"If it doesn't show aggression toward Evans, and even shows affinity, then we can confirm that the underlying logic of both is highly synchronized with S-099."
"This will determine our next experiment."
Ren Yi rolled his eyes in the sealed chamber. "So my performance today determines whether I end up on the operating table or in the lab?"
Opposite the glass, Evans stood timidly.
Tear stains remained on his face from the ward, his eyes full of pleading and helplessness—the very image of a lonely youth driven to a dead end.
But through the strand of perception Ren Yi had sent over, he noticed something was off.
Why did this kid seem... happy to see him again?
"Wow, this kid is an acting king."
This discovery made Ren Yi hesitate for a moment, but then he decided to play along.
If the organization wanted to see "brotherly affection," he'd give it to them.
Ren Yi controlled his cloud-like body, slowly and steadily approaching the glass.
He didn't emit the dizzying waves like last time, but condensed the mist into a relatively soft form, like a harmless ball of cotton.
Seeing this, Evans tremblingly reached out a hand and slowly pressed it against the cold glass.
His gaze was still full of that "lifeline" longing, even carrying a hint of grievance as if seeking validation.
Ren Yi pressed against it too.
A mass of pure white mist, separated by a transparent barrier, overlapped with the calloused hand of a teenage boy.
One human, one Anomaly—in this lab filled with surveillance cameras and researchers' gazes, they perfectly performed a "cross-species reunion" full of destiny, without a single word spoken.
The two parties on either side of the glass each had their own ulterior motives, yet at this moment, they became the most tacit "partners" in the base.
"Look at that resonance strength..." In the monitoring room, Cyril smiled enigmatically, her fingertips sliding quickly across the screen.
"No more redundant observations are needed."
"Let's proceed to the next phase."
"Send B-013-A and Evans to the core containment area of S-099 for direct contact!"
Wait? Isn't that a bit too arbitrary?
Ren Yi swayed slightly in the sealed chamber. He didn't feel any resistance; instead, a thick sense of curiosity welled up.
He had long wanted to see what kind of Anomaly S-099 actually was.
As long as his perception touched S-099, he could obtain some important information about it.
However, the decision Dr. Cyril made felt a bit off to him.
To put it simply... wasn't she being a bit of an idiot?
Relying solely on a faked "resonance" to rashly send him and Evans to the most dangerous core containment area of S-099.
This didn't fit the rigor of a top scientific doctor at all; instead, it reeked of a strange urgency and arbitrariness.
Clearly, Ren Yi wasn't the only one who thought so.
The surrounding researchers were obviously startled by this arbitrary decision, looking at each other with hesitation and worry on their faces.
Researcher B-117, who was in charge of the front-end operations, spoke up hesitantly, his tone cautious.
"Doctor, isn't it too hasty to have contact now? S-099 is extremely unstable. If a chain reaction occurs..."
"I have already reported to headquarters," Dr. Cyril interrupted coldly.
"Headquarters has authorized it and prepared the 'Final Means' to deal with any emergencies. Now, execute the order!"
Hearing the words "headquarters authorized," the researchers' instinct for obedience took over.
They lowered their heads, looks of helplessness on their faces—like poor subordinates being gaslit by their boss—gritted their teeth, turned around, and began to get busy.
However, Ren Yi, hiding in the corner of his perception, felt a surge of wrongness.
"No, you didn't apply for anything at all."
Ren Yi's perception had been fixed on Cyril.
From beginning to end, aside from looking through files and issuing orders, this woman hadn't contacted any so-called "headquarters" at all.
In fact, since Ren Yi arrived on this land ship, the base had been in a strange "offline signal" state.
Dr. Cyril was lying.
Ren Yi inexplicably sensed an urgency in her emotions.
She didn't seem to be executing headquarters' orders, but rather purposefully facilitating something.
Facilitating the contact between him, Evans, and S-099—as if that were her true goal.
Did this woman know something?
But that shouldn't be possible. Ren Yi muttered to himself. The fact was, he really was an innocent "outsider," a minor Anomaly accidentally caught up in this storm.
Could it be that he was taking the fall for something else again?
Just as Ren Yi was thinking about how to protect himself and figure out Dr. Cyril's scheme, a violent sensation of weightlessness suddenly hit him, causing his perception to momentarily scramble.
He had just been thinking that if he were to have direct contact with S-099, Dr. Cyril would at least have to open this damn sealed chamber, right?
In that case, he might find an opportunity.
It turned out he was overthinking.
The entire experimental chamber wasn't opened; instead, like a giant elevator, it began to descend vertically, carrying him and Evans in the opposite chamber.
Due to the complex mechanical structure inside this land ship, the descent was accompanied by the piercing sound of grinding gears.
As the chamber continued to sink, Ren Yi's perception circle spread out bit by bit.
He was surprised to find that the surrounding scenery was becoming increasingly bizarre and oppressive.
The light was disappearing.
His perception swept past several floors of corridors and labs with fluorescent lights, heading all the way down.
It passed through thick alloy walls and then suddenly plunged into a boundless darkness where no light could be seen.
This was a massive, pitch-black void located in the belly of the land ship, deep and eerie.
Ren Yi's perception expanded hundreds of meters in an instant, yet he touched no boundaries.
Ren Yi couldn't help but be startled. Nearly half the area of this entire land ship might be occupied by this massive space.
Was this entire space used to house S-099?
But what confused Ren Yi even more was that his perception and his Anomaly Appraisal app didn't show any reaction; he didn't capture the existence of any physical entity.
Instead, below them, nearly half of this massive space seemed to be filled with some unknown liquid.
His perception was actually blocked when it touched that liquid, unable to penetrate it.
Until—plop.
The entire sealed chamber seemed to suddenly detach from its rails and, with a massive force of impact, plunged directly into that vast, pitch-black pool of liquid, sending out invisible ripples.
Ren Yi tentatively pushed his perception out of the chamber, and a strange sense of dread washed over his consciousness.
It wasn't water outside the chamber, but a viscous, black liquid, slightly warm and thick like gelatin.
They seemed to be alive, slowly enveloping and squeezing the experimental chamber's armor.
He instinctively looked at Evans across the glass and found that Evans had, at some point, stopped moving entirely.
He stood in the chamber, motionless, as if he had even stopped breathing, his eyes staring blankly into the darkness ahead.
The sounds of mechanical operation, grinding gears, and flowing liquid seemed to vanish in an instant.
The world suddenly fell into a dead silence.
In this dead silence, Ren Yi inexplicably felt a hint of familiarity.
Black water...
Had he seen something similar somewhere before?
Rate on N.U.
