Over the next three days, everything proceeded in an orderly manner according to Mo Bai's plan.

After Liu Congyi implanted a Psychological Shadow at the Phantom Butterfly, it became so obedient that it was almost heartbreaking.

It fully cooperated with Mo Bai's plan, constantly taking risks to follow Sheng Yan around as he planted bombs.

Not only that, to ensure it wouldn't betray Mo Bai and the others, the Phantom Butterfly even volunteered to eat and sleep alongside Sheng Yan, insisting on staying within his sight 24 hours a day.

Ironically, it was Sheng Yan who couldn't stand being around the Phantom Butterfly all the time. He needed rest, too, and how could he possibly sleep soundly with it lying beside him at night?

Du Heng had secretly placed the Tracker on Phantom Butterfly, allowing them to monitor its movements at all times. Because of that, they weren't worried about it betraying them and didn't actually keep it under round-the-clock surveillance.

Whenever it had free time, Phantom Butterfly would stay by Mo Bai's side, chatting with her and repeatedly promising to obey her, while begging not to be killed after this instance ended.

Even so, Mo Bai's unease didn't subside. As time drew closer, she grew increasingly tense.

To confirm Phantom Butterfly's loyalty, she even used up a B-rank card, Mind Reading (讀心 - Dúxīn).

This card belonged to Liu Congyi.

After being tricked into the bug pit in the previous instance, Liu Congyi had become terrified of being set up again. Before entering this instance, she had specifically paid a hefty fee to purchase the expensive Mind Reading card online, just in case someone tried to frame her.

The Mind Reading card could read the thoughts of a player, NPC, or instance monster within the past three days. On the night before the operation, Mo Bai used it on the Phantom Butterfly and discovered that although it still wanted to kill her, it truly had never betrayed them.

Everything was under control, but Mo Bai couldn't understand where her anxiety was coming from.

Could it be related to that player who had never shown up?

"Du Heng, you still haven't found that player?" Mo Bai asked on the eve of the second phase of the experiment.

"No," Du Heng shook his head. "I followed your suggestion and tested Professor Yang's assistant. I tried all kinds of methods, but he really doesn't seem like a player. I also asked around; people said he's been by Professor Yang's side for a long time, even earlier than when the first batch of investigators entered the instance. He should really be an NPC."

Mo Bai said, "In the Infinite World, it's easy to change your appearance and take over someone else's identity. But since he won't acknowledge you, let's assume he isn't a player. Tomorrow night, everyone needs to act carefully."

Since 7 a.m. on the second day of the instance, Sheng Yan had been placing twenty bombs every twelve hours. So far, he had made eighty bombs in total: fifty to destroy the research institute, and the remaining thirty placed at battle sites Mo Bai had selected in advance to deal with the five A-rank monsters.

Sheng Yan would plant twenty more at seven a.m. and seven p.m. the next day. Their firepower would definitely be sufficient.

Through constant casual conversation over the past few days, Liu Congyi had accumulated a great deal of energy. She had prepared psychological shadows such as fear of fire, fear of being alone, fear of death, and fear of explosions. According to their plan, fear of explosions alone would be enough to incapacitate an A-rank monster.

Du Heng hadn't been idle either. Taking advantage of his researcher identity, he had made several test tubes that could be implanted under the skin.

To ensure they entered the battle in peak condition, Mo Bai and the others decided not to inject the second-phase extract.

Du Heng implanted the test tubes into their necks, where they would press against the carotid artery. An ordinary person wouldn't be able to withstand it, but with their physiques, enduring it for a short time wasn't a problem.

The mechanical arm's extract would be injected into those test tubes instead of entering their bloodstream.

As for the blood test, Du Heng had also prepared for that.

The mechanical arm drew venous blood from the arm.

Du Heng calculated how much extract was needed to be mixed into 10 ml of blood and prepared a 10 ml test tube. The next morning, he would draw 10 ml of blood from each of the three and mix in the proper amount of extract in advance, using what Phantom Butterfly had stored.

During the first-phase injection, Phantom Butterfly had hidden some of the extract from the mechanical arm in a test tube. Only a single drop had been used during the blood draw, so it still had more than enough left.

Early the next morning, Sheng Yan worked with the Phantom Butterfly to plant twenty bombs before returning to rest.

