Chapter 977 "Countdown and the Dark Side"

"Oh!"

With a loud bang, the metal door of the laboratory slammed shut again, and a heavy sense of oppression filled the air. Li Jie and Xiao Chen looked at each other, and the alarm bells in their hearts almost rang immediately.

"You say, is this some kind of...broken 'high-tech'?" Xiao Chen smiled and tried to break the silence, but his tone was somewhat helpless and anxious, "Look, the door is locked again, and the system is activated again. What if we are used as test subjects in the end... Oh, that's too miserable."

"Guidelines?" Li Jie raised his eyebrows and said in a sharp voice, "You are quite optimistic. You actually think we are 'guinea pigs'. I don't think I am the kind of person who can be casually 'experimented' on. Just wait and see the countdown."

"Countdown?" Xiao Chen didn't seem to understand what Li Jie meant. "Didn't you say this was just a laboratory? How come it suddenly became something like... a destructive countdown? Are we preparing to save the world?"

"Save the world? You must have watched too much Avengers!" Li Jie took a deep breath and said seriously, "I'm not that noble. We need to find out the real purpose behind this!"

As he spoke, he nervously walked to the display screen and stared at the countdown that was still ticking. The numbers on the screen were gradually approaching "zero", and next to them were those complex symbols and garbled codes that were difficult to understand.

"30 minutes..." Li Jie whispered, "The countdown is clearly displayed, but who knows what is behind it?"

"I know what you're thinking." Xiao Chen suddenly covered his chest with his hands, looking bitter. "Do you think there must be a big conspiracy waiting for us in this countdown? I knew that this moment would come sooner or later!"

"Oh, I'm not as pessimistic as you." Li Jie rolled his eyes. "The countdown is the countdown, the question is what can we do?"

"What to do? What can be done?" Xiao Chen shrugged. "Do you mean to break this countdown, or shut down some system?"

"That seems to be the case." Li Jie took a deep breath. "But the problem is, we have to figure out what the countdown is for and what consequences will be caused after the system is activated."

"What consequences will it cause?" Xiao Chen raised his eyebrows. "Will the laboratory really be turned into a 'nuclear explosion' test site? Why are you so nervous?"

"What do you think?" Li Jie narrowed his eyes slightly. "The person who can activate the system must be no good. Whether it is for scientific research or for other purposes, this place must be hiding some secrets."

"Secret?" Xiao Chen suddenly became interested. "You mean, this laboratory is not only doing scientific research, but also has other dark experiments that are unknown to the public?"

Li Jie glanced at Xiao Chen and was too lazy to complain: "You just realized this?"

"I didn't! I've been thinking about what would happen if we become experimental subjects..." Xiao Chen said seriously, "But now I feel like it's not that simple. There may be some hidden 'big conspiracy' here."

"You're right, almost." Li Jie nodded, "But what we need to figure out now is how to stop this system. Otherwise, when the countdown is up, everything in the laboratory may be 'activated'. No matter what kind of black technology it is, it is definitely more troublesome than you think."

"'Start'? Are you saying that a 'super monster' is really coming?" Xiao Chen's face suddenly became serious. "Can you wait until I buy some instant noodles before dealing with this matter? I don't really want to deal with this kind of supernatural monster."

Li Jie glanced at him and said, "Instant noodles? How dare you eat them?"

"Of course!" Xiao Chen curled his lips, "However, once I am sure there are no monsters in this laboratory, I will definitely not dare to open that bag of instant noodles."

Li Jie: "..."

Having said that, the current situation forced the two to concentrate on the experimental equipment in front of them. Li Jie quickly searched around and began to see if he could find a button or system that could stop the countdown.

"These devices..." Li Jie muttered to himself, "They don't seem to be ordinary experimental equipment, but some kind of high-tech weapons or extremely complex control systems."

Xiao Chen also came over and patted Li Jie on the shoulder: "Hey, it's so complicated, there must be clues. Are you sure you can handle it? You are not a technological genius."

"I'm not, but I know that we must find the core of this system." Li Jie stood in front of a monitor, frowning, "Look at these symbols, they don't look like ordinary codes. These should be signs of advanced encryption or some kind of transmission protocol."

"Encryption?" Xiao Chen stared at the symbols on the screen in confusion. "You think these codes can be decrypted?"

Li Jie nodded: "We have to find the correct way to crack it and find the key link. Otherwise, when the countdown reaches zero, who knows what will happen."

"Okay!" Xiao Chen suddenly stood up straight, "Then I will be responsible for 'delaying time', and you will be responsible for cracking the code?"

"Delay? How do you delay?" Li Jie frowned, "Are you planning to send them a notice to let us 'delay' the countdown?"

"Of course!" Xiao Chen touched his chin, "Look how smart I am. I can go find some snacks or something and tell them, 'Wait for me to have some instant noodles, don't worry'."

"You are really..." Li Jie was speechless, but he still took a deep breath, "Ignore your messy ideas for now, what we need to do now is to find a way to end it."

The two began to search around the laboratory, with Li Jie giving instructions to Xiao Chen from time to time. After some searching, they finally found a small control panel in a secret compartment on a wall.

"Found it!" Li Jie pressed the button almost impatiently.

however--

"Oh!"

There was a sudden vibration from the other end of the wall, followed by a harsh mechanical sound, and the environment in the laboratory became more and more tense.

"Xiao Chen, don't move!" Li Jie immediately blocked Xiao Chen's way, "That control panel is fake! There is no button to shut down the system!"

"Fake?" Xiao Chen was stunned. "You mean, this is not a real control system at all?"

Li Jie looked serious: "This is the problem. There may be a bigger conspiracy in this laboratory. It is a completely closed system. It will not be easy for us to find a way to exit."

"Damn, this is too complicated!" Xiao Chen was a little discouraged. "It seems that we have to teach the 'backstage pushers' of this system a lesson?"

"Don't talk nonsense!" Li Jie said seriously, "No matter who they are, at least there may be a real disaster hidden behind this countdown."