Life Game In Other World
Chapter 464: The Ageless Life (Requesting Monthly Tickets for a Big - )

Chapter 464: Chapter 464: The Ageless Life (Requesting Monthly Tickets for a Big Chapter)

The lights in the corridor and the vault shone on Reid simultaneously, casting a long shadow behind him.

Reid looked inside the vault, where the neat light hit the hard metallic inner wall, revealing the empty interior of the vault.

The anxiety he had been holding loosened just a bit.

Following that, he slowly stepped forward, walking into the vault.

The heavy metal door began to close bit by bit, powered by the electric motor.

First, he went to the refrigerator and pulled the door open.

The test tubes inside the fridge were neatly arranged, each in its proper place, with not a single one out of alignment.

Seven Strengthening Potions were missing, taken by the officer Zadi.

When Zadi left, he had shown Reid the potions he had taken, and indeed there were seven C-Ⅶ type Strengthening Potions.

Everything seemed normal, a quiet atmosphere pervading the air.

Reid took out the outermost Strengthening Potion and inspected it carefully, finding no issues.

This vault was impregnable; theoretically, no one should have been able to breach it.

Moreover, ’Pete’ should be at his own house right now, not supposed to be here.

Theoretically, everything should have been fine, but for some reason, Reid still felt some inexplicable unease.

He put down the test tube in his hand, closed the fridge door, then turned to walk toward the supercomputer on the other side.

The computer’s power socket flickered with a faint light.

He reached out and turned on the power.

The boot screen displayed as usual on the monitor.

This was the cold boot screen; Reid had a habit of shutting the computer down after every use.

It seemed the computer hadn’t been tampered with either.

Everything was as usual, with no problems at all.

Reid walked back to the metal door, verified his identity, and opened it.

As the metal door opened, he turned around, scanning the interior of the vault one more time.

The bright light illuminated every corner of the vault, leaving almost no shadows.

And in that instant, he suddenly drew his gun and fired at the shadow under his own feet.

The bullet, still warm, cut through the forbidden air, striking the shadow beneath him, then ricocheted off the hard metal floor, hitting a nearby wall and continuing to deflect.

After several ricochets, the bullet finally exhausted its kinetic energy and fell to the ground.

There was nothing.

Reid knew the ’Shadow’s’ ability, and the reason the Research Institute’s security doors had been designed to block even shadows was to guard against this kind of ability.

This ability was also the only way Reid could think of that would allow someone to infiltrate the vault unnoticed.

"Guessed wrong?"

He murmured to himself, then slipped the hand not holding a gun into his pocket.

By now the metal door was fully open, and he turned, walking out the door.

Just as his body was about to cross the threshold, he suddenly raised his gun and fired at the corner of the refrigerator.

Bright flames spewed from the muzzle.

The scorching bullet tore through the void.

Reid had no way to determine the "Shadow’s" exact location, but his long-term dealings with it taught him a pattern.

The most unlikely places were often where the enemy was hidden.

And that location had always been considered ’empty’ by him ’resolutely’.

He wasn’t sure if someone was standing there, but he could try.

The bullets in this gun came with special micro-machinery; as long as it hit the target, it could mark it and continue to emit a signal to the vicinity.

Reid’s bracelet was outfitted with the hardware to receive such signals, and he believed that even if it were the "Shadow’s" kind of ’Concealment’ ability, the machine’s alert could help him locate the target.

This design was meant specifically to counteract the Shadow.

And just as the bullet was fired, a shadow suddenly appeared before him, the sharp sword light gliding toward his neck.

······

He Ao actually didn’t want to make a move on Reid, considering he was a law-abiding good citizen; without Reid attacking him first, he had no reason to strike.

While in ’Stealth’ mode, Reid couldn’t see him, making it unlikely for Reid to attack.

However, what he didn’t expect was that Reid’s intuition was overly sharp.

Of course, He Ao could predict that Reid, being able to manipulate ’Shadow’, must have prepared means to defend against ’Shadow’.

He just didn’t expect this guy to dare shoot on his own.

He Ao was unaware of what cards Reid held in his hand.

However, since the other party had already fired at him, he had no need to hide anymore; after all, Reid was always a target that needed to be dealt with, and now was one of the best moments to confront Reid.

He Ao’s movements were extremely fast, in the blink of an eye, Reid hadn’t even seen clearly when the sword’s edge was already close to his neck.

