Chapter 17
Xie Yunyang stood up.
There was a dead body in front of him.
The research flunky had died with his eyes wide open. Even though he was no longer breathing, his eyes were still staring straight at the ceiling.
This unlucky research flunky had also been a university student admitted to the Safe Zone from the Disaster Zone. The difference was that, unlike Si Chen, he had signed a 100-year contract with the Serpent Staff Group. Due to the trend of salary inversion, in about 25 years, he won’t even be earning as much as the new interns.
But this research flunky had no choice. If he didn’t sign for 100 years, he wouldn’t even have the chance to work in the Serpent Staff Group.
After entering university and graduating successfully, you can settle in the Safe Zone and get a level 5 citizenship certificate. If you join one of the four major conglomerates and work your way up to middle management, you can go up one citizenship level. At level 4, citizens can own a house. They can become the head of the household and gain two more Safe Zone residency spots.
This way, he would have been able take his parents to live with him.
Because this research flunky had a small social network, his disappearance won’t be discovered for the time being.
On the back of Xie Yunyang’s hand, there was a protruding eyeball. Because of this eyeball, his hand didn’t appear like a hand, rather it looked as though it was covered with the roots of a tree or the dendrites of a neuron, like the ones seen in textbooks.
His hand was resting on the research flunky’s chest. The roots had penetrated deeply but there was no trace of blood.
The body of the research flunky shriveled, like a piece of jerky or a dried out jellyfish.
Because of the fresh infusion of flesh and blood, the liver mortis on Xie Yunyang’s face disappeared. His eyes also regained their luster.
His movements were no longer stiff and the expression on his face softened even more. He now looked very human.
He took back his hand. At the base of those dendrites were pink heart muscle.
Xie Yunyang not only absorbed the flunky’s body, he’d also absorbed his memories.
The flunky’s attachment towards his parents remained in his mind, making him feel a little nauseous. But this wasn’t a big problem.
He rolled up the dried up research flunky like a towel. He then looked around his office and tucked it into the safe under the desk. It used to hold important documents.
Xie Yunyang turned on his computer and skillfully navigated the employee portal.
He granted the research flunky three days off on the grounds that he was unwell.
Sooner or later someone will find out but that was okay. Xie Yunyang didn’t intend to stay in this body for too long. This body was too weak.
But before leaving, Xie Yunyang had something he had to get; the Eternal Life Abyss in Si Chen’s body.
…
The experimental subjects raised by Si Chen’s research group were vines from the Fifth Dimension universe. It had no name, only a code — number 719.
The surface of 719 feels like tree bark. It releases poisonous gas and causes hallucinations. There is a large amount of transparent liquid stored in its body, which after preliminary examination has a composition similar to water.
Under normal circumstances, High Dimensional organism 719 was locked in a special containment box and kept in a dormant state.
In order to facilitate experiment recording and observation, the material of the containment box was light-colored transparent glass. You could see the dormant vines coiled in a spiral shape inside. In addition, the containment box was outfitted with a display screen, showing the various indicators of the organism inside.
Si Chen carried the half-person-high glass box and passed by their work station.
His colleague, Xiao Zhang, quickly ran over and snatched the containment box from him. “Chen-ge, let me, let me.”
It was common knowledge in his research group that Si Chen was in poor health and thus no one would let him do any heavy work. Even now that Si Chen had become an Evolutionary, this habit was still followed.
Xiao Zhang was 29 years old this year and Si Chen always felt like his IQ was about the same as that of the Eternal Life Abyss who only knew how to say “Mom, hungry”. But his whole body was muscled, sturdy and strong and he also worked very neatly.
Si Chen didn’t argue with him.
Si Chen walked into the elevator, swiped his employee card and pressed the button for the first floor.
His authority only allowed him onto the floor where he worked at. His access to the 18th underground floor was a temporary authority given to him by the chief.
The building had a total of 60 elevators; 30 for the above ground floor and 30 for the underground floors. Each elevator could only go to a specific floor.
Therefore, Si Chen had to first go to the lobby on the first floor and then take the elevator from the lobby to the 18th underground floor.
