"We've arrived."

Somewhere in the Great Desert, the elevator leading to No.13 Shelter finally came to a halt.

Based on the time and speed of the elevator's descent, Zhuang Lan silently calculated that the position beneath her feet was at least a kilometer, possibly even deeper, below the surface.

At the gate ahead, a Soldier wearing an exoskeleton pressed his arm against the wall's control panel, completing the identity verification.

"Vrrr..."

Accompanied by an earth-shaking tremor, a gap cracked open on the wall before them, slowly widening with the wall's movement, eventually revealing a path over ten meters wide.

Unbelievable.

That alloy wall was actually a seamless door!

It seems the Enlightenment Society indeed underwent quite a few changes during the time she was away...

Surprised by the changes of her old employer over the past couple of years, Zhuang Lan was secretly wary, although she didn't let the unexpected expression show on her face.

After all, at the moment her identity was Lieutenant "Marik," captain of the Desert Scorpion Spec Ops.

And prior to this, "he" had been here before.

Evidently accepting this fact, the Soldier didn't have any intention of flaunting. After completing the identity verification, he turned around to face "Marik," stood firm, and said.

"The Ministry of Internal Affairs just sent a message, they approved the information you submitted. However, regarding your experiences during the escape and the combat power of the Alliance's regular army, they still want to know some details, likely they'll contact you for an interrogation meeting."

"When?"

"In three days."

Marik looked at him expressionlessly, spreading his hands.

"Why not now? I'm idle anyway."

"We need to interrogate the guy you brought back from the Alliance first, see what we can pry from his mouth." After pausing, the Soldier continued in a relaxed tone, "Besides, you're a hero, we need to settle you in first, can't give you the same treatment as a prisoner."

It seems "Marik" has regained the trust of the Enlightenment Society.

Zhuang Lan felt a sense of relief though her facial expression remained unchanged, dutifully adhering to the character setting as she stated.

"I dare not claim credit, although the intelligence system bears half the blame, the fact that I messed up is also indisputable... Many people paid with their lives for this."

Seeing the slightly downcast Marik, the Soldier standing at the door reassured.

"Don't blame yourself, we don't judge heroes based on success or failure, capturing someone under the Alliance's ambush is already commendable... Of course, I'm sorry for your brothers' ordeal."

He was also the leader of a group of young men.

It's precisely for this reason that he understood Marik's feelings at the moment.

While the two were conversing, a tall and slender man stepped out from behind the open alloy giant door.

He was dressed in a silver-gray suit, its fabric as smooth as silk, not a speck of dust visible.

Not just his clothes, his skin was likewise, smooth and delicate like the alloy wall beside him, with a pale and flawless complexion.

Appearance was perhaps his most insignificant attribute.

His graceful and elegant gestures were akin to a butler from an aristocratic manor in the classical era, as if even the most trivial matters could be arranged methodically in his hands.

Although his appearance was no different from a real person, Zhuang Lan could tell at a glance he wasn't truly human.

But rather a cyborg.

Natural creations are bound to have flaws; only man-made things can be so pure without a trace of imperfection.

As Zhuang Lan observed him, the man standing at the door slightly nodded, speaking in a gentle tone.

"Hello Mr. Marik, I am your guide and lifestyle assistant during your stay in 'Utopia.' You may call me 'Butler.'"

"Although you've been here before, our Utopia wasn't finished at the time, and many things have changed since then."

"To help you quickly adapt to life here, I will guide you to reacquaint yourself with our home."

Zhuang Lan nodded before bidding farewell to the soldier who escorted her here, then followed behind the cyborg self-identified as "Butler."

On the way to the shelter, the cyborg continuously introduced the situation of "Utopia" to him, particularly the changes over the past year.

According to the Watcher Organization's intelligence, Marik's last visit to Utopia was a year ago, where he stayed for ten days.

To avoid revealing a flaw, Zhuang Lan didn't say much, only occasionally asking about unclear details.

After passing through a long corridor, the two arrived at a spacious underground space where a gigantic gear-shaped gate appeared before her eyes.

This gate resembled the entrance of many shelters.

The only difference was that it was not embedded in the wall but lay flat on the ground, like the lift platform of a freight elevator.

Upon discovering this, Zhuang Lan was slightly surprised.

It's hard to imagine how much energy is required to open and close this giant door just once.

The energy reserves of the Enlightenment Society might exceed the expectations of the Watcher Organization; it would be great to figure out their energy sources.

While Zhuang Lan was silently contemplating this, the gigantic gear beneath their feet began to slowly sink, and shortly after the platform descended, an arch-shaped like a tunnel entrance emerged from the nearby concrete wall.

That was the last door leading to No.13 Shelter.

Containing the excitement within her heart, Zhuang Lan walked steadily behind the "Butler," following it into the deepest core of the Enlightenment Society's secrets—

This was the "handle" of the Torch!

