The system handed me over to the state.

"Yes, according to our energy detectors, the energy surge occurred right here. The instantaneous surge of energy caused a brief, visible Honkai energy entity to appear in this area."

"According to the residents in the detention center, the specific manifestation was a purple sphere that suddenly appeared, but it quickly dissipated on its own. Unfortunately, this happened to be a blind spot of our surveillance cameras, and the witnesses did not record it with their mobile phones."

"Blind spots in surveillance?"

Bronya asked doubtfully, "Are there blind spots in the surveillance system inside the shelter? That shouldn't be the case. Apart from the rooms where the survivors live, every place in the shelter is monitored."

The purpose of surveillance is not to fear that someone will commit a crime, but to monitor for any possible breakdowns or anomalies at all times.

The staff member nodded, somewhat embarrassed, and said, "Yes, an hour before the surge in Honkai energy, two retired Valkyries got into a fight here because of a conflict, and the nearby surveillance cameras were destroyed. Just an hour before we were about to start repairing them, the first surge in energy occurred here."

"Hmm... I have absolutely no clue... and it's such a coincidence, it's like someone did it on purpose..."

"Has anyone at the station shown any unusual behavior during this period?"

"No, there is no abnormality among the people in the detention center at present. If we have to say something... all the Valkyries are abnormal because some of them have residual Honkai energy in their bodies, and some have artificial or natural Stigmata. These can all be considered abnormal."

Bronya shook her head. "There are absolutely no clues... Never mind, let's continue to strengthen surveillance. I'll use my Herrscher powers to check the condition of this area when I get back."

"What are the living conditions like at the current residence?"

The employee in front of her didn't seem surprised at all by Bronya's sudden change of topic, and seemed very comfortable with it. She said without hesitation, "Currently, some survivors are reporting that their living conditions are very poor, and they are constantly raising their demands and living standards. In other words... they are looking for trouble."

Bronya raised an eyebrow. "Looking for trouble? Where's the others?"

“They are all very satisfied. For these survivors, having a bed to lie on is already a great satisfaction. In our research, these survivors often had to sleep on the ground under Ms. Theresa's protection, and it was common for them to go hungry for several days in a row.”

"In the post-apocalyptic environment, food and water resources are contaminated. Limited food resources force survivors to tighten their belts and allocate resources to more Valkyries with combat capabilities, as well as children and young adults."

"So the living environment we are providing now is like paradise for them, who have been living in such an environment for years. However, some people are still not satisfied and believe that they can live better. There have been several conflicts, but they have all been suppressed by the survivors themselves. It is clear that they know that these people are causing trouble."

Bronya nodded. It was alright. She would have found it strange if no one had caused trouble. People always crave more and demand more after they have gained something.

"That's only natural. Alright, I'm going back now. You all continue working, and remember to rotate shifts."

"Take care, sir."

Back inside the research institute, Bronya headed straight for Ji Chengtian's institute. Upon seeing Bronya, Ji Chengtian warmly pulled her to a transparent glass room.

"what happened?"

"look."

Ji Chengtian simply showed Bronya the glass room. Inside, a muscular man wearing a white shirt and white shorts was facing a force gauge-like object. He assumed a horse stance, took a deep breath, pulled in his stomach, and threw a full-force punch. The cushion he hit shattered instantly.

The man immediately looked flustered, glancing around frantically. Bronya heard his panicked words, "Um... Doctor, I... I didn't mean to! I really didn't mean to hurt him!"

Bronya looked at Ji Chengtian, who smiled helplessly, "It's alright, the data has been uploaded, just wait a moment."

Ji Chengtian handed the tablet to Bronya and said, "Take a look. How much force did you exert in that punch just now?"

"Hmm... 332 kilograms, not bad? Is that the effect of your previous serum?"

Ji Chengtian nodded and said with satisfaction, "Yes, the results of the experiment some time ago showed that the serum has been confirmed to be safe for human use through human trials. Although our researchers are still conducting various tests to ensure the absolute safety of the serum, the results have already been achieved."

"The tester's name is Bai Yi. He was one of the second batch of contractors who was eliminated by the physical test. However, he scored more than half of the current final batch of 20 contractors in the psychological and personality tests."

