From Apocalypse Boss to Farmer: My Vegetables Make Me Stronger!-Chapter 226 - 217: Different

A thought suddenly struck Gu Xi.

If Dr. Qi knew who Ye Junhan was all along, then was Qi Xiang’s choice to use Ye Junhan as a pawn back then also a result of Dr. Qi’s deliberate guidance?

Qi Xiang had once told her that Dr. Qi had been secretly plotting something for many years, and because of Qi Xiang’s unique abilities, she had become a part of his plan.

’So, could that plan be related to Ye Junhan, or rather, to the Ye Family’s Hibernation Chamber project from back then?’

’And what about Li Ming? What role did he play in all of this?’

Things were getting complicated. Gu Xi lowered her gaze and poked the tender tip of the little sprout.

Just then, Yang Chi opened another data file and sent it to Gu Xi.

"Gu Xi," Yang Chi took a deep breath, his expression grave. "This is the technical data on species fusion. I’ve already deleted the raw data..."

After speaking, he deleted the copy he had in front of her.

Gu Xi was a little surprised. "You’re letting me make the decision? Why not give it to your uncle or your cousin? You trust me that much?"

Yang Chi looked at her and nodded without hesitation. "My cousin said that if I was going to follow you, I had to take a firm stance and not be indecisive..."

’Shen Yue said that?’

Gu Xi raised an eyebrow. ’It seems Shen Yue knows quite a bit.’

Still, she wasn’t that paranoid. Although she had indeed suffered a great loss because of that drugged drink back then, it didn’t mean she had to be on guard against everyone from now on.

’It’s too exhausting, and not worth it.’

...

「The Underground Laboratory.」

When Gu Xi returned, Chen Jia and the others were gathered around the latest data, engaged in a heated discussion.

"There’s no cell wall. These DNA fragments are closer to human gene sequences..."

"But we found chlorophyll in these remains... And it’s clearly an autotroph..."

Wei Heng and Shen Yue stood by the door, watching the group of researchers arguing endlessly.

They didn’t understand DNA sequences, nor did they get what an "autotroph" was. But these combatants, who had spent years on the front lines, knew one thing better than anyone—in the apocalypse, nothing was impossible.

"By the way, where’s Ye Junhan?" Shen Yue tilted his head and asked Wei Heng. He hadn’t seen a trace of Ye Junhan since he got back.

Seeing Gu Xi return, Wei Heng answered casually, "Earlier, Mr. Chen said they’d found a set of data that shouldn’t appear in plants. Gu Xi went with Mr. Ye to check it out, and then he left alone."

Shen Yue sauntered after him toward Gu Xi. "What data?"

Wei Heng glanced back at him. "You think I’d understand it?"

Shen Yue: "..."

Gu Xi walked up to Shen Yue. "Yang Chi said you found a Hybrid Monster outside?"

"It was one that slipped through the cracks." Shen Yue pulled a handful of what looked like plant roots from his pocket and handed them to Gu Xi. "Unlike the giant-tailed monster from before, the one I ran into was more plant-like. It just had a large head that resembled a chicken’s..."

Gu Xi didn’t say much. After taking it, the little green sprout coiled around it. "The plant aura is very strong, but the energy is a bit mottled..."

With that said, she handed the roots to Qin Yi, who was walking over. "Give it a try."

Qin Yi took them, his brow gradually furrowing. "I can sense the plant aura on this, but I can’t control it with my ability..."

Nearby, Ye Nan saw this and seemed to want to come take a look, but for some reason, never took that first step.

Something occurred to Gu Xi, and she turned to ask Shen Yue, "Are you sure the one you encountered was one that slipped through the net?"

Shen Yue understood what she meant and nodded.

In fact, this wasn’t the only place conducting species hybridization experiments. According to information obtained by the military, there were five such laboratories in total, all of which were now under control.

The reason this location was so special was because... one of the species being hybridized here was human.

The topic was too heavy, and the group fell silent.

...

When Gu Xi found Ye Junhan, he was speaking in a low voice with Yang Liu.

Out of respect, Gu Xi didn’t use her spiritual power to probe their conversation, waiting quietly to the side instead.

Ye Junhan noticed her gaze and glanced over. Seeing that she wasn’t approaching, he turned back and continued giving Yang Liu a few more instructions.

After Yang Liu left, he strode over to Gu Xi and took the initiative to ask, "What is it?"

"Do you have a minute?" Gu Xi looked up at him. "Can we talk?"

Ye Junhan’s hand rested on his sheath. He was silent for a moment. "...Sure."

The two of them walked one after the other, circling about halfway around the factory building.

Ye Junhan sensed Gu Xi’s hesitant gaze fall on him several times. He stopped, turned to face her, his eyes deep and calm. "What did you want to talk to me about?"

"Yang Liu sent you the video files of the plant-people, right?" Gu Xi looked up and asked him. "Do you... have anything you want to ask me?"

When the incident happened back then, Ye Junhan was only eight years old. Gu Xi didn’t know how much he still remembered.

’But that person, that face... is now in my dimensional space.’

Gu Xi knew very well that it was no longer the Mr. Ye from all those years ago; it couldn’t even be considered a person anymore. But she didn’t know what Ye Junhan thought.

Gu Xi thought back to the past, when Li Ming had snuck her, still a child, out of the base. She had seen many people ignore the objections of rescue personnel and throw themselves at the zombies...

Because in their eyes, those weren’t zombies—they were their family.

Although Gu Xi didn’t think Ye Junhan was that kind of irrational person, humans were the most complex creatures in the world. Who could say for sure about some things?

Ye Junhan’s gaze shifted slightly, landing on the little green sprout coiled around her fingertip. After a long silence, he spoke. "Back then, before he sent me in, he told me himself that if I ever saw him again, I was to kill him with my own hands."

The man’s voice was cold and detached, his tone perfectly steady without any fluctuation, like an emotionless robot.

Gu Xi froze for a second, but she quickly processed the immense amount of information in Ye Junhan’s words.

She looked up at him. "So, your father..."

Ye Junhan looked at her, remaining silent.

Seeing his expression was as normal as ever, Gu Xi was momentarily at a loss for words.

After a thought, she asked Ye Junhan, "Do you want to see him? I mean, that face..."

Ye Junhan shook his head, his expression unchanged. "There’s no need."

Gu Xi: ’Alright, next topic.’

"Then what do the higher-ups say about this?" she asked, looking up at him.

Yang Chi said he secretly destroyed the experiment data, but once the higher-ups take those people and the equipment back, they’ll quickly discover the files are missing as soon as they run a check.

’No, they’ve probably already found out.’

And the fact that He Yue and Xu Hai entered the factory before dawn today likely means they got word and wanted to be the first to get into the lab where the specimens were stored to find the data backup.

Ye Junhan directly opened his personal terminal and shared the screen with Gu Xi.

Gu Xi glanced at it. It was a message from Li Ming sent half an hour ago. It said he would handle this matter and that Ye Junhan just needed to keep an eye on the people around her...

Ye Junhan glanced at her, then switched to another person’s contact number. A similar message had been sent from that person.

And the name for that contact was two words: Xiao Yu.

Gu Xi was silent for a moment, then suddenly said, "Actually, I have the backup data."

Ye Junhan closed his personal terminal, not at all surprised. "I know."

Yang Chi is Shen Yue’s cousin, and Shen Zhennan, knowing full well what his nephew was thinking, let it all happen... It’s clear the Shen Family made their choice long ago.

Gu Xi was a little surprised, but then she saw Ye Junhan point to the little green sprout on her fingertip, look up at her, and say:

"It doesn’t seem quite like the companion plants of other Wood Element users..."