Chapter 315 - 310: A Sudden Turn for the Worse

Chapter 315: Chapter 310: A Sudden Turn for the Worse

RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE...

Soon, another slight tremor shook the observation station. The personnel inside felt it clearly.

The alarms were still blaring nonstop.

Of the two Evolvers stationed at the outpost, the one who was awake rushed to the observation deck on the roof, while the other, who had been resting, leaped out of bed and ran to their designated position.

After a moment of shock, all the observers immediately dropped what they were doing, ignored the tremor, and rushed to their stations, quickly beginning to operate their computers.

Hundreds of sensors had been placed inside the Death Maze Zone to monitor all kinds of data, including temperature, humidity, vibrations, and radiation. Now, they desperately needed to figure out what was happening.

But even before this, the on-duty personnel at the Supernatural Research and Response Department had already sent an urgent message to headquarters.

"Temperature and humidity readings are normal."

"Sectors A and B are clear."

"Infrared monitoring is clear!"

"Wait, my real-time data feed has stopped updating!"

After that, error messages began flashing on the computers one after another as the database and the forward sensors lost connection.

"We’ve lost contact with the sensors?"

...

"We can pinpoint the epicenter through elimination. None of the surrounding areas felt the tremor, so we can confirm the source is inside the maze zone."

"Switch to visible light monitoring! Turn on all the lighting systems in the village!"

"What about the defensive Soldiers? Have them fire flares into the zone!"

"If you can’t get through, use the emergency protocol! Monitor the vitals of all Soldiers!"

...

In the sealed-off area, by the wire mesh fence, red warning lights were all flashing. The piercing alarms put all the Soldiers on edge. After more than half a year of blockade, this was the first time an emergency had occurred.

The Commander switched on all the internal searchlights while trying to urgently contact the observation station.

But communications at the blockade’s border had already failed.

This possibility had long been accounted for in their contingency plans, so a Messenger immediately used observation equipment to look toward the station.

Sure enough, a Soldier was already standing on high ground, repeatedly waving two flags.

"Signal flags relaying the order: Fire flares! Seal all entrances and exits! All Soldiers, check your communication devices and fall back beyond reception range!"

Several Messengers quickly ran along the blockade line, shouting the orders to compensate for the lack of communications.

Hundreds of Soldiers began to retreat slowly in an orderly fashion. From the supply camp in the rear, trucks raced toward the blockade line, carrying the materials for a new, secondary containment perimeter.

Sending people in under these circumstances would be unwise.

...

Although nothing had happened in the Death Maze Zone for over half a year, it hadn’t been forgotten. It had always been a thorn in the side of the Super Research Department, but its docile nature also made it a subject of significant research value.

For it to act up now was not a good sign.

At the Supernatural Research and Response Department headquarters in Paris, Kodell was jolted from his sleep. Understanding the urgency of the situation, he cast aside all concerns for his appearance, splashed his face with cold water, and rushed from his home to headquarters.

"What’s the mental state of the personnel on site? Has anyone gone mad? Any suicides?"

His voice preceded him as he burst into the command hall.

"The Soldiers’ vitals are stable, and they’re currently undergoing full check-ups. The affected area of the Death Illusion Barrier has expanded outward by 300 meters."

Kodell frowned.

"How did you get that data? You were able to determine the zone of mental influence that quickly?"

"The latest from the front line is that signals are being cut off within the affected area. The new border was calculated based on the range of the signal interference."

Beyond the literal meaning, this immediately made Kodell realize that a whole range of tools—drones, exploratory vehicles, and the like—would all be useless.

"What about the operation of electronic devices? Is it only affecting the signal?"

By now, he had reached the center of the emergency command hall, where various reports and data streams flashed across the large screen.

"Multimedia devices and the like are also not functioning properly, but lighting equipment is unaffected."

Within minutes, Kodell and the other key members who arrived after him had grasped the basic situation.

Slight tremors, an expanding border, and signal interference. Although no mutated monsters had appeared, the Death Maze Zone seemed to have "come alive."

The most worrying part was the tremors; the Flame Demon incident in the United States had also been preceded by intermittent quakes.

