71: Su Mu's acceptance of the appointment and the test by the "Ninth Department"

The afternoon sunlight, carrying an almost lazy warmth, filtered through the sparse, unkempt branches of the trees, dappling the overgrown paths of the abandoned botanical garden. Su Mu was alone, having followed the coordinates from the mysterious message—now etched into her mind—to find this long-forgotten corner on the city's outskirts. The air was thick with the scent of decaying plants and damp earth, mixed with the desolation of a place long abandoned. The wind whistled through withered vines and half-collapsed fences, making a sobbing rustle that only served to emphasize the eerie silence, making the nervous, heavy thumping of her heart in her chest audible to her own ears. One hand tightly gripped the pepper spray in her pocket, its cold metal canister providing a small measure of comfort, while her other palm was slick with sweat from tension.

Time ticked by, the second hand on her fitness tracker moving silently; every second felt agonizingly long. She leaned against the rough trunk of an old locust tree, her sharp gaze scanning her surroundings like a precision scanner: statue bases swallowed by weeds, rusted benches, and the skeletal frames of the broken Greenhouse in the distance... there was no sign of life. A growing sense of being toyed with or watched began to surface, making her almost want to turn and leave.

Just as her patience was reaching its limit and she began to suspect it was a cruel trap—

"Student Su Mu?"

A low, steady male voice, almost devoid of emotion, rang out from behind her without warning. It wasn't loud, but like a pebble dropped into a still lake, it instantly shattered the frozen air.

Su Mu stiffened, her heart leaping. She spun around instinctively, dropping into a slight defensive crouch. There stood the young man she had seen several times on campus, whose cold demeanor felt entirely out of place in a youthful environment—Xiao Zhang. He stood quietly a few meters away by a cluster of wild roses. He was still wearing the same seemingly ordinary but well-tailored, wrinkle-free dark casual clothes. His posture was as straight as a pine, his face expressionless, and his eyes as calm as a deep, lightless pool of cold water as he watched her.

"It's you?" Su Mu gasped, her surprise and vigilance reaching their peak. Her finger tightened on the nozzle of the spray in her pocket. "That message... you sent it? Who are you? Where is Excellence? What happened to him?!" A flurry of questions shot from her mouth like bullets, carrying her long-suppressed anxiety and demand for answers.

Xiao Zhang didn't answer any of her questions directly. Instead, he turned slightly and made a brief, unmistakable "after you" gesture. His movements were clean and efficient, carrying the disciplined air of rigorous training. "Someone wants to see you. Please follow me." His gaze fell on the fitness tracker on Su Mu's wrist. "Your phone, and any electronic devices capable of communication or recording, must be handed over to me for safekeeping. This is for absolute security."

Su Mu took a deep breath, suppressing the turmoil and intense unease within her. Things had gone too far to back down now. She took off the fitness tracker and handed it to Xiao Zhang along with her already powered-off phone. Xiao Zhang took them and, without a second glance, placed them into a specialized shielding bag and sealed it.

He turned and silently led Su Mu toward the largest of the dilapidated glass Greenhouse structures deep within the botanical garden. The exterior walls were covered in withered ivy, and most of the glass panes were broken, looking as if they might collapse at any moment. However, when Xiao Zhang pushed open a reinforced metal side door that was cleverly camouflaged to blend in with the ruinous surroundings, Su Mu was momentarily stunned by the sight before her.

The interior of the Greenhouse stood in stark contrast to the desolation outside. The space was spotless, and the floor had even been treated for dust. The original planting areas had been cleared, and in the center stood a simple but sturdy metal table and two comfortable-looking folding chairs. An elegant portable tea set sat on the table, steam curling from it. An air circulation system hummed lowly, keeping the interior air fresh and at a constant temperature. Most striking were several large potted plants placed seemingly at random; behind them, one could just make out highly concealed black hemispherical devices—evidently high-tech surveillance and signal jammers. This wasn't an abandoned site at all, but a meticulously camouflaged and highly controlled temporary safe house.

A middle-aged man in a well-fitting Zhongshan suit, sitting as steady as a bell with an aura as solid as a mountain—Wang Jianguo—was seated in one of the chairs, unhurriedly pouring tea. He looked up, his gaze like lightning, instantly locking onto Su Mu. His eyes were sharp and deep, as if they could pierce through all appearances to reach the very soul. His face held little expression, but he possessed a natural, imposing authority that came from long years in a high position.

"Sit down, Student Su Mu," Wang Jianguo said. His voice was calm and soothing, yet it carried an undeniable natural authority, as if coming from the top of a chain of command. He pointed to the empty chair across from him. "It’s been a long journey; have some tea to steady your nerves. I am Wang Jianguo, currently in full charge of the... highly specialized national project that Excellence is involved in."

