16 years

Chapter 170 "You said, is this world real?"

Zhao Jincheng quickly agreed to Liu Ruosong's proposal.

They held two meetings, weighed the scale of information disclosure, and finally decided to officially start blood sample collection on New Year's Day.

Liu Ruosong conducted several experiments before and after to determine the scope of Irene's influence, and finally decided to set the blood sample collection location on the first floor of the laboratory building.

In order to prevent the omission of samples and the leakage of information, at that time, groups of ten people will be allowed to enter the laboratory building in batches.

After Zhao Jincheng and the others discussed it, they finally decided not to disclose the special gene to the public, and only spread it within the scope of confidentiality. Except for the relevant responsible persons within the military region, they only disclosed the information to the selected drug reformers.

There are a lot of people in the resettlement area outside the military area. It is a big project to collect samples in batches and screen specific groups of people. In addition to the doubled work pressure on the researchers under Liu Ruosong, security work must also be cautious.

In order to control the scope of insiders, Zhao Jincheng finally handed over the security work to Fu Yan.

The laboratory building was urgently remodeled. The open area on the first floor was equipped with strict security equipment, and the common passages on the second floor and the basement were closed to prevent accidents caused by too many people.

Half a month before New Year's Day, Liu Ruosong was so busy that he hit the back of his head. He had to ensure that the silver fish was bred enough for Irene's use, and at the same time he had to prepare for this "screening".He had many meetings with Zhao Jincheng day and night, and he could be regarded as experiencing the sense of urgency that Fu Yan and the others felt before carrying out their missions.

He rushed to the market like a spinning top, and finally stopped two days before New Year's Day. The experimental building was refitted, the security plan was officially finalized, and the people in the resettlement area outside had also done a good job of communication. Everything was ready, just waiting for the start of the screening plan.

The laboratory building was submerged in the night, because it was going to be used publicly the next day, so in order to ensure indoor safety, the researchers had a rare holiday.

But the laboratory building is still brightly lit, and the materials, equipment and sample preservation instruments that do not need to be watched by others are still working diligently, making a low buzzing sound in the quiet night.

Holding a thin authorization card, Fu Yan stood on the steps at the entrance of the laboratory building and looked up at the upstairs.

When he first returned to the military region, he came here once with Liu Ruosong, but at that time the laboratory building was crowded with people, he was recruited by Yue Yue as a "temporary bodyguard", and Liu Ruosong was by his side to accompany him again, dividing his mind into several uses, So I didn't have time to think about myself for a while.

Now he is "revisiting the old place" alone, looking at the cold and bright lights inside, it is inevitable that something will flash in his heart.

For example, he once walked in and never came out again.

Fu Yan stepped on the steps with one foot and stepped on the ground with the other. His heart rate was a little faster than usual, and his knuckles holding the authority card turned slightly white.

The fine pain like a needle prick spread along his limbs, Fu Yan pursed his lips and took a deep breath.

He forced himself to distract himself, and walked up the steps.

The power reserve of the laboratory building is sufficient, the lights are turned on everywhere, but there is no one there, and there is a bit of an apocalyptic atmosphere. Fu Yan walked through the lobby on the first floor, swiped the door to the confidential area with the authority card, and followed the stairs Went to the basement.

The temperature in Yancheng in winter is quite low, and the basement has a gloomy and cold atmosphere. Fu Yan inserted the authorization card in his hand into the card slot in the monitoring area, and turned on the main light in the basement.

In order to ensure safety, Liu Ruosong's blocking agent was fully supplied, and they were all in a saturated state, provided that the stock of silver fish was sufficient.This makes Erin look more like a "person" than a humanoid killer who may go berserk at any time.

Eileen looked like she didn't need to sleep or rest. No matter what time she sat there, she didn't move or speak.Researchers come and go, she refuses to communicate with anyone, and does not respond to outside activities, she looks as silent as the sculpture in the research institute.

But Fu Yan knew that she was not a dead object.

Liu Ruosong felt apprehensive and refused to let him have too much contact with Irene, but Fu Yan still had questions to ask.

He closed the door of the monitoring area with his backhand, activated the anti-lock device, and then cautiously approached the isolation area step by step.

Erin lowered her head, her eyes were a little distracted.Her slender neck exposed to the air outlines the bone lines, so abrupt that it seems that it will pierce the flesh and blood at any time.

Fu Yan looked at her gravely, and reached out to the isolation area until he reached out and tapped on the glass lightly.

Irene's ears and nose moved at the same time, then she raised her head blankly and looked at Fu Yan.

"I have something to ask you." Fu Yan said.

Irene hesitated for a moment, stood up slowly, and moved forward with difficulty.

"Has Joe Eden been transformed by medicine?" Fu Yan asked.

Erin took another step forward without speaking.

"Can you find him?" Fu Yan said.

