novelTele Chapter 6: City Purge, Precursors to Anomaly
Chapter 6: City Purge, Precursors to Anomaly
Chapter Six: City Purge, Precursors to Anomaly
The chaos caused by the chemical plant accident continued to escalate, with official control and public panic intertwined, plunging the entire city of Cangnan into a strange standstill.
But Lin Chen, amidst this stagnation, pressed the start button for the city's cleanup operation.
It was late at night, dark and windy.
Lin Chen and Zhao Lei, along with eight veterans, fully armed, quietly infiltrated an abandoned industrial area in the west of the city.
This is the hideout of that group of thugs from three days ago.
In their past lives, they took advantage of the chaos caused by the chemical plant accident to gather a dozen or so people here. Through robbery and extortion, they became one of the biggest sources of man-made disasters in Cangnan City in its early days, and their hands were stained with the blood of many innocent survivors.
In this life, Lin Chen will not give them any chance.
Outside the outpost, several modified vehicles had their engines off and all their lights turned off.
Zhao Lei whispered instructions: "There are twelve people inside, armed with controlled knives and two air guns. Divide them into three groups and take turns keeping watch at night."
He had already sent people to scout the location during the day and had gathered all the intelligence.
Lin Chen nodded, put on his night vision goggles, and said in a voice as cold as ice: "Proceed according to plan, do not linger, and leave no survivors."
His past life's lessons taught him that the wicked in the end times will never be able to repent.
Any leniency could lead to an irreparable disaster in the future.
The operation begins.
Zhao Lei led his men and silently infiltrated through a breach in the wall behind the stronghold, instantly eliminating two dozing sentries.
The thugs inside the hideout were still drinking, playing cards, and cursing about what had happened during the day, completely unaware that death was approaching.
"Don't move!"
With a low shout, a high-powered flashlight suddenly shone, the blinding white light making the thugs in the stronghold unable to open their eyes for a moment.
Before they could even react, the veterans had already rushed in, their movements swift and decisive, without the slightest hesitation.
"Who are you?!"
"Let me go! Do you know who I am?"
Just as the blond thug pulled out his switchblade, Zhao Lei kicked him to the ground and pressed the gun directly against his forehead.
His arrogance was instantly replaced by fear, and he begged incoherently, "Big brother, I was wrong, I'll never do it again, please let me go!"
Lin Chen slowly walked into the stronghold, his gaze sweeping over the few people slumped on the ground, finally landing on the blond-haired man.
"During the day, you said you were bringing people to demolish the wall?"
The blond-haired man was deathly pale, trembling all over, and could barely speak: "I...I was lying, I won't do it again, I'll never do it again!"
"It's too late."
Lin Chen's voice was completely calm, yet it carried a deadly chill.
"The chemical plant exploded, and you took advantage of the chaos to rob a convenience store, injure the store owner, and even planned to loot hospital supplies. We'll settle all these scores now."
He had already investigated the group's daytime misdeeds through Chen Jianjun.
On the verge of collapse, any crime must be nipped in the bud.
Without further ado, the veterans quickly subdued all the thugs, confiscated their weapons, and inventoried the stolen goods.
The stolen money, stolen goods, and controlled knives found in the hideout were all inventoried, serving as irrefutable evidence of their crimes.
It was already past midnight when we finished dealing with that group of people.
Lin Chen stood before the ruins of the stronghold, looking at the traces that had been cleaned up overnight, his eyes showing no emotion.
This is only the first step in the city's cleanup operation; there are still many hidden dangers like this.
"Brother Chen, everything's taken care of." Zhao Lei stepped forward and whispered, "Next, should we deal with that casino in the north of the city? I heard it's hiding a lot of gamblers and drug addicts, and they're causing trouble in the chaos."
"We'll talk about it tomorrow." Lin Chen shook his head. "There are more important things to do tonight."
He looked up toward the direction of the West City Chemical Plant, where the toxic fumes had not yet dissipated and the air was filled with a pungent odor.
In my past life, after this accident, the first signs of abnormality appeared in the surrounding creatures.
"Follow me to the outskirts of the chemical plant."
Lin Chen took Zhao Lei and drove to the western blockade line of the city.
At this moment, official rescue and control efforts are still ongoing, and the area outside the cordon is eerily quiet, with only a few rescue vehicles entering and leaving.
Avoiding surveillance, the two slipped through a hidden gap into the edge of the area where the poisonous fog had not yet fully spread.
