OVPBM 35 Part 1

Chapter 35 – “Yunwan…”

Lu Yunwan’s voice traveled through air and bone alike into Chu Xuanzhou’s ears, softer than usual.

Yet Chu Xuanzhou had no mind to distinguish what Lu Yunwan was actually saying.

The merman’s pale, sharp fangs pierced through the black fabric bit by bit, like a venomous snake in the jungle slowly closing in on its prey.

At last, at the instant the human body trembled, he pressed against Lu Yunwan’s smooth skin.

“Your Highness?”

The sting had not yet come, but Lu Yunwan instinctively sensed danger.

He tried to push Chu Xuanzhou away.

The young man seemed to realize what Lu Yunwan intended to do. Tightening his arms, he pulled Lu Yunwan closer and buried his face in the warmth of the human’s neck, rubbing lightly against it.

The ticklish sensation disrupted Lu Yunwan’s thoughts, and he shifted aside reflexively.

At that moment, Chu Xuanzhou’s muffled voice rose from the hollow of his neck. Somewhat abruptly, he asked in a low tone, “Your Excellency, in your eyes, am I the same as them?”

Hearing this, Lu Yunwan hesitated briefly before lifting his hand with deliberate calm.

He patted Chu Xuanzhou on the shoulder and tilted his head slightly, speaking close to his ear. “Of course not.”

“Your Highness, in my heart, you will always be the most special one.”

A trace of laughter lingered in his voice, gentle as a ribbon winding softly around Chu Xuanzhou.

The young man nodded slowly, engraving the promise into his heart.

* * *

It was rare for the Regent’s residence reception hall to be so lively.

Seven or eight nobles from the Capital Planet sat upon the sofas. Though they appeared to be chatting idly, their gazes remained fixed on Lu Yunwan.

—They were among the nobles whose names had appeared in the report that day.

As direct stakeholders, they were the first to lose patience and come seeking Lu Yunwan.

“I heard that not long ago, Your Excellency the Regent went to the medical center and was nearly attacked by a patient,” one merman said, gently setting his coffee cup on the table, feigning concern. “Were you injured?”

Before Lu Yunwan could reply, another immediately chimed in, “Listen to you! Of course, His Excellency the Regent would not be hurt. I even heard that… the patient turned misfortune into fortune and regained a bit of his sanity.”

As they spoke, they stole glances at Lu Yunwan.

At this point, the Regent finally straightened slightly in interest. After waiting an entire hour, they had at last reached the real topic!

Lu Yunwan smiled faintly. His fingers brushed across a poppy petal as he asked in return, “Hmm? Is the Viscount also interested?”

“Uh…” The noble across from him paused, forcing an awkward smile. “Such matters have previously existed only in theory. Naturally, everyone is curious. It’s just that I heard… it seems only humans can accomplish it?”

At this, Lu Yunwan finally let out a laugh.

His gaze settled on the speaking noble’s face, his expression proud and steeped in disdain.

Resting his left arm against the black sofa armrest, he propped his chin on his hand and said with contempt, “Humans?” He laughed again.

Silence fell over the reception hall. The merfolk heard nothing but Lu Yunwan’s laughter.

After a long while, he finally stopped. Casting a glance at those below him, he waved his hand dismissively, his tone thick with mockery. “It is not ‘only humans.’ It is ‘only me.’”

Lu Yunwan rose to his feet at last. Leaning on his cane, he advanced toward the speaker in steady, grounded strides before bending down and fixing the merman before him with an unyielding stare.

The sapphire-blue brooch pinned to the other’s chest glimmered faintly, its light reflecting in Lu Yunwan’s eyes.

The man seated on the sofa could not help but retreat, avoiding Lu Yunwan’s gaze as if guided by his own fear. By now, cold sweat had soaked through his back.

…Lu Yunwan’s elegance was so flawless that one often forgot he was a complete madman.

The atmosphere in the room tightened to its breaking point. At that moment, Lu Yunwan gave a cold snort of laughter.

“Does the Viscount truly believe I would allow a second person, besides myself, to learn these things?”

After several months inside this book, Lu Yunwan might not have mastered much else, but his ability to tailor his words to whoever stood before him had grown considerably.

Now, when he spoke nonsense, he did not even need to prepare a draft.

Having finished his remarks, Lu Yunwan smiled, straightened up, and returned to his seat.

Seeing the slightly dazed looks on the faces below, Lu Yunwan finally let out a slow breath.

Just now, he had been gambling.

He had bet on the merfolk’s innate selfishness; bet that, in their eyes, he was just as selfish; bet that they did not truly believe this experiment could succeed.

After sitting back down, Lu Yunwan gave them no time to react.

He opened the light screen and displayed the experimental plan openly before them.

“Humans account for fifty percent of the Empire’s population. Blind suppression will only stir their resentment and destabilize the Empire. The gradual expansion of the Human Rebel Forces is proof enough.”

Lu Yunwan’s gaze drifted toward the window. His tone was exceptionally calm, as though he had already removed himself from the category of “humans”.

“First, give them false hope, then use a failed experiment to prove human incompetence. Only then can those tedious notions be extinguished completely.”

The Regent drew his gaze back and let it sweep slowly across their faces, one by one.

