Star Rank Hunter

Chapter 401: I Know You

Ranzai didn’t get angry even though Cillin hypnotized him. He was a soldier, so he knew a little about hypnotism. He knew that Cillin harbored no malice toward him.

Ranzai looked into Cillin’s eyes because he wanted to know if the young man was lying. However, it was he who fell into Cillin’s trap.

It was easier to draw out one’s true emotions when their eyes were meeting. In fact, Ranzai had gotten emotional just now. He had harbored all these thoughts and emotions for over twenty years, and he had always wanted to vent them somehow. However, that matter was a top secret that could not be publicized. Even the amount of people who knew about it were few and far between. That was why he had no choice but to bury it all in his heart.

Cillin’s hypnosis made him more likely to open up, but that was all. He had not tried to interfere with Ranzai’s emotions any further than that. That was why Ranzai was no longer angry at him.

Ranzai had said everything he wanted to say, and Cillin did not force him to divulge what he did not wish to say. He would continue to keep this matter a secret as well. This was enough.

Having learned the rough picture from Yin Wushe, and now some more detailed information regarding the Tapir Extermination incident from Ranzai, many of Cillin’s old questions were answered.

The person who owed Si Fang a favor and took Pian Huo away was none other than the current Fire Phoenix, leader of Fire Phoenix organization. He was also the only one who had the power to protect Pian Huo from the consequences of that disaster while maintaining a relative level of secrecy.

The current Fire Phoenix also fulfilled his promise to give Pian Huo the freedom to choose the life she desired. Although he was Pian Huo’s protector and caretaker, he never tried to force her to go down a certain path. He also respected her choices such as allowing her to explore the top security prison to her heart’s content, and still allowing her to go wherever she wanted in the galaxy.

Besides that, Pian Huo also received some help from Si Huang. That was why she hadn’t encountered any major threat to her life to this day. Or at least, that was how it seemed to most people.

Ranzai could not explain Dream Tapir in great detail because of his occupation. Therefore, he was unable to provide Cillin much help in this regard. However, he mentioned that Cillin could seek out a man named Onesta if he wished to learn more about the Dream Tapir.

Onesta was a former subordinate of Si Fang. He had participated in the Tapir Extermination operation as well. Just like Ranzai, he wasn’t imprisoned in the top security prison and was later recruited by a Sector S force. He was well and alive.

Most importantly, Onesta was a military doctor; one who could step into the frontlines if necessary. Si Fang valued him highly as a matter of course. He of all people should know much, much more about the Dream Tapir.

Onesta wasn’t with Fire Phoenix. Back when the prison still existed, and everyone was stripped of their position and thrown into prison, Onesta was one of the few people who received better treatment than his comrades. It was because someone was looking after him.

Many people knew that Sector S’ prison system was connected to the local factions to an extent. Back then, Angenia was searching for a highly skilled medical professional among the prisoners for Gensheng and her grandchildren. Onesta was one of her targets. They naturally became familiar with one another after a couple interactions. Not long after the prison was abolished, Angenia sent someone to welcome Onesta to her faction.

This meant that Cillin could acquire the information he needed just by traveling to Golden Beginning.

The men Angenia sent to receive Cillin appeared after just a short time. In fact, Gen Xingfu was the leader of the entourage. The youngster’s gene rank had been rising by leaps and bounds after receiving his second injection, and his physique was nothing like what it used to be. Strangely, he still looked frail and thin despite this.

There were two reasons. One, they did not wish to publicize the news that Gen Xingfu was now healthy and strong. Even within Golden Beginning, Gen Xingfu had only informed a handful of close ones about his transformation. No one else knew that Gen Xingfu, Gen Xingju, Gensheng and more had all undergone a dramatic transformation.

In the past, they could only rely on their bodyguards to protect them from danger. If the bodyguards proved to be insufficient, then they could only rely on their equipment. If even their equipment proved insufficient, then it was basically up to fate whether they lived or died. But now, things were different. Assuming that no one was looking, they now possessed the strength to give those who would dare to target their lives a surprising and fatal attack.

Second, Gen Xingfu was wearing loose clothing. It looked like the clothes were wearing the man, not the other way around. This was intentional. It made Gen Xingfu looked just as frail and thin as before. Combined with Gen Xingfu’s own acting, and few people could tell that the young man was changed.

