Tan Linh wanted to hang up the phone.
What the hell was this?
Guess, guess, guess my ass! What he loved most was when the other person wanted to find him, yet had no idea where he was.
This gave Tan Linh a kind of indescribable satisfaction.
You want to find me?
You want me to tell you my location?
Heh, I just won't tell you. I just want to make you anxious, and there's nothing you can do about it.
But wait, Tan Linh thought back to what Lam Pham had just said: "Now guess where I am."
There was something wrong with that tone, definitely something wrong. Instantly, a bad feeling surged into his mind, but he quickly suppressed it.
Impossible. How could he know where I am? This is the most secret place. Even the former branch members didn't know.
"You found me?"
Tan Linh asked in a skeptical tone.
"Sigh, you're really no fun at all. You actually guessed it right. But congratulations. Although we haven't met, I can feel that your aura is very strong, your vitality is very high. It seems you've really walked a successful path," Lam Pham said with praise.
At this moment, hearing these words from Lam Pham, Tan Linh's face instantly turned pale.
Beside him, Professor Kim scrambled to check the external surveillance.
No one on the first screen.
No one on the second screen.
This gave Professor Kim a glimmer of hope.
But when he saw the third screen, with a jolt, his heart leaped violently. Who else could the figure in that image be but Lam Pham?
Professor Kim was extremely nervous, his face turning as white as Tan Linh's. He knew just how terrifying Lam Pham was. If he really broke in, it would be a dead end.
Don't be fooled by the boss seeming very strong now.
He still chose to believe in Lam Pham, because in his heart, Lam Pham's strength was truly terrifying.
Just then, Professor Kim felt a chill envelop him, as if a pair of eyes were spying on him. In the current base, besides him, there was only the boss.
He turned his head to look at the boss and found his boss's two eyes staring intently at him.
A chill shot up from the soles of his feet straight to the crown of his head.
The boss suspects me, the boss wants to kill me?
"Boss, you're looking at me like that... I'm scared," Professor Kim trembled, shivering uncontrollably, an indescribable fear gripping him. He knew the boss must suspect him, thinking he was the one who had led Lam Pham here.
But this was a false accusation! What the hell does this have to do with me?
"Did you lead him here?" Tan Linh's tone was extremely sinister, as if Professor Kim's answer would displease him in the slightest, his head and body would be separated.
Thud!
Professor Kim decisively dropped to his knees. "Boss, it wasn't me! I am absolutely loyal to you! Besides, I haven't been out during this time. It's definitely not me! Someone else must have told him! It's really not me!"
Tan Linh stared at Professor Kim, seeing his terrified appearance. He also knew it probably wasn't Professor Kim. But if it wasn't him, then who could it be?
As he was deep in thought.
The voice on the phone interrupted his thoughts.
"Hey, hello? Are you still listening to me?"
Lam Pham's voice came from the other end of the phone.
"Don't blame Professor Kim. It really wasn't him who told me. After all, I've never even met him, right? I've always wanted to have a good chat with you face-to-face, but unfortunately, you never gave me the chance. Now that I've found you, we finally have the opportunity to talk."
"Wait for me for a moment. I'll be there soon."
His tone was a little emotional, excitement mixed with anticipation. It was the kind of anticipation one feels when about to meet someone like Tan Linh.
The call ended.
Beep... beep...
The dial tone sounded.
With a crack.
Tan Linh crushed the phone in his hand, his expression incredibly ugly. "Are there any other ways to leave?"
He really didn't want to meet Lam Pham.
Don't be fooled by the fact that he seemed to have successfully evolved. Compared to Lam Pham, he knew he was inferior. The gap between them was definitely not something his current evolution could handle.
"Boss, there's only one exit, but it's probably already blocked by him," Professor Kim said helplessly.
He felt the boss might have really been scared silly.
To even ask such a moronic question. This base was built by your Tan family. Whether there are other exits or not, you don't know, and you're asking him, a foreigner? Isn't that like taking off your pants to fart—completely unnecessary?
"Activate all defense mechanisms for me! Stop him!" All Tan Linh could think about was how to stop Lam Pham. As the danger descended, his mind raced, trying to figure out what to do.
Rumble!
Just then, a violent tremor was transmitted.
The terrified Tan Linh's expression suddenly changed completely.
He knew this was a sign that Lam Pham had already come in.
Tan Linh turned to leave.
