Chapter 5-I Clean Up Garbage in a Wasteland World
Chapter 5 Psychic Contamination
After the train doors on both sides opened, the sight within was visibly bizarre. It looked like something gray was crawling inside.
Li Nianchuan instinctively looked at Zhu Ning, only to see her holding her head with one hand. But she was wearing a helmet, so she couldn't properly hold her head, only touch the helmet.
Li Nianchuan was clearly the senior, yet he instinctively relied on Zhu Ning. She was just too unusual—incredibly calm, and when she fired her gun, she exuded a ruthlessness that didn't belong to someone her age.
Li Nianchuan had only ever seen that in Demon Hunters. So far, Zhu Ning hadn't made a single mistake. It was hard to imagine this was her first encounter with a Contaminant.
She didn't look like a trash sweeper; she looked more like a professional mercenary. Li Nianchuan suspected Zhu Ning might be some big shot who had joined their Clean Squad to experience life.
"What's wrong?" Li Nianchuan asked, out of concern for his teammate. "Headache? Affected by the Psychic Contamination?"
Zhu Ning sighed. She wasn't contaminated, just melancholic. She had decided to be a slacker in this new life. For the ten days since her rebirth, she had completely ignored the missions the System gave her.
Some bullshit about purifying the homeland. Whoever wanted to buy into that grand vision could have it. But who knew that even if she ignored it, the system could force it on her.
The Vanished Last Train of Line 1. The Source of Contamination was likely inside.
"What's the contamination concentration inside?" Zhu Ning asked.
The helmet actually had a function to measure contamination levels, but Zhu Ning didn't know how to use it.
Li Nianchuan had already instinctively become Zhu Ning's subordinate. After a few operations, he gave an accurate reading. "Concentration is 71%."
Zhu Ning said nothing.
Li Nianchuan thought she was evaluating the situation, but in reality, she didn't understand. As a rookie Cleaner, she had no idea what a 71% concentration even meant.
Li Nianchuan made a rough estimate. "This is probably a D-level mission."
He had no idea how the tech department had classified it as E-level. The Demon Hunter clearly hadn't finished the job. Li Nianchuan remembered a rule in the Demon Hunter's code of conduct: upon leaving the site, the Demon Hunter must ensure that all Contaminants within a one-kilometer radius of the Contamination Zone are dead.
Li Nianchuan muttered, "This Demon Hunter's work is so sloppy."
Zhu Ning sorted through her thoughts and asked, "I have a question."
"What is it?"
Zhu Ning: "If Contaminants can interfere with communication signals, how do Demon Hunters communicate?"
A team trying to kill a Contaminant would have their signals cut off the moment they entered the zone. This would be a huge disadvantage for teamwork, yet the Demon Hunters' success rate didn't seem to be low.
Li Nianchuan sighed at her words. "They use a different channel from us. It's much less affected by Psychic Contamination."
Contamination Spores could corrupt machines and networks. The Demon Hunters must have better resources.
"We don't have it?" Zhu Ning asked.
Li Nianchuan's resentment deepened. "Resources are limited. They have to be prioritized."
Zhu Ning: "..."
They, the trash sweepers, were truly second-class citizens. The worst resources, the worst weapons, and not even a shred of care from the organization.
It would be one thing if their job was safe, but it clearly wasn't!
Zhu Ning looked at the open train doors before her and asked, "Generally, how long does it take for the rescue team to arrive?"
Li Nianchuan thought for a moment. "They just left. According to procedure, it would take at least half an hour for them to return. Besides, our Contamination Zone is now sealed. They might not even be able to get in."
They were trapped down here. The tech department at the Sanitation Center must already know, but it would take the Demon Hunter half an hour to get here.
"So it's just us?" Zhu Ning asked, not wanting to give up hope.
Li Nianchuan nodded heavily. "Yes, it's really just us."
The slacker Zhu Ning's heart sank.
Li Nianchuan thought for a moment and asked, "How did you sense the Contaminant earlier? Do you have some kind of danger precognition?"
He was a little curious. Zhu Ning's reaction was a full minute faster than his, a veteran employee. How did she know?
Zhu Ning was baffled herself. "What danger precognition? You couldn't hear it?"
Li Nianchuan: "Hear what? No."
Zhu Ning: "..."
