One person: Starting with the Snow Drinking Blade

Chapter 280 The Black-Robed Envoy

Nie Lingfeng and Wang Ye exchanged a glance, both seeing the wariness and a hint of surprise in each other's eyes. The "envoy" was coming out in person? This saved them the trouble of barging in, but it also meant they would soon be facing this unknown and unpredictable high-ranking member of the "Council" head-on!

"Creak—"

The heavy alloy sealed door slowly slid open to one side, revealing a brighter passageway behind it, filled with the glow of various instrument indicator lights.

A stronger, mixed odor of disinfectant, formaldehyde, and that strange biochemical agent wafted out. At the same time, a cold, eerie aura, as if capable of freezing blood, quietly emanated from inside the door.

A tall, slender figure, shrouded in a wide black robe with his face hidden by a hood, slowly emerged from the light and shadow behind the door.

His footsteps were light, almost silent. But with his arrival, the surrounding air seemed to drop several degrees. The four elite guards involuntarily straightened their bodies, their eyes filled with awe and...fear.

The black-robed "envoy" stopped at the door. In the shadow of the hood, two gazes seemed to fall on Nie Lingfeng, Wang Ye, and Chen Duo.

"Wu Dengsheng...sent you here?" The hoarse, strange synthesized voice slowly sounded, devoid of emotion. "Where...is he?"

Wang Ye immediately lowered his head in a "trembling with fear" manner and said in an even more "anxious" tone, "Reporting to Your Excellency! The General is currently directing the deployment at the front line and cannot leave, so he has specially dispatched the three of us to report! The situation is urgent; it seems that China has deployed helicopters and a small special forces unit, which have already crossed the border, and their target is very likely the mine! General, please go and discuss this with us immediately!"

"Oh?" The black-robed envoy's voice remained calm, but Nie Lingfeng keenly sensed that the other's "gaze" beneath the hood seemed to linger on him for a fleeting moment. Was it because of the trace of "leader" aura he had released? Or...?

"Since the situation is urgent..." the black-robed envoy said slowly, "then... let's go inside and talk. It's 'safer' inside."

He turned to the side and gestured for them to enter through the open alloy door.

Go in?

Nie Lingfeng and Wang Ye both felt a chill run down their spines. This "envoy" not only didn't suspect anything, but actually invited them into the core area of ​​the laboratory? This unusual behavior only made them more wary. Inside, it was likely a den of dragons and tigers!

But things had come to this point; the die was cast. Wasn't their disguise precisely for the purpose of getting in?

"Thank you very much, Your Excellency!" Wang Ye said with tears of gratitude, while giving Nie Lingfeng a wink.

Nie Lingfeng took a deep breath, tugged at Chen Duo's hand (feeling her small hand was a little cold), and then took the first step, walking into the open alloy door that was full of unknowns and dangers.

Wang Ye followed closely behind.

Chen Duo bit her lip and followed.

Just as the three of them stepped through the gate and the alloy door behind them slowly began to close—

The hoarse, strange voice of the black-robed "messenger" rang out again, this time seemingly carrying a hint of... playfulness?

"Welcome to...my laboratory."

"I hope you... won't be too surprised by the 'work' you're about to see."

"After all... we put in a lot of 'effort' to make them."

"Especially... the last one."

"It was prepared especially for 'distinguished guests' like you."

"I hope... you'll 'like' it."

"Creak—"

The alloy gate closed completely, isolating the world inside from the outside.

Inside the door, there were blindingly bright lights, various complex and precise instruments, and... rows of huge culture tanks separated by transparent reinforced glass, filled with pale green or dark red liquid...

In those culture tanks, twisted, deformed, and seemingly torn and pieced together countless times... humanoid creatures floated quietly, as if asleep, or as if... they might open their eyes at any moment.

In the air, besides the strong smell of medicine, there was another... a chilling atmosphere of despair and madness that made one's soul tremble.

Deep within the laboratory, in an exceptionally large culture tank connected by numerous pipes and energy devices, a monster—with tattered fleshy wings on its back, curved horns on its head, and its body covered in dark red scales and twisted runes, yet still vaguely recognizable as having once been a young woman—was quietly curled up.

Its eyes were tightly closed.

But at this moment, the fragment of the "Nirvana Feather" jade pendant that Nie Lingfeng kept close to his chest suddenly... became intensely hot... without any warning! It seemed to be wailing, or perhaps... calling out!

With a loud bang, the alloy door slammed shut behind us, the sound as muffled as a coffin lid being nailed shut, sending chills down our spines. The world inside and outside the door was completely severed—outside was a bloody, filthy, and primitive mine hell, while inside was another kind of hell, cloaked in "science" and "cleanliness," yet even more terrifying.

The lights were too bright. A stark, blinding white light shone through the cracks in the ceiling, walls, and even the floor, illuminating the entire space in stark detail, leaving no shadow to hide in. The air was thick with the pungent smell of disinfectant and formaldehyde, forcing its way into the nostrils, making the throat itch and the eyes sting. Mixed in with this was a cloying, rusty, and pungent odor, a strange mixture of countless biological agents and fermenting rotting flesh, even more nauseating and irritating than the foul smell of the mines outside, making one want to vomit.

