Chapter 6 – We meet again

The experimental building wasn’t far from the research institute entrance. Su Fengzhou had nearly perfect proportions. Once he started walking with his long legs, he moved quickly and reached Ying Xize in just a few steps.

He acted natural the whole time. “Researcher Ying, we meet again.”

Ying Xize nodded. “Captain Su, you’re at the institute pretty late. Do you need something?”

His polite manner created a natural distance.

This reminded Su Fengzhou of how Shen Wenyan had described him—Iceberg Beauty. Looking closer, it really did seem to fit.

Maybe his stare was too obvious. Su Fengzhou caught a hint of displeasure in Ying Xize’s expression.

He quickly looked away. “Sorry, it’s an occupational hazard. I tend to watch people out of habit.”

Ying Xize replied lightly, “It’s fine.”

Su Fengzhou turned slightly and pointed behind him. “The active samples from the Qiufeng Community should still be here, right? I came tonight mainly to ask Team E for help with a comparison.”

Only then did Ying Xize notice a sealed black box where Su Fengzhou had been standing. In the dim light, he recognized it right away as the same type of container they usually used for sampling.

He frowned slightly. “From Chen Mountain Cave?”

Su Fengzhou chuckled and praised him. “Researcher Ying seems well-informed.”

According to regulations, transporting active samples was quite complicated. It usually required at least one regular squad to escort the samples and prevent any escape crisis.

Considering Su Fengzhou’s rank, it was certainly feasible for him to escort alone. However, in some respects, assigning someone of his stature to this task would be even more difficult than assembling a whole defense team for protection—if he was unwilling.

Ying Xize had heard about Su Fengzhou’s problems with the defense team. He really didn’t understand why Su Fengzhou would take on such a basic task.

Without asking further questions, he stepped around Su Fengzhou and walked to the lab entrance. He swiped his card to open the door. “Follow me.”

As the youngest researcher in the institute, Ying Xize possessed the same level of access and authority as the heads of the various research groups.

Walking ahead, he unlocked layer after layer of security passages to reach his private lab.

The sample storage room was off-limits to others. So Ying Xize told Su Fengzhou to wait while he went to get the active samples from the Qiufeng Community.

When he returned to the lab, he was already wearing protective gloves and carrying a delicate container. This showed he had completed the sampling ahead of time.

“Just a moment.”

Ying Xize opened the black container that Su Fengzhou had brought. He took out part of the sample and began to work skillfully at the lab bench.

Su Fengzhou leaned against the table with his arms crossed.

The sound of clinking glassware was the only background noise in the lab.

Initially, Su Fengzhou’s eyes were locked on Ying Xize’s deft hands, but slowly they traveled up the man’s arm.

It continued upward and eventually lingered on the exposed half of his neck.

His extremely pale skin seemed to have a faint translucence. His subtly outlined bones gave off a distant allure.

Though it had been less than half a month since their last meeting, he seemed to have grown thinner.

How should one describe it?

It was as if he had a kind of beauty that easily stirred a destructive impulse in others.

Su Fengzhou’s gaze was as aggressive as ever. He didn’t hold back even in the confined space.

Despite the intense scrutiny, which would have caused even the squad members to sweat, Ying Xize’s hands remained steady. There wasn’t the slightest tremor.

Suddenly, the man who had been silent asked, “You don’t seem well. Are you feeling sick?”

Ying Xize finished the final connection between the two comparison samples.

He carefully preserved the remaining portion in sterile equipment. Then he turned to look back and lightly adjusted his gloves. His tone was as unhurried as ever. “The reaction time will be about half an hour. Once that’s done, you can compare and find out the similarity results you want.”

He wasn’t answering Su Fengzhou’s question.

Or rather, his attitude clearly showed he had no intention of addressing the sudden inquiry.

After adjusting the fit of his gloves, Ying Xize pointed to the sofa piled with documents beside him. “I suggest you move those things aside. At least you can sit and rest for a while.”

A hint of surprise flashed across Su Fengzhou’s face.

Ying Xize’s actions showed he had clearly noticed that Su Fengzhou was tired and tense.

Ying Xize turned back to his work. He opened the sterile storage cabinet to get the reagents inside. “I have my own tasks to handle, so I won’t be entertaining you.”

His words were cold. He might as well have written, ‘I don’t have time for you’ on his face.

Su Fengzhou couldn’t help but chuckle to himself.

After clearing off the sofa, he actually sat down and casually flipped through the documents that had been piled on top.

