Invasion - Chapter 133
Chapter 133
Ni Ji pulled the trigger, and a bullet shot out with a bang.
It missed. The monster by the window quickly jumped away, climbing up a pillar, looking at him.
It was a strange-looking Deviant, its body not very large, a fusion of various biological traits, colorful fish scales, long tentacles, insect compound eyes, and human-like lips and a jaw.
A grotesque body, wearing a human female's vintage dress, a black veil on its head, and strange insect legs beneath its skirt.
Both deformed and ugly, and yet also with a strange, fused beauty.
Since they entered the hall, it had been standing on the stairs, silently watching them.
A powerful mental force stabbed at Ni Ji's mind. He endured the sharp pain, firing at the Deviant by the window.
The bullet missed the monster, hitting the circular rose window on the stairs instead, shattering it.
The dreamlike, multicolored light in the hall dissipated, revealing the sky outside.
"Oh? You blocked my mental invasion, Sentinel?" the monster, clinging to the castle dome, said.
Its huge compound eyes stared at Ni Ji for a while.
"I see, you and your Guide have bonded, you’re loyal to her, subconsciously resisting all other consciousnesses from entering your mental sea," it said, "How interesting. Humans always have so many strange emotions and rules, such as the so-called love, loyalty, jealousy. These emotions, sometimes incredibly fragile, sometimes inexplicably powerful.”
"But how long can you hold on? Look behind you, your Guide has already fallen, and your companions are all down."
Ni Ji didn’t need to look back; he knew what was happening behind him.
When they first entered, both he and Lin Yuan should have seen the terrifying illusion.
First, they had seen their dead companions, Lin Yuan sobbing in his arms, and then, somehow, they had been back in that underground bunker.
Lin Yuan’s arms had been around his neck, and she had started kissing him.
As if there was no longer any need for anything else, they could take it slow, spend an eternity lost in pleasure.
The same strong scent of pheromones, Lin Yuan’s fingers, Lin Yuan’s skin, the feeling of Lin Yuan trying to bite his ear, everything exactly the same, not a single difference.
But he had sensed something was wrong, and Ni Ji, instinctively, had fired his gun.
That wasn’t Lin Yuan, no matter how perfect the imitation.
The feeling of Lin Yuan invading his mindscape, had remained in his consciousness, in his ocean, permeating every grain of sand, every drop of water.
Although it had only happened once, that feeling had solidified in his seabed, etched into his nerves.
No one could fake it, no matter how powerful their mental body.
Ni Ji had awakened amidst the gunfire, seeing the true state of the room.
There was a set of soft sofas in the luxuriously decorated hall.
Nicole was lying on one of the sofas, her eyes closed, her condition unclear. He could barely sense her faint breathing.
Du Yuanyuan had collapsed by a pillar near her feet, and Yun Luo and Rachel lay on the ground further ahead.
Lin Yuan, one hand on the armrest of the sofa, stood there, her eyes closed, motionless.
Right next to him.
The enemy’s mental attack was like invisible sound waves, unseen, untouchable, wave after wave, coming at them.
It was a kind of powerful mental attack he had never encountered before, incredibly disorienting, incredibly painful.
Ni Ji's gaze fell on Lin Yuan's hand on the leather sofa.
His entire body tensed, entering a state of combat readiness.
But a certain, hidden corner of his mind shamelessly thought of the feeling of that hand touching him.
Cold and ruthless at times, burning hot at others.
When the mental attacks from the outside became unbearably painful, Ni Ji subconsciously focused all his attention on that hand.
The hand resting on the sofa, small and beautiful, its fingers fair,
It had once held him, making every part of his being burn under her touch.
Making him feel both pain and extreme pleasure. He couldn’t forget the feeling of being controlled and manipulated.
Although it was embarrassing to say, whenever the pain and confusion from the enemy's mental invasion came,
The Sentinel would, relying on the memories of Lin Yuan, using those intense sensations, resist the mental invasion.
Like an anchor thrown into the sea, firmly embedded in the seabed, no matter how violent the storm, how high the waves, it could tightly hold the swaying ship, preventing it from capsizing.
Even though the enemy was strong, he had already been invaded by another guide, had been intimately bonded.
So he could tenaciously resist, that ocean no longer willing to tolerate any other forceful mental invasions.
When all the sentinels had fallen, when Lin Yuan was trapped in a mental battle, unable to move,
Ni Ji, his face cold, guarding her, steadily raised his gun, aiming at the enemy on the ceiling.
The orca emerged from the deep sea, carrying Yun Luo in its mouth, Rachel on its back, bringing them to the sofa.