"You must get Luna. Arrange a private jet and prepare to fly to the eastern region."

An agent beside him immediately left to carry out the order. Although Luna was just a little girl, the Super Research Department had no Perception-Type Evolvers, so they could only rely on Luna and her Spiritual Vision ability for assistance.

That night, agents knocked on the door of the Ruby family. Luna, who was only seven years old, was now a head taller, and combined with her choice of dress, she looked like a twelve or thirteen-year-old girl. It seemed she was desperate to appear more mature.

...

RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE...

People around the blockade zone felt the tremors once again. By the time the second seismological report was sent out, the atmosphere in all related government departments across France had changed palpably.

One tremor could be dismissed, but a second one in such a short time meant they had to prepare for the worst.

Fortunately, the village in the eastern region was at least in a better situation than Saint Louis had been in the United States; there would be fewer reservations about taking action.

Nearby military units began to mobilize, continuously sending reinforcements to the blockade. Long-range guided weapons were aimed at the Death Maze Zone, with their terminal guidance systems switched to inertial navigation.

The nations of the World Alliance were already keeping a close eye on each other, and this time, France had no intention of hiding the situation. If it truly turned into a Category One or higher mutation event, they hoped to receive aid from Dawn, even if it was only intelligence.

After all, it was a recognized fact among the informed nations that when it came to experts on mutation events, no one surpassed the ancient guardian organization, the Dawn Association.

And so, in this environment, the Dawn Association also received the news, about half an hour later.

Qin Xiaoxia, who was in the middle of arranging a shipment of new Magic Pattern Scrolls to De Yi Country and examining the slave creatures one by one, was startled by the news.

The memory of the Flame Demon was still too vivid. Back then, the Flame Demon had already possessed a major flaw, and on top of that, he had gotten lucky, allowing him to take it down through trickery.

’Don’t tell me France is about to have a repeat of that?’

But he quickly dismissed the idea. The tremors could simply be tectonic activity, or a World Fragment. The chances of it being a World Fragment that also happened to contain some freakish creature were too small.

’Besides, the most crucial point was that half an hour ago was exactly when the Magic Mirror had made its "delivery."’

"Do you two know something?"

Qin Xiaoxia asked the two little ones in a very friendly tone. For some reason, even though he had let them out of their cage, the two remained exceptionally respectful. He guessed they were still terrified from their earlier encounter with the Demon Eye.

The thoughtful Sister Su had even used threads from the Demon Vine to weave two little sets of clothes for them. They might be small, but they couldn’t just be left exposed.

Hearing the question from this unknown, powerful being, the two little ones glanced at each other, then looked toward the wooden box that had a Magic Ban effect.

Su Su, who was standing to the side, quickly opened the box. Inside, eight wings were trembling constantly.

"Egh...!" "Aah...!"

Tiny, pained screams came from the two small figures. They had been fine just a moment ago, but now they were collapsed on the ground in agony. The wounds on their backs twitched, making for an exceptionally bleak sight.

...

RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE...

The violent shaking made it impossible for anyone in the observation station to stay on their feet.

The alarm’s BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP grew increasingly frantic.

"Warning, warning. Tremor intensity has risen to magnitude 5.5. All relevant personnel, please prepare for evacuation. Warning, warning..."

The station-wide electronic voice repeated the warning endlessly.

Everyone, including the Soldiers on the perimeter and the two Evolvers, grew increasingly tense.

Strange sounds even began to appear in their minds.

The two Evolvers stood together and shook their heads. A repetitive, low chant echoed in their consciousness—inaudible if they focused on it, yet intermittent and nagging when they didn’t.

’Jilian... Jilian... Jilian...’

Suddenly snapping back to their senses, one of them shouted, "This is bad! The Death Illusion Barrier must have spread! Evacuate everyone!"

"All personnel, evacuate! All personnel, evacuate!"

Judging by the current situation, the Death Illusion Barrier’s six-hour Curse law had definitely been broken.

In less than an hour, the situation had taken a drastic turn for the worse.

PS: Second Chapter for Friday.