Chapter Forty-Eight: The Ancient Formula Is Complete

The moment Shen Lie saw the man standing outside the car window, he immediately sensed danger.

Over the past two days, Gu Chengfang’s name had been thunderously famous; almost every moment someone could be heard speaking about him. And whenever this man was mentioned, one had to speak of the present state of the convoy.

There was no longer any need to dwell on what the convoy had been like at the beginning. After more than three months of arduous travel, the original purpose had long since vanished. Everyone now was struggling simply to stay alive, and Shen Lie’s group was no different. They had but one goal left: survival.

As more and more people in the convoy awakened, the military gradually lost its ability to keep the entire group under complete control. A small organization called the Awakened Alliance had quietly appeared, and its leader was Gu Chengfang, known as Alliance Master Gu.

Alliance master was a title steeped in the flavor of the martial world, the sort of thing that appeared mostly in tales of heroes and wandering swordsmen. Only the truly formidable were qualified to bear it, and Gu Chengfang was exactly such a man.

It was said that he was the strongest of all the awakened in the entire convoy. He also possessed considerable charisma and remarkable leadership ability, enough to build a power base of his own right under the military’s nose.

In truth, Shen Lie was very interested in this Awakened Alliance, chiefly because he wanted to communicate with other awakened. Even now, he was still somewhat confused about the changes in his own body, and perhaps through conversation he could learn more.

But once he discovered that the convoy actually contained two opposing forces and that undercurrents were roiling beneath the surface, he immediately gave up on the idea. They had too little power to afford getting involved in unnecessary struggles. So for the past two days, he and Du Lili had basically not gotten out of the car. In any case, the dry rations they carried could still last them for a while.

Dressed in black casual clothes, with a short crew cut and a fair face, that was the impression Gu Chengfang gave Shen Lie. The man had come to visit Professor Liu, and had nothing to do with him, so after taking a single glance, Shen Lie closed his eyes and continued to feign sleep. Du Lili did not even bother to look. Only Zhang Jing showed a trace of curiosity, though she said nothing. As for Li Xue, the girl had not said a single word since getting in the car.

Of course, there was another person in the vehicle: Tao Tao. At that moment, the little girl was holding up a glass vial and admiring it. Shen Lie had given it to her, the very potion Professor Liu had developed.

The little girl was now an awakened one as well, and her ability was a rather unusual one. From her purple eye, she could fire a purple beam. That beam possessed corrosive power and could corrode away anything it touched!

Unfortunately, the little girl’s ability was still weak. The beam she could fire was not even three meters long, so it was of little practical use. Still, the ability itself held boundless potential, so Shen Lie gave her the remaining evolution potion. The child was very dependent on him, and once she grew stronger, she would surely become a great help.

After what had happened in the small town, Shen Lie had already realized that in this apocalypse, no one could survive long alone, much less live well. He had begun, consciously or unconsciously, to cultivate talent.

In this regard, Gu Chengfang was clearly far ahead of him. The man already had nearly thirty subordinates gathered under him, and without exception, they were all awakened. Those who had not awakened could only serve as peripheral personnel.

“Gu Chengfang, is it? What do you want with me? If it’s about the potion, then this old man is afraid I’m of no help,” Professor Liu said, making no move to get out of the car either. He merely glanced at the man through the window.

Professor Liu’s attitude was clearly not to Gu Chengfang’s liking. Shen Lie could see him frown, but he did not lose his temper. Instead, he continued in a warm tone. “Professor, you misunderstand. I came mainly to pay a visit to you. I heard that you are an expert in gene potions, and that you even developed a potion capable of helping us awakened evolve. I came here with admiration in my heart to see you for myself. Your invention has been a blessing to us awakened. It allows us to contribute a little more strength to humanity in the fight against the monsters.”

“Heh, Alliance Master Gu certainly has well-informed sources. But perhaps you do not yet know that all the potions I developed have already been distributed, and the raw materials needed to make them can no longer be found,” Professor Liu said with a dry laugh, sounding rather helpless.

Shen Lie and the others knew Professor Liu was not speaking falsely. They did not know whether he still had any potions left, but the phantom mushrooms required to make the potion were definitely unique to the red mist zone, and the chances of finding them again were slim to none.

Gu Chengfang evidently did not quite believe Professor Liu. Without hesitation, he said, “If the professor can make one, then naturally he can make a second. And if it is a matter of raw materials, then I, Gu, may be able to think of a way.”

There was a strong note of arrogance in his words, which made Professor Liu’s brow crease slightly. Yet the professor merely smiled faintly and took a small box from his bag. He opened it, and a flickering mushroom appeared before everyone’s eyes.

“Since you are so confident, I won’t hide anything. This is the raw material needed for the evolution potion. I call it a phantom mushroom. It grows within the red mist I came out of, to the northeast of Dongfeng Town. If you can bring me this thing, then however much you bring, I will make however many evolution potions for you.”

Professor Liu spoke plainly. Instead, Gu Chengfang lost some of his confidence. Over the past two days, everyone had learned just how eerie that red mist was. He was not foolish enough to go there looking for things.

At the same time, he heard the displeasure in Professor Liu’s tone. As an ambitious man, he deeply understood how precious a talent like Professor Liu was, and he did not wish to offend him. After saying that he would come by another day, he turned and left.

“Gu Chengfang is not a good man. Professor, you should be careful around him in the future,” Yang Weiguo said gravely as he started the armored vehicle once Gu Chengfang had gone far enough away. It was clear he had learned something from the military.

“Heh, among those who have managed to survive from the beginning of the apocalypse until now, there probably aren’t many good people left,” Professor Liu said with a laugh, replying in a tone of deep melancholy.

This little episode did not affect the convoy’s progress. The huge procession of more than twenty thousand people was bloated and unwieldy, using all sorts of strange vehicles, with even some people limping on foot. It wound through the hills and wilderness like a long dragon.

Cries of argument rose from time to time, and from time to time someone could be heard howling in pain. Every day, people died, and every day, new survivors joined. In such a stop-and-go state, the convoy finally crossed the borders of Green Mountain Province after more than twenty days and arrived in the long-awaited Liao Province!

“There are less than ten days’ travel left to Yangcheng Base. Everyone, do not lose heart. Hope is right before our eyes!” Encouraging words were broadcast constantly from the military loudspeakers, proclaiming that the convoy’s vitality had not yet been extinguished.

“Professor, did you succeed?” Shen Lie and the others sat inside the armored vehicle, looking at the potion vial in Professor Liu’s hand with faces full of surprise. Delighted expressions lit their features.