"This person is shackled to the wall of the cave." Yang Lian showed a hint of contemplation on his face, "Is it... a prisoner?"

"Could these caves be remnants of old underground prisons specifically for infected individuals?" Wang Xiyi turned to look at the other caves, "But if they are prisons, why would they be connected to religion?"

"Mr. Wang, you might not know this..." Sun Hang laughed, "Medieval church dungeons in Europe were standard facilities... Religion, once it becomes a tool for acquiring wealth and power, can never wash away the bloody filth it gets stained with..."

"Is there really such a thing?" Wang Xiyi said, slightly surprised, "So you're suggesting this place is a church dungeon?"

"Was there a church on the surface here in the past?" Candle Dragon spoke as well, "Can we check the historical records?"

"I checked while on the car; records can trace back to ninety years ago when this area was all wasteland. Seventy years ago during the 'Shuzhou Land Reclamation Campaign,' this area was cultivated into farmland. Sixteen years later, due to urban planning adjustments, this area was designated into the Celestial City district, and the farmland was turned into a residential complex for relocated households. Nine years ago, the residential complex was demolished; Tianfu Real Estate Group won in the bidding and bought the land, intending to develop it into a high-end residential area... But unfortunately, they encountered the eternal night collapse, the entire real estate market in Shuzhou crashed. Recently, the Celestial City Management Committee bought the land back at half price for the construction of Dubhe Tower comprehensive talent training base." Yang Qi spoke rapidly.

"So, if there was a church, it was at least ninety years ago?" Wang Xiyi smacked his lips, "Tsk, few people who remember such ancient histories are still alive, right?"

"Ninety years ago, this was wasteland." Yang Lian shook his head, "Who would build a church in the middle of nowhere..."

"Cult Organizations trying to avoid official attention would build churches in secluded rural areas..." Yang Qi said, noting that many cult organizations adopt the strategy of hiding in urban areas, but some larger groups needing ample activity space often build bases far from human habitation in the countryside.

In an early cult case cracked by Celestial City, the main activity base of those cultists was an old fortress built deep in the mountains and forests.

"Other drones have also sent messages back." Yang Qi said, "All these caves have similar remains; I'm recording the data one by one... The recovery image has been sent."

On this restoration diagram jointly created by artificial intelligence and human anatomy experts, appears a creature with short limbs and a lanky figure — it looks like a dog whose waist and ribs have been elongated almost twice, hairless, tailless, but with human limbs. The disproportionately large head sits atop an overly long neck, with hollow eye sockets lacking extra detail, making the creature on the diagram appear somewhat eerie.

"This must be an infected, right..." Yang Lian firmly stated, "Even deformities aren't this misshapen... Unless it's a baby born to a woman who bathes in nuclear waste every day."

"The drone collected some bone specimens, Ah Lian, please take these specimens to the surface later and send them back to the institute immediately." Yang Qi said, "Although these specimens may not reveal anything, they are the only clues we can hold."

"Okay." Yang Lian nodded.

The drone quickly returned to the main tunnel carrying bone specimens from the first cave. Yang Qi first scanned the bone fragments with equipment and then sealed them in a thick sample bag, handing it to Yang Lian.

"Based on the carbon element half-life inside the specimen, these remains date back about one hundred and twenty to one hundred and forty years, with the deceased being male, and no residual anomalous meme detected."

"So the residual meme fragments on the cave wall didn't originate from this infected individual." Yang Lian suddenly realized he had just stated an obvious fact.

"Let's send the samples back; the institute's equipment has higher precision." Yang Qi said.

"Sis, I suddenly feel like you just want to send me away, right?" Yang Lian took a few steps towards the pit holding the sample bag before suddenly turning back.

"It's too dangerous here; with three Hunters and one anomalous artifact equipment user, they might not guarantee everyone's safety." Yang Qi spoke frankly, "If possible, I'd want Ye Xuan to leave here too."

"What about you?" Ye Xuan glanced at her, "Don't you need protection too?"

"But at least one researcher needs to stay." Yang Qi said without hesitation, "Among those present on site, I am the most qualified."

Yang Lian hesitated several times, finally biting his lip hard, and shouted to Sun Hang: "Sun Hang, I'm counting on you... protect my sis!"

"You don't have to ask; I will protect Mr. Yang." Sun Hang smiled, "Just head back without worry."

"Hey, your conversation sounds like a dying wish." Wang Xiyi suddenly laughed, "Protecting three may be hard, but one is easily manageable. Yang Qi's right, take this chance, you two head back to the surface."

"No, I want to stay." Ye Xuan firmly shook her head, "This is my job."

"Are you not afraid of death?" Sun Hang looked at her.

"Not afraid." Ye Xuan said.

"Here, take this." Sun Hang suddenly tossed something to Ye Xuan.

Ye Xuan caught and examined it; it was a small ball formed by fungal threads, with bean sprout-sized threads still wriggling as if alive — holding such an object in hand inevitably made one feel a bit creeped out.

"What is this?"

"Tai Sui's meme." Sun Hang explained, "If you receive a fatal injury, swallow it before dying, and it will rapidly repair your damaged body parts... except the brain; if the brain is attacked, you likely can't swallow it anyway."

"The drawback is... infection?" Ye Xuan glanced at Sun Hang and carefully put away the fungal ball.

"Yes, though Tai Sui's meme is relatively stable, you shouldn't turn into an anomalous creature or skeleton." Sun Hang said, "You should know Song Yarong at the institute, right? She's an example."

"Alright... thank you." Ye Xuan nodded.

After sending away Yang Lian, Yang Qi adjusted the returning snake-like drone before placing it into the thirteenth cave.

Then came a slightly long wait.

This drone crawled for almost three kilometers in the thirteenth cave, turning many corners, before finally emerging from another exit — once again returning to the main tunnel.

Meanwhile, other drones reached their endpoints — apart from the thirteenth cave, all other cave endpoints were dead ends. Aside from dozens of differently misshapen skeletal remains, the drones found nothing else.

Based on the route of the drone exploring the thirteenth cave, the tunnel connecting the main tunnel is approximately one kilometer away from Sun Hang and the others' location, with the cave wall at the exit similarly marked with a cross symbol.

Except this cross symbol is upside down.

"Inverted cross? Symbol of Satan and demons..." Candle Dragon commented on the returning drone footage, "Things are getting more interesting..."

"Speaking of which, this cave has no skeletal remains, and both ends are connected to the main tunnel... with special markings at the entrance..." Sun Hang suddenly chimed in, "Could this be an escape tunnel?"

"Why do you think so?" Yang Qi turned to him.

"If this is a dungeon, each cave equals a cell, then this might be a tunnel dug for escaping... Following this tunnel, one can bypass the jailers patrolling the main route." Sun Hang said, "What do you think, doesn't that sound reasonable?"

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