Alex could not stand it any longer. He grabbed the syringe and lunged at Elizabeth Greene, intending to destroy and absorb her so he could learn the truth.
His attack posed no threat to Elizabeth Greene at all. With nothing more than a nimble twist and kick, she sent the approaching Alex flying.
Li Wei saw Alex's face twist under the direct blow of her foot and could not help feeling sorry for his face for a second.
"Damn, that was brutal!"
Li Wei grinned through clenched teeth and took two steps back, putting a little distance between himself and Elizabeth Greene.
After kicking Alex away, Elizabeth Greene looked back at Li Wei, stepped forward again, and extended her left hand. "Absorb me, and you will gain everything I have."
"Sure, you said it!"
Though he was not entirely sure what was going on, how could Li Wei refuse when she was being so sincere?
Besides, his original goal had been to absorb Elizabeth Greene, replenish the Key's energy, and leave the world of Prototype sooner.
His right hand grabbed the hand Elizabeth Greene had extended, while his left arm transformed into a claw.
Before he could even raise it, Alex appeared again. Both of his hands had become claws, and his face was twisted with fury, as though he wanted to grind Elizabeth Greene's bones to dust.
Seeing Alex reappear, Li Wei suddenly had the urge to kick him away too.
Elizabeth Greene just talked so much and said she was willing to let me assimilate her. Why the hell are you jumping out again?
Though Elizabeth Greene's attention was focused on Li Wei, she could not possibly ignore Alex. With a single glance over her shoulder, Alex's limbs stiffened, and she kicked him flying again.
When she turned her gaze back to Li Wei's face, her expression remained calm and unruffled.
If there had been even a trace of tenderness or reluctance in her eyes, Li Wei might have acted faster. Unfortunately, there was none.
"Come..." Elizabeth Greene stepped forward again, hoping Li Wei could put an end to her painful life sooner.
Whoosh!
A syringe shot straight at her, instantly piercing Elizabeth Greene's temple. The force was so great that her head was knocked ninety degrees to the side.
The sudden horror made Li Wei lower the arm he had just been about to move. He looked toward Alex, who had emerged from the darkness and stepped back into the light.
"Didn't you hear what she just said? She's willing to let me absorb her. Are you trying to steal her?"
Alex did not answer Li Wei's question. He merely gave Li Wei a cold look, then charged at Elizabeth Greene with a claw in one hand and a broad blade in the other.
A hoarse scream rang out before him. Li Wei turned back and saw Elizabeth Greene pull the syringe from her temple, clutching the wound with her left hand as she staggered back with a scream.
Alex wanted to kill Elizabeth Greene, while Elizabeth Greene wanted him to assimilate her.
So... what was he supposed to do now?
A claw and broad blade burst forth instantly. Li Wei took one stride forward and blocked Alex's path.
That action seemed to provoke Alex. On his final step, he drove his strength to the limit, bringing his enormous broad blade straight down at Li Wei.
The Hive rang with the clash of refined steel. A burst of air exploded from the ground as two nearly identical broad blades collided, neither gaining the upper hand.
"What the hell are you doing?" Li Wei and Alex were locked blade against blade, claw against claw. Their faces were less than forty centimeters apart, and they could see every detail of each other's expressions clearly.
"I need to know the truth. Move aside. I have to kill her myself!" Alex gritted his teeth, increased his strength, and forced the words out through clenched teeth.
Li Wei did not answer Alex's question. He increased the force in his own hands as well.
If Elizabeth Greene had not willingly offered to let him assimilate her, Li Wei might have stepped aside. But now, he could not pretend her earlier words had never been spoken.
While the two struggled against each other, Elizabeth Greene was tortured by the vaccine until she collapsed to the ground, eventually vomiting up a large mass of thick pink mucus.
The mucus rapidly expanded across the floor, gradually forming the outline of a huge humanoid figure as beastlike growls rose from within it.
Alex and Li Wei both noticed the movement behind them. They suddenly exerted force and shoved each other away.
After separating to either side, they both turned toward Elizabeth Greene.
Elizabeth Greene was still sprawled on the ground, vomiting continuously, while the mucus she had expelled grew on its own and quickly took on a humanoid form. An ugly monster was being born.
Its body was tall and malformed, its skin flesh-colored and streaked with blood vessels. It had a gleaming bald head and sharp pillar-like arms. It resembled a Hunter somewhat, but the pressure it gave off was even greater.
The newborn Supreme Hunter slowly rose from the ground, instantly understood the situation, and let out a furious roar toward Li Wei and Alex.
Elizabeth Greene slowly climbed to her feet. She unconsciously wiped her mouth, then pointed at Alex with one hand.
Receiving Elizabeth Greene's will, the Supreme Hunter stomped hard against the ground. It was not particularly fast, but its charge carried the momentum of a tank advancing at full speed.
Heavy, yet not lacking in speed!
Li Wei watched in amazement. He loved that powerful-looking build. It was a little ugly, sure, but if he had a group of subordinates like that in the future, they could probably scare enemies to death before even fighting!
But he would be leaving soon. The Key's energy had already reached 82.67%. Once he absorbed Elizabeth Greene, the Mother of All, the energy should fill up completely.
He would have no use for the Mother of All's strange abilities afterward. The virus would not leak under his control either. The only unfortunate thing was that he would no longer be able to marry and have children.
Unless he found someone willing to accept his Prototype transformation and let their body become strange... though that should be easy enough. After all, this was a transformation that could preserve one's most beautiful appearance forever!
There was no point dwelling on it. After the Supreme Hunter forced Alex back, Elizabeth Greene returned to Li Wei's side.
This time, Li Wei did not hesitate. His blade and claw pierced Elizabeth Greene's body at the same time. Countless crimson flesh tendrils spread rapidly from within him, wrapping around her body bit by bit, dissolving, assimilating, and absorbing her.
Just as she had said, Elizabeth Greene did not resist. She merely accepted her death with a calm gaze. Her self-awareness, like a candle flame flickering in the wind, slowly faded as Li Wei absorbed and assimilated her.
As Elizabeth Greene's consciousness faded, Li Wei gained the memories of her entire life.
She had been born into a military family, deceived by Blackwatch and America's upper echelon, and sent to live in Hope Town, where everyone was injected with a virus known as DX-1118.
No one in the town knew what was happening until one day, when the full mutation began. Because of her special constitution, Elizabeth Greene became the virus's Mother of All, her body transformed into a super-factory producing deadly viruses.
All the mutants instinctively protected her...
After viewing the memories of Elizabeth Greene's life, Li Wei learned something that made him happy.
Even after becoming the Mother of All, she had retained her fertility. Elizabeth Greene had still gone through a painful childbirth after becoming the Mother of All and given birth to a baby.
However, Elizabeth Greene did not remember much about her child. By then, Blackwatch had already stormed into the town and forcibly taken her away while she was weakened. Naturally, the child had also been taken by Blackwatch for research, and its whereabouts were unknown.
Being able to continue spreading his genes was certainly a good thing, but Li Wei cared more about whether the Key's energy had finished replenishing.
Looking at the progress bar beside the transparent Key and the number displayed above it, he found that it was exactly as he had expected. The energy had reached 100%. The Key remained fifty percent transparent, its edges flickering with a faint white glow, as though he could reach out and pluck it from the void.
"It's over..."
He could go home!
The muscles throughout Li Wei's body slowly relaxed, and the corners of his mouth gradually lifted. His mood soared—then the Supreme Hunter kicked him flying with one massive foot.
His body instantly bent into a bow as he shot out faster than a cannonball, smashing through the fungus-wrapped wall like a comet and flying out of the core Hive.
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