One night passed. The next morning, Ye Chen arrived at the basement very early, only to find that the base chemicals in the tall test tubes had vanished, replaced by numerous white agents displayed on the workbench.
Ye Chen walked over.
“You’re here,” Mo Feng stood up from behind the workbench and stretched lazily, clearly having stayed there all night without returning to his bedroom.
Ye Chen nodded. “Are these agents the gene agents?”
“Exactly!” Mo Feng nodded in affirmation.
“Twenty-three bottles in total!”
“Among them, 16 bottles of Grade 1 agent!”
“3 bottles of Grade 2 agent!”
“1 bottle of Grade 3 agent!”
“1 bottle of Grade 4 agent!”
“No Grade 5 agent, but 2 bottles of Grade 6 agent!”
Mo Feng spoke rapidly.
Ye Chen nodded; this outcome was within the scope of his calculations, confirming that Mo Feng had not cheated him.
Generally, one small-sized base chemical could refine one bottle of gene agent! One medium-sized could refine 2 bottles! One large-sized could refine 20 bottles! One extra-large size could refine 100 bottles!
After concentration and compression, each bottle of gene agent could enhance one person’s strength!
Ye Chen picked up the three most advanced gene agents—the Grade 4 and Grade 6 bottles—and said, “I’ll leave the rest for you all. Keep the Grade 3 bottle for my sister.”
Mo Feng asked curiously, “You don’t want the 16 bottles of Grade 1 agent?”
Ye Chen shook his head. “My current body has reached the level of Grade 3. My blood is Grade 3. This Grade 1 gene agent was refined from Grade 1 blood; it won’t increase my strength at all.”
Mo Feng instantly understood.
Ye Chen casually uncapped a Grade 4 gene agent and drank it down. Immediately, he felt a significant surge in power, reaching the strength equivalent of 33 people.
The Grade 3 gene agent was the same grade as Ye Chen’s blood, so its effect would be minimal. Therefore, Ye Chen intended to save it for his sister, Ye Zhu, as she had reached the strength of 12 people, classifying her as a Grade 1 New Human.
Immediately following that, Ye Chen drank two bottles of Grade 6 gene agent, instantly feeling his strength leap forward significantly, increasing from 33 people’s strength to around 41 people’s strength!
He had reached the level of a Grade 4 New Human!
One bottle of Grade 6 gene agent was equivalent to 2 bottles of Grade 5 agent, which was equivalent to 4 bottles of Grade 4 agent.
Ye Chen had suddenly gained the strength of eight people. His whole body felt light, and the slightest movement stirred a gentle breeze. The outer membrane of his skin was incredibly thick; even an ordinary zombie with the strength of 6 people, using its claws, could only inflict negligible damage upon him.
Not long after, Bai Long and the others also arrived sequentially. Seeing the long row of gene agents, their eyes gleamed.
For reference, Bai Long possessed the strength of 5 people! Yue Heng possessed the strength of 1 person! Zhuge Fan possessed the strength of 1 person!
Therefore, Ye Chen allocated 10 bottles of the 16 Grade 1 gene agents to Yue Heng and the other, bringing both of them to the strength of 5 people. The remaining 6 bottles were given to Bai Long, instantly elevating him to the strength of 11 people, making him a Grade 1 New Human!
Ye Chen glanced at Mo Feng. “Your physique should exceed the strength of 10 people by now, right?”
Mo Feng nodded. “I have the strength of 22 people.”
Hearing this, Bai Long and the others gasped, especially Bai Long, who had never seen Mo Feng consume base chemicals. He hadn't expected this cold man’s strength to surpass his own!
Ye Chen nodded, not overly surprised. After all, Mo Feng knew from the very beginning of the apocalypse that killing zombies allowed one to obtain base chemicals from their bodies. Combined with having a pistol, reaching the strength of 22 people wasn't unexpected.
“These 3 bottles of Grade 2 gene agents will have a smaller effect on you, so I’ll temporarily give them to Bai Long.” Ye Chen tossed the agents over. Bai Long excitedly accepted them, laughing, “In that case, I gratefully accept.”