The corrosive smell in the air grew stronger, the roadside vegetation had withered and turned yellow and black, and the soil had been stained an eerie brown.
Lin Chen's gene anchoring talent was slowly operating, and he could clearly feel an abnormal energy fluctuation in the air, carrying violent mutation factors.
"Watch out, there's something ahead." Zhao Lei suddenly lowered his voice and gripped the crossbow tightly.
Lin Chen followed his gaze and saw a stray cat lying on the ground in the grass not far away, emitting eerie hissing.
It had lost most of its fur, its skin was ulcerated, its eyes were bloodshot, it was a size larger than an ordinary cat, and its claws had become long and sharp. It was staring intently at the two of them, and a threatening growl was coming from its throat.
This is a precursor to distortion.
Lin Chen's eyes narrowed. This cat's condition was exactly the same as those of the early-stage mutated beasts in his previous life.
The toxic substances leaking from the chemical plant, combined with the catastrophic radiation in the air, have begun to catalyze biological mutations.
"This is... a mutation?" Zhao Lei was stunned, gripping his weapon tightly. "How could it be so fast?"
"It's just a precursor; it hasn't fully mutated yet, but it's already become aggressive." Lin Chen slowly drew the alloy dagger from his waist. "Kill it, but don't get scratched."
Before he could finish speaking, the mutated cat pounced at him with astonishing speed, its claws whistling through the air as it aimed straight for Lin Chen's throat.
Lin Chen dodged to the side, and the dagger slashed across, precisely severing its throat.
Blackish-red blood spurted out, the mutated cat twitched a few times, and then stopped moving.
Lin Chen squatted down and used his dagger to part its fur, revealing tiny bone spurs growing under the skin and deformed muscles.
He put the deformed cat's body into a sealed bag, which was an important research sample, and handed it to Dr. Li and Lao Wang, hoping that they could develop a way to deal with the deformity in advance.
"It seems our time is even tighter than we anticipated." Lin Chen stood up, his expression grave. "The mutation has already begun, and it won't be long before mutated beasts appear on a large scale."
Zhao Lei's face also darkened: "Then we must speed up the construction of our defensive fortifications!"
"It's not just about fortifications." Lin Chen looked into the distance. "Starting tomorrow, the training base will officially open. All members must undergo combat, shooting, and wilderness survival training."
"We need to build a fighting force before the mutated beasts appear on a large scale."
The two quickly evacuated the scene and rushed back to the core area of the fortress.
Meanwhile, in other corners of Cangnan City, many more such mutated creatures are quietly emerging.
They lurk in dark corners, slowly transforming into bloodthirsty monsters under the influence of toxic fog and radiation, awaiting the moment when catastrophe strikes.
Back at the temporary base, Lin Chen handed the mutated cat's sample to Dr. Li and urged him to analyze it as soon as possible.
He then convened an emergency meeting with his core team.
"The chemical plant leak has already triggered initial biological mutations, and the emergence of mutant beasts is earlier than we expected."
"Next, we need to adjust our plans and bring all schedules forward."
"First, the fortifications must be completed within ten days, and all entrances and exits must be equipped with automatic defense systems;"
"Secondly, the training base will begin tomorrow, with mandatory training for all personnel. Those who fail the assessment will be prohibited from participating in any external missions."
"Third, expedite the city's clearing operations; eliminate all large-scale violent gangs and potential threats within three days."
"Fourth, Lao Wang, you need to develop weapons to target the mutated creatures as soon as possible, as well as a plan to reinforce the city walls;"
"Fifth, Dr. Li, we need to establish an epidemic prevention and control system as soon as possible, and stockpile more vaccines and medicines to prevent the spread of the mutated virus."
Every instruction was precise and decisive.
All the core members realized the seriousness of the matter and nodded in agreement.
The meeting ended at 3 a.m.
Lin Chen stood alone at the highest point of the fortress, overlooking Cangnan City in the night.
In the distance to the west of the city, thick smoke still billowed, the clouds on the horizon pressed even lower, and the wind howled in our ears, like the prelude to the end of the world.
He gripped the dagger at his waist, his eyes resolute.
The distortion has already begun, the man-made disaster has not yet been eliminated, and natural disasters are looming ever closer.
But he was already prepared.
High walls, supplies, manpower, weapons, and his five years of experience in the apocalypse.
In this life, he will not lose again.
Dawn is approaching in Cangnan City.
But his battle to defend the city had only just begun.