To make sure Dai Qianzhong wouldn’t secretly ambush them, Du Heng confiscated the cards she was carrying.

That S-rank card was handed to Du Heng. If Dai Qianzhong dared to break her promise, Du Heng would use it.

The chance of triggering the card’s negative effect on its first use was very low, and Du Heng was confident he wouldn’t suffer the backlash.

More importantly, he had no intention of using it.

The S-rank card Bug King existed purely as a deterrent, not as a weapon for combat. It was essentially a nuclear weapon meant to keep Dai Qianzhong in check.

Ding Xun leaned over to look at the card. Even someone as fearless as her shuddered, rubbing her arms as she read aloud:

“The target’s body will become a breeding vessel for Gu insects. A Gu insect will grow inside every cell, and countless Gu insects will devour one another until a gigantic Bug King emerges. It possesses S-rank strength and obeys the cardholder. If the cardholder is below Advanced level, the Bug King will devour them.

The more the Bug King devours, the stronger it becomes. It won’t disappear on its own and can only be killed. After using Bug King, kill it while it still fears the cardholder.

There is a 10% chance that the cardholder will become a second breeding vessel and give birth to a Mother Gu. The Mother Gu will combine with the Bug King, produce countless new Gu insects, and create a new S-rank instance.”

“Why would anyone use a card that inflicts a thousand damage on the enemy while also inflicting a thousand and two hundred on yourself?”

Dai Qianzhong lost the will to fight, so she no longer bothered concealing information.

“Most S-rank cards are like this,” she said. “If Du Heng’s Scythe of Death hadn’t fused with him and survived by absorbing his mental power, then its overusage would also cause it to become a new S-rank domain.”

Seeing Ding Xun and Ye Pingjun look at him, Du Heng awkwardly rubbed his nose.

“To be perfectly honest, when I use Soul Reaping, if someone injures me from the shadows and my soul damage reaches 50% or more, the Scythe of Death will turn the tables and take over my body. Then it'll form a spirit-type instance.”

“If that happens,” Ye Pingjun asked seriously, “would the instance boss be you or the Scythe of Death?”

“The Scythe of Death, obviously,” Du Heng said. “I’m just its source of nourishment.”

Ding Xun looked thoughtful. “So your situation is like the original owner whose body was taken over by the External Brain. You’re just a body supplying life force.”

“Yes,” Du Heng said.

Ye Pingjun frowned. “S-rank cards are formed from S-rank instance monsters after they die, right? If the side effects are this severe, why does it feel like the monsters never actually completely died? Like they’re only hiding in card form, waiting for a chance to revive?”

“There are also S-rank cards where the monster died more thoroughly,” Du Heng said. “Those don’t have side effects involving body possession. They only have restrictions on use.”

“Why are instance monsters so hard to kill?” Ding Xun muttered. “Players die, and that’s it, but instance monsters still get chances to come back.”

Dai Qianzhong remained silent. But at Ding Xun’s words, she suddenly let out a cold laugh.

“What are you laughing at?” Ye Pingjun asked.

Dai Qianzhong said nothing.

Ye Pingjun continued, “I’ve always felt that your hostility toward the Observation Group is especially intense. With Ding Xun and me, you treat us like ordinary enemies. But with Gu Tiandong and Mo Bai, it feels like you absolutely have to see them dead.”

Du Heng said, “Once you reach Advanced level, you’ll understand. Isn’t it just about benefits? People can’t throw away their conscience for profit.”

Dai Qianzhong looked at Du Heng with pity.

“You people from Mending Heaven are the ones who’ve been brainwashed into idiots by Xing Shuo. You practically worship the Observation Group and have no idea that they’re actually...”

Her voice cut out. It seemed she said something, but the others couldn't hear it.

“What did you say that got censored?” Du Heng asked.

Dai Qianzhong did not continue the subject. Instead, she looked at the huge hole in the floor.

“There are things I can’t tell you. But I can tell you about the prophecy our Six Paths prophet made before this operation. A prophecy with one hundred percent accuracy.”

“I’d like to know what exactly your prophecy said,” Du Heng replied. “Something that made you assist evil and cooperate with an Ultra-Star Rank monster.”

The pity in Dai Qianzhong’s eyes deepened as she smiled.

“We never cooperated with an Ultra-Star Rank monster. We have been trying to prevent one from being born this entire time.

The one truly cooperating with an Ultra-Star Rank monster is you.”

“Me?” Du Heng burst into laughter. “What kind of joke is that?”

Ye Pingjun reached out and stopped him. His expression was grave because he realized that Dai Qianzhong was not lying.

He was the only one who saw the black-clad Mo Bai inside the Heart-Mirror Room, and the only one who knew that Mo Bai’s body contained the genes of an Ultra-Star Rank monster.

“I always thought Boss Gao from the Organ Trading Market would become an Ultra-Star Rank monster,” Ye Pingjun said. “She looked different from the other monsters.”

