567: 9.37 Virus X-1

9.37 Virus X-1

Cw: guinea pigs are being experimented on here, in case you're sensitive to it ^^2

***

Zhao Bolin was not a man who would back down from the challenge. Once he said he would do something, then he would give his everything to achieve it. 

In the next few days, he practically lived inside the laboratory and forgot about the passage of time. More often than not, Lu Yizhou had to pull his attention away from work and remind him to eat. And as always, Zhao Bolin would answer with, "Just five more minutes." Then he would pour all of his focus into his research again and the so-called 'five minutes' would never come. 

Helpless, Lu Yizhou could only forcibly shove the food into his mouth. Zhao Bolin did not even realize a thing as his mouth automatically chewed on the food. Only when he was satisfied with the results did he finally regard Lu Yizhou with an apology, then surprised when he found his tummy fed full. 

Exactly how did Zhao Bolin live his life before he arrived in this world? Lu Yizhou wondered with a tinge of exasperation. He could even ignore such basic needs like hunger. It was no wonder that he was so skinny. 

As long as Lu Yizhou was still here, he would not let his lover go hungry!

And henceforth, the bizarre sight of a human burying his head into the sea of densely packed data and a zombie feeding him patiently became a common sight to see. Such a pity that the only one who witnessed it was Xiao Tun number 1 who was still confined inside the cage. 

As days passed by in this uneventful manner, Lu Yizhou was getting more and more wary of Yang Tengfei. 

He could feel that something was off with the gaze Yang Tengfei used to look at him. His eyes were so piercing, the intensity almost tangible that Lu Yizhou got goosebumps every single time they landed on him. He was already sensitive to cameras and people's intrusive gazes to begin with, yet for some inexplicable reason, Yang Tengfei gave him a very ill premonition. Just like the calm before a massive storm.

Thanks to 666, he discovered that Yang Tengfei had secured drone footage from a student in the Robotic Club. The camera coincidentally caught the scene when Lu Yizhou walked by the window after he had transformed into a zombie! Fortunately, the image would be too blurred when zoomed. But he could not shake off the feeling that Yang Tengfei had found out something. He was just waiting for the right time to confirm his doubt. Being plotted like this was truly… unnerving. Alas, Lu Yizhou had no choice but to play everything by ear. 

If only Yang Tengfei was not the protagonist, Lu Yizhou would have chosen to deal with him once and for all. Just the repulsed look he showed everytime he talked to Zhao Bolin was enough to make Lu Yizhou's teeth itch to bite his neck off.

Twelve days after the start of the experiment, Zhao Bolin achieved the first breakthrough.

"I did it!" He tremblingly held the tube containing clear blue liquid against the light, his bloodshot eyes covered in a layer of mist. He had not slept for two days in order to monitor the progressive reaction of the virus. He would not even let Lu Yizhou talk to him in fear that he would be distracted. "I will name this formula 'Virus X-1'! It will merge with hemoglobin and cause a reaction similar to an explosion, increasing its generative rate and creating a shield to contend against the zombie's virus!"

Lu Yizhou stared at him blankly. [Virus…?]

He had only speculated it at first but now that he confirmed the truth, he was still shocked. Zhao Bolin really created another virus?

Zhao Bolin saw through him in a glance and chuckled. Due to the lack of sleep, his voice was slightly raspy and his pupils a bit manic. To put it nicely, he looked like a drug addict who had just gotten his first taste of high-quality powder. "What do you think a vaccine is? It's just another term for a more neutral and non-combatant virus. Injected into our body, it will trigger the immune system to destroy it and make us recognize a similar threat in the future. What do you think? Isn't it like fighting a poison with poison?"

Lu Yizhou nodded. Now that Professor Zhao explained it in layman terms, even Lu Yizhou, who had never been much interested in science, could understand it more or less. [What next?]

"Next…" Zhao Bolin slipped on his surgical gloves and grabbed a cage containing another unlucky Xiao Tun. He grinned. "...is my favorite part. Observation."

He swiftly injected Xiao Tun with Virus X-1. They stared at the small animal inside the transparent cage. It did not show any visible reaction except for quivering in terror when Lu Yizhou's gaze landed on it. Zhao Bolin recorded a string of data he could not comprehend before he proceeded to inject Xiao Tun with the essence from another zombie. 

Yes, for now, Zhao Bolin had refrained from using Lu Yizhou's blood or body liquid for experiment. The majority of the reason was that he discovered the level of virus activity within Lu Yizhou's body was much higher than ordinary zombies, almost ten times as high. Zhao Bolin could not tackle this Big Boss at first attempt and thus, he could only comply with the minions first. 

However, Lu Yizhou suspected that Zhao Bolin harbored another wicked intention. Indeed, he did not use Lu Yizhou's blood/body liquid for making the vaccine at all. However, Lu Yizhou could see him tinkering with another side experiment in the meantime. Oftentimes when he thought Lu Yizhou was not looking, he would show a very perverted smile and giggle soundlessly to himself…

As such, Lu Yizhou was more and more certain with his first conjecture. Making a vaccine for the virus would most likely be an ordinary task for Zhao Bolin. Just look at him, even under the threat of martial law, he could still perform another experiment to fulfill his personal curiosity.

Lu Yizhou could only shake his head helplessly and turn a blind eye to it.

After Xiao Tun was injected with the zombie's essence, its physical reaction was observed closely. At first, Xiao Tun collapsed and twitched violently just like how it was when someone was infected by the zombie's virus. Then after thirty seconds' mark, it regained consciousness and moved around like nothing happened. 

Lu Yizhou sucked in a breath and snapped his head toward Zhao Bolin, pleasantly surprised. He did it! Xiao Tun had resisted the zombie's virus! 

Just as he wanted to celebrate his lover's success, Zhao Bolin held up a hand and told him, "Wait." His expression was solemn and he never took his gaze off the guinea pig. Beside him, the timer was still ticking nonstop.

Confusion appeared in Lu Yizhou's eyes. He did not know what Zhao Bolin was waiting for and he was not given a chance to ask either. Helpless, he could only turn his gaze toward Xiao Tun. Different from its' horrified demeanor earlier, it did not show any distressed reaction anymore when Lu Yizhou stared at it. Almost… as if it was not afraid of the virus anymore. So what was Zhao Bolin waiting for?

Lu Yizhou's doubt was answered in the next five minutes.

He saw the perfectly healthy and happy Xiao Tun suddenly vomited mouthful after mouthful of blood. It let out high-pitched squeaks and in a blink of an eye, its body underwent rapid changes. The originally plump and fluffy animal shriveled up as though all liquid in its body was sucked dry. Three seconds later, it died horribly.

Lu Yizhou was speechless when he saw this. On the other hand, Zhao Bolin's expression hardly changed. He went back to his experiment table and tinkered with the microscope. Just as Lu Yizhou wanted to ask him for an explanation, he said without looking up,

"I failed to take into account the endurance of the body. Yes, the hemoglobin underwent rapid mutation and exploded in power. However, the body is not durable enough to keep up with it." He sighed softly. "Virus X-1 is a failure."

A few minutes ago, he had been so excited to the point of bursting into tears. But now in the face of failure, he did not show any signs of dejection and instead, advanced into another experiment and tried to mend his mistakes. Lu Yizhou stared at his straight back and the corner of his lips curled upward. 

His lover was really amazing.

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