“Three months...” Scarface rubbed his hands together. “That’s enough. Three months is plenty of time to get a good handle on the Deep Blue Research Institute’s secrets.”
Lei Lie nodded. “Then let’s enter the city.”
Scarface was taken aback. “Now? The Death Tide just passed, and the streets are a mess. Maybe we should wait until tomorrow...”
“Now.” Lei Lie’s tone brooked no argument.
“Chaos makes it easier to blend in. The more chaotic it is, the less likely anyone will notice us.”
Scarface thought about it and nodded. “Alright, whatever you say, Master Lei.”
He turned and waved at the Level 1 members. “Brothers, I’m leaving the Outer City side to you. Do a good job and don’t embarrass Night Owl.”
The men nodded one after another. “Don’t worry, Brother Scar!”
Lei Lie and Scarface climbed into Liu Sen’s modified Command Vehicle.
Liu Sen sat in the driver’s seat, started the engine, and drove toward the Inner City.
At the boundary between the Inner City and the Outer City, a concrete wall ten meters high rose from the ground, completely isolating the two worlds.
Sentry Towers were stationed every hundred meters along the wall, equipped with heavy machine guns and Searchlights.
Below the wall was an alloy gate about five meters wide.
At the moment, the gate was tightly shut, leaving only a small side door that allowed one person to pass at a time.
Six fully armed soldiers stood at the entrance, their muzzles pointed outward and their gazes alert.
Liu Sen’s car stopped fifty meters from the city gate.
“This is as far as I can go.” Liu Sen cut the engine and turned to look at Lei Lie and Scarface.
“The Inner City doesn’t allow outside vehicles. You’ll have to walk over, go through the inspection, show your permits, and then you can enter.”
Lei Lie nodded and pushed the door open to get out.
Scarface followed him, taking a deep breath with a hint of uncontrollable excitement on his face.
“The Inner City... I’ve never been inside in my life.” He licked his lips.
“I’ve heard it’s as clean as the Old Era in there. Even the air is filtered. One breath could probably add years to your life.”
Lei Lie ignored him and walked straight toward the gate.
Scarface hurried to keep up.
When the two reached the small door, a soldier raised a hand to stop them.
“Halt! Identification!”
Lei Lie reached into his coat, pulled out the two Short-term Employment Permits, and handed them over.
The soldier took them and examined them carefully, then looked at Lei Lie and Scarface with a scrutinizing gaze.
“Level 3 hunters?”
Lei Lie nodded.
The soldier’s attitude became noticeably more polite. “Please wait a moment. I need to verify the information.”
He turned and walked into the small Sentry Box nearby, picked up a communicator, and said a few words.
A moment later, he came out and returned the permits to Lei Lie. “Information verified. You may enter.”
He paused before adding, “The Inner City has many rules. Be careful, you two. If anything happens, find the City Defense Patrol. Don’t take matters into your own hands.”
Lei Lie nodded, took the permits, and stepped through the small door.
Scarface followed closely behind.
Behind the small door was a corridor about fifty meters long.
At the end of the corridor was another door.
As they pushed that door open—
A completely different world unfolded before their eyes.
Clean.
That was Scarface’s first reaction.
The street was a smooth asphalt road without a single pothole or piece of trash in sight.
On either side were orderly buildings, three to five stories high, their exterior walls painted a uniform pale yellow and their windows bright and clean.
The air lacked that strange smell of scorched ruins and rot; instead, there was only a faint scent similar to disinfectant.
People came and went on the streets, all wearing clean clothes. Their faces lacked the numbness and despair seen in the residents of the Outer City.
“Holy crap...” Scarface’s mouth hung open as he stared blankly at it all.
“This... this is a place where people can actually live?”
Lei Lie didn't speak, merely observing the Inner City quietly.
He had been to the Inner City a few times before for missions.
But every time he entered, he felt a sense of trance—
Was this really the same world?
People in the Ruin Zone would risk their lives for a bite to eat, and people in the Outer City would kill for a ticket into a shelter.
Yet the people here were worrying about what they should eat today.
“Let’s go.” Lei Lie withdrew his gaze. “To our lodgings first.”
Liu Sen had already arranged a place for them to stay.
It was on the third floor of a five-story apartment building on the edge of the Inner City.
Two rooms, door to door.
The conditions were simple, but they were countless times better than the Outer City.
There was hot water, electricity, and clean sheets and bedding.
As soon as Scarface entered, he flopped onto the bed and let out a long sigh of relief.
“Damn... this bed. This is how a human is supposed to sleep...”
Lei Lie stood by the window, looking out at the unfamiliar street.
The Deep Blue Research Institute was in the northeast corner of the Inner City, occupying a vast area and heavily guarded.
With their current identities, it would be nearly impossible to get inside to gather information.
A thoughtful look flashed in Lei Lie’s eyes.
Perhaps he could start with Colonel Yan.
...
Inside the Terminal Station building.
Su Wan stood by the window, watching the world outside gradually return to order.
Her gaze closely followed the receding grayish-white mist.
The Death Tide was retreating much faster than she had imagined.
The mist, so thick it almost seemed solid, was like a receding tide, shrinking back toward its origin layer by layer from the edge of the Ruin Zone.
Wherever the mist passed, the ruins that had been eroded into pitted husks were revealed once more.
But Su Wan noticed a detail.
The red and green light specks floating in the mist flew toward the depths of the ruins like birds returning to their nests as the mist retreated, vanishing into the grayish-white tide in the blink of an eye.
However—
In the very last moment as the mist receded, Su Wan’s pupils constricted.
She saw it clearly.
At the edge of the ruins about a kilometer away from the Terminal Station, the mist had retreated too suddenly.
A few light specks hadn't managed to retreat with the mist in time.
They were left behind on the spot.
Once the light specks left the mist, they fell to the ground like raindrops and then disappeared...
Su Wan’s heart skipped a beat.
Those light specks were eerie entities bred within the Death Tide.
And now, a few had been left behind.
She looked at the three Emergency Travel Orders lying quietly in her system space, then looked out the window at the ruins that had just returned to tranquility.
With three travel orders, each one would allow her to return to Blue Star urgently from any location.
In other words, she could step out of this building now.
“System, while I am away from the building, the robots will maintain order in the shelter. If there are any abnormalities, contact me immediately through the contract.”
【Command received. C1-C6 will continuously monitor the shelter’s status.】
【Reminder: Host is about to leave the Absolute Safety Zone. Please remain vigilant.】
Su Wan didn't linger; she walked straight out of the Terminal Station.
Rate on N.U.
