The iron door of the emergency escape passage trembled violently. Director Hale's roars and the soldiers' crashes pierced the door panel, like a death knell, echoing in Liam's heart. He leaned against the cold iron door, gasping for breath, his energy completely exhausted. His neural symbiosis stability lingered at 60%, and his brain activation level dropped slightly from 16% to 15.8%. The intense backlash made his eyes darken repeatedly, and his arms holding Elena began to tremble slightly, but he never let go, his fingertips tightly clutching the black chip and the small data storage device—this was their only hope.
[Host, remaining duration of the iron door: 3 minutes. The underground safe area is 100 meters ahead at the end of the passage. Emergency medical equipment is detected in the area, which can supply neurorepair agents to stabilize brain activation. In addition, the energy fluctuation of the Reapers' support troops continues to increase, expected to arrive at the Pentagon in 27 minutes. Its energy intensity is far higher than that of the previous reconnaissance aircraft, suspected to carry fragments of the symbiont transformation device.
Current brain activation level: 15.8%. Neural symbiosis stability: 60%. Minor tears in muscle fibers due to previous energy impact have been detected in the physical body, which need to be repaired as soon as possible, otherwise subsequent energy conduction and brain development will be affected.] The AI's voice sounded with a hint of urgency, and at the same time, the emergency lights in the passage flickered twice, becoming even darker. [Warning! Abnormal energy signals in the passage, suspected that Director Hale has activated the passage blocking program, and the gate 50 meters ahead is about to close!]
Liam's heart tightened. He struggled to support his body, held Elena in his arms, and stumbled forward. The passage was filled with a damp musty smell and the smell of rusted metal. The steps under his feet were uneven, and every step felt like stepping on a knife's edge. The dull pain in his back intensified, and the blood from the corner of his mouth kept oozing, dripping on Elena's hair. He could clearly feel that his brain activation level was difficult to recover due to excessive physical load, and the stabbing pain in his neural pathways slowed his thinking response—this was the fatal impact of the disconnect between brain development and physical repair. He dared not stop. Even if the pain of neural backlash was about to swallow him, even if his arms were already numb and weak, he could only rush forward with all his strength—he knew that once the gate closed, they would be completely trapped, caught between Hale's pursuers and the upcoming Reaper troops.
"Elena, hold on a little longer, we'll be at the safe area soon." Liam whispered, his voice hoarse, with a faint tremor. He looked down at Elena, who was still unconscious in his arms. Her face was still as pale as paper, her breathing weak, and her vital signs might be completely disrupted at any time. But even in her coma, her fingers were still tightly curled, as if she was still guarding those unbroken secrets.
Just as they were 10 meters away from the gate ahead, the gate suddenly made a "sizzling" sound and slowly fell. The cold metal reflection was particularly dazzling in the dim passage. A hint of determination flashed in Liam's eyes. He instantly erupted the last trace of weak energy in his body, his brain activation level temporarily rose to 16%, and his neural symbiosis stability slightly increased to 62%. He accelerated to rush over, and slipped through the gate with Elena in his arms just before it closed completely. The gate slammed heavily on the ground with a "boom", completely isolating the pursuers behind.
He could no longer hold on. His legs went weak, and he fell heavily to the ground with Elena in his arms, his eyes darkening, almost fainting. But he subconsciously protected Elena under him to avoid her being hit, and he always held the chip and data storage device tightly in his hand, never letting go. His brain activation level dropped to 15.7% again due to this violent impact, his neural symbiosis stability fell to 59%, and the physical pain made him groan involuntarily.
[Host, temporarily escaped Director Hale's pursuers, but the gate cannot block them for long, expected to be broken in 10 minutes. It is recommended to treat Dr. Elena with emergency medical equipment immediately, and try to repair your own neural pathways with the remaining energy of the chip to stabilize brain activation above 16%. In addition, readable shallow data is detected in the data storage device, suspected to contain preliminary clues about Director Hale's collusion with the Reaper Civilization. Current neural symbiosis stability: 59%. Brain activation level: 15.7%. Neurorepair agents are urgently needed to supplement energy, otherwise development may further regress.] The AI's voice sounded timely, relieving Liam's dizziness.
