Chapter 977: Hidden Quest in the Sewer?

Chapter 977: A Hidden Quest in the Sewers?

The pitch-black sewer was thick with a damp, foul odor, and the moss on the walls flickered faintly in the dim light, reflecting an ominous, greasy sheen.

The rubber-soled combat boots kissed the wet ground with a faint squeak, like the gnawing sound of rodents.

At the same time, it seemed to be the only sound echoing through the entire waterway.

This was the sewer beneath 17th Street in Avent City.

To be fair, the Vlandians really knew their stuff when it came to urban construction.

Although the maintenance of Avent City’s infrastructure had nearly ground to a halt due to the war, the drainage system was still functioning well, with sewage flowing steadily below the warning line and not flooding the walkways on either side.

That said, the situation here was far from optimistic.

In just three days, the Avent City Security Bureau had received seven reports of “sewer mutant attacks,” and news of mutated rats nesting in the city’s drainage system had the nearby residents on edge.

To protect the lives and property of Avent City’s survivors and ensure the smooth progress of reconstruction, the Goblin Corps had unhesitatingly taken on this quest, worth 1,000 silver coins, 200 contribution points, and 5,000 regional reputation.

At that moment, two agile figures moved one after the other along the narrow passageway.

On the way here, they had already taken down dozens of mutants.

Not just mutated rats, but also elusive mutant cockroaches and mutant flies that laid eggs.

Though they hadn’t yet spotted the mutant nest, they could basically confirm that the Security Bureau’s intel was solid.

“…I never thought there’d be so many mutants hiding in a residential area like this.”

“It’s the wasteland, after all.”

“Damn… this game is way too realistic in the weirdest places. I’d rather run some less stinky dungeons.”

“Take it easy. That’s 1,000 silver coins, you know.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know.”

The two wore identical Type-5 exoskeletons, full-face helmets, and carried lightweight tactical backpacks along with breaching tools they might need.

Since the gear was insured, they wouldn’t feel too bad if it got wrecked.

So, while they searched the sewer corners cautiously, their expressions showed nothing more than calm and mild disgust—no real tension.

They even had time to chat.

“Hey, don’t the locals worry about mutants suddenly popping out of the ground while they’re sleeping?”

“I don’t think worrying about it helps. Might as well keep a gun on the nightstand?”

“Eek! That sounds creepy.” Imagining a rat as tall as her waist during a midnight bathroom trip, Guigui couldn’t help but shiver.

She wasn’t afraid of rats, per se.

But only if she faced them head-on.

Still, mutated rats and cockroaches were the weakest mutants in the wasteland.

Mutated hyenas were a step up.

Even a frail wastelander like Xiaoyu could take down a mutated hyena without much trouble, and for the Vlandians, who had gunpowder running through their veins, it was probably a piece of cake.

As for the next generation, that was another story.

But thankfully, there was tech like mental interference devices to drive mutants away, so at least their range could be contained.

Just as Guigui was lost in thought, a faint sound came from the side.

“Squeak—”

Hearing the slight noise, Fengqing immediately swung her tactical light over.

The beam illuminated the shadowy corner brightly.

Beneath a twisted metal pipe, a pair of round, terrified eyes stared back at her.

The little creature seemed scared stiff, its gray fur standing on end as it flailed its legs backward, trembling, with nowhere to retreat.

Though the war had left all survivors hungry, the rats in this city were surprisingly plump.

“Eek, what a fat one!” Guigui leaned in for a look, rubbing her chin appraisingly. “But seriously, can a rat that doesn’t even reach your knee count as a mutant?”

Fengqing thought for a moment, then shook her head gently.

“Doesn’t seem like it.”

“Mutants” meant abnormal species. Without a clear definition, a natural creature that fit common sense obviously couldn’t be one.

At least it should have an extra claw or something, right?

Fengqing reached out, grabbed the rat by the neck, and pulled it out from the tangled pipes.

The startled rat squeaked frantically, flailing its claws and legs, biting at her hand—but its blunt teeth couldn’t pierce her tactical gloves.

“Alright, alright… I won’t kill you. Hope you bring us a nice surprise.”

Murmuring soothingly, she took a plastic strap with a signal chip from her exoskeleton’s tactical webbing, carefully tied it around the struggling rat, and then gently tossed it away.

The fat rat hit the ground and immediately scrambled into the darkness.

Its only thought now was to scurry back to its nest and hide.

But it didn’t know the cunning humans had planted a transmitter on it, waiting for this traitor to lead them home.

