Pei Nan was dead --- suddenly and without warning.
Even Dustin didn’t react in time.
Staring at Pei Nan’s exploded skull and her
corpse lying in a pool of blood, Dustin frowned slightly, and the smile on his
face quickly disappeared.
There had been no attacker. It wasn’t suicide
either. Her head exploded because someone had implanted a Gu worm in her ahead
of time.
This particular Gu had been hidden inside her
head, lying dormant and undetectable, not affecting the host at all.
However, the moment the host intended to betray
the Bone Cult, the Gu would awaken --- and immediately self-detonate.
This kind of internal explosion was impossible
to guard against.
Dustin had not thoroughly examined Pei Nan’s
body earlier, which led to the oversight and allowed the Gu to go off.
Otherwise, with his current skills, destroying
a worm in someone’s brain wouldn’t have been difficult.
In fact, even Pei Nan herself hadn’t realized
she’d been implanted. Otherwise, she would’ve self-detonated long before
enduring so much pain.
“What happened? She had a Gu worm?”
At this moment, Margaret stepped forward,
looking at the corpse on the ground, her brows furrowed.
“Yes. A very well-hidden brain Gu,” Dustin
nodded.
“What a shame… We didn’t get any useful
information,” Margaret said, a bit disappointed.
“Even if she had revealed the location of the
Bone Cult’s headquarters, we might not have captured anyone.”
Dustin’s expression remained calm. “She allowed
herself to be captured on purpose --- to ambush key personnel from Dragonmarsh,
and to use herself as a vessel to spread the blood plague, turning the entire
city of Pucheng into a death zone. By the time she made her move, I’d wager the
real leadership of the Bone Cult had already relocated.”
“Good point.”
Margaret nodded in agreement. “If you hadn’t
been here today, we wouldn’t have been able to stop that blood mist.”
Dustin opened his mouth and spat out the
blood-colored orb he had previously swallowed. It floated down into his palm,
spinning slowly.
“Want to study this thing?”
He handed the crimson orb to her. “According to
Pei Nan, it’s the so-called Blood of the True Bone God. The energy inside is
sinister and unclean, but as long as it’s not strongly stimulated, it won’t
explode easily.”
“A strange object like this… definitely worth
researching.”
Margaret accepted the orb without hesitation.
She didn’t know much about the Bone Cult. Most
of her knowledge came from old intelligence files.
Now that she had encountered them in person,
she realized the Bone Cult was far more dangerous than she had imagined.
They worshipped something known as the True
Bone God.
What exactly the True Bone God was, she still
didn’t know.
But now, with this so-called divine blood, they
might be able to uncover some clues.
…
Meanwhile, in Wugang City, at the City Lord’s
Manor…
After hearing his subordinate’s report, Li
Wenxing finally relaxed his tense nerves.
He hadn’t slept well in days, constantly
dealing with the outbreak.
It wasn’t until yesterday --- when Margaret had
sent a prescription --- that the rampaging plague had finally been brought
under control.
Infection rates had dropped significantly, and
the symptoms of those already infected had begun to ease.
While not a cure, it bought precious time.
Time was what he needed most. As long as he
could stall long enough for the two divine physicians to develop an antidote,
the plague would eventually be resolved.
And when that happened, he would be hailed as
the greatest hero of the southern border.
“Your Highness! Bad news!”
Just as Li Wenxing was lost in thoughts of
glory, Qian Jin rushed in, face full of panic and dread.
“What happened? Why are you so flustered?” Li
Wenxing frowned, already feeling a sense of unease.
“Your Highness! We just received word --- a
massive outbreak of red poison mist suddenly erupted inside the hospital where
the plague patients were being treated!
This mist is extremely corrosive --- anyone it
touches is completely devoured, turned into pools of blood.
Everyone inside the hospital is already dead!”
Qian Jin’s words were like a bombshell.
“What? All dead?!”
Li Wenxing jumped out of his seat in shock.
“You must be mistaken! How could this happen all of a sudden?!”
“It all happened so fast. The specifics are
still being investigated, but it’s true --- there were no survivors!” Qian Jin
said grimly.
“You mean… the divine physicians, Fang and
Zhong --- they’re dead too?!” Li Wenxing’s eyes widened, cold sweat beading on
his forehead.
“Neither of them made it out…” Qian Jin hung
his head heavily.
He knew very well --- those two were Li
Wenxing’s trump cards, the key to ending the plague.
Now that they were dead, it was a crushing
blow.
Thud!
Li Wenxing collapsed back into his chair, face
ashen. “With the divine physicians dead… how are we supposed to contain the
plague now?”
“Your Highness! Right now, the plague is the
lesser problem. That red poison mist is the real threat! It’s still spreading
--- and fast. Everything in its path is left barren. At this rate, it’ll reach
the City Lord’s Manor in half an hour!” Qian Jin warned gravely.
“What? It’s still expanding?!”
Li Wenxing was filled with despair.
The plague hadn’t even been resolved yet, and
now this red poison mist had appeared.
Was the world determined to drive him into a corner? - Ton
Comments