☆ Evolution, for survival
Ye Xi stared at her arm and suddenly realized—except for her own bite wound, all the wounds on her hand had disappeared, as if they had healed instantly! But before she could think about it, the strange itching sensation in her body made her curl up into a ball and roll around on the ground again.
This uncomfortable feeling made her want to vomit! Unfortunately, there was nothing in Ye Xi's stomach to vomit, so she dry-heaved for a long time, but there was nothing but stomach acid, and she felt so unwell.
She didn't know how long this lasted, but the uncomfortable feeling gradually disappeared. Ye Xi collapsed on the ground, panting heavily, covered in sweat. Suddenly, she felt something was wrong and looked again at her arm, which she had bitten earlier... The wound was gone! Ye Xi looked at her shoulder, which had been bitten by the zombie dog, and her body, which had been scratched by it, with some surprise. Except for her clothes being tattered, all the wounds were gone, including the scratches on her legs from the zombies!
Not only that, Ye Xi also discovered something that made her jaw drop—her vision was no longer a lush, vibrant green, but a fresh, delicate light green! The color had become lighter!
"Could it be that I was infected with the T-virus again and evolved again?" Ye Xi wondered as she struggled to her feet. Then she looked at the two dog corpses—she couldn't believe that she had killed two zombie dogs with her bare hands! And both of them had their heads smashed... Could it be that, as Red Queen said, her potential had been unleashed again? Her luck was too good; how come she didn't know she had this ability before?
…Anyway, let's change out of this beggar's outfit first. Unable to understand why, Ye Xi simply avoided the question. She looked at the guard uniform hanging on the wall, took off the strips of cloth, and put on the smallest one, but it was still a bit too big. Her high heels weren't good for movement either, so Ye Xi found the smallest pair of black Martin boots, tucked the wide trouser legs into the boots and tightened the laces, then tucked her shirt into her belt, and rolled up the long sleeves. It looked a bit strange, but at least it looked much cooler.
Ye Xi glanced at the only weapons in the room, picked up a relatively small pistol, weighed it in her hand, and then put it into the pocket tied to her thigh. She then inserted a dagger into the other side and stuffed as many bullet magazines as possible into the pocket on her waist. She then picked up the only hand grenade and hung it around her waist. Finally, she picked up the iron bar that she had thrown on the ground.
Although Ye Xi doesn't know how to use a gun, she does know how to shoot balloons with a toy gun. People who used to set up stalls in the park would have no choice but to pack up quickly when they saw her—Ye Xi has good eyesight and has been playing Counter-Strike for a long time. While she can't be said to be 100% accurate, she's pretty reliable and always wins big prizes. As for reloading and other issues, she just tried it out and finally figured it out herself, although her speed isn't guaranteed.
Suddenly, the lights in the weapons room came on again, and as expected, Red Queen had been activated once more. And, as expected, she could no longer maintain her disguise.
"Ah, Ye Xi, so you've adapted to the T-virus just like Alice? You really fooled me just now." A loli in a red dress appeared on the screen by the door. Red Queen looked at Ye Xi, who had changed her clothes, and immediately realized that Ye Xi actually had her own consciousness.
"Ah, thanks to you." Ye Xi tightened her belt and coldly curled her lips. However, with Ye Xi's zombie face, such an expression was not only terrifying but also completely harmless.
"Not completely accepted?" The figure of the Red Queen on the screen zoomed in, carefully examining Ye Xi, seemingly studying how Ye Xi differed from other zombies. "But you are constantly evolving, you look more human than when I first saw you."
Ye Xi maintained her indifferent expression, but a ripple of emotion stirred within her. More human-like…and the colors in my vision are much lighter…Could it be that continuous infection with the T-virus really allows me to evolve? Ye Xi buried her questions deep in her heart, turning to face the screen directly: “Open the armory.”
"Why?" Red Queen asked innocently. "I can't let you out, after all, you're still in a dangerous situation."
