When Li Feng woke up, all he could see was white. As he hesitated between whether Curator Wu had done some sort of experiment on him or if he had really fainted, Curator Wu’s face appeared above him.
“You’re awake?” Curator Wu asked.
“What did you do to me?” Li Feng asked.
“Didn’t do anything,” Curator Wu said. “Didn’t you just fall asleep?”
“Tell everyone I passed out from exhaustion,” Li Feng said.
“That’s what I said,” Curator Wu pointed at the IV drip next to him. “I even gave you some nutrient fluid.”
It wasn’t until Li Feng sat up that he realized he wasn’t in a hospital but in the museum’s laboratory.
He glanced at the time and found that it was already the afternoon of the next day.
“There’s going to be trouble. I still haven’t contacted Qiu Shi,” Li Feng got out of bed.
“Qiu Shi already contacted you,” Curator Wu said. “You hadn’t woken up yet, so I answered for you.”
“How are they?” Li Feng asked immediately.
“They’ve started the return trip with Hu Xiaoling,” Curator Wu said. “Qiu Shi was injured, but he had surgery in Donglin, nothing major. Hu Xiaoling is also hurt, but it’s not serious.”
“Hmm, what else?” Li Feng frowned. “How did Qiu Shi get injured?”
“Why would they tell me?” Curator Wu said.
“What about Lin Sheng?” Li Feng continued to ask.
“He’s back in the stasis pod,” Curator Wu replied.
Li Feng froze for a moment. “Why?”
“Colonel Xu believes there are still some questionable details.” Curator Wu’s expression was subtle, clearly showing his disagreement.
“Like what?” Li Feng asked.
“Some movements she considered unnecessary,” Curator Wu said. “He looked at the sky, the return route was different from the one there, and the killing was too brutal…”
Li Feng was stunned for quite a while, wondering if his brain had atrophied from sleep.
“Does she not understand what it means to be almost human?” Li Feng said. “Lin Sheng is a hidden guard, not a soldier. Killing is their job; he’s not a robot. He can’t even look at the sky? Killing needs a human touch, but looking at the sky isn’t ‘programmatic’ enough? And isn’t it just that they didn’t take a detour on the way back?”
“I hinted at that too,” Curator Wu said. “But I’m old, and I just want to focus on my research. I don’t want to get too deep into certain things…”
“And I’m young, right?” Li Feng said.
“Being in your thirties is still young,” Curator Wu smiled.
“I’ll go find her,” Li Feng grabbed the coat he had left beside him. “If we follow this logic, I’ll tell Xing Bi not to return to Yun City.”
“You could go straight to Mr. Long,” Curator Wu said.
Li Feng turned to look at him.
“He’s waiting for you in my office,” Curator Wu said. “He’s been there for an hour.”
“Quite bold,” Li Feng said as he headed for the door. “Isn’t he worried that someone’s still after him?”
“I found some clothes for you,” Curator Wu pointed to a clean set of clothes on the table nearby.
“No need,” Li Feng refused and walked out of the lab in his pajamas, even ruffling his already messy hair.
When he walked into Curator Wu’s office, Mr. Long was sitting on the sofa, looking at the screen in front of him. Li Feng took one glance and could tell it was information about Lin Sheng.
However, Mr. Long didn’t close the screen but simply turned his head. When he saw Li Feng’s appearance, he was momentarily stunned. “Why didn’t you tidy up?”
“No time,” Li Feng walked up to him. “What do you need from me, Mr. Long?”
“What do you think?” Mr. Long asked.
“I’m not sure,” Li Feng replied.
Mr. Long chuckled, “Had enough rest? You’ve really been through a lot lately.”
“I’ll need to go through more,” Li Feng said. “The inner city’s a mess right now, people need resources, and they’re all looking to me.”
“The Support Bureau,” Mr. Long said, “has always been a tough and thankless place.”
Li Feng remained silent.
“Others don’t understand,” Mr. Long said, “but I do, and that’s enough.”
“Thank you, Mr. Long,” Li Feng said.
“Even though we couldn’t completely stop these bioroidanical invaders this time,” Mr. Long said, “your precise judgment still minimized the damage.”
“Thank you for trusting me,” Li Feng said.
