"This corpse has been dead for nearly ten years, probably even before the Unified War."
Jack picked up a rifle that had fallen on the ground.
"These guys are wearing military technology gear. I wonder if it still works."
He tested it a few tis in his hand. Unfortunately, due to lack of maintenance, even the return spring was rusted, and most of the prosthetics were broken. It could only be sold as scrap tal.
There's practically no lack of oxygen here. Otherwise, equipnt wouldn't oxidize so severely in an oxygen-free environnt. V felt that guy was lying, just too cowardly to co down.
But this made Jack even more puzzled.
"Who were they fighting against, that they couldn't even retrieve the bodies and poured such thick concrete walls?"
A decade ago, the Unified War hadn't erupted yet, and Night City was just recovering from the era of nuclear shockwaves. Huang Ban hadn't returned here yet. Who could military technology possibly be fighting against?
In his ghostly green vision, the corpses on the ground only wore two types of outfits: military technology soldiers and construction workers. Besides these.....
There was a pile of robot wreckage.
They were called robots, but they actually looked more like four-legged giant spiders.
"It looks like those soldiers were more likely fighting robots and losing badly, forcing military technology to abandon the laboratory and evacuate the area. Even military technology was afraid...."
V stepped forward to pry open one of the robots entangled with a dead body. The probe extending from the robot's head had pierced the soldier's chest, not even blocked by the body armor, though it had been smashed by others.
She was puzzled. This was a military technology unit, equipped with prosthetics and guns, lacking nothing. Yet these robots didn't appear heavily ard, except for probes and laser welding guns. How could they repel, and even make military technology abandon this clearly valuable laboratory?
Moreover... these robots clearly bore military technology's logo... Could it be internal conflict? Or conflict between different factions?
"My god, that's big news, V. If we make it out, we might beco famous, Night City's legendary adventurers Jack and his assistant V. How does that title sound? Or maybe we swap roles, you be Sherlock Hols, and I'll be Watson."
"Jack...."
V put a finger to her lips to signal him to be quiet.
According to the intel provided by Lin Miao, there's a Netherworld Dog unit secretly excavating laboratory assets here. If they hear us, it'll be a wasted trip.
No matter how excited, Jack restrained himself and followed V toward the traces of a severe explosion ahead, quietly sneaking past the blown-open tal gate.
Beyond the gate was a long corridor tunnel, incredibly spacious, seemingly capable of accommodating so dium-sized transport vehicles.
The floor and walls of the tunnel were covered in bullet marks, and like inside, the corpses of robots, soldiers, and workers extended all along.
Both could envision the scene at the ti from the view before them: the robots launched the attack first, workers fled in panic, soldiers had to fight while retreating, eventually paying a heavy price to make it back to the surface.
Everything here sent chills down their spines, especially the whistling sound of air passing through a narrow vent, like ghosts whispering in the corners, refusing to dissipate.
They carefully made their way through the corridor, even avoiding stepping on corpses or robot debris to prevent making noise and attracting unwanted attention.
The corridor ended in a transit area resembling a checkpoint, which had also witnessed fierce combat, even more brutal than before. Remaining bones and chanical debris filled every corner of their vision, as both sides fought to the death, leaving almost no intact corpse.
Jack was shocked and whispered,
"Heaven help us, have we co to Hell?"
"This is the center of the battle."
V pointed to the three branching paths opposite the checkpoint.
"Those areas barely have any human corpses, looking like they were attacked. Military technology people were preparing to retreat and built defenses here, but ultimately couldn't stop them."
"Just what are they...? Could it be rogue AI?"
Though not a hacker, he had heard such urban legends.
"Damn it, why do these companies like ssing with such dangerous stuff?"
Knowing so inside information, V quietly remarked after snapping a few photos,
"Get used to it. Let's keep going."
Unlike the power-cut platform at the entrance, the three branches led to the engineering, experint, and rest areas, all lit up.
The safest place would logically be the rest area, obviously holding nothing crucial.
However, their curiosity driven by previous discoveries led V and Jack to decide to head to the engineering area.
The underground laboratory's vastness exceeded their imagination, possibly sprawling across most of Dog Town and the Taiping Continent. The engineering area was the largest of the three, no wonder military technology went to such lengths to create this massive space underground back then.
V couldn't fathom their thinking; why place such an important site in Night City?
Is New Arica itself not appealing?
Or was there so other reason?
"V! Take a look here."
Jack's voice, deliberately low, carried a hint of fear as he pointed to a large room obviously intended as a warehouse, its gates ajar. Inside, dozens of robots they had seen before were lined up neatly, and the warehouse doors were emblazoned with the na
'Hellhound Storage Warehouse'
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