Chapter 79: Unshakable 22
It is difficult for Hoshino to describe this feeling.
The moment he fell into the "black mud", his five senses seemed to be forcibly blocked. Everything around him became out of reach and impossible to perceive. If the system had not been talking in his mind, he would almost doubt whether he was dead.
【d100=95/90】
【The will is determined and failed. 】
[May I ask if the host chooses... chooses... to burn...]
As the system announced the results of the appraisal, a hoarse male voice sounded in his ears:
"That's enough. Take a rest."
Enough? Enough of what? Let who rest?
Xingye Wang wanted to speak, but no sound came out. The next second, a flash of light suddenly stung his eyes, forcing him to shed a few physiological tears. After his eyes adapted to the sudden stimulation, Xingye Wang slowly opened his eyes and looked around.
——This is an operating room.
He was lying on the operating table, facing an operating light.
Hoshino Moto took a deep breath and tried to support his upper body with his arms, but he found that his body was as soft as a ball of cotton and he couldn't muster any strength.
...This feeling of powerlessness is very familiar...
Also very strange.
Before he encountered the system, he had been dragging his last breath in this body. After coming to the other world, thanks to the magical system and the "false" body of the devil, he hadn't felt this powerless for a long time... a long time.
"Xingye, you can rest now."
The mysterious voice came again, and at the same time, there was a burst of "sizzling" sound.
...What's that sound? Is it a mechanical failure?
Ah, the noise suddenly disappeared... Never mind, what was he thinking about just now? System, demon... Why did he suddenly think of this? It feels familiar... Did I see it in a movie before...
The "hissing" sound of the electric current rang out again, but it was weaker than last time and almost inaudible.
Before he could listen carefully, a man suddenly appeared beside the operating table. He was wearing a blue-green surgical gown, his hair was neatly tucked into a hood of the same color, and the mask covered most of his face, revealing only a pair of calm, gentle eyes.
Hoshino Nozomi stared at him and found the corresponding identity from his memory - this was his surgeon.
As far as I can remember, the last person he saw after he was sent to the operating room for rescue was this doctor.
...Yes, rescue...that's why he is lying on the operating table. So now he is...about to die...?
Strange, was there a doctor here just now?
"I'm sorry, but there's nothing I can do."
The doctor's eyes were filled with sorrow. He sighed, "My colleagues and I have tried our best, but we still cannot prevent death from coming."
"Young people like you will inevitably feel panic and resistance, but fortunately you are different from them. You understand the nature of 'death' - eternal rest. You know that it is just an inevitable ending, and it makes no difference whether it is early or late."
The doctor said, "So, kid, close your eyes. You are very tired, aren't you?"
The words he uttered seemed to have magical power, floating into his ears like a lullaby. Xingye Wang felt drowsy and his eyelids couldn't stop drooping.
The doctor smiled and said, "You have nothing to worry about. You don't need to worry about anything."
That's true...
Hoshino Wang slowly closed his eyes.
"Of course, no one will care about your death."
...No, that's not right.
The subconscious mind countered: Someone will care.
Several blurry figures flashed before my eyes, as fast as meteors across the night sky. Finally, the picture stopped on a ochre-haired young man who was 1.6 meters tall and had an aura of 2.8 meters.
To be honest, Hoshino Nozomi couldn't remember who this person was.
But it was familiar. Very, very familiar.
It was as if they had been through a lot together.
A strong, indescribable emotion struck his dead heart, and the coagulated blood in his body seemed to start flowing again. Hoshino Nozomi felt a headache, and more and more scenes flashed before his eyes.
System...
System...are you still there...
[I'm here!] The system was so excited that its speech speed increased a lot, [Host, I didn't expect you to take the initiative to call me!]
[Sorry, host, the signal was interrupted by the Heroic Spirit just now and the connection was lost. Damn Gilgamesh didn't tell us that there is a Heroic Spirit with an additional job in the Holy Grail! I can already imagine him laughing and saying "How can you be a king if you are not slow?" ]
【Host, you...】
Hoshino Nozomi: Stop, I feel dizzy.
[Okay, okay.] The system choked for a moment before it realized that although Hoshino Nozomi had reestablished contact with it, it was still being disturbed by the Heroic Spirit.
The host broke a corner of the illusion with his own will, and now needs it to give a final push.
[Host, you have missed the chance to refuel your luck. Do you want to activate the luck appraisal? ]
It's a big gamble.
The probability of success is only 12%. Once he fails, he is likely to completely lose the ability to resist.
The system is correct.
Jin Shanshan, why didn’t you tell me earlier!!!
In the void, the speed of the dice's rotation gradually slowed down, and Xing Yewang's heartbeat gradually accelerated - [d100=19/20].
【Lucky identification, success. 】
Xingye Wang suddenly opened his eyes.
The sleepiness was swept away, and he turned his head and stared straight at the heroic spirit pretending to be a doctor.
The doctor's smile froze on his face.
He looked at the white-haired boy with a pale face and stiff eyes, and for a moment he didn't know which of the two of them was the ghost.
