My Genes Can Evolve Limitlessly Chapter 1

“Everyone, this is your final awakening ceremony. If you still can't awaken, you'll have to live the rest of your lives as ordinary people. You might feel a bit regretful about it, but you'll also stay far from most dangers, so it might not be such a bad outcome…”

A voice pierced into Lu Yuan’s ears, yanking him from his fantasies back to reality.

His body shuddered fiercely, snapping him fully awake in shock.

Lu Yuan raised his head, his eyes filled with confusion as he scanned the area around him.

He was currently in a classroom stuffed with students, about forty in total.

Standing on the podium was a teacher in his fifties, who was speaking at the moment.

(...Where is this place?)

Shock surged through Lu Yuan’s heart.

(Am I not dead?)

Before this, Lu Yuan had been an office slave enduring the harsh 996 work schedule*. At times, he even suffered through the relentless 007 schedule*.

The competition in the workforce had grown ever more intense lately. Without pulling all-nighters, it felt like he was failing the whole world.

From constant overnight work, junk food meals every day, and a wrecked work-life balance, he finally developed cancer.

Once the diagnosis came in, Lu Yuan surprisingly felt little emotional turmoil.

......

Wasn't life just full of 'surprises' after you'd endured enough hardship?

Though this surprise hit hard, he'd grown desensitized to everything.

By the time the cancer was confirmed, it was already at an advanced stage. To ease his family's money worries and his own suffering, Lu Yuan tearfully erased loads of his research data before choosing to end it all.

Sure, running away was shameful, but Lu Yuan thought it pretty practical.

With a younger brother back home, he knew his parents would be cared for, so he passed peacefully.

Still, his parents must be heartbroken, no doubt?

Lu Yuan’s mind quivered briefly, pulling him back to the present.

That sparked a question in his thoughts.

(Who am I?)

(Where am I?)

He could grasp the teacher's individual words, but strung together, they made no sense.

(Awakening?)

(What kind of awakening?)

Suddenly, Lu Yuan’s mind buzzed as a flood of information poured in.

The bewilderment in his gaze slowly cleared, sharpening with understanding.

It turned out he had crossed over to a new world, taking over the body of a youth named Lu Yuan as well.

Here, during the three teen years from 16 to 18, everyone got one shot at awakening.

Success meant unlocking their gene chain to become mighty gene warriors. They could then venture into the ‘Land of Origins’ for adventures, claiming wondrous treasures and immense power.

Without awakening, Lu Yuan knew little about the Land of Origins or gene warriors—his knowledge was quite sparse.

In this world, he was an orphan. As a child, he'd been the lone survivor of his family in a tragic mutation disaster. Only imperial child welfare had kept him alive and raised.

Recalling that buried memory, Lu Yuan’s pupils shrank sharply, his frame trembling.

Pure instinctual fear from the body.

Now 18, Lu Yuan could aim for a gene warrior school if he awakened his gene chain.

Failure meant testing into a regular university, but the empire would cut off living and tuition support.

After all, imperial aid ended at adulthood, age 18.

Oddly, this body's memories cut off right before class began. The last fragment showed him slumping onto the desk, blacking out.

Had the original owner just... died?

With such a reclusive personality, he had zero friends in class. Even as class started, nobody noticed his death until Lu Yuan arrived.

Lu Yuan felt a wave of surprise at this.

From the original's memories, the mutation trauma had not only orphaned him but twisted his personality into extreme isolation. Yet his health remained robust.

So why the sudden collapse?

He hadn't pulled any all-nighters, had he?

Lu Yuan mulled it over and figured the aftermath of the mutation incident was likely the cause. After all, mutations were the trickiest phenomena to grasp in this world. It wouldn't surprise anyone if bizarre things cropped up.

Lu Yuan chose not to dig deeper.

For him, gaining a chance to start anew was definitely worth celebrating.

Having arrived here, he figured he'd embrace this new life calmly.

He simply hoped this fresh start wouldn't prove too cutthroat, since he genuinely feared struggling to keep up.

“Alright, step up if I call your name. The awakening ceremony begins now. Wang Yi.”

The teacher's announcement yanked Lu Yuan from his musings. He then raised his head, eyeing the podium with a spark of eager anticipation in his gaze.

Awakening.

He'd devoured plenty of novels before, so powers like these naturally fired up his imagination.

The original owner had flopped in his prior two tries. Thus, Lu Yuan pinned his hopes on nailing it this round.

Wang Yi climbed the stage, his expression taut with nerves as he fixed his stare on the teacher.

