Seeing this, Javier wanted to say something to comfort him, but looking at Luis's resolute manner, he finally sighed deeply and said nothing.
One must know that Luis in the original timeline did not return to his Institute; he had already died. Now that he has returned, he naturally feels a great deal of emotion.
As for Luis's guilt, he will probably have to atone for it himself.
"Thump, thump, thump…"
"Thump, thump, thump…"
With no potential threat from the Regenerator and the corridor lights fully on, everyone's mood relaxed considerably this time. They were not as tense and frightened as before. They proceeded forward and quickly pushed open a large door, immediately arriving at Luis's Laboratory.
However,
As soon as they stepped into this area,
Everyone was quickly shocked by the sight before them. All around were various trolleys, hospital beds, and operating tables used for experiments and surgeries. A large amount of documents and data were scattered on the floor.
The walls were covered with various black and white X-ray films, displaying numerous grotesque and ugly human brains and bodies. These were the data Luis recorded after each experiment. At that time, Luis considered these records to be very precious and rare.
But now…
Looking at the dense, bizarre, and monstrous X-ray films on the wall, he felt an abnormal chill down his spine.
These things now looked no different from the skull decorations collected by cultists. Luis's experiments, in fact, were no different from those of deranged cultists, as no normal person would be so insane as to experiment to this extent.
Especially on the central operating table, besides the dazzling array of medicines, the most striking sight was the horrifying mummified specimen lying on it.
It was dressed in a surgical gown, its limbs bound, its back arched like a bow, and its spine dissected. Its face was incredibly hideous and terrifying, suggesting a Plaga parasite spinal transplant or extraction was being performed.
This was simply a living hellish tableau—
Even Luis himself could not imagine
how insane he must have been to make this mummified corpse into a specimen and display it here.
The scenes before him,
were as if all the evil deeds he had committed were being re-displayed, causing Luis immense mental pain and guilt. His shoulders instantly felt as if crushed by a giant rock, and he heavily knelt to the ground.
Vaguely,
Luis could see his own figure, fallen into depravity and insane experimentation… Horrifying, simply horrifying. It turned out that he was the devil, a demon from hell—!
"These…"
"Are all Regenerator experiment data?"
Upon entering the Laboratory, both Ada and Leon were surprised by the sight before them. As an intelligence agent, Ada had seen countless Laboratory environments, large and small.
But this was the first time she had seen such a horrifying Laboratory, which indicated that Luis's past research was indeed very terrifying.
And so was Leon.
This was far more terrifying than T-Virus experiments. No matter how bad the T-Virus was, it would only turn people into zombies. But the Plaga parasite… it could always torment people into bizarre and grotesque forms.
"Don't worry…"
"Making mistakes is common. The fact that you can change your mind means there's still hope, and it's an opportunity given by heaven for you to atone for your sins. Since your experiments harmed many people, then go save more people to redeem yourself. Dying is the stupidest way I've ever seen; it's merely an escape."
Compared to everyone's surprise,
Javier noticed Luis's unusual state. He slowly walked over to him, gripped Luis's shoulder with his large hand, and spoke softly to persuade him.
Wantonly trampling on others' lives for experiments is indeed an unforgivable act, but that does not mean dying oneself can atone for it.
After all, this is not as simple as one life for another. Therefore, suicide is not the best way to atone for sins, but rather an escape method when one cannot bear immense mental pressure.
However many lives were harmed,
that many lives must be saved, or even twice that number, because only then can one clear their sins. It's not too late to die then. This has always been Javier's philosophy—
Therefore,
Javier did not want Luis to have suicidal thoughts of atonement after seeing his past sins and mistakes.
This is improper,
And more importantly,
Luis was still useful to Javier. He didn't want to travel all the way to Spain to save someone, only for the person not to be saved and instead commit suicide. That would be a wasted trip, and Javier would not allow such a thing to happen.
"No…"
"I'm not planning to commit suicide and escape, but thank you, Javier. You have indeed shown me a way to atone. From now on, I will pick up my skills again and do my best to combat all Bio-weapons in the world, including viruses and Plaga parasites. I am one of the people who opened Pandora's Box, and naturally, I have an obligation to close it."
Hearing Javier's persuasion,
Luis, who was kneeling on the ground, his expression changed slightly. He slowly emerged from his despair and guilt, returning to his usual carefree demeanor, and forced a self-deprecating smile as he replied softly.
Killing as many people as he saves is indeed what a knight should do. As a man determined to become a Don Quixote knight, he should not choose suicide as an escape.
"Feeling better?"
"Come with me this way. The ID card is in the safe over here. I just need to enter the password to retrieve it, and I'll also get you some Thermal imaging scopes."
Shaking his head,
Luis tossed away the complex thoughts in his mind and chuckled, leading Javier deeper into the Laboratory. They arrived at an experimental table covered with instruments.
He entered the password into a newly lit screen. A moment later, a box in the corner opened, and Luis immediately pulled out a red and white card. He also held several Thermal imaging scopes.
The card had the Plaga parasite logo printed on it. This should be Luis's personal key card, specifically for setting permissions. As a researcher, Luis had the right to open many Institute rooms.
And until now,
Sadler had not restricted these permissions, which was enough to show that their intelligence was on completely different levels.
Sadler didn't even understand these things. The Institute was built according to Luis's ideas, so he naturally couldn't manage so much.
Sadler was like an ancient strategist, clever and resourceful, skilled in schemes and intrigues, but narrow-minded and ignorant of high-tech development, even attempting to control the entire world with the Plaga parasite.
How to put it…
It's like a person from the Qing Dynasty being reborn, trying to control the world with the opium that poisoned them. It's possible, but not realistic. Controlling a small, desolate place might work, but not the whole world.
