Wasteland Border Inspector - Chapter 747

Chapter 747: Chapter 248: Source Rail Dilemma, The Legend of the Research Institute!

“Heh.”

Yu Erlan pursed her lips, revealing a faint smile, then gently shook her head and turned to walk forward.

Cheng Ye quickly refocused his mind and followed, while his eyes swiftly scanned the environment of the sublevel two, carefully examining the structural layout of the underground area of the giant dome.

The architectural structure of this sublevel two was quite similar to the exclusive area of Rebirth Medical.

With a height clearance of nearly fifty meters combined with a vast expanse, it was as if the entire underground of the Inner City research area had been completely hollowed out, forcibly creating an independent and complete exclusive zone.

A dozen buildings with various designs were scattered about, their heights differing, yet there was a clear sense of hierarchy. The metal plaques hanging at the entrance of each building clearly marked the corresponding functional divisions, all plainly visible.

In the center of the space stood the iconic silver pillar seen above ground. What was astonishing was that its diameter underground expanded by more than five meters, reaching an impressive size of fifteen meters.

The pale green energy flowing inside the pillar remained vibrant and dynamic, extending through densely packed transparent conduits like a network of human veins to each building, supplying each research lab with nurturing fluid.

The green energy flowing through the pillar remained vibrant, extending through the densely packed transparent conduits, like a network of veins, to supply power to the entire underground space.

The base below the pillar was not a simple supporting structure but a three-story high beige square building.

Upon closer inspection, seven large gilded characters on the door frame—”Extraordinary Mother Source Containment Room”—shone brilliantly, exceptionally eye-catching.

Hiss.

Cheng Ye inhaled sharply, a storm of shock rising in his heart.

How many Extraordinary Mother Sources had Happiness City contained to warrant the construction of such a large three-story building just for storage?

If he could acquire all the Extraordinary Mother Sources within this building, how many characteristics could be unlocked?

How many rare skills, items, and intelligence could these characteristics be exchanged for?

Perhaps even…

A flash of insight crossed Cheng Ye’s eyes, and he secretly resolved to frequently visit this research facility in the future.

But just as his thoughts were racing, Yu Erlan suddenly halted her steps and looked over with a half-smile:

“Inspector Cheng, you might not know this, but while you are the twelfth inspector to enter the research institute, even Station Chief Ding could only visit the above-ground sections. Even when using the supercomputer, he had to have other researchers deliver data for him.”

She paused, her tone carrying a hint of amusement: “And this place where you’re standing now, to be exact, you’re the third inspector qualified to step in here.”

“Thank you for Director Yu’s trust!”

Cheng Ye straightened up, immediately putting on an expression of being flattered, though a faint feeling of unease rose within him, sensing her words had more meaning.

Sure enough, Yu Erlan continued:

“The first inspector qualified to come here was your grandfather, Cheng Wu. When the Infection Source Research Institute was founded, he even presided over the ribbon-cutting ceremony. I hadn’t joined the institute back then and was just a little girl, so I didn’t get to see him in person. But…”

She gestured for Cheng Ye to look toward the entrance of the containment room. As Cheng Ye followed her gaze, his eyes quickly fixed on a framed image crafted from alloy.

The image depicted a middle-aged man with a familiar face, bearing a resemblance of about sixty percent to him, being pinned to the ground by a group of guards, his face full of defiance, as if shouting something.

Two lines of text were engraved beside the frame:

[Studying the Extraordinary Mother Source leads to a dead end!]

[I, Cheng Wu, swear to overthrow this den of filth and corruption!]

“Uh…” Cheng Ye’s mouth twitched slightly, his eyes flickering.

Could it be that Cheng Wu was a traditionalist who once strongly opposed Happiness City’s exploration of source rail technology?

“Don’t misunderstand, Station Master Cheng Wu was exceptionally open-minded. Back then, he was the main force behind promoting research on infection sources, far from the stubborn old guard you’d imagine.”

Yu Erlan pointed to the date marked at the lower right corner of the frame, which displayed: New Era, February 3, Year 11.

“Three days later, on February 6, as you might have heard, Station Master Cheng Wu officially defected and left Happiness City with other high-level inspectors. Before his defection, he attempted to break into the research facility to seize all Extraordinary Mother Sources.”

“Of course, he ultimately didn’t succeed.”

Cheng Wu, before defecting, actually tried to steal all the Extraordinary Mother Sources?

Cheng Ye was momentarily stunned; he hadn’t known this aspect, not expecting Cheng Wu to be so audacious.

He instinctively asked, “Then who was the second inspector qualified to be here?”

“Well, Inspector Cheng… don’t you really know?” Yu Erlan indicated an empty space cleared next to the frame, her smile carrying deep implications, “Your grandfather failed, but your father did not.”

“Hmm?” Cheng Ye was completely taken aback on the spot.

No, wait, Cheng Wu entering the research institute made sense, but Cheng Long… wasn’t he just a Fifth-stage Inspector?

Since even Ding Yishan wasn’t qualified to enter the underground area, what justified Cheng Long’s presence here?

As thoughts rapidly turned, Cheng Ye’s face suddenly sank as a possibility surfaced in his mind.

“Inspector Cheng Long, with the help of some people, successfully infiltrated here and stole three Extraordinary Mother Sources. Fortunately, the City Lord pursued in time, preventing him from causing a major disaster,” Yu Erlan’s tone remained calm, yet it carried an invisible pressure.

“Now, Inspector Cheng Ye, you are the third inspector to enter the Extraordinary Mother Source Containment Room. Surely, you wouldn’t want to follow in your grandfather’s or father’s footsteps and leave behind a ‘legend’ here, would you?”

…