Military helicopters roared through the sky, their rotors thundering. Xiang Yu shut the cabin door, while Ugos lay trembling uncontrollably on the bench, his gaze unfocused.

Anthony shone a small flashlight into Ugos' pupils and inserted an electric needle into his wrist.

"Ugos?" Zheng Rong called softly.

Ugos didn’t respond. Anthony said, "Hand me the syringe."

Zheng Rong rolled up Ugos' sleeve and injected him with a sedative. Anthony retrieved a portable transillumination device from a medical kit, fixing it to Ugos' temples before powering it up.

With a click, an image of a brain scan appeared on Jin Pu-ai's computer.

"Is this an X-ray?" Zheng Rong frowned. "What happened to him?"

Anthony replied, "No, this is one of my research devices. It can detect his brainwave activity."

A yellow-green gradient covered Ugos' left cerebral cortex, shifting to blue around his cerebellum and brainstem.

"This part is active," Anthony pointed at the upper region, "but here, it's dormant. His brainwaves are in disarray."

Zheng Rong's breath hitched. Anthony pushed the control lever forward, taking another scan. The blue spread across Ugos' entire brain.

Anthony said, "The sedative is working. He needs further treatment with medication back in Alaska."

Ugos’ gaze remained blank. Zheng Rong closed his eyes and asked, "What's the worst-case scenario? Be honest."

Anthony hesitated, "I... I’m not sure. He could end up in a vegetative state. It’s similar to brain damage caused by a car accident. His brain cells experienced a surge of intense activity, overheating and possibly destroying some cells."

Zheng Rong shuddered. "What could have caused this?"

Anthony didn’t respond. Zheng Rong recalled the terrifying giant infant. Anthony nodded.

"That creature took control of him," Xiang Yu said gravely.

Zheng Rong asked, "You... you looked at it for so long, why aren’t you affected?"

Xiang Yu replied, "I don’t know. When I looked into its eyes, it felt like something was trying to invade my mind." He tapped his head, "But it couldn’t get in, and it didn’t hurt, so I dismissed it as a stray thought."

Anthony speculated, "Maybe it’s related to willpower, or the strength of brainwaves. That creature's brainwave energy was too strong, causing Ugos' brain cells to overreact, speeding up cognitive and motor functions. This led to cell damage, like a short circuit."

Zheng Rong sighed in exhaustion and gently patted Ugos' head.

Eve remarked, "He’s just a curious boy, full of a thirst for knowledge."

Zheng Rong whispered, "Let’s hope everything turns out okay."

The sun had set, leaving the cabin dim. Lance turned on the overhead light, and the helicopter took off into the night.

"Calling Alaska HQ, calling Alaska HQ..."

The airwaves crackled with static. Zheng Rong, agitated, snapped, "Stop for a moment, Lance. I can’t think."

Lance replied, "What’s going on? Can you reach anyone?"

The voice of Captain Gukart came over the intercom, "No, sir. Since we boarded, HQ hasn’t responded."

"Maybe it’s interference," Zheng Rong said. "The particle generator could be blocking the signal. Or worse, the main city has fallen. Let's hope it’s not the worst-case scenario."

Lance threw down the communicator, rubbing his disheveled hair. After a pause, he suggested, "Let’s eat dinner and rest."

Gukart asked, "Should we change course, sir?"

Lance replied, "Let's go see first. Once we cross the Canadian border, slow down and deploy the mechanical detectors. Stay alert."

Jin Pu-ai softly hummed a Korean folk song. Ugos slept peacefully, and Anthony took a crucifix from his medical kit, placing it in Ugos' hands over his chest.

"The devil will stay away from you," Anthony said.

Zheng Rong commented, "Psychologist, doctor, and priest?"

Anthony smiled, "Yes, when life can't be saved, the soul still needs redemption."

Zheng Rong quipped, "All-in-one service, huh?"

Anthony chuckled, "He’ll be alright."

Zheng Rong nodded, "I believe that too."

The vast snowy landscape stretched below as six helicopters hovered in the air. Lance pressed the communication button again, "Requesting response from the main city."

A static-laden voice finally answered, "Received. General Lance, please enter from the west hangar. Escort helicopters, return to the northern hangar. Immediate execution."

The team breathed a sigh of relief. Zheng Rong said, "We have a patient. We need medical support immediately..."

The communicator shut off.

Zheng Rong frowned. Lance reassured him, "Let’s get inside first."

A dark, automatic door opened in the snow-covered ground as the helicopter slowly descended into the hangar and came to a stop.

Surrounded by pitch blackness, Lance opened the cabin door, sensing something was wrong.

"What’s going on?" Xiang Yu asked gravely.

Lance signaled for silence and whispered, "I’ll check it out. You stay in the helicopter and keep the lights off."

Lance stepped cautiously onto the ground. His boots splashed into a sticky liquid.

Xiang Yu disembarked as well, and something cold was pressed into Zheng Rong's palm—it was a handgun from Anthony.

Zheng Rong ordered, "Turn on the searchlight."

"Don’t!" Lance whispered urgently.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

Zheng Rong countered, "If it’s a trap, keeping the lights off will only put us at a disadvantage."

Anthony agreed, "I’m with him."

The helicopter’s front light flicked on, but two metallic tendrils shot from the darkness, smashing it to pieces!

Panic erupted. "Get out of here now!" Zheng Rong shouted.

Lance and Xiang Yu hurled grenades while Zheng Rong jumped to the ground, pulling out a magnetic cannon. He charged it to maximum power and fired straight upwards.

