Chapter 179: The ratlike Qing Consortium
Translator: Legge Editor: Legge
Ren Xiaosu hid at the entrance of the university and watched.
The entire Western District of Stronghold 109 had suddenly fallen into inexplicable madness due to the uncertainty that Li Shentan’s appearance brought.
Yang Xiaojin, who was standing at the highest point, could clearly see the entire situation. During this early evening period, she saw nearly one-fifth of all the people in the district start rushing to the university. The people on the ground were like moths circling a light source, and all of them were swarming and sprinting. It was as though they were a group of uncontrolled, wild beasts.
In the past, she had said to Ren Xiaosu that if the Demon Whisperer were released, the fate of the stronghold would become unknown. No one could predict whether it would head in a good or bad direction.
And now, the outcome was without a doubt the worst of the speculations they had. In fact, many people could not imagine that the enemy could create such widespread chaos single-handedly.
This was the age where supernatural beings would rise, but many of the organizations were still ignoring the changes that supernatural beings could bring to the era.
On the other hand, Li Shentan took practical action to inform the major powers on all sides just how shockingly destructive supernatural beings could be.
Powerful individuals were gradually transcending the strength that groups of people had.
The people in the crowd ran even faster when they got closer to the university. Some of those whose physical fitness was worse fell to the ground when their bodies could no longer take the stress.
But the others behind them continued rushing forward as though they did not see the others drop to the ground before them.
At the university, the Li Consortium’s combat troops who were in charge of defending the place were stunned by the sight. It wasn’t that their mental fortitude was weak, but that they had never imagined they would witness such a hellish scene here on earth.
The commanding officer of the defensive forces was the first to react. He immediately issued a preliminary warning that they would fire at the crowd if they got any nearer.
As someone from the Li Consortium, he subconsciously chose to give a warning first instead of shooting to kill. This was because the people running amok were all residents of the Li Consortium’s stronghold. If they were to mercilessly fire into them, he could end up getting severely blamed and criticized. At that time, when the Li Consortium faced the wrath of the residents, he would definitely be singled out and made the scapegoat for giving the order to shoot at them!
But more importantly, he thought that if he gave a warning before opening fire, the people would stop in their tracks in fear of their weapons.
Alas, he couldn’t be more wrong!
The mindless residents had absolutely no sense of fear, having lost all control of themselves.
The “essence” of hypnotism was to let those who were hypnotized completely surrender their consciousness!
It was precisely because of this officer’s wrong call that the Li Consortium’s combat troops lost their best opportunity.
Actually, there wasn’t anything wrong with this officer’s decision. He was faced with a terrifying opponent he had never encountered before.
By the time they realized the warning had served no purpose and got ready to fire at the residents, the lunatics were only a few dozen meters away from the university’s entrance.
“We can’t wait any longer! Shoot to kill!”
Intense gunfire rang out as the soldiers from the Li Consortium pulled their triggers in fear.
But after killing the first wave of cannon fodder, those behind them stepped over the bodies of the fallen and rushed forward. They kept coming wave after wave without any fear!
In just one short minute, the seemingly heavy fortifications at the entrance of the university had been broken through. The rush of people flowing in swept aside the entire defensive line that had looked impenetrable at first glance and tore it to pieces.
Not only that, there were still plenty more residents who fearlessly climbed the electrified wire netting on the sides of the walls.
One of the walls fell!
When Ren Xiaosu saw that, he was terrified. Had these people gone mad?!
All of a sudden, the ground below his feet moved.
Ren Xiaosu looked down and discovered he was standing on top of a manhole cover.
It felt like someone was pushing the manhole cover aside from below, but whoever was doing so did not succeed in moving it even after a long time. Then Luo Lan’s irritated voice sounded from underneath it. “Those bastard fuckers from the Li Consortium actually sealed the manholes? C’mon, let’s go to a different spot and try again.”
A strange look appeared on Ren Xiaosu’s face. He walked a few dozen meters away and stood on top of yet another manhole cover. As a result, Luo Lan’s voice sounded out again, “Fuck! This one has been sealed too!”
But before Ren Xiaosu could feel amused, he heard Fatty Luo shout below, “Fucking blast this manhole cover apart!”
This time, Ren Xiaosu hurriedly said, “Come on up. There’s no need to blow up anything...”
After Ren Xiaosu stepped aside, the manhole cover quickly opened a little. Luo Lan’s eyes locked on to Ren Xiaosu’s eyes through the small seam that had opened up.
“So it’s you, kid,” Luo Lan snapped as he climbed out from below. His rotund body would have gotten stuck in the manhole if not for the people below him pushing him out.
Ren Xiaosu asked, “Were you born in the year of the rat? Why do you keep scuttling around in the sewers?”
“What do you know?” Luo Lan said disdainfully, “We’re just prescient. Back when they were constructing this stronghold, our people infiltrated their architectural design team. There are no Li Consortium strongholds we’re not familiar with. Don’t you think that it’s awesome to be able to navigate around the place from below and not get discovered by anyone?”
“Sure is.” Ren Xiaosu nodded. “Except it’s also a little stinky.”
Then he saw the Qing Consortium’s troops crawling out of the sewers one after another, until over a 100 people had come out. They were all in full battle gear, with one soldier even carrying an RPG!
Ren Xiaosu was stunned. “Are y’all getting ready to attack the university campus too?
“But of course. For something so precious to the Li Consortium, we’d definitely like to know what it is,” Luo Lan said.
“Say, why are y’all getting so excited over something that you don’t even know about?” Ren Xiaosu asked.
“We have an idea of what it might be.” Luo Lan said, “It could be nanomachines.”
Ren Xiaosu’s face darkened. “Can you sound surer?”
Luo Lan said unhappily, “The Li Consortium has done a very good job of keeping it a secret. Everyone else is also just guessing at what it might be. But the thing is, the Li Consortium is at the forefront of the nanorobotics field. We are still stuck in the experimentation phase, but their nanomachines have already been put into use in medicine.”
Fatty Luo continued, “In the early years, the nanomachines they created from DNA could already clear blood clots and other things like that. Back then, some of the executives from the other organizations would even go to the Li Consortium’s hospitals to get their illnesses treated when they got older. The Li Consortium even have nanozymes 1
that are used to treat hepatitis C. All of these are the main research fields the Li Consortium led.”
Ren Xiaosu pondered the mention of the hepatitis virus. “What, is the Qing Consortium thinking of venturing into the medical industry?”