Ice skates forward, regardless of east or west.

1

The new home is located on the southern coast, a small white house with windows facing the boundless Pacific Ocean.

The sunlight was so warm it could seep into your bones; unlike the biting cold of the north, it was a gentle warmth on your skin.

Gu Xidong stood on the terrace, watching Ling Wuwen teach B-3 and several clones to identify tropical plants.

For the past three months, life has been so peaceful it's almost unreal.

The clones have adapted to normal life: B-3 has found a job at the town's bookstore, while the others are either helping out at the fishing port or apprenticing to learn a trade.

No one knew their past; they were simply a group of relatives from the north who had lost their documents in a fire.

Only infants can never adapt to warmth.

She cried and refused to eat frequently, only calming down when the air conditioner was set to 16 degrees Celsius and she was wrapped in a thick blanket.

The doctor couldn't find anything abnormal, but Gu Xidong knew something was wrong—his daughter's eyes would flash silvery-white late at night, and she would gaze northward far more often than at her toys.

"She still wants to go back." Ling Wuwen approached with a glass of ice water. The scar from the fracture in her shoulder blade had faded, but the psychological trauma had not healed.

Every night she was plagued by nightmares, dreaming of the laboratory under the glacier, and of the man who called himself "father".

"There's no home there anymore," Gu Xidong said in a deep voice.

"Home isn't just a place, it's a memory." Ling Wuwen leaned on his shoulder.

"Her memories may have started from the embryonic stage—the temperature of the culture chamber, the buoyancy of the liquid, the sound of the instruments running, that was what was 'normal' to her."

A sharp, continuous cry suddenly came from inside the house, not like hunger or discomfort, but more like an alarm.

Gu Xidong rushed into the room and saw his daughter lying in the crib, her little hands flailing about, her eyes completely turned silvery-white and showing no signs of fading.

"What did she see?" Ling Wuwen picked up the child, but the baby cried even harder, pushing her away with its little hands and stubbornly pointing north.

B-3 returned ahead of schedule, pale-faced: "Three strangers have come to town. They have Asian faces but strange accents and are asking about 'a large family from the north'."

"police?"

"Doesn't seem like it." B-3 shook his head. "They're wearing suits, but they move like soldiers, and... one of them looks like a special forces clone."

Gu Xidong's heart sank.

Ling Yaqin said she would clear the data, so someone has clearly violated the agreement. "Pack your things, leave in ten minutes."

But it was too late.

The doorbell rang, not with hurried knocking, but with a polite ringing.

Gu Xidong peeked through the gap in the curtains and saw that the middle one of the three people outside the door was someone he knew all too well—Ye Shen.

Ye Shen should have died; at least his brain sample was sent to the post office.

The person outside the door was wearing a light gray suit and frameless glasses, with a gentle smile, exactly like Ye Shen in my memory.

"Old friend, open the door." Ye Shen's voice pierced through the door.

"I know you're inside, and I know the child's eyes have changed color. This isn't a coincidence; it's a signal."

Gu Xidong looked at Ling Wuwen, who was holding the baby and retreating to the back door, only to find at least four figures outside the back window.

"What do you want?"

"Let's talk," Ye Shen said. "I'll count to three, and if you don't open the door, we'll come in. One."

Gu Xidong opened the door, and Ye Shen walked straight in, familiarly looking around the small house:

"Warmth is not enough for you. You should be standing at the top of the world, not hiding in this small place."

The other two followed and closed the door. They did indeed resemble special clones, but were more refined, with lively eyes and genuine emotions, rather than programmed coldness.

"You're not dead," Gu Xidong said with certainty.

"The post office's brain specimen is a copy." Ye Shen sat down on the sofa.

"The real me is still alive. That scene was to test the child's neural connectivity—she can remotely sense her homologous genes through genetic resonance. The result was very satisfactory."

He looked at the baby: "She must be feeling very uncomfortable right now, because she senses the approach of her 'fathers'."

Gu Xidong froze: "Fathers?"

"Let me introduce them." Ye Shen pointed to his attendants, "Gu Xidong No. 7, Ling Wuwen No. 5. They are clones of you and her, but improved versions—genetically optimized by 17 percent, with a neural reaction time 0.3 seconds faster, and without any useless emotional burdens."

The two clones nodded in unison. "What are you doing here?" Ling Wuwen hugged the child tightly.

"Executing the third phase of the 'Gu Raising Plan'." Ye Shen smiled. "It seems you know nothing about it. Let me start from the beginning."

