Alien Relic Hunter

Perhaps because they were worried that the emergency braking would cause the train to fly off the track, the entire deceleration process lasted for nearly five minutes. With the buffering of several small reverse thrusters installed on the front of the train, the entire train successfully stopped.

This is the West District 1, which is the top district in the entire Ark after the core district. However, there are no commercial areas or residential areas in this district. Even the noble manors and residential areas that are common in the other three "First Districts" There are no mansions.

The entire West 1st District is an industry of the "Noah Core Research Institute". The research institute headquarters alone occupies one-third of the entire area, and the remaining area is also occupied by various branches, staff dormitories and The institutions of higher learning affiliated with the institute are full to the brim... It is no exaggeration to say that if you pick a random person on the streets of West District 1, ten out of ten will be related to the institute. If "outsiders" want to enter West District 1, they even need to apply for a "limited time pass".

After all, this area covers less than one percent of the entire Ark, but it concentrates more than 90% of the Ark's cutting-edge talents and technologies... This is why the undead crew can't "handle" the West District like they did in the East Ninth District. One of the reasons why District 1 was “destroyed”.

At this time, this block, which is usually full of scientific research and academic atmosphere, has completely turned into a military restricted area. A large number of armored vehicles and mechas directly formed a steel wall, dividing the West 1st District into three floors and three floors outside. The ground was surrounded. As for the researcher's headquarters near the core area, a large energy shield was directly activated. The brilliant iridescent light curtain turned a large white building upside down like a giant bowl - this light curtain Although it is extremely beautiful, anyone or anything that touches it will be instantly reduced to ashes. Even if a tank is smashed into it, the thick alloy armor will be melted into hot molten steel.

Judging from the degree of solidification of the light curtain, the power of this energy shield has obviously been fully charged. It has to be said that the wealthy research institute is really well-off. The crystal consumption of this shield per minute is enough to withstand It is equivalent to a day's consumption of a cruise fleet in a non-combat state.

Originally, Ke Lan wanted to convert it into credits to calculate how much this "big bowl" would cost per hour, but when the number of zeros in the calculation result exceeded two digits, he gave up decisively - calculate This is meaningless. In order to prevent the "things" inside from escaping out, the institute should be willing to risk all its wealth.

It's just that... "memes" cannot be trapped no matter how strong the energy shield is...

The train stops at the "College Station" in West District 1, which is the outermost of the three defense lines. A little further in is the "Core Research Institute Affiliated Polytechnic", the dream school of countless students... It's just that Now this "Ark No. 1" polytechnic looks more like a military school...

As far as the eye can see, there are garrison soldiers in military uniforms and emergency firepower points everywhere. Looking up, large-caliber heavy machine guns are set up on the high points of almost all buildings. Behind some half-open windows, You can vaguely see the figure of the sniper.

"Is it useful..." Ke Lan couldn't help but complain in a low voice. The defense here seemed impeccable, but in fact, when these soldiers saw the information carrier carrying the "meme" from the scope, this The defense line has collapsed...

As the saying goes widely among relic hunters - violence and weapons can solve many problems, but most problems cannot be solved by them.

Seeing that Ke Lan and others got off the "train", the soldiers even omitted the step of coming up to check their identities and directly gave way to the passage. Several people wearing powered exoskeletons hurried back to take them out. The barricades across the street were removed.

A group of people wearing the same dark gray uniforms as Lin Qiming and others came out - Ke Lan already knew that those with copper-colored decorative buttons on their cuffs were serious Security Bureau agents, and the people in the Crisis Management Department, despite their uniforms, They are exactly the same as the Security Bureau, but the decorative buttons on their cuffs are chrome plated.

In the absence of any identification, this was the only way to identify the two groups.

The group of people in front of them are all members of the "Crisis Management Section". On the contrary, the agents of the Security Bureau stood at their posts nearby with serious faces, not daring to move a step.

In terms of authority and level, the Crisis Management Section should be above the Security Bureau. After all, they directly take orders from the Undead Crew Association, and there is a joint parliamentary group between the Security Bureau and the Crew Association.

