Do you... desire power?

"Doc, Doctor."

"Loka! Loka!!" The continuous roar from Falmu pulled Dr. Loka back from his shock.

The current leader of Kalleva had completely lost his composure, and the gentle demeanor he had shown Loka just moments ago was gone. The burly man was now gripped by extreme anxiety, his hands tightly clutching Loka's collar.

"Stop **spacing out! Get a grip! What are we supposed to do now!" Falmu shouted into the doctor's ear.

Although Falmu had prepared himself for the possibility of playing with fire the moment they began secretly building the factory to study the Great Emperor's Relic, he still tried to salvage the situation when the moment finally arrived.

The Scarlet Star at the core of the boiler was trembling more and more violently, and the innermost containment shield had already shattered completely.

Although several backup shields were struggling to hold on in the outer layers, the cracks appearing on them made it clear that a total collapse was only a matter of time.

The Kalleva gang members on-site, after an initial moment of confusion and stupor, reacted one after another, scrambling toward the exit like a swarm of bees in a desperate bid to survive.

If there was anything in this world more terrifying than nuclear radiation, it was a leak of Corrupt Calamity.

Once the pollution from the Scarlet Star inside the boiler spread, the high-concentration red mist of Corrupt Calamity would instantly engulf the entire factory. These gangsters had seen countless times the miserable fate that awaited anyone trapped inside.

The unfortunate man in the transparent experimental room who had lost his mind and eventually transformed into a Corrupted Corpse hadn't even gone cold yet.

The massive factory was now in total chaos. Dr. Loka shuddered, and he immediately shouted angrily at the researchers at the control console:

"Idiots! What the ** are you doing! Start the emergency containment device and sink the 'Relic' into the ground!"

When Loka designed this boiler system, he had certainly considered such accidents, which was why there was an emergency button on the console.

Once pressed, a tunnel connecting to a depth of over ten meters underground would open beneath the boiler, allowing the Scarlet Star to drop directly down.

"I—I've pressed it several times, Doctor! But... it's not working! It's not just this button; the entire console is unresponsive!"

The researcher was on the verge of tears.

Loka realized the gravity of the situation. Clearly, the containment shield had shattered too quickly. In less than half a minute, the red mist of Corrupt Calamity released by the Scarlet Star had seeped through the cracks into the boiler machinery, contaminating the circuits and components, causing the equipment to fail completely under the influence of the corruption.

Damn it!

That left only one final option.

"Falmu! Get your men to the bottom of the boiler immediately! There is a manual safety device on the rear right side. Pull that switch, and we can send the 'Relic' underground!!"

The reason Dr. Loka had to explain this to Falmu in such an urgent situation was due to a cruel problem.

Who would go?

Anyone with a brain could see that the closer one got to the boiler, the more dangerous it was. In fact, quite a bit of the red Corrupt Calamity mist had already leaked out near the boiler.

Approaching now to pull the manual safety device was no different from walking to one's death. Even if they succeeded in preventing this major leak, there was no chance of coming back alive.

Was anyone willing to sacrifice themselves for the Kalleva factory?

Clearly, Dr. Loka and Falmu, as the leader, were unwilling.

As for the gang members swept by the gazes of these two, they either turned and ran or stood trembling, their eyes filled with fear and refusal.

Forget running over to pull the safety lever; they would likely be scared out of their wits halfway there.

Furious, Falmu drew his gun and aimed it at his own subordinates.

"Do as the doctor says, all of you, get to the boiler!"

The Kalleva leader roared. In his heart, the lives of his subordinates were worth nothing compared to this factory and the Great Emperor's Relic, which represented their hope.

Any amount of sacrifice was worth it to safely survive this accident.

However, before Falmu could prepare to execute one of them to set an example, a commotion broke out. Several nearby subordinates suddenly shouted in excitement:

"Le—Leader! Someone is going! Someone is already walking toward the boiler!"

What!

Both Falmu and Dr. Loka were overjoyed and hurriedly shifted their gazes back toward the boiler.

They spotted the people their subordinates were talking about almost instantly.

After all, while almost every gangster in the factory was running toward the exit, those two Kalleva "members" were moving against the current, heading in the opposite direction of the crowd toward the boiler, making them exceptionally conspicuous.

