The SSS-rank Guide Doesn't Need Saving novel Chapter 160

Chapter 160: Behind the Glass Tanks (2)

There were dozens of tanks. From where Aisha was standing, there were already a dozen. And the cavern was massive and there was no end to the tanks inside it. The ones closest to her made her understood what these tanks

Human bodies floated inside. Some were completely still while others drifted faintly with the movement of the liquid surrounding them. Thick tubes were attached to their bodies, extending from the machinery around the tanks and entering through sealed openings. Several more lines connected the tanks to large metallic structures further inside the chamber.

The entire place operated like one enormous system.

Aisha’s gaze slowly moved from one tank to another. She initially thought they were corpses collected and maintained with formalin. However, the fingers’ twitching and chest moving told her otherwise.

These people were alive. Though barely.

Aisha’s expression darkened.

A worker, unaware of her presence there, stood beside one of the tanks and entered several commands into a control panel. He tapped on a device and something moved through the transparent pipes. The substance traveled toward the tank.

Aisha watched as it entered the system connected to the container. The person inside suddenly jerked. Their body arched violently as bubbles rushed upward.

The workers immediately turned their attention to the readings displayed on the nearby screens. Their nonchalance toward what was happening to the person inside the tank made her feel extreme disgust and deepened the cold, murderous intent within her.

The person’s body continued convulsing, then gradually became still again.

Aisha’s eyes remained fixed on the dark substance. Something inside her tightened. Her gaze followed the pipes toward the massive container connected to the system. A faint dark vapor escaped from one of the metal joints.

Miasma.

"It’s miasma."

Nykos spoke at almost the exact moment the word crossed her mind. Aisha glanced toward him. The shadow beside her had gone still, its attention fixed on the chamber.

"What are they doing with it?"

Nykos didn’t answer, watching through his shadow what was going on before them.

Aisha looked back as well. The people inside those tanks were being deliberately exposed to miasma. For what? Aisha didn’t know.

Aisha moved slightly deeper into the shadows near the wall. Nykos followed.

The closer they got, the more she could see. Several tanks were empty. Others contained bodies that hadn’t moved since she arrived. Two workers approached one of them. Aisha watched as they checked the readings. One shook his head. And the other pressed something on the control panel. The liquid began draining.

Aisha’s eyes narrowed. The body inside had already been corrupted thoroughly that they no longer resembled a human. They appeared between a mass of meat and miasma.

Aisha wanted to move closer, but footsteps echoed behind them.

She immediately stopped. Soon, voices followed from where the footsteps were coming.

Before Aisha could look for somewhere to hide, shadows spilled across the ground. It climbed over her feet, her legs, and then the rest of her body. Cold shadows wrapped around her. The darkness spread against the stone wall, swallowing her completely.

Aisha could barely see through it, but it worked well in hiding her.

The footsteps grew closer.

Three people entered the passage. Two men and a woman. They wore uniforms similar to those of the workers operating the machinery inside the cavern.

The woman glanced toward the chamber. "The ship arrived already."

"That’s earlier than expected," one of the men muttered, barely looking up.

"That’s because the Elders are feeling impatient. Anyway, they’re waiting for the loading team."

The man beside her shrugged. "Then they can wait a bit longer. We’re not done here yet."

The woman gave him an irritated look.

The second man carried a device in one hand. He glanced down at it. "Don’t worry... They won’t be waiting much longer. Everything’s nearly ready."

The woman turned toward him. "How many are there this time?"

He continued using the device. "Seven made it."

Her expression tightened. "Only seven?"

"There’s nothing we can do. The Association has been moving around lately, and we can’t risk exposing ourselves."

The other man glanced toward the chamber. "And what about the rest?"

The device holder shrugged. "Same as usual. They didn’t make it."

Aisha looked at the tanks again, the ones they called failure. Some of them still contained people who were alive and were hanging on for a chance to live.

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