207: Chapter 207 Continued

Halfway through lunch, Ravi returned from outside the courtyard, holding a rolled-up newspaper.

"Mr. Li, take a look at this."

He spread the newspaper out on the corner of the dining table and pointed to a report on the second page. The headline was printed in large font in the local language, and translated, it roughly meant:

"Miracles Appear Repeatedly at Holy Temple, Believers Pray All Night Throughout the City"

"Last night, all the bronze bells in the temple rang all night without stopping. The dharma assembly is still continuing today, and the High Priest stated bluntly that this is a warning from the Snake God; someone is coveting the holy objects in the holy temple."

Li Xin glanced at the report. It was quite long, taking up half a page, and included a photo.

At the temple entrance, people were kneeling densely, spreading from near to far, a sea of heads with no end in sight. After reading it, he folded the newspaper and pushed it aside, continuing to eat the fried egg left on his plate.

"The news has been reporting these things every day for the past few days."

Ravi nodded, his tone carrying that inherent local reverence for the divine: "Yes, everyone is saying that the Snake God is guarding the holy treasury, and those disrespectful people will suffer retribution sooner or later."

Li Xin didn't respond. He finished the last bite of bread, took a few sips of water from his cup, and stood up.

Returning to the study, he sat at the desk, opened the old album, flipped through it, then closed it. In his mind, the System was running data, the cooldown countdown ticking down grid by grid, not fast or slow, just like usual.

He didn't go downstairs much throughout the day. Dinner was brought up by Ravi—a plate of fried rice and a bowl of soup—and he ate most of it. Outside the window, the sunlight shifted from bright white to dim yellow, and shadows circled the floor.

Occasionally, the sound of chanting could be heard from afar, intermittent, as if someone were chanting non-stop.

Toward dusk, Liu Mo walked up to the second floor.

Standing at the doorway, he said in a low voice: "Boss, there are many people gathered outside. All three streets are completely blocked, and the intersections are full of police cars. I passed the alley entrance just now and saw two traffic police officers standing there, staring intently at passersby."

"Are they searching our place?"

"No, they just passed by and took a look, then walked away."

"Understood."

After Liu Mo left, the study went quiet again. Li Xin sat in his chair, watching the sky gradually darken outside the gap in the curtains.

The orange-red afterglow receded, the sky turned gray-blue, then deep blue. The streetlights came on, spreading a small patch of dim yellow light on the ground.

He stood up to stretch his waist, went to the bathroom to wash his face, and returned to sit down.

"Cooldown countdown: 00:03:21."

He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes for a moment. He didn't think about anything; he just let his body calm down. His breathing slowed, and he could feel the rhythm of his chest rising and falling becoming steady; his heartbeat was neither fast nor slow.

"Cooldown ended. The sixth round of Extraction window has opened. Current Divine Domain suppression intensity assessment: increased by approximately 35% compared to the first round. Predicted speed: 19 tons/hour. Expected mental pressure: extremely severe. External meteorological disturbances will resonate with the Divine Domain's stress response. It is recommended that the host maintain a low-activity, seated state throughout."

He didn't hesitate and started it directly.

The moment the progress bar started moving, he felt something completely different from the previous rounds. The air in the entire room seemed to have been partially extracted, and sitting there, he could feel a faint sense of vacuum, and a slight pressure appeared in his ears, the kind one only gets when altitude changes.

The wind outside hadn't picked up, but the windows were vibrating slightly, and the glass emitted a very low-frequency humming sound, as if someone were constantly beating a large drum in the distance; the sound was too far away, and only the vibrations were transmitted.

Hallucinations appeared within an hour.

Faster than any previous round, and clearer than any previous round. The seated statue of Vishnu occupied almost the left half of his field of vision, a gray, semi-transparent silhouette. The lines of the ancient robes draped over the shoulders were layered, and each layer was flowing slowly.

The black, snake-shaped shadow on the right was larger than ever, hanging down from the ceiling. At the head position, a pair of dark regions resembling eyes could faintly be seen, staring at him.

He knew what those things were. He knew they were the final instinctive struggle of the Divine Domain after being mostly hollowed out, using mental deterrence to stop him from continuing.

But he just sat there, staring at the patch of light on the desktop.

The light was still there, warm yellow, with a slightly rough edge. He watched that light, not turning his head to look at those hallucinations, not trying to distinguish their specific appearance, not feeling the sense of presence they emitted that made one's neck chill. He only watched the light.

"Progress: 24%. Mental pressure has reached a moderate level. Physiological indicators such as heart rate and blood pressure show mild stress fluctuations, still within the safe range."

