CH 124

Bai Chunian couldn’t take it any longer and went for the two red-leather booklets. The tips of his fingers created a thumping sound against the glass.

“Hold it closer for me to look…” Bai Chunian arched his neck and pressed the tip of his nose on the glass, which looked a little comical from Rimbaud’s perspective. 

Rimbaud swung back and forth in front of the glass, holding up the two booklets. Behind the glass, Bai Chunian’s gaze followed, his eyes darting to the left, then the right.

“Don’t move, open it and let me have a look.” Bai Chunian sat in the back, helplessly anxious. Even though Du Mo was watching him there, he couldn’t stand up.

Rimbaud opened the first page for him, and there was a red “囍” printed under the stamped photo. Although they had never taken such a formal photo together, the technology department must’ve found a way.

Rimbaud then showed him the second page. Their names were listed on it.

“It’s so beautiful.” Separated by the glass, Bai Chunian touched the pages in the book.

Looking at Bai Chunian in this state, Rimbaud felt a little distressed. He put his webbed hand on the glass and asked, “I heard you thinking about me a few days ago, masturbating must’ve been very hard, I heard the sound of your breathing, and I was also doing it with you that night, could you feel it? I can break this glass with one punch, do you want to come with me?”

“Stop talking.” Bai Chunian put his handcuffed hands in his hair, trying hard to press down the thing that came up.

He didn’t shy away at all. Every prison police guarding them could hear what was being said. The armed police at the door drew their guns, and Du Mo was also watching them vigilantly. 

He saw a white tail squeezed out from Bai Chunian’s waistband, hanging behind his buttocks and swaying. It didn’t look like a dog’s tail no matter how he looked at it. Only after thinking for a while did he remember that when he registered Bai Chunian’s species, white lion was written on the file.

Du Mo rolled his eyes and cursed inwardly. Fuck.

Bai Chunian focused on chatting with Rimbaud and silently sent a hand to the back of his pants to stuff his original body’s trait—which carelessly appeared because he was too excited—back into his pants while acting like nothing happened. Besides, there was a tabletop blocking him. Rimbaud couldn’t see it across from him, so he didn’t lose face.

These two obviously didn’t see Du Mo as a human being. 

Du Mo lowered his head. Bored, he stood by the wall as an unwanted third wheel for the two and secretly sent a message to the four-person group chat on the electronic screen of his communication device under the tabletop. “I surrender. If I am guilty, the warden can punish me instead of having me wait upon this tail-wagging, ear-drooping, coquettish alpha behind the glass and listen to them say censored words here.”

Spittlebug,”Is it still the one surnamed Bai? How long is he staying ah; is IOA not coming to bail him out?”

Bell-bird, “The one in my prison block, Eris, is also very difficult to handle. I always trip when I pass by his cell. Because of him, my husband failed to win a car again, it’s infuriating.”

Sea Spider, “Someone came to visit Eris today.” 

After annoying him for half an hour, Bai Chunian reluctantly watched Rimbaud leave.

Du Mo stepped onto the round stool on the side. He stretched and retracted the pointer stick in his hands in boredom, then sneered, “He actually didn’t bail you out. I even thought you were about to fuck right off.”

The International Prison had a bail system for experimental subjects, and it was only for experimental subjects. A qualified organization just needed to show the purchase invoice and possession certificate of the experimental subject, as well as pay a huge sum of bail money. Because experimental subjects were identified as “weapons” and not as free people. As long as a legal organization was in possession of them, they didn’t have to be supervised by the International Prison. Later, if the experimental subject causes damage to society, the organization in possession of them would be punished for it.

“I have an immediate family now.” Bai Chunian didn’t have time to pay attention to him. He hummed a tune and walked out of the visiting room. 

Du Mo could only follow him. As long as Bai Chunian was in prison, he couldn’t let his guard down; he had always been a ticking time bomb.

After leaving the visiting room, Bai Chunian happened to bump into Eris, who had a few prison guards holding him, but they still couldn’t hold back the excited Eris. Once he saw Bai Chunian, he excitedly shouted at him, “Da-ge, I also had someone visit me! He wants to bail me out, I’m so happy! I’m sorry da-ge, it wasn’t my intention to leave you, but he’s someone whom I like even more.”

“Oh, congrats.” Bai Chunian gave him a thumbs up. “I got married too, just now.”

