Chapter 40

Chapter 40

Lin Juan’s eyes narrowed slightly, fixing on the mermaid’s gaze.

His expression was devoid of emotion, observing the mermaid as if it were an ordinary object. The mermaid swam forward, its decaying face thrust inches from Lin Juan’s.

Startled by the swollen, waterlogged face, Lin Juan frowned.

The mermaid before him possessed none of the legendary beauty, appearing only eerie and unnatural. Its human-like upper body was pale from prolonged immersion in water, and its soaked hair clung to its form in stringy clumps, giving it a wretched appearance.

The mermaid pounded violently against the transparent tank wall, its mouth agape in a silent scream.

Lin Juan remained still, observing intently.

Perhaps it wasn't truly silent—Lin Juan couldn’t hear its pounding against the tank either.

The transparent tank must have been specially soundproofed.

Several thick chains bound the mermaid, biting deep into its flesh. Yellowish pus seeped from the wounds, particularly around the stitched area on its waist and abdomen, where the flesh had repeatedly split and re-fused, forming a horrifying scar.

The mermaid was trapped within the transparent tank, unable to escape.

After examining this one, Lin Juan moved to the other transparent tanks, which also contained mermaids.

Unlike the first, these mermaids were lifeless, drifting listlessly in the water with pale skin. Maggots squirmed in and out of their open wounds.

Only the first mermaid Lin Juan had seen showed any signs of vitality.

Having surveyed the entirety of Experimental Area Four, Lin Juan found nothing noteworthy. Just as he was about to leave, he heard faint, deliberately muffled footsteps approaching from a distance.

A patrol guard?

Lin Juan still had many unanswered questions and no intention of revealing himself yet. He swiftly moved into a corner, concealing himself.

"Creak—"

The door opened. Lin Juan’s position was well-hidden; he could see the door, but the newcomer’s line of sight was obstructed, preventing him from being seen.

It was a man, tall and dressed in a security uniform.

Lin Juan drew back further.

He saw the man's face.

Su Xingchen.

It was Su Xingchen.

Lin Juan didn't rush forward to reveal himself, choosing instead to continue observing from the shadows.

This place was too peculiar, and he wasn't sure if the "Su Xingchen" before him was the real one.

Unlike Lin Juan, Su Xingchen had found himself a low-level security guard upon entering the large laboratory.

As a low-level guard, his clearance was minimal, allowing him only to patrol the outer areas and barring him from the inner core sections.

After observing for several days, Su Xingchen finally found an opportunity to sneak into Experimental Area Four under the cover of night.

His companions were missing, and Mr. Lin was nowhere to be found. Su Xingchen moved cautiously, treading softly into Experimental Area Four and making his way deeper inside.

He saw the room filled with experimental subjects.

It was immediately clear that these subjects were the result of live human experiments—animal bodies forcibly attached to human forms, creating unnatural, half-human horrors.

Su Xingchen wrinkled his nose in revulsion.

Suddenly, he heard a noise and paused. Someone attacked from behind, pinning him before he could even react.

A chill of horror shot through Su Xingchen.

As he prepared to counterattack, he heard a low voice in his ear: "Su Xingchen?"

"Mr. Lin?" Recognizing the voice, Su Xingchen didn't immediately lower his guard but halted his counterattack.

"It's me," Lin Juan eased his grip slightly, seeing that Su Xingchen retained his original consciousness. "Why are you here?"

After exchanging code phrases, Lin Juan pulled him into the shadows. Su Xingchen then recounted his experiences.

He had suddenly become a low-level security guard in the experimental base, forced to move cautiously. He had tried to find his companions but failed until he encountered Lin Juan today.

"I became a research recorder as soon as I arrived. I usually work in Experimental Areas One, Two, and Three. I've scoured all three without turning up any clues. Area Four is full of artificial mermaids, and none of our people are here. My guess is we’ll have to try Area Five," Lin Juan said.

Su Xingchen nodded. "My current role keeps me restricted to the perimeter. At first, I wondered if the others had also become security guards like me, but after sounding out all the nearby guards, none of them were."

With no leads nearby, Su Xingchen expanded his search and, by fortunate timing, met Lin Juan.

"My current position is low-level, so I only catch bits and pieces," Lin Juan shared his findings. "The logs are timestamped. I roughly calculated that this aligns with the period when Fan Xiwen experienced those events."

