Therefore, there was no new path.
Instead, the hole in the roof, smashed by the giant bat, was a new way out. If they could climb up there, they could bypass the church and reach the other side of the Institute. Perhaps re-entering the Institute from there would lead them to a new place.
"Huh?"
Hearing Javier's words,
Rebecca's expression froze slightly, and she quickly returned to the church with her grappling hook gun, looking up at the hole in the roof above her head. Then she looked at the dark grappling hook gun in her hand, and her small face immediately crumpled.
No way.
The height was at least twenty meters.
Climbing it purely by arm strength was impossible for her slender body. She wasn't some wilderness adventure expert, nor a tree-climbing expert or Tarzan. Where would she get such strong climbing ability?
Of course,
The same went for Javier.
Although he usually exercised with discipline,
He hadn't done too many pull-up trainings, nor had he actually trekked through jungles. He had no experience whatsoever with this kind of rope-climbing exercise.
Thinking of this,
Rebecca and Javier, the two partners, unhesitatingly turned their gazes to Billy Coen beside them. This guy seemed to have quite a lot of experience, so why not let Billy Coen try first?
"…"
"Alright, I'll go first then. Once I'm up, I'll help pull you two up,"
On the other side,
Billy Coen looked helplessly at Rebecca and Javier beside him. These two really lived up to their title as partners; even when they were setting someone up, they had the same expression. But there was no other way; who else had the most experience here but Billy Coen himself?
He had no choice but to go first.
However, Billy Coen himself hadn't expected that what required the most effort from him on this journey wasn't killing zombie monsters or coming up with solutions to puzzles, but rather the physically demanding task of climbing ropes. Billy Coen didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
After taking the grappling hook gun from Rebecca's hand, Billy Coen briefly inspected it, confirming there were no malfunctions. Then, he squinted and aimed the grappling hook gun's muzzle at the church roof. After slightly adjusting the grappling hook's landing point, he unhesitatingly pulled the trigger!
"Click…"
"Whoosh—!!!"
A sound of breaking air rang out,
Like a flying arrow, the grappling hook gun, carrying a tough rope, shot out with incredible speed. The thick, sturdy anchor head landed firmly on the church roof, and the bifurcated anchor hook directly wedged into the crack of the church roof hole.
He tested it and found it to be very stable.
Billy Coen pulled it forcefully several times without any problem.
Actually, this kind of grappling hook gun also has shooting techniques. Its aim cannot be too precise; the launched grappling hook anchor head must be a little distance from the building. After all, this is not bullet shooting; the grappling hook gun is meant to let the grappling hook pass over the building and get stuck in a crack, not to let the grappling hook's anchor head smash into the building's edge.
There was a fundamental difference between the two, but fortunately, Billy Coen understood these things clearly, so he didn't make any mistakes!
"Hmph!"
With a low grunt,
Billy Coen's arms exerted force, his hands gripping the rope tightly. He placed the grappling hook gun on the ground, and the excess rope was firmly stepped on by Billy Coen's feet, crossed into an L-shape. This method allowed his feet to firmly grip the rope, not relying solely on arm strength for support.
On the contrary,
If the technique of wrapping and locking the rope with both feet is skilled enough, then climbing a rope will become a very simple thing, because at that point, the true climbing power does not come from the arms, but from the feet that are stepping on the rope.
Because during the continuous climbing process,
The legs are the support point, not relying on arm strength to simply hang in mid-air. This is the most common mistake made by beginners.
And just in case,
Billy Coen also specifically wrapped the rope around his crotch area, just in case he accidentally fell, he could still remain suspended in mid-air.
Of course, the price was that his weapon arsenal in the center of his thighs was quite painful, as it was very "chafing"! If not handled well, Billy Coen might have to change his name to Billy Morgan or Billy Egg in the future.
Therefore, this was a high-risk job,
One slip could lead to eternal regret!
And Billy Coen naturally knew this very well, so he climbed cautiously, his legs gripping the rope tightly, his arms bulging with veins like coiling dragons. His forehead was covered in fine sweat, and his neck was flushed red. He held his breath and slowly climbed with all his might.
"Hmph!"
Another low grunt,
Under the admiring gazes of Javier and Rebecca, Billy Coen was slowly climbing upwards, seemingly just a few meters away from reaching the roof. This left the two novice white-belts dumbfounded. Was climbing such a high rope really that easy?
Ahem,
Actually, no.
Mainly, Billy Coen knew how to use techniques.
Beginners, laymen, or those who have never understood rope climbing, when they first learn, always only habituate themselves to using the strength of their arms to simply pull up their entire body. This is, of course, incredibly strenuous, and they may not even be able to sustain it for long before losing strength.
This is the wrong way—
Because, again, the greatest climbing power for rope climbing comes from the legs, not the arms. You need to use your legs to tightly wrap the rope and create an interlocking cross, which allows you to lift your body simply by the rope's support, instead of blindly pulling yourself up with arm strength. That's the stupidest way!
And Javier also seemed to have understood Billy Coen's technique, nodding slightly in confirmation.
Soon—
Billy Coen reached the church roof.
Indeed, the view from the roof was expansive, overlooking the surroundings of the Institute. And as Javier had said, bypassing the church from above would lead them to the other side of the Institute. Their chosen route was not wrong, not to mention that behind the church roof, there was even a suspended ladder specifically for workers to descend, which saved them the effort of climbing down.
"Hey!"
"You two, hurry up and come up! It's true that from up here, we can go around to the other side of the Institute. Our chosen route is correct. Don't be afraid, I'll hold onto the rope from above so you won't fall."
