Chapter 103

Chapter 103

With a cold smirk, he made it clear that if the scoundrel wanted to play, they'd play; if not, they'd still have to play.

Jie Linyuan, frail and without a say in this household, could only "humbly" work while striking poses and selling his looks. Now and then, he'd deliberately flex to highlight his muscles, lift his shirt to wipe sweat - a calculated display of his abs and Adonis belt, and sway his hips, throwing sultry glances at the sole audience positioned perfectly below the ladder.

But from start to finish, Wu Yin remained unimpressed and indifferent, utterly dampening Jie Linyuan's spirits. Tired of his own antics, Jie Linyuan dismissively told Wu Yin to cool off elsewhere, focusing back on his work.

Wu Yin sauntered up to the second floor, where he found the four mutants, each in their contaminated form with bulging eyes and black veins, either leaping to the ceiling to clean cobwebs or clinging outside the windows to wipe them.

Sensing Wu Yin's arrival, they quickly reverted to their human forms, diligently resuming their cleaning with conventional methods.

"Do you often resort to your mutated forms?" Wu Yin inquired, noting the key difference between them and Xue Hongyi, who, under his grandfather's watchful eye in the southern camp, mostly remained human. These mutants, however, seemed to act with unrestrained freedom, even hunting mutated animals outside, undoubtedly in their mutated forms.

This difference likely affected their physique.

Ah Orange nodded, "Is it too frightening, did we scare you? Sorry, we'll be more careful next time."

"No need to be so cautious around me, I've seen more than you have," Wu Yin waved it off, finding a clean chair to sit, "How did you all come together? Are there other mutants?"

"It was a stroke of fate, I guess...?" Ah Lan jumped in from the window, "After getting injured by a zombie, my former companions drove me out. Despondent, I lay by the roadside waiting for death, only to end up like this. Not understanding what had happened and fearing contact with other humans, I wandered until I accidentally came to the zoo and met these people."

"Hiding my mutation was exhausting," Xiao Hei confessed. "So I left my companions, seeking a free place to settle. Arriving at the zoo by chance, I found many like myself and decided to stay."

"My story's a bit more thrilling," Greg shared. "I was captured by a bounty squad that planned to sell me to a camp for research... Then, out of nowhere, Orange appeared like a deus ex machina, saving me. We fled together, eventually losing that twisted squad, and by chance, we met Sister Bai and ended up at the zoo with her."

"Actually, that bounty team initially targeted me," Orange added. "Luckily, I'm quick on my feet and managed to shake them off. Then, this greenhorn stumbled into their trap. Seeing he was one of us, I couldn't bear to leave him and, after much hesitation, decided to risk saving him."

No wonder Wu Yin always felt there was a closer bond between Greg and Orange; so there was such a backstory.

"As for other mutants, we're not sure," said Greg. "There probably are more, considering we're still looking to complete a full rainbow squad. We're missing quite a few colors."

A rainbow squad? So Xue Hongyi would be... Little Red?

"Speaking of which..." Wu Yin looked at him, "everyone's nickname seems related to their traits. You have black hair, black eyes, why are you called Green?"

"Uh," Greg replied, "it's simply because my real surname is Green."

Alán chuckled and ruffled his hair: "Exactly."

Frustrated, Greg threw a rag at Alán, and the two of them chased each other down the stairs, laughing.

……

In the evening, Jia Chen returned home just as the mutants had left and Wu Zhe woke up, yawning profusely as he emerged from his room.

"Brother Geng Wu is awake too," he pointed to his head. "But he says he's tired and won't come out."

Wu Yin felt that Geng Wu and Wu Zhe's condition was eerily similar to his experience inside Xie Linyuan, where he had been reluctant to admit his inability to parasitize Xie Linyuan. An epiphany led him to fabricate a term "symbiosis" and falsely claim it as his new power.

Unexpectedly, the term "symbiosis" turned out to be real.

Or perhaps it wasn't mere fabrication at the time, but rather his subconscious acting up, prompting him to reflexively utter a word hidden within his lost memories.

Parasitism, symbiosis, commensalism... coincidentally matching Jia Chen, Geng Wu, and himself. Are there similar abilities? Out of sixty subjects, Geng Wu estimated only about five to six developed mature cores. Wu Yin has only met three, including himself. Where are the others? Are all their abilities similarly diverse yet distinct?

Who is orchestrating this experiment, and what is their purpose?

Is the global calamity and the experiment that birthed them connected, and if so, how?

Just pondering briefly, Wu Yin felt overwhelmed by a tangled mess, as if he'd only uncovered the tip of the iceberg, with countless secrets yet to be discovered.

"Oh, do we have a young man visiting?" Jia Chen's smiling voice broke Wu Yin's train of thought. He smiled as he set dinner on the table, joking, "Just an afternoon away, and the whole place feels brand new; I was almost afraid to enter. It's great having you stay with us, Little Yin."

Wu Yin, who had done nothing but serve as a mascot all afternoon, humbly nodded, accepting Jia Chen's compliment.

"Mr. Long, you've worked hard." Hui Lan eagerly offered him a cup of honey water, then cautiously inquired, "Any... news about Grape?"

From a paper bag on the table, Wu Yin pulled out a hard pancake and, still hopeful, rummaged through it to find a packet of dried salty radishes. Having enjoyed a lavish meal at noon with the mutants, the stark contrast of their dinner was somewhat unsettling for Wu Yin, until Xie Linyuan stood up to pour him hot water, suggesting he soak the pancake to avoid choking.

"Sorry, Hui Lan, no news yet, but I'll inform you the moment I hear anything," Jia Chen said, taking a pancake, tearing half for Wu Zhe into small pieces to soak in hot water.

