Scientific Research Guild.
The once quiet yet orderly building was now eerily silent. All personnel hid within their own spaces, listening in silence to the thud, thud, thud of bloodstained footsteps echoing through the corridor.
Yes, even without approaching, they could already imagine the scent of blood through their sense of smell.
When the footsteps passed by a certain office, someone perked up their ears to listen. Just as they paused for a few seconds, the team leader managing them snapped,
“What are you dazing off for? Get back to work!”
“Y-Yes.”
In the corridor.
As an ability user, Si Zhe could clearly hear every movement within the laboratories. After two months, regaining this ability once more made him feel… incredibly calm.
He passed through layer after layer of corridors and knocked on the door of the office at the very end.
“Enter.”
Only after the aged voice sounded did Si Zhe push the door open. What came into view was an empty office hall. Further inside was the resting area where the Sage resided.
Hearing his approaching footsteps, the old man in a wheelchair, facing the floor-to-ceiling windows, slowly turned around.
No matter how many times he saw him, Si Zhe could never see through the Sage. His appearance was aged enough, most of the time relying on a wheelchair to move, yet only those eyes still held a sharp, spirited gleam.
Clearly, he belonged to the weakest group in the apocalypse, yet he had risen to the highest position in the Northern Base.
“Have things been resolved?”
Si Zhe withdrew his gaze. “The high-ranking ability users from the Ability Guild have been taken care of. As for the Battle Pet Guild, that Tier 6 hunting hound blew itself up in a desperate attempt, creating a path for some remnants… to escape the base.”
The Sage wasn’t surprised, nor did he blame Si Zhe for his inefficiency. Instead, he chuckled.
“The Battle Pet Guild may seem divided into three factions on the surface, but when faced with a real crisis, they still unite as one.”
Even the neutral faction would fight to the death for the survival of their companions and battle pets.
That was far superior to the Tier 6 ability user stationed at the Ability Guild, who only cared about running for his own life.
“That’s exactly why those troublesome individuals must be eliminated,” the Sage changed the subject. “I provided you with a Grade 7 crystal and even let you lead all the hidden Tier 6 ability users. Yet in the end, you’ve only given me a barely passing report.”
The elderly man’s voice was calm, carrying no sense of threat, yet Si Zhe understood—this meant the Sage was already displeased.
“This was my failure.”
“I will lead a team to pursue the battle pets and wipe them out completely.”
The Sage did not respond.
He simply stared at the man before him, as if admiring a piece of craftsmanship he himself had created.
After a long while, he spoke again—not in response to Si Zhe, but bringing up a seemingly unrelated topic.
“You are the most severely damaged Dantian case I have ever seen. From the moment you all joined the guild, out of love for research, and out of gratitude to that good child Weiran, I have spared no effort in treating you.”
“Unfortunately, two months of treatment yielded no results. I could no longer bear to see Weiran suffering for your sake, nor did I wish for a former powerhouse like you to completely wither away. That’s why I devised my last resort—implanting the Grade 7 crystal I personally created into the location of your Dantian.”
“You did not disappoint me either. You endured all the rejection reactions and became the first-ever Tier 7 ability user.”
The Sage murmured to himself, as if he didn’t expect a response from Si Zhe.
All Si Zhe could do was listen in silence.
“Unfortunately, the requirements for creating an artificial ability user are far too stringent. It demands a completely destroyed Dantian, an unyielding will, and an evolved physique… After all this time, only you have met all the conditions perfectly. Even so, you are still not a naturally evolved ability user. There is no way for you to advance further by any means—unless you replace it with an Tier 8 crystal…”
Hearing this, Si Zhe’s hands clenched tightly into fists.
This was also the reason why, despite “recovering his abilities,” he could not truly feel joy.
At present, he was the first and only Tier 7 ability user in the Northern Base, and even across the country. On the surface, he seemed to be at the peak of power, but as time went on, other ability users would be able to advance through their own efforts. Meanwhile, he would remain forever stagnant—no, he would gradually regress, until he was eventually overtaken and eliminated by the rising tide of higher-tier ability users.
