Three nights after Qin Weiguo and Chu Hang's "loud conspiracy," it was 7 PM on the final day of the Scavenger Plan.
Panshi Fortress, Underground Seventh Floor, Central Water Hub.
Beneath the massive alloy dome stood a dense forest of thick pipes, resembling a steel jungle.
The air was humid and stuffy, filled with the scent of disinfectant, ozone, and a faint, indescribable earthy smell, like the silt of an underground riverbed.
This was the fortress's lifeline, the core of the purified water supply that hundreds of thousands of survivors depended on for survival.
Countless thick alloy pipes continuously transported clean water, purified, filtered, and disinfected through multiple layers, to every corner of the fortress.
At this moment, inside the Water Hub Control Room.
On the huge holographic screen, real-time water quality monitoring data refreshed like a waterfall: PH value, turbidity, residual chlorine content, heavy metal ion concentration, microbial indicators... all data fluctuated steadily within the green safety zone.
Several technicians in white uniforms sat in front of the control console, intently monitoring various parameters, occasionally exchanging a few quiet words.
The only sounds in the air were the low hum of instruments and the subtle clicks of keyboards; everything... was orderly.
No one noticed.
In the most bottom layer of the Water Hub, within the labyrinthine complex of return water pipe networks.
At the interface of an auxiliary pipe, only twenty centimeters in diameter, connected to the upper-level medical wastewater treatment unit.
A drop... of dark red, viscous liquid, emitting an extremely faint but indescribably cold and dead aura... was slowly sliding down the pipe wall.
That drop of liquid... seemed to possess life!
Upon contact with the continuously flowing, turbid wastewater that had undergone preliminary sedimentation treatment below... it did not immediately dissolve or dilute!
Instead... like ink dropping into clear water... it instantly spread out!
Countless extremely tiny dark red particles, carried by the rushing wastewater... surged towards the downstream biochemical treatment tank!
One minute ago.
Special Care Ward.
Ling Chen leaned "weakly" against Chen Xue, his face as pale as paper, lips cracked, and breathing faint and rapid.
Chen Xue carefully held a cup of warm water with one hand, gently supporting the back of his neck, bringing the rim of the cup close to his cracked lips.
"Drink slowly... don't choke..."
Chen Xue's eyes were filled with tenderness and worry.
The soft silver light in her palm flowed continuously into Ling Chen's body like a warm stream, attempting to soothe his "painful" nerves and "damaged" internal organs.
Ling Chen's lips parted slightly, and he "with great difficulty" sipped the warm water from the cup.
The moment the warm water moistened his lips!
His tightly closed teeth... very slightly... clenched together!
The movement was as subtle as a tremor in breathing! So fast that even Chen Xue, who was so close, didn't notice at all!
A tiny, warm, dark red liquid... silently seeped out from between his tightly clenched lips! Like the smallest drop of blood! Silently... dripped! Merging into... that cup of clear warm water!
The dark red blood drop rapidly spread and diffused in the water! Like ink dripping into clear water!
Instantly coloring the warm water in the cup... with an extremely faint, almost imperceptible... light pink hue!
At the same time, a wave of will instantly spread out!
Though as weak as a flickering candle in the wind! It carried the aura of a polluted origin!
I am a Mutant, what do you think my blood does?
"Ugh..." Ling Chen let out an extremely "painful" groan from his throat, his body suddenly convulsing! As if struck by intense pain! He "powerlessly" turned his head away, avoiding the rim of the cup.
"What's wrong? Ling Chen? Where does it hurt?" Chen Xue was startled, her hand trembling, almost dropping the water cup! She quickly put down the cup, pressing her hands more firmly on Ling Chen's shoulders, silver light pouring out frantically! Trying to suppress his "pain"!
"Water... no more." Ling Chen's voice was hoarse, weak, and filled with deep fatigue.
He "with difficulty" raised his right hand, which was not in a cast, and "very weakly" pointed to the inconspicuous small washbasin beneath the bedside table.
