Chapter 45 Data from the Control Room
The emergency exit led to a narrow passage, and the four people moved quickly along the passage.
The emergency lights on both sides of the passage emitted a faint light, barely illuminating the road ahead.
"This passage should lead to the control room," Lu Zhao whispered, "where there is a more complete database."
Su Wanqing nodded: "The information we just collected is not comprehensive enough, we need more information."
Lin Che walked in front, observing the surroundings vigilantly: "No one has been here for a long time, and there is dust everywhere."
"Be careful," Xiao Ran warned, "This kind of place is the easiest to set up traps."
The four of them walked forward cautiously, and a heavy metal door appeared at the end of the passage.
There was an electronic lock on the door and the display had gone black.
"The power is out," Lu Zhao said, "We have to find a way to turn it on."
Xiao Ran stepped forward to check: "This kind of door has a mechanical emergency switch, usually in——"
His hand touched a groove on the right side of the door frame: "Found it."
Xiao Ran pulled the emergency lever in the groove hard, and the metal door made a dull sound and slowly slid to one side.
"Control room," Lu Zhao said, "We're finally there."
The four of them walked into a spacious room. In the center of the room were rows of computer hosts, and on the surrounding walls were large display screens, all of which were turned off.
There are also a few desks and chairs in the corner of the room.
Lu Zhao rushed to the main computer and quickly pressed the power button.
Amazingly, the computer still had backup power and the screen lit up.
“It still works,” Lin Che said in amazement. “The equipment here is really advanced.”
"There should be an independent power supply system," Lu Zhao said. "Such important facilities will be equipped with long-term backup power supplies."
He tapped skillfully on the keyboard, entering a string of complex instructions.
The login interface popped up on the screen. Lu Zhao hesitated for a moment and entered a set of account and password.
"Do you still remember the password?" Su Wanqing asked.
"This is Elizabeth's account," Lu Zhao said, "We used to share work accounts."
The system prompted that the password was wrong. Lu Zhao frowned and tried several different passwords. Finally, he successfully logged in on the fourth attempt.
"I'm in," he breathed a sigh of relief, "but my permissions are limited. I can only view some of the data."
The screen displayed a chaotic stream of data, with various numbers, codes and charts mixed together.
Lu Zhao browsed quickly, his expression becoming more and more solemn.
"What's wrong?" Xiao Ran asked.
"The data has been tampered with," Lu Zhao said, "and a lot of core information has been deleted."
He pointed to a piece of code on the screen and said, "Look here. These should be experimental records, but the key parts have all been replaced with meaningless gibberish."
Lin Che came over to take a look: "Can the original data be restored?"
"Let me try." Lu Zhao opened the system tools and tried to run the data recovery program.
The system quickly popped up a prompt: Insufficient permissions to perform this operation.
"Damn it!" Lu Zhao slammed the table angrily, "Someone is deliberately hiding the truth!"
Su Wanqing saw that Lu Zhao was angry and hurried to his side: "Calm down, Lu Zhao, getting angry won't solve the problem."
“Su Wanqing is right,” Lin Che also said, “We have to think of other ways.”
Lu Zhao took a deep breath and tried to calm down: "I'm sorry, it's just that seeing these tampered data, it's hard for me to stay calm."
"I understand," Su Wanqing said softly, "but now we need your expertise. Is there any other way to view this data?"
Lu Zhao thought for a moment: "Maybe we can try to start with the backup system. Such important facilities usually have data backup."
He opened another program on his computer and began searching for the backup files.
Xiao Ran looked around the control room, searching for possible useful clues.
"Here is a document," Xiao Ran took out a folder from a drawer, "It says 'System Maintenance Manual'."
Lu Zhao took the folder and looked through it: "This may be useful. It should contain information about the system structure and backup location."
Lin Che stood aside and observed Lu Zhao's operation. He noticed that Lu Zhao's hands were shaking slightly, and his eyes revealed anxiety and anger.
“Lu Zhao,” Lin Che said softly, “No matter what happens, we will face it together.”
Lu Zhao nodded without saying anything and continued to focus on the computer screen.
Following the instructions in the maintenance manual, he found the entrance to the backup system, but was once again blocked by a permission wall.
“It requires high-level administrator privileges,” he said. “My account doesn’t have enough.”
"Is there any other way to get around it?" Xiao Ran asked.
Lu Zhao pondered for a moment: "Maybe we can try some technical means."
He opened the command line interface and began to enter a complex string of codes.
Various commands and feedback flashed across the screen, and Lu Zhao's eyes were fixed on every line of text.
"What are you doing?" Su Wanqing asked.
"Try to exploit system vulnerabilities," Lu Zhao explained. "Every system has weaknesses. The key is to find them."
After a few minutes, the screen suddenly went black and then displayed a new interface.
Lu Zhao smiled: "It succeeded, at least partially."
