"Which one is Student Xu Zhaoyang?"
Lin Hai stood up at that moment after he was done dealing with Lin Yu.
The truth was, Xu Zhaoyang and the others were already awake before Lin Hai and the other people had entered. They were silently eavesdropping on the side without uttering a sound.
Although Lin Hai asked about it, he had obviously seen their pictures from before and his gaze was already locked onto Xu Zhaoyang.
At that moment, Xu Zhaoyang was immediately scared stiff.
He had clearly heard everything earlier, something about dark energy, awakenings, and termination.
That brat Lin Yu could go through the whole thing unscathed because he had no Superhuman abilities. He, on the other hand, was an actual living, breathing Superhuman and had even shown off his abilities yesterday in public.
"That's me."
Xu Zhaoyang felt helpless as he nervously inched forward and said, "Hi, Uncle Lin. That...termination really won't happen?"
"You youngsters should stop watching so much drama series. Could you guys actually start to learn something useful for once?"
Lin Hai helplessly shook his head and said, "If we were actually researching it, we would only require some blood samples from you, nothing as drastic as terminating you altogether. Oh please, we're not interested in doing that and besides, we have a whole bunch of volunteers on our team."
"That's good, that's good."
"No way, Elder Brother, you actually awakened your Superhuman abilities?"
"Rejuvenation of spiritual energy is real?"
"Then, is this all confidential or something? Should we step outside then?"
Zhou Jie and the other snapped out of their trance after watching Xu Zhaoyang's reaction. They were scared and self-aware.
"No, since it'll be revealed soon anyway so there's no harm in telling you guys ahead of time. However, don't flaunt this information around for now."
Lin Hai gestured with a wave then glanced back at Lin Yu and said, "Little Lin, come over and listen as well."
While he spoke, Lin Hai sat in front of a study desk and allowed Xu Zhaoyang, along with Zhou Jie and the other guys, to sit around him with stools.
"First, let's talk about what you guys called the rejuvenation of spiritual energy, alright. It's true that it's real and the official term for it is Dark Energy Spikes."
After Lin Yu had set his stool down and gotten seated, Lin Hai began speaking again after mentally preparing himself, "The main cause of it is still unknown but ever since two years ago, more unstable wormholes have been appearing around the world, and this has been occurring more frequently lately.
"These temporary wormholes do not have any spawn patterns and normally don't last very long. However, they would emanate large and thick amounts of dark energy."
"I have a question. What does dark energy mean?"
Xu Zhaoyang nervously raised his hand.
"The concept of dark energy is similar to dark matter. It does not interact with electromagnetic waves and doesn't generate any electromagnetic waves on their own. This means that its energy we can't observe or interact with. The dark energy I mentioned earlier was just energy we can't see with the human eye."
Lin Hai did not seem like a knowledgeable person but his explanations spoke volumes.
"All kinds of different dark energy were poured into Earth and as a result, it excites the human gene. That is the reason why you guys are awakening your Superhuman abilities. We call them Awakened Superhumans."
Lin Hai glanced over at Xu Zhaoyang while making that explanation as if he was trying to make him an example.
"Then Uncle Lin, what should Awakened Superhumans like me do?"
Since the whole ordeal was related to Xu Zhaoyang's fate, he naturally did not dare to make any delays and raised his hand again.
He could guarantee that the number of times he had raised his hand from highschool to college was not more than the number of times he had done so today.
"What do you do? Well, there is nothing you can do."
Lin Hai looked up and said, "When we first started approaching Awakened Superhumans like you, all of them resisted and were absolutely terrified of being terminated."
As he spoke, he looked up and nodded toward the window with his head. "Say, what if a student in the building next to yours had awakened a fire-based ability back then. When we arrived to investigate, we were met with a dust explosion."
"That's just us being young and dumb. We have never gone through such an experience, so even the cops showing up at our door will cause us to panic..."
Xu Zhaoyang forced a tiny shred of a smile and said, "Uncle Lin, please stop joking and talk about something serious, alright? At least give me some peace of mind as I am extremely on edge right now."
"Our boss is ready to have you guys do a livestream."
Lin Hai sighed.
"Ah?"
The few of them, including Xu Zhaoyang and Lin Yu, exclaimed shockingly in unison, unable to react to it in that instance.
They had thought about being recruited, supervised, or even made to sign a Superhuman agreement but…making a livestream?
???
What complete utter nonsense was this?