"This is the chief of the crisis management department, Schroeder." Seeing Ke Lan focus on the person in the front, Lin Qiming took the initiative to introduce him.

Although Schroeder obviously has a Western name, this man's appearance is that of an authentic Asian, and he is also the kind of Asian with very pure blood. Ke Lan can't even find it on his square face. Characteristics that are common in people of mixed race.

Compared to Lin Qiming, the second in command, the head of the crisis management department is not a few years older. Although he looks more stable, Ke Lan can guarantee that this guy is definitely not over forty.

Unless he specifically undergoes cosmetic surgery that can make him look younger.

The two groups of people came together. The somewhat too young chief of the crisis management department seemed to have read the doubt in Ke Lan's eyes, and took the initiative to say: "I know you must be doubting my age... I'll tell you the truth." , today is my first day sitting in the position of section chief... Well, to be precise, it’s the fourth hour.”

He glanced at Lin Qiming, who was following Ke Lan, and then said: "Qiming is the same as me. We were originally the captain and deputy captain of the First Mobile Team... To be honest, we never expected to be promoted in this way. "

"This method? Taking orders in the face of danger? So, the original deputy section chief..." A look of surprise flashed across Ke Lan's face.

"Yes, they all looked directly at the unprocessed pictures... Not only them, but the entire leadership of the crisis management department was not spared." Schroeder said with a slight regret on his face, "If possible , I would rather give up such a promotion opportunity. I think I am still more suitable for charging into battle."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Ke Lan's heart trembled. Sure enough, his previous guess was right... The reason why the two of them were able to sit in this position was entirely because Corey was more capable and more qualified than them in the entire crisis management process. The old people have all been sacrificed... No wonder Lin Qiming, a stupid young man, pulled the trigger on his head without even a moment's hesitation.

Logically speaking, people with this kind of leadership, even if they have to sacrifice themselves, will definitely weigh the pros and cons before dying and try their best to maximize the value of their lives.

Rather than like him, Ke Lan put the muzzle of the gun to his temple with a casual word.

From the first moment they met, Lin Qiming gave Ke Lan the impression that he was like a heroic general charging into battle, rather than a marshal or staff officer sitting in charge of the central army.

This guy was just the vice-captain of a mobile team four hours ago...

Ke Lan suddenly felt a little depressed... The leadership of the crisis management department was completely wiped out in the early stages of the incident, leaving only these two stupid young people to lead the team. For him, this news was simply terrible.

He needs to be the kind of ally who has experience and a keen sense of smell... Schroeder and Lin Qiming in front of him may be good as "chess pieces" to rush on the chessboard, but if they are to be the "chess players" to control the overall situation ", Ke Lan always felt that it was not very reliable.

But because of the "meme", the "chess piece" that goes into battle can only be himself.

This group of people can't help at all.

Ke Lan glanced at the messages on his tablet and discovered that the previous chief of the Crisis Management Department, who died of "memetic infection" not long ago, was also named Schroeder - Schroeder was not the same name. , but a code name: every chief of the crisis management department is "Schroeder".

"Is there any progress on the countermeasures team?" Ke Lan asked.

"Several experts hold different opinions, and the debate is fierce, but the specific progress..." Schroeder sighed and shook his head slightly.

"Forget it, I didn't count on them at the beginning." Ke Lan said, "This group of people is top-notch just for causing trouble and causing death."

The only thing he can rely on now is the assistance from the Undead Crew Association, but he also knows that if the Undead Crew Association can provide any useful information, they will definitely contact him.

If they didn't come to find him, then even if he went to ask them, he wouldn't be able to find out anything.

"However, the equipment department has temporarily produced two sets of armor for you and your assistants. One is a general-purpose type, and the other is a customized melee-specific type based on the specialty of the hunter named Asano Akira. , and is equipped with a small sonar and a special enhancement device that can amplify the power of thoughts," Schroeder said.

"A special strengthening device that can amplify the power of thoughts..." Ke Lan chewed the term again, "It seems that you have collected a lot of information about us, and you even know this..."

