Apocalyptic Era: Starting from picking up a Bishoujo
Chapter 213 - 202 VS Dr. Silver Mask 1

Chapter 213: 202 VS Dr. Silver Mask 1

I tried to attack Dr. Silver Mask using light as the medium, but nothing happened.

Dr. Silver Mask stood there unharmed. It wasn’t because my skill activation had failed, but because he had somehow neutralized my skill with some method. After completing his defense, he seemed to have confirmed something and showed an expression that suggested he had anticipated this outcome.

"Just as I hypothesized, the secret to breaking ’Shadow Entanglement’ is ’light,’" he said.

"How did you figure that out?" I asked tentatively.

From my observations, even though he could use the power of restart, he was actually devoid of combat ability and relied solely on the Divine Seal Fragment implanted near his heart for power. It would be more accurate to describe him as an ordinary person wielding a powerful artifact rather than a powerful individual in his own right. He certainly didn’t possess Chen Long’s extraordinary sixth sense, and yet he quickly saw through my trick, which I found puzzling. Could it be because he’s an expert in the research of the power of the strange that he has such insight?

"Light has always been the natural counter to ’shadow,’ so it’s not hard to understand as a direction for suspicion. Afterward, by combining the nature of your power with the whitelist mechanism of ’Shadow Entanglement,’ it’s quite easy to deduce the truth," he explained, "And to defend against your move is actually very simple."

I had also figured out his means of defending against my skill.

It was indeed extremely simple; he had merely deployed a high-density Magic Shield around himself. This laboratory was already equipped with multiple layers of protection, and he likely manipulated the equipment to adjust it to his surroundings.

The high concentration of mana itself could repel many external threats. Once I tried to ignite Chen Long with my gaze but was repelled by the powerful mana enshrouding him. This was because his mana was so strong that it could prevent external influences on the spirit. And since the light emitted from my flames is essentially a manifestation of the spirit, it makes sense that it would be excluded by the same logic.

No, in fact, it wasn’t quite that reasonable. All the lighting equipment inside the base had been destroyed by my Fire Sea, and although the power of restart repeatedly repaired it, it never managed to light up in time. The only source of light around was my flames. Yet the area around Dr. Silver Mask, who rejected the firelight, did not fall into darkness, and from the movement of his eyes, it was clear that he could also see the flames and me.

It was as if the mana protecting him had filtered out the "spirit" component of the firelight, leaving only the material aspect of light. However, that was impossible—my firelight was entirely my spirit, without a trace of real light. Such an act would be like trying to separate water from 100% ethanol, a violation of logic.

The problem was that such a Logic-defying event had indeed occurred. As a participant, I could feel it. There weren’t alternative explanations; what I have described above is the truth. This wasn’t a special function of Dr. Silver Mask’s Magic Shield but a fundamental property of mana itself.

"Demon hunters’ mana is mostly based on the spirit, and the spirit transcends time and space, as well as many principles of this world. However, the more consciously demon hunters employ mana, the harder it becomes to exhibit its original properties," Dr. Silver Mask said reflectively, "Chen Long’s ’Shadow Entanglement’ could theoretically do the same thing. He incorporated the Magic Shield, which would normally wrap around himself, into it, and the armor itself is a dense aggregation of mana capable of resisting many powers of the spirit and curses.

"However, this approach might be mistaken. The Magic Shield is a basic skill of demon hunters, rudimentary to the extreme, yet it’s precisely because of its simplicity that it can reveal the original nature of mana; whereas ’Shadow Entanglement’ is a skill built upon a highly complex consciousness with clear rules and mechanisms.

"’Shadow Entanglement’ is undeniably powerful, but this power is understandable and describable. And the more so, the more susceptible it is to human ingenuity. In a sense, ’Shadow Entanglement’ has deviated from the realm of the power of the strange. It’s too easy to describe, too easy to understand, and from the perspective of the strange, it’s rather superficial.

"In attempting to scientifically replicate the power of the strange, we often encounter such situations. Science requires precision, quantification, and exact definitions—the more accurate the description, the better. But the more we do so, the further away we move from our goal."

In the end, he became absorbed in his musing, his thoughts adrift as if engrossed in scientific contemplation.

I could grasp his point. It was precisely because of clear rules and mechanisms that vulnerabilities had been found in the ’Portal Armor.’ Perhaps this is the inherent flaw in abilities shaped by rules and mechanisms. If the law is unknowable, its power is unpredictable. Once someone grasps the full picture, weaknesses can be exploited.