"If it's before those events, we might be able to see what truly went down." Before the mission, Su Xingchen had learned about the incidents involving Fan Xiwen over a decade ago.

"That's what I thought too, which is why I haven't made any moves lately." Otherwise, if we lose this window, it would be much harder to uncover the truth.

With limited time, Lin Juan and Su Xingchen quickly exchanged information, established a contact protocol, and returned to their respective roles.

After that day, Lin Juan's routine remained unchanged. Sister Zhang seemed to take a liking to him, taking him everywhere, including to Experimental Area Five.

"Area Five has high security clearance. Not everyone can enter. Being selected is a real break for you. If you're further chosen, you could join our lab's core projects."

Sister Zhang's scrutinizing gaze fell on Lin Juan like a wary serpent—tempted but hesitant to strike.

Lin Juan played it naive and breezy, as if he hadn't noticed. "Thank you, Sister Zhang, for this opportunity."

Lin Juan passed the word to Su Xingchen.

Area Five was tightly secured. Su Xingchen attempted to infiltrate a few times but almost blew his cover and was forced to bide his time for now.

Lin Juan advised Su Xingchen to stay put for now and wait until he could get a read on the inside.

Entering Area Five required passing three layers of security checks. Lin Juan subtly scanned the area—at least five armed guards were hidden in the shadows.

After clearing security, they entered a long corridor.

Sister Zhang’s breath came faster, a mix of tension and excitement.

After about ten minutes, they reached the end of the corridor, where a silver metal door stood.

Sister Zhang stepped forward, took a silver keycard from her breast pocket, and pressed it against the door.

"Beep—Identity confirmed."

"Beep—Clearance granted."

"Please step forward."

Sister Zhang took a step forward, and a purple light scanned her from top to bottom.

A green light illuminated above the door, and it slid open smoothly.

Sister Zhang turned around: "Let's go."

Lin Juan stepped forward and was similarly scanned.

Upon entering the door, before them stood a massive cylindrical transparent tank.

Inside the tank were various animals and plants, along with eyeballs rolling over their surfaces.

Large clusters of eyeballs rolled from one body to another, and upon hearing the noise, they all turned to look at Lin Juan.

Greedy, malicious, covetous, envious… these gazes, brimming with various emotions, fell upon Lin Juan.

Those gazes felt physical, as if an invisible giant tongue, steaming with heat, was twitching with anticipation.

Lin Juan’s hand twitched at his side, but he restrained the impulse to strike.

"This is the main experimental subject our lab is responsible for, coded B-023. You must have seen them in Experimental Zone One. Each zone gets a few. Whichever zone raises them well gets to come here and take care of Experimental Subject B-023."

Sister Zhang looked at the rolling eyeballs in the transparent tank, her expression turning fanatical: "If we can upgrade the subject’s rating, there’s hope of receiving rewards and becoming upper echelon. I’ve already found a way. Soon, I’ll become upper echelon and leave this place."

"Xiao Lin, I’ve observed that you have experience caring for experimental subjects. The B-023 in Zone One was very well cared for by you. You can definitely upgrade their rating." As she spoke, Sister Zhang leaned close to Lin Juan, her face almost touching his.

Lin Juan leaned back slightly.

Sister Zhang, absorbed in her fantasy, didn’t seem to notice.

She turned and walked to the transparent tank, pressing against it, staring fervently at the eyeballs inside.

"Xiao Lin, come take a look at them. What perfect specimens."

Lin Juan walked over and tentatively asked: "Sister Zhang, what are they?"

"They are a blessing, the formula for evolution. Unfortunately, they’re not mature yet. We still need to wait a bit." The fanaticism on Sister Zhang’s face faded, as if she had regained her senses. "Xiao Lin, come a little closer."

Lin Juan complied and walked to the edge of the transparent tank.

The eyeballs were very interested in Lin Juan, swarming toward him, piling up layer upon layer. Soon, the side nearest to him was covered with eyeballs.

"Indeed, they really like you, Xiao Lin. From now on, you’ll stay here to record data on B-023. I’ll find someone else to record the data for the subjects you were responsible for in Experimental Zone One."

Lin Juan also wanted to uncover the secrets of Experimental Zone Five, so he agreed: "Okay, Sister Zhang."

Lin Juan stayed in Experimental Zone Five. His personal belongings were delivered by the "freckled man." Ignoring the envy in the freckled man’s eyes, Lin Juan put his things away.

