Chapter 42: Blood Boiling Parasite
"You—"
Brother K pointed at Marcus with a trembling hand, then collapsed before he could finish speaking.
"Such good armor, I should be wearing it!"
Marcus stepped forward and used his absorption ability to collect the remains into his Life Reservoir. He acquired seven throwing knives, two skins, two cell phones, and one set of body armor.
The container walls were torn to shreds by buckshot, a layer of fine dust settled on the ground, and rays of sunlight seeped through.
Marcus endured the dust and entered, re-disguising himself as Brother K; Raghav's appearance was still too conspicuous in America.
He walked along the rocky wasteland, following the abandoned buildings, searching for the girl's trail.
Brother K's phone was fingerprint locked, but Marcus unlocked it directly with his stolen index finger.
He opened a messaging app on the phone, the mainstream communication platform.
The first line was news from a feed, and the second line was a cute pink cartoon cat holding a lollipop, with the username "Lily".
[September 12, 2:25 PM]
Lily: "Is it worth it, Brother? He turned against Dad over a chance to be someone's attack dog!"
K: "It's worth it!"
K: "Where is it hidden? Give it to me."
[September 23, 7:41 AM]
Lily: "Are you going to kill me, Brother?"
K: "That blade could've hit your thigh or your heart. Lily, give me the item, or I'll kill Chase and the old man!"
Lily: "You hurt me!"
K: "Give me the item, and I'll let you stab me twice. Now, I'm at the same peak human level as the old man; he can't beat me."
Lily: "Are you really that heartless? Dad is old; I can't bear to see him become a scapegoat. Since you want to go, promise me that after you get the item, you'll reconcile with Dad and apologize to him. You owe him."
K: "Okay, I promise."
Lily: "Alright, tomorrow at 3 PM, West Side Green Bay Abandoned Park, Building 4. I'll be waiting for you."
The phone chat ended there. Marcus glanced at the building number next to him and walked toward the abandoned building ahead.
He breathed a sigh of relief. This Lily wasn't some kind of Tower Guardian, but Marcus was curious about something that could make two peak-level fighters do this.
He desperately wanted to understand the true nature of this world—what powerful figures existed, what strengths existed, and what dangers lurked within!
Knowing nothing, he felt utterly uncertain.
The girl was squatting quietly in the dilapidated hall on the first floor of Building Four, completely oblivious to her surroundings.
Only when Marcus approached and his footsteps echoed did she hurriedly turn around.
"Brother, you're here!"
Her expression was conflicted and somber.
"Whether I should have come or not, I'm here now. Don't say so much, where's the stuff, Lily?"
Marcus tried to mimic Brother K's tone.
"You can't go back on your promise. Promise me, and I'll give you the stuff."
Her expression was distrustful, but mostly helpless.
She couldn't believe that the once harmonious dojo, the five students who had grown up together, had turned into this.
The eldest and third had both died on the road to becoming attack dogs.
Her brother and their father, who had both reached peak human fitness, still fought fiercely over a spot meant for suicide.
Recalling the wonderful times her father led the five of them in training, all she wanted was for her family to live together in harmony and peace.
"What's there to regret? I never go back on my word."
Marcus was now only curious about what could possibly cause such a fierce struggle between master and students.
"Here you go, the Blood Boiling Parasite is in the box."
She pulled out a palm-sized silver metal box with several air holes.
"Is it really the Blood Boiling Parasite? How can you prove it?"
Marcus took the box, completely bewildered. What was a Blood Boiling Parasite? Why were they risking their lives for a single parasite?
But not wanting to reveal his identity, he asked indirectly.
She seemed anxious upon hearing this. Was her brother trying to back out? She hurriedly said,
"Brother, you promised to go see Dad with me. Once you swallow the Blood Boiling Parasite, it will attach itself to your stomach lining, providing 20% muscle efficiency and continuous repair of internal injuries. You'll know once you swallow it."
Just increasing muscle efficiency and repairing injuries?
Hearing this, Marcus looked at the Blood Boiling Parasite in his hand, unimpressed. What kind of garbage was this?
When he first became a Cursed One, he could forcibly break through the limitations of his brain, approaching 100% muscle utilization.
No need to constantly damage his muscles, only to destroy his own body with excessive force.
This Blood Boiling Parasite was utterly useless to him; he didn't have any internal injuries.
Turning against each other for something like this? Marcus even felt that the body armor was far more useful.
He pondered for a moment. When the girl and Brother K were chatting, they kept talking about being attack dogs.
What did "being an attack dog" mean, and for whom?
It seemed that whoever used the Blood Boiling Parasite had to become an attack dog.
This "dog" certainly wasn't for ordinary people; after all, they had reached peak human limits, and with the parasite, they exceeded those limits significantly.
Could it be some kind of Tower Guardian organization or a Tower Master's faction, or some other force?
Marcus admitted he didn't want to take the risk.
Who knew if someone in that organization possessed the ability to see through disguises?
His skin-shifting ability only changed appearance, not the inner self.
Marcus thought for a moment and decided the best method was to have Brother K's master become the so-called 'attack dog'.
He could then use either K's identity or that young man's identity to gather information about the organization from their master. This way, there would be a layer of separation, making it safer.
This was also an opportunity to understand the world. Having figured this out, Marcus tossed the box back to her.
"Huh?"
She caught it instinctively, letting out a questioning sound, completely bewildered.
"I suddenly realized something. The old man's lifelong dream... I'm still young, let him have the chance first!"
Marcus casually made up a story.
"Really? Brother, you..."
She couldn't believe it. One second they were fighting to the death, the next he'd suddenly given up. Was this enlightenment, the prodigal son returning?
"Then will you come back to the Red Pine Dojo with me? You promised to reconcile with Dad. Anyway, I'll give you the Blood Boiling Parasite; you didn't want it yourself."
She was completely confused by Marcus's words.
"I have other things to do. Take the parasite back to your father first. Once you're done with the next few days, I'll message you and get back to the dojo."
Marcus said, turning to leave. There was nothing useful left here.
Even if it was just preliminary contact with the deeper forces of this world through the dojo, Marcus planned to complete this story world first and become stronger.
On his way home, his mother sent a message saying she and Mrs. Peterson had gone shopping.
Sitting in his bedroom, he felt a little inconvenienced. If he went to an instance one day and his mother knocked but he wasn't there, then suddenly reappeared, it would be difficult to explain.
Therefore, he considered finding a secure, secret base specifically for entering the Lighthouse after this story ended.
He locked the bedroom door, contacted the Lighthouse Mark, and the space shifted, bringing him to Lighthouse Plaza.
Marcus had been to Hell. He'd killed gods. He'd implanted supernatural organs in his chest.
Now he was wearing a dead man's skin, investigating secret organizations in the real world.
The line between monster and human was getting blurrier every day.
And Marcus wasn't sure he cared anymore.
(End of Chapter)
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