The documents were mostly old data records. Many sections were circled in pen with detailed notes written in the margins.

The research always focused on the mysterious alien creatures from the caves. ‘Experiment Failed’ appeared most often.

The oldest data here was from two years ago. The newest was from last week.

Considering the length of time alone, Su Fengzhou couldn’t fathom the patience of these researchers.

If it were him staying in a place like this day after day, he’d probably go completely insane in less than three days.

Su Fengzhou hadn’t slept well for several days.

To be precise, the restless spiritual power inside him constantly tore at his sanity, making sleep impossible.

Those mint cigarettes were actually a custom emotional relief formula made specifically for him.

But since they lacked the Guide essence that Sentinels desperately needed during mental disturbances, they became less effective with frequent use.

Once this final comfort became completely useless, Su Fengzhou figured he wasn’t far from going totally mad.

Right now, perhaps due to the quietness of the lab, he felt slightly sleepy as he leaned back on the sofa.

His eyelids drooped slightly. His vision began to blur.

Then the sudden ringing of his phone jerked him back from his gradually muddled thoughts.

The caller ID showed it was Rong Yun, a member of the Seventh Squad.

Su Fengzhou glanced at Ying Xize, who was still working hard on his experiments. He stood up from the sofa.

He shook his head, trying to wake himself up a bit, and quickly walked out of the lab before pressing the answer button. “Speak.”

Rong Yun’s voice was clearly unsettled. “Boss, when can you come back?”

Su Fengzhou leaned against the door. He glanced sideways at the figure in the lab as he spoke. “Things should wrap up here soon. It’ll take about four hours to drive back to Chen Mountain. What’s going on over there?”

Rong Yun answered, “The logistics team just finished counting the alien bodies. They have double-checked several times and discovered that one sample is missing.”

Su Fengzhou frowned. “Was there any oversight during the cleanup?”

“We’ve searched everywhere. The key issue, as you know, is that the battlefield is… very near the cave entrance.” In Rong Yun’s tone, it was evident the situation was grave. “Judging by all the surveillance footage, it seems there’s been an ‘escape.’ We’re concerned and may need to intervene.”

Su Fengzhou’s expression didn’t change. “Understood. I’ll cut down the time and try to get there within three hours.”

Rong Yun added, “Be careful on the road.”

After hanging up, Su Fengzhou stood there thinking for a moment.

He looked up at Ying Xize. “Researcher Ying, how much longer until the reaction is complete?”

However, his words got no response.

Ying Xize remained facing away, standing in front of the lab bench, carefully handling the equipment. It was as if he hadn’t heard the question. Even his movements had subtly paused.

Su Fengzhou sensed something was wrong. Just as he was about to step forward, he saw the figure in his view suddenly sway.

It was like a signal. His heart skipped a beat, and he rushed forward instantly.

His mind went blank for a moment.

Ying Xize shut his eyes, struggling to fight off a wave of dizziness. But his strength gave out so suddenly that the scalpel slipped from his grip. With a sharp clang, it sliced through the vessel’s filaments.

The dizziness hit so fast, he didn’t have the energy to care about anything else.

As the world spun, Ying Xize instinctively reached out to grab onto something.

Right when it felt like his whole world was about to fall apart, a hand suddenly reached out and held him steady.

The cold spreading through his body made Ying Xize’s mouth twitch slightly.

He felt like something invisible was dragging him into a dark pit.

His vision went black. The only thing left was the burning heat of the hand holding him. That grip kept him from falling into complete darkness.

It was like a fire starting up, slowly pushing back the shadows around him.

After what felt like forever, the spinning in his head stopped.

Cold sweat covered his back. It pulled Ying Xize back from the blackout he’d just had.

His blurry vision cleared up. For a moment, he felt confused.

He took a few quick breaths and realized he was leaning almost completely against Su Fengzhou.

He paused. Then Ying Xize quietly shifted back a little.

He put his weight on the table and closed his eyes for a second, trying to pull himself together. “…Thank you.”

Su Fengzhou looked down at the man who had moved away from him. His brows furrowed slightly.

He reiterated the question that had gone unanswered earlier. “You’re unwell.”

This time, he affirmed it as a fact.

After a moment of adjustment, Ying Xize’s condition gradually stabilized.

However, his lips remained noticeably pale, making him resemble a fragile piece of art.

This time, he didn’t refuse to answer. “I had more blood drawn today, maybe a bit too much, so I’m a little anemic.”

