Chapter 7: I'll take on the company alone!

The restaurant that used to be noisy with people is now in utter chaos, bloodstains covering the floor constantly reminding you of how fierce a fight just took place here.

Near the counter in the distance, the old man leaned silently, soaked in blood; you hurriedly helped him up, and seeing it was you, he finally lowered his guard.

Caesar Life never stopped searching for Lin Ran's traces; after this natural disaster riot, their desire to develop a new gene agent peaked.

They don't know how they learned of Lin Ran's whereabouts, but they found this place, intending to take Lin Ran away again.

The good news is, Lin Ran secretly broke through the third-level gene lock on her own, dealt Caesar Life a surprise strike, and escaped.

The bad news is, Lin Ran is on Caesar Life's wanted list, constantly in danger.

Once again, because of your incompetence and misjudgment, Lin Ran alone bears this great risk, even dragging in the old man who sheltered you, and boundless anger fills your heart.

In your eyes, Lin Ran is just a newly adult girl who loves sweets; if nothing had happened, she ought to have become a admired human prodigy, a female general who won great victories on the natural disaster battlefield, not a fugitive.

You silently helped the old man clean up the restaurant, settled him, then sat alone on the restaurant's rooftop; behind you, the courtyard no longer held that small figure always training.

In the pitch‑black night, Zhang Jie sat alone on the restaurant's rooftop; directly opposite lay an extremely prosperous urban district.

Unlike the quiet near the restaurant, that district's streets are awash with red lights and wine, and the stirring music can be faintly heard even across a whole block.

That is the area's most famous red‑light district; those who claim to be upper‑class society love to indulge there, reveling in dog colors and horse sounds, enjoying the privileges the era brings them.

Perhaps the company executives involved in the manhunt for Lin Ran are now there seeking pleasure; even though the natural disaster hangs over them like a Sword of Damocles, they feel no worry.

Must there be a high point holding up if the sky falls? Not necessarily.

At least Zhang Jie holds that view.

This is the fifth year since Caesar Life declared itself king; Yongguo has undergone tremendous change, and in the city's dark corners everywhere are gangs, thugs, and homeless beggars.

How long can Yongguo endure like this?

Gazing at this city, Zhang Jie suddenly realized that the tragedy of this era was no longer just about his grudge against Caesar Life; it had tightly entwined every person on this planet, leaving no one able to stay out of it.

"I... I've been walking the wrong path all along..."

Lin Ran is right—only with strength can you avoid being pushed around; but what does that mean? How strong must one become?

Even the so‑called strongest human, a ninth‑level gene warrior, still died at the hands of the natural disaster.

Taking a long breath, Zhang Jie slowly rose from the rooftop; he knew what he had to do, planning to undertake a deed, a huge undertaking!!!

"Your idea is simple: as long as you destroy Caesar Life, everything will be easily resolved; you still clearly remember the hidden fury within your body, and you intend to gamble on it."

"You have left all the money you saved over the years behind, and bid farewell to the old man."

"Just before you left, the old man seemed to realize what you were about to do, giving you the jacket he wore when he roamed society in his youth, along with a saying."

"Never give up the struggle!"

"Although you weren't quite sure what the old man meant to express, you still showed him gratitude."

"You have returned to Sea Capital, the place where you grew up, and this is also where Caesar Life's headquarters stands—the source of all misfortune."

"This is no longer the scene you remember; your and Lin Ran's former home has been turned into a commercial zone, and you still recall the clusters of lush jasmine blooming in the small courtyard below your building."

"The situation here is worse than in Cloud Capital, the old man's locale; the downtown area's prosperity is over the top, with skyscrapers shooting up, making it seem like a different world compared to the rundown outskirts."

"Cloud Capital's central district resembles a gigantic commercial machine, grinding people's shattered dreams, collapsed spirits, and empty souls into endless wealth."

"At the very heart of that prosperity stands a tower that pierces Yunxiao, like a high tower—that is Caesar Life's headquarters."

One week later, at this time nearing evening, an unremarkable figure appeared before the building, looking up.

Four massive pillar‑like structures twine from bottom to top, resembling two intertwined double‑helix genes; it towers above any surrounding skyscraper, exuding luxury.

"Double Gene Helix Building—quite fitting."

Zhang Jie took off his sunglasses, gazing at the building with interest; astonishingly, his pupils were crimson, and his whole demeanor had undergone a great change.

"Quite imposing."

He adjusted the jacket the old man had given him, then slowly walked toward the building's main gate.

This is a suicide plan; standing at the building's entrance, Zhang Jie felt as if a fire were slowly flowing within his heart.

"My heart is like fire; when that all‑consuming power again welled up from within, Zhang Jie knew he had bet correctly."

"Then let all this..."

"turn to ashes!"

"Hello, sir, may I help you with anything?"

The front desk politely inquired of Zhang Jie, unaware of what was about to happen.

"Caesar Life's CEO is on the top floor, right?"

"May I ask if you have an appointment?"

Zhang Jie gave a faint smile, and the life codes of the armed guards around him appeared before his eyes.

"No appointment needed."

"Just one person?!"

"And you made it to the seventh floor?!"

"You're fucking joking with me?"

At the pinnacle of this Gene Double Helix Building, a middle‑aged man in expensive attire cursed into his phone—he is the actual controller of Caesar Life: Lu Xuefei.

"Your security division are all just eating dry rations, huh?"

"Where are the over a hundred stationed third‑level gene warriors? Get them all up! Take the guns and gene weapons issued to you and kill him!!"

Lu Xuefei gasped heavily, angrily kicking over the office desk.

"They're all a bunch of useless trash!"

His nearby little secretary trembled with fear, daring not to look straight at this middle‑aged man.

"Have them contact the Natural Disaster Research Division there, to release the blood‑disaster test subjects on the 13th floor, and meanwhile seal off all passageways above the 13th floor."

Through the huge tempered‑glass window, Lu Xuefei watched as more and more people gathered below the building, his expression ferocious.

"I won't allow anyone to challenge my authority!"