Chapter 114 Survivors' Hidden Sample Area

In the ruins after the collapse of the black market, Su Wanqing's team groped in the direction indicated by Lao Kui, avoiding the patrolling zombies all the way, and finally came to an area surrounded by towering walls.

The wall was covered with rusty barbed wire and was heavily guarded, seemingly a barrier used by the survivors to resist zombies.

"Is this the core area of ​​the survivors that Lao Kui mentioned?"

Xiao Ran spoke in a low voice, glanced around, and vigilantly gripped the gun in his hand.

"This place is harder to get into than I thought."

Su Wanqing did not answer. She carefully observed an inconspicuous metal control panel on the wall, which was obviously used to open and close the gate.

"Lu Zhao, can you try to crack the encryption of this system?" Su Wanqing ordered.

Lu Zhao walked to the control panel, his eyes sharp and his fingertips tapping rapidly on the keyboard.

His special ability is not to break things by brute force, but to find the most effective breakthrough through understanding the logic of mechanical operation.

A few minutes later, the display screen on the control panel flashed a few times, and with a "click", the iron gate on the wall slowly opened.

"Cracked successfully." Lu Zhao said calmly, as if cracking a complex system was a piece of cake for him.

Walking into the wall, what comes into view is a relatively tidy area.

Simple houses are scattered around in an orderly manner, and people are busy moving around, some planting crops, some repairing equipment, and some practicing martial arts.

Suddenly, a middle-aged man in black military uniform walked over. He had a serious expression and stared at Su Wanqing and his group with sharp eyes.

"Who are you? What is your intention for entering the core area without permission?"

The man's name is Li Gang. He is the quartermaster of the survivor base, responsible for managing supplies and public security.

"We are outsiders, and we are here to look for intelligence about virus samples."

Su Wanqing spoke frankly, she knew that hiding the truth would only arouse greater suspicion from the other party.

Li Gang frowned: "Virus sample? There is nothing here that you are looking for.

I warn you, leave here immediately, or I will be rude to you!"

"We already know that there are some old laboratories stored here, and there may be some valuable information left in them."

Lu Zhao answered, his tone probing. "If it can help you, we'd be happy to help."

Li Gang's tone became even tougher: "This is a restricted area! No one is allowed to enter! I say it again, leave immediately!"

Just when the two sides were in a stalemate, an old man with gray hair, about fifty years old, walked over.

He was wearing a clean white coat and had a wise smile on his face.

"Li Gang, don't be nervous." The old man walked up to Su Wanqing and said gently.

"I'm the person in charge here, Chen Ming. You guys are survivors from the outside world, and they must have their reasons. The virus sample you're looking for does exist, but it's not as simple as you think."

Chen Ming's appearance eased the atmosphere.

"Mr. Chen, we heard from Lao Kui that some secret virus research has been conducted here, and we would like to learn about it." Su Wanqing said.

Chen Ming sighed and said, "This is indeed the case. In the early days of the virus outbreak, this was a secret laboratory set up by the government to study the characteristics of the virus and possible antidotes. However, as the virus mutated and the epidemic spread, the laboratory's research gradually got out of control."

Lu Zhao interrupted and said, "We cracked some of the old laboratory logs and found that the virus samples were used as weapons tests by high-level forces."

Chen Ming's face changed, as if he heard some forbidden words.

"You...how do you know all this?"

"We have our own way." Lu Zhao did not explain, but just said calmly.

Chen Ming was silent for a moment, and then said, "The laboratory did conduct some inhumane experiments, but those were all instructions from high-level forces. We were just following orders and were powerless."

Su Wanqing pondered in her heart that Chen Ming's words revealed a sense of helplessness and compromise.

The secrets of this laboratory may be more complicated than she imagined.

"Mr. Chen, what happened to those researchers later?" Su Wanqing asked.

"Some researchers died in the outbreak, while others..." Chen Ming paused, seeming to hesitate.

"Under pressure from high-level supervision, some researchers chose to save themselves. They used laboratory resources to create some mutant viruses in an attempt to resist the control of high-level forces. However, their actions ultimately led to the collapse of the entire scientific research system."

Su Wanqing was shocked. She realized that behind this laboratory, there was a power struggle and human tragedy.

"We still need to investigate further and hope to be able to go inside the laboratory and take a look." Su Wanqing said.

"I'm afraid that won't work." Chen Ming shook his head. "The protection level inside the laboratory is very high, and there are still a lot of viruses left. It's extremely dangerous. I can't allow you to take the risk and enter."

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At this moment, Su Wanqing's jade bracelet suddenly flashed, as if telling her something.

She immediately activated the spatial function of the jade bracelet and conducted small-scale reconnaissance.

"Lu Zhao, I found a hidden warehouse outside the sample area, which contains some environmental toxic gas protection materials."

Su Wanqing said, "It seems that they had anticipated that someone would try to enter the laboratory."

When Li Gang heard the news about the protective materials, a look of surprise appeared on his face.

"This...what's going on? Why didn't we know there were supplies like this?"

Chen Ming frowned and said, "It seems that the manager of the laboratory is indeed hiding some secrets. In this case, perhaps we can consider cooperating and enter the laboratory together to uncover the truth."

While they were discussing, Lin Che suddenly took a step forward. His eyes were a little blurry and his tone became a little strange.

"Um... Leader, I think you should evacuate here as soon as possible."

Lin Che said in an uncertain tone. "This place...is not very safe."

Chen Ming and Li Gang looked at Lin Che in confusion, not understanding why he said that.

"What did you find?" Chen Ming asked.

Lin Che shook her head and said, “I…I smelled a hint of fear…and…concealment.”

Lin Che's perfume-making technique allows him to sense people's emotions through scent.

His words seemed to imply that the leader of the survivors, Chen Ming, was also hiding something.

At this moment, Chen Ming's face suddenly changed. He seemed to realize that he had been seen through by Lin Che.

"You've done enough investigation." Chen Ming's voice was low and his tone was cold.

"I warn you again, leave here immediately, otherwise I will have to take coercive measures."

"It seems that there is indeed a secret hidden behind this that cannot be made public."

Su Wanqing looked at Chen Ming's tough attitude and anxious expression, and became more certain of this.