Chapter 185.1 – Before the Apocalypse (2)

◎ (Xie Zhuo) There is no Xie Zhuo in this world anymore ◎

In the era of the old civilization, there was a saying: “All roads lead to Rome.” But for Xie Zhuo, this saying needed a modification— “This Young master was born in Rome.”

Young Master Xie has been the center of attention since childhood. He was born during the “Glorious Thirty Years” (06-36) of the Alliance’s golden development, in the peak period (New Calendar Year 19). His father was a rising genius scientist, and his mother was the formidable leader of the Azure Phoenix Army. As for himself, inheriting the superior genes of his parents, he possessed top-tier beauty resembling Xie Lan at a young age—silky black hair, captivating brows and eyes, and a disdainful gaze when he lifted his chin, mirroring his father.

Being good-looking was one thing, but what was infuriating was that he also inherited Vincent’s extraordinary intelligence. Before turning one, he could tamper with and destroy sophisticated instruments (things ordinary people couldn’t even turn on), using a baby bottle to dampen crucial data manuscripts, causing his biological father to stay up for nights.

As he grew older, Xie Zhuo’s talents manifested in various aspects. In the complex family relationships of Beijun, whom to approach and whom to distance himself from, he handled with ease. The cryptic and intricate city defense codes became familiar to him after going through them with Xie Lan, rightfully earning him the title of “the child from another family.”

Everyone praised him, but Xie Lan faintly sensed that something was amiss. Xie Zhuo was too intelligent, to the point where he easily lost interest in everything, making it hard to figure out what he liked or disliked. Whenever asked about his thoughts, Young Master Xie casually propped up his chin and lifted his eyelids slightly, saying, “Boring, not interesting.”

This speculation became a reality when Xie Zhuo was ten years old. Xie Lan’s father, Xie Zhuo’s grandfather, died due to a sudden heart attack, and the rescue efforts were in vain.

The members of the Xie family, upon receiving the news, rushed to the scene, filling the spacious room. Regardless of genuine or fake emotions, they all wailed and expressed their grief.

Feeling something amiss, Xie Lan turned his head to look into the distance—

Young Master Xie, well-dressed, stood by the floor-to-ceiling window. His backlit face appeared unusually indifferent. There were no emotions such as fear, worry, or tension in his pupils. They were deep, like the unfathomable depths of the sea, and he even lazily yawned.

He silently gazed at death, even too lazy to pick up the first aid kit that rolled to his feet amid the chaos.

An angelic face with a devilish heart.

Xie Lan took a quick step forward, using her body to shield him, and picked up the back of his collar and casually tossed him to her adjutant, saying, “Take him back.”

If he stayed a few more seconds, Young Master Xie would probably have coldly commented in front of everyone, “Boring, not interesting.”

Back at home, Xie Lan asked him, “Why didn’t you cry just now?”

The younger members of the Xie family were frightened; his overly calm demeanor seemed out of place.

Xie Zhuo, not lying to his mother, calmly spoke the truth, “Isn’t he dead at just the right time? If he were alive, he would continue causing trouble for you. The Azure Phoenix is growing stronger, and he can’t control the situation in Beijun. Several times, he secretly conspired with Uncle, wanting to reclaim your military authority.”

Xie Lan: “…”

Listen, can a ten-year-old say such things?

At that time, Colonel Xie Lan, having already been promoted, took a deep breath, pulled out the tactical whip from her waist, and placed the cold firearm on the table. She gazed frostily at the third person in the room, “Doctor Zhuang, what should we do with your son?”

Vincent cleared his throat a couple of times, quickly signaling to his son, and then took a step forward. Daringly, he pushed aside the whip and the gun barrel, bending down to embrace Xie Lan’s waist, “Major General Xie, don’t be angry. I’ll handle this.”

Young Master Xie silently rolled his eyes and, seeing that neither of them paid any attention to him, sensibly left.

