Chapter 4 Devour And Adapt

• Liam shuddered at the mere thought of eating a human heart. The system he had just bonded with seemed to be pushing him in the same direction that he was so desperate to avoid.
• “I…am not a cannibal!” he cried out exasperatedly, fighting to retain control of his motor functions as the infection weakened his neural pathways. “I…am not feasting on…my own aunt. I’d rather die!”
• At this, the system window flashed open again, displaying a new set of messages.
• [The Infected Evolution System was designed by June Abigail.]
• [Consuming her heart is the only way to honor her legacy and continue her research.]
• [Infection level: 75%]
• [Time until complete loss of mental control: 1 minute 32 seconds.]
• Although Liam still held himself guilty for killing his aunt, the timer counting down toward his death quickly swept his grief away, and his survival instincts kicked in like a rush.
• Realizing that he was going to turn into a mindless zombie if he didn’t act quickly, Liam begrudgingly picked up the knife and crawled over to June’s corpse.
• The injection had restored a part of his strength, but his mind was still clouded with doubt.
• As he raised the knife, meaning to stab his aunt’s corpse, his hand trembled, and he retched from the rotting stench that wafted into his nostrils.
• “I can’t do this!”
• The knife dropped from his hand as he cried out in agony.
• [Basic evolution triggered!]
• [1 new Physical Adaptation acquired!]
• [Bestial Grasp: The host can use his strengthened arm to punch through soft tissue and shatter brittle bones.]
• Liam felt his right arm hardening automatically, and as he lifted his hand, his fingers turned stiff as his bones elongated inside his skin and a cluster of new muscles overlapped over the older ones.
• [Tear out June Abigail’s heart and consume it to absorb her DNA.]
• [Infection level: 85%!]
• With the timer ticking down rapidly, Liam was starting to lose control.
• “Damn it! Damn it all!”
• With tears streaming down his cheeks, he gritted his teeth and punched June’s lifeless corpse.
• His hardened right arm tore through the clothing, his elongated fingers sinking into her soft, rotting flesh and shattering the ribcage.
• Groping inside the gooey mess of blood and muscles, he finally clasped the warm, muscular organ and ripped it out of her body.
• June’s heart was still oozing blood, but it had stopped throbbing long ago.
• Liam felt sick even at the thought of taking a bite of that hollow bag of muscles.
• But even before he could resist, his fingers tightened into a fist, crushing the heart. Blood splattered on his face as the organ burst open.
• A tiny pore opened up on Liam’s palm and absorbed the bloody mess, rapidly assimilating the dead cells into his own bloodstream.
• Seconds later, his arm returned to normal again.
• [Objective completed!]
• [Founder’s DNA obtained.]
• [Reward unlocked: Experimental Antidote!]
• Liam almost expected something to fall out of the sky, just like a video game, but hearing an electronic swish, he turned his attention to the floor.
• The red crystal pendant had opened its secret panel, ejecting a shimmering green vial filled with a bubbling liquid.
• Without a second thought, Liam pounced on the vial and uncorked it. He downed the bitter liquid in one go, just as he was about to lose control.
• His glassy eyes turned bloodshot for a moment as the infection spread to his brain, but before it could hijack his nervous system, the antidote took effect, neutralizing the effects of the bite.
• Liam coughed hard and spat out more blood, but it was fresh this time.
• [Genetic Recombination commencing!]
• [Founder’s DNA successfully assimilated into host.]
• [1 new Physical Adaptation acquired.]
• [Rapid Regeneration: The host can heal automatically from moderate injuries and wounds by regenerating tissue. To regenerate skin, blood, and muscles, the host must expend a considerable amount of energy and nutrients. The effects of regeneration increase when resting or consuming any kind of meat. Side effects may include extreme fatigue and temporary nausea.]
• [The host can consume more infected hearts to assimilate unique DNA and acquire new adaptations.]
• Even before Liam could figure out what was happening, he stopped bleeding, and the wounds on his chest and shoulder sealed up automatically as new tissues replaced the damaged ones.
• Even though the pain and swelling remained, he no longer felt the ravenous urge to bite into something.
• Gradually, his lips stopped twitching and his muscles relaxed. But he was still too weak to even stand up and move from his spot.
• “Impossible. How did my wounds heal so quickly?”
• Liam was just beginning to contemplate what was happening to him when a cacophony of raspy groans alarmed him.
• Someone was clawing at the front door, and he could hear nails scratching against the smooth wood.
• Scared and helpless, Liam turned around and peeped through the glass window behind him, only to realize he was in for one hell of a night.
• The streets outside were crawling with shambling corpses. They were tearing through the houses, pouncing on anyone unfortunate enough to be caught outside.
• The infection had swept through the town of Black Spring like a plague, ravaging its quiet homes and turning the populace into mindless undead, driven solely by a primal hunger.
• With the knocking getting louder and the raspy groans becoming more frantic by the minute, Liam realized he couldn’t stay there a moment longer. He needed to get out of the house before the shambling corpses broke in.
• Liam was still trying to figure out a way out of this mess when his system window popped open, flashing a new warning.
• [Infection level nominal.]
• [Next antidote dosage due in: 12 hours, 15 minutes.]
• [New Objective: Find a new vial of experimental antidote before the timer runs out.]
• [Reward: Secret formula for experimental antidote!]