Chapter 23: I’m Pregnant

Chapter 23: I'm Pregnant

Xia Yi wasn't the only one stunned; everyone else was looking at Cao Kun with disbelief. Even though they knew their leader had superhuman abilities, it was just physical enhancement. No one expected Cao Kun to be so monstrous!

Sun Yong and Wang Wei knew that Cao Kun was also a superhuman, and a powerful natural element user at that!

Wang Wei gritted his teeth, knowing he stood no chance against a natural element user. Just as he was about to retreat, he noticed Cao Kun panting heavily, drenched in sweat, clearly exhausted from using his powers.

Wang Wei seized the opportunity, shouting and throwing the recliner chair at him while simultaneously slamming a piece of floorboard towards Cao Kun's head.

The living room, despite its size, had limited space. With Cao Kun's energy depleted, he could only dodge and block with his hands, resulting in several hits that left his arms throbbing in pain.

Behind Cao Kun, someone saw this gap and, as he dodged, swung a knife at his back!

Cao Kun felt the imminent danger and was trying to figure out how to deflect the blow when he heard a thud and a cry as an arrow struck the attacker's knee.

Sun Yong, crawling on the ground, finally found the gun that had been thrown away. He was elated, planning to secretly shoot Cao Kun, but then he paused, listening intently before his expression changed.

Seeing their leader losing ground, he made up his mind and slipped out during the chaos.

Soon, the hallway echoed with running footsteps, and someone shouted, "The cops are here!"

Shenchi, watching the fleeing crowd, didn't chase them but leaned against the wall to catch his breath.

The SWAT team stormed in, guns drawn, overpowering everyone who could still move and handcuffing them.

Wang Wei struggled and roared, "Cao Kun, you'll pay for this!"

The leader immediately shot him with a tranquilizer dart.

"Get the medical team in here; there's someone bleeding badly from the neck," Qi Zicheng said, turning to Shenchi and the dagger in his hand. "Quite ruthless, aren't you?"

Shenchi's gaze was far from friendly, but Qi Zicheng seemed unfazed, turning to take statements from them.

Inside, Cao Kun sat on the floor, letting the medics bandage his wounds while answering the SWAT team's questions intermittently.

Suddenly, one of the men being led to the elevator turned and yelled at Cao Kun, "He's not human! He can spit fire! He can spit fire out of nowhere!"

"Oh?" Qi Zicheng approached Cao Kun, examining him closely. "How do you spit fire? Show me."

Cao Kun glanced at him, a man with sharp facial features and muscles bursting beneath his clothes, "Even monkeys get paid for their tricks. How much are you offering?"

Qi Zicheng smiled as his earpiece crackled with a call from a colleague.

"I'll be right there."

To Cao Kun, he said, "We'll meet again." Then he left, leaving others to continue taking statements from Cao Kun.

Soon, the SWAT team rounded up all the scattered fugitives, including the two men who had jumped out the window from Shenchi's place. Another team urgently called Qi Zicheng over to Building 8 and brought Xia Yi, who had tried to ambush them, back. The main force then withdrew from Building 12.

They had been monitoring Wang Wei's group for days, but due to lack of manpower, the operation had been delayed. This incident finally prompted the action, sparing Shenchi and the others from being forcibly taken away.

During special times, any suspicious individuals posing a threat to national security could be arrested by the riot control unit, even terminated if necessary.

Cao Kun, holding his still bleeding arm, looked at the disheveled Xia Yi and asked, "Where's Cao Zilong?"

Xia Yi hesitated, unsure how to respond, "He... drove off."

Cao Kun chuckled, "Makes sense, a rare opportunity."

Shenchi glanced at the hallway, causing several eavesdropping ears to retract. Despite the earlier commotion, no one had reacted, but now they were all keenly interested.

Shenchi extended his hand to Cao Kun, who tossed the keys over.

Shenchi caught them, turned, and called Xia Yi to go home.

Shenchi's place was manageable, needing only some effort to tidy up the overturned items. Cao Kun's place, however, was in much worse shape, especially without Cao Zilong to help.

Upon entering, Shenchi ignored the mess, instructing Xia Yi to lock the door. He then took off his jacket and lay down on the sofa, asking Xia Yi to check him over.

Xia Yi put away the crossbow and backpack and came over, "What's wrong?"

Shenchi frowned, "I hit my lower back, and my stomach hurt for a moment."

Xia Yi: "Any external injuries?"

Shenchi: "No."

Xia Yi washed his hands, returned, and had Shenchi lie flat on the sofa, lifting his shirt. Shenchi's body tensed momentarily.

Xia Yi sensed it but didn't comment, gently pressing his abdomen, "How does it feel now?"

Shenchi's face looked grim, "Still a dull ache when pressed."

"Any other symptoms? Nausea, loss of appetite... Has this happened before?" Xia Yi carefully slid and pressed on Shenchi's stomach. Shenchi's skin was smooth, white, and nearly hairless.

Shenchi: "No, it's happened before, but never this severe."

Xia Yi suddenly exclaimed softly.

Shenchi looked at him.

Xia Yi hesitantly placed his hand on Shenchi's abdomen again, feeling the same strange sensation!

—He 'saw' an unformed infant inside Shenchi!

Shenchi watched Xia Yi's expression, "Speak your mind."

