Volume Six: The Years I Wasn’t Human
Seeking Light
Gao Zhengwu was looking for them because An Min had created the first-generation antidote and intended to have Wen Nuan and a zombie test the medicinal effects and reactions together.
Wen Nuan looked at the red capsule in her hand and said, puzzled, “The H-agent is administered by syringe injection, but yours has become a capsule?”
An Min said flatly, “This is just an experimental product. We’ll see what the final medicinal effect is. As for the form, that can be changed.”
Sang Er glanced at Wen Nuan, then at the capsule in her hand. She wanted to ask what side effects this capsule would have after being swallowed?
Would it have an adverse reaction on Wen Nuan?
Would it…
But she couldn’t bring herself to speak. She unexpectedly felt a sense of shame, as if she wasn’t worthy of asking on Wen Nuan’s behalf.
“Doctor An, after taking this capsule, will it have any effect on Wen Nuan? What are the medicinal reactions?” Chu Han asked with concern.
Although he knew Wen Nuan was already immortal, the first-generation antidote Doctor An had created was targeted at the side effects of the H-agent, so it was possible it could also affect the original medicinal effects produced by the H-agent.
The good and bad were mixed in equal parts.
Sang Er lifted her eyes to glance at Chu Han, her knuckles curled, and she pressed her lips together without a word.
It’s a good thing someone asked.
Wen Nuan tilted her head slightly to look at Sang Er. Seeing her with her head hanging down, not speaking, looking lonely and withdrawn, she was just like the pitiful sight she had been when they first met.
Like a small cat hiding in a dirty haystack, soaked all over by the rain, its soft fur clinging to its flesh that was covered in scars, shivering and trembling, yet its pair of pitch-black pupils were filled with bravado and stubbornness.
“This capsule targets the H-agent. The medicinal reaction is uncertain. After all…” An Min clicked a few times on the control console.
Everyone saw the frosted glass in front of them suddenly become clear. Inside, a zombie was conspicuously tied up, roaring madly. It opened its blood-basin-big-mouth and lunged towards them, but was firmly blocked by the special glass, only able to stare with crimson eyes at its “food” that it thought of with all its heart.
As for the “food,” it was the five people currently in the laboratory.
An Min pointed at the frenzied zombie and said with what seemed like a bit of regret, “After it took this capsule, it became a little irritable.”
Everyone watched the zombie that was smashing KUANG KUANG against the glass, almost bashing its head in yet still not stopping, and couldn’t help but wonder in their hearts: Is this just a little irritable?
Looking at this zombie’s level, it should be a level three fire-type special ability zombie. Its consciousness had already been stimulated to some extent, and it already had a certain perception of danger. It shouldn’t be so unaware of life or death1 as to ram its head against the wall, roaring madly.
The medicinal reaction of this first-generation antidote was quite enough to make one’s gallbladder tremble and heart pound2.
Sang Er looked at the berserk zombie, frowning, wanting to ask An Min if the reaction this zombie had after taking it would also occur in Wen Nuan.
“This zombie became abnormally irritable after taking it. Will Wen Nuan have the same reaction after she takes it?” Chu Han asked.
Sang Er’s lips moved, the corners of her mouth turning down.
An Min said thoughtfully, “Perhaps it will.”
Gao Zhengwu was stunned, “What do you mean, ‘perhaps it will’?”
“It means we need to test it to see what the reaction is.” An Min pointed at the frenzied zombie. “This is the worst-case result.”
Chu Han’s brow furrowed. “Could it be that Wen Nuan will also go berserk… and eat people?”
An Min shook his head. “She won’t eat people. After all, she isn’t a zombie. The other reactions still need to be tested one by one.”
He looked at Wen Nuan and said seriously, “After you take it, I can’t guarantee the result, but I am 50% certain that this capsule will have an effect on the H-agent.”
Wen Nuan looked at the capsule in her hand and sighed. “Alright, I understand.”
She tilted her head back and swallowed the capsule. “I can’t die anyway. You can take your time and test it.”
An Min looked at his watch and smiled. “The effects will set in within twenty minutes. You need to enter the sealed room for observation.”
“Okay.” Just as Wen Nuan was about to walk into the sealed room, her sleeve was pulled.
