Chapter Twenty-Eight: His Heart Filled with Beauty

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Many professors, including Fu Ying, were intensely curious as to the true extent of Qi Chen’s mental strength.

Although Qi Chen’s projection range was somewhat limited, the sheer intensity of his power made it clear that his mental strength could not possibly be lacking—in fact, even the most conservative estimates placed him at least on par with Warm Guy’s current level.

Several pairs of eyes watched Qi Chen through the one-way mirror, following his every step as he approached the mental strength testing apparatus.

The moment the test sphere—its transparency only recently restored—was touched by Overlord, it began to vibrate violently. Dots of color rapidly formed inside, and within an instant, it reached the same orange hue Warm Guy had achieved during his own test.

Yet the sphere did not linger on orange. The color continued to shift, swirling inside like a vortex, deepening at a breathtaking rate.

The professors stared unblinkingly at the entire process. As the colors within the sphere changed, even these seasoned experts in the study of the uncanny found their heartbeats quickening.

“It’s already reached C-level!” one professor cried out, staring at the readout in undisguised excitement.

“No! It’s still climbing!” Professor Li, who had always maintained an air of unshakable calm, could no longer contain himself. He leapt from his chair and pressed himself to the one-way mirror, eyes fixed on the room beyond.

They almost forgot that during a test of mental strength, it was still possible to breathe.

“This... This is among the highest mental strengths in the entire history of City No. 3,” the bald professor muttered, swallowing hard, his eyes shining ever more feverishly.

Since its founding, City No. 3 had produced a great many uncanny walkers, with the highest recorded mental strength reaching B+ level—just shy of the ten-thousand-strong A-level.

Uncanny walkers who achieved that level of mental strength could hardly be called human anymore. In fact, it was a realm that ordinary people could never attain. Perhaps only the gods described in books from the old era could possess such formidable spiritual power.

Inside the testing chamber, Qi Chen maintained his focus, allowing Overlord to touch the test sphere. He himself remained utterly unperturbed, even wishing the test would end soon so he could grab something to eat.

Warm Guy, who understood what was happening, was a different story. Mouth slightly agape, he stared at Qi Chen’s calm face as though a thousand wild horses were stampeding through his mind.

“You... you can put your uncanny away now,” Warm Guy finally managed, after a long silence, the countless words in his heart distilled into a single sentence.

“Alright then!” Qi Chen replied cheerfully. He had no idea what the different colors of the test sphere meant, but now that the test was done, he was eager to learn the result.

Meanwhile, outside the chamber, the professors had already launched into a heated debate.

The bald professor spoke with passionate conviction. “Qi Chen’s mental strength is the highest we’ve seen in years. I propose we temporarily transfer him from the Uncanny Handling Division to the Institute so we can properly guide him for a time.”

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“Such extraordinary mental strength makes his stability absolutely crucial. If he ever loses control and succumbs to uncanniness, it would spell disaster for all of City No. 3, if not the entire League!”

“How noble of you,” the lone female professor sneered. “You just want to study him more. According to our city’s rules, we need Qi Chen’s own consent for that.

“And I don’t support bringing him to the Institute anyway. He’s better suited to the Uncanny Handling Division.”

The argument escalated rapidly. Even Fu Ying, the head of the Uncanny Handling Division, found it impossible to interject. These professors were the sort who would ignore even the city governor—for any research involving the uncanny, they became the most stubborn people in the city.

“Enough, all of you,” Professor Li interrupted with a smile, invoking his authority as chief to announce his final decision:

“Qi Chen should remain in the Uncanny Handling Division. The external situation is unstable, and internal strife within the League is intensifying. What sense would it make to have such a promising talent wasting away with us old fossils?

“Gold should be put where it can shine. Still, I do agree with Lao Xu on one point: such high mental strength means the risk of losing control and becoming uncanny is dangerously high.

“But young Qi shows no sign of mental abnormality. I have heard, though, that he becomes rather irritable when using uncanny powers in combat. Let’s wait for Professor Liu, our psychological expert, to assess him before making any further decisions.”

The debate thus ended, and Qi Chen finally received his test result—B-level! In theory, if fully unleashed, his mental power would reach the level of ten thousand.

Among natural uncanny phenomena, this was already remarkable. For an uncanny walker, he was nothing short of a walking engine of destruction.

No wonder Warm Guy’s gaze had changed. Qi Chen grinned broadly at his partner, suddenly worried that this might drive a wedge between them.

He himself could hardly believe the result—it felt unreal. Mental strength was measured through the uncanny, after all. In theory, the uncanny and its host were bound, and their mental strengths should be equivalent.

But... Qi Chen recalled the room of masks. Did the test measure only Overlord’s mental level, not his own?

He kept these doubts to himself, planning to discuss them later with Captain Fu or the professors.

While he pondered, the door to the test room suddenly opened and a middle-aged woman in a white lab coat walked in—the very female professor who had argued earlier, and the foremost psychological expert of City No. 3.

“Warm Guy, step outside. Let me have a proper chat with young Qi,” Professor Liu said with a gentle smile.

Warm Guy was only too happy to leave. He glanced back at Qi Chen, raised his brows in mock relief, and strode out as if freed.

Ah, it was so much more pleasant to be among ordinary people!

Warm Guy relaxed, but Qi Chen grew a bit tense.

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He much preferred the earlier instrument tests to sitting down for a conversation with a stranger, even if that stranger seemed utterly harmless and only wanted to help.

...

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“The tests are over. Thank you all for your hard work,” Fu Ying said, her rare smile reserved for the professors.

Once Professor Liu finished her conversation with Qi Chen, all the day’s tests were complete, and the professors gathered with Fu Ying for a preliminary discussion.

“All in all, Qi Chen is an exceptionally promising candidate. His uncanny ability gives him an overwhelming advantage in strength over most uncanny walkers.

“The only shortcoming is his range, but with such formidable mental strength as his foundation, there’s every chance he’ll improve,” the bald professor concluded, summarizing the three key elements of the uncanny.

But Professor Li and Fu Ying both turned to Professor Liu, responsible for the psychological assessment.

“Professor, what did the psychological evaluation show?” Fu Ying asked with concern. Though she had faith in Qi Chen, official approval from the psychological expert was still required.

Professor Liu fell silent for a moment, then slowly raised her head to reply:

“Perfectly normal.”

“A kind of normal I can’t even comprehend?”

Everyone present turned to her, puzzled.

“It’s as though... he wasn’t even born after the coming of the Mist, yet his age makes that impossible. None of us are old enough for that.

“But his demeanor is exactly as I described—he’s so normal that it’s as if he’s spent the past twenty-odd years in a world without the Mist, a world filled with sunlight and normalcy.

“If I had to offer an evaluation—it would be this: his heart is filled with beauty.”

...