Carbon-Based Lifeforms Rich in High Protein

Yi Nanping's subordinates wore expressions of utter disbelief.

"Lieutenant Yi, these Tentacle Monsters are clearly Remnants that can infect and parasitize humans—when did bullets become capable of killing them?!"

"Exactly, Lieutenant Yi. Didn't the higher-ups say that whenever we encounter anomalous creatures related to Remnants, we have to call for superior support and let Mental Strength Experts with high Gene Evolution Levels handle them?"

Remembering the painful experience of battling those Remnants with Mental Strength last time, Yi Nanping rubbed his nose and said irritably, "You're not analyzers. How can you be sure they were killed by bullets?"

"Team One, go inside with the instruments and check whether there are any surviving Remnants left."

"Team Two, inspect the weapons residue and see if you can find out who made the move."

He issued his orders in an orderly manner.

"Yes, Lieutenant Yi!"

These people were the Regular Army Ye Shijie had mentioned.

Just the several large armed Drones surrounding the upper space of this six-story building made it obvious that their instruments and equipment were far superior to those of Hunters like Ye Shijie and his group.

Under Yi Nanping's orders, Team One, dressed in black protective suits, entered the building carrying instruments.

Team Two, dressed in camouflage uniforms, carried instruments as they inspected the weapons remnants in the open space before the building.

Five Minutes later, a Team One member emerged from the building and gestured. "Lieutenant Yi, everything has been checked. Only four Human Traffickers remain inside, all killed with a single shot. There are no Remnants left behind. There were also twenty-three abducted Victims. All of them are dead, and none were infected by Remnants."

Yi Nanping frowned and walked over to the Human Skin on the ground. Puzzled, he said, "Could this have been the only person implanted with a Remnant? What a shame—it was blasted into this state."

A Team One member in a black protective suit bent down and collected the Human Skin, riddled with holes, as an important piece of evidence.

Another Technical Personnel member conducting the weapons inspection said to Yi Nanping, "Captain, testing shows that the Bullet Casings on the ground are all Number 085 and Number 093 Bullets manufactured by Zong Military Industries this year. Aside from military issue, only a handful of organizations in the country can legally purchase those two types of bullets."

Yi Nanping snorted. "In our Beichen Empire, guns are regulated, but bullets aren't. Zong Military Industries bullets can be bought as long as you have money. What does legal or illegal even have to do with it?"

His subordinate was left speechless. They were used to it by now.

Yi Nanping crouched down and stared blankly at the thickest remaining section of tentacle among the Bullet Casings scattered across the ground.

The tentacle had been scorched black by the gunpowder in the bullets. It looked like a charred Octopus Leg, only much bigger—a charred geoduck Octopus Leg.

His sharp gaze fixed tightly on that section of tentacle, as though he wanted to use his eyes as an analyzer to examine its structure.

He really did use Mental Strength to probe it, but found nothing.

This severed tentacle, burned by ammunition, was dead beyond all doubt. Its material structure was now no different from the Seafood humans ate.

The only conclusion was that both were Carbon-Based Lifeforms, equally rich in high protein.

Yi Nanping slowly rose to his feet and frowned. "No living tentacles?"

He still held onto a sliver of hope. According to their previous experience, the tentacles generated by these Remnants possessed extremely tenacious vitality. Even if only a tiny fragment of Cellular Tissue remained, they could regenerate.

But the results of this investigation did not support that conclusion.

"...Reporting, Captain. Confirmed: none are alive. They are all dead at the cellular level."

"What a shame." Yi Nanping sighed again.

As his subordinates placed the charred tentacles into translucent evidence bags, one of them said, "Over the past few years, there have already been three incidents of Tentacle Monsters harming people."

"Each time, no one was able to strike them with conventional weapons. Their Mental Strength Attacks were incredibly powerful and strange. Even though their rank was low, humans could not contend against them—not even Mental Strength Experts at C-Class Peak. Naturally, we had no way to fight back with conventional weapons."

"If this time's test results can prove they were truly killed by conventional weapons, that would be extremely encouraging news."

"Yeah. Of the previous incidents, only once did Lieutenant Yi manage to capture a tentacle alive. It survived for about One Week, and even now, all we got from it was the term 'Remnant.'"

"This Tentacle Monster was stronger than the previous ones, yet they were all killed. It really is a shame."

With his Hands Behind Back, Yi Nanping gazed up at the night sky and murmured, "If only we'd arrived one minute earlier... One minute earlier, and we could at least have gotten a live Tentacle Monster."

