Aberrant Seeds

Xiao Xiao was slightly surprised and looked at her.

When this powerful boss was brought up, he remained calm. "I was raised by them, and I understand their lives and their thoughts. When I was in school, I was often ridiculed because of my background, so I fought back. As a result, the fight got fiercer and fiercer, and the bigger the commotion got, the more famous I became, and that's how I got to where I am today."

"Of course, there were also many... good people!"

She seemed to emphasize the word "good people," and her voice carried a hint of sarcasm as she said, "They asked me why, since I was raised by such people and understand their suffering, I don't help them escape this sea of misery? Heh, it's precisely because I understand that I know they can't escape this sea of misery, and that they were even forced into it by some reason."

"The only thing that can help them is to let them earn this money steadily."

"So, after I gained my own abilities and power, I got involved in so many industries and managed so many people."

"Essentially, Jin Biao and I are in the same line of work, but our methods are different. His methods are too cruel. He kidnaps girls everywhere and locks them up in his underground kingdom. He tortures them by any means necessary. Even if they are rescued, they have already gone insane..."

"... Thankfully, I found you to help me."

"..."

As Xiao Xiao listened, he couldn't help but feel a little surprised.

Unintentionally, I learned about the boss's background and gained a better understanding of my job.

This city is truly amazing...

All the memories and personalities of the indigenous people are given by it; in other words, it controls the most fundamental aspects of the city.

But why did he transform this city into a dark, chaotic, desperate, and insane place?

Logically speaking, if the city's will is willing, it can easily and instantly eliminate all injustices in the city, turning it into a happy and prosperous paradise without suffering, inequality, bullying, or Paradise, right?

This city also seems to fear the Pain Substance and those Aberrant Creature, so it needs outsiders to cleanse it.

But without this desperate environment, where would these Pain Substance come from?

Or is it...?

... Xiao Xiao vaguely guessed an even more terrifying answer, but deep down he was still not quite sure.

"Ding ding ding..."

Just then, the phone in the rabbit's earpiece rang again. She picked it up, glanced at it, and then hung up again.

"What's wrong?"

Xiao Xiao noticed that she seemed a little guilty, so he asked her without making a sound.

"That tomboy is pressuring me again..."

The Rabbit Ears pouting and little mouth sticking out, said sullenly, "Really, who's the boss here anyway..."

Xiao Xiao didn't care about those things, and asked about something else, "You just mentioned that there are many people like that woman?"

All around, the music from the Old Record Player rang softly.

The pace even quickened, seemingly with a sense of urging.

[Stingy owner, one is enough?]

They want more, ten more!

[...]

Xiao Xiao frowned, deliberately ignoring the Old Record Player's urging.

Actually, it wasn't just her who wanted it; I wanted to give it to her too.

Just now, by curing this one woman, the Old Record Player gained forty points of Pain Substance.

This couldn't help but tempt Xiao Xiao; if only she could find a few more...

... Wouldn't that mean I could get something for free again?

The more I think about it, the more I realize that this is the most important thing.

Everything in this city seems chaotic and disorderly, yet it also seems to be heading towards some kind of purpose.

But after all, I'm just a newcomer, and I know too little about this world, so thinking too much is useless.

Further pointless speculation will only plunge you into greater panic and confusion.

Right now, upgrading Old Record Player is probably the most important thing, isn't it?

"Right."

When Xiao Xiao brought up this topic, Rabbit Ears nodded solemnly and said, "There are many more, and they all look pretty much the same."

"The sisters we rescued are all like her."

"..."

Xiao Xiao immediately stood up and said, "Take me there."

The Rabbit Ears were startled by the unquestionable tone of the command, looked up at Xiao Xiao, and suddenly smiled sweetly:

"Okay..."

"..."

Just then, the phone rang again, and he answered it immediately, saying, "I'm at the Iceberg Bar!"

"You're there! I'm coming right away!"

Gao Ning's roar immediately came through the phone, "I'm warning you, don't mess around! That person is very capable; she's a talent we recruited. If you try anything funny and drive her away, how are you going to explain this to all these sisters..."

"Playing the unspoken rules?"

Xiao Xiao listened from the side, feeling somewhat helpless.

This city is inherently a bit unreliable; it's picked up all these bad habits...

And it's really not very friendly to ordinary people like myself.

"Alright, alright, why would I engage in any underhanded practices?"

The Rabbit Ears said, "I'm a big boss, can't I just throw money at him?"

"But don't worry, I'm here to talk to him about serious business. Now you can come with us to the sanatorium."

"..."

"..."

When Xiao Xiao and the others came downstairs, they saw Gao Ning's car had just arrived at the store entrance. The Rabbit Ears simply waved to her without saying a word, politely came over and opened the back door for Xiao Xiao, then stood aside stammering and waiting. Xiao Xiao was about to go directly to the passenger seat, but seeing that the boss had opened the car door for him, he had no choice but to obediently sit in the back seat.

The Rabbit Ears closed the car door for him, and he obediently ran to the other side to get in the car.

