Chapter 315: Things That Can Fully Replace and Assimilate, and Manual Overload

"Tap!"

As the gun fired, an orange beam streaked across a few meters, instantly melting through Yi Lianna's left hand.

??!! The sudden reversal left Yi Lianna's mind completely blank for a moment.

"Ugh!!"

As she gradually felt the searing pain, cold sweat broke out over her body, her right hand clenched her left wrist, and she gritted her teeth, letting out an unbearable groan.

Then, Yi Lianna, incredulous, asked Lin, "Sir… why did you do this…"

She said it with a rather innocent, aggrieved expression.

"Rest assured, you won't be alone on the road to the Yellow Springs."

But Lin showed no remorse or sympathy, nor any intention to explain, and immediately prepared to pull the trigger again.

"No!!"

Seeing Lin's resolute stance, Yi Lianna shouted and lunged at him, and from her wounded left hand surged a mass of blood-colored tentacles.

But how could "she" be faster than the gun?

Having fully tested the outcome, Lin's right index finger twitched…

"Tap tap tap!"

"Puff! Puff!"

Beams continuously shot from the barrel, repeatedly melting through Yi Lianna's body.

"Huh!"

The dense beams ignited her work uniform.

The raging fire, as cold and ruthless as Lin, swiftly enveloped and devoured Yi Lianna.

Finally…

"Ah…! Ah… roar…!"

Yi Lianna collapsed, struggling on the ground, her painful roar shifting from a human woman's voice to that of a beast.

After a few seconds, she finally went completely still, letting the flames continue to scorch her.

Seeing this.

Lin showed a hint of remorse, whispered "Rest in peace" in a very low voice, then steadied himself and moved on.

He ran around the corner.

Passed a bar.

Lin noticed five people hiding inside, but he chose to ignore them and proceeded alone; after all, bringing untrained civilians would only slow him down.

Lin's destination was the central control room that managed the entire Asis.

Restoring communications, transmitting intelligence to the outside, or performing crucial operations all require the absolute authority of the central control room.

As for how to guess what kind of "thing" Yi Lianna was…

Lin enjoys repeatedly reviewing documents, files, and various data; it's less a habit than an OCD, a self-imposed compulsion that has etched the habit of "repetition" into his very bones.

A minor oversight fifteen years ago caused two colleagues to die untimely.

Although the emergency team arrived in time, helping him eliminate the beasts and hyena‑werewolves that were trying to plant bombs for a cholera colony, the colleagues' lives could not be restored.

After that, Lin forced himself to adopt a habit of "continuous repetition" to ensure no detail was ever missed again.

And Yi Lianna had actually died before he covertly infiltrated Asis.

The time of death coincided with the five minutes when the nanorobots lost signal and the intelligence department could not immediately contact her.

Based on the intelligence gathered after arriving here, the numerous bloody, nauseating scenes witnessed, and various details plus his own speculation…

Lin can preliminarily conclude that the "thing" ravaging Asis is an anomalous creature capable of complete "replacement" and "imitation".

From Tuode's interactions with his wife and daughter, and his tone with neighbors, it is evident that this "thing" can inherit all of the host's memories.

It understands interpersonal relationships and exploits them, even mimicking emotions flawlessly, indistinguishable from the real Tuode.

But one thing differs: the eyes.

The saying "the eyes are the windows to the soul" does have some truth.

Lin repeatedly watched the quarrel footage filmed by Yi Lianna and found that Tuode's gaze lacked any concern for his family.

Outsiders might miss this detail, but Jiali, Tuode's wife, and Nier, his son, sharply caught it.

Thus they said, "He is not Tuode."

Therefore, Lin chose to infiltrate the cabin of Tuode and Jiali.

After finding a few fragments of denture debris in the cabin, he reported this and also asked the Command Center to look up the short‑haired female spouse's file.

Soon, the intelligence department replied that the short‑haired female spouse's bilateral molars had been replaced with full ceramic dentures six years ago due to neglect of hygiene and care.

Even with advanced technology, dentistry remains a "challenge" for humanity.

Seeing this reply, Lin could confirm that last night's quarrel gave Tuode a chance to be alone with the short‑haired female spouse, allowing him to transform into the same kind.

But this method of transformation is not perfectly reliable; they cannot "replicate" inorganic objects like dentures.

