Chapter 271 The decision to act separately
The iron ladder at Yongming Road Station was badly rusted. When Xiao Ran climbed up with Lin Che on his back, the ladder made a creaking sound.
Su Wanqing walked in the front. As soon as the tip of her tactical boots touched the ground, the system prompt sounded from her headset: "1.2 kilometers to the fortress, 58 minutes remaining."
At 6:17, they kicked open the disguised door at the entrance of the fortress. The hem of Lu Zhao's white coat was stained with mud from the drainage ditch. He clung to the door frame and shouted, "Prepare the medical area! Lin Che's temperature is 40.3, and the mutation factor activity is 51%!"
When the blue light of the medical cabin came on, Dr. Zhang was placing tweezers into the sterilization tray.
She looked up and saw the curled blue scales on the back of Lin Che's neck. The tweezers clanged onto the tray. "The physiological structure has changed by more than 50%, but the brain wave chart..." She pushed her glasses. "The ratio of delta waves and alpha waves is normal. Human consciousness is still dominant."
Lu Zhao placed the sample box he brought back from the water plant on the operating table.
In a transparent test tube, blue liquid is climbing up the wall, as if alive: "The pollutant is a nanoscale bio-mechanical hybrid."
He brought up the microscope image. "Each particle contains a DNA strand and microcircuits specifically designed to rewrite human genes."
Su Wanqing stood outside the medical cabin, her fingertips against the observation window. Lin Che's scales glowed coldly in the blue light, and occasionally silver lines oozed out from under his skin - it was the blood that Xiaoling had just fed him.
"What's even more troublesome is the spread." Lu Zhao turned the terminal towards her. "Although the main pollution source has been dealt with, there's still 1.7% remaining in the circulating water system. Based on the city's population..." He paused, "approximately 170,000 people have been exposed."
At 5:30 p.m., the lights in the command center suddenly flickered red. Su Wanqing had just taken a bite of her cold compressed biscuit when dozens of red dots popped up on the surveillance screen—the East City Building Materials Market, the South City Vegetable Market, the North Ring Road bus stop—all flashing.
"The military has begun a forced evacuation." Lu Zhao called up the drone footage. "They've blocked off three high-infection blocks and cordoned off the observation area."
He swiped the screen. "The launch of the scorched earth policy may be brought forward to within 48 hours."
A system notification chimed in. Su Wanqing glanced at the energy monitor screen, where the data bar was jumping up at a visible speed. "Underground energy fluctuations?"
"It's not the fortress." Lu Zhao slapped the monitor on the table. "It's below the old industrial area, the abandoned mines and air-raid shelters."
He pointed at the map with the tip of his pen. "Energy accumulation rate: 36 hours to reach critical point."
Su Wanqing remembered what Melody said about "sowing seeds" in the water plant. She called up the underground structure map, and the shadow of the mine spread across the screen: "Another node of the Weaver."
The monitor in the medical area beeped softly at 7:17 PM.
Lin Che's fingers twitched, his blue eyes half-lidded, like gemstones immersed in ice water. "The Weaver and the Time Observer signed an agreement."
Xiao Ling was wiping his hands, the cotton swab suspended in mid-air. Lin Che's voice was like sandpaper grinding glass: "The Weavers are responsible for biological transformations, and the Time Observers are responsible for time nodes. They want to open a door underground to the future, or the past."
He coughed, and the blue scales trembled. "Water is the initiator. Next is time."
He closed his eyes again before he finished speaking. Xiao Ling put the cotton swab back on the tray, and the silver liquid on her wrist was flowing along the blood vessels to her fingertips.
She pulled the lancet and pricked a hole in her fingertip: "Doctor Zhang, draw my blood."
Doctor Zhang held up the needle and hesitated: "You have already transfused 200cc before."
"Another 200." Xiao Ling stretched out her arm, "It can stabilize his mutation speed."
Lu Zhao's laptop was on, and on the screen was the genetic map of Xiaoling's blood.
He tapped twice on the keyboard: "We need to analyze the reaction between the sample and your blood to make a countermeasure."
At eleven o'clock in the evening, all the lights in the command center were on. Su Wanqing stood in front of the holographic projection, her shadow cast on Lin Che's brain wave map: "Act separately."
Xiao Ran sat in a chair, the tip of his tactical boots against the table leg: "I'll go to the old industrial area with you."
