Skeletonization

Along with Luo Tan's scream, the skeleton seemed to move slightly.

But that was probably just an illusion.

Soon, Xu Cheng circled around the side of the Skeleton Chef, frowned and observed him carefully, then comforted Luo Chen: "It's okay, he's dead."

Luo Tan's rapid heartbeat gradually calmed down, but her psychological shadow still lingered.

She wasn't really afraid of skeletons, but -

Anyone who pushes open the curtain and sees a skeleton-like thing will be scared!

Xu Cheng looked at the unknown object in the pot on the stove and analyzed: "As the chef of the cafeteria, he should have been cooking to prepare for the meal. But just when he was cooking, he suddenly died."

Xu Cheng squatted down and roughly examined the skeleton, then said, "There are no obvious signs of external injuries. If it was a sneak attack such as a bullet, the impact should have directly knocked him down, and he would not be standing here in good condition."

Luo Tan: ...It sounds even more terrifying, dying from inexplicable reasons.

She said quickly: "Let's go to the lab quickly!"

Xu Cheng no longer observed anything on the dead chef. He stood up obediently, and then suddenly felt dizzy.

For a moment, he had an illusion that the scenery of this place seemed very familiar to him.

The white bones in front of him gradually transformed into an amiable fat chef. He shook the spoon in one hand and touched Xu Cheng's head with the other, smiling and saying, "What do you want to eat today?"

Wait, why was he being patted on the head?

"What's wrong with you?"

When Xu Cheng came to his senses, he saw Luo Tan standing in front of him, looking at him with a worried look on his face.

Xu Cheng shook his head: "I just..."

He is just what?

What happened to him just now?

Can't remember the scene just now no matter what?

Xu Cheng closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, he let out a long breath. He smiled and said, "It's okay. Let's go to the research center."

He may be a little too tired recently and needs a good rest.

.

The research center was indeed not far from the cafeteria, and they arrived after walking for another ten minutes.

"It turns out to be like this..."

Andre narrowed his eyes and looked at the building in front of him.

Although the building's exterior has become old over time and shows signs of weathering like other buildings, it still cannot conceal its sense of technology.

Xu Cheng was a little dazed.

For some reason, there was not only this building in front of his eyes. He seemed to see countless researchers in white coats coming in and out of the building's door. They stopped at the door to talk, exchange the latest research results, and discuss some personal issues.

He seemed to see a woman standing on the steps at the entrance of the research center, opening her arms to him...

At this moment, a cold wind blew and he woke up with a start.

There was no one in sight.

Even Luo Chen and Andre were missing.

“Luo…”

Xu Cheng opened his mouth, but could only utter one word before he could not continue.

A sudden intense panic arose in his heart, as if he had experienced such a thing before. He was all bustling and lively one second, but when he looked back the next moment, the surroundings were as quiet as snow, and he was the only one left in the mountains and plains.

Starting from his little finger, to his knuckles and wrist joints, it began to tremble inch by inch.

On weekdays, he was almost completely filled with busy work, colleagues with different personalities, and missions of escaping death time and again. He never noticed, or deliberately ignored, the insecurity in his heart. But at this moment, the corner of his heart that had always been empty was exposed to the surface of the sea, accompanied by overwhelming fear and anxiety, which was getting higher and higher and more and more intense.

…

"What's wrong with you?"

Just when Xu Cheng was shaking all over, he heard a sound that sounded like heavenly music.

Luo Tan was standing right in front of him, looking at him with a suspicious look on his face.

Seeing him raise his head, she smiled and said, "Why don't you come in?"

Only then did Xu Cheng realize that Luo Tan and Andre had already gone in. Seeing that he was not coming in for a long time, Luo Tan went to look for him again.

Xu Cheng shook his head: "I'm fine, I was distracted just now and didn't notice that you had already entered."

Luo Tan smiled and said, "Why are you like a lost kid? You can't find anyone if you don't look for them for a while."

She thought to herself: [How interesting, he is just as clueless as I am.]

Xu Cheng: "..."

At this moment, her fingers accidentally touched Xu Cheng's fingers, and she immediately asked, "Why is it so cold?"

She looked at Xu Cheng's pale face again, and realized belatedly that Xu Cheng's condition was indeed not very good. She asked worriedly, "Are you a little cold?"

“No…”

"Hey, it's cold, so don't try to make excuses."

“…”

Luo Tan looked around at himself and said with a headache: "It is indeed much colder here than the capital planet. Unfortunately, I am not wearing much today, and I don’t have a coat for you..."

"It doesn't matter..."

The next second, a hand was put into his hand: "Nuo, my temperature is quite normal, let you hold it."

Xu Cheng raised his eyes instantly.

A word is almost on the verge of coming out.

