Stigmata Zombies

The sudden Honkai outbreak instantly shattered the peace of Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical. Piercing alarms began to echo, stimulating everyone's nerves.

After receiving the defense alerts, a large number of patrol robots quickly headed towards the industrial district. In an instant, the Heliopolis headquarters building gradually became empty.

Watching the groups of mecha troops pass below her, Kiana, using the Void Lance to secure herself to the ceiling, frowned.

"Honkai? Why would it be here?" She didn't sense the spatial fluctuations of a tear, which meant that this Honkai outbreak wasn't caused by a Honkai beast attack. Since it wasn't a natural disaster, then that meant that there had been a massive Honkai energy leak.

Kiana realized that she might have found the answer hidden within Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical.

Releasing her grip, Kiana dropped from the high ceiling, before using a roll to dispel the impact when she landed on the ground. Just as she was preparing to follow the mecha troops towards the industrial district, two figures jumped down from the top of the industrial building, heading in her direction.

Startled, Kiana immediately abandoned her plan. Using the reception desk in the lobby on the first floor, she jumped to the glass platform on the second floor, then pressed her body tightly against the wall.

"…Can you still hold on?" A cold female voice came from nearby. Kiana held her breath, and quietly listened to their conversation.

"You're too late. If I hadn't taken the agent, I would have already died there."

"Isn't this what you brought upon yourself? It's not like this is the first time the experimental subject has lost control." The two voices gradually approached the elevator of Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical. Kiana revealed half of her body, and saw a woman supporting… a Honkai beast?

But Kiana quickly realized that it wasn't a Honkai beast. Instead, it was a human, because Honkai beasts wouldn't be that small.

What experiments are they doing?

Kiana's mind was filled with doubts. It was the first time that she had seen a human who could transform into a Honkai beast, and yet still retain their consciousness. If she weren't certain that this was a technologically advanced world, she might have suspected that she had stumbled into some fantasy setting.

"You should treat yourself first. Schicksal is keeping a close watch on us. If the commotion you caused is too much, we'll probably be discovered very soon." After pressing the down button for the elevator, Raven sent Jackal to the spare laboratory below ground. As a core scientist of World Serpent, her role was very important. Now that World Serpent's lord was about to descend, many experiments still needed her to resolve.

"Haa~" Jackal panted heavily. The Honkai beast transformation agent's effects were fading, and the damage she had taken was feeding back to her body.

This failure was the worst that she had ever experienced, but she didn't show any signs of discouragement.

The more powerful the experimental subject's combat capabilities, the more it meant that her research direction was correct. The reason why she had failed was because her preparations weren't thorough enough. It was definitely because World Serpent's security personnel were too weak. When the lord descended, she would have him personally…

Interrupting her own thoughts, Jackal, although focused on research, also knew that if she were to suggest that Kevin become a security guard, then she wouldn't even need to choose her burial site; she would just be cremated on the spot.

And so she shifted her gaze to Raven. Looking at her handsome feather cloak, she had an idea.

"Why don't you be my bodyguard in the future? If the experimental subject loses control again, you can use your red claws to ruthlessly scratch it."

"…" Raven's face gradually darkened. She glanced at Jackal, and was already thinking of ways to eliminate her colleague without leaving a trace. Just as she was about to say something, she noticed a shadow in the reflection of the elevator doors.

"Who's there?!" Casually throwing Jackal onto the ground, Raven immediately drew her bow, and shot an arrow towards Kiana's location.

Thwack—

The arrow was blocked by the Void Lance. Using the support of the railing, Kiana broke through the window and jumped out.

Raven wanted to chase after her, but Jackal's condition wasn't good either. After some thought, she decided to send the troublesome woman to the lab first.

After leaving the Heliopolis headquarters building, Kiana immediately headed towards the industrial district. She had already heard the key information. This Honkai outbreak was indeed caused by Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical's experiments. Then, it was likely that the previous incidents in ARC City were also related to them.

What she needed now was solid evidence. Listening to what those two had said, the experiment had clearly failed, and a powerful experimental subject had even appeared. Perhaps she could find crucial evidence in the abandoned laboratory. And while she could ignore Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical, Kiana couldn't ignore the Honkai outbreak. If it spread, the entire ARC City would be affected, and the citizens were all innocent.

The explosion in the industrial district had already attracted widespread attention. A large number of Honkai-infected zombies had started spreading towards the residential areas, and as the concentration of Honkai energy increased, Honkai beasts from the void were being drawn into reality.

Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical's mecha forces weren't weak, but they were still retreating under the endless waves of Honkai beasts and zombies. And the official patrol mecha forces and ground response teams were also quickly providing support, but they were still unable to hide their disadvantage.

"This is impossible. If it was just the industrial district, so many zombies wouldn't be gathered here. Moreover, the clothes they're wearing don't look like those of the staff. Instead, they look like ordinary civilians." After participating in the rescue efforts, Kiana immediately noticed the difference in these zombies. More importantly, she actually saw some strange patterns on some of the zombies. If she remembered correctly, it should be the unique Valkyrie Stigmata from Schicksal...

Did that mean that the disaster in ARC City was indeed related to Schicksal? Kiana didn't immediately come to a conclusion. Instead, she just kept her suspicions.

It was highly likely that the reason why so many civilians had gathered in the industrial district was that Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical was using civilians for experiments. Those who had been transferred to Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical for treatment were probably victims of this Honkai outbreak.

The clues in her mind were gradually becoming clear. Looking at the increasingly intense flames in the industrial district, she gritted her teeth and directly charged in.

After breaking into the industrial district, Kiana was surprised to find that, compared to the intense flames and Honkai outside, the inside was relatively quiet. Many of the facilities were still functioning, and the structures hadn't been damaged.

"Was the Honkai unable to affect this place? Or is it that the Honkai outside was deliberately caused by someone?" Things were gradually becoming more complicated. If the Honkai outside had been deliberately caused by Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical, then what were they trying to hide?

The inside of the industrial district was empty. Kiana walked through an electric gate, and a large computer that was still functioning came into her view, and on the electronic screen, quite a lot of data was being recorded.

"Speculations and research regarding the Stigmata Project…"