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Chapter 160 Guidance from the Mysterious Map

Su Wanqing put the notebook away and gathered everyone together. She casually opened her bracelet, and something appeared in her palm: a piece of paper that had been folded repeatedly.

She spread the tattered piece of paper on the table and used the emergency light to make it clear to everyone.

The map is covered with a dense array of symbols and numbers, with an "underground shopping mall" in the city center circled in red.

"I have a complete map of the backup routes and outpost locations. This map was left over from the initial setup of the underground passages. The circled areas are the preferred landing points, which have underground abandoned structures."

Su Wanqing pointed to several marks on the map, "The main line of the East Corridor branches here. The oil and gas pipeline in the shopping center section is still intact and can last for several hours. Other points are ready to be used at any time."

Lu Zhao leaned closer to look, squinted, and asked, "If the power supply is unstable, how can we support critical equipment and personnel?"

“I’ve already checked the design drawings,” Su Wanqing said calmly. “The shopping center was originally a government air defense project that was converted into a three-story, enclosed space. As long as our technical team goes first, the equipment can be partially restored to operation.”

Lin Che reached out and touched the ventilation shaft number at the bottom of the map. "Is this the main entrance or the auxiliary entrance?"

"Using the main entrance as cover, we actually entered through the freight elevator in the northwest corner, went down to the first basement level, and went directly around to the defensive isolation zone."

Su Wanqing pointed to the map and drew an emergency evacuation route with a ballpoint pen. "The technical team will take the full data package and core laboratory supplies. The attack team will be responsible for covering the retreat. The rest of you will follow me underground."

Xiao Ran used another pen to mark all the exits in a conspicuous way. "I'll take the main force out first to attract the attention of those tracking us from the outside, and then place the decoy signal in the main street. The rest of you just follow the plan."

Su Wanqing nodded, neatly closed the zigzag map, rolled it up and stuffed it back into the bracelet space, "Divide into groups of three minutes. One team will go through the main entrance as cover, and the second team will follow me."

While packing up the portable analyzer and the core external hard drive, Lu Zhao scanned the remaining devices.

He unplugged all the critical data cables and began manually formatting the main control terminal. "All the original host information was deleted, and sensitive data was melted down on the spot to prevent the rebels from verifying it. Only the most critical parts were left on the external hard drive. The self-destruct timer program for the remaining devices has been installed."

Xiao Ran picked up several usable guns and ammunition, skillfully organized the weapons, and stuffed everything he could carry into his backpack.

He glanced back at Su Wanqing. "The weapons team only carries enough for three days' shifts. The remaining ammunition is stored in the decoy vehicle."

The girl with the childlike voice moved swiftly, stuffing all her belongings into her pockets, and finally fastened the zipper of the pendant tightly.

After distributing the medical kits and energy bars, Lin Che looked at Su Wanqing and said, "I can use my superpower to maintain my breathing environment and water supply, so I don't need to worry about pollutants outside."

Su Wanqing nodded to Lin Che, then looked around and checked all the equipment.

She gave a concise briefing: "Get ready in five minutes and we'll be off. Lu Zhao, make the final backup, notify everyone to disconnect before you leave."

Lu Zhao responded, quickly moved the laptop to the portable server, and typed out a series of commands.

He bit his lip and used tape to secure the only hard drive containing his research data to the inside of his clothes.

Finally, he calmly stated: "The mainboard was destroyed, all backdoors were removed, and all external devices were completely destroyed."

Xiao Ran led the attack team toward the main entrance, turning on the last two emergency lights at the entrance, his footsteps quiet.

The technical and experimental teams followed closely behind Su Wanqing's group, while Lin Che walked at the back, his eyes darting back and forth between the entrance to the passage and the girl with the childlike voice.

The underground passage was quiet; the only sound was the thud of shoes on the concrete.

The girl with the childlike voice looked up at Su Wanqing, her tone steady: "Did you go to a new place? Will there still be lights?"

Su Wanqing bent down to adjust the girl's backpack straps. "The new place will be safer. There are lights and enough food. Stay close and don't fall behind."

Lin Che walked silently on Su Wanqing's other side, his voice low: "When did you prepare such a detailed map? Did you try all the alternative routes?"

Su Wanqing held the bracelet, pressing the map against her palm. "Sometimes, if you lose power just once, you have to learn to have an extra backup plan. I've tried it, and it works."

Lin Che lowered his head and didn't say anything more. He sighed, his face somewhat somber.

He suddenly placed his hand on the experimental kit, his speech quickening, "You haven't disclosed these backup points at all; the level of preparation is beyond what's expected. Did you know we might have our main power cut off, or this city might be completely abandoned?"

Su Wanqing didn't even turn her head. "If you want to argue now, let's go to the next corner. The map doesn't matter, escaping is."

The name "Night" flashed through Lin Che's mind. Lin Che pursed his lips and tapped the box.

