Those who travel back in time

Chapter 19 Old Friends

"Name?"

"gender?"

"age?"

Why kill Li Qilin?

In the interrogation room, Zhang Chi, deputy captain of the criminal investigation team of Mingguang District Branch, and his apprentice Lin Yao were in charge of the interrogation. Zhang Chi mainly asked questions, and Lin Yao took notes.

Today's interrogation did not go smoothly. The suspect remained silent, neither engaging in any extreme behavior nor answering any questions.

After a long interrogation, no useful information was obtained.

"You claim that Li Qilin 'synthesized a virus,' which is a very professional and serious accusation. What is your source of this information?" Lin Yao asked.

Chen Qing remained as still as a statue, offering no response whatsoever.

"Don't think we can't do anything to you just because you're not talking!" Zhang Chi pointed at Chen Qing with one finger. "This time you broke into the Qilin Building and attempted to kill Li Qilin. It was captured very clearly by the surveillance cameras. The evidence is conclusive. You can be convicted even without a confession."

Suddenly, the interrogation room door was pushed open, and the branch chief, whose hair was somewhat gray, and a senior police officer with a buzz cut walked in: "Xiao Zhang, release him."

"What? Release him?" Zhang Chi jumped to his feet. "He attempted to kill Li Qilin. The surveillance footage is crystal clear, and there were many witnesses. We have both eyewitness accounts and physical evidence. Release him?"

"That wasn't an attempt to kill, but a defense drill that wasn't explained to security personnel beforehand. The staff at the Qilin Building were unaware of the drill's content, which is why they called the police. It was a misunderstanding."

"Defense drills? Are you kidding me!"

"This is not what I said, it is what Li Qilin said. He has already signed the application to withdraw the case and has brought his legal team to explain to the bureau chief."

"Li Qilin wants to drop the case? What's he up to?"

"There are no procedural issues," the short-haired police officer said, holding a document in his hand. "The victim, Li Qilin, came to the station in person to explain the situation and submitted a written application for non-prosecution along with a complete set of evidence. After review by the legal department, it was determined that the circumstances of this case are significantly minor and do not meet the standards for filing a case."

As he spoke, he placed a copy of the "Decision to Withdraw the Case" on the table.

"Is Li Qilin still in the station?" Zhang Chi picked up the decision to drop the case, flipped through it casually, and was about to go find Li Qilin.

"The legal team of Qilin Group submitted a complete chain of evidence, including the 'Special Security Test Authorization Letter' signed by Li Qilin himself, a summary of the test plan, and the minutes of the group's board meeting where the board was aware of the matter. He has plugged all the loopholes you can think of. Zhang Chi, there are no problems with the procedure. Release him."

As Chen Qing walked out of the branch office, a black Maybach silently slid up in front of him. The back door opened, and Li Qilin was sitting inside. He turned to look at Chen Qing and murmured, "So similar, almost identical."

"Who do I look like?" Chen Qing got into the car and closed the door.

"Like an old friend of mine, or more precisely, like my savior." Li Qilin leaned back in his chair and said slowly, "Twenty years ago, I was just a hot-blooded young man, full of vigor and temper. Once, I got into a fight with someone in a bar. It was just a minor bump on the shoulder. Of course, I wouldn't hold it against them now, but back then..."

At this point, Li Qilin chuckled self-deprecatingly, "Just because of such a trivial matter, the other party pulled out a knife. I thought I was going to die there, but someone saved me. Actually, from the moment you stepped into that conference room, I felt you looked somewhat familiar, but I didn't think of my savior, after all, that was twenty years ago. It wasn't until I later saw the teeth marks on your arm that I remembered my savior; he also had one on his arm. I immediately found a photo from twenty years ago and discovered that he looked exactly like you, even the clothes he was wearing were identical!"

Li Qilin turned to look at Chen Qing, "Can you explain to me why you and my savior from twenty years ago have so many illogical similarities?"

"I can explain, but the truth is so unbelievable that it's hard to believe," Chen Qing said.

"What I've seen is already unbelievable; all the knowledge I've gained over the years and my life experience can't give me the answer."

"If I told you that I might have been the one who saved you twenty years ago, that I traveled back in time to save you, would you believe me?"

"But it's 'very likely' you?"

"Although I am 99% certain that this is my future self, I won't make any definitive statements since I haven't been back 20 years ago yet."

"My answer is also time travel." After hearing this unbelievable statement, Li Qilin didn't seem particularly surprised or shocked: "Although it's extremely absurd, it's the only explanation left after I've ruled out twins, disguises, cloning, and all other possibilities."

"You...believe me?" Now it was Chen Qing's turn to be surprised. To believe in time travel? This level of acceptance was simply too strong.

"The reason I was able to think about time travel so quickly is because I heard this story. Three months ago, you saved my daughter at Jiangxin Airport. The things you told her—the apocalypse, zombies, time travel—back then, like my daughter, I didn't believe a single word." Li Qilin took a deep breath. "Until today, I met you."

"I'm sorry I almost killed you before," Chen Qing said after a pause. "Back then, I thought killing you would change the end of the world."

"I would choose the death of one person over the death of billions of people." Li Qilin quickly moved on from the near-death experience, saying, "I knew the serum I had was dangerous, but I never imagined it would be this dangerous, capable of destroying the world."

"Mr. Li, since you now intend to destroy the serum, why did you create it in the first place?" Chen Qing continued to ask.

"To clarify, it's not my work; one of my subordinates acquired it by chance. Initially, we were overjoyed, as if we had discovered a new continent. In in vitro experiments, it demonstrated incredible cell regeneration capabilities, not only forcing aging cells back to a youthful state but even commanding cancerous cells to 'reform' and initiate the normal apoptosis process. At that moment, we thought we had grasped God's scalpel, and that the ultimate answer to cancer was hidden in this azure liquid."

Li Qilin abruptly changed the subject, his tone becoming extremely solemn.

"But soon, we discovered its true nature. This regeneration is forced, indiscriminate, and irreversible. We conducted a live experiment, injecting a microdose into a mouse with a leg injury. Its wound healed perfectly within half an hour, but soon the flesh on its body began to grow uncontrollably, turning it into a grotesque monster, and it died in agony. I thought at the time that this serum was extremely dangerous and had to be destroyed, but I never imagined that I had seriously underestimated its danger."