Chapter 39 Post-Apocalyptic Wasteland 2
The glass doors of the hospital building were shattered, leaving only twisted metal frames. The lobby was a mess, with an overturned reception desk, medical records scattered all over the floor, and large patches of dark brown blood on the walls and floor, silently telling the story of the tragedy that had once taken place here.
Zhou Jue did not use the main entrance.
She piloted the Hummingbird drone, conducting a quick internal reconnaissance of the building. The drone's small size and silent operation proved invaluable, easily penetrating the broken windows and transmitting information about the interior from the first to the third floor.
As she expected, the building was teeming with zombies, especially in the lobby and emergency room on the first floor, where the density was frighteningly high.
“Go up the side fire escape. The third-floor office area has the fewest zombies and two fire doors, making it suitable as a temporary base.” Zhou Jue quickly formulated an action plan.
She circled around to the side of the building and found the rusty fire escape entrance. She easily pried open the locked door with a tactical crowbar, and a strong smell of mildew and blood hit her.
The passageway was pitch black.
Zhou Jue activated the helmet's night vision + thermal imaging mode, and the entire world instantly transformed into a clear image composed of different color temperatures.
There were three zombies in the hallway, leaning against the wall, completely unaware of what was happening.
Zhou Jue didn't waste any bullets. She took out the Boundary-Breaking Shovel from the Starry Sky Secret Box, took a deep breath, and darted out like lightning.
A flash of light.
"Pfft!"
With a dull thud as a sharp blade sliced through rotting flesh, the three heads rolled to the ground almost simultaneously.
The entire process was silent and efficient.
Having dealt with the threat in the hallway, she quickly went up to the third floor. Following the route scouted by the drone, she easily found the dean's office at the end of the corridor.
The office door was a heavy solid wood door, intact. After confirming the interior was safe with a miniature peephole, she slipped inside and immediately used a portable alloy doorstop to completely seal the door from the inside.
"call……"
Only then did Zhou Jue finally have a place where he could catch his breath.
She took off her backpack, leaned against the desk, took out a bottle of purified water from the Starry Secret Box, and gulped down several mouthfuls.
"Brother Tongzi, why do I feel like I'm becoming more and more like a secret agent?" she couldn't help but complain to herself.
[Host, this is the pain of growing up. Please adapt to your new identity as soon as possible: the strongest field operative on Earth!] System 001 promptly showered you with compliments.
Zhou Jue ignored it; the system was becoming increasingly abstract. She opened her personal terminal, began organizing the information gathered by the drone, and started planning her next move.
This hospital is a huge resource pool.
Medicines, medical equipment, disinfectants... these are all valuable commodities in the apocalypse. Although she had a top-tier medical kit provided by the government, these supplies were especially important considering the mission to "build a shelter for 100 people."
"While others are scavenging for trash in the apocalypse, I started out walking into a giant supermarket, and it's even free!" Zhou Jue's mood improved considerably.
She decided to start her shopping spree with the dean's office.
On the desk, the computer tower was still there. Zhou Jue simply took out a USB flash drive-like device and plugged it in. This was a specially made "data thief" by Chen Jianguo and his team, capable of forcibly cracking most electronic devices and capturing all stored data.
[Data scraping in progress... Encrypted file detected... Starting to crack...]
[Crack successful! Downloading...]
Soon, all the data on this computer was downloaded in a package.
Zhou Jue then rummaged through the bookshelves and drawers in her office. She found detailed architectural drawings of the hospital, which were crucial for her subsequent exploration and cleanup work. In addition, there were some internal reports and meeting minutes regarding the early stages of the T-virus outbreak.
"...The infected exhibit extremely strong aggression and...phototaxis? No, it's acoustictaxis...The virus spreads through bodily fluids...The military has intervened and sealed off the 'Titan Industries' industrial park..."
Zhou Jue's gaze was drawn to the word "Titan Industries" on the report.
【Host! I've scanned this name before!】System 001 suddenly spoke up.
[In the local news database I just downloaded, 'Titan Industries' is the city's largest military-industrial complex, whose main business before the apocalypse was the research and development of 'individual soldier exoskeleton systems'!]
Individual soldier exoskeleton system!
Zhou Jue's heart skipped a beat. Could this be another way of saying "powered armor"?
The clue for side quest 2 was found so quickly? Do I have some kind of "lucky charm" constitution?
She immediately searched for the location of "Titan Industries" on the downloaded map. The map showed it to be a huge industrial park located on the eastern outskirts of the city.
"It seems that this is my next target."
Just as she was about to study the Titan Industries data in more detail, a faint, unusual rustling sound suddenly came from the ceiling ventilation duct.
Zhou Jue instantly became alert, gripped his tactical rifle tightly, and pointed the muzzle at the ventilation opening on the ceiling.
In the thermal imaging field of view, an object emitting a low-temperature signal is moving rapidly inside the pipe, and its size is... very small.
These are not ordinary zombies!
"Bang!"
The vent grille was suddenly smashed open by a tremendous force, and a dark figure pounced down like lightning!
Zhou Jue reacted with lightning speed. As he rolled to the side, his rifle was already firing!
"Da da da!"
The three bursts of fire accurately hit the dark figure.
The dark figure let out a sharp screech and crashed heavily to the ground. Zhou Jue stared intently and couldn't help but gasp.
That was... a zombie-like monkey?
It was a size larger than an ordinary monkey, its fur had all fallen out, revealing bluish-gray skin and bulging muscles. Most terrifying of all were its limbs, which had been transformed into sharp bone claws, gleaming with a chilling light!
"A mutant!" Zhou Jue immediately realized that this was the second type of sample she was looking for!
The zombie monkey was shot three times, but it only swayed slightly, black pus oozing from its abdominal wound. Its mobility seemed largely unaffected. It let out an angry shriek and, using all four limbs, pounced again like a ghost!
That's incredibly fast!
Zhou Jue didn't even have time to aim again; he could only rely on his fighting instincts and smash it hard with the butt of his rifle.
"when!"
The gunstock and bone claw collided with a crisp sound, and the immense force made her arm go numb.
What incredible strength!
The zombie monkey missed its first attack, then pushed off the wall and changed direction again, attacking her neck from an extremely tricky angle.
In a flash, Zhou Jue activated the instant overload mode of the "Obsidian" combat suit.
Buzz—
A faint electric current surged through her body, instantly increasing her speed and strength by 30%!
She dodged the fatal blow by sidestepping, and at the same time, she thrust out the shovel in her hand, accurately piercing the zombie monkey's eye socket and going straight through its brain!
"squeak--!"
The zombie monkey let out a shrill scream, its body convulsed violently a few times, and then remained completely still.
[Ding! Detection of 'T-virus' variant (rapid type) sample. Collect?]
“Collect it!” Zhou Jue gasped for breath, looking at the corpse on the ground with lingering fear.
This thing is far more threatening than the slow-moving ordinary zombies outside. If it weren't for the "Obsidian Hand" combat suit, she might have...
It's probably nothing to worry about; the system's energy shield is still pretty powerful! Hehe~
However, she still participates in more battles in this world to improve her combat power.
Just as she was preparing to collect a sample, a crackling sound of electricity suddenly came from the communication channel of her personal terminal.
Immediately afterwards, a faint but clear cry for help, tinged with sobs, came from inside.
"...Help...Is anyone there...We're on the roof of Building B...Please help us..."
He's a survivor!
Zhou Jue suddenly raised his head and looked out the window. On the roof of another building not far away, a faint light seemed to flash by.
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