Eunuch, do you really know these martial arts?

Inside the main control center, only the low hum of the server cluster and the slightly rapid breathing of the people could be heard.

Upon hearing Jiang Nian's instruction, Ling Que replied without hesitation, "Understood!"

She rushed to the control panel.

He quickly retrieved a matchbox-sized physical connection device with a specially designed interface from his tactical backpack.

This is a specially made ultra-high-speed data extractor by the base's technical department.

It is specifically designed to cope with this highly closed, network-isolated environment.

She skillfully connected the extractor to a hidden maintenance interface on the main control panel, and her fingers then quickly slid across the built-in miniature touchscreen.

"Interface protocol identification is underway, bypassing the virtual firewall to establish a physical link connection."

Lingque spoke very quickly, her eyes fixed intently on the data stream on the screen.

"Connection successful! Initiating core database structure scanning!"

On the huge curved screen, the originally smooth data stream instantly became chaotic.

Countless folder and encryption program icons were flashing wildly.

A piercing warning tone rang out in the quiet control center:
"Warning! Unauthorized physical access detected!"

"The core database is under attack!"

"Initiating countermeasures! Isolation protocol loading..."

"They found us!"

The ghost gripped the arm that bound Han Dong tightly, its sharp eyes scanning the surrounding area for any possible entrances to the defensive mechanisms.

"It will take time!"

Fine beads of sweat appeared on Lingque's forehead.

"Their encryption layer is very high, and their database structure is extremely complex, mixed with a large number of meaningless junk files and trap protocols!"

“Han Dong,” Jiang Nian said coldly, turning to look at Han Dong, “tell me, what is the ultimate goal of the Ice Marrow Project, and in which partition are all the experimental data about the progenitor gene and Zero stored?”

"Also, where is the core control terminal for the base's self-destruct system?"

Han Dong was firmly restrained by the ghost, his face ashen, but when he heard Jiang Nian's question, a hint of almost insane stubbornness flashed in his eyes.

"You can't stop it..."

He laughed hoarsely, "The great cause of Ice Marrow has long transcended the realm of individual lives! It is the ladder to the new humanity! As for the data, cough cough... you won't get anything! The main control terminal has the highest level of access control. Without my active cooperation, forcibly cracking it will only trigger a low-level formatting!"

He seemed certain that Jiang Nian wouldn't dare kill him immediately.

Because this involves crucial data.

However, Jiang Nian did not look at him, but said to Ling Que: "Prioritize searching for keywords related to gene sequences, environmental adaptability, coverage protocols, and all files marked as prototypes or clone zeros."

"At the same time, search all areas marked as high-risk, core, and emergency protocols on the base structure map."

He didn't completely trust Han Dong's words, but based on his own judgment and the information Lin Wanxing had provided earlier, he gave a more specific direction for the search.

"Yes!"

Lingque immediately adjusted the search parameters.

The data stream on the screen began to churn more violently.

Jiang Nian then walked to the other side of the main control panel.

My gaze fell on one of the split screens, which displayed a 3D structural diagram of the entire base, with several areas flashing red to indicate alarms and lockdowns.

His finger slid across the touch area, zooming in on the structural diagram and carefully observing the layout of each channel and functional area.

"found it!"

A few minutes later, Lingque suddenly let out a suppressed cry.

Her voice was filled with excitement; these were the core objectives of their trip!
"Start downloading immediately! Prioritize transmitting the core protocol and sequence map!" Jiang Nian ordered.

"The complete download is expected to take... fifteen minutes!"

Lingque reported a worrying time.

fifteen minutes!

Inside the enemy's lair, it felt like an eternity!
Just then, a soft sound came from the wall on one side of the main control center, and a hidden door that was almost integrated with the wall slid open!

Four guards dressed in silver-gray tight-fitting combat suits and with holographic masks covering their faces rushed out like ghosts!

Their movements were coordinated and incredibly fast.

The weapon in his hand was not an ordinary pulse gun, but a peculiar device that emitted a ghostly blue spiral pattern.

It was the same vortex gun that Jiang Nian and his group had encountered before!
"They're the base's elite internal security forces! Be careful of their weapons!"

The ghost gave a stern warning, while simultaneously pulling Han Dong back sharply, and dodging a spiraling wave that shot towards him.

The ripples swept across the spot where he had just stood, the air distorted with a strange sound, and a deep, molten trench was plowed into the solid alloy floor!

Jiang Nian was alert the moment the hidden door opened.