"Or maybe we could have found out who was so ruthless, turning Remnants that required high-level Mental Strength to destroy into Seafood with conventional weapons..."

At the mention of "Seafood," his subordinates' expressions instantly turned strange, as if they wanted to vomit but had to hold it in.

They probably would not want to eat Seafood for quite some time...

Yi Nanping, however, did not think that much about it.

Frowning, he entered the room and carefully scanned it, then came back outside to look around. At the same time, he examined the open space before the building and the environment within a thousand-meter radius.

The specialized glasses attached to his Helmet were like a high-powered computer. They could record the entire surrounding environment and upload it to a cloud-based Mechanical Intelligence system for high-powered modeling, allowing for better Data Analysis.

He then commanded, "Take everything here away, including the Bullet Casings and severed tentacles on the ground. Have the local Punishment Department notify the parents who reported the case to come claim these deceased abducted Victims. Seal off this entire building. Every resident inside must be relocated."

He watched his subordinates clean up the scene while waiting for the analysis results from the Technical Department.

Suddenly, the nano-level Quantum Optical Brain embedded in the back of Yi Nanping's head received an information command, which was transmitted directly into his brain through the Brain-Computer Interface.

Lieutenant Yi Nanping of Group Twelve, District Three, Mulan City Branch of the Special Security Bureau, please proceed to Safe House 244 in District Eight of the city to answer questions from your superiors.

The Electronic Sound simulated by the Quantum Optical Brain repeated the message three times before stopping.

Yi Nanping replied with a single word in his mind. Yes.

Calm and Collected, he summoned a Small Combat Aircraft and ordered, "I have matters to attend to, so I'll leave first. Send Message when you're done handling this. Remember, this place must remain sealed off."

"Yes, Lieutenant Yi."

In less than Five Minutes, Yi Nanping arrived at Safe House 244 in District Eight of Mulan City, as instructed by his superiors.

The one who Opened the Door was a squat Robot Butler.

It was not humanoid, but a Cylindrical Mechanical Body equipped with four Mechanical Arms and a circular mechanical chassis for movement.

Yi Nanping walked inside, and The Door automatically slammed shut behind him.

It had originally been an ordinary Residential House, but once the door closed, the Light and Shadow inside shifted, rapidly transforming the room into a Small Conference Room.

Yi Nanping knew this was actually 3D Holographic Projection technology. It was simply so lifelike that it looked real.

A man wearing a Dark Gray Silver-Trimmed Military Uniform sat solemnly at the head of the conference table, staring at Yi Nanping, who had gone to the scene today.

Beneath a military cap matching his uniform, his features were so handsome that they even carried a somewhat feminine beauty. Yet there was faint pressure in his gaze, making it clear at a glance that he was not someone to be trifled with.

The man introduced himself first. "I am Colonel Zong Ruoan of the Information Department at Special Security Bureau Headquarters. I have just received the data you uploaded, and there are a few things I need to confirm with you."

Yi Nanping gave a military salute. "Yes, Colonel Zong."

"You are Lieutenant Yi Nanping of Group Twelve, District Three, Mulan City Branch of the Special Security Bureau?"

"Yes."

"Lieutenant Yi, first, where did you receive the information today that a Remnant had appeared in Mulan City? Second, why didn't you capture the Remnant alive this time? Why did you kill all of them instead?"

Yi Nanping shook his head with a bitter smile. "Colonel Zong, I'm also very puzzled by this. It feels strange."

"Speak."

"At 1:15 in the morning, we received word from the local Punishment Department in Mulan City that a Remnant had appeared within their jurisdiction."

"Based on past experience, the local Disciplinary Ministry cannot handle cases related to Remnants. The Special Security Bureau's Elite Team must be deployed, along with Mental Strength Experts among the Gene Evolvers."

"I had handled a case involving a Remnant before, and I was also closest to where the Remnant appeared, so I was notified to arrive immediately."

"We reached the scene at 1:45 in the morning. We could have arrived ten minutes earlier, but our superiors stopped us midway. We waited in place for ten minutes before proceeding."

Hearing this, Zong Ruoan nodded and said calmly, "Mm. I know about the order to stop. It wasn't your fault."

As he spoke, he casually waved his hand. The 3D Holographic Projection before him changed, revealing three different scenes.

Though the times and locations differed, all three scenes were equally bloody and horrifying.

Zong Ruoan tapped with his finger and pointed at the first scene. "This is the rare lifeform known as the Remnant, which has only appeared in recent years."

