My ‘Healing’ Game
Chapter 858 Unknown Level Talent

Chapter 858: Chapter 858 Unknown Level Talent

"They’re not sacrificial offerings; they’re my students." Han Fei winked at the Dark Merchant, feeling a bit at a loss for words. He wasn’t as shameless as Zero.

"You haven’t brought new sacrificial offerings for a long time." The human head in the Dark Merchant’s hand seemed a bit disappointed, showing no awareness that danger was nearing.

"I’ve encountered some things. How about we go inside and chat?" Han Fei still had two mental patients "fostered" with the Dark Merchant, whom he believed would be of great use during the investigation of Xinhu Third Mental Hospital.

Long, thin arms gripped the shelves. The Dark Merchant was eyeing Han Fei’s five students with greed. It hesitated for a while but refrained from making a rash move, resisting the urge.

"Come in."

The door to the underground was opened, and the Dark Merchant wrapped the group and led them to the basement where the Ghosts and Monsters were imprisoned.

Since Han Fei hadn’t made any trades in a while, the Dark Merchant had captured some rather rare Ghosts and confined them in separate compartments to serve as merchandise.

"I’ve always had a question: why do you like to imprison these Ghosts and Monsters? To trade with them?" Han Fei felt like the Dark Merchant was akin to a slave trader from the old days.

"They do not serve the same Divine Spirit as we do, so I treat them as merchandise, exchanging them for sacrificial offerings for the god I believe in." The human head in the Dark Merchant’s hand frowned. "Why are you asking this?"

"We? Are there many Dark Merchants in this city?" Han Fei keenly caught the implicit information in the Dark Merchant’s words.

"Very few, and whenever we’re discovered, we face relentless pursuit by all Ghosts and Monsters." Hidden beneath the Black Robe, the Dark Merchant paused in the corridor, slowly shifting its massive body: "Good and evil are relative. If I were caught by those Ghosts and Monsters, they’d sacrifice me to their own god. We’re all Ghosts, but because we believe in different gods, we stand in opposition. Isn’t that the same with you?"

With a thin arm, it opened a cell door. The two patients whom Han Fei had transferred from Xinhu Mental Hospital remained inside, unharmed.

"Take them away. I look forward to our next trade." The Dark Merchant issued an expulsion order. If Gao Cheng hadn’t traded with it many times before, it would never have let these quality sacrifices leave.

"Life is just moving from one cage to another." The young man wearing a knitted Skull Cap emerged from the cell, still in confusion.

"Actually, I didn’t come here for them today." Han Fei said with some difficulty, "Could you take me to see the Altar? I discovered some secrets. The Divine Spirit you worship seems connected to me. Our fates were once intertwined."

The underground altar seemed to be taboo for the Dark Merchant. It not only refused Han Fei but also clenched its fingers around the human head, nearly causing the decayed head to shatter in its grip.

No matter how reasonable it seemed, the Dark Merchant was still a Ghost amid disaster. Han Fei’s request had crossed its line.

"Let me persuade it." Zero, who was following behind Han Fei, stepped forward. He stood like a reef in the sea, providing a sense of long-lost safety despite the storm, as if he could be trusted at any moment.

Moving through shadows and darkness, Zero approached the Dark Merchant. As he advanced, he raised his right hand.

As he stepped closer, clenching his five fingers into a fist, before the Dark Merchant and Han Fei could react, an overwhelming sense of oppression emanated from Zero. Standing against him was like opposing the world.

Fearless and dauntless, as he moved forward, all malevolent forces involuntarily wanted to retreat.

It wasn’t a matter of strength; nine hundred and ninety-nine experiments had transformed Zero’s Soul Body, his Will indomitable by any Ghost or Monster, not even by a Divine Spirit.

Raise the hand, drop the fist!

The Black Robe of the Dark Merchant was torn apart. It wanted to resist but didn’t even know how to.

Zero’s target wasn’t the Soul Body of the Dark Merchant but its Obsession, the reason it became a Ghost after death.

From deep within its mind came the sound of a mirror shattering, and the Dark Merchant’s massive body began to wither and shrink.

"To reason, the one with the strongest ability speaks the truth." Five gently nudged Han Fei. "If you don’t devour it now, it will dissipate."

"I always thought you rely on Brain Power to win." Han Fei didn’t expect these people to hesitate not a moment when they could take action.

Quickly, he walked to the side of the Dark Merchant, with the black fog of greed spreading outward, swallowing the Dark Merchant into the Abyss.

"Attention Player No. 0000! You have imprisoned a Large-scaled Grudge——Dark Merchant."

"Dark Merchant (Special Form Grudge): It retains most of its memories from life, possessing learning abilities far exceeding ordinary Ghosts and Monsters. It does not originate from the Deep World, but is a Ghost and Monster born in the city after the Great Disaster."

"Ability One - Nether Soul: No fixed form, immune to most Curses and various damages."

"Ability Two - God of Study: Skilled at learning and using everything around it, constantly self-improving."

"Ability Three - Brain Area: It is attempting to construct its own Ghost Creature."

After devouring the Dark Merchant, Han Fei realized they were a very special group, composed entirely of aberrant Ghosts and Monsters from after the Great Disaster, all retaining parts of their previous life memories. They were unwilling to live alongside Deep World’s Ghosts and Monsters in the captivity of humans, occupying cities, but were powerless to resist, so they could only live in the shadows, pinning their hopes on other gods.

"Take us to see that altar. These children have not deceived you; the god you believe in is indeed connected to us." Han Fei and the Dark Merchant went deeper underground. The dilapidated altar was right here.

