Infinite Gods Reign Supreme

Chapter 27 - Don't Look Out the Window

Robert ultimately didn't load all the Night Demons onto the truck—he only transported twenty, including the high-ranking Night Demon, while the rest were locked up deep inside the vault by Simin. Given their high vitality, these monsters shouldn't die too quickly even after a day or two of starvation.

Perhaps not.

Robert's attitude toward these Night Demons also differed from the third-generation version that Simin was familiar with.

“I thought you’d think what I’m doing is inhumane.” Si Ming sat in the back of the truck, closely monitoring the Night Demons packed in sleeping bags, while Ishikawa Shizuka obediently held Sam in the passenger seat. As the truck drove forward, the colonel talked to him through the protective barrier, talking about trivial matters and not going into much depth.

"Ha, is that how the future will judge me? I must have embellished a lot of things in my memoirs." The colonel seemed quite cheerful, and even without the car music on, he was nodding rhythmically like a rapper.

“I killed many Night Demons.” A sense of gratitude was evident in his eyes.

“In the early stages of the outbreak, we treated the initial batch of Night Demons as zombies in the traditional sense. When they were biting and killing people indiscriminately, we did not hesitate to fire at them. Many Night Demons were killed on the spot. After that, as the number of living people around me dwindled, I would occasionally go out with the action team to hunt Night Demons.”

He shook his head.

“They are not human…and not sick people. They are…something else. The Night Demons that have survived to this day have had the flesh and blood of countless living people inside them. But when I can no longer see my other companions, I have to force myself to believe that the Night Demons are still a kind of human being.”

There are no living people left in the world.

If he didn't firmly believe that the Night Demon could revert to human form, how could Colonel Robert possibly convince himself to conduct his research alone day after day?

But now, everything is different.

“Even so, I don’t carry a gun when I go out to talk to those Night Demons hiding in apartments, basements, and shadowy areas about coexistence between humans and demons. I know very well that when I see a living Night Demon in the dark, only one of us can usually leave alive. And if I die, then there will probably be no other living person in this city.”

The colonel sighed.

“You can’t record this… Oh well, it doesn’t matter if I record it. A news story with a headline like ‘The Colonel’s Unknown Side’ is not bad.”

"I didn't record anything." Si Ming truly didn't; he simply used the Black Night Battle Qi to check through the sleeping bag. This was to ensure that the high-level Night Demon and its daughter, the Night Demon originally chosen as the experimental subject with the butterfly mark on its back, could maintain stable physiological data.

"Ah, that's good." The colonel didn't seem to care much about it. He suddenly asked with some curiosity, "By the way, in the era you came from, were things quite difficult for humans? I feel that you have a similar temperament to me, but this Miss Ishikawa is... well, more relaxed."

“She’s a newcomer,” Si Ming smiled. “As for my era…”

He recalled his past experiences in the other world. The omnipresent malice, the distorted sky that might be broken or burning. The seemingly living creatures, yet twisted and decaying, covered in maggots and poisonous mushrooms, insane beings. And those twisted creatures that could occasionally utter a sentence or two with logic, but most of the time were dazed and confused, unable to distinguish friend from foe, and unable to communicate without being thoroughly beaten.

That's really...

A piece of old land that evokes a strong sense of nostalgia.

"...It's alright." Si Ming tapped the corner of a sleeping bag lightly with his fingers. "Although there are occasional slightly troublesome situations, most of the time, the problems are not too difficult to solve."

“You’ve worked hard, Professor Si.” The colonel suddenly hesitated. “By the way, Professor Si. You mentioned before that necromancy can resurrect the living… can it also be done without a corpse?”

He had expectations, but those expectations... weren't very high.

"I am sorry about your wife and daughter." And he did receive the reply he expected.

However, there are differences in the details.

"But personally, I think you can still start a new life, Colonel. Perhaps after some time, you'll meet other survivors?"

"Are there other survivors here!?"

"You've been broadcasting for so long, it must have served some purpose." Si Ming raised his hand and pointed to a building in the distance that he vaguely remembered. "Aren't we almost there?"

..............................

Robert's house was large, just as he described, and largely the same as in the movie. It served as both his base and his research center. With the help of Simin and Shizuka Ishikawa, these Night Demons were immediately placed on restraint beds in the research lab, or in cages used for holding experimental animals.

