The Transmigrator / Choose One of Two

"An old friend?"

Just as Bolong was about to capture the unidentified man, Spasi stopped him, smiling as he stepped out from behind him and stood in front of the man.

"I thought you had completely left the Firemoth, Lin."

Chapter Forty-Six: The Transmigrator

Standing in front of the huge transparent vessel, Spasi raised an eyebrow as he stared at the alarming data on the panel: "The erosion rate is 32%. People with poor physical condition have already succumbed to the pressure of organ erosion and died, yet you are still able to run around despite the hallucinations."

After stripping off the cloth that was left only to cover his face, Lin's body revealed more clearly the ugly marks left by Honkai Energy.

The joints of both arms were swollen and deformed, with thick blood vessels. The cut surfaces where the thighs were missing swelled up with purple fleshy lumps. Growing grotesque wounds sprouted disgusting granulation tissue. Purple stripes and blood vessels were spread all over the body, leaving no unscathed spot.

"I wonder, is it because of these medications?"

He picked up the last two vials of green potion from the plate beside him. His previously frivolous expression turned serious, and he coldly asked Lin, who was soaking in the liquid, "Do you know what these are?"

"..."

Lin shook his head at Spasi, who was looking up at him.

"These drugs are a mixture of inhibitors and other drugs. I know that those drugs have varying degrees of inhibitory effects on Honkai Energy, but because they are too harmful to the human body and too harsh, they are used separately."

"They will cause your organs to malfunction and your brain to become overstimulated. Even if you suppress Honkai Energy, it's just another way to die."

"After examination, your major organs are almost completely necrotic. I can replace your organs, but the Honkai Sickness will accelerate its erosion when I remove the diseased organs, so you are practically a dead person, just choosing a different way to die."

"I won't ask who gave you the medicine, but from now on you can no longer use these 'poisons'."

Spasi tapped on the transparent glass and smiled, "Do you remember the consent form you signed?"

"Remember."

"Very good. You should also remember what I said: the longer you Honkai Energy, the more serum can be extracted from your body. So, for the sake of those who can be saved, just keep living. The longer you live, the better. As for other things, we'll talk about them after you feel better."

"..."

Lin nodded silently, and Spasi smiled and nodded back, then said nothing more and walked out of the sanatorium.

After the door behind him closed automatically, Spasi's expression instantly turned somber and sinister that it seemed to drip water.

"Doctor, how is Mr. Lin?" Bo Long, who was waiting outside the door, asked Spasi.

In fact, Spasi's expression had already given him the answer.

"It's not just reckless anymore, it's blatant suicide. He could have lived for at least two more years, but now he probably won't even last two more months."

"..."

Bolong had heard from Spasi that he had Lin sign a body donation consent form, meaning that Spasi himself had made Lin choose to stop using inhibitors.

But now, he looked somber, and there was even a hint of barely perceptible pain in his eyes.

On one hand, she wanted Lin to make the "most valuable" choice, and on the other hand, she felt guilty about it.

Spasi quickly concealed his expression. "Don't let anyone else into this room. If anyone, especially people from headquarters, asks if Lin is in the Fifth Branch, just say no."

"Yes."

After thinking for a while, he started walking towards the laboratory.

The effects of the medicine are almost gone.

As Spasi said, the drug could forcibly excite Lin's brain, which was why he was able to stay awake. After the effects of the drug gradually wore off, the double vision in front of his eyes was once again replaced by hallucinations.

He had many questions for Spasi, but he really needed treatment; otherwise, he couldn't even maintain normal daily walking, let alone return to headquarters.

Lin was able to get to the Far East by using the Flame Moth badge to bypass the airport's security procedures, find a flight to the Far East, sneak into the cabin, and stumble his way to the Far East.

Fortunately, the people at the airport did not suspect his identity. They only knew that he was a member of the Fire Moths, and they did not ask any questions even though he looked extremely strange.

If it were someone from the Fire Moth's secret hideout, Lin would probably have been exposed.

Because he couldn't appear directly in front of the people who followed the Fire Moth, he went to try his luck at the hospital that cooperated with the Fire Moth.

This time, luck smiled upon him, and he happened to meet Spasi and Bolong.

According to Spasi, Lin's condition was so severe that it wouldn't be surprising if he died at any moment. So, the so-called 'treatment' was really just an attempt to restore his normal thinking, but it was enough for Lin.

Within the rising bubbles of liquid, Lin returned to that time in the ephemeral illusion.

"You... you want me to perform a consciousness modification surgery on this child? But he's not..."

"You don't need to say those things, you just need to tell me whether it's possible or not."

"..."

Zero stood behind the man with an icy expression, while the man was discussing something with an elderly man who looked to be over sixty years old and had white hair.

Something that has already happened to Zero.

Later, the old man and the man got into an argument, but the old man was so frightened by the man's rebuke that he lowered his head and nodded helplessly to indicate that he could.

"But he has already had one surgery, and the effect of a second surgery will be greatly reduced. At least his personality will not change much."

"It's alright, that's enough."

The man told the old man to leave, then turned his back to Lin and lit a cigarette, the lonely smoke concealing his gaze.

"Xiaolin, a person's life is made up of countless choices. No matter how much we dislike choices, we will always have to face them." He held a cigarette between two fingers, brought it to his nose, and squinted. "And humans especially like to let others make choices for them, even though I think it's a very foolish thing."

