“Is this person Dr. Adolf?” The bearded man pointed his thick finger to someone in the middle of the photo. “If it really is him, then how is Dr. Adolf is still alive?”
The bearded man frowned and looked towards the driver’s seat. “Second Brother, when was this photo taken?”
The second brother quickly spun the steering wheel, knocking away a low-level zombie that was chasing them. The huge black rubber wheel crushed the zombie, leaving behind a trail of black-red residue on the pure white snow as the car moved.
“About fifty years ago, perhaps?” The bald man whistled as he observed the zombies. “Hey, beautiful brother, are we heading in the right direction? It seems like we’re getting off course. Is there really a laboratory in this place?”
Bai Lixin checked the location and route in his mind. “Yes, we should arrive at the laboratory in about 30 minutes by car.”
The bearded man gazed at the endless expanse of snow ahead. “I never expected that even after more than 50 years since the end of the world, there are still operating laboratories and highly intelligent researchers. Even in regions with milder climates, there isn’t much food. How do those people survive in such cold, barren areas?”
“The potential of human beings is truly boundless,” the bearded man sighed. “You mentioned that there might be undiscovered laboratories in other places on Blue Star, right?”
Bai Lixin responded, “It’s possible. After all, in this vast world, the unknown is the norm.”
“The unknown is the norm,” the bearded man repeated, laughing to himself as he gazed out of the window at the snowy scene.
The window reflected the resolute and vigorous face of the bearded man. He appeared youthful in his appearance, but his eyes reflected the weight of age.
Dr. Sang grabbed Bai Lixin’s wrist and asked, “Have any additional memories from the transparent crystal nucleus you absorbed emerged?”
Bai Lixin replied, “No, I haven’t gained any further memories. Is there a problem?”
Dr. Sang responded, “It’s not necessarily a problem, but it is somewhat unusual. Typically, memories would manifest within three days at the latest after absorption, but yours haven’t appeared for quite some time.”
Zhou Guang asked anxiously, “What could this mean? Is it dangerous? Are there any potential side effects?”
Xia Chi chimed in, “Yes, could absorbing the nucleus cause any mental instability?”
Bai Lixin: ??
How about you just stay quiet?
Dr. Sang: “…”
‘Keep calm. He is your brother in law. But it seems I have to teach him some manners.’
————————–
Half an hour later, everyone discovered the ruins of a laboratory buried beneath the glaciers in the vast snow. Although the sight was shocking, the extensive destruction indicated that this place was indeed a meticulously constructed laboratory.
The laboratory remained hidden under the snow, which served as excellent camouflage. Despite the thick layer of snow, they managed to scrape their way through and enter the cave entrance, braving the biting cold.
The surrounding temperature had dropped to an unknown degree below freezing. Even within the dark tunnel, there was no sign of warmth.
“Damn, it’s freezing cold. My hands are going numb,” the bearded man took out a flashlight from his backpack and attempted to turn it on, but the freezing cold had caused the metal parts to fuse together. “My flashlight is frozen and won’t open. What about yours?”
In the darkness, rustling sounds could be heard, and then voices emerged:
“Mine is open, but it won’t light up.”
“I can’t open mine either.”
“Mine is frozen as well.”
The bearded man sighed, putting the flashlight back in his backpack. “It’s so cold that even the flashlight freezes.”
Liang Xi expressed regret, “If Samael were here, his fire ability would be useful.”
Bai Lixin’s voice came from the front, “I have a rope here. Let’s hold onto it, ensuring we stay together and can act as a group. I will pass the rope back, and each of you can tie a slipknot around your wrist. This way, if there are any issues, you can quickly detach yourself.”
Everyone agreed that Bai Lixin’s idea was good, and they began passing the rope from front to back in an orderly manner. The bearded man, standing in the darkness, felt the rope being handed to him. He swiftly took hold of it and tied a secure knot around his wrist.
Someone pushed forcefully against his back, causing the bearded man to furrow his brow. He patiently reassured the person in the dark space, “Hey, don’t worry. The rope is here.” As the bearded man threw the rope behind him, he felt the tension indicating that someone was firmly gripping the other end.
The person held the rope tightly with one hand and firmly pressed the other hand on the bearded man’s shoulder, radiating a sense of fear.
Amused by the cowardice of the person behind him, the bearded man couldn’t help but recall several figures in his mind.
Although he didn’t know which member of Bai Lixin’s team it was, they were certainly timid.
