short of Level-Two Elite Inspectors.

After all, the gap between the two tiers was immense.

At headquarters, the vast majority of Level-Two Elite Inspectors were gene-awakened.

The difference between awakened and unawakened genes was enormous.

Even the most basic gene-awakened individual, without third-tier gene optimization, could become a Senior Inspector simply by perfecting their gene state and training a simplified combat technique to instinctive mastery.

The unawakened? They required multiple gene optimizations and mastery of the original combat techniques—only then could they offset the gap from gene awakening.

Thus, under normal circumstances, most Level-Two Elite Inspectors were gene-awakened.

In the recent underground lab incident, headquarters had sent only a Level-One Elite Inspector to Lin’an—higher-tier inspectors couldn’t even enter that broken gate.

The key figures stationed there were two Inspection Officers.

“Still… I should be able to become a Level-Two Inspector before my genes awaken.”

Lin Qing mused inwardly.

With his current strength, if he used Instant Light, the gap to a Level-Two Elite Inspector wasn’t that wide.

To reach Level-Two Elite Inspector strength without gene awakening, mastering the original combat techniques was mandatory—third-tier gene abilities were a given.

The key was fourth-tier gene ability!

Only those from urban zones typically reached this standard.

After all, even gene-awakened individuals needed mastery of original combat techniques and third-tier abilities to qualify as Level-Two Elite Inspectors.

To offset the massive gap of gene awakening, one needed an equally massive advantage.

“Higher tiers? Only possible after gene awakening.”

Lin Qing thought silently.

“Remember—if you don’t earn Level-One Permission within three years, you’ll be expelled.”

Inspector Zhuo’s tone turned serious. “Even after becoming a Level-One Elite Inspector, you may stay at headquarters no more than ten years—if you don’t join a division within that time, you’ll be assigned to regional posts as overall commander.”

Though most new inspectors didn’t yet understand headquarters’ benefits, they could tell from this—being an elite inspector at headquarters was far better than being posted externally.

“While in the Training Division, you’ll still complete monthly tasks assigned by headquarters.”

Inspector Zhuo said. “You’ll also earn points and merits as rewards—details will be available once you arrive.”

He smiled faintly. “That’s all. Good luck.” The screen changed, showing the remaining distance to headquarters.

Their destination: a mysterious island in the Atlantic Ocean.

“Lin Qing.”

Beside him, Zhao Jiayi gazed out at the blue sky and endless sea, whispering: “Does headquarters on the island have a movie theater and a mall?”

“I don’t know. Probably not,” Lin Qing said. “Who’d open a mall at headquarters?”

“Huh?”

Zhao Jiayi pouted, muttering under her breath.

Lin Qing glanced at her.

This time he understood—she was speaking her hometown dialect.

She’d just said: “I want to go home.”

“Lin Qing.”

Xu Qiu, across the aisle, turned to look. “Are you staying in the Training Division?”

“For a while,” Lin Qing said casually.

He still had room to grow—he needed more training.

Life in the Training Division would be easier—mainly focused on cultivation, with only one mission per month.

Once he became a Level-One Elite Inspector, things would get busy.

And the missions he’d handle would be at least Level-One—especially if he joined Tang’s division, where tasks would be even harder.

Without sufficient strength, he’d rely on others’ protection—if they couldn’t spare attention for him? He’d need to reach Level-Two Elite Inspector first.

“I’ll stay too,” Yuan Anping sighed beside him. “I’m the weakest gene-awakened—no division wants me. I’m stuck as peripheral staff. Better off staying in Lin’an.”

Lin Qing glanced at him.

Since discovering his true strength, he no longer believed a word the man said—he just pretended to be weak every day.

The weakest gene-awakened? If Yuan Anping wasn’t at Level-Two Elite Inspector strength right now, Lin Qing would spell his name backward.

The new inspectors in the front rows turned to glance over.

One gene-awakened claimed he was tragic, while another seemed already qualified for Level-One Permission? Earning Level-One Permission right upon entering headquarters was rare.

…

Soon, the plane landed at the island’s airport—the headquarters’ base.

There was a twelve-hour time difference between the Atlantic and home; the flight took seven hours, so it was early morning on the island.

“Took seven hours to fly here.”

After disembarking, Lin Qing stared at the distant sunrise, puzzled. “I recall when the inspection officer was killed, it took less than two hours from report to Inspector Zhuo’s arrival in Lin’an?”

The others nearby stayed silent—they didn’t know either.

“Of course.”

Inspector Zhuo, standing ahead, turned and smiled at him. “We flew on headquarters’ supersonic aircraft—faster than commercial airliners. But Tang’s inspection officer rode a special warplane made by Dawn Group—twelve thousand kilometers took just over an hour.”

Lin Qing suddenly understood.

Over twelve thousand kilometers in just over an hour—that’s nearly ten times the speed of sound.

“But Tang’s vehicle isn’t anything special—it’s not even as good as mine.”

Inspector Zhuo smiled and said, “My personal flyer is far superior to hers; it can easily reach speeds of over ten times the speed of sound. It’s just small—can’t fit this many people—and I don’t like others riding in my vehicle.”

Lin Qing was stunned.

No wonder such a high-ranking inspector came to pick them up in a standard headquarters plane.

“If you think it’s too slow, you can buy your own private fighter jets.”

Inspector Zhuo said casually, “With enough points and Xu Kequan, you can even buy the top-tier ‘Planetary Cruiser’ made by Dawn Group—capable of circling the entire Earth in half an hour. Too bad it’s astronomically expensive; even we inspectors can’t afford it.”

Lin Qing was secretly shocked.

Planetary Cruiser? Circling the Earth in half an hour?

That would mean dozens of times the speed of sound. But compared to Zhixing Group, whose ships traveled across the cosmos to reach Earth, this speed hardly seems impressive.

Soon, a bus arrived and transported everyone to the headquarters’ training branch.

From afar, several tall buildings could already be seen standing in the training branch’s area.

“First, go to your assigned quarters and drop off your luggage. Report to the training center precisely at 8 p.m.”

After giving this final instruction, the inspector left immediately.

Lin Qing picked up his electronic door tag on the first floor, then took Zhao Jia upstairs.

At room 2217 on the twenty-second floor, they found the layout resembled a spacious hotel apartment—each unit had two bedrooms, two bathrooms, and a living room, plus a small but sturdy cultivation chamber.

The total area was about 140 square meters.

Perfect—Zhao Jia and he could each have one room.

“Even though we’re living close, don’t you dare use your mental force to spy on me,” Lin Qing warned.

“Got it.”

Zhao Jia puffed out her cheeks and muttered in her dialect, “Seriously, I’m the girl here—you’re such a miser…”

“What did you say?” Lin Qing feigned confusion.

“I was complimenting you.”

“Oh.”

Lin Qing said casually, “A Level One Elite Inspector can trade up for a larger duplex apartment. Level Two gets you a standalone villa. Just wait a while longer.”

…

Walking into the bedroom and closing the door, Lin Qing went to the window and looked out—the view was pleasant, with distant blue seas and skies, refreshing the spirit.

He picked up the tablet by the bed and browsed—it had few functions, mostly just meal ordering and services.

“Lin Qing, this island where the inspection headquarters is located has quite a few advantages.”

Chen Guang’s voice echoed in his mind: “This place is likely one of the sources behind the 2025 apocalypse.”

“What?” Lin Qing froze.

Sorry, my schedule’s been messed up these past two days—I’ve been getting up late and rushing out for errands. I’ll try to adjust.

(End of Chapter)