Lu Zhao pushed the newly made sound wave jammer over and said, "The situation underground is unclear, but there might be something."
"There's no time to wait." Su Wanqing interrupted him, "The energy source will reach the critical point in 36 hours. Wait until Lin Che recovers?"
She pointed in the direction of the medical bay, "He can hardly even open his eyes right now."
Xiao Ling suddenly stood up. The silver liquid on her wrist shone under the fluorescent light: "Here you go."
She handed over a small glass vial, "My blood, it might be useful."
Lu Zhao stuffed the jammer into Su Wanqing's backpack: "Improved version, can cover 10 meters."
He felt the interlayer of his backpack. "There's also a portable medical kit with Xiaoling's blood sample in it."
Su Wanqing checked her equipment. The metal handle of the tactical knife felt cool against her thigh.
She looked towards the medical area. Lin Che's monitor was still beeping regularly: "In 36 hours, the fortress will automatically activate its highest defense."
She looked up, "Whether we come back or not."
Xiao Ran fastened the last button of his bulletproof vest and said, "Let's go."
The door of the command center was closed at 0:17 a.m. Xiao Ling stood by the window and watched the shadows of Su Wanqing and Xiao Ran disappear at the end of the corridor.
The sound of Lu Zhao's keyboard could be heard behind him, mixed with the ticking of the monitors in the medical area.
Lin Che's brain wave graph suddenly jumped violently. Lu Zhao leaned closer to the screen, his pupils shrank: "The theta wave is abnormal, he is receiving information flow."
Xiao Ling leaned over. The curves on the brain wave graph were like lines blown by the wind, and occasionally a few words could be spelled out - "East City Checkpoint" and "No. 3 Mine Entrance".
"It's just like in my dream." Xiao Ling said softly, "I can see things that didn't happen, but it's not fake."
Lu Zhao saved the data into an encrypted folder: "The mutation may have allowed him to connect to the Weaver's network."
He called up the signal jammer, "We have to protect him first."
Su Wanqing's footsteps echoed in the corridor. She touched the jade bracelet on her wrist and found it was at normal temperature.
After turning the last corner, the lights in the underground garage came on and Xiao Ran was checking the fuel tank of the off-road vehicle.
"It's full of oil," he said.
Su Wanqing threw the jammer into the passenger seat: "Let's go."
The clock on the command center pointed to one in the morning. Su Wanqing turned on the holographic projection to display the three-dimensional image of the water plant, and the blue light made the corners of her eyes turn blue.
Lu Zhao pushed up his glasses and drew a circle at the "treatment center" with a laser pen: "The pipelines are most densely packed here, and the source of pollution is most likely in the main pool."
"The number of night shift workers doesn't match." Xiao Ran spun the tactical knife in his palm, knocking the handle against the conference table. "The system reported 11 people, but the thermal imaging scanned 23 heat sources."
Su Wanqing pulled up the heat source distribution map. Red dots like moldy spots covered the water plant. "Lin Che said the extra 12 may have been controlled."
She pressed her knuckles against the table. "These people are not enemies, they are victims. But you can't be soft-hearted when acting - their attack patterns can be extreme."
Lu Zhao pushed the cup aside, and a flashing triangle popped up in the hologram: "The data in the control room is more critical."
He tapped the terminal. "The water quality curve and pollutant composition are the basis for making an antidote."
Xiao Ran put the knife back into the sheath. The sound of metal friction was particularly loud in the conference room. "What about the division of labor?"
“Three groups.” Su Wanqing swiped the hologram. “Lu Zhao and Xiao Ling will go to the control room. I will take Lin Che and Xiao Ran to the center. The drone will stay at the water source monitoring station.”
She paused, "Lin Che's perception is key. She must be with us."
The lights in the weapons room were all on. Lu Zhao took out a black box from the safe, and the metal buckle popped open with a click: "Improved version of the sonic jammer."
He turned the knob on the side. "It can cover 5 meters and is specifically designed to counter the Weaver's communication frequency."
Xiao Ran picked up a pair of black gloves and rubbed the circuit patterns on the surface with his fingertips: "Can this shock people?"
"The maximum is 30,000 volts." Lu Zhao carried the jammer on his shoulder. "It will paralyze ordinary people, but for them..." He didn't finish his words and lowered his head to debug the equipment.
Xiaoling stood in front of the equipment rack, her fingertips running over the zipper of her waterproof suit.
