Invitation from the Research Institute

"Hello, Mr. Yu! We have finished verifying your physical examination records. All your conditions fully meet our research institute's volunteer standards. Please proceed to Central City A, District 19, before 12:00 tomorrow morning. We will send the specific address to your phone. Please check it carefully."

"So soon?"

"Our staff are indeed very efficient, hehe." The woman's elegant voice responded to Yu Jing.

"Wait a moment, I haven't confirmed that I want to take part in your experimental project, have I? I don't even know the specifics. Could you explain them in detail now?" Yu Jing raised his questions over the phone.

"That's alright, Mr. Yu. We have already purchased a high-speed train ticket for you from the closest train station to A-Class Student City, District 19. The train leaves in an hour and a half. You may take your identification to the station, collect the ticket, and board directly. Once you arrive at our research institute, you will receive first-class accommodations and meals. Staff members will introduce the detailed testing process and respect your personal wishes."

"If you refuse to continue participating before the test, we will also provide you with a return ticket. If Mr. Yu has decided to come to our research institute, please be sure to arrive before 6:00 tonight. Do you have any other questions?"

That string of words left Yu Jing completely bewildered.

"Excuse me, are you the Human Organ Trafficking Organization?" Yu Jing froze for a moment before asking that question.

"Hehe, if you have doubts or concerns, sir, you may return the train ticket we booked for you. Our research institute will absolutely not force you to do anything. Please rest assured."

"Alright." Yu Jing had no idea what else to say, so he hung up.

The moment the call ended, two text messages arrived in quick succession. One was an anonymous message containing the research institute's detailed location in A-Class City, while the other confirmed that Yu Jing's train ticket had been successfully booked. Moreover, the other party had bought him a ticket for the highest class on the high-speed train, costing the equivalent of half a month's wages from his odd jobs.

Are they casting a long line for a big fish? Trading a high-speed train ticket worth several hundred yuan for my organs? But public security in A-Class City is extremely strict. In recent years, I've never heard of a single criminal case. This address isn't in the suburbs either—it's actually close to the Center Area... Should I give it a try?

Yu Jing still held the little notebook in which he had planned out how to make money, weighing his plan against the research institute's invitation.

Maybe it's real. It should be easy to tell whether a research institute like this is legitimate. If it is, the national projects inside would be funded in the tens or even hundreds of millions. It's possible they'd give a million to people like us who voluntarily take part in testing—little white mice. Even if there's a problem, at worst I'll waste one day. It won't matter if I start my money-making plan tomorrow instead.

Besides, perhaps the reason the research institute chose me is because of some hidden illness in my body. That's possible too...

Yu Jing acted decisively and never hesitated. He immediately took out his phone and submitted his resignation to the boss of the supermarket where he worked temporary jobs. Afterward, he went to his dormitory and changed into lighter clothing: a gray hooded sweatshirt on top, sweatpants below, and a relatively clean pair of skate shoes.

While searching through his clothes, Yu Jing found some photographs from his time at the Intermediate Potential Institute.

In the photographs, Yu Jing represented his Potential Institute in county-level athletic competitions. The young man who had looked so strong in the photos now appeared somewhat frail. No one knew what had happened to him.

He tucked the photos beneath his clothes, left the room, and looked at his mother sleeping in the other bedroom. His mind made up, Yu Jing gritted his teeth and left home for the train station in the county town.

After taking a First-class Business Seat, he found that dedicated train attendants provided complimentary food and drinks. Most of those in Yu Jing's carriage were prominent figures in society, carrying briefcases. As a graduate of the Potential Institute from an ordinary family in a small county town, Yu Jing stood out conspicuously.

"It seems not everyone who sits in business class is rich. Only three people here are true bosses."

Yu Jing was used to observing his surroundings. Since sitting here, he had taken in everything visible within his field of view and made a simple analysis. From subtle details in their behavior and mannerisms, he could tell whether someone was merely putting on an appearance of "nobility" or truly had substance. Of course, Yu Jing had no ill intentions.

Central A-Class Student City was the most prosperous central city in District 19. Its cost of living was basically ten times, or even more, than that of the C-Class Small County Town where Yu Jing lived. Moreover, having money alone was not enough to live here. Anyone whose household registration was not in an A-Class City needed tremendous financial resources to obtain residency rights.

"One day, I, Yu Jing, will change all of this."

After murmuring to himself, Yu Jing pulled up his hood with both hands, hiding his face as he blended into the crowd.

"Is he from the slums? Xiao An, hurry over to Mommy. Be careful not to catch his germs."

Yu Jing's clothing was utterly out of place on the central streets of such a high-end metropolis. In front of him, a young married woman draped in jewelry called her daughter over, hurrying her away from the approaching Yu Jing.

Walking through the bustling streets, Yu Jing saw skyscrapers that could never exist in the small county town where his family's farmland stood beside little houses. He also saw white-collar workers carrying briefcases and high-end smartphones, discussing business and company projects amid the crowds. He felt a little envious, but not overly so.

Yu Jing knew that even if he entered a key Ability Institute through the Ability Test, he could only live in an A-Class City for four years at most. Not only would he face exclusion during his time at the Ability Institute, but once he graduated, he would be forced to return to a C-class County Town to work. Although an Ability Institute disciple would never lack food or clothing in a small county town, he would never be able to live in an A-Class City for the rest of his life.

It was precisely because of this unfairness that Yu Jing wrote out his thoughts in the form of prose during the Ability Test, causing his Category A Subjects score to be cleared to zero. In Yu Jing's view, if he had not expressed himself through obscure and restrained prose, his scores in every other subject might have been marked zero as well.

Of course, Yu Jing had mainly given up on the Ability Test because of his mother's illness and the latent virus in his own body.

"Where is 315 Punk District, East Upper Road?"

It was Yu Jing's first time here, and he still was not used to the layout of a big city. Fortunately, he soon found a bulletin board with a city map posted on it.

Following the map's directions, he arrived without trouble. Before him stood a relatively old punk-style building, and on a side bronze door was a metal plaque.

—District 19 Advanced Life Research Institute—