Chapter 33: Mutation "Suffering from hunger and cold, exchanging children for cannibalism"...
Baili Yunle immediately stood in front of Jie Shuqin, but as soon as he touched the gun, he was hit by a stone and flew away.
Xu An slowly lowered his hand, dissipating his supernatural powers. He sighed in mock sorrow, "I was sleeping soundly when you suddenly dropped from the sky. I was so kind as not to ask for vengeance on you and even helped you, yet you tried to point a gun at me. It really chills my heart."
Xie Shuqin blinked.
Baili Yunle didn't buy her trick, but he wasn't ready to draw his gun. He just frowned and asked, "Why are you here? What is this place? Are you a human or a ghost?"
"Tsk." Xie Shuqin slapped him. "Looks like Xu An was here first. This place is in such a mess. It's a good thing she didn't come and question us."
"Exactly. Xiao Jie is still on my side." Xu An was in a good mood. He threw a bottle of medicine at Baili Yunle and leaned back slightly in his chair. "You must have fallen from the glass building, right? Since you want news about the humans on the ground so badly, why don't you come out and take a look?"
The two looked at each other, and Xie Shuqin followed first.
It was pitch black outside, a faint tinge of blood catching the eye in the gloom. The lights inside the house were dim, illuminating only the still-scalding blood on the nearby ground.
Xu An continued to walk, and soon disappeared into the junction of light and darkness. Then she gently raised her hand, and a cool breeze blew over, blowing up her cuffs and hair. She lightly snapped her fingers.
After a few seconds, there was still silence.
“…”
Xie Shuqin glanced at her and felt a little puzzled.
Xu An froze, his eyes looking back and forth at one place. Seeing that there was no movement in the dark, he coughed lightly again.
“…”
Nothin'.
Xie Shuqin looked at her: "Xu An?"
"Wait a moment." Xu An smiled at her awkwardly, then walked towards the corner angrily. There was a crisp sound of slapping, and the next second, the entire underground city was lit up.
The chains above the head shone with a cold light. Each alien house was connected by a transparent pipe in the middle, with liquids of different colors rolling inside, shimmering in the flash, just like the surface of the sea.
The wave-like light shone on her face, and Xie Shuqin was overjoyed. She looked at Xu An in surprise, and happened to catch her smug expression.
"Is it pretty?" Xu An said with a smile as he walked over carrying a plump creature with wings. "Look at the ground."
The two men lowered their heads when they heard the voice.
Under his feet, there was no longer the bloody scene as before, but a huge piece of glass.
The glass is light blue, and the color below will slowly spread and circle around as you walk. Every step you take will imitate the sound of stepping on the water, just like walking on the endless sea.
"The blood we just saw was fake?" Baili Yunle had taken medicine and was still a little unsteady on his feet. He held onto the pillar next to him and sighed as he looked at the colors on both sides that resembled the bottom of the sea.
"You're too nervous. The humans on the ground may be ruthless, but they're not so tasteless. It's just that the chains on their heads are equipped with sensors. If they're red, they'll also reflect red underneath."
As Xu An was speaking, the little creature in his hand suddenly began to struggle, flapping its wings wildly.
"What?" Xu An looked at her with a smile, "You said they are from the base and will kill you? But I am also from the base."
The little creature was instantly frightened half to death. After its wings fluttered for a while, it fell down and stopped moving.
Xie Shuqin came over, a little worried: "Xu An, what is it?"
Xu An shook it in front of her, and the chip on Baili Yunle's wrist instantly flashed a red light.
"Alert, alert! An unknown alien species is approaching! Alert, alert!"
The two men immediately took their guns and walked around, but they didn't see any figure.
"Alien? Where is it?"
Looking at the two people's cautious and puzzled expressions, Xu An leaned aside and laughed.
"It's her." After laughing enough, Xu An raised his hand and flicked the little creature. "She's very smart, she understands what people say, and she won't hurt anyone."
The cuffs slipped down due to her movements, revealing faint dark bloodstains.
Xie Shuqin was stunned for a moment, put away the gun, and walked over, "Xu An, what's wrong with your hand?"
Xu An didn't expect her to come so close without any warning, so he quickly withdrew his right hand, his left hand still holding the little creature's fleshy feet.