With a loud buzz, the blast threw everyone off their feet, warping the steel plates beneath the snow. Zheng Rong fired again, blasting a hole in the hangar roof, letting sunlight pour in.

Metal tendrils fired beams of red light, scanning Xiang Yu's eyes, emitting rapid beeping sounds.

"What’s happening?!" Jin Pu-ai screamed.

"No time to explain!" Zheng Rong yelled, "Women first! Move!"

Metallic tentacles coiled out of the shadows. Lance fired his electromagnetic gun, but it only briefly stalled the attack. Xiang Yu swung his sword, cutting down the first wave of tendrils.

Anthony shot a grappling hook and hoisted Jin Pu-ai onto the ground, urging, "Go, now!"

Zheng Rong commanded, "You go first!"

Anthony leaped from the helicopter, climbing out of the snow, while Xiang Yu helped Zheng Rong up. As Zheng Rong glanced back, he saw that the thick liquid covering the hangar floor was blood, slowly seeping through the underground tunnels, flooding the Alaskan underground city.

Xiang Yu carried Ugos out as Jin Pu-ai closed her laptop, backing away. "Don’t run!" Zheng Rong yelled, "Stay together..."

But it was too late.

A massive mechanical creature emerged behind Jin Pu-ai, its sharp limbs pinning her to the ground, spraying blood everywhere.

Jin Pu-ai screamed in agony. "We’ve... walked into a trap," Zheng Rong said grimly.

Suddenly, about ten mechanical killers emerged. Two of the helicopter pilots were dragged back into the underground city by the metal tendrils, screaming in pain.

"Get out of here!" Zheng Rong shouted.

With mechanical spiders closing in, Xiang Yu and Lance fought their way to the surface. Lance used a magnetic cannon to cover their retreat, yelling, "Head west!"

Xiang Yu threw an electromagnetic grenade, disabling over a dozen mechanical killers. The group broke through the first wave of the ambush and began a desperate escape across the snowy plains.

Jin Pu-ai's laptop was recovered by Zheng Rong. There was no time to mourn their fallen comrade; their minds were blank as Lance urged them to keep moving, heading toward the forest.

From the hole in the hangar roof, a swarm of metallic tendrils stretched out, searching across the snow-covered ground. Hidden metal spiders were everywhere. Lance shouted, "Xiang Yu! Ditch the backpack!"

"No! Wait!" Zheng Rong exclaimed, pulling a stone tablet from the military pack and slipping it under Eve's wheelchair. Xiang Yu glanced at Zheng Rong, who gave him a barely perceptible pleading look.

"Follow me!" Eve called, leading them to a narrow crevice. "Jump down!"

The icy wind howled, the abyss below pitch black.

Anthony hesitated, "You... you must be joking, right, grandma?"

"This is no joke!" Eve declared, and with a push of her joystick, she and her wheelchair plunged into the crevice.

The group stood at the edge of the cliff, with mechanical spiders closing in from behind.

Zheng Rong listened for a long moment, not hearing the sound of a body hitting the ground. "Jump!" he commanded, holding Ugos as he leaped.

Xiang Yu reached out, shouting, "Zheng Rong!"

Zheng Rong was caught by Xiang Yu’s powerful grip just as they fell. A sudden reversal of force yanked them back; the world flipped upside down. Zheng Rong realized a small anti-gravity generator had been placed at the bottom of the ravine.

Before he could adjust, a second gravity field propelled them forward. A sequence of gravity projectors was built into the canyon walls, flinging them through the air with increasing speed, each turn more disorienting than the last. By the time they reached the final gravity shift, Zheng Rong's head pounded, and his body ached from the intense force pulling at him.

Zheng Rong, Xiang Yu, Anthony, Lance, and the unconscious Ugos were all hurtling through the air, finally shooting toward the cliffside's mouth.

A red net stretched across the entrance. Zheng Rong passed through, and when Lance followed, the magnetic cannon he was carrying was caught in the net, detonating in a fiery explosion.

Inside the cave, a final gravity decelerator buzzed to life. Zheng Rong felt an invisible force slowing his body until they tumbled onto a thickly carpeted floor.

"That was..." Zheng Rong coughed, as Xiang Yu crashed down on top of him, the nearly 200-pound man knocking the wind out of him.

"...an interesting trip," he wheezed. A young scholar, sitting nearby, remarked, "Dr. Zheng, you’re back? That was faster than expected."

Zheng Rong dodged Lance and Anthony, who both collapsed in front of the gravity machine.

"What’s going on?" Zheng Rong asked, still dizzy.

The young scholar responded, "You’re lucky to have found this place. Follow me. I have a question for you."

Xiang Yu half-supported Zheng Rong as they followed the scholar through the narrow tunnel, eventually entering a spacious hall lit by oil lamps.

The room was filled with refugees, huddled in corners. At the sound of the door, many looked up.

"Has Alaska fallen? When?" Zheng Rong asked.

The scholar replied, "Yes, five days after you left. The Mayans intercepted a signal and tracked it to the outskirts of Alaska."

Zheng Rong’s limbs went cold. "Was it... because of my communication with you?" he asked, his voice trembling.

The scholar shook his head, "No, that’s my question. Our communications were encrypted using the latest wave-camouflage technology, synced with the solar magnetic field fluctuations. All the data was scrambled. It couldn’t have been intercepted."

Zheng Rong was stunned. "Then what was the cause?"

The scholar replied, "During your exploration, did anyone else send a signal to the main city? We analyzed the Mayan transmissions while fleeing. They intercepted something they considered valuable, but without a computer, we can’t reverse-engineer the signal."