The moment I stepped across the threshold, a strong sense of oppression washed over me. This corridor was completely different from the hall I had just left. The walls were made of a matte black alloy, without any seams, as smooth as a mirror. The overhead lights were not traditional light bulbs, but light strips embedded in the walls, emitting a constant, pale white light that illuminated every corner with exquisite detail.
"The air circulation system here seems to have been shut down," T'Challa muttered, keenly aware of the unusually steady airflow around him, even the drifting dust seemed mechanical and regular. "No wind means no natural convection."
"It's not just that there's no wind." Ye Mo stopped and gestured for the two to be quiet. He didn't look around, but narrowed his eyes slightly and activated his newly unlocked " Vibranium Sense." Although there was no obvious Vibranium in the corridor, he could sense the faint electrical pulses flowing inside the walls. The frequency of those pulses was extremely high, and they exhibited a strange synchronicity, as if they were performing some kind of high-speed calculation.
"This is a dynamic scanning array," Ye Mo said in a low voice, speaking very quickly. "It's not a static infrared sensor, but a comprehensive monitoring system combining microwave radar and thermal imaging. Its refresh rate is at least sixty times per second. If we sneak around normally, even with the slightest movement, as long as our body temperature fluctuates by more than 0.5 degrees Celsius, or if we generate even the slightest electromagnetic interference, the alarm will be triggered within milliseconds."
Emma Frost frowned. She tried to use her Telepathy to probe the situation ahead, but she quickly discovered that the density of electronic signals here was too high, forming a thick "noise wall." Any attempt to probe with her mental energy would be instantly drowned out, and might even trigger a backlash.
"What do we do then? Force our way in?" T'Challa's hand was already on the hilt of his knife, his muscles tense, ready to deal with any unexpected situation.
"Trying to force your way in is suicide." Ye Mo sneered, turning to Emma Frost. "We need a little 'magic.' Emma Frost, how far can you go?"
Emma Frost took a deep breath, her face still pale, but a hint of determination flickered in her eyes. "I can try to create a 'cognitive blind spot.' But I can't directly block electronic signals; that's a matter of technology. What I can do is interfere with bioelectrical signals, causing the monitoring system's logic modules to misinterpret them as environmental background noise."
"That's enough." Ye Mo nodded and took out a miniature signal jammer from his pocket—a part of the Hydra prototype that he had taken during the interrogation of Klaue. After his modifications, it could now release clutter of a specific frequency, specifically targeting bio-electromagnetic wave recognition algorithms.
"Listen," Ye Mo said quickly, adjusting the jammer in his hand, "I'll activate low-frequency jamming to disrupt their recognition algorithm. Emma Frost, you need to use your mental energy to envelop the three of us, 'diluting' our presence. Imagine we're not three people, but a stone, a wisp of air, or an insignificant stream of data. Don't resist the surveillance scan; instead, guide it to 'ignore' us."
"Understood." Emma Frost closed her eyes, her hands clasped in front of her chest. Fine beads of sweat appeared on her forehead, and a trace of blood began to seep from the tip of her nose. This was a state of extreme concentration; she was using her mental will to forcibly rewrite the boundary between reality and perception.
Ye Mo pressed the switch on the jammer. An invisible ripple spread out, enveloping the entire corridor. At the same time, Emma Frost's mental barrier slowly unfolded, like a transparent film, tightly wrapping the three of them.
The three of them took a step and moved forward cautiously.
Take the first step.
The light overhead seemed to flicker, but no alarm sounded. The surveillance camera slowly rotated, its red light sweeping across their bodies, but the moment it touched that invisible barrier, it slid past it like water flowing around a reef.
Step two, continue.
The corridor grew longer, and concealed sensors began to appear on the walls on both sides. These sensors were extremely sensitive, even able to detect the rhythm of a heartbeat. Ye Mo's body temperature was lower than normal due to his previous Ice Manipulation Ability, which was a clear anomaly on the thermal imaging camera.
"Watch your body temperature," Ye Mo silently repeated to himself, while simultaneously mobilizing the trace amounts of heat energy within the Gene Spiral Tower to slowly raise his body surface temperature, bringing it in line with the surrounding environment. This was a delicate operation; the slightest mistake could lead to failure.
T'Challa moved stealthily close to the wall, utilizing the low reflectivity of his Vibranium Suit to minimize light refraction and heat radiation. His movements were as light as a cat's, each step perfectly timed, as if resonating with the pulse of the corridor.
