115: Chapter 115 A Glimmer of Light Appears During the Assessment

Ling Ye crossed the plaza in front of the main building, following the automatically updated campus navigation on his personal terminal, and walked toward the "Comprehensive Medical and Health Center" located on the west side of the academy.

The architectural style was consistent with the rest of the academy—clean lines and full of a sense of technology—but the eye-catching medical sign at the entrance and the faint scent of disinfectant in the air distinguished it from the ordinary teaching buildings.

Upon entering the lobby, the light was bright and soft, and a guidance robot glided over, emitting an electronic voice: "Student, please present your personal terminal or state the service you need to handle."

Ling Ye held out the terminal on his wrist. The robot's eyes flashed with red light as it scanned him: "Student Ling Ye, identity confirmed. Your scheduled rehabilitation assessment is in Room 207, District B, with Dr. Elena. Please follow the green indicator lights."

Following the soft green light strips illuminating the floor, Ling Ye walked through the quiet and tidy corridor. Occasionally, medical personnel in White Coats or students with poor complexions hurried past. District B seemed to be an area specifically dedicated to handling student trauma, post-operative rehabilitation, and psychological assessments.

At the door of Room 207, the indicator light displayed "Idle." Ling Ye knocked on the door.

"Please come in." A gentle and professional female voice replied.

Pushing the door open and entering, the room was more spacious than he had imagined, divided into an inner and outer section. The outer room was a simple office and consultation area, while some testing equipment was vaguely visible in the inner room. Sitting behind the desk was a female physician, about in her thirties, with blonde hair tied in a bun, wearing rimless smart glasses and a well-fitted White Coat. She looked up and saw Ling Ye, a professional, gentle smile appearing on her face.

"Student Ling Ye? Please sit. I am Dr. Elena, your rehabilitation assessment physician." She gestured for Ling Ye to sit in the chair opposite her, while her fingers quickly swiped across the holographic screen on the desk to pull up his files. "I have reviewed the medical records transferred from the Dawn City Central Hospital. Three rib fractures, a mild concussion, accompanied by blood loss and soft tissue contusions... You are truly lucky to have recovered enough to be discharged and return to school in such a short time, and your resilience is quite good." Her gaze passed through her lenses, carefully examining Ling Ye's complexion and mental state.

"Thank you, Doctor, I feel much better." Ling Ye sat down, his tone steady. His gaze met Dr. Elena's for a fleeting moment before politely shifting away, landing on the nameplate on her chest: Elena Chen, MD, specializing in Trauma Rehabilitation and Neuro-Adaptability.

"As a matter of routine, we need to perform some basic tests to assess the degree of your physical recovery, especially your cardiopulmonary function, bone healing, neural response, and... psychological stress levels." Dr. Elena said, standing up and gesturing for Ling Ye to enter the inner room.

The equipment in the testing room looked more Advanced and more targeted than that at the central hospital. Ling Ye cooperated through a series of examinations: standing on a circular platform for a rapid scan of his full-body skeletal and muscular state; wearing a helmet for simple brainwave activity and attention concentration tests; monitoring his heart rate and oxygen consumption on a treadmill that simulated gravity changes; and a set of precise, small instruments to test hand-eye coordination, reaction speed, balance, and strength control.

Throughout the process, Ling Ye tried his best to present the level expected of an ordinary teenager who was "recovering well but still slightly weak and striving to cooperate." He carefully controlled his power output, reaction speed, and mental concentration to ensure the data fell into the category of an "excellent recoverer" without being overly exceptional. For tests requiring "focus," he invoked the powerful willpower honed during his Reincarnation trials, easily reaching or even slightly exceeding the level of an ordinary excellent student, which could be explained as the mental growth brought about by his "survival after the ordeal."

Dr. Elena stood at the operating console nearby, watching the real-time feedback of the various data curves and indicators, surprise flashing in her eyes from time to time.

