Chapter 48: Half-Beastman

Fourteen minutes ago, in a ward of the base’s primary medical room.

He Shizhi hung up the IV drip with practiced ease, deftly securing the bandage on Zhong Qing’s hand and swabbing it with alcohol. But the moment the needle pierced the vein on the back of Zhong Qing’s hand, Doctor He clearly heard someone behind her suck in a sharp breath.

What a hopeless case.

He Shizhi couldn’t help shaking her head, thinking that the young people she encountered these days were all more… what was that term again?

Oh, right. Lovestruck idiots.

Xie Pingzhi, standing nearby, couldn’t hold back any longer. Her heart taut as a bowstring, she took a cautious step forward. “Doctor He, what did that headshake mean? Is Miss Zhong’s condition not looking good? Or did we get here too late?”

He Shizhi shot her a bland glance. “Mm-hmm, exactly. If you’d come a day later, she would’ve healed on her own.”

Xie Pingzhi relaxed at once. She let out a sigh, half-chiding. “Come on, Auntie He, we’re so close now—why tease me like that? How many days until Miss Zhong’s stomach is better?”

“This is acute gastroenteritis triggered by raw, cold food. At the very least, she’ll need to stay here on the drip through tonight,” He Shizhi replied, her tone turning serious as she got back to business. “Alright, it’s about time for me to head out. My apprentice will come relieve me soon. Little Xie, just find her if you need anything.”

Xie Pingzhi nodded eagerly. “Got it, got it! Take care, Auntie He. Sorry for dragging you out so late.”

“Save it. You say that every time. If you’re really sorry, stop bringing Miss Zhong fish to eat raw.” He Shizhi waved her off and pushed through the door.

The snow-white ward fell utterly quiet, save for the sliver of moonlight slipping through the two-finger-width opening in the glass window. A projector murmured world news in the background as Zhong Qing leaned pale-faced against the headboard, her eyes half-closed.

Drip by drip, the medicine flowed from the IV bag. Having seen He Shizhi off, Xie Pingzhi pulled up a chair with light steps and sat down. She looked guiltily at the frail Zhong Qing. “Miss Zhong, I’m truly sorry. I don’t know much about picking seafood. I had no idea that fish today couldn’t be eaten raw.”

Zhong Qing cracked her eyes open, her long lashes fluttering faintly. A glimmer of tears seemed to shimmer at the corners of her narrow eyes.

“It’s not your fault. I was just too greedy,” Zhong Qing managed a full, if feeble, smile. She tried to sit up a little straighter, but even that slight shift triggered a violent coughing fit, as if she were hacking up her very innards.

Xie Pingzhi, stiff with unease, froze for a split second before leaping up to pat Zhong Qing’s back, her voice laced with worry. “Miss Zhong, please don’t get up. Doctor He said you need to rest.”

It took a good while for Zhong Qing’s coughing to subside. She accepted the warm water Xie Pingzhi offered, her voice barely above a whisper. “You’ve already gone to so much trouble coming out this late to help me. Thank you.”

Before Xie Pingzhi could respond, Zhong Qing dipped her head to sip the water. Her seaweed-long black hair cascaded forward with the motion, strands draping over the slight dip in her collar, hinting at a glimpse of pale softness beneath.

Xie Pingzhi averted her eyes at once, chanting madly in her mind: Heavenly Father, grant me calm even if the sky falls—let me stay serene, Amen!

Xie Pingzhi checked her watch; quite some time had passed. She was debating how to say goodbye to Zhong Qing when Miss Zhong’s gaze shifted ever so slightly from the bed.

“Are you still busy with something?” Zhong Qing asked softly.

“Ah, not really, not really. Well, if I said yes, then yeah, maybe a little,” Xie Pingzhi stammered, her secret laid bare.

“Cough cough… Then go take care of it. It’s so late—you need to rest too, take care of your… cough cough… take care of yourself. I’m fine now, cough cough…”

Hearing this, Xie Pingzhi hesitated all over again. “You’re really okay? Then, Miss Zhong… I’ll come check on you after I’m done.”

“No need. I can take care of myself,” Zhong Qing replied with an understanding smile. “But A-Xie, are you off to handle a mission later?”

Xie Pingzhi, shrugging into her coat, answered honestly. “Yeah, I have a drink planned with Xiao Qiu.”

Zhong Qing: “…”

Oblivious blockhead. Five years, and you still haven’t learned a thing?!

Suppressing the urge to thwack Xie Pingzhi, Zhong Qing forced a gentle smile, about to say something considerate. But in that instant, a firework-sharp crack exploded outside the window. A silver-gray skull erupted in a blast overhead!

“Boom—”

The building shuddered like a mild earthquake. The ward’s lights flickered and died in a heartbeat. Every power circuit cut out without warning; even the ever-lit laboratory plunged into darkness, leaving only the ghostly moonlight.

In the absolute silence that followed, the entire base erupted like an oil pan hit by a spark! Masked figures in bulletproof black stormed in without a care, gunfire ripping through the air like a pack of wolves on the hunt. Shattering glass mingled with muffled groans!

Shrapnel flew. In a flash, Xie Pingzhi flung open her coat, wrapping Zhong Qing tightly and yanking her off the bed. With swift precision, she slammed the window shut, locked the door, drew her blade, and crouched beside Zhong Qing.

Her incomplete Shame Grace Instinct erupted in a rush of assassin-silent winds threading into the night. Xie Pingzhi’s nerves sang taut as she gauged the faint shifts in airflow for intruders.

