Chapter 30: The Imperial Ancestral Temple

"If I really do this, the talents I recognize are at least of national caliber. On average, they are world-class, and it’s not impossible to find those whose names will go down in history... Hmm, but then again, even if I knew their names, the world is so vast that I doubt I'd ever encounter them in the real world," Chu Zhu mused, finding a glimmer of humor in his plight. "But then again, once you do stumble upon one, it’s like hitting a massive jackpot!"

The next moment, Nuwa No. 17 caused the silver walls to glow red.

"Li Kang detected approaching. Li Kang detected approaching. Expected arrival at the Third District Police Station in seven minutes and forty seconds!"

Chu Zhu’s expression remained unchanged. His voice was calm, but he spoke with extreme speed. "Nuwa No. 17, wipe all records of my inquiries, wipe my entry records... Wait, do you even have a function for that? Never mind, if you do, just wipe it all! Open the portal and close it immediately after I leave."

Chu Zhu dashed out of the women's restroom and went straight into Li Kang’s office. He didn't feel awkward—it wasn't his first time here—and he sat down generously in Li Kang’s office chair. After a moment of thought, Chu Zhu pushed off with his feet, the chair’s casters rolled, and he leaned back, propping his feet up on the desk in a rather arrogant display.

Sunlight streamed through the window, bathing the office in warmth. Chu Zhu squinted comfortably as he soaked in the sun.

And this was exactly the scene that greeted Li Kang and his team when they returned.

Li Kang: "..."

His blood pressure spiked.

"Finally back?" Chu Zhu opened one eye, glanced at Li Kang, then closed it again, drawling, "Care to tell me what you ran into?"

Li Kang glared at Chu Zhu for a long time before saying, "Just a wild body-refiner who did something that defies common sense! Someone saw it, and it was... captured, then displayed on my phone."

Chu Zhu felt a strange sensation. Although he had heard Li Kang say something similar before the reset, reflecting on it now, he was still struck by how absurdly advanced Nuwa No. 17’s technology was.

Wait! Something wasn't quite right...

"I have a question!" Chu Zhu suddenly sat up, slamming his hands onto the desk, his eyes burning with intensity. "Since you can track ordinary people who know about the existence of the extraordinary, you should also be able to capture every extraordinary individual operating in Jinghai City, right?"

"We can't," Ning Linglong interjected. "I know that from a logical standpoint, tracking extraordinary individuals should be much easier than tracking ordinary people who just happen to know about extraordinary powers. But the critical issue is..."

"The retrieval mechanism is... directly commanded from above! Since God intentionally retrieved this type of information and informed us, there must be a divine purpose behind it! As for why God doesn't retrieve the extraordinary individuals within Jinghai City..."

Ning Linglong paused for a moment and said softly, "I don't quite understand, but as I said before, it is normal for us not to grasp the thoughts of God. We just need to resolve the problems in the divine oracle handed down to us!"

Chu Zhu: "..."

It wasn't that he couldn't understand. After all, in a theocratic society, no matter how confusing the will of the gods might be, it had to be executed without question. The problem was that Chu Zhu knew exactly what that "God" actually was.

The sense of dissonance was overwhelming.

"But then again, Nuwa really is a deity from the myths of the real world! In that sense, it's quite a coincidence," Chu Zhu thought to himself.

"Alright, come with us! We need to register your identity now."

Hearing Li Kang’s words, even though he had just walked out of the base, Chu Zhu perfectly simulated his demeanor and actions from his first visit before the reset, successfully entering the facility once more.

"Nuwa No. 17," Li Kang spoke in Chinese as per protocol. Once Nuwa No. 17 responded, he piously stated his request. "I implore you to grant the person behind me guest status."

If things went as expected, it would be a temporary Level 1...

"Information successfully recorded! Temporary guest status: Temporary Level 0 (valid for one month)."

Chu Zhu: "...?"

Chu Zhu almost thought he had misheard. What was this? This guest status was Level 0?

Fine, fine, so that’s how they want to play it? Chu Zhu’s emotional control was excellent; otherwise, he might have laughed out of sheer fury. It was fortunate that he had triggered the butterfly effect in the real world, earning himself permanent Level 1 status. If he had to rely on Li Kang, he would have starved to death.

Li Kang, unaware of Chu Zhu’s thoughts, turned around and began a serious introduction of Nuwa No. 17. While some of the information was already known, other parts piqued Chu Zhu’s interest.

He said, "...The entity before you is a manifestation of a great and holy divinity? Or perhaps, a thought?"

"The true body of this great divinity resides in the Imperial Ancestral Temple in the capital, enjoying the generations of worship from the royal family! The royal family and this great divinity share in each other's glory and shame, and there are even rumors..."

Li Kang tried to be mysterious, but to his surprise, Chu Zhu seemed completely uninterested.

"Why are you deliberately dangling the bait?" Ning Linglong rolled her eyes and took over. "There’s a rumor that the royal family is actually the descendant of this great divinity. I feel it must be true; otherwise, why would this divinity split its power to guard every capital?"

"..." Chu Zhu found this to be dark humor. The descendants of an AI? What, was the Great Qian royal family all AI robots?

Li Kang glanced helplessly at Ning Fengxian and sighed at Chu Zhu. "Although it's been recorded, this temporary status requires me to re-enter it every month! And there's no possibility of promotion. If you are truly determined to join us, it would be best to take the exam..."

"I have a question!" Chu Zhu interrupted Li Kang. "Can I live in this base tonight?"

"???"

"!!!"

The atmosphere at the scene shifted for a moment.

"...Are you serious?" Li Kang stared at Chu Zhu for a long time, confirming he wasn't joking. He couldn't keep his composure. "This... you... I... it's not like you don't have a place to stay! There are no rooms for you here, and even if we had rooms, we don't live here..."

Li Kang really wanted to ask, "Don't you have any sense of reverence?" This was the place where a thought of God was stationed! And he wanted to just waltz in and live here? Was this a place for living?!

However, compared to the skeptical Li Kang...

"Cough, cough... although... Boss Zhu, while I don't understand it, you must have a profound reason for doing this!" Guan Fei spoke up shyly. "So, why don't you stay in my room? But, well, my room doesn't have a bed... but if you've decided, I'll go right now..."