Chapter 96: Remaining Supplies in the Underground Tunnel
Su Wanqing stared at Lin Che, or rather Ye. He was pale, clenched his teeth, and veins on his forehead bulged.
"Ye, what's the situation now?"
Ye took a deep breath, trying to calm his disordered breathing. "I... can barely control it, but fragments of memory keep coming back, and it's painful."
"Lu Zhao, prepare the sedative." Su Wanqing said and looked at Xiao Ran.
"Xiao Ran, how are you doing?"
Xiao Ran put down the communicator, his expression somewhat serious. "I have contacted a few people, but they are all very cautious. They are waiting to see how the situation develops, and want to know how much key information we have, especially about Zhou Licheng."
"It's a good thing they're being cautious. Now, let's deal with the immediate problem."
Su Wanqing turned to Lu Zhao. "You said before that there is another underground tunnel inside the base that connects to the quarantine area?"
Lu Zhao nodded and pulled up the old inventory of the base. "Yes, from this inventory you can see that in the early days of the base construction, a backup connection channel was designed to deal with emergencies. This channel was marked as a 'safe route', but was later marked as 'long-term storage'."
"'Long-term storage'? Why?" Su Wanqing asked.
"The list didn't explain why. It only showed that Engineer Zhao, who was in charge of the project at the time, believed that this passage posed a safety hazard and was not suitable for long-term use. But based on my research on the structure of the base, this passage is likely to be directly connected to the center of the isolation zone and is the core defense intersection of the base," Lu Zhao explained.
"Why didn't you tell me about this secret passage before?" Su Wanqing asked with questioning tone.
"The information we had before was limited, and this list was found in a backlog of files. Plus, our main focus at the time was on studying the virus and finding supplies, so..." Lu Zhao said hesitantly.
"Well, it has already happened, there is no point in pursuing responsibility now."
Su Wanqing waved her hand. "Xiao Ran, lead the team to investigate this secret passage and see what's inside. Lu Zhao, you are responsible for monitoring the movements inside the base and paying attention to any abnormalities. Professor Yang, you go with us in case we encounter any special samples that require your professional identification."
Xiao Ran responded and immediately began to prepare. "Understood. I will take a few elite soldiers with me and act as soon as possible."
After a while, Xiao Ran and several soldiers disappeared deep into the corridor of the base.
Su Wanqing, Lu Zhao and Professor Yang followed closely and headed for the entrance of the secret passage.
After some searching, they finally found the entrance to the secret passage.
It was hidden in an abandoned storage room, and the entrance was sealed with thick steel plates.
"This entrance is designed to be very concealed." Lu Zhao said. He skillfully operated the tools in his hands and quickly opened the steel plate.
A musty smell that had been sealed for many years wafted into her face. Su Wanqing used a flashlight to illuminate the interior of the secret passage and found that it was a narrow passage with walls covered with dust and cobwebs.
"Be careful, there may be unknown dangers inside." Su Wanqing reminded.
Xiao Ran led the soldiers and entered the secret passage first. They advanced cautiously, holding their guns tightly.
After walking about a few hundred meters, they suddenly stopped.
"Captain, we found something ahead." A soldier's voice came.
Su Wanqing and Lu Zhao also rushed over and were surprised when they saw the scene.
In a corner of the secret passage, there are rows of metal boxes.
These boxes are affixed with various labels, saying things like "early virus samples," "special medical agents," and "gene repair reagents."
"What are these?" Su Wanqing asked.
"It's an early sample of the virus, as well as a special medical agent for research."
Professor Yang quickly checked a few boxes and said, "These samples are well preserved. It seems that they were prepared when the base was first established. They are backup materials for dealing with virus outbreaks."
Xiao Ran opened a metal box, inside which were neatly arranged small glass bottles filled with light blue liquid.
"These agents appear to be advanced and may have some role in treating viral infections."
Professor Yang picked up a glass bottle and examined it carefully. "The ingredients of these medicines are very complex, and they contain some very rare gene repair factors. If we can analyze the formula of these medicines, it will be of great help to us in treating viral infections."
Lu Zhao suddenly said: "Professor Yang, if you look carefully at the serial numbers and production dates of these samples, you may find some clues."
Professor Yang nodded and began to carefully look at the label of the sample.
