Chapter 17: Zhan Lan's Discovery

But he could clearly feel it, deep within his body.

There was a constant presence, like a stream of heat, repairing the gene chains that had shattered and then reassembled themselves within him.

Zheng Zha knelt concernedly beside Li Xiao, bandaging him together with Zhang Jie.

Fortunately, the bandages exchanged by the "Senior" were plentiful.

Looking at Li Xiao, who had been bandaged into a mummy, the people present didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

——

It was unclear how much time had passed.

Struggling out from the sea of excruciating pain, Li Xiao had forgotten how he had lost consciousness.

By the time he opened his eyes in a half-dreaming state, he felt incredibly weak and sore all over.

However, compared to the death-like agony he had just endured, this felt like being in heaven.

After a long period of daze, he realized he was leaning against Zheng Zha's back, running along with the team.

Beside them was Zhan Lan, using Zheng Zha for support.

Ahead was Zhang Jie, helping Zheng Zha carry the spiral spikes.

At the very front were Chu Xuan and Zero.

Seeing that they had successfully regrouped and that no one was missing, Li Xiao finally breathed a sigh of relief.

The weakness in his body had come quickly and departed just as fast.

He knew he had ultimately survived the aftereffects of the Gene Lock.

Just as Chu Xuan had said, the toxic secretions caused by unlocking the genes were being gradually digested and decomposed by his body.

However, regarding his physical stamina and bodily injuries, he could say his current state was absolutely terrible.

After a while, feeling that his body had recovered somewhat, Li Xiao patted the person beneath him

"Thanks, Zheng Zha. I've recovered."

As he spoke, he jumped down and began running with the team as if nothing were wrong.

However, judging by Li Xiao's pale complexion and his stumbling gait, he did not look particularly steady.

Chu Xuan glanced back and tacitly reduced the pace of the advance.

Only then did Li Xiao notice that Zhan Lan's left arm had been tied to her body.

Though it made running awkward, she could still keep up with Zheng Zha's support.

Furthermore, the ends of the four spiral spikes on Zhang Jie's back were all tethered to grenades.

As for Zero and Chu Xuan, they were carrying various unfamiliar firearms of different lengths.

Seeing this, Li Xiao knew they had reached the armory and successfully obtained these weapons.

Since that was the case...

"Overlord..."

Li Xiao opened his mouth to speak, but the sound died in his throat.

He was certain he had killed two Xenomorphs.

Zheng Zha had helped him fire one spiral spike, so where were the other three?

Thinking of that large white man with the wide mouth, Li Xiao already had his answer.

Combined with the fact that Chu Xuan had tacitly slowed the pace, it could only mean that there was likely no immediate danger.

"How many minutes has it been?" Li Xiao shouted to Chu Xuan ahead.

Compared to the doubts of others, Chu Xuan naturally understood.

Li Xiao was asking how much time had passed since the death of the last Xenomorph Warrior.

"Seven minutes!"

"So, where are we going now?"

Before Li Xiao could finish his question, Chu Xuan spoke

"That's right. Now, the only thing left on this entire spaceship is the Xenomorph Queen."

"We must strike first. If it truly can sense the death of other Xenomorphs, it has likely already prepared itself!"

"It's a great pity. If I had known in advance that you would trigger the Gene Lock, then I would have..."

"The chances of victory against the Queen in the end would undoubtedly be much higher."

Chu Xuan glanced back at the struggling Li Xiao and shook his head.

The reason he had agreed to Zheng Zha's return for rescue was merely to confirm the death of the Xenomorphs.

Seeing Li Xiao trigger the Gene Lock was an unexpected surprise, but unfortunately...

In the short term, if Li Xiao tried to trigger the Gene Lock again, he would surely die.

Li Xiao didn't know what the group had just experienced, and seeing their solemn expressions, he didn't know what to say.

Zheng Zha's expression was grim as he followed Chu Xuan's lead with determination

"But it's not bad now. Aside from Li Xiao and Zhan Lan, the rest of us are at full strength."

"If we can't kill the Xenomorph Queen like this, then we deserve to die!"

Seeing this, Zhan Lan suddenly remembered the last time in the Flame Queen's engine room.

Zhang Jie had once said that the God would not issue missions that were certain death.

No matter how incredible the mission, it would always leave a glimmer of hope.

But this time...

When she learned there were four Xenomorphs in total, she discovered a contradiction!

Because Zhang Jie had lied.

On the Nostromo cargo ship, the silent five-person squad was moving at high speed toward their designated direction.

Chu Xuan said with his head lowered

"The Xenomorph Queen's location is likely around Warehouses 1 and 2."

"Based on my calculations of the worst-case scenario, the God has not only increased the number of Xenomorphs but has also simultaneously increased the strength of the strongest one, the Queen."

"In horror movies, the Xenomorph Queen is massive, about three times larger than a regular Xenomorph Warrior."

"The proportion of its body covered in chitinous armor is also more complete."

Chu Xuan sighed

"Add to that strength, speed, and reaction capabilities that exceed ordinary Xenomorphs..."

"Sigh, it's a pity we didn't find any auto-tracking weapons in the armory. There isn't even a heavy weapon, let alone armor-piercing sniper rounds!"

"I originally thought that since the government had laid out a plan in the plot and dispatched robots, they would provide some special weapons. It turns out I thought too much, haha."

While traveling, Zero asked

"I want to know, in your calculations, what is the probability of us killing the Xenomorph Queen?"

"Just killing it? If it's purely to achieve that goal, I have a thirty percent certainty!"

Hearing this from behind, Li Xiao thought, *Holy crap.*

In other words, even if no one else's life was considered and only the final objective was taken into account, there was only a thirty percent chance.

Without Li Xiao needing to speak, the quick-witted Zhan Lan immediately countered

"What if the mission is completed under the premise of ensuring everyone survives?"

"What is the probability then?"

Chu Xuan looked strangely at Zhan Lan and Zheng Zha

"Even now, do you still hold onto such wishful thinking?"

"I do not perform calculations that are utterly impossible. And I believe everyone here is prepared to face death!"

Li Xiao desperately wanted to say, *I'm not, I didn't, don't talk nonsense.*

But facing this intellectual who was calm to an extreme degree, Li Xiao thought it was better to just play it safe and develop quietly.

Both Zheng Zha and Zhan Lan fell silent.

Chu Xuan's implication was that in this final battle against the Xenomorph Queen, someone would inevitably be sacrificed, or perhaps more than one person.

Ignoring their silence, Chu Xuan continued to speak to Zheng Zha

"Of the thirty percent chance I mentioned, you account for one and a half percent; Zero, Zhang Jie, and I account for one percent each; and Li Xiao accounts for half a percent."

"To break through the Queen's defense without heavy weapons, the only thing I can think of is your spiral spikes."

"As long as you can hit a vital spot and achieve a one-hit kill, it is not impossible."