After stocking up at the maximum level, all the handsome men in the apocalypse are looking for suppo

Chapter 53 Key Evidence
The four of them climbed up the stairs, and the exit in front of them was like a starlight in the cave.

Another muffled sound came from behind, this time closer.

"Someone's following us," Xiao Ran whispered, his hand already on the gun handle at his waist, "I'll cover your retreat, you guys go first."

Lu Zhao shook his head. "Let's go together. Now is not the time to separate."

Lin Che raised the flashlight and illuminated the front. "There are two more flights of stairs. We should be almost at the ground level."

Su Wanqing endured the pain in her knees and followed Lin Che upwards.

She recalled the horrifying scenes she had just seen in the laboratory, the volunteer who turned into a monster, the cruel experimental records, and the excited voice of the researcher.

All this confirmed her most terrifying guess: the end of the world was not an accident, but the result of someone's careful planning.

Finally, they reached a metal door at the top of the stairs. Lin Che pushed the door carefully, but it didn't budge.

"It's locked," Lin Che said, turning to Lu Zhao, "Can you open it?"

Lu Zhao checked the door lock. It was an electronic combination lock. He pulled a small device from his pocket and connected it to the combination lock.

"Give me a minute," he said, his fingers moving rapidly over the device.

At the same time, footsteps at the bottom of the stairs were getting closer and closer, accompanied by low voices.

"Hurry up, they are coming," Xiao Ran gripped the gun tightly and faced the bottom of the stairs.

Lin Che stood beside Su Wanqing and asked in a low voice, "How's your spatial ability going?"

"Somewhat recovered," Su Wanqing replied, "but not enough to take all of us away."

"Okay!" Lu Zhao said suddenly, the door lock clicked, and the green light came on.

Lin Che immediately pushed open the door. Outside was a dim warehouse filled with boxes and discarded equipment.

The four of them quickly entered the warehouse, and Lu Zhao carefully closed the door and then locked it again with his equipment.

"That should hold them back for a while," he said.

The warehouse was huge, covered in dust and cobwebs, and it was obvious that no one had been there for a long time.

The only source of light was the moonlight filtering in through a few tall windows.

"Where are we now?" Su Wanqing asked.

Xiao Ran looked around. "It looks like an old warehouse area, not far from the nuclear power plant."

Lin Che found a sliding door leading outside. "This way," he said, "I should be able to get out."

The four of them carefully walked through the warehouse and came to the sliding door. Xiao Ran tried to push it, but the door was too heavy and did not budge.

"Locked," he said.

Lu Zhao checked the control panel next to the door. "This door is electric, and the control system has been powered off."

Suddenly, there was a banging sound on the metal door behind them; someone was trying to break in.

"We have to find a solution quickly," Su Wanqing said nervously.

Lin Che noticed a manual switch next to the control panel. "There's an emergency switch here, but it requires a key."

Xiao Ran stepped forward and took out a knife from his pocket, "Let me try."

He skillfully inserted the knife into the keyhole and gently turned it. After a few seconds, the lock opened with a click.

"Basic skills of a special forces soldier," he explained to the surprised Su Wanqing.

Lin Che immediately flipped the switch, and the sliding door slowly rose upwards, revealing the night outside.

"Hurry up," Xiao Ran said, and they bent down one by one and passed through the gap at the bottom of the door.

Just when Su Wanqing, the last one to go out, the metal door behind her was finally knocked open, and several figures rushed into the warehouse.

"They're getting out! Stop them!" a rough voice shouted.

Xiao Ran pulled Su Wanqing up, and the four of them quickly ran towards the woods outside the warehouse area.

Gunshots rang out behind them, and bullets hit the ground around them, kicking up dust.

"Scatter and run!" Xiao Ran shouted, then turned around and fired two shots to buy time for the others.

Lin Che supported Su Wanqing and ran towards the woods on the right, while Lu Zhao ran to the left.

Xiao Ran covered from behind for a few seconds, then also ran towards the woods.

Lin Che and Su Wanqing made their way through the dense bushes, not stopping to rest until they were sure they had shaken off their pursuers.

"Are you okay?" Lin Che asked Su Wanqing with concern.

"It's okay," Su Wanqing panted, "just a little pain in the knee. We have to find Lu Zhao and Xiao Ran."

Lin Che nodded, pulled out a small intercom from his pocket, turned it on, and whispered, "Lu Zhao, Xiao Ran, can you hear me?"

