Chapter 137: Zombies Help?

Chapter 137: Zombies Lend a Hand?

"Chief, we’ve got trouble! Y Base is planning to attack us ahead of schedule!" Owen rushed in, his face filled with urgency.

"What happened?" Gu Jinsheng set down what he was doing and turned to look at the newcomer.

Owen quickly summarized, "Our contact sent me a message—there's a traitor in our base who leaked our secret evacuation plan. Y Base is jumping the gun and moving up their attack."

Upon hearing that there was a traitor in their midst, everyone was furious and couldn't help but voice their condemnation.

"Is he insane? Did he not consider the danger he’s putting himself in by leaking this now?"

"Must be one of the evacuees—thinking they’re safe on the colony planet and that nothing here can affect them anymore."

"You can guard against outsiders, but traitors slip through. We even closed off the neural net, yet some snake still slithered through."

"No time for blame now," Ji An said grimly. "Owen, did that person give you Y Base’s exact coordinates?"

"No," Owen replied anxiously. "He probably doesn’t know either."

Owen’s answer plunged the lab into a deathly silence, doom hung heavy in the air.

No coordinates meant shooting blind.

"Boss, what do we do?" Kong Zhongcheng asked.

Dozens of pairs of eyes turned to Gu Jinsheng, waiting for his decision.

"Sound the evacuation—now," Gu Jinsheng swiftly ordered.

"No time for background checks now," Zhou Qin pointed out.

"There’s no time left," Ji An answered.

"What about those who just returned from hunting zombies and haven’t completed their quarantine period?" Zhou Qin pressed.

"It’s too late. They’ll finish quarantine on the new planet—no choice. Lock down quarantine and sterilization there—we must prevent the zombie virus from spreading on the new planet."

"Understood."

Ji An glanced at the researchers behind him. "Abandon your stations—now. Grab what you can carry, ditch the rest. Your safety comes first."

"Director Ji, if we leave, what happens here?" Wu Youyang asked.

"Without coordinates, staying won’t make a difference. You’re our best hope out there—everything on the colony planet is unknown, and we’ll need your continued efforts. No matter what, your safety is the priority."

Ji An commanded, "Gear up—move out in twenty. After that, Kong Zhongcheng will escort you out."

"Yes!" everyone responded. This wasn’t cowardice—they knew their value. On a new planet, without their expertise, it’d be chaos and bloodshed.

Researchers lived for their work. To them, their work might even outweigh their own lives.

They stripped the lab bare, packing everything portable, thanks to the researchers’ ample storage space.

"That’s time! Kong, get them moving!"

A few researchers were still working together to dismantle a large machine. "Director Ji, just give us a few more minutes—we’re almost done!"

"Go! I’ve got this," Ji An said firmly.

Several researchers were out of options and could only follow Ji An's order to evacuate.

"Commander Zhou, someone is looking for you outside," a staff member hurriedly reported as they entered.

Zhou Qin frowned. He was swamped with work and had no time to deal with random people. "Who?"

"He said his surname is Gou."

As soon as the staff member spoke, Zhou Qin froze; his whole body went rigid.

Ji An's mind immediately flashed to a familiar yet distant face—Gou Chong.

Ji An wasn’t very familiar with Gou Chong. Before Ji An arrived, Gou Chong had been a prominent figure in the command center, moving in all the right circles and forming close bonds with Zhou Qin and others—especially Zhou Qin, with whom he had a bond forged in life-or-death situations.

Later, due to certain reasons, he betrayed Zhou Qin. It wasn’t a matter of right or wrong, just different choices. In any case, the two had a falling out, and Gou Chong was drummed out of his position for betraying the base.

It took Zhou Qin a long time to speak, his voice hoarse. "I don’t know anyone surnamed Gou or Cat."

Despite his words, Zhou Qin’s distress was too obvious—anyone could see he was shaken.

The staff member, unaware of the bad blood between the two, noticed Zhou Qin’s discomfort and assumed it was just a simple misunderstanding.

"Commander Zhou, Mr. Gou said that if you refuse to see him, he asked me to relay a message: He knows staying behind now is dangerous, and he’s willing to take your place to clean things up."

"Damn it!" Zhou Qin let out a mocking laugh. "He’s willing? Is he even qualified? What the hell is my power level compared to his? If something happens, can he handle the battles I can? If a conflict breaks out now, losing isn’t just about defeat—it means countless lives. Can he bear that responsibility?"

