63: Transformation

"That woman... we must find her!" The GUPA squad leader's voice came through his mask, resolute, after subduing another controlled orderly. "She is the source! Teams Two and Three, follow me! The rest of you hold this position, protect the uninfected, and control the situation!"

Four GUPA members immediately split into two groups. Two stayed to help the police stabilize the chaos in the corridor, while the other two followed the squad leader, advancing swiftly in standard tactical formation towards the logistics passage the old doctor had indicated. Their figures quickly vanished around the corridor corner.

"Jianchuan, Old Li! You guys, escort these doctors and Nurses to the doctor's office next door first. The structure there is sturdy, and with only one entrance, it's easy to defend!" Old Zhang shouted, parrying an attacking controlled patient with his baton. His police cap had fallen off somewhere in the chaos, and his forehead was covered in sweat.

"Understood!" Lu Jianchuan responded, immediately retreating with two other colleagues, protecting the terrified medical staff towards the nearest doctor's office.

However, just as they moved a few steps, more figures suddenly surged from the passages ahead and to their sides!

Wobbly inpatients wore blue and white striped hospital gowns, their eyes vacant; Nurses pushing medicine carts expressionlessly slammed the carts into the wall; even an elderly cleaning lady in a cleaner's uniform swung a mop, rigidly lunging forward... That woman seemed to have spread her terrifying ability to more areas of the hospital during this brief chaos! From all directions, controlled people surged like a tide. Though their movements were stiff, their sheer numbers formed a desperate human wall.

"No! We can't get through! There are too many people!" A young police officer tried to push away a approaching patient, but was grabbed by the arms by two others from the side. He didn't dare struggle too hard, fearing he might injure these essentially innocent civilians. The situation instantly became extremely passive.

"Retreat! Find another way!" Old Zhang decided decisively.

But their retreat was quickly cut off. Their small group was instantly surrounded.

"Split up! Draw them away! Meet at the office!" Old Zhang roared, suddenly throwing a police flashlight in one direction. The sound of the flashlight rolling on the ground and its dazzling light indeed attracted the attention of some of the Puppets. He then took another colleague and retreated in the opposite direction, fighting as they went, trying to tear open a gap.

Seeing this, Lu Jianchuan knew it was their only chance. He protected the doctors and Nurses behind him and rushed towards a side corridor that seemed to have fewer people. "Follow me!"

The side corridor connected to the hospital's old building area; the lighting was dimmer, and the facilities appeared older. They stumbled along, shaking off a few scattered pursuers, but the footsteps and roars behind them did not fade. At a fork in the road piled with discarded hospital beds and miscellaneous items, Lu Jianchuan abruptly pushed the medical staff into an open storage room.

"You hide here! Lock the door, and don't come out no matter what you hear!" His words were rapid and brooked no argument.

"Officer Lu, what about you?" The old doctor asked anxiously.

"I'll draw them away! Find a chance to contact the outside!" Lu Jianchuan had no time to explain further. He abruptly pulled the storage room door shut from the outside, faintly hearing the sound of it being locked from within.

He took a deep breath and turned to face the direction from which the pursuers were coming. Several controlled patients and an orderly were already shambling into the side corridor, their vacant eyes fixed on him.

Now!

Lu Jianchuan no longer hesitated, turning and sprinting towards the deeper, darker, and more secluded part of the corridor, opposite the storage room. Footsteps echoed in the empty corridor, and the pursuers behind him, like sharks smelling blood, followed relentlessly.

He rounded a corner, his gaze sharply scanning his surroundings, searching for an ideal location. At the end of the corridor ahead, a blurry sign read "Staff Restroom." The door was ajar, with no light emanating from inside. This location was secluded, far from the main passage, exactly what he needed.

He slipped inside, locking the door behind him. The restroom was small, filled with a faint mixture of disinfectant and mildew. There was only one stall, and light filtered in from a high transom window, barely illuminating the water-stained tiled floor.

[Consciousness Space] "System!" Han Chengyu's consciousness immediately called out, "Like last time, hack the entire hospital's surveillance network; leave no records!" [Command confirmed. Accessing hospital backbone network... Overwriting permissions...] The System's response was smooth and efficient. [Locked 47 surveillance nodes throughout the hospital. Injecting looping static footage, covering all real-time signal streams. "Ghost Protocol" executed. Hospital surveillance is paralyzed, estimated duration 12 minutes.]

Outside, Lu Jianchuan heard a faint 'ding' sound in his mind, like an electric current connecting and disconnecting. He knew that The Forger had cleared the battlefield for him. Time was short; he no longer hesitated, his hands moving swiftly.

He quickly unbuttoned his police uniform, taking off his jacket, pants, shoes, and socks one by one, carefully folding them, and tucking them into the corner of the innermost stall, slightly concealed with a discarded mop and bucket. The cold air touched his bare skin, raising a layer of small goosebumps.

After ensuring his clothes were hidden, he stood in the relatively open center of the restroom and raised his left arm. The silver-gray armband was tightly fitted to his wrist bone, and the crimson gem in its center seemed to have energy flowing within it.

He extended his right index finger, his fingertip carrying a hint of resolve, and pressed it firmly onto the warm gem.

Buzz—

A deep hum, as if from the depths of his cells, vibrated through his bones. The next second, a sudden transformation occurred!

A silver-white substance, somewhere between liquid and biological tissue, did not flow from the armband, but rather seeped and surged directly from beneath his own skin! Like living waves, they spread upwards along his left arm, rapidly covering his shoulders, neck, chest, abdomen, and then his entire body... Wherever it passed, there was a strange sensation of burning and itching, as if every cell was tearing and reorganizing. It wasn't painful, but carried an intense throb of life-level ascension.

Silver-white biological carapace rapidly formed and hardened on his body, closely conforming to every inch of his contours, creating a deep connection with his flesh and bones. Arm guards, leg guards, chest armor... the components extended and interlocked, emitting subtle, organic rustling sounds. Finally, a streamlined helmet extended upwards from his neck, covering his head, and the visor suddenly lit up, with a brilliant blue light like stars in a cold night, dispelling the dimness of the restroom.

A powerful sense of strength once again filled his limbs, and all external sounds seemed to be isolated by a layer, becoming clearer yet more distant. He lowered his head and looked at his hands, covered in silver biological carapace, as if they were born this way, and clenched his fists.

Transformation complete.

He was no longer Officer Lu Jianchuan, constrained by rules, but an Aptitude Holder in armor, born to counter extraordinary threats.

Without a moment's delay, he walked to the restroom door and listened intently to the movements outside—the footsteps and roars of the controlled individuals seemed to be approaching.

He took a deep breath, abruptly pulled open the locked door, and like a silver flash of lightning, silently merged into the dim shadows of the corridor outside, actively meeting the tide of Puppets and the "woman" hidden behind them, who was manipulating everything.