Still alive

The commotion was quite loud, and soon people started peeking out of the corridor.

Lu Heng, holding Song Yunjing's hand, ignored the people peeking in and walked straight inside. The corridor wasn't long, and the room at the end was particularly conspicuous, with a sign hanging on the door that read "Director of Logistics Office." The door was much thicker than those in the other rooms, clearly indicating that the person in charge of this area was in charge.

Outside, there was a constant barrage of gunfire, but when Lu Heng kicked open the door, he found that there was also a constant barrage of gunfire inside.

The man inside, entangled with a woman, was terrified by the sudden noise. He sprang from the bed, frantically throwing on his clothes. The kick had almost made him think Zombie had broken in. Seeing who it was, his face darkened, and he yelled, "Who the hell are you? Don't you know the rules? Don't you know to knock before you do anything—"

He paused mid-sentence, then noticed Song Yunjing behind Lu Heng, and his expression softened.

"Oh, the person's here." He tugged at his collar, his tone softening. "Alright, you got things done efficiently. I won't hold that kick against you."

Lu Heng remained silent.

The next second, he darted forward, grabbed the man's hair, and slammed him hard to the ground.

With a loud thud, the man's forehead hit the floor, and blood instantly flowed down. He screamed, and before he could even react, Lu Heng had already stepped on his back, his voice icy cold. "Song Yunjing."

The man trembled with pain, his mind blank, and instinctively cried out for his backer, "My uncle! My uncle is the head of the Logistics Department! If you dare touch me, he won't let you off!"

Lu Heng increased the pressure on his feet.

A slight cracking sound came from the bones. The man, in excruciating pain, tears and snot streaming down his face, finally couldn't take it anymore and confessed incoherently. "I'll talk... I'll talk! Song Yunzhong is locked in the back lab, they're using him for experiments... He looks like he's dying, there's no saving him... My uncle told me to find someone to get rid of Song Yunjing, to prevent her from causing any trouble..."

Upon hearing this, Lu Heng exerted force and crushed his cervical spine.

The man twitched twice and then stopped moving.

There was a woman lying on the bed, wrapped in a blanket and huddled in the corner, too terrified to even scream. Lu Heng didn't even glance at her; with a casual flick of his wrist, the edge of his Blood Armor grazed her neck, and she fell silent.

He turned and walked out, with Song Yunjing following behind, her face even paler than before.

The corridor was crowded with people, all huddled against the wall, peeking out, and no one dared to make a sound.

Lu Heng felt a surge of annoyance.

This group of people is no different from the one in the room; they're just annoying to look at. Too lazy to deal with them one by one, he suddenly unleashed his mental power, preparing to crush the heads of everyone present.

Just as the power was about to be released, a hand grabbed his wrist.

Song Yunjing looked up at him, her voice very soft. "Don't do that."

Lu Heng stopped using his power, turned to look at her, and looked puzzled.

"If my brother found out," she paused, "He definitely wouldn't want to see that."

Lu Heng looked at her without saying a word.

Lu Heng led Song Yunjing through the corridor, at the end of which was a heavy metal door. Two uniformed security guards stood at the door, holding guns.

"I want to go in and find Song Yunzhong," Lu Heng said calmly.

The two security guards exchanged a glance, their grip on their guns tightening, and they steeled themselves to stand in front. "Song Yunzhong isn't here."

Lu Heng looked at them and asked very seriously, "Are you sure?"

Both men's Adam's apples bobbed, but they gritted their teeth and repeated, "Song Yunzhong isn't here."

Lu Heng didn't say anything more.

The mental force suddenly pressed down, like an invisible hand pressing on their shoulders. Their knees buckled, their bones creaked, and they were forced to fall straight to the ground, not even having time to scream.

"Since you say you don't," Lu Heng glanced down at them, "Then I'll pretend you don't."

Song Yunjing stood behind, looking at the two twisted corpses on the ground. Her lips moved, but she didn't say anything. Listening to what the two security guards had said, she felt a wave of sorrow—she remembered that when she first came here, it wasn't like this.

Lu Heng didn't stop, walking straight to the metal door. There was a combination lock on the door, but he was too lazy to try it, so he kicked it open.

The door panel deformed, the latch broke open, and it collapsed with a crash.