Furthermore, judging by their demeanor, they were remarkably calm. Especially the young man in the lead—"calm" didn't even begin to describe it.

There wasn't a trace of fear or panic on the youth's face. To describe it in extreme terms, it even gave Falmu the absurd feeling that the man was taking a leisurely stroll in an environment where Corrupt Calamity pollution could erupt at any moment.

But regardless of that.

Falmu breathed a slight sigh of relief. The Kalleva leader secretly swore that if the youth and his companion could truly reach the boiler and pull the emergency device, he would definitely give them a huge bonus and promote them to lieutenants immediately.

Of course, all of this was predicated on the two of them being able to return alive.

It was just a pity that Falmu did not know.

The two Kalleva members they now viewed as the hope of the factory were, in fact, the very culprits behind this Scarlet Star leakage disaster.

At least the youth, for one, was certainly guilty.

"O-old antique, what on earth is happening? Where are we now? And I—I have a really bad feeling about that thing!"

An uneasy voice from the young girl came from behind.

However, Liao Ji did not turn back to comfort her, but instead said bluntly:

"If you still want to find your mother and save her, then... stay close to me."

Under the youth's voice, Irin looked toward the Scarlet Star not far ahead, which they were getting closer and closer to. A subconscious shiver rose from the depths of the girl's soul. She didn't even need the instincts of a Scavenger; anyone who wasn't blind could see the Corrupted red mist already overflowing around the boiler, dancing wantonly in the air as if it were wild.

This feeling was as if there were a bottomless fiery abyss ahead, and what she was doing right now was following the youth as he jumped into it.

Irin answered Liao Ji with her actions.

The girl gritted her teeth, overcoming the fear from the depths of her soul. Supported only by a shred of conviction, she chased the youth's back step by step, following closely behind him without leaving his side.

This was not just her obsession with saving her mother; there was something else, something that seemed even deeper, a feeling the girl couldn't put into words. Perhaps it was a stubborn streak; she didn't want to "fall behind" Liao Ji.

Twenty meters. Ten meters. Five meters.

As Liao Ji shortened the distance to the Scarlet Star with every step, the frequency of its tremors grew more urgent, and the Corrupted impact it released became more violent. It was as if every vibration caused the hearts of everyone in the factory to give a fierce, painful twitch.

One meter.

Finally, the tremors of the Scarlet Star reached their peak. In an instant, everyone at the scene, including Irin following behind Liao Ji, was engulfed by intense dizziness.

The girl felt as if her heart would explode in the next second. All the blood rushed to her brain, a buzzing roar filled her ears, and her neck felt as if it were being throttled. The deep sense of suffocation almost made her faint.

This was Corrupted pollution.

B-rank pollution.

And all of this lasted until...

Bang!

Crash!

First came a sound like a heavy object striking, followed immediately by the sound of large-scale shattering. After these two sounds, all the discomfort vanished, and along with it, the pervasive red mist seemed like a hallucination, disappearing without a trace.

Because of this, when everyone finally caught their breath like drowning victims reaching the shore, they regained their senses.

Yet, no one could believe the scene before their eyes.

The leader of Kalleva, Falmu, stood frozen in place as if turned to stone, and Dr. Loka beside him was even more exaggerated; he rubbed his eyes incessantly and even slapped himself hard across the face.

Slap!

But the pain from his cheek told him this was no hallucination.

The scene before him was real; it was reality!

For you see...

At the core of the boiler, the protective cover used to isolate the "Scarlet Star" had been completely shattered, leaving a massive hole. And the culprit who caused this breach...

Was actually the very youth they had placed their high hopes on just half a minute ago!

Of course, these were not the real points of focus.

The point was...

That youth had reached out a hand and then grabbed the Scarlet Star inside the [Isolation Cover].

Grabbed. He actually grabbed it.

He grabbed this terrifying B-rank pollution source, this "Great Emperor's Relic" that Kalleva had spent decades researching with such caution, even building an entire secret factory to preserve and house it?

And judging by the youth's expression, it seemed as simple as eating or drinking? Just a mundane, ordinary little gesture?

Thump.

Dr. Loka had the biggest reaction. He went completely limp and knelt on the ground. He looked as if he were possessed, his eyes staring fixedly at Liao Ji, staring at the Scarlet Star in the youth's hand—which was no longer trembling violently, a world of difference from when it was about to leak and erupt just moments ago, now as docile as a kitten.