“Relax. You've attempted awakening twice already, so you know the drill, correct? Put your hand on the awakening crystal and sense your inner self with your mind.”

Wang Yi gave a nod and pressed his palm straight onto the crystal ball atop the desk. He then shut his eyes.

The air grew thick, the room plunging into hush.

Moments passed before the teacher checked his pocket watch and intoned flatly.

“Time's up—one full minute. No response from the awakening crystal means failure. Head back down.”

Wang Yi's eyes brimmed with red at the verdict, and he trudged off in dejection.

A somber mood settled over the classroom.

The teacher scanned the faces and declared.

“Ordinary folks stand just a 10% chance of awakening, and it drops with each try. After bombing the first two, the third shot's success rate is minuscule. Temper your expectations to dodge letdown on failure.”

The words hung heavy, stifling the room further.

Lu Yuan inwardly acclaimed the teacher as a master mood-killer. This guy chilled the vibe like a pro.

Even Lu Yuan's own spirits plummeted sharply after that speech.

Did this spell doom for his awakening?

But hold on—wasn't something off here?

In novels, transmigrators were always the protagonists, right?

Without awakening, the world would miss out on a mighty gene warrior.

Plus, when mutation assaults hit later, humanity's frontline against invaders would lack one key defender.

Humanity couldn't spare such a devastating gap!

“Next, Li Xi.”

…

The awakening rite pressed on.

True to the teacher's words, third-time awakenings rarely panned out.

Thirty minutes in, all 30 students had tested, yet zero succeeded.

Lu Yuan's heart sank deeper with every passing trial.

“Lu Yuan.”

The call of his name drew every eye in the class his way.

Lu Yuan was practically invisible to them—no close pals to rally or hype him up. They just observed quietly.

The teacher's demeanor stayed as aloof toward him as with the rest, his face locked in stoic neutrality.

Lu Yuan griped inwardly. Where was the protagonist perks?

Normally, crowds would fuss over him or some rival would jeer, right?

So why the total nonchalance?

Did that even make sense?

(Am I seriously not the protagonist?)

Lu Yuan stepped up to the desk, and the teacher recited the routine once more.

“Lay your hand on the crystal ball and attune your mind to your essence. Stay calm, no need to tense up.”

Lu Yuan nodded, settling his palm on the awakening crystal.

The crystal's surface felt refreshingly cool against his skin.

Eyes closed, Lu Yuan heeded the guidance, probing for his inner existence.

Darkness enveloped his vision then.

Seconds ticked by in quiet, Lu Yuan's nerves mounting as anxiety brewed. Still, nothing registered.

(Am I truly unable to awaken? This world's no picnic—strength beats weakness every time.)

As unease gripped Lu Yuan's chest, a speck of blue light flickered amid the void.

Instantly, a translucent blue cube materialized in the dark, spinning in erratic patterns.

In that instant, the blackness fragmented as white mist enveloped his senses.

A massive double-helix pillar of light towered grandly amid the white mist. A white base lay beneath it, while fog concealed the pillar's summit.

Once the double-helix light pillar emerged, the blue cube appeared drawn to it. The cube drifted closer and started orbiting the pillar.

Genetic chain!

Shock surged through Lu Yuan's heart.

(Have I awakened? As expected, I’m indeed the mighty me! But what is this cube?)

Though Lu Yuan's knowledge of gene fighters remained limited, he grasped the fundamentals of awakening.

He'd never heard of a cube manifesting during an awakening.

Lu Yuan fixed his gaze on the cube. In the next moment, driven by pure instinct, he comprehended the blue cube's details.

The cube's purpose was straightforward yet utterly outrageous.

Evolution.

Gene fighters were known to inscribe genes from monsters and ferocious beasts in the Land of Origins, gaining genetic battle techniques. Take the swimming prowess of fish or the soaring flight of birds—these were abilities etched directly into the genes.

Each time gene fighters advanced a level, a fresh blank genetic chain materialized, offering an opportunity to inscribe new genes.

Yet, the gene inscribed into that blank genetic chain became fixed, with no further upgrades possible. Low-grade genes provided minimal gains, and high-grade ones could backfire on the host if not handled with utmost care during inscription.

Thus, selecting genes demanded extreme caution. With every inscription of a genetic battle technique, compatibility with existing ones had to be assured for maximum benefit.

By contrast, this cube enabled ongoing evolution of inscribed genes, granting infinite potential. Even the most basic, commonplace gene could progressively transform into its supreme form!

This meant endless potential and infinite possibilities!

Footnote:

[1] 996 working schedule: working from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. six days a week. 007 working schedule: No rest days to speak of. You have to be there whenever you are needed.