As the elevator gradually descended, the Eternal Life Abyss in Si Chen’s body began to feel restless.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“Mom, hungry. Meat!”
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Si Chen couldn’t help his mouth from watering.
The Eternal Life Abyss yelled loudly, “Meat! Meat!!”
Someone came out from the other end of the corridor and greeted them with bright laughter. “Is it Si Chen? Come in, come in. You can just drop it here.”
Si Chen took a quick look and saw that the person who came to meet them was Xie Yunyang, the head of the 18th underground laboratory.
He’d met him a couple of times during meetings and every time he faced them, these members of a low-level research team, he raised his nose so high up that he almost bent over backwards. That he’d come meet them in person was completely unexpected.
The doors of these top-secret laboratories were all made of a very thick special alloy. You’d need to swipe your card to get in or out.
Xie Yunyang stood at the door, even though he was wearing protective clothing, the smile on his face was still kind.
The Eternal Life Abyss became even more restless. “Meat—!”
The Eternal Life Abyss had yelled the same way when he came across that strange eye earlier that afternoon.
Were it an ordinary person, they might not have been able to understand the meaning of the Eternal Life Abyss’ cries. But it was because Si Chen was extremely cautious that he’d been able to survive until now.
If he weren’t so careful, at the age of three, a stranger would have made off with him after luring him in with candy; at the age of nine, he would have walked into the head of the orphanage's office at night; at the age of sixteen he would have been knocked unconscious on his way home from school; and when he was twenty, he would have drank the water dosed with sleeping pills handed to him by his roommate.
There was something wrong the Xie Yunyang in front of him.
Si Chen said softly, “Sir, that’s against the confidentiality agreement. We won’t be going in. We’ll leave the sample here.”
Xie Yunyang stared at him for a moment and then looked at Xiao Zhang behind him.
Si Chen didn’t know that during those few seconds, Xie Yunyang was staring at him with eyes full of longing, saliva dripping from the corners of his mouth.
Yes, Xie Yunyang had been parasitized. He was just an ordinary person and his body had died during the invasion of the High Dimensional organism.
The thing Si Chen saw that afternoon was called an “Eyeworm”. It was amphibious, able to live on land and sea and it too was a parasite like the Eternal Life Abyss.
The Eyeworm itself didn’t have any strong attacks but it prided itself on its mental pollution ability.
When the Eyeworm invades a host, it will completely replace the host; inheriting not just its body but its memory and intelligence as well, until it chooses to change to a new host.
This was the first time for this species to appear in the real world.
Because it didn’t give off any strong energy fluctuations, it didn’t trigger any alarm among the humans.
The Eyeworm and the Eternal LIfe Abyss are both in each other’s diet plans. In the bitter cold of the chaotic civilization, the infinitely multiplying Eyeworm is the Eternal Life Abyss’ primary food source. While some powerful Eyeworms are able kill juvenile Eternal Life Abyss to strengthen their weak bodies.
It’s a pity. If Si Chen had been alone, he might have gone for it.
Xie Yunyang moved his finger away from the screen that canceled Si Chen’s temporary authority to use the elevator. He reluctantly watched as Si Chen walked back to the elevator. He turned around, an eerie smile on his face.
“Idiot.”
He was scolding the Eternal Life Abyss.
It should have be the strongest creature of the chaotic civilization but it gave up its most terrifying and deadliest qualities to be a parasite, allowing its growth to be tied to the growth of a weak, low-dimensional creature.
…
…
In the elevator, the Eternal Life Abyss was also feeling very regretful. “Meat, meat…Mom, Little Abyss, can, fight.”
Si Chen stared dazedly at the metal wall of the elevator.
After leaving the eighteenth underground floor, Si Chen didn’t go home immediately. Instead, he headed to the toilets and locked himself in a cubicle.
“What’s going on?” Si Chen asked in a low voice.
The Eternal Life Abyss thought for a moment: “Eye…eat…hungry.”
Si Chen remembered the weird eyeball he saw in the water tank that afternoon.
That thing surely wasn’t anything good. Just thinking about it made him feel dizzy.
Si Chen said quietly, “I’m going to ask you some things. Squeak once for yes and twice for no. Do you understand?”
