Chapter 253 Fortress Upgrade and Sudden Crisis
The fortress's control console hummed, and the system interface flickered on Su Wanqing's retina.
She reached out and clicked on the "Build" option, and a light blue light fell on her face.
"15 times the rebate, I have to use all I can this time."
Lu Zhao pushed his glasses up and leaned over to take a look. Four new options popped up on the screen: defensive time field stabilizer, biological purification device, quantum communication network, and automatic medical cabin.
"Full construction requires 12,000 points." He pointed to the numbers, "Your total points now are 12,500."
Xiao Ran kicked his tactical boots under the table, and the metal chair legs scraped across the ground. "The purification device can filter out mutant bacteria, but the stabilizer can withstand the storm. Last time, the purple cloud almost blew off the roof of the bunker."
"Biological purification is the basis for survival." Xiaoling held Xiaoyu and sat in the corner. The red mole glowed dimly under the emergency light. "The spores in the air will rot if they touch the skin."
Su Wanqing swiped her finger back and forth between the two options. Suddenly, a system notification sounded, and the 15x rebate logo flashed.
She gritted her teeth and said, "Let's build these two first." Her fingertips tapped on the "Defensive Time Field Stabilizer" and "Bio-Purification Device", and a confirmation box popped up on the interface saying "Consume 8,000 points."
The walls of the fortress began to shake. Silver metal oozed out from the cracks in the wall, flowing like a living thing.
The ground in the central area cracked, and a hemispherical device slowly rose up, with fine lines engraved on its surface.
Inside the surrounding walls, thumb-thick silver pipes penetrate the cement, and each pipe opening is embedded with a honeycomb filtration unit.
"Look at your wrists." Lu Zhao suddenly said. Everyone lowered their heads and saw that the faint golden lines on their wrists were now glowing, like a match lit by the wind.
Xiao Ran raised his hand and shook it, and the lines flickered: "Is this... supplying energy to the device?"
"Quantum entanglement." Lu Zhao took out the detector and pointed it at the hemispherical device. The waveform on the screen completely overlapped with the heartbeat frequency of the five people. "You five are anchors. The fortress is now part of the anchor network."
He paused while pushing up his glasses. "The energy flow is three times faster than expected. The device is already 40% complete."
"bite--"
The system alarm blasted. Su Wanqing's temples throbbed, and the red font on her retina made it hard for her to open her eyes: [Time Observer carries an anti-anchor jammer, and the equipment parameters are exactly the same as in the 173rd reincarnation]
"The 173rd time?" Xiao Ran stood up suddenly, and the chair fell to the ground. "They even figured out the previous reincarnations?"
Lu Zhao's detector suddenly emitted a shrill beep. He turned the screen to face everyone, and a blue light spot was moving from the northeast area to the fortress. "There are still 15 minutes to go.
The jammer will destroy the anchor network, and if the device is cut off halfway through construction," he said, his Adam's apple moving.
"Xiao Ling." Su Wanqing turned to the girl in the corner, "Can you see their route?"
Xiao Ling closed her eyes, the red mole was dazzling: "From the east sewer, three of them, carrying a silver box."
Sweat seeped from her forehead as she opened her eyes. "There is... black fog in the box."
"Xiaoyu." Xiao Ran squatted down and gently touched the back of his sister's hand.
Xiaoyu's eyes glowed silver, and she stared at the air for a while: "There are many eyes in the fog, just like what I saw in the Northeast District last time."
Lin Che suddenly stood up, and the cuffs of his lab coat slid down, revealing the newly appeared blue scales on his wrists.
"I'll guard the east passage," he said, his voice lower than usual. "The purification power may be able to deal with the fog."
"No." Su Wanqing held his arm, and the place where the scales touched was a little cold. "The device is 60% built, and you are one of the anchor points."
She turned to Xiao Ran and said, "Take Xiao Yu to the west warehouse, where there are spare weapons.
Xiaoling, you and Lu Zhao keep an eye on the console."
