Jiang Baimian glanced at Shang Jianyao and the others, then looked back at Qiao Chu and asked:
“Where is that lab?”
Qiao Chu, whose face was hidden by his helmet, hadn’t answered when that desolate, deep, and hoarse roar echoed through the sky once more:
“Awoo!”
This time, Shang Jianyao and the others could clearly hear that the roar came from not far away, just a few streets behind the “City Smart Network Control Center.”
It was so massive, so loud, that it made Shang Jianyao and the others’ ears ring, their heads spin.
It seemed to come from the depths of everyone's hearts, from unforgettable, terrifying memories, causing Long Yuehong's legs to tremble uncontrollably, and Bai Chen to instinctively tighten his scarf, as if trying to strangle himself.
Jiang Baimian's body trembled slightly, seemingly using all her strength to fight that fear. Shang Jianyao's body shrank slightly, as if he were a child again.
However, he quickly returned to normal, or rather, not exactly normal. He revealed a smile, looking excited.
His mind seemed to skip over the word “fear” and land on “excitement.”
Of course, this was also because that rough, desolate, and massive roar had subsided, leaving only echoes and the intermittent roars from various parts of the ruins.
At this moment, Qiao Chu chuckled without much amusement:
“That lab is where that sound just came from.”
Hearing this, Jiang Baimian and the others were shocked and filled with speculation:
A mysterious lab that emitted a massive roar… A hydroelectric power station that has been running since the destruction of the Old World… City ruins that are regularly maintained… Some power lines and equipment that still work today… Cat-like monsters that can force people to sleep… Nightmare Horses that can create real nightmares, leading to various serious consequences… The existence of a suspected “Higher Mindless,” certain areas deep in the swamp with numerous monsters but no radiation pollution…
Connecting these pieces of information, the truth seemed to be both within reach and extremely terrifying.
Amidst the horror, Jiang Baimian felt a hint of excitement.
This was one of the reasons she formed the “Old Task Force!”
“I wonder if that lab’s research is related to the destruction of the Old World…” Jiang Baimian muttered to herself.
Qiao Chu ignored the question and strode forward with his black metal exoskeleton-covered legs:
“It’s time to turn on the power.”
Jiang Baimian followed, asking quickly:
“Do you have a layout map of this place?”
“First, go to the underground machine room to close the circuit breaker and restore power to this building. Then, go to the electrical grid center on the seventeenth floor to complete the power-up.” Qiao Chu seemed to have already figured out the situation of this “City Smart Network Control Center.”
Jiang Baimian, Shang Jianyao, and the others didn’t say anything more, following Qiao Chu, clad in his exoskeleton, through the door on the left side of the entrance, into the courtyard.
It was very spacious and well-landscaped, with various abandoned cars neatly parked in their respective spots, not blocking the roads.
Clusters of deep-green plants, some tall, some short, some lush, some messy, were scattered around, shadowy and indistinct, like monsters lurking in the darkness, making Long Yuehong, who was already frightened, even more tense, as if he would react impulsively at any moment.
In his own opinion, the team shouldn’t have entered the “City Smart Network Control Center” at all, shouldn’t have restored power to this place, and shouldn’t have tried to open all the doors of that mysterious lab.
Putting aside whether this would bring a new round of disaster to the already fragile human society on the Ashlands, Long Yuehong felt that he and his team wouldn’t be able to withstand the dangers contained in that mysterious lab and this eerie ruin.
He didn’t want to sacrifice himself, didn’t want to become eighty months of compensation.
In front of the building where the “City Smart Network Control Center” was located, there was a pool of water, murky and filled with a lot of debris, but not as much as expected.
Under the faint moonlight and starlight, Long Yuehong suddenly saw a black shadow flash past in the water.
“Something’s there!” he exclaimed in fear, aiming his Berserker assault rifle at the spot.
Qiao Chu looked back at him:
“An ordinary fish.”
Long Yuehong immediately breathed a sigh of relief, but the residual stimulation ignited the fear that had been accumulating in his heart.
“No, not ordinary! Don’t the Mindless eat fish? I, I don’t want to go in! I give up! I’ll wait for you guys back at the jeep!” He blurted out all his inner thoughts in one breath.
At this moment, he even felt that Qiao Chu wasn’t so charming after all.
Qiao Chu, wearing his helmet, paused for a second, then narrowed his eyes.
He silently raised his arm covered with the exoskeleton, aiming his strangely shaped silver rifle at Long Yuehong.
Jiang Baimian and Bai Chen simultaneously opened their mouths, preparing to stop him, but hesitated, unsure if they should take action, seemingly caught in a fierce internal struggle.
Qiao Chu didn’t give them a chance to react, preparing to pull the trigger.
Suddenly, he realized that his finger couldn’t pull back!
Other than that, his fingers could move flexibly in any direction.
He seemed to only lack the action of pulling the trigger!
Qiao Chu's gaze instinctively bypassed Long Yuehong and landed on Shang Jianyao, who was a little further behind.
Shang Jianyao's body was slightly bent, as if he were breathing heavily.
