Chapter 433 The Invisible God 2
My junior, Xiao Qiao, looked at me as if she were seeing me for the first time. I, too, have my share of mundane desires, and being looked at with such admiration by a beautiful junior naturally stirred a sense of pride within me. But now was not the time to indulge in those feelings.
"Don't just stare at me. He just can't see me; he can still notice your unusual behavior," I reminded him.
Upon hearing this, Junior Sister Qiao quickly averted her gaze. Actually, the reminder was just a precaution, because Junior Sister Qiao's shifting gaze was directly related to me, so the "Preacher" didn't seem to notice anything unusual.
On the way thereafter, I felt that Xiao Qiao seemed to have more confidence in her steps, perhaps because she realized that the protection I, as a "superpowered person," could provide was much stronger than she had previously claimed.
Fortunately, she didn't seem to have completely let her guard down, probably because I hadn't yet openly admitted my identity as the Great Impermanence. She might speculate that the reason I could make the "Preacher" invisible wasn't because I possessed godlike powers, but because I used other tricks. I thought it would be good to keep her on a certain level of tension, so I didn't reveal the truth and stayed close behind her and the "Preacher."
After moving for a while, we arrived at the abandoned construction site.
The charred, unfinished building split in two, the empty lot piled with construction debris, and the yellow warning tape cordoned off the area to prevent unauthorized personnel from approaching the dangerous structure—it's a place that evokes a myriad of emotions.
I don't know if it's because the two detectives who used to patrol this area cleaned it up recently, but the cleanliness here seems to have improved. Before, you could see empty plastic bottles and plastic bags, and other household trash here, but now it's desolate yet refreshingly beautiful. You can see weeds growing in the corners and edges in a pleasing way, and the exterior walls of the buildings are covered with messy ivy, giving it a unique beauty that's reminiscent of abandoned buildings. Even in this situation, I felt a childish urge to go inside and explore.
In addition, I also sensed Zhu Shi's presence from a distance; she was waiting and watching nearby.
The "preacher" entered the unfinished building with practiced ease, climbing the stairs to the top. The "top" was actually only halfway up; beyond that lay a jumbled, unfinished architectural skeleton. Xiao Qiao, the junior student, wasn't very fit; she was already panting heavily, her hands gripping her knees, as if she might collapse at any moment.
A few other people were not far away, probably having arrived earlier. They were of different genders and dressed differently, their expressions were panicked, and they all looked like ordinary people.
Opposite them was a humanoid figure made entirely of shadow, clearly the shadow clone of the "Preacher." At the shadow clone's feet lay another person, lying motionless on the ground, their exposed hands, feet, and face resembling dried-out, parched meat, so withered that their gender was indistinguishable.
Xiao Qiao, the junior student, also noticed the person who had fallen. An uneasy look appeared on her face, and she murmured, "That person, could it be..."
“That’s a corpse,” I said. “It probably just died; there’s still some residual body heat.”
Xiao Qiao's body trembled uncontrollably.
The shadow clone merged into the shadow beneath the feet of the "Preacher." The "Preacher" turned to look at Junior Sister Qiao.
“You are the last one, now everyone is here.” He said calmly, “Since everyone else arrived first, I used my clone to ‘test’ one of them. It’s a real pity, it seems this person was not chosen by the Dreamland Token.”
"A keepsake from my dreams...?" Little Qiao murmured.
The "Preacher" raised his palm, and a cyan particle of light appeared in his center. I've seen something similar before; the monster creators have used white particles of light when transforming into monsters. Although the color is different, I sensed they were of the same nature. That's probably the seed of the heart that creates monsters.
"As long as you can contain the token of your dreams within your body, you can become a messenger of 'Shangri-La,' gaining early access to 'Shangri-La' in the future," the "preacher" said. "Only those who are disappointed or even desperate about real life, and whose hearts are scarred, can accept this wonderful yet dangerous gift. It will enter the scars of your heart, take root and sprout there, and draw nourishment from them."
"As long as your heart has not succumbed to the cold reality, and you can still hold on to your dream even when your heart is repeatedly torn apart and scratched, then you are qualified to have this power."
