20: Chapter 10 Frozen Files

The air in the depths of the cave seemed frozen, pressing heavily on Lin Feng and Ling Yue's shoulders. The sweet, hallucinogenic scent of spores seemed to have faded significantly, replaced by an old, cold scent of metal and cryogen, mixed with a deeper, indescribable sense of decay.

The information from "The Engineer" acted like an invisible hand, pushing them deeper into this unknown danger. Explore "Cryo-Archive-7"? Search for clues about the "Genesis" project? This sounded like voluntarily jumping into the mouth of a giant beast that had just bared its fangs.

But as Ling Yue said, they had no way back. The passage behind them might have been sealed by "Razor" or the authorities, and the unknown ahead, while dangerous, might also hold The Key to breaking the stalemate.

The two followed the direction pointed out by the residual shadow, proceeding even more cautiously. The passage gradually became more orderly; rusted metal panels and long-dimmed embedded light strips began to appear on the walls, and the soft fungal mat underfoot was replaced by cold metal grating floors. The traces of human activity here were becoming increasingly obvious.

＞ ＞ Architecture Style: Pre-Sky Curtain Era. Industrial-Utility Grade. Significant Deterioration.

＞ ＞ Energy Readings: Concentrating Ahead. Source: Low-Power Standby Systems.

They were deep in the belly of a large facility from the old era.

Finally, the passage came to an end. A huge, thick, circular alloy door blocked their path. There were no obvious markings or keyholes on the door, only a complex geometric interface device with a dark crystal-like substance embedded in the center. It looked neither mechanical nor electronic, and its surface was covered in thick dust, but one could vaguely feel an extremely faint energy flow.

＞ ＞ Analysis: Biometric/Cognitive Lock Interface. Ultra-High Security. Power: Minimal Maintenance Level.

＞ ＞ Lock Status: Sealed. Bypass Probability: Extremely Low (Without Specific The Key/Authorization).

"Damn, a top-level biometric cognitive lock!" Ling Yue cursed in a low voice, using her new mechanical fingers to wipe the dust off the surface of the interface device, revealing the complex and delicate structure underneath. "With this kind of antique, forcing our way in might trigger the ultimate purge protocol and destroy everything inside."

She tried to connect a data probe from her mechanical arm to the auxiliary port next to the interface, but the screen was filled with garbled code. "It won't work. The protocols are completely incompatible, like languages from two different eras."

Lin Feng looked at the complex interface, subconsciously focusing his mind. ＞ ＞ Attempting Interface Analysis... He tried to have the "Source" System parse it.

＞ ＞ Scanning... Pattern Recognized: Faint Resonance with "Source" Core Protocols.

＞ ＞ Hypothesis: This Lock May Respond to "Source" Energy Signature.

＞ ＞ Warning: Attempting Unauthorized Access May Trigger Unknown Countermeasures.

The "Source" System actually recognized a faint resonance? It thought this lock might react to its energy signature? But this was extremely risky!

Just as Lin Feng was hesitating about whether to try—

Click... Hum...

An extremely faint mechanical operating sound, which definitely did not belong to the two of them, came vaguely from deep inside the door!

The two froze instantly, holding their breath.

The sound lasted for a few seconds, then fell silent again, as if some long-dormant system had been slightly disturbed by their arrival, turned over, and continued to sleep.

"There is something inside... still operating?" Lin Feng felt a chill.

Ling Yue's expression was grave. She pressed her ear against the cold door panel and listened carefully. After a moment, she shook her head: "I can't hear it anymore. It might have been some low-power circulation system maintained by the backup power that was activated."

She took a few steps back and looked at the giant door and the surrounding walls: "If hard force won't work, we have to find another way. Such large facilities usually have maintenance passages or emergency exhaust ducts."

The two began to search carefully on the nearby walls and floor separately. The walls were mostly monolithic cast alloy, seamless. Some of the metal gratings on the floor were loose, but underneath there seemed to be a deep space filled with thick pipelines, not a passage.

＞ ＞ Thermal Scan: Detecting Faint Airflow from Grating G-12 (Southeast Corner). Temperature Differential: Slight.

