Deus Ex Machina: Chapter 44

Chapter 44

Several people raised different possibilities. Zhan Feng said, “Is it possible that there were internal divisions within the Intercontinental Alliance, and that one faction is connected to Guan Jincheng?”

“That’s possible,” Yang Jin nodded. “Guan Jincheng mentioned some things.” His gaze passed over the crowd and landed on He Xun and Meng Die in the distance. “What secret plan was Qianfan working on twenty years ago?”

Everyone turned to look at them.

He Xun shook his head and said, “All I know is that the plan was of great importance, but because it was so highly classified, I didn’t even know what part of it I was involved with.”

Yang Jin asked, “What was Guan Jincheng doing at that time?”

“I’ve already told you,” He Xun replied. “He was the leader of a branch task force. We were working together on human gene decomposition. Guan Jincheng is an extraordinarily talented person. He was… no, I believe that even now, no one’s brain can surpass his. Prometheus Laboratory ¹ has so many cutting-edge scientists, but Guan Jincheng himself is Prometheus; he is the man who stands before the truth.”

“It seems like you hold him in very high regard,” Yang Jin said with a smile. “But I seem to remember that the last time you mentioned Guan Jincheng, you said you couldn’t remember much about him. He Xun, what’s going on with that?”

At Yang Jin’s words, He Xun also smiled, though there was more helplessness in his smile. He shrugged, as if not intending to struggle with it, and said, “Because I thought that, in this story, Guan Jincheng was a trivial character.”

Yang Jin said, “Then can you continue telling us?”

He Xun countered, “So, what kind of person do you think Guan Jincheng is? You all should have interacted with him when you were with Qianfan. Why don’t you think about it for yourself and decide what kind of person he is?”

In Qianfan, no one would dare question Guan Jincheng. He had made outstanding contributions to humanity. Even though his personality was extremely indifferent, his brilliant achievements overshadowed his character flaws. 

“He’s a strange person,” Yang Jin said. “He rarely leaves his laboratory, maintains polite yet distant working relationships with everyone, and has no close friends. I guess even Wan Hong doesn’t know what Guan Jincheng is thinking.”

“That’s because you’re far from the Prometheus Laboratory,” Bai Yunci said. “I’ve worked with him for a few days. Aside from eating, drinking, and basic needs, there is only one thing he cares about.”

“What’s that?” Yang Jin asked.

“Truth,” Bai Yunci replied. “The ultimate—truth—that science seeks.”

“Right.” He Xun, who had been silent for a while, nodded and said, “He truly is that kind of person. Do you think he’s a cold and indifferent person? Not really. His pursuit of truth can only be described as fervent. He’s too intelligent. While others are still thinking about the mundane matters of the world, he’s already pondering more profound things. His ideas are so creative, the complete opposite of his rigid and restrained personality. One has to admit, some people are just born to change the world.”

Yang Jin could see a commonality in Bai Yunci and He Xun’s eyes, an unreserved admiration for Guan Jincheng. Perhaps it was out of shared pursuits, or maybe a sense of mutual recognition. In any case, the role Guan Jincheng played in the explosion incident did not affect their views on him in the slightest.

“From your descriptions,” Feng Mang said, “if I knew him, I’d probably appreciate him too.”

Zhan Feng walked up to Yang Jin and said softly, “Are you having a hard time understanding? After all, to you, all tech people are probably lunatics.”

“They are lunatics,” Yang Jin answered. “I can never understand their obsession, or some of their twisted sense of right and wrong.”

“So, we won’t discuss why Guan Jincheng didn’t die, but let’s talk about what happened after,” Zhan Feng said. “He may have been curious about certain traits you possess, and that curiosity overcame the risks of exposing himself. He’s someone who dares to take risks, even willing to sacrifice his life to verify right from wrong.”

Yang Jin nodded. “Right, he’s definitely that kind of person.”

Zhan Feng asked, “Did he… do anything to you?”

Yang Jin laughed. “Are you concerned about me?”

Zhan Feng nodded. “Yes.”

Just as Yang Jin was about to speak, he remembered what Yu Chen had told him. If he detailed everything that had happened in the laboratory, it would inevitably lead to questions about his own identity. He didn’t even know who he was now, so what direction could others think? He could only shake his head and say, “It’s nothing.”

“Really?” Zhan Feng asked.

“Why? Don’t believe me?” Yang Jin responded, his eyes full of amusement.

“No,” Zhan Feng said. “I believe you. I believe that whatever you do… is the right thing.”