After a few minutes, his expression became somewhat serious.
"The production dates of these samples are all concentrated in a period before the outbreak of the virus. Moreover, these samples are not a single virus strain, but contain a variety of artificially propagated design patterns."
Professor Yang said, "This means that Zhou Licheng and his team started trying to create stronger viruses and genetically modify them very early on."
Su Wanqing frowned. "In other words, this virus crisis was not an accident, but was man-made?"
"It's very likely," Professor Yang said. "It's clear from these samples that Zhou Licheng and his team have been researching the virus for a long time and have made far-reaching plans."
At this moment, Ye suddenly said: "This secret passage has another entrance, which connects to a hidden point under the base. There seem to be some...special weapons hidden there."
"Special weapons?" Su Wanqing asked.
"Yes. I can sense through the energy fluctuations in the secret passage that there is some powerful energy source hidden there. It is a very dangerous energy. If it is used, it is enough to cause great damage."
Ye said. "I suggest that if the situation allows, we should go there and take a look. Maybe we can use it as an extreme counterattack measure when necessary."
Lu Zhao looked at the structural diagram of the secret passage and said, "The structure of this secret passage is very strange. The expansion style is different from the overall design of the current base. It is very likely a mid-term additional plan, which makes people feel a little strange."
Su Wanqing nodded. "I feel the same way. This secret passage seems to be designed to deal with more serious crises, or... to facilitate the escape of high-level officials."
A trace of doubt flashed across Lu Zhao's eyes. "So, this secret passage is likely an escape route designed by the top management? If this is true, it also confirms our previous inference that there is fission inside the base."
"Don't jump to conclusions. Now, let's go check out the burial spot that Ye mentioned."
Su Wanqing said. "Xiao Ran, leave a few people here to stand guard."
Xiao Ran responded, left a few soldiers to guard the entrance to the secret passage, and then took Su Wanqing, Lu Zhao and Ye and continued to go deeper into the secret passage.
After a difficult journey, they finally reached the end of the secret passage.
There was a heavy metal door covered in complicated electronic locks.
Lu Zhao began trying to crack the electronic lock. His fingers tapped quickly on the keyboard and complex codes flashed on the screen.
"This electronic lock is very complicated and it will take some time to crack it," said Lu Zhao.
Ye suddenly said: "No need to crack it, I can help you open it."
Ye walked to the metal door, reached out his hand, and gently touched the control panel on the door.
Just then, there were bursts of mechanical sounds coming from the metal door, and then the door slowly opened.
Behind the door is a huge underground space filled with various strange equipment and some objects sealed in glass containers.
Su Wanqing used a flashlight to illuminate the underground space, and was stunned by the scene in front of her.
This…what on earth is this place? Su Wanqing walked into the underground space. The air was filled with a nauseating smell mixed with disinfectant and corruption.
She scanned with her flashlight. The densely packed glass containers were filled with various biological tissues. Some had already rotted, while others still retained some strange activity.
"This place... is simply a purgatory." Xiao Ran whispered with disgust in his tone.
"This should be a place used by high-level officials for secret research. It is much more covert than the experiments we saw in the quarantine zone before."
Lu Zhao analyzed, his eyes resting on a metal plate on the wall, which had a vague logo engraved on it, which looked like the logo of some scientific research institution.
"Professor Yang, take a look at these samples, can you analyze anything?" Su Wanqing asked. She tried her best to ignore the suffocating smell around her and focus on the work at hand.
Professor Yang put on gloves, carefully opened a glass container, and took out a small tissue sample for testing.
"The virus strains in these samples are very complex and have all been artificially modified. Judging from their degree of mutation, there are at least dozens of different versions. What exactly do Zhou Licheng and his team want to do?"
"It's likely they're looking for a more powerful virus, or they're working on a targeted vaccine."
Lu Zhao speculated. "But he chose to conduct secret research here, which means he doesn't fully trust the base and is worried about being discovered by others."
"Then use this to your advantage." Su Wanqing said in a deep voice. "Xiao Ran, take a few people and move some of the materials in these secret passages to the open area of the base to create the illusion of a leak of experimental supplies. Remember, you must control the scale and not cause too much panic, but also be enough to attract the attention of the top management."
