In broad daylight, Barrett Walker looked upon the scene, his back inexplicably damp with fear and anger... These individuals remained frozen in time, yet they were all soldiers of the federation! Soldiers should meet their end on the battlefield, securing honor for themselves and protection for their loved ones. Yet these people had been sacrificed, rendered utterly valueless by the despicable politicians.

"Do you feel a chill running down your spine? These are truly the most natural works of art, wasted." Benjamin Blake approached, his expression remarkably calm, and inquired.

"Go to hell!" Barrett Walker suddenly threw a punch, striking Benjamin Blake's cheek with a resounding blow. Benjamin Blake fell to the ground, but as he rose and wiped the blood from his mouth, he gazed calmly at Barrett Walker, even smiling. "Did that feel good? Do you want to try again?" He taunted, even extending his right cheek towards him.

Observing his insolent manner, Barrett Walker aimed a punch at his opponent's nose, but with little force. Benjamin Blake caught the blow, still wearing a playful expression. "That nose won't be so easy to break," he remarked.

"Enough!" Barrett Walker's hand was seized by Benjamin Blake, who spoke very calmly.

"Hmm! I should be the one saying that!" Benjamin Blake released Barrett Walker and, leading him inside, continued, "I received their message, knowing you were coming. So, I moved these frozen individuals out, allowing you to decide how to handle them. In truth, they have not died; we simply dare not thaw them out. Otherwise, leaving so many federation soldiers here would be no different from a time bomb!"

"What, you mean they haven't died!" Barrett Walker advanced quickly, grabbing Benjamin Blake's clothing, somewhat excitedly.

"Come on! What does this have to do with you? Why are you so thrilled, as if you're the one who's been destroyed by that bunch of people." Benjamin Blake turned around, pointing to his own clothes. Barrett Walker released his grip, and Benjamin Blake adjusted his attire, sarcastically adding, "I thought you wanted me to come up with a solution for dealing with them?"

"I think you're delirious. Do you want to exude a domineering presence, conquer them all, and subdue them?" Benjamin Blake rolled his eyes, speaking without a hint of affection.

"Do you read novels too?" Barrett Walker looked at Benjamin Blake as if he had seen a ghost.

"Of course I do! I use them to pass the time when I have nothing else to do!" Benjamin Blake said smugly, as if to suggest Barrett Walker was outdated.

Even as he walked past these neatly frozen soldiers, Barrett Walker felt as if he were being roasted from the inside out. He had not expected this side of Benjamin Blake, but when he truly understood what danger meant, he would probably use these things to relieve his stress. Barrett Walker did not say much, instead speaking earnestly, "We could thaw out a few high-ranking officers and negotiate with them! I believe we can resolve everything through dialogue, can't we? Then we can take it step by step..."

"What do you think the current state of human scientific and technological development is?" Benjamin Blake chuckled, giving Barrett Walker a pointed look before swiftly walking inside, leaving Barrett Walker with a head full of questions. Catching up to Benjamin Blake and looking at the underground entrance ahead, Barrett Walker was filled with doubt. Just how many secrets did this inner courtyard conceal? Thinking back to the enormous machinery he had seen in the sword grave, Barrett Walker fought the urge to ask everything at once and quickly followed inside.

Looking at the tunnels made of steel on both sides, and listening to the fading footsteps of Benjamin Blake, he pressed his ear against the steel wall, listening closely to the low humming sound, perhaps the sound of a large machine in operation. Barrett Walker tapped the steel wall with his finger, the sound was muffled, it didn't sound empty at all, it must be very thick!

"Truly, it is a steel fortress!" Barrett Walker thought to himself, realizing that even such a casual passageway was tightly enveloped in steel. It must have taken a long time to construct this base! Barrett Walker chuckled self-deprecatingly, then quickly followed Benjamin Blake ahead.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"Where are we going?" Barrett Walker asked.

"Where else can we go? Let's go take a look!" Benjamin Blake replied casually, before falling silent. As they walked through the brilliantly lit steel corridor, the only sound was the wind blowing through the ventilation system above, giving a sense of loneliness. Barrett Walker followed Benjamin Blake, and the length of the steel tunnel seemed endless. After walking for a long time, they gradually saw someone standing there. As Benjamin Blake approached, the person immediately saluted him, and only then did Barrett Walker shake off the feeling of solitude.

