Chapter 1048: Rumors Can Be True
"How would I know?" the shooting player quickly replied. "I've only heard rumors about something like this—every once in a while, they transport a batch of live people in... you know what I mean."
"But it's just hearsay. I've never actually seen it happen. If it really were those things in front of us, what's there to study? Wouldn't it be faster to just grab a batch of Xenomorphs?"
"Maybe they're failed products," his companion said. "But why would they be dumped here? Shouldn't something as important as live human experiments be kept as hidden as possible?"
"That's for sure... but our government has an exalted status. They can do whatever they want without anyone interfering," the shooting player said. "Have you heard? The government's new branch hall is specifically in charge of this kind of thing!"
His companion turned to look at him. "What branch hall? The government is building a new branch hall?"
The shooting player stared at him for a moment before laughing. "You're not well-informed. Anyway, I've heard there's a branch hall in the planning stages."
After saying this, he shut his mouth.
His companion, who was actually Xu Huo, shook his head regretfully, realizing he wouldn't get anything more out of him. Watching the other player secretly use an item, he said, "You're well-informed. Do you know where the live human laboratory is built?"
Realizing his item was still useless, the shooting player pretended to be calm and said, "That's information only the government's top brass would know. Our team leader has connections through marriage—he definitely knows more than I do."
Xu Huo nodded. "But it's too late to ask him now. You'd better talk. Telling the truth can buy you a chance to live."
The shooting player gave a forced smile. "Brother, what do you mean..."
Xu Huo patted his shoulder. "Take a look at your left hand."
The shooting player looked down and realized his left hand had turned black without him noticing. He gritted his teeth and tore open his sleeve, only to find the black patterns stretching from his arm all the way to his shoulder, about to cover his chest and abdomen!
"You despicable bastard, you poisoned me!" he cursed.
Xu Huo glanced at the commotion in the other two areas before saying, "I'll give you ten seconds."
He didn't count down. Instead, he silently looked at his watch and waited for the answer.
When ten seconds were up, the "Eye of the Dead" was already pressed against the shooting player's neck, with no intention of letting him stall for time with idle chatter while waiting for his companions.
"Wait!" the shooting player quickly called out. "I'll talk! I'll talk!"
"It's at the government's new..." Before he could finish, the blade cut into his neck, about to sever his trachea. This time, the shooting player didn't beg for mercy but instead showed a fierce look in his eyes. However, his expression immediately changed to one of shock and uncertainty as he stared at Xu Huo. "Is this an Instance Dungeon?"
"The ticket didn't work?" Xu Huo smiled. "This is your last chance."
This time, without needing any threats, the other player hurriedly spilled the truth. "There should be a laboratory near the Government Hall. Someone once saw a player running out of the government parking lot in the middle of the night, screaming wildly, looking as insane as those zombies outside. But the player who said that quickly changed his story, claiming he was just bored and made it up for fun."
"But the players at Government Hall all know it's absolutely true, because other people have heard the screams too!"
"Only one person saw it?" Xu Huo raised an eyebrow.
"Others didn't see it, but they all heard the sounds," the shooting player said quickly. "And it wasn't just screams of pain—there were also sounds like animal howls. Everyone who heard them said they didn't sound like rational humans, but more like Xenomorphs!"
"So for a while, there were rumors that Government Hall was doing live experiments on Xenomorphs. Later, it was suppressed."
Xu Huo stared at him for two seconds before asking, "Has anyone heard those sounds since then?"
The shooting player's face changed. At first, they could hear them, but then they all disappeared. That meant Government Hall might have moved the location. Where would they find it now?
"Wait, wait!" Sweat broke out on his forehead, and his face was turning black from the poison. His eyes darted around before he added, "Personnel transfers! For a while, there were massive personnel transfers at Government Hall. Some people were reassigned, and a few who were said to be marginalized all ended up at an energy plant!"
"Yes! The New Xiangyang Energy Plant! Not far from Government Hall!"
"Can you be sure?" Xu Huo asked again.
"Should be right. They said they were marginalized, but I saw two of them having dinner with Government Hall's top brass. If they really had that kind of connections, how could they be marginalized!" The shooting player desperately tried to convince Xu Huo to save his own life.
Xu Huo nodded in satisfaction and put away his item. "You can go."
The shooting player couldn't believe it was that easy. He looked at Xu Huo suspiciously for a moment before slowly standing up. He stumbled a step, then leaned against the wall. When he turned back and saw Xu Huo watching him with a faint smile, he didn't hesitate any longer and quickly ran upstairs.
As soon as he stepped onto the next floor, he ran into Zheng Cheng and the other man. His face lit up with joy as he approached, but before he could even open his mouth, Zheng Cheng shot him through the forehead!
Xu Huo glanced coldly at the corpse on the ground. Ignoring Zheng Cheng and the other man, he strode out of the residential building and found Chi Minghong, who was still dodging and hiding. "I have a location. The New Xiangyang Energy Plant."
Chi Minghong wasn't surprised he had gotten away. "But with all these people around, how do we get out?"
"I have a way." Xu Huo's Spiritual Realm was enough to cover the two nearby buildings. The people outside had tightened their encirclement, but if they walked out from the edge of this building, they should be able to escape smoothly.
Without a second word, Chi Minghong followed him into the residential building. Seeing the empty corridor, she said, "I saw a bunch of people come in earlier. Where did they all go?"
"They might have gotten lost," Xu Huo said indifferently. He didn't care how many people he killed. His original intention was just to stall the searching players. Getting a concrete address was an unexpected bonus.
As soon as they left the residential building, a commotion broke out. The players who had gathered around the building scattered to chase them. Chi Minghong seized the opportunity to steal a low-altitude motorcycle, and Xu Huo jumped on as she sped away.
"We'll go as far as we can. If we get cornered later, just do that trick of yours again!" she shouted into the wind.
Xu Huo paused. "You're quite confident."
"Hey, you've got to have guts. At worst, you die, right? And we're not easy to kill!" As Chi Minghong spoke, her driving went from clumsy to reckless. She leaped into the air, then used an item to jump onto a building, deliberately taking routes with high accident rates, like balconies and platforms.
Just as she hoped, a group of Government Hall players chased after them from both sides. Dodging the automatic locking devices flying from behind, Chi Minghong lifted the bike's front. "I'm going up to the roof!"
Xu Huo blocked several item attacks and said expressionlessly, "If you keep playing around, we'll have to slink into the station in disgrace."