The ability captured a faint airflow and temperature difference from a grating in the southeast corner!

Lin Feng immediately called Ling Yue over. Together, they pried open the heavy grating with their tools, revealing a vertical maintenance shaft that only allowed one person to crawl through. The shaft walls were covered with old cables and grease stains, and a colder, rust-scented air poured out from it.

"I'll go down and check." Ling Yue took the lead, holding her energy pistol in her mouth, and her new mechanical hand grabbed the cables on the shaft wall, sliding down flexibly.

A few minutes later, her voice came from below, with a hint of suppressed excitement: "Come down! I found something!"

Lin Feng followed closely. The shaft was not deep, and the bottom connected to a narrow horizontal maintenance passage filled with various pipes and valves. Ling Yue was standing at the end of the passage, where a metal wall panel seemed to have rusted and fallen off due to disrepair, revealing a dark space behind it.

Through the gap, one could see a huge, circular hall inside. In the center of the hall, dozens or even hundreds of cylindrical devices, resembling giant metal capsules, were neatly arranged! Their surfaces were covered with white frost, connected by dense pipelines, standing quietly under the dim emergency lights, like a futuristic phalanx of coffins. The air was filled with an intense, low-temperature chill.

＞ ＞ Environment: Cryogenic Preservation Chamber. Temperature: Extremely Low. Energy Signature: Stable (Low-Power).

＞ ＞ Capsules: Status - Mostly Standby. Vital Signs: None (Detected in Units).

Cryogenic preservation chamber! Most of the capsules were in standby mode, and no vital signs were detected inside!

Was this "Cryo-Archive-7"?

The two squeezed in through the gap, the cold air instantly making them break out in goosebumps. The hall was disturbingly empty, with only the faint humming of low-temperature equipment running. They walked cautiously toward those cold capsules.

The capsules were made of high-strength composite transparent material, filled with condensed mist inside, but one could vaguely see that inside every capsule, a figure was frozen! They were wearing uniform, old-fashioned gray-white uniforms, their faces serene (or rather, solidified), as if they were asleep, but the "Source" System's scan confirmed that they had long lost all signs of life.

＞ ＞ Cause of Death: Analysis Difficult. Pattern: Uniform Cellular Stasis Followed by Systemic Shutdown. Time of Death: Estimated 40-50 Years Ago.

The cause of death was difficult to analyze, the pattern uniform: they had experienced systemic functional shutdown after some kind of uniform cellular stasis. The time of death was approximately forty to fifty years ago.

These people... were they collectively frozen and then "shut down" at the same time?

Lin Feng felt an inexplicable sadness and fear. This was no archive; it was clearly a graveyard!

Ling Yue's gaze quickly swept over the nameplates on the surface of the capsules and the dust-covered data interface on the console next to them. "They are all researchers and security personnel of the "Genesis" project... Why were they collectively frozen here? And who executed the "shutdown" program?"

She tried to connect a portable reader to the console, but she also encountered protocol compatibility issues, and progress was slow.

Lin Feng strolled among these cold capsules, feeling heavy-hearted. Suddenly, his gaze was drawn to an independent, seemingly higher-spec capsule at the deepest part of the hall. It was slightly separated from the other capsules, and there was less frost on its surface, as if it were maintaining a different temperature.

He walked over involuntarily.

The control panel of this capsule seemed more complex, and there was an independent data access port next to it that required a physical The Key to open. And what made his heart beat even faster was—in the gap of the access port, something seemed to be stuck!

It was a small, metal object that looked like an old-fashioned USB flash drive or data key, and one end was still flashing an extremely faint, almost extinguished blue indicator light!

＞ ＞ Detecting : Active Data Storage Device . Encryption : Unknown . Power : ＜ 3% . Contents : Partial Data Streams Labeled " Genesis _ Project _ Omega _ Logs " .

An active data storage device! Inside were partial Data Streams labeled "Genesis Project - Omega Logs"! Power was below 3%, and it was about to fail completely!

Lin Feng's heart hammered against his chest! This could be The Key!

He reached out, carefully trying to extract the data key.

