Chapter 22: Racing Against Containment Spread
Chapter 22: Racing Against Containment Spread
Finally, regarding the Shadow Man, after consulting higher leadership instructions, the police directly imposed a gag order.
How to handle it next, the police had no authority to inquire, even refused to file the case.
Superiors notified that the Shadow Man would be transported to the Capital.
But prior to that, a group of Researchers subjected the Shadow Man to a series of experiments.
First was blade and bullet imperviousness, the simplest test.
Confined by four-centimeter-thick alloy plates, the Shadow Man was delivered to various labs like cargo.
Knife slashing!
High-voltage electric shocks!
Flame melting!
Vacuum high-pressure!
As the Shadow Man’s body displayed astonishing resilience, the Researchers intensified their invasive experiments.
Luo Wendi, permitted to observe, watched in terror.
Bai Ge remained composed, calmly observing the Shadow Man.
He personally witnessed the Shadow Man being sent into a furnace, transported to a vacuum chamber, shoved into a high-voltage current cabin…
Unscathed—and, of course, the Shadow Man had no hair.
The Researchers sighed in frustration; they couldn’t ascertain his body composition, only confirmed no internal organs and an empty chest cavity via his mouth; Researchers pried open his mouth to extract Danmu.
Dissection proved unnecessary, as his body resisted any scratches or penetrations.
Luo Wendi couldn’t help exclaiming: “It’s astonishing—he endured all those horrifying experiments…”
“Shall we try soaking him in concentrated acid?” Bai Ge interjected abruptly.
“What?” Luo Wendi wheeled round at Bai Ge, astonished.
Dr. Little Wang nodded: “Point taken. Someone, immerse him in the acid pool.”
“Damn it! You can’t treat me like this! I want to serve the nation! I want… ahhh!” screamed the Shadow Man fiercely.
Before he finished, machinery dutifully crammed him into the acid pool.
Fully submerged in concentrated acid, the Shadow Man stayed unharmed; bubbles arose as the acid corroded the alloy plates binding him.
Dr. Little Wang said gravelly: “The acid provoked no chemical reaction… his body’s components are unbelievable.”
“We examined him under a microscope before; even at 10,000x magnification, he appeared uniformly pitch-black…”
“A terrifying physique.”
Hearing this, Bai Ge seized the opening: “Is he more fearsome, or that sword?”
Dr. Little Wang blurted: “The sword.”
“Why?” Bai Ge inquired.
Dr. Little Wang eyed Bai Ge squarely: “Are you fishing me?”
“I’m merely curious—probably I wouldn’t grasp it even if you explained, haha,” Bai Ge chuckled.
Dr. Little Wang nodded: “The Shadow Man’s menace stems from extreme inertness to chemical effects, but I’m convinced there’s a limit—our testing intensity was insufficient…”
Luo Wendi blurted: “That wasn’t enough?”
Bai Ge clarified: “What comparison? The voltage was merely 100,000 volts; the flame temperature only hit 2,000 degrees Celsius.”
Luo Wendi swallowed saliva, silenced.
He stood by, observing Bai Ge and Dr. Little Wang chat with ease, analyzing the Shadow Man’s peculiarities.
“I think his most dreadful aspect isn’t bodily toughness, but his silent, traceless nature…” Bai Ge stated.
Dr. Little Wang contemplated briefly: “I couldn’t puzzle it out either.”
Bai Ge elucidated: “Firstly, beyond speaking, he emits no sound. Two interpretations: one, every particle in his body lacks motion…”
Dr. Little Wang instantly countered: “Impossible! If molecules weren’t moving, his body should be at absolute zero…”
Bai Ge resumed: “Then only the other possibility: his body radiates some strange force field, magnetic field, or energy… blocking sound propagation. It shields everything he influences, like an instrument he played, muting it.”
Dr. Little Wang concurred: “Highly plausible.”
“Truly? If silence can be marginally explained… what about leaving no traces?” Bai Ge pressed.
Dr. Little Wang fell mute—this utterly defied explanation.
If the Shadow Man were massless? But he possessed mass; ghostly traits not affecting matter contradicted Danmu theft or exertion of a thousand jin force—unresolved.
Nonetheless, Bai Ge understood this as typical Anomalous Trait.
No prerequisites, no subsequent effects, unsupported by objective laws; a singular, isolated feature.
Frankly, unreasonable logic; no deduction required; existence justified itself.
“Alas,” Dr. Little Wang sighed bitterly.
“This leans too idealistic—don’t disseminate it carelessly.”
Bai Ge acknowledged: “I comprehend.”
Dr. Little Wang faced Bai Ge: “You’re exceptional; much credit to you this time.”
“No need. If acid fails… try laser ablation? His pure black body might react uniquely to laser,” Bai Ge suggested.
The Shadow Man overheard, hurling insults: “Shut your mouth! Silence wouldn’t label you dumb!”
Bai Ge regarded him coolly: “Oh? If laser fails, maybe infrasound… given you hear… speak…”
The Shadow Man gnashed teeth; though unharmed, sensations like pain, nausea, and suffocation inflicted discomfort—tolerable, yet agonizing.
“Stop this—mercy, please,” implored the Shadow Man.
