Qiu Shi had previously thought about what kind of “water transportation” the vagrants might use—big boats, small boats, the amphibious motorcycles that he and Xing Bi had once fought over—he had considered all possibilities.
But he never imagined they actually used “underwater transportation.”
This underwater propulsion device looked very sturdy; it wasn’t the ordinary kind that you hold with both hands to move forward. Instead, it could be strapped to the arm with a belt, freeing one hand underwater.
It seemed like a reasonable design, but although Qiu Shi had never dived or used any propulsion device before, he could still sense that this thing wasn’t very reliable.
“This thing must be hard to keep balanced, right?” He strapped the device onto his arm and tested it; the weight didn’t affect a bioroid body much.
“There is some difficulty, so they use two of them,” Bai Zhan said.
“Two just pushing forward is still manageable,” Qiu Shi said, “but if you try to do anything else with your hands, you’d probably go crazy underwater.”
“Yeah.” Bai Zhan smiled.
Feng Zhi came over from the equipment vehicle carrying diving goggles with a camera attached, capable of syncing what Bai Zhan saw underwater back to the vehicle.
“I’m going too,” Sang Fan looked at the propulsion device in Qiu Shi’s hand.
“You guys have tasks on shore,” Xu Jie said. “Once Bai Zhan and the others enter the water, all teams must start advancing along the coastline. As soon as there’s any movement underwater, regardless of whether Bai Zhan’s side has identified it, the attack should begin.”
“After the fight, you can go down and play for a while,” Feng Zhi said.
Sang Fan perked up at that and looked at Xu Jie: “Assign me a mission.”
Before Xu Jie could answer, the vagrants on the reef suddenly let out piercing shrieks again. Over a dozen jet skis hidden among the rocks burst out, bouncing people and vehicles off the reef, apparently intending to rush directly into the sea from the large reef blocks.
Between the rock crevices were even stranger watercraft. It looked like at least half of the hundred or so people were going to charge into the sea.
“Now?” Even Xing Bi seemed a bit caught off guard.
“So many people?” Qiu Shi was shocked. “Are they scared the symbiotes don’t know we’ve started moving?”
“Bai Zhan,” Xing Bi looked at him.
“Damn it,” Bai Zhan cursed, surfaced, and jumped onto the reef. “This might get troublesome… Where’s Lao Qi?”
The vagrants were powerful; they didn’t care about their own lives nor others’. They lived wildly and simply, like beasts in this desolate world.
Their idea of freedom was doing whatever they wanted without regard for any consequences, even death.
At this moment, although their goals aligned with Yun City, this alliance was more fragile than any other relationship. For the vagrants, keeping promises was meaningless.
To them, since the fight was happening, then fight. They didn’t care about obeying orders or coordinating.
“Throwing away your gear, huh!” Bai Zhan shouted, his already hoarse voice even rougher.
A bald man suddenly jumped out from somewhere and yelled, “If you’re here, then fight! We didn’t come to watch a show! Nor to take orders from you!”
Excited shrieks erupted all around.
“We’re not obedient bioroids!” A man with a spiked ponytail rode a motorcycle out from the rocks, shouting, “We’re humans—”
You’re all fools!
Fu-ck your ancestors!
At this moment, Qiu Shi’s heart burned with frustration. These people were impossible to communicate with. Whether they charged wildly into the sea or shouted and fought with Yun City’s troops here, it would be fatal to the mission.
But this mission desperately needed the vagrants. Without these reckless people, fighting the dying symbiote army would be very difficult. Yet the vagrants themselves, constantly on the edge of losing control, were a huge danger factor.
Qiu Shi furrowed his brow. Negotiations alone probably wouldn’t solve this.
“Son of a bitch!” Suddenly, a figure jumped out and landed on the reef.
“Whoa.” Bai Zhan glanced at him with a pleased look.
“Third Master,” Xing Bi said, “watch your words.”
“Are brainless people even human?” Li San Ye said recklessly, then added a cryptic remark, “The only reason you’re still alive is you just haven’t died yet!”
“Li Rui!” Ji Sui stepped forward to pull him back.
But Xing Bi raised his hand to stop him, and Ji Sui halted.
The spiked ponytail man sneered sharply, twisted his throttle, and the motorcycle roared as he charged at Li Rui from the rocks. Li Rui made no move to dodge.
“Qiu Shi,” Xing Bi whispered.