Under this scene, Loka felt as if he heard something shattering inside his own mind.

It was his worldview, built over decades of living.

Was it... was it...

Really that simple?

Yes.

It was just that simple.

Holding the "Scarlet Star" in his hand... oh no, excuse me, it should be called by its more professional, true name now.

[Damaged Corrupted Source Essence]
[Quality: ★★★★☆ (Calamity Rank)]
[Rarity: Epic]
[Effect: When used on a Corrupted of four-star quality or below, increases their rank by one star.]
[Corrupted Deviation: When released on a four-star Corrupted, there is a 60% chance of failure and a decrease in rank by one star. When released on a three-star or below Corrupted, there is a 40% chance to awaken an "Exclusive" skill.]

(Those ants that imprisoned it. Those filthy rats that stripped away its power. It is yearning to make them pay a painful price.)

(Sever their limbs! Tear their souls to shreds! Slice these filthy bodies open! Mince them! It wants them to feel the anger that has been silent for five hundred years!!)

Corrupted Source Essence, a rare and precious item in Falling, has effects exactly as its name suggests; it is a valuable "star-up" item.

One must know that no Corrupted is born as a six-star entity. Even for Liao Ji, who achieved a perfect clear in his first playthrough, the highest-talent Esper-type succubus among the five wives he raised, Rena, only had an initial star rating of five and a half.

And the one with the lowest talent, Stia, who was also the first to follow Liao Ji, only started at four stars.

But the reason they were all able to become top-tier six-star Disaster Rank Corrupted later on was because Liao Ji continuously fed them Corrupted Source Essence to raise their potential, break their shackles, and upgrade their star ratings step by step.

Of course, Corrupted Source Essence also comes in different qualities; the higher the star rating, the higher the quality and quantity of essence required.

Since this piece of essence was dug out from a Relic Cave, and this area belonged to the early-game exploration phase of the world map in the first playthrough, the items stored here naturally wouldn't be anything too extravagant.

The piece of essence in his hand right now belongs to the lowest tier, capable only of upgrading Corrupted of four stars or below.

And it looks like.

Liao Ji read the additional content of the Corrupted Deviation again, and the reason for this became clear at a glance.

There was an extra "damaged" entry after the essence, and as Liao Ji held it in his hand, he could feel that the power within the essence had truly leaked away significantly, perhaps leaving less than forty percent? This explained the reason for the added probability of "instability."

And there was also.

Liao Ji glanced at the note in parentheses at the very bottom of the panel, which usually belonged to the background story and history of equipment or items provided for players in the game, and now.

Fine.

Not only from these words, but he could also faintly sense the feeling of anger and grievance that the essence in his hand was constantly conveying to him.

All of this seemed to outline for Liao Ji exactly what this piece of essence had endured during the five hundred years he had been gone.

And now, it had finally returned to the hands of its true master.

Finally, someone could unleash its true power.

It only wanted to do one thing now.

Revenge!

However, the essence itself is not a piece of equipment like a weapon; it is merely a star-up item, so the only way it could exact its revenge was through one path.

A Corrupted.

This Corrupted Source Essence had already sensed that there was someone nearby who carried the master's Contract.

Only a Corrupted who possessed the Great Emperor's Contract was qualified, worthy, and permitted by it to use its power.

Liao Ji sighed.

Perhaps this is the difference between a game and reality. In the game, he could remain calm, analyzing the returns from a god's-eye view to maximize benefits and ensure not a single resource was wasted.

But at this moment.

Liao Ji, holding the Scarlet Star, turned around under everyone's gaze.

And when he saw the young girl who had still followed behind him, who had not retreated despite the Corrupted pollution that had just erupted from the essence, the stubborn girl who hadn't been "left behind" by him, Liao Ji shook his head.

He seemed to understand a little now why the luck attribute on Irin's panel had been an E.

So, should one call her lucky, or unlucky?

But regardless.

Since Irin had persisted to this point and followed him here, he would give her this opportunity; it was what the girl deserved, something she had fought for herself.

Therefore.

Liao Ji stared into the girl's eyes and asked softly, word by word:

"Irin."

"Do you desire power?"