Zeng Duo hurried towards that room, but the scene she saw through the glass window was exceptionally bloody.
Li Ji's body below the head was completely naked, with visible blood vessels all burst open. The floor and his body were covered in large patches of congealed red.
In such a state, no human could survive, nor could a Subhuman.
The only difference from normal circumstances was that Li Ji's body surface seemed to be secreting some kind of viscous liquid, causing him to stick to the wall, his face pressed tightly against the glass window.
Is this the consequence of the experiment? Zeng Duo's heart tightened, and she ran a few more steps deeper into the air-raid shelter.
Inside the rooms partitioned off on both sides, some were completely dark, seemingly unoccupied, while others had strands of hair and strips of flesh hanging from the gaps in the doors and windows, sending chills down the spines of those who saw them.
Zeng Duo ran to one of the glass windows and, with the help of the corridor lights, looked inside.
She saw Ning Xin, a teacher from the town.
This woman in her early thirties was one of the more normal-looking people in Early Spring Town. The part of her that was distorted was her internal organs; she had two hearts.
At this moment, her eyes were completely bulging out, with dense, abnormally ferocious capillaries on the sides.
There was a hole in her chest, providing a clear view of her heart and stomach.
The former was no longer beating.
Zeng Duo had never hated genetic experiments as much as she did at this moment.
Thump, thump, thump, her heart rate accelerated. She was afraid that she was too late, and that all the men, women, old and young people in the town had become victims of the "First City's" genetic experiments.
Without bothering to look at the rooms on either side, she followed Genava, rushing deeper into the air-raid shelter.
Before long, they arrived at a vast area that had been converted into a huge prison by the "First City" garrison.
Behind those iron fences were faces Zeng Duo recognized.
The townspeople of Early Spring Town!
Some were huddled in corners, hoping for the sounds of gunfire and explosions to subside; others were crowding at the iron fences, hoping to see what was happening and looking for a chance to escape.
Fortunately, fortunately... Upon seeing this, Zeng Duo was overjoyed.
Although there were fewer townspeople than she remembered, and many had certainly died in the vile experiments, or were living worse than death, roughly two-thirds remained.
This was a stroke of good luck amidst misfortune.
A quick glance revealed the town chief, whose legs had been severely atrophied since birth, her cousin, who had excellent hearing but eyes that were always rolled back, a female classmate with three pairs of breasts…
Most of the Subhumans who had become distorted did not become more beautiful but uglier, like monsters.
Seeing them staring blankly at her, Zeng Duo suddenly remembered something and quickly opened the faceplate of the military exoskeleton device, shouting loudly:
"It's me!"
"Duo Duo?" "Little Duo?" "Zeng Duo?" Surprised shouts came from several of the cells facing her, as if they couldn't believe their eyes.
Zeng Duo's first reaction was joy, and her second reaction was that in this environment, the nicknames "Duo Duo" and "Little Duo" were a bit too disruptive to the atmosphere...
She shook her head, shaking off this inexplicable thought, and looked around, saying:
"I'm here to open the doors for you."
She didn't bother to look for the guards who had the prison keys and planned to break the locks violently.
——Just in case, she closed the faceplate again, worried about hidden enemies releasing poisonous gas.
At this time, Han Wanghuo also came up and, after looking around, planned to help.
"The person you're looking for?" The town chief, watching Zeng Duo rushing towards him, asked steadily.
"Where did you get the exoskeleton device?" Another townsperson asked curiously while waiting for the cell door to open.
They had actually hoped that Zeng Duo, who was out and hadn't been captured, would return to Early Spring Town and find a way to rescue them. But they also knew rationally that for an ordinary ruin hunter, such a "mission" was too difficult. Even if she gathered a team of dozens or even hundreds of wasteland wanderers or ruin hunters, it would be almost a dream to fight against the regular army of the "First City."
After being locked in the newly built prison inside the air-raid shelter, they discovered that the "First City" attached extraordinary importance to the experiments here, sending out terrifyingly strong individuals and acquiring a lot of powerful weapons and equipment. They gave up on that idea and only hoped that Zeng Duo could stay away from Early Spring Town and live well.
Who knew that the chaos of the garrison last night was not an interlude but a prelude. Zeng Duo had actually obtained a military exoskeleton device and, with a robot and a human companion, had stormed into the heavily guarded air-raid shelter, inflicting heavy casualties on the garrison, who scattered and fled.
This surpassed their understanding.
Of course, this did not prevent them from being surprised and excited. No one who sees hope in the face of death can remain calm.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Relying on the "assisted aiming system," Zeng Duo used the assault rifle she had brought to hit the locks of several cells, breaking or opening them directly.
