Qin Dynasty: They've all turned into zombies, what's there to fear about a rebellion?

My knees felt like they were kneeling on shards of ice, the pain was excruciating.

In addition, there is a deathly stillness that can freeze a person's lungs.

Su Ming struggled to open his eyes, his mind still a complete blank. The last thing he remembered was riding that secondhand electric scooter—the only thing that didn't ring was the bell, it rattled everywhere else—trying to deliver takeout to the office building in the last two minutes, when a large truck suddenly darted out from around the corner…

"It flew through the air?"

Su Ming subconsciously touched his chest; there was no blood. His heart was beating faster than the subwoofer in the disco.

Before he could even congratulate himself on his good fortune, a strong, nauseating smell of Chinese medicine mixed with the rotten scent of agarwood suddenly assaulted his nostrils. He jerked his head up, his pupils dilating in shock.

This is not a hospital, much less heaven.

Before him stood a magnificent yet dimly lit hall, with thirty-six thick, black-lacquered pillars supporting the dome like silent giants. On either side stood black-armored guards as lifeless as terracotta warriors, the cold light emanating from their long spears colder than the look in his ex-girlfriend's eyes when they broke up.

On the black dragon throne directly in front, symbolizing supreme power, sat an old man on the verge of death.

The old man's face was ashen, his eyes sunken, and each breath he took sounded like a broken bellows, as if he would die at any moment. Yet even so, when his cloudy eyes occasionally swept down, they still carried a terrifying pressure that seemed capable of swallowing up six kingdoms and sweeping across the eight wastelands.

Su Ming only glanced at it before feeling his scalp tingle and the hairs on his body stand on end.

This is a fear etched into our biological instincts—like a rabbit encountering a tiger that can still bite through the throat even when it's on the verge of death.

"Has Xu Fu... not returned yet?"

The old man on the dragon throne spoke, his voice hoarse and rough, like sandpaper grinding against a rusty piece of iron.

No one in the main hall dared to respond.

Just as Su Ming was still in a daze, a middle-aged man with a pale face and no beard, dressed in a dark red robe, emerged from the shadows. He bent over, a creepy smile on his face that made people feel physically uncomfortable, but his eyes, like those of a venomous snake, lightly landed on Su Ming, who was kneeling on the ground.

"Your Majesty, that scoundrel Xu Fu... I'm afraid he won't be coming back."

The middle-aged man's voice was shrill and grating, carrying a chilling sense of schadenfreude. "An urgent report has come from the East Sea: the mirage fleet has encountered a giant wave. Lord Xu Fu said that in order to protect the elixir of immortality, he took three thousand boys and girls and transferred to small boats... their whereabouts are unknown."

What? Xu Fu? Your Majesty?

With a "boom," a memory that didn't belong to him was forcibly inserted into Su Ming's mind, causing excruciating pain as if his skull were being pried open.

The Qin Dynasty! The First Emperor! Zhao Gao!

My current identity is an unknown alchemist in Xianyang Palace. Besides following Xu Fu around eating and drinking, my greatest skill is concocting "power pills" that give me diarrhea.

And the eccentric man who spoke was none other than Zhao Gao, the most treacherous minister of the Qin Dynasty and the Chief of the Imperial Carriage Office!

"They ran away?"

Qin Shi Huang suddenly coughed violently, a cough so severe it was almost unbearable, that a few drops of blood even splattered onto the table in front of him. A terrifying murderous intent instantly erupted in his cloudy eyes, a furious rage born of being toyed with.

"I gave him tens of thousands of gold coins, warships, armored soldiers, and young boys and girls... How dare he deceive me?!"

"Your Majesty, please calm your anger. Your health is of utmost importance!" Zhao Gao knelt down and kowtowed feigning concern. Then, his tone shifted, becoming sinister. "Although Xu Fu has fled, his deputy remains. Su Ming, the alchemist, has mastered Xu Fu's true teachings. I've heard that his alchemy skills are no less than Xu Fu's."

Holy crap?

Su Ming's eyes widened suddenly as he stared at Zhao Gao, who was pointing at him, and in his mind, he cursed the old eunuch's ancestors for eighteen generations.

This is practically pushing me into a fire pit!

Was Xu Fu really on his way to find the elixir of immortality? It was a colossal scam! Now the real culprit has absconded overseas with the money, leaving Xu Fu to bear the wrath of the First Emperor of All Time.

Qin Shi Huang's hawk-like gaze instantly locked onto Su Ming.

"You...can concoct elixirs of immortality?"

