Desperate people, accept the seed of my soul!

The ventilation fans inside the abandoned biological agent plant were still slowly turning, drawing the residual reagent smell from the plant to the outside.

Shen Hanzhou stood in front of the old laboratory table, watching the pale blue liquid in the test tube stabilize. He touched the glass wall with his fingertip, and the temperature was just the same as human body temperature.

"It's done." Jiang Yubai put down the pipette in his hand, his voice carrying a hint of unconcealed fatigue, yet unusually clear. "Three batches of precursors, yield rate of 51%, just barely meeting Yan Hui's passing grade. The final drug activity is 372% higher than the erroneous version from the Five Mountains Society. The side effect is short-term mental overload, causing temporary blurred vision, but it won't burn away life force like the batch she injected."

Shen Hanzhou picked up the test tube and waved it in the morning light shining through the gaps in the ivy.

The pale blue liquid left a uniform residue on the test tube wall, exactly as shown in Shen Yanhui's experimental record of the final product state.

He uncorked the vial, tilted his head back, and drank the entire vial of medicine.

The icy liquid slid down my throat, and the next second, a scalding hot stream exploded from my stomach, rushing through my blood vessels to every part of my body.

The mental energy that had been depleted from the continuous use of his abilities seemed to be injected with new fuel. The blockage in the old injury on his left shoulder, which had been causing dull pain, was instantly cleared away, and he could even clearly perceive the structure of dust molecules suspended in the air with his fingertips.

Cement, metal, glass, ceramics... all the non-living matter that his gaze swept across, the molecular lattices of which glowed faintly in his perception, several times clearer than before.

Previously, disassembling a liquid nitrogen tank required half a second of focused concentration; now, a mere thought is enough to break the bonds between metal molecules.

"The effect is better than expected." Shen Hanzhou opened his eyes, a faint blue light flashing in his pupils. "Before, dismantling the precast panels required overdrawing a third of my mental energy, but now it only requires a tenth. Zheng Daoyuan's defenses can't stop me."

He took Shen Yanhui's photo out of the inner bag and placed it next to the medicine bottle on the lab table.

The woman in the photo is still smiling, her goggles pushed up on her forehead, as if she is looking at the medicine she risked her life for.

"Senior sister, the potion is finished." Shen Hanzhou traced the dark red marks on the edge of the photo with her fingertips, her tone calm. "Now go and take Zheng Daoyuan's life."

Jiang Yubai locked all the organized experimental data into an encrypted folder on the portable workstation, looked up at him, and said, "I'll go with you."

"No need." Shen Hanzhou stuffed the USB drive into the inside pocket of his coat and zipped it up. "I'm going to kill someone. You stay here and finish the remaining two batches of potions. The Five Mountains Society and the Xiongbei people won't let this go. There are still many places that need the potions. I'll be back after I kill Zheng Daoyuan."

"I'll wait for you." Jiang Yubai didn't insist. He took two vials of emergency painkillers from his first-aid kit and handed them to him. "If you get frostbite from liquid nitrogen or experience mental overload, just use these. Yan Hui's formula is better than the ones on the market."

Shen Hanzhou took the painkiller, put it in his pocket, and turned to push open the iron gate of the factory.

The morning light fell on him, and the cement dust that had been clinging to his coat was blown off in a rustling sound by the wind.

The motorcycle was hidden in the bushes behind the factory. He got on, started the engine, and the roar tore through the silence of the eastern suburbs as he sped towards the city.

------

The headquarters of Xiongbei Company's Lieyang branch, located fifty meters underground in a private underground palace.

Zheng Daoyuan leaned back on the sofa covered with a tiger skin, his fingers holding a wine glass, the Lafite inside swirling with dark red ripples.

The entire underground palace was built in an extremely luxurious manner. The walls were covered with polished white marble, crystal chandeliers hung overhead, antique porcelain from various dynasties were displayed on the antique shelves in the corners, and even the floor was covered with valuable handmade carpets that made no sound when stepped on.

Sitting opposite him was Zhao Si, an elite leader who had just been transferred from the headquarters of the three northern provinces. As his name suggested, he had a scar that ran across his entire face, and his eyes were like ice-cold knives. His muscles stretched his black combat uniform taut, and two modified large-caliber pistols were tucked into his waistband. The whole man sitting there looked like a cannon emplacement ready to fire.

"Headquarters has assigned you thirty-six people this time, all of them veterans who have retired from the border battlefield. They've been practicing tactics against superhumans for half a year." Zheng Daoyuan placed his wine glass on the coffee table, the glass clinking against the marble surface. "Shen Hanzhou is currently at an abandoned biological agent factory in the eastern suburbs, with only Jiang Yubai by his side. This is the best opportunity to make a move."

Zhao Si didn't reply, his fingers stroking the gun handle at his waist, his eyes filled with obvious disdain: "Someone who couldn't kill twenty-seven people, is he worth your fuss over? I've killed at least eight or ten Awakened on the border, their abilities flashy but deadly from a single bullet. He can dismantle cement and metal, let alone bullets?"

"Don't underestimate him." Zheng Daoyuan frowned. "He's disassembled the bullets Duan Peng fired before; he can twist ceramic bullets into a pretzel. Liquid nitrogen, ceramic bulletproof plates, and all-polymer firearms are useless against him. This time, headquarters has provided you with new equipment."

As soon as he finished speaking, the heavy alloy door of the underground palace was suddenly pushed open from the outside.

A man in a black suit walked in. He was very tall, with a pale complexion that had never seen the sun. He wore a silver ring engraved with a bear on his finger and walked in without making a sound, as if he floated in.

Upon seeing him, Zheng Daoyuan immediately stood up from the sofa, a smile plastered on his face: "Mr. Lu, what brings you here? Headquarters didn't notify you of your arrival."

This man named Lu Chen is a core member of the Xiongbei headquarters, in charge of all matters related to the supernatural, and his power is much greater than that of the regional head.

He hadn’t expected Lu Chen to come to Lieyang Province in person, and for a moment he felt a little uneasy—could it be that the headquarters was going to hold him accountable for the incident at Cuitingyuan where twenty-seven people had died?

Lu Chen ignored his fawning, his gaze sweeping over the decorations of the underground palace, a mocking smile curving his lips: "Zheng Daoyuan, you're living a comfortable life. Half of the operational funds allocated to you by headquarters are used to repair this underground palace, and the other half is used to line your own pocket. You certainly know how to enjoy yourself."

Zheng Daoyuan's face turned pale instantly, and cold sweat streamed down his back: "Mr. Lu, you've misunderstood. This underground palace was built by Chiji before. I haven't spent a single penny of headquarters' money since I took over—"

"I have no interest in your explanations." Lu Chen interrupted him, walked to the sofa opposite him, and sat down, lightly tapping the marble coffee table with his fingers. "Twenty-seven people, and you couldn't even kill a technician who had only awakened three months ago, let alone let him obtain Shen Yanhui's complete experimental data and synthesize the correct version of the potion. Tell me, what use are you to headquarters?"

Zheng Daoyuan took a step back, his hand reaching for the gun at his waist: "Mr. Lu, I've served Xiong Bei for fifteen years. Even if I haven't done anything meritorious, I've certainly put in the hard work! You can't just convict me like this!"