Chapter 110

Chapter 110

Wen Jueqian slid off Wen Yanxu's lap and sat down across from him. Seeing how serious he looked, Wen Yanxu fixed his gaze on him.

Wen Jueqian: "I went to the Holy Healing Medical Center today and checked on those Omegas rescued from Pandora's Night."

"Their physical condition has improved since they first arrived, but the psychological trauma runs deeper than anticipated—they're still living in fear." He paused. "I think perhaps only by tearing that organization out by the roots, letting them know that those who harmed them will never get near them again, can they ever truly heal."

Wen Jueqian looked up at Wen Yanxu: "How's the investigation going on your end?"

Wen Yanxu pulled up a map on the holographic screen, with six red markers on it.

"Six laboratory locations have been confirmed. They're spread across major provinces of the Federation, all fronting as legitimate biotech companies or private medical institutions, but they're actually illegal experiment facilities."

Wen Yanxu let out a derisive laugh: "Those 'guests' we detained from Pandora's Night came in handy—they gave up a lot of information to save themselves." His voice dropped toward the end.

"I'm sorry, Qianqian, I can't make all those elites who bought Omegas face justice. The web of interests and power structures behind them makes that impossible. I can only use their resources and connections against the organization behind Pandora's Night."

Wen Yanxu had never explicitly addressed this before—whenever the investigation results came up, he'd always been vague about it.

Having said that, Wen Yanxu's gaze locked onto Wen Jueqian, afraid of seeing disappointment and disillusionment on his face, yet hoping for his lover's understanding.

Wen Jueqian saw his clenched jaw and gently stroked it. Wen Yanxu unconsciously released the bite on the inside of his cheek.

He took Wen Yanxu's hand. "Don't beat yourself up over this. Flawed justice is still justice. We can't have perfect justice in an imperfect world, but we can do what's best right now—put a stop to the ongoing human experiments and save everyone who can still be saved. The rest of the debts can be settled later."

Wen Yanxu's tense nerves slowly relaxed at Wen Jueqian's words. He squeezed Wen Jueqian's hand back and said, "I've submitted the USB drive that Natural Law member gave you, along with other evidence, to the Federal Security Bureau as evidence of the Empire's illegal human experiments and infiltration of the Federation. The Bureau is taking this very seriously and has set up a task force, agreeing to joint operations with us. The next step is to raid all these labs at once and round up everyone involved."

Wen Jueqian: "Will the plan succeed?"

Wen Yanxu answered without a beat of hesitation, "It will."

Wen Yanxu's assurance put Wen Jueqian at ease.

Wen Yanxu hesitated, then said, "Qianqian, there's something else I need to tell you—the truth about what happened on Shadow Island twenty years ago."

Wen Jueqian straightened up.

Wen Yanxu told the story that had been buried for two decades: Wen Shiqi's illegal experiments, the fire on Shadow Island, those who perished in the lab building, Wen Shiqi's escape and subsequent disappearance, and finally how Wen Shijun had covered it up to stabilize the family and the company.

The truth was shocking.

Wen Jueqian: "So that Natural Law kidnapper was telling the truth—everything started on Shadow Island."

"What role did Natural Law play in all this? Do they really oppose all tampering with Alpha/Beta/Omega nature?"

Wen Yanxu's eyes flickered.

He knew the answer—Cecil, the leader of Natural Law, was exactly the successful result of Wen Shiqi's later experiments in the Empire: a 'perfect creation' transformed from a Beta into an S-class Alpha. Behind him was also the Scapegoat Counterattack System, plotting for fifteen years just to take him down.

This was an enemy he could never underestimate.

And Natural Law, as Cecil's blade, wasn't as righteous as their stated ideology made them seem. Its members included victims of the Shadow Island experiments, but the organization itself was run for the benefit of the perpetrators.

But he couldn't tell Wen Jueqian all of this yet—the more truth, the more danger.

He decided to change the subject: "To prevent the Shadow Island incident from becoming a weak point in the future, Aegis will come forward with the truth from twenty years ago and admit its mistakes."

"Proactively admit it? Won't that bring enormous negative consequences? Federal oversight, media attacks, public scrutiny, stock price volatility—all of it will become immense pressure."

Proactively admitting fault sounded noble and upright, but Wen Yanxu's decision seemed to him almost like courting disaster. Even if the other party was the Child of Destiny, the ensuing tidal wave would be enough to send him tumbling hard.

Wen Jueqian softened his voice, trying to persuade: "Maybe we could wait for a more opportune moment, hold off a little—"

"Qianqian, it's already been twenty years." Wen Yanxu stood up, walked to Wen Jueqian, and bent down until their foreheads touched.

"Justice can carry flaws because we still have more people to save. But justice that arrives too late is no longer justice—it becomes another form of violence against the victims. It consumes public trust and overdraws Aegis's future."