That Deviant clung to the top of a pillar, the upper half of its body leaning out, its long skirt hanging down, its posture elegant, it snorted softly.
Its compound eyes no longer looking at Ni Ji and his mental body, but intently staring at the motionless Lin Yuan.
As if a sentinel or two were insignificant beings to It. It didn’t even bother wasting its mental strength on attacking him, only interested in the Guide, trapped in its mindscape, motionless, focusing all of its attention on Lin Yuan.
The ground of the castle began to crack. Something was emerging from below.
Like the one they had encountered in the battle under the Ferris wheel. A Deviant without a heartbeat, without breath, without emotions, without any physiological reactions, breaking through the earth.
It shook the dirt off its body and slowly crawled out from the shadows of the corner.
Then another.
One after another, ferocious Deviants emerged, from the ceiling, from the ground, from the shadows behind the pillar, slowly closing in.
Ni Ji drew his bone-white dagger, staining it with his own blood, turning it into a red blade.
He stepped forward, alone, a single blade, facing the enemies emerging from the ground.
No one could help him, no way to retreat.
Behind him were his fallen comrades, and the person he swore to protect.
A Deviant suddenly jumped down from the shadows on the ceiling, pouncing on the motionless Lin Yuan from behind, its long, steely claws glinting coldly.
The orca guarding behind her let out an angry cry, and with a flick of its tail, swatted the ferocious Deviant away.
The twisted monster was slammed into the stone pillar and fell to the ground with a scream. The sturdy pillar cracked and bent.
But those sharp claws like blades also left several cuts on the orca's black back.
The enemies were fierce, their combat abilities powerful.
This time, the orca didn't whimper. Its small eyes glowed fiercely, its sharp teeth bared, as if indifferent to the blood dripping from the wounds.
It knew that this time, there was no one to pamper it.
Lin Yuan and the tentacles were all fighting in the mental world, there was no one who would pat its head.
So, it turned into that ferocious beast of the deep sea, fearless.
More enemies came charging forward. Ni Ji tightly guarded the small area around the sofa, facing enemies attacking from all directions.
Both he and the orca were quickly covered in wounds.
The light in the castle was dim, like a dark nightmare.
From the depths of the earth, the powerful Deviants, sleeping below, emerged one after another.
This was the Queen's castle in the City of Mantis, the place where the contaminated zone’s Pillar was located. How could it possibly be a quiet, beautiful, and deserted paradise?
Below, countless powerful Deviants guarded the castle.
The blood-red blade light constantly flickered in the darkness, illuminating Ni Ji's bloodied face.
The orca's calls echoed, its strong black figure moving through the air, drops of blood dripping from its body, dissipating into the void.
The scene gradually became bloody, the smashed insect abdomens leaving behind sticky fluids, the severed insect legs twitching on the ground, their nerves still reacting.
There were simply too many enemies, surrounding them one after another, the encirclement shrinking.
And Ni Ji didn’t even have room to move, even a single step back, and the comrades behind him, unguarded, would be exposed.
He could only, with his blade, his flesh and blood, his mental body, block all malice and attacks coming from the darkness.
Ni Ji took a step back, his heel hitting the sofa. He glanced at Lin Yuan behind him.
Mentally calculating how much longer he could hold out.
One of his legs broken, he could no longer jump any great distance. The blood flowing from his arms had fed his blade, and he was showing signs of blood loss.
Lin Yuan behind him was still motionless, her eyes closed.
In such an environment, she hadn’t spoken, hadn’t opened her eyes, not a single tentacle had appeared.
It meant that the battle she was in, in the mental realm, was incredibly dangerous, making it impossible for her to be distracted.
He didn't even know how her battle was going.
He couldn’t disturb her, couldn’t distract her, he couldn’t retreat any further.
Ni Ji spat out the blood in his mouth, looked away, and tightened his grip on his blade.
A cool tentacle, at some point, emerged, hooking his finger, and gently, reassuringly touching the back of his hand.
Ni Ji's eyes widened.
At that moment, that subtle touch on the back of his hand, was almost like a hug, soothing his anxious heart.
Lin Yuan had never been in such a passive situation during a battle.
In Ni Ji's impression, Lin Yuan’s mental power had been strong and reliable, almost omnipotent, she had never shown any weakness on the battlefield.
This was the first time he had seen her completely unable to care about her own safety, completely trapped in a mental battle.
It was, of course, impossible for him not to worry.
He could only protect her body, hoping she would give him some sign that she was still alright.
That small tentacle, a single gentle touch, calmed Ni Ji’s anxious heart.
There wasn’t any mental comfort, or any channeling, Lin Yuan couldn't spare any energy for anything else.
Just a light touch against his skin.
