Chapter 102: Night Investigation of the Laboratory

"Awesome! Truly awesome!"

"This is the true way of medicine!"

"The Hall of Hundred Herbs has really hit a snag this time!"

Zhou Mu's teeth clenched so hard they made a clicking sound, and the carefully maintained mask shattered completely.

He stared fixedly at Zhang Jun; his expression held not just unwillingness, but more so an incredulous fear.

That evil seed was something he went to great trouble to obtain from the "Blood Manual", and it's said even ancient martial arts masters are helpless against it, yet Zhang Jun... actually refined it with his bare hands?

This kid...... could it really be......

"Chief Zhou," Zhang Jun suddenly turned his head, looking at him, "Lost, are you convinced?" His voice wasn't loud, yet it clearly carried across the now-quiet hall.

Zhou Mu took several deep breaths, forcibly suppressing his surging anger and fear, squeezing out a smile uglier than crying: "Doctor Zhang, your skill is superior; Hall of Hundred Herbs, we admit defeat."

Mo Tianhe snorted, leaned on his cane and walked to Zhang Jun's side: "Kid, you've expended a lot of vital energy, haven't you? Rest a bit."

Zhang Jun nodded, ignored Zhou Mu, and turned to the boy who had just awakened: "Little brother, do you remember how you ended up like this?"

The boy shook his head, bewildered, then furrowed his brows, trying to recall: "I... I seem to have gone to play in the suburbs... there was an abandoned research facility there... I made a bet with friends to see who dared to go in... and then... then I remember nothing."

"Research facility? What does it look like?" Zhang Jun asked.

"It's quite large...... on the iron gate...... there's a strange symbol...... a circle enclosing a triangle......" the boy said haltingly.

Zhang Jun and Mo Tianhe exchanged a glance.

"The old research base of Ever Auspicious." Mo Tianhe lowered his voice.

Zhang Jun's heart jolted violently!

The suburban abandoned factory, the catnip of Ever Auspicious and the overseas biotech company that Su Muqing discovered, the black-clad men of the Cold Poison Sect, the secret experiments of the Blood Manual...

All the clues, at this moment, pointed entirely to that research facility!

Seeing the boy speak more and more, Zhou Mu's face turned extremely grim; he hurried forward to interrupt: "The match is over, the patient needs to rest......"

"Zhou Mu." Zhang Jun gave him a cold glance: "The Blood Talisman Curse, a thing of the Cold Poison Sect. When did your Hall of Hundred Herbs start dabbling in such filth?"

Zhou Mu's body stiffened, a flicker of unease crossing his face: "What is Doctor Zhang saying? I don't understand."

"Not understanding doesn't matter." Zhang Jun straightened his body; though exhausted enough to be spiteful, his aura didn't diminish in the slightest: "One day you'll realize how deep a mire you've stepped into."

Zhou Mu stepped back half a step under his gaze, barely maintaining composure: "Today's matter ends here. Doctor Zhang has won; the Hall of Hundred Herbs concedes. The medical path is still long; we'll meet again."

Having said that, he turned and walked away with a cold face, his back stiff as a plank of wood.

As Zhou Mu left the venue, the people in the hall gradually dispersed.

Mo Tianhe arranged for someone to send the boy to the hospital for proper care, and also sent two Mo Clan disciples to watch him covertly.

Zhang Jun found a corner to sit down and regulate his breath to recover.

"Suburban research facility." Lin Xue appeared beside him at some point, handing him a cup of warm water: "We need to go take a look."

Zhang Jun took the cup, sipped, and said softly: "Zhou Mu won't just let this go. After suffering such a loss this time, he'll surely go find the people of the Blood Manual."

Lin Xue nodded: "I've already had people keep close watch on the Hall of Hundred Herbs and Ever Auspicious. Su Muqing will also help."

Zhang Jun set down the cup, lifted his head: "We'll go tonight. Before they can react, we'll strike first."

"You just expended so much......"

"It's fine." Zhang Jun interrupted her: "The blue crystal and your help have restored a lot. Moreover......"

He extended his hand; a small cluster of pure yang flame rose in his palm, more condensed and pure than ever before.

"I've seen the secret within that evil seed."

Lin Xue's stance paused slightly: "What did you discover?"

Zhang Jun retracted the flame, lowering his voice further: "That thing isn't simple sorcery. It's a hybrid of some sort—biotechnology and ancient secret arts combined. Someone is conducting extremely dangerous experiments, trying to fuse the power of ancient martial arts with modern technology."

Lin Xue's face changed: "So Ever Auspicious and that overseas biotech company......"

"Eighty percent likely it's part of this plan." Zhang Jun stood up; the wound on his shoulder throbbed faintly, but he ignored it: "No matter who's pulling the strings behind the scenes, their scheme is definitely not small. We must act swiftly."

Lin Xue didn't waste words, turned and left: "I'll go prepare things. In two hours, we'll meet at the Mo Clan gate."

Zhang Jun watched her neat departing back, his heart feeling somewhat heavy.

At the final stage of refining that evil seed, he caught a faint, extremely subtle energy fluctuation.

That feeling was almost identical to the energy pulse in the cave deep in the snow mountains.

The vehicle provided by the Mo Clan slid silently into the depths of the abandoned industrial zone, disappearing into a thick shadow.

The car lights went out.

All around was dead silent, only the wind blowing through the ruined factory buildings emitted a mournful, wailing sound.

"Looking at the map, the main entrance has the tightest guard."

Zhang Jun's finger slid across the tablet screen; the faint light illuminated his tense profile.

"The side ventilation duct is the only breach point."

"The Mo Clan people are on standby outside. If we move, the signal will be synchronized to Su Muqing."

Lin Xue checked the small pouch at her waist; inside were several specially made ice needles, plus a highly compressed nutrient.

"Let's go."

She lowered the brim of her hat, revealing only a cold, hard jawline.

The two moved extremely swiftly, their figures almost blending into the broken walls and ruins.

The research facility's outer walls were covered in mottled rust, and the wire mesh bore a faded "No Entry" warning sign.

In the corner, the red dot of the surveillance camera blinked regularly.

Zhang Jun cocked his ear to listen, then pointed ahead at the corner.

"Two, fixed."

Lin Xue flipped her wrist.

Two points of cold starlight slipped from his hand, sank into darkness.

Thud, thud.

After two extremely faint thuds of hitting the ground, there was no further sound.

The ventilation duct's entrance was heavily rusted, barely enough for one person to crawl inside.

Zhang Jun went ahead, Lin Xue followed behind.

Inside the duct, a smell of mixed iron rust and old dust hung in the narrow, stifling space, making it hard to breathe.

They crawled for about ten minutes.

Ahead, a downward branch appeared.

"This is it." Zhang Jun kept his voice extremely low, then slipped down first.

Below was a fairly large but empty underground parking lot.

Several emergency lights gave off a ghastly white glow.

In the air hung a faint, sweet-bloody smell that even disinfectant couldn't mask, with a hint of chill.

"This way."

Lin Xue pointed to an inconspicuous alloy door.

The access control system had already been sabotaged from inside.

Beyond the door lay a long white corridor, brightly lit, glaring.

Every ten meters, a surveillance probe was installed.

The two kept to the shadows at the base of the wall, moving quickly.

Zhang Jun stretched his senses to the maximum, catching any slight sound and airflow fluctuation.

They turned a corner.

Ahead, the view suddenly opened up.

A huge ring-shaped space.

Behind the thick bulletproof glass wall lay a huge laboratory in operation!