“Wow!” Eris exaggeratedly gave him two thumbs up. “You’re so cool!” 

They high-fived. Du Mo’s teeth hurt from watching.

Du Mo poked Bai Chunian in the back with the pointer. “Don’t dawdle, let’s go.”

Qtlif kjixlcu, Djl Jtecljc mjrejiis jrxfv, “Qtb yjlifv Sglr?”

Ge Zb rtbbx tlr tfjv, “Lf’r cba ecvfg ws reqfgnlrlbc.” 

Djmx lc tlr mfii, Djl Jtecljc tjv ab kjix jgbecv atf gbbw obg j ktlif yfobgf tf kjr jyif ab vlufra j yla bo atf pbsber cfkr ogbw abvjs, rb atja tf mbeiv tbiv tlwrfio yjmx ogbw gertlcu eq ab rbwfbcf jcv ulnlcu atfw j kfvvlcu lcnlajalbc ktfc tf rffr atfw.

After Rimbaud left the International Prison, there was a ferry waiting for him. However, after he got on the ship, he jumped out of the window and into the waters and swam off.

Lu Yan and his helicopter were waiting for him three kilometers away from the island.

The helicopter was hovering over the sea, overlooking the azure ocean. A merman flashing a bright blue light loomed from the water, and a floating blue jellyfish followed him around. 

Rimbaud leapt out of the water. Xiao Xun, who was hanging on the rope ladder in advance, reached out to him. After grabbing onto each other’s wrists, the helicopter took him away from the island.

On the helicopter, Bi Lanxing put a towel over Rimbaud’s dripping wet hair. Han Xingqian asked, “How’d it go?”

“He tapped a string of Morse Code to me.” Rimbaud carefully checked if the archive envelope wrapped in a waterproof sleeve got wet while reading out each word that was written down. Han Xingqian wrote them down in his notebook in order.

It was a long phrase, “One-way see-through film.” 

Lu Yan, “One-way see-through film? The ones you stick to your car window?”

Bi Lanxing, “He probably wants one that is custom made, one that is completely opaque on one side.”

Han Xingqian tapped on the paper. “It can be done.”

Rimbaud spread out the floor plan of the prison that Bai Chunian had hand-drawn before he left. He pointed at the flower bed marked with the number 2. “Hand it over here in three days, and use Lanxing’s vines. I’ll accompany him.” 

More than a dozen numbers were marked on the hand-drawn map, all of which were analyzed by Bai Chunian before he left. They were places with a good chance to hand over goods. Some spots had been found to be unfeasible after an on-site inspection, so only a few available positions were singled out.

A week later.

Bai Chunian stood in front of the canteen window to grab some food. The person serving him food was still not Patissier. He bent down to look through the window. “Honey Bee still hasn’t come back yet?”

The inmate serving food impatiently answered, “He was transferred over to the ICU to cook for the patients there, he won’t be back for a while.” 

When Bai Chunian went back to his table and looked at the cabbage soup that was even more unpalatable than usual, he lost a bit of his appetite. In the prison canteen, there was even a commotion because the food had been worse than usual for the whole week. The inmates slammed the table in protest, asking to bring the bee omega back to cook.

Hearing the uproar in the canteen, Du Mo kicked open the main entrance, raised the pointer stick, and struck it at the door a few times, the resounding sound ceased the noise. He scolded, “Let me see who’s making a ruckus!”

The canteen immediately fell into complete silence, and the prisoners regained order.

Du Mo walked to the pool, crossed his arms, and leaned against the wall to watch them eat. The prisoners were now acting well-behaved, not daring to cause trouble in front of him. The pointer stick in his hand really hurt when used to flog people. 

Bai Chunian carried his food tray over to the sink to wash, the thin stream of water washed over his distinct knuckles.

Du Mo’s gaze landed on Bai Chunian. He was used to staring at Bai Chunian at all times. As long as he appeared in his line of sight, he would never let go of any opportunity to catch his little tricks.

Bai Chunian knew he was being watched. He said without looking up, “Since you guys want info about Sow Firewall, I happen to know something. In exchange, I want to hear about the content of your previous interrogation of Golden Silk Spider. If you agree, I will tell you what I know at the next interrogation.”

Du Mo had long since realized that he was here to negotiate. No one’s interrogation methods were good enough in front of the ex-IOA Secret Service Search Division’s section chief. Nobody would be able to get a peep out of him. To deal with this kind of guy, frankness was more rewarding than concealment. 

