Diving deep into Site-167 was nothing like exploring the waters off Varadero Beach.
Here, there was no light—only an abyssal darkness that felt like plunging into the depths of hell. Luo Shu's headlamp cast a narrow beam, illuminating a pitifully small radius—less than a fifth of his normal vision. Beyond that? Pure, suffocating black.
And lurking in that darkness? Anomalies.
The thought sent a chill down his spine. He had no choice but to activate Malice Detection, using it like a sonar pulse to navigate the unseen threats.
Compared to him, the Pickup Truck Transformer had it worse.
Science was unforgiving. Luo Shu's slapdash IP67 waterproofing had only been rated for shallow depths. Now, under crushing water pressure, silicone seals failed, and the truck's body began leaking.
The engine, still running, stayed dry thanks to internal air pressure. The cabin, too, held up—for now. But the lights?
Completely flooded. Useless.
With a sigh, Luo Shu ordered the truck to follow him like a lost puppy, its usual swagger reduced to a timid shuffle.
Descending the stairwell, they finally reached Level -3, where a T-shaped corridor branched into the unknown. Luo Shu activated Memory Enhancement, recalling the Site Director's map before swimming right.
This was the Euclid Containment Zone—every direction was a gamble. But he at least wanted to know what he was walking into.
The First Unit
The door was rusted shut, seawater having welded it into an immovable slab. No amount of force or ability could pry it open.
Enter the Pickup Truck Transformer.
It slammed, kicked, and—when brute force failed—deployed its brake-disc saw blades, carving through the metal like a deranged can opener.
Finally, the door gave way.
But inside? Nothing.
Luo Shu's Anomaly Detection (Tier 1) sensed no surviving anomalies. After the "Rotten Sucrose" incident, he wasn't about to poke around with deactivated SCPs either.
The detection range was small, but for standard containment units? More than enough.
Only the Bermuda Vortex on Level -2 had nearly blindsided him—its massive pool and stealthy positioning made it a nasty surprise.
Thankfully, it was classified as Safe—limited to aquatic environments. Had it been Euclid, this flooded nightmare would've been its playground.
The Second Unit
The next chamber's door was already breached—whether by human hands or something breaking out, he couldn't tell.
Cautiously, Luo Shu peered through a beer-bottle-sized hole in the door.
According to Level -1's paper records, this unit once held an "aggressive bottle."
What kind of bottle? How aggressive?
The answers had rotted away with time.
His headlamp revealed a 5m x 5m containment cell, dominated by a heavy safe—one with a fist-sized hole punched clean through its front.
Not just any hole.
The metal was bent outward.
This safe hadn't been cracked open from the outside.
Something had broken out from within.
Luo Shu's gaze snapped back to the door.
Same damage pattern.
A miniature Dark Heart?
He recalled a line from the files:
"This object requires safe replacement every three months."
Clearly, this thing had a habit of shredding containment.
And this safe? Far sturdier than the ones on Level -2. Yet it had still failed.
Sixty years without maintenance.
No wonder the damn bottle had escaped.
Now, it was somewhere in these flooded halls.
The Third Unit
Another ruined door—but this time, the breach was from the outside.
Had the bottle freed whatever was inside? Or destroyed it?
Luo Shu pressed his face to the hole.
No anomalies detected.
Whatever had been here was gone.
He didn't waste time breaking in. Not with that bottle roaming free.
The Fourth Unit
The last chamber on this wing.
Another bottle-sized hole.
Was this Euclid bottle a mindless destroyer? Or some kind of anomaly liberator?
Luo Shu was about to turn back when—
BZZT.
Anomaly Detection triggered.
5-meter radius. Inside this unit.
Shit.
Was it the bottle? Or the original occupant?
Either way—Euclid-class. Dangerous.
Luo Shu wasn't afraid of Euclids. But sending the truck to break down the door risked an ambush.
Yet backing down now?
Not an option.
SCP-3125's words echoed in his mind:
"To learn the truth, you must grow stronger."
Fine.
Let's do this.