He felt his fingers go a bit numb, like when blood circulation is poor from sitting too long. He moved his fingers, clenched his fists and relaxed them, repeating it a few times, and the numbness receded a little. Then he rested his hands on the edge of the table again and continued to watch the light.

Auditory hallucinations began to overlap after half an hour. Those chanting sounds were no longer coming from outside, but appeared directly in his mind.

Many people were chanting simultaneously, using a language he didn't understand, but the rhythm was exactly the same, as uniform as if one person were chanting. The sound wasn't piercing, but it was persistently present, like an audio track playing on a loop in his mind.

Beneath this layer of chanting, he could hear other things. The hissing sound of a snake's tongue, clearer than before, as if something were flicking its tongue not far behind him. And that extremely low-frequency humming that made one's tooth roots ache; even clenching his molars couldn't fully block it.

He pulled his attention back to the patch of light. The light was a bit whitish, not as yellow as before, but he still watched it, ignoring the other sounds.

"Progress: 41%. External meteorological disturbance has begun. Wind speed continues to rise; multiple strong gusts are expected within the next two hours. Divine Domain stress index is climbing synchronously."

The wind outside had indeed picked up. First, it was the light wind, the sound of coconut leaves swaying slightly, then it slowly grew larger, the curtains began to billow, and the papers on the table were blown over a few pages. Li Xin reached out to press the papers down, then pulled his hand back.

That feeling of being pressed from all directions came again. It was heavier than before, as if invisible water were pushing against him from all directions, and he felt a bit of real pressure on his chest.

It wasn't just mental; there was also a physical heaviness, as if someone had placed a thin, heavy object on his chest.

He adjusted his sitting posture, leaning back slightly to let the chair back share some of his body weight. The pressure on his chest didn't lighten, but it didn't get worse either, maintaining a tolerable level.

The hallucinations began to overlap. Beside the seated statue of Vishnu, there were other outlines, smaller ones, like attendants standing on both sides. The black snake-shaped shadow on the right became larger, and the pair of dark regions at the head seemed to be moving slowly, looking at him.

He didn't look at them, continuing to watch the light. The light had turned from warm yellow to near white, and the roughness at the edges had increased, like water vapor covering the surface of a light bulb. He still watched it, not thinking about whether it had really changed.

"Progress: 58%."

The wind outside was blowing very hard. The curtains were blown fully outward, and items on the table were swept onto the floor.

That album fell to the floor with a clatter, flipping open a few pages. Li Xin didn't bend down to pick it up; he just reached out to hold down the teacup on the table during the dozen seconds when the wind was strongest, only letting go when the wind eased a bit.

A new sound was added to the auditory hallucinations. The sound of chains dragging on the ground. Very heavy, the sound of metal colliding, one by one, as if someone were dragging heavy chains somewhere. That sound appeared behind him to the left, very close, as if separated by a wall.

He didn't turn his head.

Outside came the sound of something being blown over, from the direction of the alley. Then came people's shouts, which were unclear in the wind, probably calling for someone to dodge or something similar.

"Progress: 72%. Current mental pressure is approaching the peak of this round. Hallucination density continues to rise. It is recommended that the host temporarily deactivate some sensory anchors to reduce the risk of information overload."

Li Xin adjusted his breathing, pulling some of his attention away from the surrounding sounds. He didn't deliberately block anything, just let himself focus more intently on that patch of light. The light was now grayish-white; the warm color was completely gone, and the edges were blurred like dissolved ink.

He could feel time moving forward, though not quickly. The numbers on the progress bar were constantly refreshing deep in his consciousness.

Seventy-four, seventy-six, seventy-eight.

The wind outside stopped for a few seconds, then surged again, even stronger than before. This time he heard the sound of something smashing against the courtyard wall, very heavy, probably a large tree branch or a sheet of metal. Then came the crisp sound of glass shattering—he didn't know whose window it was.

He didn't move, just continued watching that patch of light. The light had turned into a very faint gray, almost invisible, but he still watched that position.

"Progress: 89%."

The hallucinations reached their densest state at this moment. The seated statue of Vishnu occupied almost the entire wall, and the folds of every layer of the robe were clearly visible. The snake-shaped shadow coiled around the statue, its head hanging down less than two meters above his head, and that pair of dark regions seemed to be looking down at him.

Chanting, chain sounds, snake tongue sounds, humming...

All sounds overlapped on one level, like playing several audio tracks together. The intensity made him feel his temples throbbing continuously, each throb heavier than the last.

He was still looking at that patch of light. The light was gone, leaving only the grayish-white wall, but he watched that position without shifting his gaze.

"Progress: 94%."

The wind reached its peak at this moment. The window frames of the entire house were trembling, the glass creaking, as if it would be blown away at any moment. A loud crash came from the courtyard, likely something large falling over; perhaps a branch of that coconut tree had broken.

