Chapter 32: Heart of Slaughter

A series of alarms jolted Li Yelaie instantly from his groggy slumber.

He couldn't count how many alarms were going off.

Thirty? Forty? Or more?

Just how many Forbidden Objects had breached containment?

Among them, there were even Grade B Forbidden Objects from the lower levels. Had something happened to the Captain and the others?

One sleep, and the whole world had changed!

Was this reality, or a nightmare?

Li Yelaie sat bolt upright in bed, immediately feeling a wave of chill.

The freezing air filled his nostrils, clearing his mind.

Suppressing the horror in his heart, he immediately asked, "What happened?"

At the same time, he reached out to button the collar of his Cheese-patterned pajamas, concealing the glaringly suggestive sight.

Cheese was also slow to react; a flash of embarrassment crossed her face as she immediately hopped off the bed barefoot.

"You were guided into deep sleep by a Baku, and combined with the out-of-control Ice Witch, the temperature in Black Prison has dropped to below minus ten degrees. It's dangerous!" Cheese grabbed a piece of saccharin and popped it into her mouth, explaining rapidly. "When I saw the alarms going off and realized you hadn't come out, I knew you'd been hit."

The rapidly dropping temperature caused white mist to form as she spoke.

This left Li Yelaie with a lingering sense of dread.

The Baku was a living Forbidden Object, classified as Grade C.

When out of control, it would plunge surrounding humans into a deep sleep.

A single Baku was easy enough to suppress, but paired with the Ice Demon King from the lower levels, it formed a lethal combination.

Being forced into sleep in a low-temperature environment meant one could easily freeze to death without knowing it.

If no one had noticed, Li Yelaie estimated he would have slept himself to death in his room.

Furthermore, if even a Second-Awakened Psionic like Li Yelaie could be caught off guard, wouldn't the clerical staff fare even worse?

"Quick, get dressed and grab your weapons. Get to the Command Center immediately!" Cheese urged, tossing the clothes from the bedside to Li Yelaie.

She, meanwhile, had to run back to her own room to get dressed.

As soon as she realized something was wrong, she had broken in to call him, without having time to gear up herself.

However, just before stepping out the door, she suddenly stopped in her tracks, looking outside with a face full of shock.

Li Yelaie, having just thrown on his clothes, gave her a strange look.

Following her gaze out the door, he saw an unfamiliar corridor and a containment unit that had already been opened. Inside the unit, the Forbidden Object was nowhere to be seen.

This... this was a containment unit for the upper level?

That wasn't right; the lounge should be within the residential area.

The containment units should be over ten meters deeper.

Was space distorted?

Or was it a "ghost wall" phenomenon?

Amidst his astonishment, Li Yelaie quickly dressed.

He grabbed his Crimson Longblade and Summoning Bell, and slung his Jet Axe onto his back.

"What's going on? A ghost wall?" Li Yelaie grabbed a thick coat he had brought and handed it to Cheese.

After putting on the coat, Cheese gave a slow shudder. "It's the Möbius Strip Map. It has also breached containment!"

Then, Cheese looked at Li Yelaie. "My communicator is in my room. You contact the Command Center."

On the other side, in the plaza that was usually bustling with people, many clerical staff members were walking, supporting each other while wearing thick coats.

Some would take a few steps and suddenly collapse into a deep sleep.

Others were forcefully inflicting wounds on themselves, using pain to resist the drowsiness.

Some Iron Guards were tending to the clerical staff, dragging them toward warmer bonfires.

Inside the Command Center, dozens of clerical staff had already succumbed to sleep; of the remaining dozen or so, they were struggling to keep their eyes wide open.

One bald man held a small knife and stabbed it into his arm. The intense pain helped him stay alert.

He could not fall asleep; he had to hold out until the very last moment. He had to prepare for the worst!

At that moment, a communication message arrived.

The bald man glanced at it quickly, seeing it was from Night General, and immediately connected.

"Night General, are you alright?" the bald man asked.

"What's the situation right now?" The voice responding to him was Cheese's.

"Cheese? Are you two together? Thank God! A massive number of Forbidden Objects have breached containment. Forty-eight Processors, two hundred and seventy-three clerical staff from the upper level, and three Iron Guard squads are all lost contact. You are the only ones who can reach me!"

While bandaging his wound, the bald man spoke rapidly. "Because the Möbius Strip Map has also breached containment. Everything within its range has turned into a labyrinth. Only the plaza and the black elevator in the upper level haven't been affected. Everywhere else has become a maze."

[Grade C Forbidden Object: Möbius Strip Map]

It possessed powerful reality-warping abilities. Once out of control, it would alter the surrounding space, causing spatial paradoxes.

