Chapter 91: Gluttony

Lin Qing pondered for a while, then asked: “With the same bloodline, what’s the difference in power between trace concentration and low concentration?”

“No difference.”

Anna said: “The genetic information of these powerful bloodlines contains gene abilities of varying energy levels. How much you can unlock depends on how deeply you can excavate it—but bloodline concentration determines how hard that excavation is.”

She smiled. “The closer you are to pure blood, the more naturally your genes align with the inherited gene abilities; otherwise, you must force your genes to gradually match them, and efficiency will be extremely low.”

Lin Qing nodded slightly, understanding the distinction now.

“Also, let me remind you, Mr. Lin.”

Anna said earnestly: “You don’t need to care whether the bloodline is Original or Stellar—both have upper limits so high they’re practically unreachable.”

Lin Qing understood her meaning and said softly: “So a trace concentration of Original-level bloodline is the best choice?”

Anna smiled but said nothing.

Logically, she shouldn’t have hinted—but she didn’t want to see all Chen Yanan had sacrificed go to waste, so she couldn’t help speaking up.

“Miss Anna.”

Lin Qing said slowly: “I choose the Stellar-level bloodline evolution serum.”

Anna raised an eyebrow. “Certain? Once the contract takes effect, it cannot be changed.”

“I’m certain.” Lin Qing nodded.

Anna shook her head gently and sighed. “You’re truly only eighteen.”

She had said all she could. No further persuasion. She immediately said: “Let’s proceed with the four-layer identification: facial, fingerprint, iris, and DNA.”

Chen Yanan listened beside her but made no attempt to dissuade him—after all, this was Lin Qing’s own choice.

Once the contract activated, Anna said: “The group will deliver the Stellar-level bloodline evolution serum and the bloodline evolution method tonight. Mr. Lin, keep your communication open.”

Lin Qing nodded, then turned to Chen Yanan. “Sister, thank you.”

“Why thank me?” Chen Yanan shook her head slightly. “I’m your sister.”

Lin Qing hummed in agreement.

“Alright, I should go.”

Chen Yanan smiled. “I hate goodbyes. Just get out of the car. Don’t look back at me.”

Lin Qing fell silent for a moment, then said: “When I reach the urban zone, I’ll come find you.”

“Alright.”

With that said, Lin Qing said no more. He stepped out of the car and walked toward home.

After the car door closed, Chen Yanan silently watched Lin Qing’s back, sighed deeply, and said: “Miss Anna, do you think this compensation is enough?”

“You’ve already done enough.”

Anna shook her head slightly. “The points the company advanced you—you barely have any left. Is it worth it?”

“Leaving him alone outside the urban zone… I just can’t bear it,” Chen Yanan said. “I only regret I haven’t compensated him enough—now he still has to go on patrol missions…”

Anna sighed. “Then work harder, Miss Chen. Fulfill the company’s expectations for you sooner, and you’ll be able to see your brother sooner.”

“Mm…”

…

…

Lin Qing returned home in silence, feeling no real attachment.

Compared to living here, moving to the more advanced and superior urban zone—with the backing of Dawn Group—was clearly a good thing.

And…

“From now on, I don’t have to worry about my cousin’s family being dragged into this.”

Lin Qing’s gaze grew cold.

He and Zhao Jiayi had already been marked by the Original Research Institute. There was no time to escape now.

Even if life still seemed calm, even if Lancheng appeared to have regained peace, it was only an illusion.

The head of Yi Hong Society No. 1 had still not been found.

Inspector Tang Wanqiu had deliberately pretended to drop the case—but she was surely still acting in secret.

Moreover, Lancheng must be uniquely significant to the Original Research Institute—otherwise, why would they expend Super-Sense Primordial Fluid and deploy Chu Tianyao, and why would the head of Yi Hong Society No. 1 be so terrifying? Since the Patrol Headquarters is still investigating, one day, inevitably, the Patrol Headquarters and the Original Research Institute will collide here in Lancheng.

If his cousin’s family can escape this storm, that’s best of all.

“I still have a lot of room to grow.”

Lin Qing thought to himself: “For now, I’ll maintain the standard Patrol Captain’s power level—so the Original Research Institute will misjudge me later…”

He could still train the Divine Transformation series of combat arts, and the original version of the “Free Body” combat art.

