Chapter 170: The Nuclear Bomb Didn't Eradicate the Spider‑Man

So noisy!

Mo Shu whispered softly, and her left index and middle fingers precisely slipped into Scott's jacket pocket, firmly pinching a strangely textured, leather‑like sheet of paper.

Parchment!

The moment Mo Shu's fingers grasped the parchment, Scott's body shuddered violently.

The madness in his eyes faded quickly, replaced by an extreme weakness and hollowness.

It seemed as if something was being forcibly ripped out of his body.

Mo Shu didn't hesitate; with a flick of her wrist, she pulled the Human Skin Paper from the pocket.

It was a dark‑yellow, curled‑edge, leather‑like sheet, still stained with dark red blood, exuding an indescribable sinister aura.

Without even looking, she thrust the Human Skin Paper into a heavy isolation box already prepared, crafted from alloy and Weird contaminant.

Clack.

As the lid sealed, it produced a crisp sound.

Scott, who had been frantically struggling, suddenly went limp as if all his bones had been drawn out.

He gasped heavily, his gaze scattered, sweat mixing with dust washing ragged streaks across his face.

He collapsed on the ground, completely drained of strength, like a fish out of water.

Jiang Yuan and Mo Shu exchanged a glance, each seeing the weight in the other's eyes.

The connection between this thing and its host ran far deeper than they had imagined.

North American Union military base, Interrogation Room.

Scott was firmly strapped to a metal chair, and an NAU interrogation specialist pushed a cart loaded with various chemicals into the room.

Under the alternating effects of a potent sedative and a high‑concentration truth serum, Scott's already hollowed will completely collapsed.

His gaze was dazed as he narrated his story in broken fragments.

From a dead‑end dock worker, how on a rainy night he happened upon this wish‑granting Human Skin Paper.

At first, he used his own blood to obtain trivial intelligence, such as which stock would rise or which rich woman was an easy target.

The snowball of desire kept growing.

When his own blood could no longer satisfy the "Divine Edict's" appetite, the Human Skin Paper began urging him to hunt others.

Using others' fresh blood to obtain more precise, more powerful intelligence.

From that moment, his life fell entirely into servitude to this Human Skin Paper.

A puppet constantly seeking "sacrifices" to feed the demon.

Only then did everyone grasp the terrifying rules of this Weird object.

—Using living human blood as a sacrifice to obtain absolutely truthful intelligence.

A devilish contract capable of dragging the vast majority of people into ruin.

Outside the Interrogation Room, Wang Zhangzhi finished the briefing, expressionless.

He glanced at the Human Skin Paper sealed in the box, remained silent for a moment, then suddenly made a decision.

He looked at Jiang Yuan.

"This, you guard it."

Saying so, he handed the heavy box to Jiang Yuan.

Jiang Yuan startled, instinctively took it.

The box felt cold to the touch, yet carried a scorching weight.

He knew the Captain was placing a monumental trust and responsibility into his hands.

From now on, he would be in charge of guarding it until it was returned to the Federation headquarters.

Jiang Yuan nodded firmly, carefully placing the box into his custom Tactical Backpack.

"Yes! I guarantee the mission will be completed!"

"Gan Shi An" is, at this point, concluded.

A Four-star General was just about to step forward to exchange a few pleasantries and organize a celebration banquet.

Wang Zhangzhi gave him no chance at all.

He glanced at his watch and, in an unquestionable tone, issued a new order.

"Rest for one hour."

"All units change gear, prepare to enter Chicago."

The command center fell silent.

All NAU personnel were stunned.

So... we're heading to Chicago?

The death‑ridden Forbidden Land once plowed by nuclear weapons?

No celebration needed at all?

Is this the rhythm of the Federal Weird Investigation Bureau?

Jiang Yuan's heart suddenly leapt.

He brushed the cold box holding the Human Skin Paper inside his backpack, a scorching sensation rising from his chest.

The journey must continue.

At that moment.

"Bang!"

The temporary command room's door was violently slammed open.

