Chapter 125 The Split

Umbrella Corporation.

A deathly silence enveloped the office.

Three old men sat on a sofa, watching a video playing on a loop.

A tall mechanical warrior wielded a saw blade, unstoppable, crushing everything in its path!

The vast Tiancheng branch crumbled, collapsing entirely.

Everyone and everything within the building became ruins lost to history…

"Gulp…"

The patriarch of the Ren family swallowed hard, his aged eyes fixed on the video. With a withered finger, he paused the screen, focusing on the crimson mechanical eyes of the Tank-class combat mecha.

"This is definitely not a creation of modern technology!"

The Ren family patriarch stated definitively, "I've communicated with several military-grade mechanical lifeform companies and research centers. Currently, the most advanced intelligent robots produced worldwide are only suitable for industrial and agricultural applications, absolutely unusable in warfare!"

"Terminators and RoboCops are just science fiction!"

An hour earlier, all three had received the news that the Tiancheng branch had been destroyed. The video footage sent back recorded some extremely strange and bizarre occurrences.

Like the massive robot currently displayed on the screen.

"And what shocks me the most isn't the robot…" The Ren patriarch removed his glasses, rubbing his tired eyes. "Don't you think those two humans are more worthy of our attention?"

The three fell into silence.

In the footage, the terrifying power displayed by the two humans was even more remarkable than the gigantic combat mecha.

Power akin to that in myths.

"I've always believed that we were facing some mysterious consortiums or organizations, but now it seems I've underestimated them." The Ren patriarch spoke after a long silence. "The opposition truly possesses the ability to suppress us."

"I agree," the Lan family patriarch nodded.

Bai Changyun seemed to glean something from the tone of the two men. He suddenly opened his eyes wide, his cloudy pupils filled with sharp light. "Are you afraid?"

"This isn't fear," the Ren patriarch said. "This is… cutting our losses!"

"If they had attacked our homes or headquarters last night instead of the Tiancheng branch, what would the scene look like now?" The Ren patriarch said in a low voice.

Bang!

Bai Changyun slammed the table, sneering, "Your courage is shrinking! If they truly had the power to confront us head-on, they wouldn't bother with these theatrical warnings; they would have come straight to our door!"

"…"

"I propose temporarily suspending the Evolver manufacturing project." The Ren patriarch finally voiced his idea. "At the very least, we need to investigate the opponent's identity before deciding on our next course of action."

"I refuse!" Bai Changyun said coldly. "This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! We possess the genetic drugs; as long as we solve the pairing and fusion problem, we can stand at the forefront of the world! If we miss this chance due to cowardice, all our initial investments will go down the drain."

"If you insist on continuing, then I'm out." The Ren patriarch thought for a long time before finally speaking slowly, as if he had made up his mind. "I have a premonition that if we continue down this path, we will truly meet our demise…"

Li Tianran probably didn't know that his attack last night had caused a fierce division within the corporation.

Regarding the manufacturing of Evolvers, the Ren family chose to withdraw, while the Lan family hesitated but ultimately did not pull out of the project with the Ren family.

That afternoon, Bai Changyun and the Lan family jointly funded the repurchase of all the Ren family's shares in the Evolver project, returning them as funds and supplies.

From that point on, the Ren family and the Bai and Lan families completely parted ways.

…

Li Tianran pushed open the door to Ren Xiao's bedroom. The room was dimly lit with the curtains drawn.

"Who allowed you to enter?" Ren Xiao lay on the bed, facing away from Li Tianran, her tone extremely cold. "Get out!"

"This is my home. I can go wherever I want." Li Tianran walked to the window and pulled open the curtains with a whoosh, allowing the sunlight to flood in and dispel the darkness in the room.

Clatter!

Li Tianran placed the plate in his hand on the table and said calmly, "Eat something. These things are impossible to find outside… fruit salad, fresh steak. I don't know your preferences, so I had it cooked well-done. I hope the meat hasn't become too tough."

"You went out last night," Ren Xiao asked calmly. "To attack a branch company?"

"…" Li Tianran was silent for a long time, then said, "Yes."

"How laughable. You're my enemy now, yet you're feigning concern and expressing your kindness…" Ren Xiao sneered. "You're so hypocritical."

"I don't care what you think of me, but even if you want to take revenge, you need to survive first." Li Tianran said calmly, "I know you don't want to stay here. I'll send you away soon, and you won't have any mental baggage when you return home… because I'm constantly having Han Han practice how to precisely manipulate human brainwaves. I'll have her erase your memories of this period."

"You won't remember that I killed Gagar, nor will you remember that I obtained the information about the corporation from your brain."

"And most importantly, you won't leak any information about me."

Ren Xiao's body stiffened, and she suddenly said through gritted teeth, "The last one is your real purpose, isn't it?"

"If I only wanted to achieve the last one, I could have just killed you." Li Tianran rubbed his fingers. "I hope you can understand that our current positions are as enemies. My top priority is our own safety. I can't make everything perfect, but I can try to have a clear conscience."

"Our story will end soon."

After saying those words, Li Tianran turned and walked out of Ren Xiao's room.

Outside the farm, Ding Lu, wearing a chef's white coat, asked somewhat timidly, "Boss, is the steak I cooked alright?"

"Not bad." Li Tianran nodded. Ding Lu was a talented cook. Li Tianran had only taught him a few tricks, and he was already cooking some dishes quite well.

"But I heard people say that if steak is cooked too well, it loses the original flavor of the meat." Ding Lu frowned. "I heard that the best doneness for Western food is medium-rare…"

"What do those foreign devils know about eating?" Li Tianran sneered. "If you're just after the fresh flavor, I suggest riding on the cow's back and biting into its horns!"

Li Tianran turned and left.

Ding Lu scratched his head, unsure what he had done to displease Li Tianran again…