Branching Paths (1)

Things unfolded just as Chu Xuan had predicted. The two Aliens in the surveillance feed quickly began moving towards them, followed by the one that had taken the middle-aged man and the others. At this moment, everyone was focused on the large screen, even Zheng Zha.

Although they had already decided to part ways with Chu Xuan's group, isolating the Aliens was a matter of survival for everyone. Therefore, Zheng Zha was also staring intently at the surveillance screen.

"There's only one left... where's the last one? The last one..."

Chu Xuan muttered to himself, his face growing paler, sweat beading on his forehead. At this moment, Zhan Lan suddenly touched her forehead and said, "In the original plot, there were seven members: one robot and six humans. Did you include the protagonist when calculating the number of Aliens? This Horror Movie is just Alien 1..."

Chu Xuan immediately realized his mistake. He quickly pressed a few buttons, and several isolation walls instantly appeared on the large screen. The path of the rapidly moving Aliens was continuously blocked, forcing them to change direction. Slowly, the three Aliens were cornered into a remote corridor by the thick isolation walls. Finally, the three Aliens were blocked in these corridors by thick alloy isolation walls. Looking at the map on the screen, the path to the armory was finally cleared for everyone.

The six people present let out a collective sigh of relief. Zheng Zha quietly asked Zhan Lan, "What did you two just say? Wasn't there still one Alien that hadn't appeared? Why did he immediately put up the isolation walls after you mentioned Alien 1?"

Zhan Lan chuckled, "Because of the protagonist. Think about it, didn't the protagonist survive in Alien 1? If she were also killed by an Alien, then what would happen to Alien 2, 3, and 4? They wouldn't exist. So, it's likely we're only facing five Aliens: one Queen, one you killed, and three that are currently being isolated. That means there's no fourth one."

Zheng Zha thought for a moment and said, "What if the protagonists in each Horror Movie are new? In that case, wouldn't there still be an Alien behind corridor 15?"

Chu Xuan's voice cut in from the side, "That's a matter of probability. In any situation, I will choose the option with the higher probability. As long as the probability exceeds fifty percent, it's worth a try."

Zheng Zha sneered, "Even if it costs your life? To be ambushed by a lurking Alien, even if it costs your life, it doesn't matter?"

Chu Xuan said coldly, "Yes, even my life is only a chance to survive if the probability is high... I will always choose the option with the higher probability. You just mentioned my life, didn't you? So, are you planning to act separately from me?"

Zheng Zha nodded fiercely, "That's right! I can't stand being with you! Who knows when I might get injured and be treated as a burden and abandoned. Rather than that, I'd rather rely on my own strength to survive! I can't trust you. Just like the Overlord said, I can't turn my back to you!"

"Is that so?" Chu Xuan turned his head indifferently, his voice still carrying, "That's a pity. I said I would only abandon those who are useless to this team, just like a probability issue. He was an individual with too low a probability, and he didn't pass the test. I've done all I can for Li Shuaixi. But for teammates I acknowledge, I will do my best to save them, finding ways to let the majority survive."

Zheng Zha said silently, "What if I fall into a desperate situation, and the probability of saving me is very small, but there's still a chance? What would you do then?"

"It depends. If your life is of great importance, I will save you at any cost. If saving you would put the entire team in danger, then I will simply abandon you."

"Is that so?"

Zheng Zha was silent for a long time before he said coldly, "Yes, I understand that your approach might be correct for you, but your method chills me. It's impossible for us to be together anymore... Also, don't you dare substitute your safety for the entire team's. Don't you think that kind of conceptual substitution is despicable? You always talk about the entire team. What if it was you who had to be sacrificed for the entire team? You'd probably try your best to pass off your role to someone else, right? Screw you!"

Chu Xuan smiled slightly, "If it were you, what would you do?"

Zheng Zha was gathering chairs from the control room. Without looking back, he said, "I admit that what you said at the beginning was correct. Every team member must be useful to the team. For example, if I had to protect those three punks, I absolutely couldn't do it. It's already generous enough that I haven't personally killed these three burdens. So, in the future, I will be very careful when choosing partners. But once I acknowledge someone as a partner, I will never abandon them. Only then can the team trust each other... With your attitude of treating people as tools, even if you survive, perhaps only you will be absolutely safe, right? That's why I absolutely don't want to be with you."

Neither side said anything further. Half an hour later, Chu Xuan, Zero Point, and Overlord were the first to leave the control room. Zhang Jie and Zhan Lan, however, saw Zheng Zha starting to smash the chairs wildly.

Zhang Jie quickly pulled him back and said, "Don't be angry, it's not worth getting angry with someone like that..."

Zheng Zha gave a wry smile, "I'm not angry. I'm just preparing weapons. You're right, it's not worth getting angry with someone like that, so I have my own way of fighting."

Zhang Jie and Zhan Lan exchanged glances and saw Zheng Zha smash the chairs apart, taking out the steel bars that supported them. He then grabbed both ends of the steel bar and twisted it. Soon, the steel bar became a spiral-shaped spear, looking menacing.

"Do you know why I wanted to stay away from those three?"

Zheng Zha suddenly looked at the two and smiled, "Because I have a bad feeling. I always feel like there's something lurking in corridor 15 waiting for us to approach. But I won't tell them. Let them lure that thing out. Since they believe so much in the supremacy of strength, then as the weaker party, they should be prepared to be abandoned!"

"I used to be a supervisor at the company, so I know how important teamwork is. And no one is absolutely weak. Do you know why I kept comforting Li Shuaixi? Because I wanted to bring him into our team, to acknowledge our team. Even if it came to the point where he had to sacrifice himself to save the team, he would only save the team he trusted..."

After speaking, Zheng Zha threw the spiral-shaped steel bar. With a hissing sound, the bar was almost entirely embedded in the steel wall, with only a finger-length section remaining at the end. The power of this strike made Zhang Jie and Zhan Lan secretly gasp in admiration.

Zheng Zha forcefully pulled the steel bar out of the wall. He weighed it in his hand and then said calmly, "I know his approach might be right... If you trust me, then let's face these horrors together. He has his way... I have my way of fighting! No matter what, we must survive!"

With another hissing sound, the spiral spear was thrown out like lightning, creating another thin spiral hole in the wall.