In the basement of The Deep End.
Watching the wood-like texture on Fu Li's fingertip slowly fade, Aponia let out a sigh of relief, beads of sweat rolling down her fair forehead.
Even for her, this level of [Touching] and [Changing] was exhausting.
"As I thought, the current Li is still too weak..." Aponia murmured, retracting the hand she had placed on his forehead.
Suddenly, she turned her head to look at the person who had just arrived.
"Ellie? What are you doing here?"
Recognizing the visitor, Aponia relaxed her guard slightly, a gentle smile deliberately gracing her features.
"I just came to have a look. By the way, Li's little sister, Hua, has successfully become a MANTIS ♪ She's a very cute girl, you know."
Elysia, as if not noticing anything was amiss, walked over to Li's side and asked curiously:
"Mmm~ How is Li's condition ♪"
"Not good. He just woke up and failed his first direct confrontation with the Herrscher," Aponia did not hide the truth.
Elysia nodded, a peculiar light in her eyes.
"Is that so? Li, you'll have to do your best."
After all, I haven't even gotten to touch your horns yet~♪
"Sigh..."
Watching Elysia's departing figure, Aponia picked up the coffee beside her and took a sip.
The next illusion was not something she could completely suppress. She could only hope that Li would be able to defeat the Herrscher of Domination with his own consciousness.
Otherwise, she would have to resort to other measures.
However, given the malice of those Herrscher of Domination individuals, they probably wouldn't try any cheap tricks.
---o---
"Hey, hey, Dr. Li, wake up! Today's work isn't done yet."
"Ngh... Who is it..."
His consciousness still hazy, Fu Li slowly opened his eyes and saw the short-haired girl who had woken him.
The girl looked somewhat weary. The light in her wooden eyes was dim, and her movable joints were severely worn.
But indisputably, she was a very beautiful older sister.
His name was Li. He was the number two deputy at this research institute, an ordinary person who was not a MANTIS. His older sister was named Mobius, and Klein was his assistant and the person he had a crush on.
"Oh, Klein. Sorry, I fell asleep."
Fu Li rubbed his eyes and yawned. A few crystalline tear-drops glistened at the corners of his eyes, a sign that their owner had not slept soundly and was extremely tired.
Then again, this state could be considered normal for a scientific researcher.
"You, really... you need to take better care of your health..."
Klein reached out and ruffled Fu Li's short hair, placing a stack of documents on the table before adding.
"This is the experimental data Dr. Mobius gave you. Remember to organize it and hand it in before tomorrow's meeting begins."
"I know, I know, Klein. My sister, she's really something else..."
Taking the documents, Fu Li casually set them aside. But just then, he heard Klein's sad, self-directed whisper.
"It can't be helped. After all, Danzhu and Cangxuan are dead."
Danzhu? Cangxuan? They're dead?!
A sudden shiver ran down Fu Li's spine. He had just raised his head to ask something when he saw Klein's retreating back.
That's right. Danzhu and Cangxuan were MANTISes. They died at the hands of the Ninth Herrscher. How could he have forgotten that...
It was only after losing those two reliable assistants that their workload had become so heavy.
Fu Li rubbed his head in annoyance, his mood turning heavy.
But no matter what, even in grief, they still had to work hard in order to one day defeat humanity.
However, when he picked up the documents and his gaze fell upon two sculptures on the desk, another sharp pain lanced through his head, and a different thought suddenly appeared in his mind.
Are Danzhu and Cangxuan really dead?
Danzhu and Cangxuan are really dead.
"Ah..."
The two conflicting thoughts collided in his mind. Fu Li subconsciously clutched his head, letting out a cry of pain.
Just then, a hand clapped down on his shoulder. It felt stiff, like wood.
"What's wrong, my dear little brother? Didn't you rest well?"
A voice, lazy like a snake's, sounded out. Mobius pulled him into her embrace, the wooden frontal armor pressing against his back, causing Fu Li's face to flush.
"No, sis. It's just that I had a sudden thought. Are Danzhu and Cangxuan really dead?"
"They are dead," Mobius said with absolute certainty, a trace of sadness coloring her dangerously alluring, snake-like tone.
"Li, I know you were very close to them, but can you promise your sister that you won't torture yourself like this anymore?"
"Cangxuan and Danzhu, they are truly dead."
Mobius's tone was firm and unwavering, leaving no room for doubt.
"Okay, I understand. Sorry for making you worry, sis."
"It's alright, Li. If you're too tired, just take a day off. Klein is still here to handle the lab's work. There's no need to push yourself."
"No, I still want to help share the burden."
"I see. Well, alright then." Mobius didn't stand on ceremony. After a few more words of advice, she left.
Why does it feel like... they seem hesitant to stay around me for too long?
Watching Mobius's deliberately quickened pace, a strange sense of dissonance planted a seed in his heart.
Fu Li listened to the sound of moving joints and looked again at the two stone sculptures of Cangxuan and Danzhu, trying to find the source of this feeling.
But this time, looking at the sculptures produced no strange sensation at all, as if they were truly just two commemorative items.
Forget it. I'm probably just not in a good state.
Fu Li sighed and looked at the experimental materials in his hand, his brow furrowing.
"On How to Dominate the Human Spirit"—these large words were printed at the top of the materials, seeming somewhat strange.
Why? Why dominate the human spirit?
Fu Li was just about to read on when he faintly heard a scream coming from the underground laboratory.
"Who was that?"
The source of the voice was extremely familiar. Fu Li knew with absolute certainty that it was the voice of his own sister, Mobius.
Dammit? What's going on? Besides the corpses, aren't Klein and my sister the only ones in the underground lab?
With a heart full of extreme unease, Fu Li didn't hesitate. He grabbed the pistol from his drawer and ran towards the underground lab.
Swiping his ID card to open the metal door, Fu Li moved quickly through the corridors, not even glancing at the human corpses in the surrounding vats.
His mind was currently replaying Mobius's earlier scream, which gave rise to a single thought.
Did the humans attack?
However, when Fu Li finally followed the sound and arrived at the scene, he was completely stunned by the sight before him.
He saw Klein, her eyes flashing with a blue light, holding a laboratory scalpel, which she had stabbed firmly into Mobius's chest.
The red light in Mobius's wooden eyes flickered as if the power had been cut, and after a few flashes, it completely disappeared.
[Mobius] has died.
3996-3262