184: Chapter 184 Navigating the Ghostly Shadows, Cleverly Breaking the Murder Trap

The moment the monster's sickle-like limbs swung down, he lunged forward in a dive and roll, barely squeezing through the gap between the two intersecting, slashing sickle shadows, and took the opportunity to hide behind a massive cylindrical cooling tower!

"Clang! Pshhh!"

The sickle limbs struck the metal shell of the cooling tower, sparking blinding flashes and leaving deep dents, but failing to penetrate. The cooling tower emitted a dull hum.

The monster let out an angry hiss, its massive body knocking aside several thinner pipes as it turned to pursue behind the cooling tower. Its movement speed was extremely fast during straight-line charges, but in an environment crowded with equipment and limited space, its turning and maneuvering were slightly clumsy.

Ling Ye leaned his back against the cooling tower, breathing heavily, his gaze sharp as lightning, rapidly scanning the monster's entire body.

Its carapace was thick and covered in eye-shaped patterns, but at the junction of its neck and torso, the folds of its joints, and the base of the writhing tentacles on its back, the carapace seemed thinner and lighter in color. Especially that pair of pale compound eyes; although covered by translucent eyelids, they were clearly its sensory weak points.

The monster's attack method mainly relied on the swift slashing and stabbing of its forelimb sickles, occasionally using its body to ram. The blue tentacles on its back moved constantly, seemingly sensing the environment, but were not yet used for direct attacks.

"Skree!" The monster rounded the cooling tower, its compound eyes locking onto Ling Ye, and its six pairs of sickle limbs rose again, descending like a storm of death!

Ling Ye did not take the hit head-on; he pushed off the ground and darted behind a pile of metal scaffolding wrapped in various pipes and valves! At the same time, he swung his crowbar backhanded—not at the monster, but smashing it hard against the connection of a loose, arm-thick steam discharge pipe on the scaffolding!

"Clang! Pshhh!"

The sound of the crowbar striking and the monster's sickle limbs slashing the scaffolding rang out almost simultaneously! The scaffolding shook violently, and the steam pipe connection, already rusted, burst open under the heavy blow! Scalding white steam sprayed out like a high-pressure water gun, instantly enveloping most of the monster's body!

"Screee!" The monster let out a painful, sharp hiss! The high-temperature steam clearly caused it significant damage and interference! Its pale compound eyes seemed particularly sensitive to heat and humidity changes, instantly closing their eyelids, and the writhing tentacles on its back curled up frantically!

A chance!

A cold light flashed in Ling Ye's eyes. Under the cover of the pervasive steam, he darted out from the other side of the scaffolding like a cheetah. His crowbar was no longer swinging horizontally; instead, like a javelin, infused with all his strength and "Qi," he thrust it fiercely toward the slightly lighter-colored gap in the carapace at the junction of the monster's neck and torso, which had opened slightly due to its pain!

"Puchi!"

The sharp tip of the crowbar, bolstered by his strength and "Qi," actually pierced through that relatively fragile carapace junction and plunged deep inside!

Dark blue, viscous blood emitting a cloying, fishy stench instantly sprayed from the wound!

"Roar!"

The monster let out an earth-shattering roar filled with pain and fury! Its massive body twisted crazily, and its sickle limbs flailed wildly in Ling Ye's direction! But due to the excruciating pain and steam interference, its movements had lost their accuracy.

Having succeeded with one strike, Ling Ye did not linger. He immediately let go and abandoned the crowbar, retreating rapidly while grabbing a broken steel pipe with a sharp edge from the ground, looking for another opportunity.

The crowbar remained stuck in the monster's neck, wobbling with its struggles and continuously causing secondary damage as dark blue blood gushed out.

The monster went completely berserk! It no longer cared about the surrounding equipment, its massive body crashing around, breaking several thinner pipes. More coolant and steam gushed out, causing chaos in the equipment level. Visibility dropped sharply as the sounds of roaring, crashing, hissing, and liquid spraying mixed together.

Ling Ye crouched low, weaving through the pervasive steam and splashing droplets, using various pieces of equipment as cover, calmly observing the frenzied monster.

The severe neck injury affected its movement and balance. Its frenzied, indiscriminate attacks were rapidly draining its stamina and continuously causing additional grazing damage to itself.

It was time to finish it!

Ling Ye's gaze locked onto the base of the wildly writhing blue tentacles on the monster's back, which were occasionally exposed during its frantic flailing. The notes mentioned that these tentacles were important sensory and energy conduction organs for "abyssal eye" derivatives. If he could destroy them...

He spotted an opportunity; the moment the monster's body became briefly stiff after a violent charge, he darted out from behind a control cabinet!

He used the sharp steel pipe in his hand as a javelin, exerting all his strength to hurl it fiercely toward the area where the tentacles were most densely rooted on the monster's back!

"Whoosh—Thwack!" The steel pipe accurately passed through the gaps between the writhing tentacles and slammed into the carapace crevice on the monster's back! Although it didn't penetrate deeply, the sharp broken edge successfully severed and disrupted several important blue tentacles!