Watching Fengqing fiddle with her VM screen, Guigui sighed.

“I just realized, we should’ve let Qiangrenweinan handle this. He’d have finished it in a flash.”

Fengqing, focused on the screen, replied casually.

“Emm… in theory, yes, but we can’t expect him to fly all the way to Avent City for just 1,000 silver coins.”

Besides, this wasn’t exactly a tough job.

In the time they’d been talking, the rat with the transmitter had already scurried back to its nest, huddling inside and trembling, not moving.

According to earlier evidence from the Alliance Institute of Biology, mutated rats and normal-sized rats didn’t segregate by size; instead, they tended to live together, with social hierarchy based on size.

Seeing the signal dot on the screen stop moving, a smile curled at the corner of Fengqing’s mouth as she shared the coordinates with her teammate.

“Done.”

“Let’s wrap this up and get out of here.” Guigui stretched her arm, drew her pistol, and chambered a round.

But just as she was about to step forward, Fengqing suddenly reached out and grabbed her shoulder.

“Wait.”

“What’s up?”

Guigui turned back, puzzled, but saw Fengqing silent, only making a shushing gesture and closing her eyes.

Sensing something, Guigui immediately quieted down and dimmed her flashlight beam.

The sewer fell into silence, with only the steady flow of water echoing in the dark.

The strands of hair by her ear swayed gently. After a long moment, Fengqing finally opened her eyes and spoke slowly.

“There’s movement. Not far.”

Ghost nodded with the same grave expression, gazing toward the direction not far off.

“Mm... I heard it too.”

Both were agility-type players.

Though perception wasn’t their forte, they possessed extraordinary sight and hearing, able to actively detect anomalies in their surroundings.

They exchanged a tacit glance, switched off their flashlights, and with muffled footsteps, one after the other, moved toward the corner at the end of the corridor, closing in on the source of the sound.

A hundred meters.

Fifty meters...

Right nearby!

The silence around them was absolute; that faint noise just now seemed to have vanished into thin air.

Fengqing controlled her breathing, her index finger gently flicking off the safety of her submachine gun.

Instinct told her that what lurked in the darkness might not be a rat, but something else entirely.

Just then, a soft “drip” came from the side.

It sounded like sewage water leaking from a damaged metal pipe, dripping into a puddle—yet in that instant, it made Fengqing’s nerves tighten like a taut string.

Almost by reflex, she swiftly raised her left arm to shield the left front of her helmet!

And at the same moment, a sharp crack split the deep darkness, accompanied by a dull clang as it struck the ballistic insert on her left arm’s exoskeleton brace!

The piercing tip drove hard into the polymer material, nearly grazing her arm.

Had she not blocked it, that icy gleam would likely have struck her face.

Ghost quickly raised her gun, flicking on the tactical light mounted beneath the barrel—but saw no one. Only an electromagnetic launcher with a mechanical base and infrared sight, embedded in a twisted metal pipe.

“It’s a trap!”

Since the hidden enemy had already marked them, there was no point in stealth anymore.

As she spoke, Ghost pulled the trigger, firing two shots that blew apart the fixed weapon aimed at them.

With the danger neutralized, she quickly turned to Fengqing, concern in her voice.

“You okay?”

“I’m fine.”

Looking at the dart embedded in her arm, Fengqing calmly pulled it out, examined it in her hand, and mused,

“This isn’t the work of an aberrant...”

The thing might well be poisoned, and likely with an organic toxin extracted from aberrants.

The reason? Probably to make the cause of death easier to disguise.

Reassured that Fengqing was unharmed, Ghost let out a breath of relief, but quickly grew alert again.

The danger wasn’t fully resolved.

The enemy was still lurking in the shadows, waiting for an opening!

She could feel the killing intent hidden in the darkness, drawing closer and closer!

That bastard wouldn’t let them leave the sewers alive—he’d do everything to keep them here!

“Remnants of Tyr?”

“Hard to say. Could be the Enlightened Society? Didn’t you see on the forums? They hijacked a research vessel and killed a few Academy surveyors,” Fengqing said, stowing the dart in her tactical vest. She compared the map on her VM screen, warily scanning ahead. “Whatever it is, this place is far more than just an aberrant nest...”

It might not only be the traps here—even the aberrants they’d encountered earlier could have been deliberately released, all to cover up some unspeakable secret hidden in the sewers.

In other words—

They’d triggered a hidden quest!

At that thought, Fengqing’s spirits lifted. She exchanged a glance with Ghost, whose face was alight with excitement. Far from retreating, they pressed deeper into the gloomy sewers.