The silver liquid on her wrist suddenly moved, crawling up the back of her hand along the blood vessels and weaving into a spider web under the skin.
"Xiao Ling." Lu Zhao handed over a silver bracelet, "This can amplify the properties of your blood."
He pressed the ring. "Theoretically, it can resist biological infection, but..."
"I can try." Xiaoling stretched out her arm, and the silver liquid flowed faster under the bracelet.
Su Wanqing came over with five sets of waterproof clothing, the black fabric glowing coldly under the light: "Replaced by the system, biochemical protection."
She threw a set to Xiao Ran, "Don't be too aggressive, there is a breathing valve inside."
Lin Che stood in front of the hologram, his palm hovering above the virtual water plant.
Blue lines crawl from the wrist to the back of the hand, like wires blown by the wind.
He closed his eyes, beads of sweat oozing from his forehead and dripping down his chin onto his tactical uniform.
"The main treatment pool in the north." His voice was tense. "Something is pouring into the water."
Suddenly opening his eyes, his pupils were as blue as if they were soaked in ice. "It's not contamination, it's transformation—turning people into hosts."
Before he could finish his words, he staggered and held onto the table, the tactical uniform stretched tight around his chest.
Xiao Ran hurried over to help. Lin Che lifted up the corner of his clothes, and blue scales spread from his collarbone to his heart, with a light purple edge.
"The mutation is fast." Lu Zhao took out the detector and pressed it against his chest. The value jumped rapidly. "How about letting Doctor Zhang take a look?"
Lin Che shook his head and pulled down the corner of his clothes: “This thing is attracting me.”
He pointed to the hologram, "If I don't go, who can locate the source of the pollution?"
Su Wanqing stood at the door, holding the communicator in her hand: "Are you sure?"
“You guys have stun guns with you.” Lin Che forced a smile, but the corners of his mouth turned pale and blue. “If I really lose control, Xiao Ran will shock me.”
The door of the equipment room creaked. Xiao Ling stood at the door holding a silver bracelet, and the silver liquid flowed along her wrist bones to her fingertips.
She glanced at Xiao Ran, who was checking his gloves, then at Lu Zhao, who was debugging the jammer. She walked over and touched Lu Zhao's arm: "I want to change my mission."
Lu Zhao looked up and the screwdriver fell on the table: "What?"
"I'm not following you to get data." Xiao Ling raised the silver bracelet, and the silver liquid swirled in the ring. "My blood can resist infection. We should go to the contaminated area and try it."
Xiao Ran threw the gloves he had just checked onto the table: "It's too dangerous."
"The system didn't choose me to be a vase." Xiao Ling stared at Xiao Ran, silver liquid dripping from her fingertips to the ground. "You always say you will protect me, but I..." She looked down at her wrist, "I can fight too."
After Su Wanqing finished distributing the waterproof clothing, she looked up at Xiaoling. The girl's jaw was as tight as a string, and the silver liquid was flowing under her skin twice as fast as usual.
She walked over and handed the last waterproof suit to Xiaoling: "Be in the same group with Lu Zhao, but draw a blood sample before entering the control room."
Xiaoling took the clothes, and the silver liquid suddenly retracted into her blood vessels, as if something had pulled it.
She pinched her cuffs and her eyes lit up when she looked up: "Okay."
The clock on the command center read 2:17. Su Wanqing stood at the door, the handle of her tactical knife against her thigh.
Lin Che leaned against the wall, blue lines crawling out from her collar, weaving a web around her neck.
Xiao Ran checked the electric shock gloves and pressed the switch repeatedly with his thumb.
"Operation codename 'Clear Spring'." Su Wanqing tucked the communicator behind her ear. "Lu Zhao and Xiao Ling are in the control room; Lin Che, Xiao Ran, and I are in the center."
She looked at Lu Zhao, "Data is transmitted in real time. If there is any abnormality, evacuate immediately."
Lu Zhao patted the silver suitcase. "Neutralizers can remove surface contamination, but we need samples from the source."
Xiao Ling fastened the silver bracelet tightly, and the silver liquid flashed under the ring: "I want to draw a blood sample."
Lin Che walked to the window, and the moonlight shone on his face through the bulletproof glass.
The city was gloomy, with only a few streetlights on. He touched the scales on his chest and turned to say, "The pollution will cover the entire city for eight hours. The source must be stopped before dawn."
Su Wanqing pressed down her tactical hat and said, "Let's go."
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