At 9:30 a.m., the three gathered in Mo Bai's room. Du Heng first drew their blood, added the extract, and then placed the empty test tubes and the blood-filled ones into their necks and elbows, respectively.

"It feels like I've grown a big lump. So uncomfortable," Liu Congyi said.

"The test tubes are made of silicone. They're soft," Du Heng replied. "You can move your arms a bit, but don't overdo it. If you squeeze too hard, the silicone tube could burst."

"No problem," Sheng Yan said.

Mo Bai touched her neck, still frowning slightly. "We'll succeed, right?"

Before the others could respond, Xiao Qi spoke up in her mind. "Of course we will! Player, what's wrong with you this time? The you from before would never hesitate. Why aren't you as firm as before?"

"Because my heart isn't firm enough," Mo Bai said as she pressed her hand to her chest.

Only she knew that deep in her heart, there was another plan with a higher success rate, but far more cruel.

They could gather five portions of serum in advance and, without Professor Yang's knowledge, secretly feed five players to the Ultra-Star Rank monster.

That way, they wouldn't need to risk fighting the S-rank monsters split from it. As long as they acted while the Ultra-Star Rank monster was asleep, blow up the institute, eliminate the five A-rank monsters, and subdue Professor Yang, they could win easily.

Fighting S-rank monsters was difficult. But with their current strength, dealing with five A-rank monsters and Professor Yang would be simple.

As for the five candidates for the serum, Mo Bai had already chosen them.

Mao Juncai and Zhuang Xiangyang, who had already become useless, the two Schizophrenics, and the missing player.

Mo Bai knew this plan was cruel, no different from those Asura Path players who hunted other players to survive.

That was why she had never spoken of it.

But she also knew she hadn't abandoned it.

That was the real reason why she kept asking Du Heng to find the last player.

Taking advantage of Xiao Qi's attempt to comfort her, Mo Bai confessed this plan in her mind.

Xiao Qi, who clearly had no moral compass, spoke like a little devil in her heart. "Xiao Qi thinks that's a great idea! Those four players are doomed anyway, and the last one isn't even one of us. Your teammates are the real treasures; why care about outsiders? This instance is so hard. There's no other way."

"Because bottom lines are broken through repeated compromises, no other ways, and no choices," Mo Bai said. "There's a beast inside human nature. The strong devour the weak; it's instinct. Snatching someone else's steamed bun just to survive is instinct too. Once the beast awakens, it's hard to turn back... Some lines just can't be crossed even once."

"But living like this is exhausting," Xiao Qi said. "And your teammates' lives matter too. Xiao Qi has watched you all this time. You care about them so much. You can take on dangerous tasks yourself, but you can't bear to see these people who trust and follow you die. Trading a few unrelated lives for your teammates' safety isn't wrong."

"I know," Mo Bai smiled faintly. "So sometimes, whether that line gets crossed depends on fate. That last player hasn't appeared, right? I hope that player never shows up, not even at the final moment. I hope that I won't be forced to break my fragile moral bottom line."

While chatting with Xiao Qi, Mo Bai received the notice that the second phase of the experiment was about to begin.

She rolled her wheelchair into the large laboratory hall on Basement Level Two and entered her assigned room with practiced ease.

Everyone was much more familiar this time, so it went faster than the first.

Mechanical arms extended from over two hundred rooms almost simultaneously. Mo Bai tilted her neck slightly. When the needle pierced her skin, she shifted just a bit to ensure it accurately punctured the silicone test tube.

The extract flowed into the tube without harming her.

Mo Bai clutched her neck and pretended to collapse, sneaking a glance at Sheng Yan and Liu Congyi. Their expressions of pain looked equally fake. She knew they had successfully avoided danger as well.

Watching from outside the glass rooms, Du Heng finally relaxed.

At that moment, someone stood behind him and asked, "How are this batch of test subjects adapting?"

Du Heng turned around. It was Professor Yang's assistant.

Over the past few days, Du Heng had tested the assistant's identity several times. They chatted often, so it wasn't unusual for the assistant to casually speak to him.

"They're in good physical condition. Pretty stable. They should be able to last until the third phase," Du Heng replied perfunctorily.

"Is that so? I wouldn't be so sure," the assistant said with a smile. "Did you know? Professor Yang re-examined the test subjects' blood last night. He confirmed that seven of them are in excellent condition and can withstand more serum. He's decided to inject the second and third phases together into them all at once."

