novelraw Chapter 143 Deadly Poison is the Best Tonic
Chapter 143 Deadly Poison is the Best Tonic
Wang Minyu recognized the deliveryman carrying the cardboard box.
It's that Xiao Zhang from last time who had a severe allergic reaction after coming into contact with a lacquer vase, his face swelling up like a steamed bun, but was saved by Wang Minyu with a bowl of "detox soup" and has since become a loyal fan of Renxin Pharmacy.
At this moment, Xiao Zhang was completely devoid of his usual energetic and talkative spirit.
He was holding the violently shaking cardboard box, as if he were holding a time bomb that could explode at any moment. His legs were shaking so badly that they looked like he was tap dancing, and his knees were almost hitting each other.
"Dr. Wang... Dr. Wang! Help!" Xiao Zhang's voice trembled, choked with sobs. "There's a monster in this box! There really is a monster! I... I'm not kidding!"
As he spoke, the cardboard box slammed shut again, making his arm go numb and almost causing him to drop it on the ground.
The students who were drinking "student's happy water" in the store were so startled that they all stood up with a "whoosh" and squeezed towards the door.
"Don't move!" Wang Minyu put down the nail file he was using to trim Guan Shan's nails, stood up, and looked at the constantly shaking cardboard box.
His brow furrowed slightly.
Something's wrong with that box.
Even if a regular courier package contained a living creature, it wouldn't make such a big commotion.
Moreover, he noticed that a thin, almost invisible layer of black mist was seeping out from the edge of the box.
"What monster? Godzilla or Ultraman?" Wang Minyu maintained his nonchalant demeanor, but he had already subtly given Guan Shan a wink. "Guan Shan, go take a look."
Guan Shan put down the chicken leg he had just half-eaten, wiped the grease from his mouth, and stood up.
The enormous figure instantly enveloped Xiao Zhang.
Xiao Zhang instinctively took a step back, but Guan Shan pressed down on his shoulder with his large, fan-like hand.
"Don't be afraid, I'm here," Guan Shan said in a deep voice, then reached out his other hand and gently patted the cardboard box.
"Bang!"
The contents of the box seemed to be enraged, and began to thrash even more violently.
"Boss, something inside is hitting the box, and it's quite hard." Guan Shan's expression turned serious. "And... the box is a bit hot."
"Hot?" Wang Minyu stepped forward and touched the surface of the box.
Sure enough, the temperature of the cardboard box was significantly higher than the room temperature, and it continued to rise.
"Nonsense, how could he be so scared if he wasn't energetic?" Wang Minyu rolled his eyes at Guan Shan, then turned to Su Qing and said, "Su Qing, get ready. It might be a bit troublesome."
Su Qing had already taken out latex gloves from the first-aid kit and put them on deftly.
She drew a sharp scalpel from her waist, the blade gleaming coldly under the light.
"Li Siyuan, Zhao Na, you two take the rest of the people outside." Wang Minyu's tone turned serious. "Pierre, go get the fire extinguisher from the kitchen, and open all the windows."
"Boss, is it that serious?" Li Siyuan swallowed hard, but still obediently began to disperse the crowd.
"I don't know." Wang Minyu stared at the box. "But it's always better to be careful."
Su Qing walked to the box, squatted down, and gently pried open the sealing tape with the tip of a scalpel.
"Sizzle—"
The tape broke instantly.
As the lid was slowly lifted, a strange odor, a mixture of metallic and putrid smells, wafted out.
Everyone gasped in shock.
Inside the box, instead of a monster, was... a plant?
It was a strange plant that was entirely black and looked like a lingzhi mushroom or some kind of deep-sea fungus.
It had no roots; it simply floated in the center of the box, as if being supported by some unseen force.
Its surface is covered with a sticky, oil-like liquid that gleams with an eerie rainbow sheen under the light.
What's most chilling is that its canopy is covered with countless tiny, eye-like spots.
Those "eyes" are opening and closing, and each time they open, they emit a faint green light, as if they are breathing.
The violent vibration was caused by it constantly hitting the inner wall of the cardboard box, as if it was eager to break free of this cage and rush out.
"My God..." Zhao Na whispered from behind Li Siyuan, "What kind of mushroom is this? It looks poisonous."
