After Being Parasitized by a Monster 46

Chapter 46: Let me try it myself.

Cheng Ming returned to her apartment and took off her clothes, walking into the bathroom.

As she passed the mirror in front of the sink, she paused, took a step back, bent down, and lightly kissed the mirror.

The smooth silver mirror was imprinted with her lips from the heat of her breath. Looking at the ambiguous mark, her heart rate more than doubled in an instant.

Before Xiao Ming could respond, she walked into the shower as if nothing had happened.

A sense of ritual.

She had convinced herself with a sense of ritual.

A promise was a promise. She was a person who kept her promises… The main thing was that she was facing a parasitic monster that lacked humanity. She still expected it to abide by human moral laws. Of course, she had to set an example first. How could she get anything without giving a little…

When people are shy and embarrassed, not only are their actions busy, but their thoughts are also very busy.

Many thoughts flashed through Cheng Ming’s mind in a short period of time.

She had accused it of being terrible, of not understanding her, of pretending to be human but not submitting to human thinking… But in the end, she had to admit that she was fascinated by it. Like a dangerous poppy, once addicted, there was no cure.

The road ahead was too chaotic.

She feared its existence, yet she needed its existence.

She craved its company.

There had been no extra sound inside or outside her body for a long time.

Until she turned on the water, and the warm water sprayed down from the showerhead, whoosh. After being seduced for three minutes, Xiao Ming finally came to its senses and popped out like a bubble—

“Does ‘accept’ mean… you accept that we are partners?”

The turn of events was too sudden.

If it weren’t for the sudden kiss just now, and the host’s heart rate that was still soaring, it probably wouldn’t have figured it out until the middle of the night.

“Yeah.”

Cheng Ming raised her hand and brushed the back of her neck.

She hadn’t tied up her hair when she came in this time, nor had she worn a shower cap. The mycelia, steamed through by the water vapor, twisted around her five fingers through the gaps, a wet and sticky feeling.

More “hair” hung down her waist, and a few strands rested on her shoulders and chest. Sensing her intention, they grew wildly like wild grass blown by a spring breeze in an instant.

The knuckles brushing against her skin sent a strange, tingling numbness through her. She turned her head to look at that small area. It was not an illusion, it was indeed different. The touch was a little cool and a little slippery… fish scales.

She shivered and subconsciously wanted to condemn, “How could you…”

Xiao Ming: “You said you accepted me.”

“I—”

That was what she had said, but she still felt unprepared at the last minute. Cheng Ming bit her lip and hardened her heart. “Don’t… let me try it myself.”

Water droplets splashed, and the steam gradually rose, scattering the light from the ceiling into a hazy glow.

“Mmph… alright. Cheng Ming,” it called her name.

It didn’t mean anything else. It just wanted to call her, like a puppy wagging its tail, a happy and pleasant voice.

However, why hadn’t she noticed before that her own voice calling out her own name was so strange, so… indescribably, making her heart tremble and her limbs go weak.

She could be at ease in the research institute, and she could pretend to be like a normal person in front of outsiders, but when she was alone with “herself,” and was only facing a monster that didn’t care about human etiquette, she didn’t know how she had become so awkward.

Her heart was heavily burdened, and her heart rate couldn’t slow down at all. Her face was so red that it was a mess. She was very shy, but she still tried to take this step. She supported herself against the wall with one hand, her back arched in a beautiful curve, and she lowered her head and rested it on the back of her hand, closing her eyes.

More steam gathered, blurring all the outlines, making them hazy.

“Mmph…” she opened her mouth to breathe in a daze, deep and shallow, trying to adapt to her own existence.

The warm water flowed over every inch of her skin. Her body was warmer than the gushing water, so warm that it was hot. Her fingertips were like being stuck in a hot spring in a volcano, with piles of lava and rocks, and she was in a dilemma.

It was very difficult.

It hadn’t been this difficult even the first time it had forcefully broken in.

Frowning and thinking for a long time, Cheng Ming finally understood what was wrong. She opened her mouth in embarrassment, and her panting made her vocal cords break. “You, put away the scales…”

“I can’t control it,” Xiao Ming said. “Shall I do it?”

It was unclear if it was because of her embarrassment or its passion. After enduring for too long, its voice was so hoarse.

