The anomaly was hidden deep, so deep that its greatest weakness—the “heart”—of the grotesque entity was concealed outside the plane. In other words, even if you turned the two cabin levels upside down, you wouldn’t find the anomaly’s “heart.” Unfortunately for it, this guy ran into someone who “doesn’t follow the usual path.”
Shen Ge used “Collapse” to descend to the lower level disguised as the abdominal cavity, only to discover he could continue using Collapse to go even further down.
The feedback from the anomaly energy indicated there was still a “bottom layer” below, not a direct fall from the plane to the ground once he passed through.
Holding onto a try-it-and-see mentality, he continued using Collapse, which led Shen Ge, quite by accident, to witness the true “innards” of the anomalous plane.
The reason both the System and Little Seven’s detection malfunctioned upon entering the anomalous plane was that Shen Ge and the passengers were inside the “belly” of the anomalous plane.
This grotesque entity fused with the plane was similar to the previous case of Liu Zongrui fused with the villa—being inside its belly was equivalent to being inside a twisted anomalous space.
However, unlike the anomalous villa that blocked information, the anomalous plane blocked anomaly energy. Thus, detection related to anomaly energy was affected, but signals could be received normally.
Clearly, the grotesque entity never expected Shen Ge to reach its heart directly. The parasitic anomalies covering the upper layer as a defensive measure were utterly useless.
Although Shen Ge couldn’t see the situation of the passengers in the cabin, once he left, the flight security officers and anomaly-energy firearms alone couldn’t possibly defend against a massive invasion of anomalies. Therefore, he had to finish this quickly.
Shen Ge adopted the most dangerous and direct method: deploying the “Non-Combustible Anomaly Domain” to control the ignition point, releasing anomaly energy to influence the plane’s anomaly energy. After lowering the ignition point, he immediately cloaked himself in the Crimson Mist Battle Armor, then released crimson anomaly fire to ignite all the internal organs!
Once the grotesque entity sensed its “heart” was under attack, it immediately took defensive measures, squeezing out a large number of parasitic anomalies from the surrounding flesh walls.
But anomalies of this level posed no real threat to Shen Ge; at most, they consumed a bit more of his anomaly energy as he lowered their ignition points as well.
Instantly, the entire bottom-layer abdominal cavity turned into a sea of fire. Internal organs and insects crackled and burned, filling the space with a charred, foul stench.
Shen Ge’s control over the ignition points was precise. Seeing that the insects were burned away and the “heart” and other organs were shriveled, he immediately controlled the flames, retrieved the Butcher’s Cleaver, and slashed at the “heart.”
Thud!
Thud!
Thud!
Several chops later, chunks of the shriveled “heart” were cut off, oozing large amounts of disgusting green fluid. Just as Shen Ge prepared to sever it completely, over a dozen tentacles shot out from within. A “skeletal octopus monster,” its body barely covered by a layer of human skin, lunged out.
Shen Ge reacted swiftly. He was already in the process of retracting the Non-Combustible Anomaly Domain to “extinguish the fire.” As the flames subsided, he dispersed the Non-Combustible Domain entirely and replaced it with the Immovable Anomaly Domain.
Under the effect of Bullet Time, as the “skeletal octopus monster” spread its dozen tentacles to envelop Shen Ge, the Butcher’s Cleaver had already pierced its heart!
Then, Shen Ge transformed into a slaughterhouse butcher, dismembering the grotesque entity and the shriveled “heart” into pieces, killing the entity fused with the anomalous plane.
After fusing with the anomalous plane, to ensure the plane kept flying, the grotesque entity hadn’t destroyed the plane’s systems. Therefore, even after Shen Ge killed it, the plane continued flying along its preset course.
[Host’s divine bravery is unmatched, single-handedly slaying a Tier 4 anomaly. Reward: System Points x5000, E-grade Recovery Item x1, F-grade Recovery Items x3.]
[The anomaly corpse can be sold—Value: 8000 System Points.]
“Reject.”
Although 8000 System Points were tempting, Shen Ge wasn’t sure if letting the System devour the corpse would leave the plane as just an empty shell or take even the shell away.
Even disregarding the survivors on the plane, Shen Ge would be in a tough spot falling from nearly ten thousand meters, especially since the Crimson Mist Battle Armor currently lacked a flight mode.
After dealing with the grotesque entity, Shen Ge noticed the black space enveloping the surrounding internal organs was fading, meaning the twisted anomalous space at the tail section was collapsing.
The tail was connected to the anomalous space, which implied that after Shen Ge descended, many parasitic anomalies had used that space to reach the upper cabin.
While Kaede Hananako had some experience dealing with anomalies, it didn’t mean she possessed Shen Ge’s methods for quickly eliminating large numbers of parasitic anomalies.