Su Mu's heart constricted sharply at the mention of "Excellence." She sat down as instructed, leaning forward slightly with her hands tensely clasped on the table. She stared directly at him, ignoring all pleasantries and getting straight to the point. "Mr. Wang, what happened to Excellence? What project is he involved in? Why has he completely vanished without a trace for so long? Can't he even make a single phone call to say he's safe? What is going on?" Her voice trembled with urgency as the questions poured out in rapid succession.

Wang Jianguo didn't answer immediately. Instead, he unhurriedly pushed a cup of clear, freshly brewed tea toward Su Mu. Then, from an inconspicuous black briefcase by his feet—which featured a biometric lock—he pulled out an ultra-thin, ruggedized tablet. His fingers slid quickly across the screen to unlock it, pulling up a specially encrypted video file. He then turned the tablet toward Su Mu and gently pushed it toward her.

"Given your persistence and the boundaries you've already touched upon, and considering we may need your cooperation in the future, it has been determined that certain non-core information can be disclosed to you," Wang Jianguo's tone remained steady, but it carried a heavy weight. "After watching this, you will have a preliminary understanding of the current situation. But be warned: everything you see is top secret."

Su Mu took a deep breath, her finger trembling slightly as she touched the play button on the screen.

The video footage clearly came from multiple surveillance cameras at different angles. It had been edited and processed, with some parts blurred or silenced, but the content was enough to make Su Mu feel as if she had fallen into an ice cellar, her blood nearly freezing in her veins—

The first segment: A familiar environment, looking like a school laboratory (she recognized it as the remote lab where Excellence used to tinker with things), but it was in total disarray—instruments were overturned, and electric sparks were flying everywhere. Excellence's figure was twitching and struggling violently in the frame, letting out silent screams (the audio was removed). His eyes were wide, and in his pupils, non-human, ghostly blue data streams seemed to flicker. The veins beneath his skin bulged and writhed from time to time, emitting an eerie glow. Several people in specialized protective suits were moving quickly, trying with great difficulty to restrain him... The scene looked like a miniature version of hell on earth.

Segment 2: Switch to a pure white room filled with various precision medical equipment. Excellence lay on the hospital bed, connected to various tubes and lines. His face was as pale as paper, his eyes vacant and hollow, and a trace of saliva even trickled uncontrollably from the corner of his mouth. A nurse was patiently feeding him liquid food, yet he needed guidance like an infant, occasionally emitting some meaningless, babbling syllables.

Segment 3: Time seemed to have moved forward a bit; Excellence's mental state was slightly better, but his behavior was even more... bizarre. He was giggling at a crude, comical-looking device cobbled together from a mess of wires and components, dancing with joy. Then, he carefully attached an electrode pad to his forehead, and a tri-color LED on the device began to flash with an erratic light... He was having a blast, like a three-year-old who had discovered a new toy, but the ignorance and emptiness in his eyes made Su Mu's heart wrench painfully.

The video playback ended, and the screen went dark. Su Mu's face was so pale there wasn't a hint of color; her lips trembled slightly, and her eyes instantly reddened as a layer of moisture quickly flooded them, blurring her vision. She bit her lower lip hard to keep the sobs from escaping. She had never imagined that the brilliant Excellence, with his clear eyes and that look of shy yet persistent radiance, would turn into... that version of himself in the video! That kind of pain, that bewilderment, that almost childlike innocence...

"As you can see," Wang Jianguo's voice rang out deeply, breaking the suffocating silence with an unquestionable gravity, "Excellence suffered an extremely unexpected and severe energy backlash accident during a validation experiment involving highly classified, cutting-edge technology. His central nervous system sustained unprecedented, near-catastrophic shock and damage. Currently, he is in a very difficult and lengthy recovery period. The technology he was in contact with and attempting to verify has potential value and risks far beyond your imagination, concerning national strategic security and the future competitive landscape. Therefore, the strictest confidentiality measures, top-tier medical protection, and absolute physical isolation must be taken to prevent any information leaks or secondary harm. This is why he has completely lost contact."

Su Mu's tears finally couldn't help but slide down. She quickly wiped them away with the back of her hand, trying to maintain her composure, but her voice still carried an uncontrollable tremor: "How... how could he... come into contact with something so dangerous? Before, he was just... tinkering with things in the dorm... How... how is he really doing now? Can he recover?" Every word seemed to be squeezed out of her throat with difficulty.

