Doomsday Jigsaw Puzzle

Chapter 181: Chapter 181: Fusion Disease

Despite not having ascertained the truth yet, discovering that the people she thought she had killed were alive, albeit in the form of monsters, sent Jiang Yimi into a fit of desolate fury. Her Semi-Evil Fallen body made it easy for her to fall into a certain "crux."

She began to force herself to think about other matters: freeweɓnovēl.coɱ

"What does it mean before the time runs out?"

"It’s a disease, and you have this constitution too, perhaps you’ll fall ill in the future, or maybe you are already sick."

"I don’t quite understand."

"Let’s talk as we walk, let’s go and see the second building."

The Masked Strange Person took Jiang Yimi to the second building and, upon reaching the eleventh floor, suddenly stopped.

"What’s wrong?"

"I sensed a girl with potential similar to yours... no, even higher. I’m not sure whether or not to take her with us."

Jiang Yimi felt that the Masked Strange Person was becoming more and more enigmatic.

Bai Wu knew that the girl the Masked Strange Person spoke of must be Hong Yin, who at this time was on the eleventh floor.

"If he saves Hong Yin... will my memory change? Will the causal line be altered?"

Suddenly, such a thought popped into Bai Wu’s mind. But he quickly realized—

This is not the telephone booth; he was inside Jiang Yimi’s memory. What happened here is the effect that is already in place, it won’t suddenly become the cause.

"Forget it, once your issue is resolved, I will come to rescue her."

The Masked Strange Person and Jiang Yimi did not encounter Hong Yin; at that time, she was still locked in a cage with Spirit Possession, receiving various injections every day.

Although she had not completely turned into a monster surrounded by dark resentment, Hong Yin had already developed strong spiritual power, and it was these fluctuations of spiritual power that made the Masked Strange Person sense that something was amiss.

Bai Wu actually wished the Masked Strange Person could change this causal line, but that remained merely a thought.

On their way to the nineteenth floor, the Masked Strange Person began to discuss "diseases" with Jiang Yimi.

"The disease you are talking about... what exactly do you mean?"

"Whether you’re an Evil Fallen who can use Sequences, a human who can use the lexicon, or your current Semi-Evil Fallen form, anyone who uses both powers has a chance of falling ill. For now, let’s call this disease ’Fusion Reaction’."

Jiang Yimi still didn’t understand and simply asked:

"Is this disease very frightening?"

"Not necessarily, the likelihood of contracting this disease mainly depends on the similarity between Sequences and lexicons. Also, different lexicons result in different manifestations of the Fusion Reaction,"

Seeing Jiang Yimi’s confusion, the Masked Strange Person explained:

"The two Sequences you possess can take away the fortunes of others, and your current form of Semi-Evil Fallen has awoken you to Catastrophe Havoc and Catastrophe Strike, which can also dissolve others’ fortunes. These abilities are too similar and will fuse under your special constitution, causing a lot of instability. It might cause you to lose control of how much fortune you take from others during assimilation."

"Simply put, you can master Sequences to a proficient advanced level and the lexicon likewise can be used to its full effect. The more you use your power, the stronger your control over this power will become. But the Fusion Reaction means that no matter how skillfully you wield these two powers, when you fall ill, you can’t control them."

Jiang Yimi was still pondering the meaning behind these words, but Bai Wu had understood them.

"So that’s how it is, let’s assume for now that Sequences and entries correspond to each other. If one obtains Sequences and entries with similar abilities, it can trigger a Fusion Reaction. This fused state may result in new abilities, but also can render the abilities uncontrollable... This uncontrollability manifests as either cyclic or asymmetric cyclic outbreaks."

Bai Wu turned to look at the Masked Strange Person.

"That is to say, this guy with the mask, just like Jiang Yimi, is able to possess two kinds of powers. Those known to use two types of powers include my Evil Fallen form, the deceptive Cain, and Jiang Yimi in her Semi-Evil Fallen form, as well as the Masked Strange Person. Perhaps those with the surname Well can do it too, but I’m not sure yet."

"If the symptom of Jiang Yimi’s Fusion Disease is her inability to control the degree to which she devours the fortune of others, then maybe the Fusion Disease of the Masked Strange Person is related to time? He mentioned that he would kill the principal before his time ran out. Maybe he controls a Sequence related to time and an entry associated with time, and the two fused... resulting in some new uncontrollable power?"

"Speaking of which... my Evil Fallen form generates many Nightmare Eyes; are these eyes similar to Prayle’s Eye? It doesn’t seem like it... They probably won’t trigger a Fusion Reaction."