This was not just a question, but a death sentence. If the answer was "no," Su Ming had no doubt that the black-armored guards beside him, who were already unable to contain their murderous intent, would immediately chop him into mincemeat and feed it to the dogs.

Su Ming's back was instantly soaked with cold sweat, and his throat felt as dry as if he had swallowed a handful of sand.

To say you can? That would be deceiving the emperor. If you fail to refine it, you'll be dead.

Saying no? That's suicide.

"Your humble servant..." Su Ming opened his mouth, his voice trembling uncontrollably.

"I have no time left." Qin Shi Huang seemed to have no patience to listen to his explanations. He was too tired, and the emptiness of life slipping away made him extremely paranoid and crazy. He stretched out his withered fingers and tremblingly raised seven.

"Seven days."

"I will only give you seven days."

"If I do not see the elixir of immortality in seven days..." Qin Shi Huang paused, his eyes devoid of any human emotion, only the coldness of an emperor, "Xu Fu has escaped, and I will exterminate his entire clan. If you cannot refine it, I will exterminate your entire family, chop you into pieces, and throw you into the Wei River to feed the fish."

"Take him away!"

Before Su Ming could utter another word, two fierce imperial guards grabbed his arms and dragged him out of the hall like a dead dog.

"Your Majesty! Your Majesty, I'm innocent! All I know is how to make Liuwei Dihuang Pills!"

Su Ming roared inwardly, but his mouth seemed to be sealed shut, and he could only make desperate "woo-woo" sounds.

As Su Ming passed by Zhao Gao, he clearly saw a cruel, cold smile curl at the corner of the old eunuch's mouth. His eyes seemed to be looking at a dead man, or perhaps at a sacrifice used to appease the emperor's anger.

"Bang!"

Su Ming was thrown heavily into a side hall filled with the smell of sulfur and mercury. The door slammed shut, the sound of the lock hitting the door like the gavel of a judgment taking effect.

What the hell is this?!

Su Ming got up from the ground, ignoring the excruciating pain in his knees, and looked around in despair.

This is a huge alchemy room. In the center is a bronze alchemy furnace that is taller than a person. The shelves around it are piled with cinnabar, mercury, lead blocks, sulfur, and some unknown dried animal carcasses.

Is this what is meant by "fully inheriting Xu Fu's true teachings"?

This is clearly a scene of massive heavy metal poisoning!

Su Ming casually picked up one of the so-called "semi-finished elixirs" from the table and smelled it. Good heavens, if you swallowed this, forget about immortality, you'd probably be instantly overloaded with heavy metals and turn into a living, breathing version of the periodic table.

"It's over, it's all over."

Su Ming plopped down on the prayer mat, his eyes glazed over.

In my previous life, I was a corporate slave, working 996 every day. Although it was tiring, at least I could survive. Now, I've transmigrated into a "civil servant of the Qin Dynasty," and the first thing I encounter is a hellish, life-or-death challenge.

seven days?

Let alone seven days, even if you gave him seventy years, he still couldn't concoct a elixir that could grant immortality! That goes against common scientific sense, okay?

"Why don't I just hang myself right here in this hall?" Su Ming thought sadly, looking at the rope hanging from the roof beam with cured meat. "At least I'll have a whole corpse, which is better than being chopped to pieces by those killers in seven days."

He slumped backward, lying sprawled on the cold floor, staring at the dark beams overhead, his heart filled with accusations against this messed-up world.

Don't all time travelers have cheat codes?

Aren't they all supported by a system, receiving unparalleled martial arts skills just for signing in, and becoming stronger simply by breathing?

Why is it that when it comes to me, it's like I'm sending off Qin Shi Huang to his death?

"God, are you kidding me?" Su Ming closed his eyes in despair, muttering to himself, "Even a food delivery system would be fine, at least I could ride my electric scooter and take Zheng Ge for a spin, maybe he'd be in a good mood and let me go..."

Just as Su Ming was preparing to welcome the end of his short and absurd transmigration life, a cold, mechanical voice, which sounded like heavenly music to him, suddenly exploded in the depths of his mind.

"Ding!"

"Host detected to be facing imminent death; vital signs extremely unstable; adrenaline surging..."

"Meets the system activation requirements."

"【God-Level Corpse Path Technology System】is binding, loading progress 1%...50%...100%!"

Su Ming sat up abruptly, his eyes widening like saucers, and his breathing became rapid.

"system?"

"Am I hallucinating? Big brother, Dad! Are you there?"