"Cardiopulmonary function has recovered to 95% of pre-injury levels... bone healing is excellent, callus formation is stable and has already begun remodeling... muscle strength and endurance have recovered to about 85%, neural conduction velocity and reaction time..." She paused, pushed up her glasses, and looked carefully at the screen, "Reaction time has increased on average by 12%, with variability reduced by 30%. Your scores on the attention concentration and working memory tests are... significantly higher than your baseline level before admission, even higher than the average excellence line for students of your age at the academy."

She looked up and turned her gaze back to Ling Ye, who was cooperating with the final coordination test, the sense of inquiry in her eyes deepening: "Student Ling Ye, during your hospitalization, besides the routine treatment, did you receive any special... rehabilitation training? Or psychological intervention?"

Here it comes. Ling Ye's heart stirred slightly; he knew that his performance, which remained "outstanding" despite his deliberate control, had attracted attention. He stopped his movements, wiped away non-existent sweat (in reality, his physical exertion was far less than what he had displayed), and revealed an expression of slight confusion and contemplation: "Special training? No, I just followed the hospital's requirements to rest, take medicine, and undergo physical therapy. Psychological intervention... a community psychologist came once, but I didn't have much to say, and she left after comforting me a few times."

He paused and added, his voice lower: "Perhaps... it's just that this incident made me realize some things. I can't keep feeling depressed." This reason was reasonable and consistent with the change in "Ling Ye's" persona.

Dr. Elena observed his expressions and micro-movements; her smart glasses seemed to have activated some kind of auxiliary analysis mode, with a faint light flowing along the edges of the lenses. A few seconds later, she nodded, her tone returning to a gentle one: "A strong will to survive and a positive mindset can indeed greatly promote physical recovery, and even stimulate potential that usually remains hidden. This is not rare in medicine, but such a significant example as yours is not common. This is a good thing."

She turned off the testing equipment and signaled that Ling Ye could come out. The two returned to the outer office.

"Judging by your physiological indicators, your body has recovered very well, far exceeding expectations. You can normally participate in academy courses and most physical activities, but you must avoid intense confrontation and heavy physical labor in the near future to give your bones and internal organs time to fully consolidate." Dr. Elena said while quickly filling out the assessment report on the light screen, "I will issue you a certificate 'recommending exemption from high-intensity physical education classes for one month'; other courses will not be affected."

"Thank you, Doctor."

"However," Dr. Elena changed the subject, her gaze becoming serious again, "although the preliminary results of the psychological assessment show that you are currently emotionally stable and cognitively clear, the risk of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) still exists and may have a delayed onset. The academy mandates that students like you, who have experienced a serious accident and have a weak existing family support System, must undergo at least four periodic psychological counseling follow-ups after returning to school. This is for your own sake, and also for the consideration of the academy's safety. I hope you understand and cooperate."

Psychological counseling follow-ups? Ling Ye quickly weighed this in his mind. This was both surveillance and a potential channel for obtaining information, and even... in some situations, a cover for "abnormal" behavior. He could not refuse.

"I understand, I will cooperate." He nodded.

"Very good. The first counseling session is scheduled for next Wednesday afternoon at the C District Psychological Counseling Center; the specific room and counselor information will be sent to your terminal." Dr. Elena submitted the assessment report and brought up another document, "Additionally, regarding the 'Crystal-Armored Beast attack' incident that caused your injury, the academy's Security Department needs to conduct a supplementary inquiry with you, mainly to confirm some details and complete the accident report. It is scheduled for tomorrow morning, and you will also receive a notification for that. Relax, it's just routine."

A Security Department inquiry? Ling Ye's eyes narrowed slightly. This might be an opportunity—an opportunity to understand the details of the incident from an "official" perspective, and even to test the Security Department's level of knowledge regarding the "Anomaly."

"Alright, I understand."

Dr. Elena seemed to have completed all the procedures; she leaned back, her expression relaxing, and asked as if making casual conversation: "By the way, Student Ling Ye, regarding your parents... if you need anything, the academy and community support channels are always open. Living alone is not easy. If you feel stressed or encounter any difficulties, you can come to me at any time, or to your counselor, Teacher Wang."

"Thank you, Dr. Elena, I'm doing fine for now." Ling Ye responded politely, but his vigilance was raised. This doctor seemed to be paying extra attention to him, not just out of duty.

