Star Rank Hunter

Chapter 400: The Tapir Eradication Incident

This was an opportunity.

If he really was Si Fang’s subordinate, then he must know about that incident.

The passageway entrance to the patrol ship was already open. Cillin’s spaceplane followed behind Pian Huo’s as the signal lights guided them into the patrol ship.

They had not found their footing yet when a booming laugh caught Cillin’s attention.

“You’re finally back, Pian Huo!”

Cillin looked in the direction of the laugh and saw a middle-aged man wearing the Fire Phoenix’s combat suit walking over to them.

He was Ranzai.

He looked slightly different from the young man in the footage, but Cillin could still vaguely make out the well-defined edges of his face and the young man he was over two decades ago. The passage of time certainly hadn’t succeeded in bending his stalwart back at all. Eyes blazing with vigor, he gave Pian Huo an elderly, indulgent smile.

“Uncle Ran! I miss you so much!” Pian Huo jumped over to the middle-aged man and gave him a hug.

“Heh. You lil brat.” Ranzai gave her fake mustache a tug. “This disguise is cooler than the last one.”

“But of course!” Pian Huo was very satisfied with her own disguise as well.

Ranzai had long gotten used to Pian Huo’s disguises. After giving the young woman a lookover and confirming that she was fine, he finally moved his gaze over to Cillin.

“Cillin, right? I received a message from the ‘Queen’ earlier. She knew as soon as you entered Sector S, and she is currently preparing an escort. Since I happened to be in the area, she told me to catch you and entertain you in the meantime.”

Ranzai treated Cillin with a good amount of courtesy for Pian Huo and Angenia’s sake. At the very least, his smile wasn’t faked.

Ranzai’s gaze moved over to Czedow and paused for a moment after he said this. Then, he looked away and led them into the ship smilingly.

Ranzai wasn’t very curious about Cillin. After all, he did not know the man. He only knew that Cillin belonged to Vanguard, and that he was very close to the “Queen” of Golden Beginning, Angenia. That said, he had a very strange feeling when he looked at Czedow. He felt like the man was very special… and very mysterious.

He did not pay an iota of attention to the cat sitting on Cillin’s shoulder though.

After arranging a restroom for Cillin and Czedow and affording them all the treatment a guest should receive, Ranzai left to catch up with Pian Huo.

Having engorged itself to its heart’s content, Wheeze curled into a ball on a soft bed and fell asleep. They were waiting for the escort from Golden Beginning to show up anyway, so why not? There was a wonderful saying called, “One should sleep after they eat,” and Wheeze had always practiced it religiously like it was a natural law.

While waiting, Cillin took a seat and worked on a tablet. He was researching the intel Yin Wushe had given him regarding Miracle, though he could tell that he wasn’t going to make much progress with just this.

Cillin was writing something when the bell rang. It was Ranzai. The man had returned after he was done chatting with Pian Huo. Cillin was his guest and an honored guest of Angenia. During his conversation with Pian Huo, it was clear that the young woman had an extremely high opinion of Cillin. Naturally, this greatly improved his impression and attitude toward Cillin.

“Are you comfortable? Do you have a hard time sleeping?” Ranzai asked while casting a glance at the fat cat snoring on the bed. He was asking because a pilot should fall asleep very easily after being at the helm for an extended period of time.

Of course, he did not check out whatever Cillin was writing on his tablet. Ranzai had always had a healthy dose of respect toward privacy.

“Not at all. Your arrangements are excellent. I’m just mulling over a couple problems,” Cillin stopped writing and answered.

“Oh? Care to tell me about it?” Ranzai asked curiously. Young men at Cillin’s age were also at their most ambitious. Ranzai thought that Cillin was mulling over some common problems youngsters his age faced and was getting ready to share some of his wisdom with him.

However, Cillin’s response caused Ranzai’s smile to stiffen.

Cillin spent a few seconds drawing something on his tablet before showing it to Ranzai.

Ranzai’s entire face froze when he saw Cillin’s drawing. The room temperature seemed to have nosedived because of this.