Hearing the commotion, the people inside all pointed their guns at the door and pulled the triggers.

The bullets struck Lu Heng, but were completely blocked by the Blood Armor, leaving not even a mark. Fine Mycelium sprouted from the surface of the Blood Armor, spreading out like living things, instantly wrapping around the necks, mouths, and noses of the men, and within a few breaths, the men were motionless.

Lu Heng scanned the entire area with his mental energy, his brows furrowing slightly—it was divided into many rooms, each occupied.

Too lazy to search room by room, he continued to break down doors violently.

The first one, no.

Several rooms later, none of them were safe. Lu Heng casually dealt with everyone inside. Mycelium seeped in through the cracks in the door, silently taking lives without even spilling any blood.

Lu Heng paused for a moment.

The mental energy probed downwards, passing through layers of concrete, reaching a deeper place.

There is a basement.

He raised his hand and took out the Insect Armor Sword from the Wristband Space.

He channeled his spiritual energy into the sword through his palm, causing the entire sword to tremble slightly and emit a deep hum. He closed his eyes, and his spiritual perception spread across the ground, quickly locking onto the location of the door—slanting down at the end of the corridor. The material was completely different from the doors above; it was denser and had stronger shielding, making it impossible to open by ordinary means.

Lu Heng opened his eyes and slashed down with his sword.

Sparks flew as the sword blade struck the door.

The door was indeed hard, more than twice as thick as ordinary alloy, and the first sword strike only left a white mark. However, the material of the Insect Armor Sword itself was not weak either, and the blade was not damaged at all. On the contrary, with the infusion of spiritual power, it became heavier and heavier with each strike, and the force of each strike increased.

The second sword strike left a deeper white mark.

With the third strike, the metal began to deform.

Standing behind, Song Yunjing watched as the door dented and cracked little by little under the sword, feeling a mix of emotions. She had seen Lu Heng kill before, decisively and without hesitation. But now, the way he was smashing the door was more like tearing down a wall—no fancy moves, just hard smashing until it was open.

The door finally cracked open.

Lu Heng sheathed his sword and kicked it.

The hinges broke, and the door panel fell inward, revealing a downward-facing staircase.

A damp, cold draft rose from below, mixed with disinfectant and some indescribable fishy smell.

Lu Heng didn't hesitate and stepped down.

The stairs weren't long; you reached the bottom after just a few steps.

The basement was much narrower than the upper floor, and the dim yellow light made people's faces look bluish. Several rows of iron cabinets were embedded in the walls on both sides, with the cabinet doors half open. Inside were some glass jars, and the contents of the jars were unclear; the liquid was murky and had a grayish-green tinge.

The fishy smell in the air was even stronger, mixed with disinfectant, making one's throat tighten.

Lu Heng didn't stop walking; his mental energy spread out forward, sweeping across every room.

The first one was empty.

The second room contained several operating tables with dried bloodstains on them, and instruments were scattered all over the floor. No one was there.

The third one--

My mental energy detected someone inside.

More than one.

Lu Heng pushed open the door.

The room was even dimmer. Several iron beds were placed against the wall, and people lay on them, tubes inserted into their bodies, their faces ashen, their chests rising and falling so weakly they seemed about to stop at any moment. On the innermost bed, a man was curled up, his wrists and ankles chained together. Hearing a sound, he slowly raised his head.

That face resembled Song Yunjing somewhat, but it was extremely thin, with sunken eyes, prominent cheekbones, and chapped lips.

The moment Song Yunjing saw him, tears streamed down her face.

"Brother..."

The man heard the voice, his eyes flickered, as if he hadn't reacted yet. After several seconds, he managed to open his mouth with difficulty, his voice so hoarse it was almost inaudible. "... Yun Jing?"

Lu Heng stood at the door, but didn't go in.

He scanned the entire room with his mental energy, confirming there were no ambushes, before stepping aside to let Song Yunjing in.

Song Yunjing rushed to the bedside, her hands trembling violently. She wanted to touch him but dared not, tears falling onto the back of his hand. Song Yunzhong looked at her, his lips moved, and he tried to raise his hand, but his arm was chained and he couldn't lift it at all.

"I thought..." he said haltingly, "They said you were dead..."