Madness ecstasy

"Plus, construction on [Shouzhu 151] began eighteen months ago, and if the project was approved—it would have been even earlier. Maybe there's something big going on in Mong Cai. Mong Cai might have some secrets or special features that I haven't discovered."

Doudou slowed down his pace. Once he left the noisy food stalls, barbecue stalls and restaurants, Mong Cai was almost deserted after dark, like a desolate graveyard.

"Oh, a big move? But Mong Cai is such a shabby place, what can we do?"

The muscle under Richard's left eye twitched. He stopped suddenly, shaking the mathematician; Richard covered his eyes with his elbow:

"I don't know. I don't understand. There's so little information. Hey, my eyelid keeps twitching: which eye twitching is a disaster?"

"After working in this industry for a long time, I get nervous no matter what I do. Sometimes my eyelids twitch all the time."

Doudou waved his hands and spoke skillfully in a flattering way:

"Oh! Don't worry. If your left eye twitches, you'll get rich. It doesn't matter which eye you twitch."

The night grew silent, save for the hum of cicadas. I passed through a narrow, slippery alley covered in moss, and crossed several pedestrian crossings in the middle of the night when traffic lights were out. Shouzhu 151 appeared before me.

The three of them stood at the street corner, looking at the Shouzhu 151 Building across the street: Adjectives like "out of place" and "standing out from the crowd" were not enough to describe it.

The building was more like a natural landscape, like mountains, thrust abruptly into this crude man-made landscape. Outside the building was a newly paved plaza; the fountains hadn't been turned on yet, the greenery hadn't been put in place yet, and the color was almost pure gray.

Through the glass exterior, you can see that the building is pitch black, with no light leaking out.

The mathematician squatted down, loosened and tightened his shoelaces:

"I thought this so-called [long-term branch] would be located in a more secluded location. I have a feeling this place will be packed with people during the day. It would be nice to take a stroll here in the evening to enjoy the cool air."

Chapter 61 Eve

Richard didn't move, but his fingers tapping against the seam of his pants betrayed his anxiety.

"It depends on the situation. The location will naturally be different depending on the objectives of the operation and the means used. A city like Mong Cai is too remote and too small. I haven't trained on the relevant emergency plans at headquarters."

"Generally speaking—"

"The choice of a downtown location means this frontline operation won't become a major event. Perhaps there are more covert needs, perhaps even requiring the use of civilians as cover to prevent other forces from taking drastic action. Of course, the company itself needs to keep a low profile: Asia-Europe Post isn't a true government agency, and if things get out of hand, it'll be difficult to suppress. Hence the complex reasons for this location."

The mathematician finally laced his shoe thoroughly and moved his ankle back and forth, as if warming up for a possible escape:

"It's possible—it's possible that their original target was the citizens. Right?"

Doudou, chin propped up by his fist, paced back and forth. The short nap in the car seemed to have made him feel better.

"What the doctor said seems to make some sense. Haven't you seen 'Martians Attack the Planet of the Apes'? Maybe they need to use a lot of people as research material! Oh my god, that's terrifying!"

Richard's gaze was fixed on Shouzhu 151. He looked up, searching for the towering summit of the building.

"This... shouldn't be the reason—"

"If you're looking for human material, Asia-Europe Post has better options. There's no need to come to a place like Mong Cai. Asia-Europe Post also has a lot of outbound business in Africa and Latin America. The environment there is chaotic, and it's much more convenient to get things done than in Jiaozhi Autonomous Prefecture."

The mathematician suddenly looked up—even though he had brought up the topic, it still shocked him the most:

"Huh? Human material? Are all those rumors true? Is the Asia-Europe Post conducting human experiments? I thought it was all conspiracy theories."

Before Richard could answer, Doudou asked the question first:

"Interesting—after all this research, where do these special abilities come from? Aliens? Genetic engineering? You big companies should know something. Come on, tell us."

Richard moved slightly left and right, looking at Shouzhu 151 from different angles. He looked like a tourist visiting a tourist attraction.

"I'm not sure, really. Even if Asia-Europe Post understood the true cause of the mania, it wouldn't be used as a training material for every employee."

Doudou uttered a "hmm" sound, as if thinking about something:

"Really? But what I actually find strange is: why don't I usually meet anyone with special abilities? From the videotape you played, it seems like there should be a lot of them."

Richard hid his injured hand deeper into his coat pocket.

"Many people are unaware they possess ecstasy. Some because their symptoms are too subtle, while others because their manifestations are too difficult to observe. This requires long-term follow-up by the investigation team, intelligence gathering, and experimentation to confirm."

"Most of the cases I've seen are organic miracles. No, carriers of organic mania—because only organic mania is the easiest to distinguish, visible to the naked eye. There are basically no other reliable screening methods. As you've seen in the video tutorials before."

