Chapter 113: Unknown Contagious Virus

Night fell.

Inside the canteen, beneath warm lighting, the hubbub of voices rose.

Lao Li held a tray full of food, his hands trembling with excitement.

On the tray were fluffy, tasty white rice, steaming red-braised pork, and even a bowl……of the delicious fish soup he had only drunk before the apocalypse!

"Come on, brothers! Let's… down this bowl of fish soup!"

Lao Li raised the bowl in his hand, his voice choking up.

Everyone around him from the Black Wolf Shelter also had reddened eyes.

They said nothing, merely raising their bowls in silence and then gulping down the fragrant fish soup mouthful after mouthful.

It's so fragrant….

They could no longer remember when they last had fish soup!

After finishing their meal, under the guidance of the elders of Xuanwu City, they came to their new dormitory.

It was a newly completed two-story building; though the decoration was simple, it was clean and tidy, with water and electricity fully available.

When Lao Li lay down on his own soft, comfortable single bed, he felt that all of this seemed like a dream.

"My Lord City Lord..."

Lao Li gazed at the ceiling, muttering to himself.

"Your great kindness and virtue, I, Lao Li, in this lifetime… could never repay it even if I served as an ox or horse!"

What he did not know was that, at this very moment inside Xuanwu City, countless people shared his same thought.

In the blink of an eye, a month passed.

Xuanwu City had completely changed its appearance.

Brand-new high-rise residential buildings rose from the ground, and on the wide, flat streets, solar-powered streetlights cast a soft glow at night.

In the agricultural zone, the first trial plots of high-yield rice and sweet potatoes were lush and thriving, promising growth; it would not be long before the first great harvest arrived.

The prototype of the breeding farm had also been completed; the first batch of chicks and piglets exchanged from the System Mall were happily chasing and playing in the pens.

The entire Xuanwu City was immersed in an atmosphere of prosperity, and every face bore a hopeful smile for the future.

At the same time, Lao Li's group had all passed Lin Yue's assessment twenty days prior, and now the population of Xuanwu City had finally exceeded three thousand.

All of this left Lin Yue feeling immensely satisfied.

However, just as everything in Xuanwu City flourished and everyone believed the good days would last forever, a crisis was quietly taking shape.

That afternoon, Lin Yue was in the City Lord's mansion, listening to Wang Gongtou's report on the next phase of urban planning.

"City Lord, at our current construction pace, at most another two months and the first phase of the high-rise residential area will be fully completed! By then, not only three thousand people, but even just three, we'll have room!"

Wang Gongtou pointed to the architectural model on the sand table that already showed initial scale, his face full of pride.

"Well done, Old Wang."

Lin Yue nodded in approval, preparing to discuss in depth with Wang Gongtou the matter of supporting facilities for the residential area.

"Thud thud thud."

A sudden burst of urgent knocking on the door interrupted their conversation.

"Come in."

Lin Yue furrowed his brow slightly.

The door was pushed open, and Han Ya, looking anxious, hurried inside.

"City Lord, Doctor Sun is looking for you; she has a very urgent matter to report!"

"Sun Qian?"

Lin Yue's heart stirred; he knew that, unless she had encountered a truly thorny problem, given Sun Qian's steady nature, she would never use the words "very urgent."

"Let her in."

Moments later, Sun Qian, wearing a white coat and a mask, hurried in with quick steps.

Her face bore a hint of worry and fatigue that could not be concealed.

"City Lord."

She bowed slightly toward Lin Yue, her voice somewhat hoarse.

"Doctor Sun, no need for formalities."

Lin Yue waved his hand, gesturing for her to sit,

"What's happened?"

Sun Qian did not sit; she took a deep breath, pulled a folder from her bosom, and placed it before Lin Yue.

"City Lord, please take a look at this first."

Lin Yue took the folder and opened it.

Inside was a detailed case report.

"Patient: Li Jun, male, 37 years old, former member of the Black Wolf Shelter in Suchen, who joined Xuanwu City a month ago."

"Main symptoms: red papules of unknown cause appearing on multiple parts of the body, accompanied by severe itching, worse at night. Over the past week, persistent low fever, dry cough, and fatigue have appeared."

"Preliminary diagnosis: suspected new-type allergic dermatitis, or infection by some unknown virus."

Lin Yue's brows knit tightly together.

He lifted his gaze to Sun Qian and asked in a low voice:

"How many patients like this are there?"

"Reporting to City Lord,"

Sun Qian's voice carried a deep sense of helplessness,

"As of 8 a. m. today, the Medical Department has admitted a total of thirty-five patients showing similar symptoms. They are all new residents who migrated from small and medium-sized shelters in Suchen over the past month."

"Thirty-five?"

This number made Lin Yue's heart sink sharply.

I initially thought it was just ordinary water-soil incompatibility, or perhaps due to their long-term malnutrition making their constitutions too weak, leading to an allergic reaction.

A flicker of self-reproach passed through Sun Qian's eyes.

But after several days of observation and treatment, I discovered…… the matter is far from simple.

I've already given them all our anti-allergy drugs and broad-spectrum antibiotics, but the effect is minimal. Their condition not only shows no improvement, it continues to worsen.

What worries me most is,

Sun Qian's fingertip lightly traced a certain page of the report,

Through continuous testing of their blood samples, I found that their immune cells are decreasing and necrotizing at an astonishing speed.

It's as if…… this unknown virus is frenziedly devouring their immune system.

Devouring the immune system?

Lin Yue's pupils contracted sharply; he recalled the extremely terrifying virus from before the apocalypse—AIDS.

Could it be……

City Lord,

Sun Qian knew what Lin Yue was thinking, so she shook her head and said with a very firm tone:

I know what you're thinking; I can be certain this isn't AIDS. I'm not sure exactly what it is, but I know this virus is extremely contagious.

Moreover, before onset there are no symptoms, so I also don't know how many people in the city have been infected.

This news completely shocked Lin Yue; at any time, infectious diseases undoubtedly occupy the top spot as the greatest threat to humanity!

Now, Sun Qian told him that a suspected outbreak of an unknown infectious disease has occurred in Xuanwu City.

What this means goes without saying.

I understand.

Lin Yue closed the report, his expression unprecedentedly solemn.

He looked at the woman before him, who looked somewhat exhausted from days of work, and his esteem for her rose another level.

Fortunately, before the virus could fully break out, she detected it in time.

Sun Qian, you're the head of the Medical Department; we'll do whatever you say!

Professional matters require professionals; Lin Yue may not understand medicine, but he can provide logistical support for Sun Qian, so she has no worries.

Sun Qian pondered for a moment, then spoke slowly:

With the Medical Department's current equipment, we cannot possibly determine the cause, let alone find a solution! If we had an electron microscope (especially a cryo-electron microscope) and an ultra-high-resolution fluorescence microscope, perhaps we could manage!

Sure, I'll get those pieces of equipment to you as soon as possible.

Lin Yue agreed without hesitation; others might not be able to obtain them, but for Lin Yue, who has already opened the System Mall, it's no problem—just a matter of how many energy points.

Sun Qian looked at Lin Yue in surprise; she said that even before the apocalypse, only top-tier laboratories could obtain such equipment.

But she quickly realized that, given the City Lord's vast supernatural abilities, just because others can't do it doesn't mean Lin Yue can't.

That's great; I'll go back to prepare. As soon as you, City Lord, send over the equipment, we'll start researching immediately.

Having said that, Sun Qian left the City Lord's mansion without looking back.

PS: New book, please urge for updates, please collect!