Chapter 60

Translated by Wangmama

Chapter 60

Lu Yan held Tang Xian'an's tail and drifted into a blissful sleep.

Exhaustion had been clawing at him for hours, but a deep-seated wariness had kept him awake, even driving him to stab his own leg to stay alert. With Tang Xian'an's arrival, a long-forgotten sense of safety finally washed over him, and he surrendered to it.

The system was heartbroken. [I see how it is. My endless warnings can't compete with this overgrown lizard just sitting next to you. All my efforts, wasted.]

Lu Yan felt that wasn't a fair comparison.

After all, if real danger struck, the system couldn't exactly pop out of his head to save him.

His breathing deepened, slowed. The knife he'd been clutching so tightly slipped from his fingers and sank into the water.

Tang Xian'an, not daring to move with Lu Yan leaning against him, discreetly flicked the tip of his tail, hooked the dagger, and deposited it safely on the bank.

While Lu Yan slept, the evolution continued its slow, inexorable work.

His scales hardened from pliable to resilient. Fins, edged with a metallic sheen, emerged from the junction of his tail and waist—one along his belly, another along his back. Even his hair grew noticeably longer.

Tang Xian'an's gaze settled on Lu Yan's neck, on the raised, brownish scar that circled it like a brutal necklace. A flicker of cold violence passed through his eyes before his expression smoothed back into calm.

Summer days dawn early. A pale light already edged the horizon, visible through the cave mouth.

The voice of the communications officer crackled in his earpiece. "Team Leader Tang. The captain of the 981 is preparing to return to port. They can't locate you. What is your position? Research suggests this is a pocket space created by the underground city's ruler. It will collapse before midnight tonight. The next opening won't be for another half-month."

"I know," Tang Xian'an replied, his voice low. Then, with utter disregard for protocol, he severed the communication.

Tang Xian'an possessed an incomplete relationship with time.

Incomplete, because the time he had was like a river rushing to the sea—it only flowed forward, never back.

He understood the preciousness of each moment better than anyone.

Yet right now, he wanted to do nothing. He was content to let these hours slip away, wasted by any practical measure.

Tonight, he didn't care about mankind. He only wanted to keep watch over Lu Yan.

Lu Yan wasn't unconscious for long. As his spiritual power threshold rose, the duration of his fusion with pollutants shortened each time.

He opened his eyes, the sudden light making him blink.

The first thing he registered was the tail in his arms.

Black. Soft.

His own lower body was still a fishtail, slightly longer now, and it had, quite unscientifically, coiled itself once around Tang Xian'an's leg.

The system fumed. [Coiling around him like that. Shameless.]

"..."

Lu Yan's mind had cleared from its previous, strangely agitated state. His thoughts were his own again.

Their eyes met. Slowly, Lu Yan unwound his arms from the tail. His fishtail followed suit.

The golden tail was substantial. It still felt foreign to him. He gave it an experimental twitch. The tail slapped the water's surface with surprising force, sending a spray that drenched them both.

The system narrated flatly. [Wilderness. Non-human entities. Wet t-shirt contest. AVI file.]

Lu Yan fantasized about throttling it.

"How long?"

[Twelve hours. It's 3 PM. You can still catch the last ride home.]

"You're awake?" Tang Xian'an asked. "Any discomfort?"

Not once had he questioned why Lu Yan had grown a tail. It was common for Awakened to exhibit minor aberration traits, though the process was usually gradual. A full tail appearing overnight was rare.

"I'm fine," Lu Yan answered calmly.

He instinctively reached for the pocket where he kept his mint candies, only to find his trousers had split apart, unable to contain his new form. Their contents were long gone.

Tang Xian'an caught the motion. He retrieved a cigarette case from his own jacket pocket, flipped it open, and offered it to Lu Yan.

Lu Yan took one. "Thanks."

As a man raised in a society that equated adulthood with certain vices, claiming he'd never tried smoking would be a lie. He simply didn't like it, not that he couldn't.

