Eris tugged on the materialized thread of the curse, scaling layer upon layer of dilapidated buildings. Bai Chunian, tied to the other end of the thread, was forced to follow.
The factory was filled with all kinds of warehouses and equipment. Too many obstacles and buildings stood between the playground and them; Eris couldn’t see the puppet masters, only occasionally catching glimpses of some puppets through the gaps between eaves and piles of discarded old goods. The puppets, engraved with incantations, carried hypnotized juvenile test subjects as they left through the factory gates in every direction.
“Are they all gone?” Eris stood on tiptoe, gazing into the distance from a high vantage point, muttering to herself, “They’ll wait for me, right?”
Bai Chunian, thinking only of his own future happiness, could do nothing but keep his hands in his pockets and follow along, standing beside Eris and yawning.
“Why are you working for the Puppet Master?” he asked lazily.
“I’m not working for him.” Eris lifted her head and glanced at Bai Chunian. “I think he’s right, so I’m going with him.”
“How do you know he’s right?”
Eris hoisted the rifle barrel, resting both hands on either end, and looked down at her new shoes, now caked with mud, as if deep in thought.
“I think he’s right. But even if he’s not, it doesn’t matter—I like following him.”
When Eris and several other test subjects were sold to the Red-throated Bird, they were kept locked in a warehouse.
The Red-throated Bird terrorist organization’s warehouse was stocked with firearms and ammunition. Eris and the other test subjects were kept in the armory just like ordinary weapons; unless someone opened the armory, it was usually pitch-black inside.
Occasionally, someone would open the warehouse door to bring in or take out weapons and ammunition for sale. Only then would light enter the armory, Whenever Eris saw people, he would grip the bars of his cage and flip them off, or let out a chilling laugh. In the dimly lit warehouse, the pale boy’s crimson lips and narrow, upturned mouth looked eerie.
Because his innate ability was Misfortune, anyone who came near Eris would suffer terrible misfortune. Most members of the Red Throat Birds were seeing a test subject for the first time, so they harbored deep hostility and prejudice toward Eris, often kicking his cage violently or beating him with the butts of their rifles.
Of course, Eris wouldn’t let them bully him. Even with the suppressor on, he still had a million ways to make them end up in pieces.
Within just half a month, the number of Red Throat members meeting untimely deaths grew steadily: some were killed by gunshot wounds from misfired weapons; others were blown to bits by malfunctioning bombs; some simply burned themselves and their entire room full of roommates to death while smoking in bed; and still others had their brains blown out by stray bullets while walking down the street.
The Red Throat’s boss was at his wits’ end. He knew Eris was the root of the problem, but the money had already been spent, and the research institute wouldn’t accept returns or exchanges. Now, his only options were to destroy Eris or grit his teeth and keep her.
An A3-class full-mimicry test subject was far too expensive. The boss simply couldn’t bear to destroy one that had just been purchased and hadn’t even been used yet. He had no choice but to turn to the smartest strategist by his side: “You were the one who arranged for this test subject to be purchased. You handle it.”
That was the first time Eris had ever seen the Puppet Master.
The Puppet Master wasn’t dressed in protective gear or a bulletproof vest like the others, nor did he approach Eris nervously with a gun in hand. He came empty-handed, bringing only a desk lamp, which he placed beside Eris.
The lamp lit up, illuminating a small corner of the armory.
Eris, who had been deliberately screeching to try to scare him, suddenly fell silent. He slowly sat down in the corner of the cage, moving as close as possible to the light.
The Puppet Master crouched in front of the cage and studied him. Eris met the gaze of this blond-haired, blue-eyed Alpha without flinching.
He hadn’t expected this man to be bold enough to slip his hand through the bars of the cage. Just as Eris was calculating how many of his fingers to bite off, that warm palm gently rested against his cheek.
The puppeteer whispered, “I know you’re just afraid of the dark.”
