120: Chapter 120 Triangular Marking Doomsday Gene Screening

The exposure of Nova Bio's live experiments exploded in the global public opinion arena like a nuclear bomb.

Within twenty-four hours, Alpha Capital's market value evaporated by eighty billion dollars.

Protests broke out in major Western cities. Angry crowds held banners saying "Stop Human Experimentation" and "Vaccines Belong to All Humanity," surrounding Nova Bio's offices worldwide. On social media, the hashtag #BoycottNovaBio surpassed five billion views.

But the real storm was happening in the shadows after the lights went out.

Star of Fortune Technology Building, 3:00 AM.

Chen Fan stood in the top-floor command center. The holographic screen in front of him was divided into over a dozen frames—the chaos at Alpha Capital's headquarters, Nova Bio's California lab being cordoned off by police, international medical regulatory agencies holding emergency online meetings, and the UN debating the source of the omega virus.

“We won the first round of the public opinion war.” Su Qingyue rubbed her reddened eyes. “But Alpha Capital won't just sit and wait for death.”

She pulled up several pieces of intelligence she had just received: “Three hours ago, Alpha Capital's board of directors announced an 'indefinite leave,' but they've actually moved to underground operations. Their seven secret labs cut off external networks at the same time and entered silent mode. Additionally, we monitored the dark web and found someone offering fifty million dollars for David Cohen's head.”

“As expected.” Chen Fan's tone was calm. “When a cornered dog tries to jump over a wall, the first thing they think of is always silencing the witness.”

He turned to another screen displaying the genetic sequence analysis of the omega virus. Through Xiao Zhi's deep analysis, the virus's RNA structure showed an eerie regularity—the arrangement of certain segments completely defied the evolutionary logic of any known pathogen on Earth.

“This isn't a product of natural evolution.” Chen Fan pointed to a highlighted sequence. “Look here, three consecutive gene modules arranged in a perfect equilateral triangle structure. In biology, such highly symmetrical non-functional sequences can only be one thing...”

“A mark.” Su Qingyue finished his sentence. “Someone put a 'tag' on the virus.”

Chen Fan nodded. “And this tag is highly similar to the triangular symbol we saw on the meteorite.”

The two looked at each other, both seeing the gravity in each other's eyes.

If the omega virus truly was a man-made biological weapon, and the creator might be from beyond Earth... then the severity of this matter had far exceeded the scope of commercial competition or even national power plays.

“Where is David Cohen now?” Chen Fan asked.

“In a safe house, protected by Lei Zhen's people.” Su Qingyue pulled up the surveillance footage. “But his mental state is very poor. He keeps having nightmares and repeatedly saying, 'They won't let me go.'”

“Arrange for me to meet him,” Chen Fan said. “There are some questions that must be asked in person.”

“It's too dangerous. Alpha Capital must be tracking his whereabouts with everything they've got...”

“That's exactly why I have to go.” Chen Fan stood up. “If we can't even protect someone who tells the truth, then we've lost this war from the very beginning.”

He walked to the window, looking at the sparse traffic in the night. The streets of the Magic City were much quieter than usual; the panic brought by the epidemic hadn't dissipated, but the effects of the vaccine were starting to show.

These sparks were being ignited in the darkness.

Chen Fan contacted Lei Zhen, preparing to meet David.

“Qingyue, you keep monitoring the public opinion arena,” Chen Fan said. “Alpha Capital will definitely launch a massive counterattack next. They hold equity in a third of the world's media; turning black into white is their specialty.”

“You're worried they'll bite back?”

“It's not a worry, it's a certainty.” Chen Fan sneered. “They'll say David Cohen was paid by us to slander Nova Bio, they'll say our vaccine technology was stolen, they'll say this is all a Chinese 'biological warfare conspiracy'... I've already thought of the script for them.”

“Then we...”

“We counter their changes by remaining unchanged.” Chen Fan turned around, his gaze firm. “Continue open-sourcing the technology, continue aiding other countries, and continue saving people. In the face of absolute facts, even the most clever lies will go bankrupt.”

He checked the time. “I should head out. Notify me immediately if there's any anomaly.”

Forty minutes later, at an unremarkable residential building's underground parking lot in the western suburbs of the Magic City.

Chen Fan got out of an ordinary black sedan. Guided by special ops members sent by Lei Zhen, he passed through three encrypted security gates and entered a specially modified safe house.

David Cohen sat on a sofa, holding a cup of hot water with both hands, his eyes vacant.

He looked more haggard than he did at the press conference; his eyes were sunken, he had stubble, and his white lab coat had been replaced by ordinary sportswear.

Chen Fan had Lei Zhen give David a simultaneous interpretation earpiece.

“Dr. Cohen.” Chen Fan sat down across from him.

David jerked his head up. After seeing it was Chen Fan, he relaxed slightly. “Mr. Chen... thank you for the protection. If it weren't for you, I might already be...”

“Let's get down to business.” Chen Fan went straight to the point. “What exactly did you see in the Nova Bio lab?”

David took a deep breath, his voice beginning to tremble. “The omega virus... wasn't discovered in nature. It was 'designed.'”

He pulled a crumpled notebook from his chest pocket and flipped to a page showing a complex molecular structure diagram. “This is the original design of the virus. I secretly took a photo of it on the chief scientist's encrypted computer. Look here—”

He pointed to a corner of the drawing where there was a tiny symbol: an equilateral triangle with three circles nested inside.

