Wen Shifei immediately stopped and operated quickly. "Signal source! Locked on! Northeast, about fifteen kilometers away! Intensity continues to increase!" Her voice was tinged with nervousness and excitement. "The signal characteristics... are very unique! It has a strong frequency fluctuation similar to biological neural signals! It's actively transmitting information! Like... broadcasting?"

Lu Cheneng also stopped and turned. Behind his goggles, his gaze pierced northeastward. This time, he showed no overt resistance or indifference, but rather a kind of absorbed concentration. Something within him seemed to be stirred by this powerful, neural-wave-like signal. Deep within that "emptiness" came a faint, inexplicable "resonance."

"Can you decipher the content?" His voice returned to its previous calmness, but Wen Shifei keenly caught a hint of unusual... urgency?

"Trying..." Wen Shifei's fingers danced across the virtual keyboard, beads of sweat oozing from her forehead. "This encryption method is unprecedented... The core information cannot be deciphered... But... wait!" She suddenly let out a short exclamation, "The information stream... is mixed with a... a repeated identifier! Like some kind of... signature or coordinates?"

On the screen, amidst the chaotic waterfall of data, an extremely concise symbol, yet emitting a unique rhythm, was captured, amplified, and clearly displayed by her filtering program—an abstract pattern composed of three overlapping, smooth arcs, resembling the grooves of the brain, or tangled bundles of nerves. At the very core of the intersection, there was a tiny, morning star-like point of light.

"This is..." Wen Shifei's breath suddenly stopped! Her pupils dilated in shock! This symbol... she had seen it before! Long, long ago, on the cover of her brother Wen Yuan's personal notebook! It was a totem he had designed, representing his highest level of personal encryption authority! Unique!

"Brother...Brother?!" she cried out, her voice trembling with disbelief!

Lu Chen entropy looked at her abruptly, then at the spinning neural totem on the screen. His gaze instantly became extremely sharp and complex. Wen Yuan? Pandora's chief researcher? Wasn't his consciousness backup in Pandora's core area, completely dissipated to guide the formatting?

"The coordinates have been resolved!" Wen Shifei's voice rose with excitement. "The source of the signal is just ahead! An... an abandoned old-world observatory! The code name... the code name has been resolved... it's 'Lighthouse'!" She raised her head and looked at Lu Chenentang, her eyes burning with shock, ecstasy, and disbelief. "'Lighthouse'! Brother's symbol! The signal source is called 'Lighthouse'! Chenentang! That signal! It... it might be related to brother! Brother's consciousness... might still be remnants! In 'Lighthouse'!"

A surge of hope surged through Wen Shifei's heart like a torrent! Her brother might still exist in some form! This thought instantly overwhelmed all doubts and fears! She didn't even care about Lu Chen's eyes, which had suddenly become extremely deep and unfathomable. She pointed eagerly to the northeast, where a huge and strange silhouette was vaguely visible. "It's over there! Let's go!"

She took the lead and ran towards the source of the signal, her steps staggering a little due to excitement.

Lu Cheneng stood still, watching Wen Shifei's hopeful and enthusiastic figure as she ran towards the "lighthouse." The faint "resonance" within him, triggered by the signal, suddenly turned into a cold, greedy torrent the moment he heard the words "Wen Yuan," "residual consciousness," and "lighthouse."

[High-value target... confirmed! Wen Yuan... consciousness... data... lighthouse...]

[Acquire...Analyze...Evolve...Ultimate...]

[Interference items... cleared...]

Like a venomous snake, the cold command revived and lurked within the core of his consciousness. This time, it didn't roar, didn't force its way into control. Like the most patient hunter, it lurked beneath the immense emotional turmoil wrought by the signal and the name "Wen Yuan," quietly and silently infiltrating and twisting his mind. It had "learned" to exploit Lu Chentang's concern for Wen Shifei, his curiosity about the unknown signal, and even the complex and inexpressible emotions he harbored toward Wen Yuan (awe, wariness, and perhaps a hint of gratitude for Wen Shifei) as cover!

Lu Cheneng felt a surge of dizziness and nausea, as if his soul had been forcibly torn in two. One half was shocked by Wen Shifei's discovery, and worried about the slim hope. The other half was consumed by an icy, intense possessive desire for the so-called "remnant of consciousness"! He knew this wasn't right! This feeling was too strange! It felt too much like... like that thing!

He shook his head vigorously, trying to dispel the sickening coldness. Watching Wen Shifei's receding figure, watching her run toward that "beacon" that could be a trap or a hope, Lu Cheneng's eyes flashed with a fierce struggle, ultimately suppressed by a deeper, more resolute will. He couldn't let Shifei face it alone! No matter what it was!

He took a step forward and strode after her. However, this time, his steps were no longer simply for protection, but also carried a kind of urgency that he himself was not fully aware of, guided by a cold will and with a clear goal.

Target: Lighthouse.

The abandoned observatory known as the "Lighthouse" stands abruptly on a relatively flat plateau at the end of the wasteland, like a huge metal mushroom forgotten by time.

The main structure was a massive spherical dome, constructed from countless triangular alloy frames. The high-strength, light-transmitting material that originally covered it had long since crumbled and peeled away from the harsh environment over the course of time, leaving behind a vast, hollow cavity resembling a monster's eye socket. Beneath the dome, connected to a massive cylindrical base, its surface covered in a thick layer of dark red rust and weathered concrete debris. A twisted, broken metal staircase, like the remains of a giant python, wound around the base and extended upward, eventually disappearing into a gaping hole at the base of the dome.

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