Du Heng explained to his teammates, “The reason she still isn’t an Ultra-Star is that Professor Yang sealed their daughter’s heart. But the idiots from Six Paths and Avici undid that seal, forcing Mo Bai to use Environmental Assimilation to seal the heart inside her own body. Because the heart was sealed, she couldn’t use her abilities. It’s all their fault.”

“So that’s what happened!” Ding Xun said. “I thought Mo Bai just ran out of energy. I was annoyed at myself for not saving a bottle of nutrient potion for her.”

Ye Pingjun’s expression darkened further. He looked at Du Heng and Ding Xun, who were still completely unaware, and asked in a low voice, “Mo Bai has the heart of an Ultra-Star Rank monster inside her body now?”

“Yeah,” Du Heng said. “But I trust her!”

He completely trusted Mo Bai. Ye Pingjun swayed, almost losing his footing.

Seeing his reaction, Dai Qianzhong mocked him.

“At last, someone intelligent enough to talk to. I’ll tell you this. Boss Gao never met the conditions to become an Ultra-Star in the first place. She’s too selfish.

The core of an Ultra-Star’s birth is not hatred. It’s love.

In fact, Professor Yang had far greater potential to become an Ultra-Star than Boss Gao did. Professor Yang conducted illegal experiments and used cruel methods. But besides his desire for resurrection, he also genuinely wanted to develop a universal medicine capable of curing every disease. That is a form of great love.

If he had managed to merge with his other half while holding onto that desire, there was a very high chance he would have become an Ultra-Star.

But Boss Gao, who created the diseases afflicting the town, had a weak driving force. That degree of love was nowhere near enough to support the immense power of an Ultra-Star.

We released the heart because we wanted it to merge with the body. If that happened, Boss Gao or her daughter would at most become an exceptionally powerful S-rank monster. If we gathered enough combat power, we would still have a chance to defeat her.

Pang Mian told me that in Love Amusement Park, if the Phantom Butterfly and Qiu Xuerong hadn’t interfered, we would already have succeeded. Monsters really do stick together.”

Dai Qianzhong’s final sentence seemed to come out of nowhere.

Du Heng and Ding Xun did not understand, but Ye Pingjun did.

“And don’t lump us together with Avici. Their prophet is useless. Among the three major organizations, his prophetic ability is the worst. He constantly provides misleading information." Dai Qianzhong added disdainfully.

“Our prophet is the best!” Du Heng said proudly.

Dai Qianzhong looked at Du Heng like he were a terminal patient.

“Yes. Your prophet is the strongest. He can predict the future path with extraordinary precision. But inside Mending Heaven, there is someone who wants the prophecy to come true.”

Du Heng said, “My opinion of Xing Shuo has dropped quite a bit lately, but I still don’t want you talking about him like that. He sent us here specifically to prevent the birth of the Four Pillars of Heaven.”

“Heh.” Dai Qianzhong shook her head with the air of someone sober while everyone else was drunk. She no longer bothered arguing with Du Heng.

She looked like she had no interest in associating with idiots.

Ye Pingjun said, “I still don’t understand the reason, but I currently understand that you feel nothing but rejection and hatred toward the Observation Group. What I still don’t comprehend is why you spent so much effort just to harm Gu Tiandong. You invested even more effort into him than into this entire instance. Why?”

“I might as well tell you,” Dai Qianzhong said. “Gu Tiandong’s ability is far too special. After he reaches Advanced level, he will gain an adaptation ability.

Even against an Ultra-Star Rank ability, as long as he withstands it once and survives, the next time he encounters that same power, he can defend against it completely. Once the Four Pillars of Heaven take shape, Gu Tiandong’s ability will be Six Paths’ only hope of survival.

He is the Perfect Sufferer that can perfectly defend against an Ultra-Star’s attacks.”

“Is Perfect Sufferer the Observation title Gu Tiandong gains after reaching Advanced level?” Ye Pingjun asked.

“It can also be another kind of name,” Dai Qianzhong replied.

It could also be the name of an S-rank card.

Ding Xun said, “Gu Tiandong met Boss Gao before. She attacked him, and he survived. Does that mean the next time he encounters her, he’ll be able to completely defend against her? But Boss Gao wasn’t complete back then. Can Gu Tiandong defend against her after she upgrades too?”

“Yes,” Dai Qianzhong said. “Otherwise, why would he be called the Perfect Sufferer?”

But Ye Pingjun was thinking of something else.

When they first entered the town and were inside Maze of the Mind, Mo Bai used Environmental Rejection on Gu Tiandong to save him.

At the time, Mo Bai said with a grave expression that her Environmental Rejection was no longer working.

Gu Tiandong and Mo Bai were teammates and extremely close, so everyone else dismissed it. Only Mo Bai remained worried.

Now, Ye Pingjun finally understood what Mo Bai was worried about.

“Was the conditions for Gu Tiandong to perfectly defend against an Ultra-Star Rank monster already fulfilled?” Ye Pingjun asked.

“The prophet said the condition was fulfilled by the time we encountered Gu Tiandong inside the instance,” Dai Qianzhong said. “I’m not entirely sure how it happened.”

