Plan No. 03

"Mission..." Staring blankly at the person in front of her, Xiaoyang's eyes were filled with confusion and fear, and she instinctively shuffled backward. Seeing her reaction, Ye Shi sheathed his blood-soaked short blade and scratched his helmet. "Don't look at me like that—I might look scary, but I'm actually one of the good guys... Uh, fine, I know that's not very convincing." If it were him, and one day a guy went on a murderous rampage through his residential compound, grabbed his arm, and told him to come along, he’d probably piss his pants too. The fact that this little girl hadn't burst into tears meant she had decent psychological fortitude. The problem was, he genuinely didn't know how to explain the current situation. He was completely baffled himself. According to the original plan, he was supposed to take a carriage to the nearby servants' quarters, sneak over to the Annex after getting off, and whisk the person away without anyone noticing. Yet things had gone off the rails right from the start. Halfway there, the carriage had suddenly stopped, and then the driver charged inside, lunging at him like a lunatic. At first, Ye Shi had intended to subdue the man, only to find that it was completely useless. The guy couldn't hear reason at all and even reached out to snatch his weapon. Unable to communicate, Ye Shi had no choice but to snap his neck, jump out of the carriage, and sprint straight toward the Annex in the corner of the estate. Yet when he arrived at the Annex, he discovered that things weren't as simple as he had imagined. Everyone in the building had turned into the same state as that carriage driver. Almost the moment he set foot in the Annex, those people sensed his presence and swarmed toward him like zombies. If Lao Bai hadn't helped transport the exoskeleton near the settlement before the operation began, and if that rebellious officer hadn't helped bring it here, fighting his way out of that horde of "zombies" wouldn't have been easy at all. Honestly, he was still completely in the dark, unable to figure out what had happened. The only certainty was that something huge must have taken place on this estate—or even throughout the entire settlement. Perhaps before entering the settlement, they should have conducted a more cautious investigation. Clearly, someone had targeted them, turned their plan to their own advantage, and pulled a fast one on them. Just as Ye Shi was agonizing over how to explain, the girl lying groggily in Xiaoyang's arms fluttered her eyelashes. As if awakened by the commotion around them, a sluggish murmur came from her mouth. "Hungry..." That bizarre, sudden sound sent a bone-chilling cold through both people in the basement, as if they had fallen into a pit of ice at minus fifty degrees. Yinyin opened her mouth in an exaggerated gape, her gums pulled fully back, lunging fiercely toward Xiaoyang's neck like a beast starved for a week. Xiaoyang froze, paralyzed where she sat. Just as those bloody jaws were about to clamp down, a gun barrel was shoved violently into that gaping mouth, forcing Yinyin back off of her. "Ahhh!!" A frenzied roar tore from Yinyin's throat. With blue veins bulging across her hands, she kept clawing forward, her bloodthirsty pupils looking ready to tear the girl apart. "Are you crazy?! Crawl away from her, quickly!" Seeing the petrified little girl, Ye Shi broke out in a cold sweat and couldn't help shouting. Good grief. The teeth were practically in her flesh, and she hadn't even dodged—she'd actually closed her eyes! If he had arrived two minutes later, all that would be lying here was an unrecognizable corpse! Looking at the snarling, thrashing Yinyin and the gun barrel wedged in her mouth, Xiaoyang suddenly seemed to snap back to her senses. She lunged forward, hugging his lower leg, and cried out tearfully, "Don't... don't shoot!" Seeing Xiaoyang pleading desperately, Ye Shi gritted his teeth. In the end, he couldn't bring himself to do it. He flicked on the safety, reached out to grab the zombified girl, dragged her aside, and bound her hands and feet with plastic zip ties. With her limbs bound, Yinyin writhed on the ground, dust clinging to her eyelashes, her pretty face contorted into a snarl. At that moment, she was like a rabid beast, baring her teeth and hissing low growls. "She's already 'zombified'... just like the people outside, like gnawers. Dammit, what else did these bastards plant besides na fruit?" Standing up, Ye Shi glanced at the struggling girl, then turned back to Xiaoyang, who was kneeling on the floor. "There's no time to explain. I'll keep it short, and believe it or not, it's up to you. Your dad paid a sum of money and asked us to come get you out of here. Right now, all you need to do is stick close to me, and I'll get you out! Of course, if you don't behave and listen, I'll have to tie you up and carry you out just like her, understand?" If possible, he really didn't want to resort to that. Dealing with those gnawer-like freaks outside was troublesome enough, and his ammo wasn't unlimited. He had reason to suspect that it wasn't just the people in this estate who had turned into this ghastly state; the entire settlement had probably fallen victim. Who knew what they would run into later? Fortunately, though this little girl didn't look overly bright, she was calm enough. Even after being scared out of her wits, she hadn't lost the ability to communicate and could still talk normally. Looking at the blood-spattered man, Xiaoyang nodded with a pale face. "I understand... I'll