Gene Unlocking: I Evolve Every Day

Chapter 395: Chapter 345: Time to Step Forward

It’s almost noon.

Lu Li and Liu Kexin had just finished shopping for clothes at Mei Luo and were about to find a restaurant for lunch.

As a woman, Liu Kexin’s sense of style was undoubtedly top-notch. The clothes she picked out looked incredibly stylish on Lu Li.

The two were chatting about where to go shopping next as they walked.

Before they could reach the restaurant entrance, a phone started ringing.

Originally, Lu Li didn’t plan to answer it.

However, his keen perception detected that the caller ID showed Gu Wei’s number.

After a moment’s thought, he decided to pick up the phone.

”Let’s eat at that Cantonese restaurant up ahead.”

Lu Li pointed at the restaurant and then spoke into the phone, ”Hello, Old Gu, what’s up?”

On the other end, Gu Wei’s tone was somewhat serious, ”You should go online and have a look.”

Lu Li asked, ”Go online? Has something happened?”

”You’ll understand once you check online,” Gu Wei’s tone had a hint of complexity, ”Someone has published your true appearance.”

Lu Li blinked and asked, ”Who revealed my true appearance?”

”It seems a small newspaper in Italy was the first to disclose the news, and now it’s been reposted by netizens here.”

Gu Wei spoke with a steady tone, ”However, since you were previously exposed and it turned out to be a rumor, people online don’t quite believe this gossip now.”

Lu Li realized something, ”What’s your stance on this?”

Gu Wei said, ”To be honest, our stance is naturally that we don’t want your identity revealed, because the commotion you caused before in Mexico, Ugly Country, and Niger was too big, and somewhat severe. If your true identity is revealed, it might bring some unnecessary trouble here, like facing huge compensation claims. Although whether or not to pay is up to us, once this kind of thing gets messy, the impact isn’t exactly good. But of course, it depends on your personal wishes. If you want to reveal your true identity, we will handle the pressures.”

Lu Li said with interest, ”Even if someone demands hundreds of billions of US Dollars in compensation, you can handle it?”

Gu Wei laughed, ”Didn’t I just say? Whether they demand compensation is their business. Whether we compensate is ours. Surely, I won’t just pay up because they ask, right?”

”Alright, I got the situation.” Lu Li joked, ”If I really do reveal my identity someday and someone demands compensation, you can have them come find me.”

”Haha, they’d never dare!”

”I’ll go online to check the situation.”

”Yes, whether or not you plan to reveal your identity, just give me a heads up in advance so we can prepare a response.”

After hanging up the phone, Lu Li put the phone in his pocket, without bothering to go online himself.

It was easy for him to find out what’s going on outside.

By slightly extending his perception abilities, he could gather what was happening from other people’s phones or conversations.

Sure enough, on a nearby couple’s phone at a restaurant, he saw the trending topic on Weibo revealing his identity.

There was a short video and some photos.

With just a glance, Lu Li could tell that this was from when he withstood a multi-megaton nuclear explosion, his energy was depleted, and he couldn’t maintain his disguise.

Judging by the angle and format of the photos, they were likely satellite shots.

Moreover, these videos and photos seemed to have been processed.

Otherwise, it would be impossible for a satellite to clearly capture what a face looks like from the ground.

In other words, these videos and photos had their images of his face computer-enhanced.

Lu Li noticed from the ”Ancestor Human” appearance in the video and photos that there was a slight difference from his own looks.

It could be said that thanks to the videos and photos being processed and the computer enhancement not being fully accurate, he could still deny the identity and didn’t have to reveal it.

Lu Li had already thought about the issue of revealing his identity when he was buying clothes at the Nike store.

His attitude was that if someone exposed it, he would accept being the Ancestor Human. But if no one exposed it, he’d let things take their course.

He really hadn’t expected that someone would reveal it, though not very accurately.

As a result, Lu Li found himself in a situation where he could either confirm or deny the information.

It left him feeling a bit bemused; the situation hadn’t played out as he anticipated.

”Since I’m not planning to willingly reveal my real identity, you all can continue exposing information. If you can prove I’m the Ancestor Human, I won’t deny it. But if you can’t prove it, why should I stand up and admit it?”

Lu Li didn’t bother worrying about these things, continuing to hold Liu Kexin’s hand as they entered the Cantonese restaurant.

...

Inside.

Lu Li and Liu Kexin found a seat by the window.

They then ordered five or six dishes.

Things like honey-glazed char siu, stir-fried beef noodles, rose soy sauce chicken, and boiled shrimp.

While they were eating, Gu Wei called again.

Lu Li stopped talking to Liu Kexin, who was sitting opposite, and answered the call, ”Hello, Old Gu, I’m having lunch. Call back later.”

”Okay.”

Gu Wei, very understanding, immediately hung up the phone.

Liu Kexin, who was peeling shrimp, looked up, ”What’s wrong?”

Lu Li glanced around, seeing not many people were nearby, and lowered his voice, ”Someone abroad revealed my true appearance, and it got reposted online. But since I was publicly exposed once before and it was later debunked, netizens don’t really believe the rumors this time. Gu Wei keeps calling, presumably to know if I plan to reveal my identity so they can prepare accordingly.”

Liu Kexin placed the peeled shrimp into Lu Li’s little bowl, ”So are you going to reveal it?”