Though he was cold-hearted, he had a good relationship with his parents. Conversely, because of the support from Xie Lan and Vincent, he lived freely and recklessly.

Early the next morning, the arrogant Young Master Xie was taken by his old man for a genetic test.

The results were not surprising; Xie Zhuo was diagnosed with a cold-blooded mental condition. His amygdala was one-third smaller than that of a normal person. The amygdala is responsible for generating, recognizing, and regulating emotions. As a result, Xie Zhuo severely lacked empathy, making it difficult for him to empathize with others.

He was adept at concealing himself, habitual in lying, and had no moral or shame feelings. Without proper guidance, he would engage in high-intelligence crimes in an extremely calm and composed state in adulthood.

After discussions between Vincent and Xie Lan, they decided to have him undergo genetic optimization. The exact words were, “He can choose not to accept intervention, but he must learn to restrain himself.”

…

In the New Calendar Year 29, the genetic optimization technology controlled by the Alliance had already been widely spread in District B. Despite the enormous cost, the success rate remained stable at around 70%. It not only corrected some genetic defects but also had a chance to awaken extraordinary abilities. The awakening level varied from person to person, with some strategically stopping at C-level, while others astonishingly reached A-level.

Young Master Xie’s protests were in vain, and the next day, he was escorted by his mother to the Qinglan Research Institute, where his father personally conducted the experiment.

After awakening, Xie Zhuo initially showed no abnormalities, appearing nothing like a person with extraordinary abilities.

“Did it fail?” the adjutant asked, rubbing his chin. Xie Zhuo casually propped his legs on Xie Lan’s office desk, playing with her terminal, randomly inputting city defense codes. If any member of the Xie family saw this, they would undoubtedly be terrified. If this boy pressed the wrong key, the entire Beijun might explode!

“Impossible,” Xie Lan, without any mercy, confiscated his “toy” and replied firmly. With a 70% success rate, there was a possibility of failure, but if it involved Vincent, the chances of failure would approach zero.

He said he would handle it, and she believed him.

The verdict on whether Xie Zhuo’s awakening was successful came quickly. Vincent discovered that his mental power and brain activity showed extraordinary growth, making him a monster in reasoning, memory, understanding, and strategy. However, existing instruments couldn’t determine his level. Vincent had a premonition, and soon after, the R-Type Awakened Ability Measurement Device was introduced. Xie Zhuo’s initial awakening level was conclusively determined: S4-level Mental Ability, “Omniscient and Omnipotent”.

Whether Young Master Xie’s condition was cured was unknown, but he definitely achieved restraint, as others couldn’t see through it.

He became more and more elegant and charming, as if the demon who coldly observed the death of loved ones was just a fleeting illusion.

Later, Xie Lan officially took control of Beijun, while Vincent remained busy with projects. With Xie Zhuo’s agreement, they decided to send him to study at Liuponi.

At the age of fifteen, Vincent finally relented and agreed to let him “intern” at Qinglan after graduation.

Young Master Xie, who scorned everyone equally in his lifetime except his parents, found rare interest in Vincent’s research field. Unfortunately, since the incident of destroying the lab as a baby, Vincent never allowed him to touch any equipment again.

At that time, the Fire Seed project was in full swing, and Young Master Xie abandoned his studies, falsely claiming to have “graduated early,” and arrived in Loak.

It was here that he first encountered LAK0017.

With Vincent having the highest authority at Qinglan, Xie Zhuo often took liberties and easily took over his terminal, freely roaming the laboratory.

Finding a quiet place to study, he had just settled down when a sudden loud noise interrupted him: Bam! Bam! Bam!

Being interrupted while reading was extremely unpleasant, especially with Vincent’s demanding tasks. If he slackened even a bit, he wouldn’t be able to complete them.

Xie Zhuo made a light clicking sound, his attractive brows slightly furrowing.

Just as the quiet resumed for a moment, the annoying noise reappeared: Bam! Bam! Bam!

