Closer to Revealing My True Self-Chapter 283 - 209: Tool Man_2

He was the only one who followed the boss this time, trying to gather as much information as possible, in case the boss might need it.

As long as it was useful, his bonus would come!

Feng Yi hadn’t planned to go fishing. After filling up at several restaurants, he packed up some late-night snacks to take back, including roasted ribs and grilled seafood.

When Feng Yi returned to the dormitory area, he entered through the north gate and saw the big black guard dog again.

The person in the sentry box was a stranger, and Feng Yi didn’t go over to chat, he just patted the dog’s head.

The big black dog was eyeing a cat that had intruded over the courtyard wall and only glanced back when its head was patted, looking innocent.

It remembered Feng Yi’s smell, and since the person in the sentry box didn’t say anything, the dog didn’t show any aggression.

Smelling the aroma of roasted meat on Feng Yi, the dog even wagged its tail.

Feng Yi thought about throwing it a piece of roasted rib, but the flavorful food wasn’t suitable for it, though rinsing a small piece with water probably wouldn’t hurt.

His eyes swept across the area, and he noticed a "Do Not Feed" sign nearby.

Forget it.

"Keep drooling then," he said.

Looking into those innocent but longing dog eyes, Feng Yi stroked the dog’s head again and ran off.

There was no data to analyze or work reports to write, and not too much to worry about, so Feng Yi slept very relaxed.

The next day, he continued with the group.

Having adapted to the team’s rhythm, he felt quite easygoing. Frankly, much wasn’t required of Feng Yi, except mustering some strength while diving.

His work attitude the previous day had been well-received by everyone, and they had a good impression of him.

It didn’t matter that he wasn’t familiar with the work. Do more, see more, learn more—Feng Yi was doing well in this respect.

It’s just that without paying attention, he would roam far away.

Still not steady enough, huh?

The team leader remembered Feng Yi’s wandering off and decided to remind him more today.

You never know where the vigorous energy of today’s youth will be vented.

But you can’t be too harsh; you have to consider the young people’s sensitivities.

With that in mind, the team leader walked toward the divers, softening his expression, all set to talk to Feng Yi.

He glanced over, only to see two divers preparing to get into the water.

Where is he?!

"Where is Feng Yi?" the team leader asked.

"He’s already gone down. Do you need him for something?" one diver said.

"...No, it’s nothing. Carry on."

Now was not the time for a chat with Feng Yi due to the limitations of the underwater communication network. The team leader planned to talk to him after today’s work was done.

Feng Yi had seemed apologetic yesterday; he probably wouldn’t wander off far again.

Underwater, the divers began their work for the day.

Just like yesterday, they started with data collection. Feng Yi couldn’t help much, so once again, he suggested taking a stroll nearby.

"This ’nearby’ you’re talking about, does it exceed a thousand meters?" one of the divers asked Feng Yi.

"No, really just nearby, you can find me on your positioning equipment," Feng Yi said.

"Alright then, remember the precautions we talked about yesterday!"

"Understood!"

A while later, during a gap in data collection, one diver checked the positioning equipment.

They could indeed see Feng Yi’s location this time, but he had already run off more than five hundred meters!

Can’t you just stick within fifty meters?!!!

In Feng Yi’s mind, five hundred meters was already very close.

He wanted to use those starfish for experiments, which meant he couldn’t linger in areas where humans were too active, nor could he go beyond what the team deemed acceptable.

Five hundred meters should be acceptable, right?

Feng Yi looked at the group of starfish before him.

This small area had the highest density of starfish, appearing lazy and inactive. With so many starfish, they were sufficient for his exploratory experiment.

After making sure there was no one else around, and that there were few interfering factors, Feng Yi extended his arms in an embracing posture:

Come to me, my little ones!

Experience the essence of a top predator in the food chain!

Compared to yesterday, the probing signal Feng Yi emitted this time was stronger and more purposeful.

Tiny information molecules dispersed in the seawater, captured by the marine life surrounding them.

Soon, the sea stars that had previously ignored the newcomers began to engage in autotomy one after another.

Most left behind a single arm, but a few sea stars, perhaps more timid, became agitated and cut off two.

Feng Yi watched as they moved away with small, undulating movements of their tube feet.