“Why so polite today?” Mr. Long asked.
“Probably haven’t slept enough,” Li Feng said.
“For this incident,” Mr. Long swiped the screen a few times, pulling up a real-time map of the inner city with damage reports and analysis being continuously updated. “What are your thoughts? Do you have any information to report?”
“I do,” Li Feng said. Mr. Long waited for him to continue, but he paused.
“What’s the matter?” Mr. Long looked at him and, after a moment, smiled. “Do you want me to fulfill my side of the deal first? You can ask.”
“I need more authority and a stronger voice in the task force,” Li Feng directly stated his demand.
Mr. Long looked at him with some surprise. “I thought you’d ask for something else.”
“If I can secure this position, I can have anything,” Li Feng said. “If I can’t, I might lose my life. What’s the point of asking for anything else?”
“I’ll think about it,” Mr. Long said.
“Donglin Town was attacked by Symbionts at the same time as us,” Li Feng quickly shifted back to the topic. “Although the attack methods and goals seem different, it’s clear they’re from the same group.”
“Donglin…” Mr. Long frowned. “Didn’t you report earlier that they were taken over by bioroids?”
“Yes,” Li Feng said, “but we’ll need more detailed information after Qiu Shi and the others return. Communication on the road might be intercepted; it’s not safe.”
“What are your thoughts right now?” Mr. Long asked.
“Strengthen the defenses of the inner city and strictly screen the refugees entering the city—these are the basics,” Li Feng said. “The outer city also needs to be managed, and the outermost defense line should be pushed further out. The current warning area is enough for dealing with infected, but if it’s bioroids or Symbionts, it won’t be enough.”
Mr. Long nodded, looking at him.
“Be a little more proactive,” Li Feng said.
“How proactive?” Mr. Long asked.
“We’ll understand the situation in Donglin once Qiu Shi and the others return,” Li Feng said. “As for Xingchuan Town, how many small gathering points are still around us, how many sources of infection are left, where is the Symbiont headquarters, and are there any forces we can ally with…”
“When the old director recommended you back then,” Mr. Long looked at him, “I was a bit worried—too young, didn’t seem reliable. Now that I think about it, the old director had a good eye for people.”
Li Feng didn’t say anything.
“As for strengthening the inner city,” Mr. Long asked, “do you have any specific ideas?”
“No,” Li Feng looked at him.
“Hm?” Mr. Long was momentarily stunned, but then quickly laughed again.
“For external matters, if no one else is willing to do it and Mr. Long thinks it’s necessary, I can take care of it,” Li Feng said. “As for the inner city affairs, I won’t get involved. My only request is to have a say in the task force.”
“Any specifics?” Mr. Long asked.
“Lin Sheng went back to the stasis pod, you should have a report on that,” Li Feng said. “The reasoning, in my view, was a decision made with no understanding of bioroids or Symbionts.”
“Got it,” Mr. Long nodded. “I’ll speak with the general.”
“The general…” Li Feng hesitated for two seconds but didn’t continue, “I hope it can be quick. If Xing Bi and the others come back and have to return to their pods, I will advise them not to return. At this stage, Yun City should use bioroids to protect humans, not waste combat power and wait for others to wipe us out.”
“You know,” Mr. Long said, “the creators of the first generation of Yun City thought the same way back then.”
“Do we have any other choice?” Li Feng said. “If history must repeat itself to continue, then let it repeat.”
“I’m getting old,” Mr. Long looked at his reflection in the glass beside him. “I don’t know how many more pages I can leave behind.”
Li Feng didn’t say anything.
“Have you thought about all this?” Mr. Long turned to look at him.
“No,” Li Feng said, “I just want to live.”
Qiu Shi had been sleeping the entire way because of the wound on his chest. His sleep quality was much better than on the way to Donglin, as he was basically in a daze—every time he opened his eyes, it hurt, and once the pain tired him out, he would pass out again.
He hadn’t used any painkillers or injections; he always felt that stuff would dull his reflexes.
Up front, Hu Xiaoling, who was driving, slowed down and turned around to make a gesture.
“We’re out of fuel,” Qiu Shi said.
“There’s some in the car,” Xing Bi stopped the vehicle.
