Qian Wei felt relieved after learning that the Zombie System could not be forcibly transferred to another person.
It offered at least one layer of protection against anyone who might covet its abilities. However, she remained surprised that it placed no restriction on revealing its existence.
The systems in the novels she had read usually threatened their hosts with punishment or death if they exposed them. Hers appeared willing to let her announce its existence to the entire world if she wanted.
That freedom came with its own risks.
"Will anyone else be able to see the system panel when I reveal you?"
[Only Host can view the System interface.]
"What about medical equipment or other technology? Could someone detect your presence inside my body?"
[Capabilities of technology in the current timeline remain unknown.]
Qian Wei frowned. "You were created several centuries after my original time, so how could you be unfamiliar with technology that should already exist?"
The response came after a short delay.
[Correction: Core database originated approximately five hundred years after Host’s original temporal point.]
[Current timeline has deviated from archived historical records.]
Qian Wei sat straighter.
"What do you mean when you say the timeline has deviated? Are you telling me that the history stored in your records no longer matches the world I am living in?"
[Affirmative.]
"How extensive are the changes?"
[Host authority is insufficient to access deviation records.]
Her expression darkened. "You cannot reveal a fact that important and then refuse to explain it."
[Additional information will unlock after Host authority increases.]
Qian Wei pressed her lips together.
The timeline had already changed.
Perhaps her arrival had caused some of those deviations, although she had only been awake for a few days. It was also possible that history had begun changing long before she appeared.
Either possibility proved that the future was not fixed.
If history could deviate from the system’s records, human extinction could also be prevented.
Qian Wei stored that realization away for later.
"I have another question before I make my decision. If I cooperate with the government, could your functions help them prepare for the apocalypse?"
[System functions belong exclusively to Host.]
Disappointment entered her chest, but another message appeared before she could respond.
[Host may utilize unlocked functions, resources, knowledge and rewards at personal discretion.]
That was enough.
Qian Wei did not need to transfer ownership of the system. She could become the bridge between its knowledge and the country’s resources.
The government possessed scientists, soldiers, infrastructure and the ability to organize preparations across an enormous population. If Project Dawn or another department already knew something about the coming disaster, combining its work with the system’s future knowledge could give humanity a real chance.
Qian Wei pushed the blanket aside and stood.
"Then I have made my decision. I will cooperate with the country, but I will choose carefully whom I trust with the information."
[Hidden Mission updated.]
[Identify a suitable national authority.]
That would be the difficult part.
An ordinary police station could not handle a report involving time travel, human extinction and a system bound to her consciousness. The information needed to reach someone with enough authority to bypass routine bureaucracy and enough caution to prevent panic.
Fortunately, someone was already looking for her.
Qian Wei turned toward the window as she remembered the sensation of being watched.
Zhang Ren had followed her home after leaving the hospital, but she had detected him easily. His reason had also been understandable.
The surveillance she sensed near the warehouse was different.
Whoever had observed her had remained hidden from senses capable of hearing heartbeats through walls. They possessed technology or abilities beyond those of ordinary police officers.
Instead of searching blindly for them, Qian Wei could force them to approach her.
At 8:42 that morning, she left the villa.
She did not visit the police station. The doctor had placed her on medical leave, and appearing at work so soon would only invite questions from Zhang Ren and their superiors.
She did not go to the warehouse either.
Instead, she entered the vehicle parked beside the villa and instructed its navigation system to take her to the city center.
Learning to use the vehicle had required almost an hour.
Qian Wei had spent twenty minutes the previous evening studying its controls and another fifteen that morning convincing herself to trust the automated navigation. Allowing a machine to make every driving decision felt like surrendering her life to an appliance.
The vehicle apparently sensed her hesitation.
"Would you prefer manual control?" its onboard assistant asked.
"I would prefer a steering wheel, brake pedal and controls that do not disappear whenever I stop touching them."
"Those features have not been installed in this model. However, I can reduce the travel speed until you become comfortable."
Qian Wei stared at the empty space where a steering wheel should have been. "Please reduce the speed, and warn me before making any sudden movements."
"The requested safety settings have been activated."
The journey remained smooth, but Qian Wei still kept one hand near the emergency control until they reached the government district.
The administrative complex rose above the surrounding buildings. Its glass-like exterior reflected the morning sky, while security barriers separated the main entrance from the road.
Qian Wei parked across the street and got out.
She did not approach the building.
If the people monitoring her belonged to the government, they would understand why she had come. Standing outside would show that she was willing to make contact without exposing herself to an ordinary receptionist.
Five minutes passed.
