Basement Level 2.
The second basement floor had the same corridor as the first. It was pitch black, no lights anywhere, and the only way forward was to shine a powerful flashlight into the darkness.
There was another stairwell leading downward. Following it would take them straight to Basement Levels 3 and 4.
Of course, Captain Zhang still had no intention of splitting the team. He said, "Let's just go floor by floor. If we get to the bottom and there are no stairs, we'll just turn back."
Huang Jinghe said, "But if we turn back, shouldn't someone guard this stairwell? Just like earlier, if we're not careful, a swarm of those mutant creatures could block us here. If there's another stairway ahead, that's fine, but if there isn't, we won't even be able to retreat."
Captain Zhang hesitated for a moment, then said, "Alright. Lan Jin, Ling Jiang, find a few people to stay here. Lao Gao, Shen Zhiyu, Lao Shi… the rest of you, come with me to scout ahead."
The twelve-person team split into two. It wasn't a bad idea. One group could rest, and when they reached Basement Level 3, the two teams could switch out, saving their strength instead of all walking together.
Lan Jin stayed behind. She couldn't hold back a groan as she dropped her backpack to the floor and sat down with a thud. "I'm exhausted. When we get back, I'm sleeping for days, and I'm not going on missions for months. I'll just stay at base, grow vegetables, and take care of flowers."
Ling Jiang chuckled. "That does sound nice, but we don't even know if the base will still be there when we return."
Lan Jin said, "If ours isn't, another one will be. Worst case, we'll go to the Capital city base like they said. At least we won't be wandering aimlessly."
Truthfully, if Lan Jin had known coming to this base would be so much trouble, she might've hesitated. But it was too late for regrets. She sighed. "Forget it. No point talking about it. Just makes me want to cry."
Shen Zhiyan wasn't as sentimental. She'd been a soldier even before the apocalypse, and whether the world ended or not, she followed orders. Many things that others found shocking had already happened to her long before. "If your base falls and ours is still standing, you're welcome at R City base. I told you before, I owe you a meal."
Zhou Zhi, sitting nearby, said, "You're already trying to poach her? What if your base doesn't survive either?"
"I'm not poaching. I'm inviting her to stay for a while. I just want to thank her."
"Heh. As if I don't know. She stays for a while, then never leaves. That's not thanks. That's poaching."
Lan Jin laughed. "Aren't you guys getting ahead of yourselves? Let's make it out alive first. For all we know, every base is already gone."
She didn't say what she was thinking: what made the Capital city base so confident it would stand while all others fell?
But speculation was useless. They needed to get out first.
And maybe she was exaggerating. There were still plenty of people outside. It wasn't like every base would be wiped out. No one argued with her, though.
After that, Lan Jin kept quiet, and silence settled over the group. They waited for a long time. Lan Jin checked her watch and grew anxious.
It had been over thirty minutes since Captain Zhang's team left, and they still hadn't returned. "Is this hallway really that long? It's a straight line. How can it take thirty minutes to walk to the end?"
Zhou Zhi tried his radio, hoping to reach them, but all electronics were useless here. The signal was dead.
Pei Xin stepped forward and shouted down the hallway. "Anyone there? Are you back? Say something if you are!"
But only her own echo came back.
Ling Jiang frowned. "This place really isn't safe to split up in. Should we go after them?"
Zhou Zhi said, "Let's wait a bit longer. Maybe this hallway is just longer than the ones above."
Longer? That was an understatement.
Captain Zhang's group had already walked the full length of Basement Level 2 and then descended to Basement Level 3. That floor, as it turned out, led back toward where the others were waiting, and soon—
The two teams met up at the stairwell.
Lao Gao exclaimed, "Weird, isn't it? Basement Levels 1 through 3 are nothing but hallways. We checked carefully. No hidden doors, no traps. Who builds empty corridors like this?"
Ling Jiang said, "So we're heading straight to Level 4?"
Captain Zhang nodded. "Yes. Let's go."
Together again, they all descended to Basement Level 4.
They thought it might be the last floor. But when they reached the hallway, they found another staircase going down.
This one was well hidden.
At first glance, all they saw was a creepy painting of a humanoid mutant, just like the ones upstairs. In this dim light, it gave them a fright. The first thought that crossed their minds was that something was hidden behind it. Sure enough, when they moved the painting aside, a stairwell appeared.
And that wasn't all.
The hallways on Levels 1 through 4 had been completely dark, but behind this painting, bright white light spilled down from a powerful lamp, illuminating the stairwell like it was daytime.
"Go down," Captain Zhang ordered.
Shen Zhiyu asked, "Shouldn't we check this hallway first?"
Captain Zhang swept his flashlight across it and shook his head. "No need. There's barely any distance ahead, and this is the only painting here. If there's something hidden, it's behind this."
"Alright."
He switched off his flashlight, and they all started down the stairs.
But when they reached the next floor, something felt off. Even Lan Jin, who wasn't as alert as the others, noticed it. On Levels 1 through 4, they'd heard distant wails and ghostly howls echoing through the halls. But here—
Basement Level 5—
It was silent. Like someone had put noise-cancelling headphones over their ears.
Captain Zhang's expression darkened. "Hearing noises isn't good. Not hearing them isn't good either."
The tension in his voice didn't stop him from scanning every shadow, every corner. Everyone else followed suit, weapons in hand, every sense on high alert.