"That's good." Dr. Elena smiled, her gaze sweeping over Ling Ye's consistently calm face with a meaningful look, "Your calmness and resilience are impressive. Keep it up. Alright, the assessment is over, you can go to the Academic Affairs Office to report."

Ling Ye stood up to express his thanks, and left the medical center.

Walking on the way to the Academic Affairs Office, he recalled the evaluation process just now. Dr. Elena's final words and gaze were by no means just ordinary doctor-patient care. She seemed to have an unusual interest in 'Ling Ye's' rapid recovery and psychological transformation, and might have even sensed some subtle 'anomalies'—such as the will control that exceeded his age during the test, and his overly steady emotional response.

Was it purely professional curiosity, or... did she represent someone or some department within the academy that specifically focused on 'special cases' or 'abnormal individuals'?

Also, that inquiry from the Security Department needed to be handled with care.

Upon arriving at the Academic Affairs Office, the process went much more smoothly. The teacher in charge of student records confirmed his return to school, updated his class schedule, imported the missed course materials and makeup exam arrangements into his terminal, and reiterated the importance of psychological counseling and recent precautions. Throughout the process, Ling Ye appeared compliant and reticent, fitting the image of an aloof teenager who had just gone through a traumatic event and was trying to get back on track.

By the time he left the Academic Affairs Office, afternoon classes had already started. Ling Ye did not go to the classroom immediately (he had no urgent classes today), but instead turned toward the direction of the academy library.

The evaluation was complete, and the administrative check-in was finished. Now, it was time to utilize the academy's resources to start actively exploring the secrets of this world, and... searching for ways to potentially enhance his own strength.

The library of the Third Colonial Academy was a massive, independent building that looked like a giant open book. The interior space was vast and spanned several stories, containing both a traditional paper book collection area (housing precious ancient books and special documents) and a digital reading area and immersive learning pods that occupied the majority of the space.

Ling Ye logged in with his student credentials and first attempted to search for the keywords swirling in his mind on a public inquiry terminal.

He first searched for 'Azure Planet Crystal-Armored Beast behavioral abnormality recent research report.' There were many results, but most were routine ecological studies. He utilized 'High-Dimensional Information Perception' to quickly browse the abstracts and filter out useless information. Soon, a quarterly bulletin published three months ago from the 'Azure Planet Ecological Monitoring Station' caught his attention. The bulletin mentioned that in the past quarter, automatic monitoring points distributed across the globe had recorded a 'slight but statistically significant' shift in the daily activity rhythms and territorial migration patterns of the Crystal-Armored Beast population, but no clear environmental triggers (such as climate or food source changes) were found, leading to the conclusion that 'continued observation is required; it may be related to long-term weak fluctuations in the planetary magnetic field.'

'Weak fluctuations in the planetary magnetic field'... This faintly echoed the 'background radiation disturbances' he had found at the public information station and the 'sense of disharmony' he had perceived himself.

He noted down the bulletin number and author, then continued to search for 'Dawn City anomalous phenomena unsolved cases.' Most results were urban legends and entertainment news. However, he noticed that in the public recruitment brochure for an encrypted forum (requiring an application for Advanced access or club membership) of an on-campus club called the 'Anomaly Research Society' (a student interest group), it vaguely mentioned that they were researching 'conjectures on the correlation between low-frequency anomalous signals in Dawn City and surrounding areas in recent years and the local ecology.'

Anomaly Research Society? A thought stirred in Ling Ye's heart. This might be a channel to contact peers interested in 'anomalies' and obtain unofficial information. He noted down the club's recruitment contact information and the time of their next activity.

Next, he searched for the 'Deep Space Exploration Institute,' especially public information related to the 'Star Gate Echo' mission from three years ago. There were very few results, only the basic introduction of the mission, the public parameters of the research vessel 'Explorer 7,' and clips from the press conference when the mission was announced. Regarding the mission's purpose, the wording was vague, stating only that it was to 'conduct comprehensive multidisciplinary exploration of an airspace with peculiar spatial characteristics.' After the mission went missing, officials released a brief statement of mourning and investigation, and there had been no further public progress reports since.