Du Heng's heart jolted.

"Strangely enough," the assistant continued, "five of those seven are under your supervision. You're quite lucky; your subjects are in excellent shape."

A powerful sense of crisis surged in Du Heng's chest. Mo Bai and the other two hadn't injected the extract, so their bodies wouldn't be altered by an overdose. But the other four players wasn't implanted with silicone tubes in advance.

Out of the corner of his eye, he looked at Mao Juncai and Zhuang Xiangyang, whose bodies were undergoing violent changes. Their skin repeatedly split open and healed, with blood spilling all over the floor.

Mo Bai noticed the abnormalities as well.

She saw that from the backs of Subjects 025 and 251, arms and legs were rapidly growing, as if another person inside them was trying to break free.

Subjects 025 and 251 still retained a trace of consciousness. They knew their mutations were caused by the serum and remembered the serum hidden inside their bodies. Gritting their teeth, they activated the serum concealed in their left molars. As it flowed into their bodies, the mutations gradually stopped.

The assistant, of course, saw this too. He smiled with satisfaction. "So the serum was hidden in the left molars."

Then he shouted, "Spider Woman (蛛女 - Zhūnǚ)!"

The ceiling opened, and a long-haired monster with three pairs of arms, long legs, and an enormously swollen abdomen crawled out.

Du Heng recognized her. Spider Woman, one of the five A-rank monsters.

Her hair dropped down and transformed into white spider silk, falling onto Zhuang Xiangyang and Mao Juncai.

The silk tightly bound their jaws. With a sharp twist, the serum hidden in their teeth was forced into their bodies, and the mutations on their bodies came to a halt as well.

"Four," the assistant said with a smile. "One left."

Spider Woman not only attacked Zhuang Xiangyang and Mao Juncai, but her webbing also shot toward Mo Bai and the other two. But they weren't fools, so they dodged it.

Not only that, Mo Bai swiftly pulled on her gloves and slashed through the air, cutting space itself and severing the spider silk in one stroke.

"Oh dear, these three don't seem willing to use the serum," the assistant said lightly. "That won't do. We're still short one person."

Though he didn't know exactly what had gone wrong, Du Heng understood in that instant that the situation had changed.

Mo Bai's unease had come true.

Professor Yang had moved up the schedule. Before the night of the full moon, he intended to feed the serum to the Ultra-Star Rank monster ahead of schedule.

The ceiling split open again, and several grotesque monsters leapt down. Including Spider Woman, there were five in total, exactly the five A-rank monsters.

"Mo Bai!" Du Heng roared, signaling her to act immediately.

He needed her to use Rule Optimization to restore his and Sheng Yan's abilities.

There were only five A-rank monsters. Once his advanced-level player strength returned, he could wipe them out with ease.

Mo Bai didn't need Du Heng's reminder. The moment Spider Woman appeared, she had already activated Rule Optimization. Sheng Yan grabbed a handful of Spider Woman's hair, and flames raced along the strands, spreading across her body. She was now rolling frantically on the ceiling, trying to extinguish the fire.

Seeing this, Du Heng plunged his hand into the void and began pulling out the Scythe of Death.

He could feel it. His power had returned to the Advanced level. No matter how many A-rank monsters came, he could end them in a single strike.

But just as the Scythe of Death was halfway drawn from the void, the assistant spoke into his watch: "Professor, you may activate the card-ban privilege now. The restricted card is the S-rank card, Scythe of Death."

In a forced instance, the instance boss had the authority to seal one card.

Du Heng's Soul Reaping ability was bound to the S-rank card Scythe of Death. Once the card was sealed, his ability became useless.

The void portal snapped shut. Du Heng grasped at empty air twice, but nothing emerged.

The assistant smiled at his watch. "Professor Yang, the only advanced-level player among them has his power sealed. The remaining three Intermediate-level players likely can't even handle five A-rank guards. You may proceed."

As soon as he finished speaking, the floor beneath the two Schizophrenics, Mao Juncai and Zhuang Xiangyang, split open. Four gray-black tentacles shot up from the fourth basement level to the second, wrapping around the four of them and dragging them down to B4.

