Yun Huacen had thought everything was moving in a positive direction, but reality poured a bucket of cold water over his hopes. The first batch of test subjects had encountered problems, with Qiu Xu, the first to receive the injection, dying suddenly. To understand the cause, Yun Huacen sought out Qiu Xu’s girlfriend, Guo Xiaoting, to learn about his physical condition.
“He had kidney issues, does that count?”
“Kidney issues, as in a history of kidney disease?”
“I’m not sure about kidney disease, but he had kidney deficiency.” Guo Xiaoting’s gaze shifted slightly, avoiding direct eye contact.
Yun Huacen nodded in understanding, then asked, “Besides kidney deficiency, were there any other problems?”
Guo Xiaoting shook her head. “His health was always good; he hardly ever got sick.”
Yun Huacen now had a general direction. He called Yue Zirui over, and together they moved Qiu Xu’s body onto a mobile hospital bed, pushing it into the dissection room.
Yue Zirui looked around the room curiously, his eyes landing on the metal tray beside the bed. Inside, various surgical tools were neatly arranged, including even an electric saw. He tentatively asked, “Are you planning to dissect him?”
“Obviously. How else are we going to find the cause of death?”
“Then why did you ask so many questions earlier?”
“Having a general direction helps with the work. It’s about efficiency. You usually seem pretty smart, how could you ask such a dumb question?”
Yue Zirui pursed his lips, unusually refraining from a retort.
“You’ll be taking notes later.” Yun Huacen shoved the data logbook into his hands, instructing, “Remember, write exactly what I say. Don’t make a single mistake.”
“Got it.” Yue Zirui paused for a moment before adding, “I help you with work every day. Shouldn’t you pay me a salary?”
“Do you have any idea how expensive food is these days?” Yun Huacen glared at him irritably. “Everything you eat, drink, wear, and use comes from me. I haven’t charged you a dime, and you still want me to pay you a salary? How do you manage to dream so big?”
Yun Huacen wasn’t wrong, but Yue Zirui couldn’t help feeling uncomfortable with the statement. A sudden thought crossed his mind, making him pause slightly and unconsciously avert his gaze.
“Oh, are you blushing? That’s rare. I thought your face was as thick as a city wall, never expected to see you blush.” Yun Huacen teased.
“Which eye of yours saw me blushing? If your eyesight’s bad, get some glasses.”
“Stubborn to the end.” Yun Huacen stopped teasing him. “Later, you’d better hold it together. No matter how disgusting it gets, you’re not allowed to vomit in here. Understood?”
“Yeah, yeah, stop nagging.”
After making his preparations, Yun Huacen began the three-hour dissection. Despite Yue Zirui’s mental preparation, when faced with the reality, he couldn’t control his physiological reactions. During the three hours, he went out to vomit five times, emptying his stomach of everything he’d eaten.
“The cause of death is kidney failure.” Yun Huacen let out a heavy sigh. “He did have kidney disease after all.”
Yue Zirui spoke up upon hearing this. “So, his kidney failure was caused by the injection you gave him?”
“Uncertain. It could also be due to the zombie virus.” Yun Huacen walked over to the sink to clean the tools he’d used. “But one thing is clear: the medicine I prepared does suppress the zombie virus. The fact that he didn’t turn into a zombie after death is the best proof.”
“What should we do with the body?”
“Preserve it as a specimen.”
“How exactly did he get infected with the zombie virus?” This question had been haunting Yue Zirui. He had tried asking the others before, but no matter how he pressed, they refused to answer.
“Have you ever heard a saying?”
“What saying?”
“Curiosity killed the cat.”
“Did you infect them with the zombie virus?”
“Yue Zirui, there’s something I’ve never understood. Why do you hold such intense hostility toward me? Have I ever done anything to wrong you?”
Yue Zirui opened his mouth but found himself at a loss for words. In that extra stretch of memory, Yun Huacen had used them as lab rats in his research on the zombie virus. Yet in reality, not only had Yun Huacen never wronged them, he had even saved their lives.
“Can’t come up with anything, can you? The truth is, I’ve never done anything to harm you, yet you’ve repeatedly tried to kill me. I can think of only two reasons for your behavior: either you suffer from persecution delusions, or you’re simply a psychopath.”
Yue Zirui instinctively retorted, “You’re the one with persecution delusions! You’re the psychopath!”
Yun Huacen ignored him after that. After cleaning all the surgical tools and soaking them in disinfectant, he returned to the dissection table, placed the removed organs back inside, and began suturing the incision. Another two hours passed before Yun Huacen finally finished processing the corpse. After recording the data, he handed the testing tasks over to Yue Zirui and went upstairs. His stomach was protesting, even after taking medicine, it offered little relief. His body was sounding the alarm; he really needed to take better care of himself.
After drinking a bowl of porridge, his stomach felt somewhat better. Yun Huacen looked at the cat and said, “You’ve seen the data. What went wrong?”
The cat typed: “It’s likely the zombie virus damaged his kidneys. Combined with his pre-existing kidney disease, that would have led to sudden death.”
