“What for?” Leng Shao asked in a low voice.
“To strangle them. I’ll do it.” Ye Zixiao walked forward to face them.
“Speak, which part?”
“Hey, are you deaf?”
The two soldiers raised their guns.
“Commanding officer’s guard.” Ye Zixiao replied nonchalantly.
“Guard?”
“Why are you wearing so many clothes?” the two soldiers without coats asked, confused.
Ye Zixiao didn’t answer. Instead, he suddenly stretched out his hands, grabbed the necks of the two soldiers, and applied force directly. In the blink of an eye, he broke their necks.
Leng Shao and Shan Ge immediately stepped forward, supporting the falling bodies.
“Let’s go!” Ye Zixiao led the way, followed by Tang Keke. Leng Shao and Shan Ge, like they were supporting drunks, carried the two corpses to the entrance of the hive at the fastest speed.
Ye Zixiao yanked open the iron door and found chaos inside. The brightly lit corridor was filled with soldiers moving equipment, large crates, and people in white coats walking back and forth, all appearing very busy.
No one noticed them!
“Here.” Tang Keke called out, rushing into a small room on the left.
Inside the small room, several soldiers were dozing in chairs. This was clearly a guard rest area. The two soldiers who had just been strangled must have discovered something and gone out from here.
“Who’s there?”
“What are you doing?”
Two soldiers were startled awake.
“Strangle them all.” Ye Zixiao immediately began to choke them. Tang Keke also pounced forward.
In less than ten seconds, the few soldiers changing shifts and resting had their eyes wide open as they died. Leng Shao and Shan Ge came in supporting the bodies and threw them into a corner.
“Change clothes!” Ye Zixiao urged. They were wearing thick military greatcoats, but the hive was warm. The soldiers here wore single-layer military uniforms. To continue investigating, they needed to change into lighter attire.
While everyone was changing clothes, two people in white coats pushed the door open and walked in. A man and a woman, holding walkie-talkies.
“Huh?”
“Not good…” The two in white coats turned to run.
“Come back here.”
“Hand it over.” Leng Shao and Shan Ge approached the door, pulled the two in white coats back, and then closed the door with a click. With two crisp cracking sounds, the necks of the two in white coats were twisted.
“Brother Xiao, President Tang, this man and woman arrived at the perfect time. You two should put on the white coats. I feel that people in white coats have more authority than those in military uniforms.” Leng Shao said with a chuckle.
“Okay!” Ye Zixiao nodded immediately.
Soon, Leng Shao and Shan Ge changed into single-layer military uniforms, wore military caps, and carried the rifles of the local soldiers. The only difference from the normal soldiers was that Leng Shao and Shan Ge were wearing masks.
Ye Zixiao and Tang Keke, wearing single-layer military uniforms underneath and white coats on the outside, perhaps by fate, were of similar build to the man and woman who came to deliver the clothes.
Two masked men in white coats. Two masked fake soldiers. They walked out of the guard room, one pair in front, the other behind, locked the door, and swaggered into the corridor. They observed that the corridor was circular, with a large circular studio in the center. The studio’s glass was transparent. The studio was filled with equipment. Many people in white coats were adjusting things. It was evident that this astonishingly large hive was bustling because it had just been completed and was not yet officially in use, at least, this floor appeared to be so.
The four of them circled the corridor. They encountered many people but proceeded smoothly. Whether soldiers or people in white coats, they all made way for them. Some soldiers, when meeting them head-on, even saluted Ye Zixiao and Tang Keke. This was not surprising. The people in white coats on the entire floor were busy, most without masks, and no soldiers were protecting them. Ye Zixiao and Tang Keke, wandering around, were even protected by soldiers, making them appear to be officials.
“Exciting!”
“Quite fun!” Leng Shao and Shan Ge were beaming.
As the four of them were wandering around aimlessly, unsure of what to do, a stern and commanding voice echoed from the hive’s broadcast speakers.
“All soldiers attention, the Commander-in-Chief has ordered that after the large equipment is moved, all laborers are to be brought to the plaza outside the first floor. Listen carefully, all laborers, not a single one is to be left behind.”
The commanding broadcast was repeated three times. The already bustling hive instantly became even more chaotic.
Unexpectedly, on the floor where Ye Zixiao and the others were, since all the large equipment had been moved, no laborers were seen. Ye Zixiao and Tang Keke exchanged glances and led the way towards the elevators.
There were two elevators. One was labeled “Special.” The other was labeled “Regular.” Ye Zixiao thought for a moment and pressed the button for “Special.”
Soon, the elevator arrived. As the doors opened, two people in white coats emerged. They nodded to each other but said nothing. Ye Zixiao and his group successfully entered the elevator.
Leng Shao pressed the button for the first floor and discovered that the hive had thirty-eight floors! Everyone marveled at the height but feared being overheard and dared not speak carelessly.
The elevator was designed as a sightseeing elevator. As it rapidly descended, Ye Zixiao and the others noticed that the structure of each floor was similar. The further down they went, the more people there were, with many laborers being herded by soldiers.
Finally, the elevator reached the ground floor. As the doors opened, they found themselves in a lobby-like area. Many laborers in tattered clothes were being violently pushed outside. The laborers were all flustered, their eyes filled with fear.
Ye Zixiao and his group followed the crowd out. Outside the hive, there was a plaza with many lampposts, fitness equipment, and even a regulation-size basketball court?!
“Just outrageous!”
“Utterly outrageous!” Ye Zixiao and Tang Keke murmured.
“We must be at the very bottom of the deep mountains now. Building this hive here is outrageous enough, but nothing is more outrageous than this basketball court!” Leng Shao grumbled with some annoyance.
“That’s easy to understand!” Shan Ge said somewhat carelessly.
“How is it easy to understand?”
“High-ranking officials like to play basketball!”
“Do the people of Wuguo like basketball?”
“Heh heh!”
As the four of them were whispering, a line of soldiers suddenly rushed over. The leader, holding a gun, said to Ye Zixiao, “Sir, the viewing platform is on the third floor. Please do not go any further into the plaza.”
Ye Zixiao did not speak but nodded. It was a false alarm. This group of soldiers was there only to give a reminder.
The four of them turned and looked up. The giant hive was truly awe-inspiring from this angle. But why was it secretly built here? Research was definitely being conducted. But what was a viewing platform doing here?
“Let’s go, or we’ll be exposed.” Tang Keke gently tugged Ye Zixiao’s arm.
“Damn it!” Ye Zixiao cursed and walked back. The four impostors returned to the lobby, hugging the wall as they walked back. They didn’t take the elevator again but went up the spiral staircase, quickly reaching the third floor. As soon as they reached the third floor, the four of them were stunned!