"Night's" voice was low and cold: "Su Wanqing, if you don't make things clear beforehand, are you deliberately hiding something? This tactic is different from the usual survival team. Is there anything you haven't told us yet?"

Su Wanqing looked at Lin Che, her expression unchanged, and said only, "This is an emergency plan. I'm always preparing for the worst. Now is not the time to discuss the source."

The girl with the childlike voice glanced at Su Wanqing, then at Lin Che, took a breath, and quietly tightened the zipper of her backpack. The group quickened its pace. Lu Zhao, hiding his tablet close to his body, kept turning the only remaining flash memory card in his hand.

He made a final check and confirmed that no master control key code had been missed.

Xiao Ran led the attack team away from the main group and disappeared along the main corridor towards the east exit.

Intermittent stomping sounds and faint lights soon came from the surrounding area, indicating that most of the firepower had been diverted.

The main squad then moved underground from the cargo shaft, traversing the gray-black passage on the old map.

Lin Che remained silent throughout the journey, only occasionally lowering his head to adjust his breathing. His fingertips were a little cold, and he made no extra movements.

The girl with the childlike voice followed Su Wanqing, counting her steps with her head down, her hands still tucked into her pockets.

At the end of the passage appeared a rusty metal security door. Su Wanqing peeled off the tape and found a protruding electronic panel in the corner of the door.

She took out a spare card, swiped it, and then tried the mechanical emergency lock.

It took a minute for the door to fully open. Behind the door was a new world—an old-fashioned underground shopping mall.

In the dim light, the outlines of neon advertisements still lingered on the ceiling.

Lu Zhao was the first to enter and looked around. He slowly said, "The environment is not bad, cleaner than I expected. The main passage is wide and well-hidden, and the signal wall basically blocks external detection."

The team quickly infiltrated and entered the innermost area closest to the original main stage, only to find that someone had already tampered with it.

The mall walls were reinforced with steel plates, the electrical wiring on the roof was newly replaced, and anti-slip iron plates were laid on the ground. On the most conspicuous wall, two words were written, the black paint not yet fully dry: "Good night".

Xiao Ran took off his backpack and placed the heaviest weapon in an easily accessible spot near the entrance.

He stared at the calligraphy and shook his head softly: "Someone got here before us and was well-prepared. I wonder if they are friends or enemies."

Su Wanqing spoke up: "Not an enemy, at least not yet."

Her right hand remained in her pocket, her fingertips pinching the deepest crease on the map.

She glanced down at her watch. "The internal space is clearly divided into different areas, and the main defense layer has not been touched. Let's perform a self-check according to the old partitions first."

Lin Che walked into the hall, stepped on the black floor tiles, and then kicked the anti-slip strip.

"The main circuit is intact, and the core area is well-ventilated with no odor. The structural walls are solid, and there are no problems after a quick inspection."

After the girl with the childlike voice walked in, she looked up at the painted words, then looked around, quietly stood close to Su Wanqing, and didn't ask any questions.

Lu Zhao turned on the handheld terminal and used its built-in battery to light up half of the main control screen.

"As long as the battery pack can last for three hours, the main equipment can still perform a preliminary adaptability analysis."

After he finished speaking, he immediately installed a new electronic lock on the security door at the entrance and then pushed the equipment backpack into the inner room.

Lin Che turned his head and glanced at Su Wanqing again, his voice tinged with suspicion: "Do you really have to hide this from us? You've even prepared backup bases of this level. Who are you afraid of, or what are you afraid of?"

Su Wanqing's fingers tightened slightly. "It's because I'm afraid of all the uncontrollable variables. Since every movement route and emergency exit in this city could fail within a day, I can only manage every safe haven I can trust myself. Night, if you want to ask how the base came about, now is not the time. I just prepared it in advance."

Lin Che didn't press further, but the doubt in his eyes hadn't completely dissipated.

He packed up his medical kit and sat silently near the main hall entrance. "Night" said in a low voice, "But remember, we are not your pawns. If you have ulterior motives—"

Su Wanqing interrupted her bluntly, "This place is so well prepared, it's enough that it's useful. There's no point in tracing its origin."

After a brief silence, Xiao Ran returned to the hall, took a couple of breaths, and set the security device at the door to the highest alert level.

Lu Zhao then pulled out a spare terminal from his backpack and stuffed all the remaining data into the new host.

"There's only one copy of all the research data, and the motherboard burned out on the spot. How long it lasts depends on luck."

The girl with the childlike voice walked behind the defensive gate, clutching the pendant in her pocket, without saying a word.

Su Wanqing patted the girl on the shoulder, "Take a ten-minute break, then we'll hurry up and tidy up the place before starting again."

Lin Che leaned against the wall, pulled his coat up, and remained silent. The footsteps outside the door gradually faded into the distance, and Xiao Ran locked the remaining exit completely at the end, leaving the concrete door silent.