At this emergency, where Xing Bi obviously was about to act, he called Qiu Shi’s name.
When Qiu Shi rushed out, he didn’t understand why Xing Bi had called him, but now he realized how many thoughts could flash in a moment.
What to do — kill as a warning.
Why him — it had to be a human to make the other side accept it.
Qiu Shi jumped out, onto the nearest reef, leapt off forcefully from a high spot, and as the motorcycle charged toward him, he pulled the knife hanging on his leg.
With a kick, he deflected the motorcycle; with a slash, he cut across the attacker’s throat.
The motorcycle flew past Li Rui. The spiked ponytail man spat blood and fell heavily onto the reef in front of Li Rui.
But as Qiu Shi landed on the reef, the vagrants gave him no chance to rest — immediately, a long chopping knife swung at his face.
Without thinking, he raised his left hand and caught the blade. The glove he wore for better gun grip blocked the strongest blow, but the blade still cut into his palm.
He didn’t let go. With his right hand, he raised the knife, the tip accurately pressing against the other man’s throat.
He didn’t intend to kill this person—killing one was enough…
But the man seemed to have no intention of stopping. He didn’t even consider whether he could still be alive if he didn’t stop this knife.
With his other hand holding a knife, he thrust upwards at Qiu Shi.
The style of this attack was strikingly similar to how Qiu Yu used to fight.
Qiu Shi showed no mercy. The knife pressing on the throat flipped over, the grip turning horizontal, slicing downwards, cutting open the arm that was stabbing upward.
Blood sprayed all over Qiu Shi.
When Qiu Shi released the knife blade, the man collapsed backwards onto the rock.
“Anyone else?” Qiu Shi looked at the now halted rioters. After a moment of silence, hearing no response, he continued, “Do you want to take our weapons and follow our plan so we can have a good fight later, or do you want to be wiped out here and now?”
“Use your brains a little,” Bai Zhan said, looking at Lao Qi. “There are other strong humans besides you.”
“What’s the plan?” Lao Qi asked.
“I’ll take ten men underwater,” Bai Zhan said. “The rest will follow the convoy on land. Your people will quietly move through the rocks.”
“Wait for their signal.” Bai Zhan handed a whistle to Qiu Shi.
“And then?” Lao Qi asked.
“Then go kill,” Qiu Shi said.
“You’re not a soldier,” Lao Qi said, looking at him, “What kind of person are you?”
“A body collector,” Qiu Shi said, then turned and started walking. After a couple of steps, he stopped, turned back, and asked, “What’s the signal to start killing?”
“One long, two short,” Lao Qi replied.
Qiu Shi said nothing. He bent down, dragged a rioter’s corpse on the ground to the side where others lay, then stepped over two bodies and returned to the convoy.
“The third master is back,” Qiu Shi glanced at Li Rui, who was still standing on the rocks.
Li Rui stepped back, his face cold but his eyes burning as he looked at him. “Brother Shi.”
“Xu Jie, Ji Sui, make arrangements,” Xing Bi said. “Start moving within two minutes. I think that’s about how long their patience lasts. Once they start moving, it’ll be easier to control them.”
“Team One captain,” Xu Jie pressed his earpiece. “Bring the weapons truck over and hand out some light weapons to these rioters. Control large-area destructive weapons…”
“Xing Bi and Qiu Shi lead one team, Feng Zhi and Sang Fan each lead a team…” Ji Sui began organizing.
“Da Xiong and I want to be in the same team as Fan Jie,” Li Rui said.
“Go ahead,” Ji Sui nodded.
Li Rui and Da Xiong immediately followed Sang Fan and got on a vehicle.
Several divers each led a squad of soldiers, one to two vehicles per team. Soon everyone was on board and heading south.
Xing Bi and Qiu Shi’s team only took one vehicle. Their main mission was to follow Bai Zhan’s underwater route and provide backup at any time.
“If you can’t find a concealed spot, just stop by the roadside,” Xu Jie said through the earpiece. “If infected rush up, forget about concealment.”
“Roger.”
“Can you see?” Bai Zhan asked, standing by the door.
“Yes,” Qiu Shi nodded. The screen already showed his own face, the feed coming from Bai Zhan’s underwater camera. “We just need to confirm the location and approximate size of the underwater part of the research facility. If conditions allow, get more detail—where it’s broken, where water’s leaking in, if there’s any place to enter without going through the land entrance.”
“Mm.” Bai Zhan responded.
