Marvel's Death Merchant

Zheng Zha glanced back, sighed, and then ran to grab the young man's arm, pulling him along to run in the middle of the group. Even so, the young man still looked exhausted.

The screams came from a large hall of several dozen square meters. The middle-aged man and two others were sitting on the ground screaming in terror. In the opposite direction they were pointing, three corpses lay stiffly on the ground. Zheng Zha and the others saw this scene as soon as they entered. The three corpses were a black man and a white man. Their faces were extremely distorted, as if they had experienced something very painful before they died.

As soon as Zheng Zha and the others entered, the middle-aged man ran in terror to the corridor at the other end of the room. Zheng Zha sighed and didn't bother to chase after them. He just squatted down next to the corpse and looked at it carefully. After a few glances, he asked with a pale face, "Alien One... how many aliens appeared in total?"

Chu Xuan said confidently, "Firstly, my memory would never make a mistake on such a detail."

Zheng Zha stood up, his face pale. At his feet, the three corpses each had a deep, bloody hole in their chests, indicating that the alien larva had emerged from them. Moreover, one of them had a large hole in his chest and abdomen, as if an alien larva several times larger had crawled out of it. Just imagining the size of that alien was absolutely terrifying.

“Then we’ll soon be facing three… or even more and bigger aliens,” Zheng Zha said, his tongue feeling a little dry.

Everyone examined the three corpses, which had been dead for about four or five hours. After comparing the largest blood hole, Chu Xuan was certain that there was already an Alien Queen on the ship.

Although Chu Xuan's deductions confirmed that there was only one Alien Queen on the ship, everyone still couldn't help but gasp. Taking advantage of this atmosphere, Chu Xuan also mentioned the existence of the Gene Lock. However, before he could explain what the Gene Lock was, another extremely pitiful scream and cry for help echoed through the corridor. And after only a dozen seconds, the sound disappeared.

Zero stared coldly into the corridor and said, "It was those three thugs... they were attacked."

Tang Xing knew there was no immediate danger, so he needed to wait. Helping these reincarnation teams was also necessary, and utilizing the natives' power was essential. (To be continued...)

Chapter 163: The Plot Begins

Zheng Zha sighed and said, "Let's go take a look. If we find any aliens, we can eliminate them while we're at it... The aliens we've found should be quite weak, right?"

Chu Xuan nodded and said, "Yes, the aliens we see are still in their infancy. If we have enough firearms to deal with them, they are indeed very weak. Besides a Desert Eagle and those two pistols, didn't you exchange for any other weapons?"

Tang Xing actually wanted to say that he had many weapons, but in order not to affect the plot, he couldn't take them out; those weapons were unnecessary variables at the moment.

Zheng Zha and Zhang Jie exchanged glances and then smiled wryly, "We are different from you after all. I am just an ordinary white-collar worker. Apart from Zhang Jie being a retired soldier, Zhan Lan is a writer, Li Xiaoyi is a student, and Tang Xing said he is a businessman... but in my opinion, he is an arms dealer."

Zheng Zha gave a wry smile and said to Chu Xuan, "Look, for a group like ours, just surviving is already a blessing. How can we think about anything else!"

Chu Xuan smiled and said, "Let's go, let's go there and take a look first... Besides, what you said isn't entirely correct. Didn't I just mention gene lock? This is cutting-edge technology in the world, and we happen to be at the forefront of the world. You could say that even European countries like the United States may not know as much as we do."

"In the most ancient times, when human ancestors were still monkeys—no, even earlier than monkeys—there was an archaeological gap in the era of human ancestors. Yes, there's nothing to explain why humans suddenly evolved from monkeys into humans. Don't believe the passages in books about the slow evolution of humans; that's all nonsense, about millions of years of evolution. Let me tell you, cutting-edge genetics tells us that this period was only a little over 120 years. Yes, not millions of years, not hundreds of thousands of years, not even a thousand years. In just a little over 120 years, we humans completed all the necessary conditions for evolving from monkeys into ancient humans."

