Gao Wu: I inherited the evil organization in the game

Chapter 697 Slow Down on the Road to the Underworld

The old man didn't even look at the eyeball. He simply pinched it gently with two fingers, and the eyeball, like the wall before it, quickly melted into a viscous liquid, dripping into the sewage at his feet.

"Xiao Jiuzi..."

The old man spoke in a hoarse, low voice, like that of a night owl, to the deserted, dark waterway.
"We have already received what you left for the young master. You... can go in peace now."

He sighed softly, carefully wiped the dust off the parchment scroll, and put it close to his body.

Having done all this, the old man slowly twitched the corners of his mouth, revealing a chilling smile:
"However, take your time on your journey to the underworld. Don't be in a hurry. Our family will soon send the people who killed you down to join you. Would you like [Masked] or Zuo Bai to come first?"

Hehehe—

The old man let out a series of eerie low laughs. Before the laughter subsided, he casually pressed his palm lightly against the edge of the hole he had melted.

The next moment, the old man's figure blurred like a ghost and disappeared from the spot.

Five seconds later.

Centered on the hole in the wall, the underground shaft wall, which stretches for more than twenty meters, along with its supporting structure, seemed to lose all its strength in an instant, collapsing and softening.

Like cream splashed with strong acid, it turned into a large puddle of sticky sludge and collapsed with a crash.

The ground above, having lost its support, suddenly sank into a large area, becoming soft and spongy, forming an irregular pit with mud-like substance dripping from its edges...

....
The hunchbacked old man was in District Nine to retrieve something for his young master, and he was using the Jumping Fun Passage.

Zhao Jingyi came to District Nine to retrieve something on behalf of her mentor, even though her mentor had forbidden her from doing so.

But she still arrived as quickly as possible; there's no way around it, sometimes a student's filial piety is just that touching.

Zhao Jingyi took a roundabout route.

Between the zones, there are vast ruins and uninhabited areas where you can drive and wander as you please without any traffic rules. You can drive as you please, as long as you can reach your destination alive.

However, when Zhao Jingyi and her convoy finally arrived after overcoming numerous difficulties, they discovered that something was amiss.

All entrances and exits to the city have been sealed off, creating a somber atmosphere.

Squads of Survey Corps soldiers in uniform armed uniforms replaced the usual security personnel, taking full control of and guarding all entrances and exits.

A convoy from District Six was stopped outside the city.

The convoy wasn't large, consisting of eight heavily modified transport trucks and armored off-road vehicles, each looking as if it had just been pulled out of mud and blood.

Thick yellow sand and dust covered the original paint, and the front of the vehicle was covered with splattered, congealed bloodstains. Some vehicles had cracks on their armor plates that looked like claws tearing through them, and some of the cargo box panels had hideous holes.

Clearly, the journey was not smooth.

At the start, the convoy consisted of fourteen vehicles of various types, but eight of them were eventually able to reach the city walls of District Nine.

With a survival rate exceeding 50%, this is a figure that can be boasted about in long-distance freight transport between the lower city areas.

It's important to know that long-haul trucking fleets typically prepare about 30% more "cargo" as normal transportation losses.

When the convoy unfortunately encounters hordes of undead or other mutated monsters that are difficult to defeat during transport, the pre-prepared "cargo" will be "released" to clear the way for the convoy.

As for what exactly "delivery" is, where it comes from, and why it involves such dedication?
Trust me, you don't want to know the specific answer; it's definitely not Zhao Jingyi.

At this moment, Zhao Jingyi was sitting in the cargo box of a transport vehicle located towards the back of the middle.

The carriage was dimly lit and filled with the smells of engine oil, sweat, and lingering blood.

She leaned against her suitcase, listening to the two transport team members whispering to each other in the same vehicle.

"Damn it, what's going on? Why is District Nine suddenly under lockdown? Something's not right. Has something serious happened inside?"

The team member with a scar on his face kept glancing at the cold muzzles of the Survey Corps soldiers' guns outside the car window.

Another team member spat into the car and complained:

"Who knows? Maybe they just want to find an excuse to collect another 'toll'."