"This isn't a mushroom." Su Qing's eyes were more serious than ever before.
She even pulled a portable Geiger counter from her pocket—one she had "borrowed" from the lab specifically for detecting radioactive materials.
She turned on the switch and pointed the probe at the box.
"Beep...beep beep...beep beep beep..."
The counter emitted increasingly urgent alarms.
"There's a slight radioactivity." Su Qing's voice was cold. She then pulled a small air quality detector from another pocket. "Moreover, the concentration of negative ions in the air is rising rapidly, and the electromagnetic field is fluctuating. This thing... is absorbing energy."
Wang Minyu's brows furrowed even more deeply.
He took a deep breath and activated the [Aura Observation Technique].
In the system panel view, the plant was surrounded by a thick, almost tangible black mist.
The mist was not still, but like a living thing, constantly churning, twisting, and spreading in all directions.
The text on the panel was blood red and was flashing incessantly.
[WARNING! High-risk mutant species detected!]
【Name: Energioid spore (larva)】
[Source: "S" organization, codename 'Abyss']
[Danger Level: S]
[Characteristics: This spore is a genetically edited silicon-based life form capable of absorbing and converting various forms of energy from its environment (electromagnetic waves, heat, kinetic energy, and even bioelectricity) into its own growth energy. Its secreted mucus is highly neurotoxic; contact can lead to muscle paralysis, respiratory failure, and cardiac arrest.]
[Note: This is a living "black hole." If left unchecked, it can drain the entire city's electricity within 24 hours and grow into its complete form. At that point, it will become a mobile EMP (electromagnetic pulse) bomb, capable of instantly paralyzing all electronic devices within a ten-kilometer radius. Even more terrifying, it will begin to "prey" on bioelectricity, meaning... it will drain the life force of all living things.]
[Current status: Juvenile, energy reserves 15%, currently searching for an energy source.]
Wang Minyu's heart sank.
The "S" organization is finally no longer satisfied with just small-scale biological weapons.
They've started playing with things that you only see in science fiction movies.
This is no longer a "prank," it is a blatant act of terrorism.
If this thing really grows into its complete form, the entire power grid of Changxiang City will be paralyzed.
At that time, hospitals, transportation, communications... everything will fall into chaos.
Patients who rely on medical equipment such as ventilators and pacemakers to stay alive will die instantly.
This isn't killing one person; it's massacring an entire city.
"Xiao Zhang." Wang Minyu forced himself to calm down and turned to look at the still trembling deliveryman. "Who sent this? Where did it come from?"
"N-no... I don't know." Xiao Zhang's teeth were chattering. "It was an anonymous package. The sender's field was blank, and the shipping address was listed as 'unknown.' The recipient's name was 'Renxin Pharmacy, to be opened by Wang Minyu.' When I first received it, it was just a regular box, nothing unusual. I was delivering it halfway there on my electric scooter when it started ramming inside, and it kept getting worse, almost flipping my scooter over! I... I was terrified, so I ran here as fast as I could..."
Wang Minyu understood.
During transportation, this thing absorbed the electric vehicle's power and began to "awaken".
Now, it is fully awake and searching for more energy.
"Everyone, leave the pharmacy immediately, the farther the better!" Wang Minyu suddenly shouted. "Guan Shan, evacuate everyone from the streets! Su Qing, contact the fire department and tell them to prepare!"
"Boss, what about you?" Guan Shan asked.
"I'll stay and deal with this thing." Wang Minyu's eyes turned cold and resolute. "It's coming for me, and I can't let it hurt anyone else."
"I'll stay too," Su Qing said calmly. "You need help."
"And me!" Pierre ran out of the kitchen, carrying a fire extinguisher. "Boss, I have a liquid nitrogen tank in my kitchen that might come in handy."
Looking at them, Wang Minyu felt a warm current welling up in his heart.
But he didn't have time to be sentimental.
"Pierre!" Wang Minyu shouted into the kitchen, "Get your liquid nitrogen tank out! Quickly!"
"Boss, are you making molecular ice cream?" Pierre paused for a moment, but quickly realized, "Oh, I see!"
He carried a pot of freshly stewed "calming chicken soup," put it aside, and then scrambled back to the kitchen.
