The Ark's core area, command centre.
The air circulation system emitted a low hum, mixed with the smell of disinfectant, rusting metal, and a faint, indescribable plant fragrance. This fragrance came from the direction of Lin Lu's laboratory and also lingered around Chen Yan's bandaged broken leg.
On the metal walls of the command centre, the huge main screen was divided into several sections:
Top left: Blurry footage from the few surviving hidden cameras on the outskirts of Iron Dome. The deep green mist still lingered, but the surging tide of zombies and giant tree-like creatures had vanished, leaving only scattered ordinary zombies and abandoned, twisted plant-like remains. Lei Zhen's suicide squad, whose lives had been sacrificed like fireworks, had succeeded. The cost was the dozen or so light points representing their life signals on the screen, which had permanently faded after the final intense energy burst. Lei Zhen's signal was the last to disappear, with a resolute calmness.
Top right: A complex data stream cascaded down like a waterfall, with the core being the 'Gaia Protocol' execution logic tree diagram decoded by Lin Lu's team. Cold, efficient, ruthless. A subroutine module named 'Evaluation-Override (Eval-Override)' was highlighted, but its core instruction set displayed a glaring red 'locked/missing' status.
Below: A constantly flickering number—[Ecological Restoration Rate: 82.3%]. The digits after the decimal point were climbing upward at an extremely slow yet unwavering pace. Each tiny flickering felt like a hammer striking everyone's heart.
Chen Yan leaned on his specially made alloy crutch, standing in front of the screen. The intense itching and stinging in his injured leg were becoming increasingly difficult to ignore, and the faint green light emanating from beneath the bandage seemed to have grown slightly brighter. He forced himself to ignore the changes in his body, his gaze fixed on the latest briefing sent by Lin Lu:
> Eval-Override subroutine status confirmation: Logical chain exists, core activation key missing.
> Key nature speculation: Non-physical code, a macro data set representing a specific 'behavioural pattern.'
> Key clue: Protocol log fragments point to the concept of 'Eco-Beacon' on the surface. A sustainable, symbiotic human outpost must be established, with its ecological footprint data forming the final key.
> Execution window: Before the ecological restoration rate exceeds the 85% threshold.
> Warning: The system has detected abnormal data access; the 'Purifier' unit has been activated and is moving toward this coordinate. Estimated contact time: 72 hours.
Below the briefing is a blurry satellite scan image (residual data from the pre-apocalyptic era intercepted by the deep bunker system), marked with several potential surface coordinates suitable for establishing an 'ecological lighthouse.' One of them was circled by Lin Lu with a trembling hand— 'Jade Valley': a narrow valley surrounded by mountains, which was a national-level nature reserve before the apocalypse. The satellite image shows that even under the deep green coverage of the 'Gaia Protocol,' the area still retains a relatively rich spectrum of biodiversity, like a stubborn splash of colour in an otherwise bleak landscape.
'Purifier...' Chen Yan murmured the term, a chill creeping up his spine. A unit specifically activated by 'Gaia' was no ordinary foe, far surpassing the vine-armed zombies.
'Bang!' The command centre door burst open. Captain Zhao, in charge of internal security, stormed in with a grim expression, followed by two equally panicked team members.
"Sir! Something's wrong!" Captain Zhao's voice was urgent. "The medical zone… and the living quarters in Zone C… people are spreading rumours… saying that Dr. Lin… she… she has green light on her! Saying she's been contaminated by those demonic things! She's a traitor! She wants… to turn us all into trees!"
Rumours! At the moment when unity was most needed, deadly suspicion was spreading like poisonous vines in the shadows!
Chen Yan's eyes turned as cold as ice: 'Who's spreading it? The source?'
'We... we don't know yet, but it's spreading fast! Some people are getting excited and want... to go to the lab...' Captain Zhao's forehead was sweating.
'Follow me!' Chen Yan didn't hesitate for a moment, grabbing his cane and dragging his increasingly unresponsive leg, striding swiftly toward the medical zone. With each step, excruciating pain and an eerie tingling sensation emanated from deep within his leg bones. The green fluorescence seemed to grow even brighter.
Outside the medical zone, over twenty survivors had gathered, their expressions filled with excitement, wielding makeshift weapons (wrenches, iron bars). Their faces betrayed a mix of fear, anger, and despair at the unknown. Several members of the Lin Lu medical team were pushed and shoved to block the laboratory door, their faces streaked with tears and stubbornness.
'Let her out! Explain yourself!'
'We don't want to become monsters!'
'She has green light on her! I saw it! Last night!'
'Get out! Lin Lu!'
The crowd was in an uproar. Panic spread like a plague, fermenting rapidly in the enclosed space.
'Shut up!' Chen Yan's voice boomed like thunder, instantly drowning out the chaos. He pushed through the crowd, stepping forward to block the tightly closed laboratory door. His cane struck the ground heavily, the clang of metal against metal silencing everyone.
His piercing gaze swept over the distorted faces: 'Green light? Contamination?' He suddenly ripped open the trouser leg and bandage on his right leg!
'Whoosh—'
A collective gasp echoed through the room!
Below Chen Yan's knee, his calf skin had turned an eerie grey-green, resembling dried tree bark, covered in tiny cracks. Even more terrifying was the fact that beneath the skin from his ankle to his knee, countless tiny, leaf-vein-like deep green patterns were slowly flowing and pulsating, emitting a faint, firefly-like emerald glow! The light flickered with the pain in his leg, exuding an otherworldly, eerie aura!
The crowd fell silent, staring in horror at their leader's mutated leg.
'Look closely!' Chen Yan's voice was hoarse but carried an undeniable authority. 'I have it too! I was bitten by those damn things! According to your logic, am I also a traitor? Should I be burned to death too?!'
He pointed at his own leg, then at the laboratory door: "Dr. Lin is risking his life to find a way to save us! How to find a way out! She's dealing with those things to find an antidote! To figure out how to deal with those monsters outside who want to turn us all into fertiliser! What about you?!' His gaze lashed out like a whip, striking every troublemaker's face. 'The enemy hasn't even broken in yet, and you're trying to kill the only doctor who can save you?!"
The crowd shrunk back under his intense stare, some lowering their heads in shame.