Sigh, I hope they're not too greedy, otherwise after deducting losses and 'shipping' costs, they won't make much money at all.

Both of them became very agitated at the mention of this.

"Damn it, I really don't understand why all the districts are suddenly going crazy, registering all those unregistered citizens, fucking idiots!!!"

"Yes, if we want to hire more 'partners' in the future, the price will probably skyrocket. It's getting harder and harder to make a living in this world."

The convoy leader returned with a grim face, slammed his hand on the wall of the truck they were in, making a dull thud that interrupted their conversation.

The captain's face was unusually grim, clearly indicating that the negotiations with the Survey Corps had not gone smoothly.

Zhao Jingyi had disguised her identity and infiltrated the shipping fleet of a pharmaceutical company in the Sixth District. In name, she was also one of the "cargoes" being transported.

Yes, it's the part of the goods that needs to be protected.

Therefore, she had no say in the matter and simply stayed quietly in the corner of the carriage, just like the other silent boxes.

Simply observe, listen, and think quietly.

However, she didn't have to wait long.

In a short while, all the doors to the carriages were unlocked from the outside.

The pharmaceutical company's entourage, along with several passengers like Zhao Jingyi, filed off the train one by one.

One of the men, who appeared to be a pharmaceutical company executive, quickly walked up to the transport team leader, whispered a few words to him, and handed him a box of cash.

Then he turned and strode towards them, his expression equally unpleasant, and said:

"The convoy can't get in. District Nine is under martial law and locked down. People are allowed to enter but not leave. It's uncertain when the lockdown will be lifted. The transport team doesn't want to be locked out of the city. Their vehicles and people are turning back to District Six."

We'll have to move the goods into Zone 9 ourselves. Don't worry, I've already contacted the buyer's company in Zone 9, and they'll send people inside soon to prepare for receiving them..."

The supervisor simply explained a few words and, without any intention of discussion, directly ordered the employees to start unloading and moving the goods.

Fortunately, they mainly transported medicines or sophisticated medical equipment. Although each box looked quite large, it was actually not very heavy, and the accompanying staff were equipped with basic exoskeleton support systems.

This is almost standard practice in cross-regional transport teams, in order to prevent situations where vehicles are damaged unexpectedly during transport and manual handling is necessary.

Some might think that carrying goods on one's back in a dangerous, uninhabited area or even a ruin would be tantamount to suicide, and that it would be impossible to return to the city alive.

Joke~
For any company, paying exorbitant transportation costs is pointless if the goods are lost en route while the employees miraculously escape and return alive; they might as well have died on the road!
Zhao Jingyi did not participate in the moving.

She paid three times the "transportation fee" of ordinary cargo, and her status was that of cargo; all she had to do was move herself.

She stood quietly to the side, watching the pharmaceutical company employees activate their exoskeletons, unload a box from the vehicle, and pile it up.

Her gaze swept past the bustling crowd, landing on the blockade formed by armored vehicles and cannons, and beyond that, the silhouette of the steel city.

"Something might have really happened inside. The situation is unclear. Should I still go in as planned?"

This thought only lasted a very short time. Zhao Jingyi did not hesitate for long before taking her seemingly inconspicuous but unusually heavy suitcase off the car.

Silently following behind the team of employees carrying boxes, one after another, they passed through the checkpoint guarded by Survey Corps soldiers.

The Survey Corps soldiers guarding the city glanced indifferently at each person entering the city.

Their gaze lingered on Zhao Jingyi for a couple more seconds, perhaps because her demeanor was different from that of a porter, or perhaps because of the suitcase in her hands.

In the end, however, they indifferently withdrew their gaze and did not stop or inspect the area.

After all, their orders were to strictly investigate and prohibit anyone from leaving the city; the orders didn't mention entering the city at all.

Of course, the most crucial point is that the transport captain had already slipped a substantial amount of "inspection fee" into the pocket of the officer on duty during the negotiations.

