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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter Eight: The Laboratory
When they arrived, Xin Yi realized that this so-called building was more like a tunnel carved into the mountain. A dome-shaped room painted in camouflage colors was covered in vegetation, with many ferns hanging down to provide concealment. If it weren't for a section of the roof that had collapsed, it would have been nearly impossible to detect.
The moment Xin Yi stepped inside, he drew his weapon and remained on alert, while Song Bunan chose to leave his large bag outside, tightening his loose clothing with straps. He watched as the slender figure of Xin Yi swiftly pulled out four or five different types of knives and tucked them away on his person, wrapping his left arm with detachable ropes—a rather peculiar habit of equipping himself.
"Are you accustomed to cold weapons?" Xin Yi asked as they each took a side and moved inward, following the marks left by their leader. He inquired after Song Bunan had declined his spare gun. Although he couldn't see the other’s expression clearly, he sensed that Song Bunan was probably smiling. "That thing is useless without bullets; it's not even as good as a stick for starting a fire. I prefer to get up close and personal."
Song Bunan wasn't joking; he genuinely felt more comfortable with cold weapons than firearms. Fortunately, Xin Yi seemed to respect his preferences and didn't press further. They continued moving deeper into the structure back-to-back.
The dome-shaped room resembled a security office, with remnants of clocking machines visible among the ruins on either side, and occasionally damaged identity cards scattered about. Directly opposite the entrance was a heavy door typical of bank vaults, hanging crookedly from the mountain wall, its surface marred as if it had been blown apart. The signs of destruction around them were fresh; he estimated that this place had been abandoned or destroyed no more than a week ago.
Stepping through the severely warped door frame, Song Bunan activated a cold flame illumination stick and tossed it ahead. The orange light quickly expanded within its limited duration, illuminating their surroundings. Countless rooms lined both sides, resembling either a prison or a hospital, each door and window marking an individual unit, with numbered tags hanging from the doors. The light did not reveal any destination; instead, it showed an endless stretch of doors and windows leading into darkness.
The air was thick with a pungent odor; all doors and windows were made of iron, and the nearest door bore water stains left after being wiped down. Song Bunan approached it, gently brushed his fingers over the surface, and sniffed before stating that it had been cleaned with an irritating disinfectant—likely to erase any traces.
The corridor was straight and even had non-slip mats on the floor, ensuring that no footprints were left behind and creating an eerie silence in the confined space. They intended to check each door closely, but all were locked tightly without any keyholes for Xin Yi to demonstrate his lock-picking skills.
"There should be a central control deeper inside. You mentioned your teammates are here too; why haven't we seen them? Did they go further in?" The inability to open any doors forced them to continue forward. As the glow from the cold flame stick faded, only their shoulder lamps illuminated about three meters ahead. Both had come equipped with portable gear; Xin Yi had planned to switch equipment upon reuniting with his team but was caught off guard by Song Bunan's question. He shook his head lightly in response.
"We agreed to meet at the entrance, but I checked my communicator just now and received no reply. What's wrong?" Xin Yi noticed that Song Bunan's tone suggested reluctance to proceed further. He halted and looked over; at some point, the man beside him had donned a black mask again, blending almost seamlessly into the darkness. Under the glow of the shoulder lamp, Song Bunan's eyes sparkled as they met Xin Yi's gaze, revealing no discernible emotion.
"My suggestion is not to go any further. Your teammates haven't entered this place; our gear is too basic for deep exploration. The locked doors around us indicate there is still power running here; we cannot ascertain whether there are people controlling it or if anyone is inside at all. If those inside have better weapons than we do, venturing deeper would be tantamount to walking into death," Song Bunan stated methodically.
Xin Yi agreed with his assessment; there was not a glimmer of light in the darkness ahead, nor any signs left by their leader nearby. Analyzing their situation led him to conclude that they hadn't gone too deep before retreating. He nodded in understanding and gestured for Song Bunan to lead while he took up the rear.
They had indeed ventured deep, and as Song Bunan turned back, he could see the last flicker of the cold flame torch, tiny like a star, contrasting sharply with the impenetrable darkness ahead. It was evident that this place stretched across the entire mountain above them.
From the moment he entered, he felt a palpable malice. This malevolence surged from the front, growing stronger with every step until it surged up from his feet to his crown, forcing him to halt Xin Yi and refrain from advancing further. There was something formidable lurking here, whether human or otherwise, that neither of them could handle at this moment.
Fortunately, Xin Yi heeded the suggestion to retreat. He turned and strode forward, yet the sense of malice did not diminish in the slightest. Just as they were about to reach the entrance, they suddenly heard a series of clattering sounds, accompanied by something scraping against the iron door and wall.
The unsettling noise drew closer from the darkness. Xin Yi prepared to fire a warning shot but was stopped by Song Bunan. Instead, he pulled out a small dagger from his side, attached it to the cold flame torch, and threw it in the direction of the sound just as it ignited. The orange light illuminated the passage once more, revealing several oddly positioned "people" ahead, next to an open door.
From their attire, it was clear that these were part of the same group that had attacked them in the mountains. The relentless and pain-immune creatures were difficult to deal with; unless they were completely killed, even severed limbs would still pose a threat. Xin Yi wanted to escape with Song Bunan but was concerned about these individuals potentially harming his teammates if they pursued.