His new living quarters were smaller than the previous ones. The room was entirely white, giving Lin Juan the illusion that he had become an experimental subject himself.

Living in Experimental Zone Five almost completely severed his ties with the outside world.

Lin Juan had previously told Su Xingchen that he might be transferred to Zone Five, so when Su Xingchen couldn’t reach him using their usual method, he wasn’t overly worried.

Seizing the opportunity, Su Xingchen racked up some achievements, earned a promotion, and became mid-level security personnel, gaining access to more areas.

During the time he couldn’t contact Lin Juan, he wasn’t idle. He spent his time piecing together the secrets of the mountain-base laboratory while searching for his companions.

The good news was that he managed to contact several companions.

The first one he reached was Sheng Tianzong. After entering, Sheng Tianzong had become a researcher’s bodyguard, serving as protective detail with very little free time.

Gradually, they contacted a few more companions.

Along with good news, there was also bad news.

The bad news was that they discovered several ability users had been converted. They no longer remembered they had entered with a mission, forgot their true identities, and genuinely saw themselves as part of the laboratory.

Sheng Tianzong and Su Xingchen attempted several times to awaken them but not only failed, they nearly exposed themselves, forcing them to lay low.

Successfully connecting with Su Xingchen, they exchanged information.

Lin Juan had a brief window outside, so after a hurried conversation, he returned to Experimental Zone Five.

One day, Sister Zhang, who hadn’t been seen for a long time, appeared.

She brought news.

"The higher-ups are sending someone to inspect the results. Xiao Lin, you’ll need to put on a good showing."

This was the first time Lin Juan heard anyone in the laboratory mention matters outside.

From researchers down to janitors, Lin Juan had tried to probe and exchange information with them, but he found they were like fixed-refresh NPCs, with very little lifelike quality, making it difficult to obtain useful intel.

The arrival of the higher-ups to inspect the results sent ripples through the entire laboratory. Researchers became twice as busy, security patrols increased substantially, and the few aware ability users had to temporarily cut off contact.

Soon, the person sent by the higher-ups arrived.

Lin Juan followed behind Sister Zhang and saw the man escorted by an entourage.

A familiar black overcoat. Looking up, Lin Juan saw his face.

It was the man who gave Qiu Lishu the eyeball!

Lin Juan masked the astonishment in his eyes. It seemed his guess was correct; this laboratory was inextricably linked to the matter they were investigating.

"Mr. Qiao, this way, please."

So his family name was Qiao. It was unclear whether it was his real name or an alias.

Afterward, Lin Juan tried to subtly fish for information from Sister Zhang about Mr. Qiao’s real name but without success.

Everyone addressed the man as "Mr. Qiao"; no one knew his real name.

Mr. Qiao placed great importance on Experimental Subject B-023. Upon learning that Lin Juan was the lead caretaker of B-023, he had him summoned that same day to inquire about its condition.

Fortunately, he only asked about B-023’s daily behavior and status. Lin Juan shared his observations.

"When food is plentiful, they coexist without incident. But once food becomes scarce, they start cannibalizing each other. Those that succeed in cannibalizing others grow slightly larger but die within five to seven days."

"When food is insufficient, they become very aggressive, repeatedly ramming the tank walls recklessly."

What Lin Juan didn't mention was that, without exception, during those instances, the mutinous eyeballs showed an unusual craving for him—they regarded him as food. Lin Juan had no doubt that if it weren't for the transparent container, they would swarm over him.

Lin Juan also knew that Experimental Area Five was under constant surveillance; his every move and B-023's every action were clearly visible to those monitoring.

Mr. Qiao had likely already seen it.

His eyes showed satisfaction: "You've done very well. Rest assured, once B-023 matures, you'll be well compensated."

Lin Juan pretended to be flattered: "Thank you, Mr. Qiao."

Returning to Experimental Area Five, Lin Juan stood before the transparent container. The eyeballs inside had grown significantly larger since he first arrived, highly active—clear evidence of Lin Juan's careful nurturing.

Wherever Lin Juan moved, the eyeballs tracked his movement.

As he walked, Lin Juan pondered.

Mr. Qiao had said to wait until B-023 matured, meaning it hadn't reached maturity yet but was close. The results Mr. Qiao came to inspect were likely B-023 at its maturity.

