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Chapter 17: The Crimson Research Institute
🕑 Added 2024-12-18 15:26:10 +0000 UTCThe historical records regarding Mu Qing in the Star City database left Feng Qi deeply unsettled.
The facts were laid bare before him, leaving no room for denial.
The future depicted in the dream realm was intricately linked to the present, a reality he had already come to accept.
“Dawn” Rebel Army, Rune-Enhanced Humans, innocent casualties… The flood of information swirled in Feng Qi’s mind, taking a long moment before he finally collected himself.
At that moment, a thought took root in his mind: eliminate Mu Qing before she could become a calamity.
If she were to die before her betrayal, there would be no "Dawn" Rebel Army, no thirty years of darkness etched into history.
But just as the idea began to solidify, doubts started surfacing in his heart.
As a human, why would Mu Qing betray her own kind? What circumstances led to her making such a decision?
It was then that the voice of the narrator echoed in his mind:
"Every action has its reasons. You start to sense that the truth may not be as simple as it appears. Thus, you resolve to investigate this matter further!"
“What do you mean by that? Are you hinting that there’s more to Mu Qing’s betrayal?” Feng Qi asked urgently.
"Heh~ Not telling~"
Feng Qi: …
As infuriating as the narrator could be, its hints often steered him toward critical truths. This time, it felt no different. Feng Qi began to suspect that Mu Qing’s betrayal might indeed hide a deeper, undiscovered secret.
Fueled by this suspicion, he turned to the database, determined to uncover the truth behind her actions.
Due to his guest access permissions, Feng Qi could only perform three searches, so he avoided anything that seemed untrustworthy or vague.
As he delved into the historical data about Mu Qing, he noticed that most records in the Star City database focused on her post-betrayal actions.
Details about her life before defecting were scant, mostly limited to her time as a student at Star City Academy.
Those records painted a bleak picture: during her time at the academy, Mu Qing was ostracized by her peers, with no one willing to befriend her.
Even when it came time to form an internship team for domain combat training, no team was willing to accept her.
This revelation made Feng Qi suspect that her experiences during her academy years might have sown seeds of resentment toward humanity, eventually driving her to oppose them.
But the exact answer remained elusive.
He proceeded to comb through the information detailing Mu Qing’s life after graduation.
Later records revealed that, despite her lack of friends, Mu Qing possessed extraordinary strength. The rune crystal fused to her body granted her a unique ability: she could draw power from food.
Her digestive system had undergone significant changes due to the rune crystal modifications. It operated at thirty times the efficiency of an average human's, rapidly breaking down food and converting its nutrients into a faint blood energy that coursed through her body, enhancing her physical strength.
Leveraging her unique physique and stellar performance during field training, Mu Qing was recruited into the Black Reef, an A-Rank Domain Combat Squad, after graduation. She excelled during her probationary period, eventually earning her place as a core combatant in Black Reef’s elite A-Squad.
Her subsequent career was filled with exceptional achievements.
She participated in numerous missions to clear domain fields and earned accolades for her bravery and tactical acumen.
From these accounts, Feng Qi struggled to reconcile her image with that of a genocidal maniac.
She had once stood on the front lines, risking her life repeatedly to fight against domain creatures. On more than one occasion, she had faced mortal danger without flinching, even sustaining life-threatening injuries to cover her teammates’ retreat.
Skipping over this period of her life, Feng Qi finally reached the mission that marked the turning point in Mu Qing’s fate.
[Mission Code: 321529]
Mission Issuer: Crimson Research Institute Headquarters
Assigned Combat Squad: Black Reef (A-Rank Domain Combat Squad)
Mission Details:
At 3:00 PM on April 23, 2031, an underground laboratory located on the outskirts of Twilight City suddenly lost contact with the headquarters. The incident is suspected to involve a domain transgressor attack. Assistance is requested from available combat Squad to investigate the situation.
