IRCDM Chapter 91

Chapter 91: Incitement – Liang Huan Isn’t That Kind of Person

In the dimly lit corridor, the music from the banquet hall could still be faintly heard.

“Although I quite like the conditions you’ve offered, agreeing wouldn’t be a problem,” Liang Huan said, taking a step forward. Seeing Chen Yanwei cautiously retreat two steps, he smiled gently yet distantly, “But Li Yao and I are about to remarry. It’s never good for a couple to have discord, Department Head Chen, don’t you think?”

Chen Yanwei didn’t know what expression to make for a moment. The oppressive feeling emanating from Liang Huan made her instinctively uncomfortable, and she retreated another step to distance herself from him: “Minister Lin, I still hope you’ll consider it carefully. After all—”

“After all, I very much dislike others interfering in my private life, especially in matters of the heart,” Liang Huan said, his smile fading, his gaze turning cold, “You indiscriminately locked him in prison for three years, then tossed him into the Eastern Third District. You ignored his mental power disorder, and instead sent a bunch of spies to monitor him. Even so, he still held hope for the military.”

He stepped forward, cornering Chen Yanwei in the shadows, and smiled: “Now he risked his life to get you the hope of new coordinates, and you suddenly had a pang of conscience and wanted him back. Department Head Chen, there’s a limit to how much you can bully someone. Just because Li Yao has no parents or family, you can manipulate him so casually?”

Chen Yanwei’s expression was a bit ugly: “Minister Lin, you’re exaggerating. All of this is for the base, for humanity.”

“No need to say such high-sounding words,” Liang Huan said with a smile, “Even without the East District Base, there are still three other human bases.”

Chen Yanwei felt a chill run down her spine: “Lin Chen, what do you mean?”

The smile in Liang Huan’s eyes deepened: “Go back and tell Huan Zan, Dawn Star is mine. If you want my things, you have to consider the cost.”

The terrifying mental power almost paralyzed Chen Yanwei in place. Liang Huan walked past her, patted her shoulder with a smile, and opened the window. The outside was empty, without a single figure.

The air pressure around Liang Huan instantly dropped. He gave Chen Yanwei a nonchalant look and left the corridor.

The sharp pain in her mental source made Chen Yanwei stagger back a few steps. She leaned weakly against the wall, raised her hand to wipe her face, and saw viscous, dirty blood on her palm.

She clenched her fist with lingering fear, and tapped her chip: “…Lin Chen didn’t agree.”

“Understood,” the background noise on the other end included music.

“Yi Heng Bai!” Someone grabbed his wrist, the force so strong that it crumpled the neat military uniform cuff into layers of wrinkles.

Hearing this, he turned his head and saw an ordinary and unfamiliar face.

Li Yao then remembered that he was still wearing a mask. He was still in disbelief, staring intently at the gentle and young man in front of him, with a hint of vigilance in his eyes: “Brother?”

Yi Heng Bai smiled at him: “What ugly thing are you wearing on your face?”

“Come here!” Hearing the familiar voice, Li Yao suppressed the shock in his heart, dragged him into an empty room next to them, and slammed the door shut.

With a dark gun pointed at his brow, Yi Heng Bai didn’t get angry, and helplessly raised his hands: “A-Li, I shouldn’t be considered a Heteromorph Imposter now, no need to be so nervous.”

Li Yao clenched the gun in his hand, his expression cold: “Yi Heng Bai died long ago. What did you do to his body?”

Yi Heng Bai unbuttoned his military uniform, revealing most of his mechanical arm and artificial bionic heart under his shirt, while the skin on the other side was Heteromorph scale-like skin. His right hand slowly turned into a semi-transparent Heteromorph tentacle under the light. Meeting Li Yao’s disgusted gaze, he manipulated the tentacle back into a human hand.

“I don’t know exactly what Marshal Huan and Father did, but I didn’t regain consciousness until Uncle Chuanwu’s surgery was successful at the beginning of this year,” Yi Heng Bai said, buttoning up his uniform, “I’ve been adapting to this new body for the past few months. Overall, it’s been going smoothly.”

A family member who had died for many years was now standing alive in front of him, but Li Yao felt no joy, only anger: “Those bastards!”

“A-Li!” Yi Heng Bai knew his temper well and quickly stopped him: “Calm down first before you talk!”

“Calm down my ass! What are you telling me to calm down about?!” Li Yao glared at him, his eyes bloodshot, “I personally signed your death certificate. I said I rejected any form of biological experiments, no experiments! You hated machines and Heteromorphs the most, you told me to sign it – I’m going to kill Chuanwu and Yi Yuan!”

“A-Li.” Yi Heng Bai tightly gripped his arm, his eyes slightly red: “Marshal Huan and Father had their considerations and couldn’t be helped. And now I can still see you, that’s already very good.”

Li Yao turned his back to him, biting his teeth without saying a word.

Yi Heng Bai walked over and gently hugged him, comforting him: “At least the brain is still my own – most of my brain, not the Heteromorph you hate the most. Besides, my mental power and physical evaluation are now both 3S+. I never thought I’d envy you for a lifetime, but I fulfilled my wish after death.”

Li Yao’s whole body stiffened the moment he was hugged, and even his breathing was trembling, obviously very resistant.