Yue Heng couldn't help but roll his eyes.
However, he and Zhuge Fan held no objections. Previously, their strength was too low, forcing them to remain at the back of the group when hunting zombies, contributing little. Receiving 5 gene agents each was already a great satisfaction.
Zhuge Fan was still a youth; his physique wasn't as robust as Yue Heng’s. Based on the required standards for strength, speed, and nerve reaction time for a one-person strength level, Zhuge Fan could only be counted as half a person’s strength!
Therefore, in the early stages, he needed an additional half-person’s strength supplement to catch up.
This inherent deficiency was easily rectified.
Ye Chen looked at Mo Feng. “A batch of base chemicals will arrive shortly; I’ll assign some to you then.”
Mo Feng paused. “Shortly?”
Ye Chen checked the time, saw it was about right, and walked outside. Bai Long and the others followed curiously but saw nothing, looking strangely at Ye Chen.
Just then, the ground in the distance began to tremble. Beneath the ashen sky, a vast cloud of yellow dust churned up, and a large mass of shadowy figures sprinted toward them from afar—a truly spectacular sight. Leading them was a Purple Extreme Demonic Ox towering four zhang high, followed by Green Pythons twenty to thirty meters long, zombie dogs, mutated ants, and zombie ants…
Whoosh!
Above, a monstrous bird swooped down, its wings spread wide, obscuring the sky. Each wing spanned three to four zhang, its talons were razor-sharp, and its chest boasted a tuft of golden feathers.
Ye Chen’s pupils constricted. “Golden Crested Eagle!”
Among the eagles, the Golden Crested Eagle was an exceedingly powerful species, possessing immense strength!
Before long, a horde of monsters charged toward them.
Bai Long and the others were utterly shocked. That leading Purple Extreme Demonic Ox, with a single charge, could flatten everything in the research institute except for the hidden passages!
“Run!” Yue Heng and the others cried out, turning to flee. Ye Chen’s expression remained calm; he could see at a glance that these monsters bore fatal wounds, clearly indicating that the Black Leech insect troop led by Little Black was closing in.
Boom! Boom! Boom!~~~
All the monsters halted outside the research institute.
Bai Long and the others had already retreated into the passageway behind. If there was the slightest disturbance, they would immediately slip into the hidden passage to hide. Only Ye Chen remained alone.
“Moo—” The Purple Extreme Demonic Ox fixed its blood-red eyes on Ye Chen.
From the rear, a Three-Tailed Silver Dog emerged slowly, strolling languidly to the entrance, lifting its head to look down at Ye Chen, speaking arrogantly, “Despicable human, I have returned.”
Ye Chen frowned, giving it a cold look. “Where are the zombie corpses?”
The Three-Tailed Silver Dog snorted coldly. Its tongue, modified by Little Black, could now articulate human speech. “Today, I am back to collect. You had better hand them over obediently, or beware that I…”
“I asked you! Where are the zombie corpses?!!” Ye Chen cut it off, his tone chillingly severe.
Black Heart jumped slightly. Seeing Ye Chen’s frosty expression, it inexplicably felt a tremor and subconsciously controlled the Three-Tailed Silver Dog to take a step back. But it quickly remembered the host of powerful allies behind it, regaining its confidence, and roared, “Don’t think I won’t move against you just because you hold the antidote! Today, we’ll fight until the net breaks. Even if I die, they will kill you all!”
Ye Chen stared at it coldly for a long moment, then slowly averted his gaze, his expression smoothing out. He let out a slow breath and said, “I’ll give you one more chance. I don’t want to kill you!”
A bad premonition rose in Black Heart’s mind. Ye Chen’s power had left an indelible impression on it. It recalled a human saying and retorted, “Don’t try to scare me; I wasn’t raised to be scared off!”
Ye Chen nodded, reached into his pocket, and pulled out a pale green vial of agent, saying lightly, “I forgot to tell you, the bottle of ‘Flower Burial’ I gave you causes drowsiness after ingestion, putting you to sleep for one to three hours.”
