43: Chapter 43 The Fate of Mutants in the Boxing Ring

That word made Liu Kun shiver.

"What kind of experiment?"

"An experiment that has nothing to do with you."

Yan Zheng walked along the corridor toward the backstage of the fighting ring, while Liu Kun followed with small, hurried steps, looking like a chick that had been picked up.

"Boss Yan, don't scare me. I just run a fighting ring. I don't want to hear a single word about experiments or HYDRA…"

"Then don't listen."

Yan Zheng stopped in front of the iron door at the backstage passage and looked back at Liu Kun; his gold-rimmed glasses reflected a cold light in the dim corridor.

"You only need to do one thing."

"What thing?"

"Let me go in and see those Mutants to perform one final physical examination."

Liu Kun's expression wavered between "confusion" and "not wanting trouble" for two seconds.

"A physical examination? Now?"

"An investor has the right to conduct a final assessment before the assets are handed over. That's reasonable, right?"

Yan Zheng: ( ˘ ᗜ ˘ )

Liu Kun hesitated for a moment, unhooked his keychain from his waist, picked out one key, and inserted it into the lock of the iron door.

"Fine, it's going to be handed over the day after tomorrow anyway. Look if you want to."

The iron door was pushed open. At the end of the backstage passage were four independent iron cage compartments, each about six square meters, with three brick walls and one side made of iron bars.

Four Mutants were locked inside separately.

In the first one, a burly man sat against the wall. His skin had an unnatural gray luster, as if it had been coated in a layer of cement slurry. This was the "Hardened Skin" type ability. Yan Zheng's Material Perception had once labeled him—a defensive Mutant with bone density three times that of a normal person.

In the second one, a tall, thin man crouched in the corner. His fingers were ridiculously long, each at least thirty centimeters, like an opened folding ruler. It was a "Limb Extension" type ability, with amazing attack range but average bone strength.

In the third one, a short woman lay on an iron bed. There were burn marks on the corners of her mouth, and the cement floor had been corroded into several pits. It was an "Acid Spray" type ability, a long-range attack method with extremely strong corrosiveness.

In the fourth one, a silent young man stood leaning against the iron bars. His entire skin had a faint orange-red hue, and there was a scorched smell in the air. It was a "High-Temperature Physiology" type ability, with a body surface temperature that remained above seventy degrees year-round.

Yan Zheng stood in the center of the passage, his gaze sweeping from left to right across the four iron cages.

Yan Zheng: ( ✧ ᗜ ✧ )

"Boss Liu, which three does Kingpin want?"

"The Hardened Skin one, the one with the long fingers, and the woman who sprays acid."

"Not the High-Temperature Physiology one?"

"Wesley didn't mention him. Maybe he thinks he's hard to control. That kid's temperature is too high; ordinary restraint devices soften as soon as they get close."

Yan Zheng walked to the front of the fourth iron cage and looked at the young man inside through the iron bars.

The young man looked up at him, his eyes hollow.

"Boss Liu, where is that underground Doctor's equipment now?"

"The second room on the right in the backstage area."

"Lend it to me for half an hour."

"What are you going to do?"

"I said, a physical examination."

Yan Zheng took a pair of White gloves from his suit pocket and put them on unhurriedly, his movements as precise as if he were about to enter an operating room.

"The investor wants to see the physical data of these gentlemen to confirm that the assets haven't been damaged."

"Just look then, don't cause any trouble."

Liu Kun threw the medical room key to him and leaned against the corridor wall to smoke.

Yan Zheng: ( ꉺ ᗜ ꉺ )

Half an hour later, Yan Zheng walked out of the medical room. He took off the White gloves, folded them, and stuffed them back into his pocket. There was a very thin layer of Water vapor on his gold-rimmed glasses.

He checked the system panel in his consciousness.

Four golden notifications were neatly lined up.

[Deep gene map scanning complete. Hardened Skin type X-Gene map has been entered into the blueprint library.]

[Deep gene map scanning complete. Limb Extension type X-Gene map has been entered into the blueprint library.]

[Deep gene map scanning complete. Acid Spray type X-Gene map has been entered into the blueprint library.]

[Deep gene map scanning complete. High-Temperature Physiology type X-Gene map has been entered into the blueprint library.]

"Four blueprints, all acquired."

Yan Zheng leaned against the corridor wall, standing side-by-side with Boss Liu, his voice very soft.

"Boss Liu, how many copies of the original data are there for the gene files that underground Doctor created?"

"Just one, it's all on that laptop."

"What about backups?"

"No backups. I run a fighting ring, not a hospital. Who would back up that kind of thing?"

"Very good."

Yan Zheng turned his head to look at Liu Kun, the curve of his mouth carrying a gentleness mixed with something he didn't even want to hide.

"Boss Liu, let me ask you one more thing."

"Go ahead."

"What if an accident happens at the fighting ring the night after tomorrow, before you hand the people over to Wesley?"

Liu Kun's cigarette almost fell from his lips.

"What kind of accident?"

"For example, someone attacks the fighting ring, all the Mutants die in the chaos, and the computer with the gene files is destroyed in the Fire."

Yan Zheng: ( ˵ ¬ ᴗ ¬ ˵ )

Liu Kun's mouth hung open for two seconds, and the ash fell onto his trousers.

"Boss Yan, are you crazy? Those are Kingpin's people! If the Mutants die, how am I supposed to explain it to Wesley?"

"You don't need to explain."

Yan Zheng patted the dust off his trousers and straightened up.

"Because you are also a victim."

"The fighting ring was attacked, you, the boss, also got injured, and despite fighting for your life, you couldn't save those Mutants."

"Kingpin's wrath won't be directed at you; it will be directed at the attackers."

Liu Kun's face was filled with the dual contradiction of "What kind of nonsense are you talking about" and "That actually makes sense."

"Then… who is the attacker?"

Yan Zheng took off his gold-rimmed glasses and wiped the faint layer of Water vapor on the lenses with the corner of his shirt.

"Boss Liu, have you ever heard of The Hand?"