Zhou Qin sneered. "All talk!"

The staff member didn’t dare to respond and quickly left. Having just been reprimanded, they spoke bluntly to Gou Chong, who was anxiously waiting outside. "Look at your own power level compared to Commander Zhou’s. With such a vast gap, how dare you suggest replacing him?"

For a moment, Gou Chong’s expression faltered. "Is that what he said? I knew even if I offered my life, he wouldn’t forgive me."

Gou Chong looked like a pitiful dog abandoned by its owner, making the staff member waver for a brief moment.

"I know I’m not capable, nowhere near Commander Zhou. But the situation is critical now—the longer you stay, the more dangerous it gets. Someone like me, with no real skills, staying behind… if I die, what does it matter?"

Gou Chong pleaded, "Please, just let me see him once. I can convince him."

The staff member was firm. "No. Commander Zhou is up to his neck right now. Leave now, or I’ll call the patrol. Then you won’t have to leave—you’ll be cooling your heels in a cell directly."

Gou Chong’s father, seeing this, could only pipe up, "Son, let’s go. If you truly care about Commander Zhou, you should follow his orders now, help keep things running smoothly, not cause trouble and distract him."

"I’m just worried about him."

"If you really want to lighten his load, leave immediately. The new planet is in chaos right now. If you’re willing to help maintain order there, that would be the best help you could give."

Gou Chong was out of options. Seeing the staff member about to call the patrol, he could only retreat.

Ji An glanced at Gou Chong, who had been distracted since the staff member left. "Really not going to see him?"

Gou Chong shook himself out of his thoughts and shook his head. "Since I chose betrayal back then, what’s the use of regret? If I die, I won’t even have the chance to hear his bullshit."

Ji An said nothing more. He had been through similar experiences and understood the principle of don't preach if you haven't been there.

"Boss, Director Ji, I just got word—we must evacuate now!" Owen’s voice cracked with panic.

"What now?" Gu Jinsheng asked.

"He just got another transmission—Y Base is about to launch missiles."

Gu Jinsheng asked, "How is the evacuation going?"

"Nearly complete."

Gu Jinsheng nodded. "Alert all ground personnel to evacuate immediately within three minutes."

"Yes, sir."

"We're moving out," Gu Jinsheng said.

The group wasted no time and hurriedly ran out of the command center. On the way, Owen's neural-com suddenly buzzed with an incoming video call.

"Is it him calling?" Owen glanced at the device while running, equal parts shocked and thrilled to see it was that person.

Without waiting for Gu Jinsheng's response, Owen eagerly pressed the answer button.

A holo-display instantly appeared before them, moving along with Owen's sprint.

At first, the screen only showed some background—sterile white walls and high-tech doors and windows. The barest whisper of footsteps could barely be heard.

"Where is this?" Owen's excitement turned to confusion at the sight.

The group kept running, with Ji An turning his head to look at the holo-display projected by Owen.

Gu Jinsheng recognized it at once. "A military base. They are inside a military base."

Suddenly, an explosion rumbled in the distance, and the camera began to shake. The wearer of the neural-com moved too quickly, making the feed too blurry to make out.

When the footage stabilized again, familiar faces appeared on the screen.

"Who dares trespass into Y Base's military facility?" the Base Commander of Y Base roared.

Another familiar voice soon followed. "Your security's full of holes. How could intruders get in?"

The owner of the voice soon appeared on the screen—it was actually Charles.

"No, Base Commander Charles, they're not human—they're zombies!" the Base Commander of Y Base shouted in panic.

Zombies?

Ji An and the others on this side of the screen all went pale.

"What's going on? How did the neural-com end up in the hands of zombies? Did they kill the owner...?" Before Zhou Qin could finish, the Base Commander of Y Base yelled in alarm.

"What are these zombies doing? They're heading for the control panel—they're trying to sabotage it!"

Charles barked, "Quick, launch the missiles now! Ignore them!"

"Ah, no! These zombies are causing chaos..." The scene broke into complete chaos, with energy blasts lighting up the screen.

The zombies that stormed into Y Base's military facility were all elite-tier, moving with terrifying speed and strength. For a while, neither side could gain the upper hand.

"What's with these zombies? They're tearing into the control panel—it looks like they're trying to help us?" Zhou Qin muttered, half to himself.