Chapter 825: Cannot Be Trusted
The Duchess wasn’t alone—she was accompanied by a short, bearded man. The moment he appeared, the Black Epaulets’ expressions shifted dramatically. Ran Ying strode out to greet him. “Executive Director.”
The short man gave a slight nod, his tone stern and reproachful. “How are you handling this? Do you have authorization?”
“Yes.” Ran Ying truthfully recounted the contents of the authorization.
The Executive Director’s expression relaxed slightly, and he asked, “If you’ve already communicated with Mr. Xu, then lead your team back first.”
“Executive Director…” Ran Ying hesitated.
The Executive Director’s face turned cold. “Go back!”
Ran Ying’s brows furrowed deeply, her expression souring. But she quickly masked it, gestured to the people behind her, and was the first to withdraw from the ancient castle.
Though the Black Epaulets were unwilling, they couldn’t defy their superior’s orders. As they left, their resentful glances seemed to blame the collusion between money and power.
The Executive Director glanced at Xu Huo, bid farewell to the Duchess, and left with Ran Ying and the others.
The Duchess strolled leisurely into the castle, sat down on her own, and said, “You’ve only been here a few days—how did you offend the Black Epaulets?”
“It’s not the Black Epaulets I offended, but a grudge with Ran Ying.” Xu Huo briefly recounted what had happened since arriving in District 011.
The Duchess wrinkled her nose with distaste. “That woman is full of underhanded tricks. Since she’s set her sights on you, she won’t let go easily.”
Xu Huo shrugged with an indifferent smile. “As long as the Black Epaulets don’t openly attack the castle, it’s fine.”
Ran Ying was someone to reckon with. Her search for Dr. Deng was likely about the Perfect Potion, though he wasn’t sure if she had any connection to Dr. Deng.
Dr. Deng’s earlier visit to him had felt a bit like fishing for bait.
“You just got back from District 009—how did it go?” The Duchess looked him over. “I heard you brought a woman back with you.”
“A good friend,” Xu Huo said. “I ran into her in an instance dungeon and offered some hospitality.”
“Handle your own affairs as you see fit.” The Duchess added, “I’m hosting a banquet at my place in a couple of days. Once you’ve dealt with the Black Epaulets matter, bring your friend along to have some fun.”
Xu Huo agreed. “Thanks for helping me out today.”
The Duchess smiled. “Remember that.”
She covered her lips with her fan, touched her hair with her other hand, and said, “I came out in a hurry today and didn’t dress up properly. I’ll head back now.”
Xu Huo stood to see her off. At the door, the Duchess added, “If you run into any trouble, you can come to me to discuss it. I’m at least more reasonable than those Black Epaulets.”
“In District 011, building good relations with the nobility won’t do you any harm.”
He escorted her outside the castle and watched her board the aircraft before returning.
Bai Kou was by the balcony upstairs, chin resting on one hand, a teasing smile on her face. “Really not considering it? This one’s even better than the last.”
Their eyes met, and Xu Huo could clearly see the mockery in hers. He smiled back. “Your skirt is flying up.”
Bai Kou turned her head and went back into her room.
With the Ran Ying incident, Xu Huo decided not to return to the study. Instead, he went to the Spider Hall in the back.
Dr. Deng was confined by Mr. Dong in a special space. Only when meals were delivered did Mr. Dong enter. After more than ten days locked in a dark room, Dr. Deng looked haggard, but his eyes lit up when he saw Xu Huo. He hurried over and asked, “Did you get the potion?”
Xu Huo took out the doll he had found. “I was too late. When I got there, only an empty doll remained. The syringe inside was already taken. I didn’t see the actual item, so I can’t confirm if it was the Perfect Potion.”
Dr. Deng examined the doll repeatedly, then looked at Xu Huo with suspicion, his expression wavering.
“Items like this that hide potions aren’t uncommon in instance dungeons,” Xu Huo said. “Your information was inaccurate.”
“Impossible!” Dr. Deng asserted firmly. “The information was absolutely correct. It’s just that the timing was too late—some player might have taken the potion before you.”
He sighed regretfully. “What a shame. If someone who doesn’t know its value took it, they might have used it as a cheap potion.”
Setting aside whether his regret was genuine or an act, Xu Huo said, “I made a wasted trip, and because of you, I’ve been targeted by the Black Epaulets.”
Dr. Deng visibly tensed. “The Black Epaulets must know about this. They won’t let it go!”
“I suspect it’s because of the potion too.” Xu Huo scrutinized him. “Our agreement was that I’d take you to another district after I returned from District 009. But this time, I got nothing and ended up with a troublesome aftermath. I took a big loss.”
Dr. Deng could see the impatience and killing intent in his demeanor and quickly said, “Don’t jump to conclusions. I’m very useful to you. Even though I can’t make the Perfect Potion, I can improve ordinary potions and fix their defects.”
“Advanced versions of potions are already available,” Xu Huo said. “You can buy them if you have money.”
“Mine are better!” Dr. Deng said without hesitation. “You’ll understand once you try them. Give me a few potions and buy me some ingredients, and I’ll definitely make them.”
“The better the improvement, the fewer the side effects later. You don’t want to end up in a wheelchair like Lawrence Li, do you? And even a wheelchair is a relatively good outcome.”
“You’re an expert in pharmacology. How do I know you won’t tamper with the potions?” Xu Huo said. “From what I know, some top experts can alter the properties of potions, even precisely controlling the subtle changes they cause in the human body.”
Dr. Deng shook his head. “The kind of potion you’re talking about requires one-to-one matching. Improving human genes isn’t like killing a virus—it’s not that targeted. Even with one-to-one production, there’s a lot of uncertainty. And with such potions, one or two doses have almost no effect. If changing the human body were that easy, the Game Government would have developed the Perfect Potion by now.”
From his words, Xu Huo gleaned two pieces of information. First, a small amount of potion, even if it could alter the body, would have a very weak effect, leaving room to pull back. Second, such potions are extremely difficult to make. If they don’t match the user, they might not work at all, or could even backfire.
From this perspective, the green syringe was unlikely to be problematic, because wasting a Perfect Potion for that would be pointless.
“You don’t have to worry about me tampering with the potions. To reach a level where a player can’t detect it, you’d already be a top-tier pharmacology expert,” Dr. Deng said. “Anyone who reaches that level would be working on the Perfect Potion.”
Xu Huo didn’t reply immediately. He crossed his arms and said, “You’re hard to trust.”
“Use a prop!” Dr. Deng urged. “Use a prop and you’ll know if I’m telling the truth. I’ve done a lot for the Perfect Potion, but since I came to District 011, I haven’t screwed you over!”
(Chapter End)