Long-term salvation

However, as the gate to the deep-sea city in that supernatural dimension was closed, after a few weeks, people would find one or two strange fish-man corpses on the coast, and these rotten bodies would soon be recovered by the paranormal investigators of the Army Without Borders who rushed to the scene after hearing the news.

Although for Rhodes, he still had some minor troubles to deal with.

At any rate, now at least, the sun was rising over Innsmouth.

Chapter 342: Post-event handling (1/4)

Bright sunlight shone through the clouds, illuminating the collapsed buildings in Innsmouth. Only about a hundred people survived, their faces filled with gratitude for having survived the disaster. When they saw Rhode returning, supported by Qianye and Nayako, their gratitude quickly turned to joy.

"The in-law is back!"

"The in-law is back!"

"Long live Lord Qianye, may the son-in-law live forever in good health. Mr. Carter is more... um?!"

"Shut up! Are you trying to kill yourself?!"

Looking at the idiot on the rooftop who was being beaten by seven or eight people with their mouths covered, Rhodes sighed as he sat on the small boat slowly floating along the waves, not wanting to bother with these guys.

Rhode's thoughts wandered as he reached out to embrace Nayako, who had fallen asleep on his shoulder. He turned his head to look at Qianye, who was sitting at the bow. The latter had taken off his shoes and gently dangled his feet in the seawater. After shifting his gaze from the eye-piercingly white thighs, Rhode carefully considered his words and asked:

"At the bottom of the sea, I seemed to enter a dream world and met Cthulhu, but I managed to escape with the help of certain beings... the Three Pillars?"

"The elders are very interested in your development and are naturally willing to pay attention to you, but that's all," Qianye said with a smile. She stretched out her hand and touched Rhodes' broken ribs, and the latter soon felt a sense of comfort, and the vague pain also dissipated for the most part.

The beautiful black-haired woman shook her finger, and the smile on her face turned serious:

"So, before, we only scared off the Lord of R'lyeh. But when He realizes that the three elders won't attack directly, He might still attack you in His rage."

"I'm lucky."

"That's right. If the other two elders didn't have children, you would have been caught by mother and bred by us." Qian Ye's body swayed, letting his hair be soaked by the sea water, with a beautiful and ethereal look on his face.

"...I really wish you could say it was to improve genes."

Rhode covered his face with his hands, but he immediately saw Qianye's expression change slightly, and her slender legs stopped shaking. In just a few seconds, she grabbed something from the bottom of the water.

In the core of the Dagon Cult in the town of Innsmouth, Ucia Cambaro, who was tightly bound by black tentacles, was struggling constantly. But after meeting Qianye's gaze, she gave up resistance with a look of despair on her face and said nothing.

It seems that this woman with Deep One blood did not choose to swim towards the Deep One city in the deep sea, nor did she commit suicide like some Innsmouth people... Is it because of her half-brother?

"Sure enough, I should just shoot him." Rhode touched his chin. He pulled out his revolver and lifted up Uxia's chin, meeting her desperate yet somewhat unwilling eyes. "It seems there's no point in keeping him around. He's still a potential threat."

“It’s not really a hidden danger.”

Qianye tilted her head slightly, raised her finger, and the tip of her hair immediately turned into a tentacle, slowly and unstoppably piercing into Wuxia's abdomen - the latter's eyes widened instantly, and severe pain swept through her body, almost tearing her soul apart!

"Now, she has lost the ability to 'reproduce'."

Qianye's fingers slid across Wuxia's face. The latter only heard a few faint whispers of threats. It didn't matter if she didn't accept them, because these words would be engraved in her bones.

Removing his finger, the Dark Young continued:

"You can slice her up or keep her for observation... After all, humanoid creatures with octopus tentacles that can swim freely in the sea are rare. Alternatively, you can study the R'lyeh Text and use the spells and the characteristics of carriers of the Deep One's bloodline to one day open the gates of the Deep One's abyssal city and drop a few nuclear bombs inside."

