379: I ate the title of Chapter 377.

There weren't many people in the cafeteria. The two found a seat by the window, their trays holding buns, eggs, and porridge.

Lu Jianchuan picked up his phone and tapped the icon with the gray background and white border.

The group chat "Cast" was quiet; the last message was from a few days ago. After a moment of thought, he typed:

Lu Jianchuan: I have something I want to ask you.

Lu Jianchuan: I met a teenager yesterday named Ye Ouyang. His evo factor concentration is 2.007%, but it's in a dormant state and cannot be activated. He wants to have armor like us.

Lu Jianchuan: Is it possible?

After sending it, he placed his phone on the table and took a bite of a bun.

About a minute later, the phone screen lit up.

.**: Let me consider it.

.**: It's not necessarily impossible.

Lu Jianchuan put down his bun and stared at the screen.

Another message came from the other side:

.**: Hmm... I have an idea.

.**: Alright, you guys don't need to worry about it. Leave this matter to me.

Lu Jianchuan paused for a moment, then typed:

Lu Jianchuan: Really? That's great then, I'll leave it to you.

.**: Don't worry, no problem. Leave it to me.

Lu Jianchuan stared at that line of text for two seconds, his lips twitching slightly as he set the phone aside.

"What did he say?" Shen Mingyuan asked.

"He said to leave it to him." Lu Jianchuan picked up the bun and took another bite. "We don't need to worry about it anymore."

Shen Mingyuan nodded and didn't ask further.

[Consciousness Space]

Han Chengyu sat cross-legged in that void of white space, resting his chin on his hand as he looked at the floating deep-blue light screen in front of him. The screen was displaying the last message Lu Jianchuan had sent—"He said to leave it to him, we don't need to worry about it."

He stared at the line for a few seconds, then suddenly sighed.

"Sigh—"

[host's emotional fluctuations detected. Sighing frequency has increased by 37% compared to daily average. Is psychological counseling required?]

"No need," Han Chengyu waved his hand. "I'm just feeling sentimental. I barely get to appear day after day; I finally have a bit of screen time."

He looked up and rolled his eyes at the Void Realm.

"This damn author, keeping my presence so low every single day."

[System Analysis: Based on the classification of this work, we belong to the 'behind-the-scenes' setting. According to the conventional narrative logic of such works, behind-the-scenes characters should not appear frequently. A behind-the-scenes character who appears frequently can no longer be called behind-the-scenes.]

"Isn't this an ensemble story?" Han Chengyu retorted. "Who says the protagonist isn't part of the ensemble? I should appear more often, got it?"

[...The System will record your opinion. However, according to statistical data from the past three hundred-plus chapters, your appearance frequency shows a slight negative correlation with the work's reputation—]

"Shut up."

[Understood.]

Han Chengyu sighed again, shorter this time. He sat up straight, swiped his finger in the air, and pulled up another light screen.

"Right, System, help me check on that Ye Ouyang matter. Can you find anything?"

[Of course. Infiltrating Earth's internet is equivalent to a human breathing air for this System's computing power. Executing now.]

Streams of data scrolled rapidly across the light screen, so fast the naked eye couldn't possibly track them.

[Accessing global population database...]

[Retrieving genetic testing records...]

[Screening medical institution archives...]

[Processing...]

Han Chengyu leaned back against his chair and waited.

[System retrieval complete.]

[Integrating data...]

[Generating report...]

The dense streams of data on the light screen in front of Han Chengyu gradually settled, replaced by a clearly structured file.

He glanced at it, his eyebrows arching slightly.

"Oh?"

[According to official internal database records: Target 'Ye Ouyang' was not born of natural conception. He is one of the survivors of the early 'Artificial Lifeform Experiment.']

[Experiment Code: Limit Factor. Purpose: To explore the theoretical upper limit of human evo factor concentration. Method: Screening genes from military volunteers and cultivating high-concentration factor embryos through directed in-vitro recombination.]

[A total of 127 embryos were cultivated in this experiment, with 11 surviving newborns. Among the 127 cases, the one with the highest factor concentration—detected at 12.87% at birth.]

Han Chengyu's gaze lingered on that number for a second.

"Over 10%, then he..."

[Yes. This experiment ultimately determined that a factor concentration exceeding 10% will lead to a complete collapse of the gene chain during the embryonic or newborn stage. This conclusion became the red-line benchmark for all subsequent related research.]

[Because the experimental process involved a large number of embryonic deaths and congenital defects in newborns, it was later strictly prohibited. The 11 current survivors are placed in different regions for long-term medical tracking.]

[Ye Ouyang's factor dormancy is precisely caused by the genetic defects left by the experiment—his factors are in a state of 'permanent self-protective shutdown' and cannot be activated by any known means.]

Several more files popped up on the light screen, containing information on the other survivors scattered across the country.

Han Chengyu finished reading, leaned back, and remained silent for a few seconds.

"So that's how it is..."

He raised his hand and swiped in the air, pulling up another interface—Ye Ouyang's factor test data. That string of numbers lay there quietly: 2.007%, grayed out, followed by a label: [Dormant State · Non-activatable].

He enlarged the data, then shrunk it, looking it over several times.

[host, are you considering making him a new Aptitude Holder?]

"Yeah," Han Chengyu nodded. "There's strength in numbers. If he really wants to fight to protect others, I have no reason not to give it to him."

He paused.

"But I have to solve this dormancy problem first... let me think."

He stared at the data, his fingers tapping lightly on the armrest.

[Does the System need to retrieve relevant gene repair protocols?]

"Not for now," he waved his hand. "I'll figure it out myself first. I'll contact him once I've solved it."

He stretched and sighed again.

"Alright, then the long-awaited research begins again."

He looked up into the void.

"I have a hunch that the author is going to lower my presence again next."

[According to statistical data from the past three hundred-plus chapters, your hunch has an accuracy rate of 97.3%.]

"..."

Han Chengyu rolled his eyes.

"How annoying."

[Real World]

At the end of the hallway, Ye Ouyang leaned against the wall with his head down, his toes scuffing back and forth on the floor.

White Tiger stood beside him, its bifurcated mechanical tail swaying gently, its optical lens fixed on him.

The silence lasted for a while.

Ye Ouyang suddenly spoke: "Do Senior Lu and Senior Shen... not want me to fight alongside them?"

White Tiger's mechanical tail paused.

"Otherwise, why would they keep passing the buck?"

White Tiger's head turned slightly, and its optical lens flickered a few times, as if processing the question.

"Perhaps..." it spoke, its voice steady and metallic, "perhaps what they said is indeed the truth. They really don't see that person; they haven't been in contact since obtaining their armor, only managing to connect occasionally. They simply can't reach him."

It paused.

"Look on the bright side; it's beneficial for your mental health. An optimistic attitude towards life helps lower anxiety levels, increases dopamine secretion, and extends life expectancy. This is medical advice from an integrated robot."

Ye Ouyang looked up at its mechanical face and remained silent for two seconds.

"...Fine," he said, his lips twitching. "I feel comforted by you."

White Tiger's mechanical tail gave a gentle flick.

"You're welcome."