After the misunderstanding was cleared, Lin Xuan straightened his military uniform and was about to make a "please" gesture to invite the legendary Prototype into the base for a detailed discussion. In his view, if he could completely retain a combat power of Alex Mercer's level, it would mean invincibility in this apocalypse. However...
"No need."
Mercer's voice remained as calm as a pool of stagnant water, without any ripples. "My time is running out."
Lin Xuan was stunned for a moment and subconsciously pulled up the system panel to take a look.
[Warning: Special Summoned Character "Prototype - Alex Mercer" (Temporary) Remaining stay time: 00:00:49]
The bright red countdown seemed to be mocking Lin Xuan's thoughts from just now.
Lin Xuan's heart tightened; this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! Ignoring formalities, he asked urgently, "Mr. Mercer, since you possess such formidable power, can you... completely resolve this virus crisis? Or at least, tell us what we should do?"
Mercer looked at Lin Xuan, a mysterious light flashing in his eyes. He first nodded slightly, as if saying "this is easy for me," but then immediately shook his head.
He walked over to Lin Xuan's side, and the suffocating pressure made the surrounding air feel as if it had solidified. He lowered his head and said in a voice only the two of them could hear:
"The Biomass you provided is too little. That meager amount of energy cannot support my existence in this world for long, let alone help you clean up those... messes."
Hearing this, a hint of discouragement and regret couldn't help but show in Lin Xuan's eyes. It turned out he was still too poor to afford such a great deity.
Mercer seemed to see through Lin Xuan's thoughts, but he didn't offer comfort. Instead, he continued in his characteristic voice with a touch of biting humor:
"Don't make that face. Although I can't help you wipe your ass, I can point you in a direction."
Mercer looked toward the northwest. "Eighty kilometers from here, there is an interesting place. I suggest you go take a look. The source of the trap Karen encountered today is right there."
After saying this, Mercer spoke no more. His body began to glow with an eerie red and black light.
"Stay alive, Lin Xuan. Don't make me feel like this 'business trip' was worthless."
With the fall of the last syllable, Alex Mercer's figure instantly disintegrated, turning into countless black-red virus particles and brilliant starlight, dissipating into the air as if he had never appeared. Only the Super Soldier still lying on the ground remained, proving that everything that had just happened was not an illusion.
The moment Mercer disappeared, a series of pleasant system prompts rang in Lin Xuan's mind.
[Ding! Mission Completed: Rescue the key figure "Karen Parker"!]
[Reward: Biomass +1000]
[Ding! Achievement Unlocked: Destroy the "Bloody Cross" stronghold!]
[Reward: Biomass +5000]
[Ding! Strategic Goal Achieved: Qingyun Town "blood toxin" factory is officially online!]
[Reward: Biomass +5000]
[Special Reward: Unlocked construction blueprint "Black Watch Military Fortress" (can overwrite and transform existing structures)]
[Detected that the host currently has control over the F University campus. Do you want to immediately consume the rewards to transform F University campus into a standard military base?]
Looking at the skyrocketing Biomass in his account, Lin Xuan's mood instantly recovered from his earlier regret and even became incredibly excited. Adding his previous stock, his Biomass reserves were approaching the twenty-thousand mark!
"Yes! Transform it immediately!" Lin Xuan gave the command in his heart without hesitation.
In the next second, a shocking scene occurred.
With the Gymnasium at the center of F University as the focal point, an invisible wave of energy instantly swept across the entire campus. The originally ordinary teaching buildings, dormitories, and Gymnasium were kneaded and reshaped as if by an invisible giant hand.
Reinforced concrete walls writhed and turned into heavy composite armor plates; all glass windows were automatically replaced with bulletproof, explosion-proof, one-way transparent materials; the top of the Gymnasium split open, and a sci-fi command tower and radar array rose up...
The entire process lasted only a dozen seconds, and an indestructible steel fortress rose from the ground, replacing the original university campus.
Fortunately, at this time, because of the level-one combat readiness alarm, all survivors were hiding in their rooms trembling, not daring to peek out. Otherwise, this "miracle" would have definitely made them think they were crazy or that aliens had descended.
Looking at the brand-new base, Lin Xuan took a deep breath, a sharp light flashing in his eyes.
"Ling Jianqing." He turned around and said to his adjutant, who was equally shocked, "Notify captain Robert Cross and have him come to my office to see me immediately. I have a mission for him."
"Yes! Sir!" Ling Jianqing stood at attention and saluted, her high heels making a crisp clicking sound on the new metal floor.
Lin Xuan stepped toward the military pickup truck parked nearby, opened the door, and sat inside.