come with you. Please, I beg you, save Yinyin..." Glancing at the little girl bundled up like a zongzi against the wall, a troubled expression appeared on Ye Shi's face. "Save her... How the hell am I supposed to save her?" To put it plainly, he didn't even know what had happened to these people. Tape her mouth shut and carry her back? That wasn't entirely out of the question. Except he was only one person. Escorting one deadweight was hard enough; adding another would stretch his confidence to the limit. Xiaoyang swallowed hard, trying her best to stay calm, and said in a trembling voice, "I... I might know why everyone turned out like this." "Huh?" Ye Shi looked at her. Seeing that the man was willing to listen, Xiaoyang continued patiently, "This Annex... is a very important place in the estate. A long, long time ago, it was the master's main house. Later, when the new big mansion was built, the master used this place to place certain important guests under house arrest." A flicker of surprise flashed in Ye Shi's eyes. That didn't sound like something a six-year-old child would say. Could she even understand the concept of hostages at her age? "And then?" Xiaoyang continued, "Because it's so important... many people guard this place. Some servants may wear servants' clothes, but they aren't actually servants—they're the master's trusted confidants. Without exaggeration, this place is even safer than the main house. And because of that, the master feels completely at ease about this place. If I went somewhere else, many people would frantically look for me, but here, even if I disappear for a while, no one pays attention..." "In other words, if there's any secret that needs to be kept hidden from prying eyes, your master would most likely put it here?" Ye Shi rubbed his chin, musing. Whether for protection or surveillance, this really was the safest choice, and the hostages living in the Annex could serve as a smokescreen. If they stationed guards in a separate area, it would actually draw attention. Xiaoyang nodded nervously. "Yes... Don't you think it's strange? In such an important place, they built such a huge basement, yet it's only used to store miscellaneous junk. And in fact, no one really stacks everyday items down here—the dust on the crates is so thick." Ye Shi raised his flashlight and swept it around, trying to spot any clues, but no matter how he looked, it just seemed like an ordinary basement. Still, just as she said, maintaining such a meaningless space in such an important location was indeed suspicious. Even if it had been dug out in the past and was no longer needed, they should have found a way to bury it or seal it off completely, right? Yet the master of this estate hadn't done that. "And then... Yinyin told me there was an iron door in the Annex's basement. If we hid behind it, no one would ever find us. So she snuck in here with me." "Actually... I felt it wasn't a good idea. If we accidentally saw something we weren't supposed to see, something terrible might happen. But I couldn't stop her, so I could only follow her down." "After coming down, she said she heard some sound, and then led me forward... and we actually found that door." Ye Shi swallowed. "What's behind that door?" Xiaoyang shook her head, her face filled with regret. "I don't know... Yinyin wanted to open the door, but shortly after she grabbed the handle, she passed out. She slept for a very long time, and when she woke up, she was like this. I guess it must be related to the sound behind that door... but I couldn't hear the sound she was talking about at all." Ye Shi frowned. "I didn't hear it either." Logically, that shouldn't be the case. His Perception was very high; even the faintest noise would be magnified infinitely by his sharp sixth sense and instinctively analyzed. If there really was a sound there, it couldn't possibly escape his intuition. Yet suspiciously, he hadn't sensed a thing. "...I believe Yinyin wasn't joking. She really heard something, and followed the sound to find that door. If we can go in and turn off whatever is making that sound, she should go back to normal, right?" With that, Xiaoyang grabbed Ye Shi's arm, looking up at him with pleading eyes. "Please, I beg you... save her." Honestly, Ye Shi didn't want any unexpected complications. Especially since the plan had drifted off course right from the beginning, and he had no idea what was happening on Fang Chang's side. With so many variables cropping up from the start, their primary objective of "securing the farm owner" might have already failed. Under these circumstances, taking the secondary objective and retreating immediately to cut their losses was probably the safest choice. Staying in a basement for too long was never a good idea; the sole exit could easily be blocked by pursuing enemies. What if there was nothing behind that door? Besides, if it was really that important, why wasn't there a single guard, or even a padlock? Two children had found it without breaking a sweat and had nearly opened it. Yet looking into the NPC's pleading eyes, he eventually gritted his teeth, made up his mind, and tapped his right fist against his helmet. "...Fang Chang, what's your situation?" There was no response on the comm channel, only the hissing static of interference. This wasn't simply a lack of signal; it seemed more like something was jamming it. Ye Shi cursed under his breath, tapped his helmet with his index finger to shut off the comms, and then looked at the girl whose eyes were brimming with desperate