Eunuch, do you really know these martial arts?

"Ka! Perfect!"

Director Zhang Yi's voice was filled with excitement.

The last shot on the rooftop was filmed at 3 PM.

The sunlight slanted across the rooftop, casting long shadows on everyone.

Jiang Nian leaned against the wheelchair as the effects of the acupuncture were gradually fading.

He could feel the weakness that had been drained away slowly subsiding.

The elevator doors closed, leaving only the three of them in the cramped space.

Su Qing pressed the button for the first floor, her fingers trembling slightly.

"Teacher Jiang, you still look unwell," she said worriedly. "Should we go back to the hotel to rest?"

"Let's go back to the dressing room on set first."

Jiang Nian shook his head, "Director Zhang said we need to add a few more shots."

The elevator goes down.

The number jumps from 7 to 6, and then to 5.

Just as the number jumped to 4, Jiang Nian suddenly opened his eyes.

"and many more."

"What's wrong?" Yang Zhan immediately put his hand on his waist.

"here we go again?"

Su Qing looked around in horror.

“No, it’s not an external resonance.” Jiang Nian pressed his hand to his chest.

He closed his eyes and felt it carefully.

They are definitely different.

“Old Qin,” Jiang Nian pressed the communicator in his ear, “I need to analyze a set of data immediately.”

"explain."

Qin Lao's voice came immediately, with the sounds of various instruments in the laboratory in the background.

“My labeling activity is generating new harmonics,” Jiang Nian reported a series of figures.

The sound of rapid keyboard typing came from the other end of the communication line.

A few seconds later, Old Qin gasped.

"How can this be!"

"What happened?" Yang Zhan asked.

“This harmonic…” Old Qin’s voice trembled, “matches a certain fundamental frequency that we extracted from blood sample number zero!”

The elevator arrived at the first floor.

The door opened, but no one came out.

"What do you mean?"

"Although the gene marker number zero is homologous to yours, its expression pattern is that of a young child."

"And your mark is evolving into a more mature form!"

"The harmonics generated by this evolution perfectly fill the missing band in the zero-marked frequency!"

The corridor was deathly silent.

Su Qing covered her mouth, her eyes wide open.

Yang Zhan's hand was still blocking the elevator door, his knuckles white from the force.

"Let's get out of here," he finally said. "This isn't the place to talk."

In the dressing room, Director Zhang Yi was discussing the shots they had just filmed with the cinematographer. Upon seeing Jiang Nian return, the director immediately went to greet him.

"Jiang Nian, are you alright? You scared me half to death just now."

"It's alright, director."

Jiang Nian forced a smile, "It's an old problem, I'll be fine after a rest."

"That's good, that's good." Zhang Yi patted him on the shoulder. "There are three more close-up shots. After that, we'll wrap up. Can you handle it?"

"can."

Shooting continues.

But Jiang Nian's mind was no longer on the play.

He could feel the resonance of those marks within his body growing stronger.

"Teacher Jiang?"

Lin Wan's voice pulled him back to reality.

In front of the camera, Lin Wan, who plays Su Mian, is looking at him with concern.

In the script, this is supposed to be a moment where Lu Chenxi is distracted.

"I'm sorry." Jiang Nian immediately got back into character. "Where were we?"

"You said you wanted to contact the family of the patient in bed 3," Lin Wan replied naturally.

“Yes.” Jiang Nian nodded. “We’ll meet at 3 p.m. tomorrow. I’ll wait for them in my office.”

"Cut!" Zhang Yi called out. "This take is good, but Jiang Nian, the part where you were distracted just now was actually quite good, it really suited the character's state. How about we keep it as a take?"

"it is good."

For the rest of the filming, Jiang Nian simply stopped trying to control himself.

He allowed that subtle sense of resonance to flow naturally, and the result was surprisingly good.

On the monitor, Lu Chenxi's eyes held a complex expression that was hard to describe.

It possesses both the professionalism and composure of a doctor, as well as a detached, almost compassionate, sense of being detached from reality.

"Amazing." Zhang Yi murmured, staring at the screen. "Jiang Nian is in incredible form today."

At 4 PM, all the shots were finished.

When it was time to wrap up work, Zhang Yi specifically called Jiang Nian aside.

"Jiang Nian, is something on your mind today?"

The director looked at him and said, "I'm not trying to pry into their privacy, but as a director, I need to understand the actors' state of mind."

Jiang Nian remained silent for a moment.

“Director,” he began slowly, “what would you do if one day you discovered that you might not be the person you thought you were?”

Zhang Yi was taken aback for a moment, then laughed: "That's quite a philosophical question."

He pulled up a chair and sat down.

"I've been acting for thirty years and I've seen too many people."

