The moment Ye Li stepped into the elevator, someone pulled a black hood over her head, completely blocking her vision. From then on, she was dragged along the entire way.
By the time the hood was removed and her vision returned, she was already inside a cell surrounded on all four sides by metal walls.
The guards who had escorted her shoved her through the door, locked it, and left.
Apart from a table and two chairs, there was nothing inside the cell.
Tsk, what cheapskates. Not even a sip of water!
Ye Li curled her lip and sensibly pulled out the chair facing the cell door, slumping down into it.
After all that exertion on top of her severe injuries, she was already utterly exhausted both physically and mentally. That her eyes could still stay wide open was entirely thanks to her gritting her teeth and forcing herself to hold on.
Whenever she felt on the verge of collapsing, she would twitch her severed right arm, letting the sharp pain jolt her fatigued, numb nerves to keep her mind alert.
Fortunately, she didn't have to wait long. About half an hour later, the cell door opened again, and a tall man clad in black combat gear stepped inside.
The man appeared to be in his early thirties, exceptionally handsome with deep-set, sharp, and flamboyant features. His narrow, slightly upturned eyes held a glint of wicked amusement.
A deep scar sliced cleanly down his right forehead, cutting across his sword-shaped brow all the way to the corner of his eye. Far from detracting from his looks, the long scar added a fierce, domineering presence that inspired instinctive dread.
A guard immediately stepped forward and pulled out the chair for him.
The man took a seat with effortless poise and crossed his legs, his posture languid and casual yet bearing the unmistakable authority of a superior.
Lifting his gaze slightly, he looked the one-armed woman before him up and down with indifferent eyes.
Catching sight of him, Ye Li raised her brows in genuine surprise. “Just passing through?”
Her seemingly out-of-the-blue remark was understood immediately. A flicker of amusement stirred in his deep eyes. “What makes you say that?”
Ye Li replied unhurriedly, “Commander of the Base Guard and overall head of the Security Department—General Huo Jingyang! If you weren't just passing through, I honestly can't imagine what merit a nobody like me could possibly possess to warrant a personal audience with a big shot like you.”
As one of the base's key leaders, memories of him were naturally present in the original host's mind.
Huo Jingyang, thirty-three years old. Before the apocalypse, he was the youngest General in the history of Country Z. He had served on the battlefield and earned distinguished military honors, known for his fierce courage and sharp tactical mind. Today, the vast majority of military power in this base rested in his hands.
It was precisely because she knew his identity that Ye Li found this so strange.
She had at least that much self-awareness!
“You're quite interesting!”
As if pleased by Ye Li's answer, Huo Jingyang curled the corner of his lips, his tone playful, like someone teasing a pet.
“Speak. What was the purpose behind all your commotion in the middle of the night?”
“Forced by circumstances; I had no choice.” Ye Li shrugged. “I want to make a deal with you!”
Huo Jingyang arched a brow. “Oh? What kind of deal?”
Ye Li said, “I know I'm just an insignificant Mutant, but my ability still holds at least some research value. I can fully cooperate with your experimental research. In exchange, I want a decent quarantine environment. And once the research is over, I also want a chance to join the guard.”
“Quite a few demands!” Huo Jingyang said. “But you should know that when it comes to the experiments, you don't have a choice. Even if you don't cooperate, none of the scheduled experiments will be spared.”
“I know that!” Ye Li nodded. “However, someone like me tends to get irritable when uncomfortable, and there's no guarantee I won't cause some chaos during the experiments and create extra trouble for you. Besides, my request isn't excessive. It's just switching cells—a mere lift of a finger for you. Giving each other a little convenience saves everyone a headache, doesn't it?”
Huo Jingyang replied, “Wouldn't killing you outright save even more trouble?!”
“That'd be great!” Ye Li chuckled. “It just so happens I don't feel like living anyway, but doing it myself is kind of a hassle. If you're willing to lend a hand, I'd be eternally grateful.”
Whether she lived or died really didn't matter to her. At worst, this world would be scrapped, and she would simply switch to another Desperate Realm to keep messing around.
“You truly are interesting.”
Huo Jingyang chuckled along with her, his features softening in genuine amusement. “Still, that alone isn't enough. After all, your value is far too limited.”
“No!” Ye Li disagreed. “Everyone's value is limitless! Even though my life isn't worth much right now and my ability is pretty useless, who's to say I'll still be good-for-nothing after a secondary mutation?”
Indeed, whether it was Mutants or Aberrations, both had the potential to undergo a secondary mutation.
Following a secondary mutation, an Aberration would mutate into an Abomination, its defense, attack power, and even intelligence vastly enhanced.
Meanwhile, after a Mutant underwent a secondary mutation, their ability would mutate and evolve once more; even a completely useless ability had the chance to be utterly transformed.
Naturally, the probability of a Mutant achieving secondary evolution was extraordinarily slim, and the risk was immense. One misstep during the process could cause them to mutate directly into an Abomination.
Within this very base of over ten million people, fewer than ten Mutants had successfully undergone secondary mutation to date, making them exceedingly rare.
“You certainly think far ahead!” Huo Jingyang scoffed without holding back.
“Life is hard enough as it is. One has to have dreams to have something to look forward to. What if that dream comes true?” Ye Li continued shamelessly. “So, how about it? Want to make a venture investment?”
Huo Jingyang didn't reply. Instead, he held out a hand to the side, and an aide immediately handed him a folder.
Opening the folder, he flipped through it quickly and remarked, “Jiang Wanzhou... ‘An evening boat on the fishing river, leaning against the railing to gaze at the moon.’ A nice name...”
Evidently, inside the folder was the original host's personal file.
“Only twenty-two years old. Not very old, but you certainly have nerve...”
Ye Li squinted with a smile, shamelessly replying, “I'll take that as a compliment!”
“Self-healing ability...” Huo Jingyang shifted his gaze to the woman's severed right arm. “So that severed arm of yours can grow back?”
Ye Li nodded, looking quite proud. “That's right! It can even fully regenerate to its original state. Rare, isn't it?”
The corners of Huo Jingyang's lips twitched upward. “So... you're a salamander person!”
Ye “Salamander Person” Li: “...”
Since when did this turn into personal attacks? Could they not have a proper conversation?
As if the woman's disgruntled expression amused him, Huo Jingyang burst into hearty laughter. “That truly is rare!”
Ye Li gave a dry laugh. Whatever made him happy!
“Can we do it or not? Give me a straight answer; I'm in a hurry to get back to sleep!”
She had lost her patience.
Huo Jingyang closed the folder and smiled slightly. “Just for this rare ability of yours, I think it's worth a shot.”
With that, he instructed his subordinates, “Reassign her to a cell on Sublevel 5.”
“As expected of a great general, what discerning taste!” Ye Li's eyes lit up, and she gave him a thumbs-up with her only hand.
Unmoved by her flattery, Huo Jingyang merely waved a hand. “Take her down!”
“Yes, General!”
Two guards immediately stepped forward, slipped the hood back over Ye Li's head, and hauled her out of the cell.
No sooner had they left than Gao Wen, Captain of the Security Guard's Second Squad, stepped inside.
Rate on N.U.
