Cyber Era Witch
Chapter 149 - 149 131 Sun Biotech

149: Chapter 131 Sun Biotech 149: Chapter 131 Sun Biotech Since Solar Company had released this kind of information, their side wouldn’t be considered as acting without cause.

Kong Tai had been the leader of a medium-sized mercenary group called the Boundless Organization, in charge of three squadrons.

Since his long-time collaborator, Matteo, had been annihilated and Kong Tai himself had turned to the gang world, the Boundless Organization quickly fell apart.

However, its empty shell remained and could be exploited.

Borrowing the mercenary group’s identification code from the Boundless Organization, Xu Yang, Lila, and A40 changed their appearance to form a small mercenary squad.

They put on thick disguises and prepared to set off.

Xu Yang had developed his own style of dress: he wore a long-sleeved black plastic anti-dust coat and a blood-red Phantom mask, which had been treated to resist scanning, making him appear even more mysterious.

Underneath, he sported a long-sleeved printed shirt to cover the Nano Armor clinging to his body, with leather trousers and black sneakers, resembling a street Ghost Face rōnin.

Lila, on the other hand, disguised herself as a knowledgeable field medic, wearing an old-fashioned military hat from Taixi Continent, donning a white cloak adorned with medical symbols, a light grey buttoned shirt, and tight pants underneath.

Her face was hidden behind a ceramic mask, with her original head packed in a portable medical kit, following Xu Yang’s side.

A40 merely carried its sword, leading the way in front.

Thus, a credible-looking mercenary squad was formed.

Kong Tai’s Boundless Organization had a rich history and detailed records, which left no room for fault.

Thereafter, Xu Yang contacted Solar Company, requesting to take on the commission.

Solar Company was in a complete mess due to the theft of the Golden Branch, and now had to place their hopes on the mercenaries.

Upon arriving at the enterprise located on Yu Central Avenue, it appeared somewhat rundown.

In the previous Rat Tide assaults, the company had clearly suffered severe damage.

The site was roughly composed of the main office building, warehouses, and laboratories.

Now the warehouse was completely leveled to the ground.

Repair drones constantly shuttled through the air, and a medium-sized crane was ceaselessly transporting and passing materials.

The repair work was bustling, with loud rumbling.

Personnel were already waiting at the entrance.

This was a company person with a serious expression and a rigid demeanor, sporting short hair and eyes replaced with deep blue prosthetics.

He scanned Xu Yang and his group subconsciously but was stealthily blocked by Xu Yang, the feedback all carefully prepared false information.

The company person’s right hand was a cold mechanical one, seemingly reluctant to shake hands with Xu Yang with that hand, so he stretched out his left instead.

Xu Yang didn’t mind, and they shook hands left-handed.

“I apologize,” the company person said, as locals from Kyoto Infinity typically began interactions with an apology, “I am Yahara Masato from Sun Biotech, honored to meet members of the renowned ‘Boundless Organization’.

I truly hope you can help us retrieve the lost ‘Golden Branch’.”

“Please lead the way, thank you,” Xu Yang courteously responded, although their true intention for coming wasn’t to sincerely work, they still needed to go through the motions.

“Sun Biotech has always been committed to life science research to improve human living conditions,” Yahara Masato led them across the company courtyard, with clumsily programmed robots swaggering up and down the main thoroughfare, forcing them to squeeze along the edge.

A40 watched those engineering robots with a gaze as if wanting to cut them down.

“Your company’s many products are quite renowned,” Xu Yang said while retrieving information using Digital Mind.

Sun Biotech was somewhat famous within Aizu City, mainly for OEM pharmaceutical production, as well as developing some human enhancement concoctions.

Their flagship product, “Summer Pill,” made people physically robust and mentally vigorous, but was addictive due to the addition of stamp ingredients, clearly indicative of a ruthless corporate approach.

“We try our best to earn trust and profit honestly,” Yahara Masato proudly claimed regarding Sun Biotech’s achievements, “However, a thief visited our backyard, stealing our crucial production materials.”

“It happened during the Rat Tide, didn’t it?” Xu Yang said.

“Indeed,” Yahara Masato admitted, “at that time, we were preoccupied with taking refuge, and the laboratory was breached.”

“We deeply regret such an incident,” Xu Yang said patiently, “We are a responsible team and will surely try every means to retrieve the item.

However, we need you to take us to the last known location of the stolen goods so that we can gather relevant clues.”

“Didn’t the defense systems work?” A40 eagerly asked, “Was it because a particularly powerful foe arrived, one that the guards you left behind couldn’t stop?”

“No, no…” Yahara Masato was slightly startled by A40’s presence, “…it seems they arrived through covert operations.”

Entering deep into the laboratory, the air conditioning was set very low, and Xu Yang could feel the chill in the air, so he raised the temperature control system on his Nano Armor.

On their way, they didn’t encounter other company personnel, as if the entire company hadn’t resumed operations yet.

Passing through the metal corridor, Xu Yang noticed that Solar Company had stored each experimental subject in independent metal spaces, intentionally isolating them, with complex procedures required for entry and exit.

Through the glass walls, they could see the cutting-edge experimental equipment and protected subjects.

Some resembled misshapen embryos, some like dark, sliced-off tumors, and others like small juvenile creatures, wailing plaintively, dissimilar to any known animals.

