593: 9.63 The King's Warning

9.63 The King's Warning

For the first few days, the soldiers were still laboriously killing the zombies who had surrounded the entire basecamp. However, they gradually realized that it was all futile; kill one, and two more would fill the spot. The entire country had become the Zombie King's troops and the military basecamp was akin to an isolated island amidst the poisonous blood sea.  1

Everyone's nerves were strung taut, and the higher-ups converged meetings after meetings to discuss what they should do. Without Commander Yang Tengfei's lead, they were akin to a beast who lost its fangs, struggling desperately on its last breath under the pitiful mercy of the domineering enemy. 

After careful observation, the soldiers belatedly discovered that the zombies did not seem like they intended to attack. They would only move once the soldiers launched a strike, otherwise they would always remain still. Just like a force of oppressing yet silent fortress. 

It was then that everyone realized.

…This was the Zombie King's warning.

He could clearly invade the military basecamp with his prowess, yet he didn't. He just showed off his might in order to suppress the humans.

—If you don't attack me, then I won't make a move. But if you do, then don't blame me for retaliating.

However, this alone was enough to erode everyone's spirit bit by bit, gradually filling them with endless anxiety and restlessness. They knew that the blade of death was looming right above their necks, yet they had no idea when it would fall. Such a feeling was utterly unbearable. Still, could they do anything to turn the situation around? No. Between them and the Zombie King, it was clear who held the upper hand.

And hence, a bizarre stalemate was formed amidst this tense atmosphere. 

Weeks passed by in a blink of an eye.

Over in the military basecamp, Li Zhu was working day and night to complete the formula for the vaccine. He almost did not take a rest. Alas, every single experiment he did ended up being a failure. After being injected by the formula, the guinea pigs would end up dying, their bodies withering with a speed visible to naked eyes. No matter from which angle he approached it, the result ended up the same. He could feel that he was only a step away from success, however, he just could not break through that final bottleneck!

A similar circumstance could be seen in F University where Professor Zhao's laboratory was.

As Zhao Bolin had expected, the army had confiscated everything which had to do with the vaccine. But fortunately, they were insightful enough not to take the useless things and hence, the tools and raw materials Professor Zhao needed to make the vaccine was still accessible.

He just had one major problem — no one would supply him with guinea pigs anymore.

The ones available on the markets had long been monopolized by the army and so, their only choice was to hunt them in the wilderness. Question, how many guinea pigs were there in this country? Even though Lu Yizhou had dispatched his minions to sweep through every crook and cranny, in the end they only brought back less than ten in numbers! It was simply not enough for Professor Zhao's personal use!

A few months ago, he had already created an antidote to contend against the virus in Lu Yizhou's body. First time, the antidote could only be effective for ten minutes before Lu Yizhou's regeneration ability rendered it invalid. After that, Professor Zhao kept improving the formula and the effectiveness gradually increased as well. If not for Lu Yizhou's sudden mutation, he was certain that he would have completed the antidote by now.

That's right, the virus in Lu Yizhou's body had indeed mutated.

Zhao Bolin's face was solemn as he scribbled on his notebook. "...I can't use the previous formula anymore. The level of activity of the virus in your body has increased – no, to be exact, it has started to be assimilated with your blood cells. Previously, I could still isolate the virus carrier in your gene segments but now… it has almost merged into your DNA!" He bit his nails anxiously. "No… I have to stop this! At this rate, the antidote will be completely useless. It can't resist the virus and worse, it may even affect your blood cells and cause you to experience several organ failure!"

As a research subject and patient, Lu Yizhou listened genuinely to Zhao Bolin's ramblings. It took him a few moments to figure out what the man meant. 

Assuming that previously, the zombie in him and the human him could still be separated into A and B. Zhao Bolin only needed to isolate and obliterate A, leaving B unharm. Only then would Lu Yizhou return to being human. But now, A and B had almost assimilated in each other. If Zhao Bolin used the same method to eliminate A, then there was a high possibility that he would harm B as well. By then… the only ending for Lu Yizhou would be death…

Then came another problem. This was not a level of experiment which could be tested on guinea pigs. For starters, they did not have superior DNA like Lu Yizhou. And second, even if they were infected, the virus activity in their blood could never achieve the same level as Lu Yizhou. It rendered the data useless in comparison.

