Chapter 197: Catastrophe
Xia Chenge hesitated, clearly troubled.
After all, this was no longer the apocalypse; could humans accept the fact that zombies existed?
Ling Zhongjing watched Xia Chenge intently, as if awaiting her answer.
“Xiao Mu has a terrifying virus,” Xia Chenge thought for a moment, carefully choosing her words to be as tactful as possible. “If you were scratched by Xiao Mu, or if your own wounds came into contact with Xiao Mu’s blood, you would be infected with this virus.”
“What about daily interaction?” Ling Zhongjing asked urgently.
“As long as you don’t get injured, you generally won’t be infected,” Xia Chenge replied.
In the apocalypse, humans turned into zombies primarily from being scratched or bitten by zombies. There was no mention of infection occurring simply by being in the same space without physical contact.
No one knew how heavy Xia Chenge’s heart was at that moment.
Only she in the entire world understood what a terrifying threat Ling Hanmu was to ordinary humans.
He was a being capable of destroying the world!
But Xia Chenge dared not show any of it.
“Why would someone get infected with a virus for no reason?” Ling Zhongjing shivered all over, already vaguely guessing the answer. “Xiao Mu is like this because of the virus, so he…”
He didn’t finish his sentence, but Xia Chenge knew what he was going to say.
“Yes, once this virus takes hold, it’s incurable,” her soft voice landed heavily on Ling Zhongjing’s heart.
Ling Zhongjing’s eyes instantly turned red as he desperately suppressed his inner grief.
What terrible deeds had he committed to make his son suffer such torment?
“It wasn’t Ling Zhongwen, was it?” Ling Zhongjing asked Xia Chenge, clinging to his last shred of hope.
Xia Chenge lowered her head; the answer was too cruel, and she couldn’t bear to say it.
“It was him!” Ling Hanmu’s voice was calm. “When I was three years old, he started using me for experiments, until I was fifteen. Every time I was hospitalized for being sick, it was like walking through the gates of hell.”
“But after every experiment, he would hypnotize me, making me forget everything that happened in the laboratory.”
“I remember all those things now.”
“Third Uncle, Fourth Uncle, Fifth Aunt, as well as Eldest Brother, Second Brother, Third Sister, Little Sister… they all suffered under Ling Zhongwen’s experiments, tormented to death!”
“Ling Zhongwen is not human; he is a devil in the human world.”
Xia Chenge looked at Ling Hanmu in shock.
Ling Zhongjing’s eyes widened, his face filled with disbelief.
“Xiao Mu, is what you’re saying true?” After a long pause, Ling Zhongjing finally found his voice.
Ling Hanmu closed his eyes. “My current state is also entirely thanks to him.”
“Dad, if one day I can’t control myself anymore, don’t be soft-hearted. You must kill me. Otherwise, I will turn the human world into a purgatory and make everyone a walking corpse!”
“Xiao Mu, what are you talking about? There must be a way. Father will do everything in his power to cure you!” Ling Zhongjing suddenly hugged Ling Hanmu, unable to control his emotions this time, and burst into tears.
“What did I do wrong to deserve this for my son?”
Ling Hanmu remained still, letting his father hold him, tears slipping from his closed eyes.
He dared not have physical contact with his loved ones, fearing that if he accidentally injured them, he would doom them forever.
Xia Chenge, standing nearby, felt as if something was stuck in her throat, making her very uncomfortable.
She had thought that returning from the apocalypse to the past and preventing humans from creating the zombie virus would be a simple task. But in the end, it had become the most difficult mission of her life!
The zombie virus had already been created, but how could she bring herself to kill the person she loved most?
On one side was the entire human society, and on the other was her world… she couldn’t make a choice!
Xia Chenge’s head throbbed with pain. She wished she had perished with humanity in the apocalypse rather than returning to the past to make such a heart-wrenching decision.
Healing Power couldn’t overcome the zombie virus, and even with advanced medical technology in the apocalypse, no way was found to clear the zombie virus from an infected human body. What could she do?
“Uncle, Xiao Mu, don’t worry. Things are in our hands. We will definitely find a way to overcome the virus and restore Xiao Mu’s health.” Seeing that it was getting late and the medical staff would soon be on duty, Xia Chenge broke the somber and tense atmosphere, reminding Ling Zhongjing.
“Xiao Ge, are all the things in the laboratory untouchable?” Ling Zhongjing calmed down.
“Most of the test tubes here contain the virus. To be safe, I plan to have Elder Jiang take them for research. I hope the old gentleman can find a way to counteract the virus! Also, if possible, have the army seal off the hospital first, and all patients should be tested for the virus.”
Although it was unlikely Ling Zhongwen would casually use the virus on people, this was a hospital, and Ling Zhongwen was the leader of this anti-human research. Who knew if someone had been unlucky enough to be infected!
“I know how to handle it. Will you take Xiao Mu with you, or what?” Ling Zhongjing had no objections; even if Xia Chenge hadn’t suggested it, he would have done so.
He was well aware of what Ling Zhongwen’s laboratory represented!
It might be acceptable to conduct such research privately, hidden from the country, but if something went wrong, it would truly catch the nation off guard, making the situation even worse.
“I’ll take Xiao Mu and go with him,” Xia Chenge said, pointing at Xia Mingxuan.
“Alright.” Ling Zhongjing glanced at Xia Mingxuan.
Xia Mingxuan seemed to recognize Ling Zhongjing and looked somewhat excited. However, Ling Zhongjing’s gaze swept over Xia Mingxuan’s face, not realizing that his old friend was standing right before him.
“By the way, Uncle,” Xia Chenge said, looking towards Ling Hanchao. “He claims his name is Ling Hanchao and he is Xiao Mu’s brother. But when I found him, all his organs had been replaced with artificial machinery; only his consciousness belonged to him.”
“He begged me to kill him!”
Upon hearing this, Ling Zhongjing raised his head, forcing back the tears that were about to well up, and choked out, “Xiao Ge, Uncle doesn’t blame you. It’s better to die than to live like that. Death is true liberation for him.”
Ling Hanmu suddenly jumped off the bed and stumbled towards the glass tube.
He stood before the glass tube, looking at the experimental subject inside, who was no longer human in form, and suddenly punched and shattered the glass tube.
The experimental subject slowly fell towards Ling Hanmu, who reached out and caught him.
With trembling hands, he pushed aside the hair on the experimental subject’s face. The deeply sunken cheeks and eye sockets still held a faint trace of his past self.
“Brother…” Ling Hanmu cried out with all his might, holding Ling Hanchao and weeping uncontrollably.
It was the first time Xia Chenge had seen Ling Hanmu so broken. She wanted to comfort him but didn’t know what to say.
She felt a deep sadness, a strong urge to cry.
Ling Zhongjing stood in place, wiping away tears intermittently.
For the Ling family, this was not only devastating news but also a catastrophe.
