Chapter 45.

Chapter 45.

On level 65 of Hive Section C, Chu Shi walked briskly towards the safety staircase, his face grim. His subordinates, taking cover behind metal cabinets, exchanged gunfire with soldiers, the sound of shooting unceasing.

"Retreat, down the stairs." One of the subordinates threw a bomb towards the soldiers, and they all dashed into the safety staircase.

"What bad luck, wasn't it said that there were no other exits in the underground shelter, and that everyone inside could be drowned? Turns out there's an emergency exit, never heard of it before. And we didn’t even find that Feng kid, but lost a few brothers instead," one subordinate muttered under his breath as they walked.

Although he spoke softly, Chu Shi ahead suddenly stopped, turned, and stared at him. The subordinate immediately fell silent, too scared to make a sound.

Pointing outside the Hive building, Chu Shi said, "They're all there."

Through the layer of water cascading down from above, they could see a brightly lit part of the mountainside in the distance, bustling with people.

"They built the emergency exit high up. Do you know where it leads?" Chu Shi asked.

His subordinates all shook their heads.

"It leads to Haiyun Tower," Chu Shi provided the answer, then asked again, "Do you know how long this passage is?"

Since Haiyun Tower wasn't far from the shelter, just across two long streets, less than a mile away, a subordinate tentatively guessed, "One mile long?"

"No," Chu Shi corrected, raising his mechanical arm with its five metal fingers spread, "It's five miles."

Suddenly, a crisp gunshot sound rang out. A bullet shot down from above hit the handrail beside the stairs. Western Union soldiers had charged into the safety staircase, pursuing them, so the group hurriedly continued downward.

As the flood continued pouring in, the entire underground fortress was in chaos. Soldiers were busy guiding and evacuating crowds, and not many were available to confront them, allowing them to remain calm and composed.

The continuous gunfire from behind followed them, and upon reaching the fiftieth floor, Chu Shi gestured for others to keep going down, while he and Ah Dai hid behind a wall.

When the pursuing soldiers arrived, a wolf-like shadow suddenly appeared next to him and dashed out.

The leading soldier let out a scream as a sudden bloody hole appeared in his neck, and he collapsed to the ground. Before the others could react, a barrage of gunfire followed, and they too fell.

After eliminating the pursuers, Chu Shi leapt over the stair railing to the floor below, catching up with his subordinates, the wolf-like shadow closely following him.

Continuing downward, Chu Shi resumed his earlier explanation, "The lithia stone is not very hard, but lithia veins are always surrounded by a layer of hard black steel stone. To ensure a continuous power supply, the Eastern and Western Union Armies built the underground shelter on the lithia veins. While the power supply was secured, this made it difficult to construct the emergency passage. Therefore, they built a spiraling emergency passage that bypasses the black steel stone layer to reach Haiyun Tower, making its total length five miles."

After this explanation, all the subordinates nodded, seemingly understanding. Chu Shi asked again, "Do you now understand why I’m telling you this?"

The subordinates exchanged puzzled glances.

"A five-mile-long passage. Once everyone is inside and the underground shelter is submerged, what do you think will happen if the door to the passage cannot be closed and the floodwaters from the shelter pour in?"

"The door to the passage doesn’t close, and the floodwaters pour in?"

Chu Shi's eyes reddened, his nostrils flared, and his face revealed an excited expression, "The flood will fill the tunnel, those people will experience drowning, struggling painfully to their deaths... while we, in our diving suits, will safely return to the surface."

Chu Shi's subordinates were desperadoes, but seeing his crazed demeanor, they still couldn't help but avert their eyes in fear.

One of them cautiously asked, "But Chu, our mission in the underground city was to retrieve the code box. We haven’t found that Feng kid yet; what about our code box?"

The flickering light in the stairwell cast ominous shadows on Chu Shi's face, "Now that there's an emergency passage, no matter where that kid is, he'll end up there. As long as we find him and get the code box before the tunnel is flooded, our objectives of drowning everyone and completing our mission are not in conflict."