"Ugh... I want to throw up..."
He frowned "painfully," and dry retching sounds came from his throat.
Chen Xue immediately understood!
She thought Ling Chen was nauseous and had an upset stomach! She quickly picked up the cup of warm water, which only a small sip had been taken from and had a faint pink tint, and walked quickly to the washbasin.
She didn't hesitate or suspect anything! She directly poured the remaining water in the cup... all into the drain of the washbasin!
Whoosh—!
The warm water, containing a drop of Ling Chen's original Dragon Blood, instantly rushed into the drainpipe! Following the complex medical wastewater pipe network... surging downwards! Converging into... the Underground Seventh Floor... that vast, like a giant beast's blood vessel... Central Water Hub!
A drop of blood! A drop of polluted blood containing the origin of Bone Eater Stage Peak, Soul Jade Physique, and Dragon Qi! Just like that... silently... merged into... the life source of Panshi Fortress!
Time: 4 hours after poisoning, 11 PM.
Location: Fortress Lower Level, D-Zone Soldier Collective Dormitory.
Inside the massive alloy cabin, the air was filled with the smell of sweat, engine oil, and cheap tobacco.
Hundreds of exhausted soldiers, who had just finished their shifts, were crowded in the narrow wash area, rinsing the oil and sweat from their faces with cold water.
Faucets gurgled, and many directly drank large gulps of cold water from the faucets, trying to dispel their body's fatigue and throat's thirst.
"Damn it! The West Gate defense line was almost breached by those bastard ghouls today! I'm exhausted!"
A burly man, shirtless, revealing strong muscles and several fresh scars, wiped the water droplets from his face and grumbled to the person next to him.
"Tell me about it! We almost ran out of ammo! And those bigwigs upstairs are still bickering!"
A lanky soldier next to him took a big gulp of water, mumbling in agreement.
Suddenly!
"Ugh..."
The lanky soldier's body suddenly stiffened! The water cup in his hand clattered to the ground! His hands frantically clutched his throat!
His face instantly turned beet red! His eyeballs bulged like goldfish! Filled with bloodshot veins! A strange, wheezing sound, like a broken bellows, came from his throat!
"Hey! Old Li! What's wrong with you?!" The burly man next to him was startled and quickly stepped forward to support him.
Splatter—!!!
The lanky soldier suddenly spat out a mouthful of... dark red, foamy... foul blood! The blood splattered all over the burly man's face! Immediately after!
His body began to convulse violently! On the surface of his skin, black-blue blood vessels wriggled and bulged wildly like earthworms! His skin visibly became gray and lost its luster at a rapid pace!
The whites of his eyes were quickly covered by scarlet bloodshot veins!
His pupils... began to dilate! A... cold, brutal, beast-like... aura... slowly emanated from him!
"Corpse... Corpse transformation?! Was he scratched during the day? What are those people in the Medical Center doing?!" The burly man's eyes widened in terror! He screamed!
"Roar—!!!"
Responding to him! Was a roar filled with brutality and bloodlust... an inhuman roar! The lanky soldier... no! It was a ghoul!
With a madness that sought to tear everything apart! It fiercely pounced!
Splatter—!!!
Sharp teeth instantly tore through the burly man's neck! Hot blood spurted out like a fountain! Splattering the entire wash area!
"Ah—!!!"
"Corpse transformation! It's a corpse transformation!!!"
"Run!!!"
Piercing screams, terrified shouts, the roars of ghouls... instantly shattered the dormitory's peace! Like a spark thrown into boiling oil! Instantly igniting chaos!
Location: Fortress Medical Center, Emergency Hall.
This place... had already become a living hell!
The piercing alarm blared frantically like a death knell!
Blinding red lights flashed wildly under the pale illumination! The air was filled with an intensely nauseating smell of blood, disinfectant, and... an indescribable stench, like rotting corpses!