“Why the distracted ‘mm’?” Qiu Shi glanced at him. “You know what ‘if conditions allow’ means, right? Want your senior brother to remind you again?”
“I know what it means,” Bai Zhan glanced at Xing Bi. “Don’t use him to pressure me.”
“No matter what, leave enough margin to rescue you,” Xing Bi said.
“Mm.” Bai Zhan adjusted his diving goggles, patted the car door, strapped on the propulsion device, then jumped onto the rocks and sat behind Lao Qi’s motorbike.
After a whistle blew, five jet skis leapt between the rocks amid the excited whistles of the rioters, then one by one rushed from the highest rock into the sea.
The rioters on the rocks disappeared into the gaps within seconds and moved southward.
Qiu Shi closed the car door. Their vehicle slowly followed Bai Zhan’s position along the edge of the road.
Xing Bi watched the screen’s transmitted footage. Qiu Shi didn’t look but stared out the window. Though the distance was great, he could still see the five jet skis speeding into the sea.
Qiu Shi took the binoculars again and looked.
Maybe because the distance felt closer, the sea looked especially terrifying. The wind was strong today, and the white foam whipped up by the waves looked like a thick chain wrapping around the riders, as if trying to drag them under.
“The waves are big,” Bai Zhan’s voice came through, mixed with howling wind. “Get ready to dive early.”
“Roger,” Xing Bi replied.
A few seconds later, Qiu Shi saw through the binoculars Bai Zhan and Lao Qi lean left simultaneously, then both fell into the water.
The water was clear and shimmering. When they were engulfed by the sea, they looked like two tiny insects trapped inside a huge piece of green amber.
They disappeared from view. Qiu Shi threw the binoculars aside and leaned toward the screen.
Bubbles and churning water filled the frame, nothing clear in any direction.
Soon, the screen showed Bai Zhan’s outstretched left arm with the propulsion device securely strapped on, activated. The shattered water sprayed behind, showing decent speed but somewhat unstable direction.
“Will this work?” Qiu Shi frowned.
Several knocks came through the earpiece.
“They need to dive deeper,” Xing Bi said. “Near the surface, the waves are too big and currents unstable.”
“Mm.” Qiu Shi kept staring at the screen.
“Change clothes?” Xing Bi asked.
Qiu Shi looked down at his blood-stained jacket, then glanced back to see Song Heng and several fully armed soldiers sitting behind him.
He hadn’t paid attention before, but now the bloody smell hit his nose.
He took off his jacket, thought for a moment, and rolled down the window to toss it out.
A soldier handed him a new uniform jacket, which he put on.
The footage from Bai Zhan’s side gradually calmed down. The white foam from the waves disappeared, replaced by clear water dotted with drifting particles.
Bai Zhan began looking around—upwards, he could see the deep underwater position where the waves vanished and sunlight filtered through the water, breaking into tiny patches of light. When bubbles passed through, it all felt dreamlike and unreal.
He turned to look left and right, seeing the rioters who had dived with him. These coastal-raised rioters were excellent divers, reportedly surfacing only every few minutes for air.
To move more flexibly underwater, like Bai Zhan, they carried no auxiliary breathing equipment. Now they darted lightly up and down like fish, trailing one or two white bubbles. Unlike their wild, domineering behavior on land, underwater they seemed more joyful and free.
Qiu Shi even saw a few of the refugees happily swimming circles underwater.
“Pretty impressive,” he said.
“Don’t envy them,” Xing Bi replied, “you’d just be skipping stones.”
“Shut up,” Qiu Shi shot him a glance.
Everything before their eyes, made light and relaxed by the clear, lively seawater, felt less like a dangerous reconnaissance mission and more like an underwater tour led by Bai Zhan.
Only when Bai Zhan tapped the headset to report to Xing Bi would Qiu Shi suddenly be jolted awake — beneath that sparkling, crystal-clear water hid the research facility that, though unfinished, still bore witness to humanity’s destruction driven by fear and desire.
“There’s something ahead, huge,” Xing Bi said. “He’s planning to circle around toward the deep sea.”
Qiu Shi glanced at the coordinates.
“Our vehicles can’t go any further,” the driver said. “About a kilometer ahead is the suspected entrance location. If there are symbiotes, we’d be exposed.”
“That reef behind is hidden,” Xing Bi looked back at the soldiers. “Get out, keep watch, watch out for infected.”
Several soldiers jumped out of the vehicles and disappeared among the reefs.