Threat Level: Unknown
Mission Rewards:
3,000 special spirit stones
Three B-Rank alloy combat armors
Ten Class-3 spiritual plants
50 million in cash
Three corpses of the C-Rank rune creatures, “Death Calamity”
During the mission, Mu Qing’s temperament underwent a dramatic change. She personally killed the commander who had selected her for the "Black Reef Combat Squad." Afterward, she recruited a large number of scavengers and founded the Dawn Rebel Army, turning her blade against humanity.
This revelation piqued Feng Qi’s curiosity about the underground laboratory of the Crimson Research Institute’s branch.
Was Mu Qing always hiding her true self, or did the events within the laboratory fundamentally change her?
In search of answers, Feng Qi began digging into information related to the Crimson Research Institute.
However, disappointment soon followed. He lacked the clearance to access any meaningful data regarding the institute.
Closing the search window, Feng Qi fell into deep thought.
Knowing that Mu Qing would betray humanity in the future, he couldn’t simply stand by and do nothing. Two choices now lay before him:
Kill Mu Qing.
Change Mu Qing.
After careful consideration, he decided to wait until he returned to the real world. First, he would attempt to approach her, then make his decision based on what he learned.
With his plan tentatively set, Feng Qi opened the Cultivation Technique section and resumed studying the fundamentals of Tiger Fist.
The last time he accessed this material, he had only managed to grasp the foundational techniques, covering roughly one-third of the content. He had been forced to abandon his studies due to the sudden arrival of the "Dark Shadow."
Now, with time on his side, he aimed to finish learning the remaining intermediate techniques of Tiger Fist.
As the instructional video began playing, a man in military uniform appeared on the screen. Following the instructor’s precise movements, Feng Qi practiced the techniques while attentively absorbing the lecture.
Although fully mastering Tiger Fist held limited value to him, as his strength mainly relied on gaining Bloodline Evolution Points by slaying monsters in the dream realm, understanding the methodology behind the techniques was far more critical.
He meticulously analyzed the teaching concepts and internalized the principles of Tiger Fist, finding ways to adapt and integrate them with his own combat strategies.
Time ticked away steadily. After rewatching the video several times, Feng Qi imprinted the major concepts of Tiger Fist into his memory.
Glancing at the timer in the upper right corner of the screen, he realized there wasn’t enough time left for another review.
Approximately 2 minutes and 30 seconds remained before the Dark Shadow would arrive in the underground laboratory.
He had considered attempting to seal the metal corridor’s entrance, but no switch was visible, nor could he locate any related commands in the database.
As he waited, just as expected, a dark silhouette began to emerge from the corridor leading into the underground shelter.
Thick black mist enveloped the figure, obscuring its specific features. However, the dark crimson rune crystal embedded in the creature’s forehead glinted faintly, cutting through the fog.
The narrator made its presence known, chiming in with its usual cryptic farewell:
"Traveler, how long will it be before you return? Do not linger when the time comes. Across the heavens and the earth, connections are fleeting; life’s greatest rarity is reunion, but parting abounds."
Feng Qi: …
As the shadow closed in, Feng Qi couldn’t help but wonder: What kind of prefix title would I gain if I somehow managed to kill this creature? What special abilities would it bestow upon me?
Of course, he knew these were mere fantasies. In his current state, he stood no chance against the Dark Shadow.
With every passing second, the dark figure approached, the mist curling like tendrils. Grabbing the bone club he had left on the control console, Feng Qi strode forward, projecting an air of defiance—a warrior prepared to face his fate.
But, as expected, no miracle occurred this time either.
The moment contact was made, the dark mist engulfed Feng Qi, and the all-too-familiar sound of chewing filled his ears.
Darkness swallowed his vision, and he instinctively anticipated being pulled back to the real world.
However, instead of his usual awakening, a new string of information appeared in his mind:
[Initial energy depleted. Energy replenishment required. Current energy: 0%.]
[Energy reserves empty. Activating Reality Feedback Panel.]
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