The strange powers unique to monsters also seem to have a degree of mechanistic ’ease of description.’ At first glance, they all appear to have absurd superpowers well beyond their own level: transferring cause and effect, altering established facts... But looking back now, their abilities, as pursued by the Human Bureau in the quest for the true ’power of the strange,’ have also strayed from the theme.

In contrast, something as crude and undefined as the Magic Shield, once its depth is explored, becomes indefinably malleable like a child’s tantrum, becoming extremely stubborn.

It feels like I’m inadvertently including myself in the criticism—is this an illusion?

Returning to the matter at hand, fortunately, Dr. Silver Mask’s Magic Shield, though no less formidable than Chen Long’s, had not yet reached a level that I couldn’t overcome.

Perhaps it’s because I can’t quite imagine my spirit existing in the form of light, so my power hasn’t amplified enough to penetrate that Magic Shield. It’s not that I consider my nature to be dark; it’s just that light is too fast, and I can’t imagine my spirit transmitting through light as a medium. However, as soon as my primary weapon, the flames, surge forward, a Magic Shield of that caliber will be instantly destroyed.

The Fire Sea inch by inch eroded the territory occupied by the power of restart, recalling Dr. Silver Mask’s attention.

He sighed as he watched the collapsing scenes around him. Having come this far, he was powerless to turn the tide. I finally gained confirmation that he truly had no strength left to summon.

His power of restart had only just managed to maintain equilibrium with the Flame Power, and now the stronghold had to endure the collapse triggered by Chen Long’s death. The balance had already crumbled, and defeat was imminent.

"You are the Flame Ability User that Chen Long once mentioned, who fought with him in the outside world... right?" He looked at me again. "At first, I thought you were just a child test subject recruited by the researchers in the stronghold, that the so-called ’unfortunate child who witnessed the battlefield’ was nothing but a hollow excuse they fabricated... It seems you have twisted their cognition with some unknown method."

It appeared that my false identity had not twisted his cognition—was it because of the Divine Seal Fragment in his body?

"Your goal must be Zhu Changan, who is contained within this stronghold," he said. "I’ll return him to you in hopes that you will cease your destruction of this place and leave promptly."

"You think about negotiating now? Isn’t it too late?" I countered.

"You don’t actually have to destroy this place," he said evenly. "I can tell that you are, just like my original self, an out-and-out self-centered person. Even if I point this out to you now, you won’t feel any shame. On the positive side, you are good at accepting yourself; on the negative, you are utterly shameless.

"And the contradiction is that you still care about your friends, even feeling compelled to care for acquaintances with whom you have some dealings. Because in truth, you are very lonely, longing for someone who can truly understand you...

"So here’s what I’ll say to you—if you give up destroying this separate reality space, the ’ghost girl’ who calls herself Lu Chan at your side won’t have to die.

"You don’t really care about how many bad things we at the Human Bureau have done, nor do you have a hero’s impulse to punish us by your own hands, but surely you don’t want her to disappear, right?"

This was a psychological strategy.

The girl Lu Chan turned her head to look at me.

Although I had agreed with Lu Youxun to destroy this place, I indeed did not wish for the girl Lu Chan to disappear. However, Dr. Silver Mask had still misunderstood me. He considered me the same type as Ying Lingyun, and as Ying Lingyun’s "possibility avatar," he must have an intrinsic understanding of him. Thus, Ying Lingyun and I were indeed different types of people.

"You have two misunderstandings," I said.

"...What are they?" he asked.

"First, if my partner genuinely, with head held high, wants to walk the path of destroying you, willing to vanish in the end if need be, then I will sincerely respect her will and accompany her to the final moment," I said.

Dr. Silver Mask appeared somewhat taken aback.

Without hesitation, the girl Lu Chan said, "Of course, that’s exactly what I think."

"Second, I may not be a good person, but I like to be friends with good people, so I’m going to kill you."

I thought if I were to really follow Dr. Silver Mask’s suggestion here, I might never be able to continue my friendship with Zhu Shi and Changan.

"Good people... good people?" Dr. Silver Mask said incredulously, "If that’s the case, then you should be even less inclined to eradicate us. I admit, we have been involved in heinous work, but the only hope of resisting the dark regime of Luo Mountain and saving the ordinary masses in the future lies here.

"A vast number of innocent lives have already perished here, and we must indeed face retribution for that... But if you destroy it now, all those blood and tears will become worthless!"

"Do you really believe in that notion, Silver Mask?" the girl Lu Chan asked, "If so, why isn’t the ’Dreamer’ sustaining this place you, but Chen Long instead?"

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