Qiu Shi opened the map in front of him, seeing the soldiers scattered around the vehicles; nothing else suspicious.
The underwater footage began to darken as Bai Zhan dove deeper.
The refugees followed him, obviously divided into three groups, taking turns surfacing for air before diving again — their physical condition was extraordinary.
As Bai Zhan turned his head to look around, Qiu Shi saw a massive black shadow appear straight ahead on the screen.
“What was that? The wall of the research facility?” Qiu Shi asked.
There was a tap on the headset from Bai Zhan.
“Underwater tunnel,” Xing Bi said. “It should connect the research facility to that shore entrance.”
“So this must be the tunnel under the bridge Grandpa talked about…” Qiu Shi whispered. “What about the bridge?”
“Maybe it’s been destroyed,” Xing Bi said. “To hide the location of the research facility.”
On screen, Bai Zhan started approaching this huge tunnel, probably to follow it in search of the main part of the research base. According to Grandpa, there’s more than one tunnel — theoretically four, each leading to different parts of the facility. But the research facility wasn’t finished, meaning only one of these tunnels actually leads to the hiding place of 249…
“Bai Zhan, don’t get too close,” Xing Bi warned.
Bai Zhan tapped a few times.
“Don’t try to prove yourself at a time like this,” Xing Bi said.
Bai Zhan raised his right hand to the camera and flipped the middle finger.
Xing Bi chuckled.
“Is he going in?” Qiu Shi asked.
“The probe he’s carrying shows some sections of the tunnel are made of different materials, possibly glass. If so, we can see inside, check for damage, flooding, and whether it’s passable,” Xing Bi explained.
“Mm.” Qiu Shi bit his lip, a bit tense.
Xing Bi reached out and pinched his cheek, making his lips pop out from between his teeth.
“Damn,” Qiu Shi couldn’t help but laugh. “What’s that for?”
“Relax,” Xing Bi said. “Bai Zhan is strong. Don’t worry too much.”
“You just told him not to prove himself right now,” Qiu Shi said.
“He agreed, didn’t he?” Xing Bi said.
“That wasn’t agreement!” Qiu Shi shook his middle finger at Xing Bi.
“Don’t learn from bioroid fools,” Xing Bi said.
The black shadow on screen grew larger, gradually occupying most of the frame. The sunlight filtering down faded, and the surroundings seemed drained of color by the looming dark shape.
Qiu Shi could now clearly see the tunnel’s outer shell — old, covered with seaweed and strange unknown organisms, but no fungal traces.
Compared to the refugees, Bai Zhan was still cautious and didn’t get too close. The refugees, meanwhile, clung to all sorts of protrusions and seaweed on the tunnel’s exterior, moving deeper like a strange crawling creature.
Then the screen brightened somewhat, showing a section different from the current dark gray-black tunnel exterior.
“Glass, for real,” Qiu Shi said, shocked.
Ahead, the tunnel turned to glass — a circular pane resting quietly underwater, emitting a soft white glow inside.
Bai Zhan tapped his headset.
“There’s lighting inside,” Xing Bi said. “It’s probably watertight.”
Bai Zhan gestured again, intending to go closer.
“Watch your surroundings,” Xing Bi reminded.
Bai Zhan turned off his thruster and slowly approached the glass. Two colorful fish swam past him, making Qiu Shi’s eyes widen in surprise.
“Damn, fish,” he said. “Fancy fish!”
Bai Zhan was already next to the glass, which revealed a circular tunnel interior with a white floor. The tunnel was embedded with white glowing strips, making it look especially calm.
Bai Zhan moved toward the junction of the glass and the tunnel’s shell, leaning over to see the obscured section inside.
Qiu Shi followed the screen, tracking Bai Zhan’s gaze.
Suddenly, a pair of wide, blood-red eyes suddenly appeared, staring out from that obscured area. Qiu Shi jumped back against the chair.
“Fu-ck!”
Bai Zhan was clearly startled too, though he retreated less dramatically.
“Ambush,” Xing Bi said. “Retreat! Bai Zhan! Retreat!”
Bai Zhan turned on his thruster and backed away.
But as he looked down into the depths, Qiu Shi was shocked to see a line of infected rapidly bursting from beneath the tunnel, breaking the surface of the water.
They were faster than Bai Zhan with his thruster on.
These weren’t swimming up from the bottom — they had been launched from below like from some kind of underwater catapult.