"Therefore, I kept him and asked him if he would like to participate in this serum test. Before that, his full-force punch only weighed 40 kilograms, which was slightly weaker than that of an average adult!"

"Then... after the serum injection, his output increased eightfold, is that exaggerated?"

"Back in the day, Tyson's punch only weighed a little over 200 kilograms, right?"

Bronya was secretly alarmed. Even a soldier would have a hard time withstanding such exertion multiple times, right? And now, an ordinary man had increased his weight from 40 kilograms to 332 kilograms, and his muscles didn't even look that exaggerated. Could this be achieved through genetic modification?

"However... I still have some concerns..."

Ji Chengtian fell into deep thought. Bronya only needed to think for a moment to understand what he was worried about. "Don't worry, you should have confidence in our education. Since you can get high scores on personality tests and psychological tests, it means that you are not a bad person by nature."

"How about having a little faith in your own country's people?"

Ji Chengtian gave a wry smile, "I do hope so... but the results of the second contractor selection are truly shocking, and I can't help but worry..."

Chapter 158: The Second Batch of Contractors

Bronya became even more curious. "The more you talk about it, the more curious I get. What exactly did you see? Tell me about it!"

"Go see for yourself. The last batch of people are training here at the base. As per Lao Yu's instructions, the remaining 19 eliminated people will also work inside the research base. However... to be honest, I don't have a good opinion of some of them. Some of the kids' personalities are... terrible."

Is it really that serious?

Bronya muttered to herself. She was quite confident in the people of Shenzhou, especially the teenagers. Besides, this was already the final round. People who had made it this far shouldn't have any serious personality problems, right?

"So what are your plans for this child?"

Ji Chengtian was immediately at a loss for words, "He's about your age, do you call him a child?"

Bronya shrugged. "In my eyes, he's no different from any other child."

"Okay, you win. Next, we will definitely continue research. Making this serum into a vaccine will definitely require more testing and research. After all, it involves genetic modification, and we really can't be careless and launch it directly."

"We are not the United States, nor are we from Europe. We have a responsibility to our own people."

After the conversation, Bronya's curiosity was piqued. She had always been very curious about the second contractor, and the base had been keeping it from her and not telling her any relevant information. She was really curious!

I don't know if I can say it this time. If I can tell myself who my future colleagues might be, it's not too much to ask!

Therefore, Bronya decisively went to find Lao Yu. Since Lao Yu was in charge of this matter, she definitely had to go directly to Lao Yu to resolve it.

As for Bronya's curiosity, Lao Yu, knowing he couldn't hide it any longer, simply said, "No problem! I'll tell you everything! But go see for yourself, explore for yourself." He then proceeded to... ahem! (Crossover.)

"You can go see for yourself. It's inside the base anyway, and it's fine to let them make contact with you beforehand. But... do it in moderation. Also, don't tell them about the contractors for now. I don't think they're ready yet."

Bronya nodded to indicate that she understood, and then began to ponder: if a second Contractor could emerge in Shenzhou, would other countries also be able to do so? Or was Shenzhou the only exception?

Bronya wasn't entirely sure, but that didn't matter. She could just ask Tong Xi when she got back and she'd find out everything. Surely this kind of information couldn't be anything too secretive, right?

After inquiring about the training area for the 20 people, Bronya set off. The area where the 20 people were located was where a small group of troops were currently stationed in the base. A huge underground training ground had been built there to meet the daily training needs of the soldiers.

Those 20 people are currently training in that area. As of now, she knows nothing about them, but curiosity still drives her toward that area.

Soon, she arrived at the first area of ​​this huge underground space, which was the largest open space, a super huge playground, and it was also planted with some green vegetation.

That's right, whether you're in the sky or on the ground, they can plant greenery for you.

"Commander Bronya!"

Upon noticing Bronya's arrival, the soldiers on guard immediately stood at attention and saluted. Bronya simply made a shushing gesture and said, "Shh! Don't make a sound. I just came to take a look."

The soldier nodded, turned around and continued standing guard, while Bronya went into the inner area and casually took a white coat from the empty guardhouse next to her and put it on to avoid attracting attention with her unique attire.