The place was entirely structured like a large containment facility, with the “Golden Branch” being just one of the many oddities stored by Sun Biotech.

Curious about whether Solar Company had collected other ancient relics, Xu Yang sensed the unease in Yahara Masato due to the outsiders’ scrutiny.

Yahara secretly sent a signal, causing the glass walls of each containment zone to close, and the iron curtains slowly descended, blocking the view.

This slight maneuver couldn’t stop Xu Yang; he silently connected to the cameras and terminals of each containment zone.

While observing the stored items inside, he gathered information.

After analyzing the information gathered from the archives and containment zones, it turned out that Sun Biotech Company had been conducting secret human experiments, and the Golden Branch was at the root of it.

They had already discovered that the Golden Branch possessed the ability to alter landscapes and increase plant yields, so they attempted to transplant this power into humans.

After a decade of research and tens of thousands of experiments, many desperate citizens of Aizu City signed contracts for voluntary experimentation, receiving the power of the Golden Branch implanted within them.

The vast majority suffered violent rejection reactions and died on the dark and sunless underground operating tables.

After sending countless experimental subjects to their deaths, the company’s research result was the product now known as “Summer Pill.” This pill combined the power of the Golden Branch with an addictive formula reminiscent of stamps, intended to evoke the vigor of crops in summer, making one feel physically strong but also infected with the power of the Golden Branch, causing tree roots to grow within the body.

According to Solar Company’s calculations, users would die within 5 to 10 years, and with the addictive component of stamps added to the mix, people were unable to resist increasing their dosage, consuming more and more, and accelerating the process.

The most critical point was that upon death, human corpses would produce derivatives of the Golden Branch, meaning the Golden Branch achieved self-replication using the nutrients from human bodies.

By then, Solar Company could recover the precious replicas of the Golden Branch, continuing to expand their research scale.

Their obsession with the Golden Branch was evident.

Now, the precious original Golden Branch had been stolen, causing them immense anxiety.

If the production of the Summer Pill ceased due to a lack of raw materials, the company’s operations would struggle to continue.

Such underhanded tactics filled Xu Yang with contempt.

In the pursuit of commercial interests, they had become nearly maniacal.

Reaching the end of the lab, Xu Yang stood at the original location of the Golden Branch, only to find nothing there but a large pool of water.

“Water?” Xu Yang frowned, “Why is it all water?”

“Sorry, this was a large bulletproof glass enclosure before,” Yahara Masato shook his head, “But by the time we returned to the company, it had turned into water.”

Xu Yang closed his eyes, analyzing the positions of the surrounding cameras and security equipment; he found no blind spots, as every path was blocked by at least four defensive machine guns and a set of intelligent sniper rifles.

Solar Company really went to great lengths to protect the Golden Branch, thinking it was very safe here.

Hmm…

Xu Yang inquired about the situation with Yahara Masato, learning the approximate time of the Golden Branch’s theft, then began backtracking from there, stealthily downloading the recordings of that time and using his processor’s capabilities to analyze them, looking for any traces.

“…That’s right, according to the analysis of the security personnel we hired, the intruder likely carried anti-scanning implants and optical camouflage equipment,” Yahara Masato reported, “As for the container suddenly turning into water, we were indeed alerted; but at that time, Ratmen were everywhere, and we were unable to go back to check.”

“I understand,” Xu Yang nodded.

He sent a message to Lila using his built-in mailbox, and Lila reported back that she had already gathered important intelligence.

“There’s a trace of Magic Power left behind,” Lila sent a secret text message.

“Its properties are unique, I suspect a Reality Manipulator stole the Golden Branch.”

“I’ve hacked all sensor and camera data reports from that day,” Xu Yang replied.

“The work here is nearly done, it’s time we head back.”

Lila sensed her surroundings, continuously collecting key information, then gave a slight nod.

To put on a show for Yahara Masato, Xu Yang pretended to search for information throughout the area when he was simply wandering around.

“We can handle it,” Xu Yang said to Yahara Masato when they finished.

“In fact, after an initial survey, I already have some ideas.

Could we return to our base for now, and contact you once we’ve analyzed the intelligence?”

“Yes, of course, you can,” Yahara Masato’s eyes lit up.

The teams that came before had claimed it was impossible, but this “Boundless Organization” had reignited his hopes of retrieving the Golden Branch.

The Golden Branch, oh, the Golden Branch…

Yahara Masato kept fantasizing about the beautiful Golden Branch growing into a vast Golden Tree, sprouting from Aizu City, and piercing through Anjiu City with a single breath.

If all the residents of Aizu City became hosts to the Golden Branch, then Aizu City would become the breeding ground for the Forest Master to reincarnate.

The city, filthy and insignificant, was meant to be offered to a greater existence.

With this thought, Yahara Masato’s face revealed a look of ecstatic delight.

They were close to success; once the Golden Branch was retrieved—those who had taken the Summer Pill and become its parasitized kin, turning into a tree’s beloved progeny…

Yahara Masato’s contentment lingered even after seeing Xu Yang and his companions off, looking down at his mechanical hand, which under its metal facade, was not only turning to wood but also crawling with insects.

After walking away, Lila looked back in Yahara Masato’s direction, lost in thought.