Chapter 5: I, Noyan! Master of Feigned Injuries!

At the entrance of Huating Bio Laboratory in Jin City, Ren Jie was being pushed toward the fast track by the staff.

Ren Jie gazed at the night sky, the pain radiating from his severed arm keeping his mind sharply alert.

It was already late at night. The full moon was dim, its scattered moonlight failing to touch the borders of the Greater Xia.

The moonlight gathered, forming the Milky Way, flowing toward the horizon...

Since that night a century ago, the moon no longer belonged to humanity.

Yet beyond the dim moon hung an enormous and magnificent golden gate, standing tall in the sky above Blue Star.

The gate was firmly shut. Divine patterns danced across its portal, suffused with a sacred aura. The divine radiance spilled onto the earth, illuminating the night sky.

Ethereal yet tangible, it seemed to exist beyond this dimension.

People called it the Sacred Celestial Gate. It had abruptly appeared in the sky over Blue Star 180 years ago and had never been opened since.

Strangely, whether by day or night, from the northern or southern hemisphere, and from any angle, one would always see the front of the Sacred Gate.

No one knew what lay beyond it.

For 180 years, the gate’s divine light continuously shone upon humanity, though it had long ceased to be a topic of fascination.

People had grown accustomed to the gate’s presence, all knowing that without it, humanity’s flame of civilization might have already been extinguished by some catastrophic disaster...

Countless thoughts swirled in Ren Jie’s mind. He recalled that dog-headed woman was also a divine favored one, wasn’t she?

He didn’t know any executives from Huating Bio Group. Was this arm installation arranged by her?

In a blink, Ren Jie was pushed deep into the laboratory.

Unlike what he had imagined—a clean, orderly space filled with high-tech equipment—the lab was a mess. Besides the experimental devices, piles of folded books cluttered every corner.

At this moment, Nuo Yan sat cross-legged in an office chair, a Hua Zi cigarette dangling from her lips, using a beaker as an ashtray, intently watching her phone.

Her hair was tied into two buns. She wore a black-and-white short-sleeved shirt and printed beach shorts. Though slender, her aura was wildly intense, betraying her delicate figure.

Her features were exquisitely beautiful, save for a medical eye patch covering her left eye, and snowflake earrings dangling from her earlobes.

Only the work badge pinned to her chest marked her as the laboratory’s head.

From her phone came a string of risqué sounds that made one blush.

Ren Jie's expression stiffened. The staff’s face turned bright red, and wisely slipped away.

Now only Nuo Yan and Ren Jie remained in the lab, the indecent sounds echoing incessantly.

Ren Jie wiped his nose and said, “Um... are you playing that out loud...?”

“I know. What’s there to hide?” she replied.

“Well... but they said you’re the one installing my arm...” he said hesitantly.

“No rush, no rush. A young guy bleeding a little won’t die. Let me finish watching—it’s at a crucial part now!” she said.

Ren Jie: (•́口•̀ ٥)!!!

I spit on that!

From the sound, it’s barely the start, hasn’t even got to the main point yet!

And this Nuo Yan is definitely ruthless.

She’s watching study material and not fast-forwarding?

By the time she finishes, I’ll have bled out!

Is this delinquent really the lab head?

“Caribbean?”

Nuo Yan’s eyes brightened. She looked up at Ren Jie with a look of camaraderie.

(* ⁰̷̴꒨⁰̷̴) “Oh wow, young man, you really know your stuff.”

Ren Jie twitched at the corner of his eye, sweetly said:

(⌒ᴗ⌒;) “Sister, I’m really in a hurry. How about you install the arm first, then I borrow your phone to talk later?”

Nuo Yan’s expression turned serious:

(･ˇへˇ･｡) “Ten phones!”

“Deal!”

Only then did she break into a smile and come closer to prepare for the surgery.

“Kid, you’ve scored big. Our group’s Third Miss personally called, instructing me to install your arm for free, with lifetime maintenance included.”