"Back to headquarters."
—- Dividing Line —-
Location: Abandoned research institute in the deep mountains 80 kilometers away from F Base - Underground core area.
This was once a secret biological research center, but now it had become a twisted, life-profaning experimental field. The air was filled with the stench of formalin mixed with rotting meat, and huge culture tanks were filled with various indescribable biological tissues.
In the center of the core lab was a chimpanzee dressed in casual clothes, walking upright and looking like a human. Its name was Charlie, a hybrid chimpanzee with human genes. It was swirling a glass of crimson wine, its eyes reflecting a chilling arrogance. It was the mastermind behind the "Bloody Cross," and those crazed human believers were nothing more than livestock in its eyes.
On the opposite side of Charlie was an even more eerie existence.
He sat on a large metal high-back chair, wearing a spotless white scientist's uniform and round-framed glasses on the bridge of his nose. His skin was a lifeless grayish-white, as cold as a marble statue. He was the mastermind of the F City death wasteland—Corpse King Corpse King.
"So, this is your reason? Charlie." Corpse King's voice was calm and flat, like a precision machine reading data.
"You stole the 'Bloody Cross' samples I meticulously cultivated and then pilfered my 'Infection Mosquito' technology, all for... this low-level gluttony?"
Charlie laughed contemptuously, revealing a mouthful of sharp fangs.
"Low-level? No, my Creator, this is the necessity of 'evolution'." Charlie took an elegant sip of the blood in his glass.
"Humans claim to be the spirit of all things, yet they slaughter other species for food without restraint. Now, I too possess intelligence, even higher than theirs. So why can't I treat humans as livestock and kill them for meat? Isn't this the fairest natural law?"
"You've confused the concepts of'survival' and 'tyranny'." Corpse King pushed up his glasses, his gaze cold behind the lenses as he stared at this out-of-control experimental subject.
"Human meat-eating behavior is to obtain energy and maintain the reproduction of the species."
"But you and the lunatics you control, your behavior is merely to satisfy a perverted desire for slaughter and a twisted psychological need for revenge. This isn't called evolution; it's called regression. You've downgraded yourself from a new species with infinite possibilities to a beast that only knows how to wave a knife and fork."
"Shut up!" Charlie's face instantly turned hideous, the wine glass in his hand crushed to pieces, blood splattering everywhere.
"You spend all day hiding in dark corners playing with corpses. Do you think you're more noble than me? You modify those zombies and turn them into bizarre monsters—isn't that also profaning life?"
Corpse King remained expressionless, not even changing his posture in the slightest.
"I am exploring the boundaries of life. I am searching for an eternal form that transcends the decay of the flesh. Every one of my works is a reinterpretation of the definition of 'life'. And you, Charlie, are just a clown who stole my technology and was blinded by anger and desire."
Corpse King's words were calm, yet they were like the sharpest scalpel, precisely cutting open Charlie's fragile self-esteem.
"Enough!!" Charlie was completely enraged. He slammed the table over, his eyes blood-red. His legs tensed as he was about to pounce on Corpse King.
At this critical moment—
"Boom—!!!"
The laboratory's reinforced dome suddenly let out a loud bang, followed by countless glass shards and concrete blocks falling like a rainstorm.
A vigorous figure descended from the sky along a high-strength tactical rope!
"Bang!"
The newcomer landed heavily between Charlie and Corpse King, kneeling on one knee. The massive impact directly smashed a crater into the alloy floor.
As the dust cleared, the true face of the newcomer was revealed.
He wore the signature black combat uniform of the Black Watch, holding a modified high-tech stun baton, his eyes as cold as a blade.
It was none other than the Black Watch ace urgently dispatched by Lin Xuan—captain Robert Cross (Cross).
"A monkey that looks like a human is still a beast."
Kross slowly stood up, brushed the dust off his shoulder, and stared coldly with burning eyes at the stunned Charlie, who was still in a pouncing stance.
"You're not even worthy of a human name. Your existence itself is an offense to this world."
Charlie was stunned. He hadn't expected a human to burst in at this juncture. He stared warily at Kross, a low, threatening growl coming from his throat: "Are you one of those humans in black?!"
Kross ignored the chimpanzee and instead turned his head to look at Corpse King, who had been sitting in the chair without moving from start to finish.
"I hope you've been well, human."
Corpse King pushed up his glasses and gave a very polite greeting. There was no surprise in his tone, as if he had anticipated this moment long ago, and even carried a faint hint of appreciation.
"You people actually found this place. It seems my assessment of you needs to be adjusted upward again."