Cillin had drawn a very unusual-looking animal on his tablet. To most others, they would think that it was some sort of imaginary creature. However, as a former subordinate of Si Fang, the picture was anything but unfamiliar. In fact, it was a neverending nightmare that haunted his dreams and caused him to wake up in cold sweat every now and then. ŕ𝒶ƝỐ𝖇ΕS̩

“What is the meaning of this?” His smile disappeared completely, his complexion turned red with anger, and his voice grew somewhat raspy. The sudden agitation was such that his emotional outburst had a tremor in it.

Dream Tapir, the Armies’ secret project. Cillin had encountered some of its products back in Sector M, but none of them constituted its primary objective. According to his knowledge, the first phase of the Dream Tapir project involved multifunctional titanium guns of the DKC series, and the second phase involved some weapons of mass destruction. In fact, the thing Cillin encountered in Sector M belonged to the second phase.

However, nothing Cillin had learned so far contained anything related to Yin Wushe’s claims. One of the most defining things in the intel the old man provided was this symbol.

As far as Cillin knew, this symbol was unlike any of the images the Dream Tapir project had used. This one looked evil somehow.

The Dream Tapir project had begun at a very early date, and its earliest starting point was the very name of the project: Dream Tapir. The research that came after were really just smoke and mirrors to obfuscate the fact the first Dream Tapir was, and had always been, their primary objective.

Twenty years ago, Si Fang was discharged from the military and thrown into prison because of the Dream Tapir incident. Twenty years later, Yin Wushe declared that Dream Tapir might make a comeback.

Cillin paid Ranzai’s outburst no heed. He continued, “As a former subordinate of General Si Fang, I believe you know a lot more than I do.”

For a long time, Ranzai simply stared at Cillin to find out what kind of emotion was hiding in Cillin’s eyes or what his objective was. However, Ranzai could not find out anything. Before this, he thought that Cillin was just worrying about things a young man his age would worry about. He never imagined that he would be worrying about this god forsaken nightmare.

Moreover, Cillin had mentioned Si Fang’s name and the fact that he used to serve under her. This meant one thing: the young man might not know everything about him, but he knew enough.

After going through the possibilities carefully and calming down, Ranzai asked, “What is your goal?”

Cillin shook his head. Ranzai clearly suspected that he was interested in obtaining the Dream Tapir, and this was something he must clarify before the conversation could continue.

“I’m aware of Pian Huo’s identity. I know a little about General Si Fang’s deeds. I know about the mass incarceration that took place. I know about the disaster that struck the top security prison. I also know about how you and everyone involved in the Tapir Eradication incident felt: abject hatred and rejection.”

“However, are you sure you finished what you set out to do perfectly?”

Ranzai’s heart skipped a beat. “What… do you mean?!”

“I recently learned that, although you successfully destroyed that planet, you have not succeeded in destroying all data relating to the project. It is based on this data that Miracle is continuing the Dream Tapir project, and twenty years is enough time for them to make a lot of progress.”

When Ranzai heard this, he clenched his fists so hard that his finger bones cracked audibly, and veins bulged furiously on the back of his hands. It was rather terrifying.

“Isn’t Oros dead?!”

Cillin could tell how much Ranzai hated the man just from his tone.

“Oros is dead, but there are other interested parties. Dream Tapir had gained a lot of support throughout the years,” Cillin answered.

The profits promised by Dream Tapir was enough to drive many people insane. They were even willing to wait decades for its emergence. All things considered, how could they possibly abandon the project just because one man was dead?

They failed back then because a woman named Si Fang dared to do what most people didn’t dare to do; take drastic measures that most people would balk at the mere mention of. But what about now? Who else was left? Who would dare to stand in the way in its emergence?

Even if someone dared, they were already too late.

“Miracle had long since taken over the follow-up projects of Dream Tapir. GAL is extremely chaotic right now, and there are more or less an equal amount of people who support or reject Miracle. However, many people did not know that Miracle is harboring such a devil behind their doors. If a time comes where Miracle must perish, then they will definitely release the ‘Dream Tapir’ they had meticulously nurtured for so many years,” Cillin said.