In layman's terms, it was a "ghost wall."

The containment units had already transformed into labyrinthine structures.

Even the entrance to Li Yelaie's lounge had been connected to a containment unit.

On the other end, Li Yelaie couldn't help but ask through the communicator, "Have you contacted the branch? Deploy a team to support Black Prison!"

The bald man on the other end hissed in pain. "A large-scale uncontrolled distortion phenomenon has appeared within the Megacity. That Fantasy Band is problematic; some kind of music they're playing is causing the audience to begin distorting wildly.

They're monsters! There are tens of thousands of people! All distorting and losing control at once!

Processors from all major branches, even from Headquarters, have almost entirely mobilized. It seems the Forbidden Objects sensed this and dared to breach containment collectively! We can only hold the Command Center and the black elevator; we can't provide support, and we can't even find you."

The Fantasy Band? Was that where Xinghuo and the others went? Li Yelaie's heart skipped a beat.

Fortunately, Li Yunyan couldn't go out and was still at the family apartment; she should be safe.

"So, you're saying we won't have reinforcements for a while?" Cheese sighed. "We'll have to rely on ourselves."

"Unfortunately, that is the case. I hope you can regroup with your teammates," the bald man responded. "If possible, please suppress the Möbius Strip Map as quickly as possible. Once it affects the lower levels..."

Li Yelaie responded in a heavy voice, "I understand!"

He understood the gravity of the situation. The most dangerous thing wasn't the combination of the Baku and the Ice Witch, but this Möbius Strip Map!

If its labyrinth expanded into the deeper lower levels of Black Prison, then Grade B, or even Grade A Forbidden Objects, could breach containment!

*Damn, this time, I might really have to make a deal with Mr. Shadow,* Li Yelaie thought.

"Also, watch out for the King's Banner of Zolan!" the bald man's voice was full of caution.

"The King's Banner of Zolan, that acceleration Forbidden Object?" Li Yelaie inquired. "What happened to it?"

"Its danger level has increased, stay away from it..." The bald man's voice became intermittent, and finally, only static filled the communicator.

It seemed the signal was completely lost.

After ending the communication, Li Yelaie's heart felt heavy.

At this time, Cheese had also put on the clothes and shoes Li Yelaie had brought.

Due to the height difference, they didn't fit well.

But the good news was that Li Yelaie had previously brought a bag of saccharin for her, preventing the restriction of her being unable to use her abilities.

Cheese picked up the saccharin and said in a calm tone, "Do you remember the Forbidden Objects we saw before?"

"Of course," Li Yelaie nodded.

"That's good. Don't put too much pressure on yourself. When you encounter a Forbidden Object, follow the standard suppression procedures." Cheese offered encouragement, a smile appearing on her pale, delicate face. "I'm here to carry you, just hold on tight!"

"Don't worry, I'm quite brave too!" Li Yelaie responded in a low voice, gripping his longblade.

Both were lying. Facing this situation, neither Cheese nor Li Yelaie felt any sense of certainty.

They could only do their best.

Thus, the two stepped out of the room and began feeling their way through the path.

The ability of the Möbius Strip Map was extremely bizarre; any intersection or gate could lead to any location.

When Cheese opened the door to a lounge, what she saw instead was a containment room.

The Forbidden Object inside had already escaped, and there were three mangled corpses of clerical staff on the floor.

The pistols in their hands had been emptied of bullets, and their bodies looked as if they had been trampled repeatedly by some giant beast. Blood and plasma were splattered across the walls and floor.

They hadn't given up resisting until the very end, but the enemy was incomparably terrifying; all resistance had been futile.

Looking at their painful, terrified, and broken faces, Li Yelaie's heart grew even heavier.

Cheese stepped forward, closed their eyes, and then calmly inspected their wounds.

"Bones crushed by horse hooves; they were trampled to death." Cheese frowned. "Which Forbidden Object could it be? Is there such a thing in the upper level?"

In her memory, there didn't seem to be any Forbidden Object with such lethal methods in the East City Branch.

The Grade B "Man and Horse" was one; it had horse hooves. And it was a lower-level Forbidden Object.

Thinking of this, her expression grew even more grim.

"Could the Möbius Strip Map have already permeated into the lower levels?" Cheese's voice carried a hint of despair.

This meant they were very likely to run into a Grade B Forbidden Object next.

Only Captain Yang Chen and the elite Ye Bushou in a squad could contend with that level of Forbidden Object.

"No," Li Yelaie waved his hand. "That's impossible. Otherwise, with my luck, I'd encounter a Grade B the moment I opened a door."

