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Deus Ex Machina: Chapter 33
Chapter 33
The sheer number of people gathered outside meant that security personnel were already on hand to maintain order, but the explosion came so suddenly that no one knew whether they should save themselves or help others. Everyone panicked, running in all directions to escape. Anyone who ran even a little slower was swept up in the surging crowd and swallowed by the chaos.
“Can you let go now?” Yang Jin asked Zhan Feng. “Every second of delay brings irreparable damage.”
Zhan Feng thought for a moment and said, “I’ll go with you.”
“Fine,” Yang Jin agreed decisively.
“Hey, hey, hey?” Feng Mang chimed in. “How do you plan to get there? The streets are completely blocked. By the time you make it over, it’ll be too late.”
Yang Jin asked, “Do you have a better idea?”
It seemed Feng Mang had been waiting for this question. He snapped his fingers and pulled out his handheld computer, fiddling with it. “Head to the rooftop. We’ll take the sky route.”
They had only known about the crippled spaceship parked on the roof, but when they reached the top, a previously unnoticed space, which they had thought was just a storage room, slowly opened up to reveal a helicopter inside.
“Is there a fighter jet in there too?” Yang Jin asked. “How much more stuff do you have hidden?”
“How could there be a fighter jet? This is Aurora, for crying out loud!” Feng Mang replied. “What’s wrong with me parking a helicopter on my rooftop?”
“Nothing,” Yang Jin said, shaking his head. Zhan Feng had already checked the equipment and boarded the helicopter. Yang Jin asked, “Is there a doctor willing to come with us?”
He Xun moved slightly, but Meng Die shot him a look, so he stayed put. Bai Yunci, noticing everything, sighed and said, “I’ll go.”
“Let’s go.” Zhan Feng had already started the helicopter. The spinning rotor blades generated powerful gusts of wind, forcing everyone to take a few steps back. Despite the strong turbulence, the noise from the helicopter was surprisingly quiet. Sensing something off, Zhan Feng shouted down, “Why is this helicopter so strange?”
Feng Mang shouted back, “I modified it myself! It’s fine, just fly it!”
Yang Jin said to Zhan Feng, “Ignore him. Let’s go.”
“Doesn’t this remind you of Qianfan?” Zhan Feng remarked, “Three of us heading out to handle a mission.”
Yang Jin responded, “Don’t get sentimental.”
Zhan Feng pulled up the control stick, and the helicopter soared into the air like a bamboo dragonfly, heading straight for the disaster site.
“Let’s go,” Feng Mang said. “We’ll give them… wait, why are there only a bunch of kids left?” He only then realized that the three adults had already headed to the scene, leaving him with three young ones. Ying Si, annoyed, retorted, “You got a problem with that?”
“No,” Feng Mang sighed. What could he say? He glanced at He Xun and Meng Die, who clearly had no intention of getting involved. He Xun asked softly, “Is there anything I can help with?”
Feng Mang replied, “Not for now.”
Everyone left the rooftop, with Shi Yixi being the last to go. Unable to resist, he turned back for one last look. The helicopter was already a distant dot on the horizon. If it weren’t for the glow of the fire, it would have blended into the pitch-black night.
“Rescue helicopters have already arrived,” Yang Jin said. “Let’s adjust our altitude and head straight into the explosion zone.”
“Isn’t it too dangerous?” Zhan Feng asked.
Yang Jin replied, “Haven’t we faced worse dangers before?”
“Whatever makes you happy,” Zhan Feng replied coldly to Yang Jin, but he still lowered the helicopter’s altitude as Yang Jin suggested, flying directly into the core area. The three of them could immediately feel the wave of heat from the explosion rushing towards them. Although the explosion was caused by drones, the intense heat had destroyed the structure of the nearest building. The once incredibly sturdy metal had melted into a liquid, like molten, blood-red fluid—not symbolizing life, but death.
“How is this thing so powerful?” Yang Jin’s brows furrowed deeply.
