Wesker's desire to leave Umbrella grew stronger. There was no need to stay on this sinking ship, and it was a good opportunity to investigate Spencer's true motives. Even when he was a researcher, Spencer's strange research direction puzzled him. He had to find out what was truly hidden behind it.
A Zombie Dog with rotting flesh was hiding in the bushes, watching everyone. As everyone was startled, the creature's instincts activated the Zombie Dog's attack. This was the best time to strike, its four limbs running quickly, rushing over at an extreme speed, pouncing on Joseph, who was still surprised and hadn't recovered.
"Ah!" Joseph clearly realized what was happening, but it was too late to react. He could only watch as the Zombie Dog got closer and closer, the foul smell from its fangs clearly discernible, making him nauseous.
Bang! At the critical moment, Eddie fired. Using his modified submachine gun, adjusted to single-shot, high-power mode, he accurately hit the Zombie Dog's head, killing it instantly with one shot!
"Phew! So scary, what the hell was that, Eddie, thanks!" Joseph was a bit incoherent, clearly frightened.
"There are still enemies, everyone be careful!" Eddie raised his submachine gun, aiming in another direction. There were several glowing red spots there, not shaped like humans!
Jill also noticed. After putting on her infrared night vision goggles, she saw them too. Picking up her modified high-power pistol, she shouted, "Three o'clock to the east, six enemies, not human, don't know what they are, everyone be careful."
A thought flashed through Wesker's mind, "Alpha Team take the left, Bravo Team take the right. Clear out the enemies, and once it's safe, we'll start examining these things."
Svetlana looked at Eddie with some surprise. This man was very nervous on the plane just now, but now he had become so steady. Had he entered a state of focus and forgotten his fear?
The Zombie Dogs charged quickly, but the prepared S.T.A.R.S. members had already drawn their firearms and began to attack. Although the Zombie Dogs were very agile, they still couldn't evade the precise bullet snipes. They were taken down before they even had a chance to launch an attack.
On Eddie's side, several rotting wild wolves were rapidly approaching. This was where the T-Virus's enhancement effect became apparent. Under extreme focus, the movements of these bio-weapons became incredibly slow, as if entering bullet time. He calmly aimed his gun at the wild wolves, a single shot to the soul, a headshot!
Thud! The charging wild wolves were all taken care of by Eddie alone, all falling to the ground. After their heads were blown off, even with the incredible T-Virus, they could no longer become walking dead.
"Good shot!" Enrico praised. To hit the head of a target moving at such high speed, that level of skill was indeed quite impressive.
"What the hell are these things? Rotting wild dogs?" Bravo Team's sniper, Foster, poked the dead zombie wild wolf with his sniper rifle, the lingering fear in his heart not yet gone.
"It's best to be careful. There might be more of these monsters nearby. Heaven knows where these things came from. Even well-trained agents could get bitten to death if they're not careful," Kenneth, advised.
The entire team began to divide their labor, some defending, some observing. Eddie and Rebecca stopped to examine the Zombie Dogs, trying to find evidence.
"These are Doberman dogs from the mountains, very aggressive, and they seem to be controlled by something. From their appearance, they should have been dead for some time. Muscle tissue is dead, but the head is still perfectly alive. Such a strange thing," Eddie calmly analyzed.
Rebecca was a little scared, but she still braced herself. She couldn't be a burden to the team.
"Can you find any useful evidence?" Squad leader Enrico asked.
Eddie shook his head, "No, but there are traces of drugs on them. It seems someone has conducted experiments. There must be some facility nearby. We'll investigate it; we should find something. When we return, these things might be taken back for dissection and research."
"Then let's split up. If we find anything, we'll gather immediately," Wesker, as the captain, ordered. He didn't know what this mission was for; Umbrella's higher-ups hadn't given him instructions. The only thing he could do now was to collect combat data on various bio-weapons so he could use it when he switched companies.
The group began to search separately. Svetlana followed behind Eddie, protecting him as a bodyguard. She started to get curious, wondering what secrets this man held. The tension on the plane wasn't faked, nor was it an advantage; it was a fear of something.
And the appearance of the Zombie Dogs also made Svetlana ponder. What exactly were they? Did this man know these terrifying things would appear?
Bang bang bang! Another round of gunshots came from afar, followed by Jill's voice, "There are strange creatures nearby. I just killed some more monsters. Everyone be careful."
With fear and trepidation, the group began to head for the outskirts, even the two drivers joining the fight. Staying put was too dangerous; one person absolutely couldn't handle hordes of Zombie Dogs, so they had to leave the helicopter in place.