Just as his fingers were about to touch the metallic surface—

Beep-beep-beep—!!!!

A shrill, piercing alarm, completely different from the low hum of the cryogenic equipment, exploded from the broadcast system at the top of the hall! Red rotating warning lights suddenly flared, bathing the entire cryogenic hall in a blood-red glow!

＞ ＞ Intrusion Alert Triggered ! Security System Awakening !

＞ ＞ Defense Protocols Initializing : Internal Blast Doors , Non - Lethal Neuro - Inhibitor Gas ( Estimated Deployment : 60s )

"Damn it! What did you trigger?!" Ling Yue snapped her head up and roared at Lin Feng, instantly stowing her reader and raising her energy pistol again!

"I don't know! I just saw this..." Lin Feng was also flustered; subconsciously, he yanked the data key out and stuffed it into his pocket.

"Forget about that! Find an exit, quickly!" Ling Yue had already rushed toward the breach they had entered through, but almost simultaneously!

Rumble! Bang! Bang!

The heavy internal blast doors around the hall began to descend rapidly, sealing off all exits! The maintenance passage breach they had come through was also completely blocked by a thick gate that suddenly dropped from above!

The only exit was blocked! Neuro-inhibitor gas was about to be released!

"It's over!" Ling Yue's face turned pale. She tried to shoot the hinges of the gate with her energy pistol, but it only left a few shallow melt marks—it was completely useless!

Despair washed over Lin Feng. Were they going to be trapped here to death, becoming new members among these frozen corpses?

Just at this critical juncture—

Szzzt—Bang!

The cover of a ventilation duct in a certain area at the top of the hall was suddenly kicked open from the inside by a tremendous force! A tall figure, accompanied by swirling dust, descended rapidly while gripping a rope, like a god descending from the heavens!

It was Lei Kun!

He landed with a roll to absorb the momentum, not pausing for a second. His right hand had already pulled a device that looked like a giant tuning fork from his tactical backpack and slammed it into the ground!

"Cover your ears!" He roared at the stunned pair and activated the device!

Wuuuuummm————！！！！

An invisible but extremely intense directional low-frequency shockwave burst outward from the device!

The alarm speakers and red lights at the top of the hall instantly sparked and went out one after another! The nozzles about to spray the neuro-inhibitor gas twisted and misfired! The entire security system seemed to be "stunned" by the roar in an instant, falling into temporary paralysis!

"This way! Quick!" Lei Kun pulled out the device and pointed to the ventilation duct opening he had descended from, speaking rapidly, "This thing won't last long!"

A narrow escape!

Lin Feng and Ling Yue did not hesitate at all and rushed toward the duct opening at top speed. Lei Kun hoisted Ling Yue up first, then shoved Lin Feng up as well, before finally grabbing the rope and climbing up agilely himself.

Just as they crawled into the ventilation duct, an even shriller alarm from the security system recovering its functions and the humming sound of some energy weapon charging came from below!

"Go!" Lei Kun growled and led the way, crawling rapidly through the narrow duct.

The three of them scrambled for their lives along the winding ducts. They didn't know how long it had been, but it wasn't until the alarms behind them were almost inaudible that Lei Kun signaled for them to stop and rest. In the darkness, only their heavy, ragged breathing remained.

"How... how did you find us?" Lin Feng asked, breathless and incredulous.

Lei Kun's voice sounded in the darkness, steady as ever but tinged with a hint of fatigue: "Wrench hacked into the low-level monitoring logs here (though most of them were broken) and saw your last position before you triggered the alarm. I happened to be checking another exit nearby, so I snuck in." He paused, "Next time, ask before you touch unknown things."

Lin Feng felt a wave of lingering fear and embarrassment.

"Where's the item?" Ling Yue was more concerned with the actual gain; she looked at Lin Feng.

Lin Feng remembered and hurriedly pulled the data key that had almost cost them their lives out of his pocket. The faint blue indicator light had turned a dangerous red, and its flashing frequency had become extremely unstable.

＞ ＞ Device Power : ＜ 1% . Data Integrity at Risk .

"Power is below 1%! The data might be lost!" Lin Feng said urgently.