Gen Xingfu might look as frail and thin as before, but his presence was anything but unchanged. As Pian Huo said, Gen Xingfu had shedded his gloomy self and become much more positive than before.

“We finally meet again, Cillin!” Gen Xingfu strode up to Cillin and gave him a fist bump. Then, he greeted the gray cat sitting on Cillin’s shoulder.

Wheeze gave Gen Xingfu face and returned the greeting. He was master grandpa two’s descendant after all, meaning that he was one of them. Naturally, he should be given differential treatment.

Ranzai was watching while Gen Xingfu and Cillin made chit-chat. He knew Angenia valued Cillin a lot, but he wasn’t expecting the young man to share such a good relationship with Gen Xingfu as well. In Sector S, many people knew that those with the surname Gen were highly distrustful and unapproachable. However, that was clearly not the case here. Not only were they well acquainted with each other, he could tell that the smile on Gen Xingfu’s face was real and from the bottom of his heart, not perfunctory. This realization caused his already high evaluation of Cillin to rise even more.

“Yo, big young master Fu! I didn’t think you would show up in person! How surprising!” Pian Huo said wistfully. She too was acquainted with Gen Xingfu, which was why she didn’t care to speak too courteously. Before the three main factions of Sector S rose to supremacy, they had cooperated with each other several times in the past. That was why they weren’t unfamiliar with each other.

“But of course. It’s not everyday Cillin pays us a visit. Of course I should welcome him in person.”

Gen Xingfu spent a minute or two catching up with Pian Huo before taking his leave withCillin almost as if he was in a hurry. In fact, he was. His grandmother was literally counting the minutes in Golden Beginning right now. ř𝓪NǑВĘŚ

After Golden Beginning’s starship departed, Pian Huo stroked her fake beard and remarked, “Is it just me, or is Angenia and the Gen clansmen way too close to Cillin? It almost feels like they’re one big family.”

“I would agree if not for the fact that multiple investigations into their relationship yielded no definitive proof,” Ranzai replied. As one of the three main forces of Sector S, they had investigated the leaders of Golden Beginning many times as a matter of course. However, they never found any sign that the “Queen” had another descendant, and Gensheng himself only had a son and a daughter.

“Have we found anything regarding the ‘Queen’s’ husband?” Pian Huo asked.

“No. That man is an absolute enigma. He remains a mystery even to this day.”

Ranzai had also looked into the man the elders of Sector S called “trash” or “garbage” many times, but his puzzlement only grew the longer he investigated.

The “trash” they spoke of was an acquaintance of the Food King. They said he wasn’t a denizen of Sector S, but his origins were unknown. He disappeared a long time ago and was still missing to this day. Some people said that the “trash” must be long dead because his gene rank was poor; so poor that he could not possibly lead a long life. He was already aging back when he first disappeared, and one could only imagine how much older he had become after so many decades, assuming he was still alive.

Something felt strange though. The “Queen” was a famous figure of sector S. She had elevated Golden Beginning to its current height with an iron fist. However, she had never forgotten about the man they called “the trash named Gen”. If that man really was a worthless piece of garbage with no redeemable qualities whatsoever, why would the “Queen” remain loyal to him after all these years? And how could such a man become acquainted with the Food King? In fact, calling them acquaintances was an understatement. If the Food King’s own son or daughter dared to say a single bad word about that man, the Food King would not hesitate to slap them to the nearest wall.

Pian Huo suddenly recalled something and asked Ranzai, “Do you still remember his name?”

Ranzai thought for a moment before answering, “If I remember correctly, his name is Genya.”

“Genya?!” Pian Huo gasped when she heard this. “The planet I visited this time is Cillin’s birthplace, and I found out that his master’s name is Genya!”

Cillin wasn’t the one who told Pian Huo about this. She learned about it by asking around the area. She had also looked into the residence prior to choosing it as her shelter, and she heard that the owner of the residence had been dead for many years.

“Are you sure?” Ranzai was astonished as a matter of course. If what she said was true, then the so-called trash definitely did not deserve his infamy. There was no way he could raise someone like Cillin otherwise.

“I remember there is a tree in the residence, and it looks very similar to the one at the headquarters. They don’t allow outsiders to check out the tree at close range, so I could only glimpse it from afar. Even so, I’m certain it’s the same type of tree!”

