Chapter 201, Shelter No. 016

Song Liang and the others returned to District 13.

The residential areas on both sides were very quiet. There was no trace of the body on the entire street. The road was clean and there was not a single person in sight.

The spirits made a point of going around to the parking lot to take a look.

The parking lot gate, which had been melted by the fire phoenix, has long since been restored to its original state, showing no trace of what happened here last night.

We didn't find any trace of monsters along the way.

Everything in the contaminated area couldn't be viewed through the lens of common sense. Without studying it in detail, the four climbed over the wall to the second floor and found the room where the two sisters lived.

"Who?!" A wary voice rang out from inside the house.

Zhou Tianqi was speechless. "It was us." Could it be that the two sisters had lost their memories after just one day?

There was a rustling sound inside the house, and footsteps gradually approached the door.

The door opened a crack, revealing the face of the younger sister, Tian Shuang.

Fortunately, the two sisters still remembered them.

Have you thought it through?

Seeing that only four people had come to the door, Tian Shuang looked puzzled. "Just the four of you? The others didn't agree?"

Zhou Tianqi quickly explained, "Our team... our leader sent us to negotiate first, and he agreed."

As Zhou Tianqi spoke, he observed Tian Shuang's reaction, trying to make his words sound both sincere and reasonable.

That baby face makes people feel good.

Tian Shuang indeed lowered his guard and invited them into the house.

Song Liang walked at the front. The room was dark, but the sentry's excellent eyesight allowed him to make out a blurry figure on the sofa.

It's my older sister, Tian Ling.

Duan Xi stood there for a while, then secretly released his spiritual form. Seeing that the two sisters did not react, he sent the peregrine falcon into the room to search.

A kettle was on the table, the kitchen was fully equipped, all the food and drinks were neatly arranged, and clothes were hanging to dry in the bathroom.

The house is filled with traces of life.

"Is this your home?" Duan Xi asked.

Sitting on the sofa, Tian Ling hummed in agreement. "Our family has been living here ever since we came to this base."

Song Liang was somewhat surprised.

He had initially thought this was just one of the opposition's temporary strongholds.

After all, many people die every day at this base, and many houses are vacant.

Qi Jun clearly noticed the problem as well, and asked calmly, "Is it just the two of you at home?"

"Yes."

Tian Ling smiled sadly, "When we came to this base, there were five of us in my family. Now it's just me and my sister left."

The organisms in the polluted area sometimes have normal thinking and sometimes jump around in their logic.

For example, after Zhou Tianqi agreed to join the opposition, the two sisters immediately showed them unconditional trust.

Song Liang casually steered the conversation toward the base.

They got the information they wanted with almost no effort.

This place is actually a shelter designated as number sixteen by the state.

"Where is Shelter No. 016?" Duan Xi asked Song Liang in a low voice.

Of the group, Song Liang, who was in charge of logistics, was the most knowledgeable about the distribution of shelters in various regions during the Dark Ages.

Song Liang answered cryptically, "Xi'an."

Looking back now, the lower half of the tall gray walls surrounding the base resembled the ancient city walls of Xi'an in the old days.

No wonder they were able to build such high walls to stop the monsters so quickly.

When the dark apocalypse suddenly descended, the country sent troops to provide support, and the first shelters established were all in major provincial capitals.

The top-ranked shelters are located in areas with large military garrisons.

Without exception, they all possessed formidable military strength, firepower, and dense population.

"Isn't Xi'an a polluted area?"

Qi Jun said in a low voice, "I remember there was more than one; there were two city ruins."

Why is this No. 235 contaminated area in Gulang County designated as Shelter No. 016?

Song Liang: "I don't know."

They had no idea what had happened more than a hundred years ago.

But it is certain that the contaminated area originated from the mental realm of the Gatekeeper, who remained in Shelter No. 016 in Xi'an during the sixty-eighth year of the Dark Ages.

As for why it eventually ended up in Gulang County, and why a polluted area was created there.

It is currently unknown.

"What are you whispering about?" Tian Ling asked.

Zhou Tianqi was listening attentively and almost reflexively replied, "It's nothing, we were just discussing whether we should bring gifts after meeting your leader..."

Tian Shuang chuckled: "The base has been cracking down hard lately. We can't gather unless we receive a notice, for fear of attracting the attention of the higher-ups."

The implication was that they couldn't be taken there for the time being.

Duan Xi tentatively asked, "When will you receive the notification?"

Tian Shuang: "Next time we take action."

What's the next move?

What action?

Song Liang recalled that yesterday, Yun Zhao had only mentioned destroying the digital life world, and the two sisters had already encountered a bug.

I wonder if it's related to their actions.

Song Liang could only steer the conversation toward the central urban area, using a roundabout approach to gather information.

"You mean District One?" Tian Ling said, "Civilians can't get in there. Those who live there are sentries, guides, and the base's leaders."

This is similar to other bases.

Sentinels have heightened senses and cannot live in crowded places.

Zhou Tianqi: "Then... are all kinds of research institutes and laboratories inside?"

Tian Shuang's soft voice rang out, "You guys are new here, right? How come you don't know anything?"

“Yes.” Zhou Tianqi chuckled dryly.

Tian Ling asked in confusion, "Have outsiders come in these past three years?"

These past three years?

Song Liang astutely grasped the key point.

Three years after the development of Digital Life World?

"Yes! That's right, we fled to the vicinity, were rescued by the sentries, and then entered the base and hid here." Zhou Tianqi racked his brains to cover it up.

Tian Ling said quietly, "Then you guys are really unlucky."

Tian Shuang lit a candle at some point, illuminating the dim room.

There is electricity in the base, but no one uses it. The rule against turning on the lights probably existed before the contaminated area was even created.

"It's similar to our experience."

Tian Shuang looked desolate. "Back then, my family also fled to the vicinity and was taken in by the base. Who knew that now only my sister and I are left?"

Their father was a sentry.

For ordinary people, leaving the shelter meant certain death, but it was the father who led the family here.

The two sisters also have a younger brother who was frail and sickly from a young age, lacking nutrition, and grew up with difficulty until he was ten years old.

After arriving at the base, the younger brother's health deteriorated.

It was around that time that the Digital Life Project was announced to the public, calling on civilians to volunteer for the experiment.

Hearing that entering the place would grant eternal life, the father enrolled his younger brother without hesitation.

He was chosen!

The two sisters were very happy that day and accompanied their brother to the laboratory.

A group of scientists and researchers examined the younger brother's various physical data. They saw many instruments they couldn't understand, which were scanning the younger brother's entire body.

I thought my younger brother was saved.

After all the tests were completed, the family received a notification: "You can go home now."

"Go back?" The father was stunned. "Aren't you waiting to enter the digital life world?"

The person in protective gear said impatiently, "Yes, go back and wait. He'll appear in the digital life world after he dies."