Embers Ad Infinitum

Chapter 755: Confronting ‘Danger’

Translator: CKtalon

The catchy festive song livened up the Rec Center. The employees present chatted and laughed, and they would hum from time to time. It made Long Yuehong feel like he was celebrating the new year.

For almost all Pangu Biology employees, the Lunar New Year was definitely the best and most relaxing period. They would choose to throw problems to the back of their minds as long as it wasn’t life-threatening or urgent. They would first celebrate the Lunar New Year before anything else.

At the end and beginning of the year, every family would’ve saved up for a year and were willing to use a portion of their saved contribution points to reward themselves and their family. When the time came, Pangu Biology would definitely increase the supply of meat, vegetables, sweets, soda, and snacks. It would also produce rare items that employees usually didn’t see.

Long Yuehong connected the Lunar New Year to tables filled with good dishes, sweet beverages, and delicious sweets, new clothes, as well as kids enjoying all kinds of fun games.

Before joining the Old Task Force, he had looked forward to the Lunar New Year the most in the year. Although he could often eat good food now, he still missed the atmosphere.

The Lunar New Year is at the end of January; there are about four months left… Long Yuehong looked forward to it.

The bustle at the Rec Center on the 495th floor lasted until it was almost lights out. There was a pause in the middle because Shang Jianyao insisted on listening to the radio.

In a happy mood, Shang Jianyao washed up before the lights went out and went to the bathroom.

After lying down, he massaged his temples and closed his eyes.

…

Mind Corridor, Room 506.

Shang Jianyao smiled as he turned the brass handle and pushed open the door.

As expected, he entered a place that was suspected to be a laboratory. The silver-white metal walls partitioned many small rooms, and inside were different complicated instruments.

Shang Jianyao looked around and focused on the people coming and going. They were all wearing light-blue masks and white coats, and they were in a rush or unsmiling.

Shang Jianyao stopped a person in a white coat as if he were familiar with him. “What is this place?”

The man in the white coat turned his head to glance at him, and his gaze instantly turned sharp. “Who are you? How did you sneak in? Who instructed you?”

Without waiting for Shang Jianyao to come up with an answer, he pulled back and shouted, “Guards! Guards! The experimental subject has escaped!”

Thud! Thud! Thud!

Black-clothed guards ran over from all directions holding submachine guns. Several of them were even wearing military exoskeletons.

“How terrifying!” The expression on Shang Jianyao’s face didn’t match his words. He began to mutter to himself, “Face the danger directly with courage… Face the danger directly with courage… So I have to force my way out?”

In the blink of an eye, Shang Jianyao stomped his feet and jumped toward the door that seemed to lead to the corridor.

He didn’t rashly use his abilities. This wasn’t because he had experienced the cruise ship trauma and had learned his lesson. He was afraid that an Awakened’s abilities would bring about unnecessary changes and cause him to encounter an irresistible influence. After all, the strategy guide had clearly written that abilities could be used for any psychological trauma related to Room 506.

The only reason he didn’t do so was: this made things more interesting!

Using abilities directly would make the problem much simpler. The danger level would be reduced by at least one-third!

As he ran, Shang Jianyao suddenly ‘fell’ and slid forward for a distance. This wasn’t because he had been affected by an Awakened ability but an action of his free will.

Badump!

One of the guards was caught off-guard and couldn’t stop in time before he was knocked over.

Shang Jianyao pounced on him and picked up a black object. He then did a pulling action and threw the black object at the nearest guard wearing a military exoskeleton.

With the comprehensive warning system’s help, the guard preliminarily determined that it was a grenade because everyone carried one.

He quickly ducked to the side and hid behind a machine. The nearby guards did the same.

The military exoskeleton wasn’t kinetic armor; it didn’t completely cover the body. It couldn’t prevent the wearer from suffering damage when it encountered an explosion or shrapnel.

Pa!

The black object landed to the side without exploding.

“Haha.” Shang Jianyao laughed. “Sorry, I threw the wrong item.”

He slung a submachine gun over himself and held a black grenade in his left hand. He threw and caught it repeatedly.

The black object from before was quietly lying on the ground—it was a black leather shoe.

