Chapter 311: Hospital Mutations
The entire front of a large truck was jammed into the ward, crushing instruments, hospital beds, and cabinets all out of shape in one go. Fortunately, Professor Lan and Team Leader Wu and the others were not far from the door, and they managed to escape successfully when Yan Jiayu fled. Two doctors who had fallen behind were also brought out by Yuan Yao and the Painting Woman!
"There's no one in the truck," Team Leader Wu said, glancing inside.
"This is the third floor. How could anyone drive a truck in here?" Team Leader Song said, pulling out his phone as he walked out. "It must be the work of a player!"
Team Leader Wu arranged for people to move Xu Huo to a safer location, had Professor Lan and the others accompany him, and assigned players to protect them.
It was impossible to leave the hospital now, and all the wards were unsafe. The hospital temporarily cleared out a medicine storage warehouse for them to use, then evacuated the medical staff from the building.
"How's the situation outside?" Team Leader Wu asked after making arrangements, before going to meet up with Team Leader Song.
"The attack just now came from a player, but we can't trace who it is yet," Dai Wenqian answered. "I suggest we evacuate the nearby residents as well. A warning shot like this shows their stance."
Team Leader Wu's face darkened. "The area around the hospital should have been surrounded and monitored by the Special Defense Department long ago. How did so many players manage to sneak in?"
"Fifteen minutes ago, some military electronic equipment malfunctioned," Dai Wenqian said. "It's unclear whether this is the work of certain players or some other accident."
Team Leader Wu glanced outside and said, "Regardless, try to communicate with the players first. Also, be on guard against those with ulterior motives trying to interfere."
"Team Leader," Team Leader Song's secretary walked in, "there's an incoming call from outside. They're requesting to speak with the highest-ranking person in charge."
"Give it to me." Team Leader Song took the phone. "I'm Song Xian from the Special Defense Department. You can speak directly to me."
After the other party said something, he put the phone down and turned on the speaker. "You can speak now."
"Greetings to the leaders of the Special Defense Department," a voice, clearly altered by a voice changer, came through the phone. "Before we talk, I want to clarify one thing: the attack on the hospital five minutes ago was not our doing."
Team Leader Wu immediately asked, "Who do you represent?"
"Two hundred and seventy-one players, both online and offline," the other party replied. "But rest assured, we have no intention of opposing the government."
Team Leader Wu and Team Leader Song exchanged glances. The latter asked, "What do you want?"
"To confirm the safety of the player Xu Huo," the voice on the phone said. "It would be best if the Special Defense Department could send him out and hand him over to us."
"What did you say!" Team Leader Song's voice rose sharply.
But the other party was very calm. "This proposal benefits both sides. Xu Huo stood up for us players and evolvers. If he dies under the Special Defense Department's encirclement, your hands won't be clean. You know the serious consequences that would cause."
"This is our country too. We don't want to see war break out everywhere."
"Handing him over to you—can you guarantee his safety?" Team Leader Song said. "Can your meager forces compare to the Special Defense Department?"
"If the Special Defense Department's firepower could stop players, what just happened wouldn't have occurred," the voice on the phone said confidently.
Team Leader Song wanted to speak further but was interrupted by Team Leader Wu raising his hand. He said, "If your only goal is to protect Xu Huo, your actions should align with ours now. Do your best to identify every player entering Flower City, rather than using this as a bargaining chip to force the Special Defense Department to compromise."
"Xu Huo's condition is unknown. The Special Defense Department has the world's best medical teams and expert groups. Leaving the hospital would do him no good."
The other party was silent for a moment before saying, "We want to confirm one thing: is Xu Huo really undergoing secondary evolution?"
"No comment," Team Leader Wu said.
"Fine." The other party was also very straightforward. "Have your people clear a circular zone within two kilometers of the hospital. We'll contact willing players to gather there. But the Special Defense Department must withdraw completely. If anyone makes a move against us, we won't sit idly by."
"In three minutes, the Special Defense Department will issue a city-wide evacuation notice. If any players insist on staying within the two-kilometer radius of the hospital, you cannot interfere with the Special Defense Department's operations," Team Leader Wu said quickly.
"No problem." The call ended.
The secretary had already gone out to issue the evacuation notice. Team Leader Song didn't oppose Team Leader Wu's decision, but said, "We're unlucky."
The one who called was likely a temporary representative elected by the civilian players. With the situation unclear, their likelihood of making a move was low. After all, there weren't any particularly high-level players right now, and the state's deterrent power still existed. So the person who attacked Xu Huo earlier was trying to muddy the waters, hoping to make the Special Defense Department and civilian players fight each other. There might not even be a hundred civilian players in Flower City, but they represented the majority of civilian players. The consequences of conflict would definitely be unfavorable.
"Increase armed personnel during the resident evacuation. Replace all weapons with new equipment fitted with biometric locks. Make sure to evacuate everyone within two kilometers of the hospital within half an hour," Team Leader Song instructed Team Leader Liao. "Report immediately if any lingering players are found!"
Team Leader Liao went to make arrangements.
"The technical team has traced the source of the phone signal," Dai Wenqian said at that moment. "Team Leader, I want to go check it out."
Team Leader Song nodded. "Keep an eye on those players. Be wary of them having other plans."
"Unless absolutely necessary, it's best to avoid conflict," Team Leader Wu added.
After Dai Wenqian and Zheng Ke left the meeting room, Team Leader Wu prepared to check on Xu Huo's condition. As he walked out of the sealed room, he caught a glimpse of the sky outside and instinctively said, "What time is it? Why hasn't it dawned yet?"
Over at the warehouse, Professor Lan had someone fetch some medicine, intending to administer it to Xu Huo.
Although Xu Huo had warned them before the truck crashed in, he hadn't woken up afterward. Therefore, Professor Lan also agreed with Tang Guangbo's assessment that his body couldn't keep up with his brain's evolution speed.
"He warned me about the danger outside the wall just now, which means he can hear us talking. Let's ask him if he wants this injection first," Yan Jiayu said.
Professor Lan hesitated briefly before agreeing to her suggestion and directly asked for Xu Huo's opinion.
But this time, Xu Huo gave no response. Professor Lan injected two doses of the medicine into his arm, while Tang Guangbo continued talking to him.
There was no reaction for a while after the injection. The overly tense Yuan Yao stood up and said, "I'm going to the restroom."
After closing the warehouse door, he found a nearby restroom. While washing his hands, the lights suddenly went out.
"Good thing all the hospital patients were evacuated. Otherwise, who knows how many would have died tonight." Yuan Yao leisurely dried his wet hands on his clothes. Turning on his phone's flashlight, he went out and found that even the emergency lights in the corridor were off. The phone light could only illuminate two or three meters in front of him.
This unusual situation made his hair stand on end. Muttering, "I've done nothing wrong in life, so I'm not afraid of ghosts knocking at midnight," he ran back towards the warehouse. But when he pushed the door open, the warehouse was completely empty.
"Yuan Yao." Someone called him from behind. Hearing the voice, Yuan Yao turned around happily. "Brother Xu, you're awake?"