Unless… the Sage once again “bestowed” upon him an Tier 8 crystal.
Si Zhe was painfully aware of the Sage’s intentions.
He had granted him a new life, but at the same time, he had trained him into a puppet—one that would remain bound to him forever.
If he disobeyed, he would not even be allowed to remain as a puppet.
After months of being at rock bottom, Si Zhe’s once indomitable pride had already been shattered in half.
If he wanted to climb back to the top, if he wanted to protect Weiran, then he had no choice but to accept all of the Sage’s so-called “benevolence.”
Taking a deep breath, Si Zhe lowered his gaze and spoke in a subdued voice, “I will obey the Sage’s every command.”
“You are a child who knows gratitude and repays kindness, just like Weiran.” The Sage nodded in satisfaction. “In that case, I will give you a little more time.”
“The little pets that escaped from the base won’t be able to cause much trouble for now. What you should be wary of are those who haven’t returned from the desert yet.”
“Jiang Hong is most likely dead.”
“Zeng Zhuyue, Lu Tao, and the others are currently missing.”
“And then there’s that pretty newcomer to the base, as well as her Tier 6 python. Both of them are still alive.”
“I need you to find them—and eliminate them completely.”
At the mention of a certain familiar enemy, Si Zhe’s eyes darkened slightly.
The reason he had ended up in this state was all thanks to that python. From the moment he regained his strength, he had already decided—he would not let that person or that snake go.
Even if it meant making Weiran sad… he could no longer afford to care.
“Yes.”
Si Zhe responded swiftly, and with his assurance, the Sage waved a hand, signaling for him to leave.
Just as he was about to turn away, Si Zhe hesitated for a few seconds before finally asking, “Sage, I’ll take care of them, but… shouldn’t Weiran come back? Carrying out such difficult missions alone—I’m worried she won’t be able to handle it.”
The Sage remained silent for a long time.
From that silence, Si Zhe faintly sensed something amiss. A vague unease crept into his heart.
“Sage?”
The sunlight streamed in through the floor-to-ceiling windows, casting a glow behind the wheelchair. The elderly man sitting in it slowly closed his eyes.
A long pause.
Then, he dropped a heavy bombshell.
“I haven’t been able to contact Huiling for several days.”
“Nine times out of ten, something has gone wrong.”
“No one knows that Huiling was a peak Tier 6 ability user specializing in emotion-based abilities. If even she couldn’t protect herself, then that child Weiran… may have already met a grim fate as well…”
Si Zhe’s pupils quivered slightly.
He couldn’t believe what the Sage was saying and immediately retorted, “That’s impossible!”
“There is no such thing as impossible.” The Sage wheeled himself toward the floor-to-ceiling windows, gazing for a long time at the tiny, ant-like figures moving below the high-rise. “Even though I raised Huiling with my own hands, I had long prepared myself for the possibility that she wouldn’t return. Everyone who joins the Scientific Research Guild must be ready to sacrifice at any moment.”
Bang!
A sphere of lightning crashed onto the office desk, leaving a massive scorched crater.
Si Zhe glared at the Sage’s back with unyielding intensity. “This was just an ordinary mission! Weiran is a Tier 6 ability user—how could she possibly just die like that?! If it was truly a mission with such a high risk of death, why would you send her?!”
“Because she was the best candidate.” The Sage’s voice remained indifferent. “Before this, no one—not even I—could be sure whether you could be healed. Since both you and she chose to take this gamble for the long run, you should have already been mentally prepared for the consequences.”
With those words, spoken so lightly, the Sage stripped Si Zhe bare, exposing the truth he could not bear to face.
No.
He wasn’t prepared.
He had never once thought of letting Weiran risk her life. He had simply been too dejected, allowing the treatment to drag on for too long, neglecting to investigate the true danger behind Weiran’s mission.
“You can continue to hold on to the thought that Weiran is still alive if that makes you feel better.”
“But if I were you, I wouldn’t deceive myself. I would take revenge.”
