Ark Chess Player.

"Wuhu... Take off."

Lin Lu whistled, sincerely hoping that Mephisto was afraid of heights, so that next time they could use the Fulton balloon without the system on him. It wasn't just about the visual experience; being able to experience it firsthand would surely be an extremely enjoyable thing.

Soon the Fulton balloon rose into the air and disappeared from Lin Lu's sight, leaving only a bright white spot of fuel spray.

Unable to use his spiritual domain, Lin Lu's eyesight was worse than he had imagined; being able to see things clearly was already his limit. Furthermore, the surrounding area was stained with flames and smoke, further limiting his visibility, and the sky was shrouded in even deeper darkness by the thick smoke.

Even so, Lin Lu was able to imagine in his mind what the monster was about to face.

In the world of Terra, where aviation is not well-developed, many people believe that the hot weather is caused by sunlight and subconsciously think that the higher the altitude, the hotter it is. However, this statement is not entirely accurate.

The upper atmosphere is divided into different layers, with the troposphere being the lowest layer and closest to the Earth's surface.

The main heat source of the troposphere is radiant heat from the Earth's surface. As altitude increases, this radiant heat gradually decreases, making the troposphere cooler at higher altitudes. Above the troposphere lies the stratosphere, whose main heat source is ozone. Ozone absorbs solar radiation and warms up, resulting in increasing temperature as you ascend through the stratosphere.

However, the atmospheric heat sources in the mesosphere, thermosphere, and exosphere change further upwards, so it's not as simple as the residents of Terra think.

This knowledge existed in Lin Lü's mind, stemming from the knowledge and experience he gained as a researcher in the past.

In the world of Terra, Originium energy is practically the lifeblood, controlling the development of modern industry. Weapons, equipment, defensive machinery, and even the power engines of mobile cities all rely on this mineral.

Therefore, Terra's scientific research development is abnormal, yet it has its own unique development pattern.

Deprived of the Fulton System's navigation, the Fulton balloon, propelled by Originium fuel, had already reached an altitude of 5,000 meters and was still rapidly ascending, having long since crossed the forbidden zone for humans. Frost rapidly spread across the monster's charred surface, but thanks to its own resilience, this level of cold was not enough to kill it.

but……

Friend, have you ever heard of thermal expansion and contraction?

Under Lin Lu's relentless bombardment and the ever-increasing temperature, coupled with Jeanne d'Arc's fiery cage that constantly intensified the heat... the monster's heat was already in an extremely terrifying state, to the point that Lin Lu dared not touch it directly with his hands or even stomp on it, lest the soles of his shoes melt the instant he stepped on it.

It goes without saying what would happen under such temperatures with continuous and rapid cooling.

"Boom."

Lin Lu pursed his lips and made a playful onomatopoeic sound.

The monster, high in the sky, exploded completely from the inside out.

The flawless ultimate biological researcher stopped thinking.

Chapter 204 New Dragon Gate Police Story (4K)

"Speaking of which, how do I get down?"

Lin Lu looked up at the night sky, fell into deep thought, and began to question the meaning of life.

The entire Lungmen Administrative Building was ablaze. He dragged himself to the edge of the collapsed wall and looked down into the thick, blackened fog.

Wow... it really is hot pot.

Lin Lu had previously brought the fire in the administrative building under control. Even during the powerful earthquake, he was still able to halt the flames with the might of the Dragon Witch, buying time for those below to escape. But that was all; the truth could not be hidden forever. The moment he lost consciousness, a torrent of fire descended from the sky.

Firefighters from the Lungmen Fire Department are working hard to contain the fire and prevent it from spreading to other areas, while officers from the Guard Bureau are maintaining control of the scene to prevent anyone with malicious intent from adding fuel to the fire.

Lin Lu's efforts paid off. When the Lungmen Administrative Office encountered an emergency, nearly a third of the Guard Bureau members stationed on the outer ring of Lungmen came to the scene. If Mephisto's conspiracy were allowed to succeed, the Guard Bureau's strength would be greatly reduced, and the cooperation mission between Rhodes Island and Lungmen would jump directly from "very difficult" to "hahaha" level difficulty.