His tone was casual, as though discussing nothing more significant than the day’s weather.

Yet upon hearing this, the merfolk opposite him could not help widening their eyes.

…The Regent intended to crush his own kind psychologically.

He wanted to destroy humankind’s confidence entirely!

More merfolk than merfolk. The phrase surfaced in everyone’s mind at the same instant.

Sensing their wavering, Lu Yunwan seized the momentum and pushed further.

He wiped at nonexistent dust on his cane and casually extended an invitation. “Coincidentally, the experiment has more than sufficient funding. The only thing lacking is patients to cooperate. The medical centers under your names may also participate.”

Lu Yunwan was not short of experimental subjects. He was simply using research funds as bait, deliberately drawing this group of nobles into the fold.

The nobles who had come to Planet Cangrui today were not the entirety.

And once they joined, the differing interests that emerged would inevitably fracture the merfolk from within.

Sure enough, the merfolk who had been tense just moments ago immediately grasped the Regent’s meaning.

Excitement lit up their faces.

“Since it is for the peace of the Empire, we will certainly cooperate!”

Once one person spoke up, the others quickly followed.

“Indeed, Your Excellency the Regent! What we have in greatest abundance are patients. Use as many as you wish. If it is not enough, we can find more.”

“Of course,” Lu Yunwan replied with a smile.

But even as he spoke, Lu Yunwan secretly clenched his fist, a chill creeping up his spine. Damn it, these merfolk really do not have a shred of humanity!

In their eyes, those wounded patients were nothing more than “lab rats”.

Lu Yunwan even suspected that if there were not enough experimental subjects, they would manufacture accidents themselves just to produce more “lab rats”.

Being the Regent was no easy task…

If one did not perish in silence, one would warp in silence. To deal with nobles devoid of humanity, one had to be even more ruthless than they were.

Just like… the original host.

At the thought, Lu Yunwan’s heart gave a sudden jolt.

He tightened his grip on the cane, forcing down the strange sensation rising within him.

Only after receiving the answers he wanted did the merfolk finally take their leave.

Lu Yunwan also left the reception hall and headed toward the laboratory on Planet Cangrui. Aside from Imperial University, Song Feiyan, an expert in the field of mental power research, had also joined the experiment.

The silver-white hatch slid open. Recognizing who had arrived and already having learned of Lu Yunwan’s “experimental purpose” from Fang Yixue, Song Feiyan let out a cold laugh at once.

“So Your Excellency fell into a cesspit himself, and that was not enough,” Song Feiyan shot him a glance and deliberately disgusted him with his words. “Now you’re busy dragging all of humankind down with you?”

“Professor Song!” Before Lu Yunwan could respond, Chu Xuanzhou, who was also in the laboratory, frowned. “Please mind your language.”

“It’s fine, Your Highness.” Lu Yunwan casually glanced at the data on the light screen, then walked over and patted Chu Xuanzhou’s shoulder with notable familiarity. “That is assuming the experiment succeeds.”

“If it fails, the only person I can drag down with me would be you, Professor Song, since you are participating.”

From his tone, he even seemed to look forward to it.

Enraged by Lu Yunwan’s words, Song Feiyan cursed a few times before turning back to the data, refusing to spare him another glance.

Meanwhile, Chu Xuanzhou, who had been staying in the laboratory, began reporting the experiment’s progress to the Regent.

Lu Yunwan could sense that ever since returning from Planet Chenmu, Chu Xuanzhou had become somewhat different.

He had begun to take an interest in imperial affairs and was gradually adapting to the role of “Assistant to the Regent”.

Perhaps because he had read the original novel and knew that the person before him would one day change the Empire and unify the interstellar realm, Lu Yunwan felt it entirely natural that Chu Xuanzhou was developing an interest in power.

He did not dwell on it.

“Your Excellency, these are the data for the first batch of human participants,” Chu Xuanzhou said as he opened the light screen. “They were selected by Imperial Military Academy as the humans with the most stable mental power.”

His silver-white hair fell loosely behind him, softening the sharpness of his features.

Cold light reflected across the young man’s face. His originally deep violet eyes seemed a shade lighter beneath it, further stripping a bit more warmth from features already bordering on unreal.

Secretly a sucker for good looks, Lu Yunwan could not help letting his thoughts wander. If one ignored the overwhelming height, frame, and muscle, the protagonist Chu Xuanzhou was as flawlessly beautiful as the merfolk he had once imagined.

“Your Excellency?”

Noticing Lu Yunwan’s distraction, Chu Xuanzhou paused.

“Mm?” Lu Yunwan returned to his senses at once, lowering his gaze back to the light screen.

He did not see the shadow that passed through the young man’s eyes at that moment, nor the subtle shift in the text on the screen.

“These humans experienced discomfort during the preliminary phase of the experiment. I suggest temporarily slowing their progress and proceeding with the second round after they recover.”

Chu Xuanzhou’s tone was earnest and patient.

Hearing the protagonist’s suggestion, Lu Yunwan responded exactly as Chu Xuanzhou had anticipated, nodding in approval.

As expected of Chu Xuanzhou before exile and blackening. He truly is developing along the upright and righteous protagonist template!