Unplugging the USB drive, Lin Feng decisively submitted the task.
He could submit the task at 50% completion, and Lin Feng now had 80% of the usable technology, so the points earned wouldn't be small.
The remaining 20% was likely scattered bits of technology held by various enclaves.
Lin Feng couldn't be bothered to search for them. Having 80% was good enough. Next, he would destroy the meteorite core, complete the main quest, and then he could choose to leave.
The moment the task was submitted, the points were credited.
Simultaneously, a prompt appeared on the terminals of all participants in the selection process.
Codename Shanhai has completed the side quest: Acquire Usable Technology.
At the same time, on the leaderboard, Lin Feng's points had once again climbed to first place, with a whopping eight thousand points.
Good heavens, this one side quest alone was almost double his total points from the first stage.
And looking at the second place, their score was 0.
Pathetic, no comparison at all.
After submitting the task, Lin Feng got up to leave, but he frowned, feeling that something was amiss.
A moment later, he returned to the lounge, called Walter, and together they boarded the descending elevator...
Meanwhile, Aaron had already emerged from the first Life Gene Association research institute.
Looking at the side quest in his hand, with 5% completion, and then at Shanhai on the leaderboard, Aaron's face contorted, and he felt an urge to cry.
Damn it, was this kid cheating? 80%?
Had he directly stormed the headquarters?
His subordinate's expression was also grim.
Tasks didn't earn points until submitted.
They had thought they weren't far behind Shanhai, but the reality proved they hadn't understood Shanhai at all.
"Even an off-book team couldn't complete a mission this quickly..."
"Did he use some kind of cheat?" the subordinate analyzed.
Aaron kicked him angrily.
"Stop spouting useless nonsense. If he used cheats, he'd have been eliminated long ago."
Aaron cursed, but in his heart, he knew that first place was probably out of reach, and he could only aim for second.
Although his father might be disappointed, this Shanhai was indeed incredibly strange, completely beyond normal comprehension. His father would likely understand.
Now, it was time to race against the clock to complete his own mission.
Aaron had completely lost the will to compete with Shanhai...
In another world, Diona, sporting a pair of black cat ears, also noticed the terminal notification.
Her delicate cat ears twitched, and Diona let out a smile.
"This is truly... bullying children..."
Diona also possessed strength. Her customized mission plan, if all went according to plan, would take a month.
And this day wasn't even over yet, and Shanhai had already completed a side quest.
Compared to them, this speed was like an adult bullying a child.
As expected, a cat's intuition for judging people was spot on.
This made Diona even more confident that Shanhai could help her achieve her goals.
She shook her little head.
Too far, thinking too far. She needed to revise her plan. Since the big shot could complete the mission in a single day, it proved that there must be a shortcut in the second stage of the selection.
Diona immediately abandoned her original plan and began to re-evaluate her tasks, formulating a new strategy.
While everyone else was in shock, Lin Feng was gradually approaching the location of the meteorite, the forty-ninth floor of the Life Gene Association headquarters.
His identity card's clearance was sufficient to reach this area.
The space on the forty-ninth floor wasn't very large.
Overall, it was a massive, transparent laboratory, filled with various instruments and the meteorite.
As soon as he entered the forty-ninth floor, Lin Feng saw the meteorite.
Inside the transparent room, it had been dismantled into three pieces of varying sizes.
One piece was on a massive instrument, with an irregular object emitting a faint glow at its center.
That must be the core releasing radiation.
"Halt!"
Lin Feng's path forward was blocked.
Two guards stood in his way.
The security here seemed unimpressive, with only two guards.
However, one guard was a Level 5 mutant, and the other was a Level 6 mutant.
Those who could reach this area were typically core members of the Life Gene Association.
Over the decades, various enclaves had dispatched numerous spies and launched various infiltration activities, all of which ended in failure.
There was no choice. The Life Gene Association headquarters had five permanent Level 6 mutants and one Level 7 mutant.
Such a formidable combat force was beyond the reach of those enclaves; they simply couldn't break in.
Therefore, gradually, everyone had temporarily abandoned the idea of attacking the Life Gene Association headquarters.
Setting up two high-level mutants here was merely to prevent internal betrayal.
To the Life Gene Association, this was a forbidden zone; non-core personnel could not enter!
"Please present your identity card!" the two guards demanded expressionlessly.
Lin Feng calmly took out his identity card.
The guard glanced at it and shook his head.
"Level 6 combat personnel require a special pass to enter."
The meaning was simple: Lin Feng's identity card was not of sufficient rank.
Lin Feng smiled faintly, having anticipated this outcome.
From behind, a slightly aged voice called out,
"Open the door, he's with me!"
It was Walter.
It had to be said that superhuman intellect wasn't limited to learning.
When employing his mind effectively, Lin Feng could even handle every minute detail.
However, Lin Feng usually disliked using his brain, only resorting to his almost-rusted little brain when dealing with powerful anti-forces like the Black Robes.
The two guards clearly recognized Walter.
They exchanged glances, said "Yes," and opened the security door.
Although Walter was only Level 6, a Level 6 researcher combined with Walter's prestige here meant that even if Lin Feng were a Level 1 combatant, he could still be brought in.
Entering the transparent room, Lin Feng approached the core and began to examine it closely.
At the same time, he turned back and instructed,
"Begin, Professor, prepare to destroy this core."
Walter was still under Lin Feng's control; he could not refuse anything Lin Feng said.
A red light flashed in his eyes, and Walter walked to an instrument and began operating it swiftly.
The purple meteorite core, with its irregular shape, constantly emitted unseen energies.
Lin Feng, cooperating with the suppressor, reduced his physique to the level of an ordinary person.
Immediately, he felt a strange sense of dizziness.
Soon, Lin Feng felt an unknown force at work within his body.
This feeling was not just radiation; it was more like nanobots were modifying him...
Shaking his head, Lin Feng's aura rapidly returned to its previous level.
He felt it was better not to easily experiment with this unknown mutation.
It was best to destroy the core quickly and complete the mission...