After confirming,
Billy Coen quickly shouted to Javier and Rebecca, who were still below in the church. Javier and Rebecca exchanged glances, and finally, Javier had to go first.
"Hmm…"
Gripping the rope with his arms,
Javier imitated Billy Coen's previous technique, using his feet to create a loop in the rope for support. With a slight pull from his arms again, sure enough! This time, he easily climbed up several meters without any effort.
This made Javier exclaim that he had successfully learned the trick; climbing ropes wasn't as difficult as he had imagined. No longer relying solely on arm strength, Javier also easily climbed onto the roof—
But…
Rebecca, that girl, wasn't so lucky.
That girl absolutely refused to come up, and she hadn't even learned Billy Coen's technique. Her small face was flushed red for a long time, and she only climbed a few meters before decisively falling down, stomping her feet in frustration on the ground. After much struggle, an exhausted Rebecca chose to give up.
She plopped down on the ground, huffing with anger—!
It wasn't that she was being temperamental; it was that she genuinely couldn't climb that damn rope. The S.T.A.R.S only taught daily police duties and firearm training; potion mixing was something she already knew. Who would specifically learn to climb ropes like Tarzan?!
In desperation,
Billy Coen and Javier had Rebecca wrap the rope around herself. The two big men exerted themselves for a long time, using all their strength, to pull the little girl Rebecca up from below the church. They had no idea what this little girl ate; although her bust wasn't large, her weight was quite substantial, not light at all.
"Thump, thump, thump…"
"Thump, thump, thump…"
"Thump, thump, thump…"
Upon reaching the church roof,
Javier and the two others did not hesitate. After confirming their route, they slowly descended along the suspended ladder behind the church, which was provided for workers to repair the roof.
Continuing past a lawn garden, Rebecca discovered some medicinal herbs specially planted by the Institute on it, which could be used to stop bleeding, so she picked some for reserve.
Soon,
The three arrived at the other side of the Institute.
Whether it was a coincidence or simply the intended route, Javier and the two others found an elevator on the other side of the Institute that could be directly entered, with an accessible backup power switch next to it. Perhaps the next stop… they really could reach the central secret of the Institute—
Chapter 46: Emerald Leech Key
"What do you say…?"
"Should we go in? Although we don't know where this elevator will take us,"
Slowly pulling the power switch and watching the Institute's elevator slowly open before them, Javier and the two others exchanged glances and spoke to each other. According to their previous plan, they had successfully bypassed the church and reached the other side of the Institute.
And there indeed was a door leading to a new path, but the problem was… they apparently didn't know what else was waiting for them inside, hence the question. But it was merely a question.
Looking at the hesitant two,
Rebecca, who was good at lightening the mood, didn't hesitate at all. She stepped into the elevator and said with a cheerful smile:
"We don't have any other options, do we? Since we've already started the sanctions against the Umbrella Corporation, that means we have no retreat. Now, there's only one way: forward, right?!"
Without any worry at all,
Rebecca spoke so calmly. No matter what awaited them, they had to move forward. Now they had no retreat. Javier and Billy also shook their heads and smiled slightly upon hearing this. In terms of fearlessness, Rebecca was even more impressive.
Little did they know that the reason the two hesitated was out of fear of implicating Rebecca, because Rebecca was a wonderful girl in the prime of her youth and really shouldn't have to risk her life with two grown men. But now that Rebecca had said so, they could only enter the elevator together.
"Ding—!"
A crisp sound rang out,
The elevator had no floor buttons; this old-fashioned elevator, they didn't know where it would take them. While they had this short time, Javier and the two others loaded their weapons and ammunition, ready for battle at any moment.
"…"
Who knows how long passed,
The elevator doors slowly opened,
The elevator took Javier and the two others to the research lab led by Marcus. And this… was the true place Marcus used to research leeches and the T-Virus. The previous Institute was merely the surface; not many research findings were exposed there. On the contrary, this was the core.
Because—
It could be seen just by the facilities in the surrounding rooms.
There were no more so-called miscellaneous rooms; here were bookshelves and bookcases of all sizes, filled with books on various fields of biology. All kinds of small instruments were neatly stacked. This was the real research facility.
"…"
"It seems our luck is good; we've entered the true core of the Institute. It appears this is the real place the Umbrella Corporation uses to research the T-Virus. What we experienced before was merely the tip of the iceberg."
Looking at everything around him,
Javier couldn't help but exclaim, and Rebecca and Billy Coen also watched their surroundings with curiosity. Indeed… this was the true core.
And very soon,
Under the continuous search of the three,
They found a tattered, torn diary here, which seemed to record information about the T-Virus and leeches:
"Just in case, I've hidden my treasure, but keeping it on me isn't safe. Therefore, I've hidden it in a container. To open the container, a special stripping agent must be used. [To hide a leaf, hide it in the forest]. Spencer and his cronies will never find it!"
Familiar handwriting,
It should be another one of Marcus's little essays.
But what left Javier speechless was, if he was going to hide it… why would he record it in his diary? Was he afraid others wouldn't know about his clever plan?
Subsequently,
Javier crumpled the paper and threw it into the trash can. Annoying as it was, this was indeed significant news, indicating that Marcus did have some hidden treasure.
And,
In addition to that,
Javier and the two others also discovered a new tool in the lab: a simple item transport elevator, embedded in the wall like a storage cabinet. This type of elevator was relatively miniature; although it couldn't carry people, it could transport some items, making it a very convenient office tool.