Moreover, Dawn Group’s bloodline evolution serum and method would arrive tonight—another path to increasing his power.

When the time was right, he’d claim he had mastered the original “Free Body” combat art and gain the headquarters’ gene optimization benefits, then choose a different gene optimization method.

Once gene optimization was nearly complete, he could trigger gene awakening directly.

“When all this is done, I wonder how strong I’ll become…”

Lin Qing felt genuine anticipation.

…

That evening at 7:30.

Dawn Group’s explosion-proof transport vehicle arrived at the gated community and notified Lin Qing to come out and receive it.

“Verified.”

After successfully passing the four-layer identification—facial, fingerprint, iris, and DNA—the heavy rear door of the transport vehicle finally opened.

Inside the cargo compartment, Lin Qing found the escort officer to be a short-haired woman with a cold expression, wearing tight, combat-style attire. From the feedback of her life field, her power was clearly immense.

The short-haired woman glanced at Lin Qing, pulled out a dark, heavy box, handed it to him, and said flatly: “Inject on-site. Vein or artery is fine.”

Lin Qing nodded slightly, took the pale golden serum, and injected it into his arm.

After the injection ended, the short-haired woman tapped a few times on her wristwatch, projecting two 3D holographic documents, signaling him to read.

Lin Qing wasted no time and studied them closely.

This bloodline evolution serum originated from an extraterrestrial lifeform called “Celestial Orb Monarch.” Due to its inherently extreme danger, even the most diluted trace concentration of its bloodline—despite the absurdly high difficulty of evolution—made this serum extremely valuable.

The other document contained the detailed content of the bloodline evolution method.

After reading, Lin Qing asked: “What are the requirements for the third-energy-level energy needed for this bloodline evolution method?”

“No requirements,” the short-haired woman replied bluntly. “As long as you can absorb it as energy to fuel your training, it’s acceptable.”

Lin Qing fell into thought.

The original Sunrise Training Method only absorbed second-energy-level mysterious energy.

The only energy he could reliably attract and absorb at the third level was “Awakening Energy”—which required training the “Gene Awakening Method,” and once trained, gene awakening was inevitable.

Moreover, at his current level, third-energy-level energy was still too difficult to control.

So he still needed to find a third-energy-level energy source he could absorb to train the bloodline evolution method.

“Any other questions?” The short-haired woman looked at Lin Qing. He immediately asked: “Which third-energy-level energy is most suitable?”

“I don’t know your situation, nor the current conditions outside the urban zone. Ask the Patrol Headquarters,” the short-haired woman said directly, shaking her head.

“Alright.” Lin Qing nodded. “No more questions.”

…

Watching the transport vehicle drive away, Lin Qing wasted no time and went straight to the branch office.

Although it was already night and he couldn’t train combat arts, as a Patrol Captain, he still had this privilege.

Arriving at the combat art chamber, Lin Qing explained he had injected the bloodline evolution serum and voiced his confusion—after all, the previous gene optimization contract had gone through the World Government, so the Patrol Headquarters could easily access the records.

“You chose the trace concentration Stellar-level bloodline evolution serum?”

The hoarse voice sighed. “The difficulty of this bloodline evolution is… excessive. Wait a moment—I’ll ask for you.”

Lin Qing waited quietly.

After a moment, the hoarse voice spoke again: “Inspector Tang has instructed me to tell you—you have two options.”

“Two?” Lin Qing listened intently.

“Among senior Patrol Captains at headquarters, many train the bloodline evolution method.”

The hoarse voice said: “They typically absorb a gentler, easier-to-absorb energy called ‘River of Life’—a high-energy tonic used to restore stamina and heal wounds. Its nature is mild; even non-gene-awakened individuals can absorb it. Many senior Patrol Captains use it to train the bloodline evolution method.”

River of Life?

Lin Qing immediately asked: “Does headquarters sell it?”

“Of course.”

The hoarse voice said: “But Patrol Captains cannot purchase River of Life.”

“Can’t buy it?” Lin Qing froze.

“Hah…” the hoarse voice chuckled. “Don’t worry. Inspector Tang said she’ll use her Inspector authority to buy it for you—you just pay.”

“Thank Inspector Tang for me,” Lin Qing breathed a quiet sigh of relief. “What’s the price?”

“Prepare yourself—River of Life tonic is expensive.”

