Chapter 33: Nuo Mask

The Heart of Slaughter throbbed in the center of Li Yela's chest, appearing like a grotesque, pulsating tumor.

Gold-red blood vessels and meridians, resembling a spiderweb, extended from the Heart of Slaughter and attached themselves to his skin, continuously injecting an endless stream of power into his body.

This power was reinforcing his physical form, making Li Yela's muscles sturdier and his bones more resilient.

Li Yela felt as if he had gained infinite strength, possessing inexhaustible energy!

He could faintly sense that if he were to activate the Overlord Mask in this state, he would infinitely replicate the peerless might of the Hegemon of Western Chu, capable of pulling mountains and splitting rivers!

Breaking through the Army Breaker Formation alone would no longer be difficult; with his strength and reflexes both enhanced, Li Yela was confident he could shatter any weakness with a single strike.

However, he was also acutely aware of the terrifying nature of this power.

A voice seemed to echo in his mind—*kill, kill, kill*—as if it intended to please some entity through slaughter.

But that was all for now. He wondered if this would eventually affect his personality.

"Why is the Heart of Slaughter moving on its own?" Li Yela stared at the throbbing heart in his chest, momentarily unsure if he should forcibly rip it out. "Isn't it supposed to only bewitch others into wearing it? How did it jump straight onto me?"

"It might be controlling the chest muscles to force a heartbeat before the physical body completely dies," Cheese said, stepping closer. She looked at Li Yela's chest, her heart sinking, but she suppressed the panic in her eyes and offered a forced word of comfort. "Don't be nervous. Psionics have a certain resistance to the Heart of Slaughter's bewitchment. You'll be fine for a short while."

As if to ease his tension, she added in a low voice, "Well, now I've seen your chest. We're even."

"You should never go into business in the future!" Li Yela's mouth twitched.

Shortly after, the two civilian staff members who had been chased by the Slaughter Machine ran back.

They were startled upon seeing the Heart of Slaughter in Li Yela's chest, but they remained calm. "For a Psionic, thirty minutes is still within the safety window. You can forcibly remove it now, but the Heart of Slaughter will be extremely dissatisfied and will drain most of your physical strength. Once removed, you will fall into a state of profound weakness for a long time."

"Then I'll have to wear it for now. I have at least half an hour of the enhancement period left. If I remove the heart now, I don't think I'll be able to resist the Dream Tapir's drowsiness," Li Yela said.

The Dream Tapir's effect was still active. If he let his guard down or lost his strength, he would likely be pulled into a deep sleep by the creature. In the current environment, that would be fatal. If another taboo object like the Heart of Slaughter appeared, Cheese would have to fight while simultaneously protecting him.

The danger was too great.

After thinking for a few seconds, Cheese nodded in agreement. "That's the only way."

Li Yela continued to ask, "I am a second-awakening Psionic. Will that affect the safety window? Does a higher level of awakening mean it lasts longer?"

"There is some influence, but not much of a difference," the other civilian staff member explained. "Some who have awakened three times can last two hours, while some with four awakenings can't even last an hour. As far as we know, thirty minutes is the universal safety window. Therefore, for safety reasons, the authorities provide one free Heart of Slaughter enhancement to Level 3 handlers. Any subsequent enhancements require merit points."

Li Yela nodded slightly. "Then I suppose I'm enjoying the benefits in advance."

The group quickly began inspecting the scene. Regrettably, the fallen civilian staff members had already perished.

There was no time for grief. After quickly moving the bodies into a rest room, they immediately set to work.

According to the staff's description, they had encountered three handlers, but they had become separated in the chaotic map.

Currently, the group intended to try and regroup with the other handlers first.

At this moment, Li Yela found himself missing 'Detective.' If he had his trace-tracking abilities, they could quickly locate their colleagues instead of running around aimlessly like this.

"At the very beginning, we were chasing and suppressing the out-of-control Hidden Scarf along with the three handlers. But after the Mobius Strip Map went out of control, we were separated from two of the handlers at a corner, and then we encountered a group of cavalry!" a staff member said while they were moving.

"Cavalry?" Cheese was stunned. "Is there such a taboo object in the Black Prison?"

She and Li Yela exchanged a glance, remembering the containment room they had seen earlier, where a staff member had been trampled to death by horse hooves!

