Chapter 58: Martial Law
Chapter 58: Chapter 58: Martial Law
Yang Bo basked in contentment as he lay in the bathtub, no longer angry. Why? Because the game had just showered him with a mountain of benefits. Killing the B-rank Mutant boss and handing over its corpse rewarded him with five million Game Coins. Apparently, it was a rare Mutant. Furthermore, the one he captured alive netted him eight million Game Coins. The customer service representative even mentioned that, pending the appraisal results, the live B-rank boss would likely be worth a staggering thirty million Game Coins.
What shady conspiracy? There was none. It was just the game’s official administration helping him cut his losses!
However, Yang Bo was currently nursing a slight headache. He possessed a whole suite of abilities, but he only fully understood the effects of Sound Wave Control and Invisibility. He had used Electric Energy Control twice, and he still had no clue how to utilize Light Energy Control.
Earlier, he had conducted a series of experiments, such as using Light Energy to heat water and Electric Energy to process an indestructible painting, but that was the extent of it.
Why? Because in this world, casually displaying one’s Superpower was a crime.
Otherwise, why wouldn’t there be Genetic Evolvers flying all over the planet? It was because they didn’t dare. Flaunting a Superpower on the planet was illegal, and the punishments were incredibly severe.
When Yang Bo first moved into this community, Liu Zhijie had assured him of its absolute safety. The community was equipped with an alert system to deter intruders, which took the form of Laser Cannons—a localized extension of the planetary alert system. Anyone foolish enough to take to the skies for a joyride would highly likely be shot down by a Laser Cannon.
If Yang Bo caused too much of a commotion, police drones would arrive instantly, and Rail Cannons positioned tens of thousands of kilometers away would lock onto him. The Rail Cannons were composed of multiple Laser Cannon installations orbiting the entire planet. A single blast from one of those could obliterate even Top Level Mechas, let alone a flesh-and-blood individual.
It wasn’t that no Genetic Evolvers had ever thought themselves invincible, but they had all been swiftly knocked out. Nobody knew exactly how many Laser Cannon installations were hidden within this community. By the time someone found out, they’d likely realize there were at least three to five, perhaps seven to eight, or even more Laser Cannon Towers lying in wait.
"Humanity must have some incredibly powerful enemies," Yang Bo mused. He found it hard to believe that humanity would need such an overwhelmingly powerful defense system just to police its own kind.
When Yang Bo was house-hunting previously, his ultimate goal had been an independent manor. With one, he could install Energy shielding equipment in the basement and freely train his abilities.
Take the Invisibility ability, for instance. It could be considered immensely powerful, but it could also be seen as rather weak. While invisible, he could only rely on his physical Power. The moment he attempted to use anything else, such as Electric Energy, the Invisibility would fail. Of course, it was still exceptionally useful for escaping or pulling off stealthy maneuvers.
Naturally, Yang Bo was in no rush. Using potent abilities like Electric Energy Control and Light Energy Control on a planet like this was asking for trouble, and he had zero desire to expose himself. The darkness of this society was plain to see. The Genetic Potion company wanted his biological samples merely to test drugs. Was it possible that they were the only Genetic Potion company engaging in such practices? Don’t be ridiculous. Everyone was doing it.
"Support abilities are still the most important," Yang Bo told himself. From the very beginning, he had a clear understanding of his role: to act as a lurker in the shadows and minimize his exposure. Were the guys from the Genetic Potion company’s security department badass? Yes, but they had still been killed by his sneak attacks. If it came down to a head-on clash, Yang Bo estimated his chances of winning were slim to none, considering they were trained professionals.
Letting others assume he was a soft pushover, only to reveal himself as a solid steel ball when squeezed—this information gap had allowed Yang Bo to evade danger several times. If his current true strength were to be discovered, a casual report from anyone would result in him being taken away for investigation.
"Metal Control." Fresh out of the shower, Yang Bo walked over to the window in his pajamas. The window glass was one-way; he could easily see out, but no one could see in.
At that moment, his wristband beeped. Walking over to the sofa, Yang Bo picked it up and saw a new email. It was an official announcement: the planet’s Administrative Star’s Chief Executive would be broadcasting the investigation report regarding the Red Earl incident in ten minutes. The broadcast would also detail upcoming legal changes, and all citizens were urged to tune in.
Yang Bo opened the virtual screen to see how the situation had unfolded, while simultaneously pondering his Metal Control. A rather crazy idea was already forming in his mind.
"Fellow citizens, I am Leibo, the Chief Executive of Pado Star. Here today, we mourn for seventeen thousand, eight hundred and fifty of our citizens." The virtual projection displayed a Caucasian man nearly two meters tall with black hair and blue eyes, appearing to be middle-aged.
Five minutes later, Leibo continued, "The security department and the police have confirmed that this tragedy was an attack launched by the extremist organization known as the Red Earl. This attack was anti-humanity, anti-society, and anti-civilization.
"In this incident, the confirmed death toll has reached fourteen thousand and twenty. The remaining individuals are classified as missing because the Laser Weapons carbonized human tissue, making it impossible to identify the specific victims. For this, we express our deepest regrets.
"Regarding the deaths, missing persons, and other affected citizens in this attack, the government will be providing a certain amount of compensation."
Yang Bo hadn’t expected the death toll to be so high. Of course, if it hadn’t been for him, even if they hadn’t all perished, many more would have undoubtedly died.
Leibo’s speech pressed on. "I will now announce the new decrees for Pado Star. The Alliance Council has decided to upgrade the planetary defense systems across all Alliance Administrative Stars, officially elevating them to military grade.
"Furthermore, the planet’s alert level has been raised to Red, and the Intelligent System’s judgment authority has been increased by twenty percent. For individuals or organizations violating bans, the alert system will automatically select a disposal protocol.
"It is strictly forbidden for any citizen to use Superpowers in unauthorized areas.
"The use of Superpowers in any public area is strictly prohibited..."
Yang Bo was a little confused. What exactly did a military-grade alert system entail?
He quickly went online to check and soon understood the difference. Under a civilian alert system, human life took priority over the incident itself. In other words, as long as one hadn’t caused severe consequences, the alert system wouldn’t lightly execute them—much like regular police protocols.
A military-grade system, however, prioritized the incident. As long as someone committed a prohibited act, they would instantly be gunned down. TAT-TAT-TAT!
The alert system’s commands were divided into two parts: human and intelligent. In a civilian system, when there was a conflict between a human command and an Intelligent System command, the human command had priority.
This new decree increased the Intelligent System’s authority. This meant that in a conflict between human and system commands, there was a high probability that the Intelligent System would take precedence. As for the specific allocation of priority rights, that was a closely guarded secret.
In practical terms, this meant that in the past, if a Superpower User decided to take a quick flight, they might only be slapped with a fine or a minor sentence. But now, if they flew and the intelligent alert system judged it as a violation of the ban, the surrounding Laser Cannons would activate immediately, offering zero chances for rehabilitation.
Yang Bo hadn’t known much about these laws before. Naturally, he couldn’t remember them all, either; he only knew that the government forbade Genetic Evolvers from flaunting their Superpowers in front of ordinary residents.
Continuing his research, Yang Bo discovered the reason for these drastic changes. The Red Earl had killed an unprecedented number of celebrities and politicians in this incident. Moreover, the Speaker of the Alliance Council had nearly kicked the bucket, making them a laughingstock to the other two major nations. Add to that the Red Earl’s public declaration of vengeance against Pado Star, and the Alliance had no choice but to issue what was essentially a martial law decree.