But she was the kind of woman who could say one minute that it was over, and the next minute go back on her word and ask, "Do you have any proof?"
The scales in Kiana's heart tipped to one side. She was already eighty percent certain that her ominous premonition was, in all likelihood, inseparable from Herta.
What she had said definitely wasn't ant literally.
If she went back now, could they reconcile?
After thinking about it seriously for a mont, Kiana felt the odds were slim. If what Herta had said earlier truly hadn't been literal, then her mood right now was probably terrible.
Turning back at this mont would very likely an walking straight into the line of fire.
An even greater possibility was that she simply didn't have ti to do anything right now. She would brush it off, say Kiana was overthinking, and then once she had ti to spare...
"Forget it. Since things have already co to this, I'll go see Ruan first."
After hesitating between turning back to admit defeat and pressing forward, Kiana ultimately threw the matter to the back of her mind.
Whatever ca next could be dealt with when it ca.
She hadn't even planned to stay long at the space station in the first place, but because of various incidents, she had ended up remaining here for quite so ti.
At the very least, the route from here to the containnt zone—
She was so familiar with it that she couldn't be more familiar.
The first place Kiana went was the previous laboratory. There were still other people there. If she couldn't find Ruan, she could at least ask one of the researchers.
Although she had never spoken to them before,
They were probably quite familiar with her.
With the access card Ruan had given her earlier, she passed through without obstruction and arrived at the laboratory in the containnt zone.
After swiping the card and pushing the door open, she realized that Ruan wasn't there.
"Not here, huh."
Kiana muttered to herself. The laboratory was clearly still operational, with several researchers working inside.
Just as she was about to ask soone, her attention was drawn to the foxian woman subrged in nutrient solution.
This ti was different from when she had last seen her.
Not in appearance, but—Kiana sensed sothing familiar emanating from her.
She froze for a mont, then seed to understand sothing. Her heart skipped a beat as she slowly approached the figure suspended in the nutrient fluid.
Her gaze locked firmly onto the person within.
She was still alive. If one focused carefully, one could sense that her ntal fluctuations were not active. That was likely why she had yet to awaken.
There were still marks of Destruction on her body.
But those were not the most important thing. Tingyun being picked up by Ruan and saved was not surprising. A new form was only natural.
Having been destroyed by Phantylia and left with the brand of Destruction wasn't strange either.
What Kiana truly cared about was—
"Why... are there traces of Honkai?"
She could hardly believe her own eyes. The last ti she had co, she hadn't seen any Honkai traces on her at all.
"...Miss Kiana?"
A soft female voice sounded from the side. Just hearing it made one feel that the speaker must be an extrely gentle person, soone who would never raise her voice.
Kiana shifted her gaze away from Tingyun and looked toward the researcher beside her. "You are?"
"You can call Rena," the researcher replied. She wasn't tall and looked very much in line with her gentle voice.
"You're here to see Ms. Ruan, right?"
Kiana glanced at Tingyun before nodding. "Yes, I'm here to see her. She doesn't seem to be in the lab. Do you know where she is now?"
"Sorry, we don't know Ms. Ruan's whereabouts either." Rena showed an apologetic expression. "But you can wait in the lounge. Based on Ms. Ruan's recent habits, she'll probably co by in about one system hour."
"One system hour... I see." Kiana nodded, then gave the researcher a bright smile. "Thank you. That's very helpful."
"You're welco. Would you like to take you to the lounge?"
"Actually, I'm a bit curious about her situation." Kiana pointed at Tingyun. "Since you work here, you should know about her, right?"
"The foxian lady?"
Rena thought for a mont. Seeing no need to keep secrets from soone who could freely enter these important areas, she explained, "Ms. Ruan brought her back from outside. The marks on her body were inflicted by a Lord Ravager."
She added with so emotion, "Even soone destroyed by a Lord Ravager can be brought back. Ms. Ruan's abilities are far beyond what ordinary people like us can comprehend."
Ruan was certainly formidable.
Kiana had known that for a long ti.
