Chapter 2428: Chapter 2429: Mutation

"Are you sure?" Angel’s heart voiced through the Mind Ribbon, sounding surprised.

"I’m sure." Nis said very confidently, "If you don’t believe me, you can go over and see for yourself; there’s a mark at the very bottom."

Angel hesitated for a moment, then looked up at the Mist above.

The mist continued to roll, faintly revealing the huge silhouette in the sky that represented the laboratory.

From Angel’s perspective, the laboratory now completely lost the shape of a "building," appearing instead as a rounded "torso" with innumerable external corridors forming "steel tentacles," resembling a giant spider-shaped mechanical beast.

As the steel tentacles kept waving, attacking the shadow-constrained Schieze larva, the surrounding mist and clouds were pushed away, making its form clearly visible.

Angel’s gaze slowly moved down from the laboratory’s shell to its "abdomen," a place usually buried deep underground and impossible to see, but now visible due to its elevation in mid-air, clearly revealing the abdominal structure.

A flat metallic surface with a design akin to a circular manhole cover in the very center.

And on this manhole cover, two clear numbers were drawn in exceedingly bright red paint.

—00 number.

"As Nis said, the 00 number really is the laboratory itself..."

Not long ago, when the Mind Ribbon had just connected, Nis had asked Angel about his situation to ensure he was fine and urged Angel to move away quickly because the 00 number had appeared.

Angel was still contemplating who the 00 number was when Nis directly provided the answer: it was the laboratory itself!

Now that confirmation was received, Nis was indeed telling the truth.

"You have seen it, right? Ha, previously worried that the 00 number was the laboratory’s secret armed force; little did we know we’ve always been inside the 00 number’s belly." Nis sighed, "After you’ve finished looking, come over. By the way, did you run into Reynaud later?"

The Reynaud Nis referred to was the body possessed by the Mist shadow.

"I did run into him, and I’ve got Reynaud’s body now too, but the situation is slightly complicated. I’ll come over later, and you can see for yourselves."

Once Angel finished speaking, he sought direction and flew towards Nis’ location.

In no time, Angel spotted Nis hiding behind a rocky sea reef several nautical miles away, waving at him to signal him closer.

"Where are Lord Kanter and Wizard Ferro?" Angel landed and glanced around, besides Nis and Reynaud, there were no other figures behind this solitary sea reef.

Nis: "Lord Nite went to find Ferro."

"Did something happen to Wizard Ferro?" Angel asked, somewhat surprised.

Nis waved his hand: "Nothing happened. They’ve been found, and both are in the Mind Ribbon."

With Nis’ explanation, Angel understood what transpired after they left.

The reason Ferro crushed the crystal Kanter gave him was not because 01 number had returned, but because 03 number left the Flame Law Ground. When 03 number came out and found "Sanders" was not present, they immediately launched an assault on Ferro and attempted to rush towards the laboratory to activate the 00 number.

During the skirmish, Ferro noticed the distant emergence of Schieze larva with plenty of combat personnel around, indicating that 01 number had returned. Upon seeing the scene, Ferro decisively crushed the crystal without hesitation.

When the Spatial Passage appeared instantly, 03 number immediately sensed something was off, and without even waiting for Kanter to appear, fled swiftly into the distance.

Although 03 number saw 01 number and others returning, they also saw the Schieze larva wasn’t dealt with and dared not run towards 01 number, only fleeing in the opposite direction.

Then, Ferro chased after.

From the passage that emerged, they only saw Ferro’s back.

"Lord Nite went over to check on the situation, and I stayed nearby prepared to assist you," Nis said, pointing out that although Lord Kanter crafted the black crystal Angel received, ultimately it was Nis who handed it to Angel.

"With Wizard Kanter’s speed, he should catch up soon, right?" Why hadn’t he returned yet?

Nis: "At first, because 03 number is a Water System wizard and had an advantage at sea, it took some time to catch up. Later with Lord Nite joining, they caught up, but a little unexpected situation arose..."

"A little unexpected situation?"

"Yes, that’s what Lord Nite said in the Mind Ribbon; however, something seemed to have happened on their side, so I didn’t inquire further. Later, from their intermittent communication, I guessed that 03 number seemed to undergo an unexpected transformation." Nis said: "Judging by their tone, after transformation, 03 number was able to resist Lord Nite’s attacks to some extent. Those creatures from the Origin World should not be underestimated; they all possess mystical trump cards."

While Nis spoke, Angel also heard intermittent communication from the Mind Ribbon.

It seemed to be dialogue during battle.