“You mean the injection was administered too late?” The thought filled Yun Huacen with regret. “It’s a shame our resources are limited. Otherwise, we could have monitored his vital signs with equipment.”
The cat remained silent for a moment before typing again: “I suspect the medication also contained components harmful to the kidneys.”
“Then we need to thoroughly examine the other two.”
Yun Huacen stood up and headed for the door. This was too important to delay.
Just as Yue Zirui was about to take a nap, he heard the door open. Looking up, he saw Yun Huacen and couldn’t help but ask in confusion, “Weren’t you going to rest? Why are you back?”
“I figured something out.” Yun Huacen opened Guo Xiaoting’s cage. “Come help me move her to the examination room.”
Guo Xiaoting looked at them weakly and asked, “Where are you taking me?”
“For a check-up.” To avoid any accidents, Yun Huacen commanded, “Don’t move!”
Guo Xiaoting’s body became uncontrollable, completely immobilized. She panicked, “What did you do to me?”
“Looking at you like this…” Yun Huacen and Yue Zirui worked together to lift her onto the mobile hospital bed, panting slightly. “You weren’t planning to do something just now, were you?”
Guo Xiaoting instinctively averted her gaze. “In this state, what could I possibly do?”
“There’s plenty you could do, like biting me.” Yun Huacen observed her expression closely, catching the tension in her subtle body language. “Seems I guessed right.”
“I didn’t! Don’t talk nonsense.”
Yue Zirui also noticed Guo Xiaoting’s expression and couldn’t help but frown. “These people truly refuse to repent! You’re thinking about how to save her, while she’s plotting how to harm you.”
“Why does that sound so familiar?” Yun Huacen turned to look at Yue Zirui. “Isn’t that exactly what you’re like?”
Yue Zirui choked back a retort, unable to refute, and rolled his eyes at him in annoyance.
Yun Huacen wheeled Guo Xiaoting into the examination room, where a series of tests revealed that her kidneys were indeed damaged. If left untreated, she would likely suffer kidney failure and die, just like Qiu Xu. Next, Yun Huacen examined Yao Shan, whose condition was slightly better than Guo Xiaoting’s. Even without medication, his life was not in immediate danger.
“How am I? Am I going to die?” Yao Shan asked.
“Not for now.” Yun Huacen replied as he returned Yao Shan to his cage.
Yue Zirui approached Yun Huacen and whispered, “Will they die?”
Yun Huacen glanced at him. “That’s not your concern. Focus on your duty and notify me if anything happens.”
“If you don’t tell me anything, how am I supposed to help you?”
“Even if I laid my research findings right in front of you, would you understand them?” Yun Huacen headed toward the door. “I need to go out. Keep watch and call me if anything comes up.”
To stay in touch, Yun Huacen gave Yue Zirui a phone with only one number saved, his own.
Yue Zirui quickly added, “I may not understand medical knowledge, but can’t you at least tell me where you’re going and how long you’ll be gone?”
“I’m going out to find medicine for them. I’ll leave and return today.”
“Alright then.”
By the time Yun Huacen returned upstairs, it was already 3 a.m. After a quick wash, he lay down and fell asleep. The next morning at nine, after breakfast, he left the house with the cat, leaving Potato, Cabbage, and Rose to watch over the place.
The local pharmacy in the town had long been emptied, with no specialized medication for kidney disease available. The only option was to go to the large pharmacy in neighboring Yunan Town, which they had visited before. Since they were familiar with the route, the twenty-minute drive went smoothly, and they arrived at the pharmacy without issue. This time, no one interfered, allowing them to search the store in peace. However, despite combing through every corner, they couldn’t find what they needed.
Yun Huacen sighed and looked at the cat. “It seems we’ll have to go to the city.”
“The city isn’t safe.”
Yun Huacen paused, then understood what the cat meant. “Are you saying there are mutated zombies in the city?”
The cat nodded.
Lately, Yun Huacen had been so absorbed in his research that he barely had time to eat or sleep, let alone keep up with news from outside. Hearing the cat describe the city as unsafe led him to this conclusion, after all, ordinary zombies posed no threat to the cat. A thought suddenly crossed Yun Huacen’s mind. “When you disappeared for a day or two before, were you going to the city?”
The cat nodded and wrote, “Hunting.”
“Hunting?” Yun Huacen was taken aback, then added, “Were you hunting those mutated zombies?”
The cat nodded again and wrote, “To advance, to collect crystals.”
Yun Huacen tentatively asked, “You’re collecting crystals for me, aren’t you?”
“Yes. You’re too weak.”
Yun Huacen felt a surge of defiance. “You may be powerful, but I’m still the one controlling you.”
“If I hadn’t warned you, you would have died many times over.”
Yun Huacen sheepishly rubbed his nose. The previous incidents with the Samoyed, potatoes, and cabbage were all cautionary tales. If it weren’t for the cat’s reminder, he wouldn’t even have had a chance to use his ability.
“But I still have you, don’t I?”
“I can’t watch over you every single moment.”
“Alright, alright, I get it. I won’t hold you back.”