"Are you saying that heavy energy rifle from the Flag Capture Battle was Lin Jie's work?"Death Star, Ninth Prison – Warden's OfficeJenna was still wearing her classic blue business suit, sitting behind her desk with her hands folded in front of her, propping up her forehead. The communication light on the device on her desk was blinking, and the familiar, authoritative voice echoed from it: "It seems Lin Jie isn't just alive—he's thriving… Ms. Jenna, I'm very disappointed in you.""I'm sorry, sir," Jenna replied, her head still bowed. Unlike the last time, when Lin Jie had goaded her into losing her cool, she was much calmer now."I don't want to hear meaningless apologies. All I care about is results.""Pardon my boldness, sir, but why do you insist on Lin Jie's death? He…""Stick to your job!"The tone on the other end of the line suddenly sharpened, cutting Jenna off mid-sentence. Then the call ended. In the quiet room, the busy tone from the communicator sounded 格外 loud."Coward hiding in the shadows!" Jenna looked up, a hint of venom in her expression.As someone who had navigated the 官场 for years, Jenna knew exactly why powerful figures like him would choose an outsider like her for a task instead of their own trusted subordinates. There were only two reasons:First, the matter involved something too shady to be exposed.Second, it made it easy to find a scapegoat if the situation blew up later.Clearly, she was now that potential scapegoat."He won't even tell me the full story— that means this matter is far from trivial. My political career can't afford such a risk. So I absolutely can't be the one to kill Lin Jie… otherwise, I'll never be able to wash my hands of it later."Jenna leaned back in her office chair, her fingers tapping rhythmically on the desk.Bang!The office door suddenly swung open, and a prison guard walked in: "Warden, Horst has been brought here.""Let him in," Jenna nodded.The guard turned and left. A moment later, a man with green skin walked in. Like Li Zhe's mechanic, he was a Tanathian—his skin was green, a tentacle-like appendage protruded from his head, and his large skull was crammed with small facial features.This was Horst—the man Simon had mentioned, his bitter enemy."What do you want?" Horst strode to the desk, towering over Jenna. His tone showed no respect for her position as warden."Mr. Horst, I understand you and Simon have some… bad blood between you?""I don't want to hear that man's name," Horst's expression darkened, and the green tentacle on his head shot straight up. This was how Tanathians reacted when their emotions flared violently.So the feud is real… Jenna smiled, glancing at the rigid tentacle. "Don't misunderstand, Mr. Horst. I didn't invite you here for no reason— I just wanted to ask: you don't want Simon to gain his freedom, do you?"Horst frowned slightly. "What are you getting at?""It's simple. You don't want Simon to be set free, and I happen to want that mechanic by his side dead. I think we could work together."Oh?Horst's expression shifted, softening considerably. The tentacle on his head drooped, and a faint smile tugged at his lips. "Go on. How do you propose we cooperate?""He did get electrocuted when we went to the junk yard for parts a few days ago," Curly Hair said. "He said he did it on purpose to 'change his hairstyle.' I didn't believe him then… but now I think he might have been telling the truth.""I've always heard geniuses are a little crazy, but I didn't think it was true," Simon added. "Still… he's definitely one of a kind. Getting shocked like that and walking away unharmed?"That night, in Simon's "presidential" cell, Simon and Curly Hair sat together, both looking shaken. Ten hours had passed since Lin Jie's "heroic" electrocution.The scene had been so shocking that even a powerful figure like Simon had frozen for over twenty seconds before remembering to pull Lin Jie away from the cables. At the time, Lin Jie's hair had stood on end, his body convulsing, foam frothing at his mouth—he'd looked like he was on the verge of death. Simon had rushed to his room to find healing potions; but by the time he'd returned, Lin Jie had already woken up. Apart from a slight tremor in his body, his spirits were surprisingly high.If Simon hadn't stopped him, it seemed Lin Jie would have even reached for the cables again."Is his body just… different?" Simon muttered, rubbing his bald head in disbelief. As a high-ranked martial artist, he couldn't tell if Lin Jie had any "spiritual power," but he was certain Lin Jie's body was still that of an ordinary person.He hadn't thought about it at the time, but now he realized: a normal person hit by that kind of electric shock would either have their skin burned through and be left paralyzed, or die on the spot. But Lin Jie? Apart from some charring on his clothes and skin, he hadn't had a single scratch. Within hours, he'd been jumping around again—it was nothing short of a miracle."Boss, should we ask Brother Lin again? Find out what's really going on?" Curly Hair whispered."No need," Simon shook his head. "Didn't we already ask him this morning? His excuses—'electrocution is good for health,' 'shocks boost muscle strength'—were any of those even remotely believable?"Everyone has their secrets. Even if you ask, they might not tell the truth. Even if they do, you might not believe them. And even if you believe them, it still might not be the truth.Simon let out a long sigh, slumping back into the sofa. Lin Jie's electrocution was just a side note. No matter the reason—whether shocks really were good for him, or he just enjoyed self-torture—it didn't matter. As long as Lin Jie stayed alive and useful to him, everything else was trivial.Even if Lin Jie liked touching live wires… or even biting hand grenades, Simon would be happy to "supply" him.My guess was right—electrocution is how you charge the Rubik's Cube.And it seems the cube has even changed my body, drastically reducing the damage electricity does to me.In his bedroom, Lin Jie seemed to be meditating with his eyes closed, but in reality, he was examining the Rubik's Cube inside his body. After the energy boost from that morning's electrocution, the number "3" had reappeared above the cube. The nearly thirty seconds of shock had even increased the number of times he could twist it by two."I'll be busy making and maintaining weapons for the Mammoth over the next few days—I can't just hang around touching live wires all the time. I have to make these three chances count."As he thought this, Lin Jie studied the patterns on the Rubik's Cube carefully. The last time he'd traveled through dimensions, it had been because he'd pieced together these fragmented patterns into a single (unknown) design. He figured that if he could really assemble a complete pattern, the reward would be even greater.He didn't have enough moves right now… but slow and steady wins the race. Lin Jie was confident: as long as he kept "working hard"—kept touching live wires—he'd eventually piece it together.Click!For someone who worked with machinery, spatial awareness was a must. The Rubik's Cube was no challenge for him. He glanced at it once, then found the solution. With a thought, he twisted it.Just like last time, the cube trembled slightly. The light gray patterns on its surface flickered with pale blue light, converging above the cube before taking the shape of a mechanical gauntlet.
[Mechanic's Glove]
[Type: Mechanical Gauntlet]
[Rank: E-]
[Mode: 1]
[Energy Output: 70]
[Equipment Requirement: Possess a fully functional arm]