The tree was very special; so special it gave her the heebie jeebies. Despite having traveled to many places, she had never seen another tree like it. However, the dying, nearly bald tree in Cillin’s residence was definitely the same type of tree as the one in Golden Beginning.

While Pian Huo and Ranzai were discussing Cillin and Genya, Gen Xingfu and Cillin had arrived at Golden Beginning’s headquarters. Once again, Angenia and Gensheng were welcoming them in person, but this time they were accompanied by two other people. One of them was Gen Xingfu’s younger sister, Gen Xingji. The other person was the Star Rank Hunter guarding Gen Xingji on a permanent basis, Prisa.

This was the first time Cillin met Prisa. Prisa was Gen Xingfu’s aunt, though you wouldn’t know looking at her appearance alone. However, one only needed to look at the way she carried herself to know that she was anything but an ignorant young woman. On the contrary, it was clear that she was a veteran with a storied history.

PrisaʼThere were rumors claiming that Prisa and Gensheng were blood-related siblings born from Angenia’s womb. There were also other theories regarding her background. One thing for certain, Prisa’s origin was a mystery to most people.

Cillin was certain Prisa and Gensheng were not blood-related siblings though. After all, Prisa did not have the Gen Family bloodline. She had displayed an extraordinary amount of strength from the very beginning, meaning that her gene rank was extremely high. Her situation was completely different from Gensheng and those bearing the blood of the Gen Family in them. Besides that, Cillin believed that Angenia was absolutely faithful to Genya.

Still, no ordinary person could become a Star Rank Hunter. There was no doubt that there were a lot of strings behind Prisa’s back; far more than the ordinary person could imagine. Sector S used to be a prison Sector after all. Here, anything could happen.

Angenia usually carried herself in a stern, dignified manner. When she saw Cillin though, she smiled and spoke to him like a kind old lady. Those who saw this scene before had become immune to it, but those who hadn’t were completely blank-faced. They hid their emotions well, but their hearts were shocked to put it mildly.

Is this Cillin the Queen’s illegitimate son, or Boss Gen? But if he’s really Boss Gen’s illegitimate son, young master Fu would not be smiling this brightly. At the very least, the smiles on their faces aren’t fake.

The young girl, Gen Xingji was currently standing next to her older brother and following behind her father and grandmother. She was looking at the man conversing happily with her grandmother. He looked almost the same age as she, so how could he make her normally strict and stern-faced grandmother smile like a chrysanthemum? It was the kind of smile you would expect a grandmother to show her juniors, and yet she and her big brother had almost never gotten to see it.

Angenia led Cillin to the courtyard they used to nurture the Fuji Trees. They all looked fairly healthy and strong. The reason the Fuji Tree was called the “Elder Tree” (T/N: Honestly I’ve completely forgotten if I used Elder Tree in previous chapters, do correct me if I’m wrong) was because it was special compared to all other plants. It could grow ten years of height in a single year, but it could also not grow a single centimeter for a whole decade. It all depended on the tree’s mood, and the biggest factor that affected the tree’s mood was the Gen Family.

The Fuji Tree would only be “in the mood” to grow if the Gen Family was around. It was just like when Genya was still at Planet Brown Earth. Back then, the Fuji Tree grew well with a tall trunk and gigantic canopy. It looked like a centuries-old tree even though only decades had passed.

But after Genya left, the tree stopped growing altogether. Not only that, its condition worsened with each passing year.

The Fuji Trees growing in Golden Beginning’s courtyard did not look as well grown as the one on Planet Brown Earth—at least, not when it was at its prime. Even so, it was incredible. Perhaps even Genya himself did not expect the trees he gifted Angenia all those years to grow to this extent.

Only a very, very small number of people were allowed to set foot in this courtyard. Even Pian Huo only got to watch them from beyond the wall when she was accompanying Fire Phoenix on a visit. Therefore, Cillin did not need to worry too much about prying eyes here.

“So, where do you want to plant it?” Angenia asked while searching around the courtyard for a good spot.

Cillin waved his hand and pointed at the spot between the Fuji Trees. “That spot is fine.”

Cillin walked over and crouched down at the empty spot between the Fuji Trees. Then, he pressed the finger with the curly leaf pattern against the ground.

