Chapter 736 Beginning to Change
The towering main building of the Northland Ring Tower stands majestically in front of everyone. This glorious building that once represented the highest technological achievements of mankind and the future of civilization is now mottled and decaying. The cement exterior walls can be seen everywhere with pitted peeling marks and weather-exploded weather. The cracks caused by the cracks caused the once bright paint to basically fade into a dirty yellowish brown, and large areas of the wall peeled off, forming a disgusting layer of soft soil around the ring tower. But its main body is still strong, and the reinforced steel frame supports this old tower well. It seems that there is no need to worry about collapse.
"There are no traces of erosion by the nanomachine swarm," Nolan raised his head and glanced at the nearly straight wall, "and there is no change compared to the last time I came here. It seems that no other adventurers have come this year. Get through this.”
Hao Ren was curious about what Nolan came to this place for a year ago, but now seemed not the time to ask such questions. Ulanov led the crowd in front to find the entrance to the tower. After going around a section of the circular outer wall, they saw a broken door. Judging from the marks around the door, it was blown open.
"More than one group of people have been to this place in the past sixty-five years. The attraction of pre-war technology is not what it is now." Nolan turned to the mercenaries who came here for the first time and said, "If you want to start from The idiots who dug up the treasure here are coming one after another, and most of them didn't come back alive, so if you still want to come back alive, just listen to the instructions and don't touch things you don't recognize."
"Isn't there a group of nanomachines here?" Hao Ren asked casually.
"Do you think the nanomachines are the only danger here?" Nolan raised his gun. "We don't bring guns to deal with nanomachines. There are warning robots here - they were originally used to guard underground containers. Things that have a theoretical lifespan of a hundred years, God knows how damaged their programs are now."
Ulanov nodded slightly and confirmed Nolan's statement.
Hao Ren lowered his head and looked at the weapon in his hand. It was a light assault rifle. Laser projections were used on the gun to display the remaining ammunition capacity, current user, machine status and other characteristics. There was also a gray fox mark. This weapon was given to him by Nolan. Although Hao Ren had not joined the team yet, Nolan could not let his companions go to the battlefield empty-handed.
Before entering the building, Ulanov touched Hao Ren's arm: "How is your marksmanship?"
Hao Ren replied vaguely: "It's similar to boxing and kicking."
"Okay, you and I will walk together later, and we will clear the way for the boys behind us."
The mercenaries protected the two researchers from the Baihe Chamber of Commerce as they carefully stepped into the door, and the abandoned and collapsed internal corridor appeared in front of everyone. The paint and cement debris peeling off the walls are scattered all over the floor, and the signs hanging on the roof are covered with rust. There is a desolate and strange atmosphere lingering in this building that has been abandoned for decades. Some mercenaries are here. He swallowed nervously under the pressure of this atmosphere, and the gurgling sound was clearly audible in the silent corridor.
It was quiet all around, with only the cautious footsteps and breathing of everyone echoing around. Nolan was walking at the front of the team, while Hao Ren and Ulanov were guarding the surroundings. The corridors become darker as they go forward. The limited windows on the outer wall of the ring tower can no longer provide sufficient light to the depths of the building. Several mercenaries who have not undergone visual modifications have put on night vision devices. In the light green night vision, this place is even more weird.
Hao Ren looked at the people around him. He could still see things clearly in this place, but considering his status as a "natural person", he still wore night vision goggles like everyone else.
"Do you know how to get to where you are going?" Nolan stopped slightly and turned his head to ask the researcher from the Baihe Chamber of Commerce not far behind him.
"Main control room, master computer control terminal No. 1," the thin researcher replied calmly. Although he was only a civilian employee, he was as calm as the soldiers in this environment, which Hao Ren couldn't help but Take another look at this person.
When he heard the words "main control room", Ulanov couldn't help but take a breath. He took a step forward and said, "I know the shortest route."
Nolan nodded: "Okay, you lead the way."
The team continued walking deeper into the building and found a spiral staircase that spiraled upward. The main control room was located above the staircase. Hao Ren and Ulanov went to check whether the stairs were still strong, but on the way they suddenly saw a skeleton lying on the stairs.
Ulanov immediately squatted down to check the condition of the skeleton, and judged the identity of the person from the fragments of his clothes: "... He was a staff member of the ring tower. He seemed to have lost his footing and fell to his death from above."
The nanomachine swarm did not attack the North Ring Tower after it went out of control. Therefore, the people in this building survived longer than others in the disaster, but their fate was not much better than those who were dissolved outside. In that disaster, the building was sealed into a completely isolated island, with no supplies, no rescue, and no hope - they were trapped alive in this place, and as researchers and controllers of the nanomachine swarm, They also knew that it was impossible for anyone to break through the raging fleet of aircraft outside to rescue them. No one knows how the people in the Ring Tower spent the last days of their lives. In the twenty years after the disaster broke out, the situation inside the Northland ruins was completely unknown to the world. When a group of desperate troops finally broke into this place at the cost of huge casualties, they only found corpses.
According to the descriptions of soldiers who were lucky enough to come back alive, people in the ring tower died of various causes. Most died of hunger, a few committed suicide, and the rest were basically killed in fights. ——Perhaps in order to snatch the last food, a riot broke out here. There are also many more horrifying stories passed down. For example, someone saw kitchen utensils containing human bones in the kitchen of the ring tower ruins, and a large number of dismembered corpses in a certain room...
Every one of them is mind-numbing.
Hao Ren looked down at Ulanov who was inspecting the skeleton. He didn't know if this man had recalled the dark rumors about the Northland Ring Tower at this moment. In order not to waste time, he patted the other man on the shoulder: "Let's go. The people behind are waiting.”
Ulanov slowly stood up.
Everyone reached the second floor through the stairs. After bypassing a narrow passage, a wide corridor appeared in front. Ulanov pointed to a door not far away: "That's the control room you're looking for."
"The door is actually intact..." Nolan looked at the door in surprise, "I thought the guy who came here before had smashed every door."
"There is probably an alarm device connected to the security robot behind this door." A researcher from the Baihe Chamber of Commerce stepped forward to check the status of the door. "... Incredible, the locking device is electrified! The energy in this place has not been cut off!"
Nolan looked at the researcher with a meaningful look. It seemed that this person knew a lot about the situation in the ring tower.
Ulanov turned his head and looked at the end of the dark corridor. He seemed to see something that concerned him: "You are busy here, I will go over and take a look."
After he said this, he walked straight ahead. Seeing this, Nolan ordered the mercenary beside him: "Karl, you come with him."
The tall mercenary Karl nodded silently and quickly followed Ulanov's pace. The two figures soon disappeared at the dark end of the corridor.
Hao Ren didn't pay much attention. He felt that Ulanov should have taken this opportunity to look for clues about his wife. It was not good for him as an outsider to join in and watch the fun. He turned his head and continued to watch the Baihe Chamber of Commerce researcher tinkering with the locking device on the door. It was incredible that some of the electronic equipment on the door could still be used today.
At this moment, a burst of piercing gunshots suddenly broke the silence in the building.
Hao Ren instantly looked up to where the gunfire came from - that was the direction Ulanov and Karl left!
Nolan's voice sounded at the same time as the last gunshot fell: "People from the second team, go over and take a look at the situation."
Hao Ren didn't know which team he was in, and he didn't think so much. When Nolan spoke, he had already rushed to the other end of the corridor.
Whether it was an illusion or not, as he raised his legs, he suddenly saw the surrounding corridor walls undulating like water. Although it was only a short moment, it was particularly concerning.