The Northern Ring Tower was in front of them . The glorious building, which once stood for the highest scientific achievements and civilization of humankind was now disintegrating . The cement wall was cracking from weathering on the outside; most of its bright paints had also faded into dirty, yellowish brown colors, peeling and falling off the walls . They formed a layer of disgusting soft soil at the foot of the tower . Despite that, the main structure of the tower was still sturdy . The reinforced steel skeleton inside had held the tower up very well . Hence there was no concern of collapse for now .
"There are no traces of erosion by the Nanomachine Swarms . " Nolan glanced up at the nearly vertical wall . "There's little difference compared to the last time I came . It looks like there haven't been any other adventurers coming here for the past year . "
Hao Ren was curious why Ulyanov was doing here a year ago . But he knew it was not the right time to ask . Ulyanov led them flanking the tower looking for an entrance . They came before a broken door . From the looks of surrounding marks, the door was blown apart .
"There had been more than one group of people who came here in the past sixty-five years . The allure of pre-war technology has long drawn people here," Nolan said, turning and telling the mercenaries who came here for the first time . "Idiots kept coming for the treasure, but most of them did not make it back out alive . So if you want to live, follow my command . Don't touch anything you don't know what it is . "
"I thought the Nanomachine Swarms are not here?" Hao Ren asked .
"Do you think the Nanomachine Swarms are the only danger here?" Nolan said, raising her gun . "This gun isn't for the Nanomachines . There are robots here guarding the container underground . These robots could live for a hundred years, in theory . God knows what kind of damage had happened to their operating system now . "
Ulyanov nodded slightly, seemingly agreeing with Nolan .
Hao Ren looked down at the weapon on his hand . It was a light assault rifle . The laser display on the stock indicated the remaining bullets, current users, and the state of the parts, as well as a Grey Fox insignia . Nolan gifted him this rifle . Though Hao Ren had not joined them, Nolan would not let him come onto the battlefield empty-handed .
Before entering the building, Ulyanov bumped Hao Ren on his shoulder and asked, "How good is your marksmanship?"
But Hao Ren just gave him an ambiguous reply . "As good as my kung fu . "
"Well, you walk with me . We will clear the way for the kids behind . "
The mercenaries escorted the White River Consortium researchers into the tower carefully . They came into a corridor . Paint and cement on the hallway had peeled and fell off on the floor . The sign hanging on the ceiling was rusting away . A chilling and strange air was lingering in this decadent building . The mercenaries swallowed nervously in this silent corridor .
It was quiet all around, only the cautious footsteps and breathing of the mercenaries echoed in the corridor . Nolan was leading in front with Hao Ren and Ulyanov flanking the team . The passage became darker and darker as they moved deeper . The few windows on the outer wall of the tower could no longer provide sufficient light to the deeper part of the building . A few mercenaries who had not undergone visual enhancement had put on their night vision gear . In the light green vision, the place became even spookier .
Hao Ren looked at the others; he could see them . But considering that he was a still a 'Natural,' he thought it best to put up his night-vision goggles just like the others .
"Do you know where you're going?" Nolan asked . She stopped and looked over her shoulder at the White Water Consortium researchers who were not far behind .
"Do you know where you're going?" Nolan asked . She stopped and looked over her shoulder at the White Water Consortium researchers who were not far behind .
"The main control room . The control terminal of Master Computer No . 1," the thin researcher replied . He was as calm as a soldier in this environment despite being just a civilian . Hao Ren could not help looking at him again .
Ulyanov's heart missed a beat when he heard the 'main control room . ' He stepped forward and said, "I know the shortest route . "
Nolan nodded . "Well, after you . "
The team continued to move deeper into the corridor before they came to a spiral staircase . Going up was where the main control room was . Hao Ren and Ulyanov went up to check the condition of the stairs . Then they bumped into a human skeleton halfway up .
Ulyanov bent down to check on the condition of the skeleton . Judging from the tattered clothes, he knew the identity of the deceased . "A personnel in the ring tower . Most likely died from falling from above . "
The berserk Nanomachine Swarms did not attack the Northern Ring Tower; people in the building had lived longer than the rest of the world . But their fate was not much better than those who were dissolved by the Nanomachines . In that catastrophe, the building became an isolated island with no supplies, rescue, and hope . These researchers and controllers of the Nanomachine Swarm knew that there would be no rescue forthcoming . No one knew how people in the ring tower spent the last days of their lives . In the two decades after the disaster, the situation inside the ruins of the north was a total unknown . When a suicide squad suffering huge losses and finally made their way into this place, what they found were only dead bodies .