The little creature began to flap its wings and make whimpering sounds from its mouth.
"Don't talk nonsense!" Xu An threw the little creature behind him and looked at Jie Shuqin guiltily. "It's okay. I just got a little injured when I was dealing with those monsters."
"Can you understand what it says?" Seeing Xu An nod slowly, Xie Shuqin was half-believing and half-doubting. Before she could say anything, Baili Yunle walked over to her side and said, "This little wound will scab over on its own in a while."
Xie Shuqin glanced at him, then turned her head and said, "Xu An, where are those monsters? You didn't see this either?"
"You'll have to ask the humans on the ground about that." Xu An shrugged. "They made these things. When these monsters die, they'll turn into water and everything will be gone."
"Turning into water? How does that work?" Xie Shuqin felt like her head was about to explode. "Is there technology now that can turn things into water?"
Baili Yunle also shook his head, "Why don't we go back and ask the doctor?"
"Don't think about it." Xu An interrupted them, "Don't you want to know the news about the humans on the ground? There's not much here, and the real news is ahead. Are you willing to go?"
When Baili Yunle was about to ask what her plan was, Xu An immediately spoke up: "Let me be clear, I do have a plan, but I can't tell you what it is."
She looked at Jie Shuqin: "But I won't let you die. It's very beautiful. Do you want to go and see it?"
Baili Yunle was not in a good mood: "How do we know where that is? Can you believe what you said..."
"Tsk." Xu An frowned. "You're so annoying. I invited Jie Shuqin to go, and you're just a bystander. It doesn't matter whether you go or not, understand?"
Xie Shuqin inexplicably felt a sense of tension.
She laughed dryly twice and winked at Baili Yunle so hard that her eyes almost cramped.
"We are looking for news about humans on the ground anyway. If we go together, at least we can take care of each other." Although usually it was Xu An who took care of them.
"Okay." Xu An didn't wait for Baili Yunle to speak. He turned around gracefully and grabbed the wings of the little alien that had just taken off. "I'll go check the road. Lame, you take good care of your legs."
"Who are you calling lame? Hey!"
Seeing Baili Yunle being humiliated, Xu An jumped up from the ground in a good mood and landed lightly on the alien house.
Baili Yunle was filled with rage and had no place to vent it. He cursed angrily: "Even when exploring the way, you have to act like this. Who cares?"
He looked at Xie Shuqin angrily, but saw that her eyes were fixed on Xu An's movements. Her face showed no expression, but her eyes were full of confusion: "Xu An's balance is so good, why can't he drive a mecha?"
Xie Shuqin became the base's top mecha pilot because of her exceptional balance, which allowed her to maneuver effortlessly within the two-person holographic mecha cockpit.
She originally thought that Xu An, like Baili Yunle, had poor balance, which was why she couldn't drive the mecha and even blew it up. But now it seems that her balance is obviously very good.
Xu An, who had just landed on the alien house, seemed to sense something and tilted her head slightly. The loose hair on the side of her face fell randomly on the tip of her nose, covering her eyes.
Xu An blinked her lifeless mechanical prosthetic eyes. The little alien beside her whispered something. She lowered her eyes and listened, and a smile slowly appeared on her calm face.
"It's okay." She patted the little alien's wings, "Your wings are so ugly, and you're showing them off in front of me."
After saying that, she threw the little alien aside and jumped down.
When he landed, the sound of splashing water was heard. Xu An glanced at the simulated waves under his feet and quickly walked into a dark alley.
A pair of red eyes lit up in the dimness, and a muffled breathing sound was heard. Xu An looked at it quietly.
"Always keep an eye on Lin Yu's movements and don't let her come back." As he spoke, the pair of mechanical prosthetic eyes flashed red neon lights. Xu An glanced at his injured hand, expressionlessly aggravating the injury. He dripped blood into a bag and handed it to the beast-shaped hand in the dark. "Also, I brought two people with me, as well as my blood. This time, we must uncover their paradise."
The figure swayed and quickly disappeared into the darkness.
Xu An silently bandaged his wound and turned over from this side of the house.
The recovery agent developed by humans on the ground is really effective. In just a short period of time, Baili Yunle's legs have almost recovered. At least now he can jump around again.