Cold air suddenly blew in from the fortress's vents. Su Wanqing heard a metallic friction sound coming from above her head, the sound of the manhole cover being lifted.
She took out the stun gun from her waist and clenched her knuckles until they turned white.
"bite--"
The system interface jumped to 85% completion. The patterns on the hemispherical device began to rotate, emitting a low hum.
Su Wanqing's wrist was hot, and the golden lines were so bright that they almost burned through her skin.
“Boom!”
There was a sound of something heavy falling from the east passage. Lin Che's blue lines suddenly surged, crawling from his wrist to his shoulder, and his scales glowed coldly under the light.
He nodded to Su Wanqing, turned around and rushed into the passage.
"Bang!"
There was the sound of glass breaking. Su Wanqing heard Lin Che groan, followed by the sound of liquid splashing.
She held the electric baton tightly and was about to follow, but Lu Zhao suddenly grabbed her and said, "The device is 95% ready!"
The red light on the control console turned green. The hemispherical device emitted a dazzling white light, and the air in the entire fortress suddenly became fresh and sweet.
Su Wanqing's wrist felt cold, and the golden lines dimmed.
There was a sound of something heavy falling in the passage. Lin Che walked out, holding onto the wall, with half of his clothes torn, revealing the blue scales on his shoulders.
He was holding a silver box with black smoke coming out of its surface.
"Their fog," he panted, "was purified by me."
Lu Zhao took the box and pried it open with a tool. Inside lay a ball of black mist, which was slowly dissipating.
The detector swept over the fog, and the screen suddenly went black. "Anti-anchor material."
He said, "It can corrode the structure of the time anchor."
Su Wanqing looked at Lin Che's shoulders. The scales had already climbed to his collarbone.
"Go to the medical bay," she said, "and check if there are any sequelae."
Lin Che did not move. He stared at the scales on his arm and touched them lightly with his fingers: "Just now in the passage, I knocked over the beaker."
His voice was muffled. "It was contaminated water. When it touched my skin, I instinctively wanted to purify it."
Lu Zhao's hand paused on the box. He looked up and asked, "Did you purify the polluted water?"
Lin Che nodded: "More thorough than the device." He rolled up his other sleeve. The scales on his wrist had faded a little. "But after that, the blue lines became more numerous."
Su Wanqing walked over and gently touched the scales on his arm.
It was a little hard, like the edge of a fish's gill. "Lu Zhao," she said, "test his genes."
Lu Zhao took out a blood collection needle from the drawer of the laboratory table. When Lin Che reached out, the scales scraped against the metal table, making a crackling sound.
The blood sample was dropped onto the test board, and a red light swept across it. A line of words popped up on the screen: [Unknown gene sequences account for 37%, and the match with Weaver technology is 92%]
"Not human." Lu Zhao said in a soft voice.
Lin Che looked down at her arm. The scales glowed blue under the light, like shells submerged in the deep sea.
"Every time I use my ability, there will be more lines," he said. "If it spreads all over my body..."
"No." Su Wanqing interrupted him, "We will find a way."
Lu Zhao put the test board into the drawer. When he turned around, his glasses reflected the light: "Wanqing, can I talk to you for a few words?"
The two walked behind the console. Lu Zhao lowered his voice: "If the scales cover his entire body, he may lose his human characteristics. Memory, emotions, and even consciousness." He pushed his glasses, "This ability is not evolution, it is transformation."
Su Wanqing looked at Lin Che's back. He was squatting and talking to Xiaoyu, who reached out to touch the scales on his arm without any fear in her eyes.
"Hide it from him for now," she said, "We'll find a way to control it."
Lu Zhao nodded. The console suddenly sounded a prompt, and a new message popped up on the system interface: [Time Observer's positioning success rate dropped to 30%]
The ventilation system of the fortress began to hum again. Su Wanqing glanced at the wall clock, and the hands pointed to ten o'clock in the evening.
She touched the jade bracelet on her wrist, and the cool touch penetrated her skin.
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