Umbrella Corporation camp, command center.
"Sir! We've got a connection."
The blond technician lifted her head, tossing her shimmering golden seaweed-like hair, and spoke to the supervisor of Umbrella Corporation's Raccoon City branch.
"Excellent, sweetheart." The supervisor slipped a wireless Bluetooth earpiece over his ear. Watching the unusually young "Chinese exchange student" on the computer screen, he said in a low voice, "My young friend from China, or perhaps... my special agent from China, it seems you have something to tell me."
Somewhere in Raccoon City's South District, in front of a public phone booth.
When the public phone finally rang, Yin Kuang knew he hadn't wasted nearly twenty minutes waving at the surveillance camera. He'd almost been "treated" by a Zombie that had wandered past.
Yin Kuang picked up the phone. He'd been about to greet the caller in the clumsy accent he'd learned from his English teacher, but the other person spoke first. After a long pause, Yin Kuang finally understood what the person on the other end meant, and a bead of cold sweat trickled down his forehead. "Me? A special agent? Is that guy's brain on the fritz? Someone like me might not even make it as an ordinary worker, let alone a special agent!"
So Yin Kuang said, "Ma'am... no, sir... you've got it wrong. I... I'm not a special agent. I'm just... just an exchange student." It was his first time speaking with a foreigner, and in English, too. Yin Kuang was a little nervous and mixed up "sir" and "ma'am."
"..." The other person fell silent for a moment, clearly struggling to understand Yin Kuang's clumsy English. "All right. Whoever you are, tell me what you want."
If Yin Kuang had been an ordinary person, the supervisor wouldn't have given him the time of day. But he was one of the "Chinese exchange students" who had inflicted heavy losses on the Black Snake Mercenaries. That made the supervisor curious about what this Chinese boy, who didn't look a day over twenty, wanted from him.
"I want T-Virus Serum... pure..." Yin Kuang stated his purpose bluntly. He knew foreigners didn't like beating around the bush; they spoke plainly and directly. Yin Kuang also liked people who got straight to the point.
"What? What did you say?" The supervisor already felt like he was being messed with. He suddenly wanted to crush the wireless earpiece on his ear. "Kid, that joke isn't funny. And you've picked the wrong person to joke with. I have to admit, I'm impressed you managed to give Black Snake a thorough beating, but that doesn't mean I'll put up with your stupidity."
Yin Kuang knew the other person was about to hang up. Though he could mostly understand what the man meant, he hurriedly said, "I have a dog. A black dog. I'm sure Umbrella Corporation would be very interested in it. It's a special dog."
"A dog?" The supervisor put the earpiece he'd already taken off back on. Suddenly, a thought flashed through his mind. "Damn it! I've been so focused on the 'Pursuer' and Alice that I completely forgot about that extraordinary Labrador!"
Frowning, he said, "You're right. I am very interested in that Labrador. So, you have the dog?"
"Yes. To be honest, I ambushed your company's security guards because of this dog. I can't tell you why. But now, I want to make a simple deal with your company using this dog. I'm sure you'll be very interested. This dog is extremely important to your company."
Speaking so many English words was genuinely difficult for Yin Kuang. Fortunately, his English foundation was solid. His accent was terrible, but he could just about piece together simple sentences with simple words, and his meaning was more or less clear.
The supervisor managed to understand Yin Kuang's meaning. His smooth forehead creased as he asked, "What do you want?"
"T-Virus Serum, as pure as possible," Yin Kuang said. "I imagine you have plenty. I only need one sample, and you'll get the dog."
"Ha!" The supervisor couldn't help laughing. "Young friend from China, you should know that every sample of the T-Virus is incredibly precious. The purer it is, the more valuable it becomes. You may not know the market, but even diluted T-Virus can fetch a hundred million dollars on the black market. One hundred million dollars. You foolish Chinese boy, do you really think a Labrador is worth that much?"
Yin Kuang understood what the other person meant. He's bargaining. Looks like there's a chance this deal might go through. I know Umbrella Corporation may not play fair, but I still have a shot.
So Yin Kuang said, "No, no! Sir, you may only be interested in this black dog, but you have no idea what it's really worth. I swear to you on my ancestors that this dog is worth far more than a hundred million dollars. It's worth more than Raccoon City itself."
The supervisor smiled, but his expression quickly turned serious.
He knew a little about China. He knew that swearing by one's ancestors was considered sacred and solemn there, much like Christians swearing by Christ or the cross. It carried even more weight than a legal contract.
"Then tell me what's so special about this ordinary-looking dog that it could be worth more than the city you're in. Perhaps you don't even know how many billions of dollars this city is worth."
"No matter how much it's worth, this dog is worth more to your company," Yin Kuang said. He turned toward the camera high above and flashed it a smile. "I swear, you'll want it badly. You'll get it for a price far below its true value. All I want is one sample of the purest T-Virus Serum."
"Tell me what it's worth. I'll think carefully about whether this deal is worthwhile."
Yin Kuang said, "Just watch."
With that, Yin Kuang set the phone aside. Then, from somewhere, he got hold of a Zombie's corpse and placed it beneath the camera. After that, he put the black dog beside the corpse.
He picked up the receiver and said, "Sir, don't blink. You're about to witness a miracle."
After speaking, he went over to the Labrador, took out a knife, and cut a small wound in one of the black dog's paws. He used a cup to collect a little of its blood...
In front of the screen, the Umbrella Corporation supervisor suddenly barked, "Zoom in, you idiot!"
The blond technician froze in fear.
Once the camera zoomed in, the supervisor could see everything more clearly. The Chinese boy was sprinkling the black dog's blood over the Zombie's body, drop by drop.
After he finished, Yin Kuang was extremely nervous, too. His previous experiment had succeeded: the female Zombie's muscles had regained the elasticity and color of a human's, and its thick, black blood had turned red. But he couldn't be sure this would work again.
Still, Yin Kuang was lucky. This time, it worked!
"Oh! My God... what am I seeing?!"
The supervisor let out an unrestrained gasp of amazement, his expression blank with shock. But it didn't last long before it gave way to excitement, exhilaration, and even madness!
He wasn't the only one. The technicians who noticed the anomaly and the researchers who had crowded around were going wild, too!
"Its blood! Good heavens... good heavens! Almighty God, have You finally shown us Your power?" A bald researcher tossed aside his notebook and rushed to the screen, nearly pressing his face against it. "This dog's blood... it can actually break down the T-Virus?!"
"Get out of the way, you old fool." The supervisor shoved the old researcher aside and crowded up to the screen himself. He stared at the analysis data provided by the technicians. The screen clearly displayed the results, and even though they were only preliminary, they were more than enough to excite him. "I wasn't wrong. I wasn't wrong. I knew this dog was extraordinary. I'm such an idiot! Such an idiot!"
The supervisor no longer saw a dog. He saw money—an enormous amount of money—and power within Umbrella Corporation. He could almost see himself becoming one of the company's decision-makers, sitting in the boardroom and scolding employees who'd made mistakes—even the supervisors who'd once scolded and insulted him!
Before you continue