"Mephisto..."

If we had killed him back in Chernobog, none of this would have happened, right?

In Chernobog, Mephisto treated Reunion soldiers as pawns and the battle as a game of chess, demonstrating considerable command ability.

If it weren't for Lin Lu's unique tactical command skills, his ability to use his data-driven spiritual domain to detect the enemy's troop deployment and predict their intentions... perhaps the rescue team would have been defeated by the Reunion Movement soldiers who outnumbered them by more than three times.

Moreover, the Reunion Movement's invasion of Lungmen tonight also reveals Mephisto's ambition.

Whether it's tying down most of the Lungmen Guard's manpower in the wealthy area or completely exploiting these soldiers as tools, it's clear how despicable Mephisto's tactics are. He treats human lives as part of his human resources; these infected are nothing more than numbers to him. Even if he can't conquer Lungmen, they can be turned into human bombs to wear down the Lungmen Guard's manpower and solve the Reunion Movement's current situation of having too many people and lacking food and supplies.

It was truly... a plan as innocent as a child's, a scheme as ruthless as a devil's.

"Indeed, to catch the thief, you must first catch the king."

Lin Lu sighed and slowly leaned his shoulder against the scorching wall. Even though his coat was quite fire-resistant, he still felt the heat... but if he didn't do this, he worried he might accidentally fall. Even if he didn't die from the fall, the process of reverting from a puddle of mud to human form would probably scare the people at the Lungmen Fire Department to death.

Mephisto had foreseen this: to catch the thief, first catch the king. The two earth-shattering events that occurred in succession at the Lungmen Administrative Hall were not coincidences, but retaliatory strikes against Lungmen and Rhodes Island. If either Wei Yanwu or Lin Lu fell, the likelihood of Lungmen falling would increase dramatically.

Currently, there are monsters on the foundation of the Lungmen Administrative Hall that are no less powerful than the ultimate biological researchers. Lin Lu can roughly deduce the reason for this possibility.

—The officers of the Konoebu (Bureau of Imperial Guards) must not have taken proper isolation measures when transporting the bodies of infected individuals from the Reunion Movement. Even though Inspector Chen and Hoshiguma had repeatedly emphasized this point, they still failed to execute the orders flawlessly.

The Lungmen Guard Bureau is roughly divided into several factions and factions, each vying for power, with none able to command the others.

This is why, when Lin Lu was in charge of military command, he repeatedly emphasized that there could only be one commander's voice on the battlefield.

Even if he falls, Amiya will take command.

If Amiya falls, command will be handed over to the next person; until then, everyone must obey the orders of the single commander. In squad-based missions, this is the most effective and robust command system. It's simple and brutal; unless everyone is down, the enemy's decapitation strikes are merely a formality.

On the other hand, judging from the disastrous performance of the Lungmen Guard Bureau tonight, even Inspector Chan, the head of the special inspection team, was not in control of her own destiny. Otherwise, she wouldn't have been tied down in the wealthy area to the point of being unable to move. With her foresight, how could she not have seen that this was a trap deliberately set by the enemy?

"I'm not afraid of god-like opponents, but I'm afraid of pig-like teammates."

Lin Lu sighed again, feeling a sense of helplessness, like a professional player unable to carry a bronze-level player.

If Rhodes Island didn't genuinely need a special item from Lungmen, he would have had the urge to take his people to develop elsewhere.

You can discuss business anywhere.

The key is who to talk to, how to talk to them, and what to talk about.

"who is it?!"

A faint sound came from behind him, and Lin Lu dragged himself around to look.

Even though Lin Lu is unable to activate his spiritual domain, he can still perceive his surroundings through his senses.

So, who could this third party be in such an unattractive place?

“…Amiya?”

At the edge of Lin Lu's blurry vision, the outline of a pair of rabbit ears appeared.