“This symbol appears on all top-secret documents,” David said. “I asked colleagues, but no one knew what it represented. But once, I accidentally overheard two high-level executives talking in German, mentioning 'Sower' and the 'Harvest Plan.'”

Chen Fan's heart jolted. “Go on.”

“The project code for the omega virus is 'reaper-7'.” David flipped to the next page, which recorded a string of experimental data. “Phase one was toxicity testing, conducted in prisons and slums, with the mortality rate controlled at around 3%. Phase two was transmission optimization, released via aerosols in closed communities to observe cross-infection rates. Phase three...”

He paused, his voice dropping even lower. “...was 'Consciousness Remodeling Testing.'”

“What does that mean?”

“The virus destroys the host's original neural structure while implanting something... how should I put it, like a 'basic instruction set',” David struggled to find the right words. “It allows the infected to retain some intelligence but lose independent will, making them capable of accepting simple collective commands. Those level-two variants in the lab could already perform tasks like 'opening doors', 'carrying things', and 'attacking designated targets'.”

Chen Fan thought of the infected in the Songjiang Industrial Park who had tactical coordination; a chill rose from his spine.

“What is the ultimate goal of this project?” he asked.

David shook his head. “My clearance wasn't high enough. But I once overheard a board-level call where they mentioned the 'Purification Protocol' and 'New World Population Structure Optimization'... Mr. Chen, they aren't making an ordinary biological weapon. They are designing a... population control tool.”

A brief silence fell over the safe house.

Chen Fan's brain worked rapidly, piecing all the clues together: the meteorite from the stars, the eerie triangular symbol, the man-made virus, the consciousness remodeling experiments, the population control plan... a terrifying hypothesis gradually took shape.

“Dr. Cohen,” Chen Fan spoke slowly, “During your time at the lab, did you ever come into contact with... samples or technology of non-Earth origin?”

David was stunned. A few seconds later, his pupils suddenly dilated. “You... how did you know?”

He tore the last page from his notebook; it was a blurry photo of what seemed to be part of a metallic device.

The surface of the device was engraved with complex patterns, and at the center of the patterns was that very symbol of a triangle nesting three circles.

“This was something in the 'Sample Zero Zone' at the deepest part of the lab,” David's voice carried fear. “I sneaked in once for only five minutes and almost triggered the alarm. The equipment inside... didn't look like technology from our era. There was also a document titled 'Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Interstellar Sowing Protocol'...”

Interstellar Sowing.

Chen Fan closed his eyes. All the fragments were finally pieced together.

The omega virus was not an Earthly product; it was "sown" onto Earth. And Alpha Capital likely wasn't the creator of the virus, but merely the "Gardener." They were responsible for tending this sown land and carrying out the "harvest" and "purification" according to the "protocol."

“What is their next phase?” Chen Fan opened his eyes, his gaze sharp as a blade.

“Before I escaped, I heard that 'reaper-8' had already entered clinical trials.” David swallowed hard. “That is a... targeted mutation virus spread through the air, only targeting people with specific genotypes. The lab calls it the 'Gene Sieve'.”

Targeted elimination.

Chen Fan stood up abruptly. “The specific release time?”

“I don't know, but I overheard a date...” David struggled to remember. “December... December 24th. Christmas Eve.”

There was one month and seventeen days left.

Chen Fan immediately dialed Lei Zhen's number. “Captain Lei, maximum level alert. I need to see someone capable of making national-level decisions immediately. Now, right now.”

Hanging up the phone, he looked at David. “Dr. Cohen, are you willing to say everything you know in a larger venue? It could be extremely dangerous.”

David was silent for a few seconds, then he smiled—a smile filled with bitterness and resolve. “I've already died once. From the moment I decided to escape, I never expected to see tomorrow's sun alive. But if my testimony can prevent a greater disaster... I'm willing.”

“You won't die,” Chen Fan said solemnly. “I promise.”

Leaving the safe house, Chen Fan got into the car but didn't start it immediately.

He took out his phone. “Xiao Zhi, I want you to use all computational resources to do three things.”

【Please instruct.】

“First, scan globally for all information related to the triangle nesting three circles symbol—artifacts, literature, occult organization symbols, space debris... everything.”

“Second, reverse-engineer the genetic design logic of the omega virus to find its 'control backdoor'. Since it was designed, there must be a switch.”

“Third, establish a global epidemic simulation model to predict the range of casualties if 'reaper-8' is released.”

【Task accepted. Estimated completion time: 72 hours. Warning: Computation at this level will consume a massive amount of energy. Suggest connecting to the national supercomputing network.】

“I'll give you the authorization,” Chen Fan said. “From now on, your priority is set to the highest.”

The car drove out of the parking lot, merging into the sparse pre-dawn traffic.

Chen Fan looked at the brightening sky outside the window, the sense of urgency in his heart growing stronger.

One month and seventeen days.

He had to find a way to stop 'reaper-8' before Christmas Eve. He had to uncover the interstellar conspiracy behind Alpha Capital.

He had to establish a pandemic prevention network on a global scale sufficient to handle a biological warfare crisis.

And... he had to protect all those like David Cohen, who found the courage in the darkness to light a torch.

As the car crossed the overpass, the first ray of sunlight pierced through the clouds on the eastern horizon.

Chen Fan stepped on the gas.

A new day had begun.

And an even more arduous battle lay ahead.