"In the human genome, from the genes of ancient single-celled organisms to multicellular organisms, to fish, to amphibians, and slowly evolving to the current human genome, everything actually shows up in the genetic code. Do you know what appeared in the human genetic code in those 120 years? Let me tell you, a lock appeared."

"Yes, a lock. All of humanity's potential was only unleashed for a little over 120 years, and then it was locked away for various inexplicable reasons. So, from ancient humans to modern humans, our evolution has been negligible. In fact, for the last tens of thousands of years, we humans have not evolved at all. Perhaps you will say that technological progress has made humans much more advanced than tens of thousands of years ago, but this is just the accumulation of knowledge and has nothing to do with the evolution of humanity itself. The evolution of humanity itself has gradually stagnated."

Chu Xuan spoke as he ran, ignoring the astonished looks on the faces of the others. He continued unhurriedly, "This space—I'm not referring to the horror movie Alien 1, I'm referring to the entire horror movie loop space. Actually, I've seen it before, but I didn't know its significance at the time. In the ruins where the Upper Cave Man skull was discovered, our country found an inscribed stone tablet. We deciphered most of the text, and the meaning can be summarized as 'When human evolution comes to a complete standstill, terror will unlock the human gene lock again, propelling human evolution forward once more.' The person who left the message was named 'The First Humans to Unlock the Gene Lock.' Perhaps this space has existed since ancient times."

Zheng Zha suddenly had a thought and asked, "So what will happen if the gene lock is unlocked? Will humans become superhumans?"

Chu Xuan smiled and said, "You must have heard of the poem by Li Bai, 'Heaven has endowed me with talents, which must be put to use.' The definition of the gene lock is exactly the same. According to the genes, there are no weaklings among humans. Every human should have their own strengths, and this strength should be top-notch. In fact, humans can achieve such talents through training, such as sports, memory, and intelligence. So, eliminating the gene lock means that humans can decide their talents according to their own circumstances. You can become a super genius when you need to use your brain, a strongman when you need to exert force, and a super soldier who will survive no matter what, even if everyone else dies."

"Able to solve problems under any circumstances, possessing an unwavering mentality, and never dying under any circumstances! This! Is the evolution after unlocking the genetic lock!"

Chu Xuan also explained the various aspects of the gene lock theory, including the fact that when the gene lock is unlocked, a highly toxic substance will be secreted by the body, which can lead to death in severe cases. In addition, in response to Zhang Jie's questions, Chu Xuan also speculated that the God Space might just be an intelligent system.

“However, I have even more faith in the power of human intelligence and technology,” Tang Xing said calmly from the side. The others nodded in understanding, as most of them shared this view.

At this moment, Zero suddenly waved his hand and whispered, "Perhaps what you said makes a lot of sense, but please be aware of our current situation... The smell of blood is thirty meters to the left ahead. Anyone want to go and check?"

Zheng Zha gritted his teeth and said, "My enhancement aptitude is high, so I'll go take a look."

Tang Xing said earnestly to Zheng Zha, "I'll go with you; perhaps my weapons will come in handy."

Zheng Zha took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the boundless fear in his heart. He and Qi Huan quietly walked to the left side of the corridor. Because he was so nervous, he seemed to be able to hear Tang Xing's own heartbeat. Gradually, he seemed to be able to feel even the subtle fluctuations between his blood vessels. It was a very strange feeling, indescribable, but Zheng Zha still had a glimmer of understanding. He seemed to be only one step away from unlocking the genetic lock.

Tang Xing was quite satisfied with Zheng Zha. After all, Zheng Zha was a person with great fortune, so it was good for him to rely on him for the time being.

Unfortunately, this state did not last long. When he cautiously looked to the left from the intersection, he was suddenly startled. Instantly, this mysterious and indescribable state vanished, leaving him with only deep fear.