"Some people know what they want from the very beginning, while others wander around for half their lives before finally finding their direction."

"But no matter what, people are always changing."

He looked at Jiang Nian: "The Lu Chenxi you played today is different from the Lu Chenxi you played in the audition a month ago. It's not that your acting skills have improved, it's that you've grown."

"The character grows, and so do you."

Jiang Nian seemed to be deep in thought.

"Thank you, director."

"Why are you so polite?"

Zhang Yi stood up. "We're filming a group scene in the hospital lobby tomorrow. You don't have many scenes, so you can come later. Get some rest."

The convoy returning to the hotel remained tightly packed.

But this time, Jiang Nian clearly sensed that the atmosphere around him was different.

As the car entered the hotel's underground parking garage, Yang Zhan suddenly said, "Li Su, take a detour."

"clear."

The convoy did not drive directly to the designated parking spaces, but instead slowly circled around the garage.

"Instructor, that white sedan at three o'clock has been parked there for three hours without moving."

Wang Chuang reported from the car in front, "The windows are tinted dark, so we can't see inside."

"Zhao Qing, Zhou Yan, you two get out of the car and check," Yang Zhan ordered. "Be careful."

Two minutes later, Zhao Qing's voice came through the walkie-talkie: "There's no one in the car, but we found this."

A photo was transferred to the tablet.

This is a candid photo taken by Jiang Nian today while he was filming on the rooftop. The angle is very tricky, and it was obviously taken from a distance with a telephoto lens.

“Provocation,” Li Su scoffed.

"Instructor Yang, I want to go to the training room."

"Now?" Yang Zhan frowned. "Your body..."

"It is precisely because my body is changing that I need to adapt as quickly as possible."

Yang Zhan stared at him for a few seconds before finally nodding.

"Okay. But you can only practice for one hour, and then you must rest."

In the training room, the lights were turned to a soft white.

Jiang Nian had changed out of her costume and was sitting in a wheelchair wearing loose-fitting practice clothes. The brace on her right leg had been temporarily removed, but her knee was still secured with an elastic bandage.

Lin Wei and Chen Lu were preparing medical supplies in a corner of the room, while Li Su and Wang Chuang stood guard at the door.

Yang Zhan stood opposite Jiang Nian. "We're not practicing techniques today," he said. "We're practicing perception."

"Perception?"

“Yes.” Yang Zhan sat cross-legged in front of Jiang Nian. “Close your eyes and feel the resonance within your body. Then tell me what it feels like.”

Jiang Nian did as instructed.

At first, it was all darkness.

But soon, the resonance of those markings emerged.

Like a star map.

Countless points of light twinkled in the darkness, connected by faint rays of light, forming a complex three-dimensional network.

“The starry sky,” Jiang Nian said slowly, “has many points of light, and there are lines connecting them.”

"Can you count how many points of light there are?"

Jiang Nian tried to concentrate.

“Thirty-seven,” he said. “No, thirty-eight… wait, there are a few dark ones too.”

Are there differences in intensity between the light spots?

"Most of the spots of light were about the same brightness, but six of them were exceptionally bright, like stars. The other three were very dim and almost invisible."

"Where's the location?"

Jiang Nian felt it.

"Six bright ones, two near the spine, two on the arms, one at the heart, and one... between the eyebrows."

He was stunned for a moment when he said the last spot.

Between the eyebrows.

That is the upper dantian, the place where the spirit resides.

Yang Zhan's eyes widened slightly.

Yang Zhan stood up, walked to Jiang Nian's side, and put his hand on Jiang Nian's right wrist.

The internal force slowly penetrated.

A few seconds later, Yang Zhan's expression changed.

“Your right hand,” he stared at Jiang Nian, “is healing more than three times faster than normal.”

Lin Wei immediately came over and carefully unwrapped the bandage on Jiang Nian's right hand.

The wound, which was a bloody mess this morning, has now formed a thin but resilient scab. At the edges of the scab, the new skin is pale pink and is slowly but steadily growing towards the center.

"This is impossible," Chen Lu said incredulously. "This healing speed... is beyond medical explanation."

"Those marks."

Jiang Nian looked at her hands and said, "They are promoting cell regeneration."

He suddenly thought of something, closed his eyes, and looked inward again.

Sure enough, the golden line connecting the spine and the right arm was continuously emitting a faint pulsation.

“Try your left hand,” Yang Zhan said.

Jiang Nian turned her attention to her left arm.

There were also marker dots there, but they were not very bright, and the connecting silver lines were thinner than those on the right arm.

He tried to channel that energy.

It was difficult at first, like groping for a switch in the dark.

But after several attempts, he found a way.

Successful.

