Chapter 115: Setting up a Base

Gao Yuan cycled along the newly constructed road at a speed of seventy to eighty kilometers per hour and finally saw an intersection.

A narrower road stretched northward along the mountain, but at the T-junction, a roadblock obstructed the entrance of the smaller road, and there was a sign next to it.

Military Area, No Trespassing.

This is it.

Gao Yuan rode over, no longer pedaling hard, but he also didn't dare to squeeze the brakes too fiercely for fear of breaking them, nor did he dare to stop with his foot, as it would be a waste of shoes.

As his speed gradually decreased, Gao Yuan completed the turn, rode the bicycle to the entrance of the restricted area, and then rode straight in without any hesitation.

It was several tens of kilometers again, but this time the progress was very smooth and fast.

At last, Gao Yuan saw a property complex, but it seemed rather old. As he rode closer, he confirmed it was a dilapidated estate of redbrick four-story buildings, the walls around them, and the towering poplar trees inside the buildings, all indicating the site had a history of several decades.

Was this a military base, or perhaps a munitions plant?

Gao Yuan did not need to concern himself with the poor condition of the buildings; he simply had to keep riding the newly paved road further into the mountain.

The cluster of buildings was nestled in a valley between two mountains, and after Gao Yuan cycled past them, the new road led straight into the mountain face.

An arched entrance about ten meters wide and ten meters high, but the entrance was blocked by a huge iron gate.

Gao Yuan stopped and touched the gate with his hand.

It was cold, a metal gate indeed.

How should he get their attention?

For a moment, Gao Yuan hesitated.

But just then, a voice came through a loudspeaker.

"Who are you, and what are you doing here?"

The voice wasn't very loud, and the speaker's tone was urgent.

Gao Yuan looked around and said, "You can see me, right? Can you hear me speak? I'm from Shimen Shelter No.2, and I have extremely important business to attend to, I am..."

Gao Yuan took out a military ID from his pocket, flipped it open, and said, "I've been sent by Brigadier General Wang Hu from Shimen Shelter No.2. I have extremely important business, it's urgent! Whoever's in charge, open the gate for me quickly!"

Before Gao Yuan could finish, the iron gate began to move slightly, then started to slide to one side slowly.

After opening just enough for a person to pass through, the iron gate stopped moving, and then two fully armed soldiers wearing gas masks stepped out.

"You're from Shimen Shelter No.2, aren't you?"

Gao Yuan said urgently, "Yes, yes, yes, from Shimen Shelter No.2."

"Just you alone?"

With their gas masks on, he couldn't see the faces of the soldiers, but the soldier sounded very surprised.

Just myself.

"Come in."

Suddenly, Gao Yuan thought of something. He hesitated before entering and said, "Do I need to be disinfected before going in?"

"Yes, a full body disinfection."

"Then I'll leave my things outside."

Gao Yuan quickly took off all his belongings, ran a distance away, and placed them outside along with his bicycle before quickly running through the gate.

The gate was about twenty centimeters thick and not just a single layer.

Once inside, he was in a massive tunnel with bright lights, but twenty meters ahead was another huge iron gate.

"Where do I get disinfected?"

Gao Yuan had already made peace with his situation and was led by soldiers to a disinfection chamber. He stripped off his clothes in no time and was sprayed with disinfectant by two people.

Once Gao Yuan had put on new clothes, a soldier holding his old clothes and wearing a gas mask said in a ghostly tone, "Your feet really stink; even the gas mask couldn't block the smell. You're the first."

"Believe it or not, those shoes weren't mine."

Gao Yuan quickly put on his clothes and changed into a pair of brand-new rubber shoes, then someone immediately led him through the second gate.

As the second gate began to slide open slowly, the person leading Gao Yuan, who was dressed in a nuclear biochemical suit, suddenly said, "Comrade, let me ask you something. How's Shimen Shelter No.2 doing?"

Gao Yuan turned to look, then replied softly, "You don't know?"

"We don't. Tell me, how is Shimen Shelter No.2?"

Gao Yuan hesitated for a moment before he replied in a low voice, "It's gone, Shimen Shelter No.2 is gone."

The person in the protective suit stiffened; by then the second iron gate had opened, and it was time for Gao Yuan to go in.

"What about the first one? What about Shelter No.1!"

Gao Yuan, about to step forward, paused and then, as he stepped over the iron gate's rails, he said quietly, "Gone too, I'm sorry..."

Gao Yuan dared not look back.

Behind the door stood dozens of people.

Gao Yuan couldn't help but look up and around; the place still looked like a tunnel, but it was clear that there was a large space ahead. Of course, it couldn't compare to the architectural space on the surface of the mountain, but inside the mountain, the space was frighteningly large.

Leading the group of dozens was a lieutenant colonel. He saluted Gao Yuan, and then immediately asked, "Are you here on Commander Wang's orders?"

Gao Yuan didn't salute back; he thought for a moment and said, "Yes, but also no. Now I need to see your Supreme Leader. Um, I have extremely important news to report to him personally."

The lieutenant colonel lowered his voice and asked softly next to Gao Yuan, "What is it about?"

"Uh, can I say it? It's about Dawn."

The lieutenant colonel immediately said, "Follow me."

Without any superfluous words, the lieutenant colonel turned and gestured for Gao Yuan to follow, then quickly started walking ahead.

The lieutenant colonel was so eager he almost ran, and Gao Yuan, seeing his urgency, quickened his pace. Then the lieutenant colonel did start to run.

Gao Yuan soon ran into a hall-like space; indeed, it was a hall. The height wasn't very much, about fourteen to fifteen meters, but the hall was thirty to forty meters in length and width.

There were four corridors leading to different locations. The lieutenant colonel, with Gao Yuan in tow, quickly ran towards one of the corridors. This corridor was much smaller, but still had a height and width of about four to five meters.

As the two of them ran forward, another group of people came towards them.

The two groups quickly met in the corridor. The lieutenant colonel saluted and urgently said, "General, he really does have news about Dawn!"

A major general, in his fifties or sixties, grabbed onto Gao Yuan's shoulder and said, "Tell me exactly what's going on!"

Gao Yuan hesitated because Xiang Weiguo had instructed him several times never to talk about Xinghe to everyone he met.

"So, are you the Supreme Leader here?"

"Yes!"

Supreme Command's leader was only a major general? After a brief hesitation, Gao Yuan felt these people couldn't possibly be deceiving him, but he still wanted to confirm.

"Really?"

"You're really killing me, young comrade. I am indeed the highest authority of Base No. 12."

So it was a divisional base. Nonetheless, that was adequate. Gao Yuan immediately looked at the group following the general and said, "So many people... Can I speak?"

"Yes, tell us exactly what the situation is!"

Gao Yuan took a deep breath and said, "The aliens who are on our side have arrived. They landed at Shimen Shelter No.2, and then the Serpent People—that is, the enemy—launched an attack. The aliens are still alive, waiting for you to go and assist in their rescue. Simply put, that's the situation."

After a chorus of astonished gasps, the general's eyes widened as he said, "Really? You, come with me!"