Apocalypse Survival Guide for a Beta [GB] - Chapter 65

Not only had someone betrayed her mentor but Mi Xing was also in danger.

Through her brief contact with Mi Xing after the apocalypse, Elena had deduced that Mi Xing was likely in a precarious situation. Now, with the memory chip her mentor had left her, she was certain that Mi Xing had encountered danger.

She couldn’t help but look at Lin Bai again.

But Bai Chuan immediately stepped in, blocking her gaze. He stared at her and asked, “Why do you keep looking at my A’Bai?”

It wasn’t unreasonable for Bai Chuan to misunderstand. Elena had just declared that someone had betrayed her mentor and the next moment, she was fixated on Lin Bai.

Elena withdrew her gaze and said, “It’s nothing. My mentor was betrayed and now Aurora’s people are here. Maybe Aurora is planning something. We need to get out of here quickly and find out what’s going on.”

Tang Mary couldn’t help but throw some cold water on her plan. “Even if you figure it out, with Aurora’s influence now, you might not be able to do anything about them.”

Elena didn’t show the slightest sign of backing down. She didn’t even furrow her brow. Instead, she calmly said, “My mentor once taught me a phrase from an ancient Earth text. ‘Do good deeds without asking for the outcome.’ I think it’s true. No matter the result, I only seek to act with a clear conscience.”

Tang Mary, not well-versed in literature, didn’t fully grasp the meaning of the phrase. But she understood Elena’s choice and said indifferently, “You really are the Federation’s righteous adjudicator, huh? I just hope Aurora actually did something bad. I can’t stand how secretive and mysterious they always act!”

Bai Chuan said coolly, “Aren’t you all thinking too far ahead? Right now, we’re not even sure we can get out of here.”

That was the truth. They had been stuck in the laboratory for nearly eight hours and the mutated zombies outside showed no signs of leaving.

Through the dim glass windows, they could see rotting limbs swaying in the corridor outside.

Elena put away the memory chip and was about to pick up the map handbook again to study their escape route when her gaze landed on the envelope by her leg.

Envelopes were rarely used in the Federation anymore. But her mentor, who studied ancient Earth cultures, occasionally used them for writing notes and tucking them into books. Now, even knowing the dangers of the apocalypse and the presence of zombies, her mentor had still chosen to store the memory chip in an envelope.

Elena had always trusted her instincts. Since joining the Law Enforcement Department, her intuition has helped her solve countless cases. And now, her instincts told her that the envelope held a deeper meaning.

Thinking this, she picked up the seemingly ordinary envelope.

Apart from its yellowed paper, there was nothing special about it.

The flap was visibly glued shut, with a slight excess of adhesive leaking at the edge.

Holding the envelope carefully, Elena scrutinized it. Something felt off. Given her mentor’s meticulous nature, she would never have allowed glue to spill over the edges like this.

Elena removed her oxygen mask and brought the envelope close to her nose. In the stale air of the laboratory, she detected a faint scent of white cedar, subtle but unmistakable. She immediately recognized it as her mentor’s pheromone scent.

That confirmed it. The envelope hid a secret.

Outside the laboratory, zombies still lingered. Inside, the air was running out. But Elena felt a sudden calm settle over her heart.

“Lin Bai,” she heard herself say.

Lin Bai looked up when she heard her name. Elena handed her an envelope. “Take a look at this envelope. Can you see anything unusual?” Elena asked, watching Lin Bai closely.

Lin Bai hesitated for a second before reaching out to take it.

Bai Chuan and Lou Tiannan also leaned in to look.

The envelope wasn’t large and it only took a few seconds to flip it back and forth for inspection. Lin Bai noticed the slight glue residue at the edge and immediately understood why Elena had given it to her.

Since Elena had already confirmed her identity and specifically handed her the envelope, there was no need to waste time pretending. Lin Bai said directly, “There are glue marks on the envelope. We should open it and check.”

“Mm.” Elena nodded, keeping her eyes fixed on Lin Bai’s face.

Since Elena wasn’t making a move, Lin Bai grabbed a wooden board to use as a base. Tang Mary initially handed her a thin metal sheet to help but it turned out to be unnecessary. The glue wasn’t very strong. With careful, gentle movements, it was easy to peel the envelope open.

The laboratory was silent as Lin Bai sat on the floor, quietly working to open the envelope.

From Lou Tiannan’s angle, he could only see the back of Lin Bai’s head. Occasionally, strands of her long hair would fall forward and she would absentmindedly tuck them behind her ear. Her fingers moved with precision and care, treating the envelope with serious attention.

When Elena saw Lin Bai actually getting to work, a subtle emotion flickered across her face. Countless questions swirled in her mind but she suppressed them. Now wasn’t the right time. There would be an opportunity to ask later.

Bai Chuan watched Lin Bai’s movements and suddenly felt a strange sense of familiarity. A long time ago, his boss used to sit at his desk, hunched over, sketching with the same focused posture. As expected of a bionic human created by his boss, she really did resemble her.

Under everyone’s watchful eyes, Lin Bai carefully unfolded the envelope into a full rectangular sheet of paper. Both sides were blank.

