The door opened to reveal an omega maid in a blue-and-white uniform, who led Bai Chunian into the mansion and asked him to wait in the reception room while she summoned the owner.
Bai Chunian settled into the plush sofa, wearing a fresh black tank top to signal he took this meeting seriously.
The Shao Jin Mansion was grand and imposing, overlooking the sea, with stylish, refined décor. Bai Chunian ran his hand across the Fendi coffee table, mentally comparing it with the chairman’s and Uncle Jin’s vacation villas—he judged the mansion’s owner’s taste as ordinary; stylistically, Uncle Jin had the superior eye.
The host did not keep him waiting long. Soon the door opened, revealing the Reptile omega and the Black Panther alpha.
“Domino isn’t here?” Bai Chunian asked casually. “I wanted to thank him for covering me at the detention center.”
The Black Panther alpha’s gaze was cold as he slowly seated himself on the sofa; a servant brought fresh coffee.
“Domino’s book signing tour has him booked solid,” the Reptile replied, chewing on a candy stick. He still wore the fluorescent yellow hoodie with a black worm emblem on the front.
“Oh, right,” Bai Chunian said. “I’ve read all his works recently. One called Water-colored Grave was quite good—immersive, very engaging.”
Domino was a pen name. Water-colored Grave was a sci-fi novella under 100,000 words, describing a baby born and raised inside a human-sized transparent rectangular fish tank, living and dying in a cycle where his children inherited memories and lived out their parents’ lives repeatedly. The last child eventually grew up, shattered the tank, and walked away from the silent room.
The book was wildly popular among sci-fi readers, winning the Galaxy Award six months ago. Its appeal lay in its heartfelt emotions and precise detail; fans firmly believed that Domino had lived in a fish tank for a month to authentically write the story.
“A signing tour, huh? Too bad I can’t attend. I hope to get a copy with a signed title page,” Bai Chunian said with a smile.
The Black Panther alpha’s gaze sharpened, carrying a hint of hostility.
The Reptile continued chewing, “I’ll pass that along.” He realized Bai Chunian had noticed something amiss—after all, nothing could escape the eyes of a divine agent.
Bai Chunian leaned back leisurely, hands folded on his stomach. “Professor Lin Deng isn’t here either. Looks like I came at an unlucky time.”
The Reptile stiffened internally but maintained a composed expression.
“I just returned from South America. It was so quiet there that I almost suspected you of secretly leaking my whereabouts to the Red-throated Bird.”
The Reptile gritted his teeth. How did this guy manage to be so intimidating even on someone else’s turf?
“Yes, I told them. But only that,” the Reptile admitted. “We couldn’t approach Lan Bo’s territory, so we tried to use a terrorist organization to scout for us. They were all timid, and when you killed Kraken, they didn’t dare make a sound.”
Bai Chunian snorted mockingly. “That wasn’t an ordinary terrorist group—they had smart leaders. If you want intelligence, come to me. My price is fair, no tricks. Tell me what you want, and I’ll give it.”
The Reptile sighed inwardly. What we really want is intelligence on you… damn.
“You gave me useful info, so I can’t leave empty-handed. Let me tell you a bit about my experiences in the Caribbean.”
The Reptile leaned forward, listening intently. After half an hour of Bai Chunian recounting his romantic adventures with Lan Bo, he finally gleaned a useful clue.
Bai Chunian honestly revealed the discovery of numerous clones of himself in the region. This was no longer a secret; the South American branch agents had all witnessed it. Knowing the truth couldn’t be concealed, Bai Chunian chose to inform the chairman before reporting it formally, which was why the chairman reassured him at the time: You are unique.
The confidentiality of the branch wasn’t exactly reliable. Rather than letting the crawler dig everything up on his own, it was better to go with the flow and hand over some intel as a favor.
The information clearly caught the crawler off guard. “This… I’ll look into it further. If there’s anything new, I’ll let you know.”
“Exactly. We’re on the same side,” Bai Chunian said with a faint smile. “At least our overall goals align.”
“We’re all experimental subjects,” Bai Chunian added, eyes curving slightly. “Destroying the 109 Research Institute should be a shared wish. As for what methods you use to counter humanity afterward, I honestly don’t care.”
Being called out so bluntly actually made the crawler feel more at ease. Talking to a divine envoy meant that no amount of carefully crafted wording mattered—this kind of person never bothered with subtlety.
After the explosion at the 109 Research Institute, countless experimental subjects had escaped. To cover up their crimes and minimize the impact, the institute claimed only a small number had gone missing and that most had already been recaptured. In reality, a large number of subjects were now loose in society. On the surface, things seemed stable, but in truth, the situation was already completely out of control.
Ordinary people couldn’t distinguish experimental subjects from humans. Only rare instruments could detect them, and those were scarce, with limited range—practically useless.
“Fine,” the crawler said, choosing to be honest as a gesture of goodwill. “The Formless Stalker and Samael are both members of our group. The triangular hut belonged to the Formless Stalker—we funded it. Samael was also sent by us to rescue Professor Lin Deng. But his ability is too unusual—wherever he goes, people get infected. He was bound to be exposed. He knew he would die, and he volunteered to exchange his life for Professor Lin Deng’s.”
