Chapter 00065: Inhuman Beings (Thanks to Liang Burong's Silver Alliance)
# Inhuman Beings (Thanks to Liang Burong's Silver Alliance)
Chapter 65
Novel: Above Destiny
Chapter 65: Inhuman Beings (Thanks to Liang Burong's Silver Alliance)
"Izak is dead, and Ingar and Eller are injured. Everyone is here."
In the corner of the Rift, beneath shattered walls, the Returning Home Knights had gathered once again.
After counting the members, a hint of melancholy appeared on the face of the bearded man, Su Lan.
They had entered the Rift under such unfortunate circumstances, with losses even before they fully stepped into the realm.
Some were injured to varying degrees.
Unlike Ji Jue and the others, who had absurdly fallen from the sky, some had accidentally dropped into the lair of monstrous beasts, and others had barely taken a few steps before being buried under collapsing buildings, emerging covered in dust.
Fortunately, their positions were not far apart.
Using the resonance between their formations, they easily wiped out a few crocodile-like monsters lurking in the mud, then gathered back together.
They maintained their vigilance, protecting Lou Feng at the center.
The moment the Rift changed, the experienced Su Lan quickly knocked down their employer.
The two had not separated since they arrived, appearing slightly dusty now.
Unlike some unfortunate souls who were immediately hunted down upon landing, Lou Feng had adequate time to analyze their surroundings.
Thankfully, the instruments stored in the space opened by the Eternal Gate had not been damaged during their journey.
"No, the spiritual frequency is a mess. I can't find any traces of Shangshan, and the stability index is below safe limits," Lou Feng said, pulling his gaze away from the screen of his handheld device.
"However, according to the data, the Rift still overlaps with the present world. If we find a chance to reopen the door, we can leave here."
"So, we need to set up a safe stronghold first?" Su Lan understood.
"I'll send someone to search the surrounding area for the workshop traces mentioned by Master Kong."
As a seasoned mercenary, Su Lan was well-prepared for unexpected situations.
Even if they lost some large equipment due to hasty transport, they still had enough food and emergency supplies on hand.
Even now, without needing an order from Su Lan, some members already started searching the nearby buildings for suitable camp locations.
"And, if there's a chance—no, find a chance…" The expression on Lou Feng’s face twitched slightly, and he forced the words through his clenched teeth, "Find that guy named Ji!"
Setting aside their personal vendetta, the fact that he might be carrying something from Ye Xian was troublesome enough.
Among all the entrants, he posed the biggest threat!
If they painstakingly found the workshop, only to have this bastard snatch the fruits of their labor, Lou Feng could very well hang himself out of despair.
"Remember, if possible, try not to kill him, understand?" Lou Feng warned seriously.
"This could count as an explanation to Master Ye."
"Got it, Boss."
Su Lan smiled slightly, "Don’t worry; we are professionals."
Just a kid without even a formation to his name, catching him wouldn’t even require a gun; it was a simple task!
But just then, someone nearby suddenly asked, "The Ji you mentioned, is he a young man with a scar on his face?"
"Yes."
Lou Feng nodded.
The Returning Home Knight furrowed his brow and asked again, "Does he ride a small motorcycle? Hmm, and when he smiles, he's really annoying?"
"Exactly."
Lou Feng raised his head, about to ask, "How do you—"
His words were abruptly cut off.
He froze in place.
As if hearing his call, at the end of the ruined street, the roaring of an engine erupted, and through the swirling dust, a face he would recognize even as ashes became clear.
Ji Jue!
He was coming.
In the astonished gaze of everyone, a small motorcycle raced and roared, dragging along a figure flying through the air, hurtling toward them!
"Hello! HELLO! こんにちは!!!"
Ji Jue wildly waved his arms, shouting at the top of his lungs, "Brother Lou! Long time no see! How have you been? Hahahahaha—"
With his booming voice, the engine sound climbed again until, with a violent tremor of the earth, the collapse of shattered walls and horrifying sounds exploded suddenly!
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!!!
Half of a dilapidated building screamed as it split apart, a huge, hideous monster slithering in the ruins, lifting its body in rage and howling loudly as it relentlessly pursued!
"I missed you all so much!!!! Ji Jue, speed up!"
He rushed at them, cackling wildly.
"That Ji… you bastard..."
Lou Feng’s vision blurred.
He didn't even realize he was cursing for the first time in his life.
Before he knew it, he was being lifted by Su Lan, thrown over his shoulder.
"Run!!!"
The bearded knight shouted, hardly bothering about the precious instruments and supplies strewn across the floor that had just been calibrated.
Without a moment's hesitation, he led the charge!
In the battlefield, even a hint of hesitation or luck could only lead to death.
After witnessing countless instances of those who remained frozen in the face of whistling shells, those who lived learned the most important lesson about being decisive.
