Chapter 160 Guidance of the Mysterious Map
Su Wanqing put away her notebook and gathered everyone together. She opened her bracelet casually and found something in her palm: a piece of paper that had been folded repeatedly.
She spread the crumpled paper on the table and used the emergency light for everyone to see clearly.
The map was densely marked with symbols and numbers, including one with a red circle around an "underground shopping center" in the city center.
"I have a complete map of the alternate routes and base locations. This is from when the underground passage was first laid out. The circled one is the preferred stop, with an abandoned underground structure."
Su Wanqing pointed at a few marks on the map and said, "The main line of the East Corridor branches here. The oil and gas pipeline network in the shopping center is not broken and can last for a few hours. The other points are ready for use at any time."
Lu Zhao came over to take a look, squinting his eyes and asked, "If the power supply is unstable, how can the key equipment and people be supported?"
"I've checked the design drawings." Su Wanqing said calmly, "The shopping center was originally a government air defense project. It has three floors and a closed structure. As long as our technical team goes first, the equipment can be restored to partial operation."
Lin Che reached out and dialed the ventilation well number at the bottom of the map. "Is this the main entrance or the auxiliary entrance?"
"We used the main entrance as a cover. We actually entered from the freight elevator in the northwest corner, went down to the underground floor and went directly into the defense area."
Su Wanqing pointed at the map and drew an emergency evacuation route with a ballpoint pen. "The technical team will take the full data package and the core laboratory supplies. The attack team will be responsible for covering the retreat. The rest of you will follow me underground."
Xiao Ran used another pen to mark all the exits of the passages. "I will lead the main force out first to attract the outer pursuit and place the bait signal in the main street area. The rest of you will follow the plan."
Su Wanqing nodded, closed the folded map neatly, rolled it up and stuffed it back into the bracelet space, "Divide into groups and have three minutes. Team one will go through the main entrance to provide cover, and team two will follow me."
Lu Zhao packed up the portable analyzer and the core mobile hard drive while scanning the remaining equipment.
He unplugged all the key data cables and began to manually format the main control terminal. "All the original host information has been deleted, and sensitive data has been destroyed on the spot to prevent the rebels from verifying it. Only the most critical part of the mobile hard drive is left. The self-destruction timer program of the remaining equipment has been implanted."
Xiao Ran picked up a few usable guns and ammunition, filed the weapons skillfully, and stuffed all that he could carry into his backpack.
He turned around and looked at Su Wanqing. "The weapons team only brought enough for three shifts. The remaining ammunition is placed in the bait truck."
The girl with a childish voice moved swiftly, putting all her things into her pockets, and finally fastened the zipper of the pendant.
Lin Che distributed the medical kits and energy bars and looked at Su Wanqing. "I can use my special powers to maintain the breathing environment and water supply, so I don't have to worry about pollutants outside."
Su Wanqing nodded to Lin Che and looked around to check all the equipment.
She made the arrangements concisely, "We'll set off after we're ready in five minutes. Lu Zhao, the last round of backup, cut off the connection after notifying us before leaving."
Lu Zhao responded, quickly moved his notebook to the portable server, and typed a series of commands.
He bit his lip and taped the only hard drive containing the research data to the inside of his clothes.
Finally, he said calmly: "The core board of the host has been burned, all backdoors have been cleared, and all external devices have been destroyed."
Xiao Ran led the attack team toward the main entrance, turned on the last two emergency lights at the door, and walked very quietly.
The technical team and the experimental team followed Su Wanqing's team. Lin Che walked at the end, his eyes moving back and forth between the entrance of the passage and the girl with the childlike voice.
The underground passage was very quiet, and the only sound was the sound of soles of shoes on concrete.
The girl with a childish voice half raised her head to look at Su Wanqing, and said in a steady tone: "Have you gone to the new place? Will there still be lights?"
Su Wanqing leaned over and adjusted the girl's backpack strap. "The new place will be safer. There will be lights and enough food. Follow closely and don't fall behind."
Lin Che walked silently on the other side of Su Wanqing. He lowered his voice and asked, "When did you prepare such a detailed map? Have you tried all the alternative routes?"
Su Wanqing held the bracelet and pressed the map against her palm. "Sometimes, if you lose power once, you have to learn to prepare an extra route. I've tried it, and it works."
Lin Che lowered his head and said nothing. He exhaled, his face a little gloomy.
He suddenly put his hand on the experimental box and spoke faster, "You have never explained these backup points. The depth of preparation is beyond the norm. Did you know that our main power supply would be cut off, or that this city would be completely abandoned?"
Su Wanqing didn't even turn her head. "If you want to argue now, let's go to the next corner and talk. The map is not important, escaping is what's important."
The name "Ye" flashed in Lin Che's mind. Lin Che pursed his lips and knocked on the box.
