Chapter 119: Is the source of pollution alive?

Si Jue? Lilith was glad that she was still wearing a helmet, so no one could see the surprised expression on her face. Robbins happened to walk out from behind her, blocking her view.

"Danger zone map? I just gave him a copy last week. Doesn't he have a backup?"

Robin paused, looked at the sentry in front of him, clicked on the light computer again to send the information,

"I reminded him a long time ago not to clear his messages all the time. I've already sent it, so I asked him to check it."

"Thank you. I won't bother you anymore. Goodbye."

The silver-haired, red-eyed boy nodded at Robbins, and left as silently as he had come. Except for the very beginning, his eyes never fell on any other place.

Even Shen Jiaxu only suspected her identity and did not recognize her. Si Jue could not see anything either. She was too paranoid.

Lilith exhaled slowly, and her unbalanced heartbeat slowly returned to normal.

She hadn't seen Si Jue for a long time and felt that he seemed to have changed a little. Were his eyes so red before?

Compared to the others, she always felt softer towards Si Jue. He was the first one who said he liked her, and he was always obedient and well-behaved.

She had clearly promised to consider his idea carefully, but she turned around and abandoned him...

The girl stuck out her tongue somewhat guiltily, and was surrounded by the tall sentries of the exploration team. She didn't know if it was an illusion, but Lilith always felt that they were ready to make a move.

"?"

She raised her head and saw Lanqi coughing lightly.

"Well, it's still a long way to the cube. Can I carry you?"

"No, Lanqi, even if you want to choose a mount, you should consider our captain first, right?"

Jayne popped his head out from the side and spoke vaguely as if he had accidentally bitten his tongue.

As he spoke, he leaned towards Lilith. The exploration team's uniform wrapped around his lean and beautiful body. When he bent over, his white collarbone bumped against her.

"The captain has too many things to be responsible for. How can we let him be distracted? R can sit on my arm."

A sentry who was treated yesterday pushed past Jayne and came to the girl,

The male hormones were overwhelming, but there was no unpleasant smell. Instead, it was like the dry desert wind or the snow-covered pine trees.

But such a close distance still made Lilith feel a little uncomfortable. She took a step back and was caught off guard when someone lifted her up by the knees. Her long, slender eyelashes trembled twice. Through the curved mirror, she saw a pair of calm and distant chestnut eyes.

"Please let Senior Lanqi and I take turns protecting the guide. After all, it was the same last time. If we adjust our positions, it will disrupt the original plan, right?"

Shen Jiaxu said with a smile, and put his elbow through the leather material to pick up the girl.

"What do you think, R?"

He was clearly questioning her yesterday about why she didn't treat him, but now he looks so understanding. Is Shen Jiaxu a face-changing monster?

Lilith couldn't help but want to complain, she simply relaxed her tense muscles and put all her weight on the sentry.

If he wants to hold her, then he can hold her. She is fully armed and doesn't believe he can recognize her.

Besides, it was easy for these sentries to carry hundreds of kilograms of supplies and hold a weak guide.

"Move your hand down a little, my bones are hurting."

Lilith demanded confidently, closing her eyes and not looking anymore. The sentry beneath her paused, then readily adjusted his posture so that the guide could stay more securely and comfortably in her arms.

Jayne wanted to say something, but Robbins patted his shoulder lightly.

"Alright, what are you fighting over with the newcomer? Didn't you see that R has already agreed? Exploring the contaminated area and protecting her is what we should do."

Lilith recovered her sore body and conserved her energy. After a huge tremor, the cube stopped, revealing the contaminated area wrapped in thick fog.

Although it was only her second time, Lilith felt that she was already used to it. She still had the rope tied around her waist. The difference from last time was that this time Shen Jiaxu was behind her.

"R, the captain was in such a hurry last time that he didn't have time to tell you the cause and current status of the contaminated area, right?"

Lan Qi looked around vigilantly, followed Shen Jiaxu, and whispered to Lilith,

"It's said that the contaminated area was originally a free trade zone jointly governed by the Federation and the Empire. At that time, the relationship between the two regimes had not yet reached the point of confrontation, and Federation soldiers often came here to buy things."

"Later, the free trade zone grew larger and larger, and the Central Star people, skilled in business, quickly gained the majority of market influence. This caused dissatisfaction among some Federation people, and disputes ensued. People were often knocked unconscious or disappeared, and the situation eventually became increasingly serious. As the conflict intensified, even the Sentinels became involved."

Lanqi paused, his eyes dim.

"The war lasted for decades. That's when we learned that the Federation had been secretly conducting human experiments. They chose this very spot as the testing ground. The missing Sentinels became test subjects, and their blood flowed across every inch of land here."

"Later, the Queen intervened and led the warriors in a desperate resistance. Coupled with the civil unrest in the Federation, the war finally subsided. However, the contaminated area has become what it is now. No one dares to approach it anymore."

"We suspect that the Matrix, used in the Federation's experiments, became corrupted and contaminated the land, causing the Sentinels that entered it to go out of control."

This matter was not mentioned in the game, and Lilith did not know about it. She only knew that the contaminated area was related to the conspiracy of the Federation, but she did not expect that there was such a tragic history.

"Because of this, the Queen's spirit was also severely damaged. In addition, she lost her own child. Since twenty years ago, she has rarely appeared in public, and basically all matters have been handed over to the ministers of the cabinet."

The Queen was just a title in her memory. She knew more about Arnold than the Queen. When Lanqi mentioned her, she had already pictured a heroic Queen in her mind.

"So, when you were exploring the contaminated area, did you try to find the source? Simply killing the monsters is probably only treating the symptoms, not the root cause. If the source of the pollution isn't completely eliminated, all your efforts might be in vain."

Lilith put forward her idea sharply. She leaned back, using the sentry's chest as a cushion for her cheek. Her voice was only transmitted between the three of them.

Lanqi was silent for a moment, and when he spoke again, his voice was a little hoarse.

"The combined number of members in each exploration team has exceeded 4,000. Every time we approach an unfamiliar and dangerous area, we lose some of our companions. Even so, we haven't found the suspected source of the contamination. Whenever we think we have a clue, we just circle around the contaminated area, as if..."

“It’s as if the pollution source is alive.”

Shen Jiaxu continued what Lan Qi had not finished saying.