Chapter 408
Betrayal
Chapter 408 Betrayal
The person in charge's office.
Zhang Minglu handed over the summary report after the second experiment to Gao Liangwei for review.
After a moment's observation, Gao Liangwei quickly identified the key point: "The parasites are unaffected by the Scarlet Fear? This seems to be the same principle behind why we can't extract information from them."
“Yes.” Zhang Minglu nodded. “The spores modify the host’s brain nervous system, causing the parasites to ‘ignore’ factors that are detrimental to the spores on a mental level… But this does not mean that they are completely immune to scarlet fear, just not as severely as humans.”
"This is not good news for humanity."
Gao Liangwei's face darkened as he realized something.
"What does the person in charge mean?"
"If the parasite uses this to launch a counterattack, the consequences will be severe."
Gao Liangwei comes from a military background, so he always thinks about problems from a military perspective first.
"The leader of the parasites, that 'prophet.' If he takes advantage of the fact that the parasites are less affected by the Scarlet Fear and launches a large-scale counterattack against the coalition forces at night on the front lines of the Black Flag Kingdom, our coalition forces will undoubtedly be in an extremely passive position."
Zhang Minglu was taken aback upon hearing this; he had never even considered this possibility.
Now that Gao Liangwei has mentioned it, he realizes that this matter is indeed of great importance.
If the parasites exploit this rule to fight a night battle against the coalition forces...
"Sir, should we inform the Allied Forces of this intelligence? But today is already the 8th, and a week has passed since the rules were broken, and the parasites haven't launched a counterattack yet..."
"If you are waging a war against an enemy, you should never hope that the enemy will make a mistake."
After Gao Liangwei finished speaking, he made a phone call to explain the situation.
He then looked at the report again.
"Your experiment has also explored that 'unknown' more deeply this time... That red blush, you think it's... brainwaves?" Gao Liangwei's expression was strange. "Brainwaves... can they be seen with the eyes?"
"In charge, actually, the testers didn't 'see' those terrifying images either. According to the analysis of various data collected from the two experiments by dozens of experts and scholars in related fields, those images were generated directly in the human brain through brainwave interference."
"The human brain is formed... Is this why everyone sees different images?"
"I'm afraid so. That 'red blush' is undoubtedly the source of the interference. After it's inputted into the human brain, it begins to interfere, causing the brain to generate terrifying images. That's why we've named it the 'Source of Fear'."
"Has any tester caught it?"
Zhang Minglu shook his head and said regretfully, "Although the mental stabilization tools ensured the safety of the testers and prevented them from falling into a state of brain death or madness, that's all we could do. The testers reported that their mental energy was almost exhausted just from using it to counteract the effects of the terrifying scenes, and they simply couldn't muster the willpower to approach that source of fear."
"...If we can't even get close enough, how can we talk about capturing and studying it?" Gao Liangwei put down the report.
Zhang Minglu hesitated for a moment and said, "It seems that to get close to exploring it, ordinary high-limit mental power sublimators are not enough; we need the very best to participate in the experiment. For example, Long Hun and Bai Xuewu from our base... but they are all key personnel being trained..."
Gao Liangwei understood Zhang Minglu's meaning. The latter was struggling with whether it was worthwhile to send top-tier ascendants to take risks in order to explore the unknowns within these rules.
Even with the help of props, accidents can still happen.
This is a turbulent time, with the war against the Fire Thief Cult and the Parasites still ongoing, and the combat power of every top-tier Ascended is indispensable.
"What's your opinion, person in charge?" Zhang Minglu couldn't make up his mind and had no authority to make the decision.
Gao Liangwei countered, "Where will the next experiment be held?"
"In Lu Ruiguo, Dr. Lu Rui plans to have some patients who cannot perceive fear due to physiological or psychological factors become test subjects."
"Use patients as test subjects? Is that feasible?"
"There are many different opinions, and I don't know how effective it will be. We can only wait for the experimental results."
Gao Liangwei pondered for a moment: "Then let's wait for the results of the third experiment. If Lu Rui's plan succeeds and he captures the 'source of fear,' that would be best. If the experiment fails, I will propose at the Human Alliance meeting that each member state send one top sublimator to conduct the experiment."
Zhang Minglu nodded in agreement, and before leaving, he asked curiously, "Manager, what's the progress of the investigation into the incident involving the spread of scarlet fear through games?"
"Section Chief Li Meng is currently investigating, and Li Liang was recently transferred to assist him."
"Li Liang? That's the internet celebrity Sublimator who possesses hypnotic tools... It seems Section Chief Li Meng suspects someone inside the game development studio. But what are their motives?"
