Implantation

On the wall of a secluded alley, a large, mottled spider with thick legs and well-proportioned limbs was crawling nimbly ahead. Every so often it paused, as though scanning its surroundings, before resuming its crawl forward. Chen Chuan followed at an unhurried pace. This creature was a biological combat weapon specially bred by Tayana, originally designed for surprise attacks and assassinations, and therefore exceptionally sensitive to scent. The crossbow bolt and note left behind earlier bore their owner's scent, allowing it to track the trail. At the moment, however, the spider moved at a modest speed. Unleashing high speeds consumed a massive amount of energy, and right now it was merely running on the residual energy left over from its last awakening. Since it had not engaged in combat last time, plenty of energy remained. Even if he didn't use it, it would gradually dissipate while the spider remained dormant, leaving the creature in a state of restless agitation. It made more sense to put that energy to use now and let it sink into a genuine deep slumber afterward. Before long, they arrived in front of a house. The Tayana spider stopped here, circling in place. Chen Chuan didn't bother with any elaborate reconnaissance. He walked straight up to the door and listened briefly beside it. Detecting no movement within, he gave the door a light press with his hand. The lock was jarred open by the impact, and he stepped slowly inside. Inside, as expected, he found that the occupants had already fled. Some kind of liquid had also been sprayed around, apparently an odor neutralizer or deodorant. This was likely just a temporary hideout. Dust lay thick on the table, clutter littered the surroundings, and more than one person had stayed here. Judging by the traces, they had left in a hurry, leaving behind half-eaten food. Had they anticipated someone following them and evacuated in advance? Chen Chuan tapped the back of his fist twice. After turning a circle, the spider crawled back outside. He followed it out and soon arrived at the mouth of an alley, where the spider stopped beside distinct tire ruts. He looked in the direction the road led. It seemed the group had made a timely getaway by vehicle, and someone had likely picked them up. Pursuing any further was pointless. He could have someone inspect the residence later to see if any clues turned up. Even if they found nothing, it didn't matter; if this group continued to meddle in the matter, they were bound to seek him out again. Setting down his briefcase, he curled his finger and tapped the back of his hand twice. The combat spider crawled obediently back, slipped into the case nestled inside the briefcase, and soon went quiet. At that very moment, a cargo truck was driving down the highway. Inside the truck bed sat the group of youths, joined now by a man in his forties with a mustache framing his mouth. The truck compartment was stuffy, with no view of the outside. Brother Xin could not help asking the man, "Mr. Zero, was it really necessary to leave in such a hurry?" Mr. Zero answered definitively, "It was. You shouldn't have provoked that expert." "Isn't he just an urban legend expert?" another youth blurted out. Mr. Zero said, "That expert has ties to the constabulary. After being attacked today, he'll likely have them comb through the nearby residential areas once he gets back. You stayed there for days, and you passed through so many places on your way back and forth, Su Xin—can you swear you didn't leave a single trace behind?" He folded his arms. "Finding you would be easy." Su Xin asked, "Could they follow the trail and find us now?" Mr. Zero said, "Don't worry, you're safe now that you've relocated. That house was just an abandoned property we used. The owner has no ties to us, so they won't find you." "Is that expert really that troublesome?" The other youth snorted and looked at Su Xin in dissatisfaction. "Brother Xin, if we'd known, you should've just gotten rid of him today." Mr. Zero shook his head. "That would have caused an even bigger stir. Besides, you might not have been able to kill him anyway. The man is a student of Wuyi Academy—his skills are far from ordinary." "He's right. He caught my arrow with his bare hand." Su Xin nodded solemnly. Even though he hadn't intended to hit Chen Chuan, the arrow had been snatched out of the air before it even reached him. And that was in an ambush situation. Such reflexes were chilling to contemplate. Had the man not been inside a car at the time, Su Xin doubted he could have escaped at all. "A student of Wuyi..." Hearing this, the young people felt not only a touch of dread, but also a hint of yearning—followed by even deeper resentment. If not for the Blood Mark Gang, perhaps they too could have been studying at Wuyi right now. The cargo truck drove straight out of the city and into the wilderness. Late into the night, it rolled into a campsite, evidently a stronghold for a wasteland smuggling ring. When Mr. Zero led the group inside, the people there regarded them with cold, detached stares—as if looking at mere cargo. It made them feel deeply uneasy. Mr. Zero led them into a large tent and gestured toward a rack ahead. "The weapons you asked for are right here." "What's in there?" The youths had expected formidable firearms, but all they saw were several sealed cases. They didn't look like explosives either, leaving them puzzled. Mr. Zero smiled, stepped forward, and opened them. When the contents were revealed, the young men stared in bewilderment. "What is this?" Inside the opened case lay an object resembling a silkworm chrysalis, with several spindly limbs sprouting around it. It seemed alive, squirming faintly in an unsettling manner. Had Chen Chuan and his companions been here, they would have recognized it as remarkably similar to the one they had recovered in the wasteland. Except here, there was more than just the single piece they had seen; several matching components were laid out alongside it. Something