Everyone in Zone 01 was anxiously whispering, and as if sensing something, they all looked up at the sky.
Suddenly, the massive spirit entity became extremely unstable, and tiny ripples of particles seemed to vibrate in the air.
Then, Director Qiu’s face changed dramatically: “Quick! Get down!”
The well-trained crowd also turned pale and immediately sought cover!
The dark sky and the scattered rain seemed to be shaken and distorted, and three seconds later, loud explosions “bang” “bang” burst forth.
—All the glass in Zone 01 shattered at the same time! The walls seemed to start shaking.
This was the sign of a psychic power rampage beginning!
“Quick! Evacuate!”
Without hesitation, everyone quickly retreated towards the direction of the parked helicopter.
…
Shu Tang went against the crowd towards Zone 01, everyone hurried along, and a large flow of people swarmed outside.
Shu Tang also knew today’s situation was dangerous, and feeling anxious, she grabbed an alpha therapist to ask if there was a shortcut? Perhaps seeing her urgency, the alpha pointed out a path to Shu Tang.
As Shu Tang walked further, fewer people passed by her side. By the time she reached Zone 03, she almost thought there was no one nearby.
The rain poured down, the sky turned pitch black, and everything fell into silence.
The ground was all water, reaching below Shu Tang’s knees.
Surrounded by darkness, she took a deep breath, almost able to hear the echo of her own breathing.
Although Shu Tang was a bit scared, she knew by the looks of it that Zone 03 was like this, people in Zone 01 probably had already fled. She didn’t know what was happening here, and she even faintly heard the sound of something exploding nearby.
Shu Tang was anxious, especially afraid that if she found the mermaid and missed the last truck, both of them would be doomed.
She simply rolled up her trouser legs, waded through the water from the corridor, and hurriedly ran forward in the dark.
Shu Tang was desperate like “What to do if the house cat is lost and not even the scissor method works?”
Shu Tang’s high school desk mate had a cat, and the time it got lost, she dragged Shu Tang crying, unable to catch her breath, and conjured up a tragic world with her vivid imagination. At that time, Shu Tang couldn’t empathize, but now, she felt the same.
Her mind was a mess, one moment thinking there seemed to have been a small explosion here, wondering if the mermaid hiding in the corner was safe; the next moment worrying if little Rose would be drowned.
But “he” seemed to be a fish—
What if there was a leakage in the water?
At this moment, another group of people was also in a rush.
It was Colonel Chen Sheng, who was hastily searching for Shu Tang with his trusted alphas.
These alphas were truly in a state of despair, as if the sky was about to collapse.
After failing to find the person in charge of Zone 01 via walkie-talkie, their last hope was also on the brink of shattering.
Colonel Chen’s adjutant was urgently persuading Chen Sheng, who was rushing back to the sanatorium. The elite alphas behind him also had tense expressions, but they couldn’t just watch as a founding hero crossed over to the side of humanity and became a true monster.
Thus, with hearts feeling as if the sky had fallen, the two sides fatefully met.
Shu Tang immediately recognized the kind-hearted person who had given her directions on the day of the blind date.
She called out to the group of hastily moving alphas.
Colonel Chen, leading his trusted aides, was searching frantically when suddenly he heard Shu Tang’s voice, which sounded like music from heaven.
The two sides met hurriedly, both extremely excited.
Especially the alphas with Colonel Chen, who looked at Shu Tang as if they were looking at a star of hope.
However, at this moment, these seasoned alpha warriors, who had weathered many storms, did not realize that the conversation that was about to unfold would shock even them, who had seen much of the world.
It started with Shu Tang’s startling call of “Little Chen.”
Immediately after, Shu Tang anxiously asked, “Little Chen, have the people in Zone 01 evacuated? What about the blue rose?”
Colonel Chen, slightly shocked by “Little Chen,” stopped in his tracks, puzzled: Who? What blue rose?
Clearly, everyone was confused, but the situation was urgent, and there was no time to ask further.
Colonel Chen quickly got to the point:
“Therapist Shu, do you remember the patient you saw in Zone 01 that day?”
“His psychic power is out of control today, and the situation is very dangerous. We need your help!”
In a way, asking someone to approach a founding hero in the current situation was almost like sending them to their death.
Colonel Chen had already prepared himself, ready to pay a great cost, as long as—
Shu Tang: “Okay!”
Shu Tang was worried. The little rose was not only scared but also had a psychic outburst. Just thinking about it made her anxious: “Little Chen, hurry and take me to him.”
A group of alphas were shocked and confused, but they were moved by Shu Tang’s fearless tone, treating her as a brave soul ready to sacrifice herself, and they respected her deeply: True alphas cannot be judged by their appearances.
Then, they hurriedly took Shu Tang towards Zone 01.
The closer they got to Zone 01, the stronger the vague sense of oppression became, as if the air itself was slightly distorting.
It seemed to signal that some danger was not far away.
Just now, they had discovered that Subject 001 had returned to the restricted area. However, this clearly had no effect, as Subject 001’s riotous mental power could easily destroy the entire sanatorium.
Chen Sheng looked at the commendable alpha next to him and couldn’t help but warn:
“His situation is quite special, and his mental strength is very strong. Going in there, you might be in grave danger.”
Upon hearing this, Shu Tang immediately said, “It’s okay, he may have a bad temper, but he’s still reasonable to talk to.”
Chen Sheng: ?
Everyone else: ??
