237: "Old...Old Dean?!"

"No! Absolutely not!"

A decisive ruthlessness flashed in He Jingrui's eyes.

Rather than living in such an unclear way, perhaps even becoming a tool for his enemies, he would rather die gloriously alongside his comrades!

He had to uncover the truth! He had to find a way out!

He Jingrui suppressed the turbulent emotions in his heart, his gaze sharpening as he began to carefully observe the massive chamber.

The inner walls of the chamber continuously writhed and contracted, like the internal organs of a living creature.

He cautiously explored along the inner wall and soon discovered a thicker, more vigorously pulsating "passage," which was the only path from this place to other areas.

After taking a deep breath, He Jingrui carefully stepped into this dim passage, which glowed with a faint light and exuded warm, humid air.

The inner walls of the passage were very slippery and viscous, feeling soft and elastic underfoot.

He felt a strong sense of unease, as if he were treading on the blood vessels or intestines of some giant beast.

The passage twisted and turned, and as he walked, the imagined guards and attacks did not appear; it was so silent that only his own footsteps and the faint sounds of the chamber walls writhing could be heard.

This eerie calm, however, made He Jingrui even more vigilant.

After an unknown period of walking, the space suddenly opened up before him.

An even larger chamber appeared before him.

At the core of this chamber was a "fountain pool" constantly churning with crimson liquid, from which red mist emanated, filling the air with an unsettling, sweet, bloody scent.

The area around the pool was empty, with only the flesh walls slowly pulsating.

"Where is this?"

He Jingrui looked at the entire chamber in confusion. After finding nothing noteworthy, he reluctantly walked to the "fountain pool," just about to lean in and look inside.

The next moment, a woman's face appeared from beneath the "fountain pool."

He Jingrui was startled by this sudden sight and immediately jumped back.

Looking again, a "woman" slowly emerged from the "fountain pool."

The "woman" possessed a figure with curves almost perfectly matching a human female, her skin as pale as cold jade, faintly emitting bioluminescence.

She was almost completely nude, with only crucial areas covered by some shimmering, intricate purple scales. Two small, sharp, curved horns on her forehead indicated her non-human identity.

He Jingrui cautiously retreated a few more steps, his muscles subtly tensing, ready to strike.

However, the "woman" paid no attention to He Jingrui. She merely walked out of the "fountain pool" and then sat down behind it.

At the same time, the fleshy ground beneath her "grew" into a bizarre yet incredibly ornate chair, allowing her to sit steadily upon it.

The "woman" had her eyes tightly closed. Her beautiful, yet expressionless face, exuded a cold, inhuman aura.

Dozens of slender fleshy tubes hung from the ceiling of the chamber, connecting between her waterfall-like hair, trembling slightly, seemingly transporting or extracting something.

This bizarre scene made He Jingrui retreat a few more steps.

The natural oppressive feeling emanating from the "woman," stemming from her life-level, as well as her cold demeanor that regarded all things as ants, made him extremely uncomfortable.

Suddenly, the "woman" raised her hand and pointed at He Jingrui.

Intense hostility and vigilance instantly filled He Jingrui's heart, and the starting stance of the Nameless Fist Technique almost instinctively began to form.

Just at this moment of intense tension—

Plop.

A slight sound came from the side.

He Jingrui sharply turned his head, only to see the fleshy ground beside him writhe, slowly "growing" a peculiar creature.

It was about the size of a palm, its shell a translucent, amber-like texture. It was shaped like a snail but had no shell, its soft body sprawled on the ground, two antennae at its top gently swaying, and a pair of anthropomorphic eyes "looking" at him.

In this bizarre place, the appearance of such a strange creature immediately put He Jingrui on edge.

However, the "snail" suddenly spoke, its voice carrying a playful yet familiar tone.

"Yo, Xiao Ruirui, awake? You're still young, so much morning grumpiness~"

He Jingrui was struck by lightning, freezing in place.

This voice... this teasing tone... sealed memories rushed out like a floodgate, washing over his mind.

In the orphanage, the kind and amiable Old Dean who always said strange things, encouraged him to practice boxing, horse stance, and calligraphy with various snacks... "Old... Old Dean?!"

He Jingrui's voice trembled violently from extreme shock and disbelief.

"Is that you?! You... how did you become... a snail?!"

The "snail" rolled its eyes anthropomorphically, its soft body even leaning back like a person, and retorted grumpily:

"Stinky brat! After all these years, your eyesight is still so off! What snail! This is a Chimera Ant's biological communication terminal! This old man is doing very well!"

Though he was rebuked, He Jingrui's eyes instantly reddened.

That's right! It was that tone! Always sharp-tongued, yet always secretly caring for them—the Old Dean, Hu Xuan!

Immense joy and bewilderment intertwined, leaving him momentarily speechless.

He looked at the unmoving Chimera Ant Queen, then at the "communication snail" on the ground. Countless questions flooded his mind.

"Old Dean, what exactly is going on? Where is this? How are you here? Squad Leader Ban and the others... that woman, no, the Queen, she..."

Hu Xuan let out a soft chuckle through the "communication snail," tinged with a hint of emotion:

"I knew you'd have a belly full of questions, kid. Don't rush, sit down and we'll talk slowly. Don't worry, it's very safe here."

As he spoke, the fleshy ground behind He Jingrui writhed, quickly "growing" an ergonomically designed, soft yet sturdy fleshy chair.

He Jingrui hesitated for a moment, then sat down as instructed, his gaze, however, remained fixed on the "snail," as if trying to see through it to the old man whose whereabouts were unknown.

"I know you have many questions."

The snail wiggled its antennae, conveying Hu Xuan's steady voice.

"Simply put, I have a bit of a collaboration with Director Ye Chen from the research institute. This time, well, we teamed up to set a trap, luring this Chimera Ant colony and those annoying guys into a single sweep."

He Jingrui was somewhat bewildered.

"Director Ye Chen?"

The snail shook its head and continued:

"Oh, right, you haven't met him, kid."

Hu Xuan's voice carried a hint of complexity.

"It's good that you don't know him, it's best if you never do. That guy's mind is as deep as the ocean, even I, an old man, can't see through it."

He Jingrui sat obediently, quietly listening to Hu Xuan's rambling. He felt that it would be nice if this moment could just continue indefinitely.