Chapter 80: This Is Simply Unbelievable

The Zhang sisters were not very sociable, so Ji Cheng left Luo Rao with them and went alone with the three members of Huang Long’s squad to the door on the other side of the small honeycomb chamber.

It was a sturdy and heavy security door.

“Take a look. This is the situation now.” Centipede pointed at the side window of the door, his tone gloomy. “Why does something like this exist? It’s completely unreasonable.”

Ji Cheng walked up to the door and peered through the side window. He could clearly see that behind it was a large room with scattered cardboard boxes and a long laboratory table in the middle, covered with test tubes and distillers.

Near the door, the floor was dotted with more than ten small circular protrusions.

Half of these protrusions were currently covered with cocoons made of intertwined metallic threads. Within, he could faintly make out metal spiders, each slightly larger than a chicken egg, their green lights flashing and emitting a series of beeping sounds.

“It looks just like a bunch of spiders spinning cocoons,” Fu Ting added.

The word “spider” flashed quickly through Ji Cheng’s mind, and he soon recalled the relevant information.

These were actually mechanical sentinels known as “D-208 Disk Spiders.”

Like the previously seen D-150 spherical sentinels, they belonged to the first tier of mechanical sentinels—the knowledge required to produce them was first-tier at most.

However, the D-208 Disk Spiders were far more expensive, and their actual combat power was much greater.

From what Ji Cheng knew, their construction required at least first-tier knowledge in computer theory, materials science, mechanical control, and force field research—four distinct fields—as well as some zero-tier biological gene knowledge.

They appeared as eight independent metal spiders, but all were controlled by a single processor. Each spider was more akin to an organ or component than an individual unit.

According to the Galactic Empire’s Robot Naming Act, the definition of a mechanical sentinel’s individuality is based on the number of processors.

Therefore, the eight metal spiders on the ground counted as a single “D-208 Disk Spider” unit.

Ji Cheng reviewed these facts and immediately shook his head.

“What are these bizarre things? I only have some skill at network intrusion; this is far beyond my abilities.”

He was already considering how to find another route.

What looked like cocoon spinning was actually the D-208 Disk Spider’s biomimetic charging method. The small protrusions were charging posts, and the flashing green lights indicated they were currently active.

Charging usually lasted several days. For flesh-and-blood ability users like themselves, lingering in such a high-radiation environment for four or five days—even with combat suits to block some exposure—would inevitably cause genetic issues.

Centipede forced a smile, the scar on his face making him look even more intimidating. “These metal spiders seem to be some kind of mechanical sentinels. No idea why they’re staying in the front room, but it probably has something to do with those protrusions.”

Ji Cheng nodded.

Not bad.

Centipede then pointed to a small storage box embedded high in the wall: “We’ve observed that’s the position of the room’s small network node, which controls various basic facilities in this room. Those protrusions may well be under its control.”

Ji Cheng glanced at him, somewhat surprised that beneath Centipede’s rough and fierce exterior, he was quite perceptive.

“If we can breach the room’s network node and use its permissions to turn off the flashing green lights, perhaps the spiders will leave.”

“That’s a possibility,” Ji Cheng replied after a few seconds.

Centipede patted Ji Cheng’s shoulder. “Before you arrived, we had already discussed it. None of us are skilled at network intrusion.”

“Even if we were, no one’s as good as Ji Cheng,” Fu Ting chimed in, his electronically synthesized voice immediately recognizable.

“Absolutely,” Centipede agreed wholeheartedly.

Ji Cheng’s reputation for network intrusion had spread widely among the ability users of Southport New City. Given his earlier report of breaching a small node, the group had great confidence in him.

A loud clang sounded from the other end of the honeycomb chamber.

From the security checkpoint where Ji Cheng’s group had entered, five people emerged.

It was the team from Anxi City, clad in grey-white combat suits, their pant legs stained with grime. Their leader was Lei Junming, the most assimilated among them.

“Why are people from Anxi City using this route?”

“No idea. Did they take a wrong turn?”

“That’s impossible. Everyone has maps, and detouring from Zone C to here is much farther.”

My reinforcements have arrived. Ji Cheng’s brows lifted in delight at the sight.

There were two well-established routes for smuggling into the central area: one through the waste processing chamber between Zone A and B, and another in Zone D.

Anxi City’s ability users had ID cards for Zone C, which was closer to the Zone D entrance, so they should have used that route.

But at Ji Cheng’s strong invitation, they took a slight detour and entered through the sewage line.

“May I ask why you’re entering the central area from this direction? Has something happened?” Centipede, despite being the strongest, had an intimidating appearance. “Blue Lantern” Liu Fangjian was taciturn and reserved, so Fu Ting, the synthesizer-voiced man, took charge of negotiations.

“No, nothing’s happened.” The five walked over, Lei Junming at the front, giving a curt reply.

Fu Ting’s face stiffened, but he endured it.

Anxi City’s team was strong, so their tone matched.

Lei Junming walked up and looked past Fu Ting. “Ji Cheng.”

Was he greeting Ji Cheng directly? Fu Ting squinted and turned to look, only to see Ji Cheng waving and smiling, “Glad you finally made it.”

They really seemed to be on good terms.

Fu Ting turned to Centipede, and the two exchanged a “I don’t understand” look.

At this moment, the four behind Lei Junming also drew near, each warmly greeting Ji Cheng, instantly causing astonishment among the surrounding ability users from various city-states.

Anxi City was the most powerful in the Western Continent, and its ability users were notoriously proud, never showing deference to anyone. Yet they greeted Ji Cheng so warmly.

Centipede glanced at the Zhang sisters nearby, trying to glean something from their expressions.

But their faces remained calm, not surprised at all by Anxi City’s ability users greeting Ji Cheng.

Never mind the debt of saving their lives; Ji Cheng’s reasoning skills—able to swiftly cleanse pollution even while infected and trapped in hallucinations—were enough to earn universal respect in a mining zone like the “Brain in the Sand.”

Centipede’s group wasn’t aware of this; the report had been delivered by Zuo Hao, who mentioned no casualties, so they assumed, based on experience, that a normal, uninfected person had handled the cleanup.

“We made a deliberate detour to get here. Hope we’re not late,” one Anxi City ability user said with a hearty laugh.

Deliberate? The crowd held their breath.

“No, you’re right on time. Thanks.”

Ji Cheng remembered him—during the recent mental contamination incident, he’d been the one persistently asking questions, seeming not particularly bright, but now proved quite loyal.

“Don’t be formal with us,” another ability user spoke up, the tone even slightly ingratiating.

What was going on? All the ability users present—from Huang Long’s squad to the teams from Red Eagle Republic and Blackwater Hanging City—were stunned.

Anxi City’s team had deliberately detoured just for Ji Cheng?

Centipede was utterly dumbfounded, frozen in place, his mind repeating, “Impossible.”

Though he didn’t know Ji Cheng well, he was familiar with his background. Nine days ago, he’d watched Ji Cheng become an ability user and had even shared a drink with him.

After that, Ji Cheng apparently took a mission into the wild, happened to meet Chairman Zhang returning to the city, and was summoned back—then straight to the Hive.

When had he gotten involved with Anxi City’s ability users?

Could it have been at last night’s revelry? He remembered seeing Ji Cheng chatting warmly with other city-state ability users, but surely that wasn’t enough to make the proud Anxi City group detour here just for him?

This was the Hive Laboratory, not a commercial promenade; every corridor carried its own risks.

“Unbelievable.”