I'm Your Little Darling

Having seized control of the helicopter, Li Wei flew it high into the sky. Ignoring the calls over the public channel, he leaned out to survey the chaos below. Perhaps he might spot Alex Mercer.

But amid the rumbling cannon fire and the roar of aircraft guns all around, he found no trace of Alex. There were no distress signals over the radio either. A-God apparently wasn't here.

Though he might still be somewhere nearby. Li Wei wasn't particularly eager to consume officers whose minds were filled with bizarre thoughts, but assimilation was indeed the fastest and most convenient way to find someone.

The infected had barely any memories worth mentioning, so assimilating them wouldn't burden him with any extra memories.

After briefly considering that strange and unpleasant sensation, Li Wei still gave up on assimilating the officers. Instead, he turned the helicopter around and flew toward the GENTEC research facility.

The city was gradually being evacuated, and he still hadn't paid Raymond—the man who had turned him into a Mother—his visit!

Li Wei had originally intended to kill him before leaving. But now that the entire city was being evacuated, Raymond McMullen, as GENTEC's chairman, might have already fled.

The conspicuous helicopter flew over Manhattan and quickly located the GENTEC research facility.

Blackwatch apparently had no plans to evacuate from here. Large numbers of armed troops were still protecting the facility, and Li Wei landed the helicopter on the gleaming helipad of a nearby building.

Several Blackwatch soldiers stood on the rooftop. Seeing the helicopter land, they did not seem particularly wary. Their squad leader sent a communication request to the helicopter.

"I didn't receive any docking notice. Explain yourself."

"I'm here to escort Chairman Raymond McMullen away." Sitting in the helicopter, Li Wei slowly powered down the rotors and explained his purpose upon hearing the squad leader's question.

He was indeed here to send Raymond away from this world. There was nothing wrong with putting it that way.

The Blackwatch squad leader replied, "Wait a moment," then appeared to contact the Blackwatch base.

Li Wei had already stepped out of the aircraft. Still wearing the appearance of the military pilot, he transformed his arm into a twisting, spinning tentacle and lashed it directly across the Blackwatch squad leader's face. A headless corpse was created in an instant.

The Blackwatch soldiers, who had been completely unconcerned moments before, were stunned by the sudden scene. But they quickly raised their guns at Li Wei and pulled the triggers, bullets spraying from their muzzles.

Li Wei stamped the ground and shot forward like an arrow. His right hand spread open and seized a Blackwatch soldier by the throat, while his left hand transformed into claws and pierced through the man's body.

He let the bullets strike him. Aside from a stinging pain, they left nothing behind.

After tossing aside the corpse, Li Wei took several more swift strides. His claws pierced the remaining Blackwatch soldiers. When he reached the last one, countless black-and-red fleshy tendrils stabbed into the soldier's body. In less than a second, Li Wei had merged with him.

"Ugh... He's actually gay!" Li Wei dry-heaved on the spot, his heart turning cold. Every time he absorbed and assimilated someone whose brain remained intact, he gained their recent memories.

This ability granted by the virus was powerful indeed, a perfect tool for interrogation and extracting confessions, but the downsides were genuinely huge!

Headaches and fevers were one thing, but constantly seeing other people's bizarre fetishes was like having some indescribable horror smash him in the head. It was revolting beyond belief!

"If I ever use this again, I'm a brain-dead idiot!" After dealing with his psychological discomfort, Li Wei picked up a rifle from the ground, replaced its magazine, and leisurely walked down from the building.

From the Blackwatch soldier's memories, he had learned that Raymond had not left yet, though he was about to.

The inside of the building was empty. After taking the elevator down and rounding a corner, he could see the GENTEC research facility.

Relying on this disguise, Li Wei avoided numerous inspections and eventually followed an ordinary soldier into the facility.

The damage Li Wei and the Hunter had caused to the buildings a few days ago had not been extensive. By releasing blood toxins in time, the facility had quickly locked the Hunter back in its cage. Some cutting-edge equipment was difficult to relocate, so the base had not changed locations.

Raymond McMullen had just taken off his lab coat when he received word that the helicopter sent to escort him away had apparently arrived.

He did not waste any more time. Grabbing a briefcase stuffed with documents, he prepared to leave his office.

But at that moment, the office door was rudely pushed open from outside, and a lab technician in a white coat walked in expressionlessly.

Recognizing the newcomer, Raymond relaxed and continued toward the door. "Jeni, if there's anything you need, speak to your supervisor. He's in charge here now."

Manhattan could explode into a viral disaster at any moment. Even the super soldiers Blackwatch had deployed on a massive scale could die at any time.

A scholar like him naturally could not sit around and wait for death!

But just as he was about to brush past Jeni, a hand like an iron clamp seized his neck. His body was forced backward, and Jeni lifted him entirely off the ground.

A crimson wave swept across Jeni's body, and his face shifted. A man in a black leather jacket and hood, wearing a familiar face, appeared before Raymond.

"Mer... cer..." Raymond's neck reddened as he choked. When he saw Alex Mercer, his eyes bulged wide. He had clearly never expected to encounter Alex here.

Alex had no intention of wasting words on Raymond. His left hand twisted and transformed into a pair of terrifying, savage claws.

"Chairman! I'm here to escort you out..."

Just as Alex was about to kill and assimilate Raymond, the office door behind him was pushed open again. A uniformed Blackwatch soldier entered the room with a gun in hand.

The Blackwatch soldier was clearly taken aback by the sight inside the office. But after freezing for a moment, he decisively raised his gun at Alex and shouted, "Let Chairman Raymond go! Leave this place!"

A glimmer of hope gradually appeared in Raymond's unfocused eyes, and his trembling hand reached toward his pocket.

But the next moment, his neck loosened. The large hand that had kept him from breathing released him.

Once freed, Raymond collapsed weakly to the floor. The pistol in his pocket fell to the ground. Through his hazy vision, he saw the Blackwatch soldier knock Mercer aside and flee.

He was safe!

Seeing this, Raymond was filled with relief. Then a pair of large hands helped him up, and he heard several indistinct words by his ear.

"Chairman Raymond... get up. I'll take you somewhere safe..."

Alex's grip had left Raymond completely dazed. Drool continued to run uncontrollably from his mouth. He did not resist, merely placing his hand on the good soldier's shoulder and staggering forward.

The indistinct cries by his ear grew more numerous. Raymond felt himself being led into a room. Looking around, it seemed somewhat familiar.

"Chairman Raymond, come, have a seat!"

The soldier's voice sounded again.

What a good soldier~ Later, Raymond intended to transfer the soldier who had saved his life to his side as his personal bodyguard!

There were not many soldiers this loyal and reliable anymore. Only soldiers like this could accomplish great things!

"Alright!"

Raymond sat down in the chair. His flushed face had already returned to normal. Looking around, he could not help saying, "Eh, this place looks a little familiar."

"Of course it does. This is your Laboratory No. 2, Chairman!" The soldier shoved Raymond onto the repaired hospital bed, his hands moving like lightning as he quickly secured Raymond to it.

By the time Raymond came to his senses, his body had already been fastened to the hospital bed. Only his upper body could still move with difficulty.

He stared in disbelief at the Blackwatch soldier who had saved him from Mercer, his throat stammering, "You, you... who are you?!"

Dark-red waves rippled across the Blackwatch soldier's body, just as they had across Alex. Li Wei returned to his original appearance, an utterly wicked smile spreading across his face. "I'm your little darling, Chairman~!"