"His vital signs are currently stable, but the recovery of his cognitive functions, logical thinking, and memory... is extremely slow, and the outlook is not optimistic. Medical assessments show he suffered a kind of... information-level trauma, for which traditional medical treatments have limited effectiveness." Wang Jianguo's tone was heavy, but his gaze remained sharp as he carefully observed Su Mu's every subtle reaction. "This is also why I'm taking the risk of meeting you here today."

He leaned forward slightly, his gaze falling on Su Mu like something tangible, bringing an invisible pressure: "We know that through your personal ability and keen intuition, you have been secretly investigating Excellence's situation. We've noticed your extraordinary talent in the field of computer engineering, as well as the information mining and anti-tracking capabilities you've demonstrated in the geek network communities. More importantly, according to our information, you are one of the very few people Excellence truly trusted before the accident and with whom he could engage in a certain level of technical exchange."

Su Mu was stunned, her heart racing wildly again, but this time with a completely different premonition—a mix of shock and a hint of disbelief: "What... what do you mean?"

"We need your help, Student Su Mu." Wang Jianguo looked directly into her eyes, his tone solemn. "Excellence's recovery requires multi-dimensional, continuous, and gentle stimulation. In particular, he needs non-therapeutic interaction and companionship from someone he is familiar with and trusts, which could have an unexpectedly positive effect on an emotional and cognitive level—something cold machines and drugs cannot replace. At the same time, we must admit that his 'fooling around' handmade works before the accident had internal logic and flashes of inspiration that were extremely unique, even... ahead of their time. After analyzing his remaining design sketches and some physical debris, our team of top experts expressed great amazement and confusion. We need someone who has a solid foundation in engineering electronics and can understand his... well... 'Excellence-style' leaping thought patterns to assist the medical team in designing and debugging customized auxiliary rehabilitation training equipment, and to try to interpret and verify those imaginative, seemingly illogical but potentially groundbreaking creative fragments."

He paused, his tone becoming even more solemn, carrying a weight that brooked no refusal: "Of course, this means that once you choose to join, you will need to sign the highest-level lifelong non-disclosure agreement, accept 24/7 security monitoring and behavioral restrictions, temporarily suspend your studies, leave your familiar campus and living environment, and enter a closed R&D and medical base completely isolated from the outside world. All your communications will be strictly controlled, and your identity will be temporarily encrypted. You can view this invitation as an extremely special 'internship' serving a national strategic project, or more directly—this is the only chance to go deep into the center of a top-secret vortex, participate firsthand, and possibly... save your friend."

Su Mu's heart hammered frantically in her chest, blood surging to her head and making her feel a slight dizziness. This invitation was too sudden, too massive, and too incredible, almost exceeding the limits of her imagination. National secrets, strategic projects, nerve damage, closed management, lifelong confidentiality... these words were like heavy boulders weighing on her heart. The risks, the unknowns, the loss of freedom... all of it made her feel an instinctive fear.

However, the image of Excellence's pained, distorted face from the video flashed before her eyes again, followed by that vacant, ignorant gaze as he played with a crude toy... The Excellence who was focused on soldering in the lab, who frowned in deep thought in the library, who discussed the possibilities of Quantum Entanglement with her under the stars... had now become like that, trapped alone in a place isolated from the world...

Without almost any hesitation, a powerful emotion from deep within her heart overwhelmed all fears and considerations. She snapped her head up, the confusion and tears in her eyes instantly replaced by an incredibly firm light, clear and resolute.

"I agree." Her voice wasn't loud, but it was exceptionally clear and firm, without any tremor. "As long as I can help him, as long as there is even a sliver of hope that he can get better, no matter what I need to do or where I need to go, I agree."

Wang Jianguo watched her quietly, his sharp gaze seemingly wanting to penetrate her soul to scrutinize the truth and weight of her resolve. A few seconds later, on his habitually cold and hard face, the corner of his mouth twitched upward ever so slightly, revealing an almost imperceptible smile—a mix of satisfaction and a touch of complexity.

"Very well." He nodded, a hint of subtle softening in his tone. "A wise and brave choice. Welcome to the 'Torch Dragon' project support team, Student Su Mu. From now on, your code name is 'Firefly'." He stood up and extended his hand to Su Mu. "I hope your little spark of light can truly bring a glimmer of brightness and a turning point to his dark world."

Su Mu also stood up, took a deep breath, and firmly grasped that heavy and powerful hand. Her palm was still a bit cold, but her eyes shone like tempered steel.

She knew that from this moment on, her life's trajectory would completely change. She was actively stepping into an unfathomable vortex full of unknown dangers, but she had no regret in her heart, only a determination to burn her bridges and a faint but incredibly firm hope—

For Excellence, she was willing to go through fire and water.