Five Hundred Thousand Inhibitors

"Thank you."

Jiang Mian didn't say anything more.

Despite her mind racing with thoughts just moments ago, she maintained an unchanged expression.

Maintaining this mask had almost become her instinct.

She picked up her cup of milk tea and looked out at the desolate street.

The dark clouds in the sky had grown heavier, but the rain still hadn't fallen, as if it were gathering for a torrential downpour.

Ye Chenyang's phone vibrated twice on the table. He merely glanced at it before turning off the screen.

After a while, Jiang Mian spoke softly, as if by chance:

"...Brother Ye, do you think... in the eyes of normal people, should mutants all be eliminated?"

She spoke with a hint of hesitation, as if simply confused by the matter.

Initially, she and Ye Chenyang weren't very familiar with each other, and she usually called him by his full name or simply "you."

But given the "persona" she was playing, calling him like that after getting to know him felt too distant, especially since his name wasn't two characters like hers.

So, after a few days of training, she naturally changed her address.

Asking this question wasn't a whim; she wanted to see what kind of answer Ye Chenyang, with his rationality, would give.

She didn't expect an emotional display of hatred, but she figured he'd side with the majority.

She wondered, if one day her identity were exposed, what would Ye Chenyang's attitude be?

Would he execute her without hesitation, or would there be a flicker of doubt?

If it were the former, she could also eliminate him without hesitation.

As for the restraint of [Radiance] against calamity... her level was higher than his now, and she was about to reach Third-tier.

He was only First-tier. Even with the peak sequence, he'd need time to develop, right?

Therefore, Jiang Mian felt... the advantage was hers!

But if it were the latter, although she couldn't act without a psychological burden, she could still use him.

With her current acting skills, as long as this cute and soft mask remained, and she continued to play the part, she didn't believe he wouldn't be moved.

Jiang Mian's question was simple, but Ye Chenyang's thoughts were more complex.

He looked at Jiang Mian's profile, recalling their first few meetings.

Back then, he felt there was something inexplicably strange about Jiang Mian, but after they became familiar, that feeling gradually faded, and [Eternal Day] didn't give any more prompts.

Ye Chenyang found it difficult to explain, so he temporarily assumed that Jiang Mian had been too stimulated during her Awakening, showing signs of mutation, but ultimately awakened successfully.

As for why she asked this question, that was even easier to explain.

Before her Awakening, Jiang Mian had worked as a temporary employee at the Special Affairs Bureau. When they delivered the remains last time, she was temporarily assigned to their group.

Considering that Groups Three and Four were mostly veteran employees, it was easy to infer what Jiang Mian had dealt with before.

Among those corpses, there might have been people who desperately tried to maintain their sanity, those who couldn't afford Inhibitors and could only wait for death, or those who chose to end their own lives before completely losing their minds.

Jiang Mian had been in that environment, exposed to the last traces they left in the world, and now she was asking him this question.

Following this line of thought, Ye Chenyang felt he might understand Jiang Mian's feelings.

Perhaps the current incident had triggered bad memories, or perhaps she felt sympathy for the mutants.

Outside the window, the first drop of rain finally fell.

Ye Chenyang picked up his cup and took a small sip. Instead of directly answering Jiang Mian's question, he approached it from an angle she wouldn't expect.

"Do you know how much a Type One Inhibitor costs?"

Jiang Mian froze for a moment and shook her head.

She was aware of the basic classifications of Inhibitors. For example, the Type Three Inhibitor she had bought previously cost twenty thousand on the market, but she could get a discount through the right channels.

That was why she had haggled every time before.

The standard effective period for general Inhibitors, using Sequence 100 and beyond as an example, was half a month for a Type Three Inhibitor, and it was unstable.

As for Type One... it lasted for half a year, regardless of the sequence.

For the current Jiang Mian, it was an unattainable "miracle drug."

Ye Chenyang leaned forward slightly and raised his right hand.

"Five hundred thousand."

Jiang Mian was slightly taken aback. Five hundred thousand... With her current salary of around thirty-six thousand a month, plus various subsidies, she barely made fifty thousand.

Even so, it would take ten months of work, without considering other expenses, to afford one.

And for mutants who wanted to hide their identities, the cost through underground channels was even greater.

Not to mention that their channels for obtaining money were limited, and they usually had to rely on the less effective Type Three to hold on.

Ye Chenyang straightened up and, looking at Jiang Mian's expression, continued:

"From the moment Mutants 'Awaken,' they stand on a slippery slope."

"Theoretically, their need for Inhibitors increases with their level, but upon reaching Tier Six, their mental power will greatly strengthen, possibly offsetting the erosion and maintaining the mental state from just before advancing, or... they could be assimilated into a calamity."

Hearing this, Jiang Mian was startled. Official documents only gave a vague explanation about Mutants becoming calamities; this was the first time she had heard a specific figure.

Perhaps upon reaching Tier Six, one could be free from Inhibitors?

"But the vast majority of Mutants don't last that long.

Ultimately, they are just a group of pitiable people who are not in control of themselves, afflicted with an incurable disease.

And the government... considers things from the perspective of the majority of 'normal people'."

There were other things Ye Chenyang didn't say.

Normally, when the stone monument showed no abnormalities, the government would turn a blind eye to Inhibitor trading, even deliberately leaving a way out.

Besides the Containment Bureau, each city would establish a special management zone, open to Mutants who met the criteria.

And Base City No. 144's special management zone was located at...

Upon hearing this, Jiang Mian unconsciously lowered her head, the sweetness on her tongue suddenly turning a bit bitter.

Whichever side you stand on, you consider things from that side's perspective.

But...

Was it truly the out-of-control Mutants that made the government decide to crack down?

Not necessarily.

This clean-up seemed long-planned, from the investigation of the Mobile Black Market when she first Awakened to the recent riots and encirclements, it was clearly premeditated.

If you look at it long-term, the number of Mutants has been accumulating. Even if the growth rate isn't high, more people survive than die.

Therefore, they needed a sufficient reason to initiate a purge, to keep the number of "wild" Mutants steadily within a controllable range.

"Alright, don't overthink it. You are an Awakened now, and your path ahead is long. Focus on the present."

"Mhm, mhm."

Jiang Mian nodded and didn't ask anything further.

The two chatted for a while longer until the sky outside gradually darkened.

Ye Chenyang looked outside; it was raining quite heavily.

"Did you bring an umbrella? Do you want me to walk you back?"

"No need."

Jiang Mian shook her head and took a yellow raincoat out of her bag.

"I have to get up early for my shift tomorrow. I'm heading off then?"

Ye Chenyang nodded and walked with her to the shop entrance.

After watching the figure in the yellow raincoat disappear into the rain, he opened his umbrella and walked towards a black car parked in the distance.