The weapon refiner is not doing her job properly

Chapter 200 The Missing Lamb (8)

Tong Zi's tense nerves relaxed slightly as the fire lizard's condition quickly stabilized.

She once again deeply appreciated Su Ninglong's reassuring qualities, which were like a bottomless treasure trove, always able to magically produce unexpected yet precise and effective wonders to turn the tide in the most critical moments of crisis.

This explains why all the hunters who had the privilege of fighting alongside her would give a thumbs up when they mentioned the name "Su Xiaolong," their eyes filled with admiration and longing, hoping to cling to this golden "thigh" again in the next mission.

Ultimately, the sacred artifact she developed was truly powerful.

"Stop dawdling!" The door behind was now enduring increasingly violent impacts, groaning under the strain and making a piercing, tearing sound, as if it could be completely pierced at any moment.

"The 'guests' behind us can't wait any longer! Let's go!" Doug shot off like an arrow, bursting with astonishing speed, and charged towards the end of the dark corridor.

The others didn't dare hesitate for a moment; driven by their survival instincts, they immediately put all their strength into following closely behind.

Su Ninglong tacitly slowed her pace, silently retreating to the very end of the group, her eyes scanning the darkness of the passage behind her warily, taking on the responsibility of bringing up the rear.

Like frightened birds, the group fled desperately through the oppressive passage, breaking down several doors in succession.

Finally, as Doug violently smashed open the sixth heavy metal door, the suddenly open view before them caused the rushing group to abruptly stop in their tracks.
Behind the door, the oppressive, closed corridor was replaced by a vast, soul-stirring underground space.

This place seems to be a natural cave formed by hollowing out the entire mountain peak from the inside; its spaciousness and height exceed everyone's imagination.

The fire lizard had just managed to stabilize its SAN value at 63 thanks to the "Concentration Pill," but under the impact of this desolate cave space, it plummeted again as if struck by a heavy hammer.

A spasm-like sensation came from my stomach, and acid rushed straight to my throat.

He clenched his teeth tightly, forcibly suppressing the scream that almost burst from his throat and the urge to vomit, and fine beads of cold sweat instantly seeped from his forehead.

Their gazes were involuntarily drawn to the breathtaking sight at the center of the cave's dome.

A colossal, dark brown vine, so immense it defies description, coiled above their heads like a slumbering ancient evil dragon.

Its gnarled trunk extends menacingly from a severely damaged and cracked cylindrical metal culture chamber.

What's even more nauseating is that the trunk of this terrifying giant vine is covered with many cultivation chambers of varying sizes and shapes, resembling ugly insect egg cases, clinging tightly to each other and extending into the bottomless darkness deep within the cave.

Each "egg sheath" was filled with a murky, viscous liquid that shimmered with an eerie light.

Immersed in this liquid are "creatures" whose original species form is completely unrecognizable.

Some limbs are folded backward at angles that completely violate physiological structure, with the stark white bones piercing the skin and exposed in a grotesque manner;

Some, like overinflated sacs, swell disproportionately, their skin covered with huge, burl-like protrusions, and withered, vascular vines, like dead roots, tightly coiled around and constricted their swollen bodies...

What lies before us are not ordinary corpses; they are pitiful creations forcibly twisted, pieced together, and then thrown into an unknown purgatory—defective products produced by human hands.

In the murky culture medium, the twisted shapes were interspersed with clearly identifiable human limb remains.

There were also arms that had been forcibly sewn or grafted, and half of a face covered with woody growths...

These are the root causes of the fire lizard's nausea.

He forced himself to take a deep breath, abruptly averted his gaze from those nightmarish incubation chambers, and instead turned his attention to Su Ninglong.

She was the most indifferent of all the people to the hellish scene before her.

Su Ninglong paid no attention to the incubation chamber and walked straight to the incinerator on the side of the cave.

The furnace opening was enormous, and wisps of smoke carrying a pungent, burnt smell were rising from it, as if a "feast" that had just devoured everything had just ended.

Beside the furnace, piles of black body bags resembled ominous grave mounds. Many of the bags were torn, oozing a dark reddish-black filthy liquid that left winding trails on the ground.

On the cold metal workbench next to the incinerator, large patches of dried, dark brown blood outlined a blurry, distorted human figure.