As long as the "inspection fee" is paid in time, whether you are inspected or not, what you are carrying is "safe goods". Even if it is a whole truckload of high explosives, it will be listed as harmless "building stone" on the documents.
Conversely, if the "inspection fee" is not paid in full, even if you are only transporting a bag of ordinary laundry detergent, it will be considered a "mass biological weapon".

so.
The harmless Zhao Jingyi, pulling her equally harmless suitcase, safely set foot on the land of District Nine once again!
....
According to the original plan, Zhao Jingyi should go directly to the coordinates sent by her mentor, pick up the items, and leave immediately.

However, the unusually tense atmosphere in District Nine made her feel vaguely uneasy.

Statistically speaking, she felt that the lockdown of District Nine should be unrelated to her mentor, but what if it was?
After all, a mentor's ability to stir things up, especially their ability to create big events, is not to be underestimated.

As Zhao Jingyi walked down the street, dragging her suitcase, various thoughts raced through her mind.

As a scientist, especially one trained by Zuo Bai, Zhao Jingyi also learned to be cautious.

To conduct an experiment, you need to prepare all the equipment in advance, design the control group, and prepare for all possible unexpected situations and corresponding solutions.

In her view, doing things and conducting experiments are fundamentally similar in logic—both require as much information as possible, both require considering various variables, and both require preparing for the worst-case scenario.

After all, if an experiment fails, you might be able to replace the materials and start over, but when it comes to your own affairs, you are the only consumable, and there is absolutely no chance to start over.

"We must reassess the risks and not blindly follow the original plan."

With that thought in mind, she hailed a taxi on the street, opened the door, and sat in the back seat.

"Driver, to Maple Forest Hotel."

She gave a pre-selected location for her stay, then asked casually,

"Has something happened in District Nine? I see checkpoints everywhere on the road."

The driver, a middle-aged man with dark skin, glanced at the ordinary-looking middle-aged woman in the back seat through the rearview mirror and replied in the same casual tone:

"That's right, even the Survey Corps has been moved into the city."

Since this morning, the roads have been in constant turmoil. Every now and then, you can see the blue and white police cars blaring past, causing widespread anxiety.

Zhao Jingyi frowned:
"So, what exactly happened?"

The driver shook his head:
"Who knows what exactly happened? There wasn't a single word about it in the news. But I saw some people online speculating that it might be because the 'air tax' is really going to be implemented."

The government is probably worried that this will cause large-scale protests or even riots, so it's deploying forces in advance to conduct drills and act as a deterrent in the city.

Zhao Jingyi nodded slightly, acknowledging that this speculation was not without its logic.

Locking down the city can indeed effectively prevent disgruntled "blank resident" people from escaping the Ninth District and becoming unruly "free citizens" outside.

Previously, people could freely leave the country, but now with the air tax, you can't leave without paying.

But deep down, she always felt that things might not be so simple.

Just as she was pondering this, the driver suddenly lowered his voice, as if he wanted to share some incredible secret.

There were only the two of them in the car, and it was unclear why he was lowering his voice—he was afraid someone would eavesdrop.

He said mysteriously:

"However, let me tell you, I personally think it's definitely not about the air tax, but rather..."

"Oh?" Zhao Jingyi feigned interest. "Then why do you think it is, Master?"

The driver coughed lightly and began to speak freely:
"In my opinion, this situation is most likely—someone has died! And it must be some very important person who has died!"

That's why the city was locked down; they're trying to catch the murderer. Otherwise, nothing else would warrant such a large-scale operation by the government.

To support his point, the driver brought up past incidents:

"Think about it, even seven or eight years ago, when the news reported that a horde of undead wandering from the ruins was approaching District Nine, the city was never as tense as it is now."

The last time the entire city was locked down like this, with the Survey Corps being mobilized into the city, was probably more than twenty years ago.

I remember there was a member of parliament, yes, a member of parliament, whose entire family was wiped out by someone.

I remember that congressman's name was, um, what was his last name again...

Listening to the driver's incessant analysis, Zhao Jingyi's face remained expressionless, but she seemed to be deep in thought:
"That guess is quite possible. So, could District Nine be searching for mentors? If so, that would be... fantastic!"

(End of this chapter)