“We are just entering a lab Are you going to be a burden?” the bearded man whispered to the person behind him. “Hey, if you’re scared, you can stay behind. Go back to the car and wait. Don’t slow us down when the time comes.”
There was a short, tense silence in response to the bearded man.
Bai Lixin, who was at the front, spoke again: “It’s all wrapped up. We will report the number every once in a while. I will start, 1.”
“2.”
“3.”
.
.
.
“7.”
The counting sounds came one by one, and the person behind the bearded man grabbed him more and more tightly. When the bearded man heard the people in front finished counting, he secretly broke free from the grasp of the coward behind him, and answered “8” absent-mindedly. .
Behind him, there was no sound.
The bearded man was completely angry, he frowned and turned his head towards the darkness, cursing in a low voice: “Enough, can you speak? Don’t you know how to report the number? Hurry up and count.”
Around, there were several gasps.
The bald man’s voice echoed from the front, sounding hesitant. “Boss… who are you talking to?”
“This person behind me,” the bearded man felt the hand grabbing him again, and he knocked down the opponent’s hand irritably, grumbling, “That’s enough. Can you stop it?!”
“But, boss,” the bald man’s voice resonated clearly in the darkness, “There are only eight of us.”
Realization struck the bearded man, and he remembered that he was the last person to enter the tunnel just moments ago. “Fuck.”
A cold hand brushed against him again, and the bearded man noticed its icy touch, shriveled appearance, and sharp nails. This hand didn’t belong to any of them.
Instinctively, he grabbed the hand, but it slipped away with remarkable agility, emitting a strange, hoarse laughter that faded into the darkness.
The sound of movement, like something scraping against the ground, continued to fade away.
Bai Lixin didn’t dwell on the voice and instead leaned against the frost-covered wall, taking cautious steps forward. “Let’s proceed, but watch your step and stay close.”
Bai Lixin moved slowly because he had realized that his abilities were blocked as soon as they entered the laboratory. He had attempted to use his abilities to survey the surroundings, but there was no response.
‘Is it just me having this problem, or did it happen to everyone?’
Bai Lixin moved slowly, and after adapting to the dark, everyone gradually began to see some blurred shadows around them.
“Hiss, that’s weird, my ability doesn’t seem to work anymore,” Li Cancan asked in the dark. “Give it a try and see if it still works.”
Soon, everyone found that their abilities could not be used at all.
In this strange dark space, they were completely passive, having lost the ability to survive.
What’s more serious, all their skills and prop cards were temporarily sealed due to the copy.
This meant that at this moment, they were no different from those in the trial copy; they were just ordinary people.
But what was around them?
It was dark, cold, and filled with powerful and terrifying zombies that could emerge at any time.
A sense of natural fear suddenly rose from the depths of everyone’s hearts.
The darkness was extremely quiet, and no one said anything.
But the tense atmosphere already enveloped them.
“If our powers completely disappeared after we entered this laboratory, then those people with powers who came here before, such as the powerful Yuan, most likely lost all their powers when they entered before.”
“Yes, Yuan was such a powerful ability user,” the bearded man said. “I’m afraid even transparent nucleus zombies may not be his opponents, let alone with so many strong people around him at that time. I always wondered what kind of zombie killed him, and now I finally understand why.”
“The zombies that killed him were not necessarily strong, but they were very fragile at the time. No matter how tough a weapon is, it loses its effectiveness when frozen. It was easily broken.”
Knowing the truth of Yuan’s death, the bearded man calmed down. “Yuan may have died, but we may not. Yuan always relied on his abilities, but apart from abilities, I haven’t given up on physical strengthening exercises.”
“My blood is boiling now.”
The bearded man’s words injected enthusiasm into the others present.
The team continued to move forward.
Suddenly, there was a “bang” sound of an object hitting the wall, and Zhou Guang immediately asked, “What happened?”
Bai Lixin retracted his raised foot and calmly said, “A bug jumped out and I kicked it away, it’s okay.”
“They are already waiting for an opportunity, so be careful.”
While speaking, several gusts of cold wind suddenly passed through the darkness.
In the next second, there was a rumbling sound.
Bai Lixin asked, “Are you all right?”
Xia Chi replied, “Brother, I’m all right. These zombies are so weak.”
The bearded man’s voice remained calm, “Don’t take it lightly. It’s impossible for zombies of this level to have killed Yuan and the others. There might be a more powerful presence.”
Because they couldn’t see and there were too many obstacles, several people walked in the dark for half an hour before reaching the end.
From time to time, small zombies would jump down to attack them, but they were all quickly dealt with.