"Although the genetic compatibility of these legs isn't high with yours, after nearly twenty years of wear and tear, they've adapted quite well." Xu An looked at Baili Yunle's legs, which were practically unchanged, and couldn't help but admire them. "Those guys, despite their poor aesthetics, are incredibly thorough in their experiments. Go check with Yin Xiangrong when you get back. If she can't tell, why don't you look for the intern next to her?"
Baili Yunle had been quite moved by the first few words, but his face darkened when he heard the last sentence: "Intern? If you want me dead, just say so."
"You are Jie Shuqin's brother, how could I harm you?" Xu An smiled, but Baili Yunle felt that there was a murderous intent in her words, especially when she said the word "brother".
"I'm back! This place is incredible. I just stand on the chain and look around, and I can see the light blue glass light reflected everywhere. Xu An, this is the scenery you would see in the sea, right?" Jie Shuqin's voice fell before he jumped down.
Xu An put his finger on his chin and thought seriously: "Should it be?"
"Haven't you been to the sea?" Xie Shuqin pursed her lips slightly, a little surprised. "I see you've been to so many places, I thought you knew the sea too."
Xu An lowered his eyes and smiled awkwardly. The little alien beside him suddenly flew over and bumped into Jie Shuqin's arms, whimpering and crying.
Xu An exploded instantly.
"What are you doing! Come out! Come out!"
Jie Shuqin felt a little puzzled, but the little alien in her arms stuffed herself even harder, and even deliberately turned out her soft belly. Seeing that Jie Shuqin had no intention of touching her, she rubbed her even harder, making whimpering sounds from time to time.
Xu An was furious.
Xie Shuqin looked at the spoiled little alien in her arms, then looked at Xu An, who was a little furry with anger. The corners of her mouth turned up, and she tilted her head and looked into her eyes deliberately: "Xu An, are you jealous of it?"
"You..." The anger on Xu An's face froze instantly. The next second, she quickly reached out and grabbed the wings of the little alien and lifted it out. She laughed angrily, "Who's jealous? Me? Ridiculous."
She turned gracefully and led the way with both hands and feet.
Xie Shuqin looked at Xu An, then looked at Baili Yunle who was standing beside him with a confused look on his face, shrugged, and followed.
After passing through layers of glass waves, there is an iron gate in front of you.
The door was estimated to be three meters high, with a circular palm print scanner in the middle. Several chains were tightly wrapped around it, faintly flashing a dark light.
"This chain can suppress superpowers." The three of them could clearly feel that their superpowers were being severely suppressed by a force.
Xu An held the little alien and looked at Jie Shuqin: "This door cannot be opened by force. Instead, it will irritate the people inside. It can only be opened by humans."
Xie Shuqin was stunned for a moment, then understood. Just as she was about to put her hand into the scanner, Baili Yunle stopped her, "Let me do it."
Xu An's mouth twitched slightly: "Look at your legs. Even if your genes haven't mutated, the scanner won't recognize you."
Baili Yunle was already very concerned about this matter. After hearing what she said, he snorted coldly: "Really? Then why don't you go and open it? Don't tell me you can't open it either?"
Xie Shuqin punched him.
"Talk less." She quickly stepped between the two of them and reached out her hand decisively.
A mechanical voice sounded: "Scanning..."
The blue scanning screen slowly rotated, and the electric current converged downward along the scattered transparent grooves on the gate, forming a leafless dead tree.
"Scan successful, welcome."
With a "click", the scanner in front of the door cracked in the shape of Tai Chi, and the door slowly opened from the middle.
The chains clanked as they were hit, and cold mist overflowed from the crack in the door, slowly forming a thin layer of ice when it hit the chains.
Xu An stood in front of them, and the cold mist continued to flow in, staining a few drops of water on her eyelashes.
"Does your protective clothing have a warming program?" Xu An asked lightly.
The two exchanged glances, quickly pulling out their spare protective suits and putting them on. "Yes, if all the properties are used for quantum thermal insulation, it can withstand temperatures as low as -80 degrees Celsius."
"That should be enough." Xu An didn't look back and strode in. The two quickly followed. As soon as they stepped into the entrance, a piercing chill invaded from the soles of their feet. They shivered and the protective suits soon showed the temperature - minus 93 degrees.
