Chapter 619: Gene Lock

The girl in the baseball cap walked in, holding the hand of the little girl with dimples. The sisters both looked a little worn, their expressions showing signs of fatigue and hardship. It seemed they had suffered quite a bit during their days in the camp.

The baseball-cap girl raised her head, looking at Li Xiaofei with eyes that shone as brightly as stars. There was a hint of hesitation and calculation in her gaze, as though she was grappling with a decision of great importance.

"What is it you want to tell me?" Li Xiaofei asked. He gestured to a nearby chair. "Please, have a seat."

The girl sat down and picked up a glass of water from the table. She drained it in one gulp, then poured another glass for the little girl with dimples. After taking a long, deep breath, the baseball-cap girl seemed to gather her composure.

She glanced at the others in the room, then turned to look at Li Xiaofei. "I want to speak to you alone."

Li Xiaofei smiled and said, "These are my closest friends. It’s fine if they hear it too."

But the girl remained silent as she sat in the chair. In response, Ye Liuying stood up and left the room. The others also got up one by one and followed Ye Liuying out.

"Now, can you tell me?" Li Xiaofei asked.

The girl in the baseball cap let out a self-deprecating laugh, almost as if she was talking to herself. "Talking about this with people like you, whose heads are full of muscles and who spend their entire lives immersed in fighting and killing, might sound like a fantasy. But the truth is, I don’t have a better choice."

Li Xiaofei smiled silently.

Little girl, where does your sense of superiority come from?

"How many star beasts have you killed?" The girl asked.

"Lost count," Li Xiaofei replied. "Let’s just say a lot."

"And what do you think they are? What kind of creatures are they?"

What kind of creatures?

The question caught Li Xiaofei slightly off guard. It was broad and deep.

"They are... humanity’s mortal enemies," he answered after a brief pause, approaching the question from a different angle.

"Yes, humanity’s mortal enemies," the girl echoed with a sigh. She asked, "Have you ever wondered where the star beasts come from?"

"They invaded from beyond the stars," Li Xiaofei answered, giving the textbook response.

The girl suddenly looked up with a sharp and piercing look. "Have you ever been beyond the stars?"

𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

"No," Li Xiaofei shook his head.

"Then how do you know there are star beasts beyond the stars?"

There was a faint trace of sarcasm in the girl’s eyes, as if she was mocking him for not thinking for himself.

Li Xiaofei thought for a moment and replied earnestly, "You’re right. It can’t be confirmed with absolute certainty. So, according to you, where do star beasts come from?"

The girl exhaled softly and said two words, "Man-made."

Li Xiaofei’s expression froze as he muttered, "Man-made?"

"Hard to believe, isn’t it?" The girl in the baseball cap nodded calmly. "But it’s the truth. All star beasts, regardless of their species or rank, are artificial creations. They were deployed on Earth specifically to threaten and destroy humanity."

Li Xiaofei frowned, deep in thought. It was indeed a novel perspective he had never considered before.

"Do you have any evidence?" he asked.

The girl replied, "Plenty. I’ve done extensive research and experiments. But even if I explained the science, you wouldn’t understand. Let me give you a simple example instead. You’re aware that when the Star Council suddenly stopped aiding humanity’s major factions and governments and created the Governors to hunt down Extraordinary Ones, the star beasts, our supposed greatest enemy, began to mysteriously decline?

"Despite being humanity’s deadliest threat, their numbers inexplicably dwindled instead of taking advantage of the situation to wipe us out completely. Instead, the Governors became the new rulers. Don’t you find that strange?"

Li Xiaofei remained silent. He had heard this from several others too. It was indeed bizarre. The war between humanity and the star beasts should have been one of mutual annihilation or domination. But what had actually happened was completely illogical. Humanity’s Extraordinary Ones had been massacred in droves, yet the star beasts hadn’t launched a final assault. Instead, they too began to decline, leaving the Governors to establish their dominion. It didn’t add up.

"Do you have any other evidence?" asked Li Xiaofei, pressing further.

The girl in the baseball cap replied, "You should already know that the Star Council can control star beasts, right?"

Li Xiaofei’s heart skipped a beat. He hadn’t heard of this on this Earth. But on the Earth he came from, the Yiggs Coalition could command star beasts to lay siege to cities, and the Jiepeng forces could manipulate oceanic star beasts to attack Great Xia. That was a form of control too.

The girl continued, "The truth is, star beasts are bioengineered creations, modified by a higher civilization and deployed to Earth for specific purposes. They’re like lab rats, no, they’re more advanced than lab rats. After all, they possess terrifying extraordinary abilities, as well as evolve and reproduce at astonishing rates. But no matter how much they evolve or multiply, all star beasts remain under the control of their creators. Do you know why?"

"Why?" Li Xiaofei asked cooperatively.

"Because of the gene lock," the girl said confidently.

"Gene lock? What’s that?" Li Xiaofei asked, unsure of its meaning.

The girl gave a self-assured smile. "Have you heard of genes? Never mind, you probably haven’t..."

This Earth had not known peace for six centuries. The civilizations of the past had long since collapsed. Much of the knowledge and technology from those days had been lost to history. Even what was considered common knowledge six hundred years ago had long been buried and replaced by the overwhelming tide of extraordinary abilities and techniques dominating this era.

Concepts like genes, which were once fundamental, had become obscure terms unknown to all but a few specialists dedicated to studying them. Li Xiaofei gave a faint smile and didn’t bother correcting her.

I’m from the 21

st

century—how could I not know what genes are? That’s elementary knowledge, okay?

The girl in the baseball cap continued, "Genes, simply put, are biological codes that determine the fundamental structure and functionality of life. They store all the information about a lifeform’s race, blood type, reproduction, growth, aging, and death. Everything about a living organism, its birth, growth, decay, disease, aging, and death, is tied to its genes.

"But never mind the details. What you need to understand is that genes can be edited and modified, just like editing text in an article or writing computer code to generate programs. Higher civilizations who had enough knowledge can edit and modify genes to create new lifeforms. By embedding specific instructions into the genes of these lifeforms, they can control every aspect of their behavior. Do you understand what I’m saying?"

Li Xiaofei nodded, signaling for her to continue her show.

The girl said, "I’ve conducted extensive research and have essentially cracked the gene lock within the star beasts. You understand what that means, right?"

Li Xiaofei’s heart trembled slightly.

"Are you saying that you can now use genetic manipulation to control the star beasts on Earth?" asked Li Xiaofei as he finally understood what the girl was implying.

"Exactly," the girl replied confidently. "If I’m given the chance, I can quickly modify the gene locks of star beasts, turning them into humanity’s allies."

Li Xiaofei stared at the girl, his gaze suddenly turning fervent.