The intercom rustled, and then Lu Zhao's voice came: "I can hear you. I have shaken off the pursuers."

"Where's Xiao Ran?" Lin Che asked.

After a few seconds of silence, Xiao Ran's voice was heard: "I'm fine. There were two people chasing me, but I've dealt with them. Where do we meet?"

Lu Zhao's voice came again: "Go west, there is a small road over there that leads to an abandoned gas station. We will meet there."

“Understood,” Lin Che replied.

He put away the intercom and turned to Su Wanqing, "Can we go?"

Su Wanqing nodded and said, "You can go, don't worry about me."

The two began to walk westward, the darkness providing good cover. Lin Che walked ahead, stopping from time to time to check the direction.

"How do you know these places?" Su Wanqing couldn't help but ask.

Lin Che smiled slightly. "Before the apocalypse, I often came to this area to collect some special plants to make spices. I am quite familiar with the terrain here."

Su Wanqing nodded thoughtfully, "Lin Che, what do you think the evidence we found can prove?"

Lin Che thought for a moment, "It proves that this disaster wasn't an accident. Someone deliberately released the virus, probably to screen for people with special genes, just like what the document says about 'screening for high-quality genes'."

"But why? Why create such a disaster?" Su Wanqing asked in confusion.

"Perhaps they truly believe this method can promote human evolution," Lin Che said, "or perhaps they have a deeper purpose related to the 'Biological Reset Plan', as we have seen in previous documents."

The two continued walking forward, and after about twenty minutes, they finally saw the abandoned gas station.

The station was completely dark, with only the moonlight illuminating the outlines.

Lin Che took out the walkie-talkie and said, "We're here. Where are you?"

"I'm behind the gas station," Lu Zhao replied.

"I'll be there in five minutes," Xiao Ran's voice came.

Lin Che and Su Wanqing approached the gas station cautiously, went around to the back, and saw Lu Zhao leaning against an abandoned truck.

"No one is following you, right?" Lu Zhao asked.

"No," Lin Che said, "We got rid of them."

The three of them waited for Xiao Ran. A few minutes later, Xiao Ran's figure emerged from the darkness.

"Sorry for the delay," Xiao Ran said. When he approached, Su Wanqing noticed blood on his arm.

"Are you hurt?" she asked worriedly. Xiao Ran shook his head. "It's just a scratch, nothing serious."

The four of them found a relatively secluded place to sit down and rest. Lu Zhao took out the USB drive he found in the lab from his backpack.

“The information here is extremely important,” he said. “If we can find a computer, we can look at everything.”

Su Wanqing thought for a moment and said, "There's a computer in the safe house. We can go back and check it out."

Lin Che looked around. "This place is quite far from the safe house, and I suspect those people will track us. We need a means of transportation."

Xiao Ran stood up and said, "I'll go check this gas station. Maybe I can find a usable vehicle."

Lu Zhao also stood up and said, "I'll go with you."

After the two left, Su Wanqing turned to Lin Che, "Do you think that video is real? Have those experiments really been conducted on human bodies?"

Lin Che's expression was serious. "I believe it's true. The researcher in the video sounded excited, like he'd accomplished something great. People like him don't care about the lives of their subjects."

Su Wanqing shuddered as she thought of the man who had mutated in the isolation pod. "Those people are so scary. How could they do such a thing?"

"Power and ambition," Lin Che said softly, "When people believe they are doing something great for humanity, they will find all sorts of excuses for their actions, even if that means sacrificing certain people."

"But that wasn't just any sacrifice," Su Wanqing said. "It was the end of the world."

Lin Che nodded, "That's why we must stop the 'Biological Reset Project', whatever it is."

At this time, Lu Zhao and Xiao Ran came back.

"There's a van that's still usable," Xiao Ran said. "I fixed the circuit, so it should be able to drive."

"There's half a tank of gas in the car," Lu Zhao added, "enough for us to get back to the safe house."

The four of them packed up and prepared to leave. Lin Che helped Su Wanqing stand up and asked softly, "Can you still walk?"

"We can go," Su Wanqing said firmly, "We have to bring the truth back."

The four of them came to the dilapidated van, Xiao Ran sat in the driver's seat, and the others got in the back seat.

"Fasten your seat belts," Xiao Ran said, and then started the engine.