Liam slowly opened his eyes, struggled to prop himself up, and carried Elena to the underground safe area at the end of the passage. It was a small secret room, with an old emergency medical instrument placed in the corner. The surface of the instrument was covered with dust, obviously not used for a long time. Next to it was a simple communication terminal with a black screen, which had long lost its signal. He carefully placed Elena on the ground, turned on the emergency medical instrument, which made a faint hum and slowly started. A soft white light enveloped Elena's body, starting to detect her vital signs. At the same time, he quickly took out the neurorepair agent built into the medical instrument and injected himself with one—the agent flowed along his blood vessels, instantly relieving the stabbing pain in his neural pathways, and his brain activation level slightly rose to 15.9%, with his neural symbiosis stability recovering to 61%.
[Dr. Elena's vital signs are weak, energy is completely exhausted, there is slight damage to the neural pathways, and there is no life danger, but continuous energy supply is required to wake up. The emergency medical instrument can maintain the stability of her vital signs, but cannot provide energy supplement. It is recommended to find an energy source as soon as possible. After the host injected the neurorepair agent, brain activation level: 15.9%, neural symbiosis stability: 61%. Initial relief of physical muscle damage, which can support basic energy conduction.]
Liam breathed a sigh of relief. As long as Elena was not in danger, there was still hope. He sat beside Elena, connected the small data storage device to the auxiliary interface of the emergency medical instrument, and dense codes and fragmented information instantly popped up on the screen, most of which were communication records between Director Hale and unknown contacts, as well as some vague experimental data.
"Hale's collusion with the Reapers..." Liam's gaze was firmly locked on the screen, and his fingertips gently tapped the interface, trying to crack more complete information. With his brain activation at 15.9%, his data analysis ability was significantly enhanced compared to before. But at that moment, the black chip in his hand suddenly trembled again, and a faint black light flickered on its surface, resonating with the codes of the data storage device. The fragmented information on the screen was instantly reorganized, and a clear communication record appeared in front of him—it was a conversation between Director Hale and the envoy of the Reaper Civilization, with a respectful and greedy tone.
"Lord Reaper, I have taken control of the Advanced Neurotechnology Division of the Pentagon. As long as you help me obtain the complete technology of the neural symbiont and help me break through 20% brain activation, I will assist you in mass-transforming human symbionts and completely controlling the Earth."
"Lowly human, as long as you keep your promise and provide the human brain awakening data and the technical parameters of the Connection Core on time, we will give you enough power to make you the ruler of the Earth. Liam's neural symbiont is the key. His energy is the nemesis of our biochips and the key to improving our transformation device. You must capture him alive and extract his symbiosis core and brain neural map."
"Please rest assured, my lord. I have laid a tight net. Liam is exhausted of energy, and Elena is unconscious. They have nowhere to run. In addition, I have found the fragments of the transformation device left by Marcus. As soon as your support troops arrive, we can complete the device repair and start mass transformation experiments to forcibly enhance human brain activation and build a symbiont army."
The communication record ended abruptly. Liam's eyes suddenly turned cold and sharp, and the anger in his heart became more intense. His brain activation level briefly touched 16% due to emotional fluctuations, but it was difficult to stabilize because his body was not fully adapted, and his neural symbiosis stability remained at 62%. He finally understood that Director Hale had long since completely betrayed humanity and reached a dirty deal with the Reaper Civilization. Marcus was just a pawn abandoned by him, and mass-transforming humans and controlling the Earth was Hale's real ambition—he wanted to use the Reapers' technology to forcibly break through the barriers of brain development, even if he became a puppet.