Feng Mang’s voice came through the communicator: “I just accessed footage from the few surviving surveillance cameras nearby. About three drones flew in. Two have already exploded, and the third hasn’t been located yet. The drones were incredibly small, yet caused such massive destruction… What kind of black-tech weapon is this? I’ve never seen anything like it!” As he delved into his area of expertise, his curiosity was piqued. Feng Mang prided himself as one of the top weapons developers in the world, believing that the only people capable of rivaling him worked at Qianfan. He always felt that Qianfan’s refusal to hire him was their loss. His goal was to develop new energy weapons that even Qianfan couldn’t create.
However, the mysterious weapon in front of him, which he couldn’t even analyze, felt like a personal insult.
“I’m running an analysis on the radiation elements,” Feng Mang added.
“You do your thing,” Yang Jin said as he delegated tasks. “Lao Bai, you come with me. Xiao Feng, go find the third drone.”
“Got it.” Zhan Feng lowered the helicopter to the appropriate height, and Yang Jin and Bai Yunci quickly rappelled down the ropes. The streets below were already packed with people, so they had to land on a second-floor platform of a nearby shop and work their way inward against the flow of the crowd. As the helicopter flew off, Yang Jin said, “Fan Fan, sync the route and scan the buildings for signs of life.”
“15th floor of the **OS building, three people. 28th floor of the AQ building, one person…” Fan Fan reported, “but the life signs of the person in the AQ building are weakening. No chance of rescue.”
“Lao Bai, you head to **OS. I’ll go to AQ,” Yang Jin ordered.
“Are you out of your mind?” Bai Yunci pointed at the blazing building. “The middle floors of that building are nearly melted through, and you still want to go in?”
“Let’s give it a try,” Yang Jin said. “Hurry, there’s no time.”
Bai Yunci, not wanting to waste time arguing, left without another word. Yang Jin made his way to the AQ building alone. The interior was no longer navigable, so he used the suction power of his gloves to scale the outer walls. The extreme heat and towering height were punishing on the body, with the dozens of meters of vertical climbing already depleting much of his stamina.
“The temperature’s too high, Yang Jin,” Fan Fan warned. “You’re approaching the melted section.”
“It’s fine,” Yang Jin replied. “We have to put some faith in Feng Mang’s inventions, right?”
Feng Mang interjected, “But I didn’t install any cooling devices on your gear! Are you sure you can handle this? You might as well give up. By the time you get there, that person will probably be cooked!”
“Fan Fan, status report,” Yang Jin cut in.
“Life signs are still detected,” Fan Fan confirmed.
“If that bastard dies before I get there…” Yang Jin muttered, “Well, if he dies, I can’t kill him again, can I? Let’s just hope he’s lucky enough to survive.”
Hearing this, Ying Si rolled his eyes. “Yang Jin, how can you still joke at a time like this?”
“What else can I do?” Yang Jin replied. “If I look all gloomy, I’ll die even faster.”
“You’ve reached the melted section, Yang Jin. Prepare to jump,” Fan Fan warned.
“Lock the position,” Yang Jin instructed. A cable shot out from his wrist with tremendous force, wrapping around the building’s corner and attaching to the other side. Seizing the momentum before it faded, Yang Jin swung in an arc, his body drawing a half-circle in mid-air as he flew to the opposite side, successfully clearing the melted area.
Everyone watching felt a surge of tension. No one could guarantee that the attachment point was secure, nor could they predict what might happen while Yang Jin was dangling mid-air away from the building.
One small mistake could mean being smashed to pieces.
But they seemed to tacitly accept that no unbearable accident would happen—because that person was Yang Jin. Even though he was prone to making reckless jokes, he was not someone who would falter in a critical moment.
“I’ve found the three people,” Bai Yunci reported. “One is unconscious, the other two have minor injuries. Zhan Feng, I’m on the 15th floor, come pick me up.”
“Got it.” Zhan Feng received the message and immediately flew toward the target. Just as he arrived, an explosion erupted from the 15th floor, causing glass to rain down like snow.
The explosion made everyone behind the screen jolt.
“Don’t worry,” Feng Mang said. “That was Lao Bai blowing out the glass—they need to get out of there… Hey!” At the same moment, Bai Yunci asked, “Is there enough room on the helicopter for all of us?”
“…No,” Feng Mang responded, “it’s not a transport helicopter.”
