Chapter 31: I Want This Female

A sinister expression instantly flashed across the man’s face. He ignored the birds that had suddenly started ramming into him, his mouth twisting into a ferocious grin.

He certainly wouldn’t confront Gu Mian openly, but what he might do in secret was another matter entirely. Overcome with excitement, Li Jiang subconsciously shoved his hand into his pocket, fumbling for a cigarette...

He’d forgotten, however, that he was wearing a hospital gown. His pockets were completely empty.

’No, wait...’

’I definitely felt something...’

A slick, icy sensation crept up his fingertips, slithered into his sleeve, and coiled tightly around his forearm. Li Jiang froze. The moment he realized what was happening, he started screaming, trying to shake the thing out of his sleeve...

’A snake... It’s a snake!’

Catching a glimpse of a snake’s body emerging, Li Jiang opened his mouth to scream. But in the next second, more snakes poured in through the gaps in the window. They scrambled to worm their way into his pant legs and sleeves, constricting his limbs with deadly force.

Li Jiang was dragged to the floor. He thrashed and clawed like a madman, trying to fling the snakes off.

"Aah—Help me!"

He tried to crawl out of the lab, but there were too many snakes coiling around him. They pulled him in unison in the opposite direction... Li Jiang flailed his limbs, nearly fainting from terror.

He reached out, desperately grabbing onto a piece of equipment in front of him, and screamed, "Quick, let me the fuck go! Or else—or else I’ll burn you all to death!"

The sound of soft footsteps approached, finally stopping at the laboratory door. A man stood there, impeccably dressed, with a clean-cut, handsome face—a stark contrast to the sprawling form of Li Jiang on the floor.

He calmly swiped his keycard and opened the door, his movements perfectly natural.

Hearing the sound, Li Jiang immediately looked up. When he saw who it was, the smile on his face instantly froze.

"Gu... Gu Mian..." For a fleeting moment, a savage glint appeared in the man’s eyes, but it was quickly masked by other emotions. His voice trembled as he tried to force an obsequious smile. "Help... help me, Professor Gu."

The snakes were clearly there for him. Gu Mian was standing right in front of him, yet they showed no intention of attacking. But with Li Jiang... the more he struggled, the tighter the snakes coiled, as if intending to strangle him.

"Oh? I thought Professor Li wouldn’t want to see me." A faint smile touched the man’s lips. He lowered his gaze slightly, his black eyes bottomless behind his gold-rimmed glasses. Although his face was that of a distinguished gentleman, it was now tinged with a sinister air.

"Wh-Why would you say that..." The man forced a dry laugh. He wasn’t sure if it was his imagination, but the snakes had stopped moving the moment Gu Mian entered. Now, looking up at Gu Mian’s face, he saw that the man was perfectly composed, as if a room full of snakes was nothing out of the ordinary for him.

A terrible thought suddenly occurred to him, and Li Jiang’s expression grew even more grim. "These snakes... they don’t have anything to do with you, do they, Professor Gu?"

The man chuckled lightly, not bothering to hide the coldness in his eyes. He asked in a very low voice, "And what if I said they do?"

"You son of a bitch!" Li Jiang’s expression turned savage again. Seizing the moment the snakes loosened their grip, he scrambled to his feet and lunged at Gu Mian. But before he could even get close, the other man simply raised a leg and kicked him away.

THUD—

His body slammed against a cold glass panel. At the same time, the snake that had been on his arm suddenly shot up to his neck and began to squeeze...

Li Jiang was forced backward, his hands desperately clawing at the snake coiled around his neck. He managed a few pained coughs. "You... What in God’s name are you?"

He’d heard that a high-ranking monk in the late Qing dynasty had mastered the art of snake charming, but that was just a legend. Besides, even if Gu Mian really had learned such an art, how could he possibly control so many snakes at once...

’What kind of monster is he?’

"You’ve been researching Beastmen for so many years, yet you don’t even know who I am?" The man looked up, his eyes filled with an icy chill.

With the snake coiled around his neck, Li Jiang’s face was flushed crimson. But he still couldn’t accept it. "You... You’re a Beastman?"

Gu Mian said nothing, the mockery on his face plain to see. He gave a lazy wave of his hand, and in the next instant, the snakes on Li Jiang’s body respectfully retreated.

Freed, the man coughed violently a few times, his eyes now filled with a cowardice completely different from before. He supported himself on the wall and slowly got up, warily watching the man opposite him. "What do you want?"

When Gu Mian didn’t answer, he immediately added, "There are security cameras in the hallway. If something happens to me, you won’t be able to get away either."

The man leaned back, resting steadily against the lab bench. He lowered his eyes, and after a long moment, said lightly, "And how can you be sure the cameras will capture me?"

’I can cause a power outage in the entire lab building, which would prevent the cameras from recording me. Besides, so what if they did? I’m a Beastman. My identity on Blue Star is far from just this one.’

Li Jiang seemed to realize this as well, and his expression suddenly turned to panic. If Gu Mian were truly concerned about such things, he wouldn’t have come alone. Moreover, if he had wanted Li Jiang dead, he could have simply let the snakes finish the job.

"Then what do you want from me?" he asked, backing away cautiously while trying to stay calm. Li Jiang racked his brain, trying to recall the day’s events. He seemed to remember that his initial run-in with Gu Mian was over that Yellow-tailed Robin...

’If Gu Mian really is a Beastman, the chance that he’s using other Beastmen for experiments is minuscule. The most likely possibility is... he ate the Yellow-tailed Robin!’

’Since he can control snakes, he’s most likely a Snake Beast. And according to animal instinct, isn’t it perfectly natural for a snake to eat a bird?’

’The reason Gu Mian is targeting me now is probably because of those birds...’

"You want these birds, right? I can give them all to you!" The man’s eyes lit up. He then pointed to the glass panel and added sharply, "I have many more at home. I won’t report you, and I’ll even tell you where to buy them..."

Gu Mian: "The condition."

"The condition... the condition is that I... I want this Beastman, the one who stole the wing bone." To save his own skin, Li Jiang had been willing to give the birds to Gu Mian for free, but since Gu Mian had brought up terms, he certainly wasn’t going to miss the opportunity. Li Jiang’s expression was now one of extreme excitement. When Gu Mian didn’t respond, he immediately pointed to the handprint on the glass. "It’s this female, the one who left this handprint..."

’Everyone who can get into the University A labs is an adult. Judging by the size of this handprint, she must be a female.’

Li Jiang was certain Gu Mian would agree to his terms. He’d gone to all this trouble for a single Yellow-tailed Robin. If all of his rare birds were on the table... Li Jiang didn’t believe for a second he wouldn’t be tempted.

"You won’t lose out on this deal." ’Snakes are cold-blooded animals, and Snake Beastmen are just as heartless. All I’m asking for is one female. After weighing the pros and cons, Gu Mian is sure to agree.’

’Even though these birds haven’t transformed yet, if they’re fed properly, they’ll eventually transform one day, just like that Yellow-tailed Robin... Anyone knows how to choose between one full meal and a lifetime of them.’