At this moment, it was too late for Reid to think of retreating; the sharp dagger directly severed his neck, his facial expression frozen at the last moment of surprise.

The massive force carried by the sword blade made Reid’s body stagger back several steps, once more retreating into the safe.

However, He Ao’s movements did not stop at his hands; he took a few steps forward and slashed at Reid’s torso again.

The ’mark’ he left on Reid hadn’t been retrieved even after Reid’s ’death’.

This time, his sword edge stopped in midair.

A pair of skeletal claws clasped together in the air, forcefully catching his strike.

He Ao withdrew his sword and retreated to the metal door.

At the same time, the piercing alarm sound broke the silence of the corridor outside the door, with red light shining in the empty corridor.

As the alarm sounded, the opening metal door completely closed, blocking the last bit of light.

He Ao leaned against the door, staring at the Reid before him.

Reid’s head had flown off, hit the inner wall, and rolled around.

Yet, no blood seeped from the sharp cut at his neck, only fine strands of flesh twitching.

The hand Reid had stuffed into his pocket slowly reached out, showing the red alarm he was holding; this alarm was the source of the corridor’s alert and had now triggered alarms throughout the entire Research Institute.

He nonchalantly crushed the alarm in his hand, and the claws that had caught He Ao’s short sword stretched out in a twisted angle behind him, grabbing the fallen head and pulling it back.

These two claws weren’t Reid’s arms but extended from the shoulder blades on his back, gray-white in color, resembling elongated ’claws’ of bone.

"Pete? It seems I guessed wrong."

The severed head was reattached to the neck by the claws, the fine flesh tendrils entwined together, once again ’fixing’ Reid’s head to his neck.

But the savage wound around the neck wasn’t restored, appearing grotesquely horrific.

Reid tilted his head, and with a crackling sound, the noise pierced through his body as he slightly arched his back, bending his torso like a shrimp.

Two sharp bone-made claws tore through his clothes, extending from behind his ribs, stretching out.

With his original pair of hands, he now had six ’hands’ in total.

At this moment, Reid looked less like a person and more like a human-shaped exotic beast.

He Ao called upon his Divine Sense, focusing on the ’Reid’ before him.

Tremendous power was flowing wildly from that mutated body, like the steam in a pressure cooker finally bursting through its restraints.

Before this, He Ao sensed that Reid’s body energy was only at D-level, but now, that pulsating energy swiftly crossed the threshold between D and C and surged to the peak of C-level.

A terrifying pressure spread out from Reid’s body.

"Should I address you as ’human’, or as an ’exotic beast’?"

He Ao, wielding a short sword, calmly gazed at the Reid before him.

"Don’t lump me in with those vile creatures called exotic beasts," Reid smirked. "Have you ever seen an exotic beast with such high intelligence? Those beasts are nothing but failures in the evolutionary process."

His voice was somewhat hoarse, bearing a blurry, mad tinge.

He Ao activated his Super Memory to look at Reid’s soul.

Unlike Kors’ soul, which was speckled with milky spots, Reid’s pale soul was now nearly entirely milky white, tightly clinging to his twisted body.

He had lost his mind long ago.

"You must think I’m mad now,"

Reid, looking into He Ao’s eyes, seemed to realize something and chuckled softly,

"I’m not mad, I feel very good now. You’ve hidden your power for so long; surely you know what it feels like to suppress one’s strength.

"It’s like you could walk down the street with your head held high, but instead you have to curl up your body, gradually draw in your limbs, and move like a duck. That suffocating and frustrating feeling has entangled me for years, and finally,"

he smiled broadly,

"I’m liberated today."

A pair of new claws stretched out from his lower back, violently clawing towards He Ao. "I should thank you, Pete, you gave me a brief chance to stretch out."

"No need for thanks," He Ao rolled to the side, dodging the incoming claws. "You bypassed the ritual to gain power beyond D-level, so what’s the price?"

"The price is that there is no price,"

Reid’s face twisted into a ferocious smile,

"I’ve treated many people and researched in the medical field for many years, Pete. You must understand, humans are a clever yet frail species. Even though we can harness the power of the Talent Sequences, we are still inherently weak."

Chunks of twisted bone pierced through his clothes, enveloping his body like a frightful armor,

"Only a tiny fraction of people can ascend to the rank of a powerful Transcendent. The vast majority of this world’s populace are destined to live short and weak lives. We are like insects, born in spring and perishing in autumn, oblivious to the quiet of eternal years. A human’s body inherently has limits."