"Ye" said in a low and cold voice: "Su Wanqing, you didn't tell us clearly in advance. Are you deliberately hiding something? This routine is different from ordinary survival teams. What haven't you told us yet?"
Su Wanqing looked at Lin Che with a calm expression and said, "This is an emergency plan. I am always prepared for the worst. Now is not the time to discuss the source."
The girl with a childish voice looked at Su Wanqing, then glanced at Lin Che, took a breath, and quietly tightened the zipper of her backpack.
The team moved faster. Lu Zhao hid the tablet close to his body at the back, turning the only remaining flash card in his hand.
He confirmed one last time that no set of master control keys had been missed.
Xiao Ran led the attack group away from the main team and disappeared along the main corridor towards the east exit.
Soon, intermittent footsteps and faint lights were heard from the periphery, and most of the attracting fire had been diverted.
The main team moved underground from the freight shaft, passing through the gray-black passage on the old map.
Lin Che remained silent during the journey, only occasionally lowering his head to adjust his breathing. His fingertips were a little cold, and he made no unnecessary movements.
The girl with a childish voice followed Su Wanqing, lowered her head and counted her steps, with her hands stuffed into her pockets without letting go.
At the end of the passage, a rusty metal security door appeared. Su Wanqing peeled off the tape and found a protruding electronic panel in the corner of the door.
She pulled out her spare card and swiped it, then tried the mechanical emergency lock.
It took a minute for the door to open completely. Behind the door was a new world - an underground shopping mall from the old days.
In the dim light, the outline of neon advertisements could still be seen on the ceiling.
Lu Zhao was the first to enter and look around. He said slowly, "The environment is not bad. It's cleaner than I expected. The main passage is wide and well concealed. The signal wall basically blocks external detection."
The team quickly sneaked in and walked into the innermost area close to the original main stage, and found that someone had already tampered with it.
The walls of the mall were reinforced with steel plates, the power wires on the roof were newly replaced, and the floor was covered with anti-slip iron plates. Two words were written on the wall in the most conspicuous place, the black paint not yet dry - "Good Night".
Xiao Ran took off his backpack and placed the heaviest weapon within easy reach of the entrance.
He stared at the words and shook his head quietly: "Someone arrived before us and was well prepared. I don't know if he is a friend or an enemy."
Su Wanqing said: "Not an enemy, at least not yet."
She kept her right hand in her pocket, her fingertips pinching the deepest part of the crease on the map.
She looked down at her watch. "The internal space is clearly divided into different areas, and the main defense layer has not been touched. Let's check the old areas first."
Lin Che walked into the hall, stepped on the black floor tiles, and kicked the anti-slip strip.
"The main circuit line is intact, and the core area is ventilated and has no odor. The structural wall is solid and has just been inspected and there are no problems."
After the girl with the childish voice walked in, she looked up at the painted words, then looked around, and quietly stood next to Su Wanqing without asking any questions.
Lu Zhao turned on the handheld terminal and used its own battery to light up half of the main control screen.
"As long as the battery pack can last three hours, the main equipment can still perform a preliminary analysis of adaptability."
After he finished speaking, he immediately installed a new round of electronic locks on the defense door at the entrance, and at the same time put the equipment backpack into the inner room.
Lin Che turned his head to look at Su Wanqing again, with a hint of suspicion in his voice: "Do you have to hide it from us? You even have backup bases of this level. Who or what are you afraid of?"
Su Wanqing tightened her fingers slightly, "I'm afraid of all the uncontrollable variables. Since every movement route and emergency exit in this city may fail within a day, I can only control every reliable shelter myself. Ye, if you want to ask how the base came about, now is not the time. I just prepared it in advance."
Lin Che did not ask any more questions, but the suspicion in her eyes did not completely disappear.
He put away the medical kit and sat near the entrance of the main hall without saying a word. "Ye" lowered his voice, "But remember, we are not your pawns. If you have other intentions-"
Su Wanqing simply interrupted, "This place is so well prepared, it's enough to be useful. There's no point in tracking down the source."
After a brief silence, Xiao Ran returned to the hall, took two breaths, and adjusted the alarm device at the door to the highest warning level.
Lu Zhaoze took out the spare terminal from his backpack and stuffed all the remaining data into the new host.
"This is the only copy of all the research data. The motherboard was burned on the spot. How long it can last depends on luck."
The girl with a childish voice walked to the back of the defense gate, pulling the pendant from her pocket, without saying a word.
Su Wanqing patted the girl on the shoulder and said, "Take a ten-minute break. We'll hurry up and clean up the place before we start working again."
Lin Che leaned against the wall, pulled his coat tight, and kept silent. The footsteps outside the door gradually faded away. Xiao Ran locked the extra exit completely at the end, and there was silence behind the cement door.
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