Apocalyptic Island - Chapter 56

Chapter 56

The robot housekeepers moved swiftly, everyone lining up in an orderly fashion to enter the room, find their assigned spots, and begin charging while standing. One by one, the robots returned to their positions; pre-set programs ensured that every unit remained perfectly organized.

With a soft sizzle, the charging interfaces at the bottom connected, and blue lights flickered to life in the eyes of all the robots. The charging docks were arranged like a honeycomb, each indentation designed to perfectly accommodate a robot’s recessed charging port.

Standing at the back were two somewhat out-of-place figures—Wen Yishu and Bai Mi. They were mimicking the robots, standing atop the docks as if charging. Before the robots had entered, Wen Yishu had selected two adjacent empty spots, quickly donned some idle clothes left in a corner, and slipped a wig onto Bai Mi’s head.

Only after finishing this did she step up onto the dock, where the magnetic charging connector automatically popped out. She fought the urge to dodge the metal tentacles dancing with electric arcs. Although she had placed padding under her feet, the icy sensation nearly triggered a defensive spasm from her muscle memory.

Wen Yishu kept her head bowed low. Just as she completed her disguise, the main control door slid open. Her heart climbed into her throat, but fortunately, the robots simply returned to their respective spots and failed to notice the two extra “units” in the room.

Wen Yishu let out a sigh of relief and nudged Bai Mi with her finger, pointing toward a robot whose chest was stamped with a wrench icon labeled “Maintenance Tunnel Access.” To get there, however, they had to cross three entire rows of charging docks currently being inspected.

The patrol robot was unlike the housekeepers; its cold, hard metal shell lacked any decorative flourishes. It didn’t even have synthetic skin. Where the face should have been sat a large electronic eye that monitored every inch of the scene.

A cold blue light swept across the standby robots one by one. Finally, the rollers beneath the patrol robot turned toward the two of them. Wen Yishu stared fixedly at the machine, holding her breath even though she knew it was futile. The red light on the patrol robot’s camera lit up, emitting a series of beeps indicating a malfunction.

After an agonizing two-second pause, the patrol robot finally spoke: “Detected equipment overheating. Please follow for entry into the maintenance room.”

Wen Yishu exhaled. She had worried for nothing; it was just a “mentally challenged” machine. As they say, cheap goods are never quality. It had actually identified them as robots, perhaps due to the effects of the injected chemicals. To be safe, Wen Yishu had turned the drug-stained part of her clothes to the front; it seemed the effect was quite good.

The two exchanged a brief side-long glance. Wen Yishu was the first to follow the robot’s pace. She mimicked the robotic gait, walking carefully along the patrol robot’s predetermined route.

The sliding door opened again, the metal walls outside reflecting a cold light. Her heart raced with excitement. They were finally out. Wen Yishu caught a glimpse of the sliding door and noted it was a full five centimeters thick; she felt a phantom ache in her hand again.

She began cursing Dr. Zhao in her head once more. Once they stepped out, the sliding door hissed shut behind them. The whirring sound of the patrol robot’s wheels caught their attention. Wen Yishu kept her head as still as possible, using only her peripheral vision to scan the path ahead.

Crossing a long corridor, they followed the patrol robot upward to the first floor. Wen Yishu noticed the furnishings here were very sparse. The first floor was a hollow lobby with a simple wood-grain decor; it looked like a robot base established after the original guesthouse supplies had been cleared out.

In the middle of the empty floor, Wen Yishu immediately spotted a pile of luggage. The robots had even pushed her bicycle there, with her flamethrower still clipped in its usual spot. She wondered if the robot responsible for tidying up had obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Outside, the sky was a dull gray, with a faint sliver of weak light peeking through the windows. The lights were not on upstairs, and the basement was falling further and further behind them.

Wen Yishu brushed against the back of Bai Mi’s hand—now. She sprinted forward, tackling the patrol robot before it could enter a room. The robot landed on its forelimbs, trying to use its own strength to right itself, its camera-head attempting to swivel around. Bai Mi, standing by, immediately covered the lens.

Her fingertips precisely jammed into the robot’s triangular alloy jaw, and with a sharp yank, she tore the entire head off. She then severed the induction command wires inside. The patrol robot was instantly drained of all power, slumping onto the floor as a pile of scrap metal.

Wen Yishu stared at her, dumbfounded, retracting the hand she had been about to use. She gave Bai Mi a thumbs-up. “Nice one, Team Leader. That was impressive.”

Bai Mi tossed the mechanical camera head aside, the lens shattering upon impact. She brushed her hands off and pulled Wen Yishu up from the floor.

“Are we leaving now?” Bai Mi asked. Although neither had rested well, the sun would be up soon; leaving was the best choice.