[Warning! Detected that Director Hale's pursuers have broken through the gate and are approaching the safe area, expected to arrive in 5 minutes! At the same time, the energy fluctuation of the Reapers' support troops has increased again, expected to arrive at the Pentagon in 22 minutes. Its flight trajectory is approaching the underground safe area, suspected to have locked the host's position! Current brain activation level: 16%, neural symbiosis stability: 62%. The chip has produced weak resonance with the neural symbiont. You can try to guide energy fusion to trigger symbiosis advancement and stabilize activation!] The AI's warning sounded urgently, with an unprecedented sense of solemnity.
Dual crises came again, and Liam's heart sank to the bottom. His energy was still in a state of exhaustion, his neural symbiosis stability was only 62%, his brain activation level had just reached 16% but was difficult to stabilize, Elena was unconscious and could not provide any help; Hale's pursuers were about to arrive, and the Reapers' support troops were also approaching rapidly. The energy of the chip in his hand was almost exhausted, the clues in the data storage device had not been fully cracked, and they seemed to be trapped in a desperate situation again.
At that moment, the black chip suddenly erupted with a strong black light, which intertwined with the blue light at Liam's temples. A warm energy gushed out of the chip and slowly flowed into his body. The pain of neural backlash was instantly relieved a lot, the originally disordered neural pathways also began to repair slowly, his brain activation level successfully stabilized at 16%, his energy intensity actually recovered slightly from 0 units to 5 units, and his neural symbiosis stability also increased to 63%.
[Host! The chip has a deep resonance with your neural symbiont, triggering the omen of symbiosis advancement! The hidden Reaper bioenergy in the chip is being slowly absorbed and transformed by your high-frequency blue energy into your own energy! Although the conversion efficiency is extremely low, it can slowly repair neural pathways and supplement energy. If the initial conversion can be completed, your neural symbiosis stability will increase to more than 70%, your brain activation level is expected to break through 16.5%, and you may even unlock the primary energy absorption ability, laying the foundation for subsequent brain development!] The AI's voice sounded with a hint of surprise.
A hint of hope flashed in Liam's eyes. He tightly held the black chip, took the initiative to guide the remaining blue energy in his body to deeply fuse with the black light of the chip, and accelerate energy conversion. He could clearly feel that the black energy in the chip was being slowly absorbed and converted into gentle blue energy, flowing all over his body. The dull pain in his back gradually decreased, the dizziness also faded away, the blue light at his temples became more stable, forming a perfect resonance with the black light of the chip. With the nourishment of energy, his brain activation level slightly rose to 16.1%, and his neural symbiosis stability steadily increased to 65%. The physical muscle soreness also got initial relief—this was the chain gain brought by symbiosis advancement, making brain development and physical repair progress simultaneously.
"Zila——" The iron door of the safe area suddenly made a harsh sound. Obviously, Director Hale's pursuers had arrived at the door and were trying their best to destroy the iron door. Liam knew that he did not have much time for energy conversion, and must prepare as soon as possible to meet a new round of life-or-death duel.
He slowly stood up, looked firmly at the door, gathered the weak blue energy just converted at his fingertips, and the blue light at his temples intertwined with the black light of the chip, forming a faint energy halo. His brain activation level stabilized at 16.1%, and his neural symbiosis stability was 65%. Although the energy was still weak, although he was still facing a dual hunt, there was no flinch in his eyes—he wanted to protect Elena, to crack the conspiracy of Hale and the Reapers, to survive, to complete his own symbiosis advancement, to take brain development to the next level, and to protect the future of humanity.
The tremor of the iron door became more and more intense. With a "boom", the iron door was completely knocked open. Director Hale rushed in with more than a dozen fully armed soldiers, holding pulse guns aimed at Liam, and the muzzles flickered with cold blue light. Director Hale's face was full of anger, and his eyes greedily stared at the chip, data storage device in Liam's hand, and the blue-black halo intertwined on his body—he could feel that Liam's brain activation level was steadily recovering, and his symbiotic energy was becoming more condensed. This was the "perfect sample" he had been dreaming of.
"Liam, where else can you run this time!" Director Hale sneered and shouted sharply, "Do it! Capture him alive, take the chip, data storage device and Elena back. Lord Reaper's support troops are about to arrive. You and Elena will become chips for us to reach the deal, and your brain neural map will help me break through 20% activation!"