"What's the matter, kid?" He said as gently as he could. "Do you have anything else to say? If not, just close your eyes slowly."
This is just a hypocritical compliment.
In this illusion, he deprived this human of the ability to speak and imposed "suggestions". As long as the other person closed his eyes, he could completely control his will and devour his soul.
Although the structure of this human's soul is somewhat strange, and no one knows why he suddenly escaped from the "suggestion", he has just increased the intensity of the "suggestion" again, and soon, this human will completely faint.
As "all the evil in this world" that polluted the Holy Grail, Angramanu, a Heroic Spirit of the Avenger class, has never failed to capture it - except for that last time when he encountered Gilgamesh with a loud laugh.
However, the existence of the Hero King's extraordinary specifications is rare in the world, and he does not believe that the will of the human in front of him can compete with that of the Hero King.
But the next moment, Avenger's smile froze on his face again.
Hoshino Nozomi was still staring at him. Not only that, he even sat up and asked in a cold voice, "Where's Matou Sakura?"
Avenger: "..."
This development doesn’t seem right.
Without waiting for him to argue, Xingye Wang said to himself, "It's not here."
Avenger: “?”
Xingye Wang: "I'm going out."
Avenger: "???"
"Wait!" Avenger gritted his teeth, "You're awake?! Why?!"
——Because luck E also has its spring.
Xingye Wang glanced at him indifferently without explaining.
He just conducted another investigation and the results showed that Matou Sakura's self-will had almost dissipated.
He felt a little lost, but now he had to hurry up and get out.
The illusion disappeared unnoticed, and the world returned to chaos. I think Avenger saw that the truth was revealed and hid himself first.
"It seems that you don't have the ability to fight head-on. No wonder you are willing to stay in the Holy Grail." As he spoke, Xingye Wang put on the character card of [Zhongli].
It was obviously inappropriate to perform a magic trick in front of the natives, but fortunately Avenger seemed unable to tell the difference. This special heroic spirit was intangible and had no fixed form, so he looked at the essence of the soul instead of the face. No matter which demon character card Hoshino used, his essence was his own, so there was no risk of being exposed.
"Gilgamesh once said that during the Fourth World War, you not only released him, but also created a body for him," Zhong Li said, "I am a very easy-to-talk-to person, you just need to release me."
In the twisted darkness, no answer came.
"I guess you are trying to transform me into magic power," Zhong Li looked around and shook his head. "Since you don't agree, I have to use the last resort."
He raised his hands, and suddenly, silky golden light appeared all around him, stretching like waves.
"...What are you going to do?" Avenger suddenly had a bad feeling.
"Nothing, I'm trying to summon the stars."
"Tianxing?"
"Maybe calling it a meteorite would make it easier for you to understand."
"you……"
After a moment of silence, Avenger's tone became sharp: "You can still summon a meteorite? No, if you do this, both of us will die! Are you crazy?! Stop!!!"
Amid the hysterical shouting, the light became brighter and brighter.
Avenger: "Stop! I'll let you out!"
The golden light faded, and Zhong Li smiled politely: "Thank you."
Avenger: "Just let you go, right? No other requests?"
"Of course," Zhong Li was puzzled, "I told you, I'm a good talker."
Avenger: "..."
The black mud began to churn, spitting out the undigested foreign matter without hesitation.
When returning to reality, Zhongli thought about a question: why did Fyodor choose this tactic?
The black mud can cause irreversible fatal injuries to heroes, but can only cause ordinary wounds to him. If it weren't for the exception of the Avenger inside, the time he could leave the black mud would be greatly shortened.
Did he think that mental attacks would work? Did he put his hopes on Avenger?
Zhong Li thought about it and only came up with one possibility: Avenger had been hiding inside the Holy Grail, and was probably a variable outside of Fyodor's plan. Therefore, the real reason was that, out of some misunderstanding, Fyodor believed that the black mud could seriously injure him, so he had a clear goal from the beginning, and all ambushes were to trap himself in the black mud.
If he went out unscathed, maybe he could catch them off guard, but what if... he was disguising himself?
Pretending to be controlled by the black mud like Saber did might be more effective.
*
“Blah——”
The black mud receded like the tide, revealing what was inside.
He raised his eyes, and a flash of golden light flashed in his eyes in an instant. It was clearly a beautiful scene with flowing lights and colors, but it was so depressing that it made people breathless.
——It was as if I was the prey being targeted.
That was another Zhong Li who was completely different from his usual gentle and refined image.
Not far away, the Red King landed beside the doubtful Fyodor and said in a deep voice: "During the Demon God War, the Rock God showed an endless killing spree, and his reputation even spread to our country, but after Liyue stabilized, he was no longer like this."
"The contrast between before and after is too great," Fyodor said, "just like Saber."
The black mud did not transform him into magic.
Why? Can't eat?
If Morax really transformed like Saber and was controlled by the Black Holy Grail, it would undoubtedly be a good thing for them.
But for some reason, Fyodor's heartbeat was accelerating uncontrollably.