Open-Chest Surgery

The next day.

After devouring breakfast, Jiang Qian sat cross-legged by the window, as still as a meditating monk.

He had observed the "Spider Cocoon" inside his body several times while carefully controlling his energy expenditure.

Each observation brought new discoveries.

The details he could "see" gradually grew more abundant. Things that had never caught his attention before kept flooding into his field of view. He repeatedly pushed Spirit Vision to its limits, and with each time, his adaptability improved and his control grew more practiced.

Now, by weaving together fine trickles of blood, he could enter the Spider Cocoon and sense it more carefully, confirming how it was growing and when it would mature.

But bearing Lan Junxian's instructions in mind, he didn't take things too far.

Every second now was a gamble, and anything could happen. If the spider broke free of its cocoon, Jiang Qian's consciousness would die, and a new consciousness would take over his body.

But Jiang Qian wouldn't let that happen, and neither would the authorities.

Killing it would be much easier than saving him.

Jiang Qian opened his eyes, his emotions barely stirred.

A rustle came from the doorway.

Lan Junxian, dressed in a blue suit, came in first. He adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses and greeted Jiang Qian. "Good morning."

Jiang Qian had just replied, "Morning," when a whole team of medical staff poured in...

"Are you ready?" Lan Junxian asked.

Surrounded by white coats, Jiang Qian nodded. "I'm ready whenever you are."

The calm acceptance of death he displayed left a deep first impression on the official medical team.

"Good."

Lan Junxian, on the other hand, was already used to Jiang Qian's attitude.

He continued, "We need to assess your abilities first and make any necessary adjustments to today's surgical plan based on the results. This woman will be operating on you. She's a renowned toxin scientist and surgeon, as well as an official License Holder. You can call her Dr. Cai."

As he spoke, Lan Junxian shifted aside and gestured toward the tall woman beside him.

Dr. Cai was covered from head to toe in a white coat, with a mask over her face. Her long hair was pinned up, and her eyes and brows held a mature, intelligent charm.

She paid no attention to Lan Junxian's deferential manner, seeming quite indifferent to the man who had proposed the surgical plan. But she was warm and gentle with Jiang Qian, who was about to go under the knife. "Try to relax. I'll do everything I can."

"Thank you."

At Jiang Qian's calm response, a hint of pity and reluctance flashed through Dr. Cai's eyes, then quickly faded. Her professionalism demanded that she focus entirely on performing the surgery.

"Let's begin. We'll start the surgery after three tests."

A wall beside the Safe House rotated, revealing a fully equipped operating room.

Before they placed Jiang Qian on the bed, the medical staff lined up a row of liquid toxins in black reagent bottles in front of him. Using a special method to administer them, they had him "sample" diluted solutions.

During the test, Jiang Qian identified every toxin's ingredients and effects without a single mistake, then laid out their toxicity levels using a coding system.

The toxin scientists and medical staff present were astounded!

The final results showed that Jiang Qian's toxin identification ability was 99.998% accurate.

Everyone was almost in a daze, wondering whether that tiny 0.002% margin of error came from Jiang Qian's identification or from the scientific instruments used to prepare the toxin samples.

"You're a born king of poisons. Even experts from the Nine Poisons Sect would envy your talent!" Lan Junxian said, unable to hide his excitement. "Perhaps this is what the life-and-death trial gave you in return."

The second test was for toxin resistance.

Jiang Qian's body still couldn't accept every toxin without issue. Of the toxins Lan Junxian had provided, he could absorb and use about seventy percent.

Those toxins would be used as weapons against the Spider Cocoon.

In terms of both quantity and variety, they were more than sufficient.

As he watched the toxins being injected into Jiang Qian's veins one by one, Lan Junxian felt his budget bleeding away...

The third test was for pain tolerance.

Since the surgery would rely on Jiang Qian's ability to control toxins as a safeguard, he would need to stay conscious and take part throughout the procedure, without anesthesia. So his pain tolerance was also a factor in assessing the risks during surgery.

Surprisingly, Jiang Qian's sensitivity to pain was normal, but his tolerance was remarkably high.

In other words, if pain were ranked from one to ten, he could tell which level he was experiencing, but he wouldn't become so restless or squirm so violently that he couldn't sit or lie still.

Lan Junxian believed that Jiang Qian's body had changed its pain receptors to accommodate the many potent toxins it contained.

The final conclusion was that the open-chest surgery could be performed while Jiang Qian was conscious. However, they had to ensure that he remained well-rested and full of energy throughout.

With that, he had passed all three tests.

"We can begin preparing."

At Dr. Cai's command, the medical team took their places. Everyone was on high alert, not daring to take the matter lightly.

All sides were watching the outcome of the surgery:

Representatives of the various families in the Capital Special Task Force who held opposing views; the official License Holders of the Jinping Special Operations Department; and the East Sea Branch of Special Operations, represented by Lan Junxian.