"What's her condition now?"
"Ms. Ruan helped her reconstruct her body and allowed the destroyed parts to reach a balance, preventing collapse," Rena said. "Her awakening is only a matter of ti."
Why inject Honkai power into the process?
The question rolled around on Kiana's tongue several tis, but in the end she swallowed it back down without asking.
"Thank you for the explanation."
"You're welco. I'll take you to the lounge."
"Sorry to trouble you."
Kiana followed her out of the laboratory. On the way, the researcher nad Rena hesitated several tis before finally, very cautiously, asking a question.
One that most people in the lab were extrely curious about.
"Your relationship with Ms. Ruan... is it very close?"
Rather than bluntly asking what kind of relationship they had, Rena circled around the topic.
"Oh?" Kiana looked at her in surprise. "Are you curious, Miss Rena?"
"No, I... well, alright, I am a little curious. To be recognized by Ms. Ruan and have permission to freely access all areas..."
She didn't continue, but it was obvious that their relationship wasn't ordinary. When Ms. Ruan wasn't around, the lab staff had gossiped about it more than once.
So believed they were lovers. Others thought that soone like Ms. Ruan would never engage in romance, and that they were probably just collaborators.
Like her relationship with Ms. Herta.
"But if this makes you uncomfortable, you don't have to answer," Rena quickly added. "It's just my personal curiosity."
Kiana seed easy to talk to—not like Ms. Ruan or Ms. Herta, who were such towering figures that most people didn't even dare initiate conversation.
Even so, if one of those great figures called your na and spoke to you, it would be enough to make you excited for an entire year.
What greater acknowledgnt could there be from a genius?
Kiana looked at her for a mont and said, "Are you curious about a genius' gossip, Miss Rena?"
"It's fine if you can't say."
"There's nothing I can't say." Kiana smiled. "Ruan and I are lovers. She's my beloved. That's why I can co and go freely in these areas."
That guess had actually been right.
Ms. Ruan had truly fallen in love.
What shocking news.
"But rember to keep it confidential."
"Please rest assured, I won't spread it around!"
She really was easy to talk to. She had actually managed to hear the truth from her.
Having satisfied her curiosity with such explosive news, Rena's expression turned serious.
Gossip about a genius was one thing.
But if word spread from her, her career would likely end right there. She had finally joined Ms. Ruan's project team. With this on her record, her future was bright.
She wasn't about to dig her own grave.
The lounge was so distance away. As Kiana walked with her, she suddenly sensed sothing. Her expression changed.
She reached out and stopped the person who was about to continue forward.
"Miss Kiana?"
Kiana didn't reply. A handgun suddenly appeared in her hand. Combined with the coldness that had overtaken her expression, it made Rena's heart leap into her throat.
Was she going to silence her?
Had she so easily satisfied her curiosity because she had already decided to leave her corpse here?
Was gossip about a genius really worth such a terrifying price?
The corridor was desolate and remote, not a single figure in sight. Under the pale, indifferent lighting, Kiana's faintly furrowed brows and stern expression only made the atmosphere more unsettling.
She raised the gun.
But instead of pointing it at Rena, she fired straight ahead—two shots in quick succession.
Bang! Bang!
Rena didn't even have ti to breathe in relief before she saw the bullets strike sothing. The air ahead twisted violently, and two shadowy forms exploded into view.
"That's—!"
Rena recognized them at once. Her eyes widened in horror.
True Stings.
As one of the assistants in Ms. Ruan's laboratory, she knew that Ms. Ruan was currently researching the power of Propagation in the space station's containnt zone. It wasn't exactly a secret.
But she had never imagined that True Stings would appear in the corridor here.
If they were here, did that an so of the insects had escaped from Ms. Ruan's lab?
Rena's face turned pale as she recalled the records of the Swarm Disaster.
They were ordinary researchers with fragile mortal bodies.
If not for Kiana, she wouldn't even have noticed the spatial distortion ahead. If she had walked straight into it by accident...