In the hall! In the corridors! Inside the wards! Everywhere were... madly biting and attacking... ghouls! And soldiers and medical personnel who had been bitten and were either painfully mutating or had already turned into new ghouls!
Dismembered limbs were scattered everywhere! Organs and intestines dragged in pools of blood! Walls and ceilings were splattered with viscous blood and brain matter!
Screams, wails, roars, gunshots, the clang of metal... intertwined into a mad and desperate symphony of death!
"Hold the line! Hold the line! Lay down suppressive fire! Don't let them break into the critical care zone!"
A military officer, covered in blood, with a large chunk of flesh torn from his left arm, roared hoarsely! His assault rifle spat fire!
Several Pounce ghouls were shot into a bloody mess by him! But... more ghouls! They surged from all directions like a tide!
They were swift! Immensely strong! Fearless of death! Ordinary bullets hitting them, unless a headshot, simply couldn't stop their frantic advance!
"Medic! Medic! We need support here! Little Zhang was bitten! Quick!"
In a corner, several soldiers, using overturned hospital beds and equipment as cover, desperately resisted the ghouls' assault! A young soldier lay on the ground, his thigh tightly clamped by a ghoul!
Blood gushed out! He let out a piercing scream!
"Lord Silver Priest! Where is Chen Xue?! Quickly, have her come! Her light energy can suppress the ghoul virus!" Someone shrieked in despair!
But... where was Chen Xue?
Outside the special isolation ward.
The heavy alloy door was tightly shut.
Inside, Chen Xue's face was ashen, her hands pressed tightly against the door panel, soft silver light surging frantically from her palms, forming a thin, rippling energy shield that firmly resisted the ghouls' frantic pounding and scratching from outside the door!
Bang, bang, bang! Bang, bang, bang! The alloy door panel vibrated violently under the impact of immense force!
It let out a grating groan! The door panel was already covered in deep claw marks and dents!
"Ling Chen... don't be afraid... I will protect you..."
Chen Xue's voice was tearful and trembling, yet filled with an undeniable resolve!
She looked back at Ling Chen, who was still "unconscious" on the bed, her eyes filled with determination!
She didn't know what was happening outside! Why were there so many ghouls!
But she knew... she had to hold this door! She absolutely couldn't let anything... harm Ling Chen!
Outside the door! In the corridor! Over a dozen berserk ghouls, contaminated by dragon blood, were frantically pounding on the ward door! Their crimson eyes were filled with a frantic craving for the pure life essence within the door... and a primal fear... and submission... towards a higher-level existence?! The force of the impacts... grew fiercer with each blow!
Ling Chen felt quite helpless. Hours ago, he had subtly tried to convey to this girl that she should leave. In just over ten days, to gain such a level of trust from a healing-type ability user, he didn't want this nearly perfect pawn to suddenly die.
But the girl... seemed to want to push him down today... An hour ago, she had blushed and directly kissed him!
There was nothing he could do; he could only secretly use his mind to draw some ghouls over. Since you want to stay with me, then just stay like this.
"This is truly... too outrageous," Ling Chen couldn't help but marvel at the diversity of humans once more.
How could she think a severely injured person would have that kind of ability?
If he really reacted, he would be completely exposed!
Command Center.
On the huge holographic sandbox, the three-dimensional model representing the interior of The Boulder was now... completely covered by dense, blood-like crimson light spots!
Each light spot... represented an infected ghoul! Or... a person who was mutating! The light spots spread like a plague!
From the lower-level soldier dormitories! To the Medical Center! Then to the living quarters! And even... beginning to spread to the upper-level officer living areas and core zones!
"Report! Large-scale ghoul transformation outbreak in Sector D soldier dormitories! Source of infection unknown! Suspected water contamination!"
"Report! Medical Center emergency hall has fallen! Ghoul count exceeds three hundred! Spreading towards the critical care zone!"
"Report! Infected individuals found in Sector C living quarters! Number rapidly increasing!"
