Chapter 167 Lu Chan the Young Girl 1
There are "fireflies" I left at the Luoshan office. I want to see if I can see what's happening there.
And the result is... we can't see it.
It's not that I can't see anything at all, but it's so blurry that I can't discern any useful information. If seeing the secret outpost of the Humanitarian Division through the vision synchronized with Lu Youxun is like seeing underwater, then seeing the Luoshan office from here is like adding a lot of silt to the water; I can only see fleeting glimpses. I can also faintly hear some chaotic sounds, much like listening to noises on land underwater—completely incomprehensible.
I've actually had a similar experience before, when I was transported to the Shadow World by Agent Kong. In the Shadow World, even the "fireflies" connecting to the real world could only perceive things that were quite blurry.
So, is the secret base I'm in now built in the Shadow World? It's certain that it isn't. While both can only perceive fleeting glimpses, the connection experience in the Shadow World is more like the strange sensation of light produced by pressing your finger against your eyeball through your eyelids with your eyes closed.
It can only be said that both are in an area with very poor signal quality.
If the poor signal in the shadow world is because it's another dimension, how do we explain the poor signal here? Is it because this is a "different time period"? Or is there a barrier here that prevents the exchange of signals between the inside and outside?
Next, I considered my escape route, that is, whether I could use the connection with the "fireflies" to teleport myself out of this eerie and terrifying place.
Since this is a strange place, it probably won't let me leave so easily. Just like the haunted mansions or caves in horror movies, most terrifying events only work when there's a background where escape is difficult. If I could just walk away, there would be no horror at all. I'm already mentally prepared for the fire teleportation to be banned.
—That's what I thought, but it turns out that teleportation is possible.
I clearly sensed that I could teleport out of this place at any time.
Most of my hard-earned mental preparation has been wasted. It's one thing to have superpowers, but they didn't even properly cut off my escape route. Could they please stop adding elements that reduce my sense of danger? I can't help but recall how my past power prevented me from encountering strange creatures. Could it be that my superpowers are actually preventing me from immersing myself in the adventure?
However, I can't really leave this place so soon. Even if it doesn't look like one, this is still known as the secret base of the Humanity Division, and I need to continue exploring further. Besides, if I rush back now, I might not be able to enter this place again.
I continued to use my senses to observe my surroundings, and before long, I spotted a strange figure nearby.
The figure, also dressed in white straitjacketry and tightly bound to a cross, seemed out of place among the surrounding prisoners. Excluding myself, everyone else was at least an adult man or woman, while this figure belonged to a young girl in the prime of her youth.
Judging by her appearance, she was only two or three years older than me, probably around the age of starting high school. She had delicate beauty, long black hair, and flawless white skin, like a well-educated female student from a scholarly family.
The only drawback is that she looks lifeless now, staring ahead with unfocused eyes, revealing a tired and disheartened air.
The stranger who previously accused the Humanitarian Division of capturing ordinary children should also have seen the girl, yet he didn't bring up her, seemingly not finding anything wrong with her presence. Does this mean the girl isn't just anyone, but a witcher?
It seems that Zhu Shi started working in the demon hunter family business in high school, or even junior high school. Perhaps it's not so rare for teenagers to work as demon hunters in Luoshan.
Suddenly, several figures appeared in front of us, and the "jailers" around us stopped in their tracks, along with the crosses binding us, which also stopped moving.
At the same time, I felt a slight vibration in my consciousness.
No, the vibration wasn't from my consciousness, but from something hidden within it—a fragment of a divine seal. Other fragments of divine seals appeared nearby!
Was it on the figures that appeared ahead? I focused my attention to observe them.
Among those figures, there were actually two old acquaintances of mine.
One of them had short white hair, wore tight gray clothes and pants, and was tall and strong; it was Chen Long.
The other person wore a silver mask, a white suit, and a white lab coat stained with blood.
Is this the creator of the freak? No, it's Ying Lingyun?
Did Ying Lingyun really not die?
No, this might be a time period from two years ago, so it's quite normal for Ying Lingyun to still be alive at that time.
Beside these two were three unfamiliar figures. They were obese, wearing green surgical gowns, and their heads were covered with green surgical caps and blue masks. Their exposed eyes were bloodshot, and the skin around their eyes was bluish-black and rotten.
"These must be the test subjects for this batch," someone, possibly Ying Lingyun, said wearily.
