Conan: When Shinjiu and Maolilan swap bodies

"You envy me? Heh..."

Qingze laughed, his lips parted wide, his brows furrowed with a morbid neuroticism.

"Then would you dare to test the drug?"

How many lab rats have died on their way to drug trials?

He didn't die, not because of any stroke of luck, but simply because he couldn't feel pain.

He had seen too much of that kind of pain—the constant tearing, growth, breakage, and recombination of cells.

Most of his contemporaries who entered the laboratory at the same time as him died because their bodies could not withstand the strain.

Gin did not answer Aozawa's question; his voice was cold and objective.

"Drugs are constantly evolving. Early versions are updated and iterated. The evolution of life itself requires experimentation and comes at a cost. You should be grateful to have become a beneficiary of evolution, rather than rejecting it."

"The Human Evolution project, from the first generation HE-1 to the current HE-39, has been continuously improved. The side effects have been reduced to almost nothing, but the enhancement to the body is considerable."

“APTX has reached generation 4869. It is currently a semi-finished product, but that doesn’t mean it will always be a semi-finished product.”

Aoze looked up at the rearview mirror. The dim lighting didn't affect his vision much, and Gin's eyes were clearly visible in the mirror.

He looked at the burning flames of desire in his eyes, and a mocking smile appeared on his lips.

"What if you're not included in this eternal youth?"

Chapter 516 Shirley, is she really dead?

The car fell silent instantly, the atmosphere becoming deathly still.

Gin slammed on the brakes and turned to stare coldly at the person in the back seat.

"What do you mean?"

Qingze shrugged innocently and lazily slumped back in his seat. "It's nothing, just a hypothetical scenario."

Gin didn't believe he was just making things up.

Sure enough, the next moment, he turned the lighter in his hand and spoke again.

"Don't you think something's wrong? Anyone should be able to participate in drug testing, right? But the boss insists on using someone from his own family..."

At first glance, this behavior seems to simply increase workload and is meaningless, but upon closer examination, there are many problems involved.

The sound of a lighter igniting rang out, the flame briefly illuminating the space before extinguishing itself, repeating this cycle endlessly, leaving only the sound of metal scraping against metal, exceptionally clear in the dim space.

Gin remained silent.

He certainly had doubts.

However, he lacked sufficient information to speculate further.

His gaze fell on the metal box placed on the back seat, his mind racing with thoughts.

Qingze only mentioned it briefly and didn't say anything more, thus ending the conversation.

"Let's go, we're almost there. There's still a long way to go..."

Gin's gaze fell on his face, filled with intense inquiry.

What does he know?

What is he implying?

What is he planning to do next?

He tried to read something from Qingze's face, but Qingze just yawned and showed no sign of anything amiss.

"Let's go, hurry up."

The car was parked on the side of the road in the mountains. Qingze got out of the car and looked at the large courtyard house not far ahead.

It was past eight o'clock in the evening, and the courtyard was brightly lit, with lights on in many rooms, indicating that the people inside were clearly still awake.

Looking at the quaint courtyard, Qingze clicked his tongue twice, "No wonder they're from the Karasuma clan, there aren't many poor people among them."

Qingze stuffed the recording equipment and medicine box into his pocket and straightened his clothes.

"Let's go, sneak in, find the person, and then administer the medication separately."

With a busy schedule, there was no time to wait for everyone inside to fall asleep; this was where their infiltration skills came in.

Gin glanced at him. "You've rested for three years. I hope you're still as skilled as ever."

Qingze ignored him, walked around the courtyard wall twice, and then leaped lightly into the shadows of the courtyard without making a sound.

Gin followed closely behind, his injured leg not hindering his movements at all.

An elderly man with white hair sat at a low table drinking tea, while a TV drama was playing on the television in front of him, which he watched with great interest.

Suddenly, a hand covered his mouth from behind, and a handkerchief soaked in ether was tightly covered over his mouth and nose. The old man struggled, but soon his body went limp.

After laying the person flat, Qingze threw the camera to Gin without saying a word. Gin then picked up the camera and started recording.

Qingze took the red and white capsule from the medicine box, squatted down, supported the other person's neck with his left hand, and used two fingers of his right hand to pry open the other person's jaw, placing the capsule deep into the back of the tongue. Then he picked up the tea on the table and poured it down.

The old man's Adam's apple bobbed as he unconsciously swallowed the capsule.

The television continued to play silently, without any other sound coming from it.

Qingze stepped out of the camera's view and observed quietly.

For the first few minutes, the old man showed no signs of distress and remained in a comatose position.

A few minutes later, his body began to tremble slightly, then the trembling intensified, and he unconsciously curled up inward.

Pain gradually appeared on his unconscious face. His brows furrowed, his breathing became rapid and labored, his body temperature rose rapidly, and sweat beaded on his forehead.

