Cyber ​​Ghost Record

Chapter 93, Section Ninety-Two: Medals
Suger opened his eyes.

He saw the mighty branches of the Heavenly Tree King, its clusters of flowers a deep, blood-red hue. Data streams drifted beneath the dim stars of the magnificent, sapphire-blue dome, mingling with the stench of blood, and wafted into the ventilation shafts of the Lion and White Elephant.

He heard faint chanting, the low, mournful tone making his chest tighten and his breathing difficult. He pinched the bridge of his nose hard for a while, and after several seconds, the sounds began to fade away.

His vision gradually brightened.

The branches and leaves of the Heavenly Tree King have disappeared.

He saw that the background of the wall was a clear blue sky and a horse chestnut tree standing next to the red walls and yellow tiles of the Buddhist temple, with its white flower spikes swaying in the breeze.

He sat up, shaking his throbbing head. Two days had passed since Li's case, but the dim light and shadow of Renlitian Palace still lingered in his mind.

He sat on the bed in the security bureau's break room. The medical report showed he had sustained some injuries, but nothing serious; his body could regulate its own imbalances and dysfunctions. He stared blankly for a while, his mind replaying the events of two days ago.

Fan Wujiu is gone, sacrificing a backup and leaving behind many doubts. These doubts may cause future troubles, but at the same time, the more doubts there are about this matter, the better Su Ge can hide himself under the cloud of suspicion.

Suger got out of bed, looked at the scenery on the screen, stretched his body for a while, and then ate a typical nutritious breakfast. At that moment, an access request popped up on the screen. After he agreed, Lu Shixi's hologram appeared on the screen. She was wearing a black and white combat uniform, and a half-covered helmet covered her prosthetic eye.

"How are you feeling?" she asked.

Suger clenched his fingers; his sense of touch was still a little dull, as if there was a layer of foam filling under his skin.

"I feel okay. The doctor said it was a stress reaction, and there may be aftereffects of hibernation."

Lu Shixi nodded.

"I've come to tell you some good news. The case is closed. You've made a significant contribution this time, and the Security Bureau has submitted an application to the Yingchuan Zong Council to give you a special reward."

"What?" Su Ge deliberately changed the subject, "Is the Security Bureau going to give me a permanent position instead of being a temporary worker?"

“You have to go through a formal assessment to become a full-fledged employee.” Lu Shixi looked Su Ge up and down. “At the very least, you have to be able to use a consciousness anchor, of course, without using an anchoring agent.”

Sug understood that the team leader had already reviewed his information.

"So what do you plan to do with me, this meritorious contributor?" he asked.

Lu Shixi didn't speak, he just spread his hands.

A blue and gold ribbon, woven together, hung from her palm, with a round medal dangling from its base.

The medal is predominantly black, with a carnation pattern surrounding a skyscraper. Sug recognized this building; he had gazed upon it from the city's lower levels the night he awoke from hibernation. It was called "Buzhou," also known as the "Spine of the World," and was the tallest building in Yingchuan City. It rose from the city, supporting palaces in the clouds, beside which a line of thousand-year-old cranes soared into the clouds.

"This is?"

"The Great Zhou Medal is the highest honor a citizen of Yingchuan City can receive," Lu Shixi said. "This is an award given to you by the Grand Abbot, who is the head of the Yingchuan Zong Council. If you don't understand his position, you can think of him as the mayor of Yingchuan City. You assisted the Security Bureau in solving Fan Wujiu's case and prevented a large-scale terrorist attack, so the Security Bureau helped you secure this city's model hero title."

Lu Shixi released his hand, but the medal did not fall; instead, it blurred and disappeared.

"It will be linked to your citizenship information."

“This…” Sog hesitated for a moment, “What’s it for?”

“Honor has many uses,” Lu Shixi said meaningfully. “If we’re talking about anything practical, besides the bonus, it also gives you priority access to Yingchuan City’s public resources. But these are all minor details. If you want to convert to a certain deity, it can be considered as ‘superior merit.’”

"Superior good roots?"

“Superior good roots are a type of innate capacity.” Lu Shixi looked at Su Ge. “Sharp innate capacity, good roots, dull innate capacity, and no innate capacity—these four types of innate capacity are the standards for distinguishing the potential levels of believers. The demon that approached you before was once a superior good root, and was enlightened by the Bodhisattva Marici to become a being of countless grains of sand.”