My left palm felt slightly warm, and a familiar tingling sensation came from the wound.

"It works!" Su Qing exclaimed.

Jiang Nian opened her eyes and looked at her hands.

“So,” he said slowly, “these markings are not just keys, but some kind of life enhancement system?”

“I’m afraid it’s more than that.” Yang Zhan’s expression was grave. “Elder Qin said that the organization’s gene technology originated from the study of the genes of a certain ancient organism. If that organism itself had super regenerative abilities…”

“Then those who inherit this gene will also gain similar abilities,” Jiang Nian added.

But he had more on his mind.

If marking can promote wound healing, what about other aspects? Strength? Speed? Reaction time? Even... lifespan?
What is the ultimate goal of an organization?
“Continue training.” Yang Zhan walked back to his original position. “Now, try to control the energy flow of that golden thread.”

Jiang Nian closed her eyes again.

This time, it took him even longer.

Control is much harder than guiding. Just as you can't command your heart to beat faster or slower, this flow of life energy seems to have its own rhythm.

But Jiang Nian did not give up.

He immersed his consciousness in the star map, staring intently at the golden line connecting them.

Gradually, he sensed a subtle connection.

Ten minutes later, Jiang Nian opened her eyes, her forehead covered in sweat.

"How is it?" Yang Zhan asked.

"Okay," Jiang Nian said, catching her breath. "But it's exhausting. Like the kind of exhaustion you get from performing three hours of high-intensity surgery."

“That’s normal.” Yang Zhan nodded. “Any form of precise control will consume a lot of energy. That’s all for today.”

He glanced at his watch: "An hour's up. Go back and rest."

On the way back to his room, Jiang Nian remained silent.

Su Qing pushed the wheelchair and asked cautiously, "Teacher Jiang, what are you thinking about?"

"I'm thinking about what the organization really wants."

Jiang Nian looked at the smooth floor of the corridor and asked, "If it's just to open the Void, why would they implant this life enhancement ability into the key?"

"Perhaps it's to make the key more durable?" Su Qing guessed.

“Or,” Yang Zhan said, walking ahead without turning his head, “the key itself is what they want.”

Inside the room, Qin Lao's communication device was already waiting on the screen.

The old man looked more tired than during the day, but his eyes were frighteningly bright.

"Jiang Nian, the data analysis is complete."

He got straight to the point, saying, "The harmonic frequencies you provided do indeed complement the zero-marked frequency. And this complementarity is perfect."

"How do you mean perfect?" Yang Zhan asked.

Mr. Qin pulled up two waveform graphs side by side.

The one on the left is Jiang Nian's, and the one on the right is number zero.

"Look here, Jiang Nian's harmonics have a continuous peak band between 3.7 kHz and 4.2 kHz." Old Qin circled the area with a laser pointer.

“And the harmonics of zero are almost non-existent in this frequency band.”

“Look here again, the zero harmonic has a unique spike at 1.2 kHz, which is not present in Jiang Nian’s spectrum.”

"But when we overlay the two spectra—"

He pressed the button.

The two images slowly overlapped.

Everyone held their breath.

The superimposed waveform presents an extremely smooth, almost perfect sine curve. All gaps are filled, and all peaks are balanced.

“This…” Su Qing murmured.

"Like the two halves of a lock."

Old Qin's voice trembled, "They're useless on their own, but together they form a complete key."

The room was so quiet you could hear your own heartbeat.

"So," Jiang Nian slowly began, "the organization needs both me and Zero?"

"Or we might need to fuse your two gene samples," Old Qin said. "But in any case, one thing is certain—"

He looked at Jiang Nian with a complicated expression.

"You are in more danger now than ever."

Bai Yongxu's image then cuts in.

"We have just received the latest intelligence on the South China Sea."

His voice was low and deep. "The underwater vehicle that was previously damaged by Jiang Nian has been confirmed to have returned to the base. However, satellite thermal imaging shows that after it entered the base, the base's energy consumption dropped by 40% within half an hour."

"What do you mean?" Yang Zhan asked.

“That means,” Bai Yongxu pulled up a set of data charts, “that aircraft is very likely not a simple patrol unit.”

"for what?"

“For a bigger operation.” Bai Yongxu switched the screen to show a blurry but unsettling photograph.

The photo was taken from high altitude, and you can vaguely see the top of the hemispherical structure of the South China Sea base slowly opening.

“This was taken three hours ago,” Bai Yongxu said. “The technical department analyzed that they may be preparing to deploy some kind of large equipment.”

"How big?" Jiang Nian asked.

"Judging from the size of the opening," Bai Yongxu took a deep breath, "it's at least five times the size of the previous spacecraft." (End of Chapter)