Zhu Ning didn't have any precognitive abilities; at most, she was just more vigilant. If you had to count something, it would be a "skill" she brought with her from her past life. She had spent the better part of her life fighting zombies in a zombie-infested world. As the zombies evolved, so did she.
Her marksmanship, her skills, and her vigilance far surpassed those of an ordinary person. This was a precious "inheritance" she had honed over ten years.
In other words, Li Nianchuan grew up in a world of technology and was overly reliant on machines. As long as his monitoring equipment wasn't blaring warnings, he wouldn't sense danger.
But Zhu Ning grew up in a zombie world. For her, there was no such thing as a truly safe place. One moment of carelessness could get you killed. Instantly, Zhu Ning saw Li Nianchuan as a delicate flower raised in a greenhouse.
Li Nianchuan could also sense the gap between them. He asked, a little embarrassed, "How did you know I prepared for the Demon Hunter exam?"
Zhu Ning glanced at him. Li Nianchuan was truly a simpleton. Wasn't it written all over his face?
Zhu Ning gave a perfunctory reply: "Just a guess."
Li Nianchuan: "You're really smart."
Zhu Ning: "..." She didn't feel complimented at all, thanks.
"Should we go in?" Li Nianchuan pointed at the open train doors.
Zhu Ning and Li Nianchuan had to survive for at least half an hour. Within that time, they had to ensure they weren't overcome by Psychic Contamination. Otherwise, even if they were lucky enough to be alive when the rescue team arrived, they might have already been driven insane.
"Do you want to go in?" Zhu Ning asked back.
"Umm..." Li Nianchuan: "Not really."
Employee Handbook, Rule #3: If you encounter a live Contaminant, remain still and await rescue. Li Nianchuan had been professionally trained. His instinct was to obey the Cleaner's employee handbook.
"I'm going in," Zhu Ning said.
She wasn't looking for death. She had to complete the mission the System had assigned her. If the Source of Contamination was inside, eliminating it was the only path to survival.
Without a moment's hesitation after speaking, Zhu Ning stepped into the carriage.
Grayish substances were crawling within the carriage. As Zhu Ning entered, her figure was immediately swallowed by a mass of writhing, unknown creatures, as if devoured by the carriage itself.
Li Nianchuan looked back at the still-twitching Fishman on the ground, then at the open carriage doors. He gritted his teeth and followed in Zhu Ning's footsteps.
Cleaner Handbook, Rule #4: Do not get separated from your teammates.
The moment Li Nianchuan got on the train, he regretted it.
There were writhing black substances inside the carriage, floating in the air—visible but intangible, like the background of a comic book.
There weren't many people on the last train of Line 1. A few scattered office workers sat far apart from each other. But after they saw Li Nianchuan, the passengers in different carriages all turned their heads in unison.
They were all Contaminants.
They had various forms. Some had fins growing from the sides of their ears; others had human faces, but covered in fish scales. In the carriage Li Nianchuan had entered, a flopping fish lay in the center of the open space.
Li Nianchuan was already suffering from Psychic Contamination. Now, his scalp was crawling. He finally located Zhu Ning inside the carriage.
Zhu Ning was sitting on the left side of the carriage. Her black, fully-enclosed helmet and Cleaner uniform made her stand out in the crowd. After Li Nianchuan entered, the doors slammed shut behind him with a thud.
He had no choice but to bite the bullet and sit down next to Zhu Ning.
With a rumble, the train set off. Li Nianchuan had no idea where this train was headed.
Zhu Ning turned to look out the window, counting silently in her head. After a moment, she said, "I didn't see Xu Meng."
It was pitch black outside. The Sub-rail was moving much faster than a person could walk. They had only walked about two kilometers in the sewer, not too far from Xu Meng.
Now, two kilometers had passed, and she still hadn't seen Xu Meng.
Li Nianchuan's nose hurt more and more after boarding the train. He said, "A Contamination Zone has its own independent time and space. Take a look at your clock."
Zhu Ning's helmet had an internal clock. Since they entered, the numbers had frozen. A Contamination Zone had its own flow of time and an independent spatial dimension. So this was what a Contamination Zone was.
"How do you get into a Contamination Zone?" Zhu Ning asked.
Li Nianchuan: "Demon Hunters look for a way in. Whether they can find one is a matter of luck. You don't necessarily have to enter to eliminate the Source. You can also use heavy weaponry to suppress it directly."
If it was confirmed that there were no living people inside the Contamination Zone and the situation was particularly dire, they could choose to just level the area.