"Note that this is not a request, but an order." Ye Xi leaned against the wall, looking at the screen, her cloudy, milky-white eyes narrowing slightly, a half-smile playing on her lips. "You've already told those Umbrella Corporation freaks my information, haven't you? I don't think you'd be so kind as to keep my secret, after all, you're just a machine obeying Umbrella's orders. So, I believe someone outside will also be eager to see my combat capabilities, to compare me with Alice. Do you think that person will abandon me as an experimental subject?"
Red Queen was silent for a moment, whether she had reconnected with the eccentric doctor outside or was pondering Ye Xi's words, it was unclear. "Of course, you're right." As soon as Red Queen finished speaking, there was a "click," and the weapon hidden behind the wall slowly emerged.
Ye Xi was dazzled by the variety of weapons. Born in China, Ye Xi had never seen so many weapons before, and even when she played Counter-Strike, she had never seen so many physical firearms. So, for a moment, she didn't know which weapon to choose.
Weapons that are too flashy and obviously high-tech are out of the question; even if I did, I wouldn't necessarily know how to use them. As for rocket launchers, while they have great destructive power, they're too heavy, and too long and bulky to carry around easily. Too much recoil? Too complicated to reload? Too heavy? After much deliberation, she only took two pistols and a machine gun. She slung the machine gun over her back, filled each pocket with bullets, and then, gun in hand, walked back to Red Queen.
"I want to know what's going on outside this floor."
"This..." Red Queen paused, then suddenly laughed: "You don't need to know."
As soon as she finished speaking, a massive purple figure suddenly appeared at the entrance to the armory, followed by a loud banging as the door was forced open. Ye Xi was startled and immediately stepped back, raising her gun to aim at the door. The armory door was clearly more sturdy than the other doors, and with Red Queen controlling the electronic lock, it wouldn't be easy to break it open anytime soon.
That enormous purple shadow… it’s a Licker! How could a Licker appear? That’s not how it’s supposed to be in the movies! Ye Xi’s mind went blank for a moment, but she quickly regained her composure. Movies? To hell with movies! This isn’t some cheesy movie; I can’t just sit here eating sunflower seeds and watching!
There's a Licker at the front door… so should I go out the back? No, that won't work. At its speed, I'd probably be skewered by its tongue after only a few steps. Oh, damn it! How did it know there was someone in here? Aren't zombies supposed to only attack me if they get very close?
Oh, no wonder! Ye Xi tapped her head, remembering that she had regained her blood due to the T-virus's evolution. The Licker's nose was much better than a zombie's, so it must have noticed her.
A loud crash snapped Ye Xi back to reality. Staring at the dented steel door, she couldn't help but shudder. A sudden idea flashed through her mind, but… oh well, she couldn't worry about that now. "Ye Xi, worry about others after you've survived!" Selfishly thinking this, Ye Xi immediately moved closer to the screen and said to Red Queen, "Alice and the others are in the server room right now, right? Connect them to me, quick!"
After Kaplan restarted Red Queen, Alice and her group began discussing how to escape the Hive. Suddenly, a flash of white light appeared in the center of the control room, followed by a huge screen that slowly appeared before them. A zombie's face suddenly appeared on the screen. Her sparse hair was grayish-white, and her pale skin, unlike the withered, dark skin of other zombies, gave the impression of malnutrition. Her large, milky-white eyes, as if covered by a layer of dead skin, stared intently at Alice and her group, as terrifying as a hanged ghost. Judging from the contours of her face, before becoming a zombie, she was undoubtedly an Eastern woman, and quite beautiful at that.
"Ah!" Kaplan was the first to shout. He immediately picked up his gun and fired a shot at the screen. The bullet passed through the screen as if it were passing through a layer of fog, and hit the steel wall not far away.
Unlike his impulsiveness, everyone simply gripped their weapons tightly, watching the suddenly appearing screen and... that face that resembled a zombie but wasn't quite a zombie.
