Apocalyptic Island - Chapter 70

Chapter 70

Wen Yishu rubbed the String-of-Pearls; she had nothing left to give it to eat. Not wanting to linger, she hurried to make her exit. The walls of the quarantine zone were high—not see-through chain-link fences—which made her movements much easier to conceal.

Outside, the guards had doubled in number. When she climbed down, she nearly got spotted, but thanks to her agility and quick pace, she managed to put significant distance between herself and the zone.

She hadn’t gone far when screams erupted one after another behind her. The String-of-Pearls acted as her rear-view sensor, broadcasting a real-time account of the chaos. A massive flock of red-eyed birds had descended from the sky, swarming the areas where the guards were most concentrated. The sound of gunfire crackled like firecrackers behind her. Wen Yishu’s heart skipped a beat as a stray bullet whistled past her ear, driving home just how dangerous the situation back there had become.

She couldn’t worry about them. She had the String-of-Pearls form a protective shield behind her and scrambled onto the rooftops, only feeling safe once she had run far enough away.

In her headset, Bai Mi constantly checked on her safety, only relaxing once Wen Yishu reached the apartment. Qu Yue sent a message confirming that Warp Speed had no knowledge of Rhine’s plan—even the surveillance feeds they were provided had been faked.

Wen Yishu looked out the window; the city was indeed in turmoil. The news feeds were exploding, and the sounds of rioting and destruction echoed from afar. Because her current area was relatively remote, it had managed to avoid being targeted by the mobs for now.

As luck would have it, just after she arrived at the apartment, Huo Xiaoguan and Ling Shuang sent a message. These two were clearly in the dark as well. She wondered what Rhine’s upper management was thinking—were they sending these people in just to die?

Frowning, Wen Yishu looked at the messages, then suddenly looked up at Bai Mi. As their eyes met, a dark realization struck her.

“Do you think… Rhine is sending Xiaoguan and the others in to be ‘fodder’?”

Bai Mi was stunned by the suggestion and looked at her in shock. Wen Yishu felt even more certain of her theory. If people who had been in contact with her were supposed to be discarded, yet these two were still alive—and Yu Ning had easily passed the vetting for such a critical project to fetch the Merman personally—then her previous guess was wrong. It wasn’t because of Yu Ning’s experience; it was because Rhine never trusted them. They were being penned up like pawns to be sacrificed at any moment.

Perhaps the girls knew more than they realized. Bai Mi saw a calm madness in Wen Yishu’s eyes. Her previous neural-link indoctrination had limited her imagination, but after Wen Yishu spoke, many things began to click. Still, it felt inconceivable. She asked: “If that’s true, what is their ultimate goal?”

Wen Yishu shook her head. “God knows. Maybe there are already Mermen in the upper management.” She tossed out a heavy, terrifying possibility that left Bai Mi speechless for a long time.

Wen Yishu comforted her: “It’s okay, we can’t always assume the worst. Xiaoguan and the others are heading this way now. Let’s focus on getting them out first.”

She sent a message back to Huo Xiaoguan, and the two replied immediately, providing their landing coordinates. It wasn’t far from the quarantine zone—a larger industrial park in the Haishi District. Although it was within the city limits, it was sparsely populated and had been cleared out as a backup area when the plant mutations first began.

Wen Yishu calculated the time; they needed to leave now. But Bai Mi suddenly grabbed her wrist. Under the warm yellow light, her expression was resolute and beyond argument.

“I’m coming with you. It’s too dangerous for you alone.”

Wen Yishu smiled and said, “Stop it, Leader. If you aren’t here, I won’t have a backup team.”

Bai Mi shook her head and stood up, staring into Wen Yishu’s eyes. “Even as a backup team, I can’t do anything for you from here. I’m going with you. This isn’t me asking for your opinion; it’s my decision.”

Wen Yishu thought for a second. Just as Bai Mi expected a rejection, Wen Yishu grabbed the hand that was holding her wrist and pulled her along. “How do we get there? The hoverboard is too slow and can’t carry two people.”

Bai Mi flashed a small smile and led her to a stop, pulling a key from the entryway. “I got the motorhome we drove before back.”

Wen Yishu stared at the key in surprise, wondering how she had managed to retrieve it. A minute later, the two were sitting inside the empty motorhome. Wen Yishu was stunned to see Huang Fei in the driver’s seat, waving at her.