Lu Li chuckled and voiced his inner thoughts, ”I’m definitely not going to come forward on my own. But if someone can prove I’m the Ancestor Human, then I won’t deny it. You understand what I mean, right?”

Liu Kexin continued peeling shrimp, ”Yes, I understand what you mean. Just decide accordingly.”

Lu Li blinked, ”Then tonight, shall we...”

Liu Kexin rolled her eyes and said, ”Didn’t I promise you already? Why do you keep bringing it up?”

Lu Li was in a great mood, planning to have a romantic evening with his girlfriend and then take a crucial step forward.

If it were any other woman, he wouldn’t care much about romance, but Liu Kexin was different.

She was his girlfriend.

Moreover, she was still a virgin.

Lu Li definitely wanted to create a beautiful memory for Liu Kexin’s first time, so he was willing to put in some effort.

Three or forty minutes later.

The two of them were finishing up their meal, chatting as they ate.

At this point, Lu Li picked up his phone and dialed Gu Wei’s number.

Beep.

The phone rang once before connecting.

Gu Wei’s voice came from the other end, ”Mr. Lu, have you finished eating?”

Lu Li leaned back on the sofa, ”Yeah, what’s up? Speak.”

Gu Wei said, ”I just wanted to ask if you’ve made up your mind?”

Lu Li replied, ”I’ve decided, just let things take their course.”

Gu Wei let out an ’uh’ sound, ”Let things take their course? I don’t quite understand what you mean.”

Lu Li took a sip of water, placed the cup down, and smacked his lips, saying, ”It’s simple. If someone confirms it, I’ll acknowledge it. If no one does, it’ll be the same as before.”

Gu Wei said with a wry smile, ”That’s no different from not answering at all.”

Lu Li seemed to get it, ”Old Gu, haven’t I told you before? We’re friends, so don’t beat around the bush with me. I don’t like that stuff. If you have something to say, just say it directly.”

There was a slight pause on the other end.

Then, Gu Wei took a deep breath and said, ”Our original intention was, if you didn’t want to admit to this matter, we’d hold a news conference to explain where you’ve been recently, like developing a new bomber, so you haven’t appeared in public. But if you intend to admit it, the preparation work on our end would be more extensive, so we wanted to know your clear attitude.”

Lu Li asked, ”Do I really need to appear on camera personally?”

Gu Wei replied helplessly, ”Haven’t you seen how big the online uproar is?”

Lu Li laughed, ”I just checked Weibo and honestly didn’t look at the comments.”

Gu Wei said, ”Why don’t you take a closer look, and then we can discuss it?”

Lu Li said, ”Alright.”

He hung up the phone.

Liu Kexin, who was reapplying her makeup nearby, asked, ”Do they want you to appear on camera?”

Lu Li shook his head, ”Not necessarily. I need to understand the situation more thoroughly before deciding.”

Saying this, he picked up his phone, opened Weibo, and began to review it closely.

...

This matter has indeed caused a huge reaction online!

”Damn!”

”Someone’s claiming again that Great God Lu Li is The Ancestor?”

”Someone mentioned half a month ago that Great God Lu Li was The Ancestor, and now it’s being reported again, especially by a foreign media outlet. Do you think Great God Lu Li might really be The Ancestor?”

”It’s hard to say. I just searched the newspaper that reported it. Apparently, it’s a very small foreign newspaper with a questionable reputation. Logically speaking, given the paper’s capacity, the likelihood of accurate reporting is low. However, there were previous claims domestically, suggesting some possibility that Great God Lu Li is The Ancestor. After all, there’s no smoke without fire. Of course, we can’t really tell until Great God Lu Li comes forward, either to clarify or decisively admit it, so we know the truth of the matter.”

”Wow, is Great God Lu Li really The Ancestor?”

”If this is true, we’ll finally have our moment of pride. Who would dare provoke us then? Let Great God Lu Li obliterate them!”

”Fake news, look at how excited you all are. Wasn’t there a claim last time about Great God Lu Li being The Ancestor, too? Later, Great God Lu Li himself came out to debunk the rumors. Don’t stir things up online. Great God Lu Li is our national treasure, a top-notch designer and engineer of bombers. Why cause trouble for him?”

”No, this time they have released videos and photos, clearly at the scene of The Ancestor fighting mercenaries. Why are you still skeptical?”

”I think Great God Lu Li really is The Ancestor.”

”The photos and videos have been doctored. If that’s not fake, I’ll eat my computer!”

A heated debate raged online.

The number of comments under just that one shared news post had reached a staggering number of millions.

Including other news articles, short videos, and more, the scale of the uproar was simply unparalleled.

Whether Lu Li was The Ancestor or not had already left a massive impact, not just nationally but globally.

Considering the magnitude of the situation, if Lu Li didn’t make a statement, there’d be no peace.

...

In the restaurant.

Lu Li briefly scanned the online situation.

He vaguely understood why Gu Wei insisted he either debunk the rumor or admit the matter.

Because if he didn’t come forward to clear things up or admit it, people around the world would descend into panic.

To be honest, others’ lives didn’t matter much to him.

But Lu Li also didn’t want people globally to be anxious every day because of this.

He knew he should step forward, either to clarify or to admit the truth of the matter.

With this in mind, Lu Li once again picked up his phone and dialed Gu Wei.

He said straightforwardly, ”Arrange a news conference for me.”