Chapter 219: Mutation (Part XVII)
Bai Yinnian walked out carrying Xiao Cui, his face pulled into a long, sour expression.
At exactly six-thirty, Lin Xu pulled up to the front of the house.
Bai Yinnian yanked the door open and stuffed Xiao Cui inside first. Then, he picked up Xiao Ji and placed him next to the boy. He turned to Liu Xi, who was sitting in the very back of the vehicle.
“You sit in the front.”
Liu Xi gave a quick “oh” and climbed into the passenger seat. Only then did Bai Yinnian fold the wheelchair, put it in the trunk, and climb in to sit next to Xiao Ji.
Lin Xu kept glancing at Xiao Ji and Xiao Cui through the rearview mirror, but he didn’t say a word.
Liu Xi knew of Xiao Ji, but she had never seen Xiao Cui. Seeing the boy in a white T-shirt and denim overalls, looking like a little porcelain doll, she let out a surprised sound.
“Boss, whose kid is this?”
Bai Yinnian replied grumpily, “Mine.”
Liu Xi was stunned. Bai Yinnian wasn’t the type to have patience for children. She asked curiously, “Where did he come from?”
“He’s a test subject,” Bai Yinnian said.
Liu Xi still didn’t quite process it, thinking back through recent events. “I didn’t hear about any test subjects passing the final trials and being assigned to the team recently.”
Bai Yinnian glanced at Xiao Cui, who was looking out the window obediently. “He hasn’t passed the tests. To be precise, he is still a High-risk Pollutant currently under observation.”
The moment those words were spoken, the hair on Liu Xi’s arms stood on end.
She stared at Xiao Cui through the mirror. The more she looked, the more familiar he seemed. After thinking for a moment, her scalp went numb. “Subject 3?”
The members of 【Divine Wings】 were all “successful” test subjects, but they all had to pass rigorous testing before being released from the cages. Liu Xi had walked that path herself.
Precisely because of that, she knew exactly how terrifying those High-risk Pollutants who hadn’t regained their sanity were. Every single one of them was a living killing machine.
Liu Xi’s main skills were focused on her extraordinary five senses; she wasn’t the team’s heavy hitter. Back then, her survival through the experimental pits had been a near-death experience.
Her reaction wasn’t surprising.
However, her obvious shock clearly made Xiao Cui feel excluded. Hurt, he reached out his arms toward Xiao Ji, hoping for a hug.
Ever since Xiao Ji had opened the boy’s spiritual gates and personally enlightened him, their bond was far from ordinary. Facing this situation, Xiao Ji naturally wouldn’t stand by. He picked up Xiao Cui and deposited him right into Bai Yinnian’s lap.
Bai Yinnian held the child and spoke to Liu Xi. “He’s very obedient. There’s no need to be afraid.”
For the sake of Xiao Cui’s psychological well-being, Bai Yinnian thought for a moment and then addressed Lin Xu and Liu Xi. “Don’t mention this to the others for the time being.”
Liu Xi agreed. Lin Xu didn’t speak, but he fished a plum candy out of his pocket and handed it to Xiao Cui.
Xiao Cui looked at Bai Yinnian and didn’t move.
Bai Yinnian nodded. “Take it.”
Only then did Xiao Cui accept the candy and tuck it into the front pocket of his overalls.
Xiao Ji coached him, “You should say thank you.”
“Thank you,” Xiao Cui whispered.
The journey from the base to Route 81 in the city center took a full hour and twenty minutes. Along the way, Bai Yinnian wanted to talk to Xiao Ji but didn’t know what to say. His mind was still stuck on Xiao Ji’s comment about being “careful” in the future.
F*ck.
Be more careful.
If there weren’t others around, Bai Yinnian would have probably given his own mouth a few good slaps. Now, with four pairs of eyes on him, he could only refrain and curse his own loose tongue for speaking without thinking.
The sky grew darker. Once Lin Xu parked the car at the intersection of Route 81, Bai Yinnian followed his usual routine of lighting a cigarette. Soon after, two more identical black armored vehicles appeared behind them.
“Is everyone here?” Bai Yinnian asked Lin Xu as he stubbed out the cigarette.
Lin Xu leaned out the window to check. “All here. Including special personnel, thirteen people have been deployed. Six from our team and seven from Team 2. The other two cars are at full capacity.”
Bai Yinnian stepped out. He set Xiao Cui on the ground first, then set up the wheelchair and lifted Xiao Ji into it.
The people from the other two cars began to disembark. A tall man with a buzz cut, carrying a flamethrower under his arm, looked at Xiao Ji and Xiao Cui and let out a mocking laugh.
“Captain Bai, what’s going on? Has Team 1 run out of people? You’re bringing the old, the weak, and the disabled on a mission now?”
Bai Yinnian spared him a sideways glance. “None of your f*cking business. Worry about your own men and your own mouth, Mu Fan.”
Xiao Cui looked at the man, then walked behind Xiao Ji and took over for Bai Yinnian, gripping the handles of the wheelchair.
Mu Fan didn’t seem offended. He merely glanced at the bracelet on his wrist and addressed Bai Yinnian.
“Standard rules. Route 81 has detected 213 Low-level Pollutants, 16 Mid-level Pollutants, and High-level Pollutants…”
High-level Pollutants were not common. Previously, only a batch of them had been created through direct modification by researchers. Aside from those, Bai Yinnian had only ever seen two that weren’t even able to fully control their forms.
Mu Fan stopped there, frowning at the red numbers on his bracelet representing High-level Pollutants. The digit was flickering erratically between 2 and 3.
He clicked his tongue and cursed. “Trash equipment, glitching again.”
He shoved his hand into his pocket. “Low-level is 1 point, Mid-level is 10, and High-level is TBD. Want to bet?”
Bai Yinnian had always found this man utterly tedious. “Not interested.”
“What? You lost your nerve because you’re carrying dead weight?” Mu Fan taunted. “Are you going to have to pull two men back just to protect them? It looks like you really don’t have much of an advantage this time.”
Bai Yinnian raised his chin and looked at him. “Mu Fan, Team 2 has 39 people. Team 1 only has 18—not even half your numbers. Yet, for three years, our record has left Team 2 in the dust. I wonder why that is? It’s such a difficult mystery. I can’t figure it out; can you?”
Mu Fan’s face darkened instantly.
He only dropped one line: “We’ll see.”
With that, he led his men toward Route 81.
Bai Yinnian ignored him and addressed his own teammates. “Standard rules. Your own safety comes first. Kick their asses.”
Xiao Cui pushed Xiao Ji, following at the edge of the group.
Under Bai Yinnian’s instructions, Lin Xu stayed very close to Xiao Ji.
Xiao Ji listened to Lin Xu explaining the internal dynamics of 【Divine Wings】. He asked, “What’s the deal with that Mu Fan?”
Lin Xu sighed. “Since the founding of 【Divine Wings】, we’ve been split into three teams. Because the Captain’s situation is special and his combat power is too high, he was directly appointed as the leader of Team 1.”
“Mu Fan earned his way to the leadership of Team 2 through challenges and trials. He’s always been resentful. Last year, during the internal competition, the Captain was off receiving punishment for a minor infraction and didn’t participate. Mu Fan took first place, but no one except Team 2 acknowledged it. There was a lot of talk.”
“Ever since the massive outbreak of 【Heaven’s Punishment】, he’s treated missions like a game and sees our Boss as his ultimate rival. He has to turn everything into a contest.”
“Don’t mind him. He’s annoying because he’s too competitive, but he isn’t a bad person.”
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