“In the beginning, during the ATWL exam, I spread a large amount of research institute data, hoping to cause a major disturbance. But the institute has some skilled hackers. I would alter the data, and they would repair it right after. In the end, at least half of the important information never got released.”
“Professor Lin Deng is our hope. I can’t say too much yet—unless you agree to join us. If both you and Lan Bo join, destroying the 109 Research Institute will be much easier.”
Bai Chunian spread his hands. “I’m a member of IOA. Joining you would be betrayal. You know our president—someone at that level isn’t something any experimental subject can fight against. I’d advise you to keep your goals simple. Don’t target IOA.”
“President Yan Yi… is actually quite admirable,” the crawler muttered. “I hacked into an international conference. He openly called for banning the breeding of living special combat weapons, recognizing the independent personalities of existing experimental subjects, advocating for education over extermination. Even a rare high-level A3 omega wouldn’t dare propose something like that—it’s too risky. Sooner or later, they’d be crushed by various forces. But Yan Yi is powerful enough, and he acts decisively.”
The president had been in Westminster these past few days. Bai Chunian had been quietly following the developments. The president’s stance alone was enough—no matter the outcome, Bai Chunian was willing to follow him.
“Alright,” the crawler said, shaking his head. “Just promise me you won’t oppose us anymore. You sent the Formless Stalker to an international prison—that was a major loss for us.”
Bai Chunian didn’t answer immediately. “I don’t know how many members you have, but you should restrain yourselves. Experimental subjects can survive perfectly fine on inorganic matter, so stop eating people. And don’t vent your hatred for the institute on ordinary humans. The president is already exhausted. Anything that causes him trouble—I’ll take care of it. He just made those proposals at the conference, and then you go and create a string of murders right after. That’s basically slapping him in the face.”
The crawler thought for a moment. “I can agree to that.”
Bai Chunian extended his hand. “Good. You get it.”
The crawler shook his hand.
“Since that’s settled, I’ll give you another piece of intel as an apology for leaking your whereabouts earlier,” the crawler said. “The Red-Throated Bird has always been hostile toward IOA. At first, it was because they made huge profits trafficking high-level glands. After IOA was established, omega safety improved dramatically. Killing for glands and forced marriages nearly disappeared, making it much harder for them to find valuable high-level omegas to sell. Now that President Yan Yi is pushing for protections for experimental subjects, it’s also hurting their arms trade.”
“He’s long been a thorn in their side.”
“I intercepted internal communications—they’re planning a moderate-scale terrorist attack at Port M while his plane is making a stopover. The goal is to create chaos and undermine his authority.”
“They’d love to kill Yan Yi, but no one can actually beat him. Assassination won’t work. So they’re going for indirect methods—basically trying to disgust you and create fear, weakening his influence.”
Bai Chunian’s smile faded slightly. “But without official authorization, I can’t leave the country.”
“That’s not my concern,” the crawler said. “I respect Yan Yi, but I’m not sacrificing my people to help him. Besides, we both know his strength—he won’t be in real danger.”
They talked for a while longer. Bai Chunian stood to leave. Before going, he leaned toward the black panther alpha sitting stiffly in a single-seat sofa, hands in his pockets.
“You haven’t moved at all sitting there. I suggest you hang yourself on the wall—you’d make a perfect seal.”
The black panther alpha shot him a glare.
After Bai Chunian left, the alpha said coolly, “Troublesome guy.”
The crawler sat on the sofa, a lollipop stick between his teeth, swinging his legs. “Can’t help it. If I were a divine envoy, I’d be just as arrogant.”
“Do you think he’ll go to Port M?”
The crawler countered, “Why wouldn’t he? I didn’t lie to him. You can tell his feelings toward humans are different from ours—largely because of that president. An experimental subject who’s trusted and cherished by humans… honestly, I don’t know whether to envy or despise that.”
“For now, we’re allies. In the short term, our interests and goals don’t conflict. As long as we share a common enemy, we’re friends.”
“Black Day, go pass the word—tell everyone to stop attacking humans for now. Eat something proper instead. He’s right… that president really isn’t bad.”
The black panther alpha let out a faint snort and stood up, leaving the reception room.
After leaving Shaojin Mansion, Bai Chunian lingered at the dock for a while.
Of course, he wasn’t going to blindly believe every word the crawler said—but some risks had to be guarded against.
He pressed the miniature communicator in his ear and contacted Han Xingqian.
Han Xingqian was bent over a desk grading biochemical assignments, not even lifting his head as he spoke. “I heard everything. Apply to headquarters for a maintenance mission at Port M’s monitoring station. It won’t hurt to take a look—better safe than sorry. Every terrorist attack planned by the Red-Throated Bird has always been troublesome.”
“Yeah, that’s what I was thinking too.”
Han Xingqian asked, “Are you bringing Lan Bo?”
Bai Chunian replied, “Yes. And you’re coming too. Bring three trainees with you.”
Han Xingqian frowned slightly. “Isn’t that overreacting?”
Bai Chunian said firmly, “No. Who are the top three in the year-end assessment?”
Han Xingqian flipped through the records. “Bi Lanxing, Lu Yan, Xiao Xun.”
Bai Chunian: “Pack them up and bring them along.”