The next moment, a series of cracks entered everyone’s ears, and a massive tree seemed to burst out from the underground. Although it was bald and withered, its trunk and branches were thicker than all of the Fuji Trees growing in the courtyard.

As soon the tree appeared, the surrounding trees immediately shifted away as if to make space for the new tree. After the new tree had stabilized, they gathered around it once more.

After the big tree had burst out of the earth and spread its roots underground, it immediately sensed a familiar aura it hadn’t sensed for a long time. This delighted it as a matter of course. Its delight was directly reflected on its health as its branches began growing green sprouts. The green sprouts then unfurled into leaves and grew incredibly large. It wasn’t long before its canopy was filled with vibrant green leaves once more.

Even the surrounding trees seemed to share in its happiness and grew many new leaves and elongated their branches.

Gen Xingfu was stunned. Everyone including Gensheng and Angenia was stunned. Angenia was more familiar with the Fuji Tree than most, but she was still surprised by this incredible sight.

Angenia knew that the Fuji Tree was spiritual. Genya had told her a lot about this tree. However, she had never witnessed its miracles with her own eyes. It was why she was feeling a deep, unforgettable impression right now.

“Is this… the tree she planted back then?” Angenia asked with a tremor in her voice.

“Mm. It’s been in his courtyard for the longest time. He often sat in his rocking chair under the tree and looked up at the sky.”

Looking at this tree made Cillin recall about the past. However, the people of the past might not be able to make a reappearance.

Angenia wished to stay here a little longer. So, she tasked Gen Xingfu with the matter of leading Cillin to Onesta.

On the way, an excited Gen Xingfu asked a lot of things about his grandfather, Genya. Cillin told him a little about Genya, but refused to elaborate on certain critical matters. After all, it might not necessarily be a good thing to reveal them now.

Gen Xingji was following beside them, and she was wrinkling her nose with displeasure at Cillin’s obvious secrecy. Just how mysterious was their grandfather? Not even grandma and aunt Prisa were able to find anything. Just what kind of person was the grandfather she had never seen in her life?

Gen Xingji expressed her unhappiness by making odd faces and sticking her tongue out at the gray cat on Cillin’s shoulder. This was the first time ever she saw such an expressive face on a cat, and an adept liar too.

In recent days, Onesta had been researching the secret behind Gen Xingfu and the others’ dramatic transformation. When he was informed that someone was paying him a visit, he hurriedly stopped what he was doing and stepped out to receive them. Angenia had warned him about the visitor, so he did not dare to take this visit too lightly. Besides, he was hoping to pry some information out of Gen Xingfu’s mouth.

Unfortunately, after Cillin made the request to speak with Onesta privately and emphasized that he had a “heart-to-heart” with Ranzai beforehand, worry suddenly gripped the doctor’s heart without warning. His worries turned out to be well-founded when Cillin brought up the Dream Tapir not long after they entered a meeting room.

Thanks to his meeting with Ranzai, Cillin now knew how best to delve into the subject and how to communicate with the survivors of the Tapir Extermination operation.

For a long time, Onesta did not say anything at all. Then, he left the room and eventually returned with a storage device.

“Everything I know about the Dream Tapir is here.”

Onesta had researched the Dream Tapir in search for a solution for countless years, but he was never able to make any progress. That was why he eventually set it aside.

Cillin accepted the storage device and said, “Thank you.”

“This is all I can do. I hope you can succeed where I failed.”

“I will do my best.”

While Gen Xingfu and Gen Xingji were waiting outside, Prisa showed up.

“Where’s Cillin?” Prisa asked.

Gen Xingji pointed at the meeting room with her mouth. “He’s having a secret meeting.”

As if on cue, the meeting room door opened, and both men walked out in succession. Onesta had collected himself at this point and so was wearing his usual smile like nothing had happened. He saluted Prisa after seeing her.

Prisa’s gaze landed on Cillin. She knew Cillin a lot more than most. She knew what he was capable of and some of his more secretive deeds such as the sabotage of a key experimental base of Miracle’s in Sector C.

What were they discussing? Why did it take so long? Prisa was curious.

“I know you, Cillin. My nephew often spoke about you,” Prisa said.

Although Gen Xingfu addressed Prisa as his aunt, Cillin had a feeling that she was not referring to Gen Xingfu.