Next, communications were jammed, and a firefight with "security" revealed an even more terrifying side.

They can not only share intelligence and memories in real time and coordinate seamlessly in human form, but when they sustain damage or deem a situation critical, they can split into different‑shaped entities to escape.

Of course, these entities can also stick together and combine to gain size and strength advantages.

The most eye‑opening revelation for Lin was that their blood possesses self‑awareness, moves, and attempts to invade nearby human bodies.

Observing the autonomous flow of blood and the ability of their bodies to freely "separate" and "merge", Lin wondered whether a single cell could be a complete, independent individual.

If so, their infection routes would be myriad; casual handshakes or embraces could let them infiltrate bodies and complete assimilation.

But why did he "escape disaster"? After posing this question to himself, Lin combined all details, intelligence, and clues, concluding that they were deliberately avoiding.

The reason appears simple: it is because of him and the nanorobots inside all the intelligence officers.

This 'thing' can complete assimilation quickly, but in the process it will inevitably destroy the nanobots and expel them from the body.

Therefore, Yilianna, disguised as an ordinary maintenance worker, was taken by them as an assimilation target, causing a loss of contact for nearly five minutes and attracting the attention of the Intelligence Department.

The 'thing' that had inherited all of Yilianna's memories read information related to Umbrella, and after learning of Umbrella's capabilities, it realized they had chosen the wrong target.

To prevent the Intelligence Department from dispatching an Emergency Team to take forcible measures, it has consistently maintained a human appearance, injected backup nanobots, and proactively contacted the Command Center in an attempt to dispel the Intelligence Department's doubts.

However, Supervisor Qiaoermile still dispatched Lin to investigate.

As one of the most experienced Intelligence Officers, Lin did not disappoint; he indeed obtained useful intelligence.

If this trend continues, Lin will soon discover their existence.

Therefore, these 'things' no longer adopt a cautious approach; they switch to aggressive tactics, block communications, actively expose themselves, and lure Umbrella into conducting a full investigation.

From the moment miners accidentally unearthed the spacecraft and were infected by them, their original intention never changed: to wait four days, then silently spread to the outside world—and ultimately to all of human territory—using the transport fleet sent by the company.

Unexpectedly, they infected an Umbrella Intelligence Officer, ultimately leading to the current situation.

Most importantly, after Lin finished talking with Yilianna and indicated he was preparing to go deeper into the mining area for investigation, Axisi soon erupted into full-scale chaos.

Moreover, amidst the chaos, Yilianna happened to run into him…

How could there be so many 'coincidences'? It is only possible that their kind shared memories, revealing his location to Yilianna, so that Yilianna could then use the guise of a colleague or comrade, taking advantage of the gap when signals were blocked, to assimilate him.

Thus, once the Emergency Team arrives at Axisi, the assimilated 'he' who had been injected with backup nanobots can leave Axisi unhindered with Yilianna and head straight to the human world. In fact, whether or not he is present, as long as the Emergency Team that reaches Axisi lacks detailed knowledge of their characteristics, the human world is doomed to be overrun by them.

That group of 'things' wanted to assimilate him merely as a safety precaution to avoid another accident.

While thinking,

Lin had already arrived at the inevitable passage leading to the Main Control Room, a corridor that was the most spacious.

Here there is an open field of view, no cover providing concealment, and furthermore there are more than ten armed guards spaced apart.

Lin stood in the corner of the wall, observing.

Seeing the situation in the corridor, he temporarily slung the laser submachine gun with its strap across his chest, freed his hands, and took out a small injector from the tactical pack at his waist.

Its metal exterior bore the words 'disposable agent' and 'caution', among others.

He flipped open the protective cap, exposing the needle-free injection port, made contact with the skin of his left forearm, and injected the agent into his body.

Then he put the injector back into the tactical pack and checked his remaining equipment, which was now scarce.

At this point, Lin's breathing rhythm gradually quickened, and even his pupils dilated slightly.

After checking,

He firmly grasped the laser submachine gun again; his eyes were no longer dull and lifeless, but showed fearlessness and resolve, and he muttered quietly:

"How could it possibly let you, a bunch of soulless things, run outside? How could it possibly let you threaten humanity, threaten them…"

He said.

Lin's left hand took out the sole remaining acid grenade, pulled the pin with one hand, released the safety, silently counted two seconds, and threw it outward.

