Chapter 82

Chapter 82

A few minutes later, Lu Yan boarded the helicopter.

For easy identification, the pilot's ID number was embedded right on his chest.

Generally, what mission you ended up on was assigned. But usually, the Awakener's own preference was taken into account.

For instance, with Lu Yan's current spiritual power threshold around four thousand, he was perfectly suited for clearing out the living dead at the cemetery. But Lu Yan had said he wanted to go to the reservoir, so the pilot received orders to take him to the corresponding location.

Lu Yan had been with the Special Operations Department for a while now, but he'd always been on free exploration duty. This was the first time he'd received a direct task from the department.

System: [I'd call this the main quest.]

The "Special Operations Department Employee Edition" app, which had been gathering dust on his phone since he downloaded it, vibrated. A string of mission messages popped up.

[Mission Code: A-381]

[Executor: Lu Yan (C-Class, Support)]

[Assigned Squad: B2]

**[Squad Members: Zhou Qimeng (B-Class, Special, Captain); Chen Shisi (C-Class, Combat); Detective (C-Class, Support)]

An asterisk followed the first two names as they weren't formal department employees. Tapping their profiles revealed basic information: an overview of their innate abilities and past mission experience.

To foster trust among team members, headquarters prioritized forming temporary squads with complementary abilities or prior cooperative experience.

So, seeing familiar names didn't surprise Lu Yan much.

[Mission Overview: The First Research Institute is located beneath the Azure Dragon Reservoir. At 22:47 on September 9th, it came under attack by pollutants. As one of the earliest facilities dedicated to pollutant research, each level of the institute houses numerous pollutants kept as experimental subjects. Should these subjects escape, the resulting damage to City A would be catastrophic and irreversible.]

[Mission Objective: Clear Sub-Level 1, Zone B2 (map attached).]**

In Lu Yan's memory, the institute's first sub-level was a shelter, with levels 2 and 3 being experimental zones housing many animals and plants.

But that was decades ago.

The helicopter reached the airspace above the reservoir. On the shore, a temporary supply station had been erected.

Uniformed personnel streamed in and out, distant specks moving with the purposeful anonymity of worker ants. A banner hung over the station, red with stark yellow characters. Lu Yan squinted to read it: "Unite as One, Resist Pollution, Provide Disaster Relief."

System commented: [Not bad. Sets the mood. The tension's building.]

"Mr. Lu, are you trained in parachuting?" the pilot asked.

Parachuting had been a mandatory skill during his training at headquarters. Lu Yan had practiced freefall from six thousand meters and emergency jumps with a canopy deployment at a mere hundred meters above ground.

He fastened the parachute harness across his chest and waist. The cabin door slid open, and Lu Yan stepped out into the void.

The area around the reservoir was flat. As long as he didn't land in the water, it shouldn't be a problem.

At the supply station, Lu Yan spotted his teammates. Half a year had passed. Zhou Qimeng's features seemed sharper, more chiseled, his face narrow like a mixed-race model's, his eyebrows nearly soaring into his hairline.

The sight of Lu Yan visibly delighted Zhou Qimeng. He shot forward, arms wide for a bear hug.

Lu Yan sidestepped, letting him embrace empty air.

Zhou Qimeng's expression crumpled with theatrical hurt.

"What are you doing here?" Lu Yan asked.

Zhou Qimeng's usual base of operations was in City D, Sichuan-Chongqing region. A world away from City A.

"Long story," Zhou Qimeng sighed dramatically. "I'm not officially with Special Ops, you know. But my game's about to launch, so I came to City A for the press conference. Who knew I'd get this lucky? Just had to run into this mess."

Detective muttered beside him, "Ever wonder why you always hit pity on your gacha pulls? No self-awareness?"

"Dr. Lu, I didn't even know you were in City A! I send you 'good morning', 'good afternoon', 'good night' on WeChat every day, and you never reply..." Zhou Qimeng's voice took on a wounded tone. Then, almost subconsciously, he glanced up at the space above Lu Yan's head.

Six months apart, and the titles floating there had changed again. Two of them now.

One was golden: [Cult Ender (Intermediate)].