Scattered around the bloodstains were saws, pliers, and bone chisels covered in congealed grime and various suspicious debris...

These tools lay there silently, seemingly telling the story of the cruel acts that had occurred here.

Tong Zi forcibly looked away, but she was suddenly drawn by some intuition to a control panel covered in dust and stains not far away.

In the corner of the console, a bunch of "deliberately" placed items caught her attention.

Several torn pieces of protective clothing, with blurry edges and off-color Star Alliance emblems printed on them, exuded a cheap and shoddy feel.

The Star Alliance did make similar honor badges when they were short of money at the beginning.

What made her pupils shrink even more was the sight of several incomplete artifacts scattered nearby. She had seen illustrations of their style in an old Star Alliance almanac before. She remembered that chapter quite well because the illustrations depicted the remains of lost ancient artifacts.

The word "framed" flashed through Tong Zi's mind.

She reached out discreetly, intending to pick up a fragment of the protective suit bearing a cheap badge, planning to quietly slip it into her pocket. Regardless of why these things were there, their presence posed a threat.

Before her fingers could even touch the fragments, a cool hand gently pressed against the back of her hand. Unbeknownst to her, Su Ninglong had silently moved from the incinerator to her side.

"Don't take any unnecessary actions with counterfeit goods that don't pose a real threat," Su Ninglong advised. "You think you can frame the Star Alliance with just a few fakes? If it were that easy, the Star Alliance would have disbanded long ago."

She then changed the subject, saying, "Besides, who would frame someone and then put the item in such an obvious place? Since they've put it out so openly, we might as well take it out openly too."

As she spoke, she slowly rummaged through her small backpack and pulled out a large, thick, transparent evidence bag, which she enthusiastically stuffed into Tong Zi's hand, her eyes gleaming mischievously: "Here, use this. Put as much as you want in, don't be shy."

Tong Zi looked at the evidence bag in front of her, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

Her earlier caution seemed so unnecessary; Su Ninglong's problem-solving method was direct and efficient, clearing away obstacles for her in no time.

"Why do you stuff everything into your pockets?" Tong Zi couldn't help but ask.

I'll definitely use up all the backpacks people gave me in the warehouse when I get the chance. I only brought plastic bags today, so I'll just have to make do with these.

Su Ninglong replied casually. More than a dozen backpacks with the Dingding Mouse pattern had already been lost, and there were probably seven or eight more of the same style left in the warehouse.

As for the other styles of backpacks, there are fifty or sixty of them in total.

She was thinking to herself that she would probably receive more gifts in the future, so she should pick out a few that she would like to keep with her so that she could easily grab them whenever she needed them.

She expects more people to send her more in the future, so she needs to keep a few on hand so she can take them whenever she needs them.

Without giving it any further thought, Tong Zi quickly put on gloves and swept everything she had found into a plastic bag.

She opened the cabinet door and began to search carefully. If she was going to search, she had to search thoroughly and leave no corner untouched. During the search, Su Ninglong joined in and unexpectedly pulled out a piece of drawing paper with a childlike style.

The brushstrokes of the painting reveal childlike innocence, but the content creates a contrast, exuding an unsettling dark atmosphere.

A child with a smile on his lips but tears streaming down his face stood in the center, with an unusually large tree standing behind him.

The tree's roots twisted and spread like living things, tightly entangling and enveloping the child and the space around him.

Outside the cage formed by tree roots, another lifeless child lay on the cold ground, with an adult dressed in indistinct white standing beside him.

"What does this mean?" Su Ninglong murmured to herself.

"What the hell are these beasts doing?" A low growl filled with suppressed rage came from behind; it was the fire lizard.

He was staring intently at one of the incubation chambers, his teeth grinding together, his eyes blazing with fury.

Su Ninglong turned her head sharply in the direction of his gaze.

Inside the incubation chamber, submerged in murky liquid, was a twisted monster.

The monster's head was topped with a child's face, but below that face was a body that looked like it had been forcibly pieced together.

His limbs were long and thin, like bamboo joints, and so thin that the outline of the tendons and bones attached to his skin could be seen.

On its deformed body, there are a few eyeballs that don't belong to it and a few distorted, painful faces.

Inevitably, it also has a few eyeballs and a human face.

The hungry wolf beside him widened his eyes instantly, clenched his fists, and said incredulously, "We've been looking for this child for six whole years. She's my colleague's daughter."

