Xiang Nan became the new "Rat," a member of the Twelve Zodiacs.

But ever since the Yorknew City incident, he hasn't returned to Hunter Headquarters.

That Zodiac status can be seen as the V5 giving up a few minor interests—and also as Chairman Netero's way of binding him to the camp, for the sake of the human world's safety.

Xiang Nan doesn't care either way.

In the meantime, the global landscape has changed noticeably.

After the V5 began recruiting "players," other nations big and small started searching for them too. As word of the Yorknew incident spread, every country found traces of the "Multiverse" in the intel and documents, and began to prepare for it.

Xiang Nan also re-established "contact" with the Republic of Padokea's military and resumed his post.

In the past, under the Hunter Association's unwritten rule of staying out of politics, he would have been kicked out the moment he became a national official.

Now, even though he's back as the military's Chief of the General Staff, the Association hasn't reacted at all—and even the V5 are turning a blind eye.

The V5 don't dare make a move.

If they fall out with Xiang Nan and the players they find don't match his value, any deeper understanding of the Multiverse will be almost impossible. What's more, with the Republic of Padokea and the Kakin Empire behind him, a clean break could let those two "benefits" of the Multiverse, boost their national power, and make it hard for the V5 to guarantee their dominance over humanity in the future.

In short, the V5 are being extremely careful with Xiang Nan now.

…

"How is it?"

"Still no good… Even with a certain amount of training, their bodies just aren't strong enough to fully digest this power. They gain a bit, but the genetic damage remains uncontrollable." The next day, at the Zatobi family's compound.

Inside a palace treated as a forbidden zone, Xiang Nan watched researchers coming and going, then looked to the sealed cage where a test subject lay bristling with cables and instruments, and spoke with the project lead.

"To put it simply, the liquid's restorative force can't keep up with how fast the genes destroy and reverse the flesh."

The lead sighed.

Staring through the glass at the same target Xiang Nan was watching—a man whose limbs had deformed and whose skin was covered in hair—he said, "However, based on the data and materials you provided, Altana fluid can, to a degree, raise a subject's tolerance for genetic modification. It'll let us rack up experimental results and push the research forward… but we'll need time."

"How long?" Xiang Nan asked.

"At least two years."

"The success rate?"

"We should reach over thirty percent… That's the upper limit with our current technology."

"What if the subjects aren't ordinary people but Nen users? Not just physically tougher, but with some understanding and control of energy… the success rate should be higher, right?" Xiang Nan frowned.

"True… but Nen users are rare. From your plan and vision, you want to use these modified bodies to build a large army. The pool of Nen users can't meet that scale," the lead replied.

"What if we use Altana's power to force-open Nen, mass-produce Nen users, and then put them into the trials…" Xiang Nan offered.

"That's feasible. With what we currently understand about that energy, forcing Nen awakening to manufacture Nen users is no problem at all… But the amount of fluid and Altana crystals you've supplied is, by our estimates, still far too small."

"I'll handle that. Your job is to refine the research and keep raising the success rate."

"Understood."

The lead nodded, then turned and left.

Xiang Nan had come to Mia's territory to quietly stir the underworld by leveraging the Ten Dons' identity and clout—building on their old "Shadow Beasts" program and data to develop humanoid weapons similar to the Shadow Beasts.

To that end, he transferred the military's scientists to the Zatobi family's compound.

At the same time, Mia spent heavily to recruit external researchers.

These people will remain hidden in the underworld to complete the Shadow Beasts program. Xiang Nan named the project the "Artificial Human Initiative."

He could progress faster if he personally took the reins, but there's only so much he can do alone.

Once the plan succeeds, the future Pandora's Box will never lack fresh blood, and the combat power it incubates will far exceed that of ordinary Nen users—true weapons deployable on large-scale battlefields.

The research is buried in the underworld precisely to avoid discovery—by the V5, for example, or by the Kakin Empire, which still maintains exchanges with the Republic of Padokea.

All researchers are under tight surveillance; with the Zatobi family's muscle, they can ensure there are no leaks.

That's a crucial part of Xiang Nan's plan.

It's an important move in the effort to bring down the Kakin Empire.

Besides, with Owl—the former Shadow Beasts' leader—providing support, the Republic of Padokea's elite scientists, and resources like Altana, Xiang Nan was sure success was only a matter of time.

He himself is also one of the researchers.

"Still… if I get the chance, I need to make another trip to Gintama," Xiang Nan thought.

After all, the Dragon Vein energy they brought back from that world is still too little.

The Artificial Human Initiative is an absolute secret that must never get out, and Xiang Nan remains extremely cautious about it.

…

After leaving the research base, Xiang Nan returned to his room.

He injected a vial of Altana fluid into his body.

As the Dragon Vein power surged into him, the veins under his skin bulged at once, writhing like little green snakes about to burst through his flesh; a few seconds later they settled down again.

Xiang Nan let out a long, turbid breath.

Among all the Altana variants, the Dragon Vein he absorbs is the most domineering—the strongest planetary energy.

After so long building up resistance, he can finally raise the dosage.

But reaching true immortality like "Utsuro" in Gintama will take a long time. When the Altana's flesh-boosting effect no longer registers for him, that will mean he's hit his ceiling.

Still, in just over a month, he should be fully adapted to the Dragon Vein's power—no more injections; he can "bathe" in it and absorb it directly. As long as the strengthening hasn't plateaued, every absorption will boost his vitality.

His physical strength and aura reserves are already far beyond what they were when he returned from the Gintama world; the intensity of his Nen—his aura pressure—has also undergone a transformation.

In terms of aura alone, he's now no weaker than Uvogin.

"And it isn't just Altana… When I have time, I need to go back to The King of Fighters and see if I can gather the full Orochi power of the Eight Hakkesshu," Xiang Nan thought.