Ye Pingjun’s heart pounded with alarm. The prophecies of Advanced players were terrifying that everything seemed to be developing along a predetermined path.

“What else did you do to prevent the birth of an Ultra-Star?” Ye Pingjun asked.

“Mo Bai jumped down just now, didn’t she?” Dai Qianzhong said. “We prepared two layers of safeguards in this area.

The first was an ambush by Pang Mian and me, preventing the Ultra-Star Rank monster from obtaining the final puzzle piece. The second was that I used a card called Time Acceleration along the route leading underground.

No matter how she reaches the underground area, once she passes through that stretch, her body’s perception of time will accelerate by five to ten times. The acceleration will only disappear once she reaches the bottom.”

“It’ll only take a few minutes to reach the underground area,” Ding Xun said, confused. “Even multiplied by ten, that’s only a few dozen minutes. That’s nowhere near enough to make someone age or starve. What’s the point of the card?”

Du Heng and Ye Pingjun spoke at the same time, “The Black Boots!”

“You want the Black Boots to devour Mo Bai’s body, become an S-rank monster, and form an S-rank instance?” Ye Pingjun demanded.

“Exactly,” Dai Qianzhong said. “That’s our final safeguard. If even that fails, then the prophecy cannot be reversed. At that point, all we can do is wait to die.”

“Your prophet even knew we would bring the Black Boots with us?” Du Heng asked.

“Our prophet is powerful,” Dai Qianzhong replied. Then she looked at Du Heng with eyes full of mockery. “But even she can’t compare to your prophet. Just what species of monster is your prophet?”

“Why do you call everyone a monster?” Ding Xun asked, relying on pure instinct. “Why do I get the feeling that you think Mo Bai, Gu Tiandong, Mending Heaven’s prophet, and Qiu Xuerong, whom I’ve never even met, are all monsters just like the Phantom Butterfly?”

“Aren’t they?” Dai Qianzhong replied.

Ding Xun and Du Heng were still confused. But Ye Pingjun finally understood Dai Qianzhong’s meaning completely.

He looked down into the huge hole beneath them.

“Ding Xun, take me down. I need to find Mo Bai.”

“What, so you can get in her way?” Ding Xun said. “You’re out of abilities. I also burned through all my energy fighting Pang Mian and Dai Qianzhong back-to-back. Du Heng looks completely drained too. If we go down there, we’ll only hold Mo Bai back.”

“That’s exactly what we must do!” Ye Pingjun said, his voice trembling. “We need to protect Mo Bai’s heart. If something really happens to Gu Tiandong, we have to comfort her. We can’t let Mo Bai lose hope in this world!”

“How could Mo Bai ever lose hope in the world?” Ding Xun asked. “She’s more steadfast than anyone.”

“If Gu Tiandong dies right now, she will!” Ye Pingjun said solemnly.

“You people really are close to your monsters,” Dai Qianzhong said.

“Shut up!”

Ye Pingjun, normally so mild-tempered, snapped in fury.

“If Mo Bai really gets pushed to the point of no return, it will be because people like you who forced her there! You know the prophecies and how the future will unfold, but you never once thought about helping Mo Bai.

You never thought about giving her even a little warmth. All you ever thought about was how to drive her to her death and how to drive her insane!”

Ye Pingjun said no more. He spotted a foothold and jumped down.

Only then did Ding Xun belatedly say, “Wait... the Ultra-Star Rank monster they said was going to be born... Was that Mo Bai? How could a human possibly turn into a monster?”

Du Heng finally realized it too. “If Mo Bai used Environmental Assimilation to contain that heart...”

“My god!”

Ding Xun rushed over and punched Dai Qianzhong in the head.

“What are you doing?” Dai Qianzhong shouted angrily as stars exploded across her vision. “If you attack me now, are you trying to start a war?”

She simply didn’t want to fight. That didn’t mean she would allow herself to be slaughtered.

“I’m trying to knock you unconscious,” Ding Xun said. “Your defense is annoyingly good. A normal person would’ve passed out after one punch.”

She raised her fist again. “Don’t resist. It’ll only hurt once.”

One punch. Dai Qianzhong didn’t faint.

Ding Xun: “Okay, twice.”

Two punches. Dai Qianzhong still didn’t faint.

Ding Xun: “Three times...”

“Enough!” Dai Qianzhong roared. “I promised not to use my abilities, and you still have the Bug King card holding me in check! Stop hitting me!”

“Fine,” Ding Xun said. “Then behave yourself and pretend you’re unconscious. When you see Mo Bai, you’re not allowed to attack her.”

With that, Ding Xun hoisted Dai Qianzhong, who was pretending to be unconscious, over her shoulder and jumped down together with Du Heng.

The two of them were much more agile, so they quickly caught up with Ye Pingjun.

Once Ye Pingjun rejoined the group, Ding Xun helped him increase his speed. The three of them jumped downward as fast as they could.

The underground space was impossibly deep, like a bottomless abyss.

Regret weighed heavily on all three of them. They let Mo Bai walk into that abyss alone.

Ye Pingjun’s expression was heavy.

“I hope we’re not too late.”