Nie Lingfeng, Wang Ye, and Chen Duo stood at the door, speechless for a second or two from the sight before them, even instinctively holding their breath.

This was no longer a mine; it was clearly a colossal underground biological laboratory, equipped with astonishingly advanced technology! The space was several times larger than the altar hall of the "Blood Buddha" outside, and over twenty meters high—it was as if half a football field had been moved underground. The ceiling was covered with a dense network of pipes, ventilation vents, and various precision instruments and monitoring probes flashing indicator lights. The floor was covered with spotless, gleaming white tiles—of unknown material—reflecting blinding light.

The most shocking sight was the array of at least twenty or thirty enormous cylindrical culture tanks neatly arranged along both sides of the laboratory walls. Made of transparent reinforced glass, each three to four meters high and over two meters in diameter, they were filled with a pale green or dark red, viscous liquid constantly bubbling. Connected to the liquid by thick tubing and electrodes—sometimes made of rubber, sometimes of unknown metal—were…

Nie Lingfeng's pupils contracted sharply, and he tightened his grip on Chen Duo's hand! Chen Duo trembled violently, her emerald eyes widened instantly, her small mouth opened unconsciously, and a very slight, suppressed gasp escaped her throat. Her face turned deathly pale, and her body trembled uncontrollably! Wang Ye's usually half-closed eyes opened completely for the first time, and the laziness and cynicism in them vanished without a trace, leaving only deep solemnity and an indescribable chill.

Those culture tanks... contain "people".

Or rather, it was once a "human being".

But now, their appearance—or rather, "them"—is difficult to describe accurately in words. They barely retain human torsos and limbs, but their bodies are twisted and deformed, joints bent backwards, some with extra arms or legs, others fused together, indistinguishable from one another. Their skin displays a variety of bizarre colors—dark red, bluish-gray, purplish-black—some covered in scales or tumors, others ulcerated and oozing pus, with flocculent substances slowly drifting from the liquid. Their faces are even more grotesque, their features distorted and displaced; some are reduced to a single, constantly opening and closing mouth, others have eyes covering their faces—all tightly closed, yet one can almost feel their silent pain and despair.

Some of the "things" in the culture tanks had completely degenerated into human forms, turning into writhing, ever-changing lumps of flesh, studded with various organs and eyes. Others exhibited distinct animal characteristics—lizard tails, insect arthropods, and even…bird feathers (but rotten and twisted). All the culture tanks were connected to complex instruments and screens, displaying various incomprehensible data and waveforms, emitting monotonous "beep-beep" sounds that were particularly jarring in the deathly silent laboratory.

All of this constitutes a picture filled with extreme blasphemy, madness, and cruelty! It is the most naked trampling and distortion of life and humanity! It evokes a more profound sense of dread and rage than the corrupted monsters outside!

"This...this is...the 'goods'?" Nie Lingfeng's voice was squeezed out from between his teeth, filled with suppressed rage and killing intent. The burning sensation emanating from the "Feather of Nirvana" jade pendant on his chest seemed to resonate with the hellish scene before him, causing his heart to ache! He could almost "hear" the silent, eternal wails of the twisted souls within those glass tanks!

"It seems so." Wang Ye's voice turned colder than ever before. His gaze swept over the culture tanks, finally settling on the enormous one deepest in the laboratory, connected by even more pipes and energy devices. "I just wonder, did that 'envoy' invite us in to show us his 'masterpiece,' or... to stuff us in and make us part of it?"

"Hehehe..."

The hoarse, strange synthesized voice sounded again, coming from behind them. Sometime later, the "messenger," shrouded in a long black robe, had silently moved to a spot a few meters behind them, like a ghost.

"A visit? Of course." The envoy's voice remained calm and even, but from the shadow of his hood, it seemed as if two cold eyes were scanning back and forth between the three of them. Finally, the focus fell on Chen Duo, who was being tightly protected behind Nie Lingfeng, her face pale and her body trembling slightly. "After all, one of you 'little guests' seems to have a particularly 'deep' feeling about my 'work'."

He slowly raised a hand, also covered by a black glove, and pointed to the largest culture tank deep inside the laboratory.

"Especially...that one."

"She is our most successful and closest to 'perfect' experimental subject recently. She incorporates multiple rare 'ancient bloodline' fragments, including... trace traits of some legendary 'divine birds' from the East."

"Although there was a 'minor' accident during the fusion process, causing her form to be somewhat... unstable, the potential she possesses and her affinity with the 'Holy Blood Crystal' are the highest among all the test subjects. We originally intended to use her as the... first choice 'anchor point' to welcome the arrival of a wisp of the 'Master's' will."

"Ancient bloodline? Divine bird traits?" Nie Lingfeng's heart sank! The burning sensation from the jade pendant on his chest intensified! He subconsciously looked at Chen Duo, only to see that Chen Duo was also staring blankly at the huge culture tank, her emerald eyes filled with complex emotions—fear, sadness, confusion, and a trace of... even she herself might not have noticed... resonance and throbbing!

Could it be... that test subject really be related to the Phoenix bloodline? Was it some unfortunate soul with a diluted Phoenix bloodline that the "Council" captured from who-knows-where, and then forcibly modified and contaminated using "Holy Blood Crystals" and various cruel methods, turning them into this monstrous form?!