“Golden Silk Spider resisted interrogation. Everytime we interrogate him, he just sits there in silence.” Du Mo spread out his hands. “No one was able to get him to spill.”

“Oh, but it looks like he said something else.” Bai Chunian looked into his eyes with ease. “For example, words like ‘I will only talk with the IOA’s president.’ There should be something like that, right?”

This got Du Mo’s guard up. “Tell me, why did you want to come in here? If it’s only to go undercover, why didn’t the IOA send an undisclosed agent so they could easily conceal their identity?”

Bai Chunian eyes curved. “Guess.” 

“You’re just here to attract attention. The IOA’s real motive is outside!”

“Oh… Of course, that’s not it. Your tone is like the one used in detective films when exposing the criminal.”

Bai Chunian washed his tray as he said, “You shouldn’t spend so much energy guarding me. In fact, I’m the last thing you need to watch over.”

Du Mo sneered, “Clever mouth. So tell me, who needs even more guarding?” 

“Of course it’s Golden Silk Spider.”

Du Mo lowered his arm. “Why?”

Bai Chunian unhurriedly wiped his tray with a dishcloth. He drawled, “What do you think I’m here for?”

Du Mo, “As a spy? Undercover? In short, you’re doing something for the IOA, I just have no evidence right now. If you are only arrested for disrupting social order, the IOA still has a chance to release you on bail, but if I find evidence of you illegally investigating in prison, you will never be able to leave again.” 

Bai Chunian smiled. “You said this, not me, so it can’t be used as testimony. Since you think I can come in using this method, of course the Red-Throated Bird can too. Moreover, they’re even more professional than me and have lurked longer, because they come to the prison specifically to silence others.”

Du Mo’s face gradually turned pale. “What do you mean?”

“Golden Silk Spider’s statement has value to you guys. It’s the same for us. If he dies, his secrets would be buried forever, and neither of us would be able to obtain it.” Bai Chunian sighed. “Is Golden Silk Spider still in the ICU? I know that at your age, to be able to reach this position shows that you are very capable. Therefore, out of some experience or intuition, you have this consciousness to protect him, which is why you didn’t let him go back to the prison block. Not bad, but you haven’t thought everything through—you haven’t even thought about the inside logic.”

Du Mo pursed his lips and looked at him. After washing the tray, Bai Chunian wiped his hands with a rag. “You still don’t get it? Special agents are born with an intuition for danger, that’s why you have always been a prison guard, little birdie.” 

“If the Red-Throated Bird killer can kill him once, then he can kill him a second time. So, do you need to hire me as a bodyguard? Assign me next to Golden Silk Spider. I guarantee that he won’t be in any danger.”

Du Mo also realized the seriousness of the issue. After flatly rejecting Bai Chunian, he quickly left the canteen and said into the walkie-talkie, “Surprise inspection of all felony prison blocks to check if there are any prohibited items entrained. Focus on some former members of the Red-Throated Bird. Proceed immediately.”

When the prison guards in the felony prison blocks received this message, they immediately organized a surprise inspection.

Bai Chunian stacked the food trays in an orderly manner, went back to take an afternoon nap, then followed the prison guard to work. 

The felony prison blocks were turned upside down by Du Mo. All the suspected contraband was searched out by him and piled up in the plaza. The prison guards checked one by one. The workload was very heavy. By evening, there were still a third of them that had not been checked, so they had to work overtime overnight. At the same time, more than half of the armed police and snipers were dispatched to the felony prison blocks and outside the special custody building.

At twelve o’clock in the morning, the other inmates in the cell were snoring all around. Bai Chunian sat on his bed and played with his fingers to pass the time.

When Bai Chunian heard the soft click of the fingerprint lock on the cell door, he turned over and landed on the ground—light and silent like a cat.

He opened the door a bit, then squeezed out. He stuck to the foot of the wall and climbed up onto the window sill. He climbed up the fan duct in the ceiling to the roof. 

The roof of the prison building was about 16 floors above the ground. There were no external air-conditioning units or anti-theft nets outside the building, only the window sills of each cell. Iron fences were welded on the outside of the double-glazed glass, and there was only a narrow edge on the outside of the windows.

If he used the staircase, he would be recorded in the surveillance system, which would alert the staff member in the security control room. This was the only feasible path to take.