“This is exactly what Section Chief Li wants to investigate. We’ll just wait for his news. Dr. Zhang, don’t forget there’s another beheading operation targeting the Fire Thief Cult later this month. You need to keep a close eye on the Ascended Ones involved in the operation.”
“I understand. I will speak with them individually in the next few days to make sure they have no worries.”
……
At 9:50 a.m. on the 8th, Shi Jingyi walked from the college to the South Street Stadium.
As soon as she arrived at the entrance of the venue, Guan Tong's voice rang in her mind through the telepathic network.
“Shi Jingyi, I have checked both inside and outside the stadium and there is no ambush. But if Lu Cheng is hostile, we cannot rule out the possibility that he might use a teleportation device to summon reinforcements.”
Upon hearing this, Shi Jingyi looked around and asked, "Thank you for your help. Hasn't Lu Cheng arrived yet?"
"Not yet. Look down at your left hand. Don't use your mental powers to defend against my shadow."
Upon hearing this, Shi Jingyi looked down and saw a thin shadow rising from the ground and landing in the palm of her left hand.
Then, the shadow line quickly wrapped around her wrist several times, like an inconspicuous thin rope.
"What is this?" Shi Jingyi asked with a smile. "You made a bracelet for me using your shadow?"
"It's just a safety net. If anything goes wrong, I'll immediately switch places with it and move to your side."
"Oh? That's quite a convenient ability, but don't underestimate me."
"How could I dare to underestimate you, a martial arts master?" Guan Tong said. "However, if the enemy is unethical and uses numbers to bully the few, I certainly won't let you fight alone."
"……Um."
Shi Jingyi took a deep look at the shadow bracelet on her wrist, then lowered her arm.
She went into the stadium and stood in the lobby to wait.
At 9:58, Guan Tong saw Lu Cheng appear through the shadows she had placed outside the venue.
He was wearing a trench coat and a mask, looking somewhat furtive, his eyes firm yet revealing a hint of unease.
He walked into the stadium and immediately saw Shi Jingyi in the lobby.
It has been quite some time since he left the academy. Now, seeing this lecturer again, the latter's clothes have not changed, but his temperament seems to have undergone some indescribable changes.
As soon as Lu Cheng entered, Shi Jingyi saw him and said, "Lu Cheng?"
Lu Cheng took off his mask and said with a complicated expression, "Lecturer Jingyi."
Where have you been all this time?
"I..." Lu Cheng wanted to say something, but he didn't and fell silent.
Shi Jingyi frowned slightly.
After a moment of silence, Lu Cheng took a deep breath: "I'm sorry, Instructor Jingyi. I just want you to know that I have no personal grudge against you... It's just that I don't want to lose myself and become a walking corpse controlled by spores!"
As he finished speaking, light began to emanate from around him.
Shi Jingyi was about to say something, but seeing the light emanating from beside him, her eyes sharpened: "Lu Cheng, whatever you're going to do, it's not too late to stop now. Don't make a big mistake. I can help you contact the relevant departments for assistance and find a way to solve your spore addiction problem." "No, it's too late," Lu Cheng said with a self-deprecating laugh. "It's been too late since I left the academy, and it's even more too late now."
Figures were already flashing among the lights around him, which was the effect of the teleportation device.
"you……"
"There's no need to waste any more words with him."
Guan Tong's voice rang out, not from the mental network, but from beside Shi Jingyi.
Lu Cheng's eyes widened as he looked at the person who had suddenly appeared and blurted out, "Teacher Guan Tong?! What are you doing here!"
At this moment, the people who had arrived via teleportation also appeared around Lu City, a total of ten people.
Guan Tong's passive ability, [Killing Intent Perception], allowed him to clearly sense the intense killing intent emanating from these people.
"I wouldn't dare be your teacher," Guan Tong retorted sarcastically. "Being your teacher would be mortally dangerous."
"..."
Lu Cheng didn't know why Guan Tong suddenly appeared, but it seemed that he came with Shi Jingyi, but hadn't shown himself before.
This made Lu Cheng realize that he had been deceived, and he angrily said to Shi Jingyi, "It seems that you never trusted me from the beginning!"
Guan Tong said coldly, "The facts prove that you do not deserve this trust."
"Let's do it!"
At this moment, the ten people who had been teleported to Lu Cheng's side attacked together, all targeting Shi Jingyi.
Their abilities and item effects were instantly revealed to Guan Tong, who was wearing the title of "Civilization Observer".
