Chapter 320 - 319: Mrs. Fletcher’s Thoughts Are Crazy

Chapter 320: Chapter 319: Mrs. Fletcher’s Thoughts Are Crazy

"You haven’t shown up lately. Everyone is really worried about you," I said, frowning as I looked at Julian Fletcher warily.

"I’m fine. I don’t need any of you worrying about me. Leave," Julian demanded, trying to send me away.

"Julian!" Seeing him about to shut the door, I quickly pushed against it. "Are you sure you don’t have anything to say to me?"

Julian’s complexion looked terrible. He stared at me with cold eyes. "I have nothing to say to any of you. You can go now."

My expression mirrored his grimness. I pushed hard against the wood, trying to get a better look at his condition, but he showed no intention of yielding, leaving us in a tense stalemate.

I searched his eyes, trying to decipher their meaning. He just looked back at me, a trace of panic flashing in his gaze. It was as if he was begging—pleading with me to leave immediately. I finally let go, allowing him to forcefully slam the door shut, and turned to head downstairs.

In the living room below, Mrs. Fletcher sat quietly and composed, sipping her tea. She gave me a faint smile. "He refused to talk to you?"

I nodded. "What did you do to him?"

Mrs. Fletcher chuckled softly. "I gave birth to him. I gave him life. What exactly could I do to him? I love him so much I can barely contain it; I wish nothing more than to pave the perfect road for him."

I stared at her on high alert. Looking at her now, she seemed more bizarre and terrifying by the second.

"My parents were hunted down by The Genetics Organization. Their plan with Victor Quinn would have allowed them to successfully escape with Cecilia and Asher. You were the one who sold them out, weren’t you?" I asked.

From my parents’ experimental diaries, I knew their plan hadn’t initially drawn the organization’s suspicion. They had submitted an application for a new research project, stating they would take the two children, Cecilia and Asher, to an isolated location to conduct the next phase of their studies. The upper management of The Genetics Organization had already signed off on it. They could have taken the kids out of Meridia without any burden and begun their escape route. Everything should have gone smoothly and successfully. Yet, a premeditated car crash claimed the lives of Cecilia’s parents, along with Marcus Lancaster’s entire family.

"I couldn’t allow them to take away my test subjects," Mrs. Fletcher admitted, fully acknowledging that she had betrayed Cecilia’s parents.

"My mother treated you as her best friend, her sister, a kindred spirit." I clenched my fists tightly, my eyes turning red as I glared at her. I wondered if her conscience ever bothered her at all.

"All stumbling blocks in my path must be cleared. Marcus Lancaster was no exception," Mrs. Fletcher murmured.

Marcus had offended The Genetics Organization, making him their public enemy number one. Naturally, Mrs. Fletcher used them to do her dirty work, taking that opportunity to eliminate all of them at once. It was utterly ruthless.

"You’re truly vicious," I said bitterly, my voice trembling.

Mrs. Fletcher angrily demanded, "If humanity isn’t ruthless, technology will never advance, and we will remain stagnant forever. If we are to adapt to nature and transform it, we must strive to evolve. For thousands of years, biologists have traced the roots to find the origins of humanity. What do you think their goal is? Just out of sheer boredom?

"Do you know why some scientists believe the ancestors of humanity evolved from fish? Because for hundreds of millions, even billions of years, humanity has constantly been evolving and progressing. The brain is continuously being developed. Even if the speed of evolution seems slow, it is constantly changing to adapt to nature.

"Natural evolution is a cycle. Who can guarantee that in a few hundred million years, the continents won’t be covered by oceans again, and humanity won’t devolve back into a fish-like state?" She pointed to the fish in the aquarium as she spoke.

I rubbed my temples, thinking she was completely deranged. "These aren’t things our generation needs to worry about. That’s a problem for our descendants."

I believed she was being paranoid over things entirely beyond her control. A human lifespan was only a few short decades; there was no need to obsess over what might happen millions of years from now.

Mrs. Fletcher said with fervent excitement, "That is exactly why you will never understand why The First Emperor sought immortality and eternal youth. There is no one who doesn’t want to witness the changing tides of history, who doesn’t want to oversee the development and evolution of human civilization.

"I have achieved what The First Emperor could not! This is progress!"

I finally understood. Her core principle and ultimate goal was immortality. Current medical technology couldn’t reverse the decay of the physical body; it could only delay the aging process and cure or prevent diseases. No science could break the natural law that flesh ultimately rots. Since they couldn’t break through that barrier, they had to find an alternative route: seeking out new, young "vessels" for life.

This was their so-called rebirth. The reloading of a soul and its memories.

It was akin to a broken computer—transferring all the useful data via a hard drive to a brand-new machine, achieving permanent preservation and continuous upgrading of information. That was why Mrs. Fletcher placed so much importance on Asher’s experimental project. It was why she was so desperate to know if rebirth truly existed. It was why she had plotted this massive game of chess, systematically eliminating anyone who stood in her way.

"You’re insane," I whispered, taking a step back before turning to flee.

I felt Mrs. Fletcher had entirely lost her mind; her ideology was bordering on madness. But I could tell she was in a great mood. She was thrilled and excited. The more I acted like Cecilia Caldwell, the happier she became. She believed the experiment was finally a success, as if she had just seen the light of hope. But what was her ultimate endgame? To say it was purely for the future of humanity was impossible. Human beings are inherently selfish; she undoubtedly harbored her own personal agenda.

"Madam, everything is going according to plan," Mrs. Fletcher’s assistant said, stepping up beside her.

I ran out of the living room, glancing back at Mrs. Fletcher and her assistant. That eerie feeling made my back stiffen. The way she looked at me was exactly like a scientist observing a lab rabbit. It was as if no matter what we did, we could never escape the palm of her hand.

A bitter scoff escaped my lips. But even a cornered rabbit will bite.

Leaving the Fletcher family’s villa, I looked back toward Julian’s room. He stood by the window, watching me. His gaze was deep and overwhelmingly complex. I could almost see the violent struggle tearing at his soul. He seemed to be crying out to me for help, yet simultaneously bound by invisible shackles. He looked entirely suffocated.

He raised a hand and pressed it against the windowpane, as if trying to touch something through the void. I looked at him, and he looked at me. His eyes were red. Suddenly, he smiled faintly at me and mouthed a silent warning: "Cece, run."

He was telling me to run.

Leaving the Fletcher estate behind, I limped into Zeke Shaw’s car. Zeke, Lucas Grant, and Madeline Quinn all looked at me, eager to know what Julian had said and if it brought any new breakthroughs for the case.

Only Asher kept his head down, holding my hand in a vice-like grip. He only cared about my safety; he truly didn’t seem to give a damn about anything else.

"Julian refused to see me. It’s very strange. I don’t know what Mrs. Fletcher said to him, but he’s incredibly resistant right now," I said, shaking my head to indicate I had no leads.

Madeline sighed, slumping dejectedly against the back of the passenger seat as she looked at us. "Looks like finding the lab controlled by Mrs. Fletcher will take some time. Who knows how many people are suffering in there right now... waiting for us to save them."

I froze for a moment, a knot of unease tightening in my chest. "Julian can’t stay away from Fletcher Group forever. I’ll find another opportunity to meet with him. Maybe he just had unspoken difficulties because Mrs. Fletcher was around."

Zeke nodded. "Don’t push yourself too hard. We’ll investigate from other angles, too."

I nodded in agreement, my mind completely preoccupied by the final look Julian had given me.