I don't know why there are white coats in the guard room... but I'll borrow them for now!

Bronya, who had entered the area, stood at the edge of the playground and looked around. She scanned everyone on the playground, trying to find the possible 20 people. There was nothing she could do; Old Yu hadn't told her where the others were and instead made her search for them herself. He was really wicked!

After searching the area for a while without finding it, Bronya shook her head. It seemed that it wasn't here anymore. She decided to look elsewhere.

So Bronya set her sights on the nearby soldiers' barracks. She decided to check out the barracks while activating her optical cloaking. Her presence was well-known around the base, and she didn't want to attract too much attention or cause a commotion.

Bronya spent half an hour searching inside the soldiers' barracks, covering the entire area, but still couldn't find it. She was a little confused. Strange, why is it still not there?

With no other option, Bronya could only turn her attention to the elder brother in charge of managing the area, hoping he might know something.

A few minutes later, Bronya arrived at the door of an office. This... should be the right place, right?

So he quietly pushed open the door, and the next moment a stern voice came: "Who is it?! Don't you knock before coming in?"

The stern and loud voice immediately reminded Bronya of her time during military training. She instinctively went out the door and, under the other person's surprised gaze, said, "Sorry, I forgot to knock."

Then, the next second, the other person suddenly stood up, saluted nervously, and shouted, "Greetings, Commander!"

Shh! Quiet, quiet!

Bronya was a little exasperated; this guy had a really loud voice!

"Yes, sir. Is there anything you need here?"

The other party appeared very serious and earnest. Bronya coughed and said, "Actually, I just came to ask if you've had any new recruits recently?"

"Newcomer... Commander, are you referring to... the new Class 20 that was suddenly formed recently?"

Bronya's eyes lit up. "Tell me!"

"Yes! Class 20 is a newly formed team that was created a month ago. The team has a total of 20 members, half male and half female, and they are currently undergoing basic training!"

"Basic training, huh... You're really interested in them? By the way, don't be so serious. I'm not that kind of serious person. You don't need to be so earnest with me when you talk to me."

Upon hearing this, the man in front of him relaxed slightly. "Sir, of course we're concerned. There are several troublemakers in that class who are always disobedient. If it were me, I would have kicked them out long ago, but the higher-ups have been insisting that I keep them..."

"Sir, are you here to help deal with these troublemakers?"

"Hmm... a troublemaker..."

Generally speaking, even after enlisting, there are still troublemakers. This isn't a TV drama or movie; if someone is still a troublemaker at this point... then they're really out of line.

"No problem! Tell me what's going on, and I'll help you solve it!"

Chapter 159: Another Seele

"This is their special training area. A special area has been marked out here to provide independent training for these 20 people, and they are not allowed to leave this area."

Bronya followed the administrator to a special area. As she walked, she thought to herself, "No wonder I couldn't find it no matter how hard I looked. It wasn't placed in the normal area at all, but in a special, separate area."

But...why?

"Why create a separate area for the art style? If it's just for training, isn't that unnecessary?"

"Because the higher-ups require their training to be kept secret. Although the training content is the basic training that new recruits receive, the commander said that these people are special and that most areas of the base cannot be known to them."

"That's rather unusual... That's quite an interesting reason... So tell me, what are those troublemakers like? I'd like to be mentally prepared."

The soldier shrugged. "Actually... they're just typical troublemakers, disobedient, always going against their superiors, or cutting corners. And the three boys and two girls have even formed a gang."

Bronya looked surprised and was immediately confused. How did they even let these kinds of people in? Logically speaking, they should have been eliminated in the previous training sessions. Does Old Yu have a thing for troublemakers?

That shouldn't be the case... A troublemaker like that might not cause much trouble in the military most of the time, but if they disobey orders and act recklessly on the battlefield at a critical moment, it could lead to serious consequences.

"When you received this group of people, didn't you receive any other orders?"

"The order requires us to train them with greater intensity and rigor, and that someone will come to inspect them every so often. If the time is the same as usual, someone will come to inspect them at 3 p.m. today."