At the same time, Han Wanghuo also changed magazines and did similar things.
His shooting accuracy was no worse than Zeng Duo's and Genava's.
As several iron fence doors were pushed open, Zeng Duo quickly answered the town chief's question:
"These are the helpers I invited.
"The garrison outside has been defeated by us. Everyone, hurry out, find vehicles and supplies, and try to evacuate from here in a quarter of an hour."
"Just the two of you?" The town chief was very surprised.
"Three." Zeng Duo emphasized, explaining, "Most of the garrison has been transferred back to the First City. The defense here is very weak, but they will be back soon."
"Okay, everyone, hurry out and find cars and food!" The town chief waved his hand and shouted loudly.
He was being carried by his son, a strong man with a mental age of only seven or eight due to a brain problem.
Genava, who was next to them, seized the time to ask:
"Where is the laboratory?"
As an Artifical Intelligence, how could he forget Big White's instructions and ignore the valuable information in the laboratory?
The town chief, who was not used to the robot's strong initiative, paused for a second and said:
"The area at the innermost part is it."
Genava moved his metal-cast neck and said to Zeng Duo and Han Wanghuo:
"You take the people of Early Spring Town out and prepare various things for the transfer.
"Also, don't forget that bionic intelligent armor. Although it is broken now and can't be used, it can definitely be repaired later. Big White and the others are good at this."
It was not Jiang Baimian and others who were good at this, but Pangu Biology.
After saying that, Genava, wearing a dark green military uniform, turned around and rushed to the deepest part of the air-raid shelter.
Zeng Duo and Han Wanghuo exchanged glances and did not try to follow.
…………
First City, Green Clock Shop.
While Jiang Baimian's mind raced, thinking about feasible ways to escape, she prayed that her guess was wrong. The words of the city defense soldiers just now didn't necessarily mean that this area was shrouded in the "virtual world," or even if it was really the "virtual world," it wasn't the one protecting Marcus, the one who had dealt with the "Old Task Force," but another powerhouse from the "Mirror Church."
The sound of the helicopter's propeller turning not only didn't gradually fade away but became louder and louder, so loud that it was almost noise, and conversations had to be shouted.
Bai Chen noticed Jiang Baimian's tension and Shang Jianyao's seriousness. She opened her mouth, wanting to ask if something was wrong, but upon reflection, she rationally gave up on that plan, worrying that it would add unexpected complications.
Shang Jianyao looked at the ceiling near the door, as if he had already seen a helicopter hovering above, and the "Mind Corridor" level Awakened who had been tricked by the "Old Task Force" casting a doubtful gaze over here.
This is very disruptive to Little Red's surgery... he muttered silently, raising his hand to pinch his temples.
Just like that, he leaned against the counter displaying multiple mechanical watches and fell asleep as if he were dozing.
Within the "Sea of Origins," on the island where the golden elevator stood.
Shang Jianyao's figure appeared, quickly dividing into nine, surrounding the one blocking the door.
One of them put his hand in his pocket and took a step forward, saying decisively:
"It's time to make a decision!"
"Don't go crazy, okay? It's not certain if there's danger. Even if there is, there are other ways." Shang Jianyao, who was blocking the door to the golden elevator, immediately retorted.
This time, he didn't use the portable recorder to transfer, as if he had sensed something.
Another Shang Jianyao shook his head:
"Little Red can do things like sacrificing himself to save his companions. How can we be weaker than him?"
"Yes, yes." Shang Jianyao, holding the small speaker, nodded in agreement.
Shang Jianyao, who raised his hand to touch his chin, pondered and said:
"When the worst-case scenario is possible, no matter how small that possibility is, it will always happen.
"Since that's the case, it's better to be prepared."
Shang Jianyao, turning the "Six Senses Beads," hesitated for two seconds and said:
"May Buddha have mercy."
Shang Jianyao, holding the "Angel of Life" necklace, followed, saying:
"There will be successors!"
Soon, the nine Shang Jianyaos ignored the opinion of the one blocking the elevator door and forcibly reached an agreement, using the reason that "they couldn't be left behind by Little Red in terms of courage."
In the next second, they looked up at the sky, at the gap rolling with sunlight.
In the real world, Jiang Baimian saw Shang Jianyao open his eyes, turn his body, and look at herself and Bai Chen.
Shang Jianyao then smiled, a bright and sunny smile.
This smile made Jiang Baimian and Bai Chen a little stunned.
Before they could react, Shang Jianyao turned and walked towards the door of the clock shop.
Within the "Sea of Origins," the gap was torn open from different directions by the nine Shang Jianyaos, and the strong sunlight pierced into this world like sharp arrows.