Yi Heng Bai patted his shoulder: “Okay, come sit down. I can’t stay outside for too long. This time I’m here with a mission.”

Li Yao looked at him suspiciously, but still sat down on the sofa opposite him.

“The teacher is very likely still alive,” he said, dropping a bombshell.

Li Yao jumped up from the sofa: “What did you say?!”

Yi Heng Bai raised his hand: “Sit down first and let me tell you slowly.”

Li Yao shook his head: “This is simply impossible. What evidence do you have to prove that Marshal Chen is still alive? Or did you get Marshal Chen’s genes and conduct illegal experiments?”

Yi Heng Bai said helplessly: “The military’s gene preservation is tight. Even if there is a cloning plan, it’s impossible for a person who is exactly the same as the teacher to appear in ten years. A-Li, I won’t tell you baseless news, even if I have a mission.”

Li Yao sat back down.

“Back then, the Heteromorphs withdrew and blocked all the coordinates around the planet. You need to know that now, not only humans, but also those high-level Heteromorphs trapped on this planet also hope to find a way out. Marshal Huan’s health has been poor these years. He wanted to purge the Heteromorph sleeper agents as much as possible to pave the way for future generations. Marshal Chen absolutely cannot expose the signal receiver he asked you to bring back, for fear that those Heteromorphs will get the new coordinates before humans.” Yi Heng Bai sighed, “It’s just that Marshal Huan and you know it well, but the military’s interests are intertwined and factions are divided, each with its own difficulties. You’ve had a hard time these years. If I had woken up a few years earlier, I might have been able to help you.”

Li Yao silently squeezed his palm: “It’s nothing, I’m just completing the mission.”

Yi Heng Bai smiled: “You will never disappoint anyone. Although the new planet coordinates have not been completely activated, the coordinates can already be linked into the main orbit laid by the teacher and them. During this period of time, I have successively taken over the signal stabilizers you installed. Old Du and the others in the technology department have intermittently captured some signals. After analysis, we all believe that these may be some coordinates.”

Li Yao raised his eyes.

Yi Heng Bai handed the chip to him.

Li Yao opened the chip. A dozen or so sporadic coordinates were displayed on the screen, and the latest coordinate was followed by a string of codes. His brows furrowed deeper and deeper: “This is… the teacher’s code.”

Yi Heng Bai nodded: “A-Li, the teacher is very likely floating in some corner of space, and there may be more survivors. They have been trying to send coordinates to the planet. It was you who linked the planet’s coordinates into the main orbit, pointing out the direction for them.”

“Marshal Chen and them may still be alive,” Li Yao straightened up, staring at the flashing coordinates on the screen. He twitched the corner of his mouth, as if crying, and as if smiling, “…they are still alive.”

Yi Heng Bai nodded, his gentle gaze falling on him: “It’s just A-Li, the core signal receiver is now on you. Even the signal stabilizer can detect these signals, so logically you should also be aware of it.”

Li Yao’s eyes fixed, and the hand holding the chip tightened slightly.

“I was seriously injured before, and the technical conditions in the Eastern Third District are average. The signal receiver couldn’t be stabilized at all.” Li Yao looked up at him.

Yi Heng Bai nodded: “So that’s how it is. I thought someone deliberately wanted to hide it from you.”

Li Yao frowned slightly: “Liang Huan isn’t that kind of person.”

“I’m just guessing, I didn’t say anything bad about him.” Yi Heng Bai helplessly raised his hands in surrender, “I didn’t expect that after dying for ten years and coming back to life, I’d hear all about your gossip. But I don’t know much about Lin Chen. If you like him, that’s good. I’ve always been a very open-minded parent. I thought you’d end up marrying a mech.”

Li Yao: “…”

“Okay, I’ve already conveyed the message. Whether it’s Marshal Huan or Father, or simply from my perspective, we all hope you can return to the military.” Yi Heng Bai got up and smiled, “I don’t know how many more days I can live, and Marshal Huan doesn’t have much time left either. And you are the teacher’s most proud student, and the one who knows the most about the Dawn Project. Whether the Dawn Project succeeds or not, the most important thing is for people to come back alive.”

“A-Li, if you return to the military and we completely activate the new planet coordinates, we have a chance to welcome back Marshal Chen and the survivors of the Dawn Fleet.”

Li Yao stared at him with an unclear expression.

Yi Heng Bai smiled and rubbed his hair: “If you really suspect that I’m a Heteromorph, go and investigate it carefully. I’ll buy you some time with Marshal Huan and thank Lin Chen for saving my brother’s life. I and the Yi family will remember this kindness.”

The door behind him was opened and closed again. Yi Heng Bai’s footsteps disappeared into the music. After a sizzling sound, the earpiece reconnected to the signal, and Liang Huan’s quiet breathing was heard.

Li Yao took out a cigarette and lit it, staring at the coordinate codes on the screen for a few seconds, and said in a hoarse voice, “Liang Huan, how’s it going on your side?”

Liang Huan looked at the bodyguards blocking him and Zhuo Ming standing at the back, and smiled, “Not so good. I’ll see you in the banquet hall in five minutes. Tonight may not be suitable for work.”

He should have known better than to bring Li Yao to pick out a wedding mech.