Chapter 12: Virus

【System Notification: The zombie horde is expanding,

it has breached the street defenses; reinforce defenses immediately,

otherwise there is a 50% chance of being overrun.】

Lin Chen pushed Xia Nuan into the storage room and locked the door:

"Stay here and don't come out; I'll go check the situation."

Xia Nuan grabbed his arm, her face pale: "It's too dangerous out there, don't go!"

Lin Chen pried her fingers loose, picked up the shotgun: "Don't worry, I'll be back soon."

He pushed open the door,

and the sounds of gunshots and roars grew clearer.

Among the group being chased, one figure looked familiar—it was the man in the white lab coat seen earlier at the slaughterhouse.

He was surrounded by zombies in the center, waving a scalpel in his hand, yet unable to stop the increasing number of zombies.

【System Notification: Key character "White Coat" detected in crisis;

rescuing him will yield clues to the laboratory's location,

abandoning him will permanently lose those clues.】

Lin Chen frowned;

White Coat knew Su Qing's whereabouts—he could not be allowed to die.

He raised the shotgun, aimed at the zombie closest to White Coat, and pulled the trigger; the bullet pierced the zombie's skull, splattering green blood all over White Coat.

"This way!" Lin Chen shouted.

White Coat paused for a moment, saw Lin Chen, and a flicker of surprise flashed in his eyes;

then, like someone grabbing a lifeline, he rushed toward the supermarket.

Lin Chen fired while retreating, covering White Coat's run to the entrance, then quickly pulled down the rolling shutter.

"Thanks..." White Coat panted, blood smeared across his face.

Lin Chen pointed the gun at him: "Where is Su Qing?"

White Coat smiled: "Want to know?

Come with me to the laboratory; she's there."

【System Notification: Side quest "Rescue Su Qing" triggered;

completing the quest will reward a "Virus Antibody Sample,"

failure will cause Su Qing to mutate completely.】

Lin Chen hesitated for a moment, then looked toward the storage room door:

"I'll go get someone."

He opened the storage room door, and Xia Nuan immediately stood up: "What's wrong?"

"I'm going out for a while; you stay here and guard the place, don't open the door," Lin Chen said.

Xia Nuan tried to say more, but Lin Chen had already closed the door; he told White Coat, "Lead the way."

Taking advantage of the zombies being drawn by the gunshots, the two slipped out through the back door,

heading toward the laboratory.

As they walked, White Coat said: "I have Su Qing tied up in the laboratory; her mutation is unique—she is a perfect virus carrier..."

【System Notification: Distance to laboratory is 1 kilometer;

please avoid patrolling zombies.】

The laboratory was located in an abandoned building in the suburbs;

two zombies guarded the entrance, each dispatched by a single shot from Lin Chen.

Pushing open the door, a smell of disinfectant hit them; inside it was very dark, with only a few petri dishes glowing green.

Su Qing was tied to an operating table, tubes inserted into her body,

her face pale; seeing Lin Chen, her eyes moved slightly: "Lin Chen..."

【System Notification: Su Qing's vital signs are weak;

she must be untied and injected with an inhibitor immediately,

otherwise she will mutate completely in 10 minutes.】

Lin Chen rushed forward,

and cut the ropes binding her.

Suddenly, White Coat lunged from behind, holding a syringe: "Don't touch her! She is my experimental subject!"

Lin Chen sidestepped, punched him to the ground, and snatched the syringe, which contained a pale blue liquid.

"This is an inhibitor; it can temporarily stabilize her mutation,"

White Coat said while lying on the ground.

Lin Chen ignored him, injected the potion into Su Qing's arm; her body twitched, and her complexion improved slightly.

【System Notification: Su Qing's condition is stable; quest progress 80%;

take her out of the laboratory to complete the quest.】

Lin Chen lifted Su Qing into his arms and said to White Coat on the floor:

"You stay here."

White Coat suddenly laughed: "You think you can escape? The zombies outside were all lured here by me, just to test her combat capabilities!"

【System Notification: Laboratory main gate breached by zombies; countdown 5 minutes;

failure to exit within 5 minutes will result in being surrounded.】

Lin Chen cursed,

hugged Su Qing, and rushed outside.

Su Qing stirred in his arms: "Put me down, I can walk."

Lin Chen set her down and supported her as they ran outside. Just as they reached the doorway, they saw a dense swarm of zombies closing in.