Ling Yue snatched The Key and took out her own device, trying to connect and read it, but the interface was still incompatible! "Damn it! The protocol is too old!"

Just as she was extremely anxious, Lin Feng subconsciously reached out and grasped the data key.

＞ ＞ Detecting Critical Data Storage Device .

＞ ＞ Attempting Emergency Data Retrieval via Direct " Source " Energy Interface ...

＞ ＞ Warning : May Cause Irreversible Device Damage . Proceed ?

The "Source" System could attempt a direct read?! But it might completely destroy the device!

"Quick! There's no time!" Ling Yue urged.

＞ ＞ Proceed !

Lin Feng focused all his intent! A faint energy fluctuation surged from his palm, injecting into the data key!

The Key suddenly became scalding hot, its red light flashing frantically!

＞ ＞ Reading ... Data Stream Corrupted ... Reconstructing Fragments ...

＞ ＞ Retrieved : Text Logs ( Partial ) , Image Files ( Damaged ) , Schematic ( Incomplete ) ...

＞ ＞ Transferring to Local Buffer ...

＞ ＞ Warning : Device Failure Imminent !

Snap! With a soft sound, the data key in Lin Feng's hand dimmed completely and turned cold, with even a fine crack appearing on its surface. It was completely wrecked.

But at the same time, a massive amount of fragmented and chaotic data flooded into Lin Feng's vision, rapidly received and cached by the "Source" System!

He had succeeded! But he had also failed—the data was incomplete!

"How is it?" Ling Yue asked eagerly.

Lin Feng closed his eyes, struggling to sort through the fragmented information stream in his mind. Blurred text logs, flickering images, incomplete schematics...

"...'Genesis'... wasn't an ecological experiment..." He repeated intermittently, cold sweat seeping from his forehead due to the immense pressure of processing the information, "It was... a forbidden project of consciousness uploading... and bio-mechanical fusion... They seemed to have... discovered some kind of underlying vulnerability in 'Sky Curtain'... and wanted to create... 'New Humans'..."

"Epsilon Series samples... weren't mutations... they were successful products... but they... possessed some kind of... collective consciousness... and began... reverse-assimilating the researchers..."

"The shutdown procedure... was automatically triggered... because... containment failed... to prevent the Epsilon Series... from contacting the outside world..."

"...But the logs mentioned... there was an... 'Omega Vault'... hidden in... the deeper levels of the facility... inside there might be... the project's... raw data and... 'The Key'..."

The information was fragmented, yet enough to make one's heart race!

Consciousness uploading! Bio-mechanical fusion! Creating new humans! Collective consciousness! These concepts were far beyond Lin Feng's imagination!

Ling Yue's breathing also became rapid, her eyes flashing with extreme excitement and shock: "The underlying vulnerability of 'Sky Curtain'... 'The Key'... Could the core algorithm of project legacy be sourced from here?! From this failed 'Genesis' project?!"

Just the moment she finished speaking—

Hum...

An extremely faint vibration, definitely not coming from any of their three devices, transmitted simultaneously from the duct walls beneath them!

Immediately after, a cold, distorted whisper that seemed to be formed by the layering of countless voices sounded directly in the depths of their minds, carrying a chilling... curiosity and... hunger:

"Mo... re..."

"Tell... us... mo... re..."

"...The... out... side... world..."

The voice was ethereal and erratic, yet it seemed to come from all directions—from the metal beneath their feet, from the darkness above their heads!

It was those things that "lived in the walls"! The Epsilon Series' collective consciousness! They could actually transmit information through the metal structure, and even intrude directly into their thoughts?! They had heard the conversation just now and had developed an interest in the "outside world"?!

The three of them instantly had their hair stand on end, freezing in place, their breathing almost stopping!

Lei Kun gripped the shotgun in his hand tightly, his eyes sharp as a hawk's, scanning the endless darkness ahead and behind in the duct.

Ling Yue's face was pale as paper, her new mechanical hand trembling slightly.

Lin Feng felt a cold fear clench his heart.

They had just peered into the secrets of the abyss.

And now,

The abyss,

seemed to have noticed them too.