The other was a pink title Zhou Qimeng had never seen before. In his mind's eye, he mentally clicked on it. A note indicated it was a hidden title from a special instance.

[Alluring Beauty].

Zhou Qimeng secretly pulled out his phone and Baidu'd the term. It referred to a stunningly attractive person who was captivating, alluring... a hook.

A sudden intuition struck him. He fished out a small mirror and looked at his own reflection.

Sure enough, hovering above his head was a clear, pink title—[Victim D].

Beneath it was his original title: [Game Developer].

Which raised the question: who were Victims A, B, and C?

*

The main entrance to the Research Institute had been completely blown open. Water had flooded into the first sub-level.

Originally designed as a temporary shelter and living quarters, parts of Sub-Level 1 had been converted into experimental zones as space grew scarce.

Unfortunately, many of the pollutants studied on this level were aquatic—particularly algae and fish species.

The reservoir dam had been urgently closed to halt the water flow. To prevent these pollutants from escaping into the river system, real-time pollution monitors had been installed in the surrounding waters.

"We can access Sub-Level 1 directly by diving from the reservoir. For the other floors, we can use the internal staff elevator," Zhou Qimeng explained, securing a diving helmet over his head.

Lu Yan glanced toward the staff elevator. It was a single-person lift, and a line had formed. One man in the queue stood out, holding a long spear. He wore an eyepatch over one missing eye, giving him an air of elegant, almost medieval nobility. Perched on his shoulder was a three-headed crow, two of its heads nothing but bleached bone.

The man seemed acutely sensitive to being watched. He turned, his gaze meeting Lu Yan's, and offered a slight, knowing smile.

System: [Perennial number two on the Awakener Forum rankings. Codename: Odin. Mixed heritage. Mutation direction: Gigantification, Ossification. Spiritual power threshold: 9400. Seriously, don't you think your roster needs expanding?]

Lu Yan didn't quite follow the system's meaning.

He asked, "Where's Tang Xian'an?"

[Currently on Sub-Level 7, engaged with a pollutant released by the Prophet.]

Zhou Qimeng applied his ability, granting the entire squad the "can breathe underwater" status.

Even so, as a precaution, everyone carried an oxygen tank on their backs.

Lu Yan was no exception. He could breathe underwater himself; this tank was for a teammate.

One by one, they plunged into the reservoir like frogs into a pot.

The entire research institute was built like an inverted pyramid, making the first sub-level the most expansive. Headquarters had deployed twenty-five Awakeners in total, divided into five teams to clear different zones.

Additionally, hundreds of support personnel scoured the reservoir's periphery for stray pollutants.

The drainage system for the institute's first sub-level had almost entirely failed. Most areas were completely submerged.

Lu Yan descended about ten meters before the institute's entrance came into view.

The massive metal door had nearly melted, a gaping hole burned straight through it. The lake water had poured in, filling the space. He could even see a few grass carp swimming idly inside.

A body drifted slowly past Lu Yan.

It was a middle-aged woman. A "Janitor" name tag still hung on her chest. Her face was etched with the agonized struggle of her final moments. Even in death, her fingers were locked tight around a photograph of her child.

[After all these years of development, the entire institute functioned like a small subterranean city. A permanent population of twenty thousand. Among them, 103 were researchers. The rest were management, logistics, and security.]

[It happened too fast. Very few ordinary people made it out.]

Lu Yan was silent for a moment. He reached out and gently closed her eyes.

He'd seen many corpses. By all rights, he should be numb to it by now. Yet a leaden weight settled in his chest.

"These sacrifices... they didn't have to happen," Lu Yan said quietly. "I could have found a way to warn headquarters. But I didn't."

The system cut in, its tone flat: [There is no absolute justice in the world. No absolute fairness. Every choice inevitably creates opposition.]

[This is the result of countless causes and conditions. If not today, then tomorrow. Perhaps another pollutant would have blown the institute open from the outside. Perhaps the test subjects would have revolted from within.]

The system's mechanical voice was emotionless, chillingly detached: [Your choice might alter a branch, but in the end, all streams flow into the same river.]

