Infinite Gods Reign Supreme

Chapter 17 - At Least He Has a Higher Education Level
What happens when a person makes ample, even excessive, preparations for something? What happens when they approach a task with the same focused intensity as a lion hunting a rabbit, with the expectation that the rabbit being hunted might suddenly transform into a rabbit monster, and throw themselves into the action with unwavering determination?
The answer is, nothing will happen.

There's no inexplicable global enmity, nor do any suddenly appearing deus ex machina monsters. This is just an ordinary AVP world; the Predators have chosen Earth as their hunting ground for countless years. And the death of an elite warrior here won't cause much change.

Are the number of Predators who have died on Earth not enough?
If there really were some incredible monsters lurking on Earth, how could they not know?

and so……

After Si Ming redeemed his 100 days of return and training time, everything that followed went much more smoothly than he had anticipated, even though it was the most peaceful process he had ever imagined.

On June 15, 2004, the small town of Connison in the Colorado mountains was attacked by aliens. The National Guard stationed nearby immediately mobilized and brought the town under control before dawn—the town was immediately placed under lockdown by U.S. authorities on the grounds of a nuclear power plant leak caused by an attack by unknown terrorists. All survivors were placed under house arrest, and the entire town, as well as the surrounding forest area, underwent a thorough and meticulous cleanup afterwards.

Meanwhile, a high-value bounty was offered for the capture of a terrorist. Although no intelligence was available beyond confirming the target was likely Asian, U.S. intelligence agencies still invested considerable resources and manpower in the matter.

On June 16th, a renowned explorer of ancient Eastern ruins appeared in Mexico and hired local guides to explore Mayan civilization sites. The payment was generous, and locals enthusiastically participated. Over the next two months, the professor's explorations led to the inventory of seven major existing Mayan sites. Furthermore, four lost Mayan ruins were unearthed by this famous adventurer, causing quite a stir in the archaeological community.

But the journey didn't end perfectly. On August 18, as Professor Si finished his Mayan exploration and prepared to embark on his next ancient ruins expedition, a fierce firefight broke out between drug traffickers and government forces in Mexico City, where he was resting.

It was a truly brutal battle. Perhaps due to the intervention of unknown forces, the Mexican government forces, who should have been at a disadvantage, gained a significant advantage in this battle. When the sun rose the next day, Mexico City was littered with the gruesome corpses of at least 100,000 gang members. Most died from gunfire and explosions, but a smaller number were killed by being cut, impacted, or even crushed and flattened by heavy objects. Several streets were so devastated that it looked as if a hundred demolition machines had repeatedly rammed and run over them.

Corpses littered the streets, and many surviving government soldiers exhibited varying degrees of mental distress afterward. They claimed to have seen moving skeletons, marching armies of the dead, and even giant worm-like monsters rampaging through the roads—these individuals were ultimately classified as victims of post-traumatic stress disorder and mass hysteria. And, naturally, no one cared that a renowned explorer had disappeared in the chaos of Mexico City, his whereabouts unknown.

Time flowed on, and the earth continued to turn. On September 9th, someone seemed to have spotted Professor Si, who had been missing for over half a month, in a port town in Argentina, South America. On the same day, a research vessel from the United States resupplyed in this port city, very close to Antarctica. Refusing the locals' warm hospitality, it continued its journey to its original destination without stopping.

They certainly wouldn't notice that an uninvited guest had quietly boarded the ship.

........................

Lex Wood took a deep breath, feeling the long-lost chill of Antarctica. As she stepped back onto the polar permafrost that had left such a deep impression on her, the horrific experience from months ago reverberated in the depths of her mind.

She seemed to see Weyland Yutani again. The old man who wanted to make a final push at the end of his life ultimately failed to achieve his posthumous fame—the secret of the underground pyramids in Antarctica was concealed, and the expedition that killed the entire team was explained as a sudden polar storm. And the impact of Weyland's death on the world was exactly as he had predicted before the expedition began.

Wieland Yuya's stock fell 12%.

That's all, nothing more. Even his company was secretly taken over by the US authorities immediately after his death, as a decoy to deceive other countries. Under the pretext of "fulfilling the chairman's last wish," they built a larger research base on this polar frozen land, with far more investment in public than in private, but still less than one-tenth of what they had done in secret, for "scientific research."

"The world is clearly not ready..."

She recalled the alien spear she had received from the aliens, and the disaster that had struck Connison nearly three months earlier, as well as the alien remnants recovered by professionals—the alien she called the 'Predator' had been cremated after death, its equipment and tissues destroyed, yet a considerable amount of equipment and fragments made of alien metal were still recovered from the hospital.

If we could determine their structure and composition, then American... no, humanity's materials science would leap forward by at least fifty years. However, even with fifty years of technological advancement, how could humanity possibly contend with those powerful extraterrestrial beings?
“What’s not ready, Dr. Wood?” A gentle voice asked her from the side.