Emma Frost's mental burden was mounting. She could feel the surveillance cameras like invisible eyes, staring intently at them. Each scan felt like a sharp blade slicing through her nerves. More and more blood seeped from her nostrils, dripping down her chin onto the ground, but she dared not wipe it away.
"Hold on." Ye Mo's voice echoed in her mind, calm and firm. "Fifty meters to go. After this corner, we'll be in the outer area of the main control console."
Fifty meters. For an ordinary person, it's just a minute's walk, but for the three of them at that moment, it felt like walking on a knife's edge for an eternity.
Finally, they reached the end of the corridor. There was a spacious foyer facing a heavy alloy door. Two fully armed guards stood motionless on either side of the door, like statues. Above the door hung a huge holographic projection screen, displaying a constantly scrolling stream of data.
"This is the core area." Ye Mo stopped and scanned the surroundings. "The surveillance density here is ten times that of the outside. Moreover, behind that holographic screen, there's definitely a central processing unit connected. If anything unusual happens, the entire base's security system will respond immediately."
"How do we get over there?" T'Challa asked in a low voice, his gaze falling on the guards. "A frontal assault is impossible; their reaction speed is too fast."
"No need to break through." Ye Mo pointed to a ventilation duct grille in the corner of the lobby. "That's the only blind spot. The monitoring system's scanning logic is based on height and movement trajectory, and this vent is located in a dead corner and is closed year-round, so the system defaults to treating it as an invalid space."
"You mean we're going to crawl inside?" Emma Frost was somewhat surprised; she hadn't expected Ye Mo's plan to be so audacious.
"That's right." Ye Mo adjusted his glasses, a confident smile playing on his lips. "But this requires perfect coordination. Emma Frost, you need to reduce the range of the Mind Shielding to only cover the space inside the vents. I need to ensure that we aren't detected by any sensors the moment we enter. T'Challa, you're in charge of covering the rear. If anything goes wrong, immediately cut off the local power supply and create chaos."
"No problem." T'Challa nodded, a ruthless glint in his eyes.
Ye Mo took the lead. Like a nimble monkey, he silently climbed up the edge of the ventilation duct. His hands trembled slightly, not from fear, but from the cold and exhaustion. But he forced himself to steady himself and unscrewed the screws securing the grille.
The grille emitted a soft clicking sound, which was particularly clear in the quiet corridor.
Ye Mo's heart tightened, and he quickly looked at Emma Frost. Emma Frost's mental barrier suddenly strengthened at that moment, completely enveloping the faint sound in her "cognitive blind spot." Even the most sensitive sensors could not distinguish whether the sound came from the outside or the inside.
"Let's go." Ye Mo gestured.
T'Challa followed closely behind, nimbly slipping into the ventilation shaft. Finally, it was Emma Frost's turn; her face was deathly pale, but with Ye Mo's help, she still managed to climb in with difficulty.
As the grille closed again, the foyer returned to calm. The guards remained standing there, and the data stream on the holographic screen continued to scroll, as if nothing had happened.
The ventilation duct was narrow and dark, filled with the smell of rust and engine oil. Ye Mo turned on his tactical flashlight, adjusted it to the lowest brightness, and the faint green light illuminated the road ahead.
"This leads to the top of the main control panel," Ye Mo said in a low voice. "From there, we can observe the internal situation and find the best opportunity to enter."
The three crawled forward along the pipe. With each step, they could hear faint footsteps and conversations coming from below. The sounds were indistinct, but could be identified as a mixture of English and Wakandan.
"It seems they're already inside," T'Challa said in a low voice, his tone grave.
Ye Mo remained silent, calculating the distance in quiet contemplation. In his mind, the seventh level of the Gene Spiral Tower trembled once more, as if foreshadowing an impending storm.
When the end of the pipe came into view, Ye Mo stopped. Through the gaps in the grille, he saw the scene below: a huge circular hall with a cylindrical device emitting a ghostly blue light in the center, surrounded by dozens of technicians in white uniforms. At the entrance of the hall stood several mercenaries armed with heavy weapons.
"The target is right in front of us," Ye Mo said softly, a cold glint in his eyes. "Are you ready?"
Emma Frost nodded weakly; her mental strength was nearing its limit, but she still struggled to remain conscious. T'Challa gripped his twin blades, ready to strike.
Ye Mo took a deep breath and pushed open the grille.
The next second, he leaped and landed in the center of the hall.