chsdbacks Chapter 116 The Explosion at Liyong Power Plant
Chapter 116 The Explosion at Liyong Power Plant
Just as the progenitor bird cried out in the Feathered Abode, somewhere far away, a young man shed tears of sorrow at the sight he witnessed.
However, what he saw before him was the ruins of a power plant that had been completely burned down by fire.
Despite the heavy rain that had just passed, the air still reeked of the acrid smell of burning. Broken bricks and tiles littered the ground, the walls were blackened by soot, and the once sturdy chimneys that billowed smoke were now broken in two.
The power plant that supplied electricity to the entire city has been completely paralyzed. The days when workers and Electric-type Pokémon worked together are gone forever, and wild Pokémon consciously avoid this ruin; all around is deathly silent.
The fog swirled in the darkness, resembling a hellish landscape.
The young man wiped away his tears with his white sleeve, stepped onto the scorched earth, and walked into the center of the ruins—the power plant building hidden by the fallen steel bars.
Passing through the twisted iron gate frame, a huge, deep pit appeared before him.
The crater resembles the mark left by a meteorite, with a bowl-shaped edge, a diameter of about ten meters, and a depth of half a meter.
These are clearly traces left by an explosion... the young man thought to himself.
Just then, a small, grayish-brown bird flew in through the gap in the steel bars. It was a common pea pigeon found everywhere in Hezhong.
The Pokémon landed on the green-haired youth's shoulder and cried out a few times.
"Is that so... The Pokémon's bodies were taken away by the police..."
The man seemed to understand the pigeon's call and nodded. But his hands were clenched into fists, his nails digging deep into his palms, as if he were suppressing immense anger.
"All seventy-one elves in the power plant perished in the explosion, while over five hundred human employees were safely evacuated. The mortality rates were 100% and 0%, respectively. One and zero, a stark contrast like black and white, would be obvious even to the most oblivious person: they were murdered! Even if not murdered, there was a tremendous malice hidden behind it, yet the entire city remained indifferent!"
The green-haired youth held his head in his hands, muttering to himself in distress—
"I left Team Plasma to embark on a journey, always trying to find a way to bring happiness to all living beings in this world. But looking around, the world is full of oppression, bullying, and such illogical and unreasonable evil massacres. There are countless people who are indifferent to tragedy, and countless Pokémon have lost their lives due to ignorance and barbarity... Selfishness, tyranny, indifference, shamelessness, is this the nature engraved in the human gene?"
The man felt the world before him collapsing and shaking. Anger and resentment eroded his reason and logic, stirring restlessly and trying to take over his genius-like mind. Some extreme thoughts that had been lingering in his mind for some time began to gradually surface into his consciousness...
"Hey! N! The police patrolling nearby are here. Let's wrap up the investigation quickly."
A clear female voice rang out, gradually easing the pain-twisted expression on the green-haired youth's face. Then, footsteps approached, and a girl with a high ponytail wearing a baseball cap entered the ruined factory.
It seems that the two were companions exploring the power plant ruins together, with the young man in charge of investigating the interior and the girl acting as lookout outside.
"The smell is awful... Oh my god, what is this huge hole? Was there an explosion here?"
The girl with the high ponytail covered her mouth and nose, pointing in surprise at the large pit in front of the young man.
"Not long ago, there were piles of Pokémon corpses here, but the police have already removed them. All the Pokémon in the power plant died here; the smell you're catching is probably..."
The green-haired youth, referred to as N, stopped mid-sentence, his expression a mixture of disgust and sadness.
"Wasn't it the Bean Dove on your shoulder that told you? Oh, so it's just the corpses of elves. I thought it was... Ah!"
The carefree girl didn't realize what was happening at first, but when she realized the source of the smell in the air, she choked and clenched her hands even tighter around her mouth and nose.
"So N, what are you planning to do? Are you going to find out the truth behind the explosion?"
The girl with the high ponytail was still covering her mouth and nose, but her bright, deep blue eyes were restlessly looking around at the situation. She asked the green-haired youth in a muffled voice through her palm.
"This behavior must not be tolerated." The young man's expression was more serious than ever before.
"There are obvious signs of human intervention behind this explosion, but it's being treated as an accident. Someone must have managed to escape responsibility! Douzi, please help me find the culprit whose hands are stained with the blood of seventy-one Pokémon!"
“I have a better idea.” The girl’s eyes darted around, revealing a mysterious expression. “I know a very reliable detective. You might want to consult him.”
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On November 4th, in the 122nd year of the Union Calendar, a major explosion occurred at the United States Rikyu City Power Plant.
Around noon, a massive explosion occurred in the power plant's facility area. The explosion, subsequent blast, and ensuing fire destroyed the entire power plant within two hours, causing irreparable damage. Residents throughout the city heard the roar of the explosion, and the power grid in Liyong City was also affected, with some neighborhoods still without power.
Fortunately, before the explosion, the power plant manager, William, noticed the abnormality and immediately organized the evacuation of all employees. Therefore, no one was injured or killed in the explosion.
Currently, the police are conducting a serious investigation into the explosion. Based on the testimonies of the employees, the incident has been preliminarily determined to be an accident, seemingly caused by improper handling of an Electric-type Pokémon within the factory.
During the subsequent police investigation, William, the factory manager who saved all the employees, acted highly suspiciously. He refused to cooperate with the police investigation and was unwilling to provide testimony before and after the incident, leading some in the Liyong City Police Department to suspect him. Currently, William is under constant police surveillance, but has not shown any abnormalities…
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"Hugo, are you really planning to meet the leader of that Plasma Group?"
On the deck of the ship bound for Liyong City, Bilan, holding her white sun hat to protect herself from the sea breeze, asked the detective in the white coat with a worried expression.
"Aren't they an evil organization that's plotting to overthrow the United States Alliance? We even fought with their people at the Qibao Museum before. Isn't it a bit inappropriate to confront them directly like this?"
"Seeing is believing," Detective Hugo said with a shrug.
"According to the intelligence I've gathered, this green-haired leader named N seems to be operating independently with his cult, at least not directly involved in Team Plasma's criminal activities in various places. He might actually be a good person, as Douzi said. Moreover, making contact beforehand could give us a chance to understand the true situation within Team Plasma. I've had enough of being caused trouble by this bunch of evil organizations every now and then; it's time to take the initiative and launch an attack."