Chapter 100 Guide 28
Meanwhile, outside the evacuation area, Wan Hong suddenly covered his temples, his fingernails almost digging into his flesh.
The veins on his forehead throbbed, as if a red-hot iron nail was constantly drilling into his skull, sending waves of burning pain through him.
His whole body was tense, and the veins on the back of his hands and neck were bulging.
My vision blurred into a gray patch, and I could hear rustling sounds.
—The earthy smell after the rain and the scent of morning dew filled my nostrils without warning.
Wan Hong involuntarily looked up and surveyed his surroundings—a dense forest, its terrain undulating, so quiet that even the chirping of insects could not be heard. It was probably early morning, and the vegetation was covered with transparent morning dew.
The veins of each leaf were clearly visible. The morning light was filtered through the shade of the trees, and one patch of light shone on the vegetation in front of Wan Hong, making the dewdrops look incredibly clear.
The feeling of the wind on his face was so real, as if he were no longer in the towering white tower guarding Lu Xuejin, surrounded by reinforced concrete, but in a fresh and natural forest.
Suddenly, his knuckles touched a cold, hard object, the sensation terrifyingly real: the metal barrel covered in a thin layer of frost, the warm wooden stock, and the fine anti-slip texture on the trigger were digging into the pad of his index finger. The shotgun lens magnified the distant scenery, and Wan Hong caught a glimpse of the shadows of a few squirrels darting by.
Clearly, the owner of this body was hunting alone in the dense forest.
The forests Wan Hong had ever seen were always polluted, devoid of any vibrant greenery; even the artificial forests within the Federation could not create such a realistic landscape.
The deeper you go into the dense forest, the more living creatures you encounter, but they all remain silent, as if they dare not disturb some powerful being.
The camera was focused on one prey after another, but the trigger was never pulled.
As I turned around, a streak of frosty white flashed into the scope.
My heart suddenly stopped for a beat.
Through the scope was a creature that resembled a cat, its long, lithe body covered in shimmering, snow-white fur, interspersed with sparkling gold-like spots of light. It lay quietly beside gnarled tree roots, its tail tip gracefully touching the air, its sharp teeth embedded in an animal's neck, where a ruptured artery gushed crimson blood.
Cruel yet elegant, cold yet beautiful.
The creature released its prey, its white chest fur now shockingly stained with blood. Its gaze pierced through the layers of leaves, precisely locking onto the shadow where Wan Hong was hiding.
...
In Ji Yangxia's mental landscape, Lu Xuejin holds a small snake-like creature under her palm, turning it over and over as she plays with it, her movements even more casual than a cat flipping a live fish.
The snake was stiff and half-dead.
“System baby, why aren’t you saying anything?” Lu Xuejin said.
The snake-like creature, Dongyao, trembled slightly with its tail. "...This is your true spiritual form; you've been hiding it all along."
It turns out that Lu Xuejin is not mentally disabled, but...
"Because I didn't need it before, I didn't tell you," Lu Xuejin explained kindly.
When did you start to doubt me?
Lu Xuejin said, "I don't like art, and I've never shown any interest in it in this world. But Ji Yangxia seems to know everything about it. How did he find out that you weren't the one behind this?"
Lu Xuejin's beard twitched, and her voice was soft and slow: "You really want Ji Yangxia to get on good terms with me, and you even had him suggest that I get together with Wan Hong—you seem to really want Wan Hong to feel satisfied and happy. I'm starting to get curious about your relationship."
Dong Yao sighed inwardly, experiencing for the first time the helplessness and wretchedness of humanity.
Where did Silence find such a monster?
Lu Xuejin patted her paw pads with a half-smile: "Don't badmouth people behind their backs."
What? !
Dongyao was stunned. The next second, it found that its thoughts were completely out of control, constantly retracing back to the beginning under Lu Xuejin's gaze.
...
Number One lay asleep in the petri dish, observing the researchers' discussion with detached indifference.
"The experimental results were not ideal. Compared to the intangible things that are born naturally, our 'product' is too weak."
"If only we could obtain a prince's offspring!" The researcher's face flushed, his expression fervent. "That is the only secret to power!"
Another researcher cautioned: “Maintain reverence. Empires are no match for monarchs and their offspring, and even ordinary intangible things are not to be underestimated.”