The soldiers pulled the trigger one after another, and blue pulse beams roared towards them. Liam subconsciously stood in front of Elena, released an energy pulse intertwined with blue and black halos from his fingertips, and barely blocked the attack. The beams hit the energy halo, making a harsh sizzling sound. The halo trembled violently, but it still blocked the first round of attacks forcefully. However, the energy in Liam's body was consumed half again, his brain activation level dropped back to 16%, and his neural symbiosis stability dropped to 61%.
At this critical moment, the communication terminal in the underground safe area suddenly sent a faint signal, the screen lit up instantly, and a blurred image popped up—it was Marcus! Marcus in the image looked haggard, covered in scars, obviously recorded before being abandoned by Hale.
"Liam, if you can see this image, it means Hale has completely betrayed humanity and colluded with the Reapers." Marcus' voice was hoarse, with a hint of remorse, "I was deceived by Hale. He used my ambition to make me develop symbiont transformation devices for the Reapers, but I later found out that the real purpose of the Reapers is to completely destroy human civilization and turn the Earth into their colony. Hale is just a pawn abandoned by them. I forcibly increased my brain activation to 18%, but because my body couldn't adapt, I finally became a semi-puppet."
"I know I have committed unforgivable sins and cannot make up for them, but I have left the core weakness of the Reaper biochip, as well as the complete data of Hale's deal with the Reapers, hidden in the hidden interface of the Connection Core. In addition, Elena has an emergency energy source implanted by me in her body. As long as the energy source is triggered, she can wake up briefly to assist you in cracking all the secrets of the chip. The energy of the Connection Core can further repair your neural pathways, help you stabilize your brain activation, and even break through 17%."
At this point, the image suddenly cut off, and the communication terminal fell into darkness again. Liam was shocked. Marcus' words undoubtedly gave them new hope—there was an emergency energy source in Elena's body, and there were complete clues and weaknesses of the Reapers in the Connection Core, which could further assist his brain development! Driven by this belief and nourished by the chip's energy, his brain activation level once again slightly rose to 16.2%, with his neural symbiosis stability reaching 63%.
Director Hale's face suddenly turned pale. He did not expect that Marcus had left such an image, and also hidden the complete data and weaknesses. "Fool! You even left a backup plan!" Director Hale roared angrily, picked up the pulse gun himself, pulled the trigger at Liam, "I see how you die this time!"
The blue pulse beam rushed straight at Liam's chest, unavoidable. At this critical moment, Elena suddenly opened her eyes slowly, a faint blue light flashed in her eyes. She subconsciously raised her hand, released an emergency energy, which intertwined with Liam's energy pulse, forming a stronger energy shield to block Hale's attack. Elena's emergency energy activated the symbiotic resonance in Liam's body, and his brain activation level instantly broke through 16.3%, with his neural symbiosis stability increasing to 65%.
"Elena!" Liam shouted in surprise, a glimmer of light flashing in his eyes.
Elena smiled weakly, her voice hoarse: "Liam, I... I can help you... Marcus' emergency energy source... has been triggered... we still have hope... the Connection Core... can help you enhance brain development..."
Seeing this, Director Hale was so angry that he jumped into a rage and shouted sharply: "All of you, shoot! Kill them all! Don't let them get the complete data and weaknesses, don't let him break through 17% activation!"
The soldiers pulled the trigger again, and countless blue pulse beams roared towards them. In the distance, the energy fluctuation of the Reapers' support troops became more and more intense, and the ground began to tremble slightly. A bigger storm had already arrived. Liam held the chip tightly, looked at Elena, and a hint of determination flashed in both of their eyes—they would fight side by side, crack the hidden clues, confront Hale's pursuers and the Reapers' invasion, complete the dual breakthrough of symbiosis advancement and brain development in the underground desperation, find a glimmer of hope, and strive forward towards a higher level of symbiosis awakening.