So, how was a mature B-023 different from its current state? Why did it have to wait until maturity?

One question resolved, only to be followed by more.

Lin Juan found a way to share his new findings with Su Xingchen.

Su Xingchen also sent their new findings.

Inside this massive laboratory, there was a heavily guarded underground warehouse. They planned to sneak in to investigate.

On the fifth day of Mr. Qiao's visit, B-023 showed no signs of maturity, and Mr. Qiao was getting impatient.

Sitting in the monitoring room, he watched Lin Juan pacing around in front of the circular transparent container in Experimental Area Five, the eyeballs following his every move. His gaze darkened: "Wait two more days. If there's still no progress, activate Plan E."

Using his authority, Su Xingchen swapped shifts with the security personnel guarding the underground warehouse, drugged the other three security staff, and slipped downstairs quietly.

It was very quiet.

As he went down, Su Xingchen could only hear his own footsteps.

He soon reached the bottom.

Surrounding him were boxes made of special materials. Su Xingchen tried to open them but failed.

There were eight boxes in total, all impossible to open.

As if sensing someone outside, something stirred inside the boxes. Su Xingchen checked the time and gave up on investigating.

Fifteen minutes later, he came back right on time. The three drugged guards were waking up.

Su Xingchen had made careful preparations; no one noticed anything amiss.

"Xiao Lin, come give me a hand."

Lin Juan, having just recorded the final data, heard someone call his name.

It was the staff member responsible for cleaning the experiment tanks.

"What's up?"

"This tank is unsteady; could you help steady it?"

If Su Xingchen had been there, he would have noticed that the boxes filled with dead eyeballs were identical to those he saw in the underground warehouse.

Lin Juan steadied the box. For some reason, an unusually large number of eyeballs had died today; it took five boxes to hold them all.

Seeing the staff member having trouble carrying the boxes, Lin Juan kindly offered, "Do you need help?"

The staff member, truly overwhelmed and worried about dropping the boxes, thankfully agreed: "I was just wondering how to move these out."

Lin Juan was strong enough to carry all five boxes effortlessly, but he didn't want to show his strength and only took two.

The two walked out one after the other.

Perhaps sensing Lin Juan's kindness, the staff member started chatting.

After chatting for a while, Lin Juan asked offhandedly, "Are these going to be disposed of?"

Having worked in Experimental Area Five for so long, Lin Juan noticed that whenever eyeballs "died," a designated staff member would come to clean up, placing the motionless eyeballs into specialized boxes and taking them away.

Lin Juan wanted to know what these eyeballs were used for.

To fish for information, he began making a point to talk to this staff member, offering snacks to him.

At first, it had little effect; the staff member only focused on his work. But after Lin Juan helped him once, he gradually started talking to Lin Juan.

Now, the two were on good terms; otherwise, the staff member wouldn't have asked Lin Juan for help.

His task seemed insignificant but was actually one of the lab's most top-secret projects.

Hearing Lin Juan's question, he thought that since Lin Juan was caring for B-023, he would find out sooner or later, and said, "Yes, they need to be disposed of, but it's a tricky process."

After winding through corridors, the staff member led Lin Juan into his work area.

A foul odor hit them; Lin Juan covered his nose: "What's that smell?"

"It's from disposing of B-023 waste. Can't be helped—there's been so much to process lately, the ventilation system can't keep up." The staff member expertly took out two masks, handing one to Lin Juan and putting on the other himself.

With the mask on, the stench faded somewhat. Lin Juan followed the staff member inside, carrying the boxes.

In the room, he saw a hearth-like table with a large metal chopping block and an open metal box nearby—the source of the unpleasant odor.

The staff member moved the boxes to a corner and, without avoiding Lin Juan, opened one, scooped up a handful of eyeballs, and placed them on the metal platform.

He took a cleaver hanging on the wall and began chopping.

As he worked, Lin Juan noticed that under the staff member's rolled-up sleeves, lumps shifted under his skin.

Just like the eyeballs Lin Juan had seen in the transparent container.

If the transparent container were soft, Lin Juan believed the eyeballs rolling inside would look exactly like the lumps shifting under the staff member's arm skin.

With each chop, splatters flew onto the staff member's face, quickly absorbed into his skin without a mark.

Soon, a small bulge appeared where the splatter had vanished.

The staff member chopped as he stared at Lin Juan.

The hostility became more apparent.

