Chapter 210 – The Alien Exhibition Hall
The Xie family had been defeated. They tried every possible way to find evidence and drag both the Wells and Pang families down with them.
The countless guards and pioneers who had died at the Sankar Arsenal knew nothing, had gained nothing, but had lost everything.
Tu Ran had precisely located a girl named Xiao Min among the noisy middle school students. Her brother had died at the Sankar Arsenal.
Tu Ran guessed that her brother had worked in the Executive Department or with the Pioneer Team, with a higher likelihood of being in the Executive Department due to its safer work environment compared to the Pioneer Team.
This girl could attend an elite school, indicating her family was not poor; while not a major conglomerate, they were at least a minor one.
Her brother had likely joined the Executive Department’s lower ranks either to experience life or to enhance his resume, planning to be transferred to a management position afterward.
He would never have imagined that he would become entangled in the power struggle of the three major conglomerates and lose his life as a result.
The students continued their incessant chatter as they got out of their luxury cars one by one. The leading teacher counted the students, confirmed the number was sufficient, and approached Tu Ran. “Everyone is here now; we can go in.”
“Tell them to quiet down. The Songwu Research Base prohibits loud noises,” Tu Ran said.
The teacher looked troubled, glancing at the students and then at Tu Ran, and said cautiously, “I can’t seem to stop them from making noise.”
It wasn’t that he couldn’t stop them; it was that he didn’t dare to.
Most of these young masters and misses from the conglomerate families were polite and respectful to their teachers, but a few were incorrigible. If he spoke up and upset them, they would immediately complain to their parents, who would then report to the school. It would jeopardize the teacher’s hard-earned position.
The previous teacher had reportedly been dismissed in this manner.
“Step aside, I’ll handle this,” Tu Ran said.
The leading teacher looked at her with gratitude, almost ready to kneel and bow.
Tu Ran cleared her throat, raising her voice and casting a stern look over all the students present. “Quiet down. The Songwu Research Base houses many live aliens. They especially enjoy eating the flesh of children like you. If you keep making noise and wake them up, we won’t be able to protect you.”
The chubby boy from the Xie family furrowed his brows. He was speaking earlier when this woman interrupted him, which made him quite angry. He pointed at Tu Ran and said, “If you can’t protect even us, what right do you have to call yourself a pioneer?”
Tu Ran looked down at the chubby boy, who barely reached her shoulder, with a faint smile. “Whether I am a pioneer or not is my own business and none of your concern. Just like my warning about the noise attracting the aliens in the base is something you should heed. If you refuse to listen and end up being eaten by the aliens, that’s not my concern.”
The chubby boy’s mouth opened and closed as he tried to retort, but Tu Ran’s argument was sound, and he couldn’t find a point to counter. However, admitting defeat was not an option. He began to use his rights as a young master from a conglomerate.
“If you can’t protect us, just wait to be expelled by the Pioneer Team!” he threatened.
Tu Ran thought he might come up with something more severe, but it was just this.
“Just what I want,” she replied.
Being expelled from the Pioneer Team would be a stroke of luck.
The chubby boy’s face turned red with anger, but he had no other recourse. He just stared at her.
“Are you quiet now? If you are, let’s go in.” Tu Ran, carrying a machine gun, sauntered to the door, ready to open it.
The Songwu Research Base was divided into two levels. The upper level was an entirely automated alien storage room, housing countless living and dead aliens, all controlled by artificial intelligence. Aside from regular maintenance performed by the repair department, there were usually no people around.
The true research base was located underground, where the researchers worked.
This visit was only to tour the upper level’s alien collection; access to the lower level was locked off.
As soon as they entered the Songwu Research Base, the sounds of astonished exclamations came from behind Tu Ran.
The young masters and misses looked around, as if they had stepped into a prehistoric era overrun by monsters. The combination of sci-fi and wonder left them dazzled, unsure of where to focus their attention.
They gazed up at the giant bat-like alien, which nearly filled the entire ceiling of the base. Its six claws were black and glossy like black gold, enough to tear apart a building. Two large bear-like aliens guarded a critical path; their fangs were as long as a human’s forearm.
These creatures, already the rulers of the land, also had wings—one pair curled up and the other extended, as if they intended to conquer the sky. A nearly meter-thick python coiled around a robust tree trunk, flicking its blood-red tongue. Just as everyone thought it was merely a large python, they noticed that its tail end also had a head, making it a two-headed, tailless python.
Everything captivated the young masters and misses’ curiosity, making it hard for them to look away.
Although they had seen these aliens before in various videos or holographic projections, the experience of being there in person was a world apart from what they had imagined.
Gradually, the students spread out, seeking to observe their favorite aliens up close.
Tu Ran also examined the aliens carefully, trying to determine which were alive and which were dead.
Some of the aliens were dead. For example, the bat-like alien hanging from the base’s ceiling had minimal safety measures; it was simply suspended by hooks piercing its wings and other parts. If it had been alive, the research institute would not have been so lax.
The two bear-like aliens were likely dead as well. They stood rigidly in place without any restraining ropes or similar devices, suggesting they were merely specimens.
Tu Ran suspected that the giant python was alive. It was enclosed in a sealed transparent glass tank, and a mist-like substance was continuously sprayed into the tank from its eight corners. This substance was likely not mere mist but a drug designed to keep the giant python in a state of constant stupor.
In addition to the giant python, there was also a living “Xiang” (a mythical creature) with the body of a tiger, deer antlers, and wild boar tusks, similarly confined within a glass tank. White mist was being expelled from the tank, and the creature stood motionless, its limbs stiff.
All living aliens were contained in glass tanks, while the dead ones were displayed outside.
Whether alive or dead, the aliens appeared almost lifeless and rigid, making it difficult for the students and teachers to distinguish between them. Most came to see the spectacle, and very few paid attention to the explanations.
Tu Ran observed these aliens with interest. Many of them were unfamiliar to her and were not present in the original owner’s memories, suggesting they were recently discovered species.