Li Xin heard himself breathing. It was steady, not speeding up. He could feel his chest rising and falling evenly, the intervals between each inhalation and exhalation were about the same.

[ Progress: 98%. ]

The hallucinations suddenly froze for a moment. The silhouette of Vishnu stopped, the serpentine shadow stopped, and all sounds cut out at the same instant. It wasn't that they disappeared, but a pause, as if someone had pressed a pause button.

Then everything receded simultaneously. The silhouette of the seated statue began to fade from the edges like smoke blown away by the wind, the snake shadow contracted into a line and then vanished, and all sounds returned to zero in the same instant; the room suddenly became as quiet as if the air had been sucked out.

The strong wind outside also stopped. That abrupt cessation created a brief sensation of a vacuum in one's ears, like suddenly entering an anechoic chamber from a noisy environment.

[ Sixth round of Extraction complete. This round's intake: 300 tons. Cumulative loss in Room B: 1800 tons. Estimated remaining: 1050 tons. Cumulative gold: 9202.7057 tons. ]

[ Cooling initiated. Countdown: 11:59:59. ]

Li Xin sat there, his hand still resting on the edge of the table. He could feel his heartbeat quickening a bit—not out of fear, but the body's natural recovery after processing that high-pressure state. He eased up for a few seconds, unclenched his fist, and saw the white marks pressed into his palm by his fingernails.

He stood up and walked to the window, pulling back the curtain to look out. It was already midday, and the alley was in a mess.

A bedsheet, likely hung out by someone, had been blown into the middle of the road. There were several broken flowerpots on the ground, the trash can at the base of the wall had toppled over, and garbage was scattered everywhere. But the wind had stopped, and everything was slowly returning to stillness.

He closed the curtains and went to the bathroom to splash his face. The cold water against his skin made him a bit more alert. He looked at himself in the mirror; his complexion was worse than yesterday, his eye sockets sunken, and his lips cracked. He wiped the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand and turned back to the study.

Sitting down, he picked up his phone and took a look. Liu Mo had sent a message an hour ago: "The wind outside is very strong, we have already returned indoors, are you alright over there?"

Li Xin replied: "I'm fine, you all get some good rest."

After sending the message, he placed the phone on the table, leaned against the back of the chair, and closed his eyes. His eyelids were heavy, but he knew he couldn't lie down to sleep now; once the cooling window passed, he had to proceed with the seventh round. He sat with his eyes closed for a while, letting his heartbeat slowly subside and his muscles relax.

After it quieted down outside, the sound of chanting began to drift from the distance again. It wasn't as uniform as before, intermittent, as if they were still keeping it up, but everyone was just very tired.

Drowsiness washed over him, and he fell asleep in the chair. When he woke up, the horizon was still dim, and picking up his phone, the time had passed midnight.

He had slept for a full dozen hours or more, feeling only soreness and weakness in his limbs, filled with exhaustion, unable to muster any energy.

The System cooling countdown had less than an hour left.

He straightened his back, drank a few sips of warm water, and slowly moved his shoulders and wrists. His muscles were aching, a stiffness accumulated from sitting still for a long time. He stood up and paced back and forth in the room for a few minutes, and only when his limbs felt a bit more limber did he sit down again.

He took out some food brought from home from the System space and ate a hearty meal. Just as he finished, the item cooling time ended.

[ Cooling finished. Seventh round of Extraction window is now open. Current Divine Domain suppression intensity assessment: increased by approximately 42% compared to the first round. Predicted speed: 17 tons/hour. Expected mental pressure: Ultra-heavy. This round will be the peak pressure round of the entire process; it is recommended that the host make comprehensive psychological and physiological preparations. ]

Li Xin looked at those words, shifted his chair forward, and sat firmly again. His hand rested on the edge of the table, his gaze falling on the patch of streetlamp light filtering in through the gap in the curtains.

"Initiate."

The progress bar started to move. Almost at the same time, he felt that pressure slam down more directly than in any previous round. It wasn't a gradual increase; it was full-force from the start.

There was a buzzing sound in his brain, as if something very heavy was pressing down from above his head, making his neck stiff.

The hallucinations appeared simultaneously within five minutes. The seated statue of Vishnu, the serpentine shadow, the silhouettes of those attendants on both sides, the ancient patterns scattered on the ground.

All of them unfolded at once, filling every corner of his vision. Those outlines were no longer semi-transparent gray; they carried a deep, dark golden luster like that on old bronze ware, with a texture so real that it was hard to convince himself they were just hallucinations.

The sound of chanting rang out simultaneously from every layer of his brain, mixed with the sound of chains dragging on the ground, the hissing of snake tongues, and that low-frequency buzzing. All the sounds layered together, causing his auditory System to produce an overloaded, dull pain.

