Fusion and Transformation

What if the concentration of the virus in his body was too low?

Simple—just increase the concentration.

If countless viruses gathered together, they would eventually affect his body. This was also the fastest solution.

The only downside was... the risk was too high.

The idea of actively taking in the virus was good, but the question was, how could he control how much he absorbed?

If the viral concentration became too high and exceeded the countermeasures he had prepared, even the fourfold cell activity in Wu Ming's body might not withstand such a violent transformation.

"So, I need to keep it within a certain limit."

Wu Ming pondered, The air in this city already contains low concentrations of the virus. Its source must be the sea, so the concentration in the ocean must be the highest.

In that case, the air near the coast should also have a fairly high viral concentration, but I can't be sure whether I could withstand it.

He frowned slightly. This idea was too risky. The coast was practically right beside the sea, so the viral concentration there was easy to imagine. If it exceeded his limit, wouldn't he be gambling with his life?

"No. I want to become stronger so I can survive better. How can I put the cart before the horse?"

More importantly, the risks and rewards were completely disproportionate.

Even if he headed back now, the latent virus in his body would erupt in a dozen or so days. With his thorough preparations, the transformation would certainly go smoothly.

Putting himself in danger just to save a dozen days was far from worth it.

"Since going to the coast is too risky, perhaps I can look for a low-risk area."

Wu Ming looked at the map on his phone, and his gaze suddenly settled on a spot.

It was a winding river that ran through the city center. One of its tributaries was even not far from the hotel where he was staying!

"That's where I went for a walk today. There's a river nearby? Could it be the Huangpu River?"

He suddenly understood where the virus he had inhaled today had come from.

"Right. As a tributary of the Yangtze River, the Huangpu River is connected to the sea. Naturally, viruses from the sea can travel upstream into the river."

"And as a consequence of traveling upstream, the viral concentration in the river water must be far lower than in the ocean. That's why the concentration in the air near the river is so low."

"Wait, controllable risk... isn't this the perfect place I've been searching for?"

At this thought, Wu Ming perked up and hurriedly zoomed in on the map, looking for a place where he could come into contact with the river water.

He vaguely remembered that swimming in the Huangpu River seemed to be prohibited, and enforcement was strict. He definitely could not just jump into the river openly. Better yet, no one should discover him at all.

But as he zoomed in on the map, Wu Ming quickly realized he had been mistaken. The area where he had walked during the day was not near the Huangpu River, but Suzhou Creek, a tributary of the Huangpu River.

"So it's a tributary's tributary."

Wu Ming smiled. There was no disappointment in his eyes, only delight.

Suzhou Creek was good too! And after being filtered twice by the Yangtze River and the Huangpu River, the viral concentration in Suzhou Creek had to be even lower. It might be perfectly suited to his constitution.

Moreover, compared with the strict control over the Huangpu River, Suzhou Creek was monitored far less closely. There were fewer residents nearby as well, greatly reducing the risk of him touching the river water.

"Not bad. This is the place."

Wu Ming nodded in satisfaction. "It's still early. I'll scout out the area first and find a suitable place to enter the water, then come back when it's deep into the night."

He acted immediately.

This time, with a destination in mind, Wu Ming did not walk. Instead, he hailed a taxi to the place where he had contracted the virus that morning. After walking a little farther, he indeed saw a river ahead.

Compared to the Huangpu River, this river was clearly much smaller. There was not even much protection along its banks, only a row of low railings that could be crossed easily.

"As expected, the viral concentration by the river is much higher."

Standing by the riverbank, Wu Ming sensed the virus in his body stirring restlessly and nodded to himself.

Unfortunately, the virus here still could not shake his body's genes. It seemed that if he wanted to complete the transformation quickly, he would have to enter the water.

It was still afternoon. To avoid arousing suspicion, Wu Ming had no intention of waiting here until midnight. Instead, he returned directly to the hotel to rest and conserve his strength.

When deep night arrived, at three in the morning, Wu Ming set out on schedule. Carrying his pack, he returned to the riverbank.

The trip took around forty minutes. By the time he reached his destination, both banks of Suzhou Creek were completely silent, without a single person in sight. It was perfect for him to act.

Without further hesitation, Wu Ming went to the shore, set down his backpack, flipped over the railing, and crouched down to place his hand into the icy river water.

