Chapter 365 ·The Source
Chapter 365: The Source
Faced with the changes brought about by the spirit entity's rampage, Little Pink Mushroom, standing on Zhou Ming's shoulder, took a deep breath, puffing out its cheeks.
Then, amid its "ying ying" cries, its body radiated pink light imbued with an illusory aura.
In an instant, whether it was the hatred-filled murmurs or the blood-red mist that created the bizarre scenery, everything vanished into nothingness beneath the pink radiance.
As the distorted space returned to normal, an ordinary dormitory room appeared before Zhou Ming.
However, the desks, chairs, beds, and cabinets normally found in the dormitory had all disappeared. Instead, the floor and surrounding walls were completely covered with bizarre runes.
Judging by the scent emanating from the runes, they had been drawn with blood.
Besides that, behind the spirit entity stood something resembling a shrine, which appeared to be the source of this entire disaster.
As for the spirit entity that had lost its sanity, it was now bound by a pink chain, while its body had become even more translucent.
Judging by its condition, it had already entered an extremely weakened state.
“The reason I called you worthless is because, even after being given a chance to turn your life around, you didn't know how to seize it.”
“If you had managed to remain rational and reached the pinnacle as an aberrant existence, then even if you had slaughtered one small base—or even ten large bases—I would still think more highly of you.”
“Yet you remained obsessed with fairness, with the mentality of a child.”
“If you think the world is unfair, then what about those born with disabilities? What about those born as Wildfolk?”
“Calling you worthless is already giving you too much credit. You're nothing more than a puppet that lost its mind to power.”
After seeing the spirit entity regain its sanity, Zhou Ming slowly gave his answer.
His words were like a sharp dagger, piercing straight into the other's heart.
“Lord Zhou Ming is right. I truly am worthless.”
At this moment, as it faced death, there was both relief and acceptance in its expression.
Perhaps, just as Zhou Ming had said, Heaven had once given it an opportunity, yet it had failed to seize it.
It had no right to harbor hatred.
Without Little Pink Mushroom needing to act, a transparent flame ignited across its body.
Perhaps it was to preserve the last shred of its dignity.
Or perhaps it was to atone for its sins.
At that moment, it chose to end its own life.
Meanwhile, throughout the base, the souls trapped within the mutated corpses streamed into the room like flocks of birds returning to their nests.
Amid the burning soul flames, they ultimately disappeared from this world together with the spirit entity.
When the flames finally died out, a diamond roughly the size of an egg fell onto the floor.
Its facets were perfectly defined.
It was crystal clear, flawless, and immaculate.
The light it emitted carried an irresistible allure.
“This is...”
Using a serpent shadow, Zhou Ming picked up the fallen object while searching through his memories for information regarding various Transcendent treasures.
Suddenly, a trace of astonishment appeared on his usually expressionless face.
“Soul Gem.”
The Puppet Substitute Technique contained detailed records regarding Soul Gems, allowing him to immediately identify the object in his hand.
“I never expected accepting the Hunter Guild's mission this time would bring such an unexpected reward.”
Although Soul Gems did not possess a specific grade, their value was so great that they were immensely beneficial even to Legendary Saints.
If Zhou Ming possessed the technique to create a Tower Spirit, then with this Soul Gem in hand, he could transform his stone tower into an existence capable of resisting Transcendent experts.
It could even continue evolving, eventually becoming a Legendary structure capable of moving freely.
Although he was surprised by the appearance of the Soul Gem, Zhou Ming was even more interested in the object enshrined within the shrine on the ground.
As his gaze shifted, the object inside the shrine came into view.
It resembled an octopus.
Its entire body was black.
Its twisted tentacles were embedded with ruby-like gems that resembled eyes.
The instant Zhou Ming laid eyes upon the object, hatred immediately arose within his heart, while a special sacrificial ritual surfaced in his mind.
Apart from that, no other abnormalities appeared.
Rather than employing any other Transcendent methods against the hatred rising within him, Zhou Ming relied solely upon his own will to suppress it by force.
“This thing probably doesn't belong to Blue Star. I wonder whether it came from Tamu World or some other world.”
“Judging by the situation, however, there doesn't seem to be any other existence attached to it.”
As Zhou Ming attempted to suppress the hatred growing within his heart through sheer willpower alone, he quickly assessed the danger posed by the object.
Nevertheless, to be safe, he immediately took out various materials, formed hand seals with both hands, and cast the Snake Soul Seal.
The various Transcendent materials began melting together, forming a sealing liquid that enveloped the shrine before ultimately solidifying into something resembling amber.
Afterward, Zhou Ming took out a separate Spatial Storage Equipment and placed the amber-encased shrine inside.
As for how he would make use of the object, Zhou Ming had no plans for it for the time being.
However, now that the abnormality at Xiaolin Base had been successfully resolved, he could finally proceed to the offshore region and carry out his plan.
Just as Zhou Ming stepped out of the dormitory building, a supersonic fighter suddenly appeared above Xiaolin Base, and a figure leaped directly down from the aircraft.
“It seems the Alliance places great importance on this supernatural incident.”
Sensing someone's arrival, Zhou Ming immediately dispersed the barrier he had set up while also recalling the constantly credit-seeking Little Pink Mushroom.
In the end, despite its outstanding performance, Little Pink Mushroom received absolutely nothing.
All its efforts had been in vain.
“Haha, Brother Zhou Ming, we meet again.”
As the familiar voice sounded, Zhou Ming immediately recognized the newcomer.
It was none other than Military Lieutenant General Feng Tianyun.
To arrive here as quickly as possible, Feng Tianyun had traveled aboard a military supersonic fighter, intending to obtain firsthand information about Xiaolin Base.
“So it's Lieutenant General Feng. I didn't expect your military to arrive so quickly.”
Since the two were already old acquaintances, Feng Tianyun did not conceal the purpose of his visit.
Likewise, Zhou Ming did not hide much either, giving him a brief overview of the situation inside Xiaolin Base.
As for the object enshrined inside the shrine, however, he did not mention it at all.
Instead, he attributed the cause of the disaster to a spirit entity that had formed by chance.
Naturally, Feng Tianyun did not completely believe Zhou Ming's account.
However, the situation inside Xiaolin Base alone was already sufficient for Alliance Headquarters to conduct extensive research.
As for how Xiaolin Base would ultimately be dealt with, that was a matter for later.
After chatting briefly, the two left Xiaolin Base together and headed toward Tiemu Base several dozen kilometers away.
The following day, as several military airships arrived, large numbers of military tents began appearing outside Xiaolin Base.
Various detection instruments began examining Xiaolin Base, which had been affected by supernatural power, along with the numerous mutated corpses.
Zhou Ming, however, paid little attention to any of it.
After spending some time with Feng Tianyun and answering the various questions he raised, Zhou Ming chose to leave Tiemu Base and head toward the offshore region.
As far as he was concerned, one should not concern oneself with affairs outside one's own responsibilities.
Whatever changes the Alliance underwent in the future were no longer matters that concerned Zhou Ming.
His trip to Xiaolin Base to resolve the supernatural incident had merely been part of a transaction between himself and Mu Tianqing.
The only thing that truly pleased him was that this mission had unexpectedly rewarded him with a Soul Gem and a special sacrificial ritual.
As for the object within the shrine, until he fully uncovered its origins, Zhou Ming intended to keep it sealed within his Spatial Storage Equipment and refrain from using it.