Chapter 511: 512
The space behind the iron gate was somewhat larger than Aiden had imagined, and the layout of the room was somewhat reminiscent of a prison infirmary.
Ten iron beds were neatly arranged here, but in terms of style, this room was far more eerie and horrific than any prison infirmary. Each iron bed was equipped with restraining straps and chains, clearly indicating that the "patients" lying there were anything but docile.
Several of the iron beds were stained with blood that had turned black, with two of them almost completely covered, even spreading onto the floor. The blood wasnât cleaned up much, showing that these beds werenât used for medical purposes, and no one cared about the life and death of those lying on them.
Since arriving at this broken place, Aiden had already lost count of how many times he had encountered scenes straight out of a horror movie.
If this was indeed the place hastily arranged for Professor Dodgeâs sonâs surgery, then it was clear that the situation was very urgent, they didnât even have time to clean up the terrible scene beforehand.
But after entering, Aiden couldnât help but wonder if he had come to the wrong place.
At a glance, two technicians dressed as military medics stood in the middle of the iron beds, faces obscured by beak-like masks, with no one else in sight but them.
"Where are Dodge and his son?" Aiden frowned and asked.
Under the effect of the "Concealment" ability, their presence wouldnât be detected, and naturally, their voices wouldnât be heard by others.
The faces of the two in front of him were hidden, but their height did not match Professor Dodgeâs, clearly they were not him, and the operation bed where his son should have been lying was nowhere to be seen.
The military officer just now could not have lied, as the Nemesisâs "Betrayal" should have been effective.
"Escaped?" Lamia said.
This core research area was located at the deepest part of the mountain belly. According to Qiqimoraâs reconnaissance and exploration, there was only one entrance and exit, with no other escape routes. Digging a new tunnel here was not only expensive, but a secret passage leading directly to the core area from the outside world would create a very high risk of an attack, so it was normal for there to be none.
To escape, one would have to go through the way they came in. A regular person couldnât do it, but Professor Dodge possessed the Hand of Oblivion and perhaps also commanded the divine word of the "Void" authority. The base suddenly being attacked, he would have the capability to escape in a crisis.
"Itâs unlikely, his sonâs surgery was only halfway done, and in that state, it probably wasnât easy to move him." Aiden shook his head, "Moreover, the baseâs people probably wouldnât allow him to take the Divine Artifact with him without permission."
"Somethingâs off..." Qiqimora looked around, "It seems like something is missing."
Qiqimora had once risked being discovered to sneak into the core research area and had roughly explored a few of the labs. Although she had only glanced at each room, she had some impression of the arrangement inside.
"These two also look a bit odd." Lamia flicked her tongue, catching a scent, "This is... the smell of fear!"
"Humans produce a smell when they are afraid?" Aiden was taken aback.
"Oh, one of them peed their pants from fear." Lamia explained.
"Alright..." Aiden understood.
Because the two opposite "doctors" wore beak-like masks, Aiden couldnât see their expressions. But with Lamiaâs prompt, he noticed that they both stood apart, exhibiting a sense of panic; one was trembling, and the other held a gun tightly, as though he was about to crush the handle.
Aiden had just infiltrated this core research area and had knocked down all the guard forces outside. It wasnât surprising that these two technicians inside panicked upon hearing the commotion.
But upon closer observation, Aiden noticed something peculiar â the two were not intently watching the iron gate, the only entry and exit point. Instead, they glanced around nervously, as if the real danger was inside this very room.
Could it be that they knew we possessed the means of "concealment," and thus guessed that they had already infiltrated our ranks?
Suddenly, the armed doctor let out a cry and raised his gun.
Aiden realized this man was about to shoot blindly, and just as he was about to intervene, something unbelievable happened:
Before he could pull the trigger, the gun-holderâs body began to shrivel and thin, as if compressed by some mysterious force into a soft sheet of paper. Almost without pause, that force twisted the "paper" as one would wring out a towel, rolling it into a thin line, then from both ends, the line shortened to a mere dot, before disappearing completely.
Throughout the entire process, he didnât emit even a single cry of pain, just vanished without a trace left behind.
"Ha, what the hell was that!?" Lamia shouted excitedly.
"Annihilation," Qiqimora murmured, an expert in the study of "the void" and its powers, she knew that was the effect of the Annihilation abilityâreducing material existence to nothingness.
But in Aidenâs eyes, this effect had another layer of shocking implication:
Is this... a dimensional reduction strike!?
To collapse a three-dimensional object into a plane, then twist that plane into a two-dimensional line, and finally shrink it to a point before it disappears completelyâwasnât the effect of this "Magic" too much like science fiction?
"Aaaahhhh!!!" The trembling doctor, having witnessed his comradeâs fate, rushed towards the door Aiden and his group had entered through, crazed.
But he didnât make it two steps before the same thing happened to him.
Aiden watched as the scene of the dimensional reduction strike was replayed, and another person disappeared from the room.
"Itâs the power of âAnnihilation.â Be careful, kid, that professor is in here!" the Avenging Goddess concluded, arriving at the same conclusion as Qiqimora.
"He used âconcealmentâ? Then he should be observable when he interferes from the outside," Aiden raised the question.
Qiqimoraâs "concealment" would reveal her form once she interfered with the outside.
"Because this isnât a normal level of âconcealment,â" the Avenging Goddess hinted.
"Heâs wearing the Hand of Annihilation!" Aiden suddenly realized.
The situation in front of him could only be explained by Professor Dodge donning the Hand of Annihilation to make himself invisible and then touching the two doctors, causing them to completely vanish.
With only a few seconds of thought, Aiden understood what had happened here.
"...Thatâs pretty ruthless," he couldnât help feeling a chill down his spine.
"Damn it, what am I missing... I just canât remember," Qiqimora said, clutching her head, her expression tense.
"Even you are affected by the âvoidâ for once," Aiden smiled wryly.
"Hey kid, if you already know whatâs going on, could you give your teammates a briefing?" Lamia urged impatiently.