As the two advanced, Flynn, watching the monitors from his hiding place, grew tense and couldn’t help cursing under his breath.

“Damn it!”

This was the Enlightened Society’s secret outpost—or safe house—beneath Avant City.

The local disciples and guides used this base for regular meetings, intelligence exchanges, and planning operations. The aberrants roaming the sewers had been deliberately released to divert attention.

But he hadn’t expected the Alliance to be so thorough, even bothering with the rats in the sewers.

Watching the two soldiers draw closer to his base, Flynn had no choice but to risk activating the bait he’d placed along their path, luring them into an ambush for elimination.

Yet something even more unexpected happened.

The two soldiers were exceptionally skilled. The one in front blocked the lethal dart with a single raised arm, and the one behind didn’t even give him a chance to finish the job—she fired two shots and blew apart his carefully laid trap!

Now things had gone sideways.

Not only had he failed to kill them, but he’d also exposed the secret hidden in the sewers!

No time to hesitate. Flynn immediately rose from the holographic computer, grabbing the exoskeleton hanging nearby.

The signal in the sewers was terrible; those two soldiers probably hadn’t yet reported their findings.

There was still time!

Transparent ripples spread across the exoskeleton’s armor, merging with the environment like snowflakes falling into water.

Fully equipped, Flynn wordlessly picked up the rifle propped by the safe house door, chambered a round, and stepped through the security door into the pitch-black sewer. Guided by the surveillance feed projected on his tactical goggles, he suppressed his killing intent and pursued his targets.

No matter what, those two little rats couldn’t be allowed to return alive!

By now, Flynn had a vague sense that these Alliance soldiers could keenly perceive the killing intent hidden in the darkness, like awakened individuals with special talents.

But he clearly hadn’t realized that Alliance warriors were capable of far more than that—and that there existed something like the “official forum,” which defied common sense.

Otherwise, he would never have bothered with such a pointless cleanup operation. He’d have blown up the base and fled immediately.

Killing one or two players meant nothing—their coordinates would be exposed on the forum in seconds!

At that moment, Fengqing and Ghost were still cautiously advancing, searching ahead. They hadn’t expected their enemy, instead of fleeing, to come straight for them.

Just then, a barely perceptible sound came from a corner nearby.

They quickly aimed their tactical lights in that direction, but saw nothing.

Suspecting the enemy might have optical camouflage, Ghost decisively drew the knife strapped to her arm and slashed forward—but hit nothing but air.

“Tch, nothing.”

Disappointed, Ghost sheathed the knife, reversing it in her left hand and holding it beneath her pistol.

Fengqing frowned, quickly shifting her light as she scanned the surroundings.

She was certain she’d heard something.

Years of battlefield experience had honed her ears—they wouldn’t deceive her!

Just then, the corner of her eye caught a glimpse of moss clinging to a metal pipe ten meters away.

Under the flashlight’s beam, it shimmered with an oily, iridescent sheen—but now that sheen was clearly torn!

In that instant when their eyes met the unseen gaze, Feng Qing felt her heart yanked into her throat.

Right there!

“Over there!”

“Where?!” Hearing Feng Qing’s shout, Gui Gui, who had been on guard in another direction, swiftly turned her head.

“Rat-a-tat-tat—!”

The chatter of the submachine gun answered her query. With no time to call out the location, Feng Qing simply squeezed the trigger, using the tracers to point her teammate toward the attack direction.

As she had anticipated, the orange-yellow streaks did not strike the twisted metal pipes but slammed into an invisible wall, rippling with concentric rings.

Outlined by those ripples, a pitch-black figure slowly revealed itself.

Caught completely off guard, the enemy took the full brunt of the burst, staggering backward and nearly crashing to the ground.

“Damn it—”

Flynn roared, raising his rifle to retaliate, when a swift-as-the-wind figure closed in, turning into a glint of cold steel aimed at his face.

“Clang—!”

The clash of metal echoed through the narrow tunnel. Flynn, having drawn his curved blade, barely parried the lethal strike, but cold sweat already drenched the back of his skull.

He had thought they were just two petty thieves, never expecting to run into special forces!

Gui Gui, her first strike thwarted, gave him no time to dwell. She quickly dropped low and slashed her dagger toward his flank.

Even for a veteran of countless battles, caught off guard, Flynn struggled to hold his ground, barely twisting his body to let his armored vest absorb the blow.

A dull thud like an axe hitting a wall rang out, and this time it was Gui Gui’s eyes that widened.

“Holy crap! Can’t even cut through that?!”

