An Aberration in Bronze City

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

Every time he tried to focus, a throbbing pain would come from behind his eyeballs, as if some mechanism was protecting him from seeing what was inside.

But Lu Yuan still managed to capture the fragments.

An outline that is wrapped up.

Curled up, enormous.

It does not belong to any living organism.

It does not belong to any conceivable species.

The curve of that outline was twisted, like a piece of paper being folded.

The outline remained unchanged.

But Lu Yuan knew it was alive.

Because the chains were trembling.

Then it turned its head.

It noticed.

Separated by countless layers of chains, by an endless city.

Through a fading dark green gap

It saw itself.

[You have glimpsed something Taboo.]

[Brave humans, daring to look directly at His silhouette with their Flesh.]

[Your human identity is being transformed... Transformation failed...]

[Sanity: -20...-15...60/120]

The moment Lu Yuan saw Him, the runes of the Bronze City, which had been dormant for who knows how long, burst forth with astonishing light.

Immediately following was a violent tremor, and this ancient city, which had stood on this plain for an unknown amount of time, unleashed its power at that moment.

Majestic, enormous.

A pure and holy aura enveloped the entire city.

But the ground tremors continued.

A loud bang followed.

The dim light reached its peak and then dissipated.

At the same time, Lu Yuan's gaze irreversibly stopped.

Then a voice came.

It wasn't heard through my ears; it appeared directly in my mind.

"Save me... get out of here..."

Low-pitched, slow.

A long silence followed between each word.

"I can... give you... everything... you want..."

Lu Yuan stood still.

Expressionless.

He felt no fear.

There was no wavering.

He simply stared coldly in that direction.

[Forbidden Studies - Seeker: +1...+1...]

The moment the sound rang out, Forbidden Studies began to surge wildly.

Lu Yuan knew what he was facing.

This could be an opportunity, or it could be your downfall.

The outline bound by chains was still writhing.

Those eerie green eyes are still burning.

That voice still Echo in my mind, over and over again.

"... everything..."

Lu Yuan's lips twitched involuntarily.

[Sanity: 30/120]

[Forbidden Studies - Seeker: 11/100]

The image shattered.

Like a puncture in the water, the entire scene shattered into countless pieces in an instant, and then vanished.

Lu Yuan closed his eyes.

The feeling of dizziness returned.

The intense nausea made Lu Yuan quickly leave Sandworm Town and retrieve the last bottle of Sanity Potion given to him by Captain Morris, the Pathfinder.

Without any hesitation, I drank it down.

[Sanity: +15...45/120]

As soon as the medicine was taken, a feeling of clarity immediately arose.

This barely managed to suppress the physical discomfort.

Lu Yuan slowly lay down.

The image I had just seen still lingered in my mind's eye.

It was quiet for a long time.

"... I see."

Morris's claim that the organization was close to Taboo, and his pursuit of the void, was not driven by a thirst for knowledge.

It's a transaction.

They found something that was locked.

Then they made some kind of exchange.

"Oh."

Lu Yuan gave a cold laugh to himself.

It sounds like an ideal.

It's a business transaction.

He wasn't surprised.

From Grim Port to the Bronze City, from the Night Watcher to the Tower of Erudition, every organization he encountered ultimately revolved around the same issue.

To make deals with things beyond human comprehension, and then pretend that's called a "mission."

Morris was no exception.

However, his trading partner was locked up in a city.

"Temporary."

Lu Yuan glanced at his right palm.

Clean and tidy.

That power from the City of Chains was not written into his body.

It wasn't because he refused.

It's because something else took the spot first.

"A Taboo tried to leave its mark on me, but was blocked by another unknown entity."

Lu Yuan closed his eyes.

"Whose pawn am I, really?"

There is no answer to this question.

At least not tonight.

Meanwhile...

Within the Bronze City, countless figures swept through the darkness.

Countless hissing sounds rang out.

Then, a stench spread out.

"Knock knock"

"Lu Yuan, get up quickly, something seems to be wrong with Bronze City..."

Laurina's somewhat anxious voice rang out from outside the room.

Lu Yuan turned his head and glanced at the curtains that were still drawn, with a faint light still seeping through the gaps.

"Um?"

Lu Yuan opened the door, looked at Laurina standing outside, and gestured for her to come in.

Laurina was wearing a silk nightgown and holding a small box in her arms.

He walked in looking somewhat nervous.

"All the runes in Bronze City just lit up!"

Laurina looked at Lu Yuan and continued.

"I read in a book that the last time Bronze City experienced something like this, it was to defend against something."

"All the runes in Bronze City are lit up?"

Lu Yuan strode to the window and pulled back the curtains.

The Bronze City, which should have been shrouded in darkness, was now illuminated by streetlights.

Not far away, one could see the Night Watcher constantly rushing into the darkness.

A faint blue light still clung to the ancient city walls.

Before Lu Yuan could even figure out what it was...

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

A series of gunshots rang out around Bronze City.

Upon seeing this, Lu Yuan instantly realized something.

"Let's go! Light the lamp first!"

Lu Yuan took out his Revolver from under his pillow, strode downstairs, and quickly retrieved a packet of Refined Sandworm Oil.

Pour it onto the kerosene lamp.

A pure white light illuminated every corner of the Alchemy Workshop.

Lu Yuan finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Laurina, who followed behind, looked at the lamp with some pity.

"What a waste..."

As the light illuminated the surroundings, Laurina noticed that Lu Yuan's previously normal complexion had become extremely unpleasant.

His skin was almost entirely pale, and cold sweat could be seen on his forehead.

What did you do?

Laurina's expression changed as she looked at Lu Yuan.

"Aren't you afraid of losing control by pushing your rationality to the limit like this?"

Lu Yuan waved his hand.

"It's alright. My Transcendence Path have given me some resistance to this kind of situation."

Lu Yuan's statement was half true and half false.

But Lu Yuan's expression immediately turned serious.

[Environmental Perception: A large amount of trace Contamination has been detected... A massive amount of trace Contamination has been detected; it is recommended to stay away.]

A very abrupt gray-white notification appeared.

"Take the lamp upstairs, and bring the Sandworm Oil with you. Remember, whatever you do, don't come down!"

Lu Yuan's sudden seriousness made Laurina realize that something was wrong.

Laurina took out two small, round bottles of medicine from a box in her arms and handed them to Lu Yuan.

"It's very effective against strange phenomena, but never use it against the wind; the range is about five meters."

After speaking, Laurina divided the Sandworm Oil into two small bottles and placed them on the table. Then, taking the remaining Sandworm Oil and the lamp, she quickly went upstairs.

Lu Yuan quickly placed the medicine and Sandworm Oil that Laurina had taken out onto his belt.

[Detection Target: Eeriebane Potion (Created by Laurina)]

[A special potion made with bizarre Blood of ██ and special materials through Eerie Alchemy. It can cause considerable damage to any low-level monster. Be careful not to poison yourself.]

Lu Yuan's eyes lit up when he saw the prompt.

[Target detected: Unnamed (created by Laurina)]

[A modified "invisibility" potion, seemingly capable of blocking perception?]

He quickly filled the potion, counted the Silver-Plated Bullets, and put several bottles of perfect-quality Sanity Potion into his waist pouch.

A knock on the door followed.

"Lu Yuan, emergency assembly! Quickly!"

(One more chapter, coming later)