“I’ll stretch my legs,” Qiu Shi said as he opened the car door and got out.
The sky was already getting dark, and there was no particular smell in the air. It was empty—aside from the wind, there was nothing. This emptiness made him uneasy.
“Your wound,” he looked at Hu Xiaoling, “rebandage it.”
“It’s fine. It doesn’t hurt much anymore,” Hu Xiaoling said.
“The bullet hole isn’t even covered, it’s exposed,” Qiu Shi said.
“Hm?” Hu Xiaoling looked down. “Maybe I moved too much?”
Xing Bi pulled out a medical kit.
“I’ll do it myself, I’ll do it,” Hu Xiaoling said.
“We haven’t run into anyone the entire way,” Qiu Shi said. “Did the Symbionts clear the area, or is something else going on?”
“This area is open, not easy to hide in,” Xing Bi said. “Be cautious as we approach the hilly region ahead.”
When Qiu Shi got back into the car, he opened the map—there were only the three of them as small dots.
“If a Symbiont approaches, can you sense it?” he asked Xing Bi.
“Not necessarily,” Xing Bi started the car again, following behind Hu Xiaoling. “Some can hide.”
“Did you discover that in Donglin?” Qiu Shi asked.
“Mm, like splitting into groups. Donglin can even block information about Symbionts within a certain range,” Xing Bi said. “It prevents them from being controlled by other entities.”
“Does Yun City have that kind of technology?” Qiu Shi frowned.
“You’ll have to ask Li Feng,” Xing Bi said. “I don’t remember.”
“Yun City is probably a mess by now,” Qiu Shi said. “It’s been running on its own rules for years. No one knows what the outside world is like, and no one cares… but I’m the same, it’s all the same.”
Xing Bi glanced at him.
“I’m afraid of change,” Qiu Shi said. “Do you know that feeling? When the wound hurts badly, as long as you don’t move, you can bear it. But if you move even a little, it’s excruciating.”
“I get it,” Xing Bi responded.
“You don’t get it at all. Your wound healed in less than two days,” Qiu Shi said.
A small bright dot appeared in the upper right corner of the map.
“There’s someone,” Qiu Shi looked at the dot, “just one, and they’re not moving.”
“Let Hu Xiaoling go behind us,” Xing Bi steered the car to overtake Hu Xiaoling’s vehicle.
Qiu Shi extended his hand out the window and made a gesture.
Hu Xiaoling gestured back and followed behind their car.
The small dot remained stationary the whole time. When their car got close enough, they could already see a field of corpses, but the dot still didn’t move.
It was a woman, sitting in the middle of the corpses.
“They’re all human,” Xing Bi slowed the car and stopped beside the group of corpses.
The car’s headlights illuminated the ground, casting a sharp contrast between light and dark. In the glaring light, the bodies on the ground and the woman’s blood-stained half of her body appeared eerily sinister.
“Who did this…” Qiu Shi looked at the bodies on the ground. When Xing Bi got out of the car, he followed and raised his hand, signaling Hu Xiaoling not to move.
There were black fungi on the ground, and Hu Xiaoling had wounds, making him susceptible to infection.
“Human,” Xing Bi examined the wounds on the bodies.
“Were they robbed?” Qiu Shi glanced at the woman. She looked like a refugee, but including the bodies on the ground, there were nine people in total, yet there was no luggage. It was highly likely they had been robbed.
However, Qiu Shi didn’t expect her to answer. The woman looked as if her soul was no longer in this world, leaving only an empty shell behind.
Qiu Shi returned to the car, grabbed a few cans and some water, and went back to the woman, intending to leave them with her and continue on their way.
But the woman only stared at the gun on his leg.
Qiu Shi paused.
“Kill me,” the woman lifted her eyes to look at him. She suddenly spoke, her voice low and somewhat distant, but her gaze was resolute.
Qiu Shi said nothing, put the supplies back in the car, turned, drew his gun, and shot the woman in the forehead.
Her head jerked backward, and she collapsed among the corpses.
“Ah!” Hu Xiaoling shouted from the car behind them.
Qiu Shi glanced at him, wanting to say something, but in the end, he silently got into the car.