Facing the darkness, everyone vaguely saw a huge door in front of them.
The thick and cold metal texture exuded a majestic brilliance in the dark. When the bearded man knocked on the door, it made a dull “dong dong dong” sound. He withdrew his hand regretfully and said, “It would be great if my ability still existed. I could punch through this iron gate. What should we do now? Look around?”
Zhou Guang suggested, “Yes, let’s look around. Maybe Yuan went inside. So there must be keys or clues to get in.”
The bearded man exclaimed, “Yes, let’s look for them. But who knows whether Yuan really went in or not?”
Bai Lixin knocked on the door thoughtfully, “It doesn’t need to be so troublesome.”
The bearded man asked, “Do you have any other good ideas?”
Bai Lixin put both hands on the crack of the door, “There is no easier way.”
The bearded man grinned, “What nonsense are you talking about? It doesn’t need to be so troublesome, but there is no easy way? Do you think you can knock down the door with your bare hands?”
There was a muffled “bang,” and the two icy metal sliding doors slowly opened towards both sides.
The young man’s casual voice followed immediately, “It is now open. It wasn’t difficult.”
In the darkness, the bearded man and the bald head stared blankly at the blurry silhouette in front of them. In the middle of the two huge iron doors, a tall and slender figure stood, with two arms that didn’t look strong spread out in a straight line to both sides, firmly holding the iron doors open.
Bearded man: “…”
Bald head: “…”
Fuck, this little brother, what’s your last name?
Your surname is not “Chao” and your last name is not “Ren”!
Brother, do you still need help?
———————–
In the live broadcast room.
[Fortunately, the live broadcast room has its own night vision function. Let’s just say that the system has finally become useful.]
[God Xin reproduced his Super Saiyan power. Awesome God Xin, these two clueless guys have been scared silly.]
[In comparison, Xia Chi and the others are much calmer.]
[That’s because the group of four grew up under God Xin’s guidance, and what they have seen is definitely not comparable to that of ordinary people.]
[The scariest thing is the big boss’s expression, okay? What the hell is that doting expression on his face?]
[I declare that this character was installed by God Xin!]
[Invisible pretense is the most deadly.]
————————-
After a few people entered, the sliding door closed, plunging the surroundings into darkness. It was unclear whether it was due to the iron door blocking it, but the room immediately grew warmer.
“The flashlight still won’t turn on,” Xia Chi muttered, flicking the useless flashlight in his hand. The cold metal shell hit the wall, producing a crisp “click” sound. Suddenly, a bright light shone down on them from above.
Xia Chi glanced at the flashlight in his hand and then at the switch on the wall that he accidentally touched. He said happily, “Seems like my luck is still holding up.”
Someone commented, “Maybe it’s a talent you have. Hey, it’s quite heavy.”
Everyone: “…”
What a nonsensical thing to say.
With the lights came the activation of the heating and ventilation systems.
As their eyes adjusted to the white light, everyone slowly opened their eyes. However, upon seeing the scene in front of them clearly, they fell into silence once again.
It was an empty circular area, the predominant color should have been white, but now it was filled with blood and corpses.
There were numerous zombie corpses, as well as the bodies of familiar ability users dressed in combat uniforms.
No matter how much the zombies and ability users opposed each other in life, in death, they could only crumble and be intermingled with the enemy’s corpses.
Zombie and human bodies were entangled, frozen in various death poses.
Some zombies had bitten into the necks of ability users, while the ability users had stabbed knives into the zombies’ foreheads.
In other instances, two zombies were tearing at the legs of an ability user, whose widened eyes were filled with resentment and unwillingness, bloodshot eyeballs glaring red.
Li Cancan and Liang Xi couldn’t bear to look any longer, turning their heads away.
The bearded man meticulously surveyed the ability users who had fought desperately in their final moments, and his voice grew heavy as he spoke, “I recognize many of them. Some were from Yuan’s team, while others were from earlier teams that came here. Regardless of the team, none of them made it out or returned.” He paused and added, “The first team didn’t even make give back any news after entering.”
“The same goes for the second and third teams.”
“Yuan led the ability users to attack here. He managed to escape at the end, bearing transparent crystal nuclei and scars all over his body. He exerted his final strength to reach the front of the ark, where he met his demise. Another ability user discovered Yuan’s body and brought him back.”
“For fear that Yuan would mutate, they didn’t even keep Yuan’s body, and cut off his head directly, but took back the body and the transparent crystal nucleus.”
The bearded and bald head silently gave the last military salute to these corpses, with solemn eyes.