His eyes dark, he returned Qiao Chu's gaze, speaking with some difficulty but very earnestly:
“My mom said that even if you really like someone, you can’t indulge their bad habits.”
…………
When Jiang Baimian fired a grenade at the Sleep Cat, creating a significant explosion.
Somewhere in the city ruins, on a plaza with multiple sculptures.
The mechanical monk Jingfa, wearing yellow robes and a red kasaya, stopped his movements, turning his head to look in the direction of the sound.
In front of him were several tattered female Mindless corpses.
Not long after, in the direction of the explosion, a roar that shook the sky echoed once more.
As the red light within his electronic eyes flickered a few times, the mechanical monk Jingfa abandoned the corpses around him and strode towards the source of the sound.
…………
In the dark city ruins, on a certain street, inside a certain house.
Du Heng, a middle-aged handsome man wearing a deep-black robe, with long hair of the same color, and a circle of beard around his mouth, muttered in confusion:
“Not here?”
As soon as he finished speaking, an explosion sounded from a place not too far away.
Du Heng didn’t react much to this, but soon after, a desolate and hoarse roar also rang out in that direction.
“Could it be over there?” Du Heng pondered for a moment, then walked towards the stairs.
…………
Inside a store along the street within the ruins.
Galuolan, a Daoist with blond hair and blue eyes, was lying on a very soft black leather recliner, dozing off.
Unfortunately, she couldn't fall asleep and was awakened by the successive explosions and roars.
"Ah, my cultivation is still not enough. My master could sleep soundly next to a factory... Oh well, since I'm awake, I'll just go with the flow. I wonder if I can find a ride along the way..." Galuolan blamed herself in a scholarly manner.
Even when she was talking to herself now, she was using Ashlands language.
Then, Galuolan slowly got up and walked step by step towards the location of the roar.
…………
On the other side of the city ruins, on a plaza with many machines.
A convoy of five vehicles was parked here.
Among those five vehicles, one was a gray-green armored car.
Beside the armored car, a middle-aged man wearing a gray-green beret looked at the harvest and nodded in satisfaction.
"Li-ge, it hasn't been long, and we've already filled all the vehicles. How about we have the brothers look around for vehicles that can still be driven and repaired, and try to get one for each of us?" A man with a shaved head approached, saying happily.
Lin Li, known as “Hyena” Li-ge, looked around, his gaze slowly sweeping across the faces of the twelve or thirteen core members, seeing the same joy and excitement on everyone’s faces.
He had a very straight nose and a slightly protruding forehead, making his appearance quite distinctive.
"That’s alright." Lin Li nodded in agreement to the bald man's suggestion. "The main thing is that we haven't found any weapons that can effectively improve our strength this time, or technical information that can be exchanged for good things from the big forces. We have to prepare for the future. There must be a big force behind Black Rat Town. We must prepare to deal with them before they figure out what happened."
Just as he was about to add a few more words, the explosions and roars rang out one after another in the same direction.
After listening quietly for a while, "Hyena" Lin Li smiled:
“Looks like there’s some good stuff over there.
“Let's go take a look. If we have a chance, we’ll attack. If not, we’ll look for something else.”
This was the style of their bandit group, like a pack of hyenas that smell rotting meat and come running, but don’t risk getting close, only waiting for opportunities in the distance.
“Yes, Li-ge!” His core members, who were originally taking turns sleeping, stood up energetically when they heard this.
…………
Hearing Shang Jianyao's words, the corner of Qiao Chu's mouth moved imperceptibly.
Only now did Long Yuehong realize that Qiao Chu wanted to kill him.
Suddenly, all the beautiful fantasies he had imagined collapsed at the same time, truly bringing him back to “reality.”
“He, he…” Long Yuehong discovered in horror that Qiao Chu was not a companion at all, not someone worthy of following, not someone with great charm.
He had been so blinded by infatuation all along!
It was too eerie!
Before Long Yuehong could finish speaking, in Qiao Chu's golden eyes, circles of seemingly illusory ripples appeared.
Jiang Baimian, who had decided to take action to stop Qiao Chu, suddenly felt a strong sense of frustration:
She had clearly wanted to lead Shang Jianyao and Long Yuehong away from the dangerous area, but instead, she had led them to a high-risk ruin. A field training exercise that should have been ordinary and unremarkable had developed to this extent. This was a team leader's dereliction of duty. Her past dreams had been abandoned because of a mistake, and her body had almost collapsed…
She might as well just die like this…
At this moment, Jiang Baimian was completely disheartened, giving up the struggle, only wanting to wait for death.
Bai Chen, Long Yuehong, and Shang Jianyao had the same reaction, all so depressed that they didn't want to do anything, didn't want to say even a single word.
Qiao Chu didn't attack. Instead, he put away the silver rifle, saying with an icy gaze and a gentle voice:
“Don’t worry, it’s all over.”
Long Yuehong and the others, who were deep in a dark and depressing world, seemed to hear the comfort of an angel.
ps: Early update for recommendation tickets~