Eddie returned to Raccoon City with the two women. Raccoon City was still peaceful at this moment, but the underground was not. There were traces of damage everywhere, and a large number of zombies had begun to wander, as if T-Virus had unintentionally infected the staff there.
When Eddie returned, the crossfire was still ongoing. The Federal Marines were engaging Umbrella's Special Forces in a direct confrontation. The Marines were retreating while fighting, having received news of William's death and needing to withdraw to the surface.
Chapter 175: Gamma Hunter
Sneaking back, he happened to see the Federal Marines retreating with the bodies of their comrades. It seemed like an act of camaraderie, but in reality, it was to avoid leaving any evidence; after all, no bodies meant no evidence.
Eddie wasn't concerned about the clash between Umbrella's Special Forces and the Federal Marines. He only wanted to return to the lab to check on Moira and Katherine's enhancement progress.
Ten hours had passed since he left to retrieve the Red Queen's motherboard from the server room and returned to the underground research facility.
The underground research facility had a large number of Hunters and various bioweapons released by William. Originally, most of them were placed in the southern area, but as the northern area was opened by Umbrella's Special Forces, some inferior G-Virus adults began to emerge, looking like large, bizarre catfish.
These adults weren't very strong in attack, but they mutated continuously, had thick skin, and required hundreds of bullets to kill.
After knocking away a few Hunters along the way, Eddie returned to the lab with the two women. They didn't choose to return through the sewers because the sewers had been turned into a fiery passage by incendiary bombs, which would take at least some time to extinguish.
It was also to avoid encountering William. The monster William was best left for the split-headed person to handle.
Opening the lab door, Lisa stood with her arms crossed, wearing high heels, her eyes intently fixed on the cryo-chamber. Her two-meter-two height already towered over everyone, especially being tall and wearing high heels. Even Eddie didn't want to talk to Lisa, as it was tiring to crane his neck.
"Mother!" Lisa transformed from a cool bodyguard into a dutiful daughter upon seeing Jessica.
Eddie pressed the button to close the door with his backhand, preventing Hunters from entering. There were definitely other researchers in the underground research facility, not just them.
"I'm really tired. Let's see what's happening first." Eddie grabbed a burger, ate it, and operated the keyboard, opening the surveillance footage.
Umbrella's Special Forces advanced while fighting. As they passed a certain pool, a strange Hunter suddenly leaped out, directly devouring one of the Special Forces members, then quickly leaped back into the pool.
Its speed was so fast that it took only two seconds; a flash of a shadow and it was gone! Only the continuously spreading ripples on the water's surface indicated that a monster had appeared there! It was a Hunter Gamma type!
Eddie's eyes flickered a few times as he watched. The Gamma type was the least practical model among Hunters, yet this impractical Gamma type Hunter had the greatest power. Compared to other Hunters, its digestive organs were incredibly powerful, capable of directly swallowing and digesting large enemies. An adult human would be fully digested in just ten minutes!
It was considered impractical because this Hunter was created using amphibian genes, making it unable to leave water for long periods. It could only survive and fight in humid and damp environments, unlike other Hunters that could operate in all environments. It could only be sold to armed groups in tropical rainforest regions, which didn't generate much business, so it wasn't mass-produced.
At most, it would be found underground in Raccoon City; its traces were nowhere to be found elsewhere.
"What was that thing just now?" Svetlana was surprised. With that kind of advance speed, she might even be hit if she wasn't careful. It was terrifying.
"Gamma type Hunter, it can only fight in humid environments. If the pool is drained, it will die within two hours." Eddie explained, still typing on the keyboard.
Before long, the water level in the pool began to drop. Five monsters, almost two meters tall and resembling frogs, could be seen squatting quietly in the three-meter-deep pool. They were very much like frogs yet not, as they had no eyes, and their gigantic size looked very eerie.
Seeing the water in the pool suddenly drop, these Gamma type Hunters became uneasy and extremely violent.
Umbrella's Special Forces immediately opened fire, even throwing grenades.
Boom! A cloud of smoke from a grenade explosion wafted over. The Gamma type Hunters were only heavily battered but not immediately incapacitated.
"Attack! Attack!" a squad leader commanded, continuously firing his tactical submachine gun at these suddenly appearing monsters. These bioweapons were unlike anything they had encountered before.
Gunfire erupted in the underground laboratory, and many researchers locked their doors to prevent the situation outside from affecting them.
General Morgan, far away in Pentagon City, upon hearing the news of Dr. William's death, immediately sent people to pick up the Marines. At the same time, looking at the images transmitted by the Marines, those agile bioweapons, it was said that after biting people, these things would turn the killed humans into zombies!
Beside General Morgan was a middle-aged man wearing a gold ring, none other than Federal Security Advisor Simmons. At this moment, Simmons frowned; William's death had forced his plan to be interrupted. "General, the current situation is that we must obtain Umbrella's serum samples. The newly developed G-Virus will certainly bring higher strategic value to the Federation."
