The Great Sneeze

Information flowed through Zhou Zhi's mind.

The full scope of the Great Sneeze Space appeared before him.

The panorama was not particularly large; at a height of three or four meters, twisted human figures hung everywhere.

They wore various types of clothing, clearly the residents of Blue Stone Town.

There were at least several hundred of them.

It looked extremely terrifying and unsettling.

Beneath the hanging residents sat a strangely shaped circular machine.

The machine resembled a necrotic lung.

Its exterior constantly oozed a murky, yellowish mucus.

"Hang them up."

Qiu Ti had changed into a white lab coat and was recording something; he pointed ahead with a casual gesture.

Wu Ji did not hesitate, nor did he say a word, as he hung Yu Jinhai, Zhou Zhi, and the others in the air.

"How strange."

Qiu Ti's brows knit together, looking like a crumpled piece of paper: "Legend has it that by actively infecting oneself with the plague and reaching the stage of complete pathologization, one can unearth the deep power of the [Plague]."

"That woman said as much."

"Why... why can I not find it..."

Qiu Ti frowned, but his expression soon smoothed out.

Setting aside the deep power for now.

The pathologized power he had gained by proactively introducing the Influenza Plague and turning Blue Stone Town into a Pestilence Zone was already sufficient.

If he hadn't done this, how much time would it have taken to fully comprehend the knowledge of [Influenza]!

Zhou Zhi was suspended in the air, squinting his eyes.

This Qiu Ti did not care at all whether they were truly unconscious or not.

In a place like this, pathologization was far too easy.

At the very least, Zhou Zhi had already seen quite a few Mucus Men hanging in mid-air who were clearly still human before being strung up.

The flowing mucus gathered into the lung-shaped mechanical device.

It really is a lot like alchemy, Zhou Zhi thought to himself.

Information surged.

[Mucus Collection Device].

[The ultimate goal of Qiu Ti's creation of the Blue Stone Pestilence Zone].

[Collect life mucus and extract its essence].

[Currently, the device is in operation].

[Perhaps something might actually be refined].

However, Zhou Zhi could do nothing right now.

Qiu Ti's strength was formidable.

Yu Jinhai hadn't even lasted a single exchange.

That alone explained everything.

Zhou Zhi's gaze fell upon Xia Yu, who had already lost consciousness to the side.

He lowered his head slightly and continued to observe.

"Where is that woman?"

Qiu Ti looked down, gazing at Wu Ji from his superior position.

Wu Ji's expression was solemn: "She is locked inside the inner sanctum of the Great Sneeze Operating Room."

Qiu Ti wore a look of satisfaction, his small mustache twitching slightly: "Good."

"That little thing is from the Chen Family; she has quite a few good things on her. Without her, my Plague Advent plan might not have been able to be implemented so early."

Wu Ji's gaze shifted toward the depths, and his back hunched slightly: "My Lord..."

His expression was cautious: "Time is running out."

"Chen Yao is that person's younger sister. Even if the Pingchang Epidemic War Corps hasn't reacted yet, it has been a week; that person will surely realize it eventually."

"If we provoke them... there will be no place for us to stand in Xuanyuan..."

Qiu Ti's expression turned cold, and he slapped Wu Ji, knocking him directly to the ground.

A crimson palm print appeared on Wu Ji's handsome face.

"What a piece of trash."

Qiu Ti looked up. "Introducing the plague into the human kingdom is a capital crime punishable by the Medical Department."

"You're still thinking about such trivialities."

"As long as one possesses power, never mind Xuanyuan—Chengyun, Ultimate Bliss—where can one not go?"

Wu Ji lowered his head, not daring to make a sound.

The man who had been a prominent figure at school, the object of Lin Rui's admiration.

Now, he was reduced to this state.

Zhou Zhi could fully understand.

School was an ivory tower.

The pride of the school, the favored son of heaven.

In the face of cruel reality, they would appear particularly fragile.

Zhou Zhi did not know exactly what had happened.

But there was nothing new under the sun.

[Lure of profit] was secondary.

What Zhou Zhi was more certain of was that Wu Ji had submitted due to Qiu Ti's martial prowess.

He was willing to become an accomplice to this Great Sneeze Doctor.

Perhaps that companion's corpse on the first floor had been killed by Wu Ji's own hands.

Collecting his thoughts, he confirmed that neither Qiu Ti nor Wu Ji was paying attention to him.

Zhou Zhi took out his scalpel.

Bai Xiu's Scalpel had already been overwhelmed and shattered.

Zhou Zhi held only the blade tip, hiding within it.

These two have mastered the power of plague-eradication; I am certainly no match for them in a direct confrontation.

Zhou Zhi pondered, then sliced through the ropes.

Taking advantage of the swaying Mucus Men, Zhou Zhi landed on the ground. Because of the mucus covering the floor, his footsteps were almost silent.

"Hoo."

He kept his breathing steady.

Zhou Zhi's gaze was calm.

Qiu Ti was focused on his research in the center.

Wu Ji was acting as a servant, helping out, which allowed Zhou Zhi to relax slightly.

His gaze shifted toward the depths of the [Great Sneeze Space].

A woman was locked inside the inner side of the Disinfection Room.

Zhou Zhi recalled the previous information.

"The Wu Ji five-man group also brought along an outsider with a bad temper."

"This outsider has a prominent family background and an extremely troublesome brother."

"It seems she is one of the members of some idol group."

Zhou Zhi crept forward on tiptoe.

All around him were twisted, suspended Mucus Men.

The viscous sensation would make anyone feel like vomiting.

But Zhou Zhi's expression remained unchanged.

Putting on his mask, Zhou Zhi moved slowly.

The disease index continued to rise.

Yet his gaze remained locked.

[Disinfection Room].

Information surged.

[Safe zone; entering it will significantly reduce the possibility of disease progression.]

[It seems someone is being held inside here now.]

The lock was tightly shut.

Zhou Zhi observed the pitch-black iron door, listening to the sounds from within.

There seemed to be some movement.

"Who is it?"

From the inside, a girl's voice rang out.

It sounded as if she had found a glimmer of hope amidst despair.

Yet, that voice carried a hint of sharpness and bitterness.

"You aren't Wu Ji?"

"And you aren't that monster doctor either?"

"Who are you?!"

Zhou Zhi did not speak, merely pausing for a moment.

The other party must have deduced his identity from the sound of his footsteps.

After waiting a while, and confirming there were no other traps, Zhou Zhi countered with a question of his own.

"Who are you?"

From within, the girl's voice was clipped: "I am Chen Yao."

"You aren't one of that monster's people?"

"I am Chen Yao of the Pingchang Chen Family."

"My brother is Chen Chaosheng, help me... help me contact him..."

"As long as you save me, I can give you a lot, a lot of money."

The voice was very young, not much older than Zhou Zhi.

Zhou Zhi remained silent.

It seemed this woman was not as clever as she thought.

"My name is Zhou Zhi," Zhou Zhi said. "I am a resident of Blue Stone Town."

"Of course, that is irrelevant. What matters is how I can contact this brother of yours."

The woman's clipped voice came again.

"Everything on me was taken by that damned beast."

"There is... a [communicator]."

"There is a heart-shaped sticker on the top."

"The password is three, five, six, seven."

"The first contact is my brother."

The woman's voice sounded somewhat perverse and sharp: "That beast took it into the operating room... I saw it!"

"It's right nearby!"

Perhaps fearing they would disturb Qiu Ti and his companion, the woman who called herself Chen Yao kept her voice very low.