The warm white light from the desk lamp streamed through the bars of the cage, enveloping him. Eris didn’t know what this feeling meant; he just felt a bit drowsy and wanted to rest his head on that hand and sleep.
However, the puppeteer didn’t keep stroking him. Instead, he went out, brought back a table and some odd tools, and began making a doll in the armory.
Only then did Eris realize that the Puppet Master had brought his own desk lamp over to light the way for him, leaving no light available while he worked on the doll.
The Puppet Master rarely spoke while making the doll, always staring quietly and intently at the parts in his hands. Eris didn’t disturb him either; he simply squeezed his way to the front of the cage, clutching the bars and watching him longingly.
The Puppet Master finally noticed him, took out a measuring tape, let Eris out of the cage, and measured his shoulder width, waist circumference, arm length, and leg length. When measuring his waist, the Puppet Master stretched out his arms to encircle Eris, then pulled the tape tight to check the number. It was just a routine measurement, but Eris kept waiting to be picked up.
Over the next few days, Eris didn’t return to his cage. Every day, he would lie by the table, watching the puppeteer draft patterns, cut fabric, hand-sew garment pieces and lace, and finally dress him in the finished clothes, shoes, and hat.
Only then did Eris realize that in the human world, being naked was considered indecent. He felt down for a while, embarrassed that he’d been wandering around naked in front of the puppeteer for so many days.
“I rely on darkness and shadows to kill, but I find it boring.” Eris tilted his head back to gaze at the sky glowing with a faint light, cupping his palm to catch the fine rain falling from above. “Why did Aileen design me this way? I don’t like the night at all.”
Bai Chunian followed him absentmindedly. In this world, all notions of right and wrong were merely a matter of people holding opposing views; there was no clear distinction between them.
His phone vibrated in his pocket. Bai Chunian pulled it out and glanced at it. Lan Bo had replied: “I’m still on the ship. Find a warm, sheltered spot to wait for me.”
Bai Chunian pressed the receiver to his ear and listened to that gentle reply on repeat two or three times. He didn’t know if it was some kind of cosmic inevitancy for a messenger to fall in love with their master, but it made perfect sense for a stray animal to fall in love with the owner who gave it shelter and warmth. Not every pure-hearted puppy is lucky enough to meet someone who puts an end to their wandering.
As they entered the playground, a powerful, overwhelming aura swept toward them. Bai Chunian noticed that an Omega had appeared behind her without her realizing it. She was floating in the air, wearing a fluffy cotton-ball skirt. Her skin was snow-white, her eyes a translucent, pale milky white, and her milky-white hair hung straight down like needle-like crystals, all in shades of gray and white.
That overwhelming sense of pressure emanated from the glands of this seemingly young girl.
Bai Chunian stared silently at the petite girl, took a photo with a miniature camera, and sent it back to the Technical Department.
Technicians from Group B of the Technical Department, who had been on standby, responded immediately:
Special Operations Weapon Code 6017
Code Name: Erosion Cotton
Main Body: Asbestos Omega
Differentiation Level: A3
Growth Stage: Level 8 Mature Form
The leading digit 6 indicates modification of a non-living object (mineral-type gland), the middle digit 0 signifies no mimicry, and the final digit 17 denotes that the primary ability is area-of-effect damage.
Eris wouldn’t give a Level 8 Mature Form the time of day. He pressed the muzzle of his gun against the little girl’s cheek: “Nix forbade me from killing children anymore. Get lost.”
It was just a Level 8 Mature Form; Bai Chunian didn’t give her a second thought. Although the research institute had many top-tier experimental subjects, their strength still paled in comparison to the top-tier experimental subjects of the Messenger Type with full mimicry.
Eros spread her arms wide; her skirt fluttered in the wind as countless milky-white needles drifted toward him in delicate strands, scattering faintly through the air.
“Hurry up, don’t let her stall us.” Bai Chunian covered his mouth and nose to dodge the rain of needles, leaping down from the high platform and landing on the roof of a truck in the middle of the field. Eris followed close behind.