"Report! Unknown high-energy contamination source detected in the water supply system! Energy spectrum... unable to analyze! Contamination source... suspected... Dragon-type aura?!"
Emergency reports, like death knells, pelted the command console like hail! The staff's faces were pale, their voices distorted by extreme shock and fear!
The entire Command Center... was utterly silent! Only the alarm blared frantically!
Qin Weiguo stood before the command console. His face was as grim as the sea before a storm. Water contamination?! Dragon-type aura?! Large-scale ghoul transformation?!
This... was definitely not an ordinary ghoul virus outbreak! This was... a meticulously planned... biochemical attack!
"Lockdown! Immediately lockdown all areas!" Qin Weiguo slammed his fist onto the control panel! It made a dull thud! His voice was as chilling as an ice pick!
"Initiate highest-level biochemical isolation protocol! All passages! All sealed! Energy shield power to maximum! All uninfected personnel! Immediately enter shelter! Repeat! Immediately enter shelter!"
"Commander! The infection range is too large! The blockade... is collapsing!" A staff member shrieked in despair!
"Chu Hang!" Qin Weiguo suddenly turned! His gaze was like a poisoned dagger! It fiercely pierced the figure wearing a pure white mask beside him! "Can your Rule... purify this plague?!"
Chu Hang stood there silently. The pure white mask reflected an eerie light under the red glow of the alarm.
His bottomless eyes, through the mask's eyeholes, stared intently at the crimson light spots spreading like a sea of blood on the holographic sandbox!
His fingertip... trembled ever so slightly...
Rule... purify the plague?
He could feel it! The cold, dead, dragon-aura-infused contamination source permeating the air! That contamination source... was like a maggot in the bone!
Like the most stubborn virus! It was frantically eroding every corner of The Boulder! Eroding... every living being!
Even more terrifying was... deep within that contamination source... there seemed to be... a trace of... an extremely familiar, yet soul-deeply unsettling... cold will!
Soul Jade Physique!
It was that Ling Chen! It must be him!
Chu Hang's brow, beneath his mask, for the first time... furrowed tightly!
A cold anger and... an indescribable... sense of being manipulated... coiled around his heart like a venomous snake! He slowly raised his hand! At his fingertip!
A wisp of Rule power, condensed to the extreme and emitting a pure white light... like a flickering flame... slowly gathered!
"Rule... Judgment!"
Chu Hang's voice was cold and... carried a barely perceptible... solemnity!
"Target... contamination source!"
Wooooosh—!!!
An indescribable, seemingly originating from the world's rules themselves, cold and absolute will! Like an invisible storm! Instantly erupted with Chu Hang at its center! Sweeping through the entire Command Center! Even... penetrating the thick alloy walls! Spreading frantically towards the interior of The Boulder!
Rule Judgment! Purify all filth! Eradicate all heresy!
However!
Just as this Rule power was about to touch the pervasive dragon blood contamination source within The Boulder!
An unexpected change occurred!
"Aghhh—!!!"
Inside the Command Center! A young staff member, who was intently staring at a monitor screen! Suddenly let out a piercing scream!
He clutched his head with both hands! His eyeballs were instantly covered in crimson blood vessels! Blue veins bulged on his skin! Writhing frantically like earthworms!
"Roar—!!!"
He suddenly lifted his head! Let out an inhuman roar! Opened his mouth, filled with viscous saliva and bloody foam! Revealing sharp fangs! And fiercely lunged at... his unsuspecting companion beside him!
Splatter—!!!
Hot blood... instantly splattered across the monitor screen!
"No—!!!" Inside the Command Center! It instantly plunged into extreme chaos and... despair!
Rule Judgment... not only failed to purify the contamination! Instead... like a spark thrown into a pot of oil! It instantly... ignited... the contamination source... that had already been lurking... within the Command Center!
The plague... had already spread to... The Boulder's most core... brain!
Chu Hang's pupils beneath his mask... suddenly constricted! The Rule power gathered at his fingertip... instantly... violently... fluctuated!