Chapter 236: The Red-Hooded Monster
Chapter 236: The Red-Hooded Monster
“Most of them probably aren’t the Spider-Type…”
“How painful was it to twist their necks so severely?”
“…”
Witnessing the horrifying scene before him, these thoughts naturally emerged in Lu Xin’s mind.
He didn’t know why, but seeing such a bizarre and terrifying sight at this moment brought him a sense of calm.
It was probably because he had already noticed the problems with these people and had been pondering what kinds of changes these Mutants might undergo. So now, seeing this scene didn’t cause panic; instead, it felt like he had found an answer.
The compartment door behind him slid open gently. Doll poked out her small head.
She seemed to also sense the fluctuations in the surrounding Psychic Energy, looking towards the distance with curiosity.
Her face too showed no trace of alarm.
The panicked one was Chen Jing.
She was currently outside this Quarantine Zone, roughly two hundred meters from the vehicle where Lu Xin and Doll were located.
When that immense Psychic Entity, almost visible to the naked eye, materialized beside the East Sea Grand Hotel, she also noticed that the Spirit Detectors installed every thirty meters around the Quarantine Zone simultaneously triggered alarms.
The red lights kept flashing, and the piercing alarms blended into a continuous blare.
Clearly, something was wrong.
These people, forcibly sent into the temporary Quarantine Zone, were precisely the individuals Lu Xin had identified as problematic but who hadn’t registered anything via detection.
They had even been somewhat troubled, unsure of how to prove the strangeness on these individuals for a subsequent explanation.
But now, detecting was unnecessary.
That string of Spirit Detectors directly proved the problem.
…
“Everyone… prepare…”
Chen Jing gripped the Walkie-Talkie and shouted loudly.
Only upon hearing her own voice did she realize it trembled. She struggled to control herself, forcing her voice to sound both calm and forceful: “Immediately reinforce containment measures. Report to the Special Clean-up Department and the City Defense Department. Connect me to the Information Analysis Team.”
“I need their Logic Chain analysis and solution proposals in the shortest possible time.”
…
At that same moment, as the shadow cloaked in red grew taller and its form beneath the Crimson Moon became increasingly clear, Mr. Su and Professor Bai, forcibly escorted away by the Special Dispatch Team, had already used the East Sea Grand Hotel’s internal secret elevator to descend a hundred meters underground.
They entered a specially constructed platform and boarded an underground train.
“Dispatch someone to interrogate the Old Captain,” Mr. Su ordered coldly as he took his seat.
“Spare no effort. Find out what exactly he is scheming.”
After speaking, he seemed to have much more to say, but after a long silence, he suddenly spat out curses:
“Damn it! That treacherous dog! Grandson of a mallet! That old bastard who should live in the sea…”
…
“An occurrence like this is not at all surprising,” Professor Bai said with a light laugh as he sat in the seat opposite.
“It was only a matter of time, sooner or later. Now, it’s time our preparations are put to the test.”
…
…
“Are the High Wall No.1, No.4, and No.7 Hyper-frequency Ion Cannons ready?”
At the same time, in a temporary Command Room not far from the East Sea Grand Hotel, Minister Shen was furious:
“Additionally, immediately evacuate all non-essential personnel except Ability Users! Dispatch the Investigation Team! I need a report on this Monster’s Psychic Magnitude, its Contamination Logic, and what level of approach is required to deal with it!”
Through the large window in front of him, the East Sea Grand Hotel, barely a kilometer away, was clearly visible. So too was the mass of twisting, writhing Psychic Energy beside it – a terrifying Mental Power of a magnitude they previously could scarcely imagine.
Bathed in the glow of the Crimson Moon overhead, he even began to discern the features within that mass of Psychic Energy.
His subordinates frantically gathered the documents near them, preparing to retreat.
After all, the sheer visibility and dread emanating from that Psychic Energy meant a mere kilometer offered no safety for command personnel.
