"Tell me your suggestions."
General Qi spoke slowly, his expression unusually heavy.
When the virus broke out, nearly four-fifths of humanity died.
Younger children, from newborns to teenagers around twelve or thirteen years old.
Older elderly people, the mortality rate for those over fifty was extremely high, and almost none of those over sixty survived.
The mortality rate for these two age groups was the highest.
For Qi Jianwen, the old leaders of the army group failed to survive the virus outbreak and died, and he couldn't contact his superiors. After he was thrust into the position of lieutenant general, the only absolute authority in the army group, he didn't feel much joy in his heart. All he felt was a heavy responsibility that was about to crush him.
Communications were completely paralyzed. Radio waves could only be transmitted over short distances. Any further than that, the inexplicable energy field in space interfered, and radio signals simply couldn't be transmitted.
It had been more than ten days since the apocalypse.
He couldn't contact the capital.
He couldn't contact other army groups or military regions.
The planes that were sent out, whether armed helicopters or fighter jets, could only maintain intermittent contact at close range. Beyond a certain distance, there was no news, and not a single one could fly back.
After the virus outbreak, only more than 20,000 soldiers remained in the vast military region.
Not to mention how many survivors outside were waiting for the military to provide assistance, just those who had fled to the military region from nearby cities with bloodshed all the way, plus those who had returned from rescue missions, there were nearly 300,000 survivors in the military region alone.
20,000 soldiers, 300,000 survivors, these were a mountain, pressing down on him heavily.
Qi Jianwen couldn't imagine how many humans had been killed throughout Huaxia during the virus outbreak, followed by the mutated beasts, insects, and other mutated creatures beyond human imagination.
"Traditional combat methods, including ordinary soldiers, are no longer so important. Awakened humans are the key to our survival."
Chen Gong's firm voice interrupted Qi Jianwen's thoughts.
"Ability users and evolutionaries, the strength they can display is not limited to what we are currently seeing. Mutated creatures are still evolving, and our human awakeners are also evolving."
"To be at the top of the food chain like before, it seems unrealistic now. What we need to do now is to survive as much as possible and not be completely eliminated from the food chain in the shortest possible time."
"Here, I have good news to tell everyone. After my team and I worked day and night, we successfully extracted the original evolutionary genes, which is what you know as the virus, from the bodies of people and animals who died in the early stages of the virus outbreak."
"After purifying the virus, we combined it with the mutated genes of human evolutionaries and successfully developed the gene evolution fluid."
Speaking of this, a fanatical expression appeared on Chen Gong's face.
"Gene evolution fluid!" A government official was slightly stunned.
"I have the honor of inviting everyone to see our research results." Chen Gong's face showed a confident smile.
"Let's go." Greatly moved, Qi Jianwen couldn't sit still any longer. He stood up and followed Chen Gong out of the conference room.
The others followed, discussing as they walked.
The location of the conference room, including the underground research laboratory, was the core area of the military region. Especially in the chaotic apocalypse, it was now heavily guarded, with a sentry every five steps and a post every ten steps.
Following the stairs, Chen Gong led a group of people into the underground research institute. After entering a password and passing fingerprint and iris authentication, the heavy metal door with a modern feel slowly opened.
Inside the huge underground research institute, in transparent research rooms, were various high-tech experimental equipment. However, there were not many independently researched by Huaxia. Most of the internationally advanced experimental equipment were basically imported at a high price in the past.
As many as hundreds of staff members in white coats and masks were busy conducting various experimental operations. Even when the professor led a group of people in, most people were buried in the screens and experimental equipment, not even raising their heads and not noticing them at all.
"Everyone, please come in."
Walking through a long corridor, Chen Gong led everyone into an unusually large independent research room.
"Oh my god, what are these?"
"Am I seeing things? How did the skin on that person's body become scales!"
"Over there, look over there, that person has wings!"
...
The people who could come here had all seen the world, but at this time, they were like Grandma Liu entering the Grand View Garden, everything they saw was incredibly surprising, or rather, shocking.
A large number of glass containers were distributed in the research room, some large and some small, filled with green liquid.
Inside the liquid, were soaking various creatures, including mutated vicious rats, as well as mutated vicious cats, vicious dogs, etc. Among them, there were also some humans.
Strangely shaped, these creatures all had organs growing on their bodies that they did not originally possess.
For example, a woman with gray inner membrane wings.
For example, a man whose skin was covered with keratinized scales.
For example, a mutated vicious rat with horns growing on its head.
...
"These people, have they taken the gene evolution fluid you mentioned?"
Qi Jianwen's voice was slightly trembling, whether it was because of shock or some other reason.
"No, they are just another direction of my gene research, mixing gene fragments of mutated beasts and insects with each other and with humans..."
"Who can ensure that these monsters fused from the gene fragments of ferocious beasts and humans will not attack our humans. I think there are great hidden dangers in your research."
A government official pushed the frame of his glasses on the bridge of his nose, and said with an uneasy expression.
"This is just the first direction of research. Before we have developed a method to perfectly control them, we will naturally not mass-produce them. Also, our hidden dangers are in the outside world, not here."
