Absolute Gate

Chapter 11 Disasters and Anomalies
Wu finally signed the document and was assigned to some kind of base that very night.

His resume is simple, his background is clear, his ancestors for three generations have a clean political record, and apart from his maternal grandfather, he has no other relatives.

So there was nothing to settle him in. Lu Guangqi said that all daily necessities would be provided to him free of charge, and then drove him to the suburbs.

The car headed south, getting closer and closer to Mount Lu.

Outside the window, the wind howled, and the scene of gathering clouds remained unchanged. The group looked on with deep concern.

Seeing their expressions, Wu Zhong suddenly had a thought.

“You say those ghosts and spirits are legendary beings, and yet they suddenly appeared today…”

"I watched the video. Could it be that it's about the incident on Mount Lu?"

He remembered watching a video today, with comments saying something about the revival of gods and demons.

At the time, he treated it as a joke and didn't believe it at all. But after experiencing all this, he realized that ghosts and gods could only have emerged from the vortex of wind and clouds on Mount Lu.

Everything matches up perfectly.

The young Taoist priest, who was sitting next to him, did not hide anything when he heard this: "That's right. Around seven o'clock this morning, a vortex appeared on the Five Old Peaks of Mount Lu, constantly devouring matter."

“All sorts of ghosts, gods and monsters are born from it. They rely on the clouds and mist of Mount Lu as their body, and they are ever-changing, each with different abilities.”

"Although they are physically weak for the time being, and I could shatter them with a single shot, they are indeed continuously getting stronger."

"Moreover, it is inexhaustible, immortal, and seems to be able to be reborn in the cyclone."

Wu Zhong exclaimed in surprise, "Is this really true?"

"Why didn't you keep this kind of thing quiet? Why did you release it?"

The young Taoist priest rolled his eyes: "Look at this hurricane outside the window. The huge cyclone can be seen hundreds of kilometers away. Do you think it can be sealed off?"

"It's better to guide than to suppress. Instead of suppressing the news, we should release it ourselves... use the cultural and tourism account, add some background music, and guide public opinion, then no one will believe it."

"..." Wu Zhong was speechless. To be honest, he really didn't believe it.

He wanted to ask more about the Lushan cyclone, but the group wouldn't reveal anything further.

He ignored her completely, and the car remained solemnly silent.

Wu Zhong has a somewhat stubborn personality; after saying a few words without receiving a response, he could only remain silent.

He was genuinely agitated and felt very uncomfortable.

Time passed in a dull manner, and he was taken to a military base at the foot of Mount Lu.

This area is near Lushan Military Airport, the only airport within the entire Xunyang city area.

After the car stopped, Lu Guangqi led him into a huge air-raid shelter.

The interior was brightly lit and extremely spacious. It was as if an enormous space had been carved out of the mountains, leading directly to a deep underground location.

They took the elevator down to a bunker, where a group of military personnel were moving around.

This is not a newly built underground defense fortification; it has been around for many years, at least several decades.

Surrounded by gates arranged in alphabetical and numerical order, Lu Guangqi led him to open gate B12.

"Buzz!"

Lu Guangqi's method of opening the door was peculiar. Instead of retinal or palm print authentication, he spread his five fingers and formed a complex air shield in front of his palm!

The air shield was pushed into the grid-like groove next to the gate, and the gate slowly opened.

"What is this? Is it your superpower?" Wu Zhong asked in surprise. He had never seen such a magical scene before, and the visual impact was huge.

Lu Guangqi simply said, "It's just a small trick. Come with me."

"Let me take you to meet someone first."

Wu knew he wouldn't say much more, so he stopped asking.

At the same time, he was secretly shocked: This is a real superpower! The ability to condense air with a wave of the hand, is it the ability to manipulate gas?

He obediently followed Lu Guangqi as they walked through this passage.

This looks like a prison? There's an old door every so often.

Unfortunately, there was no viewing window, so Wu was still unsure whether someone was being held inside.

"Click."

Arriving at door B12-019, Lu Guangqi swiped his card to open the door.

This time, it wasn't some magical superpower verification method to open the door; a simple access card would suffice. Wu Zhong stared intently at the card, watching as Lu Guangqi casually slipped it into his briefcase.

"Endless Summer, you're quite well-behaved, aren't you? Meditating?" Lu Guangqi entered and sat down in a chair.

Wu Zhong saw that there wasn't a person locked up directly inside, but rather another compartment.

Through the thick glass window, one could see a ragged man in black sitting cross-legged in the cubicle, who appeared to have been in a fight.

He was wearing heavy, specially made shackles, his hands bound by two iron balls, just like Doraemon's hands.

"What……"

Upon seeing the appearance of the imprisoned man, Wu Zhong's pupils immediately contracted, because he recognized the man!
It was the same stern-looking man who had pulled him up and saved his life on the roadside earlier.

"How is it? Is it him? The one from this afternoon?" Lu Guangqi glanced at Wu Zhong.

“Yes, yes…” Wu Zhong nodded emphatically.

Thanks to this man, he survived; otherwise, he would have been hit and killed by that truck. How could he not recognize him?