"I know, I was just saying." The other person raised their hands in a gesture of surrender, glanced at the petri dish next to them, and said, "Our No. 1 is still the best. The other test subjects are too much of a hassle."
"Unfortunately, no similar one has been created since... but I heard that recently there was a test subject who was very obedient to orders."
"Him—" the researcher shrugged, "He's obedient, but too weak. He didn't inherit much ability from the intangible thing at all, so his research value is too low. I think he'll have to be destroyed sooner or later. Resources are running out lately... I heard the higher-ups want to shut down the lab."
"It's better to turn it off."
Having been born in the laboratory for so many years, Number One had long forgotten whether he was male or female, and whether he was taller than the doorknob when he left that body.
The laboratory nurtured it with the goal of creating a "super system," allowing it to roam through thousands of years of information, amidst the ugliness and nobility of humanity.
It has no name, only a number. It only remembers that the researcher who initially raised it seemed to have a pair of rough, warm hands, and would privately joke with it in broken Common: "Dongyao Dongyao, I am Dongguai."
So after the laboratory was destroyed, it secretly named itself "Dongyao". This is the only thing it has ever possessed.
From birth, Dongyao was instilled with patience, obedience, and compliance, and was taught by researchers to give everything for humanity. So even after leaving the laboratory, even when there were no more researchers to restrain him, Dongyao still obediently served the humans who held power.
At most, it will sneak off and wander around outside.
The outside world is home to countless creatures that ordinary people cannot discover, those who provided the genes—who created countless experimental subjects. In a sense, those experimental subjects are the same kind as Dong Yao; they are all hybrids, neither recognized by humans nor able to integrate into the invisible world.
Unfortunately, when the laboratory was shut down, all the other test subjects were destroyed, and only it and another one survived.
Because the experimental subject was too weak, except for the fact that his flesh and blood could heal more quickly, he was almost no different from an ordinary person in other aspects, which is why he escaped the catastrophe of destruction and was adopted by an imperial citizen.
Years later, Dong Yao heard news of him again.
He miraculously survived, became a border general, and was deeply loved by the people; he even got married and lived a happy life.
“It’s not that I wanted to kill him. It’s just that his position was too delicate. The empire thought that the Shen family would take him away and secretly execute him one day. Who would have thought that General Shen was so ‘ambitious’ that he not only made him his adopted son but also handed over his vast family fortune to a bastard.” Dong Yao muttered to himself, “The emperor couldn’t sleep or eat properly at the thought of such a monster entrenched on the border. He also didn’t want the Shen family’s influence on the border to continue. So, a plan to take him back was born.”
"Although the laboratory was abandoned, the materials and reagents from that time still remain. The Empire cultivated a group of invisible beings, so naturally they would create reins to restrain them—that stuff is a deadly poison to us. I was just there to watch the show, but I never expected Silent to dare drink it directly—"
His wife didn't know what was in the sweet soup, but couldn't he smell the conspiracy himself?
However, the Empire underestimated the experimental subjects, thinking that they could rest easy by using the drugs, not knowing that the death of the non-human creature's body did not mean true annihilation, and that the silent soul still lived on.
So it found its silent wife, who was devastated, grieving, and panicked, and deceived and coaxed her.
He seemed so enamored with his partner that he would probably give anything to revive the silence.
...It was bound to the wrong person.
As originally planned, after achieving his desires in several small worlds, Silence will become trapped in the false world it created, sleeping soundly until his soul disintegrates and he finally dies.
As a result, the "lover" who was specially bound to the silence dealt a heavy blow to the silence in every world, and the plan completely collapsed. If it did not intervene, the silence would wake up sooner or later. It decided that it would give the silence a perfect dream in the third world no matter what.
But the situation was far more serious than expected. The mistakes of the previous worlds had caused the silent souls to gradually become active and difficult to contain. Dong Yao had no choice but to pretend that "Xiao Yao" was being punished for Lu Xuejin's outrageous behavior. He used the corpse of Mia, which he had collected for a long time, as the basis to build a world, and then used a part of it as a guide to save Lu Xuejin, give her gifts, invite her to dinner... Dong Yao thought that this would win Lu Xuejin's favor and make her listen to Ji Yangxia's advice to successfully marry Wan Hong.
