Genshin Impact: Joining the Genius Society-Chapter 223: Shattering Ruan · Mei’s Understanding
"Su Ran... may I call you that?"
A like-minded friend was something incredibly precious.
Ruan Mei knew very well how difficult it was to complete her research alone.
In the past, she would never have considered letting anyone join her research.
Even if someone did join, they would only ever be a research subject.
But after Herta told her that the Swarm Emanator had truly been successfully cultivated, she realized that Su Ran was someone whose talent surpassed her own.
If she wanted to complete her research, gaining his help would dramatically accelerate her progress.
"Actually, if you add ’sir’ or ’master’ after my name, I’d be happy to accept that too."
If this were anyone else, they might easily be ensnared by Ruan Mei’s refined, elegant charm and agree without hesitation.
But Su Ran wasn’t like that.
He understood this woman’s true nature perfectly.
She was an absolute self-interest supremacist.
Simply put, she only ever considered what benefited herself.
Of course, Su Ran wasn’t much different.
But unlike Ruan Mei, he wasn’t that extreme, nor was he so cold and detached. 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚
Perhaps the biggest difference between them was this:
Su Ran clearly understood that he was biased and selfish.
Ruan Mei, however, lacked that self-awareness.
Because of that, Su Ran believed he stood a level above her.
At the very least, he was more human.
Naturally, being rebuffed like this made Ruan Mei uncomfortable.
"...Then I’ll just call you Su Ran."
This man was indeed difficult to deal with.
If she didn’t need him, she wouldn’t want to interact with someone like this at all.
She simply couldn’t handle him.
"Fine. I can tell you don’t like talking—adding two extra words is already too much effort for you."
Su Ran nodded as if he fully understood her "difficulty."
Though no matter how one heard it, the remark sounded strange.
And no one present was foolish.
They all clearly understood that Su Ran was openly unfriendly toward Ruan Mei.
Even Yelan felt that this woman was being deliberately targeted.
Back in the dreamscape, Yelan had suffered quite a bit herself— yet she’d never been treated this bluntly.
Ruan Mei likely sensed it too.
But she didn’t care what others thought.
As long as the collaboration could proceed, that was enough.
Even if she became universally disliked, it meant nothing to her.
"I would like to invite you to participate in an experiment with me—research related to Aeons."
"You want to deconstruct Aeons? Or even become one?"
Su Ran sneered at Ruan Mei’s idea.
Because it was genuinely naïve.
Even before he had been granted wisdom by the system, he would’ve found such a thought childish.
"So-called Aeons are merely beings who have walked the furthest along a Path. They are pioneers of their respective Paths. But what about you, Ruan Mei? What exactly do you plan to do—rely on simple research and analysis?"
Aeons were entities fundamentally beyond scientific analysis.
Yet Ruan Mei wanted to achieve this seemingly impossible goal through research alone?
Where did she get such confidence?
"This is not an unattainable dream. In you, I see hope."
From Su Ran’s successful replication of a Swarm Emanator, it appeared that even Aeons might be reproducible.
That was precisely why Ruan Mei was willing to lower her guard and approach Su Ran personally.
All she wanted was to establish this collaboration.
Her eyes were filled only with Su Ran—and expectation.
If she were rejected this time, she might very well shut herself away completely afterward.
Becoming the ultimate social recluse.
"Come here."
Su Ran crooked his finger at Ruan Mei, signaling her to come closer.
She complied.
A large hand rested against the side of Ruan Mei’s face.
She was startled.
"Tell me—can you analyze my life signs?"
Su Ran knew Ruan Mei could analyze life through touch.
But he would never allow anyone to touch him without his consent.
If she wanted to analyze him, it could only happen with his permission.
So now, he was giving her that chance.
To try and parse his existence as it was in this moment.
"..."
Although she wasn’t using her hands directly, the face was closer to the brain.
Ruan Mei did her best to probe Su Ran’s existence.
Confusion.
Incomprehension.
After sensing Su Ran’s form of existence, those were the only things left.
She asked the same question that Nous had once asked.
"Are you... alive?"
These unprecedented life signatures—
Every inch of Su Ran seemed unlike anything a living being should possess.
And yet, whether in form or emotion, he was unmistakably human.
That contradiction only deepened Ruan Mei’s confusion.
She had encountered countless forms of life.
She had analyzed innumerable biological structures.
But she had never encountered anything like Su Ran.
Compared to a living organism, he felt more like a phenomenon— something tangible, perceivable, yet fundamentally abstract.
His existence completely scrambled Ruan Mei’s mind.
In the past, she believed Aeons were a form of life—
entities that could be analyzed and replicated through scientific means.
But now, after sensing Su Ran’s life signatures, she began to doubt herself.
If beings like Su Ran existed, then might Aeons be similar entities as well?
Existences without recognizable life signatures?
Or perhaps something closer to a phenomenon than a lifeform?
If that were the case...
How was she supposed to study them?
Ruan Mei fell into a prolonged state of mental blankness.
"Oh come on! You’re willing to let her study you but not let me test you? I’m mad now!"
Seeing Su Ran voluntarily allow Ruan Mei to analyze him, Herta completely snapped.
He had clearly said she was his friend, and Ruan Mei was just a passerby.
So why did Ruan Mei get to go first?
"Alright, alright—here, I’ll touch you too. Happy now?"
Su Ran withdrew his hand from Ruan Mei’s face and casually patted Herta’s cheek instead.
Herta: "..."
What was with that tone, like teasing a child?
That wasn’t what she wanted at all!
That wasn’t it!!
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