Translator: Onlyfornovels
Editor: DragonFae
Bai Chunian, with his Bone Armor left hand, twisted off a section of steel beam. He crafted a sharp blade from its tip and wedged it between the sealed elevator doors, prying them open.
“Turn on the light and be careful.”
“En.”
Once they opened a gap, Rimbaud extended his fingertips into it, forcefully prying apart the sealed, thick metal elevator doors and crawling out through the torn hole.
Bai Chunian also jumped out.
After leaving the sealed elevator, they entered a small room lit by purple lights. In front of them was a coded heavy door, but it was already open, and with a push to either side, it swung open.
“Eris and the others ran away, even took my decoder with them. They should at least return it to me,” Bai Chunian complained while fumbling around.
After passing through several opened heavy doors with codes, both of them were momentarily dazzled by the vast space outside the door.
The dense shadowless lights and wall lamps illuminated this large space brightly, making their eyes uncomfortable after being accustomed to darkness.
Bai Chunian glanced back at the sign on the door, which read “Headquarters Cultivation Area.”
In front of them was a vast array of transparent cultivation pods, neatly arranged like library shelves. The control consoles next to the cultivation pods were all vacant, with no researchers in sight who should have been operating the equipment.
Bai Chunian held his breath, listening for any sounds in the room, while Rimbaud climbed up to the ceiling, searching for and destroying surveillance cameras.
“Larvae Cultivation Pods.” Bai Chunian crouched down beside one of the small transparent covers, tapping the transparent panel. However, it was empty inside, and the switch to the oxygen pump was manually turned off. In the lower right corner of the cultivation pod, there was a photo of a juvenile seal pup, originally being cultivated here, covered in white fur.
“The entire Larvae Cultivation Area is empty; there’s nothing inside any of the cultivation pods.” Bai Chunian brushed off the dust from his palms, stood up, and walked deeper along the corridor.
Rimbaud moved between the vertically placed transparent capsule-shaped cultivation pods, swaying his tail to maintain balance. Electric currents flashed and leaped within the semi-transparent tail.
After passing through the Larvae Area, they entered the Cultivation Stage Experimental Subject Area, which was similarly devoid of any subjects.
“Before, in the research institute, there was a plan to centrally destroy a batch of experimental subjects at the Warwick Pharmaceutical Factory. However, Puppet Master intercepted midway, and brought them back to Canada. I don’t know if those experiment subjects that were scheduled for destruction included any from the headquarters.”
Bai Chunian took out a map, looked at it and said, “It’s quite complicated; let’s see what the map says.”
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.
Ktf wjq’r jccbajalbc obg atlr rfmalbc rlwqis rjlv, “Ywlaafv.”
“…” Djl Jtecljc rmgjamtfv tlr tfjv jcv mibrlcu atf wjq rjlv, “Ktf wjlc qtjgwjms lr lc atf vffqfra qjga, yea Olc Gfcu vlvc’a jccbajaf atf lcafgcji gbeafr klatlc atfrf fzqfglwfcaji reypfma jgfjr. P uefrr Cliffc rajgafv vlnlvlcu atf jgfjr joafg fzqjcvlcu atf agjvf lc fzqfglwfcaji reypfmar, jcv ys atfc, Olc Gfcu tjv jigfjvs yffc fzqfiifv.”
Rimbaud closed his eyes, slightly raised his chin, and filtered the faint scent in the air with his breath. When he opened his eyes again, his gaze became cold. “I sense a similar aura. In the deepest part.”
Bai Chunian paused for a moment, then continued to move forward, saying, “Let’s go take a look.”
After passing through the Cultivation Stage Experimental Subject Area and traversing a corridor along with a malfunctioning password-locked door, what came into view was the Maturity Stage Experimental Subject Area. However, all these cultivation pods were empty. Normally, maturity stage experimental subjects would be in their prime for sale, and it wouldn’t make sense to destroy them all. But transporting them all away in such a short time frame was also impractical.
In Bai Chunian’s heart, a sense of unease arose. He quickened his pace towards the deepest part. “Hurry up, we’ll blast a passage through the south wall, then leave here as soon as possible.”
Passing through several doors, golden-patterned laser-engraved words appeared on the wall: “Elite Area.”
After entering the Elite Area, the arrangement in the rooms was no longer transparent capsule-shaped incubators. Instead, there were individual, fully enclosed square compartments, each with a sturdy metal door and a standing controller. Besides being able to see the names and numbers of the experimental subjects inside from the door plates, Bai Chunian couldn’t see anything else.