The left side of the passageway was piled with indescribable pieces of flesh, so much so that it was impossible to tell that they had ever been human. Apart from some scraps of clothing scattered on the ground, no one could be sure that the flesh here had once belonged to a human.

Tang Xing remained expressionless at the sight; it meant nothing to him. Zheng Zha, on the other hand, suddenly vomited violently, leaning against the wall. Seeing there was no danger, everyone else rushed over. Then Zhan Lan, Li Xiaoyi, and Li Shuaixi joined Zheng Zha in vomiting. Even Zhang Jie's lips twitched a few times. Only Lingdian, Bawang, and Chu Xuan squatted beside the shredded flesh, silently watching.

The plot has begun, unfolding as before. However, it will naturally be different from previous plots—that's the advantage of being a time traveler. (To be continued...)

Chapter 164 The Terrifying Alien

Overlord picked up a few strips of cloth from the ground. He and Zero exchanged a glance. The white man said in a stuttering voice, "It's those three thugs. Two corpses are also missing."

Zheng Zha and the others had already stopped vomiting, but when they heard this word, they started vomiting again, this time bringing up stomach fluids as well.

"No, I don't think so." Chu Xuan looked closely at the pieces of flesh and said, "I have done a few dissection experiments. Most of these pieces of flesh are broken bones and filthy internal organs that are hard to eat. And look here, this is a shoulder bone fragment. I have found three different shoulder bone fragments. So I think the alien took what it could carry and left behind the remains of three corpses."

This time, Zheng Zha and the others really couldn't even vomit their stomach contents. They felt their internal organs twitching. Fortunately, Zheng Zha's physical condition was far superior to the others. After vomiting for a while, he still had the strength to move. As for the others, they had already vomited until their limbs were weak and they could only stand up by holding onto the wall.

However, Chu Xuan frowned and looked at the three people whose limbs were weak, and said, "Let's leave here first. Things are much worse than we thought. There are already aliens in the third stage of maturity, and... they are likely nearby."

As soon as he finished speaking, Zero and Overlord suddenly bent over, a hint of fear in their eyes, especially Zero, who whispered urgently, "Something's wrong, there's danger..."

As people living on the edge of life and death, they often have a special intuition for danger. When Zero and Overlord simultaneously ducked down, Zheng Zha also felt a tremor in his heart. He couldn't explain what this feeling was; he could only instinctively look behind him. Suddenly, a huge black shadow darted out from the passageway behind him. Because it was moving so fast, only his reflexes among the crowd could catch a glimpse of that huge and terrifying shadow—a horrifying creature that only appeared in nightmares.

At the very back of the group was Li Xiaoyi, who was leaning against the wall. He had been vomiting so badly that his limbs were weak, and he couldn't muster any strength at all. When Zheng Zha looked behind him with a terrified expression, the boy could only manage to turn around, and then he was so frightened that he couldn't move anymore.

This is a mature, gigantic alien, standing about 2.78 meters tall, with a body and tail exceeding three meters in length. It possesses a glossy black shell, a massive, elongated head extending to its back, and a terrifying mouth filled with sharp teeth. Even more frightening is that its tongue, protruding from its mouth, is also covered in sharp fangs. This is a monster whose mere appearance is enough to terrify ordinary people.

Li Xiaoyi watched as the alien kept spitting out saliva. He barely had time to swallow before the alien's huge tongue pierced his shoulder. The tongue, full of sharp teeth, moved with incredible speed. Even Zheng Zha could only vaguely see a black shadow. Then, Li Xiaoyi was dragged by the alien to the corner of the corridor.

"Ah! No! Brother Zhang, Brother Zheng, save me... I don't want to die!"