"These scumbags, what kind of experiments are they conducting?" With nowhere to vent his anger, the hungry wolf could only stomp his foot hard on the metal floor.

A hollow and abrupt muffled sound rang out clearly.

"It's hollow underneath? Maybe we can escape." The hungry wolf immediately crouched down and tried to pry open the floor to check.

The fox quickly stepped forward and grabbed his arm: "Don't be impulsive."

"How can you expect me to calm down?" The hungry wolf abruptly shook off the fox's hand.

Even through the helmet visor, one could clearly feel the resentment churning on the wolf's face.

Seeing this, the fox tried urgently to calm him down: "Little Su, is there any more medicine? Give it to him quickly."

"No more." Su Ninglong shook her head decisively.

She is the Old Ancestor of Many Treasures, not one of those "medicine jars" in the Valley of the Divine Healer who are famous for their elixirs and remedies. She wouldn't carry so many medicines with her.

The hungry wolf's eyes were bloodshot, and with nowhere to vent its anger, it could only slam its fist hard into the floor where the hollow sound had just come from.

"boom!"

The floor shattered and a hole appeared. Almost at the same moment, a thick tree root, like a lurking venomous snake, suddenly sprang out from the dark ground and stabbed straight at the hungry wolf.

The hungry wolf reacted extremely quickly, rolling on the ground in a clumsy but effective manner, narrowly avoiding the fatal blow.

He dodged, but the fox following closely behind him stumbled and lost its balance due to the ground shaking and its companion's dodge.

The flexible tree roots, as if they had eyes, coiled up and tightly wrapped around the fox's waist and legs, dragging him mercilessly toward the dark underground fissure.

"fox!"

"team leader!"

Doug and Tong Zi gritted their teeth and rushed out to rescue him at the same time.

The moment they took a step, the seemingly solid floor beneath their feet seemed to be activated, emitting a piercing tearing sound as it automatically split open to the sides.

Caught off guard, the two cried out in alarm as they slid into the suddenly appearing, bottomless "abyss".

The situation has taken a turn for the worse.

Su Ninglong's wrist produced a thin blade that formed a flying sword.

She stepped onto it, and instead of retreating in the face of the strange tree roots, she charged forward, attacking the giant tree in the center of the laboratory that exuded an ominous aura.

Just as she rushed towards the tree stump.

"Crack! Splash!"

A series of ear-piercing explosions suddenly rang out, and the glass domes of several already damaged incubation chambers finally gave way and shattered completely.

The fire lizard jumped onto the control panel, trembling, and heard a sickening creaking sound of bones grinding and a slippery, sticky wriggling sound coming from the incubation chamber. Several rotting monsters struggled to crawl out.

Their empty, white-rimmed eyes seemed to have no vision, yet they eerily locked onto Su Ninglong, who was speeding through the air.

Without the slightest hesitation, these twisted creations let out inhuman growls and pounced on her.

Su Ninglong's face was ashen. The "Kiss of Death" formed by the flying swords beneath her feet increased in speed, carrying her rapidly through the chaotic laboratory, narrowly avoiding the monsters' attacks.

The fire lizard held his breath for a long time before he could finally breathe again. He thought the monster was going to attack him and was wondering where to run.

He looked around, feeling lost and confused, unsure of what he should do to avoid holding others back.

"Let's go save the captain!" the hungry wolf roared, charging towards the crevice.

"No, you stay here." Su Ninglong's voice carried an unquestionable command as she pointed at the fire lizard. "Fire lizard, don't move. Just stand on the table and prepare to support me."

She then ordered Hungry Wolf, "Hungry Wolf, you can follow the direction Doug and the others fell and go save Fox."

The hungry wolf glanced at the fire lizard, whose expression was clearly panicked, and then at the bottomless chasm. After a brief hesitation, he gritted his teeth and said, "I'll stick with you guys."

Su Ninglong had no time to say more and let him go.

She had already made up her mind that the fire lizard must not leave her spiritual range. After all, he had just taken the medicine she gave him, and who knew what uncontrollable changes might occur after the medicine wore off or in this strange environment?
Various monsters roared and relentlessly pursued Su Ninglong, while Su Ninglong, riding her flying sword, continued to dodge obstacles and rush towards the huge and eerie tree stump in the center of the laboratory.