"I know what to do. Do you want the Federation to go to full-scale war with Umbrella? Retreat first, we'll talk about it at another time." General Morgan snorted, not fond of Simmons, especially his so-called family.
"General, I must remind you that even Umbrella cannot override the security of the Federation. Their developed bioweapons have seriously threatened the Federation's security. If you don't do this, I will go through Congress to properly explain to you how to maintain the Federation's influence!" Simmons snorted. What general? In his eyes, there was no difference from a dog.
General Morgan had a very strong desire for control and was obsessed with power, while Simmons's aim was to maintain the current status quo, keeping the Federation's unique influence worldwide, which led to a strategic conflict between the two.
What Simmons didn't expect was that General Morgan had already made full preparations. He had long since, through an alliance with Kaplanto, had his agent Rachel assist Umbrella's former senior researcher, Frederick, in escaping. Frederick had T-Virus and vaccine data, as well as some preliminary synthesized G-Virus.
"Then you go tell those congressmen. When you all decide, I will act. You are just an advisor, not a marshal, and you have no right to dictate to me, understood?" General Morgan snorted.
Chapter 176: Moira's Twenty-Year Agreement
Six hours later, it was now three in the morning. Katherine woke up first. The first thing she saw when she opened her beautiful eyes was the man she secretly admired typing on the computer, his focused expression very attractive.
"Eddie, I'm awake, and I'm very hungry," Katherine said weakly.
Eddie pointed to the large amount of cooked food on the left, all prepared burgers. "Eat by yourself, and rest well after you're done."
As Katherine woke up, Suzuki Yoko and the others also began to awaken. They all disregarded etiquette and quickly started eating. They were too hungry, as if they hadn't eaten for a month.
Moira was the last to wake up. Her physique was the best, and the transformation took longer. After waking up, she realized something was off with herself, and when she looked at Eddie, she felt a little embarrassed.
"There's food on the left. Once you're done eating, we should leave. There's nothing good to stay for here, and it's very dangerous," Eddie said indifferently.
Moira felt a bit lost, not knowing why, but she still scurried over to eat and tidied her clothes.
"Your first stage of evolution is complete. Don't you feel stronger and more energetic? Your recovery ability will also be greatly enhanced, healing in a very short time. The only cost is a larger appetite, which is in line with the law of conservation of energy, isn't it?" Eddie chuckled.
"Hmph, have you forgotten? There's also a twenty-year agreement!" Moira pouted. She had essentially signed a contract of servitude. By the time her debt was paid off, she would be thirty-eight years old, and no one would want her. She would only be cheap for some scumbag.
"I didn't force you to agree. Anyway, you can't get off the ship now, haha!" Eddie teased. He wasn't a good person; since they had taken his benefits, they shouldn't think of running away!
"I never thought of getting off the ship!" Moira huffed, "This ship is too damn awesome!"
She inexplicably gave Eddie a thumbs-up, which made him a bit puzzled.
"I'm starting to believe your nonsense; there really is a possibility of immortality. I have high hopes for you. Originally, I planned to sell your information, but now I won't. You must work hard and not disappoint me; I will fully help you," the top hacker January quipped.
Whether a hacker genuinely helped him or not had a significant impact on Eddie. To continue his research, advanced computers and programs were essential. Eddie didn't understand this aspect and could only rely on others, and preferably women, as they were easier to win over.
"I will always support you too, Eddie!" Suzuki Yoko smiled sweetly, appearing very docile.
"This isn't the time to express loyalty. We need to retreat now. Many Umbrella personnel have arrived outside. If you don't want them to be captured for experiments, it's best to leave quickly," Svetlana said, pointing at the surveillance screen.
The screen showed Sergei leading his exclusive guard team entering the underground research facility from outside. With him here, this place would definitely be repaired.
"They are all mine; no one can take them away. Let's go, through the ventilation ducts. Svetlana, you lead the way. It's four meters high here; you can jump up. Try it, ladies, you are no longer ordinary people." Eddie pointed to the ventilation duct above.
"Who's yours, hmph! Clarify your words, we joined your team, we're not your people, hmph!" Moira huffed, correcting his grammatical error, and quickly took a running jump, directly leaping to the four-meter-high ventilation duct, grabbing the edge with both hands, and climbing up in one swift motion.
Katherine also smiled sweetly at Eddie. Having put on high heels, she also took a running jump onto the ventilation duct. She loved high heels, and she knew Eddie liked to see beautiful women wearing high heels.
Each woman jumped up individually. Even Cindy, who looked the most delicate, jumped up on her own. Her enhanced strength and extraordinary performance gave her great confidence, making her more self-assured.
They arrived at the elevator's location via the ventilation duct. Svetlana jumped down to scout. There were no traces of bioweapons here; everything was still normal. "No problem, you can come down."
Eddie was the last to arrive. He led everyone out of the ventilation duct, took the elevator down to the underground, which was about the same depth as a subway, only twenty to thirty meters from the surface.