He tried pressing the console a couple of times, only to find that the control panel was locked. So, he took out the identity cards of the researchers Albedo and Reynold from his pocket and swiped them. The screen popped up with a prompt saying, “You do not have the operation authorization.”
“No operation authorization…” Bai Chunian approached the fully enclosed box-shaped cultivation pod, pressed his ear against it, attempting to listen to the sounds inside, where there seemed to be the sound of flowing water.
Outside the box-shaped cultivation pod , Bai Chunian discovered a liquid supply tube extending deep along the side of the corridor. Each box-shaped pod had a similar pipe extending from it, systematically converging to a point. Unable to determine their destination for the moment, he could only follow the flow of the pipes to continue forward.
While walking, Bai Chunian carefully observed these box-shaped cultivation pods. It seemed that all the cultivation pods in the Elite Area belonged to A3-grade experimental subjects, and those with a maturity level below five were not deemed worthy of being bred here.
The sheer number of box-shaped cultivation pods sent shivers down Bai Chunian’s spine. The probability of naturally occurring A3 differentiated glands was extremely low, yet Aileen had cultivated such a staggering number of A3-grade experimental subjects. Achieving this under pure natural conditions was impossible and must rely on pharmaceuticals.
As for those experimental subjects forcefully pushed to A3 differentiation through drugs, similar to prematurely overdrawing life, they were deformed or short-lived. However, the research institute doesn’t care. As long as the inspection report of these commodities is stamped with the A3 differentiation qualification, they can conscientiously pack them into boxes and trade them to buyers for billions in profits.
Walking along the densely arranged cultivation pods to the depths, a pool of blood suddenly appeared on the floor. Bai Chunian crouched down to examine it; the blood had completely dried, turning black, and crumbled at a touch.
As he proceeded deeper, the bloodstains became more numerous and dense. When he turned another corner, Bai Chunian was slightly startled and took two steps back.
On the ground lay an armed security personnel in disarray, their condition gruesome. The person’s head was shattered, seemingly caught by the face and unable to break free, ultimately dying from the crushing of half their skull while still alive.
Rimbaud climbed onto an open cultivation pod, lightly tapping the nameplate with his tail: “Number 200, the cultivation pod for Eternal Undead. He escaped from here.”
Rimbaud crawled into the empty cultivation pod. Inside, apart from a bed, there wasn’t much else. Two crumpled tissues were thrown under the bed, and he leaned in to sniff. They still carried the lingering scent of magnolia flowers.
It was the pheromone scent of Pearl.
Bai Chunian also walked in. Seeing Rimbaud staring at two used tissues, he quietly crouched down next to him, placing a hand on the omega’s head to comfort him.
“He cried. Was he missing us?” Bai Chunian lowered his eyelids.
“There’s nothing worth crying about.” Rimbaud shook his head, indicating that he didn’t need comfort. He turned around, and his tail swept away the two tissue balls.
After some hesitation, Rimbaud secretly picked up the tissue balls again and tucked them into his backpack.
Bai Chunian noticed all of Rimbaud’s furtive movements but could only endure the heartache and guilt, pulling Rimbaud away.
They left the cultivation pod, about to run towards the central drug repository direction when Bai Chunian sensed something unusual.
He turned around abruptly. The corridor they had come through was now blocked by a cultivation pod. Bai Chunian hurriedly went to inspect, peering into the bottom crack from the ground. He discovered there were tracks on the ground, indicating that this cultivation pod had been manipulated and moved here.
While Rimbaud was crawling towards the central drug repository, a cultivation pod moved swiftly along the tracks, blocking his path. The moving speed was extremely fast, and Rimbaud found himself wedged in the narrowing gap. To avoid being flattened, he could only rapidly climb back.
Bai Chunian grabbed Rimbaud’s arm, abruptly pulling him out of the gap. In the last second after the fish tail escaped the crack, the cultivation pod completely blocked the way.
Rimbaud lost his balance and fell into Bai Chunian’s arms. He shook his tail tip to check for injuries, and his fish tail turned red with anger.
“Nali? (What’s wrong?)”
“A trap set by Aileen.” Bai Chunian surveyed the surroundings, first observing their situation. They were surrounded by twelve exceptionally sturdy cultivation pods in a narrow rectangular space. The ground was beneath their feet, and the ceiling above, and upon inspection, there were no crevices anyone could squeeze through.
Bai Chunian lifted Rimbaud’s fish tail to measure the distance, dragging Rimbaud from one end to the other. After measuring, he found that the distance between the front and back cultivation pods was 9 meters, and the left and right distance was 3 meters.
“Rimbaud, try going to the ceiling and see if you can get out.”