"You've already experienced someone else choosing your life for you once, so I want to give you the power to choose. But whether your choice is to willingly be used as a tool by those old guys, or to do it in the name of protecting humanity, then I'd rather choose for you again."

"Anyway, I'm a bad person just like them, so doing one bad thing is nothing to me."

Zero was very smart, smarter than his peers and even many adults, so the man deliberately discussed the matter of altering memories with the old man in front of him.

At least Zero should know the truth at this point. This cruel tenderness is the last thing he can do for Zero.

"Is there anything else you want to say? The surgery will begin immediately."

He had his back to Lin, his fists clenched so tightly that his nails dug into his palms with excruciating pain, yet he remained expressionless, seemingly oblivious to everything.

"Have."

Zero replied coldly.

"What?"

"Quit smoking, it's bad for your health."

"..."

The man threw the cigarette at his feet, stomped on it fiercely, and ground the cigarette butt with gritted teeth.

It's like they want to trample the whole world.

"What kind of memory should we create for him?" the old man asked the man beside him, who was leaning against the wall with his arms hanging down and biting his lip.

The man looked up at the bloody and cruel scene on the operating table, closed his eyes, and sighed deeply.

"Time traveler".

"What?" The old man thought he had misheard.

"Make him feel like a time traveler."

The man chuckled self-deprecatingly, "A 'time traveler' who once lived in a peaceful world, had a happy family, and had a lively personality."

Chapter 47 Two Choices

"Doctor, are there any instructions for today?"

The young researcher timidly asked Spasi was reviewing various data.

Spasi is not a hands-off manager; he is often the busiest person in the lab. However, he never repeatedly checks the accuracy of data, especially the progress of a project. In his words, it's like a primary school student checking the time every three seconds the day before a field trip—meaningless and a waste of energy.

However, today Spasi has become a "primary school student".

After entering the laboratory without saying a word, he checked the progress of the Honkai Sickness Serum development, then buried himself in work for an hour, checked it again, and repeated this process for a full five hours.

This anomaly made others think they had done something wrong, as if Spasi was finding out their mistakes.

"No, no, you just need to do your own thing." Spasi's attention wasn't on him; he just said it casually and then walked out of the lab, leaving the others looking at each other in bewilderment.

Doctor Spacy seems a little... strange today?

Spasi made his way to Lin's sanatorium, and only after confirming that no one was around did he unlock the door with his fingerprint and iris scan.

Although the Fifth Branch does not participate in the headquarters' disputes, all branches are subject to the headquarters' jurisdiction. Lin's situation is special, so he has to be careful.

Just then, Lin woke up from the illusion of his memory. His single, dark eye silently watched Spasi standing at the door in the dark liquid.

Spasi said with feigned humor, "Did I disturb your sweet dreams?"

"...No."

What exactly is that memory?

Lin couldn't confirm whether the memories in his mind were real; he couldn't even be sure who he was.

Is he Lin?

Or is it zero?

Or is it both, or neither?

These seemingly plausible memories filled in the gaps in his memory, but also left him feeling bewildered about this complete past.

"Are you...?" Spasi looked at Lin, asking in confusion, "... something has changed?"

"... Doctor Spacy, I want to ask you a question. If SiZhi had grown up normally, would you have wanted SiZhi to know the truth about the Honkai?"

"..."

Lin's indistinct words from inside the oxygen machine caused the temperature in the already cold treatment room to drop another ten degrees, Spasi's smiling expression froze.

His family situation had always been a source of worry for Spasi. He tried his best not to bring up the Fifth Branch Incident with Lin, both to keep his emotions in check and to avoid causing any further conflict between them.

He can't forget, and he won't allow himself to forget.

"You're still the same as always." But this time, Spasi only paused for a second before shaking his head with a wry smile. "Aren't you afraid I'll pull the plug on your oxygen tube?"

"Sorry."

"Don't apologize, it will only make me feel bad."

After waving his hand absentmindedly, Spasi began to seriously consider Lin's words. "If SiZhi grows up, the truth of the Honkai... what do you mean? Large-scale Honkai? Herrscher? Honkai Sickness?"

"Everything."

"All of this..." Spasi scratched his unkempt long hair. "To be honest, I don't want to."

"If you ask me why, I can only say that I don't want my children to know that someone's body is torn to pieces, someone dies on the eve of adulthood, and someone sits in an empty restaurant."

"All of this, everything about humanity, and everything about the truth, is the embodiment of cruelty."

He smiled helplessly, "We're already working so hard, why should we let the children know about this pain?"

Lin Yaoyao looked over and observed Spasi's expression.

Gradually, it overlapped with the bitter smile of the man in my memory.

His Adam's apple bobbed, and he asked hoarsely, "What if... she chose the truth herself?"

"..."

"..."

"If she were still young, I would have stopped her." Spasi saw the reflection of SiZhi in his mind's eye and said wistfully, "But you say she's grown up, so I will believe that she has made the best choice for her. What parent wouldn't want to believe in their own child?"

Lin lowered her head, closed her eyes, and listened to the beating of her heart.

"I understand, thank you..."

Half a lifetime of trials and tribulations, you and I in the play.