“The beasts aren’t ready to be hunters yet,” Lex shook her head. Looking at her black-haired, black-eyed companion, she felt as if a thin fog had been shrouded in mist, yet the matter itself seemed insignificant. “The Predators are too powerful. The reason humanity has been able to survive under their watchful eyes is because they haven’t yet seen humans as valuable prey. If the two civilizations were to go to war, the consequences would likely be quite dire.”

“Perhaps.” Her companion shrugged, seemingly unconcerned. “But that’s not something we should be concerned with. Our job is to assist in the excavation of this collapsed site. As for the rest, those professionals in charge will make the judgment.”

Lex sighed.

She had to admit that she was not much of a force in this 'scientific expedition team'. She was even less capable than the 'Professor Si' in front of her, who had also been invited to excavate ancient ruins; at least he was younger and stronger.

But speaking of which, when exactly did Professor Si join this 'scientific expedition team'? Why do I seem to have no recollection of it at all...?
"Welcome to the forward base, Dr. Wood, Professor Si. The General has been waiting for you for a long time. We have just encountered a small problem and need your professional advice for reference."

Her train of thought was interrupted. Lex looked at the officer who was receiving her and nodded politely. As she followed the officer to the base, she subconsciously glanced at the research vessel behind her—she wasn't sure if it was just her imagination, but she seemed to see a huge, blurry outline, like an octopus or a worm, quietly crawling on the research vessel's control tower.

That feeling was fleeting.

She turned and followed the officer through one guard post after another—in less than three months, the US government, mobilizing vast amounts of manpower and resources, had built an enormous military base on this abandoned whaling station. At least one division of polar special operations forces was stationed there. And in the bay outside the base, six fully armed destroyers were ready to bombard it at any moment.

"The attack will be very difficult," Professor Si commented as they walked. "Whether it's infiltration or a direct assault, the chances of success are slim. Unless we use some radical and destructive methods, but that might hinder subsequent development."

“You’re quite humorous, Professor Si.” Lex chuckled. She had heard of Professor Si before, though she had never met him before today. He was indeed an explorer known for his daring and radical nature. It was said that two months ago, during an expedition to Mayan ruins, he had strangled an eight-meter-long anaconda with his bare hands. She didn’t know whether it was because he was incredibly strong or because the anaconda was simply in poor condition.

“Strictly speaking, that snake was only six meters long, and I wasn’t fighting barehanded,” Professor Si replied, then nodded slightly apologetically. “I’m sorry, such a wide-ranging mental suggestion is very taxing on me. But don’t worry, this situation won’t last long.”

What is he saying?
What nonsensical and strange things is he saying?
Lex frowned, a complex web of logic churning within his mind—yes, Professor Si was indeed a world-renowned explorer of ancient ruins, and yes, he had indeed been invited to explore a sufficiently ancient site. So, under these circumstances, wasn't his presence here perfectly normal?
The hazy feeling resurfaced in her mind once more—she turned around again, and in a daze, she seemed to see a huge, transparent silhouette following her and the others deeper into the base. Her reason told her that something completely wrong was happening, but her emotions insisted that nothing unexpected had occurred.

"It's better not to," Professor Si said again. "If we make things too clear, it will probably be difficult to end things peacefully."

What he said seemed to make sense, so Lex stopped thinking about it. The officer who had been leading the way and the soldiers they encountered along the way acted as if they hadn't heard anything.

Soon, the two met the commander at the base. They also became fully aware of the 'minor trouble' the officer had mentioned earlier.

“Drilling has encountered some problems.” The commander showed her some photos of tunnels and ancient ruins. “Dr. Wood, you said that the Predator detonated a powerful bomb before taking you out of the ruins. Now, the drilling is approaching the depth of the collapsed area, but some broken ruins are blocking our way.”

"I need your expertise to tell me which of these fragments are valuable. Because you are the only one who experienced this event, your judgment is crucial."

The commander explained, while Professor Si naturally walked over to examine the photos.

"Do you have complete excavation drawings, as well as scans of the remains' structure?"

The commander hesitated for a moment, seemingly wavering. But he ultimately took a stack of documents marked "Top Secret" from a classified filing cabinet and handed them to Professor Si.

"Thank you for your cooperation." The black-haired, black-eyed man nodded, smiled, and accepted the document. He then turned and left decisively, without anyone stopping him.

He just left like that.

Lex stared in disbelief in the direction he had gone. Even though a cloud of confusion still lingered in her mind, her logical thinking pierced her sharply.

"He... he just left like that, is that alright?" She looked at the base commander and asked incredulously.

“What are you talking about, Dr. Wood?” The commander simply looked at her with surprise. “We specifically brought you here from the mainland hoping you could offer some constructive suggestions. As for other matters, we have our own considerations.”

"Wait, you mean you only invited me?"

"Of course, is there anyone else?"

"But just now, that Professor Si..."

"Professor Si? From the very beginning, there have only been the two of us here."

(End of this chapter)