The hoarse voice said: “At headquarters’ internal price, a single vial costs twelve million for a senior Patrol Captain.”

“How much?” Lin Qing blinked.

“Twelve million.” The hoarse voice said. “But with Inspector Tang’s authority, it’s ten million per vial.”

Ten million—for just one vial? Lin Qing asked: “How many vials does training the bloodline evolution method usually consume?”

“How many?”

The hoarse voice said: “Each training session consumes at least one vial of River of Life. But how much progress does each session yield? To unlock a single gene ability through the bloodline evolution method, consuming a hundred vials or more is perfectly normal.”

He added, “Actually, this price is already low. You must understand that before gene awakening, the amount of third-tier energy one can absorb is limited, and stable sources are even rarer.”

Lin Qing fell silent.

He couldn’t help but shake his head slightly and asked, “Didn’t you just say there were two options? What’s the other one?”

The hoarse voice chuckled and said, “The energy of the Zhihe is too weak to be truly suitable for bloodline evolution cultivation—it’s merely gentle enough to be more appropriate for you.”

He said, “When gene-awakened individuals cultivate bloodline evolution, the usual source of third-tier energy is the ‘Black Nest No.16’ energy supplement. Its energy is fine-grained, endless, and immensely abundant—perfect for bloodline evolution cultivation—and it’s far cheaper than Zhihe. For Tang Wanqiu, the inspector, it costs only 3.5 million per vial.”

“What are the drawbacks?” Lin Qing asked.

“The drawback is that Black Nest No.16’s energy is too vast and difficult to control.”

The hoarse voice said, “It’s still third-tier energy. Before gene awakening, consuming it damages the body. Even if this damage can be healed, the energy is so immense you simply can’t absorb it fast enough—over ninety percent will be wasted. In the end, its effectiveness is worse than Zhihe’s, and it still harms you.”

Lin Qing understood.

Zhihe energy serum is gentle and easy to absorb, but its energy is insufficient—and expensive.

Black Nest No.16 offers vast energy at a reasonable price, but most of it is wasted, and it harms the body.

“So? Which one do you choose?” the hoarse voice asked.

Lin Qing pondered for a long while, then shook his head slightly. “Give me one vial of Zhihe first. I’ll try it out.”

He wasn’t worried about whether he could succeed in cultivation—once he could perform bloodline evolution even once, he could immediately draw an advance.

But he’d have to repay it later.

Since third-tier energy is used for cultivation to begin with, the repayment process would be identical—perhaps just more efficient and less costly.

So he decided to try first.

“Alright, you should try first.”

The hoarse voice said, “To extract gene abilities from the bloodline using a {micro} dose of bloodline evolution serum is extremely difficult. One vial of Zhihe might barely scratch the surface.”

Lin Qing silently considered whether to take the advance, depending on the outcome.

He also needed to save some money to complete the original Sunrise Cultivation Method.

“Still no money… and if only I could advance multiple items at once…”

…

The next morning.

The dark transport vehicle from the Inspection Headquarters had delivered one vial of ‘Zhihe’ to the entrance of Lin Qing’s residential complex.

Though only one vial, it was a priceless substance worth ten million—so it was only natural that he personally confirm his iris and fingerprint to unlock it and receive it via transport.

The vehicle only left after watching him consume it on the spot.

Lin Qing activated his combat technique and swiftly returned home via the stairs.

The bloodline evolution serum injected the previous night had already taken effect.

But before cultivating bloodline evolution, even with the serum injected, it was as if nothing had been injected.

“Let’s try.”

Lin Qing immediately closed his eyes, channeling his inner mysterious energy along with the gentle energy from the newly consumed Zhihe serum, attempting bloodline evolution.

No one knew who had invented this bloodline evolution method—it was astonishingly miraculous.

It could use third-tier energy to enhance the extraction of gene abilities buried deep within the bloodline, thereby optimizing the genome.

Half an hour later.

The gentle energy of the Zhihe serum was completely depleted.

Ten million was gone.

“Indeed, I can barely sense even a fraction of one gene ability…”

Lin Qing opened his eyes and silently called out: “Order.”

On the Entropy Reverser interface, a new {advanceable item} had appeared.

{Bloodline Evolution Ability—Heavenly Orb Monarch ‘Gluttony’}

(End of Chapter)