Somehow, the discussion about Guan Jincheng turned into a tribute to him. Bai Yunci and the others all admired Guan Jincheng, but whatever he did, they were never surprised.

Many geniuses are mad, but for Guan Jincheng an attribute of being cool-headed needed to be added. 

Such a person is even more terrifying.

“For the common tommorow of humanity,” Meng Die suddenly said. “That was our oath back then.”

“Humanity? Tomorrow?” Yang Jin mused, repeating these two words over and over in his mouth. He had also vaguely heard Guan Jincheng mention these things before, so what is this “tomorrow”?

“Hey, you guys, look!” Dalia, who had not participated in the conversation, shouted from the window. “There’s a parade outside!”

“Are they crazy?” Ying Si ran over. “It’s all chaotic right now, and they’re still out there parading? Are they trying to cause panic?”

Yang Jin walked over and looked at the crowd gathering below, continuously moving toward the Intercontinental Alliance building. The police had already been deployed to manage security. The two sides collided, one side advancing while the other retreated, and the crowd became congested.

“I’m already tired of watching,” Feng Mang said. “At this point, if anything else happens, I wouldn’t be surprised. After seeing so much, one becomes numb.”

“What do they want?” Ying Si turned and asked.

“An explanation,” Zhan Feng replied.

“An explanation?” Ying Si was puzzled.

“Yes, they want someone to explain why things have turned out like this,” Zhan Feng said. “After all that’s happened, anyone would be anxious. What can ordinary people do? They can only seek psychological comfort, even though they know the answers they get might not be true.”

“Could it really not be intentional?” Yang Jin observed the crowd and said. “If they’ve infiltrated all aspects, all fields…”

It seemed the Intercontinental Alliance’s handling of the situation had not been accepted by the people. The continuous events had pushed people’s nerves to the brink of collapse. Since the formation of the Intercontinental Alliance, people had gotten used to unity, to not distinguishing between “you” and “me.” Most distinctive personalities and disharmonies had gradually faded, and highly concentrated resources had been effectively utilized to build a brighter human world. As a result, the edges of this world had been smoothed out during this process.

Everything was fine. Nothing was wrong.

But when disaster struck, some people realized that the world was not as they had imagined. Even the sky over Aurora had turned gray—so what light could there be left?

Compared to disaster, the most terrifying thing is the panic and instability of the human heart.

“I intercepted a message,” Feng Mang said excitedly as he operated the screen. “It was sent from the Intercontinental Alliance.”

“What?” Yang Jin asked.

“Let me see…” Feng Mang opened the message. “The information comes from a private device. The name of the device is W…W…” The rest was a string of garbled text he didn’t recognize.

“Written by Wen Song,” Yang Jin said. “It should be him. What did he send?”

“It’s encrypted,” Feng Mang said. “Only one target coordinate—39N116E… It’s Chunming City!”

In the corner, Shi Yixi reacted faintly as if someone had called his name: “Huh?”

Yang Jin frowned. “Chunming City is nowhere near anything, and it has nothing there. What does this mean? Why would Wen Song send something to this place?”

Dalia asked, “Did he send it to the wrong place?”

“At a time like this, such an action could absolutely not be explained as a mistake,” Yang Jin said. “Is this a real coordinate, or is it some kind of illusion?”

“Could it be Guan Jincheng?” Zhan Feng suddenly said. “Otherwise, why would he send it as a private individual? Is he an insider for Guan Jincheng in the Intercontinental Alliance?”

Bai Yunci said, “If you want to know the answer, why not go and see for yourselves?”

Yang Jin said, “What if it’s a trap?”

Bai Yunci replied, “A trap is always relative.”

Yang Jin smiled, immediately understanding Bai Yunci’s meaning. He sighed deeply and said, “Three days from now, I’ll set off for Chunming City. You all stay here.”

“I’ll go with you,” Zhan Feng said.

“Your condition isn’t good,” Bai Yunci said. “What could you do by coming along?”

Yang Jin asked, “Xiao Feng, what’s wrong with you?”

“It’s nothing, you don’t need to worry about me. I’m not going to hold you back,” Zhan Feng said. “We’re partners; isn’t it normal to go together? I’m more worried if you go alone.”

“Alright,” Yang Jin nodded and agreed to Zhan Feng. “Feng Mang, help me prepare the plane and equipment. Xiao Feng and I, we’ll…”

Shi Yixi tugged at Yang Jin’s sleeve and asked, “Can I go with you?”

“It’s too dangerous, Yixi,” Yang Jin said, lowering his head.