He really wanted to thank this person properly, but unfortunately the other party didn't care at all and didn't even leave a name.

"Endless Summer? Is that his nickname?"

Lu Guangqi casually replied, "Yeah, this guy's real name can't be found anymore. Endless Summer was his code name in the Free Mercenary Club, and he was quite famous."

He spoke into the microphone: "Hello, Endless Summer, do you know him?"

Wu Jinxia slowly opened her eyes, glanced at Wu Zhong, and shook her head slightly: "I don't know him."

Lu Guangqi chuckled and said, "Are you lying through your teeth? You saved him this afternoon, and you're telling me you don't know him?"

Wu Jinxia thought for a moment, carefully examined Wu Zhong, and said, "Oh, is it that person? I just grabbed him casually, I've never seen his face before."

Wu Zhong's lips twitched. That's really cool.

So she really didn't even glance at him the entire time? How incredibly arrogant!

But Wu Zhong said, "Brother, although you did it casually, it was a matter of life and death for me."

“Oh…” Endless Summer’s expression was calm and cold.

Lu Guangqi asked suspiciously, "You don't know him? Do you think I believe that?"

"A dignified Gold Mercenary, coming all the way to the country, heading straight for Xunyang City, and casually saving someone along the way?"

Endless Summer let out a nasal sound: "Ugh..."

Lu Guangqi slammed his hand on the table: "Stop playing dumb with me. You came all the way from Vienna just to casually save a complete stranger?"

Wu Jinxia asked curiously, "I saved him, do I need a reason? Why do you care so much whether I know him or not? Is there anything special about him?"

"Could this kid also be from the 'Disaster Realm'?"

Lu Guangqi probed, "He's not. He's just an ordinary citizen, but that's precisely what makes him even stranger."

"Those ghosts and spirits didn't attack us, but instead sent out day and night patrol gods, who went through all sorts of hardships to come down from the mountain and take his life. Don't you think that's strange?"

Wu Jinxia was very surprised and stared intently at Wu Zhong after hearing these words.

"Is that so? Could it be... that the runaway truck this afternoon was actually the work of the Day Wanderer?"

When Lu Guangqi heard him mention the Sun-Wandering God, it was as if he had finally found a flaw in his argument.

He slammed his hand on the table and exclaimed, "Ha! You let it slip, didn't you? We've spent a whole day researching them, including communicating with those ghosts and spirits, and we've only just begun to understand them." "You directly pointed out that it was the work of the Day-Roaming God, and you still say you don't know him?"

Endless Summer remained calm: "Just because I know about the Day Wanderer doesn't mean I need to know this kid."

"Why do you have to nitpick about this? I finally managed to do something kind, and this is what happened. People are questioning my motives. It's so frustrating... I won't save anyone next time."

Lu Guangqi pressed further: "How do you know about the Day-Roaming God?"

Wu Jinxia smirked: "I trespassed into the restricted area of ​​Mount Lu, looked at your files, and that's how I found out, wasn't it?"

“No, no…” Lu Guangqi shook his head: “This calamity only appeared in the early morning, and you arrived in the afternoon. Isn’t that too fast?”

Wu Jinxia said calmly, "Such a huge calamity cannot be kept secret from anyone. The enormous cyclone on the mountaintop can be seen for hundreds of kilometers around, and the abnormal weather has spread to several cities. Is it so strange that I came to take a look?"

Lu Guangqi said quietly, "No, it's too fast."

"Around 7 a.m., a cyclone appeared on Mount Lu, constantly devouring matter, from which all sorts of ghosts, gods and monsters were born."

“We made in-depth contact and didn’t get a rough understanding of their names and capabilities until 4 p.m. The information was stored in the base at 4:15 p.m.

"And you... actually broke in at 4:20 and went straight to the E02 database."

"Why? You're obviously after the data, but the data was only stored five minutes before you broke in, and you even know where it is stored."

Endless Summer remained completely calm and said, "What else could it be? You have a mole among your men."

Lu Guangqi's pupils contracted; indeed, an inside job was almost the only explanation.

As long as Endless Summer stays outside and waits for news from the mole, once the data is confirmed to be stored, the location will be communicated so that Endless Summer can break in and steal it.

but……

Lu Guangqi sneered: "I don't believe there are spies among our brothers. You possess intelligence-related calamities, right?"

"Say whatever you want." Endless Summer said calmly, as if she had nothing to lose. "It's ridiculous that you want to interrogate me with just empty words."

"Oh?" Lu Guangqi's eyes sharpened. "You've been caught. What's your backing that allows you to be so calm?"

"Will someone come to rescue you? Or do you think I won't resort to torture?"

Endless Summer said no more and closed her eyes to meditate.

Lu Guangqi said quietly, "The 'Eternal Thirst Plum' will be delivered tomorrow."

Endless Summer remained unmoved.

Seeing that he was not flustered at all, Lu Guangqi said, "It seems that you do not know about this calamity-causing object."

"This thing, once seen, will plunge you into eternal thirst, and even drinking water until your stomach bursts will not relieve it in the slightest."

Endless Summer wasn't scared, but Wu was.

He exclaimed in shock, "What? An eternal thirst?"

