Chapter 28: The Enemy Not Only Refuses to Surrender, but Also Dares to Provoke
Zhongyuan Village is not far south of Tokyo, surrounded by mountains on three sides, a quiet village.
If there's anything special about it, it's that the mountains surrounding Zhongyuan Village are called the Demon Mountains by the locals.
According to local legends, evil spirits dwell in the mountains, feeding on humans. Those eaten cannot escape, their souls trapped forever in the mountains.
After entering modern times, a train tunnel was dug in the mountains, but after it was opened, accidents kept happening. The train derailed and overturned three to five times.
The passengers who survived tried to escape along the tunnel, but over half of them disappeared mysteriously.
The disappeared ones were not only passengers, but also maintenance workers, and villagers nearby...
It is said that every night when an accident happened, a dim blue light would shine in the tunnel, blood dripping from the walls, and even ghostly trains passing through.
Because of this, after several more mysterious incidents occurred, the tunnel was abandoned.
Of course, the professors from the Tokyo Institute of Science would not believe in such baseless rumors. They saw potential in the ancient tunnel and set up a cosmic ray observatory to observe cosmic rays penetrating the earth's surface.
Shortly after the observatory was officially opened, Naosumi Koyama, due to Hiroshi Noda's invitation and generous compensation, resigned and went to the Special Event Research Institute.
For some reason, she would briefly lose consciousness, and when she regained awareness, she found herself standing in the abandoned tunnel.
At first, Koyama's teachers and colleagues didn't believe her, but before long, they too experienced similar situations...
"I didn't believe the villagers at first, but why is this happening? It doesn't make sense!"
After explaining the cause and effect, Naosumi Koyama's spirit was on the verge of collapse.
Uesugi Kiyoshi, who was an outsider, didn't agree with this.
He thought that science is humans' explanation and understanding of objective phenomena, so anything that actually happens is considered science.
So, a Head Balloon is scientific, a Headless Sculpture is scientific, and even if millions of Japanese gods suddenly appeared in Tokyo to party, they would also be scientific.
"What should we do now?" asked Hiroshi Noda.
"Let's fire Miss Koyama!" suggested Tomie Kawakami, "She has been absent so much, we don't even need to pay her compensation, right?!"
Uesugi Kiyoshi glared at her and gestured with his hand.
"Of course, we should solve the problem without delay. Let's leave now!"
The strange events not only didn't scare them, but also dared to come and provoke. If we don't fight back, won't it damage his reputation?
The Tunnel Investigation Corps was established, with nearly a hundred people led by Uesugi Kiyoshi including researchers and combatants, as well as over a dozen vehicles and two Headless Sculptures, forming a grand team heading straight for Zhongyuan Village.
It's hard to know how many people will be able to contribute.
In the 21st century, the most lacking thing indeed is talent!
Uesugi Kiyoshi felt that this strange event couldn't be solved just by having a lot of people.
However, he also didn't have any professional personnel. The only standout person was Tomie Kawakami, who was a powerful weapon that could only be admired but not utilized!
"We've arrived, this is the tunnel!"
Naosumi Koyama's body started shaking violently again, pointing a finger ahead.
"I wonder if the teacher and the others are still... Oh, it's Kimura Mali's sister!"
The car lights pushed away the dark in front, revealing the entrance of a tunnel. A tiny figure was slowly walking towards the entrance along the road.
She looked like a seven or eight-year-old girl, wearing a small protective suit. She was walking alone in the pitch-black night with her eyes tightly closed.
After being carried into the car for a long time, she woke up and sobbed uncontrollably while clinging to Naosumi Koyama.
"Ugh, Miss Koyama, I unconsciously came here again. I'm so scared!"
"Me too..." Naosumi Koyama tightly hugged Kimura Mali, also shedding tears.
"Mali, Mali!"
An anxious cry faintly came, and soon, another slender figure appeared in front of the convoy. Mali struggled to meet him and curled up in his arms.
"I'm so scared, big brother!"
The approaching boy was Mali's brother, named Kimura Goro. He couldn't find his sister when he woke up, so he came out to search for her.
"This kind of thing has happened many times before."
Eleven-year-old Kimura Goro looked unusually mature, with a deep-seated anxiety and fear between his eyebrows.
"Every time, it was a professor from the research institute who found her. We were originally planning to seek refuge with our aunt in Tokyo in a few days, but we didn't expect such a thing to happen just before we left."
"Where are your mom and dad?" Hiroshi Noda curiously asked.
"Mom came to the tunnel on her own a few years ago and was hit by a train, dad also disappeared in the tunnel..."
"I'm sorry!"
"It's nothing." Kimura Goro remained calm and said. I tried calling the professor before I came, but no one answered. Do you think something might have happened to them?
"We'll have to investigate to find out." Uesugi Kiyoshi gently patted his head.
Under the beam of the flashlight, the tunnel remained pitch black, with only faint traces of liquid dripping from the walls, not knowing whether it was water or blood.
Uesugi Kiyoshi gave orders to the two Headless Sculptures that had followed him.
"Number 013 and Number 119, you go inside and take a look."
With improved techniques and the introduction of machinery, the production speed of the Headless Sculptures has significantly increased, from one per week to two per day, with room for further improvement.
Therefore, even if these two are damaged here, it is acceptable.
Sculptures Number 119 and Number 013 glanced at each other and replied in unison, "Sorry, we refuse."
"What?" Uesugi Kiyoshi looked surprised.
"We can sense the danger inside. Once we enter, we will surely be consumed. If that happens, how can we achieve great fulfillment?"
"You can assign us to other tasks, but even if it means destroying us, we will not agree to go inside!"
The two Headless Sculptures were very firm in their attitude.
It's unbelievable! Two mere Headless Sculptures went against my command!
Filled with extreme anger, Uesugi Kiyoshi had already planned a strategy in his mind, but he couldn't implement it at the moment.
He thought for a moment and called two combat personnel.
"Please give your orders, Your Excellency Uesugi."
The named individuals looked as pale as ashes but didn't resist. In this respect, their obedience was much stronger than that of the Headless Sculpture.
However, Uesugi Kiyoshi would not allow his subordinates to die in vain.
Pointing to the Head Balloon in the sky above the combat personnel, he shouted loudly, "You two, go inside and have a look!"
