Miss Hong put away her phone, a smile hanging at the corners of her mouth, then turned to look at Xiao Cheng, who was bound to the laboratory table.
Xiao Cheng’s mouth was taped shut. All he could do was glare at her with eyes that seemed steeped in poison.
Miss Hong walked over in her high heels, studied his face for a moment, and nodded. “You’re good-looking, at least. Too bad your genes are no good. You’re only an ordinary person.”
Her gaze fell on Xiao Cheng’s abdomen. It had already been more than three months. The muscles of the man’s abdomen had already been stretched slightly by the fetuses. She reached out and placed her hand over it, making Xiao Cheng tense up at once.
“No matter how I think about it, it’s fascinating. Life is only interesting because it can be so unexpected sometimes, isn’t it? The most useless character is hiding the most precious treasure. When Mei Yanlan married you like it was a game, she never imagined this day would come, did she?” On Miss Hong’s mild, bookish face behind her glasses, the serpentine pattern at the corner of her eye grew stranger and more sinister.
The words cut straight into Xiao Cheng.
Miss Hong withdrew her hand, her smile deepening. “Triplets, plus Mei Yanlan. Excellent. That will be enough.”
But very quickly, she seemed to think of something. Her brows drew together, and she looked toward her assistant. “All of our intelligence on this side has definitely been bought out from that damned information broker, correct?”
That little brat from the Long family was Mei Yanlan’s student and partner, and also a long-time client of that information broker. It was hard to guarantee she would not go to him to buy their intelligence for Mei Yanlan’s sake.
“The organization headquarters, branch locations, information on all members from top to bottom, and so on were all bought out as a package. There shouldn’t be anything missing. If that information broker has any professional ethics, no one will be able to buy any intel on us from him,” the subordinate said.
Miss Hong thought it over, and her furrowed brows relaxed. So far, there had been no word that the information broker lacked professional ethics. There should not be any problem.
Just then, a man who looked like a doctor in a white coat walked toward Xiao Cheng. A nurse pushed over a machine. On one of the trays lay a terrifying syringe. The thick barrel was more than ten centimeters long, flashing with a cold gleam beneath the lights.
“Let’s run a gene-combination simulation test on the little treasures in your belly.”
The doctor picked up the syringe.
Xiao Cheng’s eyes widened, and his breathing grew a little rapid.
The weather was not very good today. The brilliant sun was blocked by a few gloomy clouds, and everyone hoped a heavy rain would come and wash away the scorching summer heat.
But the temperature before a summer rainstorm was always more humid than usual.
When Jing Pei arrived at the Tribunal Division, she saw the sexy red-haired woman handing out candy?
“You’re here. I saved you some preserved plum candies.” Mei Yanlan smiled and tossed a few candies over.
Jing Pei reached out and caught them. “What kind of candy is this?”
“Wedding candy to celebrate my escape from the grave of marriage.”
“Exactly. Marriage is a woman’s grave. If you crawl out of it, of course you should hand out candy to celebrate.”
“That’s right. Who needs a scumbag man?”
“Our Number One doesn’t need to give up the whole forest for one crooked tree.”
The colleagues who had not dared make a sound after Mei Yanlan’s divorce finally let out a breath of relief, and the atmosphere returned to its former ease.
Jing Pei stared at Mei Yanlan and blinked. She tore open the preserved plum candy wrapper and squeezed the candy into her mouth. The salty-sweet flavor soon spread across her tongue.
Today’s Mei Yanlan was no different from usual.
No, actually, she seemed a little more excited than usual. Although she had never been stingy with her smiles, today her smile was especially alluring and radiant, charming several single male colleagues until their faces turned bright red.
When Qiu Fa’s assistant An Yan saw this, he retreated several steps in a row and shouted, “I’m married! I’m married! Succubi, stay away from married men!”
Beyond that, it also showed in their fieldwork. Today, Mei Yanlan was especially ruthless and attacked especially often, to the point that Jing Pei could only stand off to the side and eat preserved plum candy.
“Teacher Mei seems a little off today,” Jing Pei said during a break.
Mei Yanlan paused, then leaned closer to her. Her red lips parted slightly. “What’s off about me?”
“That’s hard to say.” Jing Pei thought for a moment. “Is getting divorced really that exciting?”
“Of course. Sleeping with the same man all the time makes it very easy to get tired of him. You’ll understand when you’re older.”
Jing Pei: “…”
Mei Yanlan: “Hahahahaha.”
After today’s work ended, Mei Yanlan clocked out on time as usual. Jing Pei stood at the entrance of the Tribunal Division, watching Mei Yanlan stride down the steps.
“Teacher Mei,” Jing Pei suddenly called.
Mei Yanlan stopped. She turned back to look. The wind swept through her red hair, brushing it across her beautiful face, and the golden bells beneath her red horns rang with a clear, pleasant sound.
“Is there really nothing you need my help with?”
“No.” Mei Yanlan turned and left, giving a careless, cool little wave. her graceful, perfectly proportioned figure carrying a faint sense of resolve.
Perhaps she had already caught the scent of something wrong. The enemy was hidden in the dark, and whoever was coming meant no good. She had already prepared herself to walk into the final duel against her so-called fate.
Jing Pei looked up at the dim sun in the sky, her eyes narrowing slightly.
This part of the story had finally entered its final act.
Twelve Zodiac Academy.
The school infirmary was as busy as ever today. Or rather, Tang Woxue’s department was very busy.
It was not until after school that things finally quieted down.
With a gloomy expression, Tang Woxue mixed medicine. The final exams were the day after tomorrow. Was that information broker really not joking with him?
His phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID, then looked at Chu Xusheng, who was sitting on the hospital bed wearing headphones and seriously taking an online class.