Su Qing suddenly shoved Lin Chen away,

her body beginning to transform; scales burst forth from her skin, her eyes turned red,

and she roared as she charged into the zombie horde. Her speed was extreme; her claws tore open the zombies' chests, splattering her with green blood.

【System Notification: Su Qing has entered combat status; mutation level increased to 70%.

It is advised to evacuate her immediately,

otherwise she will lose control.】

Watching her frenzied state, Lin Chen felt a stir in his heart:

"Su Qing, come with me!"

Su Qing glanced back at him, a flicker of struggle passing through her eyes, then followed him as they charged outward.

The two fought their way through a bloody path, finally shaking off the zombies, and ran toward the supermarket.

Just as they neared the supermarket, Su Qing suddenly stopped,

her body swaying as the scales began to recede: "I... I can't control it..."

Lin Chen steadied her: "Don't force it; we'll deal with it once we arrive."

【System Notification: Side quest "Rescue Su Qing" completed.

Reward "Virus Antibody Sample" has been stored in the warehouse.

Please check receipt.】

Back at the supermarket, Lin Chen opened the door,

and Xia Nuan, seeing Su Qing, froze: "She..."

Lin Chen offered no explanation, guiding Su Qing to the warehouse and finding a corner for her to sit.

【System Notification: New member detected; resource allocation mechanism triggered.

Existing food supplies must be distributed per capita;

daily quota per person reduced by 30%.】

Lin Chen frowned,

having just resolved the delivery issue, only for this to happen now.

He walked over to Xia Nuan and saw her holding an empty milk carton and a biscuit bag: "When did you eat these?"

Xia Nuan lowered her head: "Three days ago..."

【System Notification: Xia Nuan has consumed expired food (the milk has spoiled),

triggering the penalty mechanism—adverse physical reactions occurring;

antibiotics must be administered immediately.】

Lin Chen's heart sank;

there were no antibiotics in the warehouse.

He looked at Su Qing, and suddenly an idea struck him.

He grabbed a pack of biscuits, walked up to Su Qing, and forcibly stuffed them into her mouth: "Eat."

Su Qing showed no reaction, merely staring at him with wide eyes.

【System Notification: Force-feeding a non-consenting individual triggers a negative effect—

Su Qing's mutation risk increased by 10%.】

Lin Chen paid it no mind,

took another carton of milk, pried open her mouth, and poured it down her throat.

Su Qing suddenly began to struggle, her eyes starting to turn red.

Lin Chen pinned her down: "Don't you want to know why you've become like this? Eat, and you'll have a chance to find out!"

Su Qing's movements ceased;

she slowly chewed the biscuits and drank the milk.

Lin Chen breathed a sigh of relief and was about to turn away when a system notification suddenly popped up.

【System Notification: Special situation detected; after Su Qing consumed ordinary food,

the virus within her body exhibited an abnormal reaction. Extract a sample for research?

Extraction will consume 80% of existing food supplies but may yield clues to a "Virus Antidote"; declining extraction will have no effect.】

Lin Chen froze;

80% of the food was nearly all their reserves.

He looked at Xia Nuan, who was clutching her stomach, her face growing paler by the second.

Then he looked at Su Qing, who kept her head down, lost in thought.

【System Notification: Countdown 10 seconds; failure to choose will automatically default to "Do Not Extract".】

Before Lin Chen could react,

the countdown ended.

【System Notification: Sample extraction not selected; no reward, no penalty.】

He had just breathed a sigh of relief

when he suddenly heard a cry of pain from Xia Nuan coming from outside the warehouse.

Lin Chen rushed out and saw Xia Nuan lying on the ground, rolling while clutching her stomach, her face as pale as paper.

【System Notification: Xia Nuan's adverse reaction is intensifying; if she does not receive treatment within one hour,】

her life will be in danger.】

Lin Chen looked at Su Qing inside the warehouse,

then back at Xia Nuan, his mind in complete chaos.

At that moment, Su Qing walked out of the warehouse, her gaze far calmer: "I know where to find antibiotics. They are at the hospital in Chengxi."

Lin Chen immediately stood up:

"Lead the way!"

【System Notification: Emergency quest "Find Antibiotics" triggered.】

Find them and return within one hour to cure Xia Nuan;

failure...】

Before the system notification could finish displaying,

Lin Chen had already grabbed the shotgun and said to Su Qing, "Let's go!"