The Bald Truth of Natural Selection

A few hours later, Xu Zhi walked into the zoo.

Around him, couples giggled in their own little worlds, and smiling families doted on their kids as they pointed at animals with wide-eyed wonder. The warmth was almost infectious.

And there he was—a single, terminally ill man—standing out like a sore thumb.

Who came to the zoo alone just to look at monkeys these days? You'd only end up being treated like one.

Behind him, a family of three was whispering far too loudly.

"Dad, look at that guy! He's balding… He looks super strong!"

"Don't be rude, son," the father said in a hushed tone. "Just because he's bald doesn't mean he's a superhero like One-Punch Man. He probably has a disease. Poor man—he's all alone at the zoo. Must be a very sick person."

Xu Zhi was in his early twenties, but chemotherapy had taken its toll. His hair had thinned, his skin was pale, and there was an unmistakable weariness in his posture. He looked decades older than he was.

Still, their tactless comments didn't get to him.

Pitiful? Sure, maybe he had been. But not anymore.

"Heh… Just wait until tomorrow," he muttered to himself, smirking. "This balding young man will evolve a luscious mane of hair, rewrite his genes, cure his cancer, and restore his youth! Don't believe me?"

He paused.

"...Well, I don't believe it either. Evolution takes time. I'm still stuck in the Paleozoic."

He loitered near the monkey exhibit and picked out the healthiest specimen. Then he made his way to the manager's office.

"I'm a medical student from the nearby university," he declared confidently, "working on a genetics research project for my professor. I need a sample of monkey blood for my thesis."

The manager squinted suspiciously. "A professor's assistant, huh? A dedicated academic? That explains the hair loss... Still, no can do! That monkey's practically my child. I raised it myself! I won't give it up—not for money, not for threats, not even if my boss tells me to!"

Xu Zhi wordlessly took out a thick envelope and placed it on the table. "Three thousand yuan. Just one vial of blood."

The manager's eyes lit up. That was a month's salary.

"You only need a test tube's worth? Hell, I'll give you two."

"Bro, one tube's enough," Xu Zhi said with a grin, brushing his thinning hair to the side. "Don't worry. Your secret's safe with me. I may need your help again—say, with peacocks. Or cranes."

The old man chuckled and rubbed his hands together. "Deal. Anytime."

Xu Zhi left calmly. He still had several hundred thousand yuan in savings from his job before the diagnosis. He lived frugally. If he budgeted carefully, he could stretch it for a good while.

He had money. His baldness was a sign of strength. And if he wanted to be smug about it?

Screw the rules—I have cash.

On his way home, he spotted a cluster of termites crawling along a tree stump and casually collected a few. Termites were absurdly strong for their size—and best of all, free.

It was around 5:00 p.m. when Xu Zhi reached his front gate.

"Hey, are you Xu Zhi?"

He turned.

A girl on an electric scooter waved at him from the dirt road. She had a cute, round face, eyes shaped like crescent moons when she smiled, and a bright, playful expression.

He blinked. She looked vaguely familiar.

"I'm Chen Xi," she said, parking the scooter and hopping off. "Remember me? I used to come over and play when we were kids. I noticed your house lit up recently and thought it might be you—but wow, I didn't expect you to actually be back!"

Her eyes widened as she took in his appearance.

"You… what happened to you? You weren't like this before."

Chen Xi?

The name jogged something in his memory. The chubby little girl from next door had grown up. Eighteen really did work wonders—now she was a pretty young woman with an effortlessly charming presence.

"Stomach cancer. Chemo. Hair loss. Depression," he said bluntly.

His voice was even, but his body told a different story—pale skin, slightly hunched back, thinning hair. He looked like someone clinging to life.

"Cancer?" she echoed, stunned. She'd remembered him as the golden boy of their village—the pride of their community, the one who got into a prestigious university, climbed the corporate ladder, and earned over 100,000 yuan a year. To hear that he'd fallen ill… that he'd returned home to die...

She scrambled to change the subject. "I started college last year. The same one you went to!"

"Good luck," Xu Zhi nodded, only just recalling that it was summer break.

But his mind had already drifted away. He had more pressing concerns—like what the hell those terrifyingly adaptable Tyranis species had evolved into during his time away.

Once, he had waited in silence for death.

Now?

Now his life was thrilling. Unpredictable. Fun.

It was like a high. Like being on drugs. He felt euphoria—even when alone.

"You're leaving already?" Chen Xi asked, her voice soft. She bit her lip and looked at him. He clearly didn't want to talk. His cheerfulness was obviously a mask.

And besides… he was going bald!

Just looking at that tragic mop of hair made her heart ache.

He had once been her idol. Now, she wasn't sure what she felt.

Still, she called out brightly, "Come visit sometime, okay? And if you ever need anything… just ask."

Xu Zhi groaned internally.

Why is everyone staring at my head with such pity? Baldness after chemo is completely normal!

The chemo was over. He was recovering. His hair would grow back. Eventually.

"Maybe I should evolve a naturally bald species," he muttered, stepping into his courtyard. "Let them witness the power of One-Punch Man."

The sandbox world had changed drastically.

The Tyranis species had already climbed onto land. The once-barren 100-square-meter ecosystem was now teeming with life. Lush greenery covered the mountains, vibrant flora thrived on the plains, and the rivers sparkled with freshwater fish.

"They've adapted to rivers now? That was fast..."

In ten short days, they had evolved from single-celled organisms into a fully biodiverse ecosystem. The rate of change was terrifying.

Good thing he'd set a rule in the system: nothing born of Tyranis spores could leave the sandbox. If he hadn't...

He didn't even want to imagine what they'd do to the real world.

All creatures here shared one trait—they all bore insect-like features. No matter how much they evolved, they were still Tyranis-born. An insect-fish. An insect-lizard. Even an insect-human.

A complete miniature biosphere now flourished at his feet.

And Xu Zhi?

"Oh dear," he whispered. "Looks like I'm the Evil Scientist now."

He grinned to himself.

Time for another experiment.

"I'll pick one lucky species and start a little genocidal trial. Let's splice in monkey and termite genes. Most won't survive. But those who do…"

He slipped on his blue plastic boots and stepped into the world like a god entering Eden.

Tiny creatures scattered underfoot, trampled without a second thought.

"Survival of the fittest," he said calmly. "If you die, it just means you weren't worthy."

He squatted down and studied the miniature world.

"Now… let's find the species most likely to evolve into Homo sapiens."

After a pause, he added with a smirk:

"Preferably one that's already bald."