The white mist rose, and it was restless, wanting to take over her body.

“No—” the feeling of losing autonomy was not good, and she was not happy. After a moment of silence, she said again, “Leave me one hand.”

She had chosen to be here instead of the bathtub because she didn’t want to be completely wrapped up.

The mycelia had to struggle against the surface tension of the water, so they were not as free. They were like wet little snakes, and could only cling to her and climb, leaving a sticky, winding trail.

“Alright,” Xiao Ming agreed.

Cheng Ming was used to using her right hand, so it considerately settled for the next best thing.

The mixing valve was opened just enough, and the sound of the water was a trickle, drip, drip. A thin mist filled the glass-enclosed area. She stood barefoot on the wet floor, and her toes were also red. The tiles had particles, but it still felt a little slippery. She uneasily grabbed the stainless steel handrail fixed to the wall.

The dark mycelia took the opportunity to climb up, wrapped around the handrail a few times, and tied up that right hand.

“Xiao Ming!”

Only then did Cheng Ming realize that she had been tricked.

But it was too late.

She was forced to be fixed to this space, a whole, equally wet and slippery, exuding a scorching temperature, and spewing out moisture and heat, extremely tempting.

Before she could finish the second word, she opened her mouth, and the mycelia that had been waiting for her immediately found a gap and drilled in, wrapping around her tongue. The cool and slippery and the wet and soft merged into a chaotic mass, crushing all the words that had not been spoken.

…

It was too bad.

If she had had no initiative from the beginning, at most she would have been passive. However, to be given freedom and then have it taken away, a person would subconsciously want to resist and fight for it. It was like a flower that seemed to be within reach was hanging in front of her, making her heart itch.

The sense of participation and interaction had indeed been enhanced.

It was just that this shower was like a fight. Cheng Ming’s elbow was even bruised.

The good thing about taking a shower was that she didn’t have to clean up afterwards.

The bad thing… there were too many bad things. Just one unsteady step was enough for it to torment her for eight hundred words.

Because she was not used to her left hand, it was useless to fight with it for control. It would only make the situation more chaotic.

In the end, history repeated itself, and it became a struggle between the host and the parasite.

It would have been better in bed…

Cheng Ming let out a sigh of regret.

After drying off, she was so tired that she kicked off her slippers and fell into the soft bed.

Xiao Ming rubbed the bruise on her right hand with its mycelia and reflected with guilt, “I’ll definitely tie it tighter next time, so you won’t be able to break free so easily…”

“…”

Cheng Ming closed her eyes, “You’d better not think.”

Jiang Dexin needed her help tomorrow, so she had to go early and arrange the things in her own laboratory first.

For the past few nights, she had been so anxious about the sequencing results that she couldn’t sleep. Now that she had completely accepted the reality, she could finally relax both physically and mentally and get a good night’s sleep.

But Xiao Ming’s spirits were still very high.

Ten minutes after turning off the lights.

“Cheng Ming, Cheng Ming, shall we put a mirror in here?” it coaxed in a low voice.

It could taste her happiness, but it was a pity that it couldn’t see her beauty with its own eyes.

“…Alright,” Cheng Ming was in a daze, and her central nervous system was unable to process the problem clearly.

And so the mycelia happily slipped out from under the covers, dragged the phone closer, found the online platform that connected the Defense Center to the apartment services, selected the product, and clicked to place an order.

All in one go.

…

Cheng Ming did not notice that a part of her balance had disappeared.

At ten o’clock the next morning, knock, knock, she knocked on the door of Jiang Dexin’s office.

“Teacher Jiang.”

“Xiao Cheng,” Jiang Dexin was already waiting. She put down her pen and picked up a USB drive on the table and handed it to her. “There’s an experiment this afternoon that you’ll be my assistant for. Get ready, we’re going into the P4 laboratory.”

“Alright,” Cheng Ming took the thing and agreed. “What preparations?”

“Mental preparations,” Jiang Dexin joked.

Cheng Ming: “…”

“Take a good look at the key points inside,” Jiang Dexin pointed to the USB drive in her hand and said seriously, “You’ve passed the assessment, and I also believe in your learning ability, but theory and practical operation are different after all.”

She let out a silent breath and nodded, “I understand.”

