Chapter 83

"Urban Smart Network Control Center," 17th floor.

Wearing exoskeleton equipment and carrying a silver rifle on his back, Chuchu returned to the elevator lobby.

He was about to press the button to call the elevator from the 16th floor when he saw the number for the adjacent elevator change from "16" to "17."

This meant that in a few seconds, the elevator doors would open, and the person inside was most likely a friend, not an enemy.

Chuchu did not hesitate. The golden eyes behind his visor rippled with a surreal wave.

Almost simultaneously, he saw countless figures appear around him.

These figures were slightly ethereal, rushing to the potted plants in the elevator lobby, voraciously gnawing on the withered leaves, shriveled branches, and dry soil.

Chuchu did not feel physical hunger, but the scene seemed to infect him, making him uncontrollably think he was very hungry and needed to eat something.

This thought dominated his mind, leaving him unable to think about anything else.

"The Realm of Hungry Ghosts"!

Chuchu's hands, covered in black metallic bones, reached into his pocket and pulled out a bag of dried beef, tearing it open with a swift motion.

He then frantically stuffed the black, dried pieces of beef into his mouth, trying to swallow them.

But the beef was as hard as a rock, impossible to eat without saliva to soften it or teeth to tear and grind it.

Chuchu was undoubtedly choking, even thinking he might choke to death here, becoming the most ridiculous casualty of the institute.

The instinct for survival and the fact that the food was already in his mouth allowed him to partially resist the hunger, managing to chew a little.

At this moment, the gray-black metal doors of the adjacent elevator opened, and a deep-black robot in tattered monk's robes and a red cassock darted out.

The mechanical eye on the robot's metallic face glowed red, as if painting the world in blood.

He looked at Chuchu, who was wearing military exoskeleton equipment, but did not immediately raise his arms to use the grenade launcher, laser weapon, or flamethrower. Instead, he took a large step forward, leaping to deliver a powerful iron fist to knock Chuchu unconscious.

Chuchu, unable to stop tearing and chewing the beef, barely managed to shrink his body and roll to the side, narrowly avoiding the mechanical monk Jingfa's punch.

In the process, driven by the strong urge to find food, he reached into his pocket again with his right hand.

This time, he pulled out not only an energy bar but also a deck of playing cards.

By now, Chuchu's eyes were rolling back, tears streaming down his face from the effort of swallowing the dried beef, but this also alleviated his hunger somewhat, giving him the strength to throw the deck of cards to the ground.

With the sound of the cards hitting the floor, Chuchu rolled toward the stairwell.

His eyes reflected the swift turn and pounce of the mechanical monk Jingfa, with those red-glowing eyes.

"Go... play... cards..." Chuchu mumbled, his mouth full of dried beef and energy bars.

Jingfa, who had just pounced beside him, froze.

The mechanical monk's head turned halfway to look at the cards on the ground.

His eyes glowed red, and his feet moved uncontrollably, bending down to pick up the cards.

At this moment, nothing seemed more important to him than playing a game of cards.

Even if his companions needed rescue, even if danger was imminent, he had to play a round first.

As Jingfa picked up the cards, Chuchu's perceived hunger instantly disappeared, and he returned to normal, though still slightly choked.

He could imagine what he looked like under his metal helmet:

His face was contorted, eyes slightly rolled back, tears and snot streaming down, far from any semblance of handsomeness.

This made him extremely angry, and he raised his arm to prepare to attack Jingfa with the grenade launcher and electromagnetic weapon.

Just then, Jingfa turned around and said in his unique, cold electronic voice:

"Let's play cards together."

The price he had paid was so great, and his mind was so twisted that he did not silently and focusedly play cards but decided to combine his two "hobbies" and drag Chuchu along!

As the mechanical monk spoke, Chuchu again saw countless, slightly blurry figures and strongly felt that he was very hungry and needed to eat something.

Fortunately, he still had food in his mouth, and there was more to finish, which allowed him to not be so "hungry" at first and to do something else.

Chuchu quickly raised his left hand to cover the visor of his metal helmet.

He suddenly felt extremely depressed, even though he was very hungry, he did not want to eat or do anything.

No longer choking, he released his left hand and looked at the mechanical monk holding the cards.

This depression seemed contagious, and Jingfa suddenly felt that everything was meaningless, that all things were but a dream.

In this incomprehensible depression, the deep-black mechanical monk seemed to have some enlightenment, sitting cross-legged, hands clasped, and softly chanting:

"Namah Amitabha, all conditioned phenomena are like dreams and illusions..."

Chuchu then felt relieved, using his waist and the military exoskeleton, he leaped into the air.

White gas jets propelled him sideways into the stairwell.