The new interface showed some previously hidden file directories. Lu Zhao quickly browsed through them and opened a folder called "Project Records".
“There’s something here,” he said, “but it’s still incomplete.”
There were several encrypted documents in the folder. Lu Zhao tried to open one of them and the system asked for a password.
"Another code," he frowned, "These people are really cautious."
"Try Elizabeth's birthday or anniversary?" Su Wanqing suggested.
Lu Zhao entered several sets of numbers, but none of them worked. He thought for a moment, and suddenly thought of something, and entered "ELIZABETH0723".
"Success!" he exclaimed in surprise, "This is the password she uses most often, plus the date of our wedding."
The document opened, showing a detailed experimental record. Lu Zhao quickly browsed the contents, his expression becoming more and more serious.
"What is this?" Lin Che asked.
"A record of a virus experiment," Lu Zhao said. "The date is three years ago, just when the virus began to spread."
The latest novel is published first on Liu9shuba!
He continued reading: "It mentions a new type of virus, codenamed S-0, which is extremely contagious and has the ability to mutate."
"Is it the zombie virus that's out there now?" Xiao Ran asked.
"It's very likely," Lu Zhao said, "the characteristics match perfectly."
He scrolled and continued reading: "It also mentions the test subjects' reactions. Oh my god, they're testing this virus on humans!"
Su Wanqing felt sick: "These people are simply crazy."
Lu Zhao continued to look through other files and opened a document titled "Source of Funds".
“It’s very strange,” he said. “This project received a lot of external funding, but the source of the funding was deliberately obscured.”
Lin Che leaned over to take a look: "There are only some code names, no specific organization names."
"This is obviously to hide the real sponsor," Xiao Ran said, "I have seen similar operations when I was in the special forces."
Lu Zhao continued searching and suddenly found a folder with a higher encryption density, called "Execution Plan".
"This requires higher permissions," he said, "I'll see if I can crack it."
He opened the command line again and entered a more complex code. After the screen flashed a few times, the folder was unlocked.
"There was only one file in it," Lu Zhao said, "and most of the content had been deleted."
He opened the only file, and there were only a few lines of text left: "The planned execution date has been determined. The target area has been selected and the delivery method has been confirmed. The infection rate is expected to be over 90%."
"Deploy?" Xiao Ran raised his voice, "Are you saying they plan to release the virus?"
"It looks like that," Lu Zhao said solemnly, "This was not an accidental leak, but a deliberate release."
There was silence in the room as everyone digested this horrible information.
"Why?" Su Wanqing finally broke the silence, "Why would someone do this?"
"I don't know," Lu Zhao shook his head, "but it must be related to the 'Biological Reset Plan'."
He continued searching the system, hoping to find more clues. Suddenly, a warning box popped up on the screen: "Remote access detection, the system will be locked in 60 seconds."
"Someone has discovered us!" Lu Zhao said nervously, "I have to download these files quickly."
He quickly inserted a USB drive and began copying files. The countdown kept decreasing: 50 seconds. 40 seconds. "Hurry up," Xiao Ran urged, "We have to get out of here right away."
"There are still a few key documents," Lu Zhao said, "Give me some more time."
The countdown continued: 30 seconds. 20 seconds. Lin Che looked at the door vigilantly: "I heard footsteps. Someone is coming."
"Su Wanqing, prepare your space abilities," Xiao Ran said, "Once Lu Zhao is done, we will evacuate immediately."
Su Wanqing nodded and concentrated on opening the space channel.
Countdown: 10 seconds. 5 seconds. "Alright!" Lu Zhao pulled out the USB drive, "I got most of the files."
Just as the system was locked, hurried footsteps were heard outside the door.
"Let's go!" Xiao Ran shouted.
Su Wanqing immediately opened the space channel, and the four of them quickly jumped in. The channel closed behind them, just in time to avoid the armed men who rushed into the control room.
The space channel brought them to the safe house. The four of them gasped for breath, still in shock.
“It was too dangerous,” Lin Che said, “I almost got caught.”
"It's worth the risk," Lu Zhao held up the USB drive, "We have important evidence."
"So," Su Wanqing asked, "what do these data confirm?"
Lu Zhao's expression was solemn: "The virus was not leaked accidentally, but was artificially created and deliberately released. This is a carefully planned disaster."
"But why?" Xiao Ran asked, "Who would want to create such a disaster?"
"I don't know," Lu Zhao said, "but the answer must be in these data."
He took out his laptop, inserted the USB drive, and prepared to analyze the hard-earned information in depth.
"We need more evidence," Su Wanqing said. "These data are not convincing enough."
"You're right," Lu Zhao nodded, "but this is a start. At least we know part of the truth."
The four of them sat around the computer and began to carefully review the data brought out from the control room, trying to piece together the truth behind the disaster.
(End of this chapter)
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