He pushed up his glasses:

"The 'Black Swan' club is actually called 'Nirvana International.' Sports are just a vehicle; the core is genetic engineering and neural control technology. For fifteen years, we have been collecting genes from top athletes to create clones and conducting consciousness transfer experiments, but we have never been able to solve one problem: how to give cyborgs the creativity and unpredictability of natural humans?"

Ye Shen stood up and looked out at the sea:

"Thus, the 'Gu-raising Plan' was born—selecting the most promising individuals, applying extreme pressure to stimulate their breakthroughs, and then reaping the rewards. You, Gu Xidong, are the 'Gu King' we have chosen."

"The accident three years ago wasn't an accident; it was part of a selection test." He turned around.

"You survived, dug out the club, found the Northern City, and even created an unprecedented 'node baby,' far exceeding expectations."

Gu Xidong felt a chill run down his spine: "Were all the people who helped us part of your scheme?"

"Wang Zhenhua is, and so am I," Ye Shen readily admitted.

"Wang Zhenhua guides you to discover the truth and ignites your desire for revenge; I provide assistance to make you feel like you have a chance of winning; the Ice Shards organization is a group of victims' families that we control, responsible for providing emotional support and intelligence. Every safe house exposure, every thrilling escape, is part of the plan, just to make you sharper and more resilient."

Ling Wuwen's voice trembled: "Then Ling Wufeng's death..."

"A necessary sacrifice." Ye Shen said expressionlessly. "We need you to experience utter loss to unleash your deepest potential. By the way, Ling Wufeng is also a clone; his 'death' was just a performance."

Lies, all lies.

Gu Xidong recalled the struggles, despair, and hope of the past three years, realizing that it was all a script written by someone else.

2

"It's harvest season now." Ye Shen walked up to him. "Three days later, at the World Figure Skating Championships in Lausanne, Switzerland, you will be 'assassinating' the head judge in front of everyone during the men's singles free skate performance."

Gu Xidong thought he had misheard: "What?"

"You'll enter as a special guest and use a miniature syringe hidden in your skate to inject the head referee with a neurotoxin," Ye Shen said casually.

"The toxins are not fatal, but they will cause permanent brain damage, leaving him in a vegetative state for the rest of his life. After that, you will be caught on the spot, and the media will dig up your dark history of 'retiring due to drug use, psychological distortion, and revenge against society,' ruining the reputation of Chinese figure skating and suspending the sport from the International Skating Union for more than three years."

Why?

"For the sake of the market," Ye Shen said with a smile.

"If a sport loses credibility, gambling syndicates can easily manipulate the competition. We have reached an agreement with three international betting companies. After the World Championships, they will fully intervene in figure skating betting, with a turnover of at least two billion US dollars per year. We will take a 30 percent cut."

He then changed the subject: "Of course, if you cooperate, Ling Wuwen and the child will live, and we will give them new identities and enough wealth for a lifetime. If they resist..."

Gu Xidong No. 7 took out a photo and threw it on the table.

In the photo, Ling Wuwen is tied to a chair in a luxury cabin, his mouth is taped shut, and his eyes are filled with terror. The sea outside the porthole in the background is exactly the same as the "Golden Flower" gambling ship described in the first volume.

"She's on the 'Golden Plantagenet,' currently in international waters, and only we know her coordinates," Ye Shen said.

"There are fifty special clones and twenty professional assassins on board. If you refuse or try anything funny, Ling Wuwen will be thrown into the sea to be fed to sharks within an hour. As for the children, we will raise them to be the next 'Gu King'."

Gu Xidong clenched his fist, his nails digging into his palm.

He tried to pounce, but was instantly blocked by two clones whose movements were too fast to see.

"Don't be impulsive, you can't beat them." Ye Shen patted the clone's shoulder.

"Even if you kill me, it won't make a difference. The 'Gu Raising Project' has seven executors, and I'm just one of them."

He walked up to Ling Wuwen and gazed at the infant:

"What a perfect child! Her brain has twice the density of neural connections as the average person, theoretically capable of controlling hundreds of clones simultaneously. With proper nurturing, she will become a true 'Queen Bee'."

The baby suddenly stopped crying, its silvery-white pupils calmly observing Ye Shen, devoid of any emotion.

"Look, she's analyzing me." Ye Shen said with great interest, "Having basic logical abilities at just three months old is a perfect combination of natural reproduction and genetic optimization."

"Don't touch her!" Ling Wuwen hugged the child even tighter.

"That depends on her father's choice." Ye Shen handed over a cell phone.

"There's an encrypted contact person called 'Helmsman' inside. Contact him after you arrive in Lausanne, and he'll give you ice skates and a syringe, and tell you the specific plan."

Gu Xidong didn't answer. "There's another option," Ye Shen said, losing patience.

