Inside a laboratory spanning three hundred square meters, more than a hundred human-sized culture dishes are arranged. Each dish contains floating limbs in liquid.
A dozen researchers, computers in hand, diligently document each data point from the gene-drug trials.
"The first batch of genetic test subjects consisted of one hundred and fifty individuals; only one was successful, while one hundred and forty-nine failed," the researcher's fingers tremble slightly as he completes the first report.
There is a spark of madness in their eyes. They have succeeded.
Upon the white experimental bed, a young girl's limbs are held tightly in place with metal straps. Two bloody trenches are visible on her neck, a stark contrast against her emaciated figure. She struggles fiercely.
The researcher in a blue lab coat disregards the struggling Shen Xun, the test subject's name, and connects a data wire to her head. A flurry of data points appear on the screen.
A dozen pairs of eyes are fixed on the streaming data, captivated.
"The subject's physical readings are all within normal parameters; we can proceed to the second phase of the experiment," under the gaze of numerous pairs of eyes, an elderly man picks up a vial of a white drug with an excited glint in his eyes.
The elderly man carefully squeezes out the air in the syringe and stands next to Shen Xun, watching her like his greatest creation.
Shen Xun has ceased struggling now; it would merely be a waste of energy.
She wishes to speak, but the cloth gagged in her mouth prevents the words from spilling out.
A sharp pain courses through her wrist. The elderly man, with hands shaking excitedly, places down the empty drug vial.
About a dozen expectant faces look on; Shen Xun was the only survivor of the genetic trials. If she can endure the second round of the experiment, it could bring about a seminal shift in their research.
"Subject's data is fluctuating erratically, quickly administer the tranquilizers... quickly..." In a flurry, several of them rush to find the tranquilizers, Two tranquilizer syringes are promptly plunged into Shen Xun's body.
The cloth gag is replaced with an oxygen mask, a rush of mist forms and quickly dissipates with every breath she takes.
Shen Xun slowly closed his eyes, and thankfully, the pain was not as severe as he had anticipated.
Ding……
The red numbers on the machine stopped.
……
"Shen Xun, Shen Xun, the teacher is calling you," Chen Xiaxia called out several times.
Shen Xun lifted his head and looked at Chen Xiaxia, his face still holding the traces of an impression left by his shirt, resulting in peals of laughter from his classmates.
Shen Xun's gaze locked onto Chen Xiaxia sharply. Wasn't she supposed to be at the J city base?
Only Chen Xiaxia couldn't laugh. Shen Xun's gaze was too terrifying, which caused her to turn her head unconsciously.
"Quiet, quiet," the long protractor slammed against the teacher's desk, its clapping sound unusually loud among the laughter. The classroom suddenly quieted down.
Teacher Lin pushed his glasses up, and somehow, Shen Xun saw a deadly stare in those slitted eyes.
"Shen Xun, this is the third time. Get out and stand outside. Come to my office after class," teacher Lin pointed toward the door with a stern tone.
Shen Xun was still a bit stunned. Was she dreaming? But it felt too realistic.
A breeze blew in from the window. There was no smell of decay in the air, only the fresh scent of trees.
Under the watchful eyes of her classmates, Shen Xun stood up and walked out of the classroom.
In the six-story teaching building, occasional students holding documents and books passed by in the corridor. Nearly everyone turned around to look at Shen Xun as they passed by her.
The familiar school building, standing outside the classroom, I could still hear the voice of the teacher lecturing between the floors, it feels both real and dream-like.
Shen Xun pinched herself harshly, a red mark appeared on her arm, it hurt a lot.
"I'm not dreaming, I'm back," Shen Xun reflected on her current situation.
Punished by Teacher Lin, then surrendering her shares, followed by the end of the world.
After the death of her parents in a car accident, forty percent of the company's shares were transferred to her name. She was the largest shareholder of the company.
But Uncle One and Uncle Two, seeing her youth, all wanted her to surrender her shares for their management. Shen Xun disagreed, and they kept pestering her so much that she didn't get a good sleep for a time. Then in class, she was caught and punished by Teacher Lin.
How did she handle it the first time, Shen Xun thought back, thinking that they really had her best interest at heart, so she gave the shares to them.
At first they indeed were hypocritical.
Later, when the end of the world came, they sent her to the lab for a few packs of compressed biscuits and mixed grain cakes.
Her mind was somewhat chaotic, but what overwhelmed it was the surprise of rebirth.
Right, the gene potion, she remembered that after she took the first potion, she survived, and gained the ability to induce plant growth. She wondered if it had followed her back.
She was the first batch of people who took the gene potion, also the only one who survived it. But she didn't make it past the second dose.
Walking through the corridor, Shen Xun entered the bathroom, locked the door, sat on the toilet, and took out her phone to see the time. It was July 6, XX year, in seventeen days, the end of the world would come.
At first, there was a sudden rainstorm, it rained continuously for a month, nearly half of E city was drenched. After the rainstorm stopped, global cooling ensued.
There was a pot of Pothos beside her right foot, it is placed here to purify the air in the bathroom.
Shen Xun made a slight wish, green light spots appeared at her fingertips, the light spots were absorbed into the leaves of the Pothos, two seconds later, the Pothos began to grow wildly.
The spreading vines climbed up to cover the four walls, quickly a two square meter space was occupied by the Pothos, and they still continued to grow.