The Masked Strange Person did not continue explaining in depth to Jiang Yimi, who had no concept of basic things like entry Sequences and naturally found it hard to grasp the "Fusion Disease" mentioned by the Masked Strange Person.

As a result, despite being around for seven hundred years, Jiang Yimi hadn’t quite understood something Bai Wu grasped upon hearing it.

She simply followed the Masked Strange Person, feeling an indescribable strength and profound mystery emanating from him.

On their way to the second building, they encountered six security guards.

Bai Wu still remembered that these six guards—had been swiftly killed by Dwarf.

Dwarf killed opponents like lightning with a flash of his blade. In some sense, Dwarf was the strongest close combat fighter Bai Wu had ever seen.

The approach of the Masked Strange Person seemed even more impressive; he snapped his fingers, and all six guards froze in place. It was as if time had suddenly abandoned them.

When it comes to making an impression, physical warriors can never outshine mages.

"Where are we going now?"

"To the surveillance room."

Seven hundred years later, when Bai Wu was exploring, there were no surveillance rooms. All the surveillance had been dismantled by Hong Yin.

But seven hundred years earlier, the Baichuan City in Jiang Yimi’s memory still had surveillance rooms.

The Masked Strange Person quickly found the surveillance room, encountering a few enemies along the way. With a snap of his fingers, he made these people seem as if they were in a barrier where their actions were exceptionally slow.

The surveillance room was on the nineteenth floor of the second building. Below that were the negative first, negative second, negative third floors... down to negative eighteen floors.

The design that symbolized hell had already existed seven hundred years ago.

The Masked Strange Person pulled up the daytime surveillance footage, and Jiang Yimi saw a group of monsters crawling out of the thick doors on the screen and then engaging in a brutal fight.

Bai Wu noted that either Elijah had not yet appeared, or he had already gone to a lower level.

The levels below were severely damaged and not possible to monitor.

And in levels negative one to negative five, there was no sign of Elijah.

As the levels descended, the degree of human mutation became more exaggerated, and it was unclear what these Evil Fallen were fighting for.

Once the hatch was opened, they fought like gladiators in an arena, desperately battling each other for their masters’ glory.

Jiang Yimi, watching this scene, asked with a trembling voice:

"Are they... all humans?"

"Yes, I only found out recently myself that Baichuan City may seem normal, but it has already begun to rot from within. The security forces, the consortia, the hospitals—they have all resorted to any means necessary to combat the Evil Fallen. The impending doom makes it indeed necessary for people to grasp some knowledge about the Evil Fallen, but their purpose is not for the sake of humanity, but to gain greater power. Although it’s all in vain, there have indeed been many futile yet grandiose projects throughout human history."

"Now, they’ve extended their reach to the schools; they see these youngest and most vibrant lives as the best material for studying the Evil Fallen. However, to make all this happen, to continuously have people disappear from the city without raising too much concern, they need a cover."

The Masked Strange Person suddenly laughed:

"You are the school’s cover. With you around, any disappearances, accidents, deaths, and so on that occur at the school can all be blamed on you. That’s why I started paying attention to you."

Jiang Yimi couldn’t believe all this because, according to the words of the Masked Strange Person, the city seemed to have completely rotted away.

"They have such a vast world... why would they do something like this?"

Jiang Yimi envied those people who could walk freely among the crowds. She couldn’t be so willful and could only seal herself within a small, low-rise building.

In everyone’s eyes, the restricted area where she resided was the most twisted and evil place in the whole school, but compared to many places outside the school, the restricted area was actually the most normal.

On the screen, the Evil Fallen continued to fight fiercely, with blood and severed limbs flying everywhere. Watching the battle of the Evil Fallen, Jiang Yimi asked:

"Will my teacher and Jiang Huan... end up like that too...?"

"Yes, under the manipulation of ’the doctor’, they will all build a cornerstone within their hearts. This cornerstone is to kill and devour other Evil Fallen, to become the strongest among them, so as to find happiness. You should understand better than others how strong the desire to pursue happiness can be."

The Evil Fallen are divided into three levels. These levels actually have nothing to do with combat strength. The first level is the Evil Fallen devoured by their desires, sparing no expense to satisfy them.

Such Evil Fallen are common; they feed on fear and despair, much like the beasts outside the tower.

The second type of Evil Fallen includes Hong Yin, Traveler, and Beauty Mark. They possess reason and continue to have human intelligence, even though some have become twisted in character, while others still maintain their goodness within.

