There were all sorts of doubts about Chen Liu’er and Li Shentan’s clone. Most importantly, nobody could understand why the Pyro Company did not implement cloning on a large scale even though they had the means to awaken the superpowers of their superhumans’ clones.
After hearing Luo Lan’s doubts, Li Shentan said with a smile, “There’s no point in wondering about that now. We might as well continue heading downstairs. I feel that the answer is probably waiting for us up ahead.” With that, Li Shentan led the way forward. Li Shentan and the others who were acquainted with Ren Xiaosu had formed a small clique naturally.
Regardless of where the others might be from, Luo Lan and Zhou Qi subconsciously chose to stick with them. With their connection to Ren Xiaosu, at least they could be sure that no one would sabotage one another in this group.
Li Shentan looked at Yang Xiaojin and said, “Y’know, I’ve had quite a hand in your reunion no matter what you think. Can you tell me what happened after you chased him down?” At first, Yang Xiaojin thought Li Shentan was going to say something serious. But after all that talk, he was actually trying to ask about some gossip. But Yang Xiaojin realized Luo Lan’s and the others’ eyes were shimmering. It looked like they were also very interested in hearing about it.
Zhou Yingxue, who was standing off to the side, said disdainfully, “Why is a group of men trying to poke their noses into my master and madam’s private matters?”
Luo Lan felt jealous. Why couldn’t he have a maidservant like her too?
Li Shentan realized the clones in the basement level were seemingly the only ones, and they were not even fully developed yet. Logically speaking, there should be more secrets hidden in this building. When they walked to the end of the basement, two alloy doors on the ground in front of them suddenly opened and revealed a staircase leading down. Luo Lan and the others looked at each other. The doors opening at this moment made it feel like someone was waiting for them to step into a trap.
However, Li Shentan nonchalantly walked down the stairs. “There’s nothing to be afraid of. If the Pyro Company really had any more strength to kill us, they would probably have already done so.”
When Luo Lan and the others saw Li Shentan walking down, they also braced themselves and followed right behind.
After the incident with the birthing chambers, Vanilla’s group had fallen to the back of the group. They thought that even if there were any further danger, it would be Li Shentan facing it first.
But when the Great Hoodwinker, who was the last person in Luo Lan’s group, stepped into the stairway, the alloy doors on the ground closed again.
That was to say, only Li Shentan, Si Liren, Yang Xiaojin, Luo Lan, Zhou Qi, Zhou Yingxue, and the Great Hoodwinker had entered this underground tunnel. The rest had been locked outside!
Luo Lan immediately panicked. “What the fuck? Are they trapping us in to destroy us?”
Li Shentan sighed and said, “You’re still in the mood to scold yourself at a time like this? You may insult yourself, but don’t drag us in with you.”
“Ahem, my bad.” Luo Lan said, “But why did they only lock just us in? This is obviously someone’s doing.”
After he uttered those words, lights on both sides of the staircase suddenly lit up. The technologically advanced walls and lights made them feel less threatened. At the end of the stairs, someone said, “Because only you can listen to what I’m about to say.”
Li Shentan’s interest was piqued. “I like this feeling of getting special treatment!”
Yang Xiaojin suddenly realized Luo Lan and Zhou Qi looked stunned.
They were stunned because the voice at the end of the stairs sounded so familiar!
This time, it was Luo Lan who walked to the front. He walked down the long stretch of steps and looked at the familiar young man in a white suit in front of him. “You’re my brother’s clone?”
The clone, who was standing in front of him bearing the same face as Qing Zhen, nodded with a smile. “That’s right. I was ‘born’ a year ago and spent three months in the birthing chamber before growing rapidly to my current state.”
“Where did they get his DNA sample from?” Luo Lan said worriedly.
“On the day he became the Qing Consortium’s head, he walked barefooted on that long mountain path. Even the snow was painted red with his blood, so it wasn’t exactly difficult to obtain his DNA sample. By the way, let me introduce myself. My name is Qing Shen,” Qing Shen[1] explained.
Just one character difference in their names made their pronunciation completely different. [2]
But everything that was happening here was well beyond everyone’s expectations. They had wondered who the Pyro Company would clone, but they never thought Qing Zhen would be one of them, because Qing Zhen was not a supernatural being!
Others might still have doubts about that, but Luo Lan was quite sure his brother was really not a supernatural being.
Qing Shen looked at Luo Lan and seemed to have guessed what he was thinking. “Among those the Pyro Company obtained DNA samples from, Qing Zhen is indeed the only regular person. The Pyro Company had never suspected he was a supernatural being either. Ever since they started cloning, they only sought to create a leader for the Pyro Company.”
The Pyro Company really believed in the path they had taken. They firmly believed they could use genetics to change the future of humanity to create a better world and society.
If they only sought to change others, it would be a hypocritical excuse for their deeds. So they started changing from within.
Not only did they create those supernatural beings and Neo-Humans, they even chose a charismatic and intelligent leader to lead them.
During this period, they had considered a lot of candidates. In the end, they chose Qing Zhen and obtained his DNA sample.
The Pyro Company had dealt with many enemies before, but they would only feel a sense of helplessness when facing Qing Zhen. It seemed that Qing Zhen was able to anticipate all their plans.
This might sound crazy to normal people, but the chief scientists of the Pyro Company were not normal to begin with.
They were not trying to create their own army but a leader for themselves!
Luo Lan’s eyes narrowed. He said, “Then what is it you want to tell us?”
If Ren Xiaosu could kill Chen Liu’er for Chen Wudi, Luo Lan could also start a killing spree and eliminate any potential threats for Qing Zhen.
Qing Shen explained with a smile, “Don’t get anxious yet. It’s like this: The Pyro Company wanted me to be as similar to Qing Zhen as possible by gathering all of his relevant information so I could learn how to be him. They were hoping I could become someone like Qing Zhen one day. However, a group of people within the Pyro Company were against this. They were unwilling to hand over authority to a clone like me. So I was being confined here by this group. Those 11 people who died outside just now actually came here to save me.” “What are you trying to say?” Luo Lan frowned puzzledly. “Bring me to the Qing Consortium,” Qing Shen said in a serious tone.
Luo Lan asked, “Why?”
“Because Qing Zhen and I both know what the Qing Consortium will face in the future, and he will need me in his plan.” Qing Shen said, “In the process of studying Qing Zhen, I was always able to feel that I was just his clone. I wanted to surpass Qing Zhen, but I couldn’t do it. Slowly, I started to admire him. Sometimes, I even feel that the purpose of my ‘birth’ might be to help him complete his plan. Bring me to him, and he’ll plan everything.”
(1) 1 (Shèn) is the Chinese character for cautious 谨慎,
[2] Author wrote this apparently because many Chinese readers had been reading Qing Zhen’s name wrong.