"Yes."

"Now, let's blend into the crowd separately and make our move once we're in the tunnel."

"Yes."

As soon as he finished speaking, the stairwell door burst open with people rushing in, hoping to escape down the safety stairs. Upon seeing the guns in Chu Shi's group's hands, they were initially shocked, then screamed and turned to run, but gunshots rang out, and everyone fell, struck by bullets.

Looking at the bodies strewn on the floor, Chu Shi coldly ordered, "We'll swap jackets with them, put hoods on them, and leave a few guns here."

Yan Bubu searched every floor of the six-story medical station building for Feng Chen but didn’t find him, so he started searching again from the top floor down.

When he reached the first floor, he saw that the water had risen higher, now reaching the edges of the hospital beds. Some patients still lay on beds not yet evacuated, helplessly looking towards the door, waiting for their turn to be moved.

Yan Bubu carefully stepped down the last stair, the flood reaching up to his chest. Unsure if Feng Chen had already left the medical station, he stood bewildered beside the staircase.

Ding-dong!

The elevator door opened next to him, and Yan Bubu heard someone inside cry, "Ah... ah... someone, please push me out, push me out..."

Yan Bubu leaned in, seeing only the permanently stationed hospital bed in the elevator, and slowly waded over, asking, "Is it you calling? Do you want to come out?"

The person on the bed weakly extended a hand, "Help... push me out... I've been up and down so many times."

The elevator door was blocked by an empty bed, leaving no space to move. Yan Bubu saw an open room across, pushed that bed inside to clear some space, and then dragged the bed from the elevator out.

The hospital bed was exceedingly heavy; amidst the elevator doors' frequent closing and opening, Yan Bubu exerted enormous effort, akin to that of nine oxen and two tigers, just to drag the bed halfway out.

As he prepared to drag it further, the weak patient stopped him: "That's enough, right here... The doctor will see me... you should hurry onto the boat..."

Yan Bubu let go, panting, "I'm not boarding the boat, I have to find my brother."

The patient turned his head to look at him, "Your brother... who is he?"

"Do you know my brother? His name is Qin Shen," Yan Bubu asked urgently, "He had a fever today and was brought here. I've searched the entire building and couldn't find him. Uncle, do you know where he might be?"

"A fever?" The patient's expression turned hesitant, "I heard the doctors saying... the army won't allow people with fevers to be moved... fearing incidents in the emergency passages... mutations."

Yan Bubu quickly shook his head, "My brother will be fine. General Lin said he'd be better in a day or two, he even assured me. A day has passed, I should be able to pick him up now."

"General Lin said so, huh..." The patient, hearing this, pointed to the left, "People with fevers... are all in that building... go look for him there..."

"Thank you, uncle."

As the patient watched Yan Bubu wade through waist-deep water towards the left, he asked, "… but how will you get out later…?"

Yan Bubu didn't look back, his tone resolute, "My brother can ride fish, he'll be able to take me away."

The patient: "…"

To the left was a long balcony, leading to a staircase at its end. Yan Bubu climbed the stairs to the second floor.

Although this side was part of the same building as the medical hall, it was a separate area, divided by a thick concrete wall.

The thick wall seemed to separate two different worlds. The medical hall was noisy and chaotic, but this side was silent and dimly lit, like a quiet tomb.

To the left of the balcony were a row of patient rooms. Yan Bubu walked through this floor, finding the rooms empty, with no one residing in them.

Dripping wet, with his shoes squeaking, he moved up to the third floor. This row was also empty, the hospital beds reduced to mere frames, devoid of even sheets, clearly unoccupied.

As Yan Bubu headed to the fourth floor, he found a metal door at the stairwell, blocking the way upstairs. He pushed the door, but it was locked tight. Peering through the gap, he could see nothing.

