Chapter 60 Entering the Central Zone

"No, we should act right now." Xia Yan still made his decision, opposing Emilia's proposal.

"Act right now? Are you crazy? Do you not want your life anymore?" Xiao Qing was even more displeased. "Sister Emilia, revenge has addled this man's brain."

"Acting now while they are in internal chaos and heavily invested in investigating Ke Quan's matter is the only way we have a reasonable chance of completing the mission," Xia Yan said earnestly.

"But once we're discovered—" Xiao Qing frowned.

"Let Xia Yan make his own judgment," Emilia chimed in. "Acting now indeed has both pros and cons. Staying in the research facility for too long might not be a good thing either. Xia Yan, you scouted the area for three days; you've got the routes memorized, haven't you?"

"Yes," Xia Yan replied.

"Then let's proceed with the mission," Emilia concluded firmly.

"Once we enter the interior of the research facility, we won't be able to communicate. Even if we force a connection, we can only maintain it for under ten seconds," Xiao Qing said with a grave expression. "Any longer, and the probability of being discovered skyrockets, which will spell trouble."

Xia Yan was lost in thought. Acting at this moment was actually the best choice because Noah, the chief supervisor of the Fiend research, was not currently inside the facility.

Though Xia Yan desperately wanted to avenge Ding Li, he also understood the priority of circumstances. Setting aside the disparity in power, if they were intercepted by Noah while executing the mission, he had zero confidence in succeeding.

Regardless of how important revenge was, he could never afford to lose his mind.

Deep within the central zone.

At this moment, Adam looked utterly wretched. Blood was seeping from the corners of his eyes, and his entire demeanor was fanatical and deranged, resembling someone who had stepped one foot into hell.

Yet he persevered, driven by his singular mission: to smuggle the research data back and hand it over to the human faction.

"Passed, it finally passed!" Adam was overwhelmed with excitement. He connected the microchip to the terminal instrument and began cracking the system. As a spy, he was naturally proficient in hacking.

Because this encryption was not connected to the network, breaking it was not overly difficult.

"Break it..." Adam's eyes were glued to the terminal instrument as his fingers flew across the interface. When he saw the final cryptographic key being unlocked, he roared in exhilaration, "Cracked! It's finally cracked!"

The man pulled out the microchip and clutched it tightly in his palm. This tiny object was infinitely more important than his own life—countless times over.

"I need to get out of here quickly. Fast!" Not daring to delay while maintaining a shred of his remaining sanity, Adam immediately turned back.

At the same time, inside the research facility, Tao Lu received a communication originating from Qiong.

Before Tao Lu could even speak, Qiong's panicked voice spilled out.

"Damn it! Damn it! How could this happen? If Lord Noah finds out, he'll skin me alive!" Qiong was terrified out of his wits.

"What is the matter, Mr. Qiong?" Tao Lu asked with a smile.

"Miss Tao Lu, we have a massive problem!" Qiong shrieked in terror. "Just moments ago, the research data in the central zone was stolen!"

As someone qualified to access the central zone for data storage, Qiong naturally had related security alarm devices linked to him. The instant Adam cracked the security key, he had detected it.

"Stolen? Who could possibly get past the central zone?" Tao Lu asked, puzzled.

"I don't know!" Qiong panicked completely. "If Lord Noah finds out, we're all finished!"

"Finished my ass!" Tao Lu said with open disdain. "Mr. Qiong, don't forget, I am only responsible for intelligence related to auxiliary research; I am not here to clean up your messes. The theft of intelligence from the central zone is entirely your sole responsibility."

"Miss Tao Lu, you—" Qiong spluttered in frustration.

"The only people with clearance for the central zone are you and Lord Noah," Tao Lu said, feigning shock. "Could it be an inside job directed and acted out by yourself?!"

"Miss Tao Lu, now is not the time for jokes," Qiong pleaded nervously.

"Contact Noah. Otherwise, the losses you'll have to shoulder will be even greater." Tao Lu sighed lightly, well aware of the gravity of the situation.

Qiong's face turned ashen, but he dared not hesitate any longer and immediately contacted Noah.

Noah, the fifty-something robust man who served as the general director of the research facility, had been running himself ragged over the incident involving Ke Quan. Hearing that the research data had been stolen pushed him to the brink of insanity.

"Useless trash, all of you are absolute trash!" Noah bellowed furiously. "If you let the data thief escape, I'll strip three layers of skin off your bones. Qiong, right now, immediately lock down the entire research facility. Do not let even a single fly out—"

"Yes—" Qiong answered in a panic.

"I am heading over immediately and will arrive in thirty minutes. Remember, do not let a single suspicious person slip by, or I swear I will kill you. I will—" Noah raged.

Originally, Noah was not at the research facility, which was the primary reason Xia Yan had decided to strike now. Yet this sudden turn of events pushed the situation in an entirely unpredictable direction.

According to Emilia's plan, Xia Yan was supposed to slip through the central zone and use Xiao Qing's hacking skills to crack the terminal instrument without triggering any alarm signals.

Unfortunately, Adam's hacking skills proved a bit too weak.

The central zone.

Xia Yan stepped into the central zone with one foot. The Chain of Purity he wore emitted a silver radiance, and the wisps of black miasma attempting to approach him were instantly purified and repelled.

This accessory, purchased at the cost of one hundred and fifty diamond coins, was indeed no ordinary item!

"This ghost of a place is truly..." Xia Yan frowned. These researchers were complete madmen; even though their experiments had yet to succeed, they had still littered the place with experimental subjects.

In truth, during the early days, the human population had not been as scarce as it was today.

What constituted forbidden research? It could be understood as research capable of destroying the world.

And this Fiend research fell squarely under the category of forbidden research.

Such forbidden research conducted by humanity was the root cause of the world's destruction!

It had whittled down the human population to roughly a tenth of its former size.

Of course, everything had its pros and cons; had it not been for the initiation of such research, humanity might never have developed supernatural abilities today.

While Xia Yan was no self-righteous savior, he would never permit these people to recklessly unleash their experimental results to ravage a world already scarred beyond recognition.

Were these researchers truly innocent? Could the mere excuses of being forced and having no other choice wipe away the monstrous sins they had committed?

Walking through the central zone with a calm expression, Xia Yan gripped his versatile blade tightly.

The corridor was long and narrow, permeated by an eerie aura that induced physical discomfort. There seemed to be no end in sight, obscuring the view of anything far ahead...

An experimental subject lunged toward Xia Yan.