Lu Shixi made it very clear that this medal is undoubtedly a stepping stone for ordinary people to climb into the upper class. Of course, it can also help someone who has been left behind by the times to gain a foothold in this society.

But Su Ge didn't want too much attention at all. He frowned, and this expression did not escape Lu Shixi's eyes.

"what happened?"

Suger shook his head.

“I didn’t contribute anything. Three investigators lost their lives in this case, and this medal should be awarded to them.” “If you hadn’t seen through it as a trap, even more people would have died,” Lu Shixi said. “You deserve it.”

"I'm just speculating."

“As it turns out, you were right.” Lu Shixi paused for a moment, “while my judgment was flawed.”

During his contact with Li, Su Ge did indeed issue a warning to the Third Special Investigations Team. However, he understood that this action had no impact on the outcome of the case. He believed that the higher-ups in the Security Bureau were also well aware of this. But that was the current situation; the Security Bureau had put him in the spotlight.

He even suspected that this was a test from the security agency.

Am I going to become famous?

“Fame will kill you quickly.” Lu Shixi shook his head. “Li’s case involves a lot of secrets, and many details cannot be made public. The Security Bureau will hide your identity; this is for your protection.”

"That's good too." Su Ge secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but deliberately showed a hint of disappointment.

“But you can already enjoy the benefits of the Great Zhou Medal,” Lu Shixi said. “You can move out of Lu Yingting, or use it as collateral to get a loan for enough money for brain-computer interface surgery in one go.”

Su Ge feigned hesitation, and after a long while, shook his head.

"I'm fine as I am now."

"By the way," he looked up, "how is Yang Guan doing now? I'm still helping him investigate a case."

"He was seriously injured, losing 30 percent of his biological tissue. However, he is not in mortal danger, and in a few days you will see a completely new him."

……

A vacuum-tracked train travels through the city's airspace.

Inside the carriage, various screens and projectors repeatedly played news reports from different channels.

"Please be aware that a new type of digital drug has recently been circulating in Yingchuan City. It has been confirmed that this digital drug can attack the brain through brain-computer interfaces..."

"According to a report from the Yingchuan City Security Bureau on August 23, at approximately 4 PM on August 21, our bureau prevented a large-scale terrorist attack at the Ruyi Garden of the Liuyutian Renlitian Palace. The suspect, 'Li,' is an illegal consciousness uploader. It has been confirmed that this suspect was arrested by the Security Bureau last August and escaped during a prison break a month ago..."

According to Yingchuan News on August 23, a mysterious informant provided crucial assistance during the Security Bureau's arrest of Li. It is understood that, in recognition of his significant contributions to Yingchuan City, the Zongxiang Council has decided to include him in the city's list of model heroes…

Suger's face reflected the ever-changing colors of the advertisement.

"Hey." Shen Ke appeared in the opposite seat, looking at Su Ge with interest, "Model Hero."

Suger stared at the news in front of him, as if he didn't see her.

The next moment, Shen Ke sat down next to him again.

“You don’t seem very happy,” she said. “What’s wrong? Not used to being a hero?”

“This is not something I deserve,” Suger said in a low voice. “The Security Bureau forced the credit onto me.” He opened his palm, manipulated his vision, and the black medal appeared in his hand. “The Security Bureau needs this successful case to convince the outside world that they can crack prison breaks. They are not giving me a medal, but this medal needs an accessory, and I am that accessory.”

“Nobody wants to take responsibility for the truth being exposed, so there won’t be any formal award ceremony.” He turned his palm over and repeated in a low voice, “That’s fine too.”

"Don't be too pessimistic." Shen Ke crossed her arms and nudged Su Ge with her elbow. "At least you got a good deal. The bonus is 30,000, enough for a few courses of treatment."

Every gain comes at a price, Socrates thought to himself, but he didn't say it aloud.

He turned to look at Shen Ke.

"How's Qian Yun doing? Has he managed to contact Zhi Ren?"

“I was just about to tell you about this.” Shen Ke shook her head. “I’ve been keeping an eye on him these past two days, and it seems your business partner is about to give out.”

(End of this chapter)