A moment later.

"It really works, but the contact area is too small. Infecting myself with just one palm will probably be difficult."

"Since that's the case..."

Wu Ming looked around. After confirming that no one was nearby, he quickly took off his outer clothes, shoes, and socks. Barefoot, he stepped onto the cold stone steps and walked into the river one step at a time.

"Brr, it's cold."

He shivered instinctively. It was January, after all. The river water was bone-chilling, and its penetrating cold entered his body, rapidly draining away his heat.

But at the same time, a huge number of RR Viruses entered along with that cold. Before long, enough had accumulated inside his body.

After barely a dozen seconds, Wu Ming felt the cells in his body begin to stir, as though his blood were boiling. His body began heating up rapidly again.

"Time to go." He realized that he needed to leave. Even if he was going to transform, it should not happen here.

So, without hesitation, Wu Ming immediately braced himself against the bank and jumped up. Ignoring his soaked body, he pulled on his clothes.

The dry fabric absorbed the water from his skin, allowing his frozen body to warm up slightly.

He tore open an energy bar and ate it. After replenishing his body's heat, he gathered all his belongings and ran back to the hotel.

Forty minutes later, he returned to his room without alerting anyone.

Sitting on the bed, Wu Ming sensed the condition of his body.

He could not see his cells transforming. He only knew that his body was strangely hot, and sweat was even forming on his forehead.

It looked like a fever, but its nature was completely different. Wu Ming did not feel cold in the slightest. It was as if all the blood in his body were burning, turning him into a massive furnace.

And he was like Sun Wukong trapped within an alchemy furnace, tempered inside and out by the furnace flames.

The sensation was not pleasant. It could even be called painful.

Perhaps because the viral concentration he had taken in was too high, Wu Ming discovered that his symptoms were completely different from those of ordinary infected people!

"Something's wrong." Wu Ming gritted his teeth and thought rapidly, The viral concentration in the river water was that high? This water has already been filtered twice, yet it's still so violent.

Then how high must the viral concentration in the ocean, the source, be?

Good thing I didn't recklessly go to the coast. The air there probably contains even more virus than Suzhou Creek. If I had really gone, I might not have been able to withstand it.

As for now... it's fine. It just hurts a little. I only need to endure it.

He could sense that his genes were undergoing a transformation. Every cell in his body was burning violently, rapidly squeezing out every shred of energy within him.

Without hesitation, Wu Ming willed it and immediately drew upon his reserves, pouring energy into every corner of his body.

At the same time, his hands did not stop. He unwrapped an energy bar and stuffed it into his mouth, chewing it up in a few bites before swallowing. Then came the second, the third...

In less than ten minutes, all the food in the backpack he had brought had gone into his stomach.

Yet after eating an entire backpack's worth of food, Wu Ming did not feel full at all. It was as if the food had been instantly digested the moment it entered his stomach.

Fortunately, the equipment slot's effect was powerful enough. He still had 37 points of stored energy left. Even such intense burning had failed to exhaust it.

Most importantly, Wu Ming felt that his body was no longer so ravenous. His cells were no longer burning as fiercely, and his overall condition began to stabilize.

Finally, a few minutes later, everything inside his body completely calmed down. His remaining energy reserves settled at 23 points. His cells no longer stirred, and there was no sign of his genes collapsing.

Only the improvement in his physical fitness was obvious.

"It's finally over."

Wu Ming let out a long breath. He felt that his lung capacity had increased considerably. He clenched his fist, and the muscles in his arm instantly bulged, feeling almost hard to the touch.

He understood that after being modified and optimized by the virus, his genes had caused every aspect of his physical fitness to soar.

"My physical strength should have improved quite a bit," Wu Ming murmured to himself.

He instinctively opened the equipment slot and took a look, then shook his head slightly. "Too bad I don't know the exact numbers. This cheat panel doesn't even display my body's real-time stats. Terrible review."

However, as this thought crossed his mind, the blank area of the virtual screen suddenly blurred. A few seconds later, a line of text quietly appeared.

[Name: Wu Ming]

[Age: 18]

[Strength: 689 KG (Theoretical Limit)]

[Speed: 18 m/s]

[Cell Activity: 3250 (100 for a normal person)]

[Neural Response Speed: 0.013 seconds (0.1–0.2 seconds for a normal person)]