Thinking this, Shen Ge immediately deployed the Invisible Anomaly Domain and used “Collapse” on the upper level. The Crimson Mist Battle Armor receded from his body, leaving only the Anomaly Leather Boots.
Returning to the upper cabin, he found it filled with corpses—shattered bodies, half-parasitized heads like bloody petals, severed limbs, and more littered everywhere. The entire cabin had become a living hell. Gunfire still came from ahead, accompanied by screams. Shockingly, people were still running toward him despite the bullets.
“Master, parasitic anomaly energy reactions detected throughout the cabin,” Little Seven reminded.
Pushing through the pile of corpses as he moved forward, Shen Ge said, “Scan the locations of the parasitic anomalies. Use the Flesh Tendrils to finish this quickly.”
“Received, Master.” Little Seven immediately began anomaly energy detection in the surroundings. Then, slender, decaying blood tendrils extended from Shen Ge’s feet, “grabbing” the parasitic anomalies and feeding them into the Anomaly Stomach.
Shen Ge fought his way to the business class section, only to find the floor covered in a thick layer of “white wax.” Passengers were crouching fearfully on their seatbacks, trying to stay away from the ground.
“Investigator Shen!”
“Mr. Shen!”
Kaede Hananako and Li Jianjun, who were directing passenger relocation, were overjoyed to see Shen Ge return, though their situation was dire.
Kaede Hananako was hanging from a clothes hook with one hand, her legs split in a perfect straddle pressed between two seatbacks—a spectacular pose, but one she couldn’t maintain for long.
Li Jianjun was huddled on a suitcase in a corner, but the “white wax” had already covered most of it and was about to reach him.
Like the surrounding passengers, both had felt despair, but their “trust” in Shen Ge temporarily suppressed their fear.
After all, they had no choice but to trust. Who would have thought they’d be so unlucky to encounter an anomaly event, and on a plane no less? In such a situation, not trusting an anomaly investigator was tantamount to suicide. Fortunately, Shen Ge didn’t betray their trust, returning before the cabin was completely overrun.
However, Kaede Hananako, Li Jianjun, and the others were also filled with worry, unsure what method Shen Ge could use to save them.
“Stay on the seatbacks and don’t move! The fire won’t reach you. Don’t fall and get eaten by the bugs!” Shen Ge shouted a reminder. Ignoring the panicked survivors fleeing from business class, he strode boldly into the business class cabin covered in “white wax.”
“Fire? What fire?” The passengers clinging to the seatbacks shared the same confusion.
Yet, something bizarre happened. As Shen Ge “stepped” into business class, just as his foot was about to touch the “white wax” on the floor, the bugs hidden within scattered as if encountering their nemesis. It was like throwing a mothball into an ant colony—the ants instantly scattered in chaos.
With each step Shen Ge took, the bugs around him squeeze to the side. When he reached the center of business class, he snapped his fingers with a crisp Snap, using the gesture to alter the Crimson Mist Battle Armor’s form and release anomaly fire.
Whoosh! Large red flames erupted from Shen Ge’s feet, instantly spreading across the entire business class cabin. The bugs burned with strange crackling sounds.
Now everyone finally understood what Shen Ge meant by “fire.” The terrified passengers clung tighter to the seatbacks, shrinking their bodies, afraid the anomaly fire would burn them too.
Shen Ge acted almost instantly, burning away the bugs in the “white wax” covering business class. But he didn’t stop, continuing to burn his way to the cockpit.
“Alright, everyone can come down now. The anomaly has been dealt with.” Seeing that the pilots hadn’t even left bones behind, he sighed inwardly, then called out to the outer cabin.
The passengers didn’t immediately climb down at Shen Ge’s words. Kaede Hananako was the first to jump down, not because she trusted Shen Ge completely, but because she couldn’t hold that exaggerated pose any longer.
“Mr. Shen, are the threats on the plane eliminated?” Kaede Hananako asked.
Shen Ge glanced at the survivors in the cockpit. Out of over a hundred people, less than a fifth remained—a major tragedy for an anomaly event.
But this couldn’t be blamed on Shen Ge’s efforts. Even if he had stayed guarding the cabin to stop the parasitic anomalies from spreading, he couldn’t guarantee passengers in all three cabins wouldn’t be ambushed by parasitic anomalies.
More importantly, as long as the grotesque entity fused with the anomalous plane lived, the anomaly energy blockage affecting those inside its belly would persist, preventing Little Seven from accurately locating the parasitic anomalies.
And if this stalemate continued, it might play right into the hands of the grotesque organization, allowing the anomaly plane full of parasitic anomalies to crash directly into Capital Airport, triggering a second anomaly disaster.
