Wasteland Border Inspector

The surface of the leaf emitted a faint golden-red glow, with clear veins gradually converging to form discernible text:

[Garcia, biological gene first recorded, approved!]

[Current energy rating: 4]

[Current contagion level: 89.3%]

...

"Huh, this thing can be used like this, to detect humans?"

Cheng Ye was amazed, then saw another leaf floating down, caught by Wang Kang beside him.

[Wang Kang, biological gene first recorded, approved!]

[Current energy rating: 2]

[Current contagion level: 25%]

"Brother Cheng, why is my energy rating not as high as Garcia’s?" Wang Kang looked at the words on the leaf, unable to resist pouting, his tone full of dissatisfaction.

Garcia, who had been groaning softly, paused immediately upon hearing this.

Then, his howling grew louder!

What’s this supposed to mean? Are these even words?

You’re just an Intern Inspector who passed the assessment not long ago, what do you want to do?

Do you want the station’s ranks and strengths to be reversed, with lower ranks being stronger instead?

Then, another leaf from the Boston ivy floated down.

Luokuke raised his hand to catch it, but the font on the leaf was completely different from Wang Kang’s and Garcia’s:

[Luokuke, biological gene certification, approved!]

[Current energy rating: 8.5↑]

[Current contagion level: 65% (new)]

"After advancing to Third-stage Inspector in the winter the year before last, I was already qualified to enter the Inner City."

Luokuke looked at Cheng Ye’s puzzled eyes and gently explained, "But my wife and children are in the Buffer Zone, so I only went in for a brief visit back then and didn’t stay long in the Inner City, but my information was already recorded by Red Tiger at that time."

"Red Tiger?" Cheng Ye caught onto the unfamiliar name and asked.

"Yes, it’s a type of Extraordinary object specifically used by us in Happiness City to guard the Buffer Zone and the boundaries of the Inner City."

Luokuke further added, "It can remember everyone’s biological information, equivalent to a special anti-counterfeiting mark, mainly to prevent some contagion sources, like the face-changing fish we previously contained, from sneaking into the Inner City by mimicking human appearances."

He paused, then mentioned other functions of Red Tiger: "Moreover, anyone whose biological information is bound to Red Tiger is considered core personnel of Happiness City. Even in case of unexpected death in the future, Red Tiger’s leaves can track the residual biological information to manifest the last recorded presence location."

"Red Tiger’s leaves can even analyze the information left by people to restore the approximate scene of the incident..."

"To see the scenes before our death, that... will it avenge us?" Cheng Ye was somewhat dazed listening to this, these methods of tracking information and restoring scenes were quite eerie.

"That depends on your rank." Luokuke chuckled, having chatted frequently with Cheng Ye these days, he didn’t mind sharing more, "As an Intern Inspector, definitely won’t do, um, I won’t do either, at least Fourth-Phase... or even higher, plus it depends on the severity of the incident."

As the two conversed, the fourth leaf of Red Tiger took its time floating down.

After two or three minutes, a voice suddenly sounded in the room, "Inspector Cheng, please suppress that force to allow Red Tiger to detect your physical condition."

"Me, suppress it?" Cheng Ye frowned.

He actually had sensed a weak fluctuation surrounding him for a while, but it was so weak that he didn’t pay it any attention, let alone resist it.

At this moment, reaching out, the two runes on the back of his hand were slightly flickering, indeed it was the belief mark left by Tan Ming, which completely isolated Red Tiger’s detection.

One vitality, counteracting the fluctuation.

One desiccation, absorbing the fluctuation.

Red Tiger was merely an Extraordinary object, but in front of Tan Ming’s belief, it couldn’t help but fall a bit short.

How to lift such restrictions?

Cheng Ye was pondering when he suddenly noticed the mark on the back of his hand gradually dimming, no longer flickering with the detection fluctuation.

Simultaneously, Red Tiger’s fluctuation finally managed to connect with his body, like a USB plugging into a device, beginning to read his information.

After another ten seconds or so, having completed the information read, a leaf nearly three times the size of Luokuke’s slowly floated down, resembling a small palm fan, even larger than a human head when held.

The leaf clearly displayed:

[Cheng Ye, biological gene first recorded, approved!]

[Current energy rating: 67]

[Current contagion level: 100%]

[Current classification: Source Binder]

Each character was exceptionally large, with a layer of faint ethereal flame glimmering on the surface.

Luokuke curiously glanced upward, his facial expression vanished in an instant, leaving only a profound daze.

Beside him, Wang Kang leaned in for a look, unable to resist exclaiming in a low voice, "Brother Cheng, your energy rating... is 16 times Garcia’s?"

times?

Lying on the bed, Garcia’s entire body twitched violently, his initial moans became somewhat distorted and deformed.

He, a level two Inspector, had actually become a "basic measuring unit" in evaluating others’ strength?

However, Cheng Ye paid no heed to these matters, his gaze focused straight on the 100% contagion level below, along with an additional classification.

Earlier, holding onto some speculation, the Shrinking Earth Giant Louse had been infused with power by Tan Ming, becoming an Extraordinary existence; since it was Extraordinary, could it be unrelated to the Infected?

But now, the data from Red Tiger dispelled all of his unnecessary guesses.

Just like Luokuke had stated earlier, from the moment he utilized the benign source of infection, his allegiance was no longer purely human.

He was an Infected, an "unusual" ability user bonded with the Extraordinary Mother Source.

In the vast Wasteland, exactly how many people similar to him existed, no one knows yet.

But so what?

Cheng Ye’s mind shifted, the two runes on the back of his hand lit up again, immediately blocking all of Red Tiger’s probing.

He casually tossed the leaf displaying his information into the nearby discard bin, pushing Luokuke’s wheelchair, he led the way forward.

In the Wilderness, ultimately, only those with the biggest fists rule.

Returning to Happiness City, he is a Prosecutor who has contained Immortal Objects, backed by the promise of Elders.

Today, Red Tiger can detect that he isn’t "human," categorizing him amongst the Source Binders.

Yet when he arrives in Dapo Town tomorrow, establishing a realm truly of his own, who would dare to claim he isn’t human then?

As he stepped out of the room, his field of view instantly cleared.

The Inner City, had arrived!

...