Tang Xian'an searched for a lighter, came up empty, and sighed. He took a cigarette for himself, brought it to his lips, and gave the tip a soft exhale.

Dragon's breath.

A spark ignited at the tip. Half the cigarette vanished instantly.

If the communications officer knew Tang Xian'an was using his precious dragon's breath to light a smoke, he'd be howling about irresponsible monarchs and banging his head against the wall in protest.

Tang Xian'an leaned in and touched the glowing tip to the cigarette between Lu Yan's lips.

His gaze was focused, utterly single-minded. The action itself was performed with a casual naturalness, as if he were completely oblivious to the charged atmosphere.

Lu Yan wanted to smoke. He provided the flame.

That was all.

It looked like a cigarette, but instead of tar and nicotine, a sharp, clean mint flavor flooded Lu Yan's senses—identical to his usual sedative.

Lu Yan clamped down on the filter with his newly sharpened shark-like teeth. They itched. He wanted to bite something.

Especially since Tang Xian'an's eyelashes were quite long. In the faint light, they cast shadows over his eyelids. His nose was straight and high-bridged, the angles just right.

It made Lu Yan's heart itch too.

Tang Xian'an's demeanor shifted back to professional. "The tail should be controllable. Try to retract it. Just think about it withdrawing."

He demonstrated with his own. The draconic tail slid back along his spine until only a short stump remained, lying flat against the small of his back.

Lu Yan couldn't help sneaking a few glances, mainly curious if Tang Xian'an's pants would have a hole. He was mildly disappointed to find a very practical, scientifically placed zipper in the back.

Lu Yan focused. His two human legs reformed.

Tang Xian'an stiffened for a second, then swiftly turned his head away. He shrugged off his jacket and draped it over Lu Yan's shoulders.

The system was impressed. [Outdoor exhibitionism. AVI. You gays really know how to have fun!]

Lu Yan took a deep breath. "Shut up."

S City.

The atmosphere inside the Pollution Disease Control Center was heavy, oppressive.

The mermaid club case was massive, had operated for decades right under their noses in S City's vicinity. The implications of what it entailed were staggering, depending on how deep one dared to dig.

Headquarters had dispatched a special investigation team. The investigators were administrative, but their executive officer was Tang Xuan'an.

In other words, anyone implicated was as good as dead. Unless they could defeat the Tyrant himself.

With the recent purge, staff walked on eggshells, voices hushed.

Back in S City, Lu Yan's phone finally regained signal.

Zhou Qiming had flooded WeChat with messages, his tone growing progressively more despondent.

The latest read: "If you don't want to see me, this humble one can roll away. I suppose I'm just not worthy. Is that it, Yan-chan?"

Lu Yan raised a brow, scrolled up, and discovered the cause. After two days of calculation, his newly upgraded "Clairaudient" account had finally tallied its contribution points, rocketing straight to the top of the Intermediate Rank Awakened leaderboard.

Contribution Points: 108.7.

Key Achievements: Participated in two A-Class events, one B-Class event, one C-Class event. Played a significant role.

Those who might have grumbled fell silent after seeing the "A-Class events." To protect operational security, the forum didn't list specifics. But among a sea of "B-Class" and "C-Class" evaluations, Lu Yan's two "A-Class" entries stood out starkly.

A-Class: The Wall of Resentment / Dream-Eater; Luochuan Botanical Garden.

B-Class: Longnu Lake.

C-Class: Parasitic Fish.

Now, having emerged from the mermaid club—judging by the pollutant density there—he'd probably add another "C-Class event" to his record. And since he was the primary resolver, the point boost wouldn't be small.

"Goddamn it, this is just the intermediate rankings!? Are newbies this insane now!?"

"Times have changed, sir. The number of Pollution Disease cases back in our day versus now…"

"More than that, I want to know how the hell he's still alive???"

Because Lu Yan hadn't immediately selected anonymity, his private message inbox was nearly bursting.

He skimmed a couple of lines, closed the mailbox with disinterest, logged into the forum, and finally toggled the anonymous setting.