"Absolutely not! I've worked here for five years. I know exactly what abilities those taboo objects have. But this cavalry is definitely not among them—at least not on the upper floors," the staff member said seriously. "Their equipment isn't high-end—leather armor, hunting bows, scimitars—they seem to be some kind of steppe cavalry. But they all have Psionic barriers! Their arrows even carry a small amount of Psionic energy, enough to neutralize the barriers. We were scattered by just a single charge. The cavalry went after that handler, and we luckily managed to hide."

"You saw what happened next. We encountered the Heart of Slaughter! Damn it!" another staff member said, his eyes bloodshot.

Cheese's expression turned solemn. "In other words, a certain taboo object can summon steppe cavalry? Could this be the Zhulan King's Banner, whose danger level suddenly spiked?"

If they were ordinary cavalry, even heavy cavalry, they would be no match for Psionics, Iron Guards, or firearms.

Setting others aside, Cheese herself could make steppe cavalry bow in submission with a single word.

But... if these cavalrymen possessed Psionic barriers and Psionic arrows, they were extremely dangerous. They could charge through a line of fire and force their way into a position. Even Psionics could be overwhelmed and killed by sheer numbers.

Furthermore, their numbers were unknown...

"Why has the Zhulan King's Banner suddenly become so powerful?" Cheese frowned. "Wasn't it just a Ding-grade taboo object?"

"I don't know," the staff member shook his head. "Zhulan is a tribe of the Xiongnu, the race once referred to by the West as the Scourge of God. Now, some variable has appeared that has caused them to revive. I even suspect that the loss of control of many taboo objects is related to this group of cavalry."

Li Yela and Cheese frowned deeply. If a Psionic legion also possessed taboo objects, the consequences were unthinkable.

Just then, the group reached the center of a corridor. As they were about to proceed, they heard a creak. A steel gate suddenly opened in the wall just a few steps away.

These gates were all-metal shutters designed to prevent taboo objects from escaping, which would drop automatically when an alarm sounded.

Under the influence of the Mobius Strip Map, no one knew where the path behind the gates led, so they hadn't wasted time trying to open them.

But now, the gate had opened on its own.

A figure emerged from the gate, wearing combat gear—presumably a female handler.

However, her appearance caused Li Yela and the others to tense up instantly.

Because the face she wore was none other than the Ghost Calculation Nuo Mask!

Had the Ghost Calculation Nuo Mask taken over this handler's body?

There was no time for hesitation; Li Yela immediately charged at her.

His long blade slashed down like lightning!

It had been eighteen minutes since he donned the Heart of Slaughter, and his physical body had been enhanced for eighteen minutes.

As a result, this strike was both incredibly fast and fierce! His leaping slash seemed intended to cut her in two!

The opponent reacted quickly—or rather, she sensed the blood vessels spreading from Li Yela's neck, the vessels of the Heart of Slaughter!

A cold light erupted from her sword!

In an instant, she unleashed a lethal streak of sword light.

The next moment, the long blade and the sword collided!

The sharp sound of the clash rang loudly in everyone's ears.

The woman wearing the Nuo Mask was forced back a step by the sheer impact. Li Yela's physical strength was actually superior to hers!

"Nuo Mask, you're seeking death!" Li Yela roared as he pursued her, one hand reaching for his face, intending to use the Myriad Manifestations Faceless technique, but he suddenly stopped.

The opponent also shouted in fury, "The Heart of Slaughter..."

"【Listen to me】 Stop! We're on the same side!" Cheese shouted immediately, preventing an imminent bloodbath.

Only then did the two realize the teammates behind the woman.

Behind the female handler wearing the Nuo Mask were two other handlers, five civilian staff members, and two Iron Guards!

She hadn't been possessed by the Nuo Mask?

But before Li Yela and Cheese could feel relief, the group rushed through the gate and began operating the controls, attempting to close the gate!

It was as if something monstrous was chasing them from behind.

Li Yela's heart sank. He immediately looked down the corridor behind the gate and saw a massive tree springing up at a distant corner, its branches forming arms that crawled rapidly across the ground.

A Bing-grade taboo object: the Tree Spirit. Its true form was a massive tree that bore fruit in all four seasons.

Its fruit could stimulate rapid plant growth.

It was said that the reason the Great City had sufficient food reserves was due to its function.

The price, however, was that to pick the fruit, one had to offer a large amount of flesh and blood as nourishment. Otherwise, it would lose control.

Once out of control... well, it was exactly as it was now: attacking biological life everywhere to obtain nutrients.

