Shen Ge assigned Fang Yaori two tasks. The first was to use the Flashbang of Strange Energy to create some minor trouble for the Abnormality inside the room. Even if it couldn’t hurt it, it could at least alleviate the time he was under its mental control to a certain extent.
And once he had that buffer time, similar to last time when he had Xiao Qi control the Red Mist Armor to continuously deliver Red Mist Strange Energy, he would have more time to absorb it.
The second task was to have Fang Yaori create noise. Don’t be fooled by the fact that the fleshy monster in the room had thousands of eyes; those lumps of flesh and fat were actually the main body.
Shen Ge’s grasp of an Abnormality’s weaknesses could be said to be second only to the Monster itself. Besides, the Research Department had long concluded that an Abnormality’s perception mainly relied on scent and sound. Back then, Fang Mingyue had also used a suona to lure monsters away, which had alleviated some pressure for Shen Ge.
Furthermore, even if creating noise couldn’t affect the Abnormality in the room, it could help Shen Ge break free from its mental control and recover quickly.
However, even Shen Ge hadn’t expected the Flashbang of Strange Energy to be far more effective than he had imagined. Almost the instant it detonated, he was freed from the mental control. By the time Fang Yaori was about to start belting out, he had already snapped back to his senses, immediately activated his hundredfold strength amplification, and blocked the Abnormality before it could swallow Fang Yaori.
But Shen Ge hadn’t pinned all his hopes on Fang Yaori; he had a third plan ready. It’s just that Fang Yaori performed exceptionally well, saving him a lot of trouble.
Fang Yaori’s performance this time meant that Shen Ge’s efforts along the way hadn’t been wasted. Usually, he seemed pretty useless, but when it mattered most, he didn’t choke.
At this moment, Shen Ge’s hundredfold amplified fist slammed into the freshly gathered flesh and fat in the room, causing meat pulp to explode outward.
The next second, the ceiling and walls of the room began to collapse, and the surrounding space rapidly contracted and compressed. Meanwhile, Shen Ge stood inside the room, as if searching for something.
“Found it?” Shen Ge asked.
Fang Yaori, who had long since collapsed in fear on the floor behind him, thought Shen Ge was talking to him. His voice trembling, he asked, “F-find what?”
He saw the terrifying scene in the room and instinctively wanted to scramble up and run away, but the oppressive, terrifying presence of the Abnormality in the room had left his legs weak. He could barely stand, let alone run.
“Report, Master. Conducting a full scan. Currently, the location with the most intense Strange Energy fluctuations is in the pile of flesh at the 3 o’clock direction,” Xiao Qi reported.
Shen Ge stomped his foot. In that instant, the Strange Skin Boots, influenced by the red Strange Energy, even created a sonic boom. Fang Yaori at the doorway only saw a blur, and Shen Ge was gone. The next second, with a “bang,” the pile of flesh on the right side of the room exploded like before, showering the room with shredded meat and blood plasma.
Although Shen Ge’s amplified strength was continuously decreasing, it was still not something the “physical body” of this flesh monster could easily withstand. Coupled with the bullet time from the Immovable Strange Domain, he had smashed all the flesh in the room to pieces in the blink of an eye. The entire room looked like the discarded offal area of a slaughterhouse—bloody and disgusting.
“Master, right ahead,” Xiao Qi said, already extending its Decaying Blood Tentacles to push aside the limbs the flesh monster was using to block them. It pried open the flesh and rolled out a dark red lump from within.
“Is this… an eyeball?” Shen Ge looked at the thing Xiao Qi had brought before his eyes. It was a blackened eyeball, somewhat similar to the “Strange Eye” they had found before.
Before Shen Ge could examine the eye carefully, the building began to shake more violently. Based on the previous situation, the collapse of the spire would be followed by the collapse of the world.
“Let’s go!” Shen Ge didn’t know if he was telling Xiao Qi or Fang Yaori. He tossed the Strange Eyeball into his Bloodskin Backpack, then stomped his foot and charged towards the doorway, using his Decaying Blood Tentacles to scoop up Fang Yaori.
Although Fang Yaori didn’t understand why a single room could affect the collapse of the entire spire, he knew that Shen Ge extending his Decaying Blood Tentacles towards him meant he hadn’t been abandoned. So he held onto the tentacles for dear life, once again becoming Shen Ge’s “accessory.”
The surrounding space continued to compress rapidly. Using the high mobility of the Red Mist Armor, Shen Ge took Fang Yaori all the way from the tenth floor down to the first-floor lobby.
As expected, the outside world was completely shrouded in black mist. The main door was wide open, with no sign of Abnormality or Monster.
Drawing on his previous experience, Shen Ge headed straight for the door with Fang Yaori. He then activated the Inescapable Strange Domain to shield them both, while instructing Xiao Qi to continuously convert Strange Energy to him through the Red Mist Armor. They charged out of the spire’s main entrance.