Bang! This time, Svetlana reacted quickly, raising her hand directly and shooting down a rotting monkey that was preparing to ambush them from a treetop.
The next second, a dagger flashed past her blonde hair. Eddie backhanded and impaled a sneaking crow to the tree. The crow's eyes were blood red, clearly infected.
Svetlana glanced at the crow, "You're improving very quickly!"
"Thanks, but you don't have to offer yourself to me to show your gratitude!" Eddie said seriously.
"Go to hell!" Svetlana snorted. She refused to accept men weaker than her.
Chapter 36: Director? Plant Zombies!
As the search continued, more and more monsters were killed, from fast-moving Zombie Dogs to slow, large mutated bullfrogs. It was as if formerly harmless wild animals were becoming increasingly violent.
Dark clouds hung over everyone's heads in the gloomy forest environment. If not for the tactical flashlights, they would have been attacked and died a million times over.
Eddie's nerves were no longer tense. Facing these hideous bio-weapons for the first time, he performed quite commendably. He wasn't panicked; instead, he was somewhat serious. He didn't even remember how many people he had saved; his eyes only saw the hideous monsters.
The T-Virus was indeed very effective. The powerful strength brought by the Progenitor Virus and the hidden adaptability in the leech genes were perfectly activated.
Eddie could feel that he saw more clearly at night than before, and even high-intensity combat didn't make him feel tired. His physical strength recovered exceptionally quickly, a point that Jill might have felt most deeply.
"Captain, there's a wooden house here!" Uncle Barry said, holding his modified Magnum pistol. This pistol's power was stronger than most submachine guns, but its recoil was too great.
All members of the S.T.A.R.S. surrounded it. Wesker seemed to sense something ominous. Was this wooden house where that abandoned experimental subject was located? It looked somewhat similar, but also not.
Enrico and Kenneth, arrived at the wooden house together. One kicked open the door, and the other aimed his gun inside.
Inside, a middle-aged man with a Mediterranean haircut was sitting in the house, as if asleep.
"Sir, are you a local resident? We are members of the Raccoon City S.T.A.R.S.. I am Bravo Team leader Enrico. Are you alright?" Uncle Enrico asked.
The man with the Mediterranean haircut stood up and said, "No, I'm fine. What are you doing here?"
"We're here to investigate the recent disappearances and attacks in the Arklay Mountains. You live nearby; have you seen any strange people?" Enrico asked.
"I don't know, I don't know!" The man with the Mediterranean haircut clutched his head and squatted down, seemingly in great pain.
Alyssa froze for a moment when she saw the man. Some strange images flashed through her mind, but when she tried to think carefully, she couldn't recall them, involuntarily clutching her head, appearing to be in pain.
Eddie supported Alyssa and asked, "Are you alright? What happened to you?"
"I'm fine, I just felt a bit of a headache. I'm much better now, thank you!" Alyssa shook her head. She was much better now; it was as if her lost memories had just returned.
"I think that old man has a problem," Eddie whispered to Rebecca.
"I think he's just an ordinary person. Is living in the mountains a problem?" Rebecca didn't notice anything. She trusted Eddie's words, but she wouldn't make any further moves until she saw the truth.
"What do you think is wrong with him?" Svetlana asked curiously. Her calm demeanor gradually changed due to her curiosity about Eddie.
"An ordinary person, living well in such a dangerous place. You heard what he just said; he's lived here for many years. How is that possible? Just in the recent period, how did he survive?" Eddie raised his doubts.
"Are you saying he's the killer? I don't think so," Edward asked, puzzled. He was a good person, not an Umbrella spy; instead, he could warn his teammates of danger even when severely wounded and near death. He was a trustworthy person.
"I didn't say that. I'm just expressing doubt about this strange phenomenon," Eddie shook his head. He knew this Mediterranean man was abnormal, but he couldn't say why specifically.
While everyone was chatting, Enrico and Wesker began to discuss, seemingly arguing about something, and finally reached an agreement.
"Everyone, pack up. We have a new lead. Follow Mr. Albert to a place where the screams of missing people are often heard. Let's go now!" Wesker gave the order.
They definitely needed to find some useful evidence before returning this time. Thinking of this order, Wesker looked at Eddie with a questioning gaze. That guy might know something!
The mountain path had no cement, only dirt. Walking here at night, visibility was very poor.
"Wait, there's someone ahead!" Joseph suddenly shouted. "Sir, are you alright? We are members of the S.T.A.R.S.. It's safe now, please don't be nervous!"
Everyone's gaze focused ahead. It was a man in ragged casual clothes squatting by the roadside, with some plants already wrapped around his body. This looked very much like someone who had been rotting for a long time and was parasitized.