"Brother, brother," Yan Bubu shouted towards the metal door, his voice echoing in the silent building, receiving no response.

He grasped the metal door, shaking it vigorously. It made a loud clang, yet remained firmly closed.

This metal door seemed to have been constructed recently, its rough style clashing with the solid, orderly architecture of the building.

The door was a single sheet of rusted dark iron, with evident welding marks where it joined the wall. Even the lock was of the oldest iron type, the bolt stretching from the door into the wall.

Yan Bubu pushed against the iron door for a while, then leaned over the balcony to look outside, hoping to find someone to help. But there was no one around, only the slightly swaying floodwaters reflecting light from above.

The floodwaters had nearly submerged the ground floor, steadily rising towards the second level.

Desperation engulfing him, Yan Bubu kicked and shoved at the iron door, calling out for his brother until his cries turned to sobs of despair.

"Hey! Who's crying there? That kid, the kid." Suddenly, a man's voice echoed from outside, accompanied by the waving light of a flashlight.

Yan Bubu immediately stopped his efforts against the door, his crying ceasing abruptly, incredulously turning towards the balcony.

He then rushed over, tiptoeing and leaning over the balcony, pleading, "Please, open the door, open the door, open the door."

Blinded by the flashlight, he squinted to see a figure standing on a hovercraft, repeatedly shouting at him, "Please, open the door…"

"Come on, quickly climb over the balcony, I'll catch you. We're pressed for time; I still have to pick up others," the person on the boat said.

Yan Bubu quickly shook his head: "No, it's not me, it's my brother upstairs, I have to get him. There's an iron door blocking the way, I can't get through."

The man replied, "You can't go upstairs, that's where the fever patients and mutants are, we don't allow anyone up there, come down quickly—"

"My brother will be fine, General Lin said he'd recover in a day or two. He's not like the others with fever; he won't turn into a monster that bites people, he won't!" Yan Bubu interrupted, anxiously pacing.

"General Lin said so?" the man asked.

"Yes, it's already been a day," Yan Bubu replied.

The man slightly moved the flashlight away, allowing Yan Bubu to clearly see his face. He recognized him as a soldier he had seen at the gate of the shelter during the flood.

Yan Bubu, seeing the soldier as a savior, pleaded, "Uncle, you know me, right? Look at me, do you recognize me? I’m the one who wouldn’t let you close the door, the one who cried, made a fuss, and hit people. You know my brother too, he came back riding a fish."

The soldier hesitated for a moment, then said, "I only have the key to the stairwell iron door. I need to go help others now. I’ll throw the key to you, and you can go on your own."

He was just a soldier assigned to pick up patients, never having been to this building before and unaware of the situation above. He had taken these iron door keys thinking of patrolling around to see if any patients were left behind, borrowed from a doctor.

Now, with other tasks at hand and many people trapped by the floodwaters, he had no choice but to entrust the keys to Yan Bubu for him to proceed.

Hearing about the keys, Yan Bubu was overjoyed and nodded eagerly, "Okay, okay, thank you."

The water had almost reached the second floor, and the soldier stood on an inflatable boat, close to the third floor. After throwing the keys to Yan Bubu, he also tossed two life jackets onto the balcony.

"There are no fish in the shelter for your brother to ride. Wear these when you both come out," he said, then spoke into his constantly buzzing walkie-talkie, "I’ve just checked the medical station and am heading there now... Yes, received, I’m on my way to rescue them."

The soldier paddled the inflatable boat away, and Yan Bubu hurriedly picked up the life jackets from the ground, holding them in his arms as he went to unlock the iron door.

On tiptoes, he unlocked the door and pushed it open, ascending to the fourth floor.

The fourth floor, like the other wards below, had its right-side balcony enclosed with iron bars. The rooms had solid metal doors with no windows, only a small square hole at the top.

Yan Bubu approached the first room’s door, unable to reach the small hole even on tiptoes. He saw a chair nearby, put down the life jackets, dragged over the chair, and climbed up.