As for Dr. Cai's team, all the official personnel who had signed confidentiality agreements, apart from doing everything they could to complete the task, had just one other duty: to take the secret to their graves.

Everything they saw, heard, and felt today had to remain confidential!

Jiang Qian was soon hooked up to all kinds of equipment and monitoring lines to track his vital signs.

The surgical plan had already been agreed upon:

1. Scan him with instruments to confirm the Spider Cocoon's location (completed; it matched Jiang Qian's description).

2. Open his chest, position the miniature instruments, and aim them at the Spider Cocoon;

3. Have Jiang Qian control the toxins in his body to paralyze or destroy the Spider Cocoon (if successful, the surgery would end and the instruments would be removed; if not, Dr. Cai would operate with the miniature instruments to kill and remove the Spider Cocoon).

Of course, removing the Spider Cocoon with instruments carried unpredictable risks. It was especially dangerous because the cocoon was nestled among his body's vital organs. Anything could go wrong.

So the key to the surgery was still whether Jiang Qian could use poison to counter poison and resolve the problem through his body's own cycle.

Watching the young man inside the isolation wall take off his shirt as cold instruments gradually surrounded his upper body, Lan Junxian suddenly felt a pang of sympathy.

He knew very well that once the surgery began, there would be no turning back. This young, vibrant life might end right then and there.

Concern for a promising talent drove Lan Junxian to press the intercom. "Sorry to interrupt."

Dr. Cai stopped what she was doing, and Jiang Qian opened his eyes on the operating table.

"Jiang Qian, is there anything you want to entrust to me? You can tell me now. If... you know what I mean. I promise I'll grant you one wish."

Dr. Cai's delicate brows drew together the instant he said it. She wanted to smack Lan Junxian in the face with a tray!

Was he trying to mess with Jiang Qian's head by saying that now?

What an idiot!

Jiang Qian, however, reacted in the exact opposite way from Dr. Cai. He accepted the offer gladly.

Still covered in equipment, he sat up on the operating table and stated his wish. "I want to make a phone call."

A phone call?

Everyone present froze.

Lan Junxian was also stunned. I'm the young master of the Deep Sea Clan and the second-in-command of the East Sea Special Operations Department, and you're just casually wasting a promise from me like that?

A few minutes later.

Jiang Qian got back the phone they had taken from him.

Dr. Cai's team had temporarily left the room.

With only Lan Junxian beside him, Jiang Qian dialed a number...

The call connected quickly.

A woman's soft, pleasant voice came through the receiver. "Hello?"

"Sis, it's me."

"A-Qian?" A rustle came from the other end of the line, and the woman lowered her voice. "If you've had your fun, hurry home! With you gone, Teacher Tang will keep a close eye on me..."

After he was quarantined, Jiang Qian had called home with the authorities accompanying him the whole time, asking for a week off. He'd said he was going on a school-organized outing. Activities like that weren't unusual in his field of study; they often involved immersing themselves in nature and working outdoors.

So I'm just a decoy to draw the fire for you... Jiang Qian pretended nothing was wrong. "You see how important I am now, right? How are Teacher Tang and Auntie? Do they miss me so much they can't eat or sleep?"

"I'm eating just fine!" Yu Xuan gave a soft snort. "Hurry back, before love disappears."

I don't know if love will disappear, but I might... Jiang Qian asked, "Nothing going on at home, right?"

"What could be going on that money can't solve? Come to think of it, I don't know what's been happening lately, but I keep feeling like someone's following me! And what's worse, my assistant feels the same way."

"That... couldn't it just be your imagination?" Jiang Qian immediately felt incredibly guilty.

Then Yu Xuan said with delight, "Sigh, do you think I'm about to make a comeback?"

"That's definitely your imagination."

"Hahaha, you're so mean~"

"If there's nothing else, I'll hang up. The signal's bad here. Take care of yourself."

After hanging up, Jiang Qian quickly dialed another number.

The moment the call connected, the person on the other end burst out:

"Old Jiang? Old Jiang, is that you??? I've called you so many times..."

"Shut up and listen to me first, Xue Yang."

Jiang Qian didn't give the other person a chance to ramble. "If my sister calls and asks about me, tell her to forget about me. She doesn't have to wait."

"Tell her that from now on, I'm entrusting her with the task of carrying on the Jiang Family line."

"If she doesn't want to have a child, she can adopt one. The kid can take my surname, for all I care!"

There was an eerie silence on the other end of the line.

Then came, "Holy shit, Jiang Qian!! You're not actually..."

Jiang Qian mercilessly cut off Xue Yang's shriek.

He handed the phone back to Lan Junxian, whose composure had utterly failed him.

"I'm ready. Let's begin."