Sang Er looked at An Min and said nervously, “Can I… accompany her?”
An Min’s gaze was meaningful. He then said thoughtfully, “Of course you can.”
Wen Nuan looked at Sang Er and said deliberately, “Aren’t you afraid I’ll go berserk and eat you?”
Sang Er didn’t dare to look into Wen Nuan’s eyes. She lowered her gaze and said, “…I’m not afraid.”
“Why do you want to accompany me?” Wen Nuan pulled her sleeve out of Sang Er’s hand, her tone a bit haughty. “You still haven’t answered my question.”
“….” Sang Er’s expression was conflicted. She bit her lip, not speaking.
Seeing her with her head down and not speaking, Wen Nuan propped her hands on her knees, tilted her head, and looked at her flustered little face. “If you don’t answer my question, then don’t accompany me.”
What to do? She was just this malicious and sinister, just wanting to force her to say she loved her.
Sang Er wanted to speak but stopped short, mumbling in a low voice, “I am… I am…”
The corners of Wen Nuan’s mouth hooked up, a trace of being certain of success flashing in her eyes. “What?”
She moved closer, coaxing, “Little Ears, what do you want to say?”
Sang Er raised her eyes and met Wen Nuan’s, which were filled with flecks of a smile. In an instant, her chest cavity trembled. “I li…”
But in the next second, that pair of smiling eyes suddenly became cold and indifferent.
Sang Er said in alarm, “Wen… Wen Nuan?”
She had never seen Wen Nuan with such an expression. In her impression, Wen Nuan had always been very gentle, kind, and approachable. She would never show such a cold and gloomy expression to her.
Wen Nuan smiled, but her expression was cold and indifferent. She looked at An Min, panting heavily. “It seems the effects are kicking in.”
An Min looked at Wen Nuan, wrote four characters on a piece of paper, and said flatly, “What are you feeling right now?”
The scenes in her mind that made her feel nauseous and want to vomit3 flashed continuously. Her body was trembling involuntarily. She took a deep breath and said through gritted teeth, “Very uncomfortable.”
“Very uncomfortable?” Sang Er immediately grabbed Wen Nuan’s hand. “Where are you uncomf—”
“Don’t touch me!” Wen Nuan violently threw Sang Er off, wrapping her arms around herself, presenting a state of self-defense.
Sang Er froze in place, looking in disbelief at Wen Nuan who had retreated to a corner. She looked at An Min and questioned, “What is going on?”
An Min didn’t answer Sang Er’s words and started writing something with his head down again.
Chu Han saw Wen Nuan’s defensive posture, her whole body trembling. He frowned. “Doctor An, what’s wrong with Wen Nuan?”
“Yeah? Doctor An, don’t be in such a hurry to write things down,” Gao Zhengwu said as he saw Wen Nuan’s gaze growing colder and colder, as if she might pounce and kill them at any moment. “What on earth is wrong with Xiao Lin?”
An Min put down his pen and looked at Wen Nuan in the corner. He walked over, pointed at his own face, and asked, “Who am I?”
Wen Nuan looked at An Min in front of her. An Min’s silhouette grew increasingly blurry. In a daze, she seemed to see that man’s smiling face.
A trace of terror flashed in her eyes. She pushed An Min away with both hands and roared, “Get lost! Don’t touch me! Get lost—”
Wen Nuan flinched her shoulders, her lips turning pale. She held her head in her hands and kept murmuring, “Don’t touch me, don’t touch me….”
“Save me, save me….”
An Min was pushed and staggered. He got up, looked at the others, and said flatly, “Her adverse reaction is still relatively mild. It has only intensified the thing she fears most in her heart.”
“Mild?” Sang Er couldn’t bear to see Wen Nuan so terrified.
She grabbed An Min by the collar and said angrily, “You fucking tell me this is mild?!”
“Wen Nuan is trembling, she’s scared, can’t you fucking see that?”
An Min lowered his gaze and said calmly, “Compared to the zombie that is still frenzied and irritable, isn’t her reaction considered mild?”
“You—” Sang Er was in a burning rage, but her arm was grabbed.
She glared at Chu Han and threatened, “Let go!”
