Chapter 10: If you have nothing to do, go play with butterflies
The iridescent phosphorescent butterflies had two pairs of beautiful wings that glowed with a dim blue light at night. During the day, their wings were a brilliant array of colors, shimmering faintly as they fluttered.
In a way, they resembled 012, whose skin also had a subtle glittering texture.
After being stung by the yellow-bellied bee, 012 no longer approached the busy hive-building bees. His gaze lingered on the colorful butterflies flitting about, often watching them for an entire day.
The dozen or so iridescent phosphorescent butterflies frequently flew around 012, landing on his skin.
This scene appeared strikingly beautiful, almost ethereal, like a deity in a jungle. The assistant researchers who happened to witness this sight were all captivated, their eyes sparkling with wonder.
“Oh my, look at that! Even the butterflies prefer to settle on a beauty,” Assistant Xiao Pan said emotionally.
Yu Yan, passing by behind them, informed her, “The iridescent phosphorescent butterflies store toxins. They land on 012’s skin to absorb the virus-laden sweat.”
Xiao Pan responded, “…I understand, thank you, Dr. Kang.”
She wanted to say, “Do you think I didn’t know that?” but didn’t dare.
The colorful butterflies persistently approached 012, but he wouldn’t allow them to get close, waving them away whenever they neared.
Seeing this “one-sided infatuation, unreciprocated” scene, the assistant researchers sighed.
Assistant Xiao Gao suggested to Yu Yan, “Dr. Kang, 012 doesn’t like these butterflies. He’s always shooing them away. Maybe we should move the butterflies out?”
Dislike? Probably not.
Yu Yan patted Xiao Gao’s shoulder and walked towards 012, habitually knocking on the glass to get his attention. He told him, “It’s okay. The viruses on your body aren’t lethal to the iridescent phosphorescent butterflies. In fact, they like toxins. When they land on you, they see you as sweet ‘honey.'”
012 ignored him.
But soon, Xiao Gao noticed that after Dr. Kang said that, 012 no longer shooed away the approaching butterflies. They often saw 012 resting with butterflies all over him.
Xiao Gao thought, ‘So he did listen to Dr. Kang.’
But how did Dr. Kang know that 012 didn’t dislike the butterflies?
“How did I know? Intuition,” Yu Yan said mysteriously, taking the necessary equipment and heading to the decontamination room to change into protective gear and enter 012’s enclosure.
Xiao Gao followed him, hesitating a bit. “Dr. Kang, if you’re going to take samples from 012, it’s safer to confine him in an isolation room. If he’s not restrained and refuses to cooperate, or even attacks you in a fit, what will you do?”
If Dr. Kang had his previous personality, Xiao Gao would never have dared to say such things, but he did now, and once he started talking, he couldn’t stop.
“Usually, Dr. Kang brings the food himself into the breeding area of 012. This kind of contact isn’t necessary and increases unnecessary infection risks…”
Yu Yan organized the tools he needed without turning around and replied perfunctorily, “Very well said, Xiao Gao. You all need to strictly follow the laboratory rules.”
Yu Yan also saw the sampling isolation room, which had all kinds of knives and needles and sturdy soft metal restraints. In the original owner’s memory, he had t*rtured many low and medium-level experimental subjects to death there.
It wasn’t a pleasant place.
Entering the breeding area of 012, Yu Yan found him still sleeping under the tree, his head resting on leaves, with a few colorful shimmering butterflies gently fluttering on his arms and chest, and one perched on his long eyelashes.
As he opened his eyes, the butterfly that had landed so delicately suddenly flew away.
“No need to be nervous, you can continue lying down. I’m just here to take a sample,” Yu Yan squatted in front of him, picked up his hand, and applied something to his arm.
The glowing hand struggled a bit, but not violently. Yu Yan quickly let go of him and took a closer look at 012’s fingers.
He remembered that when he arrived, 012’s fingers had been removed, leaving bloody flesh underneath. Now his new nails had grown back, not too long yet, but sharp at the tips, like little hooks, clearly showing their potential for attack.
“Your nails grow quite fast. Could you give me a couple of pieces?” Yu Yan asked casually.
He wanted to study them.
012 didn’t make a sound, so Yu Yan assumed he agreed and once again took his hand to cut a bit of his nails.
“Could you give me some hair as well?”
After cutting some silver-gray hair, Yu Yan lifted 012’s chin with two fingers, “Open your mouth, I need to take a saliva sample.”
The slender tube pressed against 012’s tongue, and his slightly long tongue instinctively wrapped around the tube.
When 012 was nervous, the ear feathers on the sides of his head would perk up a bit. Yu Yan noticed this and thought he looked like an owl, unable to suppress a laugh, which immediately dissolved his serious expression.
“Let go of the tube with your tongue; I can’t take the sample this way.” He tapped 012’s sharp teeth with the tube.
