Jiang Mian opened the door. He was in poor health, so even in a room with a constant temperature, he was used to covering himself with something thick.
He was wearing pajamas and fluffy slippers, his hair was disheveled, and he was holding a half-finished cup of espresso in his hand. There were a few wet marks on the blanket from accidental splashes. He looked up at Ted in confusion.
"… You're dressed like a Michelin man." Jiang Mian commented in a daze, "What's wrong? Do you need me to report my results now? I've reviewed the records of the past twelve years, as well as the results of field investigations and cultural relics salvaged from the sea. I know this is a stupid method, but…"
"Jiang Mian," Ted took a deep breath and interrupted him in a low and urgent voice, "Jiang Mian!"
Jiang Mian was stunned for a moment and stopped talking.
"Put on your hazmat suit and follow me."
Jiang Mian raised his index finger: "Wait for me a minute."
After drinking the remaining half cup of coffee, his dizzy brain finally became a little clearer. Only then did Jiang Mian realize that something was wrong.
Ted looked at him with sympathy and pity, as if he was a forsaken child who had shredded a $5 million lottery ticket the night before the draw.
He threw down his blanket, put on thick wool socks, and stuffed himself into the protective suit. As he stuffed himself into the suit, he nervously whispered, "What happened?"
His body stiffened, and he looked at Ted with wide eyes: "Is it Lapers..."
Ted winked at him uneasily, signaling him to look at the two guards following behind him. This was not the place to talk. "Don't talk too much. First... Where is your dehydration suit? This one is as thin as paper. Wear that one!"
Jiang Mian shook his head and said, "I haven't participated in the project for three months, and I have been banned from entering the experimental station for nearly a week, Ted. I don't have the authority to leave myself a set of dehydration protective clothing. This is all I have."
Ted had an extremely conflicted expression. He seemed to be hesitant to speak. It seemed that he wanted to say, "You can wear mine," but he didn't dare to; he also wanted to say, "I'll find you a set now," but he still didn't dare to.
"Stop being a riddle man," Jiang Mian sighed, zipped up his pants, and fastened the drawstrings, "Just tell me what's going on. Is there something wrong with the mermaid?"
Ted compromised silently. He motioned Jiang Mian to follow him on another route. Through his intermittent and low description, Jiang Mian finally understood what had happened in the past few days.
"You mean," Jiang Mian really suspected that he had drunk too much coffee these days and confused his mind, "Rapos is actually a super mermaid. Not only can he ignore high voltage electricity, but he is also not afraid of strong acid and is bulletproof. In the past few days, he has killed..."
He took a deep breath: "… He killed six people, how could it be possible?"
Ted stopped and gestured to the guards behind him: "Guys, step back and leave some space. Let me and the breeder tell the breeder some instructions, okay? Thank you."
He pulled Jiang Mian forward a few steps, lowered his voice, and spoke quickly: "Because you know what kind of personalities those old guys have. Ever since the mermaid killed your first successor after you left, they added a control experiment to try to figure out the reasons and what caused its hostility and aggressive behavior."
Jiang Mian certainly knew the personalities of the scholars in the research institute. How could they, the deformed creatures whose bodies and lifespans had been transformed by the immortal water, and the advanced humans who claimed to be at the forefront of evolution, take ordinary people seriously