Amidst the fast-paced yet orderly evacuation, however, personnel urgently relayed Minister Shen’s commands. They simultaneously kept receiving field reports relayed back by the Special Dispatch Team, continuously updating the furious Minister Shen, who paced like an angry lion:
“The investigation report is strange. The entity’s Psychic Magnitude is continuously rising…”
“The first report logged it around one thousand…”
“But the second and third emergency reports recorded magnitudes of three thousand, even seven thousand…”
“Calculating at this rate, it will breach the ten-thousand level imminently.”
…
“Ten-thousand level.”
Minister Shen, striding towards the exit of the temporary command center, paused suddenly, his fist clenching tightly.
Then he turned around with an icy expression and murmured, “No one’s Psychic Magnitude can appear out of thin air…”
“How did it increase?”
“…”
“So far, it seems to have emerged from nothing…”
Three staff members received reports from various sources, their faces pale: “We can only speculate that this might be…”
“Related to the captured Mutant?”
“…”
“Regardless of whom it’s associated with.”
Minister Shen gritted his teeth fiercely and said, “A Psychic Entity exceeding the ten-thousand-level appearing in Qinggang is a disaster! I want you to immediately calculate the caliber of the standardized electro-ion cannon required to neutralize it. Can it be resolved immediately?”
“Theoretically, ten units of the electro-ion cannon could eliminate it.”
“Then prepare twelve for me.”
Minister Shen ordered loudly while glancing back.
Under the Crimson Moon, the Psychic Entity beside the towering East Sea Grand Hotel building was growing increasingly distinct.
Its imposing form—so large it induced a suffocating sensation—and the crimson hood draped over it were now clearly visible.
Beneath the crimson hood was a pale human face. Unlike previous Psychic Entities inducing Hallucinations, its features remained largely humanoid. Yet, what seemed even more incomprehensible was that Minister Shen realized he could see it directly…
“Is it because I’m too close?”
Merely looking at it made him feel as if his soul could be ripped away, various disquieting thoughts surging up uncontrollably from deep within.
“Prepare four additional units!”
Minister Shen turned to his secretary and instructed, “Open fire immediately once Mr. Su and the others have evacuated the danger zone.”
“Ring ring ring…”
But precisely at this moment, the wireless phone held by the secretary suddenly rang.
The secretary promptly answered it and then handed it to Minister Shen. “It’s Professor Bai.”
“The Maritime Nation’s assault has already begun. They began positioning forces over a month ago. Presently, there are many Mutants within the city,” Professor Bai stated immediately as Minister Shen took the call.
Minister Shen, striding vigorously down the stairs, responded:
“We’ve taken targeted action; most of the Mutants have been admitted to the Quarantine Zone.”
“What I need to know now is, what exactly is that red Monster?”
“…”
“You can see it directly as well?”
Professor Bai paused briefly. “That’s the Spiritual Entity left behind after the S-class Ability User of the Maritime Nation committed suicide.”
“What is your intended course of action now?”
“What to do?”
Minister Shen’s voice carried rage and agitation: “Prep the high-frequency ion cannon first, naturally! Blast it a couple of times and see what happens!”
“Dismiss that idea,” Professor Bai countered. “The operating principle of the high-frequency ion cannon aligns with the standardized weapons the Special Dispatch Team utilized. If conventional firepower could harm it, then the Special Dispatch Team would have already succeeded in eliminating it. The results have proven it has limited effect.”
“Furthermore, without understanding its specific Logic Chain, employing such crude, direct measures introduces far too many variables.”
“…”
Minister Shen listened, his expression darkening. “What if we switch it to overdrive mode?”
“What if we prepare twenty units?”
“…”
Even Professor Bai seemed taken aback for a moment before replying, “It hasn’t escalated to that level yet. Stop being so fixated on blowing things up…”
“I’ve collated the relevant data on this Psychic Entity and conducted a preliminary analysis, allowing me to draw the following conclusions:”
“1. This Psychic Entity was triggered by the deceased S-class Ability User of the Maritime Nation. Although his death has been confirmed, his Psychic Energy has not dissipated; instead, it continues to amplify. It currently approaches the ten-thousand-level threshold yet shows no signs of reaching its peak.”