Lin Lu, who immediately thought of Amiya upon seeing rabbit ears, couldn't help but nervously walk towards her, her brows furrowed with worry.

"Amiya, it's so dangerous here, how did you get up here—wait?"

Lin Lu sensed something was amiss and promptly stopped in his tracks.

He gazed intently at the girl from the thick fog, let out a helpless sigh, and shook his head deeply.

"No, you're not Amiya... Amiya isn't nearly as good-looking as you! Don't look down on me!"

"..."

The girl from Carter's, with purple hair and gray eyes, silently watched Lin Lu. She was wearing a black fireproof suit, a gas mask, and goggles.

"You... are... the... commander those people were talking about...?" She seemed to say something, but her voice was muffled by the gas mask. After all, not everyone except Lin Lu could withstand a fire of this magnitude.

"Forget it, I'll just pack it up and take it with me. Even if I take it to the wrong person, I can still exchange it for some Lungmen Dollars."

The girl from Carter gave up asking questions; the only person still alive in her field of vision was the hooded man in front of her.

The task she was given was to break into this building, a place she would never have dared to dream of before, where even stepping into the doorway would result in her being arrested as a suspicious suspect by the Guard Bureau officers.

But she never expected that this anchor, firmly planted in the outer ring of Longmen, would one day be pulled away.

The slum's criminal underworld will probably celebrate this, right? After all, because of this building, a lot of the Guard Bureau's police force has been dispatched here, leaving these villains with nowhere to start. And because of this, many people like her, who are forced to do unfortunate things just to survive... or rather, infected people, have also been implicated.

In Lungmen, anyone with hands, feet, and a brain can make a living by working. But no matter what skills they have, those infected with Oripathy, even if they have money, will find it difficult to buy food or water in ordinary shops. If an infected person wanders into a wealthy area, there is a fifty percent chance they will disappear, and their body might be found in Lungmen's sewers a week or two later.

Even so, Lungmen is still considered a relatively friendly mobile city to infected people worldwide.

As for other cities... there's no need to say more.

"What are you doing?"

Although Lin Lu couldn't hear what the girl was muttering, he naturally wouldn't surrender obediently without being able to determine whether she was friend or foe. What if this person was from the Reunion Movement? He didn't want to open his eyes one minute and find Mephisto looking down at him, greeting him warmly, "You're awake? The surgery was a success; you're now the King of the Herd."

Why don't you try taking my bait?

The girl swung the retractable grappling hook and skillfully threw it toward the target in front of her.

"What the hell?!"

Lin Lu deftly slid in to avoid the oncoming hook device; even in his extremely weakened state, he reacted in time. The price was that the scorching ground directly and intimately transmitted heat radiation to his legs; he felt that if he had remained kneeling for another two minutes, a hooded teppanyaki grill would have been freshly made.

However, the danger is not over yet; rather, it is only the beginning.

"A double-claw grappling hook!?" Lin Lu exclaimed in surprise.

The purple-haired girl not only possessed a single hook claw, but also another hook claw lurking in the thick black fog, ready to strike at any moment.

It's important to understand the difference between mastering a single hook and being proficient with a double hook. The latter is ten times more difficult than the former; it's not as simple as one plus one. The interplay between the hook and the grappling hook will introduce various variables, significantly increasing the failure rate. Even using the same force, countless possibilities arise from different angles.

Judging from the girl's ability to wield the grappling hook and rope with ease, it would be absolutely impossible to do this without repeated and rigorous training.

Lin Lu narrowly dodged the grappling hook again. His weak body was as sluggish as a machine without lubrication. With each movement, he could hear a rustling sound coming from his bones... Well, it wasn't a rustling sound. Part of Lin Lu's skin had been charred by the smoke. Black carbon particles detached from his body during the intense movement, making a sound like sand floating and rubbing.

Unbeknownst to him, Lin Lu had become accustomed to the pain and unconsciously ignored his physical condition.

This is definitely not a good thing. Once people lose the framework of limits, they are prone to losing control.