Indeed, if the lower level was also thrown into the labyrinth, then with Li Yelaie's luck, he might open a door only to receive a "hello" from a Grade B Forbidden Object before being eaten alive.

"Since you haven't activated your abilities, you won't run into something like that," Cheese said with a forced smile.

In the next moment, they suddenly heard several gunshots and felt a slight vibration.

"It's handguns!"

Li Yelaie and Cheese exchanged a look, seeing joy in each other's eyes.

They immediately rushed out of the containment room, sprinting toward the direction of the gunshots.

Most Psionics did not use guns. Those equipped with handguns in Black Prison were basically clerical staff.

When necessary, they would use those handguns to attempt to suppress Forbidden Objects, or... to give themselves a quick end.

Since they were certain it was clerical staff, they had to regroup with them immediately!

Perhaps other Processor colleagues would also arrive there.

But just as they were about to arrive, the previously dense and intense gunfire gradually thinned out.

Li Yelaie and Cheese's hearts sank, and they simultaneously prepared for combat.

But when they rounded the corner...

They saw a blood-soaked, shirtless clerical staff member.

He was chasing two clerical staff members who were firing back.

At his feet lay several other clerical staff, their lives unknown.

At this moment, the man had his back to Li Yelaie and Cheese, rapidly approaching the two clerical staff members in the distance.

What was this? Clerical staff attacking clerical staff?

Seeing this, Cheese's expression changed. Without time to ask what was happening, she said in a low voice, "[Listen to Me]: Cardiac Arrest!"

The shirtless man's body jerked, and then he suddenly turned to look at them.

This allowed the two to see a crimson heart attached to the man's chest; crimson veins merged into his skin, and the red heart was beating violently.

Grade C Forbidden Object: Heart of Slaughter!

Upon carrying it, physical strength would be continuously enhanced. The longer it was carried, the higher the physical enhancement.

But the price was the growth of greed in the heart.

The holder would crave power even more, refusing to let go of the heart. A little stronger, just a little stronger.

Until finally, they lost their rationality and became a killing machine!

Therefore, the official use of this Forbidden Object was handled with extreme caution.

If Processors wanted to use it to enhance their bodies, they not only had to pay merit points but also had to do so under strict protection.

It would be removed immediately once the time was up to prevent any accidents.

But clearly, this clerical staff member had already been turned into a killing machine, beginning to massacre his own colleagues.

"Is there still hope for him?" Li Yelaie stepped forward with his blade.

"No, it's too late," Cheese said gloomily.

"I understand," Li Yelaie exhaled. "I'll send him on his way!"

On the other side, upon discovering the two, the killing machine instantly changed targets.

He quickly leaned down, grabbed a fire axe from the floor, and then charged at them.

His powerful physical strength was already comparable to a Second-Level True Martial artist.

This allowed him to close the distance of dozens of meters almost instantly.

He raised the fire axe high, seemingly intending to perform a "Splitting the Mountain" strike on Li Yelaie!

But at the same time, Cheese spoke: "[Listen to Me]: Close Your Eyes!"

The killing machine immediately closed his eyes, and the mountain-splitting strike swung through empty air.

When he opened his eyes again, all he saw was his own headless corpse falling helplessly.

In the split second he closed his eyes, Li Yelaie had swung his blade horizontally across his neck.

Even an enhanced body could not resist the sharpness of a Psionic weapon.

In the fraction of a second he lost his vision, he was decapitated by Li Yelaie.

But an unexpected mutation occurred!

The moment the headless corpse fell, the Heart of Slaughter suddenly detached from the body and shot toward Li Yelaie at extreme speed.

Li Yelaie and Cheese were both terrified; this was an unprecedented phenomenon! It could continue to go out of control even after being suppressed? What kind of endless loop was this?

In such a close-range ambush, Li Yelaie had no time to dodge.

The Heart of Slaughter passed through his Psionic barrier and adhered to the back of Li Yelaie's hand.

In the next moment, the Heart of Slaughter merged into his arm.

Li Yelaie felt a chill rising from his heart; he immediately unbuttoned his clothes and pulled open his collar.

Then, he saw a crimson heart beating powerfully in the center of his chest.

Golden-red veins spread out like a spiderweb, clinging to his skin.

At the same time, a powerful force was surging into his body, as if he were awakening again; his physical body began to undergo enhancement.

"Holy crap, I can't handle this kind of sudden windfall."

***

*Recommendation: This World Really Has No Weirdness*

Watching his sister crawl up the door like Spider-Man, then onto the ceiling, and then crawl over the heads of Fu Tianqing and the other two toward her own bedroom.

Fu Tianqing turned back and shrugged at the terrified tenant. "She just has highly developed motor skills. There is absolutely no weirdness in this world."