“En.” Rimbaud climbed up and delivered a heavy punch to the ceiling, creating a depression. Several consecutive punches followed, and although the solid metal ceiling was hammered tightly, it remained undamaged.
Rimbaud used the same violent method to test the ground, with similar results.
“Never mind, don’t waste energy.” Bai Chunian knew they were currently in the lower cultivation area of the research institute, with hundreds of meters between the ceiling and the ground. Aileen had calculated this topographical advantage, intending to permanently bury the evidence of their connection to the headquarters cultivation area underground. Even if they were investigated later, there would be no evidence, and she wouldn’t face imprisonment.
“Xiao Bai, the cultivation pod is moving.” Rimbaud curled his tail tip.
He leaned against one side of the cultivation pod, laying his fish tail flat. Just a moment ago, the fish tail tip could barely touch the outer wall of the opposite cultivation pod. However, now it couldn’t stretch, indicating that the cultivation pod was still slowly moving, continuously reducing the space they were in.
This discovery tightened Bai Chunian’s heart.
“There must be a loophole to get out.” Bai Chunian frowned, observing the external structure of each cultivation pod.
He placed the palm of his hand on the smooth outer wall of the cultivation pod, closed his eyes, and slowly felt it. Suddenly, he opened his eyes and carefully sensed the fluctuations in the metal with his fingertips.
“Rimbaud, there’s a seam here.”
“En?” Rimbaud crawled over, extending his sharp claws and diligently digging at the position Bai Chunian mentioned. He successfully peeled off a patch of outer coating, revealing a nearly negligible metal seam underneath.
“It’s true.” Rimbaud forcefully dug, lifting the metal skin with his fingertips to expose the screws beneath.
Bai Chunian took out a multi-tool knife from his backpack, popped out a flat-head screwdriver, and systematically unscrewed each screw.
He needed to open at least one cultivation pod first. If time wore on or the cultivation pod moved too fast, they could temporarily enter the chamber to avoid being crushed alive.
The screws in the cultivation pod were machine-tightened. Bai Chunian was cautious, unscrewing them with some difficulty, fearing the screwdriver might break.
After unscrewing six screws, Rimbaud lifted a corner of the thick 10-centimeter metal plate, revealing a cluster of wires inside.
“Good, pass it to me.” Bai Chunian knelt on the ground, bowing down to sort out the wires. Following the direction of the circuit board connectors, he singled out a main wire, used the knife to cut off the outer insulation, exposing the conductive metal wire.
Rimbaud extended his fish tail, and the tail tip crackled with electricity. The cultivation pod immediately short-circuited, losing control, and the sealed outer wall suddenly became completely transparent, revealing the interior of the cultivation pod.
Suspended in the closed chamber filled with nutrient solution was a humanoid experimental subject with a pair of white fluffy wings hanging behind and white fluffy antennae growing on the top of the head. Astonishingly, it was a female moth experimental subject, with closed eyes, as if sleeping in a nightmare.
“Wasn’t it supposed to be empty?”
The cultivation pod continued to move slowly toward the center, and Rimbaud, with heightened territorial awareness, began to feel the annoyance caused by the narrowing space.
Rimbaud released a strong electric current, and the current pierced through all the connected cultivation pods through the wires, making the outer walls of all twelve cultivation pods transparent simultaneously. Each cultivation pod contained a sleeping experimental subject.
Through the now transparent cultivation pods, Bai Chunian noticed that each chamber had a tube connected. Following the intricate tubes, he found they all converged into one chamber, supplying nutrients to the experimental subjects inside.
In essence, these A3-grade experimental subjects, reaching level eight of the maturity stage, were nothing more than food.
In the cultivation pod that received the nutrient offering, a levitating albino manta ray merman stood, entirely gray-white without any other color.
“Pearl…” Bai Chunian’s palms were suddenly sweaty, and Rimbaud crawled over, sniffing against the transparent wall.
“This is Pearl’s undead summoning body,” Bai Chunian exclaimed, as if waking up from a dream. “The one outside, the one controlled by the undead, he has colors, blue eyes and pinkish white scales, he is—”
“A corpse,” Rimbaud whispered softly.
Outside the cultivation pod containing Pearl’s undead summoning body, the independent control console screen suddenly released its lock and automatically popped up a video box.
Aileen sat elegantly in a swivel chair, lifting a highball glass with a smile. “I knew you would eventually find your way here. Since you’ve come, I want to give you a gift. He’s quite powerful.”
Thank You for the new chapter ❤⃛ヾ(๑❛ ▿ ◠๑ )
Thank you for the new chapter. I can’t wait how this family of three would end up. I am only hoping the best for them.