Chapter 19: Hail Professor Qin Yu!

“I got it too! I was hospitalized, but when I saw the news, I shot up from my hospital bed in an instant! My hands were shaking when I got the 2611 Longevity Injection. It felt so unreal—something countless heroes across time desired so desperately, went mad for, and struggled to obtain—was it really this easy for me to hold in my hands?”

“Haha, same here. The moment I got my Life-Extending Serum, I used it right then and there. I don’t know if it was the serum’s effect, but my brain felt all fuzzy during the whole thing, like I was dreaming. When I finally snapped out of it and saw the empty vial in my hand, I realized I had already used the 2611 Longevity Injection.”

“Fuzzy brain? That’s just psychological. After using the 2611 Longevity Injection, I swear, I instantly felt amazing all over. Super light on my feet. I felt like leaping around when walking, like I was a teenager again.”

“Save it, you folks. The officials said the Life-Extending Serum doesn’t work that fast after use. It takes at least overnight, or about ten-odd hours, to start showing preliminary effects. What you felt was just overexcitement… but… haha… I used it too! Damn it, I’m someone who can live at least 150 years now! Hahaha…”

“Wait, you all got it? Am I the only one who didn’t? The community notified us they’d start handing it out over the next couple of days, but I couldn’t wait. I came to the nearest hospital myself. And wow, I had no idea my small city had this many people? Damn, even holiday tourist spots aren’t this packed. I got a crash course in ‘shoulder-to-shoulder crowds’—people in front, behind, left, everywhere! I didn’t even know which way I was moving.”

“[Image] Same here. Look, this is my spot. Totally the same.”

“I don’t get what the rush is about. Getting it a couple of days later is fine too, right? Why be so frantic?”

“Alright, tell me where you are right now then?”

“Obviously… standing in line at the community distribution point. The Life-Extending Serum! If I don’t get it today, how could I possibly sleep tonight?”

“Hahaha… You guys keep queueing. I’m off to celebrate first! Tonight? No sobriety until we drop! This is just too damn exciting!”

“Hey you up there, take it easy. The official statement clearly said the 2611 Longevity Injection doesn’t bring the dead back to life.”

During this time, just after the existence of the 2611 Longevity Injection was announced and its wide-scale supply began, especially within Huaxia Nation, the atmosphere was dominated by the thrilling, ecstatic buzz of everyone realizing their lifespans were about to be dramatically extended. There was surprisingly little negative noise.

Even though the massive crowds inevitably stirred up some friction, it never became the main talking point. People were buoyant, jubilant, cheering.

From a macro view, across Huaxia Nation, most people were overjoyed by the birth of the 2611 Longevity Injection. This scientific achievement directly impacted every single one of them, tightly intertwined with their individual fates. Each person stood to benefit immensely.

A lifespan of one hundred and fifty years might not be true immortality, but it was enough to grant them significantly more time, letting them glimpse a much farther future.

“Haven’t gotten my 2611 Longevity Injection yet. Plan to camp out on the hospital plaza tonight if I don’t get it. But even now, I gotta say: my country rocks! And Professor Qin Yu is absolutely amazing!”

“Anyone know where Professor Qin Yu might make a public appearance soon? I’d honestly want to kowtow to him in person.”

“What are you asking that for, floor above? Spy? Trying to find out Professor Qin’s whereabouts? If you really want to kowtow, here – [Picture] I just grabbed this screenshot of Professor Qin. Print it out, stick it on your family shrine, and knock your head right there… I’ve already set mine up. My parents, my grandma, they didn’t mind.”

“I declare: from this day forward, Professor Qin Yu is my reborn parent! When you think about it… I’m in my twenties. After using the 2611 Longevity Injection, I could maybe live to 180. Professor Qin Yu gave me more years than my own parents!”

“Get out of here, Professor Qin Yu doesn’t have a kid like you… But… seriously, Professor Qin, thank you so much.”

As Qin Yu scrolled through these online reactions on his phone, he couldn’t help but chuckle upon reading these comments.

