Chapter 89: Need Emotions?
The oil lamps along the entire corridor had been extinguished, leaving behind a deep darkness.
A beam of light swept by in the distance, gradually approaching; it was the beam of the flashlights held by the teammates.
Not daring to stray too far, everyone extinguished all the oil lamps in the corridor and gathered in front of B2205.
The discussion about the mission was interrupted by the sudden disappearance of the voice.
"But it's so strange. Logically speaking, the gatekeeper shouldn't be able to affect the world outside the contaminated zone."
Duan Xi was completely baffled. "Didn't the captain just say that the will-o'-the-wisps wouldn't disappear once they left the contaminated area? But we've already gone out, how can we still be affected by the contaminated area?"
“It’s an emotion,” Yun Zhao suddenly said.
Seeing Xie Tu looking over, she continued, "To give an analogy, the color of will-o'-the-wisp is likened to the strength of the soul. According to the old saying, the human soul is divided into seven emotions and six desires."
“Every time the gatekeeper takes away a bit of emotion, the color of the will-o'-the-wisp fades. Once you leave the contaminated area, the taken-away emotion will not return.”
For example, Zhang Dehui.
He was lucky enough to find the shelter and the key, but by then the will-o'-the-wisp on his forehead might have already turned grayish-black.
When he reached Dawn Base and entered the city, the flames went out, and he was transformed into an emotionless monster.
Yun Zhao's thoughts were exceptionally clear at this moment. No one interrupted her frequently, and she continued along her own train of thought: "As for why the testing equipment malfunctioned, it's probably because the will-o'-the-wisp has the ability to shield against dark matter."
Zhang Dehui has been severely corrupted.
It was only because the will-o'-the-wisp suppressed the dark matter within his body.
Therefore, when he entered the city, the testing equipment malfunctioned and failed to detect the correct pollution concentration.
He passed through security and entered the city, and the flames went out, naturally releasing all the dark matter.
After hearing Xie Tu's explanation of the 'inner and outer worlds', Yun Zhao immediately understood the key point.
Of course, this is just her guess.
However, it should be pretty close to the truth.
The surroundings were completely quiet.
The rabbit blinked, somewhat incredulously, "So the case is solved?"
Sister Yun Zhao is too strong!
Imagine what would happen to them if it weren't for Sister Yun Zhao?
If you can't see the will-o'-the-wisp, you might as well bang your head against the wall and still not find a clue.
“The case remains unsolved,” Yun Zhao said softly. “Knowing this is useless; we still don’t know the rules governing the changes in the flames or the attributes of the gatekeeper.”
This is within its domain.
They were under the watchful eye of the gatekeeper, and their every move could not be hidden from him.
Xie Tu followed her words and began to think.
After the flames died down, all the dark matter was released...
His eyes widened and he immediately said, "Relight all the oil lamps!"
Yun Zhao seemed to have thought of it as well. The moment he finished speaking, a bluish-green fluorescent light emerged, and a barrier was formed instantly.
Using the green light, she looked at everyone's forehead.
really!
The color has changed!
The golden flames on Xie Tu's forehead have now turned white. Meanwhile, the white flames on the foreheads of the other team members have turned into red flames.
Yun Zhao took out the small mirror she had just used, but there was still nothing on her forehead.
“My barrier doesn’t seem to be able to stop the changing flames,” she said, puzzled. “When the will-o’-the-wisps first appeared, we were in the car that had just arrived. At that time, the barrier was still there, and I didn’t feel any mental attack.”
For example, right now, she still hasn't sensed any fluctuations in mental energy.
Those mutants have lost their emotions, so they are uncontrollable, but why can the will-o'-the-wisps pass directly through the barrier and remain untouchable?
The team members realized what was happening and, cursing under their breath, quickly ran over to relight the oil lamp.
"Rotten tomatoes, my foot! This place is really weird!"
"Before, we were dealing with monsters we could see. Now, they can even extract our emotions and turn us into some kind of will-o'-the-wisp color! What kind of science is this?!"
"I'd rather this place be full of Sentinel mutants!"
One by one, the oil lamps were relit, and the corridor was once again dimly lit.
Despite the commotion outside, the figure inside remained motionless, lying on the upper bunk against the wall with his back to them.
His entire body remained completely still, without even a breath.
He looks like a dead person.
Yun Zhao ignored him and asked Xie Tu, "Do you feel anything? Like, is there some emotion missing?"
Xie Tu tensed his jawline, released his senses, and said, "I don't feel anything."
"However, it can be ruled out that the gatekeeper is not a 'human' creature."
This indirect yet comprehensive way of influencing things is more like the power of some kind of rule or domain at work.
So far, they have not suffered any physical attacks, nor have they experienced any strong mental fluctuations.
What items require emotion?
Xie Tu's thoughts raced through his mind. He considered a variety of possibilities, but none of them seemed to fit the current situation perfectly.
The 'swish' sound that bridges the two worlds, the leaking water pipe, the clock striking twelve...
They were all rejected one by one.
At this point, after the oil lamp was relit, the four teammates ran back again.
Tao Haohao craned his neck to look into the room. "Captain, should we try to wake him up?"
Xie Tu's expression was indifferent. "Not for now. Let's go upstairs and take a look first."
They needed to investigate the situation in the underworld, and it was impossible for them to bring an outsider along.
There's a mutant in the area, so it's not convenient to discuss the mission.
"yes!"
The group followed the path they had come from, exited the corridor, and arrived at the manual elevator next to the oval plaza.
The square tents stood silently in the square. They were made of heavy canvas, their colors had become dull and old, and they were covered with a thin layer of dust.
In the shadowy corner, unseen black matter wriggled, casting long, distorted shadows from the tent in the dim light of the oil lamp.
The little bluebird gently flapped its wings, and green fluorescence spread out.
It captures and devours these dark substances.
Yun Zhao followed his teammates into the cage-like elevator, where a barrier remained constantly surrounding them.
Tao Haohao closed the iron gate and began to turn the disc, causing the iron chain to slide.
—Crunch, crunch.
The chains and gears rubbed against each other, producing a dull and grating sound that seemed particularly jarring in the quiet square.
No one spoke.
The sentries were sensing the situation upstairs, while Yun Zhao wondered, what item... required turning the page and also required emotions?
Music box?
The 'swish' sound didn't sound like a box being opened; it sounded more like the turning of pages in a book, but something thicker than a book, making the sound more muffled.
She was very quiet as she pondered, her head lowered, her expression hidden, and she seemed to be lost in thought.
Xie Tu stood behind her, worried that she might slip and fall if the elevator braked, so he reached out to support her.
"Captain, is there a data room in the shelter?" Yun Zhao asked.
Xie Tu seemed to understand what she was thinking and nodded, "Yes, it's upstairs."
It can no longer be called a data room.
Instead, it is the "National Crisis Data Reserve Archive".
That was a spark of hope left to future generations by the military, which had already prepared for the fall of the city.
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