"If you refuse, I'll kill Ling Wuwen right now and forcibly take the child away; if you resist, we'll kill you. Final ten seconds: ten, nine..."

Gu Xidong looked at Ling Wuwen, tears streaming down her face, and nodded—she would rather die than let her child be harmed. "I choose the first one."

"Wise." Ye Shen gestured for the clone to hold the child.

Ling Wuwen refused to let go, so Gu Xidong went over and hugged her: "Trust me, I will get you out."

The baby didn't cry when it was taken away; it just looked at Gu Xidong, and for the first time, a certain emotion appeared in its silvery-white eyes—a mixture of understanding and farewell.

3

After Ye Shen left with the child, the cabin fell into a deathly silence. B-3 hesitated to speak, but Gu Xidong raised his hand to stop him.

"Pack your things and head to the second backup point immediately."

"And what about you?"

"I'm going to Lausanne," Gu Xidong said, picking up his phone, "but not to become an assassin."

He dialed the only contact in his phone, and a synthesized electronic voice said, "Confirm identity."

"Gu Xidong. Executor of the 'Gu Raising Plan'."

"Received. Flight information sent. Flight from Sydney to Zurich at 8:00 AM tomorrow. Someone will meet you upon arrival."

After hanging up the phone, Gu Xidong looked at the kidnapping photo. On the back, there was a line of handwritten text: "Golden Bird, VIP cabin A-07. Latitude -34.56, Longitude 151.23."

That was the waters near Sydney; the gambling ship wasn't in international waters at all, less than two hundred kilometers away. Ye Shen lied, perhaps to make him think Ling Wuwen was far away, or perhaps... it was a deliberate slip of the tongue.

Gu Xidong recalled Ling Yaqin's last words: "True evolution cannot be designed." Perhaps Ye Shen's plan was flawed from the start, or perhaps everything was still within a larger calculation.

He carefully put away the photos and began packing his rescue gear—the old gun he'd left behind only had four bullets left. B-3 stood in the doorway: "You're going to rescue her?"

"right."

"But the child..."

"Ye Shen needs her to stay alive to conduct her research, so she's safe for now." Gu Xidong checked the equipment. "Besides, I think my daughter has her own plans."

He recalled the baby's last glance, not one of helplessness, but more like a synchronized understanding—as if saying: "Daddy, do as you say, I'll cooperate." Though the thought was mad, Gu Xidong chose to believe it, because he had nothing else to trust.

4

As night fell, Gu Xidong drove alone to the coast. B-3 and the other clones had already evacuated to their hideout further south.

At the dock, he rented a speedboat. The boat owner took the money and left in a hurry without asking any questions.

The speedboat sailed into the dark sea, GPS locked on coordinates: latitude -34.56, longitude 151.23.

Two hours later, a patch of lights appeared on the sea surface.

The enormous gambling ship resembled a floating city, brightly lit, with the words "GOLDEN CHRYSANTHEMUM" clearly visible under the searchlights on its hull.

Three years ago, he almost died on this ship; three years later, he returned to save his beloved.

Gu Xidong turned off the engine and let the speedboat drift towards the gambling ship. Just as he was about to change into his diving suit and dive underwater, all the lights on the ship suddenly went out.

It wasn't a power outage; it was manually shut down.

The entire gambling ship was plunged into darkness, with only the moonlight outlining its shape. Then, a searchlight shone, casting a beam of light onto the bow deck.

A person stood on the deck, wearing a white dress and holding a baby in her arms—it was Ling Wuwen.

She wasn't tied up, nor was she injured; she simply stood quietly, gazing at the sea. The baby in her arms also looked in this direction, its eyes reflecting a silvery-white light in the moonlight.

Ye Shen's voice came through the loudspeaker, tinged with helplessness: "I knew you'd come. Gu Xidong, you never follow the script."

Gu Xidong started the speedboat and headed straight for the gambling ship.

He knew it was a trap, but he didn't care anymore.

The lights came on again, and the deck was filled with people—not killers, not clones, but gambling ship passengers in formal attire, holding wine glasses.

Ling Wuwen raised his hand and pointed to the night sky. Gu Xidong looked up and saw a swarm of drones rising from behind the gambling ship, forming a line of glowing characters: Welcome to the final stage of the Gu-raising plan: The Gu King Showdown.

Ye Shen's voice rang out for the last time:

"The rules of the game have changed. Now, kill Ling Wuwen and the child, and you will gain your freedom; or let them kill you and complete your true evolution. Choose, Gu King."

As the speedboat crashed into the gambling ship, Gu Xidong climbed the gangway and saw that Ling Wuwen's eyes had also turned silver-white.

The baby in her arms smiled, a smile...