Chapter Fifty-Six: Waiting for the Hare by the Tree

"Hey, what are you thinking about?" Zhou Yi snapped out of his daze and looked at Sophia. At some point, Meng Xiaojiao had reappeared on the platform. She seemed perfectly normal, and the injury on her head had vanished, which made Zhou Yi pause slightly.

"Oh, I was just curious how Meng Xiaojiao's wound disappeared. Even if it healed, it shouldn't be this fast. Is there some special method?"

Sophia smiled, and Fatty let out a sigh of relief. Clearly, Zhou Yi had been lost in thought for a while, and Fatty was quite worried.

"This Meng Xiaojiao is a brand-new replica, possessing only the memories she should have in this world. As for the replica the Hunter used, it's still in the base. Once they're possessed by a Hunter, their memories can't be erased," Sophia explained.

She didn't spell it out, but Zhou Yi understood. The replica possessed by the Hunter could only be interrogated, studied, or even destroyed. Zhou Yi felt no pity; if they had fallen into Meng Xiaojiao's hands before, their fate would have been the same.

"So when will we be able to access Meng Xiaojiao's memories? Where is the thing they're looking for?"

Sophia shook her head and sighed, apparently helpless.

"Hunters have their own methods. We can send her back for research, but for now, we can't access her memories. Let's go find Cheng Zhi directly. In this world, both I and the Hunters are limited in our abilities. If you can learn more about the Hunters' plans or methods while dealing with Cheng Zhi, you'll earn greater rewards."

Zhou Yi nodded slightly and glanced at Meng Xiaojiao.

"Rewards? Do you mean those energy points? If I accumulate enough to upgrade, won't Lord Warden suppress me?"

"I've already told you, I'll help you. Just focus on accumulating energy. I can suppress your abilities so no one can tell if you've upgraded. Even Valdney won't be able to detect it."

Zhou Yi didn't look away.

Sophia sounded sincere, but Zhou Yi didn't believe her. When he was still a slave, she hadn't shown him any favor; now, her sudden kindness was too abrupt to trust.

"Why? Why are you taking care of me like this? I'm just a low-level Chosen, probably not even level one by your standards. After what the Deputy Warden just said, I have no sense of security at all!"

Sophia gave him a meaningful look, then stepped forward and handed Zhou Yi the badge she held.

"The reason is simple. Does this badge look familiar to you?"

Zhou Yi took it and paused for a moment.

He wasn't surprised. It was a hexagram, with a circle at the center formed by two overlapping triangles—almost identical to his own mark.

He was puzzled and looked at Sophia. Fatty tiptoed to get a better look.

"A hexagram?" Zhou Yi muttered.

Sophia, seeing his confusion, quickly explained, "As a Chosen, everyone bears a mark—sometimes it appears willingly, sometimes not. But the marks are not all the same. Valdney’s mark is a four-pointed star. Others have water droplets or rings; most are symmetrical shapes. But this hexagram with an eye is extremely rare. As far as I know, only the Lord of Time City has a hexagram with an eye. With each upgrade, a new rune appears at each corner. That is why Valdney is so angry.

Our law enforcement badges as half-cyborgs are all modeled after this hexagram. To be blunt, only those with the hexagram mark are considered true Chosen, regardless of their level. So whether you’re low-level or have no rank at all, I will serve you and protect you with all my power."

By the end, Sophia’s face showed genuine respect. Zhou Yi wasn't excited; instead, he felt a sense of dread.

If what Sophia said was true, his unique mark would only attract danger. This was hardly good news. Even if Valdney couldn’t touch him in the base, things would become even more difficult in the future.

Fatty had squeezed closer, focused on something else. He looked at Sophia and quickly asked, "Miss Sophia, you just said marks can appear actively or passively. What does that mean? Can they be artificially made? If so, why not create a batch of people with hexagram marks? Why go through all this trouble?"

Sophia shook her head. "Not everyone can create a mark for the Chosen. I’ve only heard that in a hidden time rift, there’s a prophet who can tattoo marks using spirit stones as dye and the prophet’s own heart’s blood.

But not every slave can withstand the backlash of the mark. Some die immediately; others, even if they survive, find it nearly impossible to advance in rank, and even then, the effort required is several times greater than for ordinary Chosen.

Moreover, this prophet hasn’t been heard from in years. No one knows where he is. Some say he was killed by the Hunters; others claim he’s actually the chief of the Hunters. But all of it is rumor—no one can confirm the truth."

Fatty’s hopeful expression faded. "I thought there might be a way for me to become a Chosen too."

Sophia wasn’t offended, nor did she think Fatty’s hopes were foolish. Instead, she answered seriously, "It’s not impossible. You’re Zhou Yi’s slave now. As long as Zhou Yi upgrades, you might become a Chosen yourself. The higher his rank, the greater your chance of freedom.

So, you and Zhou Yi are now one. Help Zhou Yi reach level one. Only then will he truly possess power."

Zhou Yi narrowed his eyes slightly; this was what he most wanted to know.

"Power?"

"Yes, power. For example, superhuman strength, invulnerability to normal weapons—even replicas have these abilities. There’s also elemental control—metal, water, fire, earth, wood, and other special attributes.

As long as you’re not in a restricted world, even replicas can use some of their powers. This makes missions easier, and even when facing Hunters, you can protect yourselves.

According to your earlier discussion, there are Hunters aiding Cheng Zhi here. If you find and kill him, you’ll earn an additional reward. This won’t affect the energy points distributed to the base for this mission."

"If I level up so quickly, won’t I draw attention? Not just from Hunters, but also from other Chosen and the Warden—they’ll want to kill me."

Sophia smiled, shook her head, and pulled a metal tag on a leather cord from her pocket, handing it to Zhou Yi.

"I can’t help with other abilities, but I can hide your power. Wear this—it will prevent anyone from detecting your true strength. Even your mark won’t shine as brightly as before."

Fatty coughed and blinked at Sophia. "Since you have something like this, why didn’t you give it to us earlier? Last time, Valdney looked like he wanted to eat Zhou Yi alive."

Sophia glanced at him and shook her head. "To become a Chosen and be accepted as a slave without being killed, you have to display your mark in front of everyone. Only then is it possible. Once that’s done, if you don’t grow or your energy points don’t change, they’ll lose interest in you."

Zhou Yi nodded, starting to understand Sophia’s logic.

By revealing his mark at the base, even if Valdney wanted to act, it was impossible. It was as if his identity had been announced publicly; the central intelligence could sense everything in the base. Any move against him would be suicide.

He flexed his wrist, feeling the pain from the wound in his palm.

The movement made him touch the stone in his pocket, and he was struck by a thought.

"Enough—we’ve wasted enough time. I’ll drive you to Cheng Zhi’s place to meet up with the surveillance team. Then I’ll take Meng Xiaojiao back.

Since they know Meng Xiaojiao is a Hunter, they’ll definitely come for her. I’ll keep watch from the outside. If her parents ask, I’ll say I’m their teacher, Mr. Xing—it’s plausible.

Most importantly, we might catch them if they come looking for her."