Landing, Chuchu raised his arm, aiming the grenade launcher at the mechanical monk in tattered monk's robes and a red cassock.

Jingfa continued to softly chant, as if having a great awakening.

Seeing the grenade, Chuchu realized it was not the high-explosive type, making him hesitant.

Because the intended enemies were "High-Level Heartless" and mutants, not robots, he had not changed the grenades before the mission.

A couple of these grenades would not likely destroy the mechanical monk.

This would help the monk overcome his depression, and the same applied to the electromagnetic weapon.

Changing grenades on the spot might not be in time, and Chuchu could not make a depressed person more depressed or keep them depressed. If he missed the moment when the monk's depression ended and did not immediately follow up with a new control, the situation would become very bad.

After two seconds of consideration, Chuchu pursed his lips and decided to give up this opportunity.

He turned and ran to the stairs, grabbed the railing, and leaped down, landing steadily on the next floor.

Thus, Chuchu, using the exoskeleton's capabilities, leaped down floor by floor in the stairwell, quickly moving away from the 17th floor and heading for the ground floor.

At this moment, the mechanical monk Jingfa finished chanting and raised his head.

His black metal face, with the mechanical eye, glowed red again.

In the next second, Jingfa, in a posture beyond human physical limits, leaped from his cross-legged position into the stairwell.

He mimicked Chuchu's method, grabbing the railing and flipping down.

...

Hearing Du Heng's words, Jiang Baimian did not hesitate, turning to Shang Jianyao and others:

"Let's leave immediately."

After giving the order, she nodded at Du Heng:

"Be careful.

"May we meet again."

Du Heng smiled and said:

"When the time comes, I hope you have sufficiently important information, intelligence, or data to trade."

He then looked at Shang Jianyao:

"Striving to enhance your Awakened abilities is not a good thing; the cost is irreparable. You decide for yourself."

Without waiting for Shang Jianyao's response, Du Heng stood up, crouched, and darted toward the spot where Xiao Chong had disappeared, moving in the shadows of the trees.

"Let's go." Jiang Baimian收回了目光。

Shang Jianyao nodded, straightened his body, and held the "Berserker" assault rifle, jogging to the back of the formation according to the previous tactical formation.

Soon, they reached the side fence.

Long Yuehong, responsible for the left side, quickly scanned the outside and suddenly met the gaze of a pair of cloudy, bloodshot eyes.

A "Heartless"... Long Yuehong was startled, instinctively raising her assault rifle and stepping to the side.

On the street outside, the tops of metal poles glowed, each illuminating a section of the area.

According to Long Yuehong, these were old-world street lamps, and at least half of them were still functioning.

The "Heartless" stood under a street lamp to the front, wearing a shrunken blue robe, a matching wide-brimmed hat, and holding a broom and a metal dustpan.

His face had some wrinkles, and his skin was rough. His eyes lacked any sign of intelligence, just staring blankly at Long Yuehong and the others without any signs of attack.

This scene made Long Yuehong somewhat surprised, interrupting her attempt to pull the trigger.

The "Heartless" soon lowered his head and began sweeping the accumulated leaves on the roadside.

Seeing this, Bai Chen and the others suddenly had some inexplicable guesses.

"Let's go out first." Jiang Baimian quickly regained her composure and swiftly climbed over the metal fence.

Long Yuehong, Bai Chen, and Shang Jianyao, under the cover of their companions, left the "Urban Smart Network Control Center" and returned to the street outside.

"He's sweeping the leaves..." Long Yuehong couldn't help but look at the "Heartless" who showed no "hunting" tendencies.

Jiang Baimian raised her head and looked at the opposite side:

"Look over there."

Following the direction of her chin, Shang Jianyao and the others saw a tall building.

The bottom of the building was a street-side house, and each floor above had several windows glowing brightly.

The light seemed to form a halo around them, making Long Yuehong feel a strange warmth.

In some of the lower windows, there were figures moving around.

Some seemed to be holding babies, pacing back and forth by the window; others were wiping the glass with rags; some were sitting on sofas by the window, holding something and staring blankly at the LCD screen on the opposite wall...

Those that Jiang Baimian and Shang Jianyao could barely see were dressed in old, disheveled clothes, moving stiffly, with dull eyes, clearly "Heartless."

The LCD screen being watched by the "Heartless" showed a colorful scene with landscapes, characters, text, and frames, but it was frozen, with no changes.

However, this did not stop the "Heartless" from watching it intently.

Jiang Baimian was silent for two seconds, then said with a complex tone:

"The ones who regularly 'maintain' this city are these 'Heartless'...

"Whenever the lights come on, they become like normal people..."

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