“Tsk tsk tsk, our Xiao Li is so kind-hearted~”

Ren Jie’s face darkened. Kind-hearted? Do you even know how I lost my arm? People ended up in the crematorium!

So it really was that dog-headed woman’s arrangement—at least she has some conscience.

But she’s the third miss of Huating Bio?

Who in Greater Xia doesn’t know Huating Bio?

Nuo Yan abruptly pulled back the blanket covering Ren Jie.

“Hey hey hey—”

“Oh, shy now? Sister’s seen it all. It’s a forced graft surgery—you need sterile procedures, so we gotta be upfront, okay?”

Ren Jie twitched bitterly: sterile? Can you put out that cigarette first? The ash is dropping on me!

But upon lifting the blanket, Nuo Yan suddenly froze, then gasped sharply.

“Wow—haven’t seen such a spectacle before. You, young man, are truly gifted. If there were a shoot, I’d definitely watch!”

Ren Jie: ???

Shoot what the hell!

“That’s not the point. Sister, are you reliable or not?”

Nuo Yan snorted:

(︶˘︶*) “Go ask around. In all of Jin City, who doesn’t know Nuo Yan?”

“I! Nuo Yan! The arm installation expert! Having me install your arm is a blessing you’ve earned over three lifetimes!”

“Speak up. What kind of arm do you want? I’ll fit it for you.”

As she spoke, she pushed over a display cabinet.

Inside were arms of all kinds, but every design was wildly exaggerated, bulky—some with alloy saw blades, big iron clamps, chainsaws attached...

Not even the biomechanical arms of cyborgs looked this extreme.

Ren Jie covered his face. What kind of arms are these?

If I install one like this, how am I supposed to face people later?

Nuo Yan pointed to a dazzling golden arm with rotating blade wheels, grinning:

“Sister recommends this one—the Masterwork Mechanical Killing Edition Arm. If this ended up on the black market, it’d drive those cyborgs crazy and sell for a fortune, got it?”

Ren Jie gritted his teeth: “Isn’t that the Killer Arm? No way! I’d rather die than wear that! Just install that one!”

He pointed to a somewhat normal-looking mechanical arm.

The arm’s skeleton was black gold, controlled by bionic muscle bundles. It resembled an electro-cable mechanical arm.

Nowadays, mechanical prosthetics were widespread.

Because to unlock the gene lock, humans needed to inject a Spirit Awakening gene serum. Only the lucky would awaken abilities and become Gene Warriors.

The genuine gene serums were expensive—200,000 per injection, not affordable for every family. The black market also offered subpar versions.

They were cheap but came with side effects, possibly causing cancer in tissues or organs, at which point mechanical prosthetics would replace the damaged parts.

Of course, some chose prosthetics after injuries causing limb loss.

Also, some ordinary people who couldn’t become Gene Warriors sought mechanical organs to gain extraordinary strength.

Those with mechanical prosthetics were called cyborg enhancers.

But mechanical prosthetics weren’t for everyone—the price ranged from tens of thousands to over a million.

Ren Jie never imagined he’d survive his ordeal and get a free arm installation by chance.

Nuo Yan’s eyes sparkled: “Young man, you’ve got great taste. This fully functional mechanical arm is the latest version developed by Huating Bio Laboratory. It’s comprehensive in functionality.”

“Definitely your best choice. Let me tell you, don’t be fooled by its humble appearance. In tests, its previous owner withstood the force of a 10-kilogram TNT blast with only minor damage to the arm.”

Ren Jie was stunned. “You mean he used this arm to block such a terrifying explosion?”

Nuo Yan shook her head. “No... he was blown to pieces. The man died at noon, the funeral was in the afternoon, but the mechanical arm was fine.”

Ren Jie: (乛益乛|||)~%?…;# *’☆&℃$！

“Install! I’ll take this one.”

Not for anything else—just because it’s sturdy!