Ranzai knew just how mad those people were. An insane amount of people were lost during the Tapir Eradication incident, and he was one of the very few survivors. It was precisely because he lived through those times that he knew better than most how scary that accursed thing was.

Back then, a small number of people had survived because the Dream Tapir hadn’t fully matured yet. But assuming it had reached full maturity now, then the consequences that would occur from its release… would be unimaginable.

“Why should I believe your words? And why should I believe that you don’t harbor any desire toward that thing?” Ranzai looked straight into Cillin’s eyes so that he would know if the young man was telling the truth when he gave his answer.

“Desire?” Cillin broke into a smile. “If I want to decimate a planet, I can do it anytime I want. There are many things in this world that could achieve the same outcome besides Dream Tapir.”

Cillin’s answer was calm and even indifferent, but the contents of his answer were spine-chilling to put it mildly. As far as Ranzai could tell, the young man wasn’t lying to him.

Ranzai had met countless people at Cillin’s age, but few people had managed to overturn his opinion of them again and again.

“Destruction is easier than persuasion and salvation. That’s why people prefer it.” This was what Si Fang had said back then. Si Fang knew what those people were planning to do with Dream Tapir, and understood what the consequences of allowing that nightmare to spread would be. That was why she had withstood all the pressure and stubbornly executed the Tapir Eradication operation.

“Dream Tapir is a good name, but the creature itself is an amalgamation of nightmares. I do not know how much you know about it, but as far as I know, it is an amalgamation of devils.”

“The Dream Tapir is originally a microparasite that could survive in space. After they were discovered, they decided to invest and research into its usability as the medium of a deadly virus. The experiment was a resounding success. Since then, they had always used this parasite as a medium to infect a target when performing relevant research.”

“This is because the virus would concentrate in this parasite when there are no viable hosts nearby. It is impossible to detect the virus source in the air. It is impossible to detect it in the water either, not even if the water source near the parasite is tested.”

“Moreover, the parasite itself is not negatively affected by the deadly virus despite being a carrier. That is why people name it the Dream Tapir.”

The Dream Tapir could devour nightmares. It could also unleash the nightmares it consumed.

“In order to perform more research, these people modified the parasite to be able to carry multiple viruses at the same time. They also injected a control body into the parasite. Imagine that someone is planning to destroy a certain organization or faction on a planet, but they do not need to dispatch a great number of elite troops, armored vehicles, fighters or more. All they need to do is to send a Dream Tapir to enter the planet and infect the relevant humans and other lifeforms.”

“The virus does not exist in the air or the water. However, it can infect anyone it targets, and the infected can infect more people.”

“The Dream Tapir is something like a hub that transfers viruses to other lifeforms. It can continuously accumulate more viruses and spread the infection endlessly. Its ability to transmit the virus surpasses imagination as well. It’s one thing if the planet is isolated—at worst, only the living creatures of the planet will be infected—but what if the Dream Tapir is unleashed upon a planet that has established connections with other planets? The propagation of the virus would become radial.”

“Back then, they used a planet as their test subject. It was a planet that was full of life, and it turned into a dead planet as a result of their experimentation. Thousands of deadly viruses had run rampant on the planet, and it all began from a single Dream Tapir. It gave no one any time to create a vaccine or even an effective suppressant. The entire planet was gone just like that. That was why the general declared Operation Tapir Extermination after learning of the incident.”

A sardonic sneer spread across Ranzai’s face when he reached this point. “Those fools from Sector V claim that the Armies are merciless, but they have no idea how big of a favor they owed General Si. Originally, those bastards were going to unleash the first successful Dream Tapirs against the infamous terrorists of Sector V. It did not happen only because General Si had enacted Tapir Extermination first.”

