21: Chapter 21 The Mutants That Cannot Be Scanned

These words sounded too distant; Yan Zheng knew very well that no matter how bright the distant stars were, he had to first walk the path beneath his feet steadily.

March 8th, Saturday, 9:00 PM.

Inside the VIP room of the Underground Fighting Ring, a new bottle of Moutai had been opened. Liu Kun was in a very good mood today because the betting volume for the week had hit a new high.

"Mr. Yan, tonight's show is interesting." Liu Kun had a cigarette in his mouth, his jade thumb ring spinning in the light. "The Silent One is fighting; every time he takes the ring, the bets are three times the usual amount."

"The Silent One?"

Yan Zheng held his wine glass, his tone like he was asking about the name of a dish.

"It's the one in Cage No. 5 you saw last time." Liu Kun exhaled a puff of smoke and chuckled. "That shaved-headed kid, seventeen or eighteen years old, hasn't said a single word since he came in two months ago, so everyone calls him The Silent One."

Yan Zheng: ( ˘ ꒳ ˘ )

"How does he fight?"

"Whether he fights well isn't important; what's important is that he can't be killed." Liu Kun leaned forward half an inch, his voice carrying the pride of a boss showing off his signature product. "Last week, I had four people surround and beat him for a full eight minutes; three ribs were broken, his nose bridge collapsed, and his face was covered in blood."

"And then?"

"Then the bones set themselves back, the nose bridge grew back, the bleeding stopped, and the wounds healed." Liu Kun flicked the ash off his cigarette and clicked his tongue twice. "In less than two minutes, he was as good as new."

"The audience went crazy, and the bets increased fivefold."

Yan Zheng adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses, the lenses reflecting the dim, yellow light of the VIP room.

"Sounds like a decent cash cow."

"You said it." Liu Kun leaned back into the chair, propping his feet up on the coffee table. "This kid is my money-printing machine; as long as he can stand up, I can keep making money."

"Boss Liu, I have a request."

"Speak."

"Could you let me go to the backstage to see him up close?" Yan Zheng set down his wine glass, his tone as gentle as if he were asking to visit a museum. "My client is particularly interested in regenerative Mutant genes, and even just observing his recovery process would have reference value for my subsequent quotes."

Liu Kun tilted his head and looked at him for two seconds, not even noticing the cigarette ash falling onto his pant leg.

Liu Kun: ( ꐦ ˘ ͈ ꈊ ˘ ͈ )

"You want to see him up close?"

"Just to look, I won't touch your cash cow."

"Fine, it's not like one look will hurt." Liu Kun stood up from the sofa and brushed the ash off his pant leg. "Let's go, I'll take you; he's supposed to go on soon, so he's warming up backstage right now."

The two walked along the dimly lit concrete corridor toward the depths of the underground, where the acidic, rotten smell of disinfectant and sweat surged up again.

The iron gate opened to reveal five cages lined up in a row.

Yan Zheng's gaze jumped straight to Cage No. 5.

The boy crouched in the corner of the cage; his shaved head had a few fresh abrasions, and his whole body was covered in scars, new and old overlapping like an abstract painting. His eyes were fixed on the ground, ignoring everyone; his breathing was steady, and while he didn't look dead, he had no vitality.

The silver inhibitor around his neck glinted coldly in the light.

"This is the kid." Liu Kun gestured toward the cage with his chin. "He looks like a dead man, but he's incredibly tough."

Yan Zheng walked to the front of the cage, less than half a meter from the iron bars.

"Can the inhibitor not suppress his regeneration ability?"

"It suppresses part of it, but it can't suppress it completely." Liu Kun stubbed out his cigarette and threw it on the ground. "This kid's ability is different from others; it's not the external type, it's internal growth, you get it? It can't suppress the cellular activity inside his body."

Yan Zheng: ( ꉺ ꒳ ꉺ )

"Interesting."

He extended his right hand through the iron bars into the cage, as if checking the quality of merchandise.

"I'll touch his shoulder to check the skin texture. Boss Liu doesn't mind, right?"

"Whatever, he doesn't bite anyway."

Yan Zheng's fingers touched the boy's shoulder.

Just a light touch, for half a second.

The system panel exploded with a golden light in the corner of his vision.

[Deep scan initiated.]

[X-Gene type: Adaptive Regeneration (Mid-High Level).]

[Detailed analysis: This gene allows the host's somatic cells to rapidly repair and adapt to physical damage. Core feature—when receiving the same type of damage for the second time, cellular resistance increases by 50%; the third time by 75%; and the fourth time, it approaches immunity.]

[Gene completeness: 91%.]

[Material rating: B+.]

[Value assessment: Extremely high.]

Yan Zheng's fingers lingered on the boy's shoulder for another 0.3 seconds.

Then he withdrew his hand and leisurely straightened his cuffs, as if nothing had happened.

"The skin texture is not bad, good elasticity." He turned to face Liu Kun, his tone as flat as if he were evaluating a steak. "My client will be very interested in this type of regenerative gene."

"That's right, this is my golden goose." Liu Kun chuckled. "If you want his gene samples, that's fine too; a tube of blood is 20,000, bone marrow is 50,000, same old rules."

Yan Zheng: ( ˵ ᵕ ˗ ᵕ ˵ )

"Blood and bone marrow are secondary."

He adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses, the lenses reflecting the curled-up figure of the boy in the cage.

"Liu Kun, I want the complete individual."

"Complete?" Liu Kun raised an eyebrow. "Mr. Yan, I said it, he can still make money for me. For a complete individual, the price wouldn't be covered by the 'scrap recycling' deal we discussed earlier."

"I know." Yan Zheng smiled, gentle, restrained, and just right. "So there's no rush; just let me know first when he can't make money for you anymore."

"You really have patience."

"In our line of work, patience is the most basic quality."

Yan Zheng turned and walked toward the corridor, his pace neither fast nor slow.

When he reached the iron gate, he paused and looked back at Cage No. 5.

The boy was still crouching in the corner, not raising his head, without any reaction, like a stone forgotten by everyone.

The corners of Yan Zheng's mouth curved into an extremely subtle arc, his voice so soft that even Liu Kun behind him couldn't hear it.

Yan Zheng: ( ꈍ ∀ ꈍ )

"Adaptive Regeneration. The more you hit it, the harder it gets."

"If this gene were fused into the bones of an Undead Creation, it would be a true immortal warrior."

"Get slashed once, and the next time the same blade won't be able to cut. Get shot once, and the next time the same caliber bullet won't be able to pierce."

"Unkillable, unwearable, getting stronger the more it fights."

He walked out of the iron gate, and a cold wind surged from the depths of the corridor, carrying the damp, musty smell unique to underground pipes.

Yan Zheng turned up his coat collar and said a final sentence to the empty corridor.

"Mr. Silent One, you are even more valuable than I imagined."

"But it's a pity, Boss Liu is still reluctant to sell."

"Then I'll just have to help him make up his mind."