Li Xiaoyi screamed madly. But his strength was insignificant compared to the alien; he struggled like an infant. All anyone could see was his hand, gripping the corner of the corridor, slowly inching away, his fingernails being torn off. His survival instinct was on full display; even with his nails ripped off, Li Xiaoyi clung desperately to the corner, his fingers being pulled and rubbed raw. Finally, he was dragged into the corridor, leaving only five bloody thumbprints on the wall. Aside from that, the entire corridor echoed with Li Xiaoyi's agonizing screams, accompanied by the lingering sounds of flesh tearing apart.

Faced with this sudden turn of events, Zheng Zha, Lingdian, and the other three had already recovered. Lingdian and Bawang did the same thing: they simultaneously gripped their grenades and pulled on the pins with their other hands, ready to throw their only weapon as soon as the alien appeared. Only Zheng Zha gritted his teeth and charged towards the alien. He remembered his words: he would never abandon any of his comrades. He had indeed heard Li Xiaoyi's cries for help.

At the corner of the corridor, three enormous, jet-black aliens were tearing Li Xiaoyi apart. The boy wasn't completely dead yet; he was struggling and convulsing. The aliens' strength was simply too astonishing. With a gentle rip from their tongues, which were covered in sharp teeth, his body was easily torn apart like paper. All Zheng Zha could see was the boy's despairing eyes before his head was smashed to pieces by one of the aliens' tongues.

The other alien turned its head to look at Zheng Zha. Its tongue slowly extended out, and clear saliva dripped continuously onto the ground. Then, the alien roared at Zheng Zha. The loud noise brought Zheng Zha back to his senses. He glanced back at Li Xiaoyi—no, he glanced at Li Xiaoyi—and then ran back to the back of the passageway without looking back.

"Run! Damn it! There's a three-headed alien!"

Zheng Zha shouted as he ran. Zero and Overlord reacted quickly, throwing grenades at the same time. Then they turned and ran into the depths of the corridor. Zhang Jie, Chu Xuan, and Li Shuaixi followed closely behind them.

Because of her position at the back, Zhan Lan was close to Zheng Zha. However, Zhan Lan's burst speed was not very good, so she was likely to be affected by the power of the explosion. When Zheng Zha passed by her, he could only pick her up in one go. Then, the shockwave from the explosion came from behind, and the two of them were thrown to the ground at the same time.

"This way!" Tang Xing suddenly said and started running on his own. Zheng Zha gritted his teeth and kept running forward. After running for several hundred meters, the three of them saw a steel gate appear beside the passageway and rushed in without hesitation.

All the doors on the merchant ship were equipped with automatic sensors that would open automatically when a creature approached, so the three of them easily entered the room. As soon as they entered, Zhan Lan jumped out of Zheng Zha's arms. She pressed some buttons by the steel door, and after a few presses, the steel door finally closed, and a red light appeared on the door.

"Damn it! They clearly said they wouldn't abandon any of their companions! But I was scared and ran away too!" Zheng Zha felt more and more indignant as he thought about it. He punched the side hard, and with a loud bang, the steel bar next to him, as thick as an arm, was dented by his punch. He and Zhan Lan stared at each other in disbelief.

"What are you doing? Don't you know this will attract the Xenomorphs? These kinds of gates are very vulnerable to Xenomorphs..."

"Wait a minute, when did I become this strong? If I had this kind of strength earlier, I could have fought Zhang Jie, or even you." Zheng Zha asked in surprise, looking at the steel plate he had dented.

"That's because you didn't master the power you gained, which is why you ended up like that. But it's not too late for you to master it now. Apart from lacking some practical experience, it's not bad. But... wait!" As Tang Xing was speaking, he suddenly felt a tremor in his heart. This was a feeling he had never experienced before. If it appeared here, there was only one possibility.

"Zheng Zha, it seems you can do a lot now. Fight!" Tang Xing glanced at Zheng Zha and said seriously. (To be continued...)

Chapter 165 Discovery

Besides lacking heavy weapons, Zheng Zha and his group also lacked food and water. While other things might be manageable, without these two items, if they were trapped like in a horror movie, they would likely starve or die of thirst. Tang Xing, however, didn't care; he didn't need to help these people at the moment.