The assistant looked up and instructed the five monsters hanging from the ceiling: "Crush the silicone tubes in their necks. Force them to use the serum."

Spider Woman, still rolling in flames, and another monster dressed in a white lab coat did not move. The remaining three dropped in front of Mo Bai and her teammates.

Standing before Sheng Yan was Du Ying, who was the strongest of the five.

In front of Liu Congyi stood the A-rank monster Giant Rock (巨岩 - Jùyán), whose body had completely transformed into silicon-based life. Its entire form was made of solid stone, with only its heart still carbon-based. Having lost its humanity, it was unaffected by Psychological Shadow.

Facing Mo Bai was the A-rank monster Ant Queen (蟻後 - Yǐhòu), capable of spawning countless man-eating ants in an instant. The moment she landed, red ants poured off her body, swarming over the glass walls and surrounding Mo Bai completely.

Du Heng tried to rush in to help. Even though his High-rank ability had been sealed, his Intermediate-level skill, Fatal Strike, was still formidable and more than enough to handle these monsters.

"Don't even think about interfering." Seeing Du Heng about to help, the assistant slowly extended his hand, and a golden rope appeared, binding Du Heng tightly.

Du Heng recognized it at once.

The S-rank item Immortal-Binding Rope (捆仙繩 - Kǔn Xiān Shéng). It had a 100% hit rate. Whoever it targeted, player or instance monster, would be bound.

It could seal the abilities of High-rank players and S-rank monsters alike, reducing them to ordinary people.

But it also had a protective effect: while bound, the target could not be attacked by others.

Du Heng was wrapped like a golden dumpling, writhing on the ground. The assistant stepped on him and said condescendingly, "Stop struggling, Du Heng. You're destined to fail."

At that moment, Du Heng realized who he was dealing with.

This man knew his name and abilities, and he possessed the Immortal-Binding Rope. This was the vice-captain of Avici¹ (無間 - Wújiān), one of the three major organizations in Neverland.

Du Heng didn't know his real name, but he knew his codename.

Soul Contractor (靈魂契約者 - Línghún Qìyuē Zhě).

"I didn't expect Wu Jian to send someone into this instance too!" Du Heng shouted.

"It's an Ultra-Star Rank instance," the assistant replied. "Who wouldn't want to join the fun?"

Du Heng roared, "What are you people thinking? Even if Wu Jian and Mending Heaven are enemies, an Ultra-Star Rank instance is the enemy of all players! How can you help Professor Yang?!"

The assistant wagged a finger arrogantly. "Professor Yang is Neverland's enemy. He's Mending Heaven's enemy. But he's not Avici's enemy. I made a contract with him. If I help him become complete, he will never harm members of Avici, and he'll even help us deal with Mending Heaven."

"You think your contract can restrain an Ultra-Star Rank monster? You'll end up losing more than you gain!" Du Heng retorted.

"A fully evolved Ultra-Star Rank monster? Of course not. But one in the middle of evolution? Perfect for a Soul Contract (靈魂契約 - Línghún Qìyuē)," the assistant said. "Even after he becomes complete, the Soul Contract will still bind him."

"You think that monster alone can defeat Mending Heaven?" Du Heng asked.

"I absolutely respect Mending Heaven as an opponent," the assistant replied coolly. "And I respect your leader. He won't lose to Professor Yang. But if you add Avici to the equation… how long can Mending Heaven hold out?"

Du Heng struggled a few more times. Realizing he couldn't break free of the Immortal-Binding Rope, he lay still and watched his teammates battle the A-rank monsters. Mo Bai's steady and composed expression flashed through his mind.

Suddenly, he felt an overwhelming surge of confidence.

"No wonder Mo Bai's been uneasy," he said. "She must have sensed this coming. I trust her. She'll find a way to break this deadlock!"

"That ornamental prop?" the assistant sneered.

"Mo Bai is not a prop! The Observation Group isn't a prop!" Du Heng shouted. "This world is wrong. It's flawed. It shouldn't be like this. We will never let it stay this way!"

"So you want to mend the heavens? Still waiting for the prophesied Nüwa² (女媧 - Nǚwā)? Stop dreaming. Nüwa will never be born!"

The assistant raised his leg to kick Du Heng, but the golden light from the Immortal-Binding Rope blocked the blow.

Because of the rope's effect, he couldn't harm Du Heng.