And the discussions online were far from limited to just these.

The shattering news of the 2611 Longevity Injection’s birth dominated everything.

Across the entire internet, from mainstream media to independent creators, the focus was laser-sharp on the 2611 Longevity Injection.

Conversations anywhere and everywhere struggled to veer away from the topic.

People live-streamed themselves using the serum; others shared their personal experiences; media outlets brought in sociologists and experts in the Field of Life Sciences to discuss the potential impact of the serum’s birth and large-scale supply on all of human society.

Even that small online forum Qin Yu used to visit, practically a forgotten corner of the internet, now had posts buzzing about this.

“So now we know why the officials recently mentioned setting a definite age for pension collection. Honestly, I totally support it. I even think they’re being incredibly generous. Surely we can’t all retire in our early sixties and then collect pensions for 120 years? The money just isn’t there!”

“Maybe retirement age needs adjusting now? For a human society where average lifespan might hit 150 or even 180 years, retiring in your sixties is like retiring in your twenties by old standards.”

“Has anyone noticed something? Since the 2611 Longevity Injection appeared, that population aging problem we were all worried about? Poof, seems gone. With a current average social age under forty, compared to an average life expectancy over 150, our whole society feels ridiculously young now! Are we… re-entering a youth-dominated society?”

“I pulled an all-nighter yesterday, just woke up, and now I’m queuing for the Life-Extending Serum. Still feels like I’m dreaming… Did I really just wake up, ready to live to 150, maybe 180? Did I time-travel?”

“Welcome, friend. Welcome to the future. The future where average lifespan stretches beyond 150.”

“Hey, maybe… just maybe… we’re at the dawn of the ‘Immortal Civilization’. Don’t you realize? How old is Professor Qin Yu right now? Public info online says he’s only 25. Twenty-five! He created the 2611 Longevity Injection. With current life expectancy, he could live over a hundred more years. What breakthroughs in extending human life do you think Professor Qin might achieve in that next century?”

“Heh, maybe by then, we’ll live even longer than this!”

In the midst of this excitement and hope, everyone radiated optimism.

Compared to extending life, living beyond one hundred and fifty years, everything else felt secondary.

It was precisely riding this wave that Qin Yu saw an announcement published by Huaxin News Agency detailing a gradual plan to delay the retirement age. It covered what many had already guessed: to adapt to the new era, Huaxia Nation would take several years to gradually push the retirement age from the previous low sixties to a minimum of ninety.

The plan ensured minimal impact on the current elderly, who stood to benefit least from the 2611 Longevity Injection.

Once the announcement was made, barely anyone objected.

Those buoyed by dramatically extended lives were exceptionally forgiving and fully understanding. After all, this was an objective issue society collectively needed to address following such a universal life-lengthening change.

For those retiring at ninety, they still had decades of retirement life to enjoy.

As for those who might retire over one hundred someday? That felt like a bridge too far in the future to worry about now.

After briefly noting the news, people quickly returned with great enthusiasm to discussing specifics about the 2611 Longevity Injection itself—things like the varied subjective feelings after using it.

…

While people within Huaxia Nation were buzzing with excitement over the birth and wide-scale supply of the 2611 Longevity Injection, outside its borders, in other nations, the mood held a strange, almost complex, flavor.

Even though it was late at night for many parts of Earth, the networks of other countries were buzzing just as intensely.

As one of the three most crucial pillars within the HCC (Human Coalition), Huaxia Nation held considerable global credibility. Moreover, it had no reason to fabricate something like this.

Therefore, after the official live broadcast ended, networks outside Huaxia were largely devoid of much skepticism regarding the authenticity of the 2611 Longevity Injection.

Yet, ironically, this very lack of doubt infused the online atmosphere elsewhere with an odd tension.

For the populace in smaller nations near the Nine Provinces, within Huaxia Nation’s sphere of influence, their reaction was clearer: sheer astonishment, followed by congratulations for Huaxia Nation, envy for its citizens getting immediate access to the serum, and fervent hope that their governments would urgently liaise with Huaxia Nation to discuss the serum’s exportation.

