The radio broke down about two weeks ago.
"I can't leave the city, so I can't contact you."
"I didn't expect them to send someone so quickly."
Is the operation about to begin?
Sun Xiaotian's face was full of anticipation.
Qin Ze patted his shoulder heavily. "That's right."
"Keep up the good work, the organization will not forget your contributions."
"You will be awarded a medal after the mission is accomplished."
Upon hearing this, Sun Xiaotian immediately stood up straight and placed his right fist on his chest.
"For the glory of Human Race!"
Qin Ze had a communication with the Five Heavenly Kings inside their heads.
Qin Ze spoke first, "There should be a gathering place underground. You should all go and gather some information later."
The Dharma King said, "No wonder the surveillance cameras were damaged; it must have been them."
Brother Devour: " The Dynasty is probably a kind of the Resistance Army force, fighting against AI."
Thousand Faces: "This little idiot, he thinks we're his contact people."
The Mist Lord, "Clearly, the Dynasty is just a makeshift operation. Their meetings are so haphazard, they don't even have a code. It's amazing they've survived this long."
After a moment's hesitation, Giant Overlord said, "What if the contact person really comes? Wouldn't we be exposed?"
Everyone: "..."
Giant Overlord: "Uh... okay, we shouldn't be that unlucky."
The Dharma King was getting a little frustrated. "Can you please stop making promises you can't keep?!"
After walking for nearly an hour through the dark underground pipes, Sun Xiaotian led the group to a rusty iron gate.
"It was originally an abandoned repair shop, which I converted into my residence."
"This place is far from shady shops and gathering places. After all, we underground workers need to be careful to protect our identities."
After showing off to Qin Ze with a smug expression, Sun Xiaotian Yangyang opened the door.
The space in front of the door isn't very big, about 20 square meters.
The room was furnished very simply.
A bed, a table.
Three large wooden crates were stacked in the corner, filled with all sorts of odds and ends.
There was an old radio on the table.
The radio station was mostly disassembled, with dozens of electronic parts scattered around it.
There was no electricity in the room; the only light came from a kerosene lamp.
Sun Xiaotian cleared the clutter off the table and placed the oil lamp on it.
Qin Ze and the others stood around the table, their faces flickering in and out of the dim candlelight of the oil lamp.
Anyone who didn't know better would think they were performing some kind of evil ritual here.
Sun Xiaotian rubbed his hands together. "That's how conditions are in the city, don't mind."
Qin Ze sighed, "We're too late."
"I never imagined you'd been living in such terrible conditions."
"The organization will never forget your contributions; one day we will see the dawn."
Sun Xiaotian immediately filled with tears.
Finally, there are people who understand him and know him.
The people sent from above before always complained about the poor accommodations or terrible food.
If you can't even endure this little bit of hardship, how can you persevere in the struggle?
Today I finally met someone who shares my values.
Sun Xiaotian excitedly grasped Qin Ze's hand. "It's good that we haven't been forgotten."
Qin Ze hadn't expected his casual words of comfort to have such a powerful impact on Sun Xiaotian, leaving him somewhat speechless.
"Everyone is ready."
"Now we're just waiting for your command to launch the final assault."
Sun Xiaotian couldn't wait, his tone full of excitement.
Qin Ze said calmly, "No rush, I need to understand the specific situation here first."
Sun Xiaotian gradually calmed down and mentally gave the other person a thumbs up.
That's what you call a professional.
In contrast, the ones sent before were all rotten fish and shrimp.
Sun Xiaotian suggested, "The black market shop is already open, shall we go check it out?"
Qin Ze nodded. "Let's go to the shady shop."
The group once again entered the dark underground pipes.
Through subtle inquiries, Qin Ze obtained a lot of useful information along the way.
It is now the year 2250, which is two hundred years ahead of the real world.
" Dynasty " is a resistance organization active outside the city.
Advocating "natural human rights, AI will only destroy the world," they have been fighting against the Mechanical Faction led by the Führer for many years.
There are reportedly dozens of cities similar to " Happiness City ".
But every city is more or less the same.
The residents are kept in captivity, sent to designated locations to "work" during the day, and returned to their homes at night.
Every so often, some high-performing employees are taken away for what's called "mechanical ascension."
Those who were successfully modified became fighting machines and were deployed to the front lines to fight against the alien beasts.
Those who fail will simply disappear—disappear in a physical sense.
Some people, unwilling to accept this fate, hide in the sewers to eke out a living.
Due to the city's vast size, its underground drainage system is extremely complex.
Although the sheriff would conduct a cleanup every now and then, the survivors, like rabbits with three burrows, always managed to evade the searches time and time again.
Like rats, they took root here and multiplied.
As for Sun Xiaotian, he was an unofficial agent of " Dynasty ".
They were responsible for spreading the ideology of the " Dynasty " and winning over the survivors.
One day, we will join forces with the main army outside the city to liberate it.
Before Sun Xiaotian's radio broke down, Dynasty made one last contact with him, telling him an extremely important piece of information.
That means the head of state will arrive in Happiness City for an inspection the day after tomorrow.
The Dynasty was preparing to carry out a decapitation operation that day and needed Sun Xiaotian to lead his men to cooperate.
The sudden appearance of Qin Ze and the Five Heavenly Kings turned Happiness City upside down.
Sun Xiaotian mistakenly believed that they were the ones who carried out the decapitation operation.
"We've arrived at the shady shop."
Half an hour later, Sun Xiaotian pointed to the faint light in the distance and said to Qin Ze and the others.
"Black market" does not refer to a single shop, but rather to a trade market where multiple stalls are gathered together.
People living in underground pipes don't have currency; they usually barter.
The shady shop opens on average every two weeks.
The opening time and location are announced only three hours in advance, and the opening time is only one hour.
It can be described as a "swift and decisive victory".
The main purpose was to prevent the sheriffs from discovering them and arresting them all at once.
This shady shop was located in an abandoned subway section, a space much more spacious than a sewer.
Qin Ze spotted several lookouts at least 300 meters away from the shady shop.
Compared to Sun Xiaotian's kerosene lamp, many stalls here have electric lights connected to batteries, but the brightness is not impressive.
Fresh rat meat can be traded for scraps of cloth.
"A moldy cigarette, or any kind of food will do."
"Two antibiotics, and I need a gun."
"..."
Food, medicine, clothing, and even weapons can be found in these black market shops.
Qin Ze took a quick look around and was about to leave when a dirty little child suddenly bumped into him.
"Sorry!"
The child ran away quickly.
Qin Ze raised an eyebrow and sent a message to Thousand Faces: "Follow them and see."
With Thousand Faces, he stepped into the dark pipe and transformed into a destitute survivor.
Qin Ze reached into his pocket and took out the note the child had slipped to him.
When unfolded, there were several small, crooked characters on it.
"There's a mole. Operation terminated."
(Taking a break today, only one update will be posted)