And also the core of the Torch Plan!

Dazzling light spilled onto the end of the alloy corridor.

And when Zhuang Lan finally passed through that final tunnel, everything that came into view did not disappoint her; it even shocked her, leaving her stunned on the spot.

The scenery suddenly opened up!

The space expanded geometrically, making one irresistibly suspect they had crossed into another world or the surface.

Towering buildings stood like natural barriers on either side of the vast space, looking up was a blue sky, and looking down was an abyss with no bottom in sight.

However, even residents living at the lowest level need not worry, as the glowing strips embedded in the exterior walls of the buildings pass the warm light all the way to the bottom of this "shelter," sharing infinite prosperity and equality with every resident living in this shelter.

Transparent tubes and bridges crisscrossed between the buildings, connecting in the middle with glistening, transparent "crystal balls."

They floated between the buildings like soap bubbles, housing the almost extinct natural landscapes of this planet, for people to admire and relax.

Long strip-shaped vehicles shuttled back and forth in the thick tubes, either delivering passengers and goods into the crystal balls embedded in the air or carrying them from one end of the shelter to the other.

It was like a city built on a volcanic crater.

Of course, this was not an actual volcanic crater, at least, the sky above was fake.

Zhuang Lan knew how long she had ridden the elevator down; the actual depth here would only be more exaggerated than her conservative estimate.

There was no doubt that the Sun emitting dazzling light was artificial.

Including the blue so clear it was hard to look away, and the clouds white as cotton...these sights were extremely rare on the Wasteland.

Without exaggeration, this world buried deep underground indeed deserved the name "Paradise."

Any Waste Land Wanderer standing here would unhesitatingly call this place heaven!

Looking at the paused "Marik," the Butler spoke in a gentle voice.

"We built this underground world according to the standards of Dream City; coming from that era, you surely know what I mean by Dream City."

Zhuang Lan nodded gently.

She knew what that was.

It was said that in the distant Prosperity Epoch, people feared the collapse of their hard-earned prosperity overnight, so they established a second home in the eternal universe.

That was Dream City.

A space habitat with artificial day and night and gravity, where it was spring all year round, a Utopia that would not wither even if the prosperous world on the surface completely declined.

If Ideal City was a reminiscence by survivors half a century ago of the beautiful times of the past, then Dream City embodied all the hopes and imaginations of people during the Prosperity Epoch towards future life.

Gazing at the closest "soap bubble," Zhuang Lan, standing by the floor-to-ceiling window, sighed after a while.

"My brothers and I eat sand in the Great Desert, never expected you guys to be enjoying this already."

This was not just Marik's sigh, but her own as well.

The Butler smiled and said,

"Because the opportunity has arrived."

"Opportunity?"

"The opportunity to enter a new era."

The Butler extended a forefinger and pointed at the transparent glass, with rings of transparent ripples spreading outward from its fingertip, the entire glass wall transformed as if into a magnifying glass, bringing the distant scenery directly to the two standing at the shelter entrance.

As the distant scenery was magnified, Zhuang Lan not only saw the people in the Park clearly but also clearly saw the smiles on their faces.

"...Thanks to the celestial beings reaching out a helping hand to us, the situation is unprecedentedly in our favor. The upper echelons have adjusted their strategy toward the Wasteland. From now on, we don't need to do anything, just wait patiently."

Zhuang Lan slightly frowned.

She had felt something strange since earlier; no one had ever mentioned the matter of reconstructing the "Desert Scorpion" to her.

"Wait for what?"

"Divine Punishment."

"...Divine Punishment?" Zhuang Lan was stunned for a moment.

"That's right."

Facing Lieutenant "Marik's" inquisitive gaze, the Butler nodded slightly and then looked toward the nearby utopia, speaking chilling words in a gentle tone.

"The flames of punishment will scorch everything from the old world, and we will gain a piece of land for recuperation in the new world... as a reward for assisting the celestial beings in their mission."

When he said this, the Butler looked at "Marik," who stood beside him, and continued with a smile.

"Oh, I forgot to tell you earlier, your mission is complete."

Zhuang Lan asked.

"What do you mean by complete?"

The Butler said in a gentle tone.

"This is the meaning from the higher-ups. Specifically, which department, you'll have to ask the insiders. In short, they hope I convey to you that we temporarily have no plans to rebuild the 'Desert Scorpion.'"

"Although many Soldiers are still performing field missions at this moment, aside from the tasks at hand, there will be no more new missions in the future. Once they complete their missions, they will return to this shelter one after another... Of course, we will calculate your merit based on your accomplishments and arrange for you to live a better life in the new epoch."

Zhuang Lan looked at him in shock, and after a long time, she slowly nodded.

"Sounds pretty good... though a bit regrettable."

The Butler looked at him, puzzled.

"Regrettable? I don't understand what you mean."

Zhuang Lan remained silent for a moment and turned to look at the corridor behind her leading to the outside world.

