Chapter 39: Return to South City

Agent No.2 smiled bitterly.

"I'm a loner, not part of the Clarks. They pay me, I work for them. That's all. What happens to the Clarks after I'm dead has nothing to do with me. You managed to dodge my three shots after I unlocked the gene lock—pretty impressive. But it's a pity, even if you leave here, you won't live much longer. The Clarks won't let you go, and you definitely won't escape their assassination..."

Agent No.2's nose began to bleed as well, but his face started to look better. He knew his time was running out.

"Let me tell you something else, Simon Clark isn't dead yet. He's still clinging to life thanks to the Clarks' medication. He won't die that easily..."

Agent No.2's lips moved a few more times, but Logan couldn't make out the rest of his words.

"Simon Clark isn't dead?!"

Logan's expression finally changed.

Simon Clark isn't dead? He had clearly pierced Simon Clark's heart—how could he still be alive?

Logan wanted to know more details, but at that moment, Agent No.2's head slumped, and he stopped breathing.

Logan frowned, crouched down, and checked Agent No.2's pulse.

He was already dead.

Logan searched the body and found a satellite phone, a walkie-talkie, several magazines, and an ID card.

"Devols..."

That was the Agent No.2's real name.

Knowing that he was destined to die, Agent No.2 hadn't asked Logan to give him the remaining half of the pill.

Agent No.2 had mentioned that aside from energy, the Clarks had also ventured into other fields, even cultivating people who could unlock the gene lock. This was the real reason the Clarks were so powerful after the apocalypse.

In his previous life, Logan had been like a frog at the bottom of a well, knowing nothing.

The fact that Simon Clark wasn't dead was something Logan had never expected.

Logan opened his hand and looked at the half-blue pill in his palm.

He carefully stored the pill in his space.

Even with the Clarks' miraculous methods, Simon Clark wouldn't be able to recover quickly from such a severe injury.

The rough journey could cause his condition to worsen, so Simon Clark was likely still in South City!

Logan stood up and walked toward the other corpses.

He quickly retrieved all the arrows from the bodies and collected the spoils before heading to find the lifeboat.

It was almost 1 AM, and there were still more than 9 hours left on the countdown in the top right corner of the Cornucopia.

He had to hurry back and find Simon Clark before the solar flare hit Earth, and kill him!

However, when Logan reached the beach, he realized he couldn't leave at that moment.

It was raining heavily, the sea was rough, and without moonlight, the ocean was pitch black, making it almost impossible to navigate.

Taking a small lifeboat into the sea at night in such weather was tantamount to suicide.

Logan had no choice but to retreat into the woods.

By the time the rain stopped and daylight came it might be too late to return to South City and find out which hospital Simon Clark was in.

He had to get back to his safe house before the solar flare hit the Earth.

Logan remembered the satellite phone he had found on Agent No.2 and took it out, dialing a number.

"Ashley, I need your help with something."

...

After hanging up the phone, Logan found a slightly elevated spot, set up a tent, and rested with his eyes closed for the night.

In a place like this, Logan didn't dare fall into a deep sleep.

At the first light of dawn, Logan packed up the tent, took some water and food from his space, and ate a little.

The rain had stopped.

It was now 5 AM, and there were 5 hours left on the Cornucopia's countdown.

Logan changed into a new set of clothes.

On his way to the beach, he passed the battlefield from the day before and glanced at Agent No.2's corpse.

To his shock, Agent No.2's body had already begun to decompose rapidly.

In just one night—no, more accurately, in just about four hours—much of the skin had already peeled off, exposing the muscles beneath, and in some places, bones were faintly visible. It was a terrifying sight.

Was this gene collapse?

Logan recalled the few shots he had exchanged with Agent No.2 the previous day.

The precision of his predictions, the accuracy of his shots, the incredible computational ability.

Without external assistance, it was nearly impossible for a human to reach that level.

The gene lock—a terrifying double-edged sword.

Logan continued toward the beach.

The sea had calmed, and Logan pushed the lifeboat into the water, started the engine, and headed for South City.

Over three hours later, Logan finally approached the coast of South City.

At this point, there was a little over an hour left on the Cornucopia's countdown before the solar flare hit Earth.

Logan took out his phone and contacted Ashley.

"Ashley, have you found the person?"

Logan had told Ashley that a friend of his was gravely injured and on the verge of death. He couldn't reach him and was at sea, rushing back to see him one last time.

He asked Ashley to check the major hospitals in South City and promised her a big red envelope.

Logan provided Ashley with Simon Clark's name, age, and other characteristics, instructing her to start with the best-equipped hospitals.

Ashley initially didn't want to help, but when Logan mentioned a $20,000 reward, she didn't sleep and took a taxi to the hospitals that night.

"I found him. He's at South City First Hospital, ICU Room 1 on the eighth floor. There are so many specialists there for a consultation. Who is this friend of yours, anyway? He's really something."

Ashley yawned, her voice tired.

In fact, she had found him at the first hospital she checked but delayed reporting back, thinking that if she found him too easily, Logan might back out.

"Thanks, I've sent you the red envelope."

Logan hung up the phone, found a secluded spot on the beach, and brought the lifeboat back into his space.

There were now 1 hour and 26 minutes left on the Cornucopia's countdown.

Logan put on a baseball cap and a mask, flagged down a car, and headed to South City First Hospital.

...

South City First Hospital.

Outside ICU Room 1 on the eighth floor, more than a dozen doctors and a middle-aged woman were standing.

To everyone's shock, these doctors were all specialists frequently featured in major newspapers and news outlets.

These people were supposed to be at hospitals in Harbor City or in the Capital City, where people would wait in line to see them.

Yet here they were, gathered to discuss the treatment plan for one person.

"Beep, beep, beep."

Inside the ICU, Simon Clark lay on the hospital bed, his entire body wrapped in bandages and tubes, breathing weakly.

"Doctors, how is my son? Can he be saved?"

The speaker was a middle-aged woman, dressed in a high-end tailored suit dress. She looked very capable, with a beautiful face that showed signs of fatigue and a hint of resentment in her eyes.

Last night, Benjamin Clark, who hadn't contacted her in years since their divorce, suddenly called to tell her that their son was in trouble. He said he was tied up with something in Harbor City and couldn't leave, so he asked her to take care of their son.

Ana Clark only found out how badly her son was injured when she arrived in South City. That heartless man, that beast, didn't even care about his own son! All he cared about was that vixen!