“Squeak.”
“You want to eat that eye?”
“Squeak.”
Si Chen remembered that sweet aroma he’d smelled. He frowned slightly. “The laboratory head is the ‘eye’?”
“Squeak.”
The Serpent Staff Group had more information on High Dimensional Creatures than even the Evolutionary Association.
As a university student in love with learning, when Si Chen first joined the company, he read their records on the thousands of High Dimensional Creatures they had on the company’s intranet. And he remembered it all in his mind.
That eye obviously wasn’t on their database. Either it was a new species, or records on it were inaccessible with Si Chen’s authority.
But most importantly, that High Dimensional creature had replaced Xie Yunyang.
Si Chen’s first reaction was to report it to the Safety Management Bureau. But it would be difficult to explain how he found out there was something wrong with the laboratory head.
Si Chen went through the security check and headed to the locker room to change. When he came out, he happened to see Xie Yunyang passing through the security check.
The other party’s eyes swept across Si Chen’s face.
In order to prevent employees from stealing valuable experiment materials, the security personnel will conduct strict checks on the employees coming in and out.
That Xie Yunyang was able to pass the security inspection proved that ordinary instruments couldn’t detect his abnormality. Reporting to the Safety Management Bureau and having their people investigate would result in the same thing.
Moreover, the Eternal Life Abyss was hungry.
Si Chen suspected that the Eternal Life Abyss really must have poisoned him. How else could he explain why he was taking the role of mother so seriously?
Si Chen casually withdrew his gaze. He had his head down, pretending to be playing with his phone.
It was then that he saw the message from Ji Chuyao.
– Just got off work. Sorry, just saw your message now.
Ji Chuyao’s reply came very quickly. “Perfect timing. I just arrived in Jiangchuan. I’m outside the entrance of your workplace.”
Ji Chuyao also sent over an emoji of a happy puppy. The puppy wagged its tail, looking cute.
Si Chen: “…??”
Hell, did he think they knew each other that well?
It was March but because of the abnormal climate, the temperature was still more than ten degrees below zero.
Ji Chuyao probably wasn’t at all afraid of the cold. Standing by the side of the road, he was wearing a two-piece suit with a light brown plaid scarf tied around his neck. He looked like some kind of university heartthrob waiting for his girlfriend after school.
When he saw him coming out, Ji Chuyao waved. “Si——Chen—! Here.”
Si Chen adjusted his expression and slowly made his way over to him.
“You get off work very late.” Ji Chuyao said.
He lowered his head and saw that Si Chen’s joints on his hands were reddening from the cold. He instinctively wanted to reach out and hold them.
Ji Chuyao had served as a heater in the Space Fold for so long that it was now second nature.
Si Chen calmly shifted his phone from his left hand to his right, avoiding Ji Chuyao reaching hands. “I was delayed on my way out.”
Ji Chuyao definitely didn’t just arrive, otherwise the snow on his shoulders wouldn’t have piled up so thickly.
Si Chen took out the umbrella and handed it to Ji Chuyao.
He didn’t know if it was because of his mechanical transformation but Ji Chuyao was too tall.
Si Chen himself was 1.8 meters tall but his eyes only came up to Ji Chuyao’s shoulders.
The two walked towards the transport station one behind the other. Ji Chuyao didn’t mind the snow so he was simply holding the umbrella for Si Chen.
The snow hit the umbrella, making pattering sounds.
Si Chen asked, “Is there something you need from me?”
“I want to talk to you about the postgraduate entrance examination.” Ji Chuyao thought for a moment and then simply said it directly, “Why don’t you go to the military academy? There’s still several months between when you sign up for the exam and when the exam actually takes place. If you train hard, I think you have a chance.”
“The military academy runs on a mentorship system. A teacher can guide at most two or three graduate students. So long as you make it out alive, the probability of getting your degree certificate is higher than that of other majors.”
“Secondly, the military academy’s postgraduate subsidies include gene medicine, evolution fluid and High Dimensional items geared towards your specific path of evolution. Some are even resources that cannot be bought outside with money. And what’s more, the military academy doesn’t charge any tuition.”
