Chapter 46: I Am Merely a Researcher, Not Particularly Skilled in Combat

"Regarding the T-virus..."

At that moment, Chu Xuan spoke up, "If possible, I hope everyone can let me study it before using it. Perhaps it can slightly increase its efficiency and make your process of breaking through the genetic lock a bit easier, or at least reduce the side effects significantly."

"Of course, go right ahead. I still have plenty of stock in my possession, feel free to tinker with them as you please."

Wu Xian raised an eyebrow slightly. If he remembered correctly, the original Chu Xuan had indeed modified the T-virus, filtering out the parts that caused genetic mutation to produce the pristine T-virus serum.

Combined with the later Dragon Blood Serum, he had achieved the magnificent feat of mass-producing combat power at the second stage of the genetic lock.

Such formidable scientific research capability must not be wasted. If they could utilize it earlier, the growth rate of the China Team might surpass even his expectations.

Of course, all of that was for the future and could be set aside for now. The most urgent matter was everyone's reinforcement direction.

First were Zheng Zha, Zhan Lan, Li Xiaoyi, and Mou Gang. Following Wu Xian's instructions, all four had the God's dimension upgrade their existing bloodlines to B-rank.

Needless to say for Zheng Zha, after becoming a B-rank Vampire Count, apart from the surge of vampire energy within his body, his overall demeanor grew increasingly delicate and alluring.

With that fair, handsome face paired with his slender and well-defined muscle lines, if he went to work as a host in a lounge bar, he could undoubtedly make countless young women swoon.

After upgrading his bloodline, Zheng Zha did not immediately exchange for any additional skills.

For one, the Vampire Count bloodline inherently came with certain innate skills, and the potential of his crimson flames had not yet been fully tapped, which was more than enough to sustain him for quite a long time.

For another, he planned to split his acquired C-rank side quest into three D-rank side quests. Two of them were intended to redeem Luo Li's freedom and have the God's dimension bestow a low-level Qigong reinforcement upon her.

As for the last one, it was meant to fund their return to the real world.

Just like in the original story, Zheng Zha still wanted to take Luo Li to meet their respective parents, let them know they were safe and sound, and incidentally bring along some wonderful goods to improve the living standards of the four elderly people.

Hearing this, Wu Xian raised no objections. He merely cast a sidelong glance at Chu Xuan before turning his attention to the next person scheduled for reinforcement.

Li Xiaoyi and Mou Gang.

Without any surprises, these two "veterans" redeemed the "Advanced Demon Mutant Bloodline" and the "Advanced Giant Mutant Bloodline" respectively. While their physical attributes skyrocketed, the distinctive traits of their respective bloodlines were further magnified.

To put it simply, Li Xiaoyi, who had already turned into a silver-haired youth, leaned even further into an edgy, rebellious aesthetic. His entire being radiated an untamed arrogance, and his tone of voice had become so cocky that it made people want to slap him across the face.

Moreover, after redeeming his created female companion's freedom, he used 1,500 reward points and two D-rank side quests to exchange for a replica of the Sword of Rebellion in its unsealed state, clearly intending to become a complete live-action cosplayer of Dante from the inside out.

As for Mou Gang, his transformation needs no elaboration—he simply grew taller, larger, and brawnier.

His original height of 2.3 meters surged even further, surpassing 2.5 meters. His entire body was packed with explosive muscles, and bulging veins slithered across his skin like great dragons. Viewed from a distance, he resembled a green giant minus the green hue.

Fortunately, once the Giant bloodline reached B-rank, it gained an innate ability akin to "growing and shrinking at will," allowing him to appropriately reduce his stature and barely meet standard human criteria. Even so, he still stood at just over two meters tall, making him stand out conspicuously among the current members of the China Team.

Additionally, to commend Mou Gang for voluntarily taking on the responsibility of protection during *Alien*, Wu Xian specially performed a private exchange for him, reinforcing him with D-rank low-level battle qi energy and the corresponding cultivation techniques.

As for Mou Gang himself, much like Li Xiaoyi, after redeeming the freedom of his mature female created companion, he used two D-rank side quests and 2,000 reward points to exchange for a pole-hammer inscribed with mysterious runes on its surface, across which arcs of lightning flickered. Clearly, it was also a magical item.

After all, having learned that the next world was *The Grudge*, dealing with ghosts and other spiritual entities naturally called for magical items to be the most effective.

With that, the two veterans' reinforcements temporarily concluded, and the turn passed to Zhan Lan.

Naturally, Zhan Lan upgraded her Ancestral Mutant bloodline once more, elevating it to B-rank. According to the mutant classification system, she should now be referred to as a Beta-level mutant.

In the X-Men series, Beta-level was already quite powerful, roughly equivalent to elite sub-bosses. Representative figures included Wolverine, Mystique, Cyclops, and others. This time, the ability Zhan Lan chose to reinforce was [Teleportation].

This ability originated from the mutant codenamed [Nightcrawler], which allowed the user to transform their body into smoke and instantly teleport to any location within their line of sight or somewhere they had visited previously. It was an exceptionally suitable skill for stealth operations and flanking.

Especially when combined with Zhan Lan's mental scanning, it might play a vital role in the upcoming team battle.

At this point, aside from Wu Xian, all the veterans had completed their reinforcements, leaving the two newly joined recruits.

"Little Chu, when it comes to the cultivation of combat personnel and future development, you are the most professional among us. Unfortunately, Zheng Zha and the others already have clear directions and no other choices, but neither you nor Zero has undergone reinforcement yet. Perhaps you can try exploring a new train of thought."

Wu Xian looked at Chu Xuan and asked curiously.

Setting aside Chu Xuan for the moment, Zero's reinforcement direction in the original story was quite ordinary: a Mystic Eye of Perception combined with a high-powered sniper rifle and special ammunition.

Cheap as it might be, that setup was undeniably cost-effective. As long as the target had not reached the fourth stage or possessed immortal characteristics, it was essentially one shot, one kill without a sound.

Yet, as strong as it could be, the ceiling of sniping was just that. Even if Zero were to exchange for the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception, unless he could unlock the fourth stage, it would be difficult to harm truly formidable powerhouses.

Furthermore, his own physical body was far too fragile. A single lapse in attention could easily result in instant death, much like his performance during *The Grudge*.

"Back during *Alien*, I mentioned this to you."

Hearing this, Chu Xuan replied smoothly, as if he had long anticipated Wu Xian's question.

"Aside from analyzing intelligence, I also have some minor accomplishments in scientific research, whereas I am not particularly skilled in combat. Therefore, I hope to continue developing along this path in the future."

"After all, within our team, aside from a qualified spellcaster, the remaining configurations—including melee combat, heavy crowd control, defense, and ranged support—are basically all covered. What we still lack is a logistics personnel capable of converting gains beyond reward points and side quests into usable resources, and I happen to be the most suitable candidate for the role."

"Last night, I searched God's dimension for numerous bloodline reinforcements related to this field, and finally found this one."

He raised his finger, and God's explanatory light curtain immediately descended.