"Boss, where are you going?" Professor Kim asked impatiently.
Tan Linh said in a deep voice, "I'll dig an escape tunnel if I have to."
He was now in a very perfect form. If he couldn't fight, then digging a tunnel to leave shouldn't be a problem, right?
Professor Kim: ...
Alright, he really didn't expect the boss to be such a humorous person, actually thinking of digging a tunnel to get out. Although it sounded a bit comical, it seemed it wasn't entirely impossible.
With the boss's sharp claws, digging through the earth would surely be very easy.
At this moment.
Lam Pham had already blasted open the main gate at the entrance. What met his eyes was a bottomless descending passage. The four sides of the passage were covered in metal, forming a single entity.
Without thinking, he jumped straight down. The height was quite significant. For any ordinary person, if they didn't use a descending tool, they would definitely be smashed into a meat patty.
Finally, his feet landed on the ground.
Lam Pham assessed the situation before him and couldn't help but sigh in admiration. As expected of the headquarters built by the Tan Group. The interior decoration gave people a very strong sense of oppression, making anyone who entered feel like they had entered a very impressive place.
Red warning lights flashed.
This symbolized that an intruder had entered.
"Tan Linh, turn these off. You know these things are useless against me," Lam Pham spoke up to remind him.
He figured Tan Linh must be in front of some screen right now, spying on him.
So, the other party could definitely hear what he was saying.
The warning lights continued to flash.
Lam Pham shook his head, said no more, and walked forward. Instantly, various mechanisms appeared on both sides of the metal passage. Guns emerged, and infrared lasers automatically aimed.
Rat-a-tat-tat...
The firepower was extremely fierce, strafing wildly towards Lam Pham.
Lam Pham originally didn't want to block it, but then he thought that his clothes were just ordinary material and would definitely be riddled with bullet holes, creating large holes one after another, which would greatly affect his image. After all, he was about to meet the other party, and image was very important.
Lam Pham threw a punch at high speed.
The air in front of him was compressed. The surrounding walls rippled with wave after wave of tide-like folds, roaring as they swept into the distance. The surrounding guns were crushed and completely destroyed.
Even the bullets that had just been fired were crushed and shattered within this pressure.
This was the destructive force created when one's own strength and punching speed were pushed to the extreme. Of course, he didn't dare to use too much force, for fear that with a little more force, he would destroy this base.
"President Tan is really not friendly. When a friend comes from afar, you should definitely give them a warm welcome. Always playing with these useless tricks really has no effect at all."
Lam Pham shook his head, expressing his regret over this.
Suddenly.
A whistling sound came from the distance. A rocket, trailing a tail of flames, came hurtling over. Faced with this situation, Lam Pham's expression was extremely calm. He knew President Tan was very terrified of his arrival.
If he wasn't terrified, would this be the situation?
Obviously not.
For an ordinary person's reaction speed, it would be impossible to dodge, but Lam Pham's footsteps shifted slightly, and he directly dodged it, letting the rocket fly behind him.
With a loud boom.
It completely exploded.
The firelight illuminated the area, but it had to be said that the surrounding metal plates were indeed tough enough. Apart from leaving black marks, there was no other effect.
Lam Pham walked forward. This base was located deep underground. Building such a base back then must have required a huge investment. In Lam Pham's opinion, this base even looked a bit like the Umbrella Corporation's base in "Resident Evil."
It had all sorts of advanced mechanisms. Besides firearms, the attack methods also included lasers and other things Lam Pham had seen before.
Even if an army were to come in.
They would probably lose a layer of skin, and the number of people who could make it to the end would be very, very small. It would be basically impossible to reach the end.
Gradually.
He passed through some areas and saw many research subjects. Some were strangely mutated, and it was impossible to tell what they used to look like. They could only be described as monsters.
At this moment.
He stood in front of a glass container. Inside was a beating heart, covered in an unknown liquid. Judging by the size of the heart, this was a child's heart.
He knew that a human heart was about the size of a fist.
Was the owner of this heart a little boy or a little girl?
"I really should have found you sooner."
Lam Pham clenched his fists, his gaze fixed on the container, unable to look away for a long time. His previously unmoved heart began to ripple. The scene before him made his mood start to become very unpleasant.
He didn't understand why some people became so cruel after the apocalypse.
To even lay a hand on the hope of the future.