The debilitating effects from the blood loss and injuries seemed to fade at that moment, and the Sentinel felt like he could continue fighting endlessly.
Although this was only a mental illusion, he couldn't possibly keep fighting and losing blood, and still protect her like this.
But, at least, at this moment, he stood firm again, tightening his grip on his blade.
On this deadly and bloody battlefield, Ni Ji couldn’t help but gently squeeze Lin Yuan’s tentacle.
The dim castle, the broken window, enemies approaching from the shadows.
The sentinel, standing amidst the enemies, quietly pinching the small tentacle, drawing strength from it.
As if it was his energy stone, his treatment solution, a limitless source of life, healing his wounds, his pain.
The tentacle, held in his palm, rubbed against his skin, and only after he let go, turning back to the battle, did it leave contentedly.
It wriggled, crawling onto the sofa, splitting into several thin strands, sliding into the foreheads of Sentinel Du Yuanyuan, the unconscious Nicole, and the other unconscious sentinels on the sofa.
…
Du Yuanyuan was doing shooting practice in the sentinel training room.
This was her daily routine, whenever she wasn't on a mission, she was almost always the first sentinel to arrive at the training ground.
She lived by a motto: every drop of sweat shed on the training ground is a drop of blood saved on the battlefield.
Only, she didn’t know why, but today, during routine training, she felt uneasy, making many mistakes.
As if she had forgotten something very important.
"Yuanyuan, Yuanyuan," someone called her name amidst the gunfire. Du Yuanyuan took off her earmuffs and looked over. It was a sentinel brother she had been close with since their academy days, she clearly remembered his name, she remembered that his mental body was a small dog.
But at this moment, she couldn't quite see his face clearly.
"Yuanyuan, I have something to say to you," the sentinel looked at her with puppy-like eyes.
Du Yuanyuan, forgetting the unease in her heart, took off her goggles, waiting for him to continue.
But a sense of sadness arose in her heart, it was as if she knew that something heartbreaking was about to happen.
The sentinel opposite her looked away, hesitated, and the tail of his mental body, unable to be controlled, appeared behind him, wagging.
Finally, his face red, he confessed.
Describing the desire he had been hiding in his heart for a long time, saying he had secretly been in love with her for many years.
"But we’re both sentinels," Du Yuanyuan gestured at her height, she was even a little taller than him, they were both tall and strong warriors. "You know, although I like men, I don’t like being the submissive one."
"I'm only asking for one night, just one night," he said, "I can cater to your preferences."
His ears were burning red as he said this, his voice very soft, but his tone firm, it seemed like he had rehearsed these words countless times.
They had known each other for many years and were incredibly close. They knew each other’s interests, hobbies, their verbal tics, even their ways of fighting and killing.
But not this kind of thing.
The two spent a very happy and passionate night together.
Unexpectedly, just like on the battlefield, the two were very compatible, seamlessly coordinated.
So exciting, everything so unforgettable.
Du Yuanyuan even thought, since he also liked her, they could make things official.
She wasn’t from a noble family, and she had never thought of being matched to a Guide by the state.
So, it was decided.
When he came back from the contaminated zone this time, she would find a good time, a romantic setting, tell him that she was also interested, ask if he was willing to be with her.
After that night, the sentinel went to a contaminated zone, not a very dangerous one, a simple escort mission.
But he never came back.
That sentinel with the Doberman Pinscher mental body, who had puppy-like eyes, who was willing to cater to her in bed, hadn't returned from the contaminated zone.
Only then did Du Yuanyuan come back to her senses, thinking of his desperate confession before going on the mission, how he had abandoned all his dignity in bed, doing everything to please her,
A desperate kind of sadness hidden within that madness.
How had she not noticed it at all?
When she heard the news, Du Yuanyuan reacted just like all her other comrades, a moment of silent mourning, then she had put it aside.
A sentinel dying in a contaminated zone was all too common, it happened almost every month.
After experiencing too many sad things, one would become numb.
Like everyone else, after hearing the news, Du Yuanyuan was only silent for a moment, without shedding a single tear.
But she took her equipment and secretly went to that contaminated zone. She searched for a long time, and found the dead sentinel's remains.
The Giant Panda's sharp claws dug through the ruins, and unearthed the sentinel’s body.
It was incomplete, he had suffered greatly before his death, only his head still whole.
The sentinel's eyes were closed, his hair messy, his face pale, he had been dead for a long time.
No trace of the man who had called her name that night with red eyes could be seen.
Du Yuanyuan looked at him for a while, then drew her saber and severed his head.
【Yuanyuan.】
A strange voice called her name, and a cold feeling invaded the space between her brows.
