Chapter Three: A Regretful Choice

No one knew how much time had passed before Zhu Lan finally woke up.

Gurgle~~~

The moment he opened his eyes, weakness flooded his body, making Zhu Lan smile bitterly. Forcing himself to climb out of bed, he grabbed the bread he’d bought days ago, laboriously tore open the packaging, and devoured it like a famished ghost returning to life—all gone in mere moments.

Touching his stomach, Zhu Lan found his hunger far from satisfied. With no other choice, he got dressed and headed downstairs, determined to fill his belly before returning. A glance at his phone revealed the time. Zhu Lan could only offer a wry smile, for he had slept twenty-nine hours straight.

“Ridiculous!” Zhu Lan couldn’t help but shout. Twenty-nine hours—ten more than his previous record of nineteen. No wonder he felt so weak with hunger.

Shaking his head, Zhu Lan retrieved the metal case from under the bed.

Staring at the digital lock, he froze. What was the password again?

“Damn it!” Only now did Zhu Lan remember—the case required a password.

With no alternative, he had to rewatch the first Resident Evil film.

Night fell. As the red light turned green onscreen, that familiar vial of liquid appeared before Zhu Lan’s eyes, bringing tears of relief.

“At last! If I hadn’t managed to open it, I would have destroyed you myself!” Zhu Lan had lost count of how many times he’d watched Parks open the case or how many attempts he’d made. He only remembered leaving once to eat, driven by hunger, before returning to keep trying.

Now, holding the vial of the virus and its serum, Zhu Lan frowned.

He’d only meant to enhance himself, but now, faced with the virus, he was reminded how terrifying it truly was. He’d been so focused on himself that he’d completely overlooked the danger this thing posed.

Living in a chaotic urban village, where burglaries were commonplace, the thought of this thing being stolen or broken open was unthinkable.

“I have to leave, find somewhere safe!” The sheer horror of the virus chilled Zhu Lan to the bone. Even a tiny leak could mean the end of the world.

With that thought, Zhu Lan quickly closed the case, exhaling in relief, though his hands and feet could not stop trembling.

The virus—a weapon capable of ending the world. How could he have brought it out of a film?

“Why was I so reckless?” Zhu Lan’s face was ashen, as if he’d lost his parents. He was no megalomaniac, but with something so terrifying in his hands, no one could claim not to be afraid.

“I must move it. This place isn’t safe. If…” Zhu Lan couldn’t finish the thought.

He turned on his computer, searching for a place he needed.

In this age of the internet, most things could be handled online—one could solve ninety-five percent of life’s problems without stepping outside.

Soon, Zhu Lan found a suitable option on the local rental site.

“Hello, is this Mr. Luo? I saw the warehouse you listed online. Do you have time to discuss it? I’d like to talk about the price,” Zhu Lan said, going straight to the point.

“Oh, do you know the Sky Blue Café? Meet me there at one this afternoon,” came the voice of a middle-aged man.

Zhu Lan considered the location and agreed. “Alright, one o’clock at Sky Blue Café.”

The man simply gave a table number and hung up.

Zhu Lan put down his phone, found some clothes, took a shower, and packed his belongings. He placed the metal case containing the virus inside his old backpack—he wouldn’t dare leave it in his room; it had to stay with him at all times for peace of mind.

Once everything was ready, he checked the time—it was already noon. He picked up his backpack and left, taking more than fifty minutes to reach Sky Blue Café.

Inside, at table thirteen, sat a man in his fifties.

“Are you Mr. Luo?” Zhu Lan asked politely.

“You must be the one who called. Please, have a seat,” Mr. Luo said, standing and gesturing for him to sit.

Zhu Lan nodded, placed his backpack on the inside seat, sat down, and kept his right hand on the bag. The threat of the virus kept his heart on edge.

“Thank you for making time for me today, Mr. Luo,” Zhu Lan began.

“Let’s skip the pleasantries. You young people always like to beat around the bush. You want to rent the place? I can give you a better price.”

Zhu Lan was surprised, expecting to have to negotiate harder. Mr. Luo was unexpectedly straightforward.

“In that case, I’ll get to the point. I want to rent the large warehouse in the northern suburbs, but three thousand a month is too high.”

Mr. Luo paused, clearly surprised—he’d expected Zhu Lan to be interested in other properties, not the least likely one.

“You’re interested in that one? The situation there…” Mr. Luo trailed off.

Zhu Lan smiled. “I know the place, and that’s exactly why the price is too high.”

