The next day, Zhang Jue and Yang Xue came to the place where the man had been found. It was a big rock with scattered bloodstains on it. This should be the first scene where the man was killed. There was no cover around here. If someone had killed him and escaped, those security guards must have been able to see it. This also confirmed his suspicions from the side.
Zhang Jue stood on that rock and looked around at the terrain. As introduced earlier, Site-14 was claimed to be the headquarters of a pharmaceutical group and was located in a remote area surrounded by mountains on three sides.
Therefore, it was not easy for outsiders to break through the outer defenses to get here. They have asked the security on duty that night, and there was no record of any breach by someone.
Zhang Jue looked to the left at the mountain range and said, "That person wouldn't have come from there, would he?
In the distance, Yang Xue suddenly waved her hand at him. As if she had found something. Zhang Jue hurried over.
He saw Yang Xue staring at a stone. Zhang Jue walked over, and Yang Xue pointed to the side of the stone that had a sign on it.
Uh-huh? The sign was fresh and just drawn not long ago.
"The Foundation's old-fashioned sign." Yang Xue looked around at it, then pointed in the direction of the mountain, "He's trying to guide us that way."
The two walked a few hundred meters in the direction that the marker was pointing, and sure enough, they saw another rock with the same sign painted on it.
Zhang Jue pinched his waist and looked into the distance, "It seems that this person is trying to lure us into something. Surely he's not doing this just for a random reason." Zhang Jue and Yang Xue didn't stop but continued to follow the guidance of the sign forward.
The day was getting darker and darker. The two follow the sign, making them even farther away from Site-14. There were no more traces of human activity in front of them. If they went any further, they would be plunged into the deep mountains, which was very dangerous.
Yang Xue looked at Zhang Jue, "What should we do? Should we go back and report the information to Site Director Huang?"
Zhang Jue shrugged, "No need to ask me. Haven't you already thought about it doing it anyway?"
After spending so much time with each other, the two already had some tacit understanding. Yang Xue nodded and continued forward.
Since Huang Xingwen took over as a Site Director, he had always treated them well. Especially when Zhang Jue was around, he treated them well enough. Yang Xue guessed that he probably saw the downfall of someone close to him, Yang Wenbai.
Not to seek merit but to seek no-fault. But in the Foundation environment, "No-fault" is already a challenging thing.
The two of them walked for a few more hours, and the time was about 9 or 10 PM. They had gone deep into the mountains. You can still hear the howling of unknown beasts lurking around. The average person would instinctively develop some fear when walking into this deep forest. Zhang Jue did not get this kind of genetics, so he wouldn't be afraid of it. But what amazed him was that Yang Xue was also calm and collected.
"What's wrong?" Noticing Zhang Jue looking at her, Yang Xue turned her flashlight and looked at him as well.
"Nothing." Zhang Jue laughed, "I just noticed that Dr. Yang seems to be a lot more daring than before." He was referring to the time when he explored SCP-087.
Yang Xue shook her head, "People always have to grow and progress, especially around people like you. Even if they grow a little slower, they will still be pulled apart by you and then ridiculed mercilessly."
"Good point." Zhang Jue clapped his hands perfunctorily, then smiled badly, "Since Dr. Yang's guts are already so big, let me tell you a ghost story."
Yang Xue looked at him, "I'm all ears."
"It's not funny when you do that." Zhang Jue spread his hands, then looked around, "Don't keep walking. Let's camp here tonight." Yang Xue nodded.
Even if they weren't scared, they shouldn't be walking around. With limited vision, they are likely to miss any important leads. Yang Xue was thinking about how to use those dead branches to build a simple wooden hut, but Zhang Jue brought out a tent from nowhere.
"What are you waiting for? Come and help me." Zhang Jue said.
Yang Xue hurried up to help him press the edge of the tent, and then Zhang Jue nailed a special wooden nail into the ground. Soon, the tent was set up. Then Zhang Jue conjured up a barbecue grill. Of course, along with barbecue meat and ingredients.
Yang Xue was completely confused. She knew that Zhang Jue had some unknown abilities, but a tent and a field grill and barbecue meat? Did he think this was a camping trip?
Zhang Jue laughed, seeing that Yang Xue's expression was a little off. Since the last time he had walked inside SCP-1351 (Moebius Cave), he had learned the proper use of his Pocket Dimension. Putting a lot of things into it was the right thing to do.
He had a hot pot when he was at the headquarters. This time, he'd gone into the deep woods on an investigation, so a barbecue wasn't too much a trouble. Zhang Jue set the charcoal on fire, took out a few barbecues, and placed them on the grill.
"Dr. Yang, would you like some chili on it?"
...
They were surviving in the wild, especially in this deep forest full of wild animals. In fact, it is best not to engage in a barbecue kind of eating. Although the fire will be lit in the darkness, at the same time, the aroma from the grilled meat will also attract some large carnivores. They weren't afraid of fire, and they were dangerous when they were hungry.
But Zhang Jue doesn't worry about it in the slightest. Once the Terror Projection was cast, it was guaranteed that those beasts would not dare to enter within a hundred meters of his location. As for the mosquitoes and insects, it is even less necessary to say that they would die when they get close.
This is why he wanted Yang Xue to relax.
Full of wine and food. The two sat together as Zhang Jue watched the stars.
"I really didn't expect that you could bring this kind of stuff yourself."
"There are more things you're not going to believe what I had brought." Zhang Jue said. He would not tell Yang Xue that he still had a diesel generator and a home theater set in his Pocket Dimension.
If Yang Xue weren't here, he would most likely have taken out the SCP-1004 and watched it for himself. Watching that tape in this forest alone must feel like an amazing experience. But now it is a bit out of place.
After eating, Yang Xue has been somewhat silent. Zhang Jue knew that she should be thinking about her father.
"Tell me about your father." Zhang Jue said, "This will also help us find him."
Yang Xue nodded. "As far as I remember, my father was a very cautious man. He often said the phrase, 'Before thinking about victory, think about defeating it first.'"
...
The next day. After the dawn, they set out on their journey again. They followed the signs left by the man and walked towards the mountains for almost an hour more.
Finally, they found a waterfall. The sign pointed to the inside of the waterfall. It looked like there was something hidden inside.
What could it be?
Zhang Jue felt weirded. It felt like there wasn't much space inside the waterfall. At most, only a rock could be inside it. But it couldn't be helped. It still had to be investigated.
Yang Xue and Zhang Jue risked jumping over the waterfall one after another. Sure enough, there was only one giant rock inside. But the surface of the rock was faintly glowing.
There were some writings on it. It turned in a clockwise direction.
What is this thing?
Zhang Jue cupped his chin. He felt something familiar about it but couldn't figure it out. Yang Xue looked at it and pondered.
"Do you know what this is?" Zhang Jue asked.
"Hmm." Yang Xue nodded. "I once saw a similar writing in my father's notes when I was a child."
"What was it?"
"If I remember correctly, it should be a spell formation for teleportation."
"A teleportation spell?" Zhang Jue said, "So here's the question. Where does this teleportation spell lead to?"
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