"The curse doesn't seem to have much direct connection with this underground laboratory," Zhao Yi said confidently.
After wandering around the cafeteria for a while, the two of them had become familiar with most of the monsters they encountered. Then, Zhao Yi led Yang Linlin back to the outside laboratory.
"Are you so sure about that?" Yang Linlin pursed her red lips, feeling like a fool every time Zhao Yi spoke.
Even though they had been together all this time and had seen the same clues, she could never guess what was going on in Zhao Yi's mind.
"If this is the source of the curse, then why haven't the monsters here been affected?"
"Compare everything to the teaching building. Don't you think this underground laboratory is too harmonious and normal?"
Yang Linlin remained expressionless.
Damn it,
How can this laboratory be considered harmonious and normal?
Everything here is terrifying monsters!
Zhao Yi continued, "Based on the information we have so far, that shadow outside is likely the ultimate creation of this experimental facility, codenamed [x-2]. It can phase through walls, fly, and its state is highly unstable. I believe you observed these traits when it was chasing Li Sheng earlier..."
Yang Linlin nodded, but her mind was blank.
Abilities of the shadow...
She hadn't paid any attention to them at all!
It could fly or something, right?
...Whatever!
If Zhao Yi says it has those abilities, then it does!
After all, she's just a bystander. Following Zhao Yi is the right thing to do!
"It possesses such capabilities, yet it stays near the entrance without wandering around. Don't you find that strange?"
Leaning against the door, Zhao Yi kept playing with the elephant clamshell on the back of his human-skin coat, revealing a childish smile.
He looked really... twisted.
"Perhaps it can't find anywhere else to go, so it keeps lingering outside?"
Yang Linlin didn't bother to speculate about the motivations of a ghostly creature.
Zhao Yi shook his head and said, "Rather than saying it can't find anywhere else to go, it's more accurate to say... it's guarding the entrance."
"The monsters inside this facility are as terrifying as a small army. Ordinary threats don't pose any danger to them."
"The only thing that can threaten them is... the curse!"
Yang Linlin was shocked. "They... are also afraid of the curse?"
Zhao Yi said, "Do you remember what Li Sheng told us before?"
"On the seventh day of the curse, all the teachers and students in the school carried their own heads, searching in every corner for their prey..."
"Those ghosts are the true hunters in this scenario!"
"They are also the problems we need to solve for both the main and side quests!"
Pausing for a moment, Zhao Yi seemed to have realized something.
"Yesterday night, the school was filled with ghostly mist."
"And besides lowering the mental strength of living creatures, there were also many extremely terrifying 'things' within it!"
"I believe the shadow outside is guarding the wellhead to prevent these things from entering the experimental facility!"
"It's protecting the monsters inside this facility!"
Yang Linlin swallowed nervously.
"Are those ghosts even scarier than the monsters down here?"
Zhao Yi said seriously, "In theory, yes!"
"And, compared to the monsters in the experimental base...they are much more terrifying!"
"These monsters are ultimately just genetically modified organisms. Although they may have strange appearances and immense strength, they still fall within the realm of 'human'."
"For example, the owner of this human skin coat doesn't actually have a high combat ability and has a fatal weakness. Even if I didn't use that sealing item, as long as we're willing to pay a certain price, we can take it down!"
"But those ghosts...are hard to say!"
Saying this, Zhao Yi quickly took out the crucial note from earlier and spread it out on the table, pointing to a line of words:
"Look - the mayor of City A ordered the experimenters to take the data and evacuate from the Shishan Experimental Base directly. They will 'find a way' to help destroy everything here."
Yang Linlin covered her mouth, her eyes revealing horror!
"Do you mean...this curse was also man-made?"
"The purpose is to...erase everything about the experimental base and Shishan University?!"
Zhao Yi slowly nodded, his face showing increasingly eerie excitement.
On the side, Yang Linlin couldn't help but take half a step back when she saw his strange expression.
What the heck, this copy is so dangerous...why are you getting excited?
"Now the conflict has been established - the mayor of City A and his group want to destroy everything about the experimental base and Shishan University through the curse, while the rebellious experimental subject x-2 wants to preserve everything."
"It obviously has self-awareness."
"For us, this is a good thing after all...because the enemy of our enemy is our friend!"
"If we have a way to communicate with it, perhaps we can obtain key information about the curse from its mouth, or even help us take a shortcut to complete the side mission!"
Zhao Yi became more and more excited as he spoke, his brain working at high speed.
Obviously, under normal circumstances, they would need to pass several days of death trials in the school, analyze the source of the curse from some loopholes in the rules, and then find a way to break it!
But now, they might be able to take a shortcut and complete the side mission early.
That reward for the Death Substitute doll, just by looking at its name, you already know how precious it is.
In such a dangerous and terrifying world, what is the most valuable thing?
Of course, it's life!
Anything that can save your life is incredibly precious!
Yang Linlin was silent for a while, and then reached out and touched Zhao Yi's forehead, muttering to herself:
"You're not running a fever...why are you talking nonsense today..."
Zhao Yi rolled his eyes and slapped her hand away.
"You really have no imagination."
Yang Linlin pouted, hands on hips, and said seriously:
"This is not a matter of imagination. You haven't seen how dangerous that thing outside is...it kills people on sight, and it's so fast that you can't even introduce yourself before it attacks..."
Zhao Yi was speechless.
"Who told you I want to communicate with that thing?"
Yang Linlin: "Huh?"
Zhao Yi:
"Never mind, it's too troublesome to explain to you. Just follow me later," Zhao Yi said.
Yang Linlin pouted her cheeks, pretending to be angry, but she didn't argue back.
Now, whether they can complete the side mission or not depends on Zhao Yi's performance. She still hoped to get the rewards by sticking with Zhao Yi as a substitute doll!
The two waited in the laboratory for a long time.
Zhao Yi kept an eye on the time displayed on the instrument. The entrance to the base was guarded by X-2, so neither the fog nor the monsters inside the fog could enter.
It was safe here.
From time to time, he would stick his head out of the door crack to observe the monsters in Bai Jie's cafeteria.
Since these things were created by humans, they would get tired, and when they got tired, they would go back to their rooms to sleep.
He wanted to enter the door closest to the edge, but he didn't want to attract the attention of other experimental subjects.
If they didn't come near that door, but Zhao Yi did, it would easily expose the fact that Zhao Yi was different.
Around 2 am, all the subjects left the cafeteria and returned to their own experiment chambers.
Obviously, they regarded it as their territory.
Zhao Yi observed for another ten minutes.
Confirming that there were no issues, he cautiously led Yang Linlin out of their own experiment chamber.
They groped their way towards the door at the corner.
On the door, it was written X-2.
"As expected... behind this door is the chamber where the most powerful experimental subject is located!"
"No wonder the other monsters during the day were reluctant to approach here. They should be afraid of X-2 attacking them, right?"
Zhao Yi muttered to himself, stroking his chin.
Then he pushed open the door.
The scene inside the door made Yang Linlin and many viewers in the live room's scalp tingle!
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