The third kind, the most perfect form, is almost unaffected and unattracted by negative emotions and is capable of using both human Sequence and the Evil Fallen lexicon; the Semi-Evil Fallen physique.

Between Hong Yin and Jiang Yimi, without discussing who has more potential, the fact that one can live in human form and the other must live as a monster already demonstrates the gap between these two states.

However, this does not mean that Jiang Yimi lacks desire; one of the side effects of the Semi-Evil Fallen state is that it makes her emotions even more sensitive.

She craves certain emotions more intensely; she wants friends, and her desire for care grows even stronger.

Bai Wu gradually understood the implications behind her eyes.

This girl indeed stands between angels and demons; if she were to fully succumb to darkness, it might take just a moment for her to become a beast that brings Catastrophe.

But if she can withstand her desires, she is like an Angel, capable of completely sealing herself away for the sake of others.

The appearance of the Masked Strange Person was indeed a redemption for her, dissolving her inner self-blame, and revealing to her the true masterminds behind the scenes.

It gave Jiang Yimi a new goal in life—vengeance.

"I... although I don’t quite understand some of the terms in your words, does this mean... that the disappearances, the accidents, are not actually my doing, that I am actually... not a calamity?"

"Of course you’re not a calamity. You have a disease, a disease that can bring misfortune to others. This disease is incurable, and there have been many similar cases throughout human history. Some people isolate themselves so as not to cause trouble for the world, while some people run around causing chaos, wishing they could infect the whole world. The latter is the real calamity."

The Masked Strange Person turned his head and continued speaking to Jiang Yimi:

"Faced with a barrage of accusations and verbal abuse, you didn’t descend into depravity, nor did you harbor resentment towards the world. Just by this alone, you have already surpassed the majority of people."

Jiang Yimi’s eyes widened, tears brimming without any attempt to hide them. She was genuinely afraid that with a single blink, the person before her would vanish.

And she would find that everything was merely a dream, a dream conjured by her own guilt.

She remained the plague upon the world, a monster loathed by everyone.

The Masked Strange Person said:

"Your teachers, seniors, friends, they cannot be saved anymore. Let them stay here. Taking them now would be futile, and it would only alarm the enemy. We have another important mission ahead of us."

"What mission?"

"Infiltrate the principal’s office and find his plan."

The Masked Strange Person continued to explain:

"The doctor and the principal are two characters we must eradicate. One of them serves a powerful force, the same force that marked me. If we could deal with him, it would be even more useful than dealing with the principal. I put in a lot of effort to draw him out, capturing many Evil Fallen and sending them to the hospital for his research."

Bai Wu recalled.

Indeed, in the records of the Ninth Hospital, there was mention of a masked stranger who delivered Evil Fallen to the hospital.

What surprised him most was the doctor.

In that record, a doctor conducting various experiments on patients in a researcher’s manner and arranging all patients’ surnames in alpha order while using numbers as their names.

Now thinking back, the doctor’s naming style is strikingly similar to that of Jing Yi to Jing Liu.

"Doctor, Merchant, Traveler... It seems this doctor is also serving the Well Power. At that time, Hong Yin was not yet powerful, slowly absorbing the pain of other Evil Fallen. But possibly due to the Masked Strange Person’s emergence, the doctor may have fled."

Bai Wu quickly ran through the timeline in his mind, and everything seemed to connect.

Jiang Yimi asked: freewёbnoνel.com

"What about the principal then?"

"He’s someone who has been deceived, stemming from the handiwork of a disciple of an old enemy of mine. This foul-tempered disciple loves to deceive others; he believes that schools are great breeding grounds for Evil Fallen, especially since students have not yet firmly established their worldviews. They could easily undergo a drastic change in character due to minor setbacks, making them prime candidates to become Evil Fallen."

"He bewitched the principal, showing him the formidable power of the Evil Fallen. Meanwhile, as the principal himself turned into an Evil Fallen, he would gain all the sequences the principal obtained. Put simply, this time he played the role of a mastermind behind the scenes, while the principal was the villain on stage."

So that was the meaning. Bai Wu initially thought from the Masked Strange Person’s words that the disciple and the principal were the same person, but now it appears that the principal is just a disciple of Cain.

Bai Wu then had a new question.

"If Cain is the disciple of an old enemy... who’s the old enemy?"

(I won’t be able to return to double updates until the day after tomorrow. I only start writing in the early hours these past days and honestly don’t have time. As a hermit writer, all the social tasks I’ve accumulated over the year have to be completed at the very beginning of the new year. I’m quite helpless about it.)