Chen Gong said calmly, and then led everyone to another laboratory.
"This is experimental subject number 324, a survivor who escaped from D City to the military region. He was originally a security guard. This experiment was conducted after I obtained his consent. Of course, if his evolution fails, we have more experimental subjects to experiment with."
Chen Gong looked at the slightly uneasy middle-aged man in the experiment room and explained to everyone in a soft voice.
No one said anything. Compared to the "gene evolution fluid" mentioned by Chen Gong, an ordinary survivor was nothing to them.
In the apocalypse, the most precious thing is human life, after all, the population is constantly decreasing sharply.
In the apocalypse, the least precious thing is also human life, with different people dying in various ways every day.
"Let's start, I want to see it from beginning to end." Qi Jianwen said with a solemn expression.
Chen Gong's gaze turned to an assistant on the side, who then walked in carrying a square box.
Closing the door, the assistant placed the box on the table, and without hurrying to open it, looked at the middle-aged man and asked, "Are you ready to become an evolutionary? Of course, this process may be dangerous, and you may lose your life at any time due to genetic collapse."
"How is my daughter's condition?" The middle-aged man asked in a trembling voice.
"Her external injuries are no longer serious, but her right leg is severely inflamed and can only be amputated, but I assure you that we will install a prosthesis for her at the appropriate time and arrange a simple and comfortable job for her in the research institute."
The assistant said calmly, and finally solemnly added: "You don't have to doubt, the country will not deceive you."
"Okay, I'm ready." A hint of determination flashed in the depths of the middle-aged man's eyes.
"Chirp..."
As the box was opened, a gust of cold air came out. The assistant took out a transparent glass bottle from the box, and the light blue liquid contained in it looked extremely gorgeous.
Taking it, the middle-aged man pulled out the cork without hesitation and drank it all in one gulp.
The assistant then closed the box and quickly left the laboratory.
Casting a fleeting glance at the assistant, Qi Jianwen had a thoughtful expression on his face.
After drinking the so-called "gene evolution fluid," the middle-aged man couldn't see the people outside the glass wall. He sat quietly, with a trace of nostalgia on his face.
Suddenly, in just a few seconds, a painful expression appeared on the middle-aged man's face.
"Ah..."
The pain reached its peak in an instant. The middle-aged man looked up and fell to the ground, his body convulsing and hunching into a ball, and then opening violently again.
As if several small mice had burrowed into his body, the middle-aged man's skin, bones, and muscles kept bulging.
The howling sound was earth-shattering. Not knowing what kind of pain the middle-aged man was enduring, his head was desperately hitting the ground, and his forehead was soon flowing with blood.
His entire body was bulging with blue veins, throbbing one by one. The middle-aged man's complexion turned red, as if it was about to drip blood. In extreme pain, he looked extremely ferocious.
The blood-red color on his skin faded, and the middle-aged man, who was desperately rolling and hitting his head on the ground, gradually slowed down his movements.
After a long time, he slowly stood up and moved his arms and legs strangely.
As if in disbelief, he looked around, kicked his foot, and rushed to the wall.
"Boom!"
His right fist, with the sound of wind, slammed violently on the wall, and a clear fist mark pit was dented on the heavy alloy wall in response.
"It's a success."
Looking at the people who had just been expressionless, seeing them staring at the middle-aged man who punched a hole in the alloy table again, each of them showing an inscrutable expression, Chen Gong smiled especially heartily.
"A total of 324 experimental subjects were tested, and he and one other person evolved successfully."
"Amazing speed, immense strength, excellent visual senses, and excellent nerve reaction speed. Such an evolutionary, equipped with advanced weapons, can be worth how many ordinary soldiers, I think the military, who want more evolutionaries, should be very clear."
"More evolutionaries are the basics, and the research on biochemical humans is even more critical. They will definitely become the most elite force that our humans can control in the future."
Chen Gong smiled and looked at Qi Jianwen.
Qi Jianwen did not speak. Watching the middle-aged man finally burst into tears of joy, after a long time, he slowly said: "The research on biochemical humans is temporarily shelved. I don't want a military base that has defended against ferocious beasts and insects to be breached from the inside due to a research laboratory disaster."
"The gene evolution fluid can continue to be researched and experimented with, but mass use is strictly prohibited until I nod."
"From today onwards, the laboratory is allowed to enter but not to exit. Also, keep a close watch on these two people who have successfully evolved. I want to know clearly every move they make every day, what they eat, what they drink, what they say every day, even an expression or a thought."
"Yes!" Behind Qi Jianwen, a fair-skinned young major general responded.
"Alas, I believe that similar research has already begun all over the world, and our progress is already very slow. Evolutionaries are key, and biochemical humans fused with ferocious beast genes are the most important. Why can't you understand..."
Watching Qi Jianwen and others leave quickly, his gaze falling on their backs, Professor Chen Gong, with his full head of white hair but vigorous energy, pondered in his heart, and a thick sarcasm appeared in his eyes.
PS: To be honest, these two chapters are really not filler. This Chen Gong will be a very important character.