According to the soldiers who were lucky enough to come back alive, people in the ring tower had died a variety of ways . Most of them died of hunger; a few of them committed suicide; and the rest were killed in the fighting, perhaps for the last remnants of food in a riot . There were many more creepy stories passed down, for instance, human bones were found in the kitchen utensils in the kitchen in ring tower, and countless mutilated bodies in a room .
Every one of them was a bone-chilling story .
Every one of them was a bone-chilling story .
Hao Ren looked at Ulyanov, who was examining the skeleton . He did not know if this man had recalled the dark rumors about the Northern Ring Tower . But to avoid delay, he patted Ulyanov's shoulder and said, "Let's keep moving . People are waiting behind . "
Then only Ulyanov slowly got to his feet .
They came to the first floor . After passing around a narrow passage, a broad hallway opened up in front . Ulyanov pointed to a door not far away . "There is the control room you are looking for . "
"The door is intact . . . " Nolan looked at the door somewhat unexpectedly . "I thought the guy who came before us had already smashed every single door in here . "
"Probably there is an alarm system behind this door that connected wirelessly to the security robots," said one of the researchers, who came up to examine the door . "Unbelievable! There is still power in the lock! There is still energy in this place!"
Nolan looked at the researcher thoughtfully . It seems like this researcher knew a lot about the ring tower .
Ulyanov turned to look into the dark end of the corridor . He seemed to have found something he was interested . "You guys stay here . I'm going to take a look over there . "
Then he went . Nolan told a mercenary beside her . "Carl, you go with him . "
Ulyanov turned to look into the dark end of the corridor . He seemed to have found something he was interested . "You guys stay here . I'm going to take a look over there . "
Then he went . Nolan told a mercenary beside her . "Carl, you go with him . "
Carl, the tall mercenary nodded silently before he quickly dashed to catch up with Ulyanov . Both of them promptly disappeared into the dark end of the corridor .
Hao Ren did not suspect anything . He thought that Ulyanov might be looking for her wife, and as an outsider, he was not in a position to be a busybody . He turned his head and watched as the White River Consortium researcher tinkered with the lock on the door . It was incredible that the electronics on the door were still functioning until this day .
Suddenly, an ear-piercing sound of a gunshot broke through the silence .
Hao Ren looked up and tried to locate the source of the sound . That was where Ulyanov and Carl were!
Nolan was quickly in response . Before the gunshot sound trailed off, she had ordered rapidly, "Two-man team, go and check it out . "
Hao Ren did not know which team he belonged . But he wasted no time thinking; as soon as Nolan opened her mouth, he had already dashed toward the end of the corridor .
As if out of the illusion, he suddenly saw the corridor walls undulating like water . Though the vision was only a flick of a second, it bothered him .
The Northern Ring Tower was in front of them . The glorious building, which once stood for the highest scientific achievements and civilization of humankind was now disintegrating . The cement wall was cracking from weathering on the outside; most of its bright paints had also faded into dirty, yellowish brown colors, peeling and falling off the walls . They formed a layer of disgusting soft soil at the foot of the tower . Despite that, the main structure of the tower was still sturdy . The reinforced steel skeleton inside had held the tower up very well . Hence there was no concern of collapse for now . There are no traces of erosion by the Nanomachine Swarms . Nolan glanced up at the nearly vertical wall . Theres little difference compared to the last time I came . It looks like there havent been any other adventurers coming here for the past year . Hao Ren was curious why Ulyanov was doing here a year ago . But he knew it was not the right time to ask . Ulyanov led them flanking the tower looking for an entrance . They came before a broken door . From the looks of surrounding marks, the door was blown apart . There had been more than one group of people who came here in the past sixty-five years . The allure of pre-war technology has long drawn people here, Nolan said, turning and telling the mercenaries who came here for the first time . Idiots kept coming for the treasure, but most of them did not make it back out alive . So if you want to live, follow my command . Dont touch anything you dont know what it is . I thought the Nanomachine Swarms are not here? Hao Ren asked . Do you think the Nanomachine Swarms are the only danger here? Nolan said, raising her gun . This gun isnt for the Nanomachines . There are robots here guarding the container underground . These robots could live for a hundred years, in theory . God knows what kind of damage had happened to their operating system now . Ulyanov nodded slightly, seemingly agreeing with Nolan . Hao Ren looked down at the weapon on his hand . It was a light assault rifle . The laser display on the stock indicated the remaining bullets, current users, and the state of the parts, as well as a Grey Fox insignia . Nolan gifted him this rifle . Though Hao Ren had not joined them, Nolan would not let him come onto the battlefield empty-handed . Before entering the building, Ulyanov bumped Hao Ren on his shoulder and asked, How good is your marksmanship? But Hao Ren just gave him an ambiguous reply . As good as my kung fu . Well, you walk with me . We will clear the way for the