Government employees entered and left the complex. Security officers watched the surrounding area, but none approached her.
After ten minutes, Qian Wei began questioning her plan.
What if the surveillance had belonged to criminals rather than the country?
What if no one came, and she spent the entire morning looking suspicious outside a government building?
She remained where she was.
Twenty minutes after her arrival, a woman spoke beside her.
"Officer Qian, you have been standing here long enough to attract the attention of the security team. Were you hoping someone would notice you?"
Qian Wei turned slowly.
The woman stood shoulder to shoulder with her and looked toward the government complex. She appeared to be in her early thirties, with short black hair and a dark business suit.
Nothing about her clothing should have seemed unusual.
Yet, Qian Wei noticed several details immediately.
The woman’s posture was straight, and her apparently relaxed hands remained close enough to her body to reach a concealed weapon. Her shoes had been chosen for movement rather than fashion, while the suit allowed more freedom than its formal appearance suggested.
Most importantly, Qian Wei had not heard her approach.
There had been no footsteps, heartbeat or movement of fabric. The woman had simply appeared beside her despite Qian Wei’s enhanced senses.
Qian Wei did not detect hostility, but that did not mean the stranger was harmless.
"You already know my name, which means you probably know why I came here," Qian Wei said. "However, I would still like to know who I am speaking to."
A slight smile touched the woman’s lips. "You may call me Lin Mei. I work for a department that takes an interest in unusual situations involving national security."
"That description is deliberately vague."
"It needs to remain vague until I understand what you want." Lin Mei looked toward the complex again. "You appear to be waiting for someone, but you have made no attempt to enter the building. Who were you expecting to approach you?"
Qian Wei studied her face.
"I was waiting for whoever has been following me since I left the hospital. Judging by the way you approached without making a sound, I believe that person has finally arrived."
Lin Mei’s smile remained, but something changed in her eyes.
It was subtle enough that an ordinary person might have missed it.
Qian Wei knew she had found the right person.
Lin Mei turned her attention fully toward her. "If you knew someone was watching, why did you wait until today to make contact?"
"Because I needed time to decide whether the people following me were enemies. If you had intended to kill or abduct me, you would already have tried."
"That is a dangerous assumption."
"It was not an assumption. I have been alone several times since leaving the hospital, yet your people continued observing without interfering. That suggested they wanted information rather than my immediate capture."
Lin Mei regarded her with renewed interest. "The medical report said you were suffering from memory loss. It did not mention that your instincts had become sharper."
"My medical report probably left out several things."
The answer confirmed more than Qian Wei intended, but she did not take it back.
Lin Mei glanced toward a quiet path beside the government complex. "We should continue this conversation somewhere less exposed. There is a public garden nearby where we can speak without attracting attention."
"I did not come here for a casual conversation. I need to speak with someone who possesses enough authority to respond to a national emergency."
"That depends on the emergency."
Qian Wei lowered her voice. "I cannot explain it on the street, and I will not repeat it to several junior officials before someone takes me seriously. I need direct contact with the person who authorized your surveillance."
Lin Mei’s gaze sharpened. "You are making a significant request without offering evidence."
"I came because your organization already knows enough to recognize my name. Otherwise, you would not have watched me before I did anything suspicious."
For the first time, Lin Mei’s polite expression disappeared.
Qian Wei continued, "Take me to your superior. Once we reach a secure location, I will tell you what happened inside Apartment 3-17."
Lin Mei became completely still.
Three hundred years had passed since anyone outside Project Dawn mentioned that address with personal knowledge.
After a prolonged silence, she touched the device beneath her sleeve.
"I have made contact with Officer Qian Wei," she reported quietly. "She approached us voluntarily and claims to remember Apartment 3-17. I recommend that we move directly to secure evaluation."
A voice responded through her earpiece.
Lin Mei listened before looking at Qian Wei.
"My superior has agreed to meet you. Before we leave, I need to ask whether you are carrying any weapon or device capable of threatening the facility."
Qian Wei raised an eyebrow. "I am a police officer, so I have my service weapon. I am willing to surrender it temporarily, but I will not allow anyone to drug me or render me unconscious."
"That will not be necessary if you cooperate."
"I came here voluntarily. Cooperation is what I am offering, but it must work in both directions."
Lin Mei considered the condition before nodding. "That is reasonable. A vehicle is waiting nearby, and I will remain with you throughout the journey."
Qian Wei looked at the woman who had managed to approach without triggering any of her enhanced senses.
She had succeeded in making the hidden organization reveal itself.
Now she had to discover whether trusting it would save humanity or place her directly inside a cage.