Benjamin Blake returned the salute, then opened a door and walked in. It was a spacious white room, brightly lit, and in the distance, the windows offered a view of some South Asian scenery, instantly broadening the field of vision. There were even some birds in the distance, reminding Barrett Walker of the hive in Resident Evil, a device designed to help the staff decompress.

In one corner of the room, there were several people in white coats, some with gray and sparse hair, and some with completely bald heads. Benjamin Blake respectfully approached one of the elderly men, who was wearing a white coat and antique glasses. The wrinkles on his face were not many, and despite his slightly graying hair, it looked very healthy. Benjamin Blake whispered something to the man, and Barrett Walker, who had followed them, heard Benjamin Blake introducing himself to the old man. The old man's gaze was initially guarded and cautious, as if Barrett Walker was a stranger, but gradually softened as he listened to Benjamin Blake, nodding at Barrett Walker and saying, "I didn't expect you to be so young, truly a young hero! Come and take a look. These people are too stubborn. We don't want to inject them with genetic drugs, otherwise they will become robots, which would be quite pointless!"

It was only then that Barrett Walker noticed, behind them was a transparent glass room, although he suspected it might not actually be glass. Behind the glass room were several middle-aged people with cold and indifferent expressions, sitting motionless. Only when Barrett Walker knocked on the window did they turn their heads to look at him, displaying a military-like demeanor through their every move.

"There's a microphone here! They can't hear the outside conversation, but their voices can be heard from inside," Benjamin Blake said, opening a nearby machine and handing a microphone to Barrett Walker.

"Hello! Can you hear me talking?" Barrett Walker shouted into the microphone.

The people inside completely ignored Barrett Walker, sitting quietly and calmly, looking at him as if he were performing as a clown.

"These people are too stubborn. The chief engineer has only given us three hours. If it doesn't work out, he's going to forcibly inject them with genetic drugs and implant chips. We've explained all the risks to them, but they react as if they were made of wood, showing no response at all. When the chief engineer is ready later, I reckon they will also become robots," the leader said with a hint of sorrow on his face, whether it was for the domineering chief engineer or for the fact that these vibrant lives were being turned into robots, it was hard to say.

It was only then that Barrett Walker realized, grabbing Benjamin Blake, and said, "Why didn't you tell me there was a chief engineer?"

"I tell you, and then do you have a way?" Obviously, Benjamin Blake spoke with a hint of fear on his face when mentioning that person, gently pushing away Barrett Walker's hands, and said disapprovingly.

"At least let me prepare! Well, could you please go out for a moment, I want to have a good talk with them!" Barrett Walker said.

"Hmph! Why should we go out! If something happens, can you take responsibility? We cannot bear this responsibility."

"Yeah! Can you take this responsibility? You can't, you are not qualified! We didn't ask you to come out of obligation, we don't have that right! So you better not get too out of line."

Hearing Barrett Walker make such an unreasonable request, the crowd immediately reacted with indignation, as if any more words from Barrett Walker would surely be drowned in a sea of saliva.

Barrett Walker felt overwhelmed, this was not a pleasing situation, and he shook his head firmly and said, "I think you should at least show some respect for life, especially since what these people are doing is not evil, on the contrary, it is very noble. They are risking their lives to protect others. So we cannot easily give up on them, at the very least we should try. If you are afraid of taking responsibility if something goes wrong, then I would rather take it all on myself!"

"Fine! I'll wait outside for you..." The leader seemed more understanding and said as he turned and left.

"Alright! I trust you." Benjamin Blake blinked at Barrett Walker, made a funny face, and then spoke with a sense of righteousness before following the others out.

"Hmph! Although science cannot explain what life is, I prefer to read ancient books from the Huaxia and I know that many things cannot be explained by science, so I choose to respect life!" This person had been the most aggressive in his rebuttal, but now seeing someone compromise and noticing the seemingly insincere expression on Barrett Walker's face, he chuckled and then turned and left.