Erin shook her head this time.

Fu Yan could see that it was difficult for him to get any answer from Irene on the issue involving Joe Eden, so he changed his mind.

"What do you mean by what you said last time?" Fu Yan asked, "Is it you and me that are the key to ending everything?"

Irene opened her misty eyes wide and approached the glass step by step. She seemed to be using her unique cognitive model to confirm the identity of the "person" in front of her. The same taste was confirmed.

"It's not with me anymore." After not speaking for a long time, Irene's tone was very strange, and the ending sounded like a strange twist: "Leaving him, I will wither sooner or later."

Fu Yan frowned slightly.

"What do you mean?" Fu Yan asked: "Does he have other means to keep you alive?"

Irene didn't answer this time, wondering if this question had surpassed her ability to think.

She "looked" at Fu Yan, and there was a layer of water in her eyes, as if she was pitying him, or looking at something else through him.

Fu Yan extended his hand to hold down the cold glass, getting very close to her.

"There's something I have to tell you." Fu Yan's expression was calm, and his tone of voice didn't fluctuate, as if in his eyes, Irene in front of him was not a half-human creature with communication barriers.

Fu Yan knew that whether it was because Irene only wanted to communicate with "the same kind", or because they had some special genetic similarity that could help Irene understand what he meant, she would definitely understand what she said.

"If you can provide information, it's better to say it now." Fu Yan said: "If you don't want to be cut to pieces."

Irene was silent for a while, then suddenly leaned over and approached Fu Yan through the glass.

She was so close that as long as Fu Yan lowered his head, he could see the flocs in her pupils.

"...I'm dead." Irene said, "You will too."

Fu Yan's heart stopped for a short time, and he pursed his lips, looking extremely calm.

"Everyone dies," he said.

Fu Yan didn't intend to continue playing riddles with her, so he turned around and prepared to leave.

He reached out to take out his authority card from the card slot, and then the main light in the monitoring area was turned off, and the night suddenly enveloped the basement, blocking everything in place.

The second the light source completely disappeared, Fu Yan heard Irene give him the last "advice".

"Listen to him," Erin said, "or stay away from him."

Fu Yan paused slightly, but walked straight down the stairwell without looking back.

He restored everything to its original state, and just as he stepped out of the gate of the laboratory building, he suddenly saw a tall and straight figure standing beside the flower bed not far away.

The other party stood very straight, facing the laboratory building sideways. The light in the building spilled out from the clean glass shop and fell one meter away from him.

Fu Yan slowed down and called out to the other party.

"Shao Qiu." Fu Yan said.

Shao Qiu seemed to be in a trance, and when he heard this, he was shocked and turned to look at him.

"team leader."

"What are you doing in the laboratory building in the middle of the night?" Fu Yan walked down the steps, wondering, "What's the matter?"

"...I'm waiting for you here." Shao Qiu said, "The door to the basement of the laboratory building is open. I guess you are here, so I will wait for a while."

Fu Yan could hear the flaws in his words, but he didn't ask him why he didn't sleep in the laboratory building in the middle of the night, but only asked him what was the matter.

"Actually, it's nothing." Most of Shao Qiu's body was hidden in the shadows, and his expression was gloomy: "I heard that Brother Xiaoliu needs volunteers, so I want to ask him if he needs to sign up."

"Volunteers will be selected from the screened reformers." Fu Yan said: "You have already confirmed that there is no induction with the petri dish."

"Really." Shao Qiu licked his lips and said in a low voice: "But, in the future, ordinary people will always be taken care of. There are only a few reformers, and the general public is the focus of research, so if Brother Xiaoliu needs an ordinary volunteer ,I also--"

"Shao Qiu!"

Fu Yan rarely turned cold, and interrupted him in a rather serious tone.

Shao Qiu's drooping eyelashes trembled, knowing that he had offended Fu Yan.

"Captain—" Shao Qiu said softly, "I don't know what to do now, I don't know what I should do to get past this step. I thought that as long as I avenged him, I would be able to escape from the nightmare , but now it seems that I can't do anything."

Shao Qiu also knew that his state was not right, but he couldn't control it.At this point, he didn't even know whether he was trapped in the potions buried deep in his body or in his own heart.

Regret and pain created a cage, covering his whole body in it. It seemed that if he had too many nightmares, he would become chaotic.

Fu Yan didn't know how to release him, and no one could easily say that he didn't care if his life was at stake.

He stepped forward and patted him on the shoulder.

"Then wait until we actually avenge him." Fu Yan said.

Shao Qiu lowered his head, looking like a new recruit in front of him, and nodded slightly upon hearing this.

Fu Yan pinched his shoulder and decided to give him some time to be quiet.

"Captain." Before leaving, Shao Qiu suddenly stopped him softly, and asked blankly, "Do you think this world is real?"

Fu Yan paused and didn't answer him.