Xie Zhuo, impatient, stood up, and with a sweep of the terminal, the wall turned transparent. The spacious, temperature-controlled room was filled with capsule containers. He quickly located the source of the noise within the sea of white. With a gentle touch of his slender fingertips on the control panel, a sealed capsule slowly slid out and stopped in front of him, separated by glass.

A pile of flesh, soft and pressed against the capsule wall, undulated on the smooth surface, its rough features somewhat resembling a lizard-like creature.

Xie Zhuo glanced at it and disdainfully averted his gaze. Too ugly, it was practically an eyesore.

Bam! Bam! The little creature persistently hammered the wall.

“Quite spirited,” Xie Zhuo raised an eyebrow, lowering his gaze to glance at the label: “LAK0017.”

“Be quiet.”

He casually pressed a few buttons on the control panel, and dozens of colorful nutrient ampoules dropped within the capsule. The complex composition of these nutrients made them expensive and could only be procured through special channels. Researchers had to be frugal with each use.

But who was Xie Zhuo? Young Master Xie spent money like water, never feeling the pinch. After all, his biological father’s terminal balance was practically limitless. Xie Lan spent every military expense wisely, but oddly enough, she never hesitated to support Vincent’s research. She could be considered the most extravagant and generous patron.

Xie Zhuo smiled and switched the projection recording vital signs to a cartoon and changed it to play-back mode.

The little creature finally quieted down, slipping to the ground quietly amid hypnotic “Makabaka” sounds, eagerly sucking up the nutrient ampoules.

Xie Zhuo spent a quiet afternoon. He stretched his arms, resting them on the edge of the control panel, lightly tapping the air rhythmically. The graceful lines from his shoulders to his jaw were so exquisite that even the most renowned painters would find it challenging to depict. The teardrop-shaped beauty mark at the corner of his eye outlined a faint sense of detachment.

The creature’s body moved, mimicking his actions, trying to extend forward. Separated by glass, their fingertips touched.

He revisited this serene reading spot several times later, always encountering LAK0017. Sometimes it aggressively pounded the wall, while other times it remained motionless, displaying various bizarre shapes due to continuous genetic fusion, which were never pleasing to the eye.

However, Xie Zhuo got used to it. He skillfully fed it nutrients, opened an animated cartoon, treating it like a mascot for his studying.

One day, he heard a soft tapping on the glass. Xie Zhuo looked up and saw the little creature sitting among empty shells, wagging its tail obsequiously.

Oh, finished your drink, huh? Did you finally learn to ask for it yourself?

Although the Fire Seed project was dedicated to human cancer research, it did not involve human experimentation. The primitive cells of these experimental subjects were cloned or synthesized “human-like embryos” to circumvent ethical risks. Strictly speaking, they could only be considered “artificial lifeforms” with rudimentary consciousness but lacking rationality.

Xie Zhuo interestingly stared at LAK0017 for a couple of seconds. The little creature’s round head bumped against the empty nutrient pouch, making its desire clear.

“Do you want more? Too bad, none left,” Xie Zhuo mischievously said.

The little creature couldn’t understand, looking dull. After a while, it disappointedly drooped its head, and the empty pouch “plinked” onto the ground.

Xie Zhuo’s mood suddenly improved, and he generously clicked the control panel, dropping another pitifully lonely ampoule.

This time, the little creature learned to cherish it. Listening to the “Makabaka” sounds, it sipped the nutrient ampoule with small sips. The liquid-like body slowly repaired itself, emitting a faint glow from the inside out.

…

A month later, when Xie Zhuo returned to the capsule storage, he found that the little creature was gone. Upon checking with his permissions, the system informed him that LAK0017 had been transferred to the third-stage laboratory.

The time for reading and companionship felt unusually quiet that day. After completing his tasks, Xie Zhuo inexplicably went to the new residence of the little creature.

To his surprise, he wasn’t the only one visiting; there was also a man dressed as a researcher, secretly wiping tears while facing the capsule.

