Genius Club

Chapter 1429: Chapter 3: The Cries from the Research Institute_3

"On the other side of the mountain."

CC said:

"The other side was originally just as steep, so there was no way to explore it; but a few months ago, a landslide created a passage that can be climbed into."

"The passage is narrow and hidden, most people wouldn’t discover it at all. My father has loved adventure since he was young, and this ring-shaped mountain has always been on his mind, he’s long wanted to take a look inside."

"So, after the landslide, he started going there often to explore, and once accidentally discovered the passage that leads straight to the research facility’s entrance."

"But it’s eerie inside, and there are some [strange sounds]. My father felt there might be danger inside, or strange animals, so he didn’t go further."

Strange sounds?

The man caught the keyword:

"Strange sounds? What exactly are they like?"

"I don’t know."

CC flicked her fluffy ponytail at the back of her head:

"My father couldn’t describe it clearly, he just said it felt like someone was crying inside... a ghostly kind of crying."

"Crying?"

The man became more and more puzzled as he listened:

"A secluded ring-shaped mountain surrounded by steep cliffs, after more than a hundred years, could anyone still be alive inside?"

He thought about it, being a bit more precise:

"Alright, theoretically, if during the disaster of 2504 the research facility was sealed inside the mountain, and just happened to have a man and a woman survive, it’s not impossible for their descendants to continue."

"However... this theory is too extreme, it’s hard to imagine generations of close relatives surviving and reproducing in that confined space."

"It shouldn’t be humans."

CC turned around:

"My dad says, the crying sounds very distant, it should be deep within the research facility; normally, if humans survived, there should be some traces of life outside the facility, right?"

"Whether it’s man-made wooden items, growing crops, or even clearing a small garden... it’s impossible for generations to be cooped up in the research facility, living inside for generations upon generations, that’s unrealistic."

"But the problem is, my father wandered around the space inside the mountain, and there were indeed no traces of human life; he then returned to the research facility entrance to listen and still heard the crying, and it had a rhythm to it."

"He felt it was terrifying, as if there were ghosts, so he gave up on the adventure, went home and told me and mom, and never went back after that."

...

Listening to CC’s recounting, the Bearded Man stroked his beard and also felt a bit unnerved.

Deep mountains and forests, isolated from the world, an abandoned research facility, eerie crying sounds.

This.

These strange elements combined, nothing but scary.

However.

Fortune favors the bold.

As the only "untouched land" in the Brooklyn area that hasn’t been scavenged, if we truly want to gain combat effectiveness, this research facility is the last opportunity.

"Let’s take a gamble."

Lin Xian touched the pistol at his waist, wondering if the gun would work against ghosts and monsters.

Suddenly.

He recalled a ghostly idea:

"Yes, we can do this."

Swallowing a mouthful of saliva, the man continued:

"When the time comes, we can prepare a small stone or fruit, if we really encounter an unknown creature, just throw it at it, as long as the stone or fruit bounces back, it proves it’s a [solid], and if it’s solid, we have guns, so we don’t have to fear it."

CC blinked in amazement:

"VV, you’re so smart! How did you come up with such a ghostly idea?"

"Haha, it seems this bit of knowledge wasn’t something I came up with, it should have been told to me by someone."

The man scratched his long hair on top of his head, unable to recall.

This curious bit of knowledge...

Who told it to him, after all?

...

After spending two hours, the two rode horses to the other side of the mountain and found the landslide point.

The man loosened the reins a bit and tied the horse in a spot rich with wild grass so it wouldn’t starve.

Then, following CC, he successfully found the landslide passage CC’s father mentioned, and went into the mountain.

The passage was very hidden and narrow.

But the sound of wind was clearly audible, and the flow of air could be felt.

This indicated that the passage was indeed connected to the outside, and definitely not a dead end.

Before entering the cave, CC made a makeshift torch, but the passage was too long and rugged, so the torch went out before they got halfway through.

Helpless.

The two could only proceed in the dark.

Fortunately, there was nothing strange inside the passage, and there were no particularly narrow spots, the journey was safe and uneventful.

Finally...

A ray of light came through, another turn, another new village, they quickened their pace and rushed out of the cave, arriving at this secluded paradise!

The man took a deep breath.

The air was as fresh as the outside forest, but it had a damp feel, probably because of the valley, it was very humid inside.

"VV, over there!"

CC pointed to a building ruins among the rocks below.

You could vaguely see that it was a building entrance, the exposed steel bars were rusty, but the building entrance remained largely intact, miraculously without collapsing.

"Let’s go down and take a look."

The man took out his pistol, checked the bullets, chambered a round, and slid down with CC.

The two stood at a distance from the ruins entrance...

Inside it was deep, dark, and empty, completely unknown what was hidden.

The man noticed next to the pile of dirt, there was a shiny silver plaque where the rainwater had washed.

He walked over, squatted down, grabbed a handful of fallen leaves as a rag, and wiped the mud clean, revealing several English letters:

"S...P...A...Space-T?"

He turned his head to look at CC:

"What does this word mean?"

CC was equally clueless:

"I don’t know, I’ve never heard of it, it’s probably something from before the super-disaster. I heard that before the disaster, Brooklyn was a private territory, belonging to a super-rich person... but that’s just a legend, who knows what the truth is."

The man stood up.

After taking one last look at the English letters on the plaque, he held his gun with both hands and slowly approached the ruins entrance.

"VV."

CC was a bit worried, grabbing the man’s sleeve.

"Shh..."

The man made a shushing gesture, signaling CC to be quiet.

Then.

Taking small, cautious steps, he quietly entered the ruins entrance, leaning his ear forward, listening carefully—

"Wah... wah wah..."

A faint, indistinct crying sound came from deep within.