"Screee!" This hiss was no longer pure pain and anger, but carried a hint of panic and weakness! The severed tentacles hung down limply, and what sprayed from the wound was no longer dark blue blood, but a translucent blue mist that radiated an even stronger "sense of discord"!

The monster's massive body convulsed violently, its movements instantly slowing and stiffening, as if it had lost part of its power source. The light in its pale compound eyes rapidly dimmed.

Now!

Ling Ye did not hesitate. He picked up a heavy maintenance sledgehammer that had dropped to the ground (it was unknown when it had been left there) and charged toward the monster, which was temporarily paralyzed from the severe damage to its tentacles. He circled to its side and rear, aimed at its pale compound eye—which was slightly lowered due to pain and covered by an eyelid—and used his last bit of strength to smash down hard!

"Bang!" A dull thud accompanied the sound of carapace shattering and some kind of viscous liquid bursting open!

The monster's final hiss stuck in its throat. Its massive body collapsed to the ground, convulsed violently a few times, and then stopped moving. Only dark blue blood and blue light mist continued to seep slowly from the wound.

It was dead.

Ling Ye leaned on the sledgehammer, breathing heavily. Sweat mixed with coolant and the monster's blood soaked his entire body. The icy sensation in his left arm became active again due to the intense battle, bringing waves of stinging pain. But he had succeeded! Relying on the environment, his intelligence, and precise strikes, he had single-handedly taken down a powerful elite derivative!

There was no time to rest. He immediately pulled the crowbar (covered in slime) from the monster's neck and picked up the steel pipe. He then quickly searched the monster's corpse. He didn't find any valuable items, but the complete, eerie "eye-shaped patterns" on its carapace, as well as the remaining blue tentacles on its back, perhaps... contained information about the "abyssal eye"?

Resisting the nausea, he used the crowbar to pry off a piece of carapace with a complete eye-shaped pattern and cut off a small, relatively intact section of a blue tentacle. He wrapped them roughly with the remaining bandages and stuffed them into his pocket. Perhaps they would be useful later.

After doing this, he looked toward the entrance of the "Alternative Maintenance Passage" locked by a combination padlock. The padlock was still there. The previous chaos hadn't reached here.

He walked up to the lock and raised the heavy pipe wrench in his hand. There was no time to try the combination; he had to break it by force.

"Clang! Clang! Clang!" Under the cover of the roaring machines, he smashed the lock shackle with the pipe wrench. After a few blows, the sturdy padlock finally deformed and snapped open.

He threw away the broken lock and pulled open the rusted iron grating. Behind it was a dark, deep, narrow pipe slanting downward, only wide enough for one person to crawl through while hunched over. The inner walls of the pipe were smooth, seemingly made of some polymer material, and the air was filled with an even stronger smell of chemical coolant and machine oil.

This was the "Alternative Maintenance Passage" leading to the "Third Isolation Valve" and the hiding spot of the xuanyuan ring!

Without hesitation, Ling Ye bent over and crawled in, pulling the iron grating back as close to its original position as possible.

The inside of the pipe was pitch black, with only endless darkness ahead. He turned on his PIT, utilizing the last faint bit of screen light before it died completely (which was almost useless), and combined it with his "Spiritual Sense" to feel his way down step by step.

The pipe was long with a gentle slope. After walking for about five minutes, a faint light appeared ahead. It was the end of the pipe!

He quickened his pace and reached the pipe exit. Outside the exit was a small, enclosed chamber filled with pale blue cold light.

In the center of the chamber was a massive cylindrical device surrounded by transparent observation windows, its interior filled with constantly circulating, pale blue fluorescent coolant. Countless pipes were connected to it, emitting a low hum. This was one of the cores of the "Coolant Circulation Hub."

On the wall to one side of the chamber, there were three huge isolation valves lined up, each with a red valve wheel and pressure gauge. On the third isolation valve, there was a faded label: "#3 Isolation Valve - Leads to Deep Sample Storage Area (Abandoned)."

Found it! The Third Isolation Valve!

According to Senior Researcher Chen Qinghe's notes, the hiding spot was right behind this valve!

Ling Ye walked to the Third Isolation Valve. The valve wheel was severely rusted but seemed capable of turning. He tried to apply force, but the valve wheel didn't budge. It required immense strength, or... lubrication?

He looked around and found a can of nearly dried-up penetrating lubricant on a tool rack in the corner. He sprayed the remaining lubricant onto the valve wheel shaft and threads, then gripped the valve wheel with both hands, exerting all his strength to begin rotating it slowly.

"Creak... Creak..." The teeth-grinding sound of metal friction rang out, and the valve wheel began to turn extremely slowly. Each rotation was exceptionally difficult, draining the stamina Ling Ye had just barely recovered.

But he gritted his teeth and persisted. One turn, two turns, three turns...

After about a dozen turns, the valve wheel suddenly loosened!

"Pshhh!" A cold, stale-smelling gust of air leaked out from the edge of the valve! The valve had been opened!

