Chapter 176

Chapter 176

"What's going on?" A sharp question shattered the tense silence at the corridor door.

The researchers turned, their faces first falling, then brightening. Why had the Command Center suddenly sent people? But with the Commander's men here, they could follow them in. Even if Professor Gabriel was angry, their punishment would surely be lighter.

"Commander George, what brings you here with your men?"

George, head of the Emergency Department, was clearly displeased. He barked, "What are you all blocking the door for? Open it, now!"

A researcher glanced uneasily at Guan Jie, who stood guard by the access control. "This man works directly for the professor. He said the professor ordered him to stay here. We didn't dare offend Professor Gabriel, so..." He subtly nudged his companions, signaling them to pull Guan Jie—that reckless fool—away.

"The Command Center is here. If you don't want to die, get out of the way," the researcher whispered urgently to Guan Jie.

Though confined to the research center for years, they had opportunities to leave after each experiment, always picking up rumors circulating on Matia. If the Captain's right-hand men were the Command Center and the Guard Corps, then their Professor Gabriel was his most trusted confidant. However, there was some minor friction between Professor Gabriel and the Guard Corps' general, so the arrival of the Command Center was no surprise.

Ostensibly, the military was under the Guard Corps, but the Command Center could also take anyone away for investigation under the pretext of threatening Matia's safety. The Command Center mostly operated behind the scenes, but that didn't mean they were benevolent.

The *Soldier Enhancer* coursed through Guan Jie's nerves, silently hijacking his thoughts. Dazed, his vision swimming, he stared at the newcomers. He didn't grasp the gravity of the situation, still clinging stubbornly to the access control panel.

"No! The door can't be opened yet!"

In his delirium, he saw blurred figures approaching and lashed out wildly, kicking to keep anyone from getting near the door. His voice was frenzied as he chanted, "No, no—just give them a little more time! Give me time! You can't go in! I won't let anyone through!"

"Just a damned dog," George sneered in disgust, motioning for his subordinates to drag the man away. Suddenly, a deafening glass shatter erupted from behind the door, freezing everyone in place.

Just as George frowned in confusion, another explosion sounded, followed by another—each followed by a heavy tremor of something massive hitting the ground.

In an instant, the researchers blocking the door recoiled in panic. Some even turned to flee.

George, noticing their reaction, narrowed his eyes and signaled his men to corral them. His sharp gaze locked onto the trembling researchers as he demanded coldly, "Why are you running?"

When the researchers exchanged uneasy glances but remained silent, George understood. "So you know exactly what’s happening." He pressed further, "What exactly is Professor Gabriel doing in there? Why did he suddenly send an SOS to the Command Center?"

Not long ago, the commander had received a desperate message from Professor Gabriel—just two words: "Help me." The Command Center quickly traced his location to the research center and immediately dispatched a team to investigate. But now, it seemed the situation was far worse than they’d anticipated.

"Open the door!" George’s brow furrowed as he clutched his communicator, finger poised over the alarm, while his other hand hovered over the gun at his waist.

Guan Jie, still thrashing wildly, was forcibly dragged aside but continued to scream as if warning someone of their intrusion.

"Don't open it! You can't open it!"

George shot him a disdainful glance, then grabbed a researcher at random, yanking off his ID badge to swipe open the door himself.

*Beep-beep.*

As the access control disengaged, all eyes fixed on the slowly widening gap—some fearful, some anxious, some merely curious.

Su Xu stepped out of the lab calmly, glancing down at the plastic bottle in his hand. If not for the fact that this was the only water container in the million-dollar lab, he would never have guessed that this discarded bottle in the corner was the crucial factor Wei Pan had described—capable of recalibrating the acceleration filter to its initial state.

Something people would go to great lengths to obtain had been treated like trash. Remembering the passion and gravity in Wei Pan’s eyes when he spoke of his wish, Su Xu preferred to believe this water truly held value—enough to justify risking his life for it.

The ocean had given him life and purpose, but he refused to follow the predetermined path, to judge whether this world deserved to continue existing under divine decree. He wanted to control his body and mind in his own way, to uncover the truth behind the orphanage tragedy—so that one day, when he died, he could face the matron and the orphans with a clear conscience. That was the only thing keeping him going.

He despised this world, but its destruction or salvation meant nothing to him. Half a year ago, he’d just been an ordinary laborer. But the people of the Deep Sea Research Institute were different. They had united voluntarily, finding meaning in survival—unlike the selfish creatures he’d seen in this rotten, stinking world.

It was a strange feeling. The gods had been wounded by humanity, yet it was humans who proved this world wasn’t entirely ruined.

"Wei Pan, you’ve never let me down," Su Xu murmured with a faint smile, tucking the bottle securely into his inner pocket and patting it once.

His gaze shifted toward the opening door, then he glanced back at the colossal entity awakening behind him before striding up the stairs to the second floor.

"Su Xu..."

He paused mid-step and turned toward the voice. Professor Gabriel, soaked in blood, staggered out from the examination room—his limbs broken from a fall, a gushing wound in his chest oozing blood, his neck twisted at a grotesque angle. His voice was a guttural rasp, like rusted gears forced to turn.

"I’m not dead... You must be disappointed." Professor Gabriel’s bloodshot eyes bore into Su Xu with venom, as if his hatred alone could skin him alive.

Su Xu lifted his chin slightly, looking down from the stairs. "Professor Gabriel, we have nothing to discuss. But it seems they have something to say to you."

"What are you talking about?" Rage consumed Professor Gabriel, leaving no room for thought—until thick, hot drool dripped onto his forehead. His broken body froze. With great effort, he twisted his broken neck toward the corridor window—and in its reflection, saw countless pairs of glowing, hate-filled eyes fixed on him.

More and more experimental subjects squeezed out of the lab, surging toward Professor Gabriel in a frenzy. Robbed of speech, they could only express their fury violently, tearing at his body, demanding retribution.

Cornered and broken, Professor Gabriel refused to yield even in the face of certain death. "I wasn’t wrong!" he shrieked. "The forebears’ legacy guided me! I couldn’t have been wrong!"

"It was just a few sacrifices... Soon, a new human race will rise—"

His hysterical laughter cut off abruptly. In denial, he rambled, "Even if Su Xu wasn’t because of the *Soldier Enhancer* serum... No, he was! That’s why he changed! He’s my perfect specimen! I just need to extract his blood, harvest the antibodies, and create the vaccine—then my experiment will succeed! I’ll bleed him dry!"

"Bleed him dry!"

The moment the corridor door swung open, George couldn’t believe the scene before him—this couldn’t be happening in the world’s most secure facility. He moved to shut the door again, but someone barged past him.

Guan Jie, having broken free from his captors, lunged blindly into the chaos. Blind to the horrors around him, he saw only his beloved Professor Gabriel being ripped to shreds.

"Professor Gabriel! I’ll save you!"

"Idiot!" George cursed, snatching at the fallen ID badge—only for a slick, gelatinous tentacle to slam down on it. His gaze traveled upward, meeting a ghoulish, pallid face—its skull stretched grotesquely, its neck fused with the squirming limbs of a *Giant Octopus*. It stared down at him, its maw bristling with jagged teeth suddenly yawning wide.