Upon hearing his words and sensing that there was no explosion, the guards ran over.

Shang Jianyao shook his left arm and threw the real grenade upon seeing this. At the same time, he rolled to the corridor.

Ta! Ta! Ta!

Rows of bullet holes appeared randomly from where he had previously been standing.

Boom!

Just as the black grenade flew out, it was hit by a guard wearing a military exoskeleton and detonated in advance.

The blast and shrapnel effectively stopped the other guards from rushing into the corridor.

Shang Jianyao jumped up and laughed boisterously again. “Thanks!”

He then muttered to himself, “Face the danger directly with courage… Face the danger directly with courage…”

He ran to the end of the corridor, where there were still a few guards.

Shang Jianyao raised the submachine gun he had snatched and fired in a sweeping motion.

Amidst the sparks, some of the guards fell to the ground, and some hurriedly searched for cover. They were momentarily unable to stop Shang Jianyao’s approach.

At this moment, Shang Jianyao suddenly felt a sense of numbness in his body.

Bang!

He fell to the ground and muttered excitedly, “Awakened…”

His voice suddenly rose. “There’s no grudge between us, so why are you intercepting me? How much did they pay you? I’ll pay double!”

His half-body paralysis quickly subsided.

He implanted the Awakened with the idea that everyone should peacefully coexist and walk their own paths.

Upon seeing that his abilities had taken effect, Shang Jianyao propped himself up with one hand and jumped to his feet.

His target was the end of the corridor.

Behind him, the guards rushed out one after another. In front of him, the enemies—who had been in a rush to hide—reorganized their defense line.

Shang Jianyao opened his mouth again, attempting to shout.

At this moment, the Shang Jianyao that sought novelty hissed in his mind. “That’s not right. This isn’t called facing danger directly.

“This isn’t considered dangerous at all. The room owner’s greatest fear that she finds most dangerous is to be captured! I have to face this danger!”

With a swoosh, he stopped and raised his hands. He then slowly squatted down and placed his palms on the back of his head.

Black figures flew over as guards pinned him down.

Before long, Shang Jianyao was tied up and gagged.

He widened his eyes, curious about what would happen next.

He was soon fixed to a metal bed. A few humans in light-blue masks and white coats walked over.

“What do you plan on doing to me?” Shang Jianyao asked in fear.

The white coat leader blurted out in surprise, “Aren’t you gagged?”

After asking, he realized that a new mouth had grown out of Shang Jianyao’s forehead. This belonged to the one who sought novelty and was filled with the desire to act.

“That’s right!” The mouth opened and closed in frustration. “I forgot!”

He then said, “Begin. Do whatever experiment you want. I won’t say a word and will only watch!”

The next second, the mouth disappeared.

However, pairs of eyes appeared on Shang Jianyao’s cheeks, chin, chest, abdomen, and the back of his hand one after another without blinking.

The eyes of the people in white coats became extremely terrified.

Someone shouted, “Men! Men, inject him with anesthetic—using the standards of an adult elephant!”

Shang Jianyao’s ten pairs of eyes witnessed a syringe—which was as thick as his forearm—inject the liquid into his body.

He muttered to himself, “Face the danger directly with courage… Face the danger directly with courage…”

Just like that, he fainted and had a good sleep.

When he woke up, the laboratory was empty.

“What kind of change is this?” Shang Jianyao sat up cross-legged and stroked his chin. “The room owner was indeed captured back then and was also injected with anesthetic. What he saw when he woke up was this scene? His psychological trauma is this place, not this matter. Therefore, it’s considered a success no matter how I escape?”

The ‘strategy guide’ provided by Pangu Biology was to escape the place and advance bravely.

This also counted as clearing this psychological trauma; nobody had tried to be captured previously.

…

495th floor, Zone C, Room 11.

Long Yuehong was lighting a lamp and packing up his clothes.

After finishing this matter, he sat down and planned on resting before washing up. Since he had nothing to do, he took out the Babymaker talisman his mother—Gu Hong—had given him.

As his finger stroked the yellowish talisman’s surface, Long Yuehong suddenly felt that something was amiss.

This piece of paper was relatively new and didn’t look like it had been passed down from his grandmother’s generation.