Xie Zhuo observed coldly. Gene fusion failures were common, and Loak’s experimental subjects went through multiple phases. Making it to the third stage was rare, so he took a look around, found a familiar number, and showed a hint of surprise. LAK0017’s third-stage experiment had actually succeeded?

Even though it succeeded, the little creature’s condition was not good. It curled up on the brink of death, with a deformed body that now had two heads, five hands, and three legs, looking even uglier than when he first saw it.

Xie Zhuo glanced at the sobbing man, thinking he might be crying over the experimental subject. Humans were so weak and sentimental.

“What’s your name?” Xie Zhuo asked coldly.

“Ming. I’m a breeder from Group G,” the young man with a delicate face replied honestly.

Young Master Xie was also a celebrity in the laboratory. Ming didn’t know why he came here or what he intended to do. Feeling intimidated by his aura, he mustered the courage to say, “It’s very well-behaved…”

Xie Zhuo couldn’t help but sneer. Well-behaved? Who was the one making loud noises by banging on the wall in the first place? Who shamelessly asked him for nutrient ampoules? If it were well-behaved, then all the experimental subjects would be well-behaved little garden babies. However, at this moment, the little creature looked a bit pitiful with its drooping appearance.

“Even if you cry bitterly, it won’t improve its condition,” Xie Zhuo casually mocked. “Save your tears.”

He skillfully brought up the control panel, hesitated for a moment, and then fed fifty ampoules.

Ming glanced at him in surprise, hesitated, and then said, “Um, Comrade Xie, each nutrient ampoule has a stock. It must be taken according to the standard. Your excessive use is against the rules.”

Who gives dozens of nutrient ampoules to an experimental subject? Even raising a child isn’t this indulgent.

Young Master Xie arrogantly lifted his chin. “Just nutrient ampoules. I can give them if I want to. I can afford it.”

He effortlessly manipulated the panel and added another fifty, completely burying the little creature under the fancy packaging bags.

LAK0017 slowly wriggled, with a clear goal as it burrowed into the small mountain and rolled around.

Xie Zhuo chuckled lightly.

Ming was dumbfounded.

“You’re a breeder. These hundred will be charged to my account,” Young Master Xie said confidently as he walked away.

Ming crouched in front of LAK0017, watching it seemingly regain some vitality, and muttered to himself near the glass, “Hang in there, survive.”

Perhaps his blessing came true. LAK0017, as one of the earliest “human-like embryos,” after nearly a thousand fusion experiments, surprisingly did not die. It became the longest-surviving experimental subject. At the same time, it possessed almost perfect immunity, a stable composite gene chain, effectively bypassing genetic diseases such as metabolism, asthma, cancer, and showed excellent immune response to super bacteria.

During this period, the Fire Seed team achieved numerous scientific breakthroughs, including preliminary gene immunity for various hereditary diseases, various mental illnesses, and cancer. The significance of these achievements was immense, with Vincent making outstanding contributions to the advancement of human evolution. He was hailed as the “greatest scientist of the new era.”

Simultaneously, the Fire Seed project entered its fourth and crucial phase: the replication of gene fusion.

Among all replicated genes, the most precious was the Phoenix gene, also known as the Firebird, believed to possess the power of immortality. There was only one publicly known original sample in the world. The Alliance had acquired it from the Tianyi organization for 50 million Alliance credits, and it had been stored in the gene bank until Xie Lan purchased it.

The experiments in the fourth phase unexpectedly progressed smoothly, and the dawn of victory was within reach until a glitch occurred during the fusion of the Phoenix gene.

Fusion failures were common, but this time, the experiment led to the death of LAK0017.

LAK0017 was the only experimental subject to reach the fourth phase, and its death meant:

At the current stage, the Fire Seed project had failed.

**TN

“the child from another family” – it’s the child your parents always compare you to. It’s like Steven He’s cousin, Timmy. XD