"Oops--"

A moment of distraction caused Lin Lu to make a fatal mistake, and his rapidly depleting stamina could not keep up with the pace of the grappling hook.

The grappling hook bounced back and forth in the crumbling building, biting Lin Lu's shoulders one after another, completely suppressing his ability to move. The black rope swayed along, binding Lin Lu's body like a writhing python, tightly binding his joints, leaving his limbs without any leverage.

Lin Lu instinctively tried to break free of the ropes, but unexpectedly...

"This rope is—?!"

Before Lin Lu could even react, the purple-haired, gray-eyed Carter easily dragged Lin Lu in front of him, carefully patted his face, and wiped away the carbon black stains.

"Oh my, she's quite pretty, I like her." The girl sighed. "It's a pity that she was targeted by those ruthless bastards. You're unlucky."

"What did you say……"

"Come on, let me take you to see the goldfish."

The girl smiled slightly and led Lin Lu to the gap on the other side of the administration building.

The two looked down at the height of over 140 meters, which seemed like the entrance to hell. The sea of ​​fire at the bottom could be felt even from a height of over 100 meters.

"Are you serious?!" Lin Lu's eyes widened.

"Don't be afraid, the worst that can happen is that you delete the save file and start over. Remember to make a wish that you'd rather be a dog in your next life than an infected person."

The girl chuckled and nonchalantly tugged at the rope, leaping off, forcing the bound Lin Lu to freefall from the sky.

"Hey, hey, hey!?"

Lin Lu's eyes widened, a feeling of weightlessness spreading through his entire body, even making his spine numb. He exclaimed in surprise, "Isn't it a bad idea for someone to jump off a building and commit suicide on the first date we meet?"

"To say something like that in this situation, it seems you're not exactly a normal person... But then again, what kind of normal person doesn't even have a single Lungmen coin in their pocket?" More than a hundred meters in the air, the purple-haired girl could even grope Lin Lu, feeling for something in his pocket.

"Latland guns?! Wow, that scared me! Thank goodness it's a replica, not the real thing. Let me tell you, if you had a light bulb on your head, I might have killed you. The people of Laterano are all people you shouldn't mess with; they're incredibly vengeful, so stingy they'd chase me for three months over stealing just two hundred LMD." The girl said, still shaken, her small hand instinctively touching her face, which turned red. "You, you, you... you can get hard even in this situation?! What kind of fetish is this?! Getting tied up and thrown off a building gets you this excited?! You pervert!"

"Miss, you were just touching the belt."

"Oh, I see. Sorry, I misunderstood. I thought you were really that hard... Huh? You're lying! You were definitely aroused!"

"Whose fault do you think this is?! Stop touching it! If you keep touching it, my high-pressure water cannon, at level 2, level 90, and level 3, will explode and we'll both be swept back into the house!"

Wow, you have this much?

"How do you understand that?!"

When the joyful life of jumping off the building was about sixty meters away from the ground, the purple-haired Katniss girl put away her playful expression, and under the gas mask were serious gray eyes that had shrunk to a point.

"It's now."

The girl pulled a grappling hook from under her fireproof suit, swung her arm through the air, and threw it with perfect accuracy, catching an industrial rope coated with tactical fluorescent material. This fluorescent paint only shows its color under special lenses and is a military-grade product.

The grappling hook and cable connected perfectly, preventing the two from falling to their deaths. However, under the influence of gravity, they continued to fall several meters until the grappling hook taut. In the instant they paused in mid-air, the girl clearly felt a sharp tearing sensation in her arms, but she didn't let go. Instead, she held onto Lin Lu tightly, preventing him from falling.

"Don't struggle, it's for your own good."

The girl exhaled shakily and slid down the cable towards the rooftop of the building on the other side. This cable, spanning the two buildings, was a bridge for survival.

Lin Lu watched silently, unable to resist tilting his head back and taking a deep breath.

"Is this the set of New Dragon Gate Police Story...?"