Shi Jingyi stomped her foot and used the Mind Martial Technique Repulsion Step to take the initiative in the battle, sending the nearest enemy flying with a single punch.
Guan Tong instantly unleashed his Shadow Domain, plunging the entire venue into darkness.
Then, eyes opened from within the shadow realm, absorbing the mental energy of the enemies trapped within.
"Damn it, that's a shadow?!"
Why is the shadow here?!
"Lu Cheng! What did you do?!"
Upon entering the Shadow Domain, the teleported parasites immediately realized that the enemy was not only Shi Jingyi, but also the Shadow.
The latter type of combat power, capable of changing the course of events, was not even within the scope of their considerations for this operation.
Lu Cheng also looked bewildered.
Lecturer Guan Tong is actually the famous legendary Ascensionist "Shadow"?
Even with all the helpers sent by the prophets, he wasn't entirely confident in dealing with Shi Jingyi alone, let alone with the addition of a shadow.
“These people are all parasites.” Guan Tong used the mind network to communicate with Shi Jingyi.
After the Shadow Domain expanded, his mental power made contact with everything within the domain, and he received responses whenever he tried to connect using the mental network.
“What about Lu Cheng? Is he also a parasite?” Shi Jingyi asked.
“He isn’t,” Guan Tong said. “That’s why he’s even more hateful.”
"..."
While still human, he actually helped the parasite try to kill his former teacher... This cannot be described simply as "traitorous," but as "a treacherous and faithless traitor."
Guan Tong would naturally not let such a person go.
But before we can take him down, there is one more step we need to take.
Shi Jingyi was not an indecisive person either. When Lu Cheng chose to use a teleportation device to deal with her, she no longer recognized any teacher-student relationship.
She immediately declared, "Kill these parasites and capture Lu Cheng alive for interrogation."
"Just to my liking."
Guan Tong coldly observed the parasites trapped in the Shadow Domain, helpless and at a loss. They might be strong, but within the greatly enhanced Shadow Domain, they were no different from lambs to the slaughter.
Reflecting Shadow Killing Formation!
Guan Tong used this ability, which he had only recently mastered, and the shadow domain that had been unfolded rapidly contracted. In the process, millions of shadow blades cut through the bodies of these parasites from all angles like a harvester.
Several of them died instantly, while others tried to use defensive items to protect themselves, but were quickly killed by the Shadow Blade.
When the shadow domain was completely retracted, the ten teleported parasites had become ten unrecognizable corpses scattered on the ground.
Only Lu Cheng, who was dumbfounded, was still standing unharmed, because Guan Tong had deliberately had Shadow Blade avoid him.
When Shi Jingyi saw the corpses of the parasites, she glanced at Guan Tong with some surprise. She hadn't expected that he had almost single-handedly handled the entire battle, and she hadn't had to lift a finger.
Once he came to his senses, Lu Cheng had no courage to fight anymore and turned to run out of the stadium.
He had only taken two steps when he caught a glimpse of a white shadow out of the corner of his eye. Then he felt a heavy blow to the head, and his body crashed heavily to the ground, his consciousness instantly becoming blurred.
How could this be...? Why is my body so fragile...?
Lu Cheng found it hard to believe. He felt that his mental strength had a high upper limit, and with the spore modification, his physical qualities had surpassed those of most ascendants.
But why was he so easily defeated in front of Shi Jingyi? The latter almost knocked him unconscious with just one move.
In a blur, he heard Guan Tong's voice.
Why did you hold back?
"...I'm afraid I might accidentally kick him to death."
Is this still considered showing mercy?
Lu Cheng could no longer bear the shock and lost consciousness.
Shi Jingyi looked at the unconscious Lu Cheng, her brows furrowed.
Why did Lu Cheng bring a parasite to kill me?
“That’s what I’m curious about too.” Guan Tong squatted down, found Lu Cheng’s phone on his body, unlocked it with his fingerprint, and looked through the messages.
Are there any clues inside?
“No, it seems we’ll have to interrogate him separately.” Guan Tong looked at Shi Jingyi. “Give him to me, I’ll make him talk.”
"..."
Shi Jingyi's expression was not good.
Even though she didn't encounter any real danger, the whole thing still left her puzzled.
She believed that Lu Cheng's statement that he "had no personal grudge against her" was true, but...
“He just said he didn’t want to become a parasite,” Shi Jingyi said. “That seems to mean that killing me would stop his transformation.”
“I understand what he means, but we’ll have to ask him to find out the connection.” Guan Tong said, lifting Lu Cheng up. “I’ll come find you after I get the results of my interrogation.”
(End of this chapter)