236: Gene Secrets

The engine was still humming.

Chen Wang's hand remained on the mechanical arm mount, his fingers gripping it tightly. He didn't turn around, but he could feel that the atmosphere in the vehicle was off. After that pulse just now, everyone had stopped what they were doing.

Lin Wei took a data cable from the toolbox and connected the insectoid's severed limb to the analyzer. The limb segment was a dark purple, and something was still moving at the severed end. She put on her gloves and began the scan.

The screen first displayed a segment of insect genes, followed by a progress bar. At seventy percent, the screen flickered, and a red warning popped up.

"Human DNA fragment detected."

Lin Wei stared at the words, her finger hovering over the confirm button. She recalibrated the equipment, swapped the cable, and tried again. The result was the same.

Matching degree 38%, associated location is chromosome 17.

She said nothing, took a screenshot of the data, encrypted it, and transferred it into the temporary folder of the kindling system.

Su Wan stood before the medical pod main control console, her eyes fixed on Star Pupil's vital signs chart. After the pulse earlier, the girl's brainwaves had cut out for a moment, then turned into irregular fluctuations. She pulled up the records and discovered that over the past three hours, genetic activity had shown three purple waveforms.

She opened a drawer and took out a new vial of medication; the label read "Protein Inhibitor X-7." This was something she had concocted herself, and it hadn't undergone animal testing yet.

At this moment, Star Pupil moved.

She was huddled in the corner, holding the mechanical parrot. Its single eye flickered, emitting a faint sound. Star Pupil raised her hand and gently touched the wires exposed at its broken wing.

Her body suddenly went rigid.

Her eyelids fluttered rapidly, her lips parted, and she whispered, "They... are modifying me."

Su Wan immediately pressed down on her shoulders: "Who is modifying you?"

Star Pupil didn't answer, her gaze fixed and vacant. A few seconds later, she looked down at the back of her hand. There was an old scar there, and now its color was slightly blue.

Lin Wei heard the noise and walked over, holding the report: "You noticed it too? There is an unknown protein in her blood. It doesn't come from the insectoid, nor from any organism we know."

Su Wan nodded: "I've already prepared an isolation protocol. She cannot be exposed to any external signals now, including the vehicle's main control console."

Lin Wei frowned: "But her psychic sensing ability needs to be synchronized with the Wuling Frequency to remain stable. If we cut the connection, she might lose control."

"Then lower the frequency first," Su Wan said. "Set the resonance value to the minimum, keeping only basic life support."

While they were talking, Chen Wang had already walked to the door of the medical pod.

He glanced at Star Pupil, then turned and returned to the driver's seat. He unbuttoned the top two buttons of his work uniform and pulled open his collar, revealing a tattoo on his chest—a wuling emblem, with simple lines and a dark color.

"This wuling vehicle has saved my life three times," he said. "And I've repaired it seven times. It understands what I'm thinking, and I know what it can do."

He pulled down the operating lever, and the kindling system lit up. The space expansion module was normal, and the energy core was at 61%. He opened the team member page; Star Pupil's status was marked as "Restricted."

"No matter what those things outside are," he said, looking at the screen, "Wuling will protect us."

Lin Wei wanted to say something, but the communicator suddenly rang.

The camera feed switched to the main screen. Day had just broken, and the ice field was a desolate gray-white. In the distant sky, a black speck was approaching.

The sound of the engine grew louder.

Chen Wang switched to radar mode. The target's altitude was three thousand meters, speed eight hundred kilometers per hour, and its flight path was straight.

"It's a fighter jet," Lin Wei said.

Su Wan pushed Star Pupil further inside and casually shut off all interfaces of the medical pod. Lin Wei retreated to the analysis desk and unplugged the data cable from the insectoid sample.

Chen Wang didn't move.

He stared at the screen until the image became clear.

The fighter's livery came into view: black fuselage, silver spiral patterns on the sides, and the number "S-09" on the tail fin.

The Stasis Zone insignia.

His hands slowly tightened on the steering wheel.

Lin Wei whispered: "This isn't an Imperial Air Force model. They use block numbering and wouldn't add spiral markings."

"That is Dr. Tang's territory," Su Wan said. "Before we rescued him, that's where he was conducting experiments."

Chen Wang recalled what Star Pupil had said just a moment ago.

"They are modifying me."