Bai Chunian stood on the edge of the roof with his hands in his pockets. He looked down at the cement ground 3,000 feet below him. When the searchlight was about to sweep over him, he jumped off swiftly.

To prevent jailbreaks, the two prison buildings were far apart from each other, and there were no trees or fences to cover them. Even if Bai Chunian wore a suppressor and still retained his inherent jumping and climbing ability, he couldn’t jump directly from a height of 100 meters without an intermediate cushioning point and remain unscathed. 

Bai Chunian landed on the narrow edge of the third-to-last floor for his first jump. He didn’t jump again, but instead loosened his feet and let his body slide down naturally, hooking his hands onto the window sill.

This kind of operation was a great test of arm strength and endurance. Without the support of his gland energy, all movements could only be completed by relying on his usual training skills and strong physical fitness support.

Bai Chunian was able to move down little by little this way while also needing to shuttle horizontally among the dense searchlights. It took ten minutes to reach the ground.

In a dark corner, an omega dressed in a prison uniform stretched out their hand and grabbed his arm. 

The uniform didn’t seem to fit them, and the low-brimmed hat obscured their face. Bai Chunian bent down to look at the face beneath the hat—Invisible Stalker was looking at him, his big eyes glistening.

“I’m done using it, you can dispose of it.” Invisible Stalker stuffed the tape in Bai Chunian’s hand.

Four days ago, in the flowerbed, as planned, Bai Chunian received a roll of special one-way see-through film that Bi Lanxing gave to him using vines. This kind of one-way film was much more expensive than ordinary car glass film. It looked like pure black tape from the outside, but even if it was wrapped in ten layers, the outside could still be clearly seen from the inside.

Once Bai Chunian got the tape, he snuck it in while working at the clothes factory and hung it on the thread spool pin inside the body of an old sewing machine. Invisible Stalker obtained the roll of tape during his shift at the clothes factory, replacing the electrical tape over his eyes with the reflective one. 

Invisible Stalker’s inherent ability was mimicking. As long as he could see the prison guard’s fingers and eyes, he could make his own fingerprints and irises the same as theirs. He copied his own prison guard’s fingerprint and iris and unlocked the fingerprint lock from between the fences. Leaving his own cell, he used the fingerprint and iris of the prison guard in Block A to help unlock the lock for Bai Chunian.

Inherent abilities couldn’t be immobilized with suppressors. Du Mo wasn’t too clear what was Invisible Stalker’s inherent ability specifically, but just in case, he blindfolded Invisible Stalker based on his intuition. However, he didn’t expect that someone would provide him with special equipment. It was his oversight.

Invisible Stalker lowered the brim of his hat and walked in front of Bai Chunian to lead him the way. He opened each gate with his fingerprint, then lightly closed them.

Bai Chunian followed behind him, watching the kid hurrying in little steps in front of him. 

“Thank you for taking the risk for me.” Bai Chunian said.

Invisible Stalker shook his head. “You said you’ll tell me how the major is doing. Is he doing okay? Did he get hurt again?”

“I saw him when I was on a mission at M Harbor. He’s doing well, and it looks like his old injury has almost healed.”

Invisible Stalker, “He met with the IOA president?” 

Bai Chunian, “En, but it was just a simple catch-up. He’s still single right now. I heard from his older brother that he wasn’t looking for a partner. Do you like him? Do you want me to help you tell him? I think I should be able to talk to him.”

“No… No need.” Invisible Stalker swallowed hard, suppressing his choked voice. “If he gets hurt and the person who hurt him is in this prison, just let me know. I’ll kill them for him. I can’t do anything else besides this for him.”

“Don’t you know that experimental subjects have bail regulations?”

“I know. But I’m a test subject that had been destroyed by the Research Institute. I don’t have a receipt nor a certificate. The major comforted me, saying that as long as I work hard, I can get out. I know he was just coaxing me and doesn’t want me to live in despair for the rest of my life. But I know that I will be imprisoned here forever, and I will not be able to leave even after death.” When Invisible Stalker said this, his eyes were full of helplessness. “If you can get out, and if there is an experimental subject who wants to hurt him, help me protect him just once, and it’ll be considered as compensation for me.” 

“Alright.”

Bai Chunian couldn’t utter any superfluous words of comfort. Compared to those of their kind who had resigned themselves to reality, he was already blessed enough.

Invisible Stalker led him until they entered the special custody building where Golden Silk Spider was, using his cloned fingerprint and iris to open all the pathways along the journey.