kids behind . The mercenaries escorted the White River Consortium researchers into the tower carefully . They came into a corridor . Paint and cement on the hallway had peeled and fell off on the floor . The sign hanging on the ceiling was rusting away . A chilling and strange air was lingering in this decadent building . The mercenaries swallowed nervously in this silent corridor . It was quiet all around, only the cautious footsteps and breathing of the mercenaries echoed in the corridor . Nolan was leading in front with Hao Ren and Ulyanov flanking the team . The passage became darker and darker as they moved deeper . The few windows on the outer wall of the tower could no longer provide sufficient light to the deeper part of the building . A few mercenaries who had not undergone visual enhancement had put on their night vision gear . In the light green vision, the place became even spookier . Hao Ren looked at the others; he could see them . But considering that he was a still a Natural, he thought it best to put up his night-vision goggles just like the others . Do you know where youre going? Nolan asked . She stopped and looked over her shoulder at the White Water Consortium researchers who were not far behind . The main control room . The control terminal of Master Computer No . 1, the thin researcher replied . He was as calm as a soldier in this environment despite being just a civilian . Hao Ren could not help looking at him again . Ulyanovs heart missed a beat when he heard the main control room . He stepped forward and said, I know the shortest route . Nolan nodded . Well, after you . The team continued to move deeper into the corridor before they came to a spiral staircase . Going up was where the main control room was . Hao Ren and Ulyanov went up to check the condition of the stairs . Then they bumped into a human skeleton halfway up . Ulyanov bent down to check on the condition of the skeleton . Judging from the tattered clothes, he knew the identity of the deceased . A personnel in the ring tower . Most likely died from falling from above . The berserk Nanomachine Swarms did not attack the Northern Ring Tower; people in the building had lived longer than the rest of the world . But their fate was not much better than those who were dissolved by the Nanomachines . In that catastrophe, the building became an isolated island with no supplies, rescue, and hope . These researchers and controllers of the Nanomachine Swarm knew that there would be no rescue forthcoming . No one knew how people in the ring tower spent the last days of their lives . In the two decades after the disaster, the situation inside the ruins of the north was a total unknown . When a suicide squad suffering huge losses and finally made their way into this place, what they found were only dead bodies . According to the soldiers who were lucky enough to come back alive, people in the ring tower had died a variety of ways . Most of them died of hunger; a few of them committed suicide; and the rest were killed in the fighting, perhaps for the last remnants of food in a riot . There were many more creepy stories passed down, for instance, human bones were found in the kitchen utensils in the kitchen in ring tower, and countless mutilated bodies in a room . Every one of them was a bone-chilling story . Hao Ren looked at Ulyanov, who was examining the skeleton . He did not know if this man had recalled the dark rumors about the Northern Ring Tower . But to avoid delay, he patted Ulyanovs shoulder and said, Lets keep moving . People are waiting behind . Then only Ulyanov slowly got to his feet . They came to the first floor . After passing around a narrow passage, a broad hallway opened up in front . Ulyanov pointed to a door not far away . There is the control room you are looking for . The door is intact . Nolan looked at the door somewhat unexpectedly . I thought the guy who came before us had already smashed every single door in here . Probably there is an alarm system behind this door that connected wirelessly to the security robots, said one of the researchers, who came up to examine the door . Unbelievable! There is still power in the lock! There is still energy in this place! Nolan looked at the researcher thoughtfully . It seems like this researcher knew a lot about the ring tower . Ulyanov turned to look into the dark end of the corridor . He seemed to have found something he was interested . You guys stay here . Im going to take a look over there . Then he went . Nolan told a mercenary beside her . Carl, you go with him . Carl, the tall mercenary nodded silently before he quickly dashed to catch up with Ulyanov . Both of them promptly disappeared into the dark end of the corridor . Hao Ren did not suspect anything . He thought that Ulyanov might be looking for her wife, and as an outsider, he was not in a position to be a busybody . He turned his head and watched as the White River Consortium researcher tinkered with the lock on the door . It was incredible that the electronics on the door were still functioning until this day . Suddenly, an ear-piercing sound of a gunshot broke through the silence . Hao Ren looked up and tried to locate the source of the sound . That was where Ulyanov and Carl were! Nolan was quickly in response . Before the gunshot sound trailed off, she had ordered rapidly, Two-man team, go and check it out . Hao Ren did not know which team he belonged . But he wasted no time thinking; as soon as Nolan opened her mouth, he had already dashed toward the end of the corridor . As if out of the illusion, he suddenly saw the corridor walls undulating like water . Though the vision was only a flick of a second, it bothered him .
Chapter end
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