If Zhao Bolin wanted to test on his formula, he could only inject them into Lu Yizhou's body.

And Lu Yizhou was very willing too. When Zhao Bolin asked for his opinion, he casually commented, "Just test it on me." He talked as if he was unaware that every single time Zhao Bolin injected something into his body, it might result in eternal death.

How could Zhao Bolin be willing to take this path? Before, he might be able to force himself to be cold-hearted and treat Lu Yizhou the same as he did with guinea pigs, but now that he realized his true feelings for the other… Zhao Bolin simply could not do it! Just by imagining the consequences of his failure was enough to make him insane!

However, did he have another choice? If he did nothing, then the virus would gradually consume Lu Yizhou's sobriety and the chance that he would emerge as a new superior species was only 50%. Let's say that he could really do it, then… what about Zhao Bolin? For Zhao Bolin to stay by his side, he either needed to remain celibate (can touch, grope but can't taste) or… he had to receive the virus and undergo the same evolution as Lu Yizhou. If he had to be honest, Zhao Bolin was not certain that he could achieve that. There were approximately 1 billion people in this country, yet only Lu Yizhou could mutate to be the King. Could Zhao Bolin bet on that near zero percent possibility?

"Don't think about it too much," Lu Yizhou said with a hint of mirth as he grasped Zhao Bolin's wrist and forced the tip of the sharp needle into his own body. 

Zhao Bolin gasped. He jerked his hand back but it was already too late. The syringe was already empty and the solution had entered Lu Yizhou's body. The rims of Zhao Bolin's eyes instantly reddened as he glared at the culprit who did not have the slightest idea how distressed he was. "What are you doing, Lu Yizhou?! You—"

He had not finished his sentence yet when Lu Yizhou suddenly gasped and clutched his chest. In an instant, Zhao Bolin forgot his anger and rushed to him, asking anxiously, "H–How is it? Where does it hurt?!"

…Of course it would hurt. The antidote was akin to killing a part of himself, the pain was akin to the separation of flesh and bones. It was almost comparable to when he transformed into a zombie. His temperature spiked abruptly and sweat dotted on his forehead. Abnormal flush arose on his pale cheeks, giving him an air of fragility. 

Lu Yizhou was already used to this kind of pain, after all this was not the first time Zhao Bolin had tested the antidote on his body. But this time… he could sense something different. The level of pain had increased; it was like all the veins on his body burst apart and salt was even smeared on the surface. It was the kind of threshold that no ordinary people could bear. Lu Yizhou was in so much agony that he could only lean into Zhao Bolin's arms and bite down on his lips to muffle the pained groans, his entire body trembling uncontrollably.

Zhao Bolin wrapped his arms around him and checked him over with an anxious look. The rims of his eyes reddened even more. "W–What should I do? Oh God, I'm sorry… I'm so sorry…"

Lu Yizhou painstakingly peeled his eyes open to look at him. He forced out through gritted teeth, "The data… You have to…" Even without him saying, Zhao Bolin understood. Lu Yizhou willingly endured this pain only for the sake of the data. Instead of panicking, Zhao Bolin should record and analyze his reaction in order to complete the antidote! 

Zhao Bolin pursed his lips. He stared at Lu Yizhou for one long moment, wiped the tears on his eyes away and nodded. Even though his shoulders were shaking, he still methodically completed a series of tests and acquired the precious data of Lu Yizhou's bodily function.

Lu Yizhou leaned his head back against the wall and gasped quietly, unwilling to disrupt the air of concentration between Zhao Bolin's brows. He clenched his fists and silently bore through the intense torment. And amidst his buzzing mind, he heard 666 exclaiming in panic, 

[666: Host, not good! The protagonist Yang Tengfei has regained consciousness and… he insists on coming after you!]

pqdm.com