Dual Worlds: I Have a Doomsday World

Lin Qi decided to believe Liu Xuan for now.

’She probably really just wants to change vehicles, right?’

He didn’t talk with Liu Xuan for long at the H4 Skyscraper’s docking bay, as he was cutting it close to clock in for work.

After a brief chat with Liu Xuan, the two entered separate elevators.

Lin Qi managed to clock in just a few seconds before ten.

Pressing the button for the seventeenth floor, Lin Qi went straight to the server room.

The most important thing for Lin Qi right now was to finish reading the S-Class Pharmacy Literature as quickly as possible. He needed to build up a richer theoretical knowledge base before the next batch of Extraordinary Materials was produced in the Doomsday World.

When he arrived on the seventeenth floor, Lin Qi didn’t see Brother Green Hair.

Then again, Lin Qi didn’t actually know Brother Green Hair’s exact work schedule.

After completing the verification procedure, he entered the server room, accessed the S-Class Pharmacy Literature, and began his studies for the day.

...

Immersed in an ocean of knowledge, time flew by.

In the blink of an eye, it was almost time to clock out.

[Incoming communication request from "Doctor Lin." Accept?]

It wasn’t time to get off work yet, but Lin Qi suddenly received a communication request from the old man.

Technically, using a personal communicator during work hours would result in a fine from the company.

But Lin Qi would never reject a call from family.

A single call would only be a two-thousand-Credit-Point fine, anyway, which was less than what the old man charged for a single bull-themed augmentation!

He couldn’t ignore the old man.

Lin Qi accepted the call and asked, "I’m still at work. What’s up?"

Doctor Lin’s face appeared on the screen, his brow furrowed. He seemed to have run into some trouble.

But once the call connected, Doctor Lin’s expression relaxed slightly. He said to Lin Qi, "Come back to the Prosthetic Clinic after work. I’ve got a strange patient."

"Based on the symptoms, it looks a lot like cyber psychosis, but the diagnostic instruments aren’t showing the corresponding indicators."

"On top of that, he’s from the company and seems to know you."

’Cyber psychosis?’

That wasn’t rare. The Prosthetic Clinic often dealt with infected Implanters.

But...

’Someone from the company?’

’Someone I know?’

For a moment, Lin Qi couldn’t think of who it might be.

Seeing Lin Qi’s expression, Doctor Lin immediately patched the video feed to his personal Prosthetic Eye and aimed it at the operating table.

The view switched, and when Lin Qi saw the face of the person on the table, he was stunned. "Brother Green Hair?"

Lin Qi was so surprised he said it out loud.

That confirmed it for Doctor Lin. It seemed the patient hadn’t been lying; Lin Qi really did know him.

Doctor Lin switched the feed back to his own face and said to Lin Qi, "He paid a hefty price to jump the queue at the clinic. You know me, I’m dedicated to my patients, and besides, he’s an acquaintance of yours."

"I can’t figure this illness out on my own. Come back and see if you can analyze it from a Prosthetic Engineering or Pharmacy perspective."

"I’ve scheduled an online consultation with a few old friends. I suspect this is a new type of cyber psychosis, possibly caused by one of the company’s prosthetics."

"If we can be the first to crack this and find a solution, the profits will be even more substantial than the Divine Iron Bull."

Doctor Lin wasn’t just a Prosthetic Doctor; he was also a businessman. Naturally, he paid more attention to matters involving profit.

Lin Qi agreed to Doctor Lin’s request. "I’ll head straight back to the Prosthetic Clinic after work. It’ll take me about half an hour."

Doctor Lin nodded. "I’ll keep running diagnostics. Hanging up now."

The call ended. Lin Qi checked the time; he could get off work in about five minutes.

He didn’t go back to reading the literature, instead just reviewing the information in his head.

Five minutes later, Lin Qi left the server room, got into an elevator, and headed for the rooftop docking bay.

When the elevator doors opened, it was no surprise to see Liu Xuan in the opposite elevator, which had arrived at the same time just a short distance away.

"What a coincidence," Liu Xuan said to Lin Qi.

Lin Qi smiled back. "It is, isn’t it."

It was another brief interaction; the two didn’t talk for long.

They each boarded their flying vehicles and headed off in different directions.

...

Sitting in her flying vehicle, Liu Xuan watched Lin Qi’s vehicle disappear into the distance. The blue light in her left Prosthetic Eye flickered faintly.

The look in her right eye also revealed that she was not in a good mood.

After a moment of thought, she changed the vehicle’s course and headed straight for the Liu’s Heavy Industries headquarters.

...

Lin Qi flew his vehicle to the No. 1 Prosthetic Clinic.

The sign in front of the clinic now read "CLOSED," so the number of people waiting in line was much smaller.

This allowed Lin Qi to find a parking spot for his vehicle not far from the No. 1 Prosthetic Clinic.

He walked the few steps into the clinic and activated his Spiritual Vision.

The old man was in the basement workshop, staring blankly at a monitor.

Streams of data scrolled across the screen.

But without exception, all of it was within normal parameters.

The old man seemed to be questioning his own existence; it was as if he had encountered the most severe challenge of his career as a Prosthetic Doctor.

Lin Qi glanced at Brother Green Hair, who was lying on the operating table, looking as if he’d lost the will to live.

’I wonder how he found his way to the No. 1 Prosthetic Clinic,’ Lin Qi thought.

Lin Qi went down the stairs, came to the workshop door, and requested entry.

Inside, Doctor Lin snapped out of his daze. He started walking toward the door, saying, "Lin Qi’s back. Don’t you worry, we’ll get to the bottom of your problem today."

In Doctor Lin’s opinion, while Lin Qi’s hands-on skills weren’t as good as his own, his theoretical knowledge had long since surpassed him.

Brother Green Hair lifted his head to look at the door, then let it fall limply back onto the operating table.

Doctor Lin opened the door. Lin Qi walked in, looked at Brother Green Hair, and asked, "Brother Green Hair, you seemed fine yesterday. How did you end up seeking medical help outside the company today?"