At this point, an unusual change occurred.

The deep wrinkles on the old man's hands and cheeks had become slightly lighter, and his withered skin had regained a little elasticity and luster—as if time had flowed backward.

Gin stared intently, quickly zooming in with the camera in his hand to clearly capture these changes.

However, these signs were fleeting. Soon after, the old man's skin lost moisture at an even faster rate, shrank rapidly, wrinkles became deeper and denser, and his complexion quickly turned ashen.

The whole process took only a little over ten seconds. The brief traces of regression had completely disappeared, replaced by an aged appearance far beyond his actual age.

The old man's curled-up body suddenly stiffened, then all movement stopped, and his painful breathing abruptly ceased.

The room returned to silence.

A few minutes later, Aozawa stepped forward to check the carotid artery, confirmed the death, and gestured to Gin.

Gin's breathing became somewhat rapid.

He turned off the camera and carefully checked the old man's condition.

The old man was indeed dead, but his skin, which looked even older than before, was undeniable.

This proves that the brief change just now was real.

The organization has made significant progress with APTX!

The day when people can truly return to their youth is not far off!

Aozawa glanced at the somewhat excited Gin and found it amusing.

That's it?

If he knew that Shinichi Kudo, whom he personally fed the medicine to, had shrunk, and that he was completely unaware of it, what kind of expression would he have?

Qingze quickly inspected the floor and tabletop, removing any traces the two might have left behind.

The two then quietly retreated along the same route, their figures blending into the night outside the courtyard without leaving any trace.

The entire operation proceeded smoothly and quietly, without attracting any attention or unusual activity.

Back at the car, Gin lit a cigarette and took a deep drag.

Amidst the swirling smoke, he gazed at the spot he had just left not far away, the image of the old man's skin undergoing a brief transformation still lingering in his mind.

He had also given APTX4869 to people a few times. Trusting the organization's drugs, he would leave immediately after giving the medication without leaving any trace of death.

But this drug trial made him suddenly remember something he had overlooked.

If APTX4869 can cause a rejuvenating effect, then is this how Shirley left that gas chamber?

The gas chamber was completely sealed off, with only one ventilation duct serving as an entrance and exit, but that narrow duct was impossible for an adult to squeeze into.

What if she didn't crawl in like an adult?

Could drug A have already shown its effects on her, causing her body to revert to a "younger" state?

Sherry, is she really dead?

Thinking of this, an excited smile appeared on his face, like a hunter discovering the tracks of prey that had been on the run for a long time.

Qingze stood in the windward direction to avoid being exposed to secondhand smoke. He looked at Gin, who was acting strangely, with disdain on his face.

"What are you laughing at? Your laughter is so creepy."

Gin was in a good mood and didn't argue with him.

He flicked his fingers, shaking off the ash from his cigarette, his face displaying a morbid excitement.

“I just realized that our dear Shirley is still alive, and is already a successful example.”

Chapter 517 Only Wasting a Beautiful Night

Qingze's eyes flashed.

"Shirley? Wasn't she dead? Apparently, she was killed by Bourbon's bomb."

"Ha, Bourbon? A rat, how plausible do you think what he did is?"

Qingze thought about it seriously for a moment, "Now that you mention it, it's true."

"I'm afraid Bourbon knows where Sherry is right now."

Gin was suddenly relieved that Rum had kept Bourbon alive instead of killing him outright.

Otherwise, they would have to search for Shirley like looking for a needle in a haystack.

As Gin pondered, his thoughts became clearer, and his smile grew even more joyful.

Qingze: "......"

Qingze silently took two steps away.

This person's smile is so creepy, I need to stay away from him.

"Forget Bourbon and Sherry, we still have three targets tonight, hurry up and get to work!"

With a prompt, Qingze opened the car door and got in.

Gin didn't rush into anything. He slowly finished a cigarette before getting into the passenger seat.

Qingze, who was holding a laptop and preparing to write a report, looked up when he saw this. "Aren't you driving?"

"I've been driving all afternoon, it's your turn."

"Tsk."

Qingze closed the laptop and tossed it to him, saying, "Write the report."

Gin nodded in agreement, took off his gloves, removed the camera's memory card, inserted it into the computer, and began uploading the video and writing the report.

Qingze got into the driver's seat and started the old car.

The car came silently and drove away silently.

After finishing writing the report, Gin took out his phone and made a call.

"Freward, keep an eye on Bourbon and find a way to get Shirley's whereabouts from him."

Hearing this, Qingze glanced at him, then turned his attention back to the road.

Upon receiving this task, Fryward was taken aback. "Sherry? Isn't Sherry already dead?"

"She's not dead. Your mission is to find Sherry."

“Alright.” Fryward said thoughtfully, “But are you planning to target Bourbon?”