“In the hospital, you might encounter patients with diseases like acromegaly, hemangioma, and arteriovenous fistula. But some of these patients are actually caused by ecstasy.”

-

Suddenly, the three of them stopped talking - according to the popular saying in Doudou's school, the sudden silence meant that some monsters were flying over their heads.

Richard and the mathematician both turned their gazes to Doudou; but it was Richard who spoke in the end:

"What do you say now?"

Doudou looked around and raised his index finger, pointing at himself in astonishment:

"Huh? Ask me?"

Richard's eyes met with the mathematician's, and they saw the complicated and incomprehensible expressions on each other's faces.

Doudou, with an expression that was unclear whether it was genuine or fake, began pacing back and forth around the blind path.

"No, we've already reached the gate of their lair. Are we going to sneak back home?! With the atmosphere at this point, it would be rude not to destroy their lair. It cost us an entire night."

Richard glanced at the gray creature rising into the clouds not far away, then looked at Doudou:

"So—do we need to formulate an infiltration plan?"

The pace of walking back and forth has increased:

"Ah? A plan? How could I possibly know that? I'm still a student! You guys come up with it, and I'll help you out. How's that? But I still think we should just rush in through the gate and catch the leader. Don't make it too complicated, Doctor, you still have to go back and help me with my math homework."

Doudou waited for a moment, but received no response. The other two companions stared at him in silence.

"Hey? Hey? Why aren't you talking? Okay, okay! Then I'll think about it."

He spread his hands and slapped his head twice, as if to force the idea out of himself:

"Um, Lao Li, do you know of any secret passages that can lead to this building?"

Richard shook his head and followed Doudou's gaze:

"I don't understand that. I haven't had access to the blueprints. Even if there are special entrances and exits, they'd require a key or something; or they'd have to be opened through the control room."

Doudou rubbed his philtrum furiously with his fingers; the movement left an afterimage, like a flesh-colored mustache.

"Hmm—there's one more! Since the Special Package Handling Department is in charge, then your base should also have psychics? Like your colleague who loves smoking."

Richard lowered his eyes and looked at the drain on the side of the road. Small groups of mosquitoes were hovering over it.

"Well, the standard is that there should be—"

"Since they've decided to establish their base of operations in Mong Cai, they'll definitely be recalling field agents from nearby areas. From what I understand, there are several more teams of monitors and ecstasy holders in Jiaozhi Autonomous Prefecture; they'll likely be rushing to Mong Cai as well."

"But it will take some time for it to be fully implemented - based on my experience, it may not even be that time yet."

"The three of us moved so quickly, I suspect the only people at the base are the section chief, some civilian staff, and the permanent security team."

"But when it comes to direct combat capabilities, field operations can't compare to the security team. So if we only consider the level of danger, there isn't a huge difference."

He circled around traffic signs and street lights, making a figure eight, while his tongue moved rapidly, like a tongue twister:

"That's all! First, we don't know about the secret entrance, second, there's no variable like strange superpowers, and third, the doctor and I haven't received any spy or stealth training. So why bother infiltrating? Why not just charge in and be done with it?"

"Time is tight and the mission is heavy. The more complex the plan, the easier it is to make mistakes. Let's adapt to the situation: I'll go ahead, you follow. If there's any danger, each of us will take cover! Do you understand? Let's go! Oh, let's cross the street slowly, watch out for cars."

Chapter 62 Building

"Wait, wait a minute."

The voice came from the mathematician walking behind:

"Um, actually, we don't have to rush here, right? I'm really grateful to Doudou for wanting to help me clear my name, but—"

He walked forward quickly and squeezed between Doudou and Richard:

"Haven't you heard the widespread rumor? Those who dare to mess with the Asia-Europe Post will mysteriously disappear. It's unlikely we'll be able to wipe out such a large criminal group right now. Richard also said that this base is likely understaffed."

This round of truth, lies and nonsense almost exhausted all the courage the mathematician had accumulated - he certainly knew that the guy he was messing around with would disappear at this time; and this "someone" was standing next to him.

However, mathematicians also understand simple risk aversion: judging by the known information, the more complex and dangerous the environment, the greater the fluctuations in Doudou's "emotions" and the more aggressive his behavior. This aggressiveness has not really harmed mathematicians so far, but...

Perhaps they had the same idea - Richard rarely agreed with the mathematician:

"Doc, that's not a legend. I've only handled a few such cases. We field agents often have to take time off to deal with [customers]."

Doudou turned his head left and right, warily looking at the empty streets on both sides, and walked quickly across the zebra crossing:

"Ah, ah, Doctor: Don't let a good deed go unnoticed. You can't just leave the bad guys alone, right?"