He looked toward the medical pod. Star Pupil was curled up in the corner, holding her head with both hands. The mechanical parrot was lying on her lap, smoke still rising from its broken wing.

"When was the last time you received the Wuling Frequency?" he asked.

Star Pupil raised her head, her voice trembling: "Last night... but it had changed. It wasn't as clear as before. There were other voices inside it."

Lin Wei immediately pulled up the history logs. Over the past twelve hours, the system had indeed received an abnormal signal. The frequency was close to the Wuling Frequency, but it carried an encrypted offset. The system had flagged it as an interference source and isolated it.

"It's not coming for us," Lin Wei said, pointing at the flight path. "It's patrolling, and its route covers the entire ice field."

"But it will find us," Su Wan said. "As long as it activates detection, it will capture our heat source."

Chen Wang pressed a button, shutting off all power except for the core system. The lights inside the vehicle went out, leaving only the kindling interface glowing with a blue light.

The fighter jet was getting closer and closer.

The radar indicated it was still fifteen kilometers away.

Lin Wei crouched back in front of the analyzer and reconnected the data cable. She needed to complete the final comparison to confirm whether that segment of human DNA belonged to a specific person.

The screen reloaded, and the progress bar finished.

A new prompt popped up:

"Fragment match successful. Source database: Stasis Zone early experimental archives."

Below it was an ID number: X-17-9342.

Lin Wei opened the details.

The page popped up a blurry photo.

It was a little girl wearing a hospital gown, lying on a bed. Her eyes were closed, and tubes were inserted into her hands. There was a mark on her left shoulder shaped like a spiral.

It was the same as the mark on Star Pupil's hand.

Lin Wei looked up abruptly.

Star Pupil was looking at her.

The two stared at each other for a few seconds.

Star Pupil spoke: "I don't remember that place. But I have dreamed about it many times."

She raised her hand and pointed at the mark: "Every time I wake up, this gets a little bluer."

Su Wan took out a detector and pressed it against her arm. The reading jumped a few times and finally stopped at "Protein activity increased to 47%."

"We must administer the inhibitor," she said.

Star Pupil shook her head: "No. If you inject it, I won't be able to sense anything. If they come again, I won't be able to give a warning."

"Then you might become a part of them," Lin Wei said.

"Maybe I always was," Star Pupil whispered.

Chen Wang stood up and walked to the analyzer. He glanced at the photo and then looked at Star Pupil.

He didn't speak, reaching out to press down on her shoulder.

He used a lot of force.

Then he walked to the weapon rack, took a modified wrench, and tucked it into his belt.

"We all thought we were saving someone," he said. "In reality, we were looking for answers."

He turned back to look at the main screen.

The fighter was still flying, but its course had shifted slightly.

It was adjusting toward the direction of the camp.

The radar showed ten kilometers.

Lin Wei quickly exported all the data and saved it into the encrypted partition of the kindling system. She deleted the original files but left a cache in the spare chip of the engineering module.

"I can fix the parrot," she said. "As long as there's a little energy, I can restore the signals it received."

Su Wan injected Star Pupil with half a dose of sedative, controlling the dosage so it wouldn't affect her consciousness. The girl's body relaxed a little, but her hand was still clutching the mechanical parrot tightly.

Chen Wang returned to the driver's seat, his finger placed on the start button.

He didn't ignite the engine.

The engine was still humming lowly.

The camera feed showed the fighter jet dropping a device—cylindrical, with four supports that unfolded after it landed.

It was a signal relay tower.

Used to enhance regional communication.

Lin Wei recognized it: "This is standard equipment for the Stasis Zone. It's used to remotely activate test subjects."

As soon as she finished speaking, Star Pupil's body jolted.

She opened her mouth, but couldn't make a sound.

Her eyes rolled back, and her fingers twitched.

The mechanical parrot's single eye suddenly glowed with a red light.

Chen Wang grabbed the wrench and smashed it into the nearest signal receiver. Sparks flew, and the panel went dark.

The inside of the vehicle plunged into darkness.

Only the kindling system was still running, floating in front of the driver's seat, emitting a faint blue light.

Star Pupil collapsed to the floor, a trickle of blood flowing from the corner of her mouth.

Su Wan immediately rushed over to check her breathing.

Lin Wei stared at the analyzer screen; the last line of data had not yet disappeared:

"Genetic fusion progress: 52%. Estimated time for complete transformation: Unknown."