Su Fengzhou noticed Ying Xize’s slightly unsteady gait and, seemingly unaware of the cold gaze directed at him, reached out to help him onto the sofa.

He casually poured a cup of warm water and handed it over, glancing down with a half-serious and half-joking tone. “You got anemic simply from a blood draw? Researcher Ying, that kind of talk makes it easy for people to suspect you were involved in some illegal blood-selling activity.”

Ying Xize reached out and took the cup.

After drinking a couple of sips of the warm liquid, some color finally returned to his face. “Just a routine check-up.”

Su Fengzhou responded with a casual “Oh,” sounding completely nonchalant. “So you got injured earlier at Qiufeng Community and needed a special check-up?”

No matter how nonchalant he seemed, he was clearly fishing for information.

Recalling Su Fengzhou’s return to the scene at Qiufeng Community, Ying Xize couldn’t quite understand why he was so hung up on whether others were injured.

His drinking paused slightly, his tone as calm as ever. “Captain Su, you’re overthinking it. It’s an old issue. I used to have monthly checkups; everyone at the Research Department knows.”

Su Fengzhou nodded and chose not to pursue the issue further, although it was unclear whether he actually believed it.

His gaze wandered around the lab, finally resting on the experiment apparatus that had been interrupted earlier.

Noticing Su Fengzhou’s focus, Ying Xize rarely commented. “It’s already damaged. I’ll find time to redo it later.”

His tone was calm, as if the disruption hadn’t destroyed over a month’s worth of effort.

Su Fengzhou didn’t quite grasp the emotional investment of researchers, but he felt a bit sentimental. “You came here so late just to diligently complete this experiment? No wonder people outside have such trust in you researchers, always actively seeking humanity’s path to survival. Unlike us, who only know how to kill, it’s no surprise everyone wants us gone.”

Everyone understood the situation the Investigation Department was in. Even though the people who were killed had clearly mutated, they had been colleagues and comrades just moments before their deaths. Witnessing such bloodshed up close was difficult for anyone to process, and with each incident, resentment toward the armed executors grew stronger.

However, Ying Xize had his own way of looking at things. “The Research Department and the Investigation Department aren’t all that different. Sometimes, taking a life is the only way to save others.”

Su Fengzhou was slightly taken aback.

Then, in the next moment, he saw Ying Xize glance over at him, a faint, unreadable smile tugging at his lips. “Besides, Captain Su, how can you be sure… that saving lives doesn’t begin with taking them?”

In that moment, Ying Xize gave off a clear sense of complete detachment.

Although he was sitting right in front of Su Fengzhou, Ying Xize lacked his usual icy demeanor and appeared distant, as if he were in an entirely different world.

Su Fengzhou stared at him for a while.

He was about to speak when the sound of footsteps echoed from the far end of the hallway.

Shortly, they reached the entrance of the lab.

Then, Team E’s leader, Chen Sining, came rushing in, immediately apologizing, “Sorry, Captain Su! I was watching a movie with my wife and had my phone on silent. As soon as I saw Xiao Li’s call, I came right over. I hope I didn’t hold anything up?”

Su Fengzhou: “…You didn’t.”

“The reaction results will be out in 30 seconds.” Ying Xize stood up from the sofa, placing the cup of water aside. “Team Leader Chen, since you’re here, I’ll be leaving.”

After hearing from the security guard that Ying Xize was still working late, Chen Sining turned and was taken aback by how pale he looked. “You’re unbelievable! On a day like this, you’re still dragging yourself to work? Xiao Xiang was so worried. He’s been blowing up my phone with messages! Go home now. I’ll take care of everything here.”

Su Fengzhou instinctively wanted to ask who Xiao Xiang was but saw Ying Xize nod and turn to leave. “……”

“Alright, it’s almost done!” Chen Sining eagerly moved toward the sterile equipment as he spoke. “Captain Su, the reaction’s finished—I’ll get the results for you right away!”

Su Fengzhou withdrew his gaze from the doorway. “Okay.”

Chen Sining carefully removed the reaction vessel and began the final comparison process.

When the results finally came out, he instinctively rubbed his eyes, somewhat startled. “The genetic similarity between these two samples is 95.6%?! Captain Su, what did you use for this comparison?”

“That’s not something you need to ask.”

Having received the answer, Su Fengzhou didn’t linger.

After saying a quick goodbye, he threw his coat over his shoulders and quickly walked out.

In an instant, he disappeared into the deep night.