If not for the current emergency, they would almost think they were dreaming.
Who is reasonable to talk to?
But soon, everyone sobered up.
Because Shu Tang then threw out an even more explosive question:
“So, Little Chen, after I bring him out, can the evacuation trucks in Zone 01 wait for us?”
This question scared everyone into a cold sweat—
Others: No, why do you think we are evacuating?
One alpha couldn’t help but blurt out, “Therapist Shu, by that time, you won’t need to escape anymore.”
Another said, “Yeah, yeah, as long as we survive tonight, we’ll be safe.”
The oblivious Shu Tang thought to herself:
True, the disaster scene at the sanatorium now, already ravaged once by that terrible entity from the forbidden area, meant the danger was now gone.
She immediately relaxed.
Finally, they reached Zone 01.
The crowd no longer moved forward because they had reached the core of the dangerous zone.
Chen Sheng led Shu Tang into the elevator and after a moment of silence, he handed his protective suit to Shu Tang.
Touched, Shu Tang said, “Little Chen, you are such a good person.”
Chen Sheng felt mixed emotions. He initially wanted Shu Tang to stop calling him “Little Chen,” but then he thought, if things didn’t go well today and she couldn’t get out, he remained silent. Not only did he accept the nickname “Little Chen,” but he also took off his hat in the elevator and gave Shu Tang a military salute.
Shu Tang: ?
Shu Tang: Why such a grand gesture just for pressing an elevator button?
Hesitantly, Shu Tang said, “You’re welcome.”
But suddenly, Shu Tang became very uneasy, looking at Chen Sheng as if she wanted to say something but hesitated.
Thinking she was about to leave her last words, Chen Sheng empathetically asked:
“Miss Shu, is there any urgent difficulty your family needs to resolve?”
“Or any other requests, just let me know…”
Shu Tang: “….”
“Little Chen, could you please speak to Director Zhou in the emergency department, and ask him not to dock my pay?”
This was the last bit of defiance from an intern.
As Shu Tang stepped into the restricted area, Chen Sheng said nothing.
Before the elevator started, he gave Shu Tang one last piece of advice:
“Do not approach rashly. Try to release your spirit body; if the spirit body doesn’t work, come back to the elevator. I will wait outside in Zone 01 for thirty minutes.”
Chen Sheng was still very conscientious. He even gave Shu Tang time to reconsider, knowing that these short thirty minutes were the most he could risk to obtain.
—He hoped Shu Tang would make good use of it.
If possible, for the sake of the honored, take a chance;
If not, he hoped these thirty minutes could give Shu Tang a way to survive.
…
This was Shu Tang’s second time entering the restricted area.
The first time she came for a blind date, this time she came to find “the cat.”
If Shu Tang was some sort of formidable heroine, she would have quickly realized the precariousness of her situation within these thirty minutes and, acting with the urgency of life and death, would use her intelligence to find a way to survive against all odds.
However, it is clear that Shu Tang is meant to be an expendable character, as she completely wasted these crucial thirty minutes.
For the first twenty minutes, Shu Tang kept searching every corner and dark room, looking for the mermaid.
She was also calling out affectionately, with names like “little rose” and “little fish.”
—This is quite normal; this is generally how one would search for a lost cat.
Although the mermaid was a fish, Shu Tang was the actual cat. However, this did not prevent Shu Tang from thinking of the mermaid, who liked to hide in the dark cluttered rooms and secretly curl up next to her at night, as a little kitten.
Having been there once, getting acquainted the second time, Shu Tang now knew her way around. Using the light from her communicator, she searched the pitch-dark abandoned sanatorium, but it was empty except for the echo of her footsteps.
At this point, the god-like teammate Colonel Chen had secured her 30 minutes, of which 20 had already passed, and Shu Tang finally remembered Chen’s admonition.
Right, she could send out her spirit body to search.
Shu Tang’s spirit body was an orange cat.
In her freshman year, Shu Tang had successfully manifested her spirit body for the first time.
Amidst the class full of fierce monsters roaring and howling, someone was quite surprised to exclaim:
“Why is there a big chicken leg in our classroom?”
Cat “A” turned around: ?
Who’s the big chicken leg?
Indeed, Shu Tang’s spirit body was an authentically orange cat, which from behind looked like a plump chicken leg; when curled up, it resembled an orange fluffy cushion.
Shu Tang was very pleased with her fur color; even if it resembled a chicken leg, it was not bad, especially compared to some canine spirit bodies that, because of their long hair, resembled a walking mop in corners.
Although its small size limited its lethality, making it virtually useless in the front-line contaminated areas, Shu Tang was still quite satisfied with it; at least it had four legs that could run swiftly, often outpacing the average alpha when fleeing.
She stretched the limbs of her spirit body and began searching everywhere for the mermaid.
A spirit body is essentially a mass of energy, appearing as a faintly glowing transparent apparition.
Normally, unless for healing or combat, people wouldn’t just let their spirit bodies roam around.
Since the discovery of spirit bodies, human bases have adopted measures to prevent them from snooping, both to guard against spirit body attacks and theft of secrets, and to prevent perverts from using them to peek at others bathing. Strict laws have even been enacted for this.
Naturally, the sanatorium had these restrictions as well, but since the power was out, Shu Tang’s spirit body could roam freely.
Thus, in the dark sanatorium, a big orange chicken leg was agilely moving around.
Drumstick: Where is my fish? Where is my fish?