“While you were sleeping, I injected another agent into your body. This is a peculiar agent, colorless and odorless, and any creature near you becomes infected.” Ye Chen spoke slowly. “In its normal state, this peculiar agent has no effect, but the moment it smells the gas emanating from the vial in my hand, it will instantly go mad and die.”
“In other words, all your subordinates around you are infected with this agent. The moment I open this cap, you will all die!”
“What!”
“How is that possible!”
“No, don’t believe him!”
Various sounds of shock and anger erupted from the monster crowd.
Black Heart swallowed hard, remembering the dozen or so agents it had overheard Mo Feng mentioning in the laboratory; its spirit trembled, but it showed no outward sign of fear, sneering, “Stop bluffing! If that were true, since you’ve been so close to me for so long, you would die too the moment you opened the cap!”
Ye Chen smiled faintly. “Don’t forget, I have the antidote.”
The corner of the Three-Tailed Silver Dog’s mouth twitched slightly, and it gritted its teeth. “I don’t believe you!”
“Oh?” Ye Chen chuckled faintly. “Did you think I wouldn’t have a countermeasure for that move? Since I let you leave, I naturally had a backup plan. Did you sleep well last night?”
Black Heart fell silent; it had indeed slept soundly last night while idle.
“If you don’t believe me, look at your own body. Are some parts turning slightly red?” Ye Chen remained placid, acting completely unconcerned.
Hearing this, all the Black Leech worms hidden within the monsters’ skulls quickly opened their eyes and examined their bodies, only to see many of their tentacles turning slightly red. They were instantly alarmed.
“You, you actually…”
“Truly despicable!”
“Damn human, give us the antidote!”
“I will kill you!”
The group of monsters roared, glaring ferociously at Ye Chen.
Fear flickered in the Three-Tailed Silver Dog’s eyes. They had all consumed human brain cells and understood the horrific fate of dying from ‘madness.’ Its voice trembled. “You, you really poisoned us?”
Ye Chen said coldly, “I never trust anyone.”
Bai Long and the others, hiding in the rear passageway, could only offer bitter smiles. Whether the monsters believed it or not, they certainly did. At least in the eyes of Yue Heng and Zhuge Fan, Ye Chen had always been a cold person. Hearing his words now sent shivers down their spines, making them wonder if their dinner last night had also been poisoned…
Ye Chen checked the time and stated coldly, “If you do not bring back 500 zombie corpses within an hour, you can all accompany them in death!” Saying this, he tucked the vial back into his pocket.
Black Heart knew Ye Chen was a man who kept his word. It gave a wry smile, turned to look at its companions, and after a brief exchange of consciousness, they all walked away dejectedly.
After they left, Bai Long and the others finally ran out of the passageway. Yue Heng asked in amazement, “Did you really poison them?”
Ye Chen answered casually, “What do you think?”
“Most likely…”
“Why even ask? He definitely did it, otherwise how would he know which Black Leeches would turn slightly red?” Bai Long stated matter-of-factly.
Ye Chen glanced at the few of them, saying nothing, but a flicker of sorrow suddenly crossed his eyes—an emotion that vanished as quickly as it appeared.
“How can these monsters speak human language?” At this moment, Mo Feng, who was usually silent, spoke up.
“That’s hitting the nail on the head!” Bai Long exclaimed in admiration.
Ye Chen shot him a sidelong glance, too lazy to elaborate, and turned to walk back into the building.
Bai Long and the others didn't press further. After all, everyone had their little secrets. In a cutthroat environment like the apocalypse, the fact that this group hadn't slaughtered each other but instead sat down to eat and chat was already a sign of harmony.
An hour later, a large group of monsters rushed back, each carrying several zombies, which they dropped outside the research institute.
Ye Chen counted them: exactly 500, no more, no less. He nodded slightly, then turned to the Three-Tailed Silver Dog and said, “Considering this is your first offense, I’ll let you off this time.”
“Can you undo the poison for us?”
“Please!”
“I can tell you’re a good person…”
Monsters pleaded one after another. Having consumed human cells, their linguistic ability was no different from humans.