Du Yuanyuan was in a daze. Her mind seemed a little clearer, only a furious rage gripped her heart, preventing her from breaking free, from awakening.
She left that contaminated zone with her lover’s head.
She found a brain-in-a-jar system on the black market, personally removed her lover’s brain, placed it into the device, and saw his last moments.
Du Yuanyuan saw a diary, a pen quickly writing in it.
There were no headings or signatures in the diary, only fragmented sentences, but Du Yuanyuan inexplicably felt that it was written for her.
"I always feel there's something very wrong about this mission, it doesn't feel right, it makes me worried that I might not be able to make it out of this contaminated zone.”
“My most beloved, knowing you as I do, after I die, you might dig into this matter.”
“So let me write down what I know, and save you the trouble, of course, if I don’t die, I’ll probably destroy this diary.”
“Very strange, before leaving, all of us on the team had thought that this was just an ordinary mission, escorting a researcher to the contaminated zone for research, the team configuration was very simple, just a few sentinels, everyone was very relaxed, thinking it would be a safe and easy mission.”
“It wasn't until just before we left that I accidentally learned that we weren’t escorting a researcher, but a Guide.”
“Not only was he a Guide, he was just a small child.”
“Why would we bring a Guide, a child with no combat experience, into a contaminated zone?”
“Only after entering did the Captain tell me that we weren't going to the regular outer areas, but to the contaminated zone’s core, to the location of the Pillar. We reached the core area and were even ordered to leave the child there alone, this was too cruel, it was appalling. I had to object.”
“Guides are the empire's treasures, even us sentinels, who desperately need Guides for channeling, can rarely even see a Guide.”
“Why is such a ridiculous thing happening? My love, I feel like I’m a villain, an accomplice, offering up an innocent lamb to demons.”
"But the Captain told us not to ask, not to mention a single word, he only wanted us to follow orders, I couldn’t listen to him this time, I had to find out why.”
“My love, I have a very bad feeling, but if I can make it out alive, I still want to thoroughly investigate this matter…”
The diary ended there.
Followed by some fragmented images.
A battlefield, a terrifying Deviant, long tentacles extending from the Pillar, a child’s crying face, the commander’s saber slashing towards his own people.
And blood, everywhere.
…
The next moment, Du Yuanyuan appeared in the training room, raising her gun to fire.
The memory had been erased. She was back to that day.
A familiar and close comrade came to her side, wagging his tail, confessing his feelings.
【Yuanyuan.】
That voice, repeatedly calling her name, again abruptly rang in her mind.
【Wake up, Panda.】
【Don't you want to uncover the truth and avenge him anymore?】
【You are just repeatedly experiencing this night, wavering between pleasure and pain.】
【Hey! If you don't wake up, Big Fish won’t make it, Nicole, Big Cat, Unicorn, they're all going to die!】
Something like a whip lashed her mind. Someone was calling her.
Du Yuanyuan was dazed for a moment. She looked up and heard the person before her say,
"I'm only asking for one night, even just one night is enough."
Du Yuanyuan looked at the person for a while, took off her goggles, reached out, and rubbed the dog ears that popped out from his head.
In front of everyone in the training room, she leaned closer and kissed him.
"Sorry, I should have made it clear to you, what I want to give you, isn’t just one night,” she said, letting go of the stunned man, her forehead against his, apologizing.
"I'm leaving. I can't keep staying in this memory with you."
"Those things you couldn't figure out, I'll look into them, investigate, and tell the whole world."
…
Ni Ji stepped on a Deviant's head, and drew his blood-red saber, the blade was incredibly sticky, his hand slipping.
His vision was covered by the crimson, already blurry.
He didn’t even have time to catch his breath, to wipe the blood from his face. A new Deviant was already crawling out from the ground, the ferocious monster opened its mouth wide, one half of its body not fully emerged yet, the other already hanging down from the ceiling with its thread, Ni Ji raised his saber again, his arm trembling, he tore a piece of cloth and wrapped it around the hilt, tightly binding the blade and his hand together.
"You rest for a bit, let me handle this," a female Sentinel’s voice came from behind.
A giant Giant Panda descended from the sky, its butt crushing the two Deviants flat.
It was Du Yuanyuan, she had snapped out of her confused mental state.
The Giant Panda's mental body powerfully joined the battle, rolling back and forth across the battlefield, tearing countless Deviants apart with its claws.
Ni Ji, breathing a sigh of relief, swayed, using his blade tip to support himself, preventing himself from collapsing. A strong arm reached out from behind, holding him.
Rachel, the Golden Lion, held Ni Ji's arm, his braid undone, his long golden hair loose, his face stained with blood, a furious expression.
"You go back and rest. Let us handle this," he said.
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