“It’s resolved. If those individuals aren’t aligned with the grotesque organization behind this incident, then we should be safe now.” As Shen Ge spoke, his gaze swept over the several grotesque entities standing in the corner. Clearly, once the anomalous plane died and the blockage disappeared, their identities were locked in by Little Seven.
Hearing Shen Ge’s answer, Li Jianjun, Tang Laoya, and the others finally relaxed. This anomaly event was pure misfortune for them.
Though unlucky to be on this flight, they were also “fortunate” that the most powerful anomaly investigator from the Celestial Dynasty happened to be on board.
Hearing the plane was now safe, many passengers slumped into their seats. But Li Jianjun and the others couldn’t rest yet; they still had cleanup to handle.
With fewer than thirty survivors remaining, first class and business class were sufficient to accommodate them, so there was no need to go to the economy class cabin filled with corpses.
However, the atmosphere in the two cabins was heavy. Everyone was worried about one thing:
The plane was currently flying on its preset autopilot course, but landing couldn’t rely entirely on the autopilot; it required pilots to assist. But now all pilots were dead, and the remaining flight attendants clearly weren’t trained to land a plane.
“Didn’t we say the anomaly is dealt with and there’s no danger on the plane? Why does everyone look so grim, like they’re marching to their death?” Shen Ge had just reported the anomalous plane situation to Deng Yuqi, instructing her to contact headquarters to arrange “retrieval” and coordinate airport lockdown procedures.
Finishing the call, he saw the survivors huddled in their seats with worried faces. Li Jianjun sat opposite him, his expression equally grave.
“Investigator Shen, although the anomaly is gone… we still face a bigger problem. The pilots are gone. How will the plane land? Aside from the captain and co-pilot, no one else in the crew knows how to land a plane,” Li Jianjun said solemnly.
“Oh, that small matter? I can fly a plane,” Shen Ge said.
?
??
???
Shen Ge’s words caused stunned expressions all around, followed by surprise, shock, confusion, and doubt… The shock stemmed from the fact: are anomaly investigators now this terrifying? Not only possessing superpowers like summoning fire with a snap, but also able to fly a civilian airliner?
Shen Ge naturally couldn’t fly a plane, but with Little Seven, the “all-around AI,” it was possible. Relying solely on AI capabilities wouldn’t suffice, but paired with the Crimson Mist Battle Armor, a mere civilian airliner was no challenge.
However, Shen Ge didn’t explain much to Li Jianjun and the others, simply telling them he could fly the plane and to wait patiently.
Later, when Kaede Hananako approached him to discuss “saving Sakura Nation,” Shen Ge brushed her off, saying they’d talk after he finished his business in the Capital.
This time, Sakura Nation was asking for help. Whether Shen Ge was willing to assist was up to him; Sakura Nation clearly couldn’t “force” him.
Kaede Hananako could only wait obediently, hoping Shen Ge’s trip to the Capital would leave him in a good mood.
Soon, the plane entered Capital airspace. Having received Deng Yuqi’s message, headquarters immediately implemented airport controls and adjusted incoming flights.
“‘Flight *****’, this is Capital Airport Control Tower…” A communication request came from the control tower just as they entered the airport zone.
Shen Ge knew nothing about plane communications or landing procedures. He had Little Seven simulate his voice for the reply and, without waiting for further tower instructions, directly took control to land the plane.
Headquarters found Shen Ge’s unwillingness to communicate and cooperate frustrating, but before they could attempt further communication, Little Seven took control and executed an emergency landing.
Though the process was terrifying, they landed safely.
As the cabin door opened, the plane was surrounded by various riot control vehicles, anomaly combat vehicles, military units, and more. Leading the team were anomaly investigators from headquarters.
Most faces were unfamiliar, but Shen Ge spotted a few he knew, like his little fan “Fang Mingyue,” Old He from the Chongqing incident, and Luo Chenguang.
Whether due to distrust toward Shen Ge or high regard for the anomalous plane, headquarters had dispatched their main combat forces.
“So you must be Captain Shen Ge, the number one anomaly investigator from Rong City Branch. I’ve long heard of your reputation. Now that we meet, truly, as the rumors say, you stand out among men!” A middle-aged man in military uniform, around forty-something and quite sturdy, stepped forward enthusiastically to greet Shen Ge.
Shen Ge wasn’t comfortable with such ornate speech. Shaking the offered hand calmly, he asked, “Is this big brother saying I’m handsome?”
?
Everyone paused. So out of all that, you only caught “stand out among men”? And that doesn’t necessarily mean handsome!
Then, a young man with a slicked-back hairstyle resembling a certain Buddha figure, standing behind the military man, spoke displeased: “Do you know who you’re speaking to?”
“Why don’t you introduce him?” Shen Ge replied coolly, looking at the young man.
