Chapter Seventeen: Genetic Optimization Serum

Bang! Bang! Bang!

In the dead of night, sudden gunshots jolted Zhu Lan awake.

“Something’s happened?” As the shots rang out, a sense of foreboding gripped Zhu Lan.

He hurriedly dressed and stepped out of the warehouse, finding Yu Dongming and the others already up and searching around in confusion.

“What’s going on?”

“I’m not sure. I was looking for Tian Jun but couldn’t find him!”

Tian Jun was the security captain assigned by Luo Guoqiang to Illusion Tech, and Zhu Lan had made him vice-captain, with Yu Dongming as chief.

“Boss, there’s trouble!” Tian Jun ran over from a distance, his face grim.

Normally dark-skinned, Tian Jun looked even darker now.

“What happened?”

“A corporate spy showed up inside the company!”

“What’s been lost?”

“The sample!”

“What? How could you let this happen? Don’t you realize what consequences that thing could bring us?”

Tian Jun fell silent.

“Damn it. Take your men and chase him down—do not let him get away with the sample!”

With that, Zhu Lan pulled out his phone and dialed.

Tian Jun nodded and turned to pursue the spy.

“Hello? There’s been an incident. A corporate spy infiltrated the lab and took a sample!”

“What? How did that happen?” an angry voice responded over the line.

“This isn’t the time to discuss that. Retrieving the sample is what matters. If it leaks…”

“I understand. I’ll have the coast guard step up patrols. I’ll call the provincial department myself and order the city’s roads sealed off.”

Ending the call, Zhu Lan headed toward the laboratory.

Having recently brought in too many new people, Zhu Lan had moved the lab out—after all, he cared more about the virus than the lab itself.

The lab had been relocated to Warehouse Nine. Though closer to the perimeter, it was a reinforced concrete structure, as was Warehouse One, where Zhu Lan lived. The other ten warehouses were only steel-framed, without concrete reinforcement.

“How could this happen?” Zhu Lan entered the warehouse, face dark, and fixed his gaze on Qin Shi.

Qin Shi lowered his head, not daring to meet Zhu Lan’s eyes. “Boss, the intruder was from the construction site. He brought a jammer, and the guards didn’t notice anything wrong with the cameras. If Liu Zhan hadn’t spotted the camera anomaly during his patrol…”

“Hmph! Besides the sample, what else was lost?”

“When Captain Tian and the others arrived, they fired warning shots, but the intruder didn’t stop. A few devices were damaged by the bullets.”

“Tighten security, and lock all the samples in my place!”

The next day, a convoy of military vehicles rolled up to Illusion Tech, and Li Hongjin stepped out.

Dozens of soldiers disembarked, each armed with a rifle, swiftly taking up advantageous positions around the area.

“What kind of security are you running here!” Li Hongjin berated Tian Jun.

Tian Jun kept his head down, not daring to meet Li Hongjin’s eyes.

“That’s enough. Now isn’t the time to assign blame. Has the sample been recovered?” Zhu Lan interjected, unwilling to watch Li Hongjin continue scolding Tian Jun.

Li Hongjin shook his head. “Despite deploying a lot of people, the intruder had accomplices. We only have a rough idea of their movements and haven’t found their hideout yet. The good news is, thanks to our quick response, they haven’t managed to get the sample out of the province. I’ve already ordered all airports, train stations, and the coast guard to step up checks throughout the province.” Zhu Lan took little comfort from this.

He shook his head and led Li Hongjin inside.

Once in the office, Zhu Lan had Cheng Xue serve tea and dismissed everyone else.

“What’s Commander Luo’s position on this?” Zhu Lan asked. He hadn’t been particularly concerned about the gene serum project; after hiring new recruits from S City University and seeing progress, he’d gradually handed it off. If nothing unexpected happened, Zhu Lan planned to focus on another project that could drive the company’s development.

Li Hongjin fell silent. “There’s a situation you need to prepare for.”

“Are they taking it over?” Zhu Lan gave a helpless smile.

Li Hongjin nodded. “If we get the sample back, it’s fine. If not, you’ll have to consider that outcome.”

Zhu Lan nodded, resigned.

If the sample was recovered, the gene serum project could continue, with tighter security. But if not, the fact that Illusion Tech held the gene serum would become known, and in the future, they’d face not only corporate spies but also enemy state agents. Illusion Tech wasn’t a dedicated research institute. Even with navy soldiers on site, their defenses were weak. In that case, the gene serum could no longer be kept there—it would have to be moved somewhere safer.

“I understand. I’ll prepare for that possibility.”

The province-wide lockdown lasted only three days. Ordinary people weren’t much affected, but some took notice.