Unfortunately, no matter how decisive one was, it still couldn't change reality.
Two legs running could never match the speed of two wheels...
Especially as Ji Jue easily sped up, waving past them, amid the furious glances and gunfire farewell, all the Returning Home Knights gradually became dazed.
Stiff, they turned to look back.
Gazing at the massive monster now almost within reach, they felt the huge shadow cast upon their faces...
Dryly, they swallowed.
The last sound they heard was the monster's piercing roar:
"Roar!!!!!!!!"
After much effort, they finally shook off the trouble following them, and Ji Jue’s group came to a stop at some ruins, panting and dusty.
Yet at their feet, a writhing corpse lay wrapped in unnatural movements.
In truth, even Ji Jue couldn't tell what sort of creature this was.
It looked like an octopus, a hippopotamus, and a cheetah blended together, with human parts grotesquely merged.
It had emerged from the darkness as they stopped, lunging at them suddenly.
However, before Ji Jue could raise his gun, An Ran’s dart swiftly exploded its head.
Along the way, they had seen too many of these creatures; not just the gigantic insect-like monsters reminiscent of some sci-fi film, but also decaying butterflies larger than humans and spider monsters pieced together from various limbs... and many more frenzied, mutated zombies.
He even doubted whether he had taken a wrong turn and accidentally stepped onto the set of a horror film.
On the ground, the headless, misshapen body continued to struggle, blood and some transparent liquid oozing out, severed flesh growing and changing forms.
"How strange, there’s clearly no heartbeat."
An Ran held a sharp dagger, skillfully slicing through the heart, groin, and neck, dissecting it with fluidity.
The dismembered pieces finally stopped moving.
Inside was revealed a bizarre structure.
Mixed with iron sheets, metal, ceramics, and plastics!
After analyzing again, he spoke seriously, "Brother Ji, this isn't human."
"Humans can’t possibly be like this, right?" Ji Jue's expression twitched.
He had known since the moment it had its head blown off by the dart.
"I mean it has nothing to do with being human; it is not human, it’s different."
An Ran explained again, growing even more anxious upon seeing Ji Jue's puzzled expression.
Unable to articulate properly, he finally found a way to describe it so Ji Jue could understand: "It’s not a transformation from human to monster. It has never been human."
Not from human becoming a monster.
But rather, from the beginning... it had never been something human!
In this sudden revelation, Ji Jue fell silent.
Hearing An Ran say this, he pinched his nose and leaned close, took the dagger from Xiao An’s hand, and carefully split open the skull of the corpse.
The gray brain matter oozed out from the crack.
However, as he pushed his hand inside to feel around, he became stiff.
Why did the parts of the lymphatic and nerve clusters show slight traces of spiritual circuit characteristics? It was faint and blurred, almost undetectable unless one had a specific purpose in examining it.
It was as if the nerves were naturally shaped this way.
No, on the contrary, it was like... the spiritual circuits had developed into nerves?
What the hell is going on here!
Was this a simulated human creation?
Yet it looked so much like a living being, whether in nerve reflexes or operational mechanisms, even the dissipating spiritual quality was identical to that of a dead person!
Watching the spasms and convulsions of the thing on the ground grow weaker, Ji Jue took a deep breath, gritted his teeth, and pressed his hand down, forcibly trying to communicate using mechanical divination.
But what echoed in his mind was nothing but an ear-piercing, chilling scream, not just from one but from thousands... an endless roar.
In an instant, it exploded!
Ji Jue’s vision went dark, blood seeping from his mouth and nose, intense coughing seizing him.
Were it not for the inability to produce sound, he would have almost shouted:
This shit is toxic!
So much crap!
At that moment, he felt as if he had foolishly stuck a tube in his mouth trying to siphon gas, only to insert the other end into a sewage tank...
If the consciousness of alchemical creations varied like cola, like Sprite, some rebellious like spirits, and some pure like plain water, then what he had just gluttonously swallowed was a mix of sea-state herbal tea and pickled herring!
The viscous, almost substantive madness surged toward him, bursting within his soul, leaving a pain even worse than being struck in the forehead, alongside a psychological shadow that he might never forget.
Mechanical divination was not a panacea.
He recalled the words of Professor Ye when he taught him a lesson with the ghost worker ball—the over-reliance on it would lead to future troubles.
Now, it wasn’t just the ghost worker ball that had suffered loss; he was soon experiencing one himself.
Ji Jue leaned against the wall, retching.
At least now, he was certain that these things were not human at all.
But all he wanted to know was...
What the hell did that bastard Mercury do back then?!
How could he create such unbearable, frenzied monsters?
"Shh—"
Just as he was about to curse, An Ran pressed down on his shoulder and whispered, "There's a sound."
Crying.
It came from the dim distance.
(End of this chapter)