115: Chapter 115 The Epidemic Breaks Out in Shanghai, the Ecological War Begins

At 3:27 AM, Chen Fan had just finished the energy analysis of the third batch of meteorite fragments. The meteorites that Lei Zhen had rushed by air from the Northwest were of varying sizes, and this was already the third batch.

Chen Fan sat cross-legged, the surface of the meteorites flowing with a dark gold light that flickered like breathing. Under the guidance of Chen Fan's Mental Power, those lights flowed like streams into the sea, seeping bit by bit into his brow and merging into the depths of his consciousness.

As Chen Fan's Mental Power grew stronger, unlike the previous passive absorption of Stellar Core Energy, this time, Chen Fan was actively "parsing" the structure of the energy. He was trying to understand the essence of this power from the starry sky, which was a wonderful experience.

As the absorption deepened, some fragmented images began to flash in his mind—

· In the endless dark void, a shuttle-shaped silver spaceship was sailing. The ship's hull was engraved with intricate patterns, and at its center was the logo of an equilateral triangle nested with three circles.

· A figure dressed in a silver uniform stood before a control console, fingers sliding across a holographic star map, finally stopping on a blue planet.

· "Seeding Protocol initiated. Subject Number: Tr-7. Observation period: 100,000 Earth years." A cold mechanical voice echoed within the ship.

· The next second, a beam of light fell upon... Magic City?

The images cut off there.

Chen Fan snapped his eyes open, the dark gold light deep in his pupils swirling like a galaxy, lingering for a long time. He spread his hands, and fine silver patterns appeared on his palms—traces of Stellar Core Energy flowing through the meridians in his body.

[Mental Power index has exceeded the baseline by 120%. Energy Vision range extended to a five-kilometer radius. Matter parsing precision has reached the atomic level.] The system notification sounded.

[New Ability: Energy Projection—Can condense Mental Power into physical images; Cross-spatial Perception—Can vaguely perceive the real-time status of all energy nodes within five kilometers.]

Chen Fan stood up and stretched his limbs. He could feel that not only his Mental Power, but his physical strength had also made a qualitative leap—bone density increased threefold, muscle fiber strength increased fivefold, and nerve conduction speed was more than twenty times that of an ordinary human.

In gaming terms, he had just completed a "class advancement."

During this time, Chen Fan had focused most of his energy on satellite production and launching.

Not long after things quieted down, Magic City entered a state of full alert—an epidemic alarm.

"A large-scale omega virus infection event has occurred in Magic City!" Su Qingyue's voice came through the phone, carrying a rare sense of panic. "Five minutes ago, three residential areas near the Songyuan Industrial Park simultaneously reported abnormal cases. More than fifty people are infected! The symptoms are exactly the same as the early stages of the Aberrations in the Northwest Gobi Desert!"

Su Qingyue paused. "What's even stranger is that all the infected claim to have seen 'glowing flying insects' or 'strange mist' between 10:00 PM and midnight last night. But meteorological monitoring shows no abnormal weather during that time."

"It's not natural transmission," Chen Fan immediately judged. "It's a deliberate release."

Chen Fan had Xiao Zhi pull up the surveillance footage. The infected area had already been cordoned off by the police, with flashing police lights forming a continuous line in the night. Through the high-definition cameras, figures could be seen behind the windows of several residential buildings, frantically slamming against the glass with movements so distorted they didn't seem human.

Further away, several ambulances were parked by the roadside. Medical personnel in full protective suits were trying to lift several violently struggling infected people onto the vehicles. But those infected people possessed staggering strength, easily breaking free from their restraints; one even tore open an ambulance door with their bare hands!

Just then, Lin Hao ran in. "Fan Zi, as you expected, the omega virus has really started spreading."

"Ordinary police forces can't control this anymore," Chen Fan said. "Hao Zi, adjust our 'Guardian' robots; they should be put to use now."

"Alright, I'll go get ready," Lin Hao said before hurriedly leaving the office.

Then he dialed Lei Zhen's number: "Captain Lei, infected cases of the omega virus have also appeared here in Magic City, and it's starting to spread. It's likely a deliberate poisoning."

"I was just about to call you about that. The disinfectant and robots you provided are very effective at eliminating the virus and Aberrations. I recommended you to the Military District Commander. He said he'd contact the Department of Health to have you assist them," Lei Zhen said.

"No problem. I was just thinking if I could contribute my humble efforts," Chen Fan said thoughtfully. "Just contact me when there's news. I'll also prepare as many supplies as possible on my end."

After hanging up, Chen Fan called Su Qingyue directly.

"All materials have been submitted." Su Qingyue's voice was still hurried but had regained its professionalism. "But the approval process at the Drug Administration is still ongoing."

Qingyue continued, "Just half an hour ago, 'Nova Bio,' a subsidiary of Alpha Capital, announced that they have developed a 'special vaccine' for the omega virus and received emergency use authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration." Su Qingyue's tone carried anger. "They released some clinical data, claiming an efficacy rate of 95%, but the price... three thousand dollars per dose, three doses for the full course, and they only accept payments in US dollars or Euros."

"They've started harvesting," Chen Fan sneered. "First create panic, then launch an exorbitantly priced solution. Typical disaster capitalism."

He pulled up the global epidemic map. In just six hours, the outbreak from the seven initial infection points had spread to twenty-three surrounding cities. The total number of reported infections worldwide exceeded five thousand, with over three hundred deaths—and those were just the official figures; the actual data could be ten times higher.

