Mou Xuan's tactical boots crushed a piece of compacted soil, and the farming area of the alliance base was fully revealed in the morning mist.
A few withered crops stood scattered among the cracked ridges, with crystals similar to glass fragments condensed on their leaves.
He raised his hand to signal the inspection team to stop, and the holographic data network projected by the watch covered the entire land.
"The organic matter content is 0.3%." Agronomist Meng pushed up his glasses, and the artificial lenses reflected a light green spectrum. "We must use the three-level composting method, with a ratio of 30 tons of humus per hectare..."
"Bullshit!" Farmer Du pulled off his straw hat, revealing his bronzed forehead. "Where can we find 30 tons of humus now? According to our ancestors' method, burning straw and mixing it with wood ash is the right way!"
The quarrel between the two startled the mechanical crow on the ridge of the field.
Mou Xuan stared at the red warning flashing on the data network. The dull pain from the tactical belt against his ribs reminded him of the failed raid three days ago.
Chen Yao's fingers suddenly covered his clenched fist, delivering a soft touch through the tactical gloves.
"We found a suspected basement entrance 300 meters from the clock tower." She tiptoed close to Mou Xuan's ear, her breath sweeping across the filter valve of his tactical mask, "Uncle Du dug up the emergency exit of the Agricultural Science Academy when he was repairing the canal last year."
The alloy gate of the Academy of Agricultural Sciences was left with spider-web-like cracks by the mutated vines.
Mou Xuan used his time ability to make the door lock gear rotate counterclockwise twelve times, and the old engine oil dripped down the blackened hinges.
Chen Yao's dagger accurately cut off the tumor-like bacteria growing behind the door. When the fluorescent spores exploded above their heads, the tactical flashlight illuminated the faded words "Top Secret" on the doorplate of the archive room.
"Predators are not welcome here." A mechanical voice came from the darkness with the noise of electricity. The spider-shaped maintenance robot controlled by Technician Zhong dropped from the ceiling. Eight optical lenses locked onto the intruder. "The database was formatted three months ago."
Mou Xuan took off his tactical mask, revealing an old wound on his left forehead that went diagonally through his brow bone - it was caused by a stray bullet on the night the Agricultural Science Academy fell.
He pointed the miniature projector on his tactical belt at the wall, and the blue light screen reproduced the scene of the two of them debugging the breeding machine together.
"I need the molecular formula of T-7 soil conditioner." He threw a half-broken chip to the other party, with dried blood on the interface. "This is what Mr. Zhong entrusted to me before he died."
The robotic arm controlled by the technician suddenly froze, and a shrill buzzing sound came from the built-in speaker.
Chen Yao took the opportunity to plug the data cable into the hidden port of the console, and the biometric lock on her wrist flashed a faint light - it was the same bracelet that Technician Zhong's daughter wore before her death.
When Mou Xuan returned to the base with the encrypted hard drive, the setting sun was dyeing the protective net of the farming area orange-red.
Chen Yao squatted in the makeshift disinfection cabin to clean her equipment, and the zipper of her tactical vest got caught in her scattered hair.
When Mou Xuan reached out to help her untie her hair, his fingertips accidentally brushed the exposed skin on the back of her neck. At the same time, they both heard the unusual sound of the disinfectant spray device starting up.
Suddenly, there was a sound of something heavy collapsing from the direction of the warehouse. Administrator Luo's panicked shout penetrated the soundproof wall: "The temperature control system of the seed bank has failed!"
Mou Xuan rushed towards the direction where the alarm lights were flashing, his tactical boots crushing the wheat grains scattered on the ground.
The surface of the seeds, which should have been golden, now had dark red veins resembling blood vessels appearing on it.
There were three claw marks on Fan Seed Collector's tactical backpack, and dark humus was spilling from the gaps.
He knelt on the inspection table and rummaged through the layers of his backpack. The seed fragments embedded in his fingernails were a gray-green color with mold. "It's all over..." The middle-aged man who once risked his life to cross the radiation zone said with a rolling throat, "The last bag of hybrid rice seeds was soaked by acid rain at Qingpu Bridge."
Chen Yao took the detector and scanned the remaining embryos. The red numbers jumping on the screen made Agronomist Meng pound the table.
The ultraviolet lamp on top of the disinfection cabin suddenly exploded, and the flying glass fragments created sparks on Mou Xuan's tactical suit. He raised his hand to block Chen Yao who was about to rush over.
"Three months ago, we didn't even have a water purifier." Mou Xuan picked up a still-active buckwheat seed with the tip of his military boots. The seed cracked into a tender yellow germ in his palm. "The 27 wild plant gene maps that Lao Fan brought back are enough for us to build a radiation-resistant sample library."
Suddenly, there was a sound of glassware exploding in Liang soil expert's laboratory.
When everyone rushed in, this strange man who always wore a gas mask was inserting three electrodes into the body of the mutant earthworm, and draft papers with spiral structures drawn on them were scattered on the operating table. "We need ruthenium-106 isotope." His hoarse voice came through the voice changer, "and..." His slime-covered finger pointed out the window, "the primitive bacterial flora in the tunnel of the old subway line 7."
The moment the air condensed, the locator on Mou Xuan's tactical belt suddenly beeped.
He called up the holographic map and saw that the dark red area representing the radiation value strangely appeared pure dark blue in the seventh zone. This abnormal phenomenon was the last image sent back by the drone before it lost contact three days ago.
"Prepare light armored vehicles." Mou Xuan synchronized the coordinates of the seventh zone to everyone's terminal. Chen Yao's fingers, which were sorting the medical bag, paused for half a second imperceptibly.
When she turned around, the tactical dagger accidentally cut the rubber pad of the laboratory table, revealing the remaining pages of "District 7 Incident Report" repeatedly traced with blood.
Seed collector Fan suddenly opened his shirt, revealing hideous claw marks on his collarbone: "Last month at the mouth of the Huangpu River, I saw mutated algae that could swallow radiation..." Agronomist Meng grabbed his arm fiercely, but the old farmer's cracked palm pressed on the armored vehicle key sensing area first.
"To enter the radiation zone, you have to bring my soil tester." Liang soil expert removed the filter valve of his gas mask, revealing his jaw that was burned by chemicals. "I participated in the reconstruction of the subway tunnel in 2019..."
The alarm suddenly blew up, and in the dust raised by the second collapse of the warehouse, Manager Luo rushed out holding a half-broken emergency light: "Those wheat seeds...the wheat seeds are glowing!" Everyone turned their heads to look, and saw that the dark red lines seeping out of the cracks in the constant temperature chamber flickered like breathing, as if countless dormant blood vessels were awakening.
Mou Xuan grabbed the equipment bag and smashed it on the hood of the armored vehicle. The sound of metal collision startled the last mechanical crow on the eaves. "Chen Yao will lead the first team to isolate the bacterial flora, and Lao Fan will be responsible for vehicle modification." He took off his tactical gloves, and the old scars on his palms scraped against the armored vehicle shell, making a harsh sound. "In two hours, I want to see the real-time modeling of the seventh zone thirty meters underground."
Chen Yao's tactical mask reflected the profile of Mou Xuan. When the windproof lenses dimmed automatically, she saw three parallel scratches on the back of the man's neck - they were left when he was attacked by mutant vines three days ago.
The signal receiver on top of the armored vehicle suddenly turned to the southeast, and the receiving frequency strangely resonated with the pulsation of the glowing wheat seeds in the constant temperature cabin.
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