Chapter Eighteen: Injecting the Genetic Serum

Why did Qi Xi know so much? Who was he, really?

Everyone exchanged glances, suspicion flickering in their eyes. The lines and information he spoke sounded like something out of a novel or a movie, leaving them reluctant to believe. After a brief moment’s thought, most people decided to wait and see. After all, who would entrust their life to someone they had just met? Even Xiao Fengyu, who had a good impression of Qi Xi, remained silent—not because she distrusted the hero who had just saved her, but because his words were simply too shocking, overturning everything she thought she knew.

But then again, wasn’t the very appearance of zombies itself a complete upheaval of common sense?

“I believe Qi Xi isn’t lying to us, but there’s still a risk. We need to make our own decisions,” said Li Feidao, standing up. He chose differently from the others—he decided to trust Qi Xi and put his life into this stranger’s hands. “I choose to become a Gene Human. It’s a gamble—a gamble with my life. But I believe my luck won’t be that bad.”

“Brother Dao, are you crazy?” Nan Housheng exclaimed, staring at Li Feidao in disbelief, as if the childhood friend he’d known forever had suddenly become a stranger. “You might turn into a zombie!”

Li Feidao shook his head. “Qi Xi said he would test it on himself first. If I die, Qi Xi and Xi Hongchen will die as well. They have no reason to joke with their own lives.”

“But—”

“No buts. I’ve made my decision. You know me—once I decide something, I rarely change my mind because of others.” Li Feidao’s tone was resolute.

His words made the others waver, but no matter what, betting their lives was too great a risk. Even if Qi Xi survived and became a Gene Human, proving his information true, it didn’t guarantee that the rest of them would survive or transform as well. Qi Xi had said his information was genuine, but there was still risk. Becoming a Gene Human would mean no longer fearing zombies—a tremendous benefit—but the price was the possibility of turning into a zombie oneself.

Sitting on the bed, hugging her knees, Xiao Fengyu squinted as she pondered. She had thought Qi Xi was a brave, upright hero, but now he seemed nothing like that—more like a mysterious man shrouded in secrets.

She felt as if she could no longer see his face clearly. Tilting her head, she gazed at Qi Xi, who was sitting on the sofa, constantly heating a test tube, her mind drifting.

Li Feidao had already walked over to Qi Xi. “I’ve decided—I want to become a Gene Human.”

Qi Xi didn’t even look up from heating the test tube. He nodded. “I understand. I’ll call you when it’s time to inject the serum.”

Li Feidao had expected Qi Xi to say something encouraging—“You’ve made the right choice!” “You’ll survive!” “Let’s work hard together!” “Victory is ours!”—but instead, he received this offhanded reply. Surprised, he chuckled wryly and sat down on the bed.

A brief silence fell over the room.

“How long does gene evolution take? Will it be fast enough?” Qi Xi glanced at Xigua and asked.

He was, of course, referring to the timeline: the mysterious force set to retrieve him in nine days. Since the zombie outbreak, 99.9% of the world’s population had turned into zombies. The rapid decline in numbers meant that those who survived had to risk venturing out for food, often meeting their end at the hands of zombies. Groups formed organizations for safety, but even those were rare. In Xigua’s past-life memories, there were no more than five organized powers. Specifically, there were four: the Red Army of China, the Heroes Group of America, the White Angel Society of Europe, and the War God Troop of Russia.

These were unshakable giants, the four overlords of the apocalypse.

According to Qi Xi’s analysis, these four forces were intricately linked with the doomsday mutation—and most likely, one of them had orchestrated the end of the world.

“It’s enough time,” Xigua nodded. “But if they hesitate for more than two days, there might not be enough time.”

“How long would it take for me, with my constitution?” Qi Xi asked again.

The conversation was not hidden from the others; everyone heard it clearly, though they couldn’t make sense of it. What did they mean by “enough time” or “not enough time”?

“To evolve from an ordinary human to a Primary Evolver takes only an hour. From there, becoming an Intermediate Evolver takes two days. From Intermediate to Advanced Evolver takes three days. And from Advanced to Gene Human takes four days. All together, at least nine days—so the timing is just right.”

Xigua thought for a moment and answered without hesitation.

“That’s good enough.”

“But after that, once you’ve become a Gene Human, you won’t be able to evolve further with ordinary viruses,” Xigua continued.

At that moment, Xiao Fengyu spoke up. “Um…”

“What is it?” Xigua frowned, displeased at being interrupted.

“I… You said if we hesitate for more than two days, there might not be enough time. What does that mean?” After much hesitation, Xiao Fengyu finally voiced her question.

Immediately, all eyes turned to Xigua. Everyone wanted to know the answer.

“With your constitutions, if you hesitate for more than two days, then in nine days, you might not have time to become Advanced Evolvers. If you aren’t Advanced Evolvers by then, there’s no point in continuing to work with you, and we won’t stay together any longer.” Xigua did not hide anything, laying out the facts, though the information was more than the group could process all at once.

At that moment, Qi Xi smiled. “Alright.”

He placed the boiling-hot glass test tube into a bottle of clean mineral water. A hissing sound rose, steam billowing up.

“It’s still a little hot, but if it cools too much, the surviving viruses will start to multiply, so we have to hurry.” After just a second of cooling, Qi Xi took out the test tube, drew some of the viral solution with a clean syringe, dabbed his vein with cotton soaked in medical alcohol, then plunged the needle into his vein. He pushed hard, and immediately felt a warm current flooding into his body, spreading with wild intensity. In an instant, Qi Xi’s mind blurred.

“Huff… huff… huff…” Qi Xi panted, his whole body burning as if he had a fever over forty degrees. Weak and limp, he collapsed to the floor.

“What’s happening?”

“Oh my god!”

“Brother Qi Xi?”

“Qi Xi!”

Everyone rushed over, hastily lifting Qi Xi onto the bed.

Xiao Fengyu touched his burning forehead, astonished. Looking up at Xigua, she asked, “What’s happening? Is he going to be alright?”

Xigua shook his head. “He’ll be fine. It’s a normal reaction to the first injection. He’ll recover in an hour.”

An hour? Though they found it hard to believe, they had no choice but to trust him in this situation.

They could only hope he’d recover. Otherwise, would he turn into a zombie? No matter how many times it had been diluted or heated, the virus was still a virus. Qi Xi’s explanations had no scientific basis. Everyone trusted only their own common sense.

If Qi Xi did turn into a zombie, wouldn’t he be more dangerous than an ordinary one? The thought made everyone anxious and uneasy.