"We're still newbies after all. We thought we were veterans just because we survived one horror movie, but we're actually unprepared for so many things. Running into a horror movie like this is like we're just playing around. Sigh."

Zheng Zha sighed helplessly, while Tang Xing also observed the walls around the room and found something of value. The technology of this spaceship wasn't particularly advanced; it used gunpowder weapons instead of the laser weapons commonly used in the interstellar era, leaving it without any effective weapons against those alien creatures.

Zheng Zha asked curiously, "What are you looking for?"

Tang Xing simply said, "These are important things; they are the very foundation for our survival."

As she spoke, Tang Xing found a button device hanging on the wall. She pressed a button at random, and sure enough, a faint sound came from it, which sounded like a phone call being connected but no one was speaking.

At this moment, Zhan Lan spoke first: "There are more than forty buttons in total. Assuming that each button represents a room equipped with a communication device, in other words, we are in the middle of the merchant ship and not too far from the control room."

Zheng Zha went closer. There were a total of forty-six buttons on the communication device. The device in front of them was marked with the number twenty-one, and of all forty-six buttons, only the twenty-seventh button was painted red.

He carefully considered Zhan Lan's way of thinking. Zhan Lan meant to divide the entire merchant ship into forty-six parts, which happened to be the number of buttons on the communication device. Both one and forty-six were located near the edge of the merchant ship, while their room number twenty-one should be in the middle of the merchant ship. Similarly, the special red number twenty-seven was very likely the control room of the merchant ship.

Zheng Zha hesitated and said, "What if the numbers on the communicator have nothing to do with the room location? What if all the room numbers have been scrambled? And that red number 27 isn't the control room, but a security room or something else? Judging our location based on that seems a bit too arbitrary."

Seeing Zheng Zha's hesitant expression, Tang Xing said seriously, "Zheng Zha, I think Zhan Lan is right. We can't just sit here and wait to die." Seeing the others' insistence, Zheng Zha agreed to their adventure.

Zheng Zha strapped three steel bars to his back, holding the thickest and longest one in his hand. He didn't want to say anything more. Watching Zhan Lan adjust the light at the entrance of the room to green, he took a deep breath and rushed out...

"Yes. My deduction is correct. Each important room has a communication device and numbers. We have just passed room number twenty-five. In other words, the merchant ship's control room is nearby."

On the other side, Chu Xuan emerged from a room and briefly addressed the other four, who all looked around nervously. Zhang Jie suddenly asked, "What's the point of finding the merchant ship's control room? I suggest we find Zheng Zha and the others first; he's our most important fighting force."

Chu Xuan said calmly, "Let's not worry about whether they're dead or not. To find them, we must first find the merchant ship's control room. We're not familiar with the ship's layout or location, we don't even know where the aliens are gathered, where the weapons are, where the food and water are, or even... do you know where the toilets are? So, we must find the control room and understand the ship's map before we can fight."

Zhang Jie wanted to say something, but he fell silent in the end. Lingdian suddenly said coldly, "Hurry up and do whatever you need to do. I feel like something is following us. Although it's still far away, the sense of danger is very obvious."

Ba Wang nodded and said in broken Mandarin, "Yes, it's very dangerous. I'm sure it's an alien."

Chu Xuan frowned and said, "Alright, then we'll choose the left passage and run forward. We must find the control room as soon as possible. If my deduction is correct... finding the control room will greatly increase our chances of survival!"

Despite saying that, Zheng Zha was still looking around intently. His muscles were tense, and he was holding the thick steel bar upside down in his hand. For some reason, he felt uneasy, as if some danger was approaching him, which made him even more nervous.

Tang Xing wasn't afraid at all. He had plenty of Terminator and biological weapons in his spatial seeds, and the alien creatures from the Infinite Terror dimension couldn't compare to the originals, so there was no point in taking them.