Put in the same position, Wen Jueqian would make the same choice as Wen Yanxu. But when the one he loved made such a choice, inevitably, Wen Jueqian didn't want him to walk such a difficult path.

"But Axu, when you step forward, the world won't distribute blame fairly. All the attacks will be directed at you. What will you do then? I'm afraid..."

Wen Jueqian's Adam's apple moved slightly, a sheen of moisture forming in his eyes. He tried to pull back, but Wen Yanxu pressed the back of his head, keeping them in that position with their breaths intertwined.

Wen Yanxu: "Don't be afraid. As long as you're still behind me, everything will go smoothly."

Out of concern for Wen Yanxu, Wen Jueqian wanted to persuade him to reconsider, but he knew his lover too well—Wen Yanxu wouldn't retreat, wouldn't compromise.

Even knowing what lay ahead, as long as it was a path Wen Yanxu had decided to walk, he would always reach the end. Whatever decision Wen Yanxu made, he would find a way to make it happen.

That almost obsessive determination was precisely Wen Yanxu's most devastating charm.

And all he could do was support him.

Wen Jueqian said in a low voice: "All of Aegis's top executives, even your father, will try to stop you from doing this."

"I have your support."

"As for Father, I'll convince him." Wen Yanxu released his hand and straightened up. "The events of twenty years ago can't have all traces erased. The enemy will always find evidence—aren't the survivors of Shadow Island living proof? If Natural Law puts us on trial in the name of justice, Aegis would be forced into a passive position, and the consequences would be far worse. Better we proactively admit our mistakes. When we hold the initiative, we can still control the direction and pace of the narrative."

Wen Yanxu's gaze drifted toward the window. In the previous timeline, he had done exactly the same—yet Natural Law had leaked the information just before the press conference.

At that time, he had already purged those with divided loyalties, including Wen Shibing, yet internal secrets had still been compromised.

He would not let any traitor within the Wen family or Aegis off easily. This time, Wen Yanxu already had a list—he only needed to gather sufficient evidence, and the speed at which he cleaned them out would be faster and more thorough than the last life.

Wen Yanxu had to seal every exploitable vulnerability before Cecil could react.

Every step he took had to be ahead of his opponent, strangling the possibility of tragedy in its cradle.

He turned back to look at Wen Jueqian: "One more thing. Before Lingjing Era launches new technology or major version updates, have 99 run a full check for you first. Don't give the enemy any opening."

Wen Jueqian nodded in agreement.

His wrist-mounted light computer suddenly vibrated. He looked down—a message from 99.

"Qianqian, Qiao Yuexun has gone missing."

Wen Jueqian's expression changed. He turned off the privacy mode on his light computer and showed the message to Wen Yanxu.

Wen Yanxu wasn't surprised. The enemy truly not to be underestimated had already come before him.

"I know. I'll handle this."

Wen Jueqian had already decided to let Qiao Yuexun go, and Wen Yanxu wouldn't pursue him to the end either. Not only had he returned Qiao Yuexun unharmed, but he also hadn't revealed his identity to the Su family.

He only arranged for Obsidian to monitor Qiao Yuexun and had 99 secretly keep an eye on his every move.

Just like in the previous timeline, Qiao Yuexun continued to use the system's abilities recklessly, leaving behind plenty of traceable tracks.

To make Wen Yanxu's memory loss seem believable, Qiao Yuexun harnessed the forces of natural law to orchestrate the attack after the charity gala.

This drew Cecil's attention to the people around Wen Yanxu, and, as in the previous timeline, Cecil began to suspect that another system existed in this world.

In the previous timeline, the True Love System had plenty of ways to cover its tracks and Qiao Yuexun's, and when it couldn't hide them anymore, it even threw Zhou Lin, the agent, under the bus.

But now, Qiao Yuexun has lost the True Love System, yet traces of high-dimensional energy still cling to him, like prey stripped of its camouflage, laid bare in Cecil's line of sight.

This was the fate Wen Yanxu had set up for him. In the previous timeline, the True Love System and Qiao Yuexun had used sneaky tactics but didn't bother to wipe away the leftover traces on Wen Jueqian, which got him killed by Cecil.

This time, Wen Yanxu would make Qiao Yuexun taste the bitter fruit of his own sowing.

At the same time, Cecil would hear from Qiao Yuexun that a system existed by Wen Yanxu's side.

Cecil would be made to believe that, for reasons unknown, he—the Child of Destiny—had been bound to a system too, while Wen Jueqian remained completely hidden behind Wen Yanxu.

In this way, Wen Yanxu placed one safety lock after another on Wen Jueqian.

A three-for-one deal—even though Wen Yanxu had already shown his hand, Cecil still thought he had the upper hand, hidden while his enemy was in the open.

This misjudgment would be enough to make Cecil commit a fatal mistake at a critical moment.

The direct confrontation between Wen Yanxu and Cecil had already begun.

==========Author's Note:==========

This chapter was really hard to write today.