Hearing this, Uxia's eyes widened, and finally he could only lower his head helplessly.

"That's indeed valuable," Rhodes nodded slightly. "I'll discuss this in detail with Mr. Paul."

Having said that, if "fertility" can be taken away, can it be given?

Rhodes turned this idea over in his mind and immediately threw it out, asking Qianye to row the boat towards the people of the Shub sect who had already started to save themselves - these guys immediately started to save themselves after the sunrise in Innsmouth, searching for those who were still alive, or shooting those who were obviously deep divers... In the whole town, there were probably about thirty more people scattered around, and these were the last things left in Innsmouth.

But where are Randolph Carter and Paul?

After a brief chat on the communicator, Rhodes found a relatively dry room to wait for Carter and his companions who were heading to the New Church District to search for survivors to return.

About half an hour later, Carter and Paul came back with a bruised old woman who seemed to be the only survivor there.

Pushing up her glasses, the old woman's eyes swept over Usiah, who was tied up tightly on the ground, and she sneered disdainfully:

"Although there is no skyfire, the sun still shines into Innsmouth, alien."

"...The great Father and Mother God will awaken Cthulhu," Ulthea whispered. She did not meet the old woman's mocking eyes, but kept muttering to herself, "The sea will one day flood the land."

"Oh, what a sad dream, you and your people—"

"Professor Harriet Dower?"

Rhodes coughed lightly to attract the old woman's attention. The latter was startled and then noticed the other people in the room. After bowing and giving an awkward smile, the archaeology professor from Brown University said apologetically:

"I'm sorry, Mr. Rhodes—yes, I've understood everything from Mr. Carter's story—so please accept my gratitude... Although I really want to repay you, I'm just an ordinary university professor."

Ordinary? Rhode raised an eyebrow. An ordinary university professor wouldn't be able to carry around the R'lyeh Text and decipher a bit of the text without going crazy. So...

"I hope Professor Dao can take up a position at Miskatonic University," Rhodes said with a smile. He pulled out a recruitment document from his storage space and handed it to the still dazed old woman. "The salary and benefits are negotiable, and you'll also meet very interesting colleagues and students there."

"interesting?"

"The university just passed a resolution regarding experiments on reanimating corpses, approving $2 million in funding. Incidentally, they just completed the 'feat' of turning a corpse into a doll, which nearly caused an accident... Of course, penalties and restrictions are inevitable."

"I'll join!"

Professor Dao said quickly, she flipped open the recruitment contract, found the place to sign and quickly wrote her name - this man is also a lunatic at heart, just right to sit at the same table with those guys in the University of Michigan who are eager to create chaos.

"Welcome aboard, Professor."

As for the rest of us...

Rhode turned to look at Paul and his girlfriend, Barbara. Paul glanced at his half-sister on the ground and nodded resignedly, agreeing to go to Miskatonic University with Professor Dower—he still had the blood of a Deep One in him! This young university student had no desire to become one... but that would change in the years to come.

Paul's girlfriend Barbara shook her head. She took a step back and said tiredly:

"Please erase my memory. I can't stand this."

"...Escape isn't necessarily a bad thing," Rhodes nodded in agreement. He stood up, patted the grieving Paul's shoulder, and continued, "But I also want to remind you, Miss Barbara, this kind of thing will only become more and more common in the future. Even if your memory is erased, it will not mean you are away from the darkness."

"This reality is too heavy for me, sir," Barbara lowered her head, not daring to look at her boyfriend's expression, but she immediately felt a familiar hug - Paul hugged the person he once loved and whispered:

"You're quite right, Barbara, we can't be together... We have to take responsibility for the children we might have in the future."

As he spoke, Paul took a half step back and smiled:

"Wait until I've dealt with my issues, then just wait for me to come find you! If you're married, then I can only apologize to your husband... Hey, don't hit me on the head!"

