With Yan’s explanation finally over, the noisy chatter among the researchers settled, and the weight on Uminari Manranyama’s heart eased as well.

The experiment, up to this point, could be said to have truly come to an end.

Everyone then moved on to the wrap‑up work, calm and methodical.

The still‑dormant “Chongzong” and “Chong MingDe” were each locked into a separate mobile life‑support unit. Under Yan’s arrangement, the units were carried out and loaded onto the truck outside the institute.

All the experimental equipment had been supplied by Dr. Murata, so there wasn’t much to discuss there. The valuable data generated during the experiment, however, was handled exactly as pre‑agreed between Dr. Murata and Yan: it would be kept by Dr. Murata, with usage rights shared between him and Yan.

“Well then, let’s part ways here for now. As for our future joint projects, we’ll confirm the schedule after we get in touch again.”

Outside the institute, Yan shook hands with Dr. Murata and Uminari Manranyama in farewell.

“Are you really not staying one or two more days, Mr. Yan? Even just one more night would be great!”

Dr. Murata clutched Yan’s hand and wouldn’t let go. Maybe, out of the three of them, he was the most straightforward one.

“Sorry, I’ve got other things already on my schedule, so I can only disappoint your enthusiasm this time, Dr. Murata.”

Yan gave him a polite smile, but the answer left no room for negotiation, and Dr. Murata had no choice but to finally let go.

“Take care on the road.”

After saying goodbye, Yan moved with practiced ease into the truck’s cab and drove away from the institute without the slightest trace of reluctance.

Normally, seeing someone Yan’s age behind the wheel of a truck would make people nervous. But his bright, energetic appearance and agile movements always made you forget, without even noticing, that he was an old man.

Of course, Yan didn’t have any strange hobby like “loving to drive trucks,” nor was it because he couldn’t trust anyone else to drive.

It was simply that, to avoid any information leakage, driving himself was the least troublesome option.

Technically, he could’ve called Tang Mingtuo over to help. After all, Tang was also in Kyoto right now, together with Yan’s granddaughter Yu… but neither Tang Mingtuo nor Yu supported this experiment. To avoid any unexpected developments, Yan hadn’t included them among the participants.

As for asking some random truck driver to do the job, that didn’t even need to be considered.

Killing them afterward would be easy. Cleaning up the mess? That was the troublesome part.

That was how Yan thought.

Several hours later, Yan drove the truck to the border area between Kyoto’s suburbs and the urban district.

He picked a stretch of road without surveillance cameras and pulled over by the curb. It was already deep into the night, and there wasn’t a soul in sight—also part of Yan’s plan.

He got out, opened the cargo bay, rolled his shoulders a little, then very casually lifted out the unit holding “Chongzong.”

An old man with a head of silver hair, easily hauling a device that weighed over eighty kilos including the person inside, from the truck down to the roadside.

Then he operated the unit for a while, confirming that “Chongzong” had fully taken control of the body that had once belonged to Chong MingDe, and that even without the life‑support unit, the body would function normally.

—You boy whom I don’t know, go and enjoy the rest of your life,

the life Chong MingDe traded his own for.

Yan carried “Chongzong” out of the unit and laid him down on the ground, then collected the device back into the truck. Next, he used Chongzong’s phone to call a taxi, stuffed enough cash for a more‑than‑comfortable ride home into Chongzong’s pocket, and finally drove off, taking the still‑under‑observation Chong MingDe away from Kyoto.