Mr. Luo looked at him intently. “Since you insist, I have a condition—minimum half a year, and I’ll let you have it for twenty-five hundred a month.”

Zhu Lan shook his head. “Two thousand, and I’ll rent for a year.”

Mr. Luo frowned. “Impossible. That price is too low. The warehouse may be abandoned, but it was built to large-scale specs, with supporting facilities. Twenty-five hundred is my lowest.”

Zhu Lan remained calm. “Mr. Luo, everyone knows the situation there. If you leave it empty, it just wastes away. Rent it to me, and you’ll get twenty-four thousand a year. If not, you’ll pay thousands in electricity alone. I’ll cover all utilities and repairs, and the road there is practically ruined, isn’t it?”

Mr. Luo was silent, then looked up. “Two years, two thousand a month, and it’s yours.”

Zhu Lan shook his head. “I can’t commit to that, but I’ll pay for the whole year upfront. How about that?”

“Deal!” Mr. Luo agreed immediately—the prospect of a year’s rent paid at once was too tempting.

With the agreement reached, Mr. Luo made a call. Half an hour later, a lawyer arrived with two contracts for both parties to sign.

Zhu Lan learned Mr. Luo’s full name—Luo You, a local second-hand goods dealer.

They both signed, and Zhu Lan transferred twenty-four thousand directly to Luo You’s account. For the next year, the warehouse in the northern suburbs was his.

Back at his rented room, Zhu Lan canceled the lease, packed his things, and spent nearly two hours crossing the city to reach the warehouse.

The place Zhu Lan rented was in the northern suburbs—a region once covered by a dozen small mountains, each about a hundred meters tall. Seven years ago, they’d been flattened for the construction of a highway, creating a vast plain. The city government, hoping to capitalize on the highway, planned an industrial park. Luo You, hearing the news, built ten massive warehouses there.

But the project faltered. In the second year of construction, a major problem with the Liyang River Bridge forced the highway to be rerouted further away, bypassing the northern suburbs for the western. Without the highway, the industrial park was abandoned. The area became desolate—only a handful of cost-cutting companies used the warehouses, and few people ever came by.

The place was so deserted that even local thugs avoided it—there was nothing to gain in the northern suburbs, and security was absolute.

Most importantly, Zhu Lan’s warehouse was at the edge of the area, with mountains stretching for hundreds of meters beyond. The nearest inhabited place was a kilometer away. Not only was there no one around, there were hardly any animals. Here, even if anything went wrong with the virus, Zhu Lan would have ways to contain it.

Moreover, with the things he’d be bringing out in future, he needed a place that could provide cover. Here, where not even animals ventured, was perfect.

It took him a week to clean out the warehouse and set up a living space by himself.

The result was satisfactory—he had a place to live, but his wallet was now empty.

His residence was on the second floor at the very back of the warehouse—a steel-structured room once meant for the warehouse supervisor. After cleaning, Zhu Lan moved in.

Originally, the ground floor beneath his living quarters was empty, supported only by a dozen steel pillars. Zhu Lan hired workers to enclose the first floor with steel plates and dug a space to bury a safe he’d bought for over three thousand yuan. He buried the virus in the safe underground. To prevent discovery, he filled the first floor with leftover junk from the warehouse. Unless someone cleared everything out and started digging, no one would ever know that a world-ending virus was hidden beneath their feet.

Zhu Lan was already regretting this. The virus was terrifying, and he couldn’t be sure he would even be able to merge with it successfully. He needed help to perfect the virus, which meant first acquiring a biological laboratory.

He thought of the Red Queen, but quickly realized he couldn’t bring her out for now. The Umbrella Corporation’s technological prowess was immense—even artificial intelligence, but the Red Queen’s host system was an entire room of massive, complex equipment. He could bring out the motherboard, but what use was that without the supporting hardware? The Red Queen simply couldn’t run.

Umbrella was the world’s most powerful biotech company in Resident Evil, based in America. Their equipment, perhaps not far ahead of this world’s, was still top-class. China might have such gear, but it would be reserved for the military or elite state research labs. As an ordinary citizen, Zhu Lan wouldn’t be able to buy it—just expressing interest would likely draw the authorities’ attention.

So, he’d have to bring out the entire Red Queen server room to get her running.

For now, though, Zhu Lan could only bring out a few parts at a time—maybe a dozen components a day—studying and recording their arrangement, so that eventually, he could reassemble them himself.