A little late, but done.

That same day, Lu Yan booked a train ticket back to K City.

The system prodded. [Not saying goodbye to your dog-dragon? He clearly misses you.]

Lu Yan frowned at the bizarre nickname, yet found it oddly fitting.

He hefted his suitcase, thought for a moment. "No."

[Why not?]

Lu Yan gave an ambiguous answer. "Because I'm not strong enough yet."

Not strong enough.

That made you someone who needed protection. Or someone others saw as an accessory.

He would become "Tang Xian'an's lover," not Lu Yan.

Far away in A City, Gong Weibin sat at his desk, carefully drafting a letter of resignation.

His luck had clearly taken a turn for the worse.

Gong Weibin was not a superstitious man, but first the Luochuan Botanical Garden was wiped out, and now his stable source of experimental subjects, the mermaid club, had been cleansed. Less than two months apart, these events had nearly obliterated two decades of careful work.

The boss was dead, but the manager, Yang Tianxin, and the surgical staff on the cruise ship—they all knew pieces of the trade. Not to mention the furious mermen now swimming free.

Gong Weibin was no fool; he'd never participated directly.

But the net was closing. It was time to disappear.

Between the mermaid club and him, there were at least three or four intermediaries. And none of them knew who their own superior was.

But nothing stays hidden forever. Gong Weibin suspected he had already drawn the attention of certain parties.

Better to resign proactively than wait to be cornered.

He removed his reading glasses with a sigh. "The last time I was forced out of a Research Institute was when Director Qiao was still alive."

After that, Gong Weibin had kept his head down for a long time, biding his time until Qiao Yu passed away. Only then did he return to the Institute, starting again from the bottom as a junior researcher.

But he was, after all, a high-level talent with an Aptitude score of 104. As the older generation of researchers gradually died off, Gong Weibin finally consolidated his power.

"However, the First Research Institute has served its purpose," Gong Weibin mused, his gaze steady. "I've already completed the experiment I wanted most here."

Just a few days prior, Gong Weibin had performed the final modification on Subject 01. This procedure was particularly risky, tied as it was to an old incident.

If it had failed, even as the Director of the First Research Institute and one of the thirteen key figures on the Roundtable, he might not have survived the collective wrath of the entire organization.

It made no scientific sense that Tang Xian'an had managed to kill his own deputy team leader back then.

Because the deputy's Aptitude was ranked 29: "Phoenix."

Yet when the body was delivered to the First Research Institute for attempted resuscitation, the deputy was clinically deceased.

The Institute's official determination was that the deputy's cells had been completely incinerated by the dragon's breath, erasing the unique properties of the "Phoenix" Aptitude.

……

Perhaps because he was born in the late 20th century, Gong Weibin retained many old-fashioned habits.

He still insisted on using a fountain pen for important documents.

He blew softly on the resignation letter, waiting patiently for the ink to dry.

Gong Weibin stood, hands clasped behind his back, and walked to a blank wall.

He pressed his fingerprint to the coded lock. The wall descended with a low hum, revealing an empty Laboratory behind it.

The air still carried the metallic tang of blood and the sharp sting of formaldehyde.

At the far end of the lab stood a transparent life-support pod.

A web of intravenous lines snaked into the body of the man suspended within.

His form had been modified. It wasn't just enhanced flesh and bone, but integrated with mechanical components.

Compared to their last meeting, Gong Weibin looked even more aged, his spine unable to straighten fully.

"The most powerful warrior should not merely be a product of evolution, but of technology."

"Ordinary humans are an obsolete species. The Awakened are merely a transitional phase. Only high-level pollutants represent the perfect form of evolution! For humanity, this is 'pollution,' but for the natural world, it is an unparalleled, divinely bestowed evolution!"

A fanatical light ignited in Gong Weibin's eyes. "I will prove my path is the correct one. A pity. With Subject 18's Aptitude, I could have gone much further."

Subject 18, Lu Cheng. Current designation: A-Class Pollutant. Aptitudes: Foresight, Hypnosis.

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