If he had shut down Luis's permissions earlier, there wouldn't have been so many problems. Unfortunately… he couldn't, and he didn't understand. He only knew how to preach and brainwash more people.
After obtaining the key card, Luis distributed the Thermal imaging scopes to everyone: Leon, Ada, the Merchant, and Luis himself, each received a Thermal imaging scope. With these artifacts in hand, there was no need to fear the Regenerator anymore.
Even if a dozen more Regenerators appeared, they would only become cannon fodder for Javier and the others. After all, once their weakness was known, the Regenerator was just a slightly more durable elite monster.
"Alright,"
"I have the key card now. We just need to go to the operating room. The operating room is not far from the Institute. I originally intended to set up the ultraviolet laser surgical equipment for clearing the Plaga parasite here, but I was afraid of Sadler discovering it, so I set up a new room separately in a more distant location."
"After all, once Sadler learned that something could clear the Plaga parasite parasitic in the human body, he would surely go mad and destroy this equipment. He would not allow his authority as a dominator to be challenged. But now… it doesn't matter anymore. His day of judgment is coming."
Holding up his red and white key card,
Luis gathered everyone, and while distributing the infrared scopes, he earnestly explained to Ashley and the Merchant, the two infected individuals.
Chapter 88: Iron Maiden
After obtaining the key card…
They did not linger, but continued to press on without delay. Time was running out; the inhibitor Ashley had been injected with was almost wearing off. If one looked closely, they could even see black blood vessels appearing on her fair face, which was another sign of the Plaga parasite growing.
If left unchecked,
it would become very dangerous in a few hours.
Of course, it wasn't that Ashley would die or be completely parasitized, but rather that once the adult parasite fully developed, the difficulty of clearing it with the ultraviolet laser surgical device would greatly increase. The larger the Plaga parasite, the more troublesome it was to clear.
Because once they are exposed to ultraviolet laser light, they will feel pain and resist fiercely, even trying to break free from the host's body.
They could tear through the host's flesh, disregard critical organs, and even directly sever the spine, which was highly possible.
Therefore,
it was like a ticking time bomb.
The later it was defused, the more troublesome it would be. After all, Luis and Leon certainly wouldn't want to see the Plaga parasite sever Ashley's spine. Even if the parasite was successfully cleared then, Ashley would likely not have long to live.
"…"
"Where is the operating room? Is it this way?!"
Compared to worry,
the Merchant in the team seemed quite excited at this moment. His murky eyes, hidden by the purple face mask, shone brightly. He had finally waited for this opportunity. Indeed… his judgment was correct; helping Javier and Leon and the others had paid off.
The Plaga parasite in his body would also be cleared, and then he could break free and gain true freedom.
The Merchant himself had longed for this moment for a long time. Initially, he had been foolish enough to come to this desolate place as a mercenary, but he never expected to be parasitized by Sadler with the Plaga parasite, turning him into a so-called puppet.
Fortunately,
the Plaga parasite attempting to parasitize him did not enter through his mouth. Instead, after an unsuccessful search, it was forced to tear through his flesh and enter near the Merchant's chest and heart.
Although this was also a parasitism, because it could not get close to the spine, this Plaga parasite could not control the Merchant's brain, which greatly slowed down the time it took for the Merchant to become a puppet zombie.
And now,
the opportunity for freedom was at hand.
This made the Merchant, who had been silent for a long time, begin to get excited. After all, if there was one thing he desired most at this moment, it was naturally freedom.
As long as the Plaga parasite was cleared, he could leave this place and take the large amount of antiques and valuables he had collected and stolen, to enjoy a life of comfort for the rest of his days.
After all,
after becoming a pseudo-monster Plaga parasite infected, the Merchant used his special physique
to blend in with the monsters such as the Wolf's Valley Village villagers, Salazar Castle servants, and Isolated Island Base soldiers. With the identity of a fellow creature who would not be attacked, he secretly stole many valuable items.
Now he was just waiting to escape from this misery…
"Don't be so hasty…"
"There should still be quite a few Regenerators on the way to the operating room. To be ashamed, I created many failed Regenerators during my experiments. Their number shouldn't be just one, so it's better for you to be careful and vigilant first."
Facing the Merchant's excited gaze, Luis understood the Merchant's desire for immediate freedom at this moment, but he still calmly reminded him.
After all, in this cursed place,
there were about fifty failed specimens.
Some valuable finished products would be placed by Luis in transparent nutrient solution glass jars, while some failed and worthless ones
were placed in body bags and frozen. After all, the Regenerator's physique was special, and destroying them was very troublesome, so Luis could only use this method at that time.
And now,
some Regenerators had indeed died in body bags, but some were still alive. Plus, there were later mutated Regenerators codenamed "Iron Maiden." Luis estimated that at least twenty or more Regenerators were waiting for them.
However,
the Merchant didn't care about this.
Having come this far, why would he fear any Regenerator? Even if Sadler appeared before him, he would fight to the death to kill him. No one could stop him from gaining freedom!
Seeing that the Merchant's expression was still excited,
Luis could only shake his head helplessly, hoping that no one in the team would lose their life due to carelessness when the game was nearing completion! That would be too regrettable.
After the warning,
Luis continued to lead the way.
Everyone pressed forward, quickly leaving the Laboratory and heading towards another corridor.
Compared to the clean and tidy Institute, the corridor before them was much dirtier. The walls were starting to crumble, with iron cell doors appearing one after another, and foul-smelling trash cans.
Hmm…
If his guess was correct,
this area should be where trash was handled, as the smell was so foul that it was impossible not to guess correctly. And in the corners of the corridor,
more and more trash bags and body bags began to accumulate. It seemed that even failed experimental materials were disposed of here one by one.
"Wait…"
"What's that over there?"