Silently, Bai Yunci loaded the injured onto the helicopter. He had done everything he could as a doctor. Giving Zhan Feng a glance, Zhan Feng nodded, immediately steering the helicopter away toward the distance.
“What are you doing!” Ying Si rushed to the screen, yelling, “They… they’ve left! Are you trying to get yourself killed?”
“You’re really annoying,” Bai Yunci said coldly, “Shut up.” He turned and disappeared into the darkness.
“What’s with Zhan Feng?” Ying Si kept ranting, “Didn’t even ask a single question before leaving? Aren’t they teammates? Shouldn’t teammates… I don’t know… At least care for each other? He’s so heartless!”
“If it were me, I wouldn’t have left Lao Bai behind either,” Feng Mang chimed in.
“Exactly!” Ying Si agreed. “At least ask, right?”
The two continued criticizing Zhan Feng’s cold-heartedness. He Xun, silently listening nearby, shook his head and sighed. Meng Die simply chuckled coldly and, pulling He Xun to stand up, whispered, “Enough, let’s go back to sleep. What does it matter if the sky falls?”
“Let’s go,” He Xun replied.
Dalia ran over to Feng Mang and the others and said, “Those two have gone back to sleep.”
“Huh?” Feng Mang glanced around and saw no one. The surveillance confirmed that Meng Die and He Xun had indeed returned to their rooms. Feng Mang muttered, “Were they really once heroes? Why are they so indifferent?”
“Indifferent to who?” Dalia asked.
Feng Mang pointed outside. “Those people.”
“And what’s sympathy going to do for them?” Dalia asked.
Feng Mang was speechless. “At least show some concern! Things are so chaotic out there—how can they sleep peacefully?”
Dalia replied, “Not everyone is as saintly as you.”
“Aurora City’s rescue efforts are so slow,” the usually silent Shi Yixi commented, “It seems like they’re helpless.”
“Yeah, what can they do?” Feng Mang said. “In the face of many disasters, ordinary people are helpless.”
Shi Yixi said, “But they’re still trying.”
Ying Si scoffed, “What good is trying?”
Shi Yixi tilted his head, momentarily unsure how to respond, though he didn’t believe that effort was futile. As Feng Mang had said, in many disasters, ordinary people were indeed powerless, left waiting in extreme fear for the chance to survive. Heroes like Yang Jin were far too rare—even with the combined strength of all of Qianfan, they numbered only in the hundreds. These people had far more important and dangerous tasks to handle; they couldn’t be everywhere in the world at once.
They seemed like characters from myths, while the ones maintaining the basic order of the ordinary world were those unremarkable, ordinary people.
People who would be scared, terrified, and thrown into chaos.
“The central area is too dangerous,” Feng Mang said. “Sending rescue teams there would be sending them to their deaths.”
Dalia stood up. “Then let’s go!”
“You!” Feng Mang shouted like a parent hearing that their daughter was about to run off with some poor guy. “You can’t go! Yang Jin and the others are already there. They’ll handle it. What would you kids do? Cause trouble? Saving lives is an adult’s responsibility, not yours!”
“I’m not a child anymore,” Dalia replied. “I’m stronger than most people. Can’t I at least do what I’m capable of?”
Feng Mang yelled, “Absolutely not!”
“I’ll go with you,” Shi Yixi said calmly, taking Dalia’s hand. “We’ll go together.”
“Stop right there!” Feng Mang chased after them. Shi Yixi turned around. Although he had begun to understand emotions to some extent, his face was still mostly expressionless, making it hard for people to guess what he was thinking. As he turned, dark clouds suddenly roiled in the sky, with lightning flashing from the black mass. The light reflected off Shi Yixi’s indifferent face, making him appear somewhat frightening.
It all happened in a split second.
“We’re going to a safe place,” Shi Yixi said. “We’ll only do what we’re capable of. We’ll take care of ourselves, don’t worry.”
Feng Mang, giving up, said, “Do you think you’re all Yang Jin?”
Shi Yixi shook his head. “No, we’re just… just ordinary people. We don’t have any desire to be heroes.” With that, he led Dalia away. Ying Si chased after them, grumbling, “Wait for me! You two brainless fools who only know brute strength—are you trying to die out there? Hey! Wait…”
His voice gradually faded until it disappeared.
