"Do you really have to observe this experiment? It's not that there's some secret I want to hide from you, it's just that the experimental process might make you uncomfortable."
"This isn't a dangerous experiment. You can completely enjoy my treasured wine here and wait for the experiment to conclude."
Dr. Max advised the Reincarnators with a worried expression.
"Dr., we won't affect your experiment in any way," Zhou Ming said with a smile. "Whether your experiment is unethical, bloody and terrifying, or indescribable, we possess strong enough psychological fortitude to endure anything."
"Moreover, our mission is to protect you. Regardless of whether you think this experiment is dangerous, it does involve contact with zombies, so we absolutely cannot ignore it."
"Alright," Dr. Max said, resigned, but he didn't argue further and opened the door to the underground laboratory.
In three days, this was the first time the Reincarnators had stepped inside.
First, there was a spacious hall over a hundred square meters, filled with various complex instruments that dazzled them. Computers displayed constantly changing data, and the light sources made the room as bright as day, reflecting cold light off the metallic casings of the instruments.
Along the edge of the hall was a wall of glass cases, many of which contained a white mouse.
Some were alive, some were motionless, some had graying fur, some moved stiffly, and some had undergone severe, terrifying mutations...
"Those are all laboratory mice. They reproduce quickly, are easy to raise, and are good for parallel comparisons, making them very useful experimental subjects."
Dr. Max pushed a large mobile medical bed out of a room, and the creature lying on it immediately caught their attention.
"Of course, as useful as white mice are, they're not as good as a truly virus-carrying live human, or rather, a zombie."
Lying on that large mobile medical bed was a zombie with an intact body. Its skin was a lifeless grayish-yellow, and it had no hair, but it hadn't undergone extreme differentiation, still retaining quite distinct gender characteristics.
This was a female zombie, currently lying on the bed with her eyes closed, her hands and feet shackled. She lay motionless with her eyes closed, and it was unclear if she was "dead" or had been "anesthetized" by Dr. Max using special means.
Various instruments were attached to different parts of the zombie's body, connected by Dr. Max to a series of display screens.
"Alright, now we'll begin the formal experiment. Record: GA series, 391 serum, compound 5."
Dr. Max inserted needles into the zombie's hands, feet, and head, attaching IV drips for injection. The injections in her hands and feet were transparent, colorless liquids, while the one in her head was a blue, translucent liquid.
Beep... Beep... The instruments hummed rhythmically, but the zombie showed no reaction.
"Injection started. The subject is showing a heartbeat response."
Dr. Max operated a nearby computer, speaking as he did so, then took out another small bottle of reagent, drew it into a syringe, and injected it into the zombie's neck.
Beep! Beep! Beep!
The instruments' beeping began to accelerate, like a person's heart beating faster and faster, causing everyone to feel a sense of unease.
"Heartbeat continues to accelerate, body temperature is rapidly rising, PA02 value is 200% of normal."
Dr. Max turned on a small flashlight and pulled open the zombie's eyelids to shine light into them.
"Pupil fully dilated state is changing. Reacting to light."
Hooosh! Hooosh!
Rapid, heavy gasps suddenly sounded. The previously motionless zombie's chest began to heave violently.
"Rapid breathing, body temperature 40 degrees Celsius, pulse... 200 per minute and still rising."
Throughout the experiment, Dr. Max remained calm. No matter how drastically the data on the display screens changed or how rapidly the machines hummed, he remained as cool as a robot, constantly observing the subject's reactions, recording data, and narrating in a calm voice.
Suddenly, the zombie's eyes snapped open, and her body sprang up like a live shrimp thrown into boiling water, only to be immediately pulled back by the shackles on her hands and feet, colliding heavily with the medical bed with a loud "bang."
Even the Reincarnators were startled by this sudden outburst, yet Dr. Max remained as if nothing had happened, pressing down on the zombie and shining the flashlight into her eyes again.
"Vision restored. Preliminary assessment indicates normal vision. Body temperature 45 degrees Celsius, pulse 330 per minute, still rising."
He forcibly held down the zombie, drew a small amount of her blood with a syringe, and hurried to a nearby table to examine it carefully under a microscope.
Xiang Zenan quietly nudged Uncle Gong's arm and whispered, "Uncle Gong, did you notice? That zombie's blood is a bit green."
Before Gong He could speak, Dr. Max's voice sounded first: "That's because her blood contains a high concentration of nutrients, which is why it appears green. This zombie is mutating into an Advanced Variant."
"What!" The Reincarnators were all startled.
"She's a Variant?" Xiang Zenan pointed incredulously at the zombie on the bed. "But I don't see any differentiation on her!"
"That's because all of her differentiation processes were externally induced and intervened by me throughout. Her differentiation direction isn't physical evolution, but..."