He tried searching for 'Deep Space Frontier Capital.' Information in public business databases was limited and similar to what he had found before, with a complex equity structure. However, in the references of an economics journal paper from ten years ago, he accidentally discovered that the capital had once sponsored an obscure academic seminar titled 'Cross-disciplinary Research on Extraterrestrial Civilization Relics Semiotics.' The author of the paper mentioned with a hint of irony in a footnote that the seminar ultimately failed to produce any recognized academic results, and that the representative of the sponsor, 'Deep Space Frontier Capital,' 'seemed more interested in certain non-mainstream, almost occult interpretations.'

This further confirmed Ling Ye's suspicion that 'Deep Space Frontier Capital' and its associated forces were indeed interested in 'non-mainstream,' 'paranormal,' and 'extraterrestrial' fields.

Finally, and most importantly to him at the moment, he searched for materials regarding 'Mental Energy,' 'brain development,' 'potential stimulation,' and 'non-standard human enhancement.' In the federal mainstream scientific community, these fields were mostly related to medical rehabilitation, extreme sports training, special forces selection, and the highly controversial and strictly regulated research on 'Psionics.'

He found some basic public textbooks and popular science articles, learning the federation's general definition of 'Mental Energy': a manifestation of brain function that synthesizes attention, willpower, intuition, and information processing speed and accuracy. It could be improved to a certain extent through specific training (such as meditation, concentration exercises, and extreme situation simulations), but there were significant individual talent differences and physiological limits. So-called 'Psionics' referred to a tiny minority of humans who, either naturally or due to unknown reasons causing brain structure mutations after birth, could weakly interfere with physical reality or perceive information that ordinary people could not. They were few in number, their abilities were extremely unstable, and they were subject to strict monitoring and research.

As for the more esoteric 'Cultivation' and 'energy circulation,' they were considered nonsense in the orthodox scientific field.

Ling Ye was not discouraged. The 'Righteous Path' he was to walk was not this world's. What he needed was to borrow this world's knowledge System to understand, supplement, and disguise the vastly different seeds of power he had brought from the Reincarnation world.

He found a few Entry-Level books: 'Brain Science and Cognitive Training,' 'Basic Meditation and Attention Control,' and 'Federal Special Forces Preparatory Physical Training Outline (Unclassified),' and downloaded the electronic versions to his terminal. He also searched for some public course videos and textbooks on basic programming, mechanical principles, interstellar navigation, and extraterrestrial ecology—these were all required for 'Ling Ye's' major, and were also knowledge he had to master to understand this technological world.

Time flew by amidst focused searching and reading. When the library's chime sounded, signaling that the afternoon classes were about to end, Ling Ye finally detached himself from the ocean of information.

He organized today's gains: his body had passed the official evaluation, obtaining a temporary 'health certificate'; he had attracted the potential extra attention of Dr. Elena; he had clarified the arrangements for tomorrow's Security Department inquiry and psychological counseling; he had initially found a few potentially useful clues in the library (ecological bulletin, Anomaly Research Society, Deep Space Frontier Capital information); and he had Acquired basic learning and training materials.

Most importantly, he confirmed that strange creatures similar to the terrifying entities in the chip's images were lurking in the Old Factory District, and that unknown forces were monitoring the area.

Crisis was everywhere, but the path ahead had appeared.

He closed his terminal and walked out of the library. The setting sun plated the academy's metal buildings with a layer of warm golden radiance, the flow of students leaving school began to increase, and the laughter of boys and girls was full of vitality.

Ling Ye silently merged into the crowd and walked toward the levitating bus stop outside the school gate.

His gaze calmly swept over the youthful faces around him, passed over the surveillance cameras flashing on the academy's high walls in the distance, and swept past the police or civilian drones occasionally streaking across the sky.

This world seemed to be running normally, and under the sunlight, everything was in perfect Order.

But only he knew that in the corners where the sunlight could not reach, in the abandoned factory district, in the gaps of data, and beneath the surface of the calm community... undercurrents had already begun to surge.

And he was about to actively step into these undercurrents.

First, it had to start with tomorrow's inquiry from the Security Department.