The three hundred or so trucks parked on the field had already been mostly dismantled. Bai Chunian saw Qishenggu and Diyi busily removing doll-like figures from boxes, then escorting the dying juvenile test subjects off the field. The puppet masters were also using keys to unlock the vehicles, releasing the remaining test subjects from the glass containers inside.
Bai Chunian said nothing. He leaped onto the roof of a truck and, using his skeletal-reinforced left hand, effortlessly crushed the metal locks on the latches and the glass containers, deftly freeing the test subjects inside.
With his help, the release process accelerated.
The Puppet Master glanced at him. Bai Chunian, chewing on a willow twig he’d picked up from the ground, said nonchalantly, “I don’t think you’re right. I do what I think is right.”
The Puppet Master nodded faintly, showing no intention of continuing the conversation.
There were still about a dozen vehicles on the field that hadn’t been fully unlocked, but their time was running out.
The cloud of sunset glow appearing on the horizon raced toward them, trailing a dazzling trail of colored light behind it.
Bai Chunian turned warily, gazing back at the test subject enveloped within the glow. He saw clearly that the figure approaching on the clouds was an Alpha.
The Alpha test subject’s upper body possessed smooth, elegant muscular lines, while from the waist down, his lower body was entirely that of a deer. He wore a silver mask, and the silvery-white antlers on his head were surrounded by a faint halo.
“It’s him.” Bai Chunian’s expression stiffened slightly. Hearing this, Eris also lifted her chin, furrowing her brows as she stared at the deer-like test subject in the distance, her eyes betraying impatience: “ “Why is it him?”
One of the first A3-class star test subjects produced by the Institute, Xia Shilu—even though Bai Chunian had never been to the Institute’s headquarters, he had long heard of him, and Eris was even more familiar with him.
Special Operations Weapon ID 5519
Code Name: Xia Shilu
Base Form: White Deer Alpha
Differentiation Level: A3
Development Stage: Level 9 Mature Form
The leading digit 5 indicates the presence of hooved glands, the middle digit 5 represents half-mimicry, and the final digit 19 signifies that the primary ability is support.
It’s not that his attack power is particularly formidable, but rather because the nature of his abilities is unique; at the research institute, he is hailed as the strongest support test subject in the history of research.
Bai Chunian shook his head: “You should go.”
Eris hoisted her shotgun: “Xia Shilu… so what?”
“My intel says Aileen sent five aces. Only four have shown up so far. If she’s sent Xia Shilu, the fifth one must be no pushover.” Bai Chunian glanced at Qishenggu and Diyi in the distance: “If we go head-to-head, those two M2-class subjects will be wiped out right here.”
Qishenggu had expended too much energy and was coughing again. Hearing Bai Chunian’s words, he raised his feather fan and shot him a contemptuous glance from afar: “Don’t underestimate us.”
The Puppet Master looked at the remaining unopened trucks and made his decision without hesitation: “Let’s go.”
The moment the Puppet Master gave the order, they immediately abandoned the remaining trucks and fled at top speed.
At that moment, Xia Shilu had already summoned a cloud of mist to shroud the sky above them. A faint glow flickered from her antlers as her J1 ability activated, unleashing a thick fog from the air. Within a mere three seconds, it completely engulfed them all in a dense fog so thick they couldn’t see their own hands.
Xia Shilu’s J1 ability “Mist”: An interference-type ability. Targets enveloped by the mist lose their sense of direction, time, and space; all electronic devices malfunction; and their hearing is impaired, while allies remain completely unaffected.
In the fog, Bai Chunian could not hear the footsteps of others. Xia Shilu’s J1 ability perfectly countered his innate “Multi-Frequency Hearing” ability, stripping him of the feline test subject’s sharpest advantage.
In the disorienting white fog, Bai Chunian faintly saw a white figure dart past his eyes.
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