An NAU technician barreled in, rolling and crawling, his face as pale as paper, lips trembling.

He was running so fast that he didn't even have time to salute, and he pointed outside, shouting in a trembling voice that had changed pitch:

"Report! Report, sir!"

"We… we sent a forward reconnaissance drone to the Zhijiage Feixu…"

"It transmitted a segment of footage…"

The technician swallowed hard, his eyes showing an unmistakable, huge terror.

"In the footage…"

"Something is moving!"

Swish!

Everyone in the command room fixed their gaze on him.

Wang Zhangzhi's eyes narrowed, and he was the first to turn and stride toward the conference room.

"Play it!"

The massive holographic screen lit up.

The image shook violently, mixed with harsh electrical static, clearly the drone's transmission from extreme distance.

On the screen was the Zhijiage Feixu, utterly destroyed by a nuclear blast.

Molten steel and building debris twisted together, carbonized skeletons visible everywhere, forming a hellish tableau.

The whole city lay silent, like a massive cemetery.

The drone's camera moved rapidly, apparently conducting a reconnaissance scan.

The footage swept over a half‑collapsed skyscraper.

Within the huge shadow cast by the building…

A twisted, slender outline flashed by!

It moved so fast it was almost impossible to capture.

But Jiang Yuan's and Mo Shu's pupils contracted to the limit in an instant!

Spider Humanoid!

Though only a glimpse, that reverse‑jointed, spider‑like silhouette they would never mistake.

"Slow down! Slow it down for me!" a NAU general roared.

The technician trembled as he slowed the footage tenfold.

This time, everyone saw clearly.

Beneath that shadow, a monster resembling a Spider Humanoid clung to the building's wall.

It seemed to sense the drone's probing and slowly… lifted its head.

Though the image was blurry, everyone could feel the malice piercing the screen.

The next second.

"Shhh—!"

A claw's after‑image slashed across the screen!

The whole footage was ripped apart instantly, turning into a dazzling spray of snowflakes.

Signal… cut.

The conference room fell into a terrifying silence.

A pin‑drop could be heard.

All NAU personnel, whether senior officers or technicians, stood frozen, limbs cold.

Nuclear weapons…

Tactical nukes capable of destroying a city…

Yet they hadn't been completely eradicated?!

That realization struck like an invisible hammer, crushing the last sliver of hope in each heart.

Chicago's nightmare was far from over.

Wang Zhangzhi's complexion was unprecedentedly solemn.

He remained silent for a full half‑minute.

Then he lifted his head again, his resolve unshaken.

"Proceed according to the original plan."

"Mission level, raise to the highest."

No one objected.

Facing absolute terror, their only reliance was the group of Eastern professionals before them.

Half an hour later.

Jiang Yuan and Mo Shu donned a suffocatingly heavy set of special‑ops gear.

This was top‑spec equipment for the S-Class Anomaly Zone, combining radiation, bio‑hazard, and Weird contamination protection; the heavy helmet sealed off everything outside.

Through the narrow visor, Jiang Yuan could only hear his own heavy breathing.

They boarded a special armored vehicle that resembled a moving fortress.

Alongside them was an entire squad of NAU elite special forces, also equipped in Investigation Bureau standard gear.

The armored vehicle started slowly, its heavy tracks crushing the ground as it headed toward the death‑shrouded nuclear‑scarred wasteland, driving into true hell.

Outside the vehicle window, the scenery rushed backward.

When the armored vehicle finally entered the Zhijiage Feixu, the atmosphere inside grew unbearably oppressive.

Before them lay a genuine apocalyptic scene.

The sky was a hazy lead color, and the air was filled with the sweet, pungent smell of radioactive dust.

Everything was destroyed, everything was melted.

Jiang Yuan's Weird Detection Instrument on his chest began to emit a faint, wavering response; the subtle hum made one's skin crawl more than any alarm.

A sense of oppression born from the instinct of life enveloped everyone.

Jiang Yuan and Mo Shu locked eyes, each seeing the solemn gaze beneath the other's mask.