The next second, the familiar feeling returned. With a whirl of the sky and earth, Shen Ge and the other were plunged into darkness enveloped by the Strange Energy of the black mist. The invisible barrier formed by the Inescapable Strange Domain created a defense around them, preventing the black Strange Energy mist from getting close.
But soon, the surrounding Strange Energy black mist seemed to coalesce into a giant hand, tightly gripping his barrier, trying to crush it!
Crack.
Crack.
Crack.
Fang Yaori vaguely heard the sound of glass shattering around them. Cracks began to appear in the air. He wanted to ask Shen Ge what was happening, but the oppressive, terrifying atmosphere made it hard for him even to breathe, let alone speak normally. “Sh-sh-sh-sh—” he stammered, unable to get a second word out.
At this moment, Shen Ge’s Strange Energy was dropping rapidly. However, his previous experience had proven that this method was feasible. As a last resort, he still had a Strange Energy Bug, which would definitely be enough to cover the consumption.
Just then, within the pitch-black misty space, images appeared, as if countless fragments of glass from different worlds were pieced together.
“Sh-sh-sh-sh-en Tan, wh-what is all this?” Fang Yaori couldn’t help but exclaim, staring at the bizarre scenes in the sky.
Shen Ge’s gaze was fixed on the changing images in the sky, trying to glean more useful clues from them.
But as the images in the sky collapsed one by one, Shen Ge knew his time for “observation” was running out. So, he condensed invisible barriers beneath his feet, concentrated the Strange Energy from the Red Mist Armor into his Strange Skin Boots, and leaped with all his might, propelling himself towards the center of the mirrored fragments above.
The mirrored fragments in the sky seemed incredibly distant, but with his strength-amplified jump, which consumed a large amount of Strange Energy, and with the continuous support of the invisible barriers, he got closer and closer.
Instantly, the sound of rushing wind filled his ears as he sped along. With the sound of shattering glass, Shen Ge used his invisible barrier to successfully crash into the mirrored fragment again, as if breaking through dimensions, moving rapidly through the torrent of time.
Shen Ge was already accustomed to the collapse of these mirrored fragments. He continued to do as he had last time, straining every nerve to grasp the collapsing fragments. When he grabbed a white fragment, distinct from the others which were gray, a loud “bang” echoed. He and Fang Yaori seemed to have shattered a pane of glass, followed by the rapid descent of a high-altitude fall.
Before them was the hotel where Shen Ge had first met Fang Yaori. Down below, the bustling street seemed unaffected by the Abnormality incident that had occurred in the nearby restaurant, with citizens going about their nightlife.
As Shen Ge and Fang Yaori plummeted rapidly towards the ground, as if they had jumped from the rooftop terrace, Fang Yaori, once he realized what was happening, let out a blood-curdling scream.
“Shut up.” Shen Ge extended his Decaying Blood Tentacles, linking them to his Strange Gloves “Unrelenting Grip.” He grabbed the edge of the hotel balcony, swung himself towards the outer wall, kicked off with his Strange Skin Boots, and successfully landed on the rooftop of the shopping mall across the street.
Fang Yaori was stunned silent by Shen Ge’s “shut up.” But when he came to his senses and realized he wasn’t still falling but was on the mall rooftop, his legs gave way the moment he landed, and he collapsed in a trembling heap on the floor.
Seeing this, Shen Ge couldn’t help but say with some exasperation, “You were doing pretty well earlier. How can you be this scared by such a small thing?”
“I’m afraid of heights,” Fang Yaori said with a wry, tearful face.
“…” Well, there’s really no helping that.
Shen Ge took out his phone and dialed Fang Mingyue’s number. The ringtone had barely sounded once before she picked up, her tone slightly urgent as she asked, “Shen Tan?”
“How are things on your end?” Shen Ge asked.
Fang Mingyue hesitated for a moment before replying, “Uh, Shen Tan, if you’re asking about the Abnormality incident at the restaurant two days ago, the Special Tactics Department has already sent people to handle it. However, the First and Second Divisions jointly used the latest detection tools to probe deep underground and still didn’t find the high-level Abnormality you mentioned.”
“Two days ago? So, I’ve been ‘missing’ for two days?” Shen Ge had caught the key information in Fang Mingyue’s response.
“Yes. For the past two days, I’ve tried every method to find traces of you, but couldn’t find a single clue. It was like you suddenly vanished,” Fang Mingyue said.
Shen Ge said, “It’s a bit complicated. In short, it was similar to what happened at the Ping An Hotel. I was suddenly pulled into a Strange Space.”
“I see. Speaking of the Ping An Hotel… based on my investigations over this period, I can confirm that the Ping An Hotel incident likely had nothing to do with the Special Tactics Department,” Fang Mingyue stated firmly.
In fact, after Shen Ge raised the possibility of a “mole,” Fang Mingyue had been determined to dig them out even if she had to tear up the ground. But neither she nor Elder Fang’s internal investigation team could find any clues linking the Ping An Hotel’s Abnormality incident to the Special Tactics Department.
