Chapter 33: A Few Test Subjects

The girl in the red coat appeared to be around fifteen or sixteen years old. Though her frame was slight, she had a round face, and her fluffy short hair only accentuated her childlike appearance.

As her figure vanished into the dark hall, Qi An felt a sudden, sharp tremor of unease.

The stern reprimand of a guard snapped her back to reality. Yu Shuang was locked in a confrontation with the soldier, and the tension was palpable.

"We were just passing by. I saw that child rush over suddenly and was simply curious," Qi An said, calming herself. Realizing she had been the one to spark the incident, she immediately addressed the soldier: "I apologize for the trouble caused to your work. May we leave now?"

Her tone was gentle. The soldier’s expression softened, and after listening to his radio for a moment, he nodded.

"The child you saw is the daughter of one of our researchers here. She has suffered injuries and sometimes behaves in ways that are hard to explain. Per protocol, you may leave after registering your names and identification. Please refrain from approaching this area again."

Registering in an unfamiliar place was unsettling, and the members of Team 2 frowned.

"We only exchanged a glance with a researcher’s daughter; we didn't even enter the facility. Why is registration necessary?" Qi An asked, puzzled. "Is there some secret we are expected to keep?"

The soldier was momentarily taken aback.

"If that injured girl took an interest in me and I were to leave my name and contact information for the sake of helping with her treatment... I would be willing. But we are from out of town and will be leaving tomorrow or the day after. Our mission is classified, so I am afraid we cannot leave our identification details." Qi An presented their temporary pass, which they used to enter the military camp.

The pass was standard issue and contained no personal information, yet it served as proof of their status as visiting military personnel.

The soldier hesitated. Unsure whether they were truly on a classified mission, he decided to report the matter. A moment later, he received instructions, saluted, and allowed them to proceed.

The entire incident had lasted no more than ten minutes, yet the group felt a lingering sense of unease, perhaps because Qi An had nearly stumbled into high-voltage equipment.

Yang Yuning kept glancing toward Qi An, curious about her intense reaction to the girl, yet he deeply admired the gentle firmness with which she had handled the situation. His large eyes, framed by thick brows, brightened, and when Qi An looked his way, he offered a smile that revealed a set of brilliant white teeth.

Qi An looked away.

The others were still focused on the event. Su Qingran frowned. "That little girl..."

She struggled to find the right words, while Zhao Bohan asked, "What kind of research facility is that?"

"I’m not sure," Yang Yuning replied. "Perhaps something related to information technology?"

Qi An was startled. Information technology? It wasn't a biological laboratory requiring human subjects? Was that little girl truly just a researcher's daughter?

The group speculated, but the facility and the girl were merely an interlude. They proceeded with their original plan to dine at the restaurant that served fish and shrimp.

To their surprise, the restaurant held its own revelation. This time, they truly saw a product of a biological laboratory—a young man whose skin was entirely rose-pink.

"He must have undergone secondary enhancement surgery..." Yang Yuning was unsure of what he was looking at, but Zhao Bohan, who had the base's academic database memorized, provided a steady explanation: "A paper from North Base 1 mentioned that their secondary infection experiments with the Black Tide virus reduced the mortality rate to 40%, though it often results in uncontrollable side effects."

Secondary enhancement involved infecting a human with a laboratory-cultivated, iterative strain of the Black Tide virus designed to evade antibody recognition, triggering a second genetic mutation to increase the subject's enhancement value. Such surgery was notoriously risky, and the New Life Base remained at the forefront of the practice.

Qi An was familiar with the regulations regarding secondary enhancement subjects across the Chinese base clusters. Typically, they were individuals serving life or death sentences, or patients suffering from terminal illnesses. It was only in recent years that a channel for voluntary application had opened up. However, due to the high mortality rate and severe side effects, the screening process was rigorous, making it nearly impossible for healthy, active-duty soldiers to qualify. The New Life Base, having opened voluntary applications over a decade ago, had a larger pool of test subjects—which explained their superior research results.

The pink-skinned man ate alone in a corner booth. Since he was suffering from visible side effects, it was clear he had survived and achieved enhancement. Whether it was worth the cost, or whether he had volunteered or been forced into the experiment due to past transgressions, remained a mystery.

The meal was delicious; the steamed fish was fragrant, soft, and tender, making them lament how well the "upper class" of North Base 1 lived. However, preoccupied by their strange sightings, they only paid half-attention to the food, which felt like a waste of their 200 contribution points.

The team strolled back to the barracks after their meal. As they parted ways, Yang Yuning seemed to hesitate as if to call out to Qi An, but he remained silent, watching her enter the dormitory.

"I think Yang Yuning has a crush on you," Su Qingran said, smiling as she unfastened her intricate hairstyle once inside their room.

"He wants to lure our Sister Qi to North Base 1? In his dreams!" Zhuang Xiao popped her head in from the outer room, clearly indignant.

"Jiu seemed to be the same way, didn't he?" Tang Long, who was quite observant, chimed in.

"Between Jiu and Old Yang, who is better?" Yu Shuang began to ponder.

Qi An rubbed her temples, unsure whether to interrupt or let them continue until the topic died on its own.

Su Qingran pressed on. "Xiao Qi, who do you think is better, Jiu or Yang Yuning?"

"Neither is good," Qi An replied.

"Why?" Both Su Qingran and Yu Shuang looked surprised. Two handsome men, and Qi An wasn't interested in either?

"Some people develop a sense of affection or attachment to a Purifier after being cleansed. It's temporary," Qi An said. "Only a fool would take it seriously."

This left the others stunned.

Su Qingran looked at Qi An with a complex expression, while Yu Shuang patted Qi An’s shoulder, her voice dropping slightly. "You're too clear-headed, Xiao Qi! But clarity is a good thing. We’re in our twenties—the prime age for striving. Before I become the Commander-in-Chief of the base, before Xiao Su becomes an ace military surgeon, and before you become China’s Chief Purifier, men are just passing clouds!"

The captain clenched her fist, delivering her bold declaration.

Qi An laughed in response, and Su Qingran joined her, clapping softly.

The deputy captain, also a handsome man, silently turned his gaze away from Yu Shuang and opened his phone to bury himself in his chaotic academic papers.

The following day, the team did not leave the camp, opting instead to borrow a training room to maintain their daily regimen.

On the morning of the third day, the official government platform on the North Base 1 intranet posted a long list of officials being dismissed or reassigned. The team saw the list on the bulletin board outside the mess hall. Yu Shuang felt a headache coming on just looking at it, and Zhao Bohan stood there studying it for half an hour.

The tremors in the upper echelons of North Base 1 were creating undercurrents visible even to the lower ranks. The soldiers moving through the camp wore strained expressions, and there were fewer pedestrians on the roads outside.

That afternoon, the team received notification that the supplies they were to escort were ready. They were cleared to depart and rendezvous with their comrades from North Base 2.

North Base 2 was the most authoritative in the insect-oil smelting industry, surpassing even North Base 1. The insect oil being transferred from North Base 1 was loaded into two heavy tankers, both filled to capacity.

Given Qi An’s sensitivity to pollution sources, she sensed it the moment the tankers pulled out: both loads were only partially purified.

This was surely going to attract even more insects than they had initially anticipated.