Having completed the throw, he quickly rushed into the corridor, the acid grenade ahead and him behind, fully appearing in the view of those "things."

Seeing that.

The security immediately raised their pulse weapons, aiming to point the barrels at Lin's legs.

However, after injecting the "drug," Lin's strength seemed much greater than before, so the acid grenade, at extreme speed, "flew" to several security stationed forward, and then…

"Boom—!"

"Sizzle…"

"Ah… roar!!"

The blast, corrosion, and screams intertwined, instantly paralyzing the movement and attack ability of many security personnel.

"Click-click!"

"Tap-tap!"

Immediately after, the corridor was filled with the rapid fire of pulse and laser weapons.

The blazing orange light continued to flash, indicating that Lin, alone against those "things," had not yet fallen.

After the gunfire and orange light ceased…

"Thud, thud…"

Inside the corridor, only unsteady, staggering footsteps remained.

"Beep, beep…"

There was also the sound of "water droplets" falling onto the floor.

"Whoosh—!"

But soon, the sound of the main control room doors opening to both sides drowned out the footsteps and the "water droplets."

It turned out that Lin, relying solely on his own strength, had successfully reached the inside of the main control room.

Behind Lin, the corridor was a mess, with numerous limb chunks and flesh still wriggling, and even blood flowing toward his position.

"Whoosh—!"

However, as the doors closed, they temporarily severed the connection between the main control room and the corridor.

And at this moment, he…

His right arm exploded, his right shin had much tissue "sheared" away, exposing the bone, his body was covered in tiny shrapnel holes, and even his right eye could not avoid the shrapnel attack.

It can be said that Lin's right side had almost no intact spot.

Even though nanomachines inside his body helped staunch the bleeding, blood still seeped from each wound, which also accounted for the earlier "water droplet" sounds.

Such injuries were enough to cause Lin, in his normal state, to faint and eventually die.

There are many reasons he has been able to hold on until now, protecting humanity…

Or rather, it was to protect the unaware colleagues from Axi Si rushing to help, as well as his family, thereby igniting a steadfast will unafraid of death—that is one aspect.

And the most crucial point is that the previously injected "drug" is propping up his shattered body, allowing him to continue acting.

The medicine, designated Te-036, is a serum specially provided for field staff of the Supervision and Intelligence Departments. In life‑or‑death moments it briefly suppresses pain, forcibly triggers adrenaline, and boosts reaction speed and strength.

After the drug wears off, it causes permanent damage to the user.

So while the drug was still in effect and his mind was relatively clear, Lin dragged his unbendable right leg to the control console loaded with many physical screens.

Afterward.

He extended his movable left hand, fished out his dedicated phone from the tool pouch at his waist, placed it on the console to sense biological data and the ID card's sensor area, and tried to obtain partial authorization.

While waiting, Lin felt his eyelids growing heavier.

A 'beep' sounded, instantly bringing him back to alertness.

He turned his head to look at the content appearing on the phone screen, couldn't help but smile wryly, and muttered to himself: 'Sure enough, nothing goes as smoothly as imagined…

Although I can't send the message out, can't say goodbye… well, it's indeed a pity, but being able to silently protect them is enough…

Saying this, Lin extended his left hand again and tapped the screen's 'Confirm' with his index finger.

Having done that, the broadcast installed inside Axisi emitted an emotionless reminder:

'The nuclear fusion reactor has been manually overloaded; it is expected to reach criticality in five seconds.'

'I repeat, the nuclear fusion reactor…'

However, before the second repetition finished playing, five seconds had already passed.

And Lin…

Before he completely lost consciousness, he 'saw' his wife sitting on the lawn in the park, smiling faintly as she watched the children playing carefree with each other.

Suddenly he 'saw' again the scene from ten years ago when he first met his wife…

He had been injured on duty, and after regaining consciousness he found himself lying in a ward of the company hospital, while his wife, who was the attending physician, asked him with a gentle smile: 'Mr. Lin, do you feel any discomfort?'

Finally…

A 'warm' white light filled everything.

The thing ravaging Axisi is 'The Thing'.

I recommend it to those who haven't read it; the 1982 edition's visuals still aren't outdated, it's genuinely warm and touching, and the story is very moving.

(End of chapter)