115: Chapter 115 The Mysterious Amulet

Nakajima Shinichi's body froze on the spot.

That voice didn't seem to come from behind him; it felt like it had bored its way directly out from the gaps between his bones.

Cold.

Deathly still.

Without a trace of human emotion.

Slowly, with a mechanical speed that was almost rusty, he turned around.

He saw it.

At the edge of the billowing dust, in the deepest darkness before dawn, that figure stood there quietly.

He wore no camouflage.

That face, illuminated by the distant firelight, was half in light and half in darkness.

Those eyes, like two bottomless ancient wells, calmly reflected his death.

"Mr. Hound, have you decided how you want to die?"

Chen Xi asked again.

His tone hadn't changed at all, as flat as if he were asking "Have you eaten yet?"

Nakajima Shinichi's heart was gripped tightly by an invisible hand.

The coolness, professionalism, and wisdom he took pride in were completely ground into powder at this moment.

He wasn't facing a Soldier.

Not an agent.

It was an incomprehensible monster that had crossed dimensions.

Fear, like a floodgate opening, instantly submerged his reason.

But he didn't beg for mercy.

As a top-tier agent of the Empire, he had his own dignity.

He just stared fixedly at Chen Xi, the last flicker of a crazed flame burning in his eyes.

"Monster..."

He squeezed the words out through his teeth.

Then, he moved.

He suddenly drew a specialized military dagger from his waist and lunged toward Chen Xi's throat in a desperate, suicidal posture.

His movements were as fast as lightning.

For any ordinary Soldier, there would be absolutely no chance of survival under this lunge.

But Chen Xi was no ordinary Soldier.

(Too slow.)

The moment Nakajima Shinichi lunged, Chen Xi's body had already reacted.

He didn't retreat.

He just tilted his body slightly.

By a hair's breadth, he let the lethal blade pass by.

At the same time, his elbow, like a cannonball firing, slammed upward with force.

Bang.

A dull, heavy thud.

Chen Xi's elbow strike accurately smashed into Nakajima Shinichi's wrist that was holding the dagger.

Crack.

The sound of bone shattering was exceptionally piercing in the silent night.

Nakajima Shinichi let out a muffled groan of pain, and the dagger flew out of his hand.

But he didn't stop.

Using his other intact hand, he turned his palm into a claw and clawed fiercely at Chen Xi's eyes.

This was the purest form of fighting, trading life for life.

A flicker of imperceptible approval flashed in Chen Xi's eyes.

(He's a tough character.)

He still didn't retreat.

His left hand, like a steel pincer, instantly clamped onto Nakajima Shinichi's lunging palm.

Then, he twisted hard.

Another crisp sound of bone dislocating.

Intense pain caused Nakajima Shinichi's face to instantly twist and deform.

Chen Xi took a step forward with the momentum and slammed his knee hard into the man's abdomen.

Nakajima Shinichi's entire body arched like a cooked shrimp, and he vomited up all the stomach acid and bile.

Chen Xi let go.

Nakajima Shinichi collapsed to the ground like a puddle of mud, gasping and twitching violently.

He had lost all ability to resist.

Chen Xi looked down at him from above, his gaze showing no fluctuation.

He slowly raised the weeding sickle in his hand.

Just then.

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse inside Nakajima Shinichi's open collar.

Something was hanging there.

Something that shouldn't have appeared here.

It wasn't a standard Japanese Army dog tag.

Nor was it a common amulet.

It was a strange pendant made of some unknown, yellowish animal bone and an exceptionally smooth, polished black stone strung together.

On the bone, some twisted symbols were carved that didn't belong to any known script.

Under the reflection of the surrounding firelight, that black stone seemed to be absorbing the light, exuding a weird, heart-palpitating depth.

Chen Xi's brow furrowed slightly.

He leaned down and ripped the pendant from the broken neck chain.

To the touch, it had a warm, jade-like texture.

But it was heavier and colder than jade.

(This thing...)

(Doesn't look like something from this era.)

He didn't think much of it.

He lightly slashed the weeding sickle toward the unconscious Nakajima Shinichi on the ground.

No sound.

No blood.

Only a neat incision, instantly charred by high heat.

Having finished this, Chen Xi stood up.

He placed the strange amulet in his palm and examined it carefully.

"System, scan this object."

He issued the command in his mind.

[Ding... Scan beginning...]

[Scan complete.]

The next second.

A line of text that made Chen Xi's pupils shrink appeared on his retina.

[Weak but unique energy fluctuations detected...]

[Warning: Energy type is outside the known physical scope.]

[Preliminary judgment: Suspected "Bio-Psionic" signal residue.]

Bio-Psionic?

What on earth is that?

Is the sci-fi game suddenly turning into high fantasy?

[Holy crap? Bio-Psionic? What the hell is this? Did Master Xi kill a Jap or a Space Marine?]

[Don't talk nonsense, the person above; this is clearly an Evil God sacrifice! Cthulhu is coming online!]

[It's over, it's over. The world-building of this game seems much more complex than we imagined!]

["Great Wall" Command Center requests an explanation! What is Bio-Psionic?]

The bullet chat in the Livestream room instantly exploded after a brief silence.

In the "Great Wall" Command Center, all the physicists and occult experts also crowded around, looking at the line of text on the screen with expressions as if they had seen a ghost.

Chen Xi's heart sank.

He had a strong intuition.

This amulet and the "Bio-Psionic" energy it represented likely involved the core secrets of this "game" world.

A secret far grander and more dangerous than the war itself.

He gripped the amulet tightly in his palm; the cold touch slightly calmed his chaotic thoughts.

He knew now wasn't the time to investigate this.

He looked up at the distant sky.

The first light of dawn had already pierced through the darkness.

He opened the system map.

On the map, the light points representing the experts on the "Rescue List" were still flashing one by one.

They were still waiting for him to save them.

Chen Xi tucked the mysterious amulet into the innermost pocket of his clothes.

Then, he activated the Chameleon Cloak.

His figure once again blended into the endless shadows of the ruins of Nanjing.

Some riddles could be solved later.

But some things had to be done now.