Xiao Ran hesitated for a moment, but finally nodded. "Understood. I'll arrange it right away."
Su Wanqing noticed Xiao Ran's expression, and he seemed to have some reservations about her plan.
In the past, Xiao Ran always obeyed orders and rarely raised objections.
"If you have any ideas, just tell me." Su Wanqing asked directly.
Xiao Ran took a deep breath and said, "At first, I didn't fully agree with the strategy of exposing these supplies. I thought it might backfire. But considering that the most important thing now is to disrupt Zhou Licheng and his team's plans and ignite conflicts within the base, I think your idea is right. I will do my best to cooperate."
Su Wanqing nodded slightly, satisfied with Xiao Ran's attitude. "Very good. I will give you more authority for the mission. At the same time, you will continue to be responsible for communicating with those defected soldiers and understanding the information they have."
"Understood." Xiao Ran responded, turned and walked out of the underground space, and began to arrange tasks.
Lu Zhao walked to Su Wanqing and said softly, "Xiao Ran's attitude changed very quickly. This is beyond my expectation."
"He's a man of principle, he just needs time and trust."
Su Wanqing said, "The most important thing for us now is to use these supplies to force Zhou Licheng and his men to reveal their true colors."
"I'll find a way." Lu Zhao said. "I found a loophole in the base management system. We can use this loophole to send information about some of the supplies in the secret passage to the base's high-level monitoring center."
"We need to act quickly," Su Wanqing said. "Time is running out."
Lu Zhao nodded and immediately started operating the computer. Black codes scrolled rapidly on the screen.
Ye remained silent, standing beside Su Wanqing, observing everything around him.
Suddenly, Ye frowned and said, "There is another entrance to this secret passage, which connects to an independent area under the base. That area... is somewhat similar to the laboratory, and also has a large number of specimen storage equipment."
Su Wanqing's heart sank. "What did you say?"
"That place... seems to be a rotating warehouse used by the top brass for secret experiments."
Ye said. "There are some more hidden and dangerous samples stored there."
Xiao Ran returned with his men and reported the progress of the mission. "The materials have already been transferred, and the creation of a false leak is also in progress. The monitoring center... seems to have noticed something unusual."
"Very good." Su Wanqing said. "Lu Zhao, what do you think we should do next?"
Lu Zhao pondered for a moment and said, "I think we must conduct a comprehensive investigation of all the functions of this secret passage. According to my judgment, this secret passage is not just an escape route or a secret laboratory. It may also have other functions, such as... weapons storage or energy supply. In order to thoroughly understand all the secrets of the secret passage, I suggest that we stay here temporarily and conduct a more detailed investigation."
Su Wanqing looked at the eerie and terrifying environment around her and nodded.
"Alright. Now that we are here, we can't leave easily. Xiao Ran, you leave a few brothers here to maintain vigilance. Ye, you are responsible for monitoring the energy fluctuations in the secret passage. If you find anything abnormal, notify me immediately."
"Understood." Xiao Ran and Ye responded at the same time.
Professor Yang was still immersed in sample analysis, exclaiming from time to time.
"The degree of mutation of these samples is far beyond my imagination. Zhou Licheng and his team... have pushed the research on the virus to a very dangerous level."
Su Wanqing walked up to Professor Yang and asked, "What did you find?"
"I discovered that there is a special code in the genetic sequences of these samples. This code... is related to an experimental weapon called 'Obsidian'."
Professor Yang said, "'Obsidian' is a biological weapon made using genetic technology, and it has extremely strong destructive power. If Zhou Licheng and his team succeed in making this weapon, the consequences will be disastrous."
Su Wanqing's expression became more solemn. She knew that they had been involved in a huge conspiracy.
"It seems that our task is more difficult than we imagined." Su Wanqing said in a low voice.
She looked at the dim underground space around her, her heart filled with vigilance.
The reaction within the base began to show.
The alarms in the monitoring center sounded one after another, and emergency reports were also coming from the radio inside the base.
"Warning, warning! Unknown material leaking in the open area, all personnel please evacuate immediately!"
"Warning, warning! Unknown virus strain detected, all personnel please quarantine immediately!"
The base fell into chaos.
Su Wanqing looked at the data that kept jumping on the screen, a sneer appeared at the corner of her mouth.
"Let the chaos get worse."
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