Chapter 957: W37 in Chaos
The real alarm sound told the law enforcement players who had infiltrated the laboratory that Xu Huo was not lying—he really intended to drag the entire laboratory down with him!
"Damn it, he'll just pat his ass and run, leaving this mess behind. It'll cost a fortune to clean up!" a player wearing glasses roared in frustration. "I said we shouldn't let these outer zone players wander around the city!"
"It's not that simple," the Duckbill Cap said. "Do you think restricting players is enough? Fifteen minutes ago, all space items in the city failed simultaneously, even A-grade items."
"Think about it carefully. Either a high-level player carrying an S-grade item has arrived here, or there's a trait specifically targeting space-type items. Either way, such a person can't be a pushover."
The Duckbill Cap's face darkened. "The worst-case scenario is that they're working together."
The virus alarm continued to blare, and the Duckbill Cap's group didn't dare linger in the laboratory.
"We'll restore the surveillance system."
With that, the Duckbill Cap ordered all players who had entered the laboratory to retreat. After the surveillance system was restored, Xu Huo confirmed the internal situation of the laboratory and then left the main control room directly.
The surveillance feed from the main control room was also connected to the temporary command center. Seeing the floor littered with shattered potion bottles, everyone present frowned. But Xu Huo was wearing a clown costume, leaving no trace to investigate, and he hadn't revealed his hand yet, so no one knew what grade of player he was, let alone his traits and items.
"Let the mayor decide," someone suggested. "One misstep, and the current situation in W37 could completely collapse. None of us can bear that responsibility."
When the communicator connected, the female mayor appeared on the electronic projection screen. She was a plainly dressed woman with a scar running from her left eyebrow across the bridge of her nose to her right cheek. However, the scar didn't make her look ferocious; instead, it gave her a unique air of resilience.
Everyone in the temporary command center watched the elderly woman, waiting for her to speak.
"From the day I arrived in W37, I decided to live and die with this city."
"W37 is what it is today because of the efforts of everyone here. I believe you all feel the same as I do—we will not allow anyone to destroy our home."
"For W37, let's begin."
"Whoever intends to destroy our home must pay with blood."
"I swear by time!"
The people in the temporary command center stood solemnly: "I swear by time!"
Witnessing the person in the clown costume leave the main control room, the temporary command immediately ordered the law enforcement team to inject antidotes and prepare for a strong assault on R1 Experiment.
The rescue vehicles gathered nearby began to leave one after another. All laboratories in the area started evacuating personnel and samples. At the same time, R1 was sealed off by players, with sixty players entering the laboratory in three batches of twenty each.
The commotion in the experimental zone was too loud, inevitably alarming the entire W37 base city. Coupled with the earlier news broadcast by the Blue Bird Television Station, the rumor that "other base cities have already broken into W37" spread like wildfire. The entire city immediately plunged into a massive wave of combat fervor. These people had full confidence in their city, but their excitement lasted only a few minutes. As several incinerator workers who had escaped from the quarantine zone brought the SE virus outbreak to light, the virus and panic began to spread at an alarming speed.
"Boom!" A sudden explosion erupted somewhere in the city. The towering flames were like a signal for the carnival to begin. Within minutes, varying degrees of chaos broke out in different parts of the city.
"Damn, it's a full-on brawl!" Shangguan Xi clicked his tongue as he watched the law enforcement players rushing from all directions toward the incident sites, then dialed Xu Huo's communicator.
"Brother Xu, whatever you're planning, be careful. The entire W37 player base is mobilized now. This damn place might even have A-grade players. If things go south, we need to get the hell out."
Xu Huo accepted his goodwill. After hanging up, he walked through the third-floor corridor of the laboratory, opening every door along the way.
Then he sidestepped to let two players searching for him pass by and went down the stairs to the second floor.
The virus leak on the first floor was severe, so most players avoided that level. Within Xu Huo's perception range, there were only six people on the first floor, about fifteen on the second, and the rest were scattered across the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth floors.
The laboratory covered a large area. With his current spiritual power, he couldn't control such a vast space, so he selected a main building and incorporated it into his spiritual realm.
"Is the light dimmer?" The Duckbill Cap, who had reached the third floor, keenly noticed the subtle change in the environment. He ordered his team to stop and notified the other five groups: "Pay attention to the laboratory environment. The opponent might not be alone."
The sixty people were divided into six groups. The bespectacled man, who harbored prejudice against outer zone players, also led a team. He had already searched two floors, even after another team had checked them.
"No items or instruments found," the bespectacled man said. "Even the clown guy is gone. Could he have already escaped?"
"He only got into the laboratory by issuing a warning. Now the law enforcement team has the area surrounded tightly, with so many eyes watching. How could he escape?" the Duckbill Cap said. "Be careful. I suspect he's a Super Evolver."
After the communication was temporarily cut off, the bespectacled man looked around and then gestured for his subordinates to spread out.
"Even if he's a Super Evolver, the number of people he can control at once is always limited."
With the personnel dispersed, even if the opponent used items to conceal his tracks, as long as he made a move, he couldn't avoid being discovered.
"Captain, the opponent might also be a Mental Evolver," a subordinate reminded.
"Mental Evolution usually leaves traces. Dispersion is still effective. Split into three groups—four, four, two. Xiao Meng and I will take the front," the bespectacled man said.
The ten people split up, with the bespectacled man at the front acting as a scout, relaying his findings to those behind.
Three minutes later, the group passed through a corridor where some lights had been broken. The lighting in the corridor was dim. The bespectacled man threw two items toward the corner, one of which was a lighting item. When the bright light flared, a figure flashed at the end of the corridor ahead!
"Found you!" The bespectacled man immediately gave chase, simultaneously releasing a chain item. The chain flew along the wall, intercepting the corridor ahead and automatically forming a door.
"Where do you think you're going!" The bespectacled man smirked triumphantly, but before he could get close, the figure turned back and grinned at him before disappearing in front of the chain door.
The bespectacled man frowned and immediately called out to his companions behind him. But when he turned around, his teammates, who had been following him, had vanished without a trace!
(Chapter End)