“I’m not afraid of danger,” Shi Yixi said. “I won’t cause you any trouble. Besides, Chunming City is my home, and I know it well. Maybe I can help. And… I can also check on my parents.”

Yang Jin had intended to refuse Shi Yixi, but Bai Yunci said, “Let him go with you. A team of three is the standard for a combat squad, right?”

“But…” Yang Jin hesitated.

Bai Yunci stepped forward and said, “What are you worried about? He’s not like Ying Si, with his unstable temperament, and his abilities… aren’t they strong enough?” He moved a little closer to Yang Jin. “He can’t stay a child forever. You can’t protect him in a safe place for the rest of his life. You’ll have to face this reality eventually.”

“What you’re saying makes it sound like you have ulterior motives,” Yang Jin muttered softly.

“You’ll know once you try it,” Bai Yunci said.

“Fine,” Yang Jin raised his voice. “Yixi, Xiao Feng, we three will go to Chunming. The rest of you stay here to monitor the Intercontinental Alliance’s movements and stay in contact at all times.” He turned his head to Feng Mang. “Is three days enough for you to prepare?”

“Three days?” Feng Mang felt Yang Jin was underestimating him. “I’ll have everything ready in one day.”

“No need,” Yang Jin said. “Three days. I need time to prepare too.”

Meng Die stood up from the sofa. Unlike He Xun, who was easygoing, she wouldn’t have been involved if He Xun hadn’t asked. “I agreed to help you save Yang Jin, and now that he’s back, my mission is complete. What you do next is up to you. It has nothing to do with us.” She said loudly, “Give me the Xing Bao formula, and we’ll be done here.”

Zhan Feng said, “I can give you the Xing Bao formula, but so what? Can you make it on your own?”

Meng Die said, “That’s our business.”

“He Xun,” Bai Yunci said, “You can do it, right?”

The frail man had been sitting on the sofa the whole time. He looked so ordinary that most people wouldn’t associate him with anything high-level.

“The injuries you’ve suffered have rapidly degraded your potential. This loss of potential has indeed taken away your sharp insight and reaction time. You can no longer stand at the forefront of medical research,” Bai Yunci said, looking at He Xun. “But experience doesn’t leave you. So, based on your own abilities, as long as you have the formula, you can make anything, right?”

“Maybe,” He Xun replied. “I mean, maybe.”

“DNX7,” Zhan Feng said. “That very rare substance inside, the one that replaces the unidentified ingredient from Haiyan, we call it DNX7. Only Checker knows how to extract it. This is the key to the Xing Bao. Even if you…” 

Meng Die stepped forward and questioned Yang Jin: “It should all be in you, right?”

“What are you talking about?” Yang Jin asked.

Meng Die said, “We found your blood in that room. Bai said that the composition in your blood is very similar to the substance in the Xing Bao. Shouldn’t I suspect that Guan Jincheng also has designs on you in this area?”

Yang Jin looked at Bai Yunci, who shook his head. Zhan Feng said, “Don’t listen to their nonsense. We all have Haiyan in us, and the Xing Bao was created based on Haiyan. It’s normal for there to be similarities.”

Meng Die sneered coldly and said, “If it’s a coincidence, we’ll find out soon enough.”

“Not possible,” Yang Jin said. “I’ve been with Qianfan for so long—don’t I know what’s happened? Do I not remember what happened to me?” His tone was sharp. He didn’t like this feeling, as if he were being dragged around in a dark world. The events from before were blurry in his mind, but everything after Qianfan was vivid. He suddenly became very sensitive, not liking being questioned about these things. The unknowns irritated him.

Everyone fell silent.

“However,” Yang Jin continued, “If it has to do with me, I can agree to your request, but there must be one condition.”

“I hate it when people talk to me about conditions,” Meng Die said. “I could just kill you.”

Yang Jin, already in a bad mood, was immediately angered by Meng Die’s direct threat. He gritted his teeth and said, “Kill me? Come and try.”

As Meng Die took a step forward, He Xun grabbed her.

“Join us,” Yang Jin said sharply. “When the truth finally comes out, I’ll give you all my blood. Until then, don’t even think about going anywhere. Meng Die, I’ve never been afraid of confronting people head-on. You can try if you want.”

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Translator Notes

1. Changed from Flame Raider to this. The word used literally translates to “fire thief”. In Greek mythology Prometheus is best known for defying the Olympian gods by taking fire from them and giving it to humanity in the form of technology, knowledge and, more generally, civilization. The name just seems to fit the lab more than “Flame Raider” or “Fire Thief”.[↩]