"I... I saw a child in your belly... Sorry! What I mean is, I've been having hallucinations lately." Xia Yi regretted his words instantly; no man would want to hear that he had a baby in his belly—it was an insult to masculinity.

Xia Yi felt that he might be experiencing hallucinations due to the recent stress and overwork. "It was the same when I operated on the soldier at the West Gate. That feeling... it's like a mirror in steam, sometimes blurry, occasionally clear for a moment, as if I could 'see' through the surface of the human body into its internal structure. It's like an X-ray machine, you know? I feel like an all-seeing instrument, one that can clearly see inside the human body. It's different from the three-dimensional images we construct in our minds; it feels 'real.'"

Xia Yi subconsciously reached up to push his glasses, chuckling, "I must be too tired lately."

Shenchi: "Do you think it's a hallucination?"

"Otherwise, what else could it be? Superpowers?" Xia Yi shook his head in self-denial, recalling the image of Cao Kun holding a ball of fire in his palm. "Too fantastical..."

How could someone suddenly gain powers far beyond their own capabilities? Genes, cells, nerves, muscles, brain—none of these could achieve such feats.

"But I am indeed pregnant," Shenchi said calmly. "For more than two months now."

Xia Yi was stunned. "What?"

Shenchi looked at him. "Perhaps your eyes have evolved some special ability."

"Evolution?"

Like Darwinian evolution?

Xia Yi found it hard to believe. Even if species evolve, it doesn't mean they can evolve so quickly to lift several tons with one hand, spew fire out of nowhere, or see bones with the naked eye. Even the Cambrian explosion wasn't this fast!

Shenchi saw through his unspoken doubts and tossed something from his backpack to Xia Yi.

Xia Yi caught it and saw a beautiful transparent bead, with something seemingly flowing inside under the light.

"What is this?" As Xia Yi moved closer, the image vanished. He rubbed his eyes.

Shenchi: "This is dug out from a zombie's head."

Xia Yi looked at him in surprise.

Shenchi continued, "Not only humans are evolving, zombies are also evolving."

Xia Yi's expression became very interesting.

Shenchi recounted the differences between Level 1 and Level 2 zombies encountered at the West Gate. He knew that Level 2 zombies would appear early in densely populated cities, but he didn't expect Jiu Zhou City to have them so soon.

After a while, Xia Yi regained his composure and worriedly said, "They are like the ancient apes, and we are the natural conditions that are driving their evolution, an enhanced version. So zombies hunt humans to obtain energy, to evolve?"

Shenchi's voice was cold. "Or to evolve in order to hunt."

Xia Yi was taken aback, feeling a chill down his spine.

He took a deep breath, set aside his questions, and focused back on Shenchi, examining him closely. He realized that Shenchi was even more slender than he had imagined, with small bones and joints, soft features, and smooth, fair skin. Perhaps Shenchi was intersex; after all, there were cases of men getting pregnant.

Xia Yi convinced himself of this for the time being.

Putting aside other thoughts, he adopted a professional demeanor. "Have you been to the hospital for a checkup?"

Shenchi: "No."

Xia Yi tried touching Shenchi's abdomen again. Previously, he had mainly checked for possible internal injuries, but now he was looking for signs of a fetus—if there really was one—

—soon, he felt a hard lump in the abdomen.

Two months? Xia Yi thought, slowly closing his eyes. The sensation of seeing inside the human body was both strange and subtle, different from using the naked eye. It was like closing the outer eyelid and opening the inner second pair of 'eyes.' Darkness gave way to a spreading glow, and his focus intensified, gradually revealing the details layer by layer...

After about seven or eight minutes, Xia Yi exclaimed, "I see it!"

Shenchi clenched his fists.

"The fetus is 2.45 centimeters long, shaped like a flattened bean pod, with the head larger than the body, eyelids fused together, and clearer features." Xia Yi gently slid his fingertips over Shenchi's abdomen, speaking slowly. "All organs have formed, the placenta has begun to take shape, the gestational sac is starting to disappear, and the crescent-shaped placenta is visible. The fetus is active in the amniotic fluid..." [Note 1]

Xia Yi opened his eyes, taking a deep breath, barely able to contain his excitement. "If I'm not mistaken, the fetus is ten weeks old, and apart from being a bit small, all vital signs are normal!"

Shenchi asked, "Is it a girl?"

Xia Yi: "The reproductive organs start developing at eleven weeks. Based on what I see, it's highly likely to be a girl."

Xia Yi couldn't quite believe what he had just 'seen.' He rubbed his eyes and blinked, and the vision gradually blurred, followed by a throbbing pain in his head and an overwhelming fatigue.

Xia Yi's legs weakened, and Shenchi quickly supported him.

Xia Yi shook his head lightly, indicating he was fine. He wanted to examine further, but the pain increased, forcing him to abandon the idea.

He had read a foreign report about a true hermaphrodite who, having both male and female organs, had formed two families, fathering and mothering two children. [Note 2]

He initially thought Shenchi was in a similar situation, but he wasn't.

Shenchi had a complete male reproductive system, while the female organ was only a hidden uterus, with the vagina oddly attached to the rectum. Miraculously, the uterus developed well and successfully conceived. This was unprecedented.

Author's note:

[Note 1], [Note 2] Information sourced from the internet.

Also: The reproductive organs begin developing at ten weeks, but ultrasounds can only determine the sex at four months due to positioning and clarity issues.