Wen Yishu shook her head. “I interrogated a robot and found Dr. Zhao’s location. Let’s go check it out—at least to destroy this experimental site.”

Bai Mi raised an eyebrow. “Interrogated?”

After Wen Yishu nodded, Bai Mi’s expression became even stranger. How do you interrogate a robot? She found it hard to imagine Wen Yishu using threats or bribes on a machine. Wen Yishu didn’t elaborate, assuming Bai Mi’s expression was just a reaction to the idea of hunting down Dr. Zhao.

She wasn’t a meddlesome person, but letting this grudge go would be too difficult. Why should the mastermind be allowed to get away scot-free? The word “concession” didn’t exist in her dictionary. Even if she didn’t seek revenge today, she would think back on it later and feel the same way. Naturally, she wanted to know the truth behind all of this now. She wanted to drag Dr. Zhao, that parasite, out into the light to face his reckoning.

Every guesthouse entrance featured a map of the entire town; they only needed to step outside to see it. However, cameras were everywhere. Once she went out, she would definitely be exposed.

Bai Mi had already opened the main door and mounted the bicycle, gesturing for Yishu to hop on. Wen Yishu gripped her waist, and they rode out. They spent a moment looking at the map by the entrance; the sky was a hazy, dusky blue, and it wasn’t raining.

Standing on the welcome stone at the entrance, Wen Yishu gazed into the distance. “Aix, lock onto the three-story building in the southwest corner.”

Aix’s steady, calm voice came through the earpiece: “Acknowledged. Route map has been planned for you.”

The surroundings were deathly quiet, just as they had been when they first arrived. Only this time, the two had already survived the robotic surge. If everything went according to plan, the robots inside should still be in hibernation.

Zhao Kangcheng was lying next to the monitoring room. He was a scruffy middle-aged man with sunken eyes and dark circles that looked as if they were tattooed onto his face. It was unclear how long he had gone without sleep. His frame was thin and frail; though tall, he looked like a bamboo pole.

At the moment, he was curled up in a sofa bed in a large slanted attic room atop the three-story building, sleeping soundly. He slept exceptionally well this time, remaining asleep even as dawn broke, until he was jolted awake by a monitoring alarm.

He irritably tossed aside the clothes covering him, grabbed a nutrient pack from the table, bit it open, and held it in his mouth as he strode into the monitoring room. A small window for the patrol robot showed a red exclamation mark. Zhao Kangcheng’s withered, branch-like hand clicked into the feed to check the footage.

First was a black-and-white still frame, until the patrol robot emerged from the maintenance room and watched the apartment housekeepers enter the charging room one by one. It began its daily task, scanning each robot for malfunctions. Zhao Kangcheng examined every detail carefully, fearing he might miss an anomaly.

Suddenly, his pupils shrank behind his lenses. He saw two live humans wearing wigs, standing on the charging docks, staring back at the patrol robot. The audio in the monitor played the patrol robot’s malfunction alert—clearly, it hadn’t recognized the humans.

Zhao Kangcheng’s hands were shaking. These two had just been captured the previous night. He had initially been excited to have two physically robust subjects; such people were less likely to die after being hooked up to a neural link and could last much longer. He didn’t know how they had escaped the basement, how they had overcome the chemical control, or where they were now.

He sped up the footage and saw the robot being tackled, completely losing its ability to function. The final frame was a low-angle shot of the two women. Cold sweat broke out on his palms. He quickly switched cameras. The earliest alarm had been twenty minutes ago. He checked several street-level monitors.

These screens were jumping with white noise, all displaying static images as if they were frozen. Not a single one showed Wen Yishu or Bai Mi. His heart was filled with a massive dread. It was the first time he realized how terrifying it was when things spiraled out of his control.

The people in the basement hadn’t woken up yet, but he was already panicking. He hurriedly pressed the button to wake all the apartment housekeepers, but the screen, filled with code, flashed a “Low Power” warning. Zhao Kangcheng immediately switched to the backup power supply. Only when he saw the icons in the charging room light up did he breathe a sigh of relief.

He slumped into his chair. His body was weak from lack of exercise, and he knew he shouldn’t get too agitated. However, he struggled to get back up and activated all the door locks and smart security systems. This finally made him feel a bit safer. He sat back down and took a large gulp of water from a nearby glass.

The daylight outside was now fully bright. His peripheral vision caught a movement at the window. Zhao Kangcheng froze, set down his glass, and stared. There was indeed a figure clinging to the outside of the window, waving at him.

He saw the smile on the person’s face and felt his heart nearly stop from terror. Wen Yishu, hanging by a rope, gave him a polite wave, and then—BAM—she shattered the glass with a single punch!

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