28: Fire department assembly and defense upgrade

Red Star Fire Station.

After receiving the mission to find clues, Liu Meng and Li Bingyao immediately went into action.

Relying on his familiarity with the station, Liu Meng led Li Bingyao through the interior of the Fire Station, searching for any possible traces.

"Dr. Li, do you think there might be clues in the archives?" Liu Meng asked, pointing to a tightly closed door.

Li Bingyao frowned; she was actually quite nervous.

Although her strength had been enhanced, she was still a doctor at heart and was not skilled in this kind of investigative work.

"Let's go in and take a look." She took a deep breath and tightened her grip on the iron rod in her hand.

Liu Meng skillfully opened the door to the archives, which was filled with various documents and fire records. The two searched the room carefully, flipping through thick files one by one.

"Why are there so many files about the Mayor's Secretary here?"

Li Bingyao suddenly discovered an anomaly among a stack of documents.

She picked up a file that had the words "Mayor's Secretary — Wang Ming" clearly written on it.

Liu Meng leaned in to look and was also somewhat puzzled.

"The Mayor's Secretary? What does that have to do with the Fire Station?"

Just then, Liu Meng's gaze...

...fell upon a fire facility map on the wall of the archives.

On this map, several fire hydrant locations were circled in red pen.

One of the hydrants was located in a corner inside the Fire Station, but there was a small "five-pointed star" mark next to it on the drawing.

"Dr. Li, look at this!"

Liu Meng pointed at the star on the drawing, a thoughtful expression on his face.

Li Bingyao also leaned in to observe closely. She noticed that next to the hydrant marked with the star, a small number "3" was written in pencil.

"3?" Li Bingyao's heart stirred as she recalled the "X" mark next to the City Hall that Wang Yi had mentioned earlier.

"Could it be that this star and the number '3' are the second password clue?" Li Bingyao guessed to herself.

The two immediately headed to the location of the marked fire hydrant.

Sure enough, that fire hydrant looked a bit unusual. Its surface was newer than the others, and there seemed to be an inconspicuous gap at the connection.

With his rich experience, Liu Meng quickly discovered that the valve of this hydrant seemed capable of being rotated.

He tried rotating the valve counter-clockwise, and with a soft "click," a small hidden compartment actually popped open at the base of the hydrant!

Inside the compartment lay a folded piece of parchment.

"Found it!" Both Liu Meng and Li Bingyao showed excited expressions.

A complex pattern was drawn on the parchment.

In the center of the pattern was a symbol resembling a gear, and next to it, a line of text was written in an ancient script:

"Only through the intertwining of light and shadow can the door of hope be opened."

Liu Meng and Li Bingyao immediately reported this discovery to the command center via the voice channel.

"Reporting to Captain Wang! We've found the second password clue! It's a piece of parchment with a gear pattern and a line of ancient text!" Liu Meng said excitedly.

Soon, Wang Yi's Assault Squad...

...carrying a large amount of weapons and ammunition seized from the Police Station...

...and riding in a police car they had found at the station...

...sped toward the Red Star Fire Station like a bolt of lightning.

Half an hour later, the two teams successfully rendezvoused at the Red Star Fire Station.

"Captain Wang!" Liu Meng and Li Bingyao felt heartfelt joy upon seeing Wang Yi and the others.

"Good work!"

Wang Yi patted Liu Meng's shoulder, then his gaze fell on the parchment in Li Bingyao's hand.

"Is this the second clue?"

Li Bingyao nodded and handed the parchment to Wang Yi.

The other members of the Assault Squad also brought out the t-virus reports and the city map obtained from the Police Station.

The five of them gathered around, laying all the clues on the table to begin a careful study.

"This report says that the developer of the t-virus is a scientist named 'Osborn.'

He has a secret laboratory in City Hall."

Wu Qiong said, pointing to the contents of the t-virus report.

"A secret laboratory..." Wang...

...Yi's gaze fell once again on the "X" mark next to the City Hall on the city map.

"It seems City Hall is our final objective."

"Then what do the pattern and text on this parchment mean?" Chen Hu scratched his head, somewhat confused.

Li Bingyao carefully studied the ancient script on the parchment. Although she didn't understand the language, she suddenly remembered something.

"Wait, I think I've seen this pattern somewhere before!"

Li Bingyao said suddenly.

"When I was organizing files in the infirmary earlier, I found an old medical journal that seemed to have a similar pattern!"

"Really?!" Wang Yi's eyes lit up. "Quick, go get it!"

Li Bingyao immediately rushed into the infirmary and soon ran back out clutching a thick medical journal.

She flipped through it quickly and soon found the familiar pattern.

"Right here!"

Li Bingyao pointed to a page in the journal.

"It says here that this pattern represents an ancient energy conversion device that requires the coordination of light and shadow to activate."

"Energy conversion device? Light and shadow?"

Wang Yi's brow furrowed; he felt as though he was on the verge of grasping something, yet it remained blurry.

In the command center, Su Yuan was also filled with excitement as he listened to their discussion.

He knew they were very close to the truth.

"General Lin, Major General Li, I think we should conduct a more detailed reconnaissance of City Hall now!"

Su Yuan suggested.

"We need to know the internal structure of City Hall, its defenses, and whether there are more powerful special infected guarding it."

"Agreed!"

General Lin Zhan immediately ordered the intelligence group to conduct a comprehensive reconnaissance of City Hall.

At the same time, Su Yuan also began scouting for new enhancement items in the Arena Mall.

He knew that as the final objective, the danger within City Hall would surely far exceed that of the Police Station.

"We need stronger firepower, stronger defenses, and more comprehensive reconnaissance methods!" Su Yuan thought to himself.

He saw an item in the mall called a "reconnaissance drone." The price was high, but the effects were very enticing.

[Item: reconnaissance drone (Basic)]

[Price: 1500 national fortune points]

[Effect: Can perform aerial reconnaissance, transmit high-definition images in real-time, and features night vision and thermal imaging capabilities.]

"This is the one!"

Su Yuan exchanged for a reconnaissance drone without hesitation and designated it for delivery to Wang Yi.

"Additionally, to ensure nothing goes wrong, I need an item that can deal with unknown dangers."

Su Yuan saw another item and his eyes lit up.

[Item: All-Member Invisibility Potion (Single Use)]

[Price: 2000 national fortune points]

[Effect: Upon use, allows all users to enter an invisible state for five minutes, granting immunity to physical attacks and most energy attacks.]

"Invisibility Potion! This is crucial!"

Su Yuan was overjoyed and immediately exchanged for a bottle of All-Member Invisibility Potion, also designating it for delivery to Wang Yi.

He knew these items would be the key safeguards for them to storm City Hall and obtain the t-virus serum.

"General Lin, Major General Li, I have prepared new equipment for the Assault Squad!"

Su Yuan said in a deep voice.

"Now, we just need to wait for the intelligence group's reconnaissance results before we can launch the final assault on City Hall!"

In the operations center, everyone was filled with confidence.

They knew that under the leadership of Su Yuan, the Administrator...

...the Dragon Kingdom players would surely complete the dungeon clear at the fastest possible speed!