“2. This incident can be confirmed as a premeditated suicide attack by the Maritime Nation against Qinggang City. Its aim is likely to inflict incalculable damage on Qinggang using this suicidal S-class Ability User, thereby creating conditions for the Maritime Nation’s landing operations.”
“3. Without certainty about the specific Contamination Logic exhibited by this S-class Ability User and the exact extent of the Maritime Nation’s preparations within Qinggang, choosing to utilize the electro-ion cannon’s method of forceful annihilation against this Psychic Entity carries a high risk of triggering consequences beyond our predictions. After all, the Maritime Nation’s Old Captain understands Qinggang’s defense protocols; he wouldn’t leave such a glaring vulnerability.”
“…”
Minister Shen listened patiently until he entered the vehicle cabin, then immediately demanded, “I require your specific recommendations.”
Professor Bai responded: “I advise three courses of action: Interrogate the Maritime Nation’s Old Captain, await the investigation results, and…”
“Consider initiating that… unconventional emergency defense plan I proposed.”
“…”
Minister Shen fell silent for a moment upon hearing this, then murmured softly, “Alright.”
Yet despite seeming to agree with Professor Bai’s suggestion, after hanging up the phone, he hesitated briefly before instructing his secretary beside him:
“I still feel uneasy…”
“…Set the high-frequency ion cannon’s output to twenty units, and keep it ready to switch to overclocking mode!”
“…”
“Hum,” “Hum,” “Hum.”
As all functional departments in Qinggang wound up like tight clock springs, operating at full capacity.
Lu Xin, currently beside the East City temporary quarantine zone, felt a wave of headache-inducing dizziness wash over him.
It radiated from the hundred-meter-tall Red-Cloak Spiritual Monster next to the East Sea Grand Hotel. Its form was growing increasingly distinct.
Visible waves of Mental Energy Fluctuation pulsed out ceaselessly.
Each wave that spread triggered agonized screams and groans from the surrounding people.
Many more, struck by the mental wave the moment it appeared, crumpled to their knees, utterly despondent.
At the same time, inside the quarantine zone, the people who had been shouting and protesting their unfair treatment suddenly changed demeanor. Lu Xin watched as the human expressions vanished from their faces. Yet the Psychic Entities clinging to them suddenly sprang to life, their features twisting with grotesque delight as they surged forward eagerly.
The direction of their surge was precisely towards the East Sea Grand Hotel.
There were at least a thousand people within the quarantine zone; their desperate forward rush formed a dark, churning tide.
…
“Bang,” “Bang,” “Bang.”
Armed Soldiers manning the barricades around the quarantine zone opened fire as the crowd surged towards them.
With flashes of gunfire, those in the front ranks fell in waves.
But Lu Xin noticed something: when they fell, the Psychic Entities haunting their bodies didn’t vanish. Instead, they lunged forward even more fiercely.
They charged ahead, tearing into the Psychic Entities on the people nearby.
Grabbing, clawing, pulling at each other—their physical bodies behaving like viscous slime, gradually fusing together amid the violent struggle.
The more rapidly the people were shot dead, the quicker the fusion occurred.
It wasn’t just them. Outside the quarantine zone, from the tall office buildings, shopping malls, and residential complexes, equally agonized and despairing wails pierced the air. These were the Mutants who had successfully hidden earlier, evading capture or forced relocation to the quarantine zone. Now, changing just like those inside the zone, they desperately surged towards the East Sea Grand Hotel.
Driven by an overwhelming, visible urge, many simply jumped down from high floors.
It was like dumplings dropping into boiling water.
Along the paths they traversed, ordinary residents watched in confusion, many beginning to exhibit strange symptoms.
Some showed expressions of intense pain; others gazed into nothingness, vacant-eyed, resembling walking corpses.
…
“Woooo…”
A deep, resonant siren began to wail, echoing throughout the entire city.
This was the Level One Alert sound—activated for the whole city.