One night, a blue light forced the intelligence of everyone on Earth to rise by 50%, leaving emotions redundant. Chen Mo, the only unchanged "error," is reduced to a living exhibit in an experience center. A chip leads him to the underground group Anchor, where he becomes a "scavenger" of humanity. When his shelter is on the brink of destruction, he and his coolheaded partner Lin You infiltrate the sanctuary of the "New Humans," using their flesh and blood to desecrate the "Light Source," the hub of billions of cold minds. The sanctuary collapses, order disintegrates, and Lin You is erased. Chen Mo survives, but a searing mark is burned into his wrist, identifying him as a "residual variable" to a newly awakened node of the Light Source. Clutching a shattered tablet that records humanity, he wanders a wasteland of formatted shells, instinct-driven thugs, and followers of the "Whisperers." The burning brand tempers his pain into power. Can he uncover the truth behind his own "source of contamination" while being hunted, and kindle the dying embers of humanity?