He could feel his temples throbbing, with a greater intensity than in any previous round, causing the edges of his vision to tremble slightly. He closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them.

That halo of light remained where it was, warm yellow and soft, with shallow, blurry edges, quietly covering the position to the left on the table.

His gaze was firmly locked onto this light. Ignoring the endless hallucinations around him, blocking out the chaotic strange noises in his ears, letting those sights and sounds become increasingly realistic, he remained completely unmoved. In his eyes, in his heart, only this patch of warm light remained.

A violent wind suddenly rose outside, making the window frame creak, and a layer of fog formed on the glass.

[ Progress: 19%. ]

He felt his back sweating; his T-shirt was sticking to his skin again, the cold and damp sensation very uncomfortable. He leaned his body forward, letting his back leave the chair back for a short while, then leaned back again.

A new sound was added to the auditory hallucinations—footsteps. Not actual footsteps from outside, but ones appearing in his brain, as if someone was walking in the corridor behind him, boots stepping on the wooden floor, step by step, very slow, very clear.

He did not look back.

[ Progress: 31%. ]

The wind outside blew for a while and then stopped again. In the brief silence, he heard his own heartbeat, a bit faster than normal, but not to a degree that would cause concern. He counted his breaths; the air he inhaled went in through his nasal cavity and came out through his mouth, maintaining the rhythm.

[ Progress: 48%. ]

The hallucinations reached their maximum density and clarity at this point. The seated statue of Vishnu was almost clear enough to see the facial contours.

That peaceful, downcast expression, as if looking down on everything, made one instinctively want to lower their head to avoid eye contact. The serpentine shadow coiled around the seated statue, the scale patterns on its body surface faintly visible, each one with delicate changes in luster.

He did not look at them. He looked at that light.

The light changed. The warm yellow turned into a dark red, as if the light had been filtered by something, but he didn't care and kept looking at that position.

[ Progress: 63%. ]

He felt his fingers gripping the edge of the table trembling slightly. Not out of fear, but a spontaneous tremor after the muscles had been tensed for a long time. He tried to release his fingers to move them, then placed them back.

The wind outside started blowing again. This time he heard a loud crash from the distance, muffled, as if something had fallen from the sky.

Immediately following, noisy human voices erupted. Countless shouts mixed together, torn apart by the howling wind, blurred and chaotic, filling the air.

[ Progress: 79%. ]

A new layer was added to the auditory hallucinations. This time it was a child's crying, very clear, as if crying in the next room. That kind of crying made him instinctively want to turn his head to look, but he controlled himself. That wasn't real; he knew that wasn't real.

[ Progress: 91%. ]

At this very moment, he could feel his entire body bearing a certain pressure.

It wasn't pain at a single point, but that kind of uniform, oppressive feeling permeating inward from the surface of his skin, as if he were wrapped in something that was gradually tightening. The pressure on his chest increased, and his breathing required more effort than before.

He was still looking at that light. The dark red was still there, but he kept looking at that position.

[ Progress: 97%. ]

The hallucinations suddenly became blurred in the final stage. The silhouette of Vishnu began to disperse, the serpentine shadow shrank into a thin line, and all sounds began to fade away simultaneously.

It was as if they had all moved away at once. The wind outside also weakened rapidly within those few seconds, changing from howling to a light breeze, and then stopped.

[ Seventh round of Extraction complete. This round's intake: 300 tons. Cumulative loss in Room B: 2100 tons. Estimated remaining: 750 tons. Cumulative gold: 9502.7057 tons. ]

[ Cooling initiated. Countdown: 11:59:59. ]

Li Xin leaned against the back of the chair, not moving. He could feel his palms were full of sweat, and there was a thin layer of sweat on his forehead too. His temples were still throbbing, but the intensity was slowly decreasing.

He looked down at his hands; his fingertips were a bit pale from gripping too tightly. He slowly released his fingers, watching the color return to normal as blood flowed back.

Outside the window, the sun was blazing high in the sky. He picked up his phone and glanced at the time; it was already past two in the afternoon.

He stood up and paced, stretching his stiff and aching knees and shoulders, then stood quietly against the wall, letting his exhausted body slowly recover.

The seventh round was over; there were still three rounds left.

He sat down again, leaned against the chair back, and closed his eyes. The remnants of those hallucinations in his mind had not completely dissipated yet, occasionally flashing in the darkness behind his field of vision like embers—lighting up and then extinguishing.

Watching those residual points of light slowly disappear completely, he felt his heartbeat drop back to the normal range.

Outside the window, the sunlight was scorching, so bright it made one unable to keep their eyes open.