Infinite Terror: Infinite Reversal

Chapter 17 View
The others chatted amongst themselves while glancing furtively at the two. Mu Xiang and James had been whispering to each other for a while, but no one knew what they were saying. When the two turned back, James looked stern, while Mu Xiang, though expressionless, exuded a sense of unwavering determination.

Zhang Jie looked at Mu Xiang with amusement, seemingly lost in thought.

Li Xiaoyi frowned, and coupled with his pale face after vomiting, he looked the worst-looking person present. It wasn't hard to guess that Mu Xiang and James had spoiled the plot, but Li Xiaoyi couldn't grasp the cause and effect, nor did he understand what gave Mu Xiang the confidence to convince the mercenaries. If this was the case, the subsequent plot might change; Mu Xiang might even advise against hiding in the Red Queen's server room until the end… Li Xiaoyi had almost no say. If Mu Xiang proposed a no-hit plan now, the others might not object, and it would look bad if he stepped forward.

"Damn it, I'm completely being led around! Who exactly is this guy?" Li Xiaoyi cursed inwardly in frustration. Mu Xiang's determined aura made him realize that this peer had immense ambition, and what Li Xiaoyi hated and resented most was ambitious people!

Zheng Zha and Zhan Lan didn't think so complicatedly. For a moment, the atmosphere on the field became quite subtle. Zhan Lan noticed it, while Zheng Zha was in a daze, mixed with the feeling of surviving a disaster and unexpected wealth.

James glanced at everyone and said seriously, "Let's continue!"

"Continue?" Spence, who had been shouting in panic outside, yelled again, "Continue what? You're kidding me! I'm not going into that passage!"

James turned his gaze to Kaplan, who, under his captain's watchful eye, seemed to be sweating slightly again: "Yes, yes, I've shut down all the defense systems, all of them..."

James asked again seriously, "All of them? Confirmed?"

However, without waiting for a reply, he picked up the shutdown device from the ground and strode into the passage. Fortunately, the device was not damaged; it was a stroke of luck amidst misfortune.

This was something Mu Xiang couldn't understand even when watching the movie... The expressive power of lasers was unparalleled, so why didn't they cut off the shutdown device that posed the greatest threat to the Red Queen? Did they have a design to counter laser cutting from the very beginning? He couldn't explain it now either.

Kaplan was still uneasy, his fingers flying across the keyboard. This time, the entrance door remained open, and Alice, just like in the original story, followed him inside. Mu Xiang thought this woman was incredibly brave. He remembered that in the movie, Spence also refused to go, and Kaplan was trembling with fear, walking on thin ice. Only she remained calm and proactively helped Kaplan. Mu Xiang followed behind them, entering the server room as the others watched.

This wasn't about saving face; it was because he needed to personally take James and Kaplan to verify what he had said. Alice happened to be there too, so she could also discover Spencer's problems.

Walking to the center of the server room, Kaplan used his arm-mounted computer to call up the main unit, then looked at James: "Sir, you can insert the pulse device now."

James waved his hand and said, "It's not time yet. We need to verify some things."

Mu Xiang smiled, turned to a camera and said, "I know you can hear everything. Now I need to retrieve your previous surveillance videos and entry/exit records. I hope you can cooperate. You should know that we have the capability to shut you down, which would render your blockade ineffective... but we didn't do that because we have no malicious intent... Kaplan, access the Red Queen's database."

Kaplan paused, about to suggest that access was required or that the surveillance system could be hacked, when the camera turned towards them. Several red beams shot from the lens, forming a red image of a girl in the air—a holographic projection of the Red Queen.

[That made me a little nervous... Could I already have PTSD about laser beams...?]

"Mu Xiang, R&D Director, you do not have permission to access the monitoring system," an electronic voice, masquerading as a little girl, said. "I need a reason."

Mu Xiang sneered as he met the image of the Red Queen's gaze: "I advise you not to discuss these issues with someone whose memories haven't fully returned... Oh, why are there problems with the memories? This is all your doing. I know your blocking procedures; if you didn't lack the necessary permissions, you could definitely have handled it in a better way, am I right?"

The Red Queen was silent for a long time before saying, "You're right. Other programs in the Hive require higher privileges, and I can't start them on my own."

“That’s right. If I’m not mistaken, the situation is bad enough already. Our request to review the surveillance footage doesn’t conflict with your objectives.” Mu Xiang adjusted his glasses. “Furthermore, I need the records of all existing security personnel; perhaps that will help me recall more details. Opening up the relevant databases won’t cause your blockade to fail.” “Fine. But I still have to tell you, you shouldn’t be here,” Red Queen’s voice rang out.

Kaplan immediately reported: "The surveillance system is open to me!"

James and Mu Xiang immediately flanked Kaplan, pressing their heads close to the small screen. Alice, bewildered by their actions, asked, "What are you doing?"

“I have some recollection of what happened… If I remember correctly, we can find the culprit. But first, I’ll use the surveillance system to check the situation in the other sealed-off areas, just in case we’re caught off guard later,” Mu Xiang said without turning his head. “If you’re interested, we can make room for you.”

When countless huddled-together zombies appeared on the surveillance footage, the other three were taken aback. Kaplan immediately zoomed in on the footage to show them the full view.

"Are these survivors?" Kaplan exclaimed. "Sir, didn't the report say they were all dead? Why are so many still alive?"

Alice frowned slightly: "No, look, their movements are like they're in slow motion, and why are they all huddled together like that?"

Mu Xiang sneered: "Kaplan, this is live footage, isn't it?"

Kaplan paused for a moment, unsure how to respond to the commanding, report-like tone, but ultimately said, "Yes, this is the scene now."

James stared silently at the monitor screen, seemingly lost in thought, but he must have noticed something amiss with these "survivors."

"The Red Queen wasn't hacked, so she won't do anything without a reason." Mu Xiang pushed up his glasses. "Seeing these employees seems to have partially confirmed my suspicions, or rather, my memories. Just look at this camera footage, rewind!"

Kaplan rewinds the clock, and as time goes back, the employees who were behaving strangely and huddled together gradually disperse and fall down, and the scene falls into silence for several hours.

“They’ve been dead for several hours,” James said coldly. “The company’s intelligence is sound.”

Alice's voice rose involuntarily: "But now they're...resurrected again?!"

“For several hours, not a single person has moved. It’s clearly not a mass coma… Even if they were unconscious, there would be some unconscious, subtle movements or faint breathing.” Mu Xiang said in a deep voice, “Go further ahead, I want to see how they fall.”

The little girl's voice rang out: "You know I killed him."

“Yes, but I still need to make a before-and-after comparison.” Mu Xiang smiled. “See? It’s obvious that they died of suffocation. The reason is that the proportion of halon gas was too high. Everyone died from lack of oxygen.”

Alice turned to look at the virtual avatar of the Red Queen: "Why would she do that?"

Mu Xiang sighed: "I guessed right, it was a virus leak... If we could see the air monitoring system data used in the surveillance footage at the time, we might have seen the proportion of halon and virus rising steadily, while the proportion of nitrogen and oxygen in the main body of normal air dropped rapidly. Otherwise, it wouldn't have caused suffocation incidents in most areas so quickly."

(End of this chapter)