Chapter 1867 - 2059: Third-Order Evolution (3)

"Mr. Zhu."

At this moment, a man entered from outside the laboratory, ready to speak. However, upon seeing those researchers lying in a pool of blood and the scattered hearts on the ground, his face paled, and he vomited on the spot.

Seeing his pale face, for some reason, Zhu Hong’s eyes slowly turned blood-red, exuding a bloodthirsty desire.

At this moment, the man, struggling to suppress his nausea, looked at Zhu Hong, who was approaching step by step. He wanted to say something, but seeing Zhu Hong’s blood-red eyes, he was overwhelmed with fear and involuntarily retreated. "Mr... Mr. Zhu..." He opened his mouth, stammering as he called out, "You..." Before he could finish speaking, Zhu Hong suddenly reached out a hand and firmly clutched his neck.

"No... don’t!" The man clawed at Zhu Hong’s hand, struggling desperately. As he suffocated, his face gradually turned red. No matter how he struggled, he couldn’t break free from Zhu Hong’s grip. After a short while, the man’s hands dropped, and he died from asphyxiation.

Glancing at the man’s corpse, Zhu Hong’s lips curled into a slight, bloodthirsty grin as he strode out of the laboratory. Soon, the air outside the lab was filled with intermittent cries of misery and despair.

...

...

"I ran into Feifei in Beijing a couple of days ago. She said she’s preparing to take up a position at the head office. Did you know about this?"

East Sea City, Wealthy Manor.

Ling Chen sat on the sofa in the living room, with Nanrong Wanqing dressed in loose home attire, lying in his arms. Hearing him mention Leng Feifei, Nanrong Wanqing responded quietly, "She mentioned it to me before. Her appointment to the head office is quite a promotion. It’s probably because the tripartite cooperation project is developing well, and the head office appreciates her abilities. Changlong Technology is an international enterprise. Since she can get into the head office, her future prospects should be good, at least at the executive level." Speaking of this, she teased with a smile, "Why did you suddenly bring her up? Are you reluctant to let her go?"

"Ahem!" Ling Chen cleared his throat twice, rubbing his nose as he said, "Don’t talk nonsense. She’s just a good friend, nothing more."

"I know, even if you did have some thoughts in your mind, you wouldn’t dare speak them out." Nanrong Wanqing held his arm, chuckling softly, "Actually, as long as you’re beside me, I’m fine with occasional straying thoughts."

"Straying thoughts? What about physical infidelity?"

"You can try, but... don’t say I didn’t warn you, jealous women are terrifying. If you want to experience that, I’m happy to oblige."

Ling Chen hastily waved his hand, "Forget it, I want to live a few more years." Pausing for a moment, he changed the subject, "By the way, you’re really not managing things now? You’re leaving Hongyu Group in Haozi’s hands, are you sure about that?"

"He’s been interning at the company for years and is familiar with the business. Besides, Grandpa has publicly announced that he will succeed as chairman. If I intervened, it would undermine the authority he’s just established. You don’t have to worry, if he truly encounters something he can’t decide on, I’ll let you know what to do. To me, this current lifestyle is what I truly want—a life of freedom, going wherever I please, without constraints. When are you free? Let’s go on a world tour, what do you think?"

"That sounds great, but I fear I won’t be able to make time in the near future." Ling Chen looked a bit helpless. Even though Su Cheng’en was dead, and Su He had returned to the Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion to enjoy his twilight years, a greater threat loomed—Zhu Hong. Right now, all the Soul Stones are in Zhu Hong’s possession. Based on his understanding of Zhu Hong, he wouldn’t stay idle. If he uses those Soul Stones to cause trouble, it would be disastrous.

Just as he was lost in thought, his phone suddenly rang. When he took out his phone, Nanrong Wanqing leaned closer, glanced at the caller ID, seized the phone, and answered, "Hello! Fatty Hu, we’re on a date, can it wait..." Before she could finish her sentence, whatever Hu Fei said on the other end made her expression change slightly. She immediately picked up the remote control, turned on the TV, and switched to the news channel.

"Hello, viewers. This is a report from our station’s journalist. There has been a horrific vendetta incident in Lingyuan Town on the outskirts of Beijing. According to information gathered by our front-line reporters, a large number of bodies were found in an underground warehouse in the town center. They suffered inhuman torture and murder prior to their deaths..."

Seeing the news broadcast on TV, Ling Chen furrowed his brow and, taking the phone Nanrong Wanqing handed over, asked, "Fatty, what’s going on?"

"Did you see the news on TV?"

"I saw it."

"I investigated and found a big discrepancy between the reported and actual death toll. In that underground warehouse, over thirty bodies were discovered, and they died gruesomely, as if someone had ripped their chests open with their bare hands to extract their hearts. Through internal connections, I obtained some of the deceased’s information. Some were researchers, and others were disciples of the Heavenly Dragon Sect."

Heavenly Dragon Sect!

Ling Chen’s expression turned grim. Since it involved the Heavenly Dragon Sect, it clearly had ties to Zhu Hong. With that thought, Ling Chen was about to investigate further, but then another call came in. He glanced at it; it was Ling Gengqiu’s number. Apart from women and important matters, Ling Gengqiu rarely contacted him.

"Fatty, I’ll get back to you later," he said before answering Ling Gengqiu’s call.

"Hey! Big brother, what’s going on?"

"Those people who died in Lingyuan Town were likely killed by Zhu Hong." Ling Gengqiu said gravely, "Zhu Hong has probably fused those Soul Stones."

"Big brother, are you sure?" Ling Chen was shocked. He couldn’t understand how Zhu Hong managed to fuse those Soul Stones. Without undergoing the first stage of evolution, forcibly fusing the Soul Stones would only cause the body to explode. But from Ling Gengqiu’s tone, Zhu Hong seemed to have succeeded.

"It’s hard to explain over the phone. I’m heading to the base now. Come meet me there, and I’ll explain everything."

"Okay."

After hanging up the phone, Ling Chen looked apologetically at Nanrong Wanqing. He originally planned to spend the day with her, but didn’t anticipate such a major incident. The latter gently stroked his cheek, smiling slightly, "It’s okay, go and be safe."

"I know. You rest first. I’ll come back to keep you company when I have time." With that, Ling Chen quickly stepped out of the villa and drove to the base.

Over twenty minutes later, Ling Chen met Ling Gengqiu in the base’s control room.