Qiuqiu was startled awake by a sudden sound. He sat up, his small eyes curiously looking at Zhou Kexin, appearing very adorable. Qiuqiu's cuteness made Zhou Kexin exclaim in surprise, and without thinking twice, she quickly reached out her hands to hold him.
Since Qiuqiu's intelligence had increased, he had only been with Chen Haoxuan, so he could be said to know only Chen Haoxuan. Now, being suddenly embraced by someone he didn't recognize frightened him; he thought Zhou Kexin meant to harm him. He let out a sharp squeak, kicked his legs, and quickly jumped into Chen Haoxuan's arms, clutching the fabric of his clothes with his front paws and squeaking incessantly. It was clear he was calling for help.
Chen Haoxuan caught Qiuqiu and placed him on his shoulder, smiling at Zhou Kexin and the others. "This is a White Mouse for research. I named him Qiuqiu. It's normal for him to be scared since it's his first time meeting you."
"Oh my! Haoxuan, how can you do this? Qiuqiu is so cute; how can you use him for experiments?" Zhou Kexin said angrily, as if something precious of hers was about to be destroyed by Chen Haoxuan.
"Right! Haoxuan, how about this: you let us take care of Qiuqiu, and you can find another White Mouse for your experiments," Chen Yina suggested eagerly. She really wanted to keep Qiuqiu as a pet because he was just too adorable, practically a weapon against girls.
Jiang Xianghan and the others also urged Chen Haoxuan not to use Qiuqiu for experiments and insisted that if he had to experiment, he should use other White Mice instead. They even promised to take good care of Qiuqiu and swore they would make him plump and healthy.
Chen Haoxuan looked at Zhou Kexin and the others but didn't seem to take their words to heart.
After talking for a while, Chen Haoxuan remained unmoved. Chen Yina couldn't help but grab his hand and whined, "Brother Xuan, please just give Qiuqiu to us!"
Chen Haoxuan shook his head firmly. "If it were any other request, I would agree, but giving Qiuqiu to you as a pet is absolutely out of the question because my goal requires his contribution. If I get another White Mouse, I would have to start the experiments all over again, which would waste a lot of my time. How about this: once my research is successful, I'll help you cultivate a few White Mice as smart as Qiuqiu?"
Chen Yina and the others understood the situation; since Chen Haoxuan had said that, protesting further might make him angry. "Alright then!"
Seeing the disappointed expressions on Chen Yina and the others' faces made Chen Haoxuan's heart ache. He took Qiuqiu from his shoulder and held him in his hands. "Qiuqiu, they are all good people who won't hurt you. Play with them; they will really like you." He then handed Qiuqiu to Zhou Kexin, who was closest to him.
Qiuqiu was still afraid of Zhou Kexin and the others; as soon as Chen Haoxuan let go of him, he squeaked again and ran back onto Chen Haoxuan. After several attempts, it seemed that Qiuqiu realized that Zhou Kexin and the others meant no harm. Since Chen Haoxuan insisted on having him play with them, Qiuqiu learned to behave and stayed in Zhou Kexin's arms. Although he was still a bit scared of them at first, after a while he relaxed and began playing with Zhou Kexin and the others.
Seeing Zhou Kexin and her friends having so much fun with Qiuqiu made Chen Haoxuan think that he must be more careful during future research sessions to ensure that Qiuqiu would not come to any harm.
Chen Haoxuan and Chen Yina had dinner, and then he took Qiuqiu back to the research institute. While looking at the Gene Warrior data, Chen Haoxuan noticed a blank space that required the genes of the strongest animal. He thought to himself that this must mean the genes of the most powerful animal, as the purpose of Gene Warrior was to enhance human strength. What is the strongest animal in the world? A Dinosaur? However, Dinosaurs seemed to have been extinct for a long time. An Elephant? Elephants might be strong but lack any significant advantages. A Tiger? Generally skilled individuals could kill an adult tiger.
"What animal is truly the strongest?" Chen Haoxuan frowned, feeling troubled.
A day passed in this state of confusion, followed by another day, and then another... After a week, Chen Haoxuan suddenly slammed his hand on the table and shouted boldly, "Of course, the strongest in this world is humanity, the ruler of the world! But if that were true, then the Gene Warrior data wouldn't say it like this. Therefore, the strongest must be some rare and nearly extinct animal. If I go searching for it, I might never find it in my lifetime. It would be better for me to create a new kind of gene myself, combining the strengths of various creatures to develop the world's most powerful gene. Perhaps I could successfully create Gene Warrior."