Faced with four vortex guns simultaneously locking onto him, he didn't retreat but advanced, taking the initiative to meet them head-on!
He couldn't let them interfere with the data download of the Spirit Sparrow!
During the sprint, Jiang Nian's body made evasive maneuvers that defied common sense, sometimes drifting like willow catkins, sometimes as swift as thunder.

The four twisting spiral ripples almost blocked all his dodge angles, but he always managed to dodge them by the narrowest of margins at the last second!

"Bang bang bang!"

The throwing knife collides with the vortex energy.

Clusters of dazzling blue lightning and shockwaves exploded, causing the lights in the entire control center to flicker.

In just two breaths, Jiang Nian had broken through the barrage of fire and gotten close to the four inner guards!

Close combat is his absolute domain!

Fist, palm, fingers, elbow...

Every part of the body has been transformed into the most lethal weapon.

With the infusion of internal energy, each attack carries a terrifying power capable of shattering metal and splitting rocks.

One of the guards tried to block Jiang Nian's straight punch with his arm, but with a crisp "crack," his specially made combat uniform and the arm bone below shattered, and he flew backward with a scream.

Just as the other man turned his vortex gun around, Jiang Nian's hand cleaver pecked at his Adam's apple like a venomous snake. After a dull thud, the guard clutched his throat and collapsed to the ground.

The battle was drawing to a close in the blink of an eye.

When the last inside defender was hit hard by Jiang Nian's powerful shoulder strike, causing his sternum to collapse and him to spit out blood and fall to the ground, he was unable to get up.

From the moment the hidden door appeared to the end of the battle, it took less than ten seconds in total.

Jiang Nian was slightly out of breath, but her breathing remained steady.

He looked at Lingque: "Download status?"

"Due to the fluctuations from the battle just now, the data transmission stability has decreased, but it has not been interrupted! The remaining time is estimated to be fourteen minutes!" Lingque shouted without turning her head, her eyes fixed on the screen.

The ghost restrained Han Dong, watching the hidden door warily.

"This hidden door might lead to the inner guard's garrison area; they'll likely come back!"

Jiang Nian walked to the hidden door, carefully examined the door hinges and locking mechanism, and then gathered his inner strength and slammed his palms hard against the alloy walls on both sides of the door frame!

"Buzz!"

A surge of powerful internal energy penetrated his body and slammed into the mechanical transmission and electronic locking system behind the door!
"Creak—Boom!"

A piercing metallic clang and an explosion came from behind the door, sparks flying everywhere. The entire hidden door was visibly deformed and jammed, with black smoke even billowing from the cracks.

Jiang Nian directly used force to temporarily block the passage.

"This will buy us a little more time."

Han Dong, who had been restrained by the ghost, suddenly burst into hysterical laughter upon seeing Jiang Nian's fierce courage:

"Useless! Hahaha! You think you can destroy this place just by getting the data? How naive!"

He struggled violently to his feet and roared at the control panel.

"Master control AI! Identify permission code! Initiate the final stage of the cryogenic burial protocol! Authorize!"

"what?!"

Jiang Nian and You Hun's expressions changed simultaneously!
"A cryogenic burial agreement?!"

Lingque gasped in shock; she had spotted the protocol name marked as the most dangerous in the download stream!
The cold, synthesized electronic voice instantly resounded throughout the main control center, even spreading to every corner of the base through the not-yet-completely-isolated channels:
"Highest authority command confirmed. Final phase of cryogenic burial protocol initiated."

"Base core energy overload program loading... Countdown: 10 minutes."

"Permanent blockade of all external access routes initiated!"

"Internal biological purification procedure ready!"

"Repeat, the cryogenic burial protocol has been activated. Countdown: 9 minutes and 59 seconds... 58 seconds!"

The lights in the entire control center instantly turned into a constantly flashing, unsettling dark red!
On the huge curved screen, a massive, ever-decreasing red countdown number covered all the data interfaces!
"You crazy person!"

The ghost roared angrily, straining its arm so hard it almost snapped Han Dong's neck.

Han Dong, however, seemed oblivious to the pain, his face bearing a fanatical and twisted smile, like that of a martyr.

"Cough cough... Let us all be buried together in this temple of icy marrow! The Lord's great deeds must not be desecrated!!"

Jiang Nian's eyes were icy cold.

He instantly understood the organization's ruthlessness.

They are ruthless not only to their enemies, but also to their own people.

This base was designed from the very beginning with the ultimate means of taking the invaders down with it!
ten minutes!
They only have ten minutes left!