Time raced by. Silence reigned around them.

“Aether, Aether—why no response?” Zhong Qing huddled in the corner under the coat, only daring to speak now that danger seemed past. Her voice trembled.

Xie Pingzhi glanced at the unresponsive Will Ring. “Someone’s hacked Aether’s core. There’s a traitor in the base!”

“What do we do? All the action specialists are out at the branch divisions this time of night. Should we call for emergency backup?”

“Don’t worry, don’t be scared. Aether will take out the intruder soon. The base has a Defensive Talisman Array—no one can run wild in the Exotic Beast Handling Base.”

Zhong Qing nodded, her face naturally taking on a look of delicate worry. She clutched Xie Pingzhi’s coat hem. “Then later, your Xiao—mmph!”

Without so much as glancing at her, Xie Pingzhi clapped a hand over Zhong Qing’s mouth, whispering warily, “Shh—someone’s coming.”

Zhong Qing: Then why cover my nose!!!

But there was no time left for Zhong Qing to resist. A thunderous barrage of footsteps suddenly erupted outside the corridor—heavy as boulders slamming into the earth, shaking the entire second floor of the ward.

“Thud!”

So deep, so crushing, like a massive bear charging down the hallway. The airflow churned wildly in the intruder’s wake. Realizing what was coming, Xie Pingzhi slowly tightened her grip on the knife at her waist.

“Thud thud!”

Closer and closer it drew, as if it had caught the scent of the living and was barreling straight for their room.

“Thud thud thud!”

It halted.

In an instant, Xie Pingzhi and the intruder launched themselves forward together! The thick door of black oak splintered at waist height under the force of the charge, shards of wood exploding outward amid flashes of steel and claws, the air ringing with the sharp snap of breaking strings and ripping silk.

Xie Pingzhi felt her blade bite into coarse fur, but there was no time to process it amid the life-or-death frenzy. The opponent’s first strike had missed, yet it pressed on seamlessly with a punch, its momentum flowing endlessly like the coils of Taiji.

How could this be? Their clash had been mid-air, with no ground for leverage—yet it still managed to counter?

Reacting on instinct, Xie Pingzhi retreated a step and raised her elbow to block, but what raked past her wrist wasn’t human flesh. It was three razor-sharp claws, fierce as any beast’s!

A remnant of the Project Y!

Xie Pingzhi knew at once that her foe was no longer human. The twisted enhancements of the Project Y put it far beyond what she could handle unarmed. Yet she refused to yield ground. Data from the disrupted airflow surged into her mind in waves. She calculated in a flash and struck true with an open-palm thrust the next instant. A sharp crack echoed as the intruder’s head whipped back at an unnatural angle.

No time for complacency—Xie Pingzhi flung a knife, her razor-edged waist blade arcing toward the creature’s throat. A dull thud rang out in the air, black blood erupting in a spray.

Xie Pingzhi had just begun to exhale when the fallen intruder’s back revealed a second assailant—a gaunt, spectral shadow. When had this one appeared?!

No chance for thought. The lanky phantom lunged straight at her, its sword-like fangs of snow-white ivory snapping toward her throat. Xie Pingzhi recoiled in horror.

“Bang—”

A gunshot cracked from flat ground, sending the shadow tumbling crookedly to the floor halfway through its pounce.

Xie Pingzhi looked up to see Shi Zui wielding a massive sniper rifle.

“Captain?”

Shi Zui nodded. “It’s me. One moment.”

She discarded the rifle and tapped rapidly at the Awakening Ring on her wrist. Little Cat’s solemn meow chimed in, and within a second, the medical area’s lights blazed back to life.

“Director Yi, C2 District confirmed secure,” Shi Zui reported gravely.

“Acknowledged.” A cold female voice replied from the comms.

At the same moment, intricate golden lines shimmered to life across the labyrinthine paths of C2 District, twinkling like a field of stars. The ancient Rune Formation activated, channeling the power of seven alchemical metals that had slumbered for thousands of years. A faint, eggshell-thin glow enveloped the entire district overhead.

“This is…?” Xie Pingzhi blinked, her head spinning. She hadn’t realized the situation had spiraled this far.

“The ultimate defense, forged by the first Word Manifestation Awakener—a flawless fusion of Rune Formation and Alchemy,” Shi Zui confirmed with a nod. “Hundreds of Saviors have breached the Base, at least. Their objective’s unclear, but tonight’s breach is no small matter.”

“And Aether?”

“Not fully online. Power systems need manual override. Director Yi’s pulling in Action Division teams from nearby sectors. Right now, it’s just us and four other squads with any real firepower in the zone. Zhouzhou’s holding B District—go reinforce her.”

Xie Pingzhi nodded and snatched up the heavy sniper rifle to charge out, but paused and whipped back around. “What about Xiao Qiu?”

Shi Zui cracked a smile. “Stray rounds are a killer inside the Base. I told her to hunker down by that Black Stone outside—it’s perfectly—”

“Why won’t you all leave me alone—!” A desperate scream pierced the air, drowned out by the lion-like roar of Augusta’s engines. Ye Jingqiu rocketed away on the motorcycle, a swarm of Intruders hot on her tail.

Xie Pingzhi: “Ah… at least Xiao Qiu looks safe for now?”

The two women locked eyes, then unleashed their Instinct in unison, vaulting toward the outer wall without a second’s hesitation!