A gurgling, rushing noise filled Lu Yan's ears, as if water had flooded his auditory canals. It throbbed against his temples.

The system's voice dropped to a whisper: [So many believe they have a choice, that they can change the outcome. Some even go to insane lengths, trying to reverse time, to restart the world. In reality, they're just walking a predetermined path.]

[Many never grasp this. But I hope you understand.]

Unfortunately, Lu Yan couldn't make out a single word.

……

……

Inside the first sub-level of the Research Institute, not only had the drainage failed, but the power grid was mostly dead. Visibility underwater was extremely poor.

Each squad member was equipped with a Bluetooth earpiece.

Zhou Qimeng checked the mission details on his phone. "Zone B2 is the Marine Experimentation Area. Primary pollutants are algae and jellyfish."

"Research subject: oxygen production by algal pollutants, and the longevity genes in jellyfish," Zhou Qimeng glanced at the file, then flipped past it irritably. "Can't make heads or tails of it."

Using pollutants in medicine, after decades of research, had become a widespread practice.

Even the monthly free special medicine distributed by headquarters contained pollutant components.

Underwater, thermal weapons were useless. Ranged weapons like bows were also hampered. In the end, it was the cold steel of close-combat weapons in everyone's hands that offered a sliver of security.

Chen Shisi cracked his knuckles, excitement in his voice. "The highest contamination value here is only 3700. I'm ready to tear some jellyfish apart with my bare hands."

Some people tensed up on the battlefield. Others were the exact opposite.

"Don't get careless," Zhou Qimeng warned, his voice low. "Things from other floors might have gotten mixed in. Stay sharp."

Moving through the flooded corridor, Lu Yan's team finally reached their assigned clearing zone.

B2, First Research Institute, Biological Experimentation Area.

The area was still submerged, but better than the entrance—the water only reached waist-deep here. But with the power out and being underground, visibility was almost zero. Shockingly, fresh blood still streaked the walls.

Wet. Warm.

It looked like a scene straight out of a horror film.

[The intel you received is flawed. Not intentionally from headquarters. For experimental safety, headquarters mandates that any pollutant used as a test subject cannot exceed a contamination value of 4500.]

[To obtain more, more detailed data, to surpass the research of other scientific institutes, many pollutant records here at the First Institute have been falsified.]

[For instance... the thing behind that door.]

Lu Yan's gaze shifted to the door the system indicated.

It looked like some kind of operating room, the door sealed tight. Water had seeped through the cracks, already covering half the observation window.

Lu Yan's brow furrowed. "How could they dare?"

[They lost their reverence. Thought they could control everything, stand above all other living beings. That, too, is a form of arrogance.]

The contamination detector showed no reaction.

Many of the labs here had walls made of special alloys, designed to weaken pollutants and block signal detection.

Lu Yan looked away, planning to deal with the final boss after clearing the other areas.

For now, what they encountered along the way were mostly non-aggressive algae.

Detective suddenly stopped, tense. "Boss. My talent is reacting."

[Talent 346 - Clue Perception]

Effect: Reacts to critical entities.

As for what exactly constituted a 'critical entity'... that was often a matter of luck.

Zhou Qimeng tightened his grip on the long blade in his hand. "I see it too... why the hell does this door have a health bar?"

As if hearing their voices, a series of thuds echoed from the edge of the window.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

Detective instinctively raised his flashlight.

A pale hand emerged from beneath the glass of the window, stained with blood—impossible to tell if it was its own or someone else's.

The hand moved swiftly, writing a single English word on the fogged glass.

"Run."

Lu Yan asked the system, "Is someone alive in there?"

[Yes. When the institute blew, they were in the middle of surgery. Two subjects: one pollutant, one Awakener. The power failure caused... operational errors. The pollutant lost control. It ate the other researchers. The remaining Awakener dragged the pollutant into a smaller room and locked the door, intending to handle it himself.]

[A miscalculation. His spiritual power threshold isn't low, but combat isn't just about raw power...]

"Who is it?"

[Number 03. Codename: Pope. Real name: Qin Guoyu. Spiritual power threshold: 8800. His older brother's Chinese name is Qin Huaijin. Current codename is probably... 'Gu Master'?]