seemed to click for the youth, and he blurted out, "A biological implant?" Mr. Zero chuckled. "Correct. A newly released model, one of the Hunting series. A true instrument of slaughter. Is any of you willing to take the implant? There is an implant doctor right here in the camp who can perform the surgery immediately. With this, you will possess combat prowess rivaling that of a fighter." Su Xin stepped forward. "I'll—" But before he could finish, the youth who had argued with him cut in, "Let me do it!" "You...?" Su Xin looked at him, hesitating. "Xiao Xiao, have you thought this through?" Xiao Xiao said, "I have. Brother Xin, your marksmanship with the crossbow is sharp. Installing a close-quarters implant would be a waste of your skills. It's better if I take it. That way, our group will have two fighters. Besides, I'm in better physical shape than you, and I've practiced fighting arts since I was little. I should be able to handle it." Seeing Su Xin still wavering, he took another step forward. "Brother Xin, let it be me. I can do this." Seeing his insistence and recognizing the truth in his words, Su Xin finally yielded and agreed. "All right, Xiao Xiao, it's on you then. But keep this in mind: once this thing is inside you, you may have to live on drugs for the rest of your life." Xiao Xiao hesitated for only a fraction of a second before nodding vigorously. Gritting his teeth, he said, "I've made up my mind!" A ruthless glint flashed in his eyes. In a world like this, without martial strength, one couldn't even protect oneself, let alone friends and family. And with strength, what couldn't be done? Mr. Zero said, "There's really no need to worry. While you'll have to rely on anti-alienation drugs, I can supply an initial batch. Besides, the Blood Mark Gang has plenty. They made their fortune smuggling illicit drugs in the first place. I'll give you intel; you just need to hijack their shipments. You can use the drugs you loot—kill two birds with one stone, wouldn't you say?" "Done deal!" Xiao Xiao said impatiently, "Mr. Zero, please call the doctor over to implant them now. I'm ready!" Mr. Zero smiled. "Wait here." He stepped outside and found a man in his thirties wearing a white coat in another tent. "We have a test subject," he told him. "Perform the implant surgery now." "Voluntary?" "Voluntary." The implant doctor said, "Good. A willing subject won't have such violent emotional swings, so the survival odds are higher. That should allow for a thirty percent implant rate." "Only thirty percent?" The implant doctor said, "For a trained fighter, thirty percent would be low. But he's just an ordinary person. Thirty percent is already the absolute limit; any more and he'd die without question." "How long can he survive with thirty percent?" The implant doctor said, "Depends on his luck. If he's lucky, a year or two is no problem. If he's unlucky, two or three months? This model hasn't been tested many times, but that's the rough estimate." "Two or three months? That's plenty!" Mr. Zero said. "Go perform the surgery. The man is in that tent." "I'll prepare and head over." A moment later, the implant doctor emerged carrying a surgical kit. Led by Mr. Zero, he entered the large tent, after which the other youths all cleared out. After being thoroughly washed down with medicinal solution, Xiao Xiao was moved into an isolated partition within the tent. His limbs were secured with metal restraints. The masked implant doctor stepped in and began pulling on gloves. Lying on his stomach, Xiao Xiao felt intensely nervous. "Doctor, it will succeed, right?" The doctor looked at him, walked over, and inserted a long, slender tube into his nasal cavity. Xiao Xiao said, "Doctor, it tickles a bit." The doctor said nothing, only watching him. Moments later, Xiao Xiao twitched several times, his eyes rolled back, and he lost consciousness. The doctor reached out and pulled down a curtain resembling a shower stall, and various pre-mixed medicinal sprays began to mist down. In Center City, this would require a dedicated implant surgical suite. But this was the wilderness, and conditions were crude. Besides, this was merely a test subject, not a regular, high-paying client, so there was no need to be so particular. He carefully removed the still-wriggling biological implant from its case, set it aside, stepped forward, took up his scalpel, and cut into the back. Outside the tent, the group of youths waited through the night. Some could not resist falling asleep. Come morning, the rustle of the tent flap being lifted and the sound of approaching footsteps jolted them awake. They looked over intently, and every one of them gasped in shock. Xiao Xiao walked out from inside. His hair was completely shaved off, his eyes sunken deep into their sockets, and his body gaunt and emaciated, skin clinging tight to bone and flesh as if all moisture and fat had been drained away. Where his neck emerged above his collar, grayish-black implant tissue was clearly visible, embedded in his flesh. Alarmed by his appearance, Su Xin urgently asked the implant doctor who walked out alongside him, "Why is he like this? How did he end up looking this way?" The implant doctor replied in an emotionless tone, "It's normal consumption from the implant procedure. A couple of nutrient injections later will set him right." "Don't worry, I feel better than ever!" Xiao Xiao glanced around, borrowed a sharpened steel pipe from a companion, and bent the metal tube with a slight exertion of both hands. Mr. Zero appeared from somewhere and smiled. "It seems you've adapted well. The Hunting type doesn't emphasize brute strength, but it requires sufficient tissue resilience to support high speed. "Tomorrow there's still—" Xiao Xiao grinned broadly and opened his arms, brimming with confidence. "I can already hear my enemies screaming. Once the implant procedure is completely finished, I'm going to wipe out those bastards! And that bullshit expert—if he dares get in our way, I'll deal with him too!"