TCPUAAV Chapter 68

 

 

“This growth serum can help you regain your strength.”

 

Lansing handed over the blue vial, his gaze fixed intently on the young mermaid’s expression. “However, you once stopped using the growth serum on your own, causing your development to stagnate. Now, if you use a high-concentration serum again, your body will rapidly enter a growth phase, and the pain will be ten times worse than before.”

 

The young mermaid clenched his teeth, his pale lips covered in scars.

 

Even when he had faced death before, he had never felt so powerless. Looking at Nota, whose face was growing paler by the second, and at Ruan Jiao, who was clutching his sleeve tightly, his eyes hardened with resolve as he took the serum.

 

[Thank you.]

 

After typing out his message, he twisted open the vial and drank it without hesitation.

 

Ruan Jiao watched him anxiously.

 

Lansing, however, had an odd expression as he narrowed his eyes, closely observing his reaction.

 

The pain started at the tail, a sensation like tens of thousands of needles stabbing into him at once. At first, the young mermaid managed to endure it, but as the sharp, prickling agony spread through his entire body, he could only curl up tightly, biting down hard on his own fingers.

 

His exposed skin flushed red, veins bulging under his flesh. His entire body convulsed as if he were rolling over a bed of needles, with no part of him spared from the pain.

 

Even so, all he let out was a muffled whimper between clenched teeth, arms wrapped tightly around his tail, body curling in on itself.

 

It hurt. More than when his scales had been ripped off one by one.

 

Cold sweat dripped continuously, soaking the ground beneath him.

 

Beside him, Ruan Jiao anxiously waved his antennas, wanting to comfort him, but the moment his hand touched the young mermaid’s skin, he heard a gasp of unbearable pain.

 

Startled, Ruan Jiao quickly withdrew his hand, staring at him in distress.

 

After a brief moment of hesitation, he bent down and gently pressed his forehead against the mermaid’s.

 

His antennas swayed in a slow, rhythmic motion, and gradually, the mermaid’s painful whimpers quieted. The veins protruding from his skin slowly subsided, and his body relaxed bit by bit.

 

A long time passed before Ruan Jiao finally straightened up, exhaling a weary sigh. He wiped the sweat from his forehead, his antennas drooping weakly.

 

Meanwhile, the scales on the mermaid’s tail gradually faded away. The beautiful blue tail transformed—fusing into two long, slender legs.

 

Lansing watched the transformation of the two cubs, his gaze growing increasingly intrigued.

 

Only he knew the truth, he had never given 047 any kind of growth serum. The laboratory that had once experimented on artificial mermaids had long been destroyed, and the growth serum no longer existed. Even if the merfolk still had some remaining stock, he wouldn’t be carrying it around.

 

What he had given the boy was nothing more than an ordinary stamina supplement.

 

What allowed 047 to break through his limits was his sheer force of will.

 

Or rather, one could say it was the ignition of his spiritual energy.

 

And as for this unknown child, whose origins seemed deeply intertwined with the Zerg, the fact that he could soothe 047’s pain was likely also due to his spiritual energy.

 

Throughout the entire Galactic Empire, research on spiritual energy had been stagnant for years. Many even questioned whether it was real or just pseudo-science.

 

But only those who had personally experienced it understood—it was a power that existed on an entirely different level.

 

“The pain you’re feeling now… is just like mine back then,” Lansing murmured. “Looks like I was right.”

 

Back when the laboratory selected him from among countless experimental subjects and sent him to the merfolk’s sacred land, he finally understood his predetermined fate—to become a vessel for the Holy Son.

 

Among the merfolk, only the strongest could become the chieftain. And the offspring of the strongest were destined to inherit their formidable bloodline, becoming the next ruler.

 

Yet, the current Holy Son was born frail and sickly. The merfolk chief had kept this a closely guarded secret, known only to two of his most trusted elders.

 

To restore the Holy Son’s strength, the chieftain spared no effort. In the end, he secretly established a laboratory, using the Holy Son’s genes to create numerous experimental subjects, each one an attempt to craft a healthy, powerful new body for him.

 

According to what Lansing later discovered, the chieftain had obtained a method—somehow—to extract a person’s spiritual essence. The plan was to remove the Holy Son’s spiritual essence from his weak body and transplant it into a chosen, stronger vessel.

 

But what they had failed to anticipate was that the sickly Holy Son wasn’t just weak in body, his spiritual essence was just as fragile.

 

When Lansing awoke from the excruciating pain, realizing that someone was trying to consume his very existence, he did not hesitate to turn the tables, devouring the other instead.

 

It was an indescribable sensation.

 

The pain of forcibly merging spiritual essences was a hundred—no, a thousand—times worse than any physical torment.

 

And when he completely devoured the Holy Son’s essence, for a moment, he felt as if he had become the other person, experiencing all of his memories and emotions.

 

But once his mind cleared, he knew with absolute certainty—He was still Experimental Subject 074. Not Lansing Libienne[mfn]Basically, all the ‘clones’ are Lansing Libienne/the Holy Son since they’re made from his genes. Even our Yuebai is technically Lansing Libienne[/mfn].

 

He possessed all of Lansing Libienne’s memories.

 

Subconscious memories on a spiritual level were often even more enduring and vivid than surface memories. In some ways, he understood Lansing Libienne better than Lansing himself ever could.

 

And as it happened, the identity of Lansing Libienne could grant him everything he desired.

 

So everything naturally fell into place. Over the years, he played the role of Lansing Libienne flawlessly. His supposed father—the merfolk chieftain—had poured everything into nurturing him.

 

As the Holy Son of the merfolk, his research into spiritual entities also progressed much more smoothly.