Although the mathematician had not held out much hope, he could not help but rack his brains for excuses:

"But--but besides, wouldn't I just be a drag on you guys? I don't know how to fight or anything like that. And I'll need you to distract me and take care of me later."

And—can walking into this Shouzhu 151 Building really clear one's name? The mathematician himself doesn't know: even...

After meeting Richard, the mathematician began to doubt the small team of special forces that had come to the apartment earlier - were those people really here to arrest him?

His chest was getting more itchy, and it seemed like it wasn't just eczema, but some other strange skin condition. The mathematician wanted to shove his hands under his shirt and scratch until they bled.

Cross the intersection and the road, and the skyscrapers are right in front of you.

Doudou finally turned around and smiled, but it was hard to tell whether that smile was meant to convey madness, friendliness, bloodlust, or comfort—or perhaps, there was no emotion to express at all, and everything came simply from the imagination of the bystander:

"It's okay, it's okay! Doctor, you don't understand. Look, most action movies or side-scrolling games require a powerless character like you, right? You can just stand by and explain the battle, analyze the situation, or something. Otherwise, I'll be bored."

The mathematician felt that he could see his impatience, but he didn't understand why Doudou suppressed this impatience - and the chilling coldness became even deeper.

Richard's face was filled with calmness - no one could tell that he was the one who was hurt:

"Doctor, don't be afraid. If it were your turn to fight, we would all be dead. It wouldn't make any difference whether we fought or not."

"You can stay close to me then. I can help you if there is any emergency."

Doudou gave a thumbs-up and swung his arms left and right, fearing that his encouragement wasn't conveyed properly:

"Hey! You see, Old Li is very sensible. Of course, Doctor, don't worry that he'll use you as a hostage to get back to the Eurasian Postal Service, or even just kill you. You're my neighbor, and if anything happens to you, I'll give him a couple of slaps."

Both people present knew that Doudou would not lie about such matters.

Richard blinked his eyes, but the rest of his facial features remained motionless.

"Sorry, I didn't think the problem through. Actually, on second thought, it would be inconvenient for me to infiltrate and operate with the doctor. Doudou, my combat ability is not comparable to yours. If we encounter the security forces, he and I might both lose our lives."

"It would be safest for the doctor to act on his own. The company will definitely not attack him immediately because he is not dangerous at all."

The mathematician's head whipped around—his mouth dropped open in surprise.

Richard changed his opinion so quickly, as if he had never intended to bring the mathematician along from the beginning: Or did he really have the idea that Doudou mentioned?

Doudou raised his hand and patted Richard's shoulder. Richard twisted his body slightly, as if trying to avoid this gesture of goodwill.

"Ah, no. The doctor might not be able to see it, but I know what you're capable of. Even though you only have one hand left, you're still much stronger than most people."

-

Richard still hid his hands in his sleeves—but even in his dark brown casual suit, the cuffs, darkened to black, were visible. Even though they had been disinfected with strong alcohol and a crude tourniquet had been applied,

His left hand had become a mass of mud, constantly oozing out body fluids; it was like a broken faucet, but shaped into a sticky, twisted shape like malt sugar.

Doudou leaned forward, stretching his neck forward, trying to go around Richard's torso to see his hand—as if afraid he wouldn't notice.

"Ha, Lao Li, you're such a tough guy. I remember that the human hand has a lot of nerves, so it must be painful. You're really patient."

The mathematician disliked Richard, even felt a bit disgusted. But on this night, at this moment, he really wanted to know what was hidden under Doudou's yellow raincoat, which still shone after being washed with blood. Was it something agitated, expanding, and malicious?

Or is it a cold, camouflaged alien object that reflects the appearance of the real world?

But he just stuffed his hands into his other armpits and hugged his chest: somehow it was really cold tonight; and he had nowhere else to go.

Richard held up the plastic bag, half filled with dark red liquid, in front of him. He could no longer discern the limbs inside through the translucent outer bag.

"The few emergency drugs the company distributed are effective, but they won't last long. I'll give you a general overview of the situation, and then we can take action."

His eye sockets were sunken, and his face was paler than the moonlight. Stubble had already pricked his mouth, and dead skin was flaking at the corners of his mouth - it was as if Richard had aged more than ten years in an hour.

"The exterior of [Shouzhu 151] isn't finished yet, but the interior of the building—"

Ping. Bang! Clang. Clang. Clang.

Richard and the mathematician were interrupted by the sudden noise. When they looked up, Doudou was already standing next to a glass wall of Shouzhu 151, with broken glass scattered all over the ground under their feet.

He held up a finger, grinning. Doudou must have shattered the glass wall with his finger. The glass reflected the light from the sky, and from this angle, Doudou seemed to be stepping on countless tiny, identical pocket moons.

"Come on, let's go straight in!"