Chapter 265: The Fourth Checkpoint

Jian Changsheng fell into silence.

He turned his head to look at the black figure on the adjacent bed, a complex, indescribable feeling stirring in his heart... He had a vague intuition that this young man next to him was not as simple as he appeared.

Just as he was about to say something more, the door was opened once again.

"12139, it's time to continue the experiment."

"Wait, didn't 12139's experiment just end less than an hour ago?"

"His case is special. If we don't proceed with the experiment and administer a higher dosage of the serum immediately, his current unstable body will collapse at any moment... With Dr. Yi overseeing it this time, we should be able to stabilize his condition."

"Perhaps we were too impatient with the last experiment..."

"Enough, just take him away. Dr. Yi will be here shortly."

As they spoke, they wheeled Zhao Yi out of the room. Jian Changsheng immediately closed his eyes, feigning sleep, and only when they had completely left did he reveal a look of pity.

He had thought that brother would stay for a while longer, but he hadn't even lasted ten minutes before being dragged off for more testing... This was just too inhumane.

Of course, this was undoubtedly good news for Jian Changsheng; with all these white coats busy with the experiment, it would be much easier for him to move around.

Jian Changsheng took a deep breath and bit down hard on his lip. Scarlet blood immediately welled up, and a surge of immense power flooded his body, allowing him to snap the restraints with ease.

He flipped nimbly off the bed, scanned the surroundings through the glass window on the door, and after confirming no one was there, he opened the door just a tiny crack...

"Off I go."

Jian Changsheng wiped his fingertips across his lips, flicked a single drop of blood, and his figure vanished from the spot.

……

"It's about time."

While patrolling the second floor, Chen Ling kept a constant eye on the clock on the wall. When the minute hand reached 59, he remained vigilant of his surroundings and slowly approached the passage leading to the third floor.

At the exact moment the hour struck, a soft cough came from the other end of the passage.

"Spade?" Chen Ling whispered.

"It's me," Jian Changsheng's voice replied. "What do you need me to do?"

"In the center of the passage, there is an eye facing the second floor that can identify personnel. Take it out from behind."

Jian Changsheng narrowed his eyes. Following Chen Ling's directions, he spotted a mysterious eyeball at the top of the passage, facing the other end. Its surface of flesh rippled slowly, like a living creature.

Jian Changsheng didn't know how it worked, nor if covering it with cloth or something else would be effective. If it truly had its own consciousness and reacted by alerting the entire base, he would look like a complete clown... After a long moment of thought, Jian Changsheng decided to settle it once and for all.

To be safe, Jian Changsheng clenched his fists and hammered them hard against his own ribs. As his bones cracked, he let out a muffled groan of pain, and blood slowly seeped from the corners of his mouth...

Under the effect of [Blood Garment], Jian Changsheng's strength surged rapidly. He flicked a drop of blood, flashed instantly behind the eyeball, and violently grabbed at its rear!

*Splat!*

The next moment, the eyeball burst into pieces in his palm!

Jian Changsheng felt his palm sticky and gross, as if he had crushed a fish eye with his bare hand, but seeing that it hadn't caused a major commotion, he breathed a sigh of relief...

"Well done, Spade." Seeing the eye was dealt with, Chen Ling walked straight through the passage.

Seeing the unfamiliar young law enforcer before him, Jian Changsheng was stunned.

"You... how did you become like this?"

He then realized, "Are you from the Path of the Playwright?"

Jian Changsheng had grown up in the Starry Chamber of Commerce, so he had some basic knowledge of other Paths. But in his memory, when Chen Ling had fought him earlier, he had clearly used [Blood Garment]... No, this guy's skills always seemed strange.

Chen Ling didn't answer. With a mysterious smile, he headed straight into the third floor.

"Did you find the Aurora Lord?"

"Found him. He's on the fourth floor, but I can't get down there."

"You've been to the fourth-floor checkpoint?"

"..." Jian Changsheng seemed to recall an unpleasant memory and gave a sullen grunt.

"What's the checkpoint like?"

"How should I put it..." Jian Changsheng scratched his head. "Have you ever seen those middle-aged ladies who sit on a little stool in an elevator to help you press the floor buttons?"

Chen Ling was taken aback. "What do you mean? The fourth-floor checkpoint is a middle-aged lady?"

"No... not a middle-aged lady, a very beautiful woman."

Jian Changsheng sighed. "At the time, the passage didn't look special from the outside, so I thought I'd go in and take a look... But as soon as I reached the other end, there was a red-haired woman sitting by the door, reading a book, I think?

I realized something was wrong, so I immediately lay down and pretended to be a mushroom, rolling all the way to her side to test if she was just a regular staff member or something else...

But as soon as I rolled over, she pinned me down with her foot! And I felt like I couldn't move a muscle, as if I were being crushed by an entire mountain."

Hearing this, even Chen Ling couldn't help but be stunned:

"The fourth-floor checkpoint is a person?"

The first three checkpoints had been so complex, involving secret codes and ritual artifacts; Chen Ling had assumed the fourth would be a high-level artifact or mechanism. He hadn't expected it to be a person.

What kind of person could become the guardian of the most confidential and important area in the entire Aurora Domain?

"And then?"

"Then those white coats rushed over. Luckily, I pretended to be a mushroom immediately, so they didn't get suspicious... Otherwise, the mission would have failed by now."

"How did they treat that woman? Did they mention any title?"

Jian Changsheng thought carefully. "They were quite respectful... They didn't mention a title, just kept saying 'Yes, ma'am' and 'Please, ma'am'."

"What was she wearing?"

"A plain white shirt and dress pants. Other than being very beautiful, there was nothing special about her... Why else would I say she looked like an elevator attendant?"

Chen Ling fell into deep thought.

He wanted to go deep into the fourth floor of the Aurora base to find the Aurora Lord, and this checkpoint was unavoidable... How could he get past it?

"Heart, do you have a plan?" Jian Changsheng looked back anxiously. "We destroyed the checkpoint on this floor; they'll find out sooner or later... We don't have much time left!

How about we take a gamble, rush in front of her, and work together to take her out?

Looking at her, she doesn't seem that powerful..."

Chen Ling shook his head, his gaze fixed on the passage leading to the fourth floor, his eyes narrowing slightly:

"No..."

"You stay here on the third floor and wait... I'll handle this checkpoint myself."