North Star, Countermeasure Research Institute.
In Han Qiu's office, he looked over the report in his hands and shook his head at Zhang Minglu standing before him.
"All the attempts failed? What a pity."
"Looks like your proposal won't work," Zhang Minglu said. "Dozens of control groups had their Mind Power balanced at different levels, and some were even completely identical, yet none could establish a Mind Network."
Han Qiu nodded. "It would have been nice to have Shadow's test report. His data would definitely have been more valuable."
"Academician Han, I already told you that Shadow refused this collaboration."
"I thought he had established a long-term cooperative relationship with the Countermeasure Research Institute."
"Long-term cooperation doesn't mean we have to cooperate every single time. Both sides uphold an equal relationship based on mutual respect. He can refuse collaborations proposed by us, and we can likewise refuse collaborations proposed by him."
The corners of Han Qiu's lips lifted slightly, carrying a trace of amusement. "The Countermeasure Research Institute, built through the concentrated resources of the entire nation, stands on equal footing with an Ascender? Interesting."
"Is there some hidden meaning in your words, Academician Han?" Zhang Minglu frowned.
"Don't misunderstand, Dr. Zhang. Your collaboration was approved by Director Gao as well. Why would I question it? It's just that as long as we cannot find a way to establish the Mind Network, we cannot identify parasites."
"This isn't something that can be solved through urgency," Zhang Minglu said. "Besides, the Mind Network may not be our only path. If the decipherment department can decode Alien Intelligence's language system, we may gain more methods."
"Really?"
An amused smile appeared on Han Qiu's face once more.
"How can humanity master something it has never heard of and has no concept of? I