Angel intended to ask Kanter about the situation but hesitated, fearing interruption, and chose to remain silent.

"Oh right, you mentioned you have the mascot’s body now, how is it?" Nis: "Was the head blown up? If he’s dead, that would be good."

As Nis continued to speak, Reynaud’s face became increasingly pale.

"Not yet dead, but seriously injured." Angel took out the ice coffin from his bracelet, "You can see the specific state for yourselves."

Nis examined the barely formed body inside the ice coffin while clicking his tongue, "How did it get like this? Cracking the skull might have been better, putting an end to it."

Nis spoke with a clear tone of regret.

When Reynaud saw his body, he was initially startled, but quickly he sighed in relief. At least he wasn’t dead, and that was enough.

Although the body looked battered and the limbs seemed intact but uncertain if still usable, as long as he’s alive, there’s always a way.

As a Transcendent, there are always ways to repair it, it’s just a matter of cost and time.

"Knife wounds, burns, energy pollution, and poison... What exactly has his body been through? Did you battle with his body?" Nis looked suspiciously at Angel.

Angel: "He is somewhat lucky. When I encountered him, he was already like this."

The reason for saying this is because if Angel had encountered Reynaud when shrouded by the Mist shadow, Reynaud’s ultimate fate would have been a head explosion. From this perspective, Reynaud was indeed quite lucky.

Angel briefly explained the situation.

After listening, Nis was also surprised: "After being possessed by the Mist shadow, bad luck follows? This change in luck is quite interesting. Although he faced many traps, the Mist shadow eventually abandoned his body. Should we say he’s lucky or unlucky?"

After thinking about it, Nis said: "It should be considered lucky, right? At least the outcome is like this."

After speaking, Nis looked at Reynaud, with a pondering gaze. Previously, he had jokingly called him a mascot, believing less in "luck," but after hearing Angel’s account, he had more thoughts on Reynaud’s Luck Talent.

In this world, miracles sometimes do happen; ordinary people occasionally exhibit incredible talents.

Could it be that Reynaud truly possesses an extremely rare Luck Talent?

If this is true... Nis grew even more interested in Reynaud.

"Do you want to possess your body now?" Angel asked Reynaud.

Reynaud, having not returned to his body for a long time, actually wanted to possess it, but after thinking he shook his head: "Forget it, returning now would be of no use, and might even burden you, sir. I’ll first use my Soul Body, and when I reach a safe place, then possess it."

"Could I trouble you, sir, to hold onto my body first?"

Angel nodded indifferently.

Nis then spoke: "Why not let me take this ice coffin, I’ll hold it for him."

Nis appeared serious, with a look that said "I can help."

Angel glanced at Reynaud, who hesitated for a moment and quietly said: "Actually, I think I might be salvageable."

Nis turned to Reynaud: "You mean, if I hold onto your body, it couldn’t be saved?"

Reynaud dared not respond, but from his expression and eyes, it could be seen that he indeed thought so.

Angel thought for a moment and ignored Nis’s "help," directly collecting the ice coffin. Reynaud’s speculation wasn’t without reason; if given to Nis, who knows if it might encounter an unfortunate accident by the time it’s retrieved.

...

After Angel and Nis reunited.

On the other side, in a serene sea shrouded in a thin mist.

Ferro stood on the back of a bird made of flame, gazing distantly at the battlefield.

The night suddenly devoured the faint glow, then the calm sea rapidly surged into waves hundreds of meters high.

In the sky, Kanter, clad in a cloak of night, stared intently at the crest of the waves below.

And on top of the wave, stood a humanoid figure. From the detailed look in her eyes and the number visible on her face, it could be concluded that this humanoid was Number 03.

However, Number 03’s appearance now was completely unlike before.

Her previously fair skin had turned into coarse green bark, and her slender limbs transformed into robust branches. Her long hair changed into a crown of branched guardians, atop which a red fruit glowed brightly.

This red fruit, from afar, looked like a ruby on the crown, extremely dazzling.

Yet more dazzling was the aura emanating from the red fruit.

That was... the scent of mystery.

...

In the dark void, a petite pink octopus with sapphire-like eyes leisurely swam as if it regarded the void as the ocean.

It looked very content, yet its speed was astonishingly fast. With each swim, it advanced a significant spatial distance. Although not surpassing high-dimensional travel, it already matched the speed of an ordinary Void Traveler.

Its course was fixed on the Southern Domain.

As the spatial distance continually narrowed, it drew closer to the Southern Domain, and its sapphire-like twin eyes started to emit a hazy glow.

Within the glow, it vaguely saw a sea obscured by mist.

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