Perhaps it was just Brother Li's impression, but when Brother Zhang mentioned Lan Jin and the others, his tone clearly relaxed. It was as if everything would soon be resolved, giving a sense of hope to anyone listening.
Before Brother Li could respond, Brother Zhang added, "Hold on for a little while. We are coming in right now."
After that, Brother Zhang shouted to the people outside, "Are you ready? The mutated creatures are mostly cleared. I'm going to have the people inside open the gate now."
Lan Jin and the other three stepped back several paces, wanting to keep as far from the creatures as possible.
Seeing Lan Jin and the others retreat, Brother Zhang's team also backed off, even farther than the four of them. When Brother Zhang gave the order and the base gate opened, a large swarm of bugs poured out. Everyone could only sigh at the sheer number of them.
Ling Jiang activated her psychic power again. The newly emerged bugs were frozen in place, while the few that still moved were dealt with as the group advanced inside.
Once the bugs were cleared, they followed and entered the base.
"Open the gate. The outside bugs are gone," Brother Zhang shouted toward the gate, his voice almost drowning out the continuous alarm.
The people behind the gate, the psychics who had been guarding this spot earlier, had already been taken by Brother Li to deal with the mutated creatures. Inside the protective gate, the regular staff trembled as they asked, "What? The bugs are cleared? Can we open the gate?"
Hearing the odd tone, Brother Zhang lowered his voice slightly and said again, "They're cleared. Open the gate quickly. How is it inside?"
The staff hurriedly opened the protective gate. When the inner doors were opened and they saw the people on the other side, tears immediately welled up. "Captain Zhang, everyone… they've made it up."
Before the words could finish, one scream after another tore through the air. The sound of wooden crossbows firing was also constant, not even muffled by the base alarm. The noise alone showed the chaos inside.
Brother Zhang heard the commotion and ran toward it with his team, reminding those behind him, "It's safe outside, but don't move yet. I'll go check first."
Lan Jin and the others wanted to follow, but they had brought too much equipment. So the four of them went to the service desk to leave their things, planning to follow afterward.
But before they could move far, Brother Zhang and the others came running down in a hurry.
Seeing them, Brother Zhang shouted, "Don't come up!"
He exited the corridor, and only then did Lan Jin and the others see that Brother Li and his team were also sprinting through the corridor.
Brother Li shouted behind him, "Run fast! Don't look back! Keep running!"
Before Brother Li's words had even finished, a roar grabbed the attention of those behind. A huge, dark figure struggled around the corner as if it were stuck.
The corridor was long and uninterrupted, with mid-sections leading to several buildings. But because of the alarms, all doors were tightly closed, leaving no escape, and no other passage was available.
Even in extreme danger, Brother Li and the others had no choice but to run toward the corridor exit. They had nowhere to hide. People have limited stamina. At first, the corner gave them a slight advantage, but soon, as their energy waned, the massive creature closed in.
Lan Jin and the others finally saw it clearly. If it wasn't the big cat, what else could it be?
Seeing the big cat approaching, the team panicked and raised their wooden crossbows, firing several shots. It was useless. The bolts bounced off as if scratching an itch. Soon, the runners behind were struck down one by one.
The cat continued toward Brother Li and his team.
The moment Brother Li and the others reached the corridor exit, the big cat followed. It seemed to have a target, leaping toward Brother Li and his team.
Lan Jin acted quickly. She used the Violetbane Ring to conjure a lightning whip and, channeling a large amount of electrical power, lashed the cat in midair.
The big cat cried out in pain as it fell to the side.
'Boom' went the sound of it hitting the ground. Brother Li exhaled in relief. They were saved.
Turning back, Brother Li saw that the one who saved them was none other than Lan Jin, the very person he had doubted for her psychic strength.
He could only think silently: "Lan Jin's power is really strong."
But the big cat was not done. After being whipped to the ground, it twitched and struggled, staggering back up, its eyes fixed on Brother Li as it prepared to attack again.
Even Brother Zhang frowned. "Lao Li, why does it only attack you?"
Brother Li shook his head. "How would I know?"
Just as everyone tensed, the cat was about to leap again when Lan Jin lashed it once more with the lightning whip. The whip's momentum, combined with the electrical charge, forced the big cat to the ground, unable to rise.
Yet the cat seemed defiant. Even on the ground, it roared and glared at Lan Jin, as if to say, "You didn't kill me today, I will cause trouble again." It was almost like a mystical creature in behavior.
Seeing it trying to rise again, Lan Jin transformed the whip into a long spike, ready to strike. But several people in blood-stained white coats ran quickly from below the corridor, shouting, "Stop! Don't kill it! Absolutely do not kill it!"
Kill it?
Lan Jin never intended to. The cat now belonged to the base. Without permission, how could she dare kill it? The spike was just to teach the cat a lesson or threaten it slightly.
===
The decision of the base, the way they wanted to keep the big cat… honestly, I think it was completely ridiculous
I mean, I get that they want to study it. But with only the base's power, it's really not enough, right? Doesn't it seem greedy and reckless? Just imagine if Lan Jin and the others hadn't been back during the attack. With a swarm of mutated animals outside and the big cat rampaging inside, wouldn't the base have been finished?
And yet, they still had the nerve to ask Lan Jin not to kill the cat. What on earth were they thinking? Too arrogant and greedy, in my opinion