"They're just like those in the mountains," Song Bunan noted as he gripped his machete defensively, showing no intent to charge out. Xin Yi stood in front of him and voiced his concerns; behind them, someone reached for his communicator at his waist. "Rather than worry, we should let them come help us. As far as I know, Zhang Family is collaborating with Mighty Falcon on this expedition and has brought plenty of supplies."
The sudden close contact made Xin Yi instinctively want to pull away, but the other party moved faster than he did, snatching the communicator and quickly typing away. Watching Song Bunan's swift fingers made Xin Yi regret not setting a password on it. "The signal is slow; I'll have them bring equipment for rapid support. We don’t know how many more of these creatures are out there; it’s going to be a tough battle."
As Song Bunan spoke, he stretched his limbs; the bones in his neck cracked with movement under the bright light, and his eyes sparkled with excitement and anticipation as if he could hardly wait to confront those monsters. In that moment, he resembled the vibrant figure from the videos Xin Yi had seen before—full of energy that made Xin Yi feel a tingling sensation in his bones.
"What are you looking at?" He quickly noticed Song Bunan's gaze on him; despite the mask obscuring his face, Xin Yi sensed that he was smiling. He withdrew his gaze and tightened his grip on his dagger without offering an explanation. "If you like masks so much, I’ll get you one when we get out."
The mask bore a skull pattern that shimmered green under the light; this familiar design tugged at his memory, though he couldn’t recall where he had seen it before.
While they were conversing, those five figures had already approached. Now they could see clearly: there were five individuals clad in matching uniforms with vacant eyes devoid of light yet fixed intently on them. Their knives were bound to their hands—one hand larger than the other—and one of them had blood smeared on their blade.
The five stood at the edge of the light cast by their shoulder lamps, creating an imposing presence. Xin Yi initially intended to shoot through one or two heads before assessing whether to eliminate the others; however, Song Bunan restrained his hand and shook his head in disapproval of leaving no survivors. Xin Yi expressed his difficulties and recounted past encounters with such attackers but was taken aback when Song Bunan nodded knowingly in response.
"Cyborgs lack the ability to think and possess no human consciousness; they can only be stopped by killing them. But these individuals are from the Zhang Family." He pointed to the man in the center of the group and named him, "Zhang Chengyun, the eldest grandson of the Zhang Family. The one with blood on the blade is Copper Coin."
The appearance of missing members of the Zhang Family in such a situation was unimaginable for Xin Yi. He had prepared himself to collect their bodies and report back, but now he found himself potentially becoming a murderer. Song Bunan seemed a bit agitated; after clicking his tongue a few times, he tied a red string around his dagger and turned to look behind him.
"It seems that those in the woods were also from the Zhang Family. Leaving only two survivors makes it hard to explain," Song Bunan murmured, his voice low and unclear. The person lost in thought did not notice the raised eyebrow of Xin Yi beside him, but Xin Yi heard it clearly.
There were originally four people; leaving two alive? Could it be that he was lying about one escaping? Xin Yi casually glanced at Song Bunan.
Suddenly, the person in his line of sight moved, raising a hand to block him before delivering a swift kick that sent Copper Coin, who had silently approached, flying. Xin Yi wasted no time either; he aimed at the knife in the hands of the struggling figure and fired two shots, breaking the blade. The gunfire prompted the other four to react, raising their hands to charge at them.
Song Bunan was incredibly fast, using a wall to propel himself forward and kick one down. He bent down to dislocate the opponent's shoulder and tore off the ropes binding their arms, tying their hands together. Before he could finish tying it, another attacker came at him. In the midst of fighting, Xin Yi caught a glimpse of him kneeling and leaning back to avoid a blade, grabbing a rope to wrap around that person's hand several times before delivering a powerful knee strike to their abdomen. As they bent over, he knocked them unconscious with an elbow strike. The one whose joint had been dislocated struggled to get up but was pinned down by another person falling on top of them and received a chop to the neck.
Having successfully knocked out two opponents, Song Bunan immediately pulled out a Copper Ring he had obtained from Ghost Messenger. He pricked their fingers to draw blood and stuffed the rings into their mouths. The Copper Ring was a talisman capable of suppressing spirits; he had exchanged half a year's worth of business for five of them. At this moment, he couldn't care less whether Xin Yi could see what he was doing; he just hoped this would bring these people's souls back to their senses.
The malicious intent that made him uneasy did not lessen; it proved that these individuals were merely appetizers. If reinforcements didn't arrive quickly, they had no idea what else they might face. Xin Yi also managed to knock one out, leaving only Zhang Chengyun remaining. Clearly more intelligent than his companions, Zhang Chengyun stepped back upon seeing his allies captured and stood at a distance, tilting his head as he observed them.
"What are you doing?" Xin Yi finally had time to notice Song Bunan's actions and couldn't understand why he was stuffing Copper Rings into others' mouths. In response, Song Bunan continued working without looking up and mumbled that it was a method used in their circle.
Oh, just some quack's method then. Xin Yi disliked it but respected it.
He fixed his gaze on Zhang Chengyun, contemplating whether to rush forward and subdue him or wait for further developments. Once Song Bunan finished his task, he stood up, lifted his mask, and stuffed one of the two Copper Rings into his own mouth before leaping directly toward Zhang Chengyun.
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