Moreover, considering the department’s reaction and countermeasures to the incident, including even deploying their trump card troops, it seemed they were not involved.
Shen Ge felt quite embarrassed inside. He had been so “convinced” that he suspected headquarters, but it turned out this time headquarters was truly innocent. He was the “root cause” that had led to the appearance of the Strange Space. Ultimately, it was just that the Dream World was on the verge of spiraling out of control.
“I understand. I’ve actually found some leads on the mole this time. If you’re free now, it’s best if you come to my location. Because based on my investigation, this matter might be somewhat related to your younger brother,” Shen Ge said. Naturally, he wasn’t going to take the blame for the Ping An Hotel incident, even if it was his actions that had ultimately caused it.
The best approach was to use Fang Yaori’s situation as a springboard to follow the trail and root out the remaining moles from the Monster Association, like Supervisor Chen. Even if they had already run away in anticipation, it wouldn’t matter. This way, he could logically shift the blame for the Ping An Hotel incident onto them.
“My younger brother? Fang Yaori?” Fang Mingyue was stunned. She really couldn’t figure out how such a crucial matter as a mole in the Special Tactics Department could be related to her useless brother.
“It’s a long story. We’re waiting for you at the *** Hotel,” Shen Ge said.
“Alright, I’ll head over right away,” Fang Mingyue said and hung up.
Fang Yaori, listening nearby, cautiously asked, “Shen Tan, my sister… is coming? Um, about that… could you not tell her about my situation?”
Shen Ge countered, “Do you think we can hide it?”
“…” No, they couldn’t.
Thinking about how his sister Fang Mingyue might just beat him to death when she found out he had participated in Monster live experiments, Fang Yaori’s face fell.
“Let’s go.” Shen Ge casually offered a few words of comfort, saying he’d try to put in a good word for him, and also mentioning that if he were to take him to the Rong City branch, his sister would find out sooner or later anyway.
Besides, to investigate Supervisor Chen, he would inevitably need Fang Mingyue’s help.
Shen Ge had Fang Yaori go downstairs and book a suite. They went into the room to rest and wait for Fang Mingyue to arrive.
Knowing he couldn’t avoid this ordeal, Fang Yaori decided to just accept it. Still feeling like there was an odor on him due to the unspeakable “firecracker incident” in the Strange Space, he told Shen Ge he was going to take a bath.
Shen Ge sat on the sofa, studying the dark red Strange Eyeball they had found inside the flesh monster. Just then, a prompt sounded in his mind—
[Detected that this eyeball holds extremely high value for devouring. It is recommended the host devour this item to complete the 5th Stage advancement.]
Hmm?
The last time the system actively suggested “devouring” was when they dealt with Number 2 Strange King in Korea, obtaining its heart after killing it.
And it was precisely because of that “devouring” that Shen Ge had achieved 100% integration with the system. After that, he had stopped pretending and fully revealed his identity as an Abnormality.
His experiences in the Dream World, and the appearance of the “Child Monster” that looked exactly like him inside the spire, also made him realize the root of the problem still lay with the Progenitor Abnormality. So, when he obtained this Strange Eyeball, he had suspected whether the system would react to it.
And sure enough, the system had once again actively proposed “devouring.”
It was just that last time, after devouring Number 2 Strange King’s heart and obtaining a large number of Progenitor Abnormality cells, the system had become more complete, but Shen Ge’s Monstrification had become more severe.
If he continued “devouring” like this, would it completely erase his human characteristics and turn him into a full-fledged Monster?
That being said, Shen Ge knew that dwelling on these issues now was pointless. There was no such thing as “semi-Monstrification” in this world. When he had fully integrated with the system, he had already embarked on the path of becoming a Monster. He had only been using this method to hypnotize himself, telling himself he was still “human.”
Just as Shen Ge was hesitating whether to have the system devour the Strange Eyeball now, a sudden urgent knock came at the door: “Shen Tan.”
Fang Mingyue had arrived.
Shen Ge got up and opened the door to see Fang Mingyue standing there, radiating an aura of “anger.” However, this anger clearly wasn’t directed at him, as she had tried hard to force a smile when the door opened.
“Shen Tan, did that idiot Fang Yaori really cooperate with a Monster?” Fang Mingyue asked, suppressing her rage.
Shen Ge explained, “It’s not that serious. It’s just that he was indeed foolish enough to be tricked by a mole from the Monster organization into participating in Monster experi—”
“Shen Tan, is my sister here?”
Just as Shen Ge was about to explain to Fang Mingyue, Fang Yaori came out of the bathroom wearing a bathrobe and drying his hair, constantly spraying perfume on himself to suppress that faint, lingering odor.
“Fang! Yao! Ri!” The moment Fang Mingyue saw Fang Yaori, she erupted with fury. The next thing Shen Ge saw was Fang Mingyue launching herself forward, landing a flying kick that sent Fang Yaori flying across the room.
“…”
This feeling… it was reminiscent of that high school karate girl who kicked through a telephone pole!
