Chapter 318 - 317: Adrian and Stella Are Genetic Mutants

Chapter 318: Chapter 317: Adrian and Stella Are Genetic Mutants

The Fletcher residence.

I didn’t let Asher come with me. If he were here, the negotiations would definitely fall apart. Leaning on my crutches, I walked step by step into the Fletcher family’s courtyard. I was once incredibly familiar with this place during the days following my car accident. In my memories, "Cecilia Caldwell" had truly cried in this courtyard countless times, simply because she couldn’t gain Julian Fletcher’s approval or trust.

"Miss Lynch..." Nanny Wright was still here, stepping forward to greet me.

I was somewhat surprised. Julian knew full well that Nanny Wright might be Victor Quinn’s subordinate, yet he kept her around without batting an eye? I wondered, "What is his purpose? Is he deliberately keeping a hidden danger around to monitor his own mother?"

"Nanny Wright, I want to see Julian," I said softly.

Nanny Wright glanced back at the living room. "Miss Lynch, Mrs. Fletcher has been waiting for you for quite some time."

I frowned and looked toward the living room. Mrs. Fletcher knew I was coming and was already waiting for me. It seemed she had the police’s actions and movements completely figured out. She knew they wanted to use her son as a breakthrough to investigate the labs.

"Miss Lynch," Mrs. Fletcher said with a smile when she saw me enter the living room, motioning for me to sit down. Once I was seated, she spoke again. "Or perhaps, I should call you Cece..."

I frowned, remaining silent.

"Knowing that you’re still alive, resurrected in another body, makes me truly thrilled." Mrs. Fletcher looked at me with pleasant surprise, bordering on madness.

"You have to understand, when Sebastian Lancaster first proposed the theory of rebirth, I didn’t believe it. But I harbored longing and desire. I hoped that technology could change the status quo. I prayed that everything was progressing," Mrs. Fletcher said with a smile. "That was until I saw you, Cece... You are like a perfect miracle, allowing me to see hope once again. Perhaps in the future... souls truly can be reborn, carrying their memories... and be perfectly resurrected in cloned bodies."

I looked at her with a grim expression. Her madness was only just beginning to reveal itself. In the past, I hadn’t noticed a single clue. She truly was an excellent actress.

"Those idiots didn’t believe in the rebirth theory. They thought what Sebastian proposed was a false proposition and that Felix Foster was just a scam they fabricated. But not me... I believed in Sebastian, and I believed that Felix was reborn. Our experiment only lacked one piece of evidence, which is you." Mrs. Fletcher laughed, her laughter tinged with insanity.

"Sebastian is a genius, but unfortunately, this genius is not easily controlled. He only proposed the theory of Felix being reborn but refused to get his hands dirty to create a second test subject. He cares about you so much, so of course, I had to force his hand..." she continued with a smile.

I stared at her in shock. Was my so-called "rebirth" the result of an experiment she forced Asher to conduct?

"I believed he could do it. So... Cece, your death was inevitable, and necessary." Her voice dropped low.

"You are from The Genetics Organization, but the ones who killed me were from The Resistance..." I frowned, unable to wrap my head around it.

"You’re still not as smart as Sebastian," Mrs. Fletcher chuckled. "God is manipulating everything with an invisible hand. I don’t need to be part of The Resistance to use them to do my bidding... Everything fell into place so naturally. You are my most perfect test subject."

She was comparing herself to God. She really was a bit insane. "Where is the laboratory?" I asked, looking at her warily.

Mrs. Fletcher just smiled. There was no way she would tell me where the test subjects were.

"That idiot Nathan Lawson focuses solely on genetic continuation. He believes that the descendants of genetically modified humans will approach perfection, and as generations of test subjects reproduce, they can reach a god-like perfection... He thinks he can create a flawless soul and the perfect vessel."

Mrs. Fletcher changed the subject, talking about the focus of Nathan Lawson’s laboratory. Indeed, every lab had a different research direction. Nathan wanted the test subjects to naturally attract one another and conceive, giving birth to complete and healthy offspring. The test subject who escaped from his lab, along with the baby they took with them, represented the very experiment Nathan was trying to complete.

"What commercial value does that have? The rich are all selfish. Those in power at the very top desire immortality for themselves, wishing to live forever... They hope to possess their next youthful vessel before their current physical body decays." Mrs. Fletcher turned back to look at me. "Therefore, only my research direction is the greatest..."

And also the most commercially valuable. It was an experiment that came closest to God, unveiling His mysterious veil. The so-called rebirth.

"The secret of genetics is a topic scientists have been researching for nearly a century, but very few have truly cracked the genetic code... Why do those scientists eventually turn from atheists into theists? Is it ’God’ they truly believe in and marvel at? No. It’s the Creator of this world. It is the origin and destination of humanity, the true meaning of genetics, the vessel of the soul, and the secret of existence."

Mrs. Fletcher spoke with borderline hysteria, smiling as she showed off the ornaments displayed in her living room. In the past, I hadn’t thought much of them, but now, I only found them macabre and terrifying.

"The frame of this painting is made of human bone, and the canvas is made of human skin..." Mrs. Fletcher pointed at the pieces on the shelves. If she hadn’t said anything, no one would have known these were such gruesome artifacts.

"After death, the physical body is nothing more than a decoration. Burn it, and it’s just a handful of ashes... What’s truly great is the soul. The so-called secret of the soul exists within our genetics. As long as we find the genetic code, we can achieve true ’rebirth.’" If a person could be reborn an infinite number of times, that would equate to immortality in the truest sense.

"When people break the laws of nature, they will inevitably pay a terrible price," I warned her in a low voice.

"Over the past millennium, have humans merely adapted to nature? No, we have been modifying it. Would people a thousand years ago have ever imagined that one day they could fly in the sky in an airplane? No, they wouldn’t have even dared to dream of it! That is ignorance! For technology and medicine to progress, one must dare to think and dare to act! One must dare to sacrifice." Mrs. Fletcher stared at me, her emotions running high. I didn’t argue with her; there was nothing more to say.

"You are all foolish and ignorant..." Having finished her passionate speech, she was probably thirsty, as she sat down and resumed drinking her tea. Sitting across from her, I warily glanced around. If Julian were free, he would have come out by now. Clearly, he was being kept under control.

"Nathan’s lab is specifically for researching genetic inheritance and the continuation of the next generation. What about the cruise ship? What is the laboratory on that cruise ship researching?" I wanted to know the answer.

"Mutants." The corners of Mrs. Fletcher’s mouth curled up. "The owner of that ship is from The Republic of M. He’s a madman. What he’s researching are genetic mutations."

"Mutants... What does that mean?" For some reason, my heart suddenly felt a sharp pang. Adrian and Stella...

"Mutants are the uncontrollable factors within perfect genes. They excel at disguising themselves, and everything they present might be a lie. They can survive in any harsh environment. Their survival skills, psychological resilience, and everything about them approach what is considered ’perfect.’ But the more perfect something is, the more imperfect it becomes because... it is uncontrollable. Thus... no one can fathom the thoughts of a mutant. The goal behind this madman’s research is to create weapons of war..." Because if such individuals were to become secret agents, they would be practically invincible.