Hu Xiaoling’s car moved to the front again, navigating toward the ferry dock at Donglin based on his memory.
The earlier excitement was gone. Now, he looked like a severely injured person, gripping the steering wheel with only his right hand, staring ahead like a one-armed swordsman.
“He’s never killed someone face-to-face before, has he?” Xing Bi asked.
“Growing up next to Yun City, who would have experienced such things? He was a refugee too, just like the people on the ground earlier. He only came to Yun City when he was old enough to remember things,” Qiu Shi said.
This kind of execution-style killing was different from any battle or cleanup operation. Even when they occasionally cleared infected outside the city, it was usually him and Zhao Lü doing the work.
Xing Bi didn’t say anything else.
“Have I been traumatized?” Qiu Shi said. “I was nearly killed by my own brother, and now I did this in front of Hu Xiaoling…”
“The person trying to kill you was a stranger,” Xing Bi said.
“Yeah,” Qiu Shi chuckled. “Xing Bi.”
“Hm?” Xing Bi responded.
“Why is it that even now, at least on the surface, you still adhere to that oath?” Qiu Shi asked.
“Never betray a friend, right?” Xing Bi said. “All my emotions, my thoughts, they all come from humans. There will always be a human who gives me hope.”
“Me?” Qiu Shi asked.
“Who else? Li Feng?” Xing Bi said.
Qiu Shi laughed, holding his chest and looking out the window. “You’re quite strange too. Other bioroids aren’t like you, right? Take Chen Dang for example, and that Lin Sheng.”
“Chen Dang isn’t a hidden guard,” Xing Bi said, “he’s a civilian.”
“So his way of thinking is different?” Qiu Shi asked. “And what about Lin Sheng?”
“It’s the people they’ve met, the environments they’ve been in,” Xing Bi said.
“Right, and you don’t interact with ordinary people,” Qiu Shi said.
Xing Bi laughed. “Your memory is no worse than a bioroid’s.”
“Maybe I have a little chip too,” Qiu Shi touched the back of his neck. “When they implanted this thing in me, they didn’t even tell me, those bastards.”
Up ahead, Hu Xiaoling suddenly stood up. The car slowed down and began driving upriver.
Xing Bi also adjusted his direction, following behind.
The surroundings were now completely dark, but tonight the moon was especially bright. The visibility was better than the last time they crossed the river, allowing them to see the undulating terrain around them, and the river’s surface, which seemed to be covered in silver scales, like a massive, writhing snake.
They drove for quite a while. Just as Qiu Shi was about to ask Hu Xiaoling if he had forgotten the way, Hu Xiaoling raised his hand and stopped the car.
“We’re here,” Qiu Shi said.
Hu Xiaoling jumped out of the car, ran to the riverbank, and bent down to take a look. “This is it!”
On the muddy shore, beneath the stones, Hu Xiaoling dug around a bit with his hands and uncovered an iron ring as thick as a wrist. A thin steel cable extended from the ring into the river.
“The other end is connected to the boat. Pull it, and the boat will slide down the track from the mountain into the water,” Hu Xiaoling glanced at the car they were driving. “We probably need to use that car to pull it. Or… Xing Bi?”
“Even hidden guards don’t have that much strength,” Xing Bi said.
“Oh,” Hu Xiaoling said. “I thought you could pull it over.”
“Maybe I should carry you and your car across the river,” Xing Bi said as he walked back to the car.
Hu Xiaoling was momentarily stunned, then burst out laughing. He squatted by the riverbank, laughing until Xing Bi had driven the car up in front of him.
“Hey, bioroids are funny too?” Hu Xiaoling said.
“They’re infinitely close to humans,” Qiu Shi said.
“I think they’re superior to humans,” Hu Xiaoling’s smile faded. “How could they be friends with humans? Humans are so… fragile, selfish, cruel…”
Qiu Shi flicked him on the head. “Hu Xiaoling.”
“You and Zhao Lü have protected us too well,” Hu Xiaoling said. “Before, the worst thing for me was getting bullied by the security bureau.”
“Did I traumatize you?” Qiu Shi asked.
“No,” Hu Xiaoling stood up. “It’s already good enough that you weren’t traumatized. That Qiu Yu… damn.”