Unlike the completely ruined altar in the Investigation Bureau, this one, though worn out, can still be used normally. The statue on the altar gives an indescribable feeling, as if it embodies divinity.

Upon seeing the altar, several children, including Number Two, got overwhelmingly excited, which was the first time Han Fei had seen them show such an expression.

"Take me over there," Number Two was placed by Number Five at the edge of the altar. Without his legs, he had no combat ability, but Han Fei knew that he was the most terrifying among all the children.

With a small palm, the black cloth on the altar was lifted to reveal the Faceless God Statue standing in the center. It was covered with scars and wounds, yet upon approaching it, one could hear faint laughter.

The laughter was madly piercing, hysterical, like a devil dancing wildly in hell.

"Found him!" Number Two smiled, resonating with the laughter from the statue, "I knew he wouldn’t die!"

"The Faceless God Statue is Kuangxiao?" Han Fei was puzzled, "In the future led by Gao Xing, he should have become Unspeakable. Once all Unspeakable are completely soul scattered, every trace will be erased from the world."

"Yes, that’s the price that must be paid for God Stealing." Number Two looked at Han Fei and explained, "However, Zero seemingly placed a small part of his will into reality beforehand, which might be due to your efforts."

"Me?" Han Fei didn’t recall doing anything.

"In any case, things are more optimistic than I imagined. After God Stealing was successfully initiated, Zero sacrificed himself, but he did not soul scatter entirely, leaving a chance for change." Number Two gazed at the statue on the altar, "If we succeed in God Stealing and become the new owners of the Shrine, Zero will safely return. But if we fail, then all will be trapped in the Shrine together, eternally tormented by its original owner, unable to live or die."

"The risk of God Stealing is indeed substantial."

"The risk is major indeed, so I don’t understand why Zero chose you." Number Four glanced at Han Fei, "Our original plan was for Zero to ceremonially sacrifice you and us, letting him perform God Stealing. But he changed it without permission, which is the part I least understand."

"He indeed is a better choice than Zero. In a city overrun by monsters, we need a real human." Number Two signaled Number Four to stop talking further.

Upon hearing Number Two’s words, Han Fei recalled the moment when Kuangxiao left the Blood-colored Orphanage, standing with thirty "monsters." The scene was extremely impactful.

"Zero’s presence still remains, visible at every crossroads of destiny, which we can utilize well." Number Two reached out to grab the Dark Merchant’s black robe, relieving its Nether Soul ability interference.

The Dark Merchant’s body kept shrinking, finally revealing its true form: an severely mutated, ugly soul. It stayed at a deeply memorable moment, a moment it was obsessed with for its eternal life.

Beneath the black robe, the Dark Merchant wore clothing for staff members of Eternal Life Pharmaceutical, seemingly holding a child in its arms.

Using a touch of the secrets within the soul, Han Fei saw into the Dark Merchant’s heart. It was formerly an employee at Eternal Life Pharmaceutical, and on the eve of the catastrophe, it had just become a father. After learning about the mother and child’s safety, it left the company late at night and went to the hospital, thereby escaping the initial slaughter.

"I think I saw... the future? The source of the catastrophe lies in Smart New City! It seems to be within Eternal Life Pharmaceutical Company!" Han Fei was only attempting to comfort the Dark Merchant, but gained an unexpected insight!

Everyone aims to investigate that disaster clearly; it pertains not only to the Shrine Memory World, but also reality, since that disaster is about to erupt in Xinhu!

Picking up the fallen head from the ground, Han Fei handed it to the Dark Merchant, hoping to communicate with it.

"Do you remember what happened on the night your daughter was born within Eternal Life Pharmaceutical? Why is the disaster’s source there?" Eternal Life Pharmaceutical’s founder was Fu Sheng. In the previous era, Fu Sheng also bore all pressure, risking the erasure of all traces to sever the link between the Deep World and reality.

"Plotting with the tiger, I knew one day you’d devour me, but I never thought it would come so quickly." The Dark Merchant looked at Han Fei with eyes full of grudge, "You may drive my body using Power of Personality, but I’ll never genuinely assist you."

"The god you worship is him; we appeared here because we heard your voice." Number Thirty gently held the Dark Merchant’s hands, "Gao Cheng is merely a shell; now it’s the god occupying Gao Cheng’s body."

Number Thirty’s Personality Ability is quite special; she can make people lower their guard and quickly determine if someone harbors hostility.

"Consuming you is for your own good, do you understand?" Number Two urged Han Fei to touch the statue, and the five children cut their wrists, letting their blood drip onto the altar.

The originally dilapidated statue absorbed the blood, and the wounds on its surface began to heal. A faint facial feature outline appeared on its blank face. More importantly, an intricate connection arose between Han Fei and the statue; as if he could feel the god’s joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness.

"Player number 0000, please be aware! You have received partial authority from Manager number 0000! Trigger exclusive ability—Twin Flowers!"

"Twin Flowers (Unknown Level Talent Ability): Effects unknown, requires player to explore independently."

"Player number 0000, please be aware! By sacrificing to this statue, you can also receive random attribute enhancements!"

Upon hearing the system prompt, Han Fei pondered a question: "The system mentions Manager number 0000, who is clearly Kuangxiao. Do managers need level-up too? If so, could the difficulty in my upgrades stem from Kuangxiao siphoning some of the experience?"

Han Fei addressed this doubt to Number Two, but Number Two did not respond, instead gesturing to the Dark Merchant, "Bring it into the Greed Abyss, let it see your will and soul."

"Are you confirming it then?" Han Fei didn’t pursue the question further; he followed Number Two’s suggestion, allowing the Dark Merchant to see the form of his soul, which bears an almost identical outline and physique to the statue.