Chapter 66: The Dust‑Sealed Past

"Hmm." After listening, Sui Bian said to her, "How about assigning you to carry out the project researching this flower, Chambos?"

"No problem, Mr. Sui," Rebecca replied cheerfully, "The company's use of the reconstituted soldier project is already very mature, so it's time for me to continue assisting Dr. BoKen in mastering the G-virus."

Although Rebecca was only twenty years old at this time, as a fellow genius she had already entered the ranks of top researchers.

Moreover, she greatly enjoyed working for Umbrella, having a clear goal of fighting for humanity behind the scenes.

The reason she abandoned her pen for the military was to protect the ideals of more people, and now Umbrella is the perfect platform for her to realize her ambitions.

"Keep up that momentum; it's going to be busy ahead, thanks for your effort, Chambos," Sui Bian said with a light laugh.

"Don't worry, Mr. Sui, this workload is even less than my graduation thesis, and working overtime for humanity isn't hard," Rebecca replied with a joking tone.

"Haha, alright, then I won't disturb you."

"Very well, sir."

After finishing the conversation, Sui Bian left the office, and Rebecca continued her research.

Next.

Sui Bian did not rush to withdraw from the temporary base; instead, he had the White Queen recruit historians familiar with Inca civilization, since the company's talent pool in this area was lacking.

Since Umbrella discovered this ancient city, it should be Umbrella that unravels the long‑sealed secrets of the city.

The content of the murals will also aid Rebecca's research.

At the same time, he had the Argentina branch dispatch twenty‑four security personnel, who rode three mi-24 armed helicopters to the temporary base.

This area will become Umbrella's new research center in the future, and bolstering defenses in advance ensures safety.

Including H. C. F., the Tri‑Union Enterprises, under the targeting of the Red and White Queens, may not be completely destroyed, but they no longer pose any threat.

Moreover, Sui Bian had no intention of sparing this group; as soon as the Red and White Queens find any clue or connection, they will strike mercilessly until the opponent is utterly eliminated.

The fewer enemies, the better.

"Be as warm to comrades as spring, and as ruthless to enemies as autumn wind sweeping leaves." — Napoleon Bonaparte.

Aside from H. C. F. and Tri‑Union, many hostile companies and organizations still eye Umbrella, including certain factions within the United States.

The heights are unbearably cold.

People are thus, and companies likewise.

January 16.

Twenty‑four security personnel arrived at the temporary base aboard mi-24s.

January 17.

After nearly two days of preparation, a historical survey team organized by the White Queen set out from the temporary base toward the ruins, escorted by ten armed security guards.

That afternoon they reached the ruins, and the hired survey team began orderly archaeological work.

During this time, the external historians kept exclaiming in awe of the ruins.

Especially the team leader, a highly renowned archaeologist doctor, told Sui Bian that this discovery was enough to enter the annals of history.

To that, Sui Bian merely chuckled, "Probably, but your current task is to translate the mural content; don't worry about anything else for now."

After four days of research and analysis, the results further shocked the archaeological team.

This Inca City has at least seven hundred years of history, originally built by a royal noble of the Inca dynasty.

According to the murals, when this noble led his people and personal guards to expand a new city, they were attacked here by a massive jaguar.

The first encounter nearly wiped out all the people and guards, turning the site into a forbidden place feared by the Inca.

Humans are so utterly insignificant before it.

Seeking revenge for his people and guards, the noble chose to return alone, confronting the giant jaguar by himself.

At this point, the mural shows the noble dragging the jaguar's head out of the rainforest.

No one knows how the noble accomplished it, but when he slew the giant jaguar, he proclaimed to the entire rainforest that humans are not a weak species.

After eliminating the threat, the noble chose to continue building a new city here and revered a flower called "Bloodman" as a sacred blossom.

Thereafter the noble seemed reborn, campaigning for the Inca dynasty across the lands, undefeated, making the city even more prosperous.

Yet two hundred years later, the noble was still alive, and his family grew ever more prosperous, arousing the Inca king's jealousy.

Ultimately, war broke out between the noble and the dynasty.

After that, there are no further records.

However, the survey team's historians, using the mural's dating, inferred that it was the period when Portugal, Spain and other nations were colonizing South America.

Those colonizers brought to South America not only colonization, exploitation and war, but also the most terrifying thing—

plague.

Species invasion is not limited to flora and fauna, but also includes microorganisms.

This city may have been destroyed by war with the Inca dynasty, or by the invading colonizers, or may have perished in a massive plague.

And the noble who once single‑handedly killed the jaguar and lived two hundred years also fell into the annals of history.

After hearing the survey team's words, Rebecca and the others felt that the world holds countless grand stories waiting to be discovered.

For Sui Bian, although he learned that the temple's flower was not the Blood Orchid, based on the description he guessed that Bloodman and Blood Orchid have similar effects.

The historical survey team that helped Umbrella uncover the Inca City's secret underwent memory erasure with UEN-001 (Silver Rod), wiping all memories of the ruins and the Bloodman flower.

Publication is impossible, but these historians used their knowledge to aid Umbrella, so they will still be paid.

The reasons and payment channels are varied—insurance, lottery—and under the White Queen's arrangement, all are disconnected from Umbrella.

January 23.

Experiments showed that the Bloodman flower's habits are similar to those of the Sun Stairflower at the African research center; once removed from its environment, it gradually loses its traits.

Based on this result, the White Queen began negotiations with the Peruvian government again.

By that afternoon a result was reached.

The Peruvian government will, to the greatest extent, not interfere with Umbrella's actions, providing the Argentina Engineering Department a green construction environment.

January 26.

Sui Bian left a considerable number of Zombie Dogs and Hunter Alpha to boost Umbrella's defensive forces here.

Afterwards, he returned to Raccoon City with Rebecca, the living dead, the Caron Task Force and related personnel, as well as the Stalker sealed into the warehouse.

This time, Sui Bian and his group brought back the corpse of a giant centipede and a sample of Blood‑Man Flower secretion.

(End of chapter)