The biting wind blew from the corridor, making Xu An's temples covered with frost. She exhaled lightly, but it was soon frozen into icy mist and dispersed heavily.
The only sounds in the quiet corridor were the flickering electricity of a few dim lights and the whistling of the wind.
The three of them stood in a line in silence. After passing through the three-hundred-meter-long corridor, they saw an endless stretch of stone steps climbing upwards.
This place is very low from top to bottom. Standing on the stone steps, the top is only a few centimeters higher than Baili Yunle.
"Was this also built by humans on the ground?" Baili Yunle was a little annoyed by the cramped space. "I'm not the tallest person in the base. If it's built like this, if the captain and the others come, they'll have to walk hunched over."
The steps before him had grown some lush green moss because no one had stepped on them for so long. Xu An quickly stepped up. "It's normal for the people above ground to be thin since they've lived underground all year round."
There was no record of these things happening underground all year round. Xie Shuqin followed Xu An decisively and asked her, "Is it because the concentration of bromine mist is low underground that they've been underground all this time?"
Xu An nodded: "Alien species are generally tall and need to eat regularly, so it is inconvenient for them to hide underground."
"Aliens also need to eat?" Xie Shuqin glanced at the little alien lying on Xu An's shoulder, "But there are only some trees on the ground, and nothing else. Could it be that aliens are vegetarians?"
The little alien whimpered something and turned away angrily. Xu An looked at it, and Baili Yunle's voice came from behind him: "Of course it's cannibalism. Don't you remember that day when the moon was full and the aliens on the ground were killing each other?"
The little alien became even angrier, flapping its wings and kicking Baili Yunle's arm with its claws.
"What are you doing!" Although Baili Yunle didn't like being kicked around by such a little thing, he had no choice but to do it because Xu An brought it, so he didn't dare to touch it.
Xu An glanced at him calmly and replied as they walked, "Originally... the alien species didn't eat each other, but the food on the ground has become increasingly scarce. Coupled with the moon's influence on their minds, the instinct for survival has forced them to peel off the skin of their own kind and suck out their brains and flesh."
"You are starving and freezing, are you going to exchange your own children and eat each other?" Xie Shuqin said in a deep voice.
The corridor was very quiet, with only the faint sound of footsteps on the stairs.
After a long silence, Xu An slowly spoke: "No, they would never eat their own children. They would use their own lives to exchange for the lives of their children."
Not sure if it was an illusion, but Xie Shuqin seemed to see a tear falling on Xu An's face.
Before she had time to take a closer look, light shone in from the cave entrance and fell on Xu An. It seemed that for a moment, her black action suit was also glowing.
"Let's go and see what kind of place the humans on the ground live in."
My gaze slowly ascended the steps, and just as they emerged overhead, a fresh breeze washed over me. Then, a crisp sound filled my ears, and a massive waterfall cascaded down the rock face overhead, tumbling violently into the pond. The splashing water soaked the stone embankment beside the pool, and the ground not far from the embankment was also stained with mist.
Various amethyst lamps were placed on candlesticks made of stones in the cave. Nameless green plants fell from overhead, gently swaying in the wind caused by the rolling spring water.
Below them were various small houses built with stones, with mosses growing on the roofs. Their shapes were surprisingly identical to the strange houses just now.
The sound of running water made my head buzz, but it was far less noisy than the clamor of the headset or the harsh sound of gunfire.
Xie Shuqin put her hands to her mouth and yelled at the top of her lungs: "Xu An! What kind of place is this?!"
But soon, the sound was drowned out by the sound of water, and even she herself could not hear clearly. But Xu An still turned around as if she had sensed something.
Xie Shuqin had half of her face splashed with water from the waterfall, and Baili Yunle's fluffy yellow hair was covered with dust and cobwebs, but without exception, they had bright, darting eyes.
"This is probably where humans on the ground lived a hundred years ago." Xu An reached out and knocked on the amethyst lamp next to him. The crisp sound penetrated the waterfall and lit up the other crystal lamps. The cave was dyed with a thin layer of light purple.
