Chapter 166 Doctor

As planned, Qin Li and the others drove to the trading market to find a place to stay. Ruan Ning and Da Huo quietly got out of the car and disappeared into the shadows.

She changed into a cloak, covering most of her face. The fire shrank in size, disguising itself as an ordinary mutated dog, and followed at her feet.

His mental energy spread out like water, sensing his surroundings. A multitude of chaotic, hungry, and greedy emotional fluctuations mingled with scattered auras of superhumans. Few were above the third rank.

She moved along the dirty alleys toward the inner city. The inner city had simple walls and guards, and the checks for entering and leaving were stricter, but for Ruan Ning, whose mental strength had reached the sixth level, it was not difficult to avoid the eyes and ears of ordinary guards.

Soon, she found "Black Scorpion's" territory.

This area is slightly more orderly than the outer area, with several relatively intact buildings. One of the three-story buildings has a faded red cross sign hanging at the entrance, but the windows are all sealed with steel plates, leaving only a heavy iron door.

This is the underground medical station.

Ruan Ning found an observation point on the second floor of an abandoned building across the street. She cautiously probed the medical station with her mental energy.

The interior is complex, including a basement. There are about twenty people, three of whom are powerful ability users—two at level four and one at level three. There are also a few faint biological fluctuations, suggesting they are under anesthesia or unconscious.

No "doctor" was found. His mental characteristics are unclear; he may be faking it, or he may not be there at all.

She waited patiently.

At dusk, a modified jeep pulled up in front of the medical station.

Three people got out of the car. The middle one was a middle-aged man wearing a white lab coat and gold-rimmed glasses. He had a refined appearance and was carrying a silver metal case.

There was a bodyguard on each side, one with sharp eyes and the other with bulging muscles.

“Doctor.” Ruan Ning’s eyes narrowed.

The three entered the medical station. Ruan Ning quietly attached her mental energy to the metal box, attempting to sense its interior. The box had a shielding layer, but a familiar energy fluctuation could be faintly detected—from the same source as the necklace, but more chaotic and weak.

It could be fragments of the carrier or a counterfeit.

She continued to monitor.

About an hour later, the "doctor" came out alone, no longer carrying the box. He got into the jeep and drove deeper into the inner city.

Ruan Ning noted the direction but did not immediately follow it; there were still clues at the medical station.

As night deepened, Liberty City became even more bustling, with various underground transactions and fights taking place in the shadows.

During the shift change at the medical station entrance, in a moment of relaxation when the guards were off guard, Ruan Ning darted like a ghost to the side ventilation opening. Her ice-based powers silently froze the gate's latches, allowing her to remove the gate and, along with Da Huo, slip inside.

The ventilation ducts were narrow and covered in dust. She crawled towards the direction of the strongest energy fluctuations and came to the bottom of an air vent.

Below was a room that resembled an operating room, with stark white lighting.

On the central operating table lay an unconscious man, his body cut open in several places, with some shimmering metal parts and crystals implanted.

On the control panel next to it was a silver metal box. The lid was open, and inside were several dull-colored, irregularly shaped crystal fragments, radiating the same distorted energy as the necklace.

A researcher wearing a blood-stained white lab coat is recording data.

"Subject No. 3, implanted with 'replica carrier 03 fragment'... strong neural rejection... energy fit rate only 11%... failure." The researcher muttered to himself, his tone indifferent. "What the doctor wants is live in vivo fit data, this kind of garbage sample..."

He picked up a syringe and walked toward the man on the operating table.

Ruan Ning's eyes were icy. She silently pushed open the ventilation vent and landed.

The researcher heard the wind and turned his head, only to have an ice pick pierce his throat. His eyes widened, and he collapsed to the ground.

Ruan Ning walked to the control panel, looked at the crystal fragments, and made contact with them using her mental energy.

A jumble of fragmented images flooded my mind—

In the same laboratory, carriers with different serial numbers were tested in an energy field.

Explosion, debris flying everywhere.

A hand wearing a white glove picked up a few of them...

The scene abruptly ended.

These fragments originated from "Carrier 03," but were only partial and severely damaged in energy.

She collected the fragments; although they weren't very useful, she might be able to analyze some of the characteristics of "Carrier 03" from them.