Were all people evil? Once the shackles holding them down disappeared, would they completely let themselves go and unleash the evil in their hearts?
Lam Pham thought about it, then dismissed the idea. No, that's not a reason. The people living in the Sunshine Shelter are so good. Everyone's heart is turned towards the light, full of hope for the future.
Just then.
A piercing sound came.
It was the sound of something sharp scratching against the metal walls. Gradually, along with it, came the sound of heavy footsteps.
Rumble!
Rumble!
The ground was shaking.
Lam Pham knew a terrifying fellow had arrived. He knew Tan Linh wouldn't let him get here so easily. Ahead was a door. With a thud, a huge fist punched through the iron door, then violently tore it to pieces.
He saw the fellow that appeared.
It was a special zombie even more muscular than a strength-type zombie.
It had green eyeballs, drooled a viscous liquid from its mouth, and its arms, waist, and thighs were incredibly full and explosive.
"Roar..."
The special zombie let out an angry sound towards Lam Pham. As it roared, a few tentacles in its mouth writhed, as if to say how powerful I, a special zombie, am.
"A modified special zombie, huh? As expected, modified zombies are more likely to become monsters."
Lam Pham felt an extremely strong sense of pressure from the other party.
This was a presence that even a Tyrant Zombie didn't have.
The special zombie didn't charge at Lam Pham, but lifted a table on the side and threw it with great force, wanting to smash Lam Pham to death with it.
Facing the incoming table, Lam Pham reached out, grabbed the table leg, and then gently placed it on the ground.
"If you have something, just come at me. There's no need to break things," Lam Pham said.
"Roar."
The special zombie roared violently, swinging its right arm. Its right arm was wrapped in an iron chain, which must have been installed by Tan Linh. As it swung, the iron chain tore through the air with great force. If it were to hit a person, their flesh and blood would definitely explode in an instant.
Facing the incoming iron chain, Lam Pham reached out and directly grabbed the chain in his hand. The special zombie was clearly a little surprised by this situation. Its ferocious expression changed slightly, evidently not expecting that the iron chain he had swung with such force would be blocked by the delicious human in front of him.
This situation was a bit beyond its imagination, something it couldn't accept.
"Come here you..."
Lam Pham used a little force, and the huge special zombie flew towards Lam Pham like a puppet on a string. In this clash of strength, it was ultimately Lam Pham who came out on top.
...
"Holy crap."
Professor Kim, who was still watching the screen, was completely wide-eyed. In his vision, Lam Pham was truly terrifying. The special zombie he had modified was even stronger than a Tyrant Zombie.
But in front of Lam Pham, it behaved like a small shrimp.
It didn't have a single chance to resist.
After Lam Pham dealt with the special zombie, he was already heading towards them. His face turned pale with fright, and he was in a state of panic, not knowing what to do.
"Boss, boss..."
Professor Kim hurriedly ran towards Tan Linh, only to see the boss frantically digging with both hands. His sharp fingers had already broken through the special metal inlay, digging out a lot of rubble and soil.
"What are you screaming about?" Tan Linh shouted angrily. He was now truly regretting it. If he had known earlier when building the facility, he would have left an escape route.
Unfortunately, when this place was built, he was still just a kid. He should have asked his elders what they were thinking. Did they really think this place was completely safe, without any danger?
Damn it.
Truly damn it.
He really didn't want to face Lam Pham. The pressure the other party gave him was immense. He didn't think he was Lam Pham's opponent. What would be the result of being caught by the other party?
He would surely die without even knowing how.
Professor Kim said, "That... he's coming soon. The modified special zombie was blown up by him with one punch."
Hearing these words, Tan Linh's movements became even faster, and more soil was dug out. Then he turned around and stared at Professor Kim, "What the hell are you still standing there for? Hurry up and think of a way to stop him for me! If you can't stop him, then you can just die there for me! Scram..."
Being reprimanded like this by the boss, what could Professor Kim say?
He could only lower his head and obediently leave.
He was now racking his brain, trying to figure out what to do. It was really difficult to stop the other party. Was it something that could be stopped just by saying so?
Don't be ridiculous.
He took out a phone and sent a message to his younger brother, who was far away at another base.
"Little brother, Lam Pham has found the headquarters. I and the dog Tan are trapped in the base and can't get out. This might be the last message I send you. Take care of yourself. If you have a chance, come to the headquarters. In the secret compartment I told you about, I left you the most important thing."