Although he had escaped final exams, he had already begun feeling anxious about the next semester. So he had bought online courses starting from elementary school and was studying on his own, trying to catch up by next semester and escape the awkward situation of attending class with elementary school students.
So Tang Woxue answered the call.
Two weak coughs came from the other end first. Only then did a soft, fragile female voice sound. “Ah Xue, how is it going?”
Tang Woxue lowered his eyes. In that instant, he looked like a wolf bowing its head. “I’m still waiting for the right opportunity.”
“Still waiting? How long are you going to wait?” The woman’s voice suddenly turned sharp.
“You useless thing. How long are you going to make me wait? Will you only be happy once I’m dead? What did you promise me back then? Are you planning to go back on your word?”
After the shrill scolding, she began coughing wildly again. From the other end of the phone came the nervous voices of nurses trying to comfort her. Only after a long while did her voice come through again.
“I’m sorry, Ah Xue. Forgive me. I’m sick. I can’t control myself, sob…”
Tang Woxue’s expression was calm, but his fists were clenched tight. He squeezed his eyes shut. “It’s all right…” Just wait patiently a little longer. I’ll get that thing. I’ll save you.”
“Okay. I’ll wait for you. I only have you, Ah Xue. I only have you.”
That soft, fragile voice was like thin vines with astonishing toughness, wrapping around him bit by bit, tightening around him.
That thing…
That thing on the true dragon’s body. He had to obtain it.
For his… queen.
But where was the opportunity that damned information broker said would arrive soon? How exactly was he supposed to get close to the young heir of the Long family?
Just then, his phone rang again. It was an unfamiliar number.
“Hello, is this Doctor Tang?” Jing Pei’s gentle, sweet voice came from the other end, clear and lively like a flowing stream.
Tang Woxue froze.
“There’s something I’d like to ask your help with. Could you come to my side?”
A young blonde woman in a red Lolita dress was holding her chin in her hands, staring eagerly at the skewers that had just been placed on the barbecue stall. From time to time, she sniffled and sucked her drool back in.
“Before coming here, I never imagined Hualan’s food would be this delicious. It feels like I wasted the first twenty years of my life. Isaac, Isaac?” She turned her head, only to realize Isaac beside her was gone.
The gentleman with black hair and green eyes was taking a phone call not far away.
After a while, he put away his phone and walked back.
“The client says the opportunity has come. We need to head over and stand by at any time.”
“Excellent! If this drags on any longer, I’m going to get so fat I won’t be able to fit into my dresses!” Lolita immediately grabbed her skirt and stood.
“What does that matter? You’re already very slim, sweetheart. Besides, even if you gained two hundred kilos, I would still love you deeply.”
“Oh, Isaac.”
Just as the two were about to kiss, the stall owner, completely blind to the mood, appeared beside them with a handful of skewers. “Customers, your skewers are ready. Eating here or taking them to go?”
Lolita’s attention was immediately stolen away by the food.
Isaac swept the owner with a faint murderous gaze and smiled. “Packed to go.”
Illegal Atavist Genetics Research Organization base.
This base, like its sister organization, the Illegal Atavist Serum Organization, had been built inside a small bubble that was not registered with the government.
The bubble belonging to the Illegal Atavist Genetics Organization was located just beyond a cliff, with a one-meter gap between it and the cliff’s edge. So to enter that invisible space-time with the naked eye, one had to gather the courage to leap off the cliff. But if someone did not know the entrance’s precise location and missed the jump, they would lose their life.
The setting sun, half-sunk below the horizon, seemed almost within reach. A staff member walked to the edge of the cliff, leaped, and vanished without a trace in the blink of an eye.
Before his eyes, the cliff transformed into a white research building. His suspended foot landed on solid ground, and colleagues getting off work or changing shifts brushed past him.
He entered the research institute, took the elevator, arrived at the floor, and knocked on the door of a laboratory before coming to Miss Hong’s side.
“The target is on her way. As expected, she didn’t mention it to anyone.”
“As expected. Her weak spot is in our hands, and the dignity of her deceased parents is important too. Taken together, they should matter more to her than her own life.” Miss Hong pushed up her glasses and said in a flat voice. She looked toward the man beside her, who was conducting an experiment.
“The genetic extraction from the three fetuses was successful. Their sexes are two boys and one girl. From what we can see so far, their atavist purity has reached fifty-five percent. As they continue developing, there is a high chance their purity will rise even further.”
Miss Hong was surprised. “Is the Ling family’s inferior bloodline being refined and purified because of the Seahorse Clan’s genes? Are Seahorse Clan genes really that miraculous?”
“It’s not impossible. Unfortunately, we don’t have a sample. Mei Yanlan’s mother was the most precious source code,” the man said regretfully. Those fools from the Ling family had acted on their own without consulting them. By the time they found out, it was already too late.
Ocean-type Atavists were very rare. There were only a few in the entire world, probably because humans did not exactly find it easy to soak themselves around sea creatures. As a result, research data was scarce, and there were countless mysteries.
“Begin the gene-fusion experiment,” the man said. His eye pressed close to the quantum magnifier. His gloved hands slid into the box, placing the two sets of genes into the nutrient solution as he began operating.
On the screen beside him, the computer was extracting data and calculating rapidly.
This was a new technology. There was no need to wait until the children were born. They could use this technique to calculate whose genes should be paired with theirs to produce children with the highest atavist purity, the highest IQ, and the best health. If needed, even facial features, pupil color, and whether they would go bald in the future could be calculated, with an accuracy rate of 99.99 percent.
“Now attempting combination with Dragon Clan genes.”
Miss Hong watched the screen, waiting for the result.
But at that moment, Mei Yanlan had arrived.