"Thanks, I didn't mean to rush; just a bit anxious," Hui Lan nodded, returning to his seat to eat his pancake.

"The hot water tastes bland; I want mutton soup instead," Wu Yin complained.

"Mutton soup?" Xie Linyuan bit off a piece of pancake, "Go back to the Beast Kingdom and cook Ian; then you'll have your mutton soup."

“……”

Hui Lan laughed knowingly, about to join in on the joke, when he caught the slightly resentful look from Jia Chen, the only one not in on it. Hurriedly trying to explain the humor, he only made it more awkward, wishing he could just turn himself into wolf soup to liven things up.

Wu Zhe wasn't picky; holding his small bowl and plastic spoon, he earnestly ate with the dried radishes until he became so tired halfway through that he started nodding off, forcing Geng Wu to reluctantly take over his meal.

……

After autumn arrived, darkness fell much quicker than in summer. For some reason, everyone suddenly sped up their dining in unison, switching from lively conversations to quietly focusing on their food, barely finishing before the sun completely set.

As the last light of day disappeared over the horizon, the sound of three people putting down their chopsticks simultaneously echoed across the table. Hui Lan nearly choked on his last bite of pancake. Xie Linyuan, who had been leisurely reading a novel next to Wu Yin, suddenly jolted upright at the noise, only to see three pairs of unfocused, blind eyes looking back at him from across the table, all sitting up straight.

Xie Linyuan: “...”

Quite the spectacle of a blind meeting.

Jia Chen, sensing something, slowly turned his face towards Wu Yin: "Little Yin, can you not see either?"

Wu Yin, turning towards the voice without responding, felt a sudden closeness to Geng Wu and Jia Chen in that moment. During the day, he had been logically determining their identities, wondering why they naturally referred to each other as brothers despite just being subjects from the same batch. He had his doubts and reservations.

But now, a thought unexpectedly sprang to mind: Oh, these are my brothers.

He realized he wasn't alone in this world, not the only unique being. There were others like him, who could parasitize in others, attract mutants, and become blind at night.

Xie Linyuan, with a headache, stood up and activated the lighting mode with his left eye, "Hui Lan, help Jia Chen back to his room, Wu Yin, stay seated for now, Geng Wu, I'll carry..."

"No need to trouble Brother Xie, Geng Wu may be blind, but I can see," Wu Zhe suddenly spoke up for Geng Wu, his voice distinctively different and childishly loud, making it easy to identify him.

Wu Yin was envious that his brothers could exploit such a bug in this way, clicking his tongue in jealousy.

Wu Zhe, unaware of his brother's true, less flattering appearance, jumped down from the stool, then exclaimed in surprise, "Brother Xie, it's your eyes that are shining! Your eyes can actually light up?!"

"Don't make such a fuss; I can do a lot more," Xie Linyuan ruffled his hair, "Then you can go back to your room to sleep, can you manage that?"

Wu Zhe nodded, then cautiously asked, "Brother Wu Yin, can His Highness stay with me?"

Without waiting for Wu Yin's command, His Highness followed Wu Zhe with a 'can't help but care for you' attitude, wagging its tail and decisively abandoning its old master for another parasite's bedroom.

Before entering the bedroom, Jia Chen suddenly turned back, "Little Yin, could you come here for a moment? I have something to tell you alone."

Wu Yin frowned, reluctant, "What is it? Does it have to be now? Can't it wait until tomorrow?"

If Jia Chen had insisted it be now, Wu Yin would have refused, insisting it wait until tomorrow. But hearing Wu Yin's response, Jia Chen hesitated, then nodded, "Alright, I'll tell you tomorrow then. Good night, Little Yin."

This immediately piqued Wu Yin's curiosity, making him insist on hearing what Jia Chen had to say right away.

Wu Yin, ever the provocatively annoying individual.

Hui Lan discreetly turned to leave, while Xie Linyuan, lacking such tact, leaned on Wu Yin's shoulder, blocking Jia Chen's room door, unwilling to leave, "Can't I listen too?"

Jia Chen shook his head with difficulty, "Sorry, this is something I want to tell Wu Yin alone."

Xie Linyuan, feeling slighted, was about to leave when Hui Lan closed his room door, the sound of the lock clicking made Jia Chen immediately invite, "Alright, come in, both of you."

Xie Linyuan, equally as bothersome as Wu Yin, suddenly lost interest in entering.

Soon, the three of them entered Jia Chen's room, closed the door, and Jia Chen sat on the bed, took a deep breath, and whispered, "Actually, I already have news about Grape. Her features are quite distinct. After showing her portrait to my colleagues at the pawnshop, their friends quickly recognized her."

Xie Linyuan, leaning against the door, immediately understood why Jia Chen initially prevented him from eavesdropping, but then abruptly changed his mind, fearing that excluding Hui Lan would arouse his suspicions.

"Then why didn't you say earlier..." Wu Yin began to ask but then realized, "Is she already dead?"

"...It's relatively more complicated than death," Jia Chen said, propping his chin with one hand, pausing for two seconds before slowly continuing, "According to Hui Lan, Grape is his childhood sweetheart and fiancée. However, according to what I've learned, Grape has already found another partner in the zoo, a man unaltered by any modifications..."

Wu Yin fell silent, his mind racing with conspiracy theories, like Hui Lan using the search as a pretext for murder, with Grape actually being his enemy. Yet, the image of Hui Lan's guileless smile quickly resurfaced.

"I understand," said Wu Yin. "Let's not tell Hui Lan for now. Give me Grape's address, and I'll go see her tomorrow morning to ask about the situation."

"Then I'll leave it in your hands, brother," Jia Chen smiled.

Xie Linyuan couldn't resist and made a sarcastic "brother~" lip shape in front of the two blind.