The goal is not only to obtain as much core data as possible within ten minutes.

They also need to find an escape route before the base self-destructs!
"Lingque! How much longer will the data download take?!"

Jiang Nian asked urgently.

Looking at the data stream on the screen, which had become even more unstable due to the activation of the self-destruct protocol, Lingque gritted her teeth and said, "The core protocol and sequence map are 87% complete! Zero observation log is only 35% complete! At the current rate... it will take at least eight more minutes to complete the core part!"

Eight minutes!
It’s too extreme!

"Prioritize ensuring the core protocol and sequence map are downloaded! Download as much as possible from Log Zero!" Jiang Nian decisively ordered.

"understand!"

Jiang Nian ignored Han Dong's maniacal laughter and turned his gaze back to the structural diagram of the base.

His brain was working at an unprecedented speed, analyzing every passage and every possible exit.

"Icy burial protocol activated, all external access routes sealed..."

Jiang Nian stared at the structural diagram, his finger quickly swiping across several main exit channels. Sure enough, he saw that they were all marked as permanently locked on the diagram.

"Conventional export channels are no longer viable."

The ghost also noticed the changes in the structural diagram, and its tone became heavy.

"There must be an emergency exit!"

Jiang Nian said in a deep voice, "A base of this size, especially one conducting such dangerous experiments, would not leave itself no way out!"

"Moreover, this path to survival may not rely on conventional energy sources!"

His divine sense spread out with unprecedented intensity.

He needs to find that hidden path to life, one that may not even be clearly marked on the structural diagram!

Upon hearing Jiang Nian's words, Han Dong's maniacal laughter abruptly ceased, a look of disbelief flashing in his eyes.

Jiang Nian ignored him, her mind completely absorbed in her senses.

Time passed second by second.

Eight minutes and thirty seconds.

The vibrations in the main control center became increasingly noticeable, and fine ice chips and dust began to fall from above.

Lingque bit her lip tightly, her fingers almost blurring across the control screen as she raced against time and fought against the constantly interfering system for every byte of data.

Seven minutes and fifteen seconds.

Jiang Nian suddenly opened her tightly closed eyes!

"found it!"

A glint flashed in his eyes. "Right below the server array! There's a vertical emergency maintenance shaft! Over a hundred meters deep, directly connected to an ancient underground tunnel!"

"It's not marked on the structural diagram, but its supporting structure is different from the surrounding structures; it's independent!"

He sensed that the passage was covered by a thick layer of ice and camouflage, the entrance was extremely well hidden, and it seemed to rely on some kind of mechanical potential energy or geothermal differential to maintain the basic possibility of opening.

It is not directly connected to the base's main energy source!

"go!"

Without hesitation, Jiang Nian grabbed Han Dong from You Hun's hand. "He's still useful. He might know about the tunnel exit."

He carried Han Dong and charged ahead into the depths of the server array.

Ghost and Sparrow immediately followed. As Sparrow ran, it didn't forget to maintain the data connection. On the terminal screen, the download progress bar for the core data climbed forward with difficulty but determination.

Guided precisely by Jiang Nian's divine sense, they quickly found a piece of alloy flooring with a slightly darker color and tiny gaps along the edges in an inconspicuous corner at the bottom of the server array.

Jiang Nian channeled his strength into his feet and stomped down hard!
"boom!"

The floorboards bounced off, revealing a dark, vertical well opening.

A chilling wind, even colder than the interior of the base and carrying the scent of millennia-old ice, rushed up from the well.

"This is it! Get down!"

Jiang Nian pushed Han Dong in first; there were simple ladders on the well wall for climbing.

The ghost followed closely behind.

Lingque was the last one. Before jumping into the well, she glanced at the terminal in her hand.

Core protocol and ancestral sequence map downloaded successfully! Zero observation log: 67%!

She gritted her teeth, forcibly severed the connection, pulled out the data extractor and stuffed it back into her backpack, then jumped into the dark well without hesitation.

Just as the alloy floor at the wellhead was slowly and automatically closing, they heard a deafening explosion and a loud crash as the alloy structure collapsed from the direction of the main control center!
……

The vertical shaft was pitch black, with only a last glimmer of red light shining through the gradually closing entrance overhead.

The four people quickly climbed down the cold stairs.

The well walls were rough, covered with a thick layer of frost, and extremely slippery.

They must escape before the base is completely destroyed, triggering a larger-scale ice collapse! (End of Chapter)