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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter Twenty-Six: Waiting
Bai Yudong was the first to climb up to the ventilation opening at the top of the tower. He didn't rush to go down but instead sat on the edge, holding onto the railing and looking down at the empty and desolate Power Station below.
The view from the top was expansive; with good eyesight, one could see almost the entire mountain. Their hiding place in the Boiler Room, the Three-Story White Building at the back door, and even the truck left behind on the Tree-Lined Path at the front gate were all clearly visible. Looking down, the complete layout of the Power Station became apparent, with groups of Zombies moving about in many alleys and open spaces. Looking back from the tower top, a row of wind Generators on the hillside continued to turn their blades with a creaking sound, contrasting sharply with the Loess area on the slope and the dense greenery halfway up the mountain.
The ventilation opening at the top of the tower was bottle-shaped, only about ten meters in diameter, much narrower than its base. Rigid walls surrounded it, each side featuring a vertical shaft. Bai Yudong cautiously leaned out to take a look down; about ten meters below, there was a suspended iron Escalator encircled by a layer of Water Barrier, but he couldn't see any further down. Bai Yudong rubbed his face, which stung from the wind, feeling perplexed.
"How the hell am I supposed to get down?" Bai Yudong cursed inwardly.
After more than ten minutes, Jiang He and his group finally climbed up slowly.
Everyone was exhausted; climbing that nearly vertical iron ladder had been quite a challenge. Pan Luo was completely deflated after being pulled up by several people, gripping the inner railing of the tower tightly and refusing to let go no matter what.
One by one, they reached the top and scattered to safe spots to catch their breath. The wind howled through the ventilation opening behind them, sending chills down their spines.
Jiang He also leaned over to take a look and noticed that a row of objects blocked a drop of more than ten meters. He couldn't help but wonder aloud, "Didn't Bearded Man say his people were inside? Wait, where are they?"
Song Yao and others shrugged, indicating they didn't know; they had been too focused on escaping at that moment to pay attention to that person.
Ming Junwei glanced at Chao Yifan, who appeared unfazed and was enjoying the view that came with their height.
It seemed like an odd tacit agreement; everyone chose to forget about that person who had fallen from above. No one asked Bai Yudong for specific details about it. Apart from Jiang He's brief inquiry, others acted as if they had never seen those individuals in Color Steel House—the Mediterranean and Round-Headed Man—as well as Bearded Man. Although everyone understood what had happened, no one brought it up.
Bai Yudong looked back in confusion and asked, "Did those scrawny guys say there were people here?"
"Yeah, I don't think this looks like a place for people," Jiang He scratched his head and shrank back slightly while pointing at a silvery metal object below. "What is that?"
“Water Barrier.” Ming Junwei glanced over and said, “There are shafts on both sides of the Escalator, so we can definitely go down. The Water Barrier has water pipes underneath; they must be at the heat dissipation material section.”
The group could only understand individual words; when put together, they had no idea what he was talking about.
“Hero, how do we get down? We’re not going to have to climb down a ladder, are we?” Jiang He felt his calves trembling, while Pan Luo, whose face had just regained some color, shivered at the mention of it, her face turning pale again.
“Can we get out from inside?” Song Yao asked.
Ming Junwei shook his head and replied, “I don’t know. I didn’t pay attention earlier; I’m not sure if the air intake below is sealed.”
Bai Yudong brushed off the dust from his clothes and looked into the ventilation shaft. “We can wait for the Zombie to disperse and then return the way we came, or go down to where Junwei mentioned; there might still be food and water. You all discuss it.”
“Let’s go down.” Ming Junwei seemed to have made up his mind long ago. “We ran too fast earlier; I estimate they really did dig a hole at the air intake. Otherwise, the people inside the tower wouldn’t have heard their warning.”
Jiang He thought about it too. The two from Mediterranean were deliberately shouting in the Color Steel House; although their voices were loud, they couldn’t possibly penetrate the reinforced concrete walls. Moreover, when Ming Junwei had teased them about not digging a hole in the tower body, Mediterranean’s eyes had flickered a bit, suggesting that Ming Junwei had hit the nail on the head, which is why they didn’t dare to speak further.
“Can such a thick tower wall really be breached?” Chao Yifan asked in surprise.
“They’re all old workers inside; they probably have their own methods. Besides, the cold water pool below has dried up; if they were to dig in from outside, it wouldn’t be impossible.” Ming Junwei glanced at Chao Yifan with an odd look but didn’t linger on it for long before continuing, “We heard movement above us and didn’t pay attention to the hole. Now that I think about it, those two definitely didn’t climb down from here. When we went out, we saw that guy climbing up first; we were just assuming.”
“Then aren’t their accomplices waiting for us to go down?” Jiang He said anxiously. If they got shot halfway down, it would really be curtains for them.
Chao Yifan turned his head and said calmly, “What if he was just talking nonsense?”
The group hesitated; indeed, it wasn’t impossible for Bearded Man to blurt out lies under Chao Yifan’s pressure.
“If there’s nothing down there or if it’s dangerous, wouldn’t that mean we’re walking into our deaths?” Chao Yifan scoffed and sat back down. “I suggest we wait for the Zombie to disperse and return the way we came.”
Song Yao looked at Jiang He, her eyes filled with questions.
In truth, Jiang He didn't want to go down either. The vent looked ominous; who knew if the machines inside were still operational? Although Ming the Great Hero was a jack-of-all-trades, this was not his specialty. At a height of sixty or seventy meters, one misstep could be fatal.
Ming Junwei remained silent, clearly contemplating the feasibility of going deeper. The zombies below wouldn't retreat anytime soon, and everyone was exhausted from running around. If Chao Yifan was right, it would truly be a waste of effort.
Bai Yudong sighed, indicating his agreement with Chao Yifan's opinion.
Suddenly, Jiang He recalled something and asked, "What about Bearded Man saying another group went to the back door? Could it be those armed ones?"
"That's possible," Ming Junwei murmured, uncertain. "Russian Brothers..."
"They should be fine," Bai Yudong replied without worry, pulling out half a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and tossing them to the others.
Jiang He and Ming Junwei exchanged puzzled glances; earlier in the shed, Mediterranean had clearly been talking about Brother Mao.
Bai Yudong guessed what they were thinking and waved his hand dismissively. "It's not them. They were referring to a team that came a month ago; they're also my people."
The group looked at each other, unsure of what to say next.
Song Yao leaned against the railing.
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