His three pairs of sharp claws whirled in the air like an octopus traversing the land, but these sharp claws were evidently more dangerous than the tentacles of an octopus, carrying a piercing sound as they reached for He Ao.

"And now, a powerful path—one that will never fall ill, that will never die—lays before me. This is the future of humankind; you wouldn’t understand the greatness of this endeavor."

Watching the claws dance, He Ao suddenly recalled the people with ’dotted lines’ on their backs from the Andavi family murals.

These claws could extend at will, or even retract into the body, much like dotted lines, limbs that were as though real and unreal all at once.

He dodged the claws with difficulty and looked up at Reid. "Did you drink from the Fountain of Youth?"

This question caught Reid off guard; clearly, He Ao’s query exceeded his understanding of He Ao. "How do you know of the Fountain of Youth?"

He Ao didn’t respond, but, while holding his short sword, and taking advantage of Reid’s momentary distraction, aimed blows at the base of one of Reid’s claws.

The sharp dagger met hard bone, leaving a scratch on the bone while a chip appeared on He Ao’s dagger.

The hardness of these bones had exceeded the limit of what the dagger could damage.

He Ao took a few steps back, creating distance from Reid.

Although the space inside this vault was unusually cramped, barely allowing any room for maneuver.

He Ao was not interested in the great deeds Reid spoke of; all devout cultists firmly believe in the greatness of their actions.

Their minds have been thoroughly corrupted by the Evil God, and their ways of recognizing and defining what’s good differ from ordinary people.

Believers of the Grim Reaper consider death to be the ultimate beauty, while the Witch of Desire’s followers believe that indulgence represents the epitome of integrity.

If a follower of the Grim Reaper wished to invite a normal person to ’experience’ the beauty of death, they would most likely be refused.

What they consider good does not mean ordinary people would accept it.

If a beautiful Witch of Desire’s follower invited a man to experience the sensation of ’integrity,’ um... it might not necessarily be rejected.

However, those are the minorities.

He Ao did not know the current state of Reid’s mind, but judging from his disregard for life and his willingness to take others’ lives, he had become a qualified cultist.

"So this is your hidden purpose in Limen City," Reid watched He Ao, as if he had realized something, "You’re not here to live in seclusion; you’re looking for the Fountain of Youth, aren’t you?"

He suddenly laughed, "Pete, we can collaborate. If you’re here for the Fountain of Youth, I can introduce you to ’the Doctor.’ With your wisdom and strength, ’the Doctor’ will definitely value you."

’The Doctor’,

This was the first time He Ao heard this nickname.

It seemed to be the ’code name’ for the leader of the Mars plan.

And just as He Ao’s thoughts were partially diverted by the ’Doctor’ code name, Reid’s claw swiftly aimed for his heart.

Reid had no intention of ’inviting’ He Ao; his aim was to distract him with this piece of news.

The attack was so fast that He Ao almost didn’t dodge it, the claw grazed the front of his shoulder, tearing his clothes and leaving a trail of blood.

"Pete, seriously consider joining us, how about it?"

With Reid’s mildly mocking ’invitation,’ the claws came at him like a torrential downpour.

He Ao’s figure flashed, retreating into the shadow beneath the claws.

His gaze fixed on Reid, whose entire body, even most of his head, was nearly covered in tough bone, leaving only a pair of eyes exposed.

And as for attacking the head, He Ao had already tried that— it was not Reid’s weak spot.

Under the view of Divine Sense, the energy inside Reid flowed uniformly terrifying, with no focal point where energy was converging.

This was the first time He Ao encountered such a situation.

Any entity with an energy cycle could not possibly lack a convergence point for energy.

Through prolonged observation, He Ao had already begun to understand some of the principles behind energy convergence points.

The energy convergence point is the dispatch center of the entire system, where all energy within the system passes through. Here, it converges before flowing throughout the body again, the core of the entire energy circulation.

Its role is somewhat similar to that of the heart.

Without this convergence point, the energy in the entire system wouldn’t be able to function.

He Ao watched Reid’s form, recalling how Reid had also concealed his true power under the vision of Divine Sense before.

Perhaps after consuming the Fountain of Youth, the body’s energy circuit undergoes some sort of structural change.

In his contemplation, his figure suddenly flickered, appearing in front of Reid via the shadows.