At that point, Lou Tiannan and the others certainly didn’t believe it was just an ordinary piece of stationery.

They tried exposing the paper to heat, cold, and even water but no hidden messages appeared. Just as they were feeling stuck, Elena suddenly thought of something. She quickly searched the lab and found an experiment lamp.

The moment she turned it on, writing appeared on the paper.

When they finished reading the message, they all saw the same flicker of hope in each other’s eyes.

According to Xiao Hehua’s note inside the envelope, she had anticipated that the mission would be dangerous. As a precaution, she had hidden a supply of high-powered explosives beneath the floor tiles in both the lab and her office. Additionally, she had marked the office window in advance, placing the explosives in the optimal locations. The high-powered charges were capable of breaking through the reinforced windows, giving them a possible escape route.

Looking through the lab’s one-way glass, they could see the markings Xiao Hehua had mentioned on the office’s floor-to-ceiling windows. Following the instructions in the note, they found the explosives hidden beneath a few loose floor tiles in the storage section of the lab.

Tang Mary remarked, “Your dean was really something else. It’s like she could see the future, managing to hide a large amount of explosives right here in the lab.”

“My mentor has always been incredible,” Elena said firmly. She had never once underestimated her.

The explosives were ready and the markings had been found. The next challenge was figuring out how to install the charges at the designated spots while being surrounded by the mutant zombies.

High-powered explosives were no joke. One mistake and they would all be buried here.

“I’ll go out and lure them away while you set up the explosives,” Lin Bai suggested.

“No way!” The four of them responded in unison.

“Lin Bai, how can you go? I’ll do it!” Tang Mary volunteered.

Lin Bai didn’t respond to her. Instead, she turned to Bai Chuan. Bai Chuan looked at Lin Bai’s emotionless expression and was reminded that her true nature wasn’t human. She was an android. If she went, it would indeed be safer and more reliable. After a moment of hesitation, Bai Chuan said, “Lin Bai… might not be… a bad choice.”

Immediately, he received sharp glares from Lou Tiannan, Elena, and Tang Mary.

“I’ll go,” Lou Tiannan said.

“Can you?” Lin Bai asked him.

Lou Tiannan was stunned by her question. He suddenly realized his own mission. He couldn’t go. He had a more important duty; to deliver the Primal Blood Vaccine back to the Federation.

Seeing Lou Tiannan fall silent, Lin Bai didn’t bother arguing with Tang Mary and instead turned to Elena. “Elena, you know I’m the best choice for this.”

‘Elena, look at what I brought you today. You know what this is!’

Elena did know. From the moment she received the electronic alert at the border prison, to seeing Lin Bai survive without breathing for eight hours and then revive, to Lin Bai memorizing a 314-digit verification code, and finally, when Lin Bai detected something unusual about Xiao Hehua’s envelope, each of those moments had been telling Elena the same thing.

You know. You’ve already figured it out.

Lin Bai was Mi Xing. And Mi Xing… was no longer human.

In this situation, Lin Bai was the most logical choice to distract the zombies.

Elena’s rational side told her Lin Bai was right. But her emotions told her she didn’t want Mi Xing to take such a risk. So she remained silent.

Tang Mary glanced between Bai Chuan and Elena, irritated. “What kind of secret code are you two using? Lin Bai, you’re not allowed to go! It’s too dangerous!”

“Someone has to go. And if I go, it’s the safest option. Don’t forget that I have abilities too,” Lin Bai said calmly. “Once you hear the explosion, I’ll return.”

She convinced the three of them easily and even Tang Mary reluctantly agreed in the end.

After finalizing the plan, Lou Tiannan said, “I’ll wait for you to come back.”

“No need. If the window is blown open, you should leave immediately,” Lin Bai replied. She wasn’t worried about herself since she was an android. As long as she disabled her aura settings, the zombies wouldn’t even perceive her presence.

“I’ll wait until the very last second,” Lou Tiannan insisted stubbornly.

For once, Tang Mary found Lou Tiannan quite likable. “Lin Bai, just let Captain Lou back you up. He has fire abilities, so he can hold them off for a while.”

Lin Bai knew that Lou Tiannan was a man of his word, with a self-sacrificing nature. At that moment, she could only nod and say, “Alright.”

She found two empty vials in the lab and pulled Bai Chuan over. “Give me some of your blood. I can use it as a distraction later.”

Bai Chuan generously let Lin Bai draw a tube of his blood. Tang Mary also offered a tube without hesitation.

Lin Bai tucked the vials into her pocket and said, “Step back. I’m going.”

With that, she swiftly pulled open the lab door. The sudden rush of air immediately alerted the mutant zombies lingering in the office. Lin Bai slammed the door shut and sprinted past them, letting the scent of fresh human blood trail behind her. The zombies, catching the smell, went wild and chased after her.

The office was suddenly empty. The four remaining inside wasted no time. They mixed the explosives and placed them at the marked positions before rushing back into the lab to wait for detonation.

According to Xiao Hehua’s letter, the mixture would explode within thirty seconds.

They counted down the seconds, eyes fixed on the office beyond. Somewhere out there, someone was risking everything for them.

All they could do was hope that the explosion would come quickly, faster!