144: Virus stock solution

Following that cruel deduction, the valley fell into a brief, deathly silence.

All color drained from Zhou Zihui's face, as if the last shred of hope had been sucked out of him.

After a long while, he nodded slowly and resignedly, as if his bones had been removed, acknowledging this bizarre yet undeniable truth.

The dark red visor stared at him, and the electronic voice rang out again, raising a new key point: "Then what about that 'Zhu Zicong'? What role exactly did he play in all of this? Who is he really?"

Zhou Zihui looked up, his eyes filled with a bone-deep exhaustion and bewilderment: "I... I don't know who he really is."

His voice was dry. "We met in the wilderness three months ago. Back then, he was just a friend who knew a lot about exploration and was easy to talk to. All those things... about me being a Chimera, about there being 'someone else' inside me, even why I became like this... it was only after that bloody incident occurred and I fled here that he found me and told me. Before that, I knew nothing."

"What did he tell you? Be specific," Shen Mingyuan pressed.

"He told me I was some kind of 'Chimera.' He said the existence of that 'brother' inside me was because of something called the 'primordial evolution factor (evo factor).' He said the concentration in my body was very high, at 1.5%... and because of that, 'he' gained consciousness and power." Zhou Zihui repeated the information that had shattered his worldview in a hollow tone. "But when I asked him why he was telling me this, what he wanted... he wouldn't say. He just said it was my 'talent' and 'destiny.' I... I don't understand it at all."

Shen Mingyuan's heart sank. A 1.5% evo factor concentration and a mysterious person who knew all this and was actively feeding information. This was no coincidence; it was a carefully planned... guidance, or rather, catalysis.

Just as he was about to ask further about Zhu Zicong's possible whereabouts or characteristics, an extremely subtle, almost instinctive sense of crisis suddenly flashed through his nerves—not from sonar or thermal sensors, but a more abstract, malicious "gaze."

Almost at the same moment, a gentle, clear voice with a perfect youthful quality came from the shadows of the rocks behind and to the side of Zhou Zihui, carrying a hint of a smile:

"Oh? It seems I've arrived just in time."

Zhou Zihui shuddered violently in fear and turned his head in panic.

Shen Mingyuan instantly pivoted, his dark red visor sharply locking onto the source of the voice.

A young man wearing ordinary sportswear, looking clean-cut and appearing to be sixteen or seventeen years old, strolled leisurely out of the shadows. A harmless smile hung on his face, but his gaze landed directly on the pitch-black armored warrior with great interest, sizing him up.

"Let me see..." The youth—undoubtedly Zhu Zicong—tilted his head slightly, his smile deepening while a cold, probing look remained in his eyes. "This outfit, this feeling... Heh, how interesting. Is this another brand-new 'creation'?"

As soon as Zhu Zicong finished speaking, Shen Mingyuan didn't hesitate for a second! The moment he confirmed the other party was by no means benevolent and was directly related to the series of bloody incidents and bizarre experiments, his right hand reached for his waist like a bolt of lightning.

Drawing his gun, aiming, and pulling the trigger!

"Bang!"

A dark red energy bolt tore through the night, shooting straight for Zhu Zicong's face! This strike came without any warning, crisp and efficient to the point of cold-bloodedness.

However, Zhu Zicong's reaction was faster than imagined! Before the hypocritical smile on his face had even fully faded, his body slid backward and to the side with inhuman flexibility and speed. The energy bolt grazed the tips of his hair and exploded against the rock behind him, leaving a scorched mark.

Even more terrifyingly, as he dodged, his left hand clamped onto the neck of the still-unresponsive Zhou Zihui like an iron vice, violently pulling him in front of himself to serve as a perfect meat shield!

"You really are... quite decisive," Zhu Zicong's voice came from behind Zhou Zihui, still smiling but with a few more degrees of playful coldness.

"After confirming I'm not an ordinary person and 'possibly' the mastermind, you go straight for the kill without a single word of nonsense? My friend in black, your style... is certainly 'efficient' enough."

