Chapter 38

A New Virus

Having completed many missions outside the base, Chen Shan and his team had learned the importance of not wasting time with questions during an emergency.

Without asking why, they dropped everything and rushed back to their truck. In no time, they were speeding away from Garden Base, leaving the bustling marketplace behind.

They drove for quite some time before confirming that no one was following them and that there were no other unusual signs. Only then did they ask the doctor what had just happened.

“When they sent me on this mission, they only mentioned that someone had been injured at the base, but they didn’t say there were so many injured!” The doctor maintained a serious expression, his voice urgent and low, laced with anger. “When I arrived, there was indeed only one severely injured patient waiting for me to treat. I was just being cautious and decided to take a stroll outside while I was waiting to use the restroom. I chatted with the families of other patients and only then did I realize that dozens of people were injured!”

“They said it was a brawl. As if I’ve never seen a brawl before!” The doctor couldn’t help but curse under his breath, rubbing his face in frustration. After calming down, he continued, “The person I treated was critically injured; I honestly thought he was done for. Yet he’s still alive—though he hasn’t regained consciousness, his heartbeat has stabilized. It’s just that his heart rate has remained the same, which is very strange.”

“I observed him for ten minutes, and in those ten minutes, his heart rate was a consistent 95—far too abnormal!”

As the doctor spoke, he seemed to recall something and frowned. “However, I checked the bodies carefully, and none of them had bite marks. I examined the one I treated thoroughly, and there were no signs of bites. While I was chatting outside, I also took a quick look at the other people—I didn’t see any bite marks on anyone else, either.”

The zombie virus, which was later referred to as the zombie virus, primarily spread through bites. Scratches could also lead to infection, but that risk had decreased significantly. Everyone who survived at this point understood that well.

With the doctor’s words hanging in the air, everyone present—except for Juan and Peter—seemed to understand what he meant by “serious trouble.”

“Are you suspecting it’s the zombie virus? But we’ve all been vaccinated!” Chen Shan’s first reaction was disbelief.

Where there’s a virus, there’s typically a vaccine. Ever since some bases barely managed to establish conditions for it, research into vaccines had never ceased. The older generation had received dozens of vaccines, while their generation was fortunate to receive the more developed ones. Although nothing offered 100% protection, the chances of getting infected had significantly decreased.

“Could it be a new virus…” Damon, the only female teammate in Chen Shan’s group, murmured the words she herself barely wanted to believe.

“It can’t be…” Chen Shan whispered, glancing at the doctor. When he saw the doctor’s silence and lack of denial, a sense of dread gripped him, and he thought, We’re in trouble.

The news reached the ears of the two people in the driver’s seat, who immediately stepped on the gas, speeding back to the base.

“You all know what you can say and what you can’t, right?” Before getting out of the car, the doctor stated, glancing at Chen Shan and the others. When they nodded in understanding, he quickly departed.

“What a good man,” Chen Shan remarked, watching the doctor’s retreating figure.

The others nodded in agreement, but several of the boys, including Juan and Peter, wore puzzled expressions.

“This is serious. The doctor could have taken us all to report to the higher-ups, but he didn’t.”

“He wants us to prepare quickly.”

“Prepare for what?” Juan asked, confused.

“Preparation for leaving this place,” Chen Shan sighed, observing the bustling and peaceful scene at the base.

“Forget about going outside the base. Just head straight to the market and buy food—easy-to-carry food. Pack your bags, and if possible, get some self-defense items. Get as much as you can; there’s bound to be some change at the base.”

“Go on, hurry up and prepare as much food as you can!” Chen Shan said, giving his brother and the others a reassuring pat on the shoulder.

Feeling anxious yet determined, the boys quickly scattered.

With Ah Hai and the others pulling them along, Juan and Peter made their way to the market. Juan didn’t think he needed anything, but Peter glanced at Ah Hai and the others and ended up buying a lot of freeze-dried food. When he spotted some well-dried sausages, he grabbed a couple of strings. Just as he was about to buy some dried fruits, the base’s alarm blared sharply.

As outsiders, Juan and Peter had no idea what the alarm signified, but everyone else in the market understood immediately. Some turned and left after hearing the alarm, while others froze in place, gazing outside.

“I haven’t heard anything happening recently. Could it be another drill?”

“Let’s go.” Ah Hai said quietly, noticing that Juan and Peter were dazed alongside the vendors, and he pulled them away.

The boys quickly exited the market. Just as they returned to their usual room at the orphanage, the voice of the base leader echoed throughout Sunshine Base.

“Residents of Sunshine Base, I regret to inform you of some bad news. We are currently highly suspicious that a new virus has appeared among us. We’ve only confirmed a few suspicious cases at Garden Base. I don’t know the scale of this virus outbreak or if it can be quickly contained, but before we know more, I am announcing a temporary lockdown of Sunshine Base. All residents are to return to their living quarters. If there are residents from other districts who do not wish to go back, you can stay, but you will need to temporarily reside at the base’s quarantine area.”

“As for the next steps, the higher-ups are already meeting to analyze the situation. You will all soon learn the results.”

With that, a loud crackle echoed through the loudspeaker, and the leader’s voice abruptly stopped.

This was Juan’s first time hearing the base leader’s voice. It sounded quite old but steady.

As his voice faded, chaos erupted throughout the base. Their orphanage was already in a relatively remote area of the base, but even from that distance, Juan could hear the commotion.