At this point, Dr. Max's voice abruptly stopped. Then he suddenly stood up, showing a surprised expression for the first time since the experiment began, and exclaimed, "It's complete!"
At the same time, the Variant on the bed suddenly opened her eyes wide, her body arched high again, her head lifted with all her might, and her mouth opened wide.
"Ah!!!"
A piercing scream with extreme penetrative power burst from her mouth. The invisible sound waves were like a meteorite falling into the sea, stirring up boundless waves that impacted and spread in all directions.
"Hiss!" Zhou Ming clutched his head and let out a low groan.
"Thump!" The zombie that had let out the scream fell heavily back onto the bed, as if that single cry had exhausted all her strength, and she lay there motionless.
"Zhou Ming, are you alright?" Gong He was the first to notice Zhou Ming's abnormality and quickly asked.
"I, I'm not... Are you guys alright?" Zhou Ming waved his hand, then suddenly realized something was wrong and looked at everyone with suspicion.
"Did you just... not hear the zombie's scream?"
"What scream?" Gong He looked at Zhou Ming with concern. "I didn't hear anything. Are you hallucinating?"
Zhou Ming looked at the others. Qin Wumeng and Xiang Zenan both shook their heads, and even Dr. Max, engrossed in his work, looked over, clearly indicating he hadn't heard it either.
Only Whale Shark said with a grim expression, "I heard it, and I saw it. It was a ripple, an electromagnetic signal."
"What the heck?" Gong He and the other two were bewildered. Only Dr. Max's expression changed, and he immediately rushed to another instrument.
"Abnormal electromagnetic fluctuations, a brand new frequency! It's that zombie..."
Before Dr. Max finished speaking, another fierce shriek sounded, but this time it wasn't from the zombie lying on the bed, but from outside.
It was a response from another zombie!
This zombie, captured by Dr. Max and studied until now, had finally transmitted the information of her imprisonment here, and a powerful zombie outside had finally become aware of this place's existence!
Zhou Ming couldn't help but clutch his head, his eyes filled with a dense Evil Qi.
"Variants... the deeply differentiated parts of Advanced Variants usually possess special abilities..."
"Damn it, is this the special ability of this zombie?"
"Is it electromagnetic waves, or a Soul scream? Or does it possess both powers?"
Zhou Ming could hear the scream because his Soul was much stronger than anyone else's here.
Whale Shark could both "hear" and "see" it because of his as-yet-unachieved Magnetic Field Rotation, which was already showing its strangeness in the current-driving stage.
"Rage!" Whale Shark crossed his arms, his tone tinged with a strange excitement. "That response was filled with rage! I can feel its peak fury, about to break through all limitations. Even if the heavens stand in its way, it will blow them up!"
"But we are what stands in its way!" Zhou Ming slowly lowered his hands from his head and said coldly.
"Exactly!" Whale Shark's excitement grew even stronger. "So it's destined to fall here. To break through us, it's not strong enough!"
"Oh no, that must be a new ability evolved by my subject after becoming an Advanced Variant, capable of transmitting information to the outside world through electromagnetic fluctuations!"
Dr. Max finally shouted out at this moment, only to find that the Reincarnators already had solemn expressions and were exuding a fierce Battle Intent, having prepared for battle in such a short time.
"Dr., gather your things and come with us. How long do you need?" Zhou Ming asked.
Dr. Max snapped out of his awe at their Aura, startled, and shouted, "One hour! I need time to record the data!"
Clearly, he had realized the gravity of the situation. Time was of the essence, and besides the data from this experiment, he was mentally prepared to abandon everything else.
"Alright, then one hour!" Zhou Ming nodded, then quickly said, "Uncle Gong, Xiang Zenan, you two stay here and protect the Dr. Join us immediately after he finishes his work."
"Whale Shark, Qin Wumeng, let's go outside and take a look!"
At this moment, the other members of the team had no objections. Days of interaction had fostered a certain tacit understanding among them, and at critical moments, they implicitly accepted Zhou Ming as the commanding captain.
Uncle Gong and Xiang Zenan stayed behind, while Whale Shark and Qin Wumeng followed Zhou Ming out of the underground laboratory. As soon as they reached the villa on the surface, they heard the noisy, harsh roars and crashing sounds from outside.
Dr. Max's villa was equipped with an expensive security System that could raise metal defenses around the entire villa to block intruders.
This insane security System, which should only appear in "The Purge," had no doubt defended Dr. Max against countless zombie attacks here, allowing him to safely weather many nights.
However, now, this security System was beginning to falter.
Because multiple Advanced Variants were continuously converging here, and increasingly powerful attacks were striking it, constantly damaging the originally impregnable security System.
And this was only the beginning.