"Hmph," Shen Mingyuan's voice came through the armor, cold as ice. "I can see perfectly well what kind of demon is hidden beneath that youthful skin of yours. Besides, who can be sure you're really only 'sixteen'?"

"Well, well, I've been seen through," Zhu Zicong shrugged. "However, I didn't plan on fighting you anyway. It's just as well; you'll make a fine witness—come, let's test our latest 'creation'."

"You... what are you going to do?!" Zhou Zihui, his throat constricted, struggled in terror but remained unable to move.

Zhu Zicong didn't answer him. Instead, using his free right hand, he produced a strangely shaped metal syringe from his coat like a magic trick, with a dark purple fluorescent liquid flowing inside. The needle glinted coldly in the dim light.

"Allow me to introduce," his tone was like that of someone presenting a work of art.

"'Catalyst-7' undiluted virus, our latest little toy."

"It isn't a pathogen in the traditional sense, but it has a lovely property—it can greatly stimulate and activate the evo factor within an organism, making them 'feel' a fatal survival crisis, thereby... initiating a grand, completely random carnival of Forced Evolution!"

His gaze fell on Zhou Zihui's pale profile, his smile cruel. "Of course, this darling isn't very 'obedient' yet. The direction of evolution is completely uncontrollable, and the failure rate is... a bit high."

"However, isn't that luxurious 1.5% concentration in your body a perfect testing platform? This is a gift I brought specifically for you from 'home,' Zihui."

Before he finished speaking, he pressed his wrist down!

"No—!!!" Zhou Zihui's shrill scream pierced the night sky.

The dark purple syringe was plunged into the side of Zhou Zihui's neck without hesitation! The fluorescent liquid inside was rapidly pushed into his bloodstream.

"Ah, right," Zhu Zicong seemed to remember something. As he let go of the limp, ragdoll-like Zhou Zihui and let him collapse to the ground, he turned casually toward Shen Mingyuan with a provocative tone.

"My friend in black, if you're interested in increasing your concentration, we also have a special 'nutrient' formula. But a friendly tip: the last test subject was too greedy and overdid it, and with a 'bang'... they exploded from the inside out. So, choose wisely~"

The moment his words fell, Shen Mingyuan had already raised his gun again!

"Bang bang bang bang!"

Without the slightest pause, a series of dark red energy bolts formed a dense barrage, sealing off multiple angles Zhu Zicong might use to dodge! Shen Mingyuan's goal was clear: capture him, or at least heavily wound him!

The relaxed smile on Zhu Zicong's face finally faded, replaced by a hint of surprise followed by even deeper interest.

His body once again displayed that inhuman flexibility and speed, as if he had no bones. He performed several bizarre twists and flickers that defied human ergonomics within a tiny area, narrowly weaving through the gaps in the barrage!

Energy bolts grazed his clothes and hair, exploding in a series of light flares and debris against the tree trunks and rocks behind him.

"Tsk, how passionate." Zhu Zicong still had the energy to joke while dodging, but his movements were noticeably faster. "But I don't have time to play hide-and-seek with you today. I've already got the experimental data. Until we meet again, Black Knight!"

As the last word left his mouth, his figure retreated rapidly like a ghost, while simultaneously throwing two inconspicuous small black spheres toward Shen Mingyuan.

Shen Mingyuan's pupils contracted. Not daring to take the hit head-on, he quickly dove to the side to dodge.

Two soft "pfft" sounds rang out as the spheres exploded. There was no fire, but a thick, dark green smoke with a pungent, sickly sweet smell erupted, instantly spreading. It not only severely obstructed vision but also heavily interfered with the shadow helmet's enhanced vision and sonar!

By the time Shen Mingyuan charged out of the smoke zone, Zhu Zicong had already vanished. Only the trees rustled in the night wind as Zhou Zihui spasmed and twitched, the veins beneath his skin bulging and writhing like living earthworms, turning an ominous deep purple.

His bones let out a tooth-grating "creak," as if being violently stretched and twisted by invisible hands. The clean-cut face that originally belonged to a youth rapidly became hideous and blurred under the extreme pain and the frantic surge of some internal power... the mutation had begun.