“Let’s call it a day. Buy what you need and get back quickly. If things get chaotic, it’ll be hard to return, and even if we do, we might lose everything we bought,” Ah Hai advised.

Having lived in Sunshine Base for less than ten years, he still retained some memories from his earlier days of wandering in other bases. Even though he had settled down in Sunshine Base for several years, the moment something happened, those memories would resurface immediately.

Since no one had come to their side, Ah Hai began to help everyone pack their bags. He taught the others how to maximize space and how to hide important items discreetly.

Feeling anxious, they found that doing something helped distract them a bit. One person taught while a group learned, and soon several boys were ready and waiting on the orphanage beds.

Meanwhile, Chen Shan stealthily made his way through the window to their room. Glancing at his brother and then at the group of kids behind him who looked lost, Chen Shan sighed and waved to everyone. One by one, the boys followed him as they left the orphanage through the window.

Outside, it was very lively—there were people harvesting vegetables, buying produce, and even some trying to steal food. But it didn’t take long for someone to come over and stop them: security personnel dressed in black uniforms who were responsible for maintaining order in the base.

With their presence, the chaos was finally brought under control, but the vegetable fields were trampled and in a mess. People had no time to worry about whether the crops were ripe or not; even fallen leaves on the ground were picked up by others. Although it looked chaotic, there was no concern about waste.

Any place with food became a battleground, and even though Chen Shan tried to lead them through the smaller vegetable patches, there were just too many people cultivating crops in the base. No matter where they went, they couldn’t completely avoid the crowds. Fortunately, they had the tall and sturdy Chen Shan leading the way, and with him clearing a path, they all made it safely to the clinic at the base entrance.

Yes, it was the clinic run by the doctor.

In front of the clinic, there was a delivery truck—the same one they had driven earlier. Pointing to the vehicle with his left thumb, Chen Shan grinned mischievously, “See that truck? I bought it! I got it before the base chief’s speech—cool, right?”

Seeing him show off, Damon kicked him lightly. “The car was bought by my sister, with money from our shared account. It’s cool because we all share the coolness.”

“Yes, yes, yes—although I wanted to buy it for a long time, I never thought I’d actually buy something without haggling. Ah—” Chen Shan said, but there was no hint of regret on his face.

Buying a vehicle was part of his plan all along; it was an essential tool for leaving the base. Now it was just a matter of doing it sooner than expected.

Yes, Chen Shan was planning to leave.

He got the news from the doctor. After relaying the information to the base chief, the doctor was sent back directly, and he was worried about having wasted so much time, fearing he’d have to pay three times the price for food. Just then, Chen Shan appeared in front of him with a big bag of freeze-dried food.

After all, with so many people, it was easier to accomplish tasks; one person could go buy the vehicle, another could buy food, another could gather fuel for the vehicle, and still leave someone behind to cover any gaps.

When buying food, Chen Shan had been cautious and also picked up the doctor’s share.

Recently, they had been making extra money by reselling vegetables; otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to afford all of this.

Looking at the big, cheerful man, the doctor finally accepted the bag of food. After a moment, he even struck a deal with him—he decided to hitch a ride in their vehicle and hired them for protection.

Yes, Chen Shan also got his information from this deal.

“I showed the chief all the photos and videos I took over there. After he saw them, he decided to leave, but there’s a group of high-ranking officials who don’t plan to leave, arguing that it’s just a few blurry photos and that we shouldn’t rashly decide to relocate based on one person’s words.”

“Bah—” The doctor, apparently offended by what he was called, replied irritably, “I said that for everyone’s good, okay? I could easily have just left after discovering this. Buying things would be cheaper, and I wouldn’t have to deal with anyone criticizing me for being alarmist.”

“The base chief is a sensible man. He believes that if there’s even a one percent chance of danger, it’s better to relocate, even if they might have to return later. However, others have become too comfortable and are unwilling to take risks. They’re more afraid of going to unfamiliar places and the unknown than of a potential new virus.”

As the doctor spoke, he looked towards the base’s sealed-off gates in the distance and sighed, “They think that even if a new virus breaks out, it won’t matter; they can endure it just like before. But—”

“But the base can no longer withstand a zombie siege like it used to.” The base chief sighed as he watched his colleagues give various reasons and firmly oppose leaving.

“Our district was indeed the best in the city decades ago and very new. Because it was the first to be sealed off, the entire city provided support from all directions, including food and weapons. We barely survived and even managed to develop into a base, but if it happens again, I’m afraid it won’t work.”

“You’ve grown old, chief. The ambition you once had is gone.” Hearing this, a middle-aged man shook his head.

“I am old.” My body may be aging, but what about you?

Your spirit is old.

Looking at the younger faces around the long table, the elder didn’t voice his thoughts.

“The Garden Base was the largest district in the city back then, and the population there is complex, with management not being up to par. Dr. He is right; in the face of such suspicious cases, Garden Base did not isolate them but directly placed them in the clinic. They even issued tasks to summon doctors from other bases.”

“With such management, if it is confirmed to be a new virus, Garden Base will be the first to bear the brunt. They won’t be able to withstand it. With such a large population and the doctors they summoned spreading it to other bases…”

The base chief slowly shook his head.

Then the leading middle-aged man frowned. “Then you shouldn’t have let Dr. He go just now; you should have put him in the quarantine area, shouldn’t you?”

Caught off guard by this remark, the base chief fell silent for a moment before responding, “You can’t convince me, and I can’t convince you. Let the residents choose for themselves.”

That evening, the base residents received the news that they could decide whether to stay or leave.