hope. "Think carefully. You only have one life... This is no joke. I don't want to hear any 'How could this happen?' or 'I might've misheard' crap later." It didn't matter if he died. He had a fresh life every three days anyway. Failing to bring her back safely might make him feel a bit sorry to brother Luo Yu, but given what had happened, he was sure Luo Yu wouldn't blame him too much. Xiaoyang nodded solemnly. "Yes... I've thought it through." Ye Shi nodded, taking a deep breath. "Then I'll take your word for it." "Thank you..." Looking at the little girl thanking him earnestly, Ye Shi urged, "It's too early for that. Lead the way." "Okay!" Xiaoyang nodded nervously and ran ahead on her own initiative. Ye Shi followed behind her. The two walked through the pitch-black basement for a short distance, and soon spotted an iron door hidden behind wooden crates in a secluded alcove. Mottled rust stretched from the handle into the seam of the door, making one wonder how long it had been since anyone had visited. "It's right here..." Looking at the rusty iron door, Xiaoyang timidly stepped behind him. Ye Shi stepped forward, reached out to grip the rusted door handle, and gave it a tug. Finding it quite heavy, he engaged the exoskeleton's power and yanked backward with force. The thick door might have been far too heavy for a six- or seven-year-old girl, but to him in his exoskeleton, it was as light as a sheet of paper. Accompanied by an ear-grating screech, the rusty iron door was easily ripped open, revealing the corridor hidden behind it. "Holy crap... It really wasn't locked?" The corridor behind the door was clean and tidy, paved with metal flooring and painted in concrete grey. Compared to the basement and the rusty iron door outside, the corridor behind it was like a completely different world. Looking at the corridor that led to who knew where, surprise flashed across Ye Shi's face, his eyes slowly lighting up with excitement. He looked back at Xiaoyang. "Wait for me here... If anyone comes in, run straight inside the door." Xiaoyang nodded hard and answered earnestly, "Okay!" Having received her confirmation, Ye Shi didn't delay any longer. Raising his muzzle, he cautiously stepped through the door and continued exploring along the clean, tidy corridor. It looked like a clinic, and also like a laboratory. Through the floor-to-ceiling glass windows, an array of equipment and sci-fi-looking display screens could be seen. All signs indicated that this place had been abandoned, and probably quite recently. Whether they had fled in too much of a hurry to pack up, or simply had no need to, the display screens were still lit, and some experimental equipment was even still running, emitting meaningless humming sounds. Ye Shi's surprise only deepened. It was hard to imagine such a research facility existing in an unassuming plantation. Could the expenses of this facility really be afforded by a mere farm owner? This was vastly more expensive than building a fancy house. He walked into one of the laboratories. Ye Shi looked at the nearest screen, only to find the blank operating interface completely empty. The data inside had likely been wiped clean. Stepping out of the laboratory, Ye Shi continued down the corridor, soon reaching the room at the very end. When he walked in, he was instantly stunned by what he saw. A massive metal cylinder stood in the center of the room, connecting floor to ceiling. Data cables as thick as forearms branched out from its base, linking it to the walls and another device in the room. This thing looked somewhat familiar. Upon taking a closer look, Ye Shi's eyes went wide, and an expression of astonishment spread across his face. "...A psychic interference device?!" This thing was practically identical to the one he had seen in the eastern suburbs of Qingquan City! Even the main structure hadn't changed; only some modifications had been made to the connected peripherals! "Could it be that this thing is what made the people outside go mad... Hiss, wait, that's not right. Doesn't this thing have no effect on humans with higher intelligence?" It wasn't completely useless, but its influence was extremely limited—so limited that it could only affect subjective judgment in trivial matters. For instance, when someone hesitated over whether to buy something, it could nudge them to buy or not buy. When it came to major decisions concerning one's life, society, or the future of civilization, the device had virtually no effect. Otherwise, when this technology was first developed, it wouldn't have been relegated to running advertisements; the entire People's Federation might have been overturned by such advanced technology. Suddenly, Ye Shi remembered a crucial detail. "The na fruit...?" Under normal circumstances, psychic interference devices didn't work on humans. At most, they were used to drive away low-intelligence mutants over a wide area. But if one ate na fruit and entered a trance... "Holy crap... So the so-called 'gospel' was actually this thing?!" The other settlements might have similar things hidden away! Thinking of this, Ye Shi felt his scalp tingle. However, now was not the time to ponder this. Walking up to the terminal connected to the metal cylinder, Ye Shi pulled a data cable from his VM and searched for a while before finally finding a suitable port to plug it into. The Alliance's Scientific Expedition provided hacking programs to players of profession level LV3 and above, covering basic functions such as bypassing firewalls, gaining access permissions, and