 

His long-held hypothesis was correct: when a spiritual entity’s power was strong enough, it could break free from the constraints of the physical body.

 

“You succeeded.”

 

Lansing crouched down, looking at him condescendingly, his tone laced with mockery. “Relying on others in moments of danger is the most foolish thing you can do.”

 

A memory surfaced—when he returned to the merfolk, only to discover through indirect probing that the laboratory had been completely destroyed and all experimental subjects had been eliminated. The frustration he felt back then still burned within him.

 

Tossing a coat over the young mermaid—now in fully human form—Lansing stood up and picked up the unconscious little fox. He urged, “Now that you’ve recovered, keep up.”

 

The young mermaid was still in shock over the fact that he now had legs. He hurriedly grabbed the coat, wrapping it around his waist, and stumbled forward on unsteady legs, awkwardly following after Lansing.

 

When they passed by a changing room, Lansing stopped and frowned at the sight of his disheveled appearance. “Find some clothes and change.”

 

Flushing with embarrassment, the young mermaid nodded quickly and rushed into the changing room.

 

The room was primarily used by the teachers, but he thickened his skin and rummaged through the lockers, eventually finding a set of black athletic wear to put on.

 

After gaining legs, his body had grown significantly taller. The loose-fitting clothes draped over him, slightly baggy but just the right length.

 

He tugged uncomfortably at the hem of the shirt, took a deep breath, and stepped out.

 

Looking at the unconscious little fox in Lansing’s arms, his expression turned anxious once again.

 

[We need to find medicine to treat Nota’s wounds.]

 

“The infirmary is too far, and carrying them makes movement difficult,” Lansing said, glancing at Ruan Jiao, who was trailing closely beside 047. His eyes narrowed slightly. “We’ll drop them off at the shelter first, then look for medicine.”

 

Then, as if amused by something, he shot the young mermaid a smirking glance. “You didn’t think this was over, did you?”

 

[What?] The young mermaid looked at him in confusion.

 

Lansing drew the long blade strapped to his back and tossed it to him. “Next, you’re going to learn how to kill the pesky bugs.” His smile turned wicked. “It’s actually quite simple. Killing a Zerg isn’t any harder than killing a human.”

 

The young mermaid visibly paled but still gripped the blade tightly.

 

On their way to the cub shelter, the three of them ran into a teacher who was cautiously searching the area.

 

The teacher breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing Ruan Jiao and strode toward them.

 

The evacuation had been rushed, and in the chaos, they hadn’t noticed when the three cubs got separated. It wasn’t until they finished settling the others and did a headcount that they realized three were missing. Left with no choice, they carefully avoided the Zergs as they ventured out to search.

 

“We’ve moved to another underground shelter.” The teacher’s gaze swept over the young mermaid—now appearing as a teenage boy—then landed on the unconscious and injured little fox. He opened his mouth to ask something but hesitated, unsure of how to phrase it.

 

“Just take us there first,” Lansing cut him off, leaving no room for further questions.

 

The teacher nodded and quickly led them to the temporary underground shelter.

 

After handing the little fox over to the teachers stationed there and instructing Ruan Jiao to look after her, the young mermaid followed Lansing out, step by step.

 

*

 

Meanwhile, on the other side of the battlefield, Mo Li had arrived at the factory with all his men, regrouping with Ruan Shiqing.

 

The factory’s defensive shield was fully activated, temporarily keeping the Zergs at bay.

 

Mo Li took stock of the weapons stored in the warehouse, distributed them among the team, and led the charge to fight back.

 

They had numbers on their side, and with powerful firearms in hand, they felt significantly more confident in facing the Zergs.

 

Ruan Shiqing remained in the control room, monitoring the situation outside the factory and staying ready to relay crucial updates to Mo Li.

 

He launched a series of scouting drones. Some were crushed under the Zerg’s feet the moment they left the shield, while others were swatted out of the air. But several managed to ascend higher, providing him with a clear view of the battlefield.

 

The outer city was completely overrun.

 

Zergs filled the skies and the ground, swarming in every direction. The clashing of their armored shells and segmented limbs produced a harsh, grating noise, one that carried a mental-disturbance effect.

 

Ruan Shiqing continuously switched between camera feeds, analyzing the situation across different areas.

 

After a long moment, his eyes narrowed, and he opened a communication channel with Marlin.

 

“The Zergs are all converging around the cub school. Something there is attracting them,” he said gravely. “Mr. Rong, Hector, and the cubs are all in that area.”

 

Mo Li looked at the real-time footage Ruan Shiqing sent him.

 

The Zergs formed a spiraling vortex, and at its center was the cub school.

 

He exhaled sharply. “There are too many. Even with Mr. Rong and Hector there, they won’t be able to hold out for long. We can’t kill them all.”

 

Ruan Shiqing switched to the anti-reconnaissance system, studying the countless Zerg pouring into B3024 from the dark expanse of space.

 

“We have to cut off their reinforcements,” he said. “B3024 has a space station, right? It should have a defensive system. An asteroid-class shield should be able to temporarily block the incoming waves.”

 

“There is one,” Mo Li confirmed after a brief moment of thought. “In the inner city.”

 

Ruan Shiqing’s eyes darkened. “Then we’re going to the inner city.”

 

 

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Must our cubs all grow up after experience a traumatic moment or what????? It started with Nota, then Heli, and Yuebai!!

 

(Would it kill Lansing to just be honest and explain clearly how it works instead of resorting to manipulation lol???)

 

(Also, pls don’t ask me what an asteroid-class shield is… I have no idea how it works lol orz)

 

Thanks for reading!

For every three ko-fis, I will upload a bonus chapter~