honeycomb
"A Level 5 mutant queen ant in a heavily polluted area is undergoing its third molting. If you don't kill her in time, it will have an immeasurable impact on the dungeon. Your tearing power may be the only force that can break open the cocoon. Kill the queen ant and give me the beast core you obtained."
Liu Xia didn't say anything, just listened quietly.
Shen Wanren paused, looking into Liu Xia's eyes, trying to probe her thoughts, but finding nothing, he could only continue: "I can guarantee that you and your companions will have unimpeded access to the underground city in the future, and I will regularly provide you with the district-level manager's salary every month, as well as long-term free housing."
"City Lord Shen, what a clever plan." Liu Xia chuckled noncommittally, "I can agree to your deal, but I have a condition."
"Please go ahead."
"Release He Tianlin first, otherwise there's no need to talk about it." Liu Xia's tone was unyielding.
Shen Wanren’s voice hesitated for a while, as if he was thinking about Liu Xia’s conditions.
The armored vehicle rolled over the shell of the mutant alligator snapping turtle, and the violent shaking caused the guard's gun muzzle to deviate from Liu Xia's head from time to time.
Shen Wanren's voice paused for five seconds before continuing: "I agree to your conditions."
"It's a pleasure to work with you." At this time, Liu Xia quietly relaxed his grip on the chain and raised his hand to gesture towards the wolf-eye specimen, with a nonchalant smile on his face, "Can you untie this chain? It's very uncomfortable for the person tied up."
About ten minutes later, twelve armored vehicles with a black metallic luster drove into a huge air-raid shelter and disappeared one by one in the sunset, as if they were gradually swallowed by a giant in deep space.
Unlike the Colosseum, which still retains the primitive method of using flames to illuminate some areas, the dungeon lord's territory is obviously much more advanced and retains traces of technological development.
After a brief period of darkness, a faint blue light illuminated the cave wall as the wheels rolled past.
The armored vehicle stopped in front of a ten-story rock wall. The rock wall was embedded with honeycomb-shaped biochemical cabins that glowed with blue light. Two elevators were still running, and staff members in uniform lead-gray clothes walked out from time to time.
“Welcome to the Hive.” Shen Wanren’s voice came from the front seat of the car, with a hint of pride in his tone.
"Sister Xia!"
As soon as the handcuffs on Liu Xia's hands were removed, he saw He Tianlin running towards him with a happy look on his face.
Obviously, after reaching an agreement with Shen Wanren, the current situation of the three has temporarily changed from prisoners to guests of the Hive.
But at this time, the boy still had a metal electronic collar around his neck, and green numbers were scrolling on the collar's display screen.
Shen Wanren had taken off his mask and walked slowly from the right. He raised his hand to light the tritium lamp on the dome, and cold light poured down.
He saw Liu Xia's confusion and said, "Don't be nervous. It's just a small safety measure, a device to monitor radiation levels."
This was the first time Liu Xia saw Shen Wanren’s face directly, and it was not quite the same majesty as he had imagined.
Apart from the strange feeling brought by the blue crystal lines, the soft bones and thin cheeks formed a sharp contrast with the lead-gray city lord's uniform, and the hoarse and low voice was very inconsistent with this face.
Judging from his face alone, it would not be an exaggeration to say that Shen Wanren is a gentle and elegant university professor.
Shen Wanren waved his hand, and a guard came forward to remove the electronic collar from He Tianlin's neck.
"Someone will take you to the rest area to regroup. The hunting equipment is in area B7. Go and familiarize yourself with the weapons. You will set off tomorrow. I will arrange for guards to escort you there..."
Before he finished speaking, Shen Wanren suddenly unfolded his handkerchief, covered his mouth with pain, and coughed twice before continuing: “As long as you kill the mutant queen ant, you can come back to receive long-term housing and the monthly district manager salary.”
After finishing speaking, Shen Wanren turned around and left without looking back. It seemed that he did not intend to communicate further with Liu Xia.
"What a strange person." Liu Xia thought to himself.
Although Liu Xia had many questions about this world, she would not directly ask Shen Wanren, who she could not tell whether he was a friend or an enemy. At present, the only people she could trust were He Tianlin and Ding Ruotong.
The three followed the guard and took the elevator to the B5 area lounge. The pure white interior area had turned a little yellow, obviously it had been used for a long time.
This lounge consists of four rooms, including a living room where you can rest and eat, two bedrooms, and a bathroom where you can take a shower. It has everything you need.
After sending the person to the station, the guard pointed to the button on the wall and said, "If you need anything, press this to connect to the communications room."
After saying that, he retreated silently, only closing the door gently before leaving.
Some canned goods and changes of clothes had been placed in the living room, which were obviously prepared in advance. It seemed that Shen Wanren was very confident that he could bring Liu Xia back.
He Tianlin's eyes widened as he stared at the canned goods on the table. As soon as the guard left, he happily rushed over: "Wow, it's canned luncheon meat. As expected of the dungeon lord, he has a lot of good stuff in his pocket."
Liu Xia and Ding Ruotong didn't seem so excited. One of them often saw fresh ingredients in the real world and looked down on this kind of thing, while the other was used to human-machine interactions.
He Tianlin pushed the opened can of beef in front of Liu Xia like he was presenting a treasure, grinning happily: "The last time I ate canned food was ten years ago."
Liu Xia took the can and found that the production date was 2315.11.11 and the expiration date column was clearly printed with "20 years".
"2315?" Liu Xia was shocked and looked at the date imprint on the can in disbelief.
"Xiao He, what year is it now?" Liu Xia asked.
He Tianlin used the silver cutlery on the table to cut open the luncheon meat, picked out a large piece, and began to devour it, revealing two sharp canine teeth. He grinned and said, "2325, Sister Xia, the surname Chen is really good. There are still canned luncheon meat within the shelf life. It tastes much better than the one I ate when I was a child. It tasted like a tire soaked in formaldehyde."
2325…?
Liu Xia still remembers that it was July 2025 in the real world.
Is this the world 300 years from now?!
So why did she come here?
What exactly happened in the real world that caused the world to become like this 300 years later?
Is World War III happening? Or is the world we live in now a parallel universe to Blue Planet?
When Liu Xia escaped from the Colosseum, he had already begun to doubt the subway stations, high-rise buildings, armored vehicles, and all kinds of things that overlapped with reality.
Ding Ruotong sat cross-legged on the sofa, obviously not interested in the canned luncheon meat. On her knees was a torn copy of "Ecological Atlas of Radiation Zones", which had originally been placed in the room.
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