extracting data. The hacking program was primarily designed for pre-war civilian security systems. Although general-purpose applets like this were usually unreliable, especially since the VM's hardware couldn't support massive computational loads, given the lax security measures here where they hadn't even bothered installing a door lock, it was worth a shot. The entire settlement was covered by this psychic interference device. If his deduction was correct, in theory, every "believer" here was the eyes of that bishop hiding in the Sanctuary. Even the farm owner himself had unwittingly become a puppet of the Church of the Torch. All the concealment was directed outward; for the people living here, there was no need for concealment or protection at all. The psychic interference device itself was the best defense. If someone accidentally stumbled in here, all they had to do was what happened today—"shut down" the unlucky person's consciousness and knock them out. Ye Shi stared nervously at the VM screen, silently counting the seconds. He needed to extract as much data from here as possible, but he also had to consider the pressure his teammates were facing right now. If there was no result in two minutes, he would slap C4 directly onto that metal cylinder, set a timer, and physically destroy this research facility. Perhaps in answer to the call from the depths of his heart, in the final ten seconds of the countdown, a pale-blue pop-up appeared in the center of the VM screen: [Read-only permissions acquired.] [Acquiring operational permissions...] Seeing this line of text, Ye Shi, who had nearly given up, almost cheered aloud in surprise. "Holy shit! It actually worked!" Brother Yin Fang is awesome! Though maybe Xiao Qi's the awesome one! A simple operating interface appeared on the terminal screen ahead. Although not a single one of the dense characters made sense to him, the plugin installed on the VM automatically translated them into language convenient for players to understand. The copying program was executing automatically. Although most of the data had been deleted, some residual files were still unearthed and organized. Waiting for the applet on his VM to acquire permission to shut down the device, Ye Shi clicked open one of the organized files. A line of title text quickly caught his eye. "...Plan No. 03?" What the heck was that? The title alone didn't reveal much. With a trace of curiosity, Ye Shi dragged his index finger across the screen, looking at the abstract section, and read it softly aloud: "...In the event that the plan is determined to carry a risk of exposure, the relevant research units must immediately terminate ongoing research, destroy experimental data, and initiate Plan No. 03." "Content of experiment: Test and record the clinical responses and combat utility of subjects stimulated by Band 03 signals... Dammit, are these bastards even human?" Ye Shi's Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed hard. What combat utility could this piece of garbage possibly have... Weren't they just a bunch of gnawers?! And they might not even be as good as gnawers—at least gnawers didn't require supplies and could survive for ages without eating anything. Of course, none of that was the point. The point was, just to test such a pointless thing, they had unhesitatingly sacrificed this settlement of fifty thousand people... even though this settlement had long since pledged allegiance to them. These bastards... Just what did they think humans were?! Wait— Ye Shi suddenly caught onto a detail. Although the personnel in this research facility had already evacuated, since Plan No. 03 was also part of the experiment, someone had to stay behind to record and collect the experimental results, right? Otherwise, wouldn't the experiment have been conducted in vain? Almost at that exact moment, a bone-deep chill crept up his spine. Without time to identify where that sinister chill came from, Ye Shi raised his muzzle toward the doorway by pure reflex and pulled the trigger without thinking. Even though there was nothing there! *Rat-tat-tat—!* Orange-yellow tongues of flame spat from the muzzle, hurtling toward the empty doorway. Yet a bizarre scene unfolded: the concentrated hail of bullets struck as if hitting a wall of air, throwing up sparks while rippling outward in translucent waves. The silhouette of an exoskeleton materialized in the air. Taking a full burst point-blank, the figure stumbled backward, barely keeping their footing. The person clearly hadn't expected that despite being equipped with near-flawless optical camouflage and suppressing their footsteps, their presence would still be detected. Barely regaining their balance, the figure raised their muzzle to return fire. But just as they pulled the trigger and fired two shots—*bang, bang*—a gust of fierce wind swept toward their face. It was a blood-stained short blade. Almost instinctively, the person raised an arm to protect their head. While that motion saved their life, it meant their arm took the blow dead-on. "Aaaagh—!!" The blade chopped straight through the exoskeleton's armor guard, sliced through flesh, and cleaved through the radius bone. Agony wrung a wretched scream from the person as blood and sweat poured forth together. Pinning the figure to the ground, Ye Shi wrenched the short blade out with a wet click, aimed his rifle at the person's head, and bared his teeth in a sinister grin. "Well, look at that... I was just thinking about taking someone alive, and you delivered yourself right to my doorstep."