Just like in the original story, as Zhan Lan turned into the corridor, a tongue full of sharp teeth suddenly shot out from the other side of the corridor, piercing through her shoulder in an instant. Zheng Zha's opportunity, however, had appeared.

His nerve reaction speed, more than three times that of an ordinary person, saved him at this moment. Everything around him slowed down, and he felt that every movement required a huge amount of strength. Even with his current physical condition, he felt exhausted. Moreover, his body felt as if it was being torn apart between movements. The ground, the air, and even the walls that were getting closer and closer all seemed to have a tearing force pulling his body down so that he could not go too fast. He had never experienced this phenomenon before.

Tang Xing was satisfied with Zheng Zha's appearance; this was the power he deserved.

Zheng Zha had already swooped down in front of the alien. He could even clearly see the saliva constantly spitting out of the alien's mouth, as well as its long, sharp tongue. In the instant he jumped over the alien, he accurately slashed at the alien's tongue with the steel bar in his hand. With a muffled thud, Zhan Lan fell to the ground, and the alien roared madly. Its severed tongue kept spitting out highly corrosive liquid. Zheng Zha had cut most of the tongue in two.

Tang Xing was satisfied to come and help, but he pretended to be late, and no one suspected him. In everyone's eyes, Zheng Zha was the most powerful, and Tang Xing couldn't really help anyway.

As Zheng Zha landed, he lashed the steel bar in his hand at the alien's back. A metallic clang rang out, and the arm-thick steel bar was bent completely. However, the alien didn't look too good either; its shell was cracked open, and corrosive liquid kept flowing out. The floor of the passageway had already been corroded and riddled with holes by this liquid.

The final battle is about to begin. The outcome is certain, and Tang Xing will naturally lend a hand at the opportune moment—it's essential. (To be continued...)

Chapter 166 Battle

The alien was extremely fast. Even though Zheng Zha felt the speed around him slow down and the air became thicker, he was only about as fast as the alien. When the alien's huge claw swept horizontally, Zheng Zha could only barely raise his arm to block it. With a muffled thud, the huge force knocked him to the ground. The entire passage seemed to tremble, and Zheng Zha's head was hit so hard that blood flowed freely.

At this moment, Zheng Zha was fighting desperately. He didn't have the Xenomorph's tough, iron-like shell. When he blocked that attack, several bloody holes were left on his arm. Not only that, the Xenomorph's enormous strength was terrifying. His head hit the floor and almost made him pass out. Fortunately, at the critical moment, he bit his tongue hard, and it was the pain that kept him conscious.

He didn't even bother to get up. Instead, he pulled out another steel bar from behind and lashed it down at the alien's feet. The force, combined with the instantaneous burst of internal energy, knocked the alien, which was two or three times the size of a human, to the ground. But as the alien fell, it also used the sharp tip of its tail to pierce his thigh. The alien truly lived up to its reputation as a creature evolved specifically for killing and survival; its fighting instincts were incredibly strong.

Zheng Zha's mind went blank. He felt as if his body was moving on its own, and countless instincts about fighting appeared in his mind. He rolled backward, and the sharp tail that had pierced his thigh came out of the wound. Then he pushed off with his feet and pounced again, the steel bar in his hand piercing the alien's mouth.

Tang Xing, of course, wouldn't remain a bystander any longer. He also took out a steel bar, and black flames instantly appeared in his hand. Then, Tang Xing fiercely stabbed it into the alien's head. Of course, highly corrosive liquid sprayed all over his body. In the end, the alien was destroyed, but Zheng Zha was also injured.

At the end, Zheng Zha felt a burning, stinging pain on the front of his body. He quickly tore off all his clothes and frantically rubbed the liquid off his body. However, the liquid hissed as soon as it hit the steel on the ground, melting and corroding the steel like ice. Apart from turning slightly black, his skin wasn't corroded at all. This sight greatly surprised Zhan Lan, who was standing nearby.