"My brothers... I promised them to avenge them."

A sudden look of realization appeared on the Butler's face, and then he smiled lightly, speaking in a gentle tone.

"Such things are no longer important. Your enemies will be reduced to ashes in the final divine punishment, becoming insignificant radioactive dust drifting away... Let the past hatred stay in the past, which will help us go further."

Zhuang Lan nodded, casting her gaze toward the distant giant dome.

The Robot gardeners trimmed the lawn neatly, while people in Blue Jackets strolled along the Park's paths, and some were walking their dogs.

The vending machines provided unlimited ice cream to the Children, and attractive-looking androids were distributing what seemed to be free balloons.

A family sitting on a bench chatted and laughed, perhaps discussing matters about the new epoch.

All of it seemed like a dreamlike beauty, yet for some reason, there was always a sense of unreality lingering in Zhuang Lan's heart.

It's not that those images were false or a simulation of holographic images.

As someone engaged in intelligence Work, she could tell that those people were undoubtedly real... at least much more real than the androids standing beside her.

At this time, she suddenly recalled the first impression she had upon meeting this "Butler."

The perfect things must have flaws, only man-made creations can be pure to such an extent without any impurities.

That giant dome was such an existence.

Or rather—

The entire utopia was like this.

The people here did not seem to be living; instead, they seemed to be kept by some high and mighty entity, arrayed within transparent crystal bubbles.

A chill crawled over Zhuang Lan's heart, but facing the smiling gaze, she still nodded.

"It's quite good."

...

Meanwhile, in a small room on the surface above No.13 Shelter, a Medical Miracle lay on the operating table, forcefully fitted with a Memory Extractor, enduring a solid round of "electrotherapy."

The Enlightenment Society seemed not to intend to bribe him with a honey trap, opting for heavy torture right from the beginning, which left the Medical Miracle somewhat disappointed after much anticipation.

At least give him a chance to "correct and return to evil"!

But his disappointment didn't last long, as soon his vision went black, disconnecting from the connection.

In the room of the special interrogation chamber, a doctor in a white coat stood beside the operating table, puzzled by the error message on the control panel, scratching his head in frustration.

"Strange."

The officer standing beside him, seeing a result, quickly inquired.

"What's strange?"

The doctor fiddled with the control interface for a while, then withdrew his index finger from the touchscreen, looking at the officer with a bewildered expression.

"The memory extraction Device did start, but the experimental subject had no response to the external stimuli input by the experimental equipment... be it visual signals or auditory signals. This feels as if..."

He hesitated for a while, then spoke in an uncertain tone.

"It's as if this guy's mind is empty."

"Empty?!"

The officer beside the operating table was taken aback.

How could someone's mind be empty?

He had never encountered such a strange situation before!

Usually, the survivors they captured from outside, whether a Manager of another Shelter or a Waste Land Wanderer who dominated a certain region, their brains could be drained clean in no time, and they had never encountered a situation where they couldn't read memories.

Seeing the perplexed doctor, the officer couldn't help but suggest.

"Shall we try again?"

The doctor shook his head.

"Let's wait a couple of days before trying again. This guy's mind has suffered severe trauma, and I fear he won't wake up anytime soon. Continuing the experiment risks turning him insane. Though you may not care, it's a significant loss for us."

Honestly, he also found it strange.

Logically, even if a dog were tied to the operating table, something should be readable, at most it would be something abstract.

As an expert in neuroscience, he suddenly felt a bit intrigued by this stubborn guy.

Could the Alliance have mastered a way to counteract the memory extraction Device?

This might become an interesting experimental material.

The officer standing aside hesitated for a moment, finally nodding reluctantly at this suggestion.

"Alright then..."

Even if it wasn't, he couldn't think of a better solution.

At this moment, the two had no idea that the guy lying on the operating table beside them had actually awoken, just hadn't opened his eyes.

When they first put on the Memory Extractor, the Medical Miracle had been hoping to see some interesting visuals, but his vision went black, disconnecting.

Seeing a critical scene about to be missed, the Medical Miracle, who had finally made it into the main plot, couldn't bear it, quickly reconnecting with the headset.

Hard work pays off.

After almost half an hour of persistent attempts, a faint light finally penetrated his eyelids, imprinting on his Game character's retina.

Then he heard the Quack say that he was crazy and needed further observation.

The Medical Miracle sneered inwardly.

He wasn't crazy, he was just fine.

But thinking that this might be a chance to infiltrate the Enlightenment Society, he eventually restrained the impulse to scare the two by opening his eyes, silently disconnecting and returning offline.

His intuition told him the chance to become the next Pangolin was right in front of him!

Soon after, a ridiculous post appeared on the official Forum—

"Brothers, how to act like a madman? (Awkward)"

"Online waiting, quite urgent."

-

(Hand slipped, the plot happening on the space side wasn't finished, will post it tomorrow.)

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