From the Abyss of Stars

118. Death Match in the Cage (Part 1)

 

The vigorous and the decayed both had some good equipment on them, some of which were made of carbon fiber material, very light, and Li Aozi could wear them.

 

【Item Name】: Vigorous Greaves

 

【Category】: Armor/Leg Guards

 

【Quality】: [Flawless]

 

【Attributes】: Provides 20 points of universal armor value (resistance to impact/piercing/energy attacks)

 

Blocks piercing damage below 80 points.

 

[Light Armor Exclusive]: Movement fluidity, stealth, and quick movement are not affected.

 

【Description】:

 

"The Abyss has made a breakthrough in biochemical materials, especially in high polymer materials, significantly improving the original Kevlar material. The new material has ten times the kinetic energy absorption capacity of the previous Kevlar. But this does not mean this armor can withstand slashing and cutting, and also—speak properly, put down the hammer!"

 

Material: Abyss special aramid, carbon fiber material.

 

Net weight: 475 grams

 

Protective area: Knees, shins, outer thighs, and front parts.

 

Durability: Normal

 

A piece of protective gear, to protect you, that's all.

 

【Equipment Requirements】:

 

【Strength】—3

 

【Constitution】—4

 

Another item was an aramid fiber lining taken from the decayed. Due to the severe deformation of the opponent's body, it did not fit human physique and could not be called equipment, but hanging on the body also added a lot of armor value.

 

Wearing this simple aramid material protection, the armor value directly increased to 90.

 

Counting his 【Extraordinary Physique】 and tier effects, he was now basically immune to ordinary handgun shots.

 

Li Aozi didn't know what to say for a moment.

 

Because his own health was less than one hundred.

 

Fortunately, the harvest was still good.

 

"Counting the unlucky ones, it's already the fourth consecutive tier challenge. One more, and I'll meet the conditions to advance to the next template."

 

His current template is 【Elite Combat Type】 NPC, and the next level is 【Advanced Veteran Combat Type】 NPC, like Nimotin.

 

The bonuses are quite substantial, 15% damage rate, plus 10% damage cap. With this boost, Li Aozi could instantly become a 1.0 version boss-level character.

 

After killing a few more Abyss members on the way, Li Aozi and Du Zexin officially arrived at the door of the Calamity treatment room. Accompanied by Du Zexin hacking into the program to unlock, the door of the cell holding countless so-called Calamity infected individuals slowly opened.

 

"Why...is there no one here?"

 

The empty treatment room was in a mess, discarded clothes and broken debris were everywhere on the ground. The refrigerator storing the medicine was overturned. Li Aozi immediately saw Zhumisidin, cobalt metformin—these are medicines specially for the extraordinary, especially for 【Martial Artists】, quite expensive, but now they were casually thrown on the ground, ignored.

 

"What happened here?"

 

Du Zexin frowned, releasing a drone to search for any living people around. Li Aozi squatted down. Although his body was old, his consciousness still retained a lot. He squinted his eyes, and the predator vision that had mutated three times could detect subtle traces on the ground.

 

"There are many footprints and drag marks on the ground. Whether there is blood is another matter, but it is clear that those infected were forcibly moved."

 

Combining Li Aozi's words with the drone's observations, this view was basically confirmed.

 

"Do you remember how many Calamity infected individuals there were?" Du Zexin asked.

 

"Not sure—but looking at these wards and living traces, I think there were no less than 300 people." Li Aozi said, "Many of the people here are teenagers, with very low Omega Energy development, and their bodies were affected by Calamity, causing deformities."

 

The space on the second floor of the shelter was significantly larger. The space of this Calamity treatment room alone was as high as 30 meters, covering an area comparable to a small community. The corridors and room spaces were spacious, easily accommodating thousands of people.

 

"If that's really the case, then moving so many people at once would cause a big commotion."

 

Du Zexin became suspicious:

 

"But I checked the map. Behind the factory and the Calamity treatment ward is the laboratory—there is no way it can hold 300 people, right?"

 

Li Aozi nodded.

 

Du Zexin was right because clearly, the remaining space was not enough to hold more than 300 patients.

 

This raises an obvious question: where did all these people go?

 

Click—click—

 

Just as the two were looking at each other in confusion, the lights in the hall suddenly dimmed.

 

The power went out.

 

Like a pianist striking keys, various appliances' lights quickly short-circuited rhythmically. Du Zexin's body burst with electric sparks, saying in surprise:

 

"Ionizing radiation caused the communication system to short circuit—what's going on?"

 

Li Aozi was indifferent: "There's a nuclear reactor underground, isn't high-energy radiation normal?"

 

"What a joke, only a massive electromagnetic pulse and high-energy rays generated during a nuclear explosion would interfere with communications. Besides, my equipment has been personally tuned..."

 

The implication was that a wireless communication device personally enhanced by a Beta-tier 【Mechanic】 wouldn't immediately fail even in the face of strong electromagnetic pulse interference.

 

Du Zexin pressed the communication system and clicked his tongue. He picked up his rifle, warning:

 

"You better be careful, Li Aozi, something feels off."

 

Buzz—

 

Shortly after, the emergency power came online. The emergency lighting in the dark and cold underground was not very effective. Excessive exposure instead made vision distort, making everything appear black and white.

 

Du Zexin activated the night vision system, and the AI automatically colorized the scene, allowing him to continue moving steadily without worries.

 

Li Aozi was different. His heart was pounding.

 

He had been near death once, had seen Naomi die, and with Snow's boost, he remained constantly tense. Any slight disturbance made him want to throw a throwing knife.

 

Time passed second by second, but the darkness couldn't stop their steps. They soon searched every ward in the Calamity treatment room, still finding nothing.

 

Li Aozi picked up a drawing book from the ground. The ballpoint pen sketches were extremely thin and messy, reminding him of Snow.

 

"Snow, are you here?" Li Aozi asked softly.

 

Snow should have strong spiritual powers. She was able to warn him, advise him to leave, and offer help earlier. Now, theoretically, as he got closer to Snow's location, his sensing should be clearer.

 

Although 【Domination】 types have no chance to communicate spiritually like 【Eerie】 types' 【Mediums】 or 【Shamans】 unless they awaken soul-related Omega Energy, Snow's spiritual power seemed too strong, allowing even him to perceive it.

 

Li Aozi even suspected that she might be one of the rare 'Void Orphans' geniuses.