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墨書 Inktalez
The entire Gu Family Courtyard felt eerily empty, sending chills down their spines.
They split into three groups and charged through three different gates. Contrary to their expectations, all the anticipated obstacles were absent, allowing them to enter the courtyard smoothly. As they surveyed the desolate surroundings, they exchanged puzzled glances with one another.
Xin Yi and Zhang Family entered through the side gate. Compared to the bustling street outside, the courtyard was so quiet it seemed abandoned. They recalled clearly that the intelligence provided by the Jiang Family indicated that nearly every room in this courtyard was occupied by personnel related to the laboratory, including brainwashed test subjects. Yet, the current situation left them baffled.
“Have we been discovered?” Zhang Zhongjing asked as he opened the nearest door to investigate. The signs of life were faint, but the spotless furniture indicated that someone had definitely been there recently. What caught Xin Yi's attention was the decor; as soon as he stepped inside, he felt an unsettling familiarity until he noticed a triangular iron rack in the corner and suddenly remembered where he was.
“This room looks almost identical to Song Bunan's shop,” he remarked. The unique decoration of Song Bunan's store was unforgettable; even this place had a miniature version of the bar from the shop. The leader frowned in confusion, muttering about why they would replicate such things in their own courtyard.
Zhang Zhongjing, however, began to piece things together. He spoke into his communicator, asking other teams if they had found anything unusual upon entering their respective rooms. Soon, responses came back indicating that many had remarked on the familiar furnishings, suggesting they resembled the homes, workplaces, or even residences of friends and family members.
The captain's voice chimed in, stating that the entire Mighty Falcon office area had been divided into small replicas here. Several rooms contained documents taken from Mighty Falcon, specifically related to their missing teammates.
“They must have targeted everyone connected to this matter,” Zhang Zhongjing analyzed with a furrowed brow as he discussed with Xin Yi and the others. “Regardless of whether these individuals would join or come here, they prepared familiar environments for them to live in after brainwashing and transformation. Moreover, it seems they have included nearly everyone of notable status in Rongcheng on their target list.” Although this theory sounded absurd, it made a disturbing kind of sense.
The leader agreed with this assessment; he had just seen a miniature version of his own home in one of the rooms. Anger bubbled within him alongside a sense of strangeness, prompting him to step outside for some sunlight and rub his arms to ease his discomfort.
“These people in this laboratory are truly insane,” someone from the team commented. “Are they trying to turn this place into a miniature Rongcheng after successfully converting these individuals into their subordinates?”
Another chimed in, “Isn't that terrifying? I’m afraid the next door might lead to my own home! How did they even manage this? I just heard someone say they’ve even recreated the basement. It’s madness!”
The sight before them caused many in the team to feel physically ill. Xin Yi and the leader could see confusion and disbelief reflected in each other's eyes; however, this astonishment didn’t last long. When they finally laid eyes on a particularly bizarrely decorated room, everything changed.
The youngest member of the team was the first to push open the door, and soon Xin Yi heard a gasp from within. When they rushed inside, they found him lying on the ground, lifeless. The young man's neck had been twisted, his eyes wide open and bloodshot, staring towards the window, which was ajar. The swaying window indicated that someone had just been inside.
Before they could thoroughly investigate the scene, chaos erupted outside. The sounds of weapons clashing and cries for help mingled with explosions. Xin Yi and the others heightened their vigilance, observing from inside the room, but they discovered that their area was secure. Some people who heard the commotion did not take cover; instead, they craned their necks to see where the noise was coming from.
"Be careful of anyone inside!" a voice shouted through the communicator. "Be careful of anyone inside..."
The voice abruptly cut off as those outside finally realized what was happening. They raised their weapons and used their communicators to check on other teams. The leader successfully contacted their captain and learned that the ambush had targeted the team that entered through the back door, while they had not detected any unusual activity in their central location near the Front Door.
"This doesn’t add up. If they wanted to trap us, why didn’t they strike all at once instead of starting from the back door?" Zhang Zhongjing remarked.
"No, since they chose to attack from that side, there must be a way for them to ensure we can’t escape," the leader indicated for several members of former falcon to scout around and informed those in other rooms to plan their escape routes based on their surroundings. "According to the map, we are currently in the central part of the courtyard. From our earlier investigation, we can confirm there are no entrances to underground facilities nearby. The Backdoor Team was attacked; could it be because they discovered something? And this place is very close to where the Jiang Family was negotiating; that room is right on our path to meet up with those at the back door..."
"That place could very well be an entrance or related to it," Xin Yi interjected.
"Qin Xiang, Xin Yi, gather your team and head to that Negotiation Point. We’ve found a Route Marker leading there. Be cautious on your way; the back door team may have been wiped out." The captain's voice broke the prolonged silence on the intercom, prompting them to move without hesitation towards their destination.
The midday sun made it hard for them to keep their eyes open. As they moved, Zhang Zhongjing remarked how he felt as if he were being watched. Several others echoed his sentiment, sharing that they too felt an unsettling sensation of being closely observed.
The sunlight rendered visibility in the surrounding buildings even more unclear; they could not afford to linger and quickened their pace towards their goal. Xin Yi recalled some points from his discussion with Song Bunan about theism and atheism. Song Bunan had mentioned that sometimes a person's sixth sense isn’t necessarily tied to supernatural elements; some individuals are inherently sensitive to others' gazes and malice, allowing them to feel such things quickly. Those hiding in dark corners are hard to spot and are often interpreted as something sinister.
"If you feel like someone is watching you while surrounded by many buildings that obstruct your view, don’t doubt it—there’s likely an enemy lying in ambush. Attack in the direction where you feel it coming from; you’ll hit them eighty percent of the time," Song Bunan’s words suddenly echoed in his mind. Xin Yi abruptly stopped and asked Zhang Zhongjing if he could pinpoint where that feeling of being watched was coming from.
Though puzzled by his sudden question, the man cooperatively pointed him towards a small, obscure house they had just passed by.
The leader watched as Xin Yi raised her weapon and, without even aiming, fired a shot straight ahead. The bullet pierced through the door, and at that moment, they all heard a muffled groan from within.
"There's an ambush! Run!"
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