Having come to this realization, Chen Haoxuan picked up Qiuqiu and placed it on his shoulder as he left the research institute. Outside, he didn't see Lin Hao and the others, so he went directly to their residence. At Lin Hao's doorstep, Chen Haoxuan shouted loudly, "Lin Hao, Jiang Dong, come out! I need to talk to you!"
"Coming!" The sound of hurried footsteps came from Lin Hao's residence. In just seven seconds, Lin Hao and his companions changed from their pajamas into suits. While ordinary soldiers might take several minutes for such a change, Lin Hao and his team only needed seconds—this was the difference between experts and ordinary people.
Lin Hao and Jiang Dong emerged from their residence almost simultaneously and ran up to Chen Haoxuan. Seeing their speed, Chen Haoxuan nodded in satisfaction. "I need you to help me catch animals. Just bring back any animals you think are impressive. You can catch them in China or abroad. The more extraordinary they are or the more you catch, the greater my reward will be for you," Chen Haoxuan instructed Lin Hao and Jiang Dong.
Jiang Dong spoke up to ask Chen Haoxuan, "Boss, what about tigers? Aren't they protected animals?"
"Catch them; why not? The world is so vast that there are still many tigers around. Catching one or two won't lead to extinction. But keep it a secret from others; make sure to transport them back discreetly. Also, be careful; after all, there are many creatures stronger than humans out there; we just haven't encountered them yet," Chen Haoxuan cautioned.
"Boss, understood! But how many people should we send out?" Lin Hao asked.
"Eighty people; leave twenty behind to protect me and my wife," Chen Haoxuan replied.
"When should we go?" Lin Hao asked again.
"Now! Hurry up and get ready! I'll give you one month; regardless of whether you've caught any powerful animals or not, report back in a month," Chen Haoxuan said sternly.
"Yes! We will complete the mission assigned by Boss!" Lin Hao and Jiang Dong shouted in unison before turning to pack their bags in preparation for capturing powerful animals.
Lin Hao and his team went to help Chen Haoxuan capture powerful animals, but Chen Haoxuan was not at home waiting for Lin Hao's return; instead, he was deducing what other gaps existed in the Gene Warrior data.
A month later, Lin Hao and his team returned in several Big Windmill vehicles. They unloaded large cages covered with cloth, one by one... eventually moving over two hundred cages. These cages were transported to Chen Haoxuan's research facility and placed into the iron enclosures that had already been prepared.
"Not bad, not bad. You all did very well. Please write up a table detailing how many animals you captured, and I will reward you when I have time," Chen Haoxuan said, satisfied with Lin Hao and his team's efforts.
Among the animals captured by Lin Hao and his team, the weakest was a tiger, as there were also four-meter-long Egyptian Cobras, giant pythons caught in the tropical rainforest that were twenty feet thick. If it weren't for Jiang Dong and the others using a large amount of anesthetics and sleeping pills, they would never have been able to bring back such a giant python. Additionally, there were various strange animals, some of which even Chen Haoxuan had never seen before. One particular creature made Chen Haoxuan both amused and exasperated: the Bear Bug. The Bear Bug is a very small creature known for its incredibly strong vitality and is often referred to as having an immortal body.
Qiuqiu, who originally stayed on Chen Haoxuan's shoulder, had now left his favorite research facility. He was afraid of the animals there, feeling as if they all wanted to eat him, so he ran over to join Chen Yina and her group.
Chen Haoxuan paid no attention to Qiuqiu. He didn't need him for experiments at the moment; instead, he needed to develop a new type of gene. Chen Haoxuan didn't need to kill those animals; he only required some of their blood and skin. In the days that followed, Chen Haoxuan often sighed in the research facility. Repeated failures left him feeling dejected. He tried various methods for gene fusion, but all ended in failure—none succeeded, whether it was fusing snake genes with tiger genes or combining the genes of the Golden Monkey King with those of the Bear Bug.
Chen Haoxuan understood that forcibly fusing different genes together was extremely difficult. However, he believed that with enough effort, he could achieve gene fusion among several animals within a year. Although he knew this deep down, his sighs of disappointment continued unabated.
After staying in the research facility for half a month, Chen Haoxuan had a full beard and looked somewhat dazed. His mood was poor; after half a month of trying, he still hadn't succeeded in fusing various animal genes. In frustration, he injected the gene serum into his own body using a syringe. Instantly, his body began to change in strange ways—his veins bulged and thickened, and his flesh swelled as if something was trying to break through his skin.
Fear gripped Chen Haoxuan. He didn't want to die like this; not only had he yet to develop the Gene Warrior, but he also couldn't bear to leave behind Chen Yina and her group. He quickly walked over to the Scanner. In front of it, he could observe the changes occurring within his body and saw several types of energy clashing inside him.
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