012 lifted his head, avoiding Yu Yan’s fingers on his chin, and awkwardly had his saliva and glandular fluids collected.
Finally, Yu Yan took out the test tube and said sternly, “Collect some of your excr*ment for me.”
In the previous research institute, 012 had these samples taken as well. They never told him what they needed; he only had to be tied up and endure the pain.
The gentle, painless sampling by this strange human in front of him, with only light touches, made 012 feel more uncomfortable and want to escape.
“Take the sample tube, go over there, and fill it up. You don’t need to fill it completely, just up to here.” Yu Yan, who had often instructed patients to collect their own ur*ne and f*ces for tests when he was a doctor, gave these instructions skillfully.
For 012, it was the first time he had to collect such a sample himself. He walked haltingly to the back of a tree in the corner.
There, broad-leaved trees provided cover—it was his “toilet.”
As Yu Yan was about to leave with the samples, 012 suddenly spoke.
“My bones, brain marrow, internal organs—aren’t you going to take samples of those?”
“Oh, no,” Yu Yan waved his hand dismissively as he walked away.
“Why don’t you tie me up?” 012 followed behind him.
“You’re being so cooperative; tying you up is unnecessary. Do you think it’s not troublesome? The operating table in the isolation room needs to be disinfected.” Yu Yan turned around and waved him off, “Go play with the butterflies if you have nothing to do. I still have work to do, so don’t cling to me.”
012 stopped in his tracks, and unsurprisingly, his disgust level increased.
It increased by a little bit each day, and now it had reached 40.
It continued to grow steadily.
Yu Yan found this immensely amusing. Nowadays, he felt uneasy if he didn’t see 012’s disgust level fluctuating daily.
He delivered the collected samples to Su He, and the two changed into their lab attire and began their research work.
Under the microscope, Yu Yan observed 012’s hair. Unlike normal human hair, 012’s hair was biologically active, carried a small amount of virus, and had sensory nerves at the tips.
“So, cutting it must also hurt?” Yu Yan mused to himself.
No wonder every time he touched 012’s hair, the reaction was so intense—possibly even more sensitive than touching his arm.
Su He, standing nearby, suddenly remarked, “If we could get some bile, the data would be more accurate.”
Yu Yan responded, “Don’t even think about it.”
Su He replied, “I know.”
A moment later, Su He said with a note of reflection, “Senior Kang, you’ve really changed a lot.”
She had tested him countless times recently, but Kang Shi hadn’t shown the slightest flaw. It seemed as if he truly had become someone who didn’t enjoy harming experimental subjects.
“You received the notification, right?” Su He asked, regaining her composure.
“If you’re talking about the notification that a research team from the Central District Institute is coming to visit us, I got that this morning,” Yu Yan answered.
“Didn’t you hear the rumors? One of the senior researchers coming is surnamed Zhou, and she’s Zhou Xiangcheng’s sister. She might be coming for 012.”
Su He spoke while deftly recording data, her movements quick and precise.
“It’s possible,” Yu Yan confirmed.
Because of what happened with the previous researcher Zhou Xiangcheng, the Zhou family had ensured 012 ended up in the hands of someone they deemed a “villain” to suffer. However, Yu Yan hadn’t harmed 012, so the Zhou family might have heard about this and decided to send someone to check on the situation.
Yu Yan had already instructed the system to investigate this morning. This was not part of the original storyline, indicating that his actions had led to a new development.
Yu Yan wasn’t worried.
“What do we do now?” Su He asked, looking anxious.
Yu Yan’s tone remained calm, “What do you mean? We can’t just torture 012 to appease the Zhou family. So, do you have any good ideas?”
Su He felt uneasy when she saw him turn around with a smile in his eyes, suspecting he might know something.
Pretending to be concerned, she suggested, “Maybe we can put on a show when they come?”
“Like what?”
“Like putting 012 in the isolation room and drawing some fake wounds on him? I doubt those people would dare to closely inspect 012.”
“Great idea. Let’s do that,” Yu Yan agreed without hesitation, almost as if he had been waiting for her to say it.
Su He thought to herself that he must know something.
The research team from the Central District Institute was scheduled to arrive tomorrow. Before leaving work, Yu Yan went to 012’s breeding area and spoke through the glass:
“012, didn’t you want to be tied up in the isolation room for sampling? We’ll try that tomorrow. It’s my first time doing this, and I’m quite nervous.”
His first time doing makeup, and he was nervous.
Nervous but did a great job.
Su He brought over the tools to help, only to find 012 covered in “wounds” and “bloodstains,” raging and straining against the sturdy soft metal restraints, making them creak. She was startled, almost thinking Senior Kang had relapsed into his old violent, s*distic ways.
“Senior, what did you do to make 012 so angry?”
