Chapter 22: Ye Yang's Problem

If Ye Yang had overheard the conversation between Wang Feng and Lin Tian, he would surely have been astonished. Unfortunately, he remained unaware of how ironic his fate truly was; all he knew was that he desperately wanted to become a Hunter, a Superman, a god in the eyes of every underdog.

"Um... what exactly does this test involve? Could you give me a hint, miss?" Ye Yang asked with a friendly smile, though he couldn't help but feel a bit disgusted with himself—this woman was at most twenty-five, at least twenty years his junior.

The secretary gave a faint smile and shook her head. "Actually, I don't know what it’s for either. I was just transferred here. I assume it's just a physical exam or a blood test."

"Oh..." Ye Yang nodded. A physical exam made sense, but a blood test? He wondered if it was to check if his constitution was incompatible with the abilities, like Lin Tian, whose own incompatibility left him stuck at Level 1 forever.

The secretary led Ye Yang to a secluded building within the military compound. Ye Yang paused in surprise; it was a small laboratory. How were they supposed to conduct a physical fitness test in a place packed to the brim with lab equipment?

"Lie down on this bed. Let's start with an X-ray," said a middle-aged man in a white coat and glasses.

"An X-ray? Uh..." Ye Yang was perplexed. What kind of test was this?

He became even more bewildered as the process continued. It was a full-body medical examination, complete with blood and urine tests, and even a dental check. Damn, he didn't even have cavities!

"Excuse me... when exactly is the physical fitness test?" Ye Yang gritted his teeth. What were these people trying to do?

"Test? Oh, that’s already done. Just sit and wait. We'll let you know once the results are ready. It won't take long," the man said, pushing up his glasses as he carried Ye Yang's blood and urine samples into a room.

Ye Yang stood there, eyes wide, unable to process this. Done? He hadn't even done a single push-up! What kind of testing did a Hunter actually require? Blood? Urine? This sounded like a screening for HIV or syphilis!

"Just wait. Isn't it better that you don't have to do anything strenuous?" The secretary sat on a sofa and tossed a cushion to Ye Yang with a smile.

"It's fine, I guess, but I don't understand the point of these tests," Ye Yang grumbled.

The secretary chuckled. "If you don't understand, just let it be. When you're sick and go to the hospital, you don't understand why the doctor orders certain tests either. Since you were a child, you never understood why your teachers made you memorize books or copy texts, did you?"

Ye Yang felt awkward. She had a point. Even now, he didn't know why he had been forced to memorize Tang poetry as a child.

Still, he felt something was off, so the moment Lin Tian arrived, he voiced his doubts.

Lin Tian pondered for a long moment, his brow furrowed. He decided to be honest; there were things Ye Yang wasn't ready to know, but there were things he already knew, such as...

"Actually, we were checking your internal condition. Do you remember that day during the apocalypse? Your right hand!" Lin Tian asked, his eyes tight with concern. Ye Yang froze, instinctively grabbing his right hand. Right! He had almost forgotten—what about that terrifying creature inside it?

"Your father already handled most of it, but we couldn't be certain, so we checked you thoroughly. Just to make sure there's nothing strange left. The real test will happen when you reach the Hunter Headquarters," Lin Tian said, scratching his head.

Ye Yang nodded, realizing the truth. Many things from before suddenly clicked. Yao Jun had mentioned his strange scent; could it be because... his heart skipped a beat.

"The results are in." The middle-aged man walked out of the room, his expression unreadable. He held up a piece of paper and tossed it to Lin Tian.

"How is it?" Ye Yang rushed forward, but the paper was filled with obscure technical jargon and strange red checkmarks that he couldn't decipher.

Lin Tian studied it for a long while before bursting into a laugh, clapping Ye Yang on the shoulder. "You're all set, kid! Everything’s okay! Come on, let’s go get a drink to celebrate!"

"What's all set? What’s okay? Damn it, why are we going for drinks?" Ye Yang was so frustrated he wanted to punch someone.

"Hey, it's all good. The unknown creature that invaded your hand? It's fine now!" Lin Tian picked at his ear. "Don't shout so loud, I'm an old man, you know!"

"...How did you fix it? I remember my dad saying he had to freeze me because he couldn't handle it!" Ye Yang remained skeptical.

Lin Tian rolled his eyes. "How should I know? I haven't been a scientist in years!"

Ye Yang felt like he was going to cough up blood.

"Why do you care so much? It's fine now, so just get ready to enter the Hunter Academy!" Lin Tian patted his shoulder. "You'll understand the rest once you become a Hunter."

Ye Yang paused, bewildered. "Academy? Hunters have to go to school?"

"Don't talk nonsense. Do you think you just get a shot and become a superhero? You think you're the Hulk? Let's go, we're going to Wangfujing for a drink!" Lin Tian shot him a look of disdain and walked off.