Barbara burst into laughter and kissed Paul, but soon, Paul pushed her away decisively.

Chapter 343: Waiting and Battle Potion (2/4)

After the sun rose in Innsmouth, Rhodes and his companions did not leave the town immediately. They waited at the edge of the town for almost three hours before the Army Without Borders' processing specialists arrived here with a transport helicopter loaded with various supplies.

According to these strong men, although they had expected the bad road conditions, they still exceeded their imagination:

When the sea fog surrounding Innsmouth began to slowly dissipate and time and space were no longer blurred, the infrastructure on the edge of the city collapsed rapidly, making it extremely difficult to enter even on foot.

As a result, the executive officers from the [Reality Veil Administration (Chapter 210)] had to unload some of the supplies from the trucks, use Labor robots to rebuild the roads, and quickly coordinate the dispatch of transport helicopters.

Fortunately, the transport helicopter didn't encounter anything strange, nor did it get lost in the gradually fading sea fog. When abnormal weather conditions can be clearly observed, using an aircraft to enter does require courage and determination. Rhode still hoped that they wouldn't do anything stupid out of impulsiveness. Training an elite pilot who can smoothly fly a helicopter in a supernatural environment is not easy.

As for now, in addition to warnings, Rhodes also needs to communicate with the executive commissioners.

"Sorry, Boss, we're late," the burly man before him said, his face thick with guilt. He glanced anxiously at the nearby town flooded by the sea. "I hope we haven't missed anything. Perhaps we should exchange experiences with our Soviet... Russian colleagues, like how they suppressed the Chernobyl nuclear disaster."

"That's not easy to do—but at least for now, I hope you can summarize this experience. A report like 'Experiences and Lessons Learned in Rapidly Handling an Otherworldly Disaster in a Remote Area' can appear on my desk in a week."

Rhodes said this, but he smiled and patted the leader's shoulder, pointing to the members of the Shab sect who were undergoing inspection and waiting to receive food, and encouraged them:

"At least these people will survive... But that's not your concern now. Have your men take precautions and then enter the flooded town. There are several locations that need to be inspected and any valuable items and information recovered."

After saying that, Rhode thought for a moment, glanced at Professor Dao who was slowly drinking his porridge, and added to the leader of the executive committee:

"Make sure to seal off the town first. As for the amnesiacs, use them if necessary, but keep good records. People from Miskatonic University will be coming here for an inspection in the next few days, so you must also provide good security."

"Yes, as you wish, Boss!"

After watching the executive officer lead the team run away, Rhode breathed a sigh of relief and suddenly felt the left side of his face burning - it was the tiny specks of sunlight leaking out from the clouds. The light was light golden at first, then gradually condensed into a honey-like texture, slicing diagonally across the wreckage of Innsmouth buildings not far away.

At this moment, Rhodes truly felt that the "haze had dissipated."

"The sun is shining after the rain...I'd better give up seafood for a week after I get back."

Rhode was filled with emotion. He stretched and walked towards where Nayako and Qianye were. The latter smiled a little when they saw Rhode coming, but soon it turned into a slight worry.

Noticing the expression on Qianye's face, Rhode crossed his arms and asked with a smile:

"Is it because of these people from the Cult of Shab?"

"Well," the gentle woman nodded slightly, "I'm a little worried about how you'll deal with them... From a human perspective of good and evil, they haven't done anything bad."

After a pause, Qianye added:

"At least not yet."

"Then I won't do anything to them," Rhodes sat on the folding chair. Nayako, who was still in a daze, walked over to him and sat in his arms. The weight of the two people made the chair creak.

"I'm not a lunatic from the Imperial Church. I won't shout about heretics dying every day."

"Do you always answer people in words they can't understand?" Qianye sighed, but the worry on her face was mostly gone. She said softly, "I will limit the sect's development and ensure they don't do anything out of line."

