Chapter 834
Chapter 834 - 820
1,374 words
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7 min read
"How long can I live?"
When mortals fall into the Abyss, sometimes a quick death is a rather good decision.
For Su Wenbing in the Cage, today was truly a nightmare... As a marginal professional, he saw this "test" as an opportunity, as a chance to ascend to a larger stage.
His Talent Abilities were not bad, and that’s how he embarked on the path of a professional, but unlike those formally educated, he merely attended a short-term training course before embarking on his career... In the first two years, he grew almost as quickly as the "college student" professionals from formal institutions, even gaining an advantage in overall combat power and work experience thanks to earlier combat experience.
But a few more years passed, and he began to noticeably struggle, while those "Student Soldiers" who were once weaker than him, one by one, surpassed him.
At that time, he was somewhat puzzled and even uneasy. Could it be that he really was inferior to those with formal education? There should be no fundamental difference between him and those students; they just wasted more time in school.
Later, he confirmed that it was actually he who was superficial... It was because those students had acquired the methods of "learning" and "advancing" at "university."
Giving a man a fish is not as good as teaching him to fish. The nurturing mechanism of major institutions can only teach so much in two to three years, but through systematic, mentor-led, and standardized training, those students laid a solid foundation and mastered methods of self-discipline and progressive learning... Simply put, they remained very "self-disciplined" after graduation.
They disciplined themselves to run and exercise every day, to read and learn every day, to regularly contact mentors and classmates to discuss the latest opportunities and intelligence... They tried to change themselves, to become better.
On the other hand, ordinary professionals were actually "lucky ones" in many ways, many of whom saw themselves as the protagonist in a comic, like players with cheats.
They often had quite impressive Professional Abilities, lived high-risk lives, earned high incomes, and generally indulged in the philosophy of "live for today," many perhaps in pursuit of power, but lacking the "habit" and "stability" of steady, daily improvement.
Of course, what’s more important, the connections made during the university period could provide immense help to a professional’s career.
All in all, Su Wenbing was not an exception. After his Talent Awakening because he thought of himself as a talented lucky person, he stepped into the professional domain in one move, extravagantly wasting his Talent and time. By the time he realized something was amiss, it was already too late... As he focused all his attention on the pleasures of the present, he naturally had no future.
"...I really didn’t expect this to be my end. Maybe I shouldn’t have come out to bet this one time, no, I shouldn’t have tried to save people..."
Su Wenbing lay on the ground, half of his face had completely mutated, grotesque horns spiraled on his head, but most fatally, it seemed the mutation had already invaded his brain.
Killing, conquest, massacre... Multiple thoughts constantly eroded what little sanity he had left.
He knew that if he continued like this, he would eventually become a monster.
He picked up a dagger, trying to end himself, to at least not become a walking corpse like those "Newborns"... but when the blade finally touched his throat, he stopped again.
"...Maybe, I can hold out..."
"Perhaps, there’s still hope for me."
"Ugh, maybe, someone will come to rescue us soon. The rescue team from above should have set off by now."
He convinced himself with various reasons that it wasn’t the last moment yet... but until the very end, the blade did not plunge.
When he finally realized that his body was no longer under his control, that his brain had completely gone Out of Control... he could no longer lift the dagger.
It seemed that something was being born from his own body, but was the Newborn really still him?
It stopped him, it was about to become his Master.
In the end, he could only lie there, uttering a resigned and sorrowful lament.
"Am I nothing but a half-wit even in my last moment..."
And, overwhelmed by despair and helplessness, he didn’t even notice the great battle going on.
He just lay there, tears of blood streaming down, waiting for the last moment to arrive.
Suddenly, the door of chains opened.
An absurdly large figure in black armor appeared before him, enormous to the extent that a single palm could grip the Cage.
And its prowess and arrogant demon flames far surpassed that of the monster he had seen before.
When he thought he was about to get a new master or die in another way...
"Hiss, hiss."
Accompanied by a burst of steaming sounds, the armor disintegrated on its own, and a young boy slid out from within.
He showed no signs of mutations, dressed too much like the boy next door in daily life, and his smile made him even more like a sunny neighborhood boy.
But the words he uttered shattered everyone’s minds in an instant.
"It’s all right now, because... I’m here."
"You’re saved..."
Upon opening the cage, Lu Ping’an gathered a bunch of unlucky people.
Their condition was terrible, many of whom probably wouldn’t have lasted until the arrival of rescue... Wounds were one thing, but "Abyssal Contamination" was far more dangerous.
Originally, even in the deeper areas, there was no reason for it to worsen so quickly, but the strange cage of the Imprisoned Demon accelerated the speed of Erosion and Assimilation.
Most of them hadn’t started "Newborn" transformation yet, but had already exhibited various degrees of Abyssal Demonization, which was troublesome even to handle on Earth.
"...Don’t bother, we’re beyond saving..."
Here, amidst the omnipresent Abyssal environment, they were like wounds that had been torn open, swarmed by all sorts of chaotic "bacteria."
Once the level of Demonization contamination was reached, reversing it was nearly impossible, well, almost...
"...It’s okay, I’m here."
Lu Ping’an calmly tossed a "deferred payment"... After one-third of the first unlucky person had poor effects, he immediately switched to one-sixth.
Instantly, they were all healed.
But that still wasn’t enough, they had been Eroded by the cage of the Abyssal Imprisoned Demon for a long time, and still bore the Abyss’s stigmata, "Contamination" would soon escalate again.
"...Sign a confidentiality agreement once you get in. If you don’t sign, then once you leave, you’re on your own."
Lu Ping’an sent out invites one by one, bringing the wounded before him into the Courtyard.
In such a highly contaminated environment, Lu Ping’an’s independently operating "Mobile Logistics Base" was simply a game-changer.
This was the fundamental reason why Xia Qin believed Lu Ping’an could save people... For most of the time, the fact that Lu Ping’an could always "pack up and run" made those in-the-know envious to the point of tears.
At least Guan Xinxian was really envious of such a super rescue base, which was much more useful than his "Ark."
"...Thank you, you are..." The man before him had already mutated in half of his face, with blood and tears all over, yet he still managed to hold on and struggle.
The fact that he could still speak impressed Lu Ping’an with his will to survive and strength.
"Lu Ping’an."
"Lu Ping’an? As expected..." It seemed that by now, Lu Ping’an could be considered as someone with considerable reputation.
The man struggled to nod his head, seemingly trying to remember it.
As one figure after another vanished from the spot, Lu Ping’an completed this first wave of rescues. He hadn’t seen these people during the competition; they must have been in a different area.
This also allowed him to breathe a sigh of relief, as there likely weren’t many familiar faces among the victims this time.
"Come on, let’s see what exactly happened."
— End of Chapter 834 —