“When did you two get in touch?” Wen Yishu asked.

Huang Fei started the engine and spoke while driving: “This afternoon, while you were out, Wen. I didn’t have a place to stay lately, and luckily I had the motorhome, otherwise I wouldn’t have been able to join you.”

Huang Fei had left the quarantine zone after they brought the Merman back. Seeing that her partners weren’t there and the area was swarming with people, she had simply taken her severance pay and wandered the city for a couple of days. By a stroke of luck, she had escaped the blockade, otherwise she’d be trapped inside right now.

Wen Yishu gave the stoic Bai Mi a thumbs-up. Bai Mi caught the gesture in her peripheral vision, gave a small nod, and returned her gaze to the road, sitting as stiffly as a wooden post. She didn’t seem used to receiving praise. However, Wen Yishu didn’t go overboard; she just gave her a sincere, normal compliment.

Bai Mi’s ears turned slightly red. She awkwardly turned her face away to observe their surroundings. There weren’t many cars on the streets. Most residential vehicles were light and convenient for daily travel. In this information age, most people only got driver’s licenses as a formality, as intelligent auto-driving systems prevented most accidents. Consequently, those cars were not durable; they were built for speed, soundproofing, and comfort.

Such cars were fine before, but in a world overrun by Xenogenics, they were impractical. The motorhome, though clunky, was more than five times sturdier. Occasionally, Wen Yishu heard “thump-thump” sounds from the roof. Every time, Huang Fei would swerve the tail of the vehicle sharply. Looking out the window, Wen Yishu saw several dark shadows falling off.

She couldn’t help but feel nervous—the outside world had descended into complete chaos. Yet Huang Fei was far less jumpy than the other two. Seeing Wen Yishu’s hand resting on her blade through the rearview mirror, she even comforted her while driving: “It’s fine. I was terrified at first too, but this car has great protection. I’ve been sleeping in it at night; no Xenogenics have gotten in.”

They had chosen the best vehicle back at the camp, and it had proven its worth. Rather than renting a cheap, unsafe apartment, Huang Fei had rented a warehouse without security features and parked the car inside. In all these days, aside from the danger she faced when stepping out of the car, she had been perfectly safe. At first, she was as worried as the other two, but eventually, she had become numb to it.

Huang Fei’s words worked; the two relaxed their guard slightly as they watched the Xenogenics outside. Following the navigation, the three arrived at the location Huo Xiaoguan had sent.

The helicopters were still some distance away. They parked the car in a hidden spot, leaving Huang Fei to wait and be ready for a quick getaway. The two got out and headed toward the specific coordinates. Wen Yishu took her flamethrower and the gun she had brought back from the black market.

Huang Fei waved at them from inside and turned off the vehicle’s lights completely. Instantly, they were plunged into darkness. Wen Yishu turned on her light-brain’s flashlight; her vision in the dark wasn’t great. Realizing this hadn’t changed, she relied entirely on Bai Mi to lead the way. She eventually grit her teeth and turned off the flashlight, letting Bai Mi pull her along as they ran.

This particular industrial park was covered in high-voltage wire fences, and the guards were even more densely packed. Standing far off, the two realized they couldn’t advance further. Moving forward would risk being caught in the searchlight beams from the watchtowers. They hid behind a low building to observe.

The light sources here were attracting Xenogenics, and the sound of occasional skirmishes at the gate rang out. Wen Yishu stared intently, wondering if Yu Ning was inside. Beyond the electric fence was a wall of significant height, limiting their vision. They could only see the silhouettes of buildings inside—pitch black without a single light.

After a while, they heard the roar of helicopters overhead. Wen Yishu, still clutching Bai Mi’s hand, looked up at the sky. A powerful beam of light from above illuminated a large area, and simultaneously, the ground below swarmed with Xenogenics attracted by the light.

“They’re here.” Wen Yishu looked down at the messages from Huo Xiaoguan and Ling Shuang on her light-brain, counting the helicopters in the air. “The third one.”

She waited for the helicopters to land. With so many Xenogenics on the ground, there was bound to be a riot when they touched down. But Wen Yishu was only half right. The helicopters didn’t land; instead, they flew directly over the park.

A furious message popped up from Huo Xiaoguan: “Godd*mmit, these people are crazy! They want us to fast-rope down. No elevator, no stairs—how is this different from just telling me to jump? Am I supposed to turn into a pancake to be used as feed?!”

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