Chapter 78: Infiltrating the Nightfall Experimental Base

The night in Pasir Gudang industrial area was exceptionally deep, with the distant harbor lights flickering faintly, cold and lonely against the sea breeze. Li Chuan stood on a high vantage point, his sharp gaze locked onto the hidden Nightfall Seventh Experimental Base, concealed beneath an abandoned factory. His grip on his weapon tightened.

"Shen Qiu, how's the security system inside?" Li Chuan lowered his voice as he spoke.

Shen Qiu's fingers were moving fast on his laptop, hacking into Nightfall's defense. "Their main server is hidden very deep inside, got a few layers of firewall protecting it. But..." his lips curled into a smirk as he tapped aggressively on his keyboard, "I just found an old security passage. Seems like it was left behind before the base was officially locked down. We can use that to masuk dalam."

"How long to crack it?" Su Man was checking her gear, voice calm.

"At least twenty minutes."

"Hah? So long?" Cheng Mo raised an eyebrow. "Won't they notice something wrong?"

"Tak lah." Shen Qiu sounded confident. "This passage is hidden, their system sudah assume it's completely sealed off. But actually, they only hide it, never really delete."

Li Chuan narrowed his eyes, processing the information. "We can't stay outside for twenty minutes. Too easy to kena tangkap by patrol." He turned to Su Man and Shen Qiu. "You two infiltrate from the west side and hack the security. Cheng Mo and I will go from the east. Once you're done, we regroup inside."

Shen Qiu nodded, putting on his earpiece. "Understood."

"Action start now." Li Chuan signaled. Cheng Mo moved first, vaulting over the perimeter wall silently. Both of them melted into the shadows.

Nightfall's outer defenses were ketat gila—infrared sensors, automated drones, and patrol guards. One wrong step, alarm terus bunyi. Li Chuan and Cheng Mo crept through the blind spots, avoiding detection, until they reached a ventilation duct.

Cheng Mo took out a small tactical knife, slipping it into the screws. With a few precise twists, the metal cover came loose. He slipped inside first, Li Chuan following right after.

The duct was sempit and berhabuk like nobody's business. They moved slowly, making as little noise as possible. After a few minutes, they reached an opening overlooking the experimental wing corridor.

Li Chuan carefully lifted the vent cover, scanning the hallway below. Bright fluorescent lights cast a pale glow on the sterile white floor. The doors to various labs were shut tight. Occasionally, a guard walked past.

He whispered into his comms, "We sudah masuk."

Shen Qiu's voice crackled through the earpiece. "Security system hampir settle. Another ten minutes, and all CCTV will masuk loop mode. After that, nobody can see what you doing inside."

"Understood. We wait for your signal." Li Chuan kept his eyes on the corridor.

Shen Qiu's hacking progress bar was nearly full, the last layers of encryption breaking apart.

Su Man stood near the control room entrance, her gun ready, eyes fixed on the corridor ahead. That's where they kept Subject Zero.

"Five minutes more," Shen Qiu muttered.

Just then, Su Man caught a movement.

A man in a white lab coat was walking towards her direction, holding a research report in one hand. His expression was calm, as if he had no idea someone was lurking nearby.

Su Man quickly ducked into the shadows, her finger lightly resting on the trigger.

But when she got a clear look at the man's face, her heart skipped a beat.

That face… it was identical to Subject Zero's records.

"Li Chuan." She whispered into the comms, "Subject Zero… he's here. I see him with my own eyes."

A pause. Then, Li Chuan's voice, sharp and alert: "You sure?"

"Damn sure. But…" Su Man's brows furrowed, "he doesn't look like someone under control. He just macam a normal researcher walking around."

A heavy silence settled between them.

Li Chuan inhaled deeply. "Don't alert him. Observe first."

Su Man nodded, pressing herself further into the dark, watching the man's every move.

Meanwhile, Li Chuan and Cheng Mo had slipped into the archive room. They flipped through classified records, searching for more information about Subject Zero.

"Security is under my control now," Shen Qiu's voice came in. "All CCTV sudah loop. Your movements won't be recorded."

"Good." Li Chuan continued flipping through files. Finally, his fingers landed on a thick report labeled:

"EXPERIMENT CODE: ZERO – PERSONALITY RECONSTRUCTION PROJECT"

As he skimmed through the pages, a horrifying truth revealed itself.

Nightfall's goal wasn't just about memory control. They weren't just wiping memories.

They were rewriting people.

Subject Zero had gone through multiple identity resets. His emotions, thoughts, even his beliefs—everything had been altered again and again.

But then, Li Chuan reached the last page.

A handwritten note stood out, the ink slightly smudged:

"Subject Zero shows signs of self-awareness recovery. Constant monitoring required."

Li Chuan's grip on the paper tightened.

"Shen Qiu." His voice was dangerously calm. "They never fully controlled Subject Zero. He might be regaining his real memories."

Shen Qiu sucked in a breath. "If that's true… then he's the only one who can fight back against Nightfall."

Li Chuan exhaled slowly. "We need to find him."