Program

Chapter Forty-Seven: Program

After Hong Mo disappeared into the distance, Gray Dog finally stirred and climbed to his feet. Hearing the movement, the others got up as well. Then Gray Dog walked over to Plump Pig and kicked him.

"Hey, wake up, you dead pig. Damn, you actually fell asleep." Gray Dog suddenly noticed Plump Pig smacking his lips, looking as though he were having a sweet dream.

"Move." Iron Ox got up as well, extending a thick arm to shove Gray Dog aside. Looking at the lazy bastard, Iron Ox suddenly raised his right leg high behind him. It looked like he was about to fire off a kick.

"Plump Pig is in for it this time." White Cat could not help covering his eyes. In truth, his eyes were wide open through the gaps between his fingers. The guy was waiting to enjoy the show.

Bang!

Plump Pig's body, weighing over four hundred pounds, was kicked flying by Iron Ox like an anti-aircraft shell.

"Ooh~~!" Gray Dog and the others shaded their eyes with their hands and looked into the distance. The fat pig woke up the moment that kick landed. He had not been in deep sleep to begin with; anyone would have woken from a kick like that. He was still a little dazed at first, but when he realized he was in the air, he immediately panicked. His short limbs flailed nonstop, though no one knew what he was so anxious about.

With a heavy splat, Plump Pig landed in the thick mud by the river, smashing out a huge crater. He had flown a full four to five hundred meters from where they stood. If Iron Ox had not controlled the direction of his kick, the fat pig would have fallen into the Yangtze River long ago.

"All right, your turn." Iron Ox turned around and stared at his three subordinates, clenching his fists until his knuckles cracked.

"Boss, White Cat came up with this idea. It had nothing to do with me," Gray Dog immediately distanced himself from it.

"Damn it, I only made a suggestion—a suggestion. You were the ones who worked out the details," White Cat said anxiously.

Thud! Thud! The two of them each took a heavy punch to the head. "Damn it, if you had an idea like that, why didn't you tell me? You got me electrocuted twice. The moment I saw White Cat go down in one hit, I knew something was off, but I didn't react right away. Then I stupidly rushed in and got shocked a second time."

"Boss, you can't blame us. We were afraid you wouldn't agree to the plan."

"Hmph. Forget it this time. Weren't you afraid that target would just kill you outright?" Iron Ox was still somewhat angry.

"How could that happen? Before coming here, I analyzed that guy's past battles and noticed something."

"What?"

"As long as you don't provoke him, that guy is probably pretty easy to talk to. And even if he really wanted to kill us, would we have kept pretending? We're not that stupid, are we?"

"How did you figure that out? Why didn't I notice?"

"Come on, Boss, with your IQ..." White Cat did not continue, but his expression said enough. Anyone who was not an idiot would understand.

"Damn, let's go. We'll report back. The target is too strong; we're no match for him." By then, Plump Pig had climbed back from the riverbank, covered in mud. However, Iron Ox's kick did not seem to have harmed him at all.

"Right, did you get anything out of this? Don't tell me we fought, got a little hurt, and came away with nothing. We'd be a laughingstock." Iron Ox suddenly asked.

"Yes, we got something."

"Mm? What?"

"That little girl is called Lingyin, not Remilia. I heard it clearly when that man left." White Cat looked very pleased with himself.

"Forget it. Stop pretending. With just that little bit, we'll be going back to get chewed out." Iron Ox had lost any interest in fooling around, and his voice was somewhat dejected.

"Getting out alive is good enough. Why should we risk our lives for those people up top? Damn it, if not for the thing inside my body, I would've quit long ago." White Cat stopped pretending as well, his face returning to its gloomy expression.

"Actually, I don't know if you noticed, but I really did find something." Toad, who had been silent the entire time, suddenly spoke.

"Say it!" The others all glared at Toad.

"That Hong Mo's right hand was intact. I remember the information from above saying his right hand had been blown into pulp, didn't it?" Toad sounded as though he were asking, yet also confirming it.

"Damn, regeneration! And it's only been four days, yet an entire arm has regenerated completely. And according to what Su Mu said, that guy's internal organs were at least shattered to pieces by her... Did any of you notice any sign that he was injured?" Iron Ox suddenly asked.

"No. You couldn't tell at all."

"Then that's it. It's definitely regeneration, and dozens of times stronger than ordinary regeneration. Damn, this is a huge discovery. With this alone, we definitely won't be blamed when we get back. Intelligence is also an extremely important gain." Thinking of what would happen after they returned, Iron Ox suddenly began to laugh.