"Uncle Lin, why do I feel like you people are fake? Not only are your names outrageous, the way you guys do things are too. Even a major thing like this…"
After a wave of confusion flashed across everyone's faces, Lin Yu spoke in complete disbelief.
"What else then? Have you guys placed under supervision, register you, and not allow you to use your abilities for criminal activities? Are you guys willing to agree to that?"
Taking a glance at Lin Yu, Lin Hai chuckled after hearing his grievances.
"Sure."
Xu Zhaoyang nodded instinctively while Lin Yu and the others followed after him.
"Oh please, don't think for a second that I don't understand. All you guys ever think about are termination or being forcefully hurt. If that was actually what we did, you'd be resisting and desperately trying to escape or something."
Lin Hai scolded them while letting out a chuckle and said, "Besides, anyone with a weapon will be tempted by bloodlust. Who would not think of taking that risk if they were in a desperate situation with actual Superhuman abilities?"
"What does that have anything to do with Awakened Superhumans making a livestream? Will making a livestream guarantee that no one will cause any troubles then?"
Xu Zhaoyang was confused as he asked that question.
"The most common reason for anyone to do risky things is due to being poor. Someone would definitely stir up trouble especially when in need of money and is also like the rest of you who have transcended beyond human limitations."
Lin Hai squeezed his slightly dried lips as he spoke.
Xu Zhaoyang's observation skills were impeccable and he was also talented in sucking up to people. He sprinted over to the water dispenser by the corner and handed Lin Hai a cup of drinking water.
Lin Hai thanked him before taking a sip of water from the disposable cup and continued, "However, everyone has equal rights now and our country can't possibly pay for all of you, even if money isn't really that important anyway. The main point is to prevent Awakened Superhumans from thinking they are entitled or have them assume they are superior to regular people."
"So this is why you want all Awakened Superhumans to do a livestream? Because it can generate an income?"
Lin Yu had an odd expression on his face.
Using Superhuman abilities for a livestream?
Flame Palms to roast chicken wings? Steaming yourself in a pot? Livestream a takeoff?
Those vivid pictures were just too beautiful. Although those were only his imagination, a chilling wave of evil radiated out of Lin Yu's heart.
"Of course, it's not that simple."
Lin Hai chuckled and said, "The only good thing about making a livestream is money. It can fulfill a person's materialistic needs too. This would allow Awakened Superhumans to register an account voluntarily and since most of their time would be occupied by being on camera, they would be indirectly supervised by the general public. This would cause them to obey the laws and do good deeds on their own to keep their image."
"...Spectacular, truly spectacular!"
Lin Yu gave him two thumbs up after hearing his explanation.
It was not hard to understand what Lin Hai said since there were plenty of references from self-made influencers and public figures.
The most common thing everyone was after these days were fame and fortune and as a streamer, one would be able to satisfy both temptations at the same time.
Forcing Awakened Superhumans to register or be placed under supervision would cause panic and be met with extreme resistance. However, 'livestreaming' was different; in fact, people might be impatient to register an account, or even frantic and dissatisfied if they were not allowed to register one.
Any Awakened Superhumans who successfully registered an account could appeal to the masses with their own Superhuman abilities. Even if they were doing a horrible job, it would not seem as bad as one might imagine, and at the same time, they could easily gain fame and fortune. It seemed the concept of an Awakened Superhuman being a streamer could be perceived as a different career than just being a 'Superhero' or a regular 'Awakened Superhuman'.
An Awakened Superhuman streamer's main requirement would be their awakened abilities. Any other career choice required knowledge or a degree. This meant that Superhuman Abilities were like specific professional skills or individual talents. Although any other profession out there had positional distinctions, from the perspective and understanding of the general public, being an Awakened Superhuman would only be a career type. Hence, this fact alone would drastically minimize the impact these people might cause.
Moreover, plenty of people knew who well-known celebrities were that someone would recognize them even if they were casually walking on the street. This alone would indirectly place them under the supervision of the general public so that it would be difficult for them to commit any crimes. The paparazzi should never be underestimated.
A streamer spent most of their time facing the camera, so in terms of supervision, it was less severe than celebrities. They might even go the extra mile to obey the law and voluntarily do things that would benefit society to preserve their image in the public's eyes
This method would not guarantee a perfect solution to solve everything but would assure 80% to 90% of Awakened Superhumans behaved and acted honestly.
'There is no doubt that our country literally has gaps in its brain. Just take a look at the Avengers or Fate/Grand Order. They could not even control a few superheroes.'