South Pole? Pyramid?

The bridge of the Boreas.

Sui Bian sat in the captain's chair with his right leg crossed over his left, his right hand lightly pinching his chin. He frowned slightly as he gazed at the polar night scenery outside the porthole, as if waiting for something.

"Sir!" At that moment, the crew member in charge of communications reported loudly, "The Charon Task Force has discovered a cryo-stasis pod hidden within the Antarctic Laboratory. We have confirmed that it contains an unidentified female."

"Oh?" Upon hearing the report, Sui Bian immediately uncrossed his legs and said, "Tell Captain Marini to transport the cryo-stasis pod and all related equipment to the Boreas intact."

"Yes, sir." Having received his instructions, the crew member relayed Sui Bian's order to Marini, Chris, and the others.

About an hour later.

A CH-53 appeared in everyone's field of vision once again, soon hovering above the Boreas.

After adjusting the aircraft's angle and following the guidance of ground crew members wielding glow sticks, the CH-53 slowly descended onto the flight deck of the Boreas.

The rear hatch opened, and technicians who had been waiting for some time entered the cabin to assist the Charon Task Force in transferring the cryo-stasis pod and related equipment out of the aircraft and into the cargo hold beneath the Boreas.

Once everything was secured, Sui Bian ordered twenty elite security guards to stand watch in shifts, ensuring that no errors would occur during the voyage.

Just after issuing the order for the security detail, the system's voice rang out beside his ear:

[Detected that the host has successfully secured Alexia Ashford, who remains in a state of cryo-stasis. Therefore, this system determines that the host has completed the challenge mission. Rewarding the host with 500 points. The host's current total is 1060 points.]

Hmm, my wallet is finally a bit fuller.

Hearing that he had completed the mission, Sui Bian finally felt at ease. Firstly, his points were back in the four-digit range, and secondly, he had successfully acquired the cryo-preserved Alexia.

He felt quite pleased.

Next, accompanied by Chris, Jill, and the others, Sui Bian boarded the CH-53 to personally visit the Antarctic Laboratory.

Upon arriving at the laboratory, Sui Bian reassured the staff in the name of the company's board of directors. While feeding them some "chicken soup for the soul," he also provided them with substantive rewards—money.

He raised their base salaries and increased their benefits and vacation time, using these incentives to motivate employees who had been forgotten by the company for many years.

Since Alexia's faked death, the Antarctic Laboratory had been cut off from research into the Progenitor Virus and the T-Virus, forcing them to shift their focus toward genetics, safe human cryopreservation technology, and gene programming.

Even without strong support from the company, the laboratory's achievements in these fields were still considerable, and its potential remained high.

After completing the routine incentives and formalities, Sui Bian took a group of researchers with him under the guise of an exchange, and finally, citing the need to increase defensive strength, he left behind fifty elite security guards.

Sui Bian did this to ensure that the Antarctic facility was firmly under his control.

Kind words are one thing, but one cannot be a "good person" when it comes to getting things done; otherwise, as the saying goes, "horses are ridden by people, and kind people are bullied by others."

August 31st.

After spending two days in the Antarctic, Sui Bian and his party began their return journey, preparing to transport Alexia back to the Hive in Raccoon City.

However...

03:32.

The Boreas, Sui Bian's private cabin.

The space inside the cabin was small. On the left side of the door was a fixed single bed, and Sui Bian was sleeping on it, covered by a quilt.

Beside the bed was a fixed desk and chair. The laptop on the desk had not been closed by Sui Bian and remained in standby mode.

"Beep! Beep! Beep!"

Suddenly, the black screen lit up, emitting a loud, urgent alert.

"Ugh..." Hearing the sound, Sui Bian curled up, then struggled to open his right eye just a crack.

"Wuaah~!" Seeing that it was the computer screen that had lit up, Sui Bian closed his eyes again, stretched, and let out a yawn.

He took a moment to compose himself.

Only then did Sui Bian fully open his eyes and throw off the quilt. Leaving the warm, comfortable bedding, he put on his thermal pants and top, sat at the desk, and looked at the computer screen, asking in a slightly hoarse voice:

"Red Queen, is there an emergency?"

"Sir." The Red Queen reported, still devoid of emotion, "Two minutes and thirty seconds ago, I utilized four of the company's spy satellites to conduct a routine global scan.

Given that you are currently in the Antarctic Circle, I had one of the satellites focus its scan on your current region, and I have discovered an anomaly."

After the Red Queen finished speaking, she displayed the anomaly she mentioned on the computer screen.

?

Hearing this, Sui Bian raised his hand to rub his weary eyes, then carefully examined the anomaly the Red Queen had described.

The content on the screen was a satellite view of the Antarctic continent, and in a region six hundred kilometers away from the Boreas, there was an area marked by a red circle.

Operating the responsive touchpad, he double-clicked to zoom in on the circled area.

Upon zooming in, Sui Bian realized it was a layout map resembling a city.

A city on the Antarctic continent?

Before Sui Bian could ask, the Red Queen promptly clarified, "Sir, I detected a sudden surge in underground heat, which revealed the floor plan shown on the screen.

Using thermal mapping, I attempted to generate a three-dimensional schematic. Please take a look, sir."

As she finished speaking, the Red Queen switched the content on the computer screen, displaying the 3D model of the 'city' for Sui Bian.

Upon closer inspection, he realized that it was not a city at all, but a pyramid of an unknown architectural style.

Wait?

Antarctica?

A pyramid?

What the hell... let me wrap my head around this. Why does this scene feel so familiar?

[Limited-time challenge mission detected.] Just as Sui Bian sensed that something was amiss, the system that had spoken to him not long ago chimed in his ear once more:

[Mission Objective: Investigate the anomaly discovered by the artificial intelligence Red Queen, and attempt to control or mitigate said anomaly.

Mission Reward: One lucky draw opportunity.

Time Limit: 2 days.

If the host exceeds the time limit, this system will retract the mission and reward, but will not impose any penalty upon the host.]

"..."

He had been struggling to place it, but with the system's intervention, Sui Bian finally remembered exactly why this scene felt so familiar.

Alien vs. Predator.

It was the same setting: Antarctica and a pyramid.

However, Sui Bian could not be certain if the pyramid Red Queen had discovered was indeed the one imprisoning the Alien Queen, nor could he be sure what exactly lay within.

"Sir." Seeing that Sui Bian remained silent, Red Queen asked in her emotionless voice, "May I ask for your orders...?"

"Hmm..." Recovering his senses, Sui Bian mused, "Notify the two captains to adjust their course and approach that pyramid as closely as possible."

"Understood, sir." Red Queen replied, immediately contacting the captains of the Icebreaker and the Poseidon.

Whether it's Aliens or Predators, Umbrella must be the first to arrive and investigate.