Evolution

At the very least.

In none of his past lives had Zhou Zhi ever seen such a thing.

One second, someone would be smiling and speaking to you; the next, they would be peeling your skin off.

It was literal—peeling the skin off.

That agony, in that very instant, was something Zhou Zhi could not endure.

The intense pain was already beyond the reach of words.

But the next moment, his body was enveloped by a strange, fleshy substance.

The sensation was indescribably sticky and nauseating.

Zhou Zhi knew clearly that Chen Chaosheng's skin had been draped over his own body.

"Skin graft... hmm, not bad."

Xia Yu gently toyed with her scalpel, as if she were carving an exquisite piece of art.

"A bit of fat grafting... then perform the repairs and stitch it up slowly."

Xia Yu smiled, but deep within her eyes lay a chilling coldness.

It was absolute indifference.

Under normal circumstances, the man before her would succumb to the Rejection Reaction and become diseased, or perhaps burst apart from being unable to withstand the power left behind by Chen Chaosheng.

But if it succeeded...

Perhaps more interesting things would happen.

It was indeed painful.

Xia Yu had not lied to him after all.

However, this level of pain was still within the realm of what he could accept.

Having arrived in this bizarre world of pestilence, Zhou Zhi had no special ambitions; he simply wanted to survive.

Nothing more, nothing less.

"Tsk."

Zhou Zhi clutched his head and let out a sound.

The low voice was different from before.

Yet, it was so familiar.

It was...

Chen Chaosheng's voice.

Zhou Zhi's expression shifted slightly.

He stretched out his hands, looking at his brand-new body.

There were no signs of any stitches, as if the skinning from moments ago had been nothing but a hallucination.

"This is..."

He had become Chen Chaosheng.

The voice, the appearance, the temperament—they were identical!

Xia Yu's eyes widened.

She began to laugh, laughing with immense delight.

"Really, truly."

"It actually succeeded!"

Zhou Zhi reined in his emotions.

He truly had not expected that such a level of surgery existed in this world of pestilence.

It was, quite simply...

On the level of borrowing a corpse to resurrect a soul.

"Alright, this has already exceeded my expectations."

Xia Yu said softly.

"Next, take off your clothes."

"Go ahead and feel your reward."

Zhou Zhi knew in an instant what Xia Yu meant by taking off his clothes.

To speak of skinning a person so casually was truly a terrifying thing.

A tearing pain reached into the depths of his soul.

"To pursue what one desires, enduring pain is only to be expected."

Xia Yu's alluring eyes shimmered as she spoke with gentle tenderness.

The [Snake and Scorpion] in her hand danced like a graceful ballerina.

As the sebum slowly adhered to his body, Zhou Zhi felt a sense of familiarity, yet this very familiarity felt deeply abnormal.

Furthermore, his muscles seemed to be undergoing alienation.

Information flowed through his mind.

[Zhou Zhi]

[Physical functions slightly improved].

[Physical appearance slightly improved].

[Spiritual energy cap slightly increased].

[A small fragment of Plague Extermination Art knowledge (Plastic Surgery)].

[Compared to human appearance, some believe that a heart filled with filth is in even greater need of plastic surgery].

Ha... ha...

Zhou Zhi collapsed onto the ground, his skin sealed perfectly tight.

"A truly exquisite surgery."

Xia Yu said softly, "However, it is getting late. The [Changdu] Epidemic War Corps should have received the news by now; these are not the stragglers of surrounding towns, but true elites."

The woman spoke gently, "The [Human Skin] and Chen Chaosheng's [Black Kite] are left for you."

"Take note... the number of times this human skin can be used is limited."

Xia Yu blinked.

Zhou Zhi's expression shifted.

"Then... goodbye..."

Xia Yu waved her hand, "We shall surely meet again."

Like sand scattering into the world, Xia Yu's body drifted away like dust.

At the same time, Chen Chaosheng's corpse began to dissipate along with the woman.

In the end, the entire world was deathly quiet.

Zhou Zhi looked up at the moonlight above.

His body was now surging with an inexplicable power, as if everything about him had been remodeled.

It was truly hard to imagine this bizarre journey.

[One hour and twelve minutes until vital signs vanish completely].

[Pathogenization Index: 50.62% (continuously decreasing)].

[Pathogenization Source: Influenza].

Zhou Zhi snapped back to reality in an instant.

"There is still much to be done."

Zhou Zhi touched the area of his chest, then slowly walked forward toward the remains of [Qiu Ti].

Zhou Zhi's current life-threatening danger stemmed from his Inferior Lung.

And now... there was a lung that was good enough.

Zhou Zhi's right hand gripped the pitch-black Plague-Slaying Blade.

It was the [Black Kite] that had belonged to Chen Chaosheng.

It felt significantly heavier than any Plague-Slaying Blade he had used before.

One had to realize that this was his perception after Xia Yu had already modified his body.

When Qiu Ti died, his body had not been destroyed.

The mustachioed man had seemed to have much to say before his death, but he had only widened his eyes, ultimately saying nothing at all.

The scalpel was raised.

[Surgery Start].

Zhou Zhi's gaze was solemn.

The blade sliced open the corpse's still-warm skin.

A faint sound emerged.

[High-Temperature Sterilization].

During the surgery, the temperature rose.

The blade danced.

Finally, the internal organs were exposed.

Those two lungs that encased Qiu Ti's infinite ambition.

[Strange Lungs].

"[Excellent Howling Lung]."

"[A special organ birthed by Great Sneeze-Qiu Ti using the Plague Disaster Ritual, containing the power of a high-level epidemic (Pneumonia)]."

"[As a bodily organ, its overall quality is beyond doubt]."

"[Tell me, between the left lung and the right lung, which one is more important?]"

"[Surgical scalpel can be used for extraction]."

His expression remained unmoved.

Zhou Zhi's hands did not hesitate in the slightest.

Having already experienced the sensation of his skin being peeled away, he felt no great fluctuation toward this level of pain now.

A strange world.

Zhou Zhi performed the surgery.

The new lungs, twisted in form, contained a bizarre power and surged with potent vitality.

Strange power.

His heart beat, and Zhou Zhi sensed the warmth brought by the new organ.

"Truly interesting."

Zhou Zhi set down the scalpel.

He slowly sutured the wound.

Everything was strange.

Yes.

Just as Xia Yu had said.

All of this was truly too interesting.

[Vital signs maintained at normal levels].

[Pathogenization Index: 12.2% (continuously decreasing)].

[Pathogenization Source: Pneumonia].

Zhou Zhi let out a long breath.

That long-standing sense of urgency finally dissipated at this moment.

But he still could not let his guard down yet.

Zhou Zhi's gaze swept across the room.

Corpses were intertwined, and mucus flowed everywhere.

There were still many things here that could be used.

Before the Changdu Epidemic War Corps arrived.

He had to at least prepare for the next step.