"The greater the wounds to the soul, the more nourishment the dream token can absorb, and the stronger the feedback power; correspondingly, the more intense the pain caused by its stimulation, and the higher the difficulty of passing the 'trial'."
"The greater the risk, the greater the reward; this rule also applies here."
This seemed fair. Because the risks were so clearly laid out, it actually gave people a sense of security. The "preacher's" gaze swept over everyone present. Their faces showed both fear and longing. Even junior student Xiao Qiao showed a hint of interest.
“If the Seed of the Heart… the Token of Dreamland can absorb nourishment from the wounds of the human heart and transform it all into power, then where will the heart, whose ‘nourishment’ has been drained, be replenished?” I said. “Little Qiao, let me tell you this first: once you become the ‘Messenger of Dreamland’ in his words, you will be forced to embark on a cycle of killing humans and devouring their souls.”
"The so-called 'messengers of dreams' are called 'freaks' where we're from. You can understand it literally, which means 'monstrous humans.' You will become a monster captured by the desire to kill, and it will be futile to resist. The desire to kill will only become stronger and stronger, driving you to the point of madness and loss of control."
This is what I know about the strange man. In reality, the mind, or rather the soul, does not follow the conservation laws of the material universe. Mingzhuo can infinitely regenerate his soul, and I still have a large amount of "slag" obtained by burning his soul.
However, this counterintuitive nature is not something everyone can display. Just as magical power, though theoretically possessing infinite possibilities, is only limited by the limitations of human cognition, humans can only reveal a fraction of its potential. To accept the Seed of the Heart with the intention of exploiting loopholes will only lead to self-destruction.
After hearing my warning, Xiao Qiao's eyes immediately became incredibly clear.
The others seemed oblivious to my words, still clinging to their delusions about the Seed of the Heart in the hands of the "preacher," their faces radiating fanaticism. They were all deeply captivated by the "paradise" depicted in the white book, and even with the shadow of death looming over them, they would surely go through fire and water to enter that "paradise."
The "preacher," holding the Seed of the Heart, approached one of them. That person seemed to instinctively want to avoid it, yet also desperately wanted to accept the "trial," gain immense power, and become a "messenger of dreams." Finally, his expression froze on a mixture of expectation and greed, and he simply closed his eyes and stood still, as if accepting his fate.
I'm quite interested in how these freaks were specifically transformed. Although I've read about it in the files at the Humanitarian Division's secret base, I haven't witnessed it firsthand. If I were alone here, I'd probably just sit and watch what happens. Whether the person being transformed fails the "trial" or becomes a monster whose basic need is to devour others' souls, since they've accepted it, I wouldn't care too much.
Moreover, by refining the souls of my enemies into "slag" and using it as a weapon, am I not also a monster who kills and refines souls?
Unfortunately, it wasn't just Xiao Qiao who was watching. Because this floor of the unfinished building had no exterior walls, Zhu Shi could also observe my every move from a distance. Often, I only try to do good deeds because I care about what those around me think, and this time seems no exception. Although there might be some information that can only be obtained through covert observation, it seems I have no choice but to act first.
However, just as I was about to make my move, a sharp whistling sound suddenly came from behind. The "Preacher" also stopped and turned around abruptly. He saw a figure in a black uniform shoot down from the sky above the unfinished building, swiftly piercing through the building without exterior walls like a cannonball, its target being the "Preacher".
In the blink of an eye, the "preacher" transformed into a three-meter-tall monster and collided head-on with the figure.
The shockwave from the impact blasted away those nearby, and the thick layer of dust on the ground was whipped up high by the gale. The entire building shook violently from the impact, and a huge hole was blasted into the floor beneath the two people.
Most of the people around were probably shaken to the point of concussion and internal injury, and immediately lost consciousness. Even those who were still in a daze were in a state of confusion.
It's a good thing that those who have been "brainwashed" by white books can quiet down for a while; at most, we can cure them later. As for Xiao Qiao, I protected her behind me to prevent her from being harmed by the shockwave and excessive sound waves.
Then, I looked at the uninvited guest who had suddenly appeared on the scene.
(End of this chapter)
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