At this moment, Jake was merely selfishly earning money to support himself.
He didn't want to care about the life or death of others; he only cared about himself. Even if his mother and father were still alive, Jake's ambitions wouldn't be particularly grand.
That was why he envied and respected heroes like Chris.
They didn't consider themselves, didn't care about their own safety, and had no personal desires.
No matter what they did, they put others—civilians—first, carrying out the mission of protecting the people and the country with the resolve of a hardened soldier.
It was just as Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela once said: if the sky is dark, then live in the dark; if speaking out is dangerous, then remain silent.
If you feel powerless to shine, then curl up in a corner. But do not get used to the darkness and then defend it.
Do not be proud of your own survival through compromise, and do not mock those who are braver than you. We may be as humble as dust, but we must not be as twisted as maggots...
Jake felt that Chris was exactly that kind of person who dared to shine.
He shed the warm light he had fought for onto humble maggots like them. This spirit of selfless devotion made Chris appear great and worthy of respect.
So, at this very moment, Jake intended to risk everything to help Chris.
Regardless of the outcome, he was willing to help Chris.
If they succeeded, then even a humble maggot like him would have helped bring the light of hope to countless civilians. This would be the greatest achievement of his otherwise mediocre life.
He couldn't really be like a maggot, one-sidedly enjoying the sacrifices and devotion of others. After all, if possible, Jake wanted to be a hero just once—!
"Hyaaaaah...!!!!"
With that shout, Jake charged forcefully into the crowd of Oculare Soldiers, fighting them desperately.
The power of the progenitor virus was constantly activating his potential. Taking advantage of the terrifying recovery ability during his berserk state,
it was indeed possible for Jake to hold the rear and block all the Oculare Soldiers.
After all, these Oculare Soldiers no longer had long-range firearms; they had all entered a monsterized state. In pure melee combat, Jake could stall for a long time.
"Chris..."
"Respect his decision. We need to leave now. Don't let this opportunity go to waste. Let's go!"
At that moment, Leon, who was nearby, hurried forward to grab Chris's arm. Looking Chris straight in the eye, he spoke decisively to persuade him.
He naturally understood Chris's struggle with the choice, but it was as the saying goes: the more critical the moment, the more one must be calm and cold-blooded. On the road to success, some things must always be sacrificed.
To stop the revival of the HAOS, Jake had to be left behind. Without someone to hold the rear, they wouldn't be able to reach the incubation pod in time. Therefore, the most cold-blooded approach was to respect Jake's choice.
Of course, it wasn't that Leon was truly heartless.
It was just that since the fire wasn't burning his own eyebrows yet, he could remain composed.
If Jake were replaced by someone close to Leon, perhaps Leon would be in the same agonizing dilemma as Chris.
But now...
Having an outsider persuade Chris to make a calm judgment was actually a good thing. At the very least, it would prevent Chris from making the wrong decision.
"..."
"Fine. Jake, wait for me to come back—!!!"
Hearing Leon's persuasion, Chris's emotions gradually calmed down, and he regained the steely resolve of a soldier.
He knew this was the correct choice,
so without further hesitation, he muttered a few words toward Jake's back as the man fought alone,
and then, with renewed fighting spirit, he charged into the base corridor ahead.
Leon and Helena, along with the adjutant Piers, followed closely behind, leaving Jake alone to fight the Oculare Soldiers.
"I acknowledge you."
"Though you still have the temperament of a street thug, this courage to sacrifice yourself is indeed the quality a soldier should have. I hope you don't die... Jake,"
Piers, who was walking at the back, couldn't help but mutter these words to himself as he looked at Jake's back. If he had previously loathed Jake's reckless and impulsive behavior, at this moment, he truly acknowledged Jake, treating him as a real brother-in-arms—the kind he would face life and death with!
"Roar roar roar roar—!!!!!!!"
At this moment, the mutated Oculare Soldiers launched a fierce attack on Jake. Oculare Soldiers with mutated legs raised their locust-like limbs and kicked violently toward Jake.
Nearby, a mutated Strelats whipped its tail,
the massive tail slamming Jake against a corner with a dull thud. Immediately after, bone spears erupted from its body, white spears instantly piercing through Jake's frame.
Then there was a massive, hard-bodied gorilla-like Rasklapanje, its enormous fist swinging fiercely toward Jake's head.
The wind from the punch stung Jake's cheeks.