In the large room, only Feng Mang remained. The images on the screen continued to flicker. He slumped into a chair, exhausted and looking utterly dejected.
“Lao Bai, I’ve taken the people to safety. I’ll head back to get you,” Zhan Feng said over the channel. Shortly after, Bai Yunci responded, “I’m already downstairs and can evacuate safely. Go pick up Yang Jin—his situation is likely more complicated.”
Yang Jin said, “I’m already inside the building, and it’s really hot in here.”
Thunder rumbled in the sky, and Zhan Feng said worriedly, “It looks like it’s going to rain.”
Bai Yunci asked, “Is that person dead? If they are, get out of there quickly.”
Yang Jin laughed, “How could they die so quickly? I’ve still got to save them.”
Fan Fan had already pinpointed the location of the building’s only remaining life sign, seemingly trapped in a very confined space. Yang Jin made his way over, and Fan Fan reminded him, “You’ve got about five minutes—the building won’t hold much longer.”
“Three minutes is enough,” Yang Jin replied.
“Alright, I’ll start the countdown then,” Fan Fan said, and after two beeps, the steady ticking of a three-minute countdown filled the air.
The atmosphere immediately became tense. Yang Jin groaned, “Spare me, will you?”
Fan Fan played dead.
Soon, Yang Jin reached a storage room. “Inside,” Fan Fan said, “still alive.” Yang Jin nodded, and just as his hand touched the door, he suddenly asked, “What kind of person would hide in such a cramped space during a crisis instead of running?”
“How should I know?” Fan Fan replied. “I’m not human.”
“Strange,” he muttered, making sure there was no danger around the door before prying it open forcefully.
Meanwhile, Shi Yixi and the others were on the ground, helping evacuate the crowd. Everyone was in a state of panic, with expressions of despair. Those faces were so heavy and oppressive that even bystanders could feel a sense of suffocation.
The crowd, the crying, the destruction—it all seemed like a slow-motion scene, with every image entering their sight as a close-up.
“It’s raining,” Shi Yixi said, looking up as raindrops fell on his face.
“Isn’t rain a good thing?” Dalia said. “The fire can be put out.”
Shi Yixi looked toward the distant building where Yang Jin was. Although there had been no signs of movement for a while, he could sense that Yang Jin was safe. But soon, an inexplicable feeling welled up in his subconscious, repeating four words over and over: Don’t go near.
Don’t go near what? Why would such a strange thought suddenly emerge?
Shi Yixi didn’t understand.
With a bang, the door collapsed, and Yang Jin dusted off his hands. He carefully observed the contents of the room in the darkness. Darkness often induces a strong sense of unease, and since Yang Jin had touched the door, he had felt some suspicion, as if something was trying to warn him. But his years of training had overridden those instinctive thoughts, pushing him to move forward.
Inside, a man lay barely alive, tied up and unable to move. A drone was perched on his body.
Yang Jin’s first reaction was to run!
The rain was coming down harder now, and the situation on the ground was still chaotic.
In the distance, Ying Si was jumping up and down in frustration. “Are these people idiots? You’re out of danger, so just go home already! How can you still be taking pictures here? Hey, I’m talking to you! Get lost!”
Dalia and Shi Yixi were helping a person who had just fallen and twisted their ankle. Shi Yixi called out, “Ying Si, come over here.”
Ying Si ran toward them.
Suddenly, a deafening crash echoed from afar as a building collapsed in an instant, its towering figure swallowed by the horizon.
“Ah!” Zhan Feng’s helicopter was thrown off course by a powerful wave, losing control and crashing onto the rooftop of another building. The rotor blades, like a meat grinder, violently scraped against the ground, sparking before coming to a stop just before falling off the edge of the building. Zhan Feng, disoriented and injured, quickly regained his senses. He crawled out of the helicopter, his long hair disheveled, and his body covered in wounds.
“Yang Jin—!!” Zhan Feng shouted, his eyes filled with devastation.
The building where Yang Jin had been was now nothing but ruins.
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