The man on the operating table was still breathing faintly. Ruan Ning checked him and found that the implant was forcibly connected to his nerves. Even if it was removed, he wouldn't live for long.

She remained silent for a moment, then an ice needle pierced his heart, ending his suffering.

Before leaving, she flipped through the researcher's notebook, which contained hastily written notes:

"Doctoral Requirements: Highly compatible living subjects whose supernatural abilities must match the target host. Latest Clue: Wild mutant communities exist in the southeastern swamp area, suspected to contain natural energy crystals, possibly related to 'Primordial' radiation. A collection team has been dispatched."

Southeastern swamp area... natural energy crystals...

Ruan Ning noted down the information, cleaned up the traces, and left along the same route with the fire.

Ruan Ning met up with Qin Li and the others, showed them the fragments, and informed them of the discovery.

"The southeastern swamp area is about 80 kilometers from Freedom City. The landscape has changed drastically since the apocalypse, and it is very dangerous." Shen Yan pulled up a map. "It is the nest of mutated crocodiles and poisonous flies, as well as miasma."

“But what the ‘doctor’ is looking for might be there,” Ruan Ning said. “Natural energy crystals, if related to ‘primordial’ radiation, might help us locate other carriers or understand the nature of ‘primordial’ energy.”

Qin Li looked at the fragments: "Why don't we just arrest the 'doctor'?"

Ruan Ning shook his head: "He is heavily guarded, and it would be easy for him to be surrounded if he makes a move in Free City. Since he has sent people to the swamp area, we can follow him and deal with his people and the gathering team in the wild, while also searching for clues."

"Killing two birds with one stone." Lin Yan nodded.

Ruan Ning looked at Shen Yan, "We need anti-toxic agents, miasma masks, and swamp walking gear. Also, Qin Li, your defensive domain might be more useful in the swamp than my control domain."

Qin Li: "I'll take care of the equipment. Antidotes and malaria masks can be bought on the black market in Liberty City, but they're quite expensive."

Shen Yan said, "I'll take care of it. I'll disguise myself as an ordinary hunting party and make the purchases."

The action plan was set for the next morning, heading to the southeastern swamp area.

Late at night, Ruan Ning sat on the roof, wiping her jade pendant, with a large fire raging beside her.

Qin Li walked up to her and handed her a warmed can of food. "What are you thinking about?"

“Carrier 03 is broken.” Ruan Ning took the can. “What about the other carriers? Are they intact, or were they also broken and scattered? What exactly happened in the ‘Origin’ Project that caused these ‘keys’ to be scattered in different places?”

“Finding the ‘doctor’ might yield some information,” Qin Li said, sitting beside him. “My grandparents have limited information; they were on the periphery of the project back then. Some of the core researchers might still be alive.”

Ruan Ning took a bite of canned meat: "After the swamp, regardless of whether we find the crystal or not, we must take action against the 'Doctor.' He has the answers we need."

Qin Li nodded and looked at the dim lights in the direction of the inner city of Freedom in the distance.

“The waters run deep in Liberty City. ‘Black Scorpion’ is just one of the forces that are visible on the surface. My people have discovered that there are several more clandestine groups in the inner city, which seem to have the shadow of other large bases behind them, and may even have spies from the capital.”

“The Shen family won’t give up,” Ruan Ning said. “They lost their plans in the Northwest, and then they reappeared in Liberty City, which means that this place is also one of their targets.”

The two remained silent for a while.

Qin Li suddenly asked, "What would happen if... all the carriers were found?"

Ruan Ning gently stroked the pendant with her fingers: "I don't know. It could be a key, a weapon, or... Pandora's box."

She looked up at the night sky.

The night in the apocalypse was devoid of starlight, save for thick clouds and the occasional shadow of a mutated bird.

“But we must keep searching.” Her voice was calm. “Not just for our own safety. 'The Origin,' 'The Black Tide,' the vessel… behind these secrets may lie the reason why this apocalypse happened.”

“Then let’s keep going,” he said, “until we figure everything out.”

The team set off the next morning.

Two off-road vehicles drove out of Liberty City and headed southeast towards the swampy area shrouded in gray-green miasma.