Before he could react and block with his hands, Jake was sent flying dozens of meters, his body being savagely ravaged like a rag doll.
His entire body was covered in wounds and bloody holes, and his shirt was dyed red with blood.
If not for the terrifying recovery ability activated by the progenitor virus, Jake would likely have died dozens of times over by now.
"Cough, cough..."
"The fight has only just begun, you beasts. I can stay here and fight you all day!"
Slumped against the wall, Jake struggled to lift his heavy eyelids.
Blood had covered his retinas, turning his vision a deep crimson, and every muscle in his body ached intensely.
But even so, Jake shakily propped himself up and spoke calmly to the Oculare Soldiers and C-Virus mutants before him.
Since he was holding the rear, he had to do it beautifully.
Jake wouldn't allow himself to go back on his word immediately after saying it. Thus, even if he couldn't hold on, he would grit his teeth and endure.
Before him were eight Oculare Soldiers with limb mutations, three Rasklapanje, and two Strelats.
Jake didn't know if he went down in a blaze of glory,
how many he could take with him. But if possible, he wanted to take them all out to make it worth it; otherwise, it would be too pathetic.
His bastard father was, after all, a supervillain who wanted to destroy the world and reshape humanity.
How did he end up as cannon fodder killed by bio-monsters?
If he went to hell and met that bastard father of his, wouldn't he be laughed to death? Jake thought to himself at that moment...
...
Meanwhile—
Step, step, step...
Without the Oculare Soldiers blocking them, Chris and the others arrived at the elevator shaft leading to the HAOS incubation pod without further hindrance.
It wasn't much different from a normal elevator. Once the air pressure stabilization next to it finished, the group quickly stepped inside.
"ROOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR——————————————————————————!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
At the same time, the frequency of the HAOS's low roars from the incubation pod grew more frequent; it was infinitely close to awakening.
This caused the expressions of Chris and the others in the elevator to change.
Especially Chris, whose expression had been grim from the start.
Only now did he realize the trouble they were in. He didn't know what method to use to stop the HAOS.
And the most painful part was, he had dragged too many people into this: Jake, Piers, Leon, Helena, and others.
If it were just him, it wouldn't matter.
Dying would be fine, but having so many comrades and subordinates with him made Chris feel extremely guilty.
"I'm sorry..."
"Leon, Helena, Piers. I'm the one who dragged you all into this. If we run into trouble later, you should escape first. Don't worry about me."
"Stopping this biohazard is my mission and my selfish choice. It has nothing to do with you. I don't want you all to be buried here because of me."
Taking a deep breath,
Chris spoke with a heavy and serious tone as he watched the numbers on the elevator display get closer.
His face was written with the resolve of someone facing certain death. Without a doubt, Chris was prepared to die.
"Chris..."
Hum... Clack—!!!!
Seeing Chris's death-defying expression,
Leon and Piers wanted to say something, but they were quickly interrupted by the sound of the elevator doors.
They had arrived at their destination.
As the elevator doors slowly opened, everyone's voices stopped abruptly, and they all turned their gaze toward the scene ahead...
But what they saw was no small matter.
One look was enough to present them with a terrifying and shocking sight they would never forget for the rest of their lives—!
"Roar roar...!!!!!!!!!"
The continuous low growls kept ringing out.
An enormous green humanoid cocoon was suspended in mid-air, looking no different from the humanoid cocoons of C-Virus mutants.
It was almost an enlarged version.
Carla had emerged from a cocoon like this, only this one was dozens or even hundreds of times larger.
But now, this humanoid cocoon had been partially torn open, revealing the figure inside: a massive humanoid zombie curled up within.
They were in a massive cylindrical incubation chamber, like a giant water barrel.
Surrounding it were spiraling steel stairs and numerous elevator doors. And the massive mysterious shadow located in the very center was the so-called Chaos Beast... or rather, the HAOS!
Its head was held by a massive crane, no... it was a giant incubator that kept it suspended. Massive mechanical arms, cables, and various pipes gripped its spine.
From these, large amounts of nutrient solution and virus were continuously pumped into its body for development. Its body was no different from a living person's, curled up like a newborn baby. It had no red flesh, but rather transparent, grayish-white flesh.
A massive skull was located in the center, with the outer layer wrapped in grayish-white flesh. Its head was somewhat elongated, like an alien's, and its body was bent and curled.