Hive Entrance Station Platform
A ripple spread through the space as Wang Ye emerged onto the station platform, as if stepping through a curtain of water.
After using spatial refraction to conceal himself, Wang Ye glanced at the ground near the tram. Seeing no bloodstains, he confirmed that the situation hadn't escalated to the later stages yet.
Walking to the back of the tram, he located the thermal storage box containing the T-virus and its serum, as he recalled from memory. Without hesitation, Wang Ye retrieved the box and stored it securely in his dimensional space, isolating it separately.
"Cheating through dungeons is just this easy!"
With that, Wang Ye continued further into the Hive. Along the way, he encountered no zombies, and the corridors were eerily empty. The surroundings were unnervingly quiet, with the occasional flicker of lights adding to the oppressive atmosphere—enough to drive anyone insane.
Yet, Wang Ye lit a cigar and began smoking leisurely. Strolling through the passage like it was a casual walk in the park, he appeared completely unfazed by the eerie ambiance. If not for being pressed for time, he might have poured himself a drink.
Upon reaching the elevator shaft, he found that, just as expected, the elevators had been completely destroyed by Umbrella Corporation's AI, the Red Queen, to prevent employees from escaping.
However, Wang Ye wasn't one to follow the conventional path. He leapt directly down the elevator shaft and opened a door at the bottom, effortlessly arriving at the lowest level.
As depicted in his memories of the movie, the lowest level was a sealed laboratory submerged in water.
Within the flooded lab were numerous zombies drifting about, flailing their limbs as if exercising.
Following the plot, Umbrella's task force, after discovering the area was flooded and impassable, had taken a detour through Cafeteria B to shut down the Red Queen. Since the zombies hadn't emerged yet, the team had likely just reached Cafeteria B not long ago.
Just as Wang Ye speculated:
Bang!
Suddenly, the world plunged into pitch-black darkness.
Unperturbed, Wang Ye calmly retrieved a pair of night-vision goggles from his dimensional space, putting them on as he hurried toward Cafeteria B.
"So quick to act—just like that!"
The blackout didn't last long.
After ten seconds, the lights in the corridor began to reboot. By then, Wang Ye had already arrived at the entrance of Cafeteria B.
During his rush, he had heard numerous faint, shuffling footsteps, indicating that the zombies trapped behind closed doors had now been freed due to the Red Queen's reset.
Although labeled as a cafeteria on the map, Cafeteria B was a facade; it was actually an incubation site housing over a hundred Licker growth chambers.
Lickers—a familiar foe—are terrifying bioweapons capable of absorbing genes through slaughter and evolving almost infinitely.
With the Red Queen disabled and its control over the Lickers' sedatives interrupted, the more mature Lickers were now beginning to regain mobility.
"Something's moving over there. I'll check it out," Rain's voice echoed from the far side of the cafeteria.
"Be careful!" came JD's reply.
Hearing this, Wang Ye equipped several energy pistols from his dimensional space onto his tactical belt, then grabbed an energy assault rifle styled like an AK as he quickly headed toward the source of the noise.
Taking cover behind a growth chamber, Wang Ye observed Rain—a woman with a braid, striking features, and clad in tactical gear—gripping her gun warily as she scanned her surroundings.
Suddenly, a young man in a white researcher's coat, with a pallid and lifeless complexion, staggered out from behind a growth chamber in a twisted posture.
"JD, get over here! I've found a survivor!" Rain sighed in relief, recognizing the figure as an Umbrella employee. Lowering her weapon, she moved closer to question the "survivor" about the situation.
"Hi, we're from headquarters investigating the incident. Can you tell me what happened here? Where did everyone else go?"
She fired off several questions, but the young man offered no response, limping closer to her instead.
Sensing something off about his behavior, Rain raised her gun again and warned, "Stop right there! I'm asking you questions—answer me!"
The young man continued to ignore her, moving ever closer. Just as he was about to lunge at her, he suddenly opened his bloodstained mouth wide and let out a guttural growl.
Startled, Rain backpedaled while firing a shot at the zombie's leg, hoping to incapacitate it.
To her shock, despite being hit in the leg, the young man only stumbled briefly before resuming his charge.
Rain fired several more rounds at vital spots on his body, but they had no effect. The zombie was nearly upon her when—
Bang!
A faint gunshot rang out from behind her.
The zombie's head exploded instantly, and its lifeless body collapsed to the ground, spilling foul-smelling fluids all over Rain.
(Why didn't it disintegrate? These energy weapons allow for adjustable output modes to suit different needs.)
"Shooting the body doesn't work on these things. Headshots are the only way to take them down for good. You were just wasting bullets."
Hearing a voice behind her, Rain's instincts kicked in. She spun around into a crouched stance, aiming her gun at Wang Ye.
After what had just happened—a seemingly invincible enemy followed by the sudden appearance of a stranger—her nerves were taut.
"Who are you?"
"Hey, hey! I just saved your life! A little gratitude wouldn't hurt!"
"I'm asking who you are—don't waste my time with nonsense!"
"Fine, fine. I'm Nicholas, squad leader of the Hydra Assault Team. I'm here to clear this dungeon. I happened to see you in danger and decided to help out," Wang Ye said, raising his hands innocently and gesturing toward the blood-red Hydra insignia on his chest.
(Chapter End)
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