Ye Yang was completely disoriented. Why hadn't anyone told him that being a Hunter meant going to school? Did he have to memorize books? He had abandoned his textbooks years ago.

Half an hour later, the report Lin Tian had looked at landed on Wang Feng’s desk, accompanied by an X-ray film. He studied it for a full half-hour before letting out a deep sigh.

"This kid... it's hard to say if this is a blessing or a curse," Wang Feng muttered, frowning.

Wangfujing in Beijing had become a street for food and entertainment—the only place left in the city for such luxuries. KTVs, bars, and restaurants were everywhere.

"Four dishes? You're ordering four dishes for two people? Can you even finish that?"

The waiter's snarky comment made Ye Yang's jaw drop. A waiter who complained about customers ordering too much? How was this guy still employed? It was terrible for business.

"Oh... the extra two are to take home for my wife and kid," Lin Tian explained.

The waiter nodded and went to prepare the order. Ye Yang broke into a cold sweat; it seemed Beijing was strictly enforcing a policy against waste, and everyone was on board.

However, not everyone felt the same, such as the group of brats at the next table...

"Damn it! I want more food, I want more booze! What kind of business are you running, refusing to let customers order?" A boy with curled hair slammed the table, looking fierce.

They had already ordered plenty, and most of it was sitting untouched, yet they continued to shout about having money to burn. No matter how the owner tried to reason with them, they wouldn't listen.

*Bang!* The curled-haired boy’s head was suddenly covered in a colorful mess as Lin Tian smashed a beer bottle over it. The boy collapsed under the table, moaning.

"Everyone, shut up and eat! You think you're something special? Go tell that to the zombies outside the city walls! A bunch of useless trash!" Lin Tian roared. Several other boys rose, looking for trouble, but Ye Yang quickly stood up and grabbed a folding chair.

Fighting? He and Lin Tian had beaten up plenty of thugs before the apocalypse. Now that he had fought actual zombies, what was there to fear from these punks?

The fight didn't happen. As soon as the boys saw the military insignia on Lin Tian’s shoulder, they immediately hung their heads like cowards. Bullying the weak and fearing the strong was the common trait of such thugs, in any era.

"Damn, you think you own the place? If you want revenge, come find me at the military headquarters—I'm Lin Tian, the second-in-command!" Lin Tian grumbled as he sat down. No one dared to talk back. The second-in-command of the military—a man who could summon a bomber with a single phone call.

Ye Yang was puzzled. Lin Tian was eccentric, but usually easygoing. Why was he so angry today?

"Remember when we were kids? They said the 80s generation was trash, then the 90s were brainless, and then the 00s... damn! If it weren't for the 80s and 90s generations, this world would have been doomed ages ago. Even the 00s have grown up—Wang Feng is one of them!"

"Compared to that, these kids from 2010 and 2020 are the truly degenerate ones. Look at what the world outside is like! And yet they're here acting tough, wallowing in luxury. Damn! Look at those idiots—they even have zombie tattoos. Would they dare to face a real zombie?"

Ye Yang rubbed his nose, torn between laughter and frustration. So that was it. He smiled bitterly and tried to soothe him: "You're right, but they're just kids. They can't grow up overnight. Who hasn't been a fool at that age? They'll grow up eventually..."

"Eventually? When? When the earth is destroyed? When humanity is finished? How much time do we have left, for God's sake?" Lin Tian slammed the table so hard it rattled. The punks at the next table lowered their heads and paid their bill, still looking resentful but too terrified to speak.

"No time?" Ye Yang froze. He sensed something wrong in Lin Tian's words. Was Beijing... also in danger? Was it not the utopia he had imagined?

"There's no such thing as a utopia anymore," Lin Tian said with a bitter smile, spitting toward the group of thugs. "Honestly, if it were up to me, I'd throw all these scumbags outside to fend for themselves. The men in the wanderer camps have more guts than these lot!"

"They're a minority... just a minority," Ye Yang offered a dry smile. Lin Tian continued to grumble about how much food they wasted.

Ye Yang waved a hand. "Alright, alright, let's talk business. Uncle Lin, we've known each other a long time—give it to me straight. Is my hand really okay? That check today... hey, I'm not stupid."

Lin Tian frowned, deep in thought, before finally nodding. "Xiao Yang, I wouldn't lie to you. But there are things I can't say. I can tell you for sure that you're fine for now, but that might not be forever!"

Ye Yang nodded. As he feared, his father hadn't completely solved the problem with his hand.

"Don't worry about that for now. Instead of dwelling on what you can't control, think about your Hunter training. Getting you into the academy is easy, but you have to put in the effort yourself. Don't end up a useless Level 1 like your Uncle Lin—that would be a huge disappointment!"