“Li Mingxuan was once a core researcher at the Changsheng Research Institute,” Chen Quan said, his tone carrying a hint of regret and gravity, as if speaking of someone who should have stood at the very pinnacle of their field. “From its inception, this institute targeted the most cutting-edge and highly anticipated direction in life sciences—longevity and cellular regeneration. Back then, whether in terms of resources, status, or future prospects, it was absolutely impeccable.”
“A few years ago, the institute's expedition team discovered an unrecorded species of insect deep underground in the far north—the Tidal Ever-Sting Bug we are facing now.”
“Research quickly confirmed that during its spawning period, this insect secretes a special bodily fluid that has the astonishing effect of rejuvenating aging cells and even reversing signs of aging. Back then, if Li Mingxuan had just stayed on the right path, his future, honor, and status would have been practically within arm's reach.”
Chen Quan explained this to Bai Ci and Lin Wenyu, who were in the dark about the details, with a touch of deliberate intent in his manner.
Hearing Chen Quan's words, Li Mingxuan slowly raised his head. His cloudy gaze swept over everyone present before finally landing on Chen Quan, his eyes filled with venom and resentment.
“Enough, you won...” His voice was raspy, each word a visible struggle. “I'm not resigned to this. I was so close to succeeding. Just one step... just one more step and I would have achieved true longevity...”
Leaning back in a temporary resting chair, Chen Quan endured the pain in his back as he slowly sat up straighter. He stared sharply at Li Mingxuan, his voice dripping with cold mockery as he deliberately raised his volume: “Succeeding? Li Mingxuan, is your so-called success using countless lives to exchange for your so-called longevity? Do you have any idea how many families you've ruined, how many innocent people you've killed?”
This deliberate provocation, striking while the iron was hot, was a tactic to pry Li Mingxuan's mouth wide open and goad him into revealing his secrets.
A person's most emotionally volatile moment was the best time to extract information. Chen Quan understood this, so he cast aside any confidentiality protocols and allowed Bai Ci and Lin Wenyu to listen in on the sidelines.
What was more, both Bai Ci and Lin Wenyu had demonstrated trustworthy qualities during the battle against the insect swarm.
“Innocent?” Li Mingxuan suddenly burst into laughter. His laugh was shrill and agonizing, causing him to cough violently.
“There are no innocent people in this world! I was terminally ill, with very little time left. I just wanted to live! Is that a crime? Those people were nothing but stepping stones on my path to longevity. If they hadn't gotten in my way, I wouldn't have ended up like this today!”
Bai Ci glanced at Li Mingxuan, realization dawning on her. Especially for someone on the brink of death, longevity was indeed a massive temptation. No wonder Li Mingxuan would abandon a prestigious job to disguise himself as a scavenger old man, hiding away in the dilapidated Chaosheng Apartments.
“To live?” The investigator wearing glasses was clearly familiar with his captain's tactics. He chimed in, his tone sharp and deliberately provocative, “Are you even worthy? You violated the institute's regulations, used the experimental fluid without authorization, and to escape punishment, you didn't hesitate to blow up the laboratory. Now, you've even released an insect swarm. How is your behavior any different from a murderer's?”
The investigator's words stabbed into Li Mingxuan's heart like a sharp blade. His body began to tremble, and the madness in his eyes was gradually replaced by pain and despair. He kept muttering under his breath, “No, it's not like that... I didn't do anything wrong. I just wanted to live... I just wanted to live!”
His muttering eventually escalated into a frantic shout.
“Nothing wrong?” Chen Quan sneered, continuing, “Then what about Lele? What did that little girl, who was only a few years old, do wrong? To hide the secret of your contact with other factions, you brutally murdered her and fed her body to the Ever-Sting Bugs to destroy the evidence. Do you dare say you did nothing wrong?”
Although some of these details were speculative, it didn't stop Chen Quan from questioning Li Mingxuan in a completely certain tone.
“Lele...” At the mention of the name, a flash of panic crossed Li Mingxuan's eyes, only to be quickly replaced by numbness. He remained silent for a moment. “She brought it on herself...”
“I was negotiating a partnership with those people at the time, wanting to defect to them to get more support and secure a stable supply of the Dew of Rebirth. But that little brat appeared out of nowhere and saw things she shouldn't have. I had no choice but to kill her... I couldn't let her ruin my grand plans, couldn't let my years of hard work go down the drain...”
“All those calculated schemes, yet you never expected that the fluid's effects wouldn't be permanent,” Bai Ci suddenly spoke up with a faint smile, her gaze sweeping over his body without reservation. “I remember that little child liked you quite a lot, and even took the initiative to help you collect bottles. Karma always catches up.”
Bai Ci understood the purpose behind the investigators' series of maneuvers—it was also to earn some points for the instance exploration rate. So, she spoke up.
If it was a matter of provoking people, she knew how to do it too.
Goaded by Bai Ci, Li Mingxuan's emotions flared up again. He snapped his head up, shifting his death glare from Chen Quan to Bai Ci. “You don't understand at all! You don't know how agonizing it is to be terminally ill and just waiting to die!”
“I had already been diagnosed with a terminal illness. The doctors said I wouldn't survive six months. I wasn't resigned to that, and I didn't want to die! So I violated the institute's rules, secretly harvested that fluid, and injected it into my own body.”
“To my surprise, the fluid actually worked. My body gradually healed, and my physical appearance remained youthful.” Li Mingxuan's tone carried a hint of nostalgia, mixed with greed. “But I didn't expect the effects to be temporary. Though my appearance stayed young, my internal organs and bodily functions continued to age. I needed to take the fluid regularly to maintain my physical state.”
“The institute discovered what I had done. They wanted to punish me, ruin everything I had, and maybe even turn me into a research subject. I had no choice but to run.” A fierce glint flashed in Li Mingxuan's eyes. “There was a foolish cleaning lady who fell in love with one of my experimental subjects. I used her feelings and got her to help me blow up the lab, faking my death. Meanwhile, I escaped secretly with the insect queen.”
“So, you disguised yourself as a scavenger old man and hid here,” Chen Quan picked up the thread. “Chaosheng Apartments is remote, has few residents, a transient population, and is close to the sea. The sound of the waves could mask the buzzing of the Tidal Ever-Sting Bugs, making it hard to be discovered.”
“You almost got away with it, too. Unfortunately, on your own, you couldn't possibly maintain the supply for the insect queen, nor could you handle any potential dangers. You wanted to defect to some other factions, but we found you so quickly, and now the queen is dead too...” The investigator with glasses pushed up his spectacles. “Indeed, karma always catches up.”
Lin Wenyu looked at Chen Quan, then at the investigator with glasses, and then at Bai Ci. Why did they seem to be playing off each other so perfectly?
Having not received the detailed script and not knowing what to say, Lin Wenyu chose to keep her mouth shut and just be an observer.
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