The van roared and slowly drove away from the abandoned gas station, heading towards the safe house.

Silence fell on the car, everyone lost in their own thoughts, reflecting on the evening's discoveries.

The evidence changed their understanding of the end of the world. It was not an accident, but a carefully designed plan.

And they may be the last hope to uncover the truth and stop all this.

Xiao Ran drove attentively, checking the rearview mirror from time to time to make sure he was not being followed.

Lu Zhaoze opened his notebook in his seat and read the paper documents he brought out from the laboratory in the dim light inside the car.

"Any new discoveries?" Lin Che asked.

Lu Zhao turned a page and said, “The specific abilities of the holders of the seven elements are mentioned here.

Water, fire, wind, earth, metal, wood, and one called 'spirit', which seems to be the rarest type."

"What kind of ability is Ling?" Su Wanqing asked curiously.

Lu Zhao continued reading, "According to the description here, spiritual element holders can sense and manipulate life energy, and some are even capable of short-range telepathy."

“So we already know the six elements,” Lin Che said, “water, fire, wind, earth, metal, and wood.

Add the spirit, and there are seven kinds.”

"The four of us represent several of these elements," Su Wanqing pondered. "Lin Che is water, Xiao Ran is fire, Lu Zhao is probably gold or wood because he can control machinery, and I have spatial abilities."

"It might be related to the spirit," Lu Zhao said, "You can manipulate space, which is beyond the scope of basic elements."

Su Wanqing looked at him in surprise, "Are you saying that I might be the holder of the spiritual element?"

"That's possible," Lu Zhao nodded, "but we need more information to confirm it."

Lin Che pondered, "If that's the case, then the 'Biological Reset Plan' might be about gathering all the element holders and using their abilities to do something."

"For example, opening the inter-dimensional channel," Lu Zhao added, "was mentioned in the previous documents."

The four continued their discussion as the van drove along the dark road, the only sounds inside the car being the roar of the engine and their low conversations.

Suddenly, Xiao Ran slowed down and pulled the car to the side of the road.

"What's wrong?" Lin Che asked vigilantly.

Xiao Ran pointed forward, "Look there."

About a hundred meters away, in the middle of the road, stood a figure, facing their direction.

Even in the darkness, they could see that the man's movements were unnatural, like he was having convulsions.

"That's..." Su Wanqing's voice trembled a little.

"Zombies," Xiao Ran said calmly, "It seems this area is not safe yet."

Lin Che looked around. "There might be more than one. What should we do?"

Xiao Ran thought for a moment, "Taking a detour would waste too much time and fuel.

We'll just go straight for it."

He turned to the three people in the back seat, "Fasten your seatbelts, I'm going to speed up."

After making sure everyone was buckled up, Xiao Ran stepped on the accelerator and the van rushed forward.

The zombie seemed to notice the approaching vehicle and began to stumble towards them.

"Hold on tight," Xiao Ran said, then turned the steering wheel slightly to the left, just avoiding the zombie.

The van roared past, but at this moment, more zombies suddenly jumped out from the grass on the side of the road. Some fell in the middle of the road, and some slapped the car windows.

Xiao Ran remained calm and controlled the steering wheel, and the van slithered forward among the zombies.

A zombie jumped onto the hood, its ferocious face pressed against the windshield, and it let out a terrible roar.

Xiao Ran slammed on the brakes and then accelerated, and the zombie was thrown out.

"We're almost out of this area," he said, speeding up.

Finally, the zombie horde was left behind, and the road ahead became empty again.

"That was so thrilling," Su Wanqing breathed a sigh of relief.

"This means we left the lab at the perfect time," Lin Che said. "The zombies are on the move, probably attracted by the noise in the lab."

Lu Zhao looked at the dark woods outside the window and said, "I'm not just worried about the zombies, but also about those who are tracking us.

They clearly won’t give up easily.”

"We will return to the safe house, study the information, and then formulate our next plan," Lin Che said firmly. "Neither the zombies nor those people can stop us from learning the truth."

Su Wanqing looked at Lin Che, whose profile appeared particularly resolute in the moonlight.

At this moment, she had more confidence that they could uncover the truth and stop the "Biological Reset Plan".

The van continued to move forward. In the darkness, the direction of the safe house was like a beacon guiding them forward.

The evidence they carry will be the key to understanding the truth of this apocalypse.

(End of this chapter)