Deviant: No Longer Human

"You can do it... right?" he asked Amelia, seeking confirmation.

He had refined some of her earlier missteps and provided her with the optimal procedures gleaned from Yin Yue\'s guidance.

Yet, the thought of resurrecting the dead still seemed like a miracle.

Amelia glanced toward the cryo pod where the body lay in stasis.

She nodded confidently. "Her body appears unharmed, which is a significant advantage. And since not much time has passed, our chances of a successful procedure are even higher."

Gasp!

Around Rebecca, the team members drew in a sharp, cold breath, their minds alight with the possibility that they might witness a groundbreaking event today.

Meanwhile, Rebecca shot a skeptical glance toward Amelia.

"Why does she look pregnant?" Amelia couldn\'t hold back the question any longer, her tone laced with surprise and a hint of accusation.

He hadn\'t informed her of this detail, nor the identity of the individual on whom they were about to operate.

Eveline\'s efficiency with the transport had been remarkable, their arrival startlingly swift.

This left Amelia pondering whether the world outside was far more stronger than Eleanor had ever admitted.

Wang Xiao\'s eyebrows arched in response. "Because she is," he stated simply.

Amelia\'s expression soured. "...It\'s yours?"

"..."

Wang Xiao met her gaze, his face an unreadable mask, offering no words in return.

"Cough, can you two decide on your internal matters later? Dr. Rebecca is waiting..." Li Zhiming interrupted, his tone both amused and exasperated.

Seizing the moment to escape the tension, Wang Xiao gave a small nod and stepped away, leaving Amelia to wrestle with her emotions alone.

She stood there for a moment, her face a mix of conflicting feelings, before exhaling a deep, resigned sigh.

_______

Outside!

"You all can leave," Li Zhiming commanded, his voice echoing slightly in the cold, crisp air.

He waved dismissively at his guards, who initially frowned in hesitation but ultimately obeyed, their boots crunching against the gravel as they departed—all except for one.

"..."

Amaya remained steadfast, an unyielding figure behind him, causing Li Zhiming\'s brow to crease in annoyance.

"Amaya? Did you not hear me? Leave us alone," he barked, his tone harsher this time, echoing a note of command that brooked no argument.

"Yes, sir..." Amaya\'s response was slow, her voice laced with reluctance and a trace of disappointment.

She cast a final, lingering look towards Wang Xiao, who was steadily approaching.

Her eyes briefly flared with a mix of defiance and resignation before she turned to leave.

Wang Xiao, for his part, barely recognized her.

In his mind, she was a mere blip on his radar, her significance barely registering.

If Amaya had known how little she figured in his thoughts, perhaps she wouldn\'t have imbued her departing gaze with such intense rage, hoping to snatch a sliver of his attention.

Tap...

Tap...

As Wang Xiao\'s footsteps echoed on the empty pavement outside, he broke the silence with a pressing question.

"What happened with Gabriel?" He knew that if anything, he could at least handle the likes of Gabriel and reduce his list of enemies.

"Gabriel has run away," Li Zhiming sighed, turning to look back at him. "Your... last attack has unsettled the higher-ups. Now, even the responsibility for the attack on Sylvergard is being blamed on you."

"Why would I attack my own territory? Have they lost their minds?" Wang Xiao couldn\'t help but squint his eyes in frustration.

Li Zhiming sighed again, pulling out a cigarette and lighting it with a flick of his lighter. "Only a few people know it was the result of a clash between you and the North American guardian."

Wang Xiao\'s eyes narrowed, his expression hardening. "Their opinions don\'t concern me," he stated firmly.

After all, he remembered that in his position, he shouldn\'t care about what others think, except for other guardians.

Li Zhiming nodded in understanding. "Just stay alive. And thank you for helping the girl out."

Wang Xiao remained silent, his thoughts as unreadable as his expression.

Li Zhiming misread the stoicism on Wang Xiao\'s face for anger and quickly tried to defuse the tension.

"I didn\'t mean to attack you... It was simply the rush of emotions getting the better of me," he explained, his voice tinged with regret.

Wang Xiao\'s response was ice-cold and matter-of-fact. "If I cared about such things, you would be dead by now. My intelligence allows me to see beyond the moment and to spare you for it."

"!"

A wry smile flickered across Li Zhiming\'s lips. "That\'s settled then. You can\'t exact revenge on my granddaughters over this!"

Wang Xiao furrowed his brow, perplexed by the very thought.

\'Why would I even consider that?\' he questioned inwardly, his frown deepening.

Li Zhiming continued to draw on his cigarette, the smoke swirling around him in the dark of night adding an air of mystery.

Wang Xiao can\'t help but inquire, "You said you were leaving in a few hours? Aren\'t you going to wait for your daughter to wake up first...?"

A shadow passed over Li Zhiming\'s face, his usual composure crumbling slightly. "Not today, I have more work to do... Besides, I don\'t have the courage to explain her identity to her... Haha... She might just tear my head off for it," he chuckled dryly, though the laugh didn\'t reach his eyes.

"..."

Silence fell between them for a moment.

Wang Xiao didn\'t regard Anran as dangerous at all—if anything, she seemed to him like a cat without claws.

Changing the subject, Li Zhiming leaned closer, lowering his voice almost conspiratorially. "Hey, did I ever tell you her story...?"

Wang Xiao nodded, signaling that he knew, but Li Zhiming, perhaps eager to share, ignored the gesture and plunged into the tale regardless.

In the beginning, Li Zhiming was merely a spy hired by Country M to gather intelligence against China, owing to his own nationality.

However, his life took an unexpected turn during a mission on a cruise ship where he met a woman from Russtovia.

She later confided that her roommate, who was also her lover, was not just a casual companion but her fiancé.

They were on the cruise to celebrate their engagement and planned to marry upon returning to their homeland.

This revelation disheartened Li Zhiming, but it did not derail his life, until he crossed paths with her once again, this time in her own country.

It was there he learned that their last encounter had resulted in the birth of a daughter—a secret she had kept, disguised as her husband\'s child.

That was when Li Zhiming made the grave error of letting his emotions dictate his actions.

He became so fixated that he bought a house next to hers, becoming her neighbor and inadvertently forgetting the dangers of his own identity.

This obsession drew a deadly attack intended for him, but it endangered everyone around them.

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A/N: Outside the country from 22-27th may, updates would resume afterwards!