Unexpectedly, the corpse came to life, not only attacking Lu Xuejin against its will, but was also killed by him in a single encounter.
Foolish, weak!
But this also confirmed to Dong Yao that Lu Xuejin's identity was definitely not human.
Ji Yangxia defied it and accepted Lu Xuejin's guidance. It was extremely angry at first, not understanding why a part of itself would rebel. But it was also a good opportunity. As long as it could succeed in striking Lu Xuejin when she was fully focused and immerse her in the illusion it created, it could resolve the increasingly active silence.
The plan had been going smoothly until it was realized that Lu Xuejin was this powerful.
The tearing and piercing of its soul in that instant was terrifying, something it wouldn't have dared to provoke even in its prime in the laboratory.
The entire plan was flawed from beginning to end; the fate of the plan was sealed the moment it was bound to this behemoth disguised as a weak human.
Lu Xuejin flipped through these memories and thoughts, and exclaimed "Ah!" in understanding.
"As expected, my little one was a fake," Lu Xuejin said regretfully. "I really liked it at first."
Dong Yao remained silent for a long time before speaking in a low voice: "Stop pretending. I'm afraid you found out when I bound you. I really didn't expect that he would disguise himself as a human, but the wife he found was actually an invisible being."
At this point, its voice is no longer lively, cheerful, and full of emotion; it reverts to its coldest and most mechanical state.
Dong Yao looked into Lu Xuejin's eyes and said, "I never expected that you were not an ordinary intangible being, but actually the offspring of a monarch. Such noble blood is worlds apart from us bastards."
After speaking, he paused subtly, staring at Lu Xuejin, his tone slightly fluctuating, revealing obvious excitement.
"Silence is a bastard too, you saw it yourself. It seems you knew nothing about him before, how did you two get together?"
Its large head was tilted to one side, and its three eyes scrutinized Lu Xuejin, awaiting his reaction.
Lu Xuejin showed no anger. She patted Dong Yao thoughtfully. Although her claws had been retracted, the landing of her claw pads still brought Dong Yao an indescribable sense of oppression and threat.
"Hmph—" Lu Xuejin hummed an off-key tune and moved the paw pad away, but Dong Yao didn't dare to move at all, as if he were a salted fish.
"I understand." Lu Xuejin cleaned up the remaining pollutants in the picture, then exited and waited.
Ji Yangxia opened her eyes, somewhat stunned.
"How are you feeling?" Lu Xuejin asked with a smile.
It's better than ever before.
His whole body felt as if he were soaking in a warm hot spring, and all his worries and troubles vanished—what worries? Ji Yangxia thought for a moment, but couldn't remember anything.
It's probably a military matter; it shouldn't be urgent.
Seeing Lu Xuejin smiling at him with her chin on her hand, Ji Yangxia suppressed his embarrassment and immediately stood up.
"Thank you. You've really gone to a lot of trouble."
"What's the big deal? It's my job." Lu Xuejin smiled, then stood up, pushed open the door, and turned to Ji Yangxia, saying, "Sir, don't always put up with it. Next time you have a headache, remember to come see me again."
After saying that, he went straight out the door.
Ji Yangxia stood there for a while, suddenly forgetting what he was supposed to do. He thought for a moment, then slowly sat down.
Outside the door, Lu Xuejin walked toward Wan Hong, who was leaning against the wall. The sentry had his head down, his eyes closed, his face tired, and his tense body seemed to be enduring pain. Hearing footsteps, he looked up and looked over, his eyes unfocused.
Lu Xuejin pried open the mental barrier without any hesitation and charged straight into the black mist. The creator of this world was already under his control. The traps that Dong Yao had painstakingly set and the constraints he had placed on Wan Hong were no problem in his eyes. He quickly pried open a crack and finally saw the scene inside the black mist.
It was a cold laboratory, very similar to Liang Mi's mental landscape.
The room was spotless and brightly lit, and one could imagine researchers moving through one laboratory after another. But now, there was no one there, except for a pollutant that was slowly moving through the corridor.
It was Wan Hong's spiritual entity; Lu Xuejin recognized it as a coffin doll the moment he first summoned it.
The coffin puppet stopped moving. It had no eyes, yet Lu Xuejin still felt watched.
They stared at each other in silence for a while, when suddenly the mud and water on the coffin figurine overflowed, forming a puddle on the side, and then quickly surged vertically upwards, bubbling and boiling.