Since it wasn't a picky eater, it wasn't difficult to appease; taking some scraps from a slaughterhouse would suffice.

Suppressing it wouldn't be too much effort, as it was weak against fire.

"A Tree Spirit?" Cheese was stunned and shouted, "Suppress it! We have so many people! It'll take minutes—"

"No, no, no, there's something behind it!" the woman wearing the Nuo Mask screamed. "Close the door, quickly!"

Only then did Li Yela see the Tree Spirit fleeing in panic.

Behind it, the thunderous sound of galloping hooves echoed.

Arrows were also piercing the Tree Spirit's body one after another.

Was it... the Zhulan Iron Cavalry?

The Zhulan Iron Cavalry was chasing the Tree Spirit?

Li Yela was stunned. At that moment, the metal gate slammed shut.

The woman in the Nuo Mask continued to point in a certain direction, saying, "Keep moving! It's still not safe here!"

Thus, the group had no choice but to follow them.

After passing through another intersection and another gate, the group finally stopped.

It was then that Li Yela learned the situation from their explanation.

To find her teammates and the location of the Mobius Strip Map, the female handler had chosen to wear the Ghost Calculation Nuo Mask. Using the mask's divination abilities, she had located several teammates and slowly gathered her strength.

However, they had encountered the fleeing Tree Spirit and were forced to retreat to the gate, where they met Li Yela's group.

"That is one way to do it," Cheese said after a moment of contemplation. "Don't forget, once you take on the Nuo Mask, you lose a lot of your memories."

"Everything has its trade-offs," replied the female handler, codenamed 'Sand Grain.' "Suppressing the Mobius Strip Map is the priority. Besides, after this, I will gain divination abilities; memories are a small price to pay. It's a good deal!"

Cheese nodded slightly, agreeing with the logic. If it were her, she would have made the same choice.

Then, Sand Grain looked at Li Yela, who was sitting to the side, and asked, "Night General, did you don the Heart of Slaughter?"

"Yes, it unexpectedly jumped onto me," Li Yela replied with a nod. "Counting the time, it's been over twenty minutes."

"Don't worry, you might last even longer. A friend of mine lasted an hour and a half," Sand Grain offered a word of comfort.

At that moment, an old voice suddenly emanated from the Nuo Mask: "I advise you not to travel with him."

Clearly, this voice belonged to the entity within the Ghost Calculation Nuo Mask.

Not travel with Li Yela? Were they suggesting abandoning him?

"What kind of nonsense is that?" Cheese replied with a cold laugh.

"Shut up!" Sand Grain also hissed, not wanting the Nuo Mask to continue speaking.

They would not abandon a teammate.

But the Nuo Mask's voice continued: "You are... Cheese, right? His thread of fate is too terrifying. If you continue to stay by his side, very bad things will happen. I hope you make the right choice."

"Bad things? Like what?" Cheese sneered. "Letting me take maternity leave?"

"Pfft!" Li Yela, who had just taken a sip of water from a teammate, choked violently.

Sand Grain's mouth also twitched. She suddenly felt a hint of regret—if she forgot this, wouldn't it be a huge loss?

The Nuo Mask paused, then sneered, "Sharp-tongued and ignorant! His thread of fate is filled with malice. Just one of the paths involves meeting a powerful enemy, which alone will be enough to cause you suffering! Once that curse is triggered, what do you think you will encounter? Do you think the entities here are as benevolent as I am?"

"And what makes you benevolent?" Cheese suddenly snapped back. She turned to Li Yela and said, "If you run into any danger, just use your Mask and go hide somewhere to raise your 'gu' bugs."

*You mean lure a bunch of taboo objects to fight each other? Do you think I'm a monster spawner?* Li Yela complained inwardly, but he still nodded.

"Enough. Continue divining the location of the Mobius Strip Map," Sand Grain commanded. "Otherwise, even if I have to give up my memories, I will leave you here forever."

The Nuo Mask spoke gloomily, "It's too late. In five minutes, the lower floor will be reached by the Mobius Strip Map. At that time, a B-grade taboo object will be thrown into the maze. Why not let me lead you out of the maze instead?"

Five minutes left? Everyone's hearts sank. Sand Grain continued, "We still have to find the Mobius Strip Map. Even if we don't make it in time, it's better to resolve the maze as early as possible."

"It seems you are all very foolish," the Nuo Mask remarked. "I truly cannot understand humans."