Kiana crouched down and reached out, touching a finger to the liquid splattered on the ground from the exploded insect.
"The containnt zone is no longer safe."
She stood and made her judgnt, looking at Rena. "I don't know why they're here, but you understand the danger of the swarm."
"Notify the others. Don't leave your posts unless necessary." After thinking for a mont, Kiana added, "I'll check the surrounding area to see if there are any other escaped True Stings."
Rena wanted to say it was dangerous, but rembering that Kiana was no ordinary person, she swallowed her words and hurriedly nodded. "I'll go back and inform everyone right away."
"Don't wander around," Kiana reminded her again.
The insects seed to be genetically modified products. They didn't actively propagate without limit, nor did they proactively attack distant targets.
"Destruction, Honkai, and now Propagation..." Kiana muttered as she continued forward. "You're really interested in every dangerous thing out there."
There weren't many True Stings. After sweeping the entire area, Kiana only found three in total.
All of them were blown apart with a single shot to the head.
Just as she was considering whether to search other sections for any that might have slipped through the net, she unexpectedly ran into Ruan.
Ruan didn't seem surprised to see her.
"Ruan!"
She had just been grumbling about how dangerous Ruan's research was, yet the mont she saw her, she couldn't help but smile and step forward to wrap her in a hug.
Ruan looked at her for a mont and said, "It seems you and Herta are getting along quite well."
Kiana's smile stiffened.
How was she supposed to respond to that?
Any answer would be wrong.
"I ran into so True Stings just now. Did they escape from your lab?"
Not knowing how to reply, Kiana simply pretended she hadn't heard Ruan's earlier comnt.
"They escaped?"
Ruan nodded, indicating she understood. She didn't look anxious. "No need to worry too much. They're experintal materials. I made a few minor genetic adjustnts. They won't cause too much trouble."
"But they can still hurt people," Kiana couldn't help saying. Even if they didn't endlessly reproduce on their own, reducing the risk to a minimum, just looking at those mandibles—one snap was enough to bite soone's head clean off.
"Mm. The experints here no longer require assistance from others. I'll arrange for the staff to be transferred elsewhere."
Hearing that Ruan had already considered the safety of others and wasn't ignoring their lives, Kiana quietly let out a breath of relief.
"Um... do you need my help?" Kiana asked. "I can help clear out the escaped insects."
"They won't be easy to eliminate," Ruan replied. "Although I edited so of their genes, certain underlying codes aren't so simple to alter. When faced with danger, they will still self-replicate and propagate."
Kiana couldn't help but say, "Then—"
"Once the experint concludes, I'll clean everything up," Ruan said calmly.
"That's good."
As long as things were still under Ruan's control.
There was no way Herta didn't know about what was happening in the containnt zone. Kiana didn't believe there weren't any of Herta's puppets stationed here.
If Herta hadn't stopped Ruan, then it ant the situation wasn't considered serious—sothing manageable.
Ruan led her to the lounge.
As the door closed behind them, Kiana thought of another issue.
Although neither of these matters had been her original purpose in coming to see Ruan, since she had encountered them, she couldn't ignore the unease in her heart.
"I saw Tingyun in the lab just now—the foxian from the Xianzhou," she said, looking at Ruan. "There are traces of Honkai on her. Ruan, you used her?"
"Hm? The experint was quite successful, wasn't it?"
Ruan looked up, slightly puzzled by the cautious tone in Kiana's voice.
"Wasn't she part of your deal with Luocha?" Kiana couldn't help saying. "Why add Honkai energy to her?"
"Wasn't the experint successful?" Ruan repeated calmly.
"But Honkai energy..."
"The brand of Destruction runs deep. I cannot erase the influence Destruction left on her," Ruan explained. "So I thought to try using Honkai energy. Although it still couldn't completely remove Destruction's impact, it minimized the damage. There is indeed a decent compatibility between Honkai and Destruction."
"I see."
At this point, what else could she say?
She could only silently offer a second of mourning for Miss Tingyun and hope that, for her, this wouldn't turn out to be a bad thing.
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