Chapter 18: One Week
Qilin had branch offices in every city, and the one in Silver City was located in the southern district, next to the Public Security Bureau. Yu Xian and Jin Sheng sat inside this very office. Looking through the window into an adjacent room, they watched Zhang Shou undergo a battery of examinations conducted by several doctors.
An utterly complex expression crossed Jin Sheng's face after he reviewed Zhang Shou's situation. As he stared at the energetic teenager in the next room, he muttered, "Does a freak's friend have to be a freak too?"
In an era where web novels reigned supreme, online authors had stretched readers' imaginations to absurd proportions. A "system" was by no means a novel concept. Centuries ago, someone had consumed a Forbidden Fruit and wished for a system, intending to use it to ascend to the highest level of existence.
The wish had been granted, but the side effect was that the person himself became the system, able to exist only through parasitic fusion with a host. Once the host died, he would perish along with them. The outcome was obvious in the end. He and his host both died, and neither of them ever ascended to godhood.
In a sense, Zhang Shou's wish was nearly identical to that figure's. His end should have been the same. Yet, not only had Zhang Shou failed to turn into a system, but he was currently alive and kicking. It was baffling.
Once the examinations had concluded, the doctors informed Yu Xian and Jin Sheng that the results wouldn't be ready until the following day.
Emerging from the examination room, Zhang Shou spotted Yu Xian waiting for him in the corridor and nervously asked, "Salted Fish, are my side effects going to be massive?"
Yu Xian shook his head. "We won't know until the reports come out tomorrow."
Zhang Shou nodded, then let out an optimistic grin. "Look on the bright side. Maybe it's because I'm blessed by heaven that I got such an absolute cheat of a system?"
Stepping out of the office, Jin Sheng looked straight at Zhang Shou. "That's impossible. You'd better drop that wishful thinking. Although you are only in the Insect rank, your potential is far too terrifying. A system of this level gained from consuming a Forbidden Fruit can't possibly come without side effects."
After Zhang Shou left the examination room, Jin Sheng had seen the doctors' expressions through the glass. Although the report had not yet come out, he had a feeling the results would not be good. He silently took back his earlier thought. Yu Xian really was the only freak here, while his fat friend was just an unlucky fellow who had gotten lucky.
The smile on Zhang Shou's face instantly froze. He thought he had been incredibly restrained when making his wish, but he hadn't expected Jin Sheng to hold the matter in such terrifyingly high regard.
Yu Xian couldn't help but ask, "Captain, is it possible to transfer my merit points to Zhang Shou so that we can request the government to step in and save him?"
Jin Sheng calmly replied, "He stays here tonight. You can stay to keep him company, or you can go home and rest. Everything will have to wait until the reports are out tomorrow."
Forbidden Fruits could be considered a supreme opportunity, but they were just as easily a harbinger of calamity. Most animals that ate Forbidden Fruits would become a threat to human safety. As for humans, those who consumed it could either soar to the top if they were lucky or bring harm to others and themselves if they were not.
The progenitors of zombies, drought demons, ghouls, and many others had all eaten the Forbidden Fruit. It was because of it that not only did their self-awareness completely vanish, but they also became sources of catastrophe that brought chaos to the world.
For example, after dozens of Qilin squads had killed the progenitor of the zombie working together, the being's corpse had released a massive surge of corpse miasma. The miasma could not be fully eradicated and would spread across the globe with the wind. Any corpse infected by it would mutate and eventually become a zombie.
Qilin had been constantly eliminating newly emerging zombies. Humans could also reduce outbreaks through timely cremation of the dead, but animal zombies were far more troublesome as they were virtually impossible to eradicate.
That was why whenever someone who had consumed a Forbidden Fruit was discovered, Qilin would arrange a full medical examination, and they were not allowed to leave without permission before the report came out.
Yu Xian said, "I'll stay and keep Zhang Shou company."
Jin Sheng nodded. "Good. It's better if you stay. It'll keep his mind from wandering and prevent him from making an irrational choice."
In the past, there had been individuals who were invited to Qilin's branch offices for a medical evaluation after consuming a Forbidden Fruit. Left alone at night, they had spiraled into catastrophic overthinking, growing so terrified of the looming results and so untrustworthy of the authorities that they snuck away. By the time Qilin located them, the backlash of their abilities had already run its course, leaving them on the brink of death.
During the night, Yu Xian and Zhang Shou shared a room. After lying with his eyes closed for a while, Zhang Shou opened them and looked at Yu Xian. "Salted Fish, I can't sleep."
Yu Xian, who was standing inverted on the ceiling, said calmly, "Don't overthink it. Worst-case scenario, I'll just turn you into a vampire. One way or another, we'll find a way to keep you alive."
Zhang Shou sighed. "I got carried away when I found a Forbidden Fruit. If only I had asked you first."
Yu Xian manipulated his Blood Energy into strands of fine threads. The crimson threads intertwined with silver threads formed from his Silver Blood, weaving into a net. He dropped down from the ceiling and lay in the net. "Impossible. Forbidden Fruits themselves have an overwhelming temptation for living beings. Your rationality wouldn't have been strong enough to last until you thought of asking me."
If two people stumbled upon a Forbidden Fruit at the same time, even if they were sworn brothers, the corrupting influence of the Forbidden Fruit would drive them to kill each other. There were even cases of fathers and sons turning on one another.
This was also why the Forbidden Fruits were often referred to as "cursed fruits." Any living beings would gradually lose their sanity upon encountering them. Zhang Shou could never have held out for long. Consuming it immediately while his sanity was intact was the absolutely correct choice.
The following day, Yu Xian and Zhang Shou sat on the chairs lining the corridor. Zhang Shou looked like a convict awaiting sentencing, his face a mask of anxious apprehension.
Jin Sheng emerged from an adjacent office holding a file with a grim expression. He walked over, sat down next to Yu Xian, and handed the report to him.
Yu Xian took the file and offered it to Zhang Shou, but Zhang Shou waved his hands. "You read it first. Let me catch my breath."
From Jin Sheng's expression alone, Yu Xian had already deduced that the outcome was terrible. "Alright."
As his eyes scanned the report, his brow furrowed deeper and deeper, his face completely clouding over with worry.
Zhang Shou's throat tightened. "What's wrong? Is it that bad?"
Yu Xian pursed his lips before replying, "It's worse than we thought. Your body is currently saturated with a highly volatile, unique energy, and the degradation rate of your telomeres is hundreds of times faster than that of a normal human.
"Every single time you use your abilities, you are essentially burning your lifespan. According to the telomere analysis, you only have about a week left to live."
Zhang Shou immediately remembered what Yu Xian said last night. "What if I become a vampire?"
Yu Xian shook his head. "The energy inside your body is highly repulsive. Vampire's blood would probably be burned away the moment it enters your body, so you simply can't be turned into a vampire. The same goes for other supernatural abilities that extend lifespan. They likely won't have any effect on you either."
Zhang Shou's face turned pale. "So... I'm going to die in a week?"
There was no such thing as a free lunch. Even if one had three extra lives, if the King of Hell demanded their death at midnight, even a hundred lives wouldn't save them.
Forbidden Fruits were never genie lamps or wish-granting beads. Consuming them always came at a price.