One of the "jailers" said respectfully, "Yes, Doctor."
Ying Lingyun gave a soft "hmm" and said perfunctorily, "Thank you for your hard work."
Then, without saying a word, he examined us.
I feel there's something strange about this "Ying Lingyun".
Although I have never actually met Ying Lingyun, judging from the behavior of the eccentric creator and Mr. Zhu's description, Ying Lingyun himself should be a man who likes to put on airs, speaks arrogantly, behaves carelessly, and has a performative personality.
In contrast, the "Ying Lingyun" before them seemed like a weary actor who had finished his role as a domineering CEO, changed back into casual clothes, and went home to drink beer after a long day at work. His voice lacked any swagger, and his posture was slouching. Looking back, his gait didn't resemble the imposing stride of the creator of the weirdo; instead, it reminded one of the introverted, athletic guys one often encounters in college. Upon closer inspection, he even appeared slightly hunched and had uneven shoulders.
Suddenly, his gaze fell on me.
"Where did this child come from?" he asked.
Who are you calling a child... I resisted the urge to retort.
The jailer replied respectfully, "He was a witness. Since he happened to be at the scene of Lu Chan's capture, we arrested him as well."
"Ying Lingyun"—since he didn't quite resemble Ying Lingyun, let's stick with calling him "Dr. Silver Mask." Dr. Silver Mask turned to Chen Long and asked, "Is that so?"
After thinking for a moment, Chenlong said, "...It seems so?"
"So, this is just a completely unrelated child?" Dr. Silver Mask's voice betrayed his displeasure.
"You don't mean to say you're going to let him go, do you?"
Just then, one of the three men in surgical gowns stepped out and said to the silver-masked doctor in a sinister tone, "Now that he's already on our territory, we can't let him leave. Don't tell me that we can just erase his memory and let him go. If he falls into Luo Shan's hands, our secret base might be exposed."
"Of course I wouldn't say that." The Silver Mask Doctor's attitude remained non-aggressive.
The man warned, "You'd better not do anything unnecessary."
"—Watch your tone," Chenlong said threateningly. "The Doctor is the highest authority here, and one of my jobs is to uphold his authority. Even if you are a senior researcher, I wouldn't mind making an example of you."
The senior researcher's expression changed slightly, and he retreated indignantly. He seemed to have originally wanted to say something harsh, but stopped himself under Chen Long's sharp gaze.
I observed the Silver Mask Doctor, and based on my intuition, the fragment of the divine seal I had just sensed should be on him.
Although their personalities are diametrically opposed, it's difficult to explain why the Divine Seal fragment is on him if he isn't Ying Lingyun. Or perhaps the Humanitarian Division possesses other Divine Seal fragments and distributed them to the highest-ranking authority within its subordinate outposts? But shouldn't the highest-ranking authority at the secret outpost where Lu Youxun was imprisoned two years ago also be Ying Lingyun?
The only possibility that can be thought of right now is that Dr. Silver Mask is one of Ying Lingyun's "possible alter egos," and the different personality traits are because this is "the more gentle Ying Lingyun." But based on Lu Youxun's past attitude and reactions, shouldn't the Ying Lingyun who had contact with him as the former stronghold manager not be such a gentle person?
Furthermore, even if the divine seal is just a fragment, it should still have the unique attribute of spanning the entire river of time. How do you explain this "divine seal fragment that appears to have appeared two years ago and belongs to Ying Lingyun"?
"Chenlong, why did you betray us!" The stranger who had spoken to me earlier suddenly shouted, "What benefits did the Humanitarian Affairs Bureau promise you? Not only us, but you even betrayed Lu Chan, even your own best friend... Are you even human?!"
"snort……"
Chenlong seemed to treat the other person's words as noise, letting them go in one ear and out the other.
The stranger was even more enraged, cursing, "You heartless traitor! Look over here... look over here! And Lu Chan, why aren't you saying anything? Say something! Ask that beast Chen Long what kind of shit is in his brain!"
As he spoke, he struggled on the cross, turning his head forcefully to look at the people not far away.
Lu Youxun is here? How come I didn't see him just now? I couldn't help but follow his gaze, but I only saw the girl with the air of a female student at the end of his line.
Chenlong, no longer ignoring him, followed his gaze to the girl.
“Lu Chan…” he uttered the name.
ah?
(End of this chapter)
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