140: The tunnel's epitaph

"He's lost too much blood! The Coagulant can't even plug the wound from that Pulse Rifle!"

In the noisy Garbage Disposal Station, Reno's voice trembled with extreme anger and helplessness.

Heishan lay on the cold metal floor, the rise and fall of his chest so weak it was almost invisible. Every breath he took sounded like a worn-out bellows, bringing out a hissing sound of bloody froth.

"Boss... Brother Reno..." Heishan used all his strength to grab Reno's arm, his eyes already beginning to lose focus. "Don't... don't worry about me... I'm... I'm a burden..."

"Shut the hell up!" Reno's eyes were bloodshot as he growled at him. "I said I'd bring every one of you back! Not one left behind!"

"You can't bring me back..." Heishan smiled weakly. "Listen to me... leave me behind..."

"I said shut up!"

Chen Feng did not join the argument; he just stared fixedly at the wrist terminal, where the map Lao Mo had just sent was already stained with a large patch of red.

Footsteps and scanning beams from outside were rapidly approaching.

"Maintenance Tunnel." Chen Feng's voice was cold and devoid of emotion as he pointed to an inconspicuous mark on the map. "Go down from here and use the complex terrain to lose them. That's a blind spot for ground unit surveillance; it's our only way out."

His gaze swept over Heishan on the ground and then landed on Reno.

There was no sympathy in that look, only the coldest calculation and resolve.

Reno understood what Chen Feng meant. His whole body shuddered, and his lips trembled, but he couldn't say a single word... The tunnel was dark and damp, with unknown slime seeping from the walls, and the air was filled with the stench of rust mixed with mold.

With every step, Heishan's condition worsened. His body grew heavier, and his breathing became lighter.

"Brother Reno..."

At a fork in the road, Heishan could go no further and slid down against the wall.

"I really... can't make it..." He panted heavily, yet a smile of relief graced his face. "Listen to me... one last time..."

Reno knelt down, gritting his teeth hard, and did not speak.

"Please... tell my wife and kid back on Ashen Earth Star..." Heishan's voice was as faint as a mosquito's buzz. "Tell them their man, their father... died like a warrior... I didn't shame you..."

Reno looked at this brother who had scavenged for food in the mines with him since they were kids, been whipped by Supervisors together, and followed Chen Feng to carve out a bloody path. The bloodshot veins in his eyes looked ready to burst.

Finally, he slowly released his hold on Heishan.

He didn't speak, but simply reached out and heavily patted Heishan on the shoulder.

Once, twice, three times.

Like a final farewell.

Heishan smiled, and on that face covered in blood and dust, a brilliant smile appeared.

Trembling, he reached into the massive backpack behind him, pulled out the team's last and most powerful Heavy Remote Bomb, and pressed it into Reno's hand.

"For me... kill a few more of those bastards..."

Chen Feng gave him a deep look without saying anything. He just pulled at Eve, who was standing there in a daze, and turned to Reno: "Let's go."

Reno gripped the bomb's detonator tightly in his hand, turned, and led the last soldier away, retreating into the depths of the tunnel without looking back.

The footsteps grew closer.

Heishan stayed at the fork alone, leaning against the cold wall, watching as the figures of the pursuers appeared around the corner of the tunnel like ghosts.

The smile on his face did not fade.

"Come on... you bastards..."

In the next second, he pressed the spare detonator hidden on his person.

The violent explosion was like an angry underground dragon, instantly swallowing him and the first wave of Alliance Agents who rushed in. The entire tunnel shook violently, and countless rocks and metal pipes crashed down, completely sealing the path behind them.

The shockwave of the explosion came from behind, making Chen Feng's combat suit flutter loudly.

Reno stopped, turned around, and toward the direction they came from—toward that patch of completely buried darkness—he gave a silent, standard military salute.

There wasn't a single tear on his face, but the fire burning in his eyes was more resolute and colder than ever before.

"Boss," Reno lowered his hand, his voice terrifyingly calm. "Let's go."

They continued deeper into the tunnel, their grief suppressed to the limit and transformed into a silent murderous intent.

However, when they rounded a massive ventilation pipe, the sight before them made everyone stop in their tracks.

Ahead, large swathes of thick, foul-smelling white organic matter covered the area, resembling a giant spider's nest.

"Chen Feng! Run!" Lao Mo's panicked voice exploded from the terminal. "Detecting powerful, non-human biological signals rapidly approaching from ahead! More than one!"

Everyone immediately raised their guns.

However, a voice that made their skin crawl rang out slowly from behind the shadows of the webbing.

That voice was full of morbid ecstasy and perverted obsession.

"Found you..."

Aris Thorne appeared from behind the webbing like a phantom, his white research lab coat stained with blood, and the eyes behind his glasses flashing with a manic light.

"Look what I've found? My perfect, moving, bleeding paradox of an artwork!"

He spread his arms as if showcasing his masterpiece.

Behind him, several monsters stitched together from twisted flesh and hideous machinery crawled out of the webbing, snarling, with shredded Alliance Agent uniforms still hanging from their bodies.

They completely blocked the path ahead.

"Now..." Aris greedily licked his lips, looking at the horrified Chen Feng and Eve, "no one can disturb our 'exchange' anymore."