169: Section 169

Unfortunately, there are no "what-ifs."

4068 walked into the Law Enforcement Office, and all the way in, he didn't encounter a single guard.

4068 continued forward when he suddenly heard a voice.

"Lord Leader, according to the news we've received, both Jing Yuan and Mark are currently on The Surface, along with the main force of the Wasteland Hunters. It's said that Jing Yuan and Mark are accompanying the Ground People on a mission. Now is the perfect time for us to act!"

"No rush. We must be fully prepared! If Jing Yuan returns to the Lighthouse, we must have a way to deal with him!"

4068 was shocked to hear this conversation.

He didn't recognize the first person's voice, but the second one was clearly Charles's.

He ventured deeper, poked his head out, and looked inside.

He saw Charles still sitting in the cell, having regained his usual composure and wearing his exclusive Leader uniform.

Outside the iron gate stood a man dressed in a black robe.

Seeing this scene, 4068 knew that someone was trying to break Charles out.

4068 began to hesitate whether to leave immediately and report this to the Wasteland Hunters.

If he succeeded in reporting it, it might be a great achievement.

But if he didn't, Charles would surely cause trouble once he got out this time.

If the Lighthouse fell back into chaos, could he gain some benefits from it?

Just as 4068 was still hesitating, a gun barrel was pointed at his head.

"Who are you?" the gunman asked 4068.

4068 quickly raised his hands and said, "I... I'm here to deliver a meal to the Lord Leader!"

It turned out there was more than one person in a black robe.

"What's happening?" Charles also heard the commotion outside.

"Lord Leader, it's a Dust Citizen delivering food."

"Bring him in!"

The black-robed man brought 4068 inside. Charles looked at him and smiled slightly. "It's you! You're actually still alive!"

"Lord Leader!"

"Ah, right! It must have been that little girlfriend of yours who pleaded for you!"

4068 lowered his head; he thought so too.

Charles laughed. "You're not bad. You lost a woman but saved your life. However, even if you survived, is there still a place for you on this Lighthouse?"

4068 grit his teeth. Now that he was a Dust Citizen, he was at the very lowest tier.

He stared at 4068 and asked, "Now that you've discovered our business, do you want to go out and report it? Or... stay and join us?"

4068 glanced at Charles. Would he really let him leave?

Moreover, Charles was right. There was no place for him on the Lighthouse now. Following Charles was his only chance to change his fate!

No matter what, it was worth a gamble!

4068 immediately knelt. "Lord Leader, I am willing to serve you!"

"Good!" Charles stood up and looked at 4068 through the iron bars of the cell.

At this moment, it seemed as if 4068 was the one inside the cell.

"Forget that Dust Citizen girlfriend of yours! Once we succeed, you can choose any Dust Citizen woman you want. Even if you want an Upper Citizen woman, I can satisfy you!"

4068 looked up, his eyes filled with a desire for power.

"Very good!" Charles loved seeing that look.

As long as they were filled with desire for power, they would do anything for it.

"I have something I need you to do! With your status as a Dust Citizen, it couldn't be more perfect!"

... Chapter 172: Abyss Depther

Dressed as a janitor, 4068 arrived at Dr. Carrie's Ecology Research Institute.

At this point, 4068 finally understood why Charles was using him.

What Charles valued was not 4068 himself, but his status as a Dust Citizen.

Dust Citizens were truly like dust on the Lighthouse.

Even if he was 4068, the one who had backstabbed the Lighthouse's strongest warrior, Jing Yuan!

Yet as he walked down the street, truly no one cared.

On the Lighthouse, a kind of habitual thinking had truly formed. Who would take a Dust Citizen seriously?

4068 walked boldly into the Ecology Laboratory and began to clean.

At this time, there was no one in the laboratory.

The words Charles had just spoken to him surfaced in 4068's mind.

"To deal with Jing Yuan, our strength alone is not enough. We need a weapon!"

"I heard that years ago, Morgan seized an armor set from the Ground People called... the Abyss Depther!"

"Not long ago, Morgan had Victor send the Abyss Depther to Dr. Carrie and told her to restart the Abyss Depther Project."

"I want you to go to the Ecology Research Institute and find the lin yuan zhe armor as well as all of Carrie's research on it."

4068 looked around while he cleaned.

Suddenly, Carrie and her assistant walked out of the inner laboratory.

Carrie said to her assistant, "Mark and Jing Yuan go down to The Surface every day; why won't they let me go?"

"Jing Nan replied that it's because the cooperation regarding ecology research hasn't been settled with the Ground People yet. With your personality, if you go down, I'm afraid..."

"Afraid of what?"

"Afraid of creating unnecessary misunderstandings!"

"Hmph!" Carrie was very angry. "Come on, follow me to find Jing Nan. I must go down to The Surface today! If they won't let me, I'll jump down myself!"

Carrie was also fuming. Ever since she learned of the Ground People's existence, she had wanted to go to The Surface to study how they survived there.

But Mark strictly limited who could go down to The Surface.

And Carrie had not been granted permission to go down.

She had applied multiple times, but none were approved.

"Dr. Carrie!"

Carrie walked past 4068. 4068 greeted her politely, but Carrie didn't notice there was a person there at all.

To her, 4068 was like thin air.

4068 grit his teeth, watched Carrie leave, and then continued searching the laboratory.

Finally, in the innermost laboratory, he saw a humanoid creature.

"What is this? A Phage Beast?"

4068 had never seen the lin yuan zhe armor, so when he saw the armor, he mistook it for a creature or a Phage Beast.

He glanced to the side and saw a computer containing research logs.

After reading the research logs, 4068 realized that this was indeed the lin yuan zhe armor.

Unlike ordinary gravity body armor, this set was smaller but had a more hideous appearance.

gravity body armor could be recognized as a product of technology at a glance.

But the armor before him looked more like a living creature.

If not for the research logs, 4068 would never have guessed this was the lin yuan zhe armor.

But as he continued reading, a chill ran up his spine.

In the research logs, there was a scene of Carrie experimenting on living people.

A Dust Citizen suffering from xinghong disease entered the lin yuan zhe armor. Before long, the armor vibrated, and a mist of blood erupted from its back.

This scene left 4068 pale with fright.

4068's first reaction was: this armor... eats people!

In the logs, Carrie's conclusion was that there was a rejection reaction inside the armor.

Carrie suggested needing a healthy living subject for the experiment, but Morgan did not agree after learning of the results.

4068 knew that Jing Yuan was extremely powerful and couldn't be dealt with by ordinary means.

But even if this lin yuan zhe armor was formidable, it was just a piece of scrap metal if it couldn't be used.