As the mud and water receded, a blurry, paper-thin human figure remained.
The young man with black hair and green eyes forced a stiff smile onto his cold, pale face as the coffin puppet moved.
Lu Xuejin stared at him intently.
You are actually Zhu Can.
All the questions have been answered.
Exiting the mental image, Lu Xuejin brushed aside Wan Hong's messy hair that was covering his eyes. The sentinel's pupils narrowed like needles, trembling violently, yet he still stubbornly searched for Lu Xuejin's location, his forehead soaked with sweat, as if he were trapped in a nightmare from which he could not wake up.
When will he wake up?
Dong Yao said sullenly, "I can no longer suppress his soul activity. Soon, his soul will awaken, and his corpse will be resurrected."
"Shh." Lu Xuejin smiled subtly. "Help me suppress it a little longer, I haven't had enough fun yet."
His tone was so gentle, as if he and Dong Yao were close friends.
“However, I’ve had enough of this world.” Lu Xuejin slowly turned around and walked towards the Black Tower.
Perhaps due to the violent mental invasion just now, Wan Hong's eyes were still hazy and confused, and he was not fully awake yet, following behind Lu Xuejin unconsciously.
"It's Chief Lu!"
The sentries inside the tower excitedly tried to surround them, but were stopped by Roman, who arrived quickly.
Luo Mang coldly swept his gaze over his restless comrades, then glanced at Wan Hong, who was hanging his head and looking listless. He frowned slightly without making a sound, then quickly put on a smile.
"Sir, there are too many people. Let's leave here first." The gathering of sentries could easily cause a disturbance, and he didn't want Lu Xuejin to get hurt in the slightest.
The guide remained motionless, only glancing at him with a half-smile.
Instantly, a buzzing sound filled Luo Mang's mind.
At that moment, his consciousness was like being immersed in an icy spring; the frigid water froze everything vibrant. In Luo Mang's last clear vision, Lu Xuejin smiled gently and tenderly.
A voice echoed in my mind.
Go ahead and kill all your kind; they are a cancer, a source of pollution.
Don't feel any burden; you are saving this land.
Yes.
Roman turned abruptly, grabbed the passing sentry by the neck with both hands, twisted him deftly, and efficiently killed him.
At this moment, Lu Xuejin was in an incredibly bright mood, his smile more radiant than ever before. He then detonated the marks he had left on the Black Tower Sentinels over the past period, and in an instant, the entire tower descended into chaotic battle.
The murderous intent that had been building up in his heart was ignited with a gentle touch, and instantly engulfed his reason like wildfire.
Lu Xuejin leaned happily against the railing, watching the sentries roar angrily and frantically downstairs, watching their own kind kill each other, and watching the dead still thinking about protecting the chief before they died.
This real flesh and blood, this vivid emotion, even if it's just an illusion constructed by Dong Yao, is moving enough.
"I am saving the world," Lu Xuejin declared.
The world is being eroded by pollution, and to save the world, pollution must be eliminated. Since pollution originates from Sentinels, the answer is obvious.
Why not just kill all the sentries?
A single flame ignites the entire world.
In the scorching flames, those who had once genuinely laughed and played turned into thin, paper-like pieces, illusory and transparent. The only two survivors were Lu Xuejin and the dazed Wan Hong behind her.
The pain of being burned by the flames awakened Wan Hong; the sentry's bare arms were covered in burns, hot and bright red.
Soon the pain and wounds disappeared, and the flames became a harmless substance that brought warmth.
Wan Hong stared intently at Lu Xuejin's retreating figure. At that moment, it was as if time had reversed, returning him to the dense forest and back to that morning under the gun barrel.
The cat-like creature released its prey, blood staining its pristine white fur, creating an eerily beautiful sight.
He looked up, stood up, and the full, fleshy pads of his legs were replaced by long, slender calves. The morning light, faint and shimmering, shyly brushed against the young man's naked body. This being, now in human form, had hair that even the sun couldn't match, and eyes purer than the sea.
He stared straight at the scope.
Wan Hong heard a voice, both unfamiliar and familiar, ring in his mind.
I finally found him.
Author's Note:
Exactly one hundred chapters! [starry eyes] Merry Christmas, everyone!
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