A level four biosafety laboratory, or P4 laboratory for short, was the most advanced, cutting-edge, and most dangerous laboratory in the world with the highest level of protection. The microorganisms studied here were often virulent, high-risk, with unknown transmission routes, and no effective treatment for the time being. Therefore, it was also jokingly called the devil’s laboratory, “Pandora’s single room.”

Although she was curious, in view of the confidentiality clause, Cheng Ming consciously did not ask too much.

She was just an assistant.

It was enough to memorize the procedures, strictly follow the operating procedures, and do what she was asked to do.

…

After reading and memorizing all the requirements, at two o’clock in the afternoon, Cheng Ming went up to the level four experimental area on the 211th floor with Jiang Dexin on time.

She had been trained with Zhou Jia before and was somewhat mentally prepared.

But when she brought the knowledge into a real scene, as expected, there was a barrier between theory and practice.

The protective clothing of a level four laboratory was quite thick, waterproof, dustproof, electricity-proof, and corrosion-proof. It also had to maintain a positive pressure, have its own respiratory gas supply system, and be completely sealed. In addition, the shoes were special experimental boots, with thick, non-slip soles, and the gloves were layered on top of each other, and the disinfection procedures were one after another.

Under such circumstances, to complete the experimental tasks, one could imagine the work efficiency.

In the middle of it, Jiang Dexin had asked about her condition several times, repeatedly emphasizing “you must say if you can’t hold on,” or directly ordering her to go to the side and rest.

Cheng Ming was only responsible for counting the strains in the preservation room and helping to transport the materials. After half a day, it was like she had run ten kilometers with a ten-kilogram load.

After leaving the laboratory, taking off the protective equipment, and showering and disinfecting, she sat in the rest corridor, her mind still in a daze.

“How is it? Can you still adapt?” Jiang Dexin came out later and asked.

Cheng Ming looked up and saw the teacher, whose face was unchanged and who was not out of breath. She was filled with respect, “Teacher Jiang, you are really as good as ever…”

“You can’t have poor physical fitness in our line of work,” Jiang Dexin laughed.

“Actually, my body is fine, at most my immunity is a little weak…” Cheng Ming cleared her throat, trying to clear her name.

“Really?” Xiao Ming didn’t believe it and muttered in her head, “Then why were you so tired yesterday…”

This Fish-Fungus was interrupting again.

Cheng Ming retorted in shame and anger, “That’s because you consume too much of my energy every time!”

The core of the experiment needed to be safe and efficient. Every functional area was clearly defined and perfect, so rigorous that it was demanding. But outside the laboratory, the corridor structure and room layout of this floor were intricate and complex, different from all the floors she had been to, as if it were intentionally designed to disorient people.

There were surveillance cameras in every corner of the corridor, and the access control system was also top-notch and strict. You could see an alarm every few steps.

The forefront of scientific exploration, the most dangerous place, of course needed the highest level of protection, which was understandable.

There was only one thing she couldn’t understand—

As she was walking out with Jiang Dexin, Cheng Ming suddenly stopped and pointed in a direction, asking, “Teacher Jiang, is there another road over there? Where does it lead?”

An ordinary person would not have noticed, but on her way in, besides admiring, observing, and trying to remember the route, she had also been looking for differences.

It was a test of brainpower.

But whether Cheng Ming’s body was up to it or not was another matter, her brain was definitely good.

And so she had discovered that all the surveillance cameras were facing away from that passage.

In such an orderly and concentrated place of the most advanced technology, how could there be a surveillance blind spot?

She was worried that she had miscalculated, so she reconfirmed it on her way out.

Jiang Dexin stopped and glanced at it, and said nonchalantly, “It’s an abandoned laboratory, don’t worry about it.”

Cheng Ming withdrew her gaze and did not ask any more.

She was just lost in thought.

“What’s wrong?”

Xiao Ming was very sensitive to her reaction.

“Do you still remember that string of numbers?”

“What?”

But it seemed to be far less good at other things than her.

Cheng Ming glanced back. A long corridor, a cold white light.

The smooth and seamless outer walls stood like solid and reliable shields on the scientific front line, protecting life and isolating danger.

They were also like airtight coffins, with high walls on all four sides, and it was unknown what secrets were buried inside.

The string of numbers that Professor Jin Xia had given her.

The first five digits were 21140.