He edited the message and sent it.
He also wanted to live, but the hope of survival was slim. There was basically no such opportunity. He and Tan Linh had done too many things. The other party would absolutely not let them live.
"Damn it, I'll fight you to the death."
Professor Kim thought of the various situations in the base and suddenly felt that there might still be a chance.
At this moment.
Lam Pham had already sensed their beating hearts. That kind of nervous mood could be felt from a great distance.
Suddenly.
A thick metal gate descended from the ceiling in front of him, blocking the path forward. A metal gate also appeared behind him.
"Still want to resist? Just stand in front of me and let us have a good chat. That's your best choice."
Lam Pham shook his head, feeling regret for their decision.
He had already held back enough. Otherwise, if he had increased his speed and just charged through, he would have appeared in front of them long ago.
Pipes appeared on the walls, and a large amount of unknown liquid poured out.
The color of the liquid was silver-white.
"This is mercury. Are they trying to poison me with this?" Lam Pham smiled and shook his head. At this rate, it probably wouldn't be long before this place was filled up.
Lam Pham ignored the mercury and walked to the metal gate. He punched hard, and the metal gate couldn't withstand such force. The surface began to bulge outwards. With a bang, the metal gate directly exploded.
Lam Pham passed through the blasted archway and continued forward.
...
"Can he really not be stopped?"
Professor Kim, who had been watching the surveillance, was now completely dumbfounded.
He had already done everything he could, but the feeling the other party gave him was simply too terrifying.
Professor Kim also wondered how he had found out the location of the base. It was clearly impossible.
But he racked his brains and could never have imagined that a certain old man, unable to bear the situation here, had escaped through a passage left by the designer.
In the end, even heaven couldn't stand it anymore and let the old man meet Lam Pham, finally obtaining the location of the base.
Professor Kim dejectedly lowered his head and walked towards Tan Linh.
From a distance, he saw the boss vigorously digging a passage. That bent back, those vigorously swinging arms, all indicated that the current boss was very scared, very panicked.
In his heart, Lam Pham was probably like an incubus.
Of course, for Professor Kim, Lam Pham was also a demon in his heart.
Professor Kim stood quietly behind, not making a sound. The boss looked very pathetic right now.
"Sigh, it's all going to end."
Professor Kim muttered to himself.
No weapon or mechanism in the base could stop the other party's path.
At most, it would just add a little fun to his journey.
Just as he was thinking about this.
A voice came from behind him.
"Hello there."
The greeting voice was full of a kind of anticipation. It was clear that Lam Pham couldn't wait to see what kind of situation Tan Linh was in right now.
Professor Kim's heart skipped a beat. He didn't dare to make a sound and quietly retreated. His heart was beating unsteadily.
Thump, thump, thump, it was hard to suppress.
Tan Linh, who was digging a passage, heard the voice, and his movements stiffened for a moment.
He stopped digging the passage.
He calmly straightened his back, shook his hands, and cleaned the soil off them.
"You've come. I've been waiting for you for a long time," Tan Linh said very calmly with his back to Lam Pham.
"Yes, I'm here. We've been in contact by phone for a long time but have never met. I'm very happy to be able to see you now," Lam Pham was not in a hurry either. The person was right in front of him, so he couldn't run away.
He looked around and saw the pale-faced Professor Kim. Judging by his situation, he should be very afraid of him.
Fear was normal.
Lam Pham just glanced at him briefly and could see that his sins were very deep. Those two hands were stained with the lives of many, many innocent survivors.
Being stared at by Lam Pham's casual gaze, Professor Kim lowered his head, not daring to breathe heavily.
Tan Linh sneered, "But I'm not happy. Seeing you just makes me feel unlucky."
Lam Pham said, "Is it because my arrival interrupted you from digging your tunnel? If you think I've disturbed you, you can continue. I'm willing to watch you finish digging from the side."
He could somewhat understand Tan Linh's unhappiness. Thinking about it, it was understandable. He had just been digging a hole nicely, and someone interrupted him. Anyone would be unhappy about that.
Therefore, Lam Pham was willing to wait until the other party had finished digging the passage.
Tan Linh: ...
At this moment, Tan Linh gritted his teeth, clenched his fists tightly. The anger towards Lam Pham had completely begun to burn in his heart.