"So this time is over, but what about the future?" Toad said flatly, not looking particularly happy.

The others' expressions fell again. Clearly, they had thought of their own circumstances. "We still need strength. As long as we have strength, everything is negotiable." The group fell silent and disappeared into the dense cluster of buildings.

Hong Mo knew nothing of this. Walking by the river, he was contemplating some issues of his own. In the battle just now, his opponents had obviously held back, and he had not truly fought either. So it had not been worth much—just a bit of exercise. What Hong Mo was mainly thinking about was his battle with Su Mu four days ago.

After witnessing Su Mu's solid air barrier, Hong Mo had discovered several weaknesses of his own.

First: his fighting techniques were too weak. If he encountered an opponent who could resist lightning, possessed superb close-combat skills, and got within striking distance, he would become a human punching bag.

For over thirty seconds, he had endured an uninterrupted barrage of blows, one move following another. Every time he gathered even a little strength, it was dispersed by another hit. Hong Mo had not even had a chance to strike back. Thinking of what had happened four days ago still made his body ache.

Second: his defense was too weak. He was not a physical-type esper. Though he was much stronger than an ordinary person, his body's toughness was not particularly outstanding. If he encountered a powerful blow, he probably would not be able to withstand it. If not for his rapid regeneration, he would likely have died a few days ago.

There was nothing to say about fighting techniques; even if he wanted to learn, there was nowhere to learn them. As for defense, there was someone beside Hong Mo whom he could ask. His precious daughter seemed to know quite a lot. He had never expected her to gain something like that at the research institute.

Hong Mo cared greatly about Su Mu's unique defensive method. Logically speaking, Su Mu was an atmospheric controller, belonging to the material-control type, and her body was not especially strong either. Yet because of that layer of air barrier, her defense was astonishing. In such an intense battle, even her thin cheongsam had not torn in the slightest.

What had Lingyin said at the time? The air barrier was a defensive model designed around an esper's abilities after extensive calculations by a supercomputer.

Hong Mo asked Lingyin what exactly that meant. Because she was young, Lingyin had actually been fairly free at the research institute. She had had opportunities to look through a great deal of material. In the eyes of those researchers, a child only a few years old posed no threat.

After espers gained their powers, most could only use them instinctively. Perhaps many copied some moves from movies, anime, or novels, but they were all merely superficial imitations. Were techniques really such simple things?

Leaving everything else aside, take Hong Mo's strongest attack at present—the railgun.

Hong Mo could fire a railgun. Yes, he could fire one, but that was all. Hong Mo understood a tiny bit about the principles of electromagnetic acceleration, so he could use it. But did Hong Mo truly understand how a railgun worked? Did he know how to achieve maximum power? Did he know how to improve its accuracy or increase its range?

He did not. Hong Mo understood none of that. In the eyes of those scientists, espers like Hong Mo were idiots holding immense wealth without knowing how to use it.

Then, those scientists used supercomputers to design calculation programs for defense and attack. How should supernatural powers be used to achieve the best results? This was an enormous field of study. After all, the human body was different from a machine. Principles applicable to machines were not necessarily applicable to the human body.

At that moment, Hong Mo desperately wished he could obtain a defensive program that had been calculated by a supercomputer. Unfortunately, that wish could only remain a fantasy.

Lingyin had seen some related information before, but so much time had passed that she had forgotten most of it. No matter how smart Lingyin was, she was still just a child.

His hands moved again, and a bolt of electricity formed into a ring. Slowly, electric current filled its interior.

Increase the intensity!

Crack! The ring formed from electric current shattered like ice. Countless tiny sparks vanished into the air. Hong Mo sighed inwardly. As expected, it wouldn't work.

Lingyin had told Hong Mo about an electromagnetic defense program designed by a computer. Whether because it was incomplete or for some other reason, Hong Mo couldn't use it. His head throbbed, and he gave a bitter smile.

Did he really have to go back and study physics, only designing his own moves after gaining a detailed understanding of electromagnetism? That was ridiculous. He hadn't even studied properly back then. The thought in his head startled Hong Mo.

Still, he knew it himself—perhaps he really should go back to school. He had only finished his first year of college. A few days into his second year, the accident had happened.

Forget it. No point thinking about that now. He should first figure out how to leave the country and evade pursuit. If he got caught or died, then thinking about anything would be pointless.

Leaving the country... the normal route was out of the question. So, illegal immigration? Just as Hong Mo was pondering it, cries for help suddenly came from the river.