Zhu Lan soon received a few visitors.

“Allow me to introduce Professor Xu Zhe, a national biological researcher.”

“Hello, Professor Xu.”

“Yes, very good. Would you be interested in working as a researcher?” Xu asked.

Zhu Lan shook his head. “Please come in.”

“I already know why you’re here. I’m not naive—I understand the situation. In principle, I agree to turn over the data on the gene enhancement serum.”

“Gene enhancement serum?” A bespectacled middle-aged man adjusted his glasses, puzzled.

“That’s right. You can review the documents first.” Zhu Lan signaled, and Cheng Xue placed several files before them.

“Based on the original gene serum, I conducted extensive experiments and developed two new serums: an enhanced gene serum and a gene optimization serum.”

“Oh? Interesting,” Professor Xu smiled as he reviewed the data.

“The enhanced gene serum takes the original formula and adds certain bacterial elements to reinforce human genes, unlocking the body’s potential. Unfortunately, this release is still temporary. We haven’t found the right combination for permanent effects yet,” Zhu Lan said, spreading his hands in resignation.

“It’s already impressive—your research is ahead of the nation,” Professor Xu said, putting down the file and nodding approvingly to encourage Zhu Lan.

Zhu Lan waved modestly. “Please, don’t say that. The nation invests so much every year. I just happened to stumble upon a certain combination, which led to the gene serum.”

“Many scientific advances are born of chance.”

“Mr. Zhu, the country will not overlook anyone who contributes. You understand that, of course. So, may we discuss the next step?”

Zhu Lan nodded. He didn’t mind handing over the enhanced gene serum—in fact, it was always meant as a cover for the existence of the virus.

The officials’ main concern was that the spy had escaped. By the time he boarded a plane and reached the Sea of Japan, he was discovered, but it was too late.

Even more troubling, the spy was from a Japanese syndicate with a semi-military background. This meant the Japanese government now knew about Illusion Tech’s gene serum and might pass the information to the United States. From now on, Illusion Tech was sure to face infiltration attempts from all manner of spies.

After much deliberation, Luo Guoqiang decided to escalate the gene serum situation, which led to the current scene.

“No problem. Frankly, keeping this thing is more trouble than it’s worth. I’ve prepared all the data, deleted every backup. Now, aside from me, this memory card is the only place where the gene serum data exists.” Zhu Lan produced a memory card from his jacket and waved it.

Everyone in the room stared in astonishment.

Especially Liu Yun, the official in charge of negotiations. He had studied Zhu Lan’s background and expected a tough negotiation, but Zhu Lan agreed outright.

All that remained was to meet Zhu Lan’s conditions and the gene enhancement serum data would be theirs.

“What do you want?” Liu Yun glanced at Li Hongjin, who was equally shocked.

With no other option, Liu Yun asked.

“It’s simple—I’m not being unreasonable.”

Liu Yun nodded, signaling Zhu Lan to continue.

“I’ll hand over the gene enhancement serum to the nation, but I want to market the gene optimization serum as a civilian product. I need support for that.”

“No,” Liu Yun refused outright.

Zhu Lan shook his head. “At least review the gene optimization serum first.”

Liu Yun shot Zhu Lan a curious look and picked up the file again. Professor Xu and Li Hongjin did the same.

The gene enhancement serum was an improved version of the original gene serum.

Rather than “enhanced,” it was perhaps better described as “stabilized.”

Though its effects were short-lived, Zhu Lan had analyzed the gene serums from various sci-fi films, broke down their components, and combined them to develop the current gene enhancement serum.

The side effects remained, though less severe than before, and the serum could unleash even greater potential.

If classified by tiers, the previous serum was low-grade, the current one was mid-grade, and if the side effects were resolved, it would be high-grade.

The gene optimization serum, on the other hand, was entirely different. It didn’t enhance physical abilities or unlock potential.

Its purpose was to optimize genes.

There are perhaps fewer than one hundred people worldwide with flawless genes—out of a population of seven billion.

Whether rich or poor, everyone carries some genetic flaws.

Some people go gray before adulthood, some are born with signs of aging—these are all manifestations of genetic defects.

The gene optimization serum was designed to repair such flaws.

Of course, complete repair is impossible. With current technology—not only Zhu Lan’s, but even with centuries of progress—no one could entirely fix all the flaws in human DNA.

The gene optimization serum could only repair surface-level defects, akin to treating an illness. So far, Zhu Lan’s serum could address only simple issues; deeper ones remained out of reach. Yet, even so, the gene optimization serum was a remarkable achievement. No other drug capable of gene repair existed. If brought to market, it would be a monopoly.