To their surprise, the face suddenly revealed a contemptuous expression, then slowly curled up the corners of her ashen lips, like a vengeful ghost, but actually a mocking smile: "Impulsiveness can lead to death, and besides, bullets are very precious at times like this." Her voice was so thick and disgusting that it gave them goosebumps.
Wait, a zombie actually spoke! Everyone's expressions instantly turned into bewildered expressions.
"Don't look surprised. Just as you might think, I've retained my consciousness, even though my body has become this grotesque." She paused, her speech rapid and somewhat muffled by her thick, sticky voice. "Perhaps I've adapted to the T-virus, but not completely accepted it."
"...Who are you?" The first person to speak was Alice, who was now beginning to display the calm and assertive demeanor she should have.
She gave Alice a strange, yet actually appreciative, look and said, "For some reason, I'll keep it short. I'm Ye Xi, a research intern at Hive. You all know the cause of this virus outbreak, so I won't explain it again. Now, all you have to do is leave this place. There's no living thing left in this hellhole. I know the way out. Please listen carefully to every word I say. Next to the train you came in, there's a box of antibodies..." After telling them the way out, Ye Xi was about to close the screen when she was interrupted by the wary Alice.
"Since you know how to get out and you know about the antibodies, why don't you get out yourself?"
“Obviously, I’ve become like this; those semi-finished antibodies are useless to me now. Besides, if I go out, it will probably cause a commotion, and Umbrella Corporation will definitely capture me for research. Although the zombies won’t attack me, I think it’s better to stay here and wait for reinforcements than to go out. I’ve given up on the company, so I hope that after you get out, you can help me take revenge. This is my only wish and my only request.” Although her voice was still thick, Ye Xi’s grief and indignation and the sincerity in her tone moved Alice. Although she still felt something was amiss, Alice agreed to Ye Xi’s request and then asked for everyone’s opinion. Obviously, they had no objection to getting out as soon as possible, so they quickly left the server room.
Ye Xi watched them leave before closing the chat screen. She had lied, but it was only a way to lure them out of the server room quickly. The server room and the weapons room were on the same floor, so as long as they left the server room, the Lickers outside would definitely notice and abandon Ye Xi in the weapons room to find more prey, allowing Ye Xi to leave this place with this temporary safety.
"How selfish," the Red Queen commented on Ye Xi.
“Everyone is selfish,” Ye Xi retorted. Although she felt some guilt, knowing that doing so would inevitably lead to the deaths of innocent people, she didn't want to die. She wasn't a saint or a holy woman; she cherished her life. For the sake of survival, Ye Xi once again went against her conscience.
The Lickers outside continued their relentless attacks on the door. Ye Xi dared not relax her vigilance; clutching a rocket launcher, she stood a considerable distance from the door, her eyes fixed on it. The door dented more and more, and Ye Xi's heart pounded faster and faster—damn it, why aren't they coming out yet?! Have they changed their minds?!
Finally, just as the door was forced open a crack, the Licker stopped its assault. Ye Xi watched the departing purple figure and breathed a sigh of relief—thank goodness, it was finally gone. That door would have collapsed after a couple more ramming attempts… Thinking this, Ye Xi shuddered; it was truly a close call!
No, now is not the time to relax. Ye Xi tossed aside the rocket launcher, tucked the iron bar into her waistband, picked up her dual pistols, opened the back door, peeked out to make sure it was safe, and then immediately ran away from the floor—she couldn't guarantee that no other Licker wouldn't come and ram the door; she had to escape while it was still relatively safe!
Author's Note: Following Mu Zi's suggestion, I'll add a blank line. Hmm~ If I said I wouldn't do BW (a type of online slang), would more people leave comments for those whose husbands are Uncle Wei? If not, then I'll just keep cursing them, curse all the unknown creatures in Resident Evil, and then transform into an Xenomorph. (picking nose)
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