After opening the door of Golden Silk Spider’s ward, Invisible Stalker lowered the brim of his hat, bidding farewell to Bai Chunian, and hurried back to his prison block. 

The lights in the ICU hallways were all on, as was the desk lamp in the ward.

Golden Silk Spider was lying on his side, facing the wall. He couldn’t sleep and was blankly picking at the wall with his nails. The white wall was full of cavities from his picking and packed with the word “brother.”

The doctor said that he presented with a stereotypic movement disorder. No matter what he was given, after a long time, he would unconsciously write the word “brother,” filling the wall with any tools he could find.

A hand was gently put on his shoulder, and Golden Silk Spider wasn’t frightened by this at all. He didn’t even feel anything, he kept staring at the densely packed wall in a trance. 

“Hide with me; someone may assassinate you tonight.” Bai Chunian pulled him up from the sickbed.

Based on experience, Du Mo’s large-scale surprise inspection should be effective. If prohibited items could be discovered, the Red-Throated Bird’s assassination operation could be temporarily prevented. But if they weren’t found, this would inadvertently alert the enemy, and even the desperadoes hiding among the prisoners would move in advance.

Golden Silk Spider was pulled to sit up, his hair disheveled. His eyes are half-opened, covered with a layer of spider-mimetic metallic luster. He looked very delicate and soft, with the corners of his mouth raised. Although the data displayed that Shao Wenchi was twenty-three years old, it was very obvious that his features had stayed at the age of seventeen. After transforming into an experimental subject, one’s appearance would no longer change.

The arteries that were cut open in his leg had been stitched up long ago, but it was still not convenient for him to walk. Seeing Golden Silk Spider’s dejected expression, Bai Chunian glanced at the time, dragged up Golden Silk Spider, and switched into a narrow janitor’s supply room that was near a corner by holding and pulling him. 

Golden Silk Spider resisted a lot at first, but was soothed by the faint alpha scent on Bai Chunian’s body. He rested his head helplessly on his shoulder, calling him in a hoarse voice: “Ge…”

Bai Chunian locked the door of the supply room, and the small light above their heads illuminated them. It seemed a little cramped for the two, staying among the pile of buckets and mops.

“I know your brother. Shao Wenjing, who was wrapped inside a mummy by you, is now lying in the IOA Medical Association. Although he has no heartbeat and isn’t breathing, he isn’t rotting…” Bai Chunian cupped his face and patted him gently to sober him up. “Listen to me. Tell me what you’ve been through, and I can save you.”

Golden Silk Spider turned his head to the side and said stubbornly, “I only talk to the IOA’s President.” 

“…” Golden Silk Spider was truly obstinate, and he didn’t know how much damage he had suffered to become like this. Bai Chunian could understand that even those who had been trained as experimental subjects from birth couldn’t get used to that kind of torture, let alone a human youth.

“How about this? Tell me where your receipt is and who bought you. If there is a receipt, the President can take you away.” Bai Chunian could only indirectly guide him to say something.

“Ru Cheng… Ruruo Fangcheng.” Golden Silk Spider muttered, “Ru Cheng bought us, and Boss Ru has the receipt.”

“Ru Cheng?” Bai Chunian remembered that the person who handed over the sunflower explosion catalyst in M Harbor was named Ru Cheng, and his father was the boss of Ruruo Fangcheng organization. 

No wonder Golden Silk Spider used spider silk as a cocoon to kill Ru Cheng before leaving. It turned out that there was still this layer of hatred within.

“Okay, you’re a good boy. You’ll be fine, and your brother will be fine too.” Bai Chunian knew he couldn’t push too hard; it was already very good that Gold Silk Spider was willing to start talking. He planned to question him slowly, and as long as he withdrew to his prison block before dawn, Golden Silk Spider should not be in any danger tonight. Also, Du Mo should be somewhat vigilant and have this place guarded very strictly after tonight.

Just as he was about to speak, he heard a piercing scream coming from the hallway, followed by the sound of an alarm. Bai Chunian jolted and opened the door of the supply room. Through the small crack, he saw that the door of the ward where Golden Silk Spider was just in was now wide open, and a shadow rushed out a broken window.

Patissier, who came to change the piece of electric mosquito repellent, fell to the ground and twitched. A syringe was inserted into his neck, and more than half of the pink drug inside it was already injected.