“General!”
Gao Wen addressed the man in the chair with a respectful tone. “What brought you down here in person?”
The security of the entire research institute was handled by her Second Squad, and the general rarely involved himself in their daily affairs.
Yet just now, when she was on her way to interrogate the troublemaking Mutant, she was informed that the general was already inside. She had waited in the adjacent surveillance room until their conversation ended before coming over.
“I came to see Dr. Xue and happened to be passing by, so I dropped in to have a look.” Huo Jingyang smiled as he recalled a certain someone’s accurate deduction, tossing the folder in his hand onto the table.
“And what did the doctor say? Is there any new progress on the vaccine development?” Gao Wen asked.
Huo Jingyang raised a hand to rub his aching temples, his tone indifferent. “Same as always.”
“General, I don't understand...” Gao Wen changed the subject, knowing he didn't wish to dwell on it. “Why did you agree to that Mutant's demands?”
A Mutant who murdered someone and caused a disturbance should have been punished as an example to the rest. Why grant her request and reassign her to a better cell instead?
“She's quite interesting.” Huo Jingyang glanced up at her. “The two of you are actually rather alike.”
Taken aback, Gao Wen picked up the folder from the table and flipped through it quickly. Her brows knitted slightly, a clear flicker of offended displeasure surfacing on her pretty face.
“She's just a useless Mutant. How am I anything like her?” she asked, dissatisfied.
“I'm not talking about abilities; I mean personality.” Huo Jingyang shook his head, the corner of his lips curling up. “She's just as ruthless as you are.”
Whether toward enemies or toward herself, she was equally merciless!
People like that were always more likely to succeed in whatever they did.
Gao Wen curled her lip with disdain.
Though loath to admit it, this Mutant named “Jiang Wanzhou” was indeed a vicious character!
“Besides, don't you think she's clever?” Huo Jingyang narrowed his eyes, brimming with intrigue. “I'm always exceptionally lenient with smart people.”
She clearly understood what she wanted, what she possessed, and what was in her best interest. She did everything she could to maximize her gains, exhibiting both courage and cunning.
From clever people like that, one could often unearth unexpected surprises and plenty of amusement...
As he spoke, Huo Jingyang suddenly felt a warmth in his nasal cavity. Immediately after, two streams of crimson fluid trickled out.
Seeing this, Gao Wen went pale with shock.
“General, your body...” She hesitated, the worry on her face unmistakable.
The general had clearly been receiving regular vaccine injections to suppress the sprouting of evil impulses. Why was he still showing symptoms of mutation?
In these turbulent times, driven by humanity's deep-seated xenophobia, Mutants faced a harsh existence.
Back then, when she had suddenly mutated into a Mutant, widespread criticism had erupted, nearly costing her her post. It was only because the general firmly defended her that she stood where she was today.
If the general were to suddenly mutate as well, his current position would inevitably be compromised.
The authorities would never allow a Mutant to hold substantial power!
“It doesn't matter.”
Huo Jingyang waved a hand and tilted his head slightly back. Calmly pulling a tissue from his pocket, he wiped away the fresh nosebleed before continuing, “I've already received an injection from Dr. Xue. It should hold things off for a little while longer.”
Gao Wen showed a look of pained empathy. She knew all too well that once the mutation began, even if suppressed by drugs, the symptoms would never truly vanish, subjecting the afflicted to constant torment.
“General, don't worry. Even if that day really comes, with your willpower, you will definitely be able to successfully mutate into a Mutant!” She believed this with absolute conviction.
Huo Jingyang smiled and didn't answer, a murky, indecipherable glint flashing deep within his lowered eyes.
...
The research institute's underground cells spanned ten levels in total. The higher up one went, the more valuable the detained Mutant was, and the better the cell's living conditions became.
Ye Li was escorted all the way down to Sublevel 5.
When she laid eyes on her new cell, she felt that everything she had endured tonight was well worth it.
It was a standard room with an attached private bathroom. The bedroom alone was fifteen square meters, featuring four white walls, a ceiling light, a simple iron-frame bed fitted with clean sheets and bedding, and a table and chair.
The bathroom was nearly three square meters, equipped with a simple squat toilet, a showerhead, and a washbasin. Though it lacked a door, the entrance was set against the wall and had a curtain for privacy.
The cell's door was electronically controlled, fitted with a clear observation window at eye level; unless someone walked right up to the glass, they couldn't see the entirety of the room inside.
Ye Li looked around, thoroughly satisfied.
Now this was a place fit for humans!
“Lights and water turn on across the cells at 9:00 AM, followed by room inspection at 9:30 AM. Lights out is at 9:00 PM, and water is cut off at 11:00 PM. Two meals a day: lunch served at 11:00 AM, dinner at 7:00 PM.” Someone brought her standard-issue daily necessities while laying out the facility's regulations.
The speaking guard looked quite young, possessing an honest, unassuming face. The trailing digits on his badge number carried an auspicious meaning.
One-six-eight—a straight road to fortune!
Noticing the woman's blood-soaked, disheveled state, the young guard kindly added a reminder. “It's already lights-out. The water shuts off in half an hour, so hurry if you want to wash up.”
“Thank you!” Ye Li thanked him sincerely.
The young guard nodded, set down the supplies, and exited the cell.
The door slid shut with a heavy thud, and the ceiling light turned off with it. Only the dim, yellowish illumination from the hallway filtered through the transparent window in the door, casting a rectangular patch of light across the floor.
By the faint light, Ye Li rummaged through the items the young guard had brought.
Two sets of loose cotton shirts and pants, including plain underwear, a pair of rubber-soled slippers, a towel, a roll of toilet paper, and a small bar of soap.
Gathering a change of clothes along with the towel and soap, Ye Li headed into the bathroom.
Cold water poured from the showerhead, stinging her wounds with sharp, agonizing pain.
Bracing herself against the wall with one hand, Ye Li gritted her teeth and endured.
Only when the wounds gradually grew numb did she, pale-faced, hurriedly rinse away the blood and grime from her body.
After drying herself off and slipping into clean clothes, Ye Li collapsed onto the bed, burying her dizzy head into the pillow. Without even bothering about her soaking-wet hair, she fell into a deep sleep.
Over the next few days, her routine consisted of waking up to eat and sleeping once she was full, idling away the time inside her cell from morning till night.
After living in bliss like this for a week, Ye Li's right arm had fully regenerated. Aside from the skin appearing slightly fairer and smoother, there was nothing unusual about it.
She felt little surprise or joy at this outcome.
For she knew that the limb growing back fully meant the next experiment was right around the corner.
Sure enough, three days later, Ye Li was wheeled into the laboratory once more.
This time, as expected, she lost her left arm.
Yet when Ye Li was wheeled back to her cell, she was informed that her blissful days of “living alone” had come to an end.
As it turned out, the number of mutating humans had surged recently, and the Mutants sent to the research institute grew day by day. Solitary confinement could no longer accommodate them all, and the new detention facility had yet to be completed. For the time being, they had no choice but to house Mutants two to a cell.
That very evening, Ye Li was greeted by her new roommate.
It was a tall, burly woman whose looks and demeanor made it immediately obvious she was no easy pushover.
Yet when the lights came on for morning inspection the next day, the woman was bawling and screaming, begging desperately to switch cells!
Rate on N.U.