In less than a minute, he pulled out a metal canister, about half a person's height, emitting white steam. It was a professional liquid nitrogen storage tank he had brought from France, which he usually used for molecular gastronomy.
"Everyone, back off!" Wang Minyu took the nozzle from the liquid nitrogen tank, took a deep breath, and aimed it at the "energy-devouring spores" in the box.
His hands were as steady as a machine.
Just as he was about to press the spray button, the spore seemed to sense a threat.
The "eyes" on its canopy suddenly opened, emitting a piercing, high-frequency shriek.
"Buzz—"
The sound pierced through the eardrums and into the brain.
Everyone instinctively covered their ears, feeling a splitting headache.
Then, something even more terrible happened.
The lights in the entire pharmacy flickered for a moment, and then went out with a "snap".
Not only that, even the phones in Li Siyuan and Zhao Na's hands went black instantly and became completely unresponsive.
The streetlights on the street also went out at the same time.
The entire street was plunged into darkness.
"It absorbed electromagnetic waves!" Su Qing calmly assessed. "It's evolving!"
In the darkness, only the eerie green light emitted by the spore appeared particularly strange and terrifying.
All those "eyes" were fixed on Wang Minyu, as if mocking his helplessness.
"Guan Shan, block the door! Don't let it get away!" Wang Minyu roared in the darkness.
He knew that this thing absolutely could not be allowed to come into contact with the external power grid, otherwise the consequences would be unimaginable.
Without saying a word, Guan Shan used his massive body to block the doorway.
"Come on!" Guan Shan roared. "If you want to get out, you'll have to step over me first!"
Without the slightest hesitation, Wang Minyu opened the valve of the liquid nitrogen tank and sprayed the -196 degree Celsius liquid nitrogen directly at the spore.
"Sizzle—"
A bone-chilling cold instantly spread, and the temperature in the entire pharmacy plummeted.
Under the extreme low temperature, the spore contracted and trembled violently, and the shrieking sound it emitted became intermittent, as if it were being strangled.
The mucus on its surface solidifies rapidly at low temperatures, turning into a black, glass-like hard shell.
But it is still struggling.
Those "eyes" opened and closed frantically, trying to absorb more energy to fight off the cold.
"Not enough!" Wang Minyu gritted his teeth and increased the force of his spray.
The white mist almost completely enveloped the cardboard box.
It sprayed for a full five minutes, until the entire liquid nitrogen tank was empty, before the spore finally calmed down and turned into a frozen, oddly shaped black crystal.
All those "eyes" have also closed.
Power was then restored to the pharmacy.
The lights came back on, and the cell phone signal was restored.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, collapsed to the ground, their bodies drenched in cold sweat.
"Master... Master, what the hell is this?" Li Siyuan asked, still shaken.
"A... very valuable 'tonic'." Wang Minyu looked at the black crystal, his eyes not showing fear, but rather a kind of... excitement similar to that of a hunter seeing a top-quality prey.
"Su Qing, put it in the highest-level biosafety box," Wang Minyu instructed. "Pierre, find out the cellular structure of this thing and what solvent can break it down. Remember, it must be handled at absolute zero; there can be no chance of it reviving."
"Boss, you...you don't mean to...eat it, do you?" Pierre's voice was trembling; he felt that his boss might really have gone mad.
"Eat it? That's such a waste." Wang Minyu shook his head, a crazy smile curving his lips. "Such a good energy block should be used for... 'alchemy.' Just imagine, if we could extract its energy absorption mechanism and convert it into something beneficial to the human body, what kind of effect would that have?"
He walked up to Xiao Zhang and patted him on the shoulder: "Xiao Zhang, you've worked hard today. As a reward, from now on, all your and all the brothers at your station's 'Midnight Diner' meals will be free. Also, keep this to yourself and don't tell anyone."
Xiao Zhang hadn't recovered from the shock yet, and just nodded blankly.
Wang Minyu picked up the phone and dialed a number he rarely used—the official "liaison," Captain Zhou.
The phone rang three times before it was answered.
"Hello, Captain Zhou?" Wang Minyu's voice was calm. "I've received an interesting 'delivery.' Yes, it's from the 'S' organization. I think you guys would be very interested."
"Also, please tell your supervisor that my 'consulting fee' is going up this time."