"?"

Gao Ning was stunned, staring blankly at the rearview mirror, and said, "You're supposed to be our boss, do you have to fawn over us like this?"

"It's all for our sisters."

The Rabbit Ears replied seriously, "He can heal the group of sisters we rescued."

"He?"

Gao Ning was genuinely surprised upon hearing this. He glanced at Xiao Xiao, who was sitting upright, in the rearview mirror again and whispered, "Those girls have been driven crazy by those devils. Now, they need at least three men for each of them every day, otherwise they will hurt themselves, self-harm, or even commit suicide, causing all sorts of trouble... Several stores don't even have enough male escorts, yet you say he can manage on his own?"

Rabbit Ears nodded. "Yes, I've seen it with my own eyes."

Gao Ning's gaze towards Xiao Xiao immediately changed.

Xiao Xiao could only sit helplessly in the back seat, thinking that Gao Ning must have misunderstood something.

However, he also noticed from the details that Gao Ning seemed to know nothing about the strangers, so he didn't bring it up to avoid trouble.

Since it was the BOSS who had spoken, Gao Ning didn't say much and turned the car onto the main road.

Several cars followed at the same time, and the group drove off in a great hurry, seemingly oblivious to traffic lights, heading towards a certain place.

When Xiao Xiao first heard them mention "sanatorium," he thought it was similar to where Yang Jia worked. But when he arrived, he found that it was actually just a private clinic. It was quite large and had a full range of services. However, the doctors and nurses all had an air of being somewhat unprofessional but quite skilled. They had already come out from a distance to greet them.

"This is our own hospital..."

Rabbit Ears excitedly explained to Xiao Xiao, "Our most professional skill is treating sprains and cuts, and stitching up severed hands and feet."

"He's also quite adept at burning people."

"..."

Xiao Xiao understood and nodded. "It's a perfect match for my major."

Without saying much, he simply got out of the car indifferently and walked towards the hospital accompanied by Gao Ning and Rabbit Ears.

He was accompanied by a row of tall bodyguards, which certainly gave him an imposing presence.

As he stepped into the hospital, a strong stench of decay immediately assaulted his senses, as if he had entered a world of the dead.

Everyone else appeared normal, seemingly unaware of the smell.

Only Xiao Xiao frowned slightly, but maintained a nonchalant expression, though inwardly he was thinking:

"This is going to be a big hit..."

What exactly are they doing?

Just as Xiao Xiao entered the clinic, a cold wind suddenly blew across the empty street.

Everything that seemed normal on this street began to subtly become distorted at this moment.

On the power lines spanning both sides of the street, an Orange Cat with graceful steps suddenly showed a human-like expression on its face.

A newspaper, blown by the wind, quietly landed on a telephone pole across the street.

The photo of a serial killer in the newspaper suddenly came to life, its sinister eyes warily scanning its surroundings.

A pair of red eyes flashed from the gap between the two trash cans.

Meanwhile, in an attic across the street, a woman who was being intimate with her husband was pushed to the edge of the bed. Her face, which was tilted back, suddenly showed a moment of confusion, but then her eyes became bright and alert. She let her husband do his thing, while she calmly stared at the clinic across the street.

"These people who were rescued from the Rotten Kingdom should, in theory, cause the spread of the mutation."

"However, it must have been Mister Ye who intervened, forcibly suppressing the Pain Substance within these infected individuals to below the critical point. But this is only temporary. Once he can no longer suppress them, these rescued people will suddenly transform into Aberrant Creature..."

"At that time, the entire city will be bursting with blossoms..."

"Even if Black Hand Yang Jia, is incredibly powerful, he will be powerless and can only watch as the city's will obliterates everything..."

"But why would she send someone like this?"

"Does he have a way to deal with these Aberrant Seeds?"

"..."

An invisible spiritual fluctuation flowed between them, revealing a hint of surprise and bewilderment:

"What could he possibly do?"

"The Pain Substance wasn't eliminated at all. I think he just had a special item of the same origin, which he used to absorb the Pain Substance from that woman's body. However, I also find it hard to understand. Special items have a limit to the absorption of Pain Substance. Isn't this guy afraid that the special item he has will reach its limit and Pain Substance will collapse instantly?"

"..."

Everyone was puzzled, and no one could get an answer from each other, until someone suggested:

"Keep guessing like this, it's not a solution. Should we go in and take a look?"

"..."

"Agree."

"No problem, we should go in and take a look."

"What is he up to? A closer look will make it clear..."

Everyone agreed, but after talking for a long time, no one moved, and an awkward atmosphere arose among them.

After a long silence, someone tentatively asked, "Why aren't you going?"

Why aren't you going?

"How could I dare to go? Last time, even Black Hat Old Cui almost got fed to the dogs. I'm not even as capable as Old Cui..."

"You're afraid of me, but I'm not?"

"..."

After a brief exchange of shoving and pushing, everyone fell silent again and quickly reached a consensus:

"Let's look around outside then..."

"As long as I can go back and report to the boss, that's fine..."