Ling Ye pulled the heavy valve open just enough to create a gap and squeezed inside.

Behind the door was a short, upward-sloping metal staircase. At the end of the stairs was another small door with no markings.

He walked up the stairs and pushed open the small door.

Behind the door was a completely sealed metal chamber, only a few square meters in size. In the center of the chamber was an old-fashioned mechanical combination safe fixed to the floor. The safe was covered in dust but remained intact.

On the floor next to the safe lay several yellowed pages and an open, empty black velvet ring box.

The ring box was empty! Ling Ye's heart sank! Could the xuanyuan ring have already been taken by someone else?!

He hurried forward and picked up the scattered pages. They were Senior Researcher Chen Qinghe's manuscript, written in a scrawled hand, seemingly in a rush during his final moments:

"It's too late... 'It's' tentacles have already infiltrated here... I can feel it... The safe's combination is... (a complex string of numbers and star chart symbols, exactly the 'birthday + star chart sequence' mentioned in the notes)...

"The 'bone ring'... I cannot take it with me... nor can I leave it for 'It'... and even less can I let the Corporation or The Scavengers obtain it...

"I have hidden it... in the most dangerous... and also the safest place... right under 'Its' 'nose'... in... the B7 Main Hall... inside the emergency maintenance passage beneath the base of the central isolation chamber... There is the final barrier there... and... a small psionic concealment field I preset... I hope... it can deceive 'It'...

"Successor... if you can find this place... and get this manuscript... remember... the 'bone ring' requires the resonance of the Ancient Ring to be truly activated... Be careful... the 'Gatekeeper' there... is 'Its' most loyal servant... and the one I feel most guilty toward..."

"...Farewell... this crazy world..." The manuscript ended there.

Ling Ye gripped the papers, his heart surging with waves of emotion.

The xuanyuan ring hadn't been taken by someone else; instead, at the very last moment, Senior Researcher Chen Qinghe had moved and hidden it in an even more dangerous location: the lower level of the base of the B7 Main Hall's central isolation chamber! Directly beneath the main body of the "abyssal eye" sample!

This was truly a case of "darkness under the lamp"! The most dangerous place was the safest place?

But that place was undoubtedly the most core and dangerous area of the entire Silent Church! It was the place where the power of the "abyssal eye" was most concentrated, and where the "eyes" and derivatives were most dense! Moreover, there was also the "most loyal Gatekeeper" that Senior Researcher Chen Qinghe mentioned, the one he felt "guilty" toward...

This final journey would be a true trip to Hell. However, he had no way back.

The xuanyuan ring was the key to balancing the erosion within his body, exploring the secret of the dual rings, and even countering the "abyssal eye." He had to get it.

He put away Senior Researcher Chen Qinghe's manuscript and looked at the mechanical combination safe. Although the xuanyuan ring wasn't here, Senior Researcher Chen Qinghe had said there were "more complete research Materials" inside.

He tried turning the safe's dial according to the combination on the manuscript. "Click... Click... Click..." With the final soft sound, the safe door popped open.

There was no ring inside, only a few thicker, bound research notes, some old-fashioned data storage blocks, and... a more ancient and tattered star chart drawn on some strange leather. In one corner of the star chart, the phantoms of two interlocking rings were drawn, and next to them, an inscription in ancient text noted: "Key of the Star Gate, orderly dual rings. Ancient Ring guards the gate, bone ring calms the abyss. When the dual rings return to their place, the portal can be secured."

A star chart! Ling Ye felt as if he had found a treasure, carefully putting away the star chart, research Materials, and data blocks. These might contain the ultimate secrets regarding the "Star Gate," the "Gatekeeper," and the true purpose of the "dual rings."

Now, he had a final goal and an even heavier responsibility. He had to return to the B7 Main Hall, sneak into the lower level of the central isolation chamber's base, and find the xuanyuan ring. Then, leave this place alive.

He closed the safe, turned, and walked out of the small chamber, relocking the Third Isolation Valve (to prevent odors from leaking).

Standing in the Coolant Circulation Hub chamber, the pale blue cold light illuminated his scarred yet incredibly determined face. The road ahead would be a true journey of life born from death.

He didn't set off immediately but sat cross-legged, taking advantage of the relatively "safe" environment here (for the moment). He swallowed his last ration, treated the wounds that had burst open during the fight, and went into deep meditation, adjusting his state to the best possible condition.

At the same time, he reopened Senior Researcher Chen Qinghe's notes and the ancient star chart, combining them with the newly acquired research Materials to frantically absorb and understand all the knowledge regarding the "abyssal eye," the "Star Gate," and the "dual rings."

Especially that star chart, which faintly resonated with the Ancient Ring mark, seemed to guide the trajectory and resonance frequency of some kind of energy. Perhaps, before entering the final dangerous area, he could try... to slightly understand and simulate a prototype of "dual ring resonance"? Even if it was just a superficial grasp, it might save his life at a critical moment.

He closed his eyes, his consciousness sinking into the Ancient Ring mark, and comparing it with the spectrum records in the star chart and notes, he began to try extremely carefully...