Su Wan looked at him and continued, “Besides that, you have a more important mission.”
“I need intelligence.”
“Everything about Panshi City—the power structure of the Inner City, the movements of the City Defense Force, the infighting between major factions, the research content of the Deep Blue Research Institute, the secrets of the Panshi Company's top brass...”
“I want to know everything you can find out.”
Zhou Hu said in a low voice, “Yes, Master.”
Su Wan thought for a moment and added, “Also, I have a subordinate named Lei Lie. He’s a Level 3 hunter and should have already entered the Inner City.”
“His mission is to investigate the Deep Blue Research Institute.”
“Since you’re in the Outer City, if you encounter anything that requires coordination from the Inner City, find a way to contact him.”
“Likewise, if he needs help, you must assist him to the best of your ability.”
Zhou Hu nodded. “Understood. Master, how should I contact them?”
Su Wan frowned slightly.
This was indeed a problem. She lacked a tool for rapid communication between the two cities.
After a moment, she said, “Report back to Panshi Company first. After that, find a way to locate the Night Owl mercenary team’s base. Some of Lei Lie’s men are staying there; just have them pass the message.”
“Yes.”
Su Wan waved her hand. “Go.”
Zhou Hu turned and strode out of the interrogation room. His footsteps faded until they vanished at the end of the corridor.
Su Wan stood in the empty room and let out a long breath.
A Level 3 Late Stage gene-modified organism was now hers.
Though it cost 50,000 Points, it was definitely worth it. Zhou Hu’s strength, special abilities, and knowledge of the Inner City labs were immense assets. More importantly, with him as a mole in Panshi Company, she would have a clear grasp of the Outer City’s movements.
Su Wan pulled her thoughts back, left the interrogation room, and returned to Room 102.
She sat on the edge of the bed. With a thought, she retrieved the four items from the system space and arranged them on the table: rubble, scrap iron, rebar, and rotten wood.
Four pieces of junk that seemed completely unrelated, except for one thing: they had all been touched by the points of light that fell during the Death Tide.
“System, begin analysis.”
【Command confirmed. Starting deep scan and analysis...】
【Scanning...】
A pale blue halo spread from Su Wan, enveloping the four items. After a few seconds, lines of text appeared on the system panel.
【Analysis progress: 12%... 27%... 43%...】
Su Wan waited patiently.
【Analysis progress: 78%... 91%... 100%】
【Analysis complete.】
【Detection results summary:】
【All four items have trace amounts of a special energy substance on their surfaces. Energy source homology with the Death Tide mist: 99.3%.】
【These substances are activated when the Death Tide mist appears, transforming back into visible points of light that drift within the mist. When the mist recedes, some points fail to return in time, falling and adhering to surfaces, where they re-enter a dormant state.】
【Further analysis indicates these substances are not pure energy, but a type of “active substance”—possessing life-like characteristics and capable of switching between dormant and active states.】
【Hypothesis: These substances are likely components of an unknown organism, or “spores” or “tissue fragments” shed by the organism during its activities.】
Su Wan’s pupils constricted.
Components of an unknown organism?
She remembered the massive entity moving slowly deep within the mist. Were those lights things that fell off it? Or were they parts of it, like “tentacles” used to sense the outside world and find prey?
【Notice: The system can extract this active substance. Extraction will aid further analysis of the Death Tide’s nature and provide valuable information for future confrontations.】
【Extract?】
“Extract.”
【Command confirmed. Extracting active substance...】
A faint, dark-red glow appeared on the surfaces of the four items. The light flowed like a living thing, peeling away from the rubble, scrap iron, rebar, and rotten wood, merging into a thin stream of light that surged toward Su Wan’s palm.
A few seconds later, the light vanished.
In Su Wan’s palm was a small glass vial, about the size of a thumb and completely transparent, containing roughly one milliliter of dark-red liquid. The liquid was thick and viscous, flowing slowly inside the bottle and occasionally flickering with a faint luster, like the blood of some creature.
Su Wan stared at the small vial, her mind racing. She put it back into the system space and was about to stand up—
Suddenly, her brow twitched.
Domain Sovereignty allowed her to sense every detail within her domain. Nothing happening in the Terminal Station building could escape her.
Just now, she had sensed an anomaly.
On the seventh floor, in a room near the end of the hallway, a woman lay on a bed, her abdomen heavily distended. Her body was curled slightly, hands clutching her belly, her breathing much faster than normal. But there was no agony on her face, only a calm endurance.
Su Wan’s perception instinctively lingered on her. A few seconds later, she realized—this woman was about to give birth!
Su Wan’s mental power, like invisible tentacles, probed the room. The woman was alone on the bed. There was no one with her, no tools, not even a basin of hot water.
Su Wan frowned. Her perception spread outward, catching movement in the corridor.
Several women stood right outside the room, huddled together and whispering, their eyes occasionally glancing at the closed door. But no one went inside.
Su Wan’s perception extended further, catching fragments of conversation from a distance. Several men passed by the end of the hallway, but after being scolded in low voices by the women at the door, they quickened their pace and left. A curious child tried to approach but was pulled away by his mother.
No one spoke loudly, but everyone tacitly avoided that room.
Su Wan’s confusion deepened. What was going on?
She turned her perception toward the women at the door, her mental power catching their intermittent dialogue—
“...How long has it been?”
“Almost an hour. It hurt a lot when she first went in, but she’s been quiet for a while now.”
“Then it’ll be soon. The quieter it is, the smoother it goes.”
“This child came at the right time. Being born right after surviving the Death Tide... lucky kid.”
“You’re telling me. It would’ve been a nightmare if the birth happened during the tide.”
“Even then, it would’ve been fine as long as the room was sealed and the mist couldn’t get in. It’s just that the mother would’ve suffered without anyone to help.”
“True...”
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