But the HCC wasn’t only Huaxia; the other two major powers, North Bear Nation and Moon Nation, along with nations within their influence, displayed a much more hesitant and conflicted stance.

Though equally stunned by the serum’s creation and its astonishing effects, most within these spheres understood that getting their hands on the 2611 Longevity Injection wouldn’t be straightforward. Crucially, Huaxia Nation’s initial announcement focused solely on supplying its own citizens, offering no hints about deployment beyond its borders.

“Living to one hundred and fifty? That’s… absurd. Think about it—one hundred and fifty years ago, my great-grandfather wasn’t even born yet.”

“I always believed that the equality of life rights, this most basic equality for humans, shouldn’t be held by a single country or one group… I think people from Huaxia Nation should share the technology behind the 2611 Longevity Injection.”

“Fool, what are you daydreaming about? You must be from Moon Nation. Why on earth should Huaxia Nation give you the 2611 Longevity Injection?”

“Actually, I think we could buy it from the Huaxia Nation people. I can spend more money on it.”

“You might consider joining Huaxia Nation, then bend over and wag your tail…”

“What nonsense are you saying? I want to ask you: if a Life-Extending Serum was placed right in front of you now, would you use it or not?”

“…”

Outside Huaxia Nation, on the internet of many other countries, discussions about the 2611 Longevity Injection completely took over the main topics and attention at that time.

Also, countless people were getting into arguments because of this.

Some made sneering remarks about Huaxia Nation alone having the 2611 Longevity Injection. Others made sneering remarks about their own countries not mastering this key technology before Huaxia Nation did.

In all this noise, many twisted ideas became popular, like wanting Huaxia Nation to share or sell the technology for the 2611 Longevity Injection. They were like bandits asking for something unfairly.

Because their position determined their thinking, they benefited from this unfair logic.

But during this period, Huaxia Nation did not react or say anything about what was happening outside its borders.

It just focused on handling things that needed quick fixing after the 2611 Longevity Injection spread widely within Huaxia Nation.

Time passed quickly from that noon to that evening.

For most people around the world, including those in Huaxia Nation, that night was unavoidable.

Though their feelings might have been different.

On Huaxia Nation’s internet, they saw many places put out notices. Hospitals and local units, to meet people’s needs, would keep giving out the 2611 Longevity Injection overnight.

They also advised everyone to not rush right away and urged them to wait and get it in the following days.

But most people probably wouldn’t listen to the advice.

Even though they knew waiting a couple of days might not hurt, the gap between using and not using the Life-Extending Serum was huge. It was about decades or even a century of life difference.

If they didn’t use it in time, they worried themselves.

And even late at night, people kept talking about the 2611 Longevity Injection and related matters, online and in real life.

Some were still in lines waiting to receive the 2611 Longevity Injection. Others had already used it or planned to get it the next day but were too excited to sleep.

So they chatted with others in the same state or celebrated, online or in person.

Within Huaxia Nation, many small towns that were usually quiet at night became very noisy and lively that night.

Overall, it was even livelier than the New Year. The New Year is just about happiness, but now, everyone felt like they had won a huge prize together that day.

“I want to say this drink first goes to Professor Qin Yu! We don’t know where Professor Qin Yu is now, so we can’t give him a glass to his face. Let’s raise our glasses to the sky and toast to Professor Qin Yu.”

“Agreed!”

“To Professor Qin Yu!”

The next day, starting from the early morning, even though the news of the 2611 Longevity Injection being created had been out for a night, the online talk and real-life fuss didn’t calm down.

Or rather, the 2611 Longevity Injection had such a huge impact on the whole world and all of human society. The current excitement was just the beginning.

Next, there was bound to be a time when this would grow more intense.

After a night, many people who had used the Life-Extending Serum clearly felt the changes and effects brought by the 2611 Longevity Injection.