“That cheetah, Zeng Zhuyue… Everyone who survived is a suspect in Huiling and Weiran’s deaths. And if we narrow it down further—considering that whoever was responsible had the power to kill two Tier 6 ability users, one of whom was at the peak of Tier 6—the range of suspects becomes even smaller…”
As the Sage systematically eliminated the possibilities, two names automatically surfaced in Si Zhe’s mind:
Su Su, and that python.
Among those who possessed such power, and who also had a deep-seated grudge against Weiran, there was only one person—her.
The eyes of the Tier 7 ability user had turned so red they were almost bleeding. His gaze burned into the Sage’s back, resembling an abandoned hound whose home had been destroyed.
His voice trembled with barely contained hatred. “You… did this on purpose.”
You deliberately sent Weiran to die.
You deliberately left me all alone.
You deliberately incited my hatred toward others—so that I would become the sharpest, most obedient blade in your hands.
When had it come to this?
When had Si Zhe lost the power to protect his lover?
When had he lost control over his own fate?
Drip.
Blood seeped through his clenched fingers, trickling onto the ground.
Si Zhe lowered his head, staring at the crimson stain spreading beneath him. His eyes were filled with bottomless, unfathomable hatred.
Hatred toward Su Su.
Hatred toward that python.
And hatred toward the Sage.
Perhaps—perhaps there was even a trace of hatred toward himself.
All of these emotions, tangled together, became impossible to distinguish clearly.
“I’m going to the desert to find her.”
The Sage said, “The guild is in need of manpower right now. Those escaped battle pets also need to be dealt with. If, at a time like this, you insist on clinging to that so-called, belated love, I will respect your decision.”
But—
“In my eyes, this will be the end of your path.”
The old man, frail and completely devoid of offensive power, handed the choice of freedom back into Si Zhe’s own hands.
Time ticked away, second by second.
The blood pooling on the ground had already formed a small puddle.
Si Zhe’s voice was so distant, even he could barely hear it himself.
“…I will avenge Weiran.”
Upon hearing these words, the Sage finally turned his wheelchair around, a look of approval on his face.
“I knew you were a good child.”
“Who hasn’t suffered setbacks in their youth?”
“Go. I will grant you the greatest authority to help you eliminate any lingering threats.”
Si Zhe ultimately left the laboratory—where sunlight streamed in but the air was colder than an ice cellar.
Once the Tier 7 ability user had departed, the Sage stared into the void for a long time.
He wasn’t thinking about Si Zhe.
He was thinking about the long-standing research surrounding the crystals… Energy, impurities, and the outer shell—these were the three main elements. He had successfully separated the first two in animals, yet he had never been able to achieve the same with humans.
This was why, despite the guild having successfully cultivated several Tier 7 zombies, he feared the massive energy and immense impurities within them—he had never dared to consume one. Naturally, he had experimented on other ability users as well… but without exception, all of them had exploded and died.
Could humans truly only reach Tier 6?
No. He refused to believe that.
The Sage was waiting—waiting for the first Tier 7 ability user to emerge.
If those high-tier ability users heading west lacked the capability, then their deaths would be of no consequence.
But if someone did possess the strength to kill that Tier 7 zombie…
The Sage suddenly clenched the armrests of his wheelchair.
Then, he would finally see the path to further advancement—or, from that person, discover the key to breaking through!
Now that Qi Huiling was dead, it meant that someone had truly shattered this deadlock.
Who could it be?
Those few from the Battle Pet Guild?
The useless ones from the Ability User Guild?
Or…
That white-eyed wolf of a cousin—the one he had never personally encountered, but had only heard of from Lin Weiran’s mouth?
Or was it those battle pets—those creatures that should never have existed in this world?
A vague suspicion surfaced in the Sage’s mind. However, regarding what had truly happened in the desert, the only thing he knew for certain was that the laboratory prepared for Jiang Hong had successfully activated.
As for the rest—anything could have happened.
Anyone could have been the lucky one.
It didn’t matter.
Si Zhe, the bait, was about to be cast.
It wouldn’t be long before the target took the hook.
All he had to do—was wait.