Lu Guangqi seemed to need him to continue, saying, "That's right, the thirst will reach its limit and never subside until death."

"What's even more terrifying is that it doesn't dehydrate the body, meaning you only experience the agony of being thirsty to the point of death, but you won't actually die."

"There is no cure for this. Once you are tainted, no one can remove it. Endless Summer, you do not deserve to die. We really do not want to use this on you."

Wu was horrified. Just one glance would cause him to be perpetually thirsty until his death, with no cure.

What the hell is this thing?! It's terrifying!
Why would such a thing exist in the world? It's a hundred times more terrifying than ghosts and monsters!
"Are you kidding me? You're just trying to scare me..." Wu Zhong muttered.

Lu Guangqi's face turned grim: "Trying to scare people? I really hope it's fake!"

"This darn thing was sold mixed in with ordinary plums at the morning market in Jinzhou last year..."

"From discovery to containment, a total of 113 people were infected with Eternal Thirst in a short period of time! Including 9 of our comrades!"

"And without exception, they all committed suicide."

Wu Zhong's face turned pale. Since there was no cure for the eternal thirst disease, wasn't suicide the only option left?

He had gone hungry for several days, which was extremely painful.

Thirst is far more painful than hunger... Is it going to be like this for the rest of my life? Just thinking about it makes me despair. Living has become an endless torment, and suicide is the only option.

Despite such intimidation, Endless Summer remained unmoved, her face cool.

This surprised Wu Zhong. Was he really that stubborn? Hmm, maybe he thought it was a lie?
But what if it's true? Aren't you afraid?

Lu Guangqi was also angered by Wujinxia's attitude: "Do you think I wouldn't use this kind of rubbish on you? Do you know how terrible the disaster at Mount Lu was?"

Endless Summer sighed and said, "Of course I know, but is it my fault? Its birth was a pure catastrophe."

"You should understand that the appearance of calamities is illogical and has no origin. They are born out of thin air, and anything is possible."

“You 985 fire brigade, don’t always try to find a source to blame for disasters. That’s a bad habit.”

Lu Guangqi said coldly, "Purely a calamity? Hmph, it's hard to say it wasn't man-made."

"Alright, even if it was a calamity from the heavens, you must still have some connection to the Lushan incident. Otherwise, how could you have traveled all this way from afar and broken into the restricted area so easily?"

"And incidentally, he also saved the first person those ghosts and spirits wanted to kill?"

"Tell me everything you know! This matter concerns the survival of countless people in the future!"

Endless Summer shook her head and remained silent.

Lu Guangqi said solemnly, "Then there's no other way. Once you contract the Eternal Thirst Syndrome and are restrained from committing suicide, you'll say anything when you see a glass of water in front of you."

"Hehe, we'll see." Endless Summer chuckled softly, then closed her eyes to meditate.

Seeing that he was unyielding, Lu Guangqi was too lazy to waste any more words on him and left with Wu Zhong in a huff.

Wu Zhong followed him slowly, and couldn't help but ask along the way, "Is that eternal thirst disease real? You're just scaring him, aren't you?"

Lu Guangqi replied without turning his head: "It really exists."

Wu Zhong's hands and feet went numb: "Are you really going to use this kind of torture on him? Didn't you say there was no cure? Once he got infected, he could only commit suicide?"

Lu Guangqi glanced at him, thought for a moment, and said, "We won't let him die until he explains himself... Once infected with this terrible effect, death is the greatest relief; he'll talk..."

Wu Zhong was frightened, even if it wasn't used on him, he was still afraid: "Huh? Didn't you say he didn't deserve to die?"

He recalled the details Lu Guangqi had mentioned and couldn't help but question him.

Lu Guangqi stopped and stared at Wu Zhong for a moment: "So his best option was to confess honestly, but unfortunately he won't shed a tear until he sees the coffin."

"What? You sympathize with him? You saw how arrogant he was. Mercenaries of this caliber are cold-blooded and ruthless, and they don't deserve any sympathy."

Wu remained silent.

Lu Guangqi led him out of passage B12 and back to passage A02.

Area A was clearly the staff's living area, where the previous team members were all. Lu Guangqi first took Wu Zhong to take a shower and change his clothes, and all his belongings were taken away.

Afterwards, Wu Zhong was arranged to stay in a clean suite with a toilet and a bathroom. It was a one-bedroom apartment and very clean, even better than his own home, except that there was no internet.

"The cafeteria we just passed is open 24 hours a day, you can go there to eat anytime."

"You can move freely in the entire A02 area. If you need anything, you can directly find Gu Yue, yes, that's him."

Lu Guangqi pointed to the firefighter who had previously sketched the Night Wanderer at lightning speed, gave him some instructions, and then left.

Wu Zhong sat on the bed in a daze. Too much had happened today; he needed to calm down.

After thinking for a while, he felt extremely sleepy. He hadn't slept well yesterday, nor today; he was simply too tired.

Since he was already there, he decided to make the best of it and lay down immediately. He fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow and slept soundly through the night without any dreams.

……

　P.S.: Sorry. Yes, it's 985. I can't use 925 directly; it doesn't sound right.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)