“Finally, the time and space we are in seems to be becoming more and more unstable. The sudden appearance of a Space Fold in Jiangchuan District is a sign…”
Ji Chuyao said sincerely, “Although I myself had gotten in through a recommendation, if you wish to take the exam, I can help with some mentoring.”
Mentoring was a troublesome business.
For example, the single mother who lived downstairs from Si Chen, her daughter was about to take the college entrance examination. Every week, she would come to Si Chen’s door with a box of eggs, hoping that Si Chen could help her daughter with her math. Si Chen didn’t want this kind of bother, so he had to pretend that he was allergic to protein.
Si Chen didn’t believe that you could get good things for nothing in this world. Every trap is disguised as something one can take advantage of.
“Why?” Si Chen asked, “We don’t really know each other that well, Mr. Ji.”
Ji Chuyao looked down at him, his blue eyes were full of emotion. “I don’t know. When I’m close to you, my heart inexplicably speeds up. It’s interesting, I want to be close to you.”
He didn’t know anything about feelings so he wanted to understand where this throbbing of his heart came from.
Ji Chuyao: “According to the most common point of view, I suppose this is called ‘wooing’?”
His father said that it was very normal to want to date in one’s twenties.
Si Chen: “…”
He gave up on thinking.
Before the bus arrived, Si Chen walked into the bookstore by the roadside and bought a set of children’s literacy books. He planned to read it to Eternal Life Abyss at night. Whether it will actually be of any use or not, he’ll simply have to give it a try first. Otherwise, they would be stuck with the same few words and that was just pitiful.
As soon as he paid and walked out of the bookstore, his phone buzzed lightly.
Si Chen opened it and saw that he’d received a new message from Ji Chuyao.
– Someone is following you.
– It was detected by my anti-reconnaissance system. There’s a guy who’s been watching us at the cafe across the road.
– I thought they were stalking me. So I avoided you specifically. It turns out that it was you he’d been stalking.
Ji Chuyao’s authority was really high. He could even directly retrieve images from the public surveillance cameras produced by his family’s company.
The weather was cold and the person in the picture was wearing a thick padded jacket, a hat and a mask. He looked quite shabby, very inconspicuous.
Si Chen zoomed in on the picture and narrowed his eyes slightly.
It was ten o’clock in the evening and it was already dark. Fortunately, the lights on both sides of the road were very bright.
Despite the man’s disguise, Si Chen still recognized the person in the photo to be Xie Yunyang.
Si Chen looked at the picture very calmly. He then typed a reply.
-Thanks for the warning.
Ji Chuyao: Do you know him? Do you need help?
Si Chen: Yeah, he’s a work colleague. The head of a neighboring research lab.
Si Chen: Don’t worry, I’ll be careful.
Si Chen turned off the phone screen. His brows and eyes going slightly cold.
He hadn’t even figured out how to get his next meal when the meal thoughtfully went running to him.
It can be considered good that his next meal came to him.
Mmmm eyes…. Sounds delicious 😋🤤
(only if you’re an Eternal life Abyss though 🤣, for the rest of us, not so much)
… *looks at the shou who can give Exploding Goat Eyeball delicacies to his gong* …….. For m ost of us, anyways.
((If you’re curious, this is from the series I Rely on Wilderness Survival Live Broadcast to become Popular Across the Stars. I know it’s very long XDD The abbreviation in CG is WILD.))
Survival expert: * eats goat eyeball/ worm/ spider / scorpion with a straight face *
“Very good, plenty of nutrients”
The broadcast audience asking the gong:
“It’s like eating raw oysters with mud, except that the oysters are stinky and rotten”
I wish take out would also appear at my doorstep unannounced and free
damn ji chuyao fell fast (≧▽≦)
Lucky day. Food is jumping into his mouth and boyfriend has decided to woo….pfft! Hahahahaha! Thanks for the update 🤣❤️🤣❤️🤣
Time to food, mommy
Thank you for your translation 💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚
Sturdier please lol
Thanks for the chapter!
Does Xie Yunyang delivering himself to Si Chen count as fast food takeout service?
LMAO