"These have all been approved by the Immortal Crew Association," Schroeder said. "But you can rest assured that Mr. Akira Asano has been removed from that experimental project, and no one will bother him again in the future."

"I want to know if this mind power amplification device will have any side effects?" Ke Lan looked directly at Schroeder and asked, "I know the price of that ability, and I also witnessed Marshall's final outcome with my own eyes. , don’t try to blind me with lies.”

Hearing what Ke Lan said, Schroeder was slightly startled, then nodded: "There will definitely be side effects... Using that kind of ability will cause irreversible damage to the experimental subject itself, but as long as it is set properly The power and side effects can be completely controlled within acceptable limits."

"That is to say, if this thing is turned on to its maximum power, it can kill Asano Akira, right?"

Schroeder didn't speak. He was silent for a few seconds before nodding his head.

"Tear it down."

"But...as long as you don't overuse it, there won't be any problems...With this device, at least you can have one more trump card in critical moments. Mr. Ke Lan, please think about it carefully. If you really encounter a desperate situation, at least One can be sacrificed to preserve another..."

"Tear it down." Ke Lan looked at him coldly, "I don't want to say it a third time. Do you think I still need Akira Asano to sacrifice his life for mine? Besides, if the matter is really serious, At that point... with all due respect, if the undead crew can't come up with a better solution, then everyone will just wait to die together."

"this……"

"It's just a matter of order." Ke Lan shrugged indifferently.

"Tell the people in the equipment department to remove the mind enhancement module." Schroeder looked at Ke Lan with a hesitant expression. He took a few breaths, then turned his head and faced a man. The subordinate said.

"Where are they now? Where are they?" Ke Lan put the tablet in his pocket and walked forward.

"They're waiting on the second line of defense," Schroeder replied.

The members of the Hunting God Hunting Group had previously discussed business with the Ye Family Group in the East Second District, so even though Ke Lan took this special train that was modified from a space shuttle, he still arrived at the scene one step later than them.

When Ke Lan and others arrived at the second line of defense, Hound and others were already waiting behind the roadblock. The moment they saw Ke Lan, Hound had already climbed over the roadblock and ran over, grabbing Ke Lan. Lan said, "Come with me, I have something to tell you."

As for the people in the Crisis Management Department, they were directly blocked by the two big guys Leighton and Zhuoligetu - it would be a great honor for them to obey the arrangements of the Crisis Management Department and wait here. As for this time, If you want them to get out of the way, that's something you can't even think about.

Schroeder and Lin Qiming looked at each other and saw a wry smile on each other's faces - although the strength of this group of ruin hunters was not very strong except for the guy named Asano Akira, but between Ke Lan's The reason is that they cannot conflict with these ruin hunters. There is nothing they can do against this group of people.

On the other side, the hound kept pulling Ke Lan and dragged him into a toilet. He asked Asano Akira to guard outside and locked the door behind his back.

"What's going on?" Hound asked nervously, "Why do they want you to perform this kind of mission? Are your secrets... exposed?"

"I don't know...but they didn't make things difficult for me, and they didn't even mention a word about my own abilities." Although the "they" in Ke Lan's words referred to the Undead Crew, it sounded to the ears of the hound. , they became the group of people from the crisis management department.

"Then how did they find you? I heard... what happened this time is very evil. Those things inside will be infected just by looking at them... Damn it, this kind of thing is not something that humans can deal with Yes. According to me, just like how we dealt with the East Ninth District, we should directly launch the entire West Second District into the sky, and then use the main cannon to completely destroy it."

"Actually, the cause of this incident has nothing to do with me...Although it was a professor from the institute who caused the trouble, the thing in the contaminated area was created by him using my cloned cells." Ke Lan thought about it for a moment , or told the truth to the hound.

"W-what did you say?" The hound's mouth suddenly opened wide, "That thing inside...is your...g-cloned cells?"

"It is the product of the fusion of my cloned cells and the active cells of the Seed of Erosion." Ke Lan corrected.