43: Chapter 43 We Are Human 43: Chapter 43 We Are Human On the express delivery box, there was a red soy sauce pot logo.

It seemed to be a delivery from Soy Sauce Express.

However, this inexplicably appearing package immediately aroused Lu Zixun’s suspicions.

According to what Wu Yue said, Long Ya’s father should also be in Chunhua City.

Why couldn’t he deliver the gift personally and had to use a delivery service?

Long Ya took the box from Wu Yue’s hands, a joyful expression on her face, and picked up a plastic knife for opening packages.

She began to cut the tape off the delivery box.

At the same time, Lu Zixun squatted next to Long Ya, his hair bristling slightly as he attentively watched Long Ya open the package.

He was terribly afraid that a Blood Worm might jump out of it—that would truly be the end of him.

Fortunately, what Lu Zixun had anticipated did not occur, and a crystal ball lay quietly inside the delivery box.

With gentle movements, Long Ya took the crystal ball out of the box, shook it slightly, and the accumulated snowflakes at the bottom fluttered, revealing a lifelike little figure standing in the middle.

Lu Zixun, observing from the side, immediately recognized that the figure in the middle was Long Ya.

The ones holding her hands beside her must be her parents.

While Lu Zixun was observing the crystal ball, he heard Long Ya’s soft sobs nearby, which suddenly startled him.

What was this now, a sentimental moment?

He extended a paw and touched Long Ya’s face, wanting to comfort her.

Afraid to say the wrong thing and scare her, he could only feel anxious.

“This is…

This is a gift made by Mom.”

Amidst her sobs, Long Ya wiped away the tears from the corner of her eyes: “Mom really didn’t forget my birthday, but…

what I want the most is for mom to be with me.”

Hearing Long Ya’s choked voice, Lu Zixun felt sympathy for the little girl.

No wonder Long Ya was so upset upon hearing her father Father Long could not return—today was her birthday.

Wu Yue walked over sympathetically, pulled out a tissue to wipe Long Ya’s tears, and comforted her, “Young miss, the master and mistress are just particularly busy this year.

They’ll be able to be with you next year.”

“Okay, I know, Aunt Wu.”

Long Ya nodded, hugged the crystal ball to her chest, and walked upstairs: “I’m going to do my homework now.”

Wu Yue, seemingly wanting to say more, watched Long Ya’s retreating figure and sighed.

In the end, she could only say, “I’ll call you when it’s time to eat.”

After thinking for a while, Lu Zixun decided not to follow her.

Now, Long Ya wanted to be alone.

He should go out and find Zeng Haoyang.

He looked up, meowed at Wu Yue, and, as she watched him dumbfounded, Lu Zixun dashed out of the hotel like a streak of smoke.

He found Zeng Haoyang in the underground parking lot.

At that moment, Zeng was talking to a B-level Genetic Optimization Soldier whom Lu Zixun had never seen before, and Lu Zixun squat beside them.

Seeing a cat running over, the B-level Genetic Optimization Soldier’s sharp eyes swept over him.

But when he saw the silver tag on Lu Zixun’s neck, his gaze returned to calm and continued to speak, “Elder Zeng, do you mean that the Blood Worm Queen is preparing to surround Wei and save Zhao?”

“It seems so.

It’s not just about surrounding Wei to save Zhao but also forcing us to make a decision,” Zeng Haoyang’s eyes gleamed coldly as he said in a deep voice, “But this move by the Blood Worm Queen—it’s quite ruthless.”

The B-level Genetic Optimization Soldier pondered for a moment and then said evenly, “To use a busload of students as a bargaining chip—should I say it’s typical of the style of Abnormal Creatures?”

“By maximizing benefits, we should kill the Blood Worm Queen without any regard, but Xiong Kang, we are human beings after all.”

Zeng Haoyang sighed, rubbing his temples with a headache-inducing expression.

Lu Zixun, who was utterly confused, couldn’t help but interject, “Excuse me for interrupting, but what are you two talking about?”

Lu Zixun’s voice caught the attention of both men, and their gazes fell on him simultaneously.

Zeng Haoyang smiled and said, “I haven’t introduced you yet.

This is B-grade Genetic Optimization Soldier Xiong Kang.”

After Lu Zixun nodded, Zeng Haoyang turned to Xiong Kang and said, “This cat is a new member of the STO, named Orange Cat, probably at the level of a C-grade Genetic Optimization Soldier.”

The man and the cat exchanged glances and then simultaneously looked back at Zeng Haoyang.

Feeling the mutual disdain between the man and the cat, Zeng Haoyang couldn’t help but laugh and cry at the same time.

Shaking his head, he explained to Lu Zixun what they had been talking about.

After listening to Zeng Haoyang’s explanation, Lu Zixun’s expression turned three shades darker.

He had wondered why they were going on an early spring outing; there was an additional motive involving Abnormal Creatures.

Originally, the STO was scheduled to lock down Area Q of Chunhua City tomorrow to capture the Blood Worm Queen hiding there.

It could be that the Blood Worms had already infiltrated the inside, or that other Abnormal Creatures had caught wind of the operation and directly caused the Blood Worm Queen to make her move, advancing the spring outing time.

To delay the STO’s forces.

Now, with the STO members in Chunhua City, there were not enough hands to lock down Area Q, making it impossible to cover all bases.

With his tail sweeping the ground and his emotions complex, Lu Zixun asked, “If we directly deal with Director Duan, is Long Ya going to be safe?”

The two men looked back at him with puzzled expressions.

Xiong Kang asked in confusion, “Why do we need to deal with that Director Duan?”

Now it was Lu Zixun’s turn to be perplexed, looking up at the two, “Isn’t Director Duan the Blood Worm?

Don’t tell me you don’t know?”

“Huh?”

All three were completely baffled at once.

At that moment, Lu Zixun suddenly realized—they had been chatting across different areas.

Lu Zixun knew that Director Duan had been parasitized by a Blood Worm, but Zeng Haoyang and Xiong Kang were unaware of this, which was why they were worried about this matter.

“Orange Cat, this is a serious matter.

Your mistake could lead to significant casualties.

Can you take responsibility for what you’ve said?”

After chewing over Lu Zixun’s words, Zeng Haoyang also reacted instantly, looking at Lu Zixun with a grave expression.

Lu Zixun became serious as well, staring earnestly at Zeng Haoyang and saying, “I can only confirm that Director Duan is a Blood Worm, I can’t be sure if other teachers are parasitized by Blood Worms.”

“It’s good to be sure about even one…”

After pondering for a while, Zeng Haoyang looked up at Xiong Kang and said, “Send someone to monitor that Director Duan, maybe we can track down the other Blood Worms by following her feeding grounds.”

“Yes!”

Saluting Zeng Haoyang, Xiong Kang rushed out.

A moment later, he ran back in, covering Lu Zixun’s head with a hat, “This gift—please give it to Yaya for me.”

Then he hurried off again.

A speechless Lu Zixun had nothing but black lines across his face, with Zeng Haoyang’s laughter ringing in his ears.

Taking the hat in his hands, Zeng Haoyang shook his head, “Let’s go, come out with me.”