“Get to work,” Xing Bi said.
“Who are you calling?” Qiu Shi asked.
“Me,” Xing Bi bent down, pulling the iron ring out of the ground and hooking it to the car’s winch.
As the winch turned, the bushes in the forest on the opposite mountain began to shake. Before long, a boat slid out.
It wasn’t a particularly standard boat shape. It looked more like a square platform, probably meant for ferrying, capable of carrying cargo. Judging by its size, it could fit both their vehicles.
From the mountain to the riverbank, there were two faintly visible tracks, and the boat slowly moved along these tracks to the riverside. The next step would be pulling it over to their side.
“There’s something on the boat,” Xing Bi suddenly said.
“Damn it.” Hu Xiaoling turned, jumped into his vehicle, and aimed his machine gun at the direction of the boat.
Qiu Shi also drew his gun and aimed, then opened the map. When a dense cluster of small dots appeared in the boat’s direction, he was stunned. There were at least twenty of them.
But the boat, now pulled into the river, was eerily quiet, even though they could already see the shadows of people on the boat.
“What’s going on?” Hu Xiaoling asked.
“They’re humans,” Xing Bi said. “Infected.”
This made Qiu Shi relax somewhat. If it were a boat full of bioroids, with their current half-damaged combat power, they would have had to rely solely on Xing Bi, which would have been problematic.
But a boat full of silent, ghost-like infected people was also strange.
The boat was pulled to the riverbank. Qiu Shi cautiously approached and confirmed that they were indeed humans. Although they didn’t outwardly appear to be infected, Qiu Shi could tell by instinct.
But why were they so eerily still…
“They’re controlled,” Xing Bi said. “Get on the boat and pass before the host notices us.”
“What?” Hu Xiaoling was stunned. “Aren’t we going to clear them first?”
“Clearing one will alert the host. Don’t touch them. Cross the river first.” Qiu Shi jumped into the car, watched as Xing Bi lowered the boarding plank, removed the steel cable, and slowly drove the car onto the boat, parking it close to the infected people, leaving space for Hu Xiaoling’s vehicle.
After Hu Xiaoling’s car was on the boat, Xing Bi didn’t put the iron ring back in place but took it onto the boat.
Qiu Shi thought similarly—this boat couldn’t be left behind. Even if Donglin could build another one later, this one had to be destroyed first.
Xing Bi started the boat’s engine, and the steel cable tightened, slowly pulling them across to the opposite shore. Xing Bi didn’t get back in the car but stood next to the infected people.
The crossing didn’t take long; it was much faster than if they had fallen into the river halfway and had to swim across. But with the added presence of these people on the boat, the time felt exceptionally long.
So long that Qiu Shi had looked at the faces of these people many times, even identifying the oldest and the youngest faces among them before the boat finally emerged from the water and began sliding toward the mountainside.
Xing Bi turned off the engine. Hu Xiaoling and Qiu Shi carefully drove the cars off the boat.
Qiu Shi found that anxiety was the strongest painkiller. Only after the car was off the boat and stopped did he feel the intense pain in his chest.
“How should we deal with these people?” he asked Xing Bi.
“Burn the boat along with them,” Xing Bi said, taking a box of oil from the car and returning to the boat, pouring oil into it, and finally dousing the infected people with the oil.
When Qiu Shi jumped off the boat, he handed Xing Bi a lighter. Xing Bi lit it and threw it onto the boat.
A burst of flames erupted from the center of the boat, quickly spreading to the surroundings. Within seconds, the infected people were engulfed in flames, their clothes and hair catching fire.
The fire, fueled by the oil, was intense, and Qiu Shi felt his face burning. He stepped back a couple of paces.
Just as he steadied himself, the infected people on the boat, who hadn’t yet been fully consumed by the flames, suddenly turned their heads in unison.
“Damn it!” Qiu Shi was startled, cursing under his breath, and raised his gun along with Xing Bi.
But the infected people didn’t move; they simply stared at them in perfect unison.
Just when Qiu Shi was about to start shooting in a sweeping motion, they opened their mouths, and their already damaged throats began to emit a crackling roar simultaneously.
“Xing… Bi…”