"A hundred years ago, when the alien species first appeared, humans were divided into two factions. One faction planned to live on the ground and fight the alien species to the end; the other faction planned to move underground and build a paradise." Xu An walked slowly in and sat on a stone bench not far away.
"So, the ancestors of the humans in the base belonged to the first faction?" Baili Yunle adjusted his hair and sat on the other side. "From this perspective, the humans on the ground are like a group of cowards fleeing a disaster."
"Not everyone has the courage to face disaster, it's just to survive." In order to prevent them from fighting, Xie Shuqin sat between them.
Although this place has been abandoned for a long time, the stone benches and tables are clean. I guess someone comes here regularly to clean them.
Xie Shuqin looked at Xu An: "Xu An, why did you bring us here?"
Xu An glanced around and spoke slowly, "I just wanted to go back and take another look at this place. Ask me about the humans on the ground, and I'll tell you everything."
"Come back to this place again?" Xie Shuqin suddenly thought of the scanner outside the door. "You used to live here? Xu An, you... are not human?"
Xu An chuckled: "Didn't you know this a long time ago?"
"No, I mean..." Xie Shuqin was stunned for a moment. She rubbed her fingertips and sighed, "Forget it, these are not important. If you don't go against the base, we won't be enemies."
Xie Shuqin raised her eyes and said, "Xu An, are the average awakening value of the people on the ground really 50%?"
"Yeah." Xu An nodded slowly, "Without an awakening value of 50, they can't survive under the feet of the mad alien."
Although I had expected it beforehand, it was still unbelievable when I actually got the answer.
Xie Shuqin paused, "What about what you said before, that they would conduct human experiments on alien species and humans, and then combine the two into one?"
"Yeah, otherwise, do you think their abilities are their own?"
Xie Shuqin took a breath of cold air.
When the base was first established, biological scientists calculated that in order to maintain human genes, the awakening value of human superpowers could never exceed 50%, otherwise, they would no longer be human.
Therefore, in order to survive, humans on the ground would rather take risks and transform themselves into monsters that are neither human nor alien.
Baili Yunle had not expected this, but no matter what, the humans on the ground were not the real enemies of the base.
Out of caution, he always kept his guard up against Xu An. After all, nineteen years ago, it was because of his negligence that Baili Yunye died at the hands of those hypocrites. But now, whether Xu An was a bionic man or a ground-based human, he could no longer care about these things.
"I just want to ask you a question." Baili Yunle looked up, "Where did the alien species come from? How can we completely eliminate them?"
It was because of the sudden arrival of the alien species that humans fell into panic, and so many absurd human experiments broke out. His sister died tragically at the hands of those people, and humans were forced to hide in the iron lumps in the sky or the mud underground.
He raised his eyes in struggle and pain, but met Xu An's murderous eyes.
Xu An casually played with the little alien's fleshy wings and said lightly: "You ask too many questions. I'm talking about the humans on the ground."
"Xu An, you know, the base and alien species have always been incompatible. It is the alien species that have made humans homeless. The humans on the ground are also human. What we really want to find is how to eliminate the alien species!"
A murderous intent slowly filled the air.
Xu An raised the corner of his lips, picked up the little alien's wings, and placed them on the center of the table. "Really? You mean, you want to kill her too?"
"She emerged from a sea of blood and corpses. Her special ability is to close the eyes of the consciousness remaining in the alien body, so that they no longer suffer from nerve splitting. You want to kill her too?"
"Or do you want to kill those aliens that can weaken the influence of the strong tide on the aliens, so that they won't kill each other or attack humans?"
"You only blame the aliens for the tragedies caused by humanity's desires, then, ignited by your so-called loyalty and righteousness, shout, 'Take back the ground!'"
As he spoke, Xu An began to laugh, and the more he laughed, the more it sounded like he was wailing.
"Who cares about this damn ground?"
Beneath them, the ground was shaking slightly, and the spring water exploded in an instant, splashing all over the three of them.
Xie Shuqin stared at her blankly, her eyes still bright.
"Xu An..." She spoke softly, but in the next moment, the surroundings shook violently, and rocks kept falling from above her head. A huge rock was slowly lifted up, revealing a dark night and a ferocious head with long white teeth on both sides of the mouth, which was as wide as the cave entrance.
It's a different species.
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