Seeing that Tan Linh didn't want to talk, Lam Pham carefully observed him and then said, "Your situation is the same as I thought before. You have indeed borrowed the power of zombies to become stronger. Looking at your current situation, I find that your evolution seems to be quite good."
He was telling the truth. Among the types he had seen, there weren't many who could reach Tan Linh's state.
"Is that so? I thought you would never be able to tell," Tan Linh knew he could never leave this place, so he wasn't afraid to chat with Lam Pham.
In times of peace, he was high and mighty. How could he casually cast aside his dignity?
Lam Pham had a smile on his face, then looked at Professor Kim on the side, "I can tell just by looking at you that you must be a talented professor. Can you tell me a little about his situation? You wouldn't refuse me, would you?"
Hearing such words, Professor Kim was truly trembling.
He had already shrunk to the side like an ostrich, yet he was still being dragged out.
Whatever you two have, you can just talk about it. What does it have to do with me? If I can find a way to beg for mercy in the end, maybe I'll still have a chance to survive.
As for now, he really didn't want to actively jump out and attract fire.
But facing Lam Pham's question, Professor Kim hesitated for a moment, occasionally looking at Lam Pham, and then at Tan Linh.
This is so difficult. Why must you force me into this kind of predicament? Can't you just treat me like air and talk among yourselves? Wouldn't that be better?
At this moment, Professor Kim just wanted to bang his head against the wall and die.
But he knew that not answering was definitely not an option.
"That, this... I, I..."
Professor Kim's stuttering appearance was extremely helpless. His head was bigger than anyone else's right now. He really felt like he was about to burst.
Tan Linh's sinister gaze.
Lam Pham's smiling gaze.
For him, both types of gazes were fatal.
"It's okay, go ahead and talk. I don't think President Tan will blame you. I just want to know the truth."
Lam Pham knew Professor Kim was very nervous. This nervousness should be coming from Tan Linh.
Lam Pham, who had always been very considerate, naturally understood that this would make people very uncomfortable. But what he wanted was to make Professor Kim uncomfortable. After all, compared to what he had done, what was this little bit of embarrassment?
Under Lam Pham's gaze.
The defensive line in Professor Kim's heart completely collapsed.
"We previously captured a mother-body. Its situation was very special. It didn't become a zombie innately, but by using some kind of..."
Professor Kim rattled on, explaining all sorts of situations. Lam Pham, on the side, listened very seriously.
Calculating the time, that was a very long time ago.
He remembered Professor Ha had told him that besides Quy Thu Nguyet, there was someone else who had been injected with the lucky cells and then disappeared without a trace.
So it was clear that the mother-body they had captured should be that person from before.
But as for Tan Linh being able to take over the other party's consciousness when he was swallowed by it, that was something he had never expected.
It had to be said that this guy Tan Linh was really lucky enough.
After saying all this, Professor Kim felt a great weight had been lifted off him. He looked at Lam Pham with a pitiful expression.
"I've said everything I should say. It has nothing to do with me now, right?"
The meaning was very clear: please let me go. If you have something, go find Tan Linh. Don't always mess with me.
My fragile heart really can't take it.
Then he looked at Tan Linh again, a message in his eyes: Boss, it's not that I wanted to talk, it's that he forced me to. You should be able to understand me, right?
Lam Pham said, "Tan Linh, what do you think will be the situation at the end of your research? I said before that the path of the Mutator is a dead end."
He knew that the path of research was like an abyss. When one discovered some benefits in the abyss, it would make the researcher go completely mad, and then, like a demon, they would sink deeper and deeper, eventually getting trapped in it and unable to extricate themselves.
Tan Linh said, "Lam Pham, you're capable for being able to find me. No need for more nonsense. What exactly do you want? Just say it. I don't think you came here to talk nonsense with me."
"If you're here to lecture me, I advise you to shut up. I, Tan Linh, have never regretted anything I've done."
Lam Pham looked at the unrepentant Tan Linh before him and couldn't help but shake his head.
"Have you never regretted your actions?"
"Hahaha." Tan Linh laughed out loud upon hearing this, "Regret? Do you think I would regret it?"
Lam Pham said, "Alright, since it's like this, then let's begin. But please wait a moment first. Let me take a picture of you, as a trace of your existence in the apocalypse."
He raised his camera, said no more, and aimed the lens at Tan Linh.
With a crack.
An eternal legacy was made.