"This lifeform is extremely difficult to deal with. Once it appears, it causes widespread casualties."

"Three years ago, it appeared for the first time and infected and devoured more than three hundred people at a Commercial Company in Mulan City Central District."

"Two years ago, it appeared for the second time and infected and devoured everyone in an entire Residential Unit in the East District, totaling more than five hundred people."

"One year ago, it appeared for the third time. Everyone was prepared then, and you happened to be carrying out a mission when it appeared. After infecting and devouring eighteen people, it was captured alive by you. It survived for One Week afterward, and during that time, all we learned from it was the term 'Remnant.'"

"This year is its fourth appearance."

Yi Nanping stood ramrod straight and said solemnly, "Yes, Colonel Zong. Based on our experience from the first three incidents, although this rare lifeform known as the Remnant does not possess a particularly high Mental Strength rank, it has an extremely powerful ability to infect. As long as even a tiny fragment of Cellular Tissue remains, it can survive and infect living creatures. It then absorbs nutrients from the host and grows rapidly."

"Furthermore, their Mental Strength is extremely unusual. Its rank is not high, but it possesses immense penetrative power. It can almost completely ignore any defensive measures and head straight for the brain's Control System."

"So once we encounter one, even Gene Evolvers cannot subdue them by force. We will be mentally controlled and unable to operate weapons. That is why conventional weapons have never worked."

"And their method of reproduction is Fission Reproduction. We determined that conventional weapons Didn't Work because conventional weapons simply cannot kill all the tentacles at once."

"Therefore, only Mental Strength Experts with high Gene Evolution Levels can counterattack with overwhelming force, thoroughly wiping out all infected Remnants in a single strike and preventing them from continuing to reproduce through fission and grow."

Of course, after today, their judgment needed revision.

Conventional weapons might still work after all.

Yi Nanping thought silently to himself.

Zong Ruoan folded his arms and narrowed his deep black eyes slightly. Thoughtfully, he said, "Lieutenant Yi is a Gene Evolver at Mental Strength Rank B Peak. You happened to be on-site during the third appearance and captured a Remnant alive. Now answer my second question. Why were you unable to capture one alive this time, and instead killed all the Remnants?"

Yi Nanping's mouth twitched as he gave a bitter smile. "Colonel Zong, this time had nothing to do with me."

"By the time we arrived, those Tentacle Remnants had already died completely, physically."

Zong Ruoan asked sternly, "Is that so? Then who killed them? In Mulan City, is there another Mental Strength Expert more powerful than you, Lieutenant Yi?"

Yi Nanping was momentarily speechless.

To be honest, he could not understand it either.

Mulan City was a major city, but it was only a city on Guiyuan Star, the most remote planet within the Beichen Empire Star Domain. Its population was not small, but among the Beichen Empire's major cities, it could only rank near the bottom.

In a place like this, he, a Gene Evolver at Mental Strength Rank B Peak, was already a top-tier powerhouse.

He could not think of anyone here with a higher rank than his.

As he remained silent, Zong Ruoan continued thoughtfully, "The Remnants from the previous incidents only reached D-Class Peak at most, so you could crush them completely. Based on previous experience, humans need Mental Strength two ranks higher to fully suppress and kill Remnants."

"From the data uploaded so far, the Mental Strength of this wave of Remnants should have reached C-Class Peak. To crush and kill Remnants at that level, a Mental Strength Rank A Peak expert is required."

"So tell me, why would a Mental Strength Rank A Peak expert appear on a planet as remote as Guiyuan Star, beyond the Special Security Bureau's jurisdiction?"

Mental Strength Rank A Peak was a far more terrifying existence than Yi Nanping, Mulan City's so-called top-tier powerhouse.

Across the entire Beichen Empire, those at Mental Strength Rank A Peak belonged to the First Tier of powerhouses. Moreover, ninety-nine percent of them were stationed on Beichen Star, the Empire's Capital Star Region.

As Zong Ruoan's words fell, the Small Conference Room sank into deathly silence.

After a long while, Yi Nanping finally said with some bitterness, "Colonel Zong, it's possible that Mental Strength Experts from another organization appeared in Mulan City. We simply don't know about them."

"For example?"

"Setting everything else aside, the Dark Night Hunter Association alone is filled with powerful people." Yi Nanping shook his head, somewhat unwilling but helpless. "I strongly suspect that the ones who acted before us were members of the Dark Night Hunter Association stationed in Mulan City."

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