Part 1
After riding the train for about 30 minutes, they finally arrived at the Shadow Guard Training Site.
As soon as they got off, Ruxue and Xiao Bao were escorted by Guard Tian to the hospital for a medical checkup and registration. After that, Ruxue would be assigned a training program and offered employment based on her abilities and specialties.
As for Xiao Bao, he would be trained together with the other children. His schedule would include lectures, physical training, exercises, and other basic survival skills.
Meanwhile, Han Yue, Shadow 8, and Guard Lei headed straight to the Admin Hall, where Assistant Chen was already waiting for them.
As they entered, Assistant Chen greeted them with a smile.
"Good job. So… was your vacation fun?"
Only Shadow 8 raised his hand with a cheerful "Yes, haha!"
They sat down, and Assistant Chen began giving updates in a calm tone.
"City H's military base is still investigating that private laboratory. The Wei family is currently under surveillance.
As for the mountain village thugs, we've already interrogated the leader and found a new lead—also connected to the same lab.
Soon, we'll receive follow-up reports.
As for the rescued villagers, they were transferred to City H Base for medical care and relocation."
He leaned back and added, "For now, go get some rest," before dismissing them.
After wrapping up the report, everyone went off to do their own thing and said goodbye.
Han Yue decided to head home.
The sun was already high in the sky, and she hadn't slept yet.
She took the train back to her residence, quietly entered her room, and dropped into bed for a well-deserved nap.
Around 4 PM, Han Yue woke up feeling refreshed. She took a hot shower, changed into comfy clothes, and headed downstairs to eat something.
In the living room, Grandpa Long was playing chess with the old butler. When they saw her, both of them looked up and smiled warmly.
"Welcome home, Little Yue," Grandpa said. "Haven't seen you in a while. Come, go eat breakfast."
Han Yue greeted them with a soft smile and headed over to eat. Nom nom nom~
After finishing, she sat with them for a bit, watching them play chess.
They casually asked how her mission went.
Han Yue replied with a small smile, "Oh, it was very eventful."
She lazily lounged around for a while until her phone buzzed. A message from Long Yi appeared:
"Are you free? If so, come to my office."
Han Yue quickly replied:
"Ok~"
She stood up, stretched, and said, "I'm going to find Long Yi~" before heading out.
Arriving at the Admin Hall, Han Yue spotted Secretary Xu working at his desk.
She smirked and teased, "Oh? I haven't seen you since you won that lottery grand prize. I thought you retired."
Secretary Xu froze and looked up, squinting at her.
"The money was deposited directly into our fund account! I didn't even get to touch it for a minute!" he huffed—then smiled. "Boss is inside. Just go in."
Han Yue chuckled. "Alright, alright~" and stepped into the office.
Inside, Long Yi was at his desk, reading documents.
Han Yue carefully crept in, trying to sneak up behind him…
But suddenly, Long Yi turned, reached back, and caught her hand—pulling her forward.
"Wah!" Han Yue stumbled, falling right into his chest.
"You scared me!" she pouted.
Long Yi smiled, pulling her closer. "It's because I couldn't wait. I missed you."
Han Yue smirked. "Your mouth is full of sweet talk, hm?"
Sitting on his lap, they chatted comfortably. Han Yue told him about her mission and how they almost tried to turn her into a lab specimen.
Long Yi's tone was gentle, but his eyes were sharp and cold. "Don't worry. They won't be around much longer."
He patted her head, gaze softening again.
Han Yue then pulled out a small object and handed it to him.
It was the beast core Xiao Bao had sold her earlier.
Long Yi examined it with curiosity. "What's this?"
Han Yue explained, "It's a beast core. I found it at Base H—sold by a little boy. Not many know its value yet. It came from the head of a mutant beast.
That means the beast leveled up from Level 0 to Level 1. Once that happens, it can generate a core like this."
She continued, "Awakeners are the same. When they level up from 0 to 1 or higher, they generate their own crystal nucleus. The color depends on the power type."
Long Yi thoughtfully rolled the core in his palm.
"Interesting..."
Then he stood. "Let's go to the research lab. I want to show you the products they've been working on using the spiritual water you gave us."
Han Yue got up as well, and the two left the office—hand in hand.
While walking toward the lab, Han Yue added, "I brought two people home with me. The woman… I remembered her from my past life. She was the strongest healer I knew—worked for the government back then, but she was cold and didn't talk to others much.
I also brought her son."
Long Yi nodded without question. "Good. Bring whoever you want—let the others handle the arrangements."
Part 2
At the research building, which was heavily guarded, Han Yue looked around and thought, Wow, it's so strict here.
After entering, they headed to a laboratory, where they met Dr. Hanzo, who was in the middle of working on potions and chemicals. When he looked up and saw it was Long Yi, he smiled and said,
"Boy, come here and look. This is a 50% awakening potion. This is currently the highest percentage I can make. The lowest being 30%."
Then he noticed Han Yue and asked curiously, "Boy, who is this little girl?"
Long Yi replied, "Girlfriend. And also, she's the one providing the spiritual water we use."
Dr. Hanzo's eyes sparkled as he rushed over to shake Han Yue's hands.
"Welcome, welcome! Come, I'll show you the good things we've been able to create so far!"
He eagerly showed her the 30%, 40%, and 50% awakening potions. He explained that after taking it, a person would either awaken as a mutant or as an awakener. It only took a few drops of spiritual water to produce 100 copies, depending on the percentage.
"You can take it as much as you want," Dr. Hanzo added. "No side effects. But once you awaken, it won't work on you anymore."
Then he brought them to the testing area, where several guards had volunteered to be test subjects. Some turned into mutants, while others awakened powers like fire, water, wood, earth, wind, and more.
Han Yue was impressed. "Wow… just a few drops can make so many potions!"
After the tour, they finally sat down to talk. Long Yi handed Dr. Hanzo the beast core Han Yue had given him and explained how it came to be — the beast's level, the awakener level, and so on.
Dr. Hanzo rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "It's too few. The mutant beasts are too few, and the awakeners are also too few. So it's likely this kind of thing won't be discovered anytime soon."
Han Yue nodded and replied, "Don't worry. When the zombies come, there will be more crystal nuclei."
Dr. Hanzo paused and asked, "Zombies? When will that happen?"
Han Yue answered, "After the global deep freeze. It comes with the Solar Mutation."
Dr. Hanzo's eyes narrowed. "Hmm… is it random, or is everyone affected by the Solar Mutation?"
Han Yue tilted her head. "I dunno. All I know is — some people mutate, some awaken, some stay ordinary, and some turn into zombies. There will also be plant and beast mutations."
After a little more discussion, Long Yi said, "You can keep the beast nucleus and study it, Doctor. As for the awakening potions — how many have you made so far?"
Dr. Hanzo answered, "So far, I've made 500 of each type. But we need more spiritual spring water."
Long Yi nodded, and Han Yue took out 30 bottles of spiritual water once again.
After that, they left the building.