“Be careful, these Night Demons are intelligent. If they discover a weakness, they will cooperate to escape from their cages. Also, there are special individuals among the Night Demons; their physical strength is much higher than that of their kin.” Robert's movements stiffened slightly, then his actions and expression became even more serious. With intelligence and division of labor, even if he tried to deceive himself, he could only regard the Night Demons as a new species rather than a special form of disease. Although he had been mentally prepared, he still felt a sense of unease when it actually happened.

The restraint operation did not take long.

During this time, some of the more physically powerful Night Demons pretended to be asleep, hoping to take the opportunity to launch a sneak attack. However, Si Ming saw through their act in advance and used his electric baton to send the unfortunate fellow into an even deeper sleep. This naturally served as evidence, ensuring that Colonel Robert would not fall into the traps set by the Night Demons like in the original story.

"I suggest prioritizing these two for testing, and even if you encounter setbacks, don't worry."

Si Ming pointed out the high-ranking Night Demon and its daughter with the butterfly mark on her back. The original work didn't mention whether this Night Demon daughter was transformed from someone with the butterfly tattoo or a product of natural reproduction between Night Demons, but in any case, this successful example should be put to use.

"You mean, there's a possibility that I might fail at the beginning?"

“There will always be failures when exploring the unknown.” Si Ming shrugged. “Maybe you used too little or too much material when you first released the sample, so that you could only inject the KV virus again, and the experimental subject could be reused.”

“That sounds like something I’m capable of doing.” The colonel nodded, injecting different doses of Compound VI into the bodies of the Night Demons bound to five beds. “Especially when I’m all alone and have only captured one Night Demon.”

The drug took effect quickly. The Night Demon characteristics on the five test subjects faded at a visible rate, and their various biological parameters rapidly approached those of normal humans. However, just a few seconds later, the Night Demons began to tremble violently and let out sharp, agonizing roars.

"The physiological parameters are decreasing, and now we are re-injecting different proportions of KV virus."

With Siming's reminder, Robert's actions became calm and methodical. As the KV virus was either reinserted or ignored, the roaring, struggling Night Demons gradually quieted down. The two with the highest and lowest dosages gradually weakened until they stopped breathing and their hearts stopped beating.

A Night Demon died; it was poisoned by an overdose of Compound VI.

However, the other one that died, while its skin and eye color disappeared, partially reverted to a near-human appearance.

“Compound No. 6 is effective.” The colonel looked at the two dead test subjects and silently breathed a sigh of relief. “My viral immunity can indeed be transferred to the test subjects. But the specific ratio will require repeated trials and careful observation.”

Si Ming clapped his hands to congratulate him.

"Congratulations, Colonel Robert. You've taken a crucial step."

“It’s all thanks to your help, Professor Si.” He nodded to Si Ming and Ishikawa Shizuka, who was carefully assisting him. “By the way, you haven’t eaten yet, have you? I have a lot of good stuff stored in my refrigerator. Would you like to try some local specialties from this era? The taste might be different from yours.”

"I am very interested."

Si Ming gladly accepted.

So the group quickly tidied up and administered sufficient sedatives to all the test subjects—Siming even left a few skeleton soldiers in the lab for emergency guard duty. After all possible loopholes were plugged, the group went to Robert's kitchen.

He had indeed stocked up on plenty of good food; aside from a lack of fresh meat, his refrigerator contained high-quality bacon and sausages. The only woman among the three proved invaluable at this moment. Compared to the two men who prioritized efficiency over refinement, Ishikawa Shizuka, this high school girl, clearly possessed culinary skills surpassing the combined abilities of Sima and Robert.

She cooked a delicious meal, and the three of them and their dog thoroughly enjoyed it. Robert even opened two cans of beer to have a drink with Simin, and then opened his favorite cartoon, Shrek, to share with the two guests.

After a hearty meal and drinks, both host and guests enjoyed themselves immensely.

After a short rest, Robert once again threw himself into the experiments and research on compound six, until night gradually fell outside the window.

Si Ming had no intention of leaving.

On the first night, he would stay inside Robert's base with Ishikawa—he had already started the side quest, and he didn't believe that a B-rank side quest could be obtained so easily without any challenge. And now was clearly the best time to demonstrate the difficulty of the mission.

He sat by the window, gazing into the distance. As the safety panel was lowered, he gave Robert a piece of advice.

"It's best not to turn on external surveillance tonight, and don't be curious about any noises coming from outside."

"This is for your own good, Colonel."

(End of this chapter)