But when his eyes met Luo Chen's calm gaze, he was forced to take back his words.

He couldn't tell.

He really couldn't tell.

Does Luo Tan know what this means?

Does she feel the same way I do about her?

But he looked at Luo Tan's frank eyes and said nothing in the end.

…

"What took you so long?"

Andre stood in the corridor on the first floor of the research center and looked at them with a smile.

His eyes paused at the two people's gently clasped hands, but quickly looked away.

Luo Tan smiled and said, "He got lost. It took me a long time to find him!"

Andre also laughed.

Xu Cheng looked at the two of them, and suddenly felt that Luo Tan, who had been extremely defensive when they first met, had slowly put away his piercing spikes and become truly cheerful.

Maybe being surrounded by family love and friendship can really make people feel lighter.

Thinking of this, the inexplicable emptiness in his heart seemed to be filled up a lot.

Then an impulse drove him to walk up to Andre and said, "Thank you."

He regretted it as soon as he said this.

Because Andre looked puzzled.

Xu Cheng could only change the subject awkwardly: "What did you just watch?"

Andre was not confused. He pointed at the wall and said, "It seems to be a researcher's introduction."

Like any large laboratory, the walls on both sides of the corridor here are posted with several connected photo frames with photos and graphics to introduce the researchers at work.

It begins with a history of the establishment of the Aksai Center for Extraterrestrial Civilization Research. The motivation for its establishment was similar to what they had guessed before, mainly for a new round of interstellar discoveries. However, what they had not expected was that this research center was actually a key project designated by the government. It was also the only research base used to explore extraterrestrial civilizations in the historical context of the time.

Luo Chen said softly: "If its status was so high at the time, even if the research ultimately failed, it should not be forgotten in the long river of history."

This was followed by an introduction of each expert and researcher. As expected, even the staffing was top-notch at the time.

Luo Tan was simply dazzled, feeling that the awards, papers, scientific research results, and conference attendance records were simply wholesaled from the vegetable market.

However, Xu Cheng stopped in front of one of the photos.

She was a woman with curly hair and glasses, who looked intellectual and gentle. However, behind the photos, her deeds did not seem "gentle" at all. For example, she could debate with scholars at academic conferences and forums without losing out. For example, when she was a reviewer for an academic journal, she listed 40 critical comments in her reply email to the contributor. Her review pass rate ranked last among journals worldwide...

Her name is Xu Lan.

Something seemed to flash across Xu Cheng's mind, but it quickly disappeared again.

But as he stared at the name, a trace of sadness appeared from deep in his heart.

Luo Chen walked to the end of the corridor, took a deep breath, and pushed open the door of the first-floor laboratory. The next second, she took a breath of cool air, then covered her mouth to block the scream that was about to come out.

There were five people in white coats in the lab, and they were doing different things. Two of them were observing data in front of an instrument, and the other two seemed to be reading a research report and talking. The last one was sitting in front of a computer with his head down.

But they are not living people. Like the chef, they have turned into bones.

Xu Cheng and Andre also walked in after her.

Andre thought thoughtfully: "So the people in the research center did not retreat. They were doing their normal work, and then suddenly they were attacked."

Luo Chen: "They didn't even look defensive at all."

She walked to the side of the skeleton with its head lowered, wanting to take a look at the computer screen to see if there was anything.

As soon as she walked over, she shook her head in self-mockery, saying that it had been decades and the electricity had been cut off long ago.

Sure enough, the computer screen was completely dark.

She was just about to look for some other information when she heard the alarm from the system.

She clicked on the animated picture prompted by the system.

[Ah, there is a fake skeleton here. Who would pretend to be this? ]

Xu Cheng and Andre were both attracted: What?

At the same time, Xu Cheng strode towards Luo Tan.

[Let me take a look. The backs of the necks of the two people who were observing the data have turned into bones. They can't be pretending.]

[The wrists of the two people reading the research report have turned into bones. It shouldn't be...]

[Then the only fake skeleton is...]

Luo Chen raised his head in astonishment, just in time to see the white skeleton sitting in front of the computer raise his head, and the white hood covering his face slipped off, revealing a human face!

As their eyes met, the human pretending to be skeleton gave Luo Chen a sinister smile.

The next second, he leaped at a speed that was incomprehensible to humans, directly jumped onto the computer desk, then stretched out his hand towards Luo Tan's heart. His move was as fast as lightning. If this move really landed, with his strength, it would be no problem for him to break an adult's heart!

However, Xu Cheng had already caught up with him.

Just when his fingers were about to pierce Luo Tan's heart, Xu Cheng grabbed his wrists with both hands and pulled them down hard. The impostor was caught off guard and stumbled immediately, then fell off the computer desk, and was thrown over his shoulder by Xu Cheng!