"That's good."

Seeing that he had nothing to do for the time being, Rhode opened the system interface and began to review his gains. Apparently, due to the consecutive missions, the system did not reward character exchange coupons. Instead, in addition to the required reward of the otherworld pollution points, it gave a very strange thing:

How to redeem and craft [Anti-Mind Pollution Injection Potion] and [Combat Injection Potion (from Escape from Tarkov)]:

There is no need to explain the former one, and the latter ones are injections from the masterpiece of Slavic Prison, such as Propital (yellow needle, relieves pain and restores blood), ETG-change (green needle, extremely fast blood recovery), Zagustin hemostatic agent (purple needle, stops bleeding and prevents bleeding), etc. There are more than a dozen types of effects.

Although many of them have serious side effects, they can definitely help the soldiers of the Army Without Borders save their lives on the battlefield!

He was able to save his life, so the rest would depend on how much power Atlas Corporation and Aperture Technology could exert. After all, no one knew when the system would be able to provide a redemption voucher for a full-time rescue (battlefield) character.

After using some points to exchange for a few yellow needles and [Anti-Mind Pollution Injection] and putting them into the storage space, Rhodes planned to wait for a chance to experience it himself in the future.

Rhodes, in a good mood, stretched his body and pinched the sleepy Nayako's cheek, causing the latter to grumble a few times.

Looking at Rhodes who was teasing Nyako with great interest, Qianye nodded slightly and said:

"There's one more thing. My patron... the Yellow King left me a letter before he left, saying he wanted to pass it on to you."

"?"

Hearing this, Rhodes hesitated for a moment, and after a few seconds of silence, he reached out and took the piece of yellow silk handed to him by Qianye. This thing then turned into an exquisitely crafted letter with a very simple content - Cthulhu has a residence in the South Pacific, and if any damage is caused to the former, the King in Yellow will present a gift.

Killing someone with a borrowed knife... I can take revenge on anyone, right?

However, this is indeed a goal that Rhodes was required to achieve by the system:

[Side Quest: Call of Cthulhu]

[Quest Description: Find R'lyeh and banish Cthulhu's consciousness to the depths of the Dream Realm to advance the base construction side quest.]

Just looking at the mission description, Rhodes felt sad for the dark green fat boy - however, even if it was just facing the sleeping Old Ones, this was by no means an easy task. Obviously, he needed to bring the descendants of the Three Pillars of God along... He had to be fully prepared.

Thinking of this, Rhode turned his head to look at Qian Ye who was standing beside him without saying a word, and said with a smile:

"Let me take you back to Hill Manor."

"Ok!"

Chapter 344: Daily Life: Abigail's Rebellion! (3/4)

"I never wanted this... I never wanted to free my family, the Pickman... Together we dispelled the disaster of the other world... But you betrayed me... You betrayed us all!"

"You stole power from the gods... and lied to your lovers..."

"Rod...if I hadn't saved it from your defeat...let Hill Manor burn!"

Abigail said this sinisterly. She placed her hands on the crystal ball in front of her and looked at the image of Rhodes sleeping in the car emerging from it. He still needed some time to return to Hill Manor, and this just fulfilled the wishes of the great Miss Abigail. She coughed lightly and tapped her fingers on the crystal ball a few times.

At the same time, Rhodes, who was lying on Qianye's lap and falling asleep, felt as if he was falling...

Opening his eyes, Rhode saw that he seemed to be in a dark room. Across from him, a man wearing a black hood sat back in a chair and said slowly:

"Their DEEP♂DARK♂FANTASIES."

Rhodes: “?!”

Before Rhode could react, he was thrown into a dream of a restaurant again. The two office workers opposite him showed subtle expressions and said:

“Very fresh...very delicious..."

Subconsciously making a tactical backward move, Rhodes' body fell backwards. This time, he found himself in a locker room, and two men seemed to be about to walk in from outside.