“Sang Er, you calm down. Harming Doctor An won’t do Wen Nuan any good.” Chu Han’s grip tightened. “Let go.”
“Get away!” Sang Er shook off Chu Han and took a few deep breaths to steady herself.
She walked over to Wen Nuan and squatted down, cautiously calling her name, “Wen Nuan?”
Wen Nuan acted as if she had not heard. She seemed to be trapped in a terrifying nightmare, unable to pull herself out, constantly mumbling, “Save me… it hurts so much…”
Chu Han’s brow furrowed. He looked at An Min. “Doctor An, what on earth is going on? Why is Wen Nuan like this?”
An Min smoothed his collar, his tone without much fluctuation. “For the zombie, the first-generation antidote is useless for eliminating the side effects of the H-agent. As for Wen Nuan, it has only intensified the most terrifying thing in her subconscious. As for what that is, that is something I cannot know.”
The most terrifying thing?! The most terrifying thing in Wen Nuan’s subconscious?
Chu Han said, “How can we improve Wen Nuan’s condition?”
“The dosage wasn’t large. It can be alleviated within 24 hours. During this time, you all…” An Min glanced at Wen Nuan, “…should not go near her. You might get hurt.”
Sang Er paused. “What do you mean?”
“To put it simply, she is now extremely hostile towards anyone. In her perception, you are all people who will harm her, so she might attack you.”
Sang Er looked at Wen Nuan, who was curled into a ball, grief appearing in her eyes. “Are we just going to stand here and watch? Let her be so scared all by herself?”
An Min lifted his eyelids. “What can you do?”
“I can’t do anything?” Sang Er looked directly at An Min. “But you can. Is there any other serum that can resolve Wen Nuan’s current state?”
An Min said coldly, “I already said, she will slowly come to her senses on her own within 24 hours.”
“I asked, is there any other serum that can resolve Wen Nuan’s current situation?!” Sang Er pressed forward step by step, her gaze fierce.
“No.” An Min was telling the truth. It was currently the antidote’s research and development phase. Many unexpected situations could occur. All he could do was collect these unexpected outcomes and slowly make corrections.
“You fucking…” Sang Er glared at An Min. She had been completely enraged by his indifferent attitude.
Sang Er clenched her fist. A flash of fire appeared, and fierce flames enveloped her fist.
Seeing this, Gao Zhengwu immediately tried to stop her, “Sang Er, you…”
Her wrist was grabbed. Just as Sang Er was about to shake it off, she heard a faint, breathy sound by her ear.
“…Little Ears?”
Sang Er froze. She turned to look at Wen Nuan and saw that her eyes were as clear as before. She immediately responded, “…I’m here.”
Seeing Wen Nuan regain consciousness, An Min glanced at his watch and raised an eyebrow slightly, his expression dark and unclear.
Wen Nuan glanced at the flames on her hand, then pulled her into an embrace, her tone thick with exhaustion and a clearly discernible sob. “I’m so tired.”
Sang Er picked Wen Nuan up, glared at An Min, and looked at Wen Nuan with heartache in her eyes. “I’ll take you home.”
Wen Nuan curled up in her embrace and said in a low voice, “Mhm, take me home.”
She was truly so scared. She had kept calling for help, but no one came to save her.
In her ears, there was still the stormy rain and cold wind from outside the window that night, and that man’s unbridled and unscrupulous wild laughter.
In the pitch-black night, she couldn’t see a single trace of light. All she could feel was the pain that man brought her.
Dense and packed, carved into her marrow4.
She seemed to have been swallowed by the darkness, unable to hide, unable to escape…
Until—
In her moment of despair, she seemed to see a trace of light. It was a scorching and brilliant flame, burning and blooming before her eyes.
She tentatively reached out to touch it, and then, she grasped it.
✨ Unlock Early Access to Chapters! ✨
Choose your perfect membership at bamboopandatl.net:
📚 Full Access ($4.99)
• Advanced chapters of ALL ongoing novels
• Access to complete finished novels
• Ad-free reading experience
📖 Single Novel Access ($1.49)
• Advanced chapters of ONE specific novel
• Ad-free reading for chosen novel
PayPal is the only current payment option!