Chapter 1974: Successfully Captured
Of course, that was no problem. Xu Huo did as he was told. The pass scanned at the gate and emitted a "Pass" confirmation tone, but the two players were still uneasy and offered to escort him to Zone E7.
"The base has been attacked. Someone has already broken into the underground base. To avoid any accidents, we'll escort Teacher Yu over."
Xu Huo wouldn't refuse and even added a few words of thanks.
Along the way, the two probed his identity with a few questions. They didn't understand professional psychotherapy knowledge, but they knew the personnel in charge of issuing psychotherapist credentials under Agor Corporation. So they used two fake names to test him.
Xu Huo couldn't answer a single question and instead asked them back, "I'm not from Jade Spring City, how would I know who issued your credentials?"
Then he said somewhat angrily, "In my original lab, no one ever asked me these questions. I only handle psychological treatment. What do I care who issues the credentials?"
As he spoke, he opened his wrist terminal, pulled up his credential folder, and displayed his psychotherapist license from another city, coldly demanding, "Are you reassured now? Your Jade Spring City invited me here. I've long heard that Agor Corporation's psychotherapist team is exclusive, and it turns out players are no exception."
The two weren't stupid and certainly wouldn't be fooled by just a few words. One of them wanted to say something more, but the other stopped his companion. "Teacher Yu, calm down. This is our duty. Since we've never seen you before, we couldn't help asking a few more questions."
The turnover rate for psychotherapists in Jade Spring City was very fast, probably because the sheer number of players needing treatment made the therapists' own mental states unstable. Psychotherapists under Agor Corporation came and went constantly, so players couldn't possibly have met every single one.
But because Xu Huo's appearance was too coincidental, the two players harbored doubts. That was why they insisted on escorting him to Zone E7. Once he met up with the other psychotherapists, they would naturally know if he was new.
The alarm in the underground base didn't last long before it stopped. The three of them encountered several groups of players along the way. These were the people responsible for base security, conducting a carpet search of every corner of the base. They had already caught five players who had sneaked in during the chaos.
"How are things outside?" asked the player accompanying Xu Huo.
"No major problems. Should be wrapped up in about ten more minutes," replied another group of players. They glanced at the credential Xu Huo had deliberately pinned to his clothes and added, "Headquarters just sent word. They want all psychotherapists evacuated ahead of schedule."
Before the two players could respond, Xu Huo asked urgently, "Have they already left?"
The player who had spoken looked at him. "Not yet. They're leaving from Landing Pad 3 next to Zone E7."
The exchange of information ended there. After the group left, Xu Huo urged the players escorting him to hurry up, wanting to catch up with Zheng Yuci and the others so he wouldn't be left behind in the base.
The two players exchanged a glance and had no choice but to use a prop to speed up.
Midway, the three of them were abruptly blocked by an invisible wall—even the two players didn't notice it. They slammed straight into it. Fortunately, it wasn't a lethal weapon, just something that pushed them back.
Then two players dressed as base personnel suddenly appeared, flanking the two East District players and forcing them apart. As they got entangled and moved away, another player came to Xu Huo's side and reached out to grab him.
Xu Huo stumbled back in panic. He wasn't fast, but he knew how to fall. He slipped flat on the ground and slid to the door of a nearby lab. He shoved a cleaning robot lying beside him forward while swiping his card to open the lab door and slip inside.
The lab door had three layers of security. The first was the outer metal door, the second was an instrument barrier that formed after the door opened, and the third was a laser barrier. This setup was mainly to prevent someone from forcibly breaking in or sneaking in when lab personnel opened the door. So even though the outer door hadn't closed, the player chasing him couldn't get through the second instrument barrier.
However, since they had managed to infiltrate the base, they had obviously studied its basic facilities. The opponent used a small jammer, causing both the instrument barrier and the laser barrier to disappear completely.
It was clear they were carrying a container prop. From the looks of it, they intended to stuff him into it. Xu Huo made a small move to knock the prop out of their hand. Before the player could react, base players arrived to provide backup.
The alarm sounded again, this time at a higher danger level than before. The reinforcements, seeing Xu Huo trapped behind an experiment table, immediately understood the intruders' goal. One female player with long hair tied back spoke into her communication terminal, "They're targeting the psychotherapists! Everyone, pay attention. Protect the teachers and evacuate them."
After giving the order, the female player bypassed her colleagues who were fighting and came to escort Xu Huo out.
"What a mess!" Xu Huo hurriedly followed her, asking if the aircraft could still take off under these circumstances.
The female player assured him it was fine. However, when they reached Zone E7, they found the situation worse than they had imagined. The doors to several experimental rooms were wide open. The players who should have been locked inside were all gone. Surgical equipment was knocked over or dismantled, and the floor was a mess.
"What's that?" Xu Huo pointed to a huge painting frame discarded in the common area. It looked like a painting frame, but what it displayed were rows of human hands and feet, each in different shapes—only hands and feet.
These limbs extended out from the frame and were fixed in place. Each hand or foot had two small holes, likely from injections. The frame was very large, but most of its slots were empty. Only three arms remained. Judging by how they hung limply, the people trapped inside were probably unconscious.
This was indeed a good way to control players, especially local players who could escape into the station. Once inside this container prop and having part of their body exposed for injections, escape was nearly impossible. And wasn't the area full of operating tables?
The sudden appearance of so many troublemaking players in the base couldn't be a coincidence. Some Rebel Army players had infiltrated.
The female player and her team clearly realized this too. They didn't bother picking up the discarded prop. Instead, they rushed to check the landing pad. From several injured players, they learned that Zheng Yuci had already left under the protection of an A-level player. Only then did they breathe a sigh of relief.
But while Zheng Yuci was gone, some psychotherapists had still been captured. The female players quickly reported the situation and then deliberately opened the fully sealed base, leaving one exit open to wait for prey.
"Are you okay?" Xu Huo noticed two people with therapist credentials slumped in a corner and went over to ask. However, before he could touch them, one of them suddenly opened their eyes and grabbed his shoulder! (Chapter End)