Chapter 773 - 667: There’s Another Person, Just Like Me (Part 2)

Chapter 773: Chapter 667: There’s Another Person, Just Like Me (Part 2)

At this moment, the sky and earth were no longer distant, but they were divided and cut into countless black cubic shapes of varying sizes by these endless moving black lines, continuously stretching and shortening.

These cubes were not tangible, yet more suffocating than physical matter. Together, they formed a vast, immensely complex, constantly transforming... cubic labyrinth.

Feng Mu’s eyes widened, his pupils rapidly contracting with intense shock.

At this moment, stripping away all complex thoughts, his heart echoed a single most primal, simple character that expressed ultimate shock and absurdity—"Fuck!"

But if one had to describe in detail the tumultuous shock within him, its magnitude was perhaps equivalent to that night, when the chosen Night Watcher was first stunned by the sight of "Moon Reading".

"It feels like the real world I am in is also divided into countless grids and units by some terrifying force.

Is it essentially a larger, more terrifying ’Eternal Imprisonment Corridor’?!?!"

This thought stabbed deeply into Feng Mu’s heart, making him feel a long-lost fear from the depths of his soul,

"What the hell are these black lines?"

Feng Mu moved his gaze laboriously, staring at the black lines hanging from the sky, feeling they were more strange and unsettling than the drifting black aura,

"They don’t show health bars, cannot be touched, cannot be understood... what is the meaning of their existence?"

"Does the other end of the black lines lead to Upper City? Is Upper City weaving and manipulating all this?"

His gaze tried to trace the black lines upwards, but they quickly disappeared into the complex, cold metal structure at the base of Upper City, making it impossible to discern the endpoint.

"Is it Upper City weaving these black lines, or are they penetrating through Upper City, continuing upwards until..."

Feng Mu dared not think further, unable to come up with an answer unless one day he could climb up the black lines to their other end and look back down to perhaps see the full picture.

Many things, when you look up from below, are always shrouded in mist, obscured, deceived, but if one day you can look down, perhaps all secrets will be revealed in detail.

Feng Mu’s face was somber as water, the slight expansion and joy from his recent mad upgrades were instantly diluted by the overwhelming reality, becoming insignificant.

The sense of strength still remained in his whole body, but it was overshadowed by a more immense horror and pressure.

He let out a long breath and then somewhat stiffly leaned his head back, looking above him.

"... All right."

He felt a slight relief in his heart, his tight jawline easing a bit,

"Although I have no idea what these black lines truly are, at least... there are none above me."

As far as he could see, there were no black lines growing above his own head.

"It should be like the black aura attached to the body’s surface, thoroughly purified and broken off by the three previous Bone Marrow Cleansings, especially the last nirvana-like cleansing, right?"

He could only make such a seemingly reasonable guess.

Because this is an unsolvable paradox.

Initially, he couldn’t see those black aura and lines, and when he finally could "see" them, they had already disappeared from his own body.

He could never witness with his own eyes exactly how the black aura or lines entwining himself disappeared; that critical "moment" was eternally buried in his blind spot of vision.

This is like a person who, from the moment of birth when they first open their eyes, can never go back to see—the moment they initially opened their eyes.

Feng Mu slowly pressed down the shock in his heart and slowly lowered his head, retracting his gaze.

The next moment.

His movements, his just-steady breathing, even his flowing blood, seemed to freeze in an instant.

He stood there rigidly, like a statue, with cold sweat uncontrollably oozing from his forehead.

A detail he had ignored, extremely horrifying, like a delayed explosive, finally detonated in his mind.

"Wait... wait a minute!!"

"It’s not just me... it’s not just me who doesn’t have black lines above my head!!"

"There’s one more person... there’s one more person who also doesn’t have black lines above her head!!!"

Feng Mu’s mouth and tongue went dry, a chill emanating out of his bones.

He wanted to turn his head and look back toward the stairwell behind him, but his neck felt like a rusted iron tool, unable to turn for a long time.

Because just now, in the stairwell behind him, he clearly... clearly didn’t see any trace of black lines above his mother Wang Xiuli’s head!!!

At that time, having completed the Bone Marrow Cleansing and gaining a new perspective, Wang Xiuli was the first "living person" he saw.

As for the other neighbors in the building, although he could "see" their silhouettes and movements in a black and white view, that view couldn’t "see" the black aura or lines.

Because the black aura or lines didn’t have health bars or physical entities, they couldn’t be captured by air vibrations, and naturally, they couldn’t be seen through Feng Mu’s black and white vision.

So at that time, in his vision:

There were no black lines on his own body, none on his mother, and "none" on the other people in the building (because they were invisible).

Feng Mu naturally thought everything was normal, that there was nothing wrong with him or his mother.

But now, standing here, seeing the terrifying network of black lines connecting the sky to earth and every living being, he suddenly, as if struck by lightning, realized it!

The neighbors in the building should all have black lines above their heads, but he just hadn’t seen them from inside his own home.

The only exception was his mother Wang Xiuli, whom he had gazed at directly with his evolved "Eye of Truth".

He remembered very clearly, he indeed hadn’t seen any black lines on his mother, only that she, like the household items, was stained with the black aura from the environment!

Feng Mu: "..."

He felt a chilling sensation surge from the soles of his feet, straight to his head, more piercing and sinister than ever before.

I have no black lines because I have "washed" myself to be clean enough.

But mother, what about you? What did you... rely on?

Feng Mu’s breathing became heavy, an almost uncontrollable urge boiling in his chest.

He almost turned to rush upstairs, to go home and ask his ever-caring mother about everything thoroughly.

But after much thought, Feng Mu ultimately relied on his strong willpower to suppress the intense urge to seek the truth.

He didn’t turn back; he just slightly closed his eyes.

In the darkness, an image quietly surfaced in his mind—the black and white version of his mother standing in front of the bathroom sink, repeatedly scrubbing her shoe soles with care.

The pale mirror reflected her equally pale smile, still so familiar, so loving.

After a long silence, Feng Mu silently withdrew his gaze and emitted a light, meaning unclear laugh from his throat, pretending as if nothing had happened, and strode away...

...

When Hou Wendong arrived at the hospital, the sky had completely "lit up".

The hospital building was brightly lit, like a giant beast crouched in "Brightness", silently devouring the flow of people coming and going.

His steps were brisk, the sound of polished leather shoes striking the smooth tiles echoed sharply and clearly.

The special care ward area was at the end of the corridor, relatively quieter. On a bench at the door, constables in uniform were quietly talking, faces weary and alert.

They fell silent the moment they saw Hou Wendong come over and snapped up from their chairs, standing straight.

"Secretary Hou!"

The four of them spoke almost in unison, their tones respectful with a hint of unnoticeable tension.

Hou Wendong didn’t have time for pleasantries; his gaze directly passed over them, falling onto the ward, impatiently asking:

"What exactly is going on now? What’s Li Shang’s condition, and when will he wake up?"