On social media, panic was spreading. The hashtag #omega virus# topped the trending lists on both Twitter and Weibo simultaneously. Various videos, hard to distinguish as true or false, were spreading frantically: passengers suddenly going mad and biting people in foreign subways, "zombies" appearing on the streets, someone mutating in public at a crossroad... Amidst this panic, Nova Bio's stock price soared by 87%, and the stock prices of seven other pharmaceutical companies controlled by Alpha Capital also turned red across the board.

"They're making money from panic," Lin Hao said through gritted teeth. "Brother Fan, our vaccine must be launched as soon as possible, and it must be free! Otherwise..."

"Otherwise, countless people will die because they can't afford it," Chen Fan finished the sentence. "Qingyue, send me a package of all the clinical data and production line qualifications. I'll contact Lei Zhen to see if we can use an emergency special channel."

"Alright!"

"Lin Hao, start the emergency production of 'Guardian-II' immediately." Chen Fan pulled up new design blueprints. "Based on the combat data from the Gobi and the preliminary analysis of the infected in Magic City, I've done a comprehensive upgrade to the robots: added a high-frequency sonic dispersal module to deal with clusters of Aberrations; equipped it with a tranquilizer dart launcher for non-lethal control; and most importantly—integrated an automatic vaccine injection device, which can complete emergency vaccination while subduing the infected."

On the holographic projection, the 3D model of the new generation robot rotated rapidly. It was more streamlined than Type I, its armor surface covered with bionic materials that could absorb impact, and its joints were fitted with hydraulic assist systems, making it three times as strong as the previous generation. Most striking was its "right hand"—no longer a cutting blade, but a multi-functional mechanical arm whose tip could quickly switch between tools like a tranquilizer gun, a syringe, or a capture net.

"This design is amazing!" Lin Hao said excitedly. "But production takes time, at least a week..."

"We don't have a week," Chen Fan interrupted him. "Use the 'Modular Fast-assembly Production Line.' Break the production down into thirty standard modules and start work simultaneously with three shifts around the clock. I want to see the first prototype within forty-eight hours and start mass production within seventy-two hours."

"This... but this is a massive undertaking!" Lin Hao's eyes widened.

"At Fanxing Technology, nothing is impossible." Chen Fan looked at him. "Unlimited resources, unlimited budget. Whatever problems you encounter, I'll solve them."

Lin Hao took a deep breath and nodded heavily. "Understood! I'll go arrange it right away!"

The communication ended. Chen Fan stood alone before the console, watching the constantly updating epidemic data and global panic index on the screen.

His fingers unconsciously tapped on the desk.

It was too fast. Alpha Capital's actions were faster and more ruthless than he had anticipated. They clearly weren't satisfied with just "testing"; they wanted to use this epidemic to complete their capital harvesting and power expansion.

Meanwhile, the governments of Earth, faced with a sudden global crisis, were slow to react and acting independently.

Chaos was exactly the soil Alpha Capital wanted.

Chen Fan pulled up a piece of intelligence he had just received—internal emails from Nova Bio obtained by Xiao Zhi through hacking. The emails showed that Alpha Capital had already booked over two hundred cargo flights worldwide, preparing to air-ship their "special vaccine" to forty-seven countries within the next seventy-two hours.

And the recipients were exclusively national governments, militaries, and large multinational corporations—ordinary citizens? They weren't on the priority list.

Even more terrifying was the last sentence of the email: "According to the first phase of test data, the mutation rate of the omega virus has reached 137% of the expected threshold. It is recommended to initiate 'Purification Protocol' testing alongside the vaccine deployment."

"Purification Protocol..." Chen Fan chewed on the words, an ominous premonition rising in his heart.

He immediately pulled up the global satellite monitoring data, focusing on scanning the cities where infections had already appeared. With Xiao Zhi's assistance, anomalies were quickly flagged—

Sudden fluctuations in the Air Quality Index.

Subtle changes in water source test values.

Abnormal migrations of wildlife.

And... localized disturbances in the geomagnetic field strength.

"They're testing environmental modification," Chen Fan suddenly realized. "The omega virus isn't just a biological weapon; it's also an 'environmental modifier'! It's changing Earth's ecosystem."

He immediately connected to Lei Zhen's encrypted channel.

"Captain Lei, this is Chen Fan. It's an emergency. I need you to do something for me: conduct a comprehensive test of the air, water, and soil composition changes in the Gobi infection zone, and compare them with the data from three months ago."

He paused. "Prepare for the worst-case scenario. If the omega virus is truly terraforming Earth's environment, then this isn't just an epidemic; it's an... ecological war."

There was silence on the other end for a few seconds, then Lei Zhen's heavy voice came through: "Understood."

"Since I returned from the Northwest, I've been researching a vaccine for the omega virus, and it's already been tested to be effective for prevention. I'm applying for emergency authorization now. I need military support—if the Drug Administration's process isn't fast enough, I hope to start production and distribution directly under the name of 'wartime supplies'."

"Give me half an hour," Lei Zhen said. "I'll give you an answer in half an hour."

The call ended. Chen Fan leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.

In his mind, three timelines were advancing rapidly:

The epidemic spread timeline—new infections appearing every second, panic spreading.

The capital harvesting timeline—Alpha Capital harvesting global wealth with sky-high vaccine prices while testing the even more dangerous "Purification Protocol."

And... his own response timeline—vaccine approval, robot mass production, the satellite plan, and those mysteries from the starry sky.

Every timeline was a race against time.