Through the small window, he could only see a bed against the opposite wall. The bed was empty, with the bedding and sheets messily strewn on the floor beside it.

"Brother, brother," Yan Bubu called into the room.

The room was eerily silent. Yan Bubu called out 'brother' two more times but received no response.

He pressed his face against the small window, moving his eyes to see more of the room. The next second, his view darkened as something appeared on the other side of the window.

It was a pair of human eyes, yet utterly unhuman, the entire eyeball black, the surrounding skin pale white, with web-like, purplish-blue fine veins.

The eyes stared fixedly at Yan Bubu, cold and devoid of any emotion, showing no sign of life. For a moment, Yan Bubu's mind went blank, as if his soul had left his body, and he just gazed back in a daze.

It was only after a few seconds that his senses returned, his brain restarted, and he let out a terrifying scream before collapsing to the floor.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The metallic door reverberated with the sound of being struck. Yan Bubu scrambled up and dashed down the stairs, his footsteps chaotic in their haste.

However, as he reached the corner and saw the open iron door on the third floor, he suddenly came to his senses and slowed down, panting heavily.

Brother... my brother is still here... I can't leave now... I can't.

Wiping his eyes, Yan Bubu murmured, "I'm not afraid, not at all. I have Binu Binu with me, and I know the magic taught by Master. I came to get my brother, I can't leave..."

He took Binu Binu out of his bag and held it tight, taking a couple of deep breaths before turning and shakily making his way back to the fourth floor.

Squeak, squeak, his shoes made bubble-popping sounds as they squelched water, sounding particularly grating in the silence.

His heart hadn't yet recovered from the earlier shock, still beating violently, his temples throbbing with each pulse. The person in the first room continued to hit the door mechanically and rhythmically, with such force it seemed they couldn't feel any pain.

Fortunately, the metal door was incredibly sturdy, unmoved despite the relentless pounding. Yan Bubu took another deep breath, mustered his courage, and hurried along the edge of the balcony.

"Don't come out, whether you're a crazy uncle, aunt, grandfather, or grandmother, please don't come out... Can you be good, please?"

Yan Bubu, stiff with fear and not daring to lift his head, reached the second room. Finding the chair still lying at the door of the first room, he reluctantly went back to drag it.

The pounding inside grew more intense. Even though Yan Bubu knew the door wouldn't budge, he was so terrified that his face turned pale and his legs wobbled, barely able to drag the chair.

Placing the chair at the door of the second room, Yan Bubu fought his immense fear, gathered all his courage to climb up, and peered timidly through the small window.

His breathing was rapid, his hands clutching Binu Binu so tightly he almost ripped its ears off. Thankfully, he didn't encounter the same shock as before and immediately saw a person standing straight against the wall on the left side of the room.

It was clear that the person wasn't normal, almost plastered to the wall, and it wasn't Qin Shen. Without making a sound, Yan Bubu quickly climbed down, picked up the chair, and moved on to the third room.

Facing that small window again filled Yan Bubu with immense fear.

After positioning the chair, he hesitated for a moment, standing aside and tiptoeing to look down from the balcony.

He saw the water level had risen closer to him, already submerging the entire second floor and nearly reaching the third.

Yan Bubu dared not delay any longer, not even allowing himself time to mentally prepare, as he quickly climbed onto the chair to look through the small window.

The layout of this room was noticeably different from the others. Not only was there a hospital bed, but also a bedside table and an IV stand with a bag of medicine still dripping.

His eyes fixed on the person lying on the bed, and upon recognizing that familiar, handsome profile, his chest swelled with overwhelming joy.

All the despair and anxiety vanished at the sight of Feng Chen, replaced by tears welling up in his eyes from the intense relief.

"Brother!" he yelled through the small window, veins on his forehead bulging with effort, followed by tears and repeated cries, "Brother! I'm here to get you, brother! Wake up! I'm here for you!"