Sure enough, once technology progressed to a certain point, you should never do by hand what you could solve with heavy firepower. The Sub-rail was moving. Zhu Ning gauged its speed; it was faster than any flying vehicle she had ridden.
[Dear passengers, we have arrived at Lily Garden Station.]
Suddenly, a station announcement sounded inside the train.
No passengers got off. Ever since Zhu Ning and he had boarded, the passengers had maintained the same posture, just staring at them.
Zhu Ning gazed nervously at the doors, her hand resting on the grip of her gun. She didn't want to fight unless absolutely necessary.
After the doors opened, one passenger got on. Then the doors closed, and the train started moving again.
Zhu Ning frowned immediately upon seeing the passenger who boarded. Li Nianchuan almost cursed out loud.
It was the Fishman they had killed!
The Fishman was carrying a briefcase, its body a landscape of wounds. It had been practically torn apart by Zhu Ning and Li Nianchuan. It dragged its mangled left leg, moving its body bit by bit, leaving a trail of blood where the broken leg passed.
Then, it used its one intact arm to grab a handrail ring in the carriage and stood before Zhu Ning and Li Nianchuan.
It stopped moving.
Neither Zhu Ning nor Li Nianchuan spoke. The first reaction of the two rookies was to raise their guns, afraid it would suddenly attack. They had seen the Fishman's speed; it was at least twice as fast as a human.
At that moment, they reached a tacit understanding. If the Fishman made any move, they would open fire immediately. But after five minutes, the Fishman hadn't moved at all, standing silently like a statue.
Zhu Ning and the Fishman stared at each other for a while. The Fishman's body was like a sieve; you could even see the chair on the other side through its holes.
Li Nianchuan whispered, "Why is it standing here with us? There are plenty of empty seats."
The carriage was so empty, it wasn't rush hour. Why did it have to stand in front of them?
Li Nianchuan's words didn't seem to attract the Fishman's attention. The Fishman seemed to be just an ordinary passenger who had come to stand there.
"Is it here for revenge?" Li Nianchuan asked.
Zhu Ning: "I don't know. I was wondering what would have happened if you had stayed on the platform."
Li Nianchuan's scalp tingled. He had followed Zhu Ning onto the train because he would rather die than stay alone on a platform with a convulsing Fishman corpse.
Li Nianchuan: "I would rather die."
Zhu Ning was a little curious. People drawn into a Contamination Zone could choose to board the train or wait on the platform.
Zhu Ning knew that boarding the train would mean being surrounded by "people." What would happen to those who remained on the platform?
"We're arriving at another station," Zhu Ning said.
This time, Zhu Ning observed in advance. An orange light in the carriage suddenly lit up, followed by the station announcement: [Dear passengers, we have arrived at Sun Kindergarten Station.]
The second stop.
Still, no one got off the train. After thirty seconds, another passenger boarded.
Li Nianchuan's hair stood on end. His nose was bleeding freely inside his helmet, and he didn't even have time to deal with it. It was another Fishman!
It was identical to the previous one, with the same wounds in the same places. The part of its fish head that was shattered, the curl of its peeled scales—everything was exactly the same. Even its behavior was identical.
Fishman number two didn't even look around. It walked directly in front of Zhu Ning and Li Nianchuan, grabbed a nearby handrail, and stood still.
[Dear passengers, we have arrived at Green River Ditch Station.]
Third stop, a third Fishman.
[Dear passengers, we have arrived at the Museum of Curiosities Station.]
Fourth stop, a fourth Fishman.
[Dear passengers, we have arrived at Mechanical University Station.]
Fifth stop, a fifth Fishman...
Time passed. At every stop, another Fishman would board. Now, there were ten Fishmen on the train, all standing in front of Zhu Ning and Li Nianchuan.
Those who could grab a handrail did so. Those who couldn't, stood behind them. As they passed more and more stations, the number of Fishmen had grown to a staggering twenty-five!
Twenty-five Fishmen surrounded Zhu Ning and Li Nianchuan. The thick smell of blood assaulted them, so strong that even their helmet visors couldn't filter it out.
The strange thing was, they made no move. They simply stood there, heads down, looking at Zhu Ning and Li Nianchuan.
No expression, no words. Just watching. Simply, purely, watching.
Was this Psychic Contamination?
Comments
Post a Comment