75: The obsession engraved in the soul

Su Lei glanced at the nurse Young Miss guarding on the side.

This seemingly fragile woman could actually maintain balance with precision when his Mental Energy was on the verge of collapse.

The moment their gazes met, Lin Xiaoyu was struck as if by lightning.

This one glance seemed able to slice through the flesh and pierce straight into the depths of the Soul.

"Wuu..."

Lin Xiaoyu's body trembled violently, her knees went weak, and she knelt heavily on the ground.

Her expression remained wooden, yet tears uncontrollably slid down her face.

Mental suggestion could imprison thoughts, but it could not lock away the body's most primitive instinct of fear.

Su Lei slowly stood up from the medical pod.

Lin Xiaoyu picked up the neatly folded black combat uniform from the side, knelt on both knees, and personally helped him put it on.

Her white, tapered fingertips occasionally brushed against his skin, feeling ice-cold, like a Puppet without temperature.

Su Lei turned his head to look into the distance, a cold arc curling at the corners of his mouth.

—Two months of Mental Energy tempering, the Perfection of Ten Steps, One Kill.

He was very much looking forward to seeing how many slashes the prey in reality could withstand?

Lin Xiaoyu gently zipped up the combat uniform, lowered her head, and bowed, saying: "An hour ago, General Lin Xiaotian sent someone to pass a message, saying that as soon as you wake up, you should go to the command headquarters to see him immediately."

...

Su Lei did not go to find Lin Xiaotian; instead, he headed straight to Wang Kai's office.

The other party was deploying missions in front of the tactical screen. Hearing the door open, he looked up, was visibly stunned upon seeing Su Lei, and then immediately smiled.

"You're awake? The medical pod report said you would need at least..."

"Where is Lin Qingcang?" Su Lei interrupted him in a low voice.

The other few officers in the command room instantly fell silent, the air seemingly congealing.

Wang Kai's smile froze on his face.

He waved his hand, signaling the others to withdraw.

Only after the door closed did he lower his voice and say: "Why are you asking about this?"

"He is involved with the Seventh Research Institute." Su Lei stared into Wang Kai's eyes. "I need to find him."

"You, why are you still investigating this matter?!" His voice was lowered even further, almost squeezed out from between his teeth.

"Didn't I tell you, once they discover you..."

Facing Su Lei's calm gaze, Wang Kai's voice stopped abruptly halfway through, his expression slowly becoming complex.

He recalled the beast tide that day, remembered those comrades who had been torn apart...

Although the Seventh Research Institute had already been declared abandoned by superiors years ago, and although that disaster was attributed to an "accidental incident."

Yet, the evidence their four-man team had collected back then indicated that this matter was far from over.

Some experiments might still be continuing.

That beast tide might have been a carefully planned "test"...

As a member of the Western Military Region, he had always been unwilling to believe this cruel fact.

But the orders from his superiors also made him bury all his doubts deep in his heart.

Now...

After a long silence, Wang Kai finally let out a long sigh, as if he had made a certain resolution.

"You must have your reasons for doing this."

"To be honest... I am also very unwilling to let this go."

He paused, his Adam's apple bobbing, as if suppressing some emotion.

"Two days ago, which was the day the Leide Group incident occurred, Lin Qingcang left the Central Military Region."

"Destination unknown?" Su Lei sneered. "The second-in-command of the Western Military Region can just vanish into thin air?"

Wang Kai shook his head. "Not vanished, it's some kind of emergency mission. At least that's what the military department's announcement says."

He paused, his voice lower. "But there is one thing very strange..."

"I'm not clear about other places, but the day he left, higher-ups transferred all the research personnel and equipment away from me."

A trace of unease flashed in Wang Kai's eyes. "It seems they are going to conduct some... special research."

"Thanks." Su Lei turned and walked toward the door.

Wang Kai stood up abruptly. "Wait! Where are you going?"

"To see that Commander of the Western Military Region."

"Even if you get Lin Qingcang's whereabouts from him, so what? Don't forget that guy's status!"

"And so what?"

"You!" Wang Kai couldn't help but roar lowly. "Do you know what you are doing? Are you trying to make an enemy of the entire Western Military Region?!"

"I know, but this matter must have a conclusion."

It was not just to complete the mission assigned by the higher-ups, nor was it just to take revenge for those comrades.

After digesting all of PX-1's memory fragments, he saw the entire life of that pitiful person.

A natural Mental Energy ability user, possessing a happy family, his wife's gentle smile, his younger sister's lively figure, the envious gazes of everyone in the Martial Alliance Association...

He brought his wife and younger sister to the Western frontier region full of hope,

yet on a night of torrential rain, he was dragged into a dark and damp dungeon by military personnel.

Listening to his wife's heart-rending cries, watching his younger sister's desperate struggle, he went completely insane.

His Mental Energy went berserk, destroying the entire Seventh Research Institute.

And then, exhausted, he was captured by the military again in the desert.

Afterward came even darker memories: the cold experimental table, monster genes injected into his blood vessels, the excruciating pain of flesh being torn and reconstructed, and the despair of his mind being eroded day after day.

The anger and hatred in those memory fragments made Su Lei's fingertips tremble uncontrollably.

"Completely destroy the Seventh Research Institute, kill the mastermind..."

This faint plea sounded in the depths of his heart from time to time.

It was as if it were the only obsession engraved into the Soul of that pitiful person.

Watching Su Lei's departing back, Wang Kai opened his mouth, unable to say a single word.

...

Western Military Region Command Headquarters.

Lin Xiaotian stood with his back to the door, in front of the holographic sand table.

The sand table projected the Western terrain, with one area marked in scarlet—Death Desert.

Hearing footsteps, he turned around. Before Su Lei could speak, he pointed to the scarlet area on the sand table.

"One day ago, a reconnaissance team lost contact in the Death Desert. In the last transmitted footage, an abnormal energy reaction appeared."

He pulled up a blurry video—

In the footage, yellow sand filled the sky, and a distorted black shadow could be vaguely seen sweeping past, its speed so fast that the lens could barely capture it.

Immediately after, the signal was interrupted, and the screen was filled with static.

"We believe it might be some kind of unknown Vicious Beast, or..."

Lin Xiaotian paused, looked at Su Lei meaningfully, "An experimental subject from the Seventh Research Institute."

Su Lei's gaze flickered slightly.

Did Lin Xiaotian know he was investigating matters regarding the Seventh Research Institute?

Or was this, in itself, just a test?

"Your mission is to investigate clearly and retrieve the reconnaissance team's recorder."

Lin Xiaotian threw over a metal chip. "This is the coordinate."

Su Lei took the chip, his fingertips rubbing against the cold surface, contemplating in silence.

After a long while, he looked at the other party with a cold sneer. "Just me alone?"

Lin Xiaotian replied with a smile. "With your strength, it should be enough."

Seeing Su Lei still silent, he added another sentence.

"By the way, Lin Qingcang and his people are also there."

"If you encounter difficulties, you can seek their help."

Big Wolf Book Source Warm Reminder: Due to special reasons, the group was forcibly disbanded! A new group has been rebuilt, Group 1 number (298732622), Group 2 (1062268835) to prevent loss of contact, tg: t.me/dahuilang888, this message will be displayed until tomorrow noon!