Bai Ge retorted instantly: “Avoid further tests by reverting to Human form; human you couldn’t endure it, thus spared.”
The Shadow Man faltered: “I can’t revert.”
Bai Ge countered: “You’re lying. After mere two days wielding this ability, you accept never becoming human?”
“Shadow-state you finds no human joys, societal integration, or facing old loved ones… despite affecting remorse, your actions, like stealing Danmu—rumored fruit for fire resistance…”
“Pardon… but do you possess a stomach?”
Awareness dawned: His hollow abdomen stored goods—yet claimed theft for consumption… contradictions abound.
The Shadow Man knowingly couldn’t absorb Danmu; why act? A method to revert existed?
“I…”
The Shadow Man gaped, silenced.
Grimly staring at Bai Ge: “Why are you so hateful?”
Effectively an admission.
Dr. Little Wang said anxiously, “Can you turn back into a Human? Show me quickly! What’s there to hide? You are a Human; would we ever harm you?”
Bai Ge said, “Doctor, we still don’t know his true identity, and hiding that is his trump card.”
“Once his true identity is exposed, facing the national machine, he will have no escape. If not, as long as he finds a chance to escape, turn back to Human and hide, who would know he is the Shadow Man?”
“As a Human, he would be even less capable of resisting and would also expose his identity. So he lied about always being the Shadow Man, waiting for the right moment.”
“This behavior shows he isn’t sincere about serving the nation; his heart still longs for ‘freedom.'”
“Right? Shadow-kun?”
The Shadow Man looked resentfully at Bai Ge and said, “Right! All right!”
“But what does it matter? I have an immortal body!”
“Say as much as you want; I won’t turn back into a Human; that’s suicide.”
Not knowing the Shadow Man’s true identity was his last trump card, and his hope.
If he turned back now, he had no other choice but to accept the nation’s arrangement.
“Actually, it’s similar now, isn’t it? If you insist on holding out, the only thing awaiting you is lifelong imprisonment. In comparison, in your Human state, you would receive corresponding humane treatment,” Bai Ge said.
The Shadow Man still didn’t give up; he said, “Hmph, since you’re so clever, why not find a way to kill me? Can you really kill me?”
“There’s no need to kill you. Isn’t just having an immortal body anything happy? You would be sealed in concrete, buried underground, unable to move, tormented by suffocation and high pressure; it wouldn’t take long—just a month would be enough to make you break down. Then you would naturally turn back into a Human and kill yourself,” Bai Ge said.
Upon hearing this, the group couldn’t help but shudder.
In fact, everyone knew this was only a proposal; no one present had the authority to dispose of the Shadow Man that way.
But at the same time, the doctors understood this was using words to shatter the Shadow Man’s psychological defenses.
If they could induce him to actively cooperate, it would be a great achievement.
The Shadow Man was indeed afraid; he knew Bai Ge’s word didn’t count, but he couldn’t deny… it made sense.
In a situation like being buried in concrete, even for a day, let alone a month, he couldn’t bear it.
However, the Shadow Man did not compromise since Bai Ge was the one speaking, and his word didn’t count.
“Hehe, hehe,” the Shadow Man laughed coldly with his eyes closed.
Seeing him still persisting stubbornly, Bai Ge felt troubled and thought: “I really want to send him into the Brain Hole.”
But seeing so many people around, he could only think it.
Originally, Bai Ge had planned to simply use the Brain Hole to live his life—earning money, absorbing Energy, waiting for the day he achieved Immortality.
But now, things had changed greatly; he knew he must become stronger as quickly as possible.
“These Containment Anomalies, if controlled by the nation, are fine… but there are always some uncontrolled…”
“And once uncontrolled, they are bound to affect society.”
“For example, the Shadow Man; he only appeared two days ago but dared to break into the Chinese Academy of Sciences. This was when his destructive power wasn’t great… his strength lay in his immortality.”
“If it were a Containment Anomaly with high destruction power, if I encountered it, I’d have no choice but to run.”
“But if I use the Brain Hole to become stronger, it will inevitably lead to more Containment Anomalies.”
For now, this was an unresolvable pressure for Bai Ge.
Yet not using the Brain Hole was impossible… no one could refuse this ability.
“I can only make myself stronger than the Containment Anomalies…”
Bai Ge could not give up on Immortality; besides, so many Containment Anomalies had appeared already; it was too late for him to stop now.
Therefore, the only option was to madly use the Brain Hole to strengthen himself.
Race against the spread speed of Containment Anomalies, making his own strengthening speed surpass potential crises!
Take Containment Anomalies that could be used and incorporate them for his own benefit; destroy unusable ones as much as possible! Or seal them in the Brain Hole Universe!
Until one day, he became strong enough to not care about the appearance of Containment Anomalies, or even welcome them…
After all, the mysterious Energy in the Brain Hole was too vast; the various traits realized through Containment Anomalies were things he needed to accumulate Energy for an unknown amount of time to achieve.
To obtain one Containment Anomaly would be worth him toiling for a long time.
“To deal with the Shadow Man, I used a Temporary Trait; having started this, I can only charge ahead.”
“Hmm… I’ll start with the Shadow Man.”
Thinking this, Bai Ge felt resolved inwardly.
Secretly, he patted his phone against the back of his head and sent it into the Brain Hole.