The assistant lifted Du Heng and forced him to look toward Mo Bai and the others.

"Do you know how your plan was exposed?" he said coldly. "It was Mo Bai's mistake. She actually believed a monster would help her. So naive. How could she ever succeed?"

Du Heng understood instantly.

"It was the Phantom Butterfly? But it was under my surveillance the whole time, and Mo Bai even used Mind Reading on it. When did it pass information to you?"

"Before you installed the Tracker," the assistant replied. "On the first night, while the four of you were in your room discussing your plan, the Phantom Butterfly came to me and proposed cooperation. As for why Mind Reading failed, that's because Phantom Butterfly itself doesn't remember coming to see me."

Du Heng looked toward the Phantom Butterfly.

It was staring at Mo Bai in confusion, as if unaware of what had happened.

At that moment, the A-rank monster in a white lab coat, codename Blank Paper, walked over and tapped Phantom Butterfly lightly between the brows.

The confusion vanished from its expression. Its eyes cleared.

"Remember now?" Blank Paper asked.

"I remember," the Phantom Butterfly said, turning to Mo Bai with a dazzling smile. "Thanks for your brainwashing. Without your help, I never would've fooled Mo Bai."

"As agreed, Mo Bai is yours. You can take her," Blank Paper said.

The Phantom Butterfly inhaled deeply and put on an expression of deep affection.

A pair of brilliant, iridescent butterfly wings unfurled from its back. It rose gently into the air and drifted toward Mo Bai's glass chamber.

With a soft beat of its wings, countless shimmering specks drifted down onto the ants. Under the effect of the Scale Poison, the ants died one after another, falling from the glass and revealing Mo Bai's face.

The glass door opened. The Phantom Butterfly flew inside and wrapped its massive wings around Mo Bai to shield her from the Ant Queen.

It whispered in her ear, "Mo Bai, come with me. As long as you love me, I'll protect you forever."

Held in its embrace, Mo Bai let out a soft sigh.

"Phantom Butterfly, you really are adorable."

"Adorable?" Phantom Butterfly looked at her in confusion. It discovered that she truly felt no pain.

That puzzled it.

With Mo Bai's intelligence, she should have already guessed the source of this upheaval, should have realized it had betrayed her. So why wasn't she suffering? Why didn't she regret trusting it?

"Phantom Butterfly, I'm not a good person," Mo Bai said softly. "I never wanted my teammates to face the Ultra-Star Rank monster head-on. I wanted to create five doses of serum, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. I'm really a hypocrite. These past few days, I kept wondering… could Phantom Butterfly give me a surprise? Could it pass information out under our surveillance? Could it do what my conscience wouldn't allow me to?"

She took Phantom Butterfly's hand and pressed a gentle kiss to it.

"Thank you for making the choice for me."

"What are you talking about?" Phantom Butterfly felt helpless. Even now, she showed no pain. "Professor Yang is waiting on Basement Level Four for his other half to fall asleep. Once the guards deliver the fifth dose of serum, he'll fuse with his other half and become complete. You've already lost."

"We won't lose," Mo Bai said firmly. "Because the fifth dose of serum… is me. I won't let Professor Yang complete the fusion."

With that, she sliced lightly across her neck. The Spatial Blade cut open the silicone tube, and the extract flowed into her body.

At the same time, she bit down hard. The serum hidden in her tooth was injected into her bloodstream and neutralized the extract's energy.

As if sensing the birth of the fifth serum, the floor beneath her split open. A massive tentacle shot up from below and wrapped around Mo Bai and Phantom Butterfly, whose wings she refused to release.

Mo Bai looked at it and said quietly:

"Didn't you always want me dead? What a coincidence. I've been hesitating over whether to kill you too. A trace of guilt, and your usefulness, kept me from making a move.

But now it's perfect. Both our wishes will come true.

Have you ever heard the story of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai? In our legends, the butterflies are destined to die for love."³

 

 

Author's Note:

To showcase the unexpected events and plot twists, this chapter might not be as detailed, and I'm not sure if everyone will understand it.

If there's anything you don't understand, please let me know in the comments, and I'll explain it all in the next chapter.

See you all tomorrow.

-

Phantom Butterfly: I only want to kill. I don’t want to die for love.

Mo Bai: That's not up to you.