If the captured sea stars were overreacting, then this time, he didn’t try to capture them, didn’t touch them directly, and even kept his distance, yet these sea stars still exhibited such extreme self-mutilation!

It could be confirmed that the sea stars’ self-amputation was because of him.

Feng Yi surveyed his surroundings.

A small fish swam by, sensed something, flicked its tail, and swam away again.

But it was still different.

The fish in the water might feel repulsed by the information as well, but not every organism would react like the sea stars before him, to the extent of engaging in such collective autotomy, cutting off not just one arm but two!

An overreaction?

No, it was their DNA that stirred!

Feng Yi had reason to suspect that his ancestors might have had some not-so-friendly interactions with the ancestors of these sea stars.

Perhaps a food chain hierarchy?

Many years ago, did their ancestors not only cause havoc on land but also stir up trouble in the sea after that?

How would marine life with higher intelligence react?

When Feng Yi returned to the team’s location, he was still pondering the food chain relationships of their ancestors.

The two divers hadn’t finished collecting data, and they were startled to see Feng Yi return so soon; they said nothing. Although there was a difference in how everyone understood the word "nearby," they still got along fine. Feng Yi didn’t shirk his duties and hadn’t caused any trouble.

"You’re back already? Didn’t find anything interesting?" one diver asked.

"Nothing, just watched some sea stars for a while," Feng Yi replied.

The two divers thought to themselves: As expected, someone who plays with snakes isn’t much into sea stars to have the interest to watch them.

As time gently passed, another day’s work was completed. Feng Yi was thinking about which restaurants to visit tonight when he got off the boat and received a notification: there was a meeting that evening.

From the others, he learned that recent data feedback was not very optimistic, and the members of the investigation team all wore grave expressions.

Professor Ding had been speaking with a smile while resting on the shore the day before, but now he looked tired and troubled, his frown as deep as Professor Li’s.

Even with his eyes closed, Feng Yi could feel the anxious and irritable vibes emanating from them.

There would be a meeting in the evening, and given the circumstances, it seemed it would not be brief. This meant he wouldn’t be able to go out for food, but fortunately, there were some provisions in the dormitory. Bing had prepared some special rations for him when he came to Mo city.

Feng Yi also had Jia bring back some snacks. He would eat them after the meeting back at the dormitory.

Participating in the investigation team’s internal meeting for the first time, Feng Yi followed the example of others by bringing a notebook and a pen to the conference room to look the part.

Among the experts and administrative staff seated around the table, Feng Yi was the youngest, but he was clear about his role—he was just an extra.

It was enough to sit in his place and be a helpful tool.

Apart from the people seated around the table, a row of individuals sat along the wall at the back of the room, consisting of students or assistants of the various experts. Since the meeting wasn’t particularly secretive, it allowed them to speak during the proceedings.

Before the meeting began, Feng Yi, who specialized in handling snakes, didn’t have much in common with the others and stayed quietly in his place, scrolling through his phone, nearly finishing the fruits in the fruit plate.

A student of an elderly professor quietly walked over, pouring tea into the cups in front of them one by one.

Feng Yi took a look.

Goji and chrysanthemum tea.

It seemed that licorice and other ingredients were added as well.

He couldn’t shake the feeling that this cup of tea seemed to be hinting at something.

The meeting started, with the experts and investigators discussing the data collected in recent times, as well as a summary of information from various aspects, presenting their views and suggestions.

Then, the atmosphere shifted from solemn to sparking debates in less time than it took to finish a cup of tea, as the mood in the conference room completed a 180-degree turn.

The clashes between the heavyweights involved data presentation, logical arguments, and theoretical integration with practice.

Even the most hot-tempered speakers, roaring with conviction, had sound and compelling arguments that commanded respect.

If one’s stance wasn’t firm, it was easy to be swayed by their rhetoric, to waver uncertainly.

That is, except for those who didn’t understand.

The students sitting in the corner bowed their heads in silence. It wasn’t their turn to interject at such times, and even though they wanted to support their mentors, they feared their insufficient knowledge might hold them back and earn them disapproval.

As for Feng Yi, who didn’t quite grasp the discussion, he sat quietly in his seat.

Drinking tea.

Continuing to drink tea.

I’m just a tool person who handles snakes; I don’t understand sea star management.