His gaze seemed as if it were Lin Juan he was chopping up.

Lin Juan twisted his mouth.

It was clear that this staff member had already been contaminated.

The bulges on his body were increasing, some breaking through the skin, and eyeballs sprouted one after another on the surface, fixated on Lin Juan as if sizing up a delicious meal.

"Thump—thump—thump—"

No one spoke, and for a moment, only the sound of the cleaver chopping remained.

Lin Juan found the scene before him somewhat familiar.

Blinking, he remembered that in the "Eye of Memory," Qiu Lishu had chopped eyeballs in the same way.

After finishing the chopping, the bulges on the staff member disappeared. For a moment, his eyes looked dazed, but he quickly recovered.

Wiping his forehead, the staff member smiled apologetically, "Sorry to keep you waiting for so long."

It took about two and a half hours to chop five boxes of eyeballs.

Lin Juan acted as if he hadn't noticed anything unusual, his expression unchanged: "Are these going to be chopped up and thrown away?"

"That would be such a waste," the staff member said, packing the chopped eyeballs in batches. "These are high-quality feed, perfect for the experimental subjects."

So that was it.

When Mr. Qiao had Qiu Lishu mix the chopped eyeballs into Lu Yanzhou's food, was he also treating Lu Yanzhou as an experimental subject?

In the original storyline, did Lu Yanzhou's descent into the paranormal have anything to do with Mr. Qiao?

What was their ultimate goal?

Lu Yanzhou's contamination level was very low—had the effects of eating the chopped eyeballs truly been eliminated?

What kind of existence was the higher authority Mr. Qiao came from?

Lin Juan had many questions. Behind this seemingly simple laboratory lay enormous secrets.

Currently, the highest-level experimental subjects in the lab were B-grade, namely those piles of eyeballs, followed by C-grade, and so on in descending order. The lower the grade, the lower their tolerance for consuming chopped eyeballs.

If they consumed an excessive amount, they would explode and die.

Lin Juan had once been fortunate enough to witness it—the exploded subject scattered everywhere, a foul stench filling the entire experimental area. Other experimental subjects, like sharks smelling blood, swarmed in and devoured every last fragment.

It even saved them the cleanup step.

Lu Yanzhou realized Lin Juan was unreachable on the second day.

The messages he sent out sank like stones. Before leaving, Lin Juan had promised not to go a day without responding to Lu Yanzhou.

At the time, he hadn't expected to be trapped, completely cut off from the outside world.

Lu Yanzhou told himself that Lin Juan was capable and wouldn't be in danger. He sat up all night, and early on the third day, he contacted Director Liu.

"Director Liu, has Xiao Juan also lost contact?" Lu Yanzhou got straight to the point as soon as the call connected.

Director Liu was evasive.

Lu Yanzhou didn’t back down: "Director Liu, Xiao Juan was invited by your organization. As his partner, I believe I have the right to know his current situation."

Lu Yanzhou knew he should be diplomatic and not antagonize the Paranormal Special Affairs Office, but emotion overpowered reason. Upon learning that Lin Juan was unreachable and his fate unknown, his pride in his rationality completely shattered.

Director Liu had no choice but to tell him the truth.

They had lost contact on the first day.

Lu Yanzhou’s vision went dark, and he steadied himself by holding onto the sofa armrest. He had never hated so much that he was just an ordinary person.

It was still early, with faint light seeping through the window. Behind Lu Yanzhou, unseen by him, a massive shadow was cast on the wall, swaying with its owner's intensely turbulent emotions.

An indescribable silence filled the room.

After a long time, Lu Yanzhou adjusted his emotions. The moment he stood up, the shadow vanished.

He methodically arranged company affairs, then boarded his private jet and headed to Dakou Mountain.

He couldn’t stay in the capital doing nothing. He needed to go to the place closest to Lin Juan.

As he drew nearer, Lu Yanzhou felt waves of dizziness. He hadn’t planned to go directly to Dakou Mountain, knowing that as a non-superpower holder, it would be futile. He had instead booked a hotel nearest to Dakou Mountain in advance, intending to wait there.

Swiping the key card to enter the room, Lu Yanzhou felt even more dizzy. He managed to instruct his assistant before collapsing onto the bed, his consciousness slipping away completely.

At the same time, in the corner of a transparent container, an inconspicuous eyeball opened its eyes in confusion.

Where is this?