Chapter 15

The further you go, the more you uncover.

Ethan retrieved various experimental data once more, but unfortunately, none provided the information he was seeking.

"I've told you everything I know; can you spare my life?" Dr. Lionel asked, his voice trembling with fear. He was terrified of dying—otherwise, he wouldn't have committed these atrocities.

Ethan glanced around the room, taking in the gruesome sight of human bodies dissected like lab animals.

He had always suspected the New Dawn Church of harboring ill intentions when they began taking in so many people. But he hadn't imagined they'd go so far as to use humans as guinea pigs in their experiments.

"You want to live, huh? Well, what's your worth? Can you create a serum or vaccine to resist the virus?"

If Dr. Lionel could do that, Ethan wouldn't hesitate to keep him alive.

"I can make a serum, but a permanent vaccine is beyond my reach. The zombie virus keeps evolving," Lionel replied, his voice heavy with resignation, clinging to any shred of hope for survival.

"Then you're still useful for now, but don't get any ideas. The New Dawn Church isn't a threat to me unless they deploy a nuke," Ethan said, his tone dripping with disdain. "If you can't tell me where their headquarters is, I'll go there myself and take them out."

Lionel knew better than to argue, though he couldn't help but wonder just how powerful Ethan really was. Could he be on par with the leader of the New Dawn Church?

Suddenly, a series of beeps echoed through the lab.

"Dr. Lionel, reinforcements have arrived! Where's the enemy?" A voice crackled through the intercom.

Lionel looked at Ethan, his face pale, fearing Ethan would kill him on the spot.

But Ethan only chuckled, pulling out a rope to tie Lionel up before dragging him outside the shelter.

Outside, a helicopter hovered in the sky, surveying the area cautiously. It didn't land, assessing whether the enemy was too strong to engage.

Ethan dragged Lionel into the open, letting the helicopter crew see him tied up.

The people on board were stunned. How could one man break through the shelter's defenses and subdue Lionel? Hadn't the entire team been enough to handle one person?

"Who are you? Let Dr. Lionel go, and we'll spare your life!" one of them shouted from the helicopter.

Ethan just smirked. A stone appeared in his hand, and with a casual flick of his wrist, he hurled it skyward. The stone soared with the force of an RPG, slamming into the helicopter and sending it spiraling down to the ground.

Lionel was shocked. "You just shot down a helicopter with a rock! Even in the wildest action movies, nothing like this happens!"

But the wreckage was real, lying right before him. Lionel had no choice but to believe it.

Ethan rushed to the crash site, yanked out a corpse, and punched through its skull, revealing a tumor the size of a thumb.

"This isn't some high-tech implant? I thought they were using technology to control people, but it's this?" Ethan was genuinely surprised.

He turned to Lionel, holding up the tumor with a grin. "So, you're controlled by this thing? Can't it be removed with surgery?"

Lionel stayed silent, unable to answer.

"Fine, I'll find a surgeon among the survivors and dig that thing out of your head. You'd better start talking before that happens, though," Ethan warned, knowing Lionel held a high position within the New Dawn Church.

Lionel felt a surge of dread. If someone tried surgery on him in this state, he'd surely die, especially with the limited medical resources available.

Ethan didn't care about Lionel's concerns. He ordered his men to bring a large truck to transport all the refugees, supplies, and research equipment from the shelter.

He stood outside, ready for any backup from the New Dawn Church, but by the third day, all the resources and people had been transferred, with no sign of reinforcements.

What Ethan didn't know was that the New Dawn Church had no intention of sending more people. They believed Ethan was too powerful, and only large-scale weapons could take him down. They figured it was just one lost city among many, with hundreds of experimental bases still operating around the world.

Ethan returned to the shelter and immediately sought out Quinn.

"Quinn, did you make sure others learned how Dr. Lionel creates the virus serum?" Ethan asked. This was crucial—Lionel's only remaining value.

Quinn's face was troubled as he responded, "He refused to teach anyone. He insists only he can do it."

Ethan's frown deepened. Was this defiance, or did Lionel think he could still negotiate his survival?

He strode directly to the rebuilt lab.

For the past three days, Lionel had been living in fear. The comfort of a warm bed and the company of women were gone. His guards had been sent off to fight zombies, leaving him no chance to escape.

Even if he wanted to run, there were always several people outside the lab, watching him.

Lionel clung to the belief that as long as he withheld the knowledge of how to produce the serum, he would be safe.

But when he saw Ethan entering the lab, he shuddered. The man was clearly there to mete out punishment.

"I hear you've been ignoring my orders, resisting in public," Ethan said, his voice cold. If Lionel wasn't even worth this much, he'd be better off dead.

Ethan didn't need the serum for himself, after all. If Lionel continued to be difficult, he'd die without hesitation.

"No, no, there's been a misunderstanding. I want to teach them, but I'm worried they won't understand," Lionel quickly tried to placate Ethan, sensing the deadly intent behind his words.

"Good. Quinn, get some senior intellectuals to study under him. If they don't learn within three days, some people won't need to live anymore," Ethan sneered, already planning for Lionel's craniotomy to remove the tumor.

Lionel felt a deep bitterness. He just wanted to live, but now it seemed he was being pushed toward certain death. Where could he find skilled surgeons and proper medical equipment in this apocalyptic world?

Ethan, however, was determined to have Lionel undergo the craniotomy.

He'd found a renowned brain surgeon among the survivors and even selected several guards as experimental subjects.

After confirming that the tumor could be safely removed without killing the host, Ethan learned some astonishing details.

The tumor not only controlled the host's behavior but also emitted a special scent that repelled zombies. It protected the host from zombie attacks and, if the host were infected by the zombie virus, the tumor would eliminate the infection.

This was the vaccine Ethan had been seeking to immunize against the zombie virus—but at a steep price. Once parasitized by the tumor, the host had no choice but to obey the controller's orders.

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