That had been her full-strength strike.

Even against the armored vest of a Type-6 heavy exoskeleton, she was confident she could punch a hole through it.

Yet his reaction was merely as if he’d been kicked.

Flynn, hit in the gut, winced in pain, but the blow gave him a chance to counter. He lashed out with a kick to her flat chest.

Gui Gui felt as if she’d been hit by a truck, flying backward with her exoskeleton, crashing into the wall with a pained cry.

That kick had broken at least three of her ribs—though it didn’t hurt much, it knocked her offline instantly.

Without checking on her teammate’s condition, Feng Qing calmly reloaded her submachine gun, laying down suppressive fire while gripping two grenades, timing their detonation.

Just as the magazine ran dry, she hurled both grenades at the target.

Less than 1.5 seconds after they left her hand, the explosion shook the entire sewer!

A scorching shockwave, laced with shrapnel, slammed into her armored vest and raised arms.

At such close range, she took considerable damage herself.

But—

The enemy took far more.

Tossing aside her submachine gun, Feng Qing fluidly drew a short blade from her tactical pack and charged into the dissipating smoke, ready to deliver the killing blow.

Yet the moment she stepped into the haze, a warning flared in her heart.

Instinctively, she bent her knees, and at that same instant, a whistling blade swept over her head.

“Swoosh—!”

So fast!

Was that the exoskeleton’s speed?!

Feng Qing’s pupils involuntarily contracted.

Before she could react, a knee slammed into her chest, nearly knocking the wind out of her.

“Ugh—”

A pained grunt escaped her lips. She felt a hand grip her neck, lifting her off the ground.

Holding her last breath, she swung her short blade at the figure’s head, but it was knocked away mid-arc by a punch.

Crack—

The sound of bone breaking. Her right arm went numb—probably dislocated.

Her toes dangling, she reached with her left hand for the ring on her pack, but the enemy saw her intent, crushing her left shoulder with a crunch.

Though she felt no pain, sweat poured like a waterfall from her calm face.

This guy had skill.

That last move had likely shattered her shoulder.

Watching the little ant squirm in his grip, Flynn, with blood at the corner of his mouth, wore a savage grin.

“You’re from the Burning Corps, right? I’ll admit you’ve got some moves, but too bad—you’re still weaker than me.”

Feng Qing, on the verge of blacking out from suffocation, suddenly felt the hand around her neck loosen slightly.

A violent cough cleared her fading consciousness.

This guy…

As a villain, he had no class.

She spoke impatiently.

“…So much blabbering. Get it over with.”

Hearing that cold voice, Flynn’s pupils shrank, the victorious smile freezing on his face.

That voice…

A woman?

Flynn grabbed her helmet and yanked it off her exoskeleton.

Staring at her disheveled hair and soft features, his eyes flickered with a bewildered disbelief, as if the hard-won victory had suddenly been cheapened.

That expression was irritating. Feng Qing pursed her lips and looked away.

Perhaps provoked by the gesture, the hand around her neck tightened again.

Flynn glared at her.

“I’ll ask you one more time: which corps are you from?”

You’ve only asked once, haven’t you?

Feng Qing muttered inwardly, then said nonchalantly,

“Goblin Corps… I fly planes. What, want to take it to the sky with me?”

“Fly… a pilot? How could you be here?! You’re messing with me!”

Enraged, Flynn’s face twisted in fury.

Though he could not see the expression on that face, Fengqing could roughly discern something from his tone.

This guy was probably regretting that he hadn't managed to test the strength of the Burning Corps.

Perhaps there was also a hint of surprise, even terror.

But such things were ultimately of no consequence.

"...Haven't you heard that villains die from talking too much? You're a bit talkative."

Fengqing, eager to start his resurrection countdown, reminded him, after all, the longer he delayed here, the longer his teammates would have to wait at the respawn point.

Flin took a deep breath, suddenly calmed down, and stared coldly at the woman he held in his grip.

"...Stop bluffing. Die."

As his words fell, his right hand was about to crush her neck, when a numbing electric current suddenly shot through his nape, coursing through his entire body, and seized control of his exoskeleton.

Someone ambushing?!

Flin's heart jolted in alarm, realizing he was in trouble, but turning around was already too late.

Whether it was a virus or a close-range electromagnetic pulse, his exoskeleton felt as if filled with lead, completely locked in place, unable to move!

Cold sweat burst from his forehead.

Just then, a hand landed on his shoulder, followed by a cheeky voice from behind him.

"Nice gear you've got there. How about giving it to me?"