Chapter 43

While Vladimir and Pu Songling were still arguing about whether "ace" or "royal bomb" sounded better, Christie had already calmly stepped off the Nautilus.

As Christie stepped off the pedal, she didn't look back at Vargrave's movements, but continued walking forward naturally.

Judging from the sound, Vargrave may have just moved the sarcophagus to the hatchway, and there's no need to check on the situation there now.

If Pu Songling was discussing something with Vladimir instead of helping Cervantes who was fighting Shelley, then he must have run out of the "stories" he had prepared beforehand, and therefore could not ask Pu Songling for help.

Then...

As if suddenly remembering something, Christie's gaze swept over Romain Rolland, who was emitting light waves, and Don Quixote, who was relentlessly charging forward only to be beaten.

Well, it seems like Vargrave will have to move it himself.

After finally managing to move the sarcophagus to the top of the platform, Vargrave calmly took out a rope and two pulleys with hooks from the sliding plate carrying the sarcophagus.

Under the slightly sympathetic gazes of Pu Songling and Vladimir, Vagreve began assembling the pulley system on the platform...

Barry circled the Nautilus for a while longer. But looking down at Wargrave, who was still working hard to assemble the pulley system, and Christie, who was standing still, Barry thought for a moment and then landed next to Christie.

"Christie, aren't we going to make a move now?"

Christie, who had been observing the battle, looked at Barry.

"Barry, do you think Shelley would stand still and let me attack her?"

Barry replied without hesitation, "Absolutely impossible."

Christie pointed to Don Quixote, who was holding Shelley back.

"I also have no way to attack Shelley without hurting Don Quixote."

"Oh... what if I were to hold them off? Neverland is a ranged attack!"

Seeing Barry's enthusiasm, Christie sighed.

“Barry, Neverland can't hold Shelley—Shelley's strength alone is enough to shatter the shell before your Neverland even makes contact, and Shelley herself has considerable ‘resistance.’”

"well……"

Barry immediately deflated and started tumbling in the air.

Although he is actually an elderly man in his eighties, Barry looks like a real child.

Even knowing the inner workings of a lost child, one can still feel a touch of pity or tenderness towards them.

However, all that flashed through Christie's mind was the potential financial loss that might result from Barry's fight with Vladimir after he was in a bad mood.

Then Christie calculated UN's recent income and decided to start comforting the child.

Anyway, we don't have to pay for the things we smashed. (Statement from a wanted criminal)

"Alright, Barry, you come and help me out. I'll warm up first."

Barry, who had been tumbling in the air, instantly returned to his position at ease: "Mission accomplished!"

Seeing Barry suddenly perk up again, Christie sighed with a hint of helplessness.

Let's work hard to get funding.

Then, Christie raised her hand and held it in the air, her five fingers spread, remaining still as if she were grasping something.

Upon seeing this, Barry thought for a moment and silently flew a distance away.

Pu Songling and Vladimir, who were originally walking towards the Nautilus, also saw Christie's actions. Instantly, their faces filled with terror, they retreated at two or three times the speed they had come from.

(However, only Vladimir showed any expression.)

At first, it was wisps of black smoke seeping from Christie's hands.

The smoke was so thin that it couldn't drift very far before dissipating in the air.

Then, the color of the smoke gradually deepened and intensified, and the wispy smoke gradually turned into a deep black fog; and the black fog continued to increase its heavy texture, and the falling smoke turned into black liquid flowing from Christie's hand.

Finally, a viscous, dark black substance with a peculiar reflective sheen like asphalt flowed from Christie's hand, dripped onto the ground, gradually accumulating at Christie's feet and continuing to flow in all directions, emitting the same wispy mist as at the beginning.

Looking at the viscous substance accumulating at her feet, constantly emitting black mist, Christie, without changing her expression, raised her palm, allowing the viscous substance to accumulate in her hand, and pointed her arm towards Shelley in the distance.

“Soldiers, commence operations.”

The viscous substance on the ground and in Christie's hand began to surge simultaneously. It began to condense and wriggle, swelling up like bubbles being blown up on the ground, and then bursting instantly.

Inside that bubble, the "soldier" stood up.

It looked like a human silhouette formed by a mass of asphalt, which was then artificially elongated. The proportions of the body were thin and distorted, and the head was simply a cylinder stretched longer than the arm-like structure. Only through association could one perceive it as a human-shaped entity.

It also lacks a structure below the waist—in fact, it can only be described as a human half-body embedded in the ground below the waist.

Once the "soldier" was formed, it did not pause or hesitate. Its "arms" supported the ground, and the parts in contact with the ground slid forward as if sliding, rushing directly towards Shelley's direction.

Meanwhile, Barry, his face beaming with excitement, accelerated past the "soldier" sliding on the ground and charged towards the battlefield first.

For safety's sake, Vladimir and Pu Songling once again took several steps back to the side.

Looking at this slightly strange-looking "soldier," Vladimir couldn't help but complain.

"No matter how many times I look at it, I feel like the 'soldiers' Christie created are from a completely different dimension than us..."

Pu Songling also agreed with Vladimir's point of view this time.

"Hmm...it looks like he's at least the final boss in one of four or five American horror movies. In the last one, he might even go so far as to destroy the world, and before he's defeated by the protagonist, he can take down five or six of the protagonist's teammates."

Vladimir: "Pu Songling, your metaphor is very vivid."

I feel like I can already picture the whole story in my head.

Pu Songling did not respond, but instead picked up his large book once again.

The next moment, Pu Songling's voice rang out on the front lines of the battlefield through the few surviving monsters.

"Roland, Don Quixote, Christie has just created a 'soldier' ​​and is heading in your direction. Be careful not to get caught in the crossfire."

On the battlefield, after hearing Pu Songling's words, Romain Rolland turned his head, seemingly to confirm the positions of the "soldier" and Barry, and then suddenly leaned back, his figure becoming blurred as if covered by flying sand, and he sank into the soil as if he had fallen into water.

A short while later, Romain Rolland, now resembling a younger version of Jules Verne, emerged from the field next to Vladimir and Pu Songling.

Vladimir glanced at Romain Rolland, who was turning back to his original form, and once again saw Romain Rolland's standard two-tone pupils.

Turning his gaze back to the "soldier," Vladimir began to speak, as if trying to make conversation.

"Contact means certain death, no survivors... Can this 'soldier' ​​take down Shelley?"

Romain Rolland, brushing dirt off his hair, didn't hesitate: "The 'No One Survived' would quickly lose its 'vitality' after leaving Christie, which might make no difference to ordinary people. But for Shelley's level of vitality, a 'soldier' ​​is merely a rather troublesome problem."

"Simply put, if we can't kill her, then we can only let Christie make direct contact with Shelley." Vladimir took out his bag, and a comb appeared in his hand. "Here, take this."

Romain Rolland looked at the comb that Vladimir handed him with some suspicion.

"What's this?"

"I forgot, wasn't it a time bomb?"

Romain Rolland paused in his outstretched hand, but still took the comb.

Romain Rolland picked up the comb, which was likely a ticking time bomb, and began to style his hair, his mood inexplicably complicated.

After quickly tidying himself up, Romain Rolland handed the comb back to Vladimir.

"Anyway, thanks... What's the situation with Christie?"

This time, it was Pu Songling who answered.

“Wagrave had already moved the sarcophagus down and just pushed it next to Christie.”

While Pu Songling and Romain Rolland were talking, Wagrave pushed open the lid of the sarcophagus, revealing its interior.

There was a man inside.

A man whose entire body was covered in gray.