"It's not that I'm unwilling to give them out for free. There are only so many resources, and even the cleverest housewife can't cook without rice."
"But our helplessness in the face of the demon tide is something we must confront—and consider as a possibility—because it is a crisis of survival and extinction. With our current technology and limited supernatural resources, it is almost impossible to solve."
His words were like a key, unlocking the hazy fog in everyone's hearts.
They vaguely sensed that Wu Heng was plotting something—a plan that might change everything—but the idea was too bold, too vague for them to grasp.
Everyone fixed their burning gazes on Wu Heng, waiting for him to reveal the answer.
"Dean." Wu Heng stopped walking and looked at Dean, who was deep in thought.
"Yeah, I'm here!" Dean jolted awake from the edge of a revelation and hurriedly answered.
"Do you remember that 'future' simulation the angel Zachariah threw you into? What you saw and heard there?" Wu Heng prompted.
"Of course I remember!" Dean's voice trembled almost imperceptibly. That experience had been seared into him. "The city had become ruins. Everywhere were crazed humans infected with the Croatoan virus, turned into half-human, half-demon creatures. They'd lost their minds and knew only killing. It was hell."
Wu Heng nodded, a sharp gleam flashing through his eyes.
"That experience gave me more than despair. It also gave me an idea."
"That demon virus could massively alter human physiology in an extremely short time, granting strength, speed, and even healing abilities beyond those of ordinary people, though at the cost of their sanity."
"What if we... could eliminate the side effect of mental collapse caused by the virus, while retaining—or even improving—the power boost it granted?"
He paused, speaking each word distinctly.