“If not for her, Sector V would have been wiped out twenty years ago! The man they worshiped, Oskulos, is a supporter of Dream Tapir as well! What right did they have to denounce us? What right did they have to cheer General Si’s imprisonment and call it a dog-eat-dog outcome?! They know nothing! They know nothing…”

Ranzai plunged his hands into his hair and bowed his head, palm covering his eyes as if he could not bear to see the light. Twenty years had passed, and still he remembered everything as clear as yesterday. Despite being wrongfully accused and punished, they never regretted their decision. However, they did feel sad and pity for the brothers and sisters who died in that operation, the fact that their military merits were wholly denied from them, and the fact that their records were struck out from the files of the GAL Armies permanently. They were saviors who were literally written out of history.

Cillin was silent. If Si Fang had not enacted Operation Tapir Extermination twenty years ago, if not for the sacrifices of those who took part in the operation, then there might not be a Tang Qiuqiu, a Free Army, or the current Sector V today. They might have been colonized beyond recognition a long time ago.

From a powerful and influential general to a prisoner in the highest prison of the Galactic Alliance. He wondered how those people felt during the most tumultuous period of their lives?

When they reached the end of their lives and looked back, they still did not regret their decision back then. It was the choice they decided; the life they chose. That was the kind of person Si Fang was, and that was the kind of subordinate she raised.

Ranzai would tell Cillin many more things about Dream Tapir, though his understanding of the Dream Tapir and the useful suggestions he could provide were limited. Still, Ranzai was a man who survived the Tapir Extermination incident. Through him, Cillin was able to get a better understanding of those heroes who were abandoned by history.

Besides Dream Tapir, Ranzai also told Cillin a little about Si Fang and Pian Huo. The guy was so agitated he literally couldn’t stop.

“When the prison disaster happened, General Si had entrusted Pian Huo to a certain person who owed her a favor. She requested that they take Pian Huo away and give her the right to choose and the freedom to live as she wishes. In fact, Pian Huo (Dancing Blaze) is named after that fire.”

“Having been locked up in prison ourselves, we understand that intense yearning for freedom better than most. However, I heard that general Si Fang had always been okay with her situation. I don’t know if she truly took it as lightly and uncaring as they claimed, but I do know that General Si never regretted her decision even when she was framed and sentenced to prison.”

“In fact, the warden had unlocked the security gates during the prison fire. It was so that the important personnel could escape. However, General Si and some of her followers stayed behind. It wasn’t just them either. Several high-ranking military officers like General Si had stayed behind as well. They were sentenced for life, which was why they chose to remain until the end.”

“I know General Si chose to stay behind not just because of that so-called military honor. It was also because she didn’t want to drag more people down with her. General Si must go if those who escaped and survived the incident wished to live without being oppressed by the military, so she went.”

Si Fang bore Wei Ting’s label, and so did those who followed her. However, they stayed behind not because of Wei Ting, but because of Si Fang herself. As Yin Wushe said, if Si Fang was still alive, then the situation plaguing the Armies might be much worse than before. It was only because Si Fang was gone that her former subordinates got the option to choose their own path and direction.

Take Ranzai for example. If Si Fang was still alive, then he would definitely follow Si Fang and return to the military. But Si Fang was gone, so he chose to accept Fire Phoenix’s recruitment instead.

At first, Ranzai only wanted to lead an aimless life. It wasn’t until he saw Pian Huo that he decided to stay with Fire Phoenix for real.

Although Pian Huo often disguised herself, she didn’t always wear a disguise. One look was all Ranzai needed to tell that she was her mother’s daughter. After all, Pian Huo looked strikingly similar to her mother.

Ranzai would chat with Cillin for a very long time. When he was finally finished, Ranzai gathered his emotions and took his leave.

While walking down a corridor, Ranzai abruptly realized that he was acting strangely. He felt that he had divulged too much. He was planning to tell Cillin some things, but he still gave more than he intended.

Ranzai’s footsteps slowed down, and his expression changed a couple times during this time. Finally, he let out a chuckle and cursed, “That brat! I can’t believe he hypnotized me!”