IMC Chapter 137

Fortunately, Shu Bao was a genius and Tesla specially made a locator for him. Combined with the map provided earlier by Duan Zhuo, a virtual arrow constantly appeared in front of everyone, guiding them on the right path.

After entering the Endless Dark Domain, all physical objects seemed to disappear, and there was not even a place to land. The prolonged flight started to wear down Lan Qing, and at such times, Fu Qing would take over. Lan Qing and Shu Bao maintained a shrunken form, each resting on one of Fu Qing’s shoulders.

This rotating system effectively prevented fatigue driving. Occasionally, when both were tired, Shu Bao would fasten a cloak and carry them both as they flew.

In the Dark Domain, the terrifying thing was not just the endless void but also the unknown fears lurking within. Anyone with a weak will would uncontrollably imagine all sorts of monsters, even going mad and transforming into one themselves.

However, the three of them had incredibly strong willpower. Even in such darkness, they were not afraid at all, thanks to their mutual company.

Time seemed to lose all meaning as they flew on, with no sense of day or night. In this world where time and space no longer existed, the three gradually moved deeper into the darkest part of the universe.

One day, as usual, the three of them were on their way. Fu Qing was flying with Lan Qing and Shu Bao when the fluffy little ball was busy filing its nails. Suddenly, it felt a huge presence in the darkness ahead.

Fu Qing reacted quickly, carrying the two of them to dodge. Just as they flew away, a giant abyssal mouth, several stories high, appeared, devouring everything in its vicinity.

Shu Bao immediately looked disgusted, for in that space, the only thing left was the nail clippings that the little mouse had just filed. This dark creature had rather strong tastes.

After the creature passed by, the three saw it clearly. It was a giant, pure black beast resembling a whale, but its belly was a black, semi-transparent membrane. As it passed, the three of them could see people or creatures inside its stomach.

The three of them had no intention of engaging and planned to shake off this foul-mouthed black fish with their speed. However, after it disappeared into the darkness, the creature could teleport and repeatedly ambushed them. Finally, Lan Qing could not tolerate it anymore, revealing his true form and swatting the black fish away with his tail. The black fish never appeared again.

With the disappearance of the black fish, the surrounding darkness seemed to lessen, as if many of the spying eyes had vanished. Shu Bao speculated that these might have been unseen dark creatures.

Perhaps because the Dark Domain was so vast, the dark creatures here were all enormous in size. Without Lan Qing transforming, the three of them would have seemed like tiny shrimp wandering among a herd of prehistoric giant beasts.

After a few tests, the dark creatures seemed to realize that these three little shrimp were not easy to mess with.

The three of them were not eager for battle. Most dark creatures could be shaken off by speed. When needed, they would deal with troublesome ones directly. For group attacks, they relied on Fu Qing’s mental attacks. Shu Bao would also use his treasure-seeking talent to find relic fragments or precious materials within the Dark Domain.

After a large number of chaotic creatures appeared, landing points in the void slowly began to increase. Sometimes they were just a few stones, other times they were handfuls of transparent, unsupported lake water. Occasionally, there was a massive ancient tree growing midair.

The world here was fragmented, completely contrary to traditional understanding. Shu Bao and the others even found themselves landing on an abandoned bus and saw chicken soup bubbling away in a pot.

In this place, time stood still for many things, while for others, time was chaotic. Sometimes, a rotting apple would change direction in midair and turn into a fresh apple.

Thanks to the strong mental powers of Shu Bao and the others, their perception of time was unaffected by the Dark Domain. They did not witness the terrifying sight of the little mouse turning white-haired in an instant.

As physical entities increased, dark creatures also began to multiply exponentially. All kinds of strange creatures and terrains appeared, and sometimes, a small mistake would result in trouble. Fortunately, the three of them had solutions to handle everything.

After a perilous journey, at a certain point, the virtual arrow in front of them began to flicker, eventually turning into a string of text: “Destination ahead.”

They had finally arrived at the legendary Heart of Darkness. When they drew closer, the shattered landscape of the planet appeared before them. Just as the records of the mechanoids had described, the planet had been completely destroyed. There were no intact buildings on the surface, only occasional flashes of fleeting past grandeur as time fragments tore through the chaos.

Shu Bao and the others landed at a ruined site. The surroundings were eerily silent, with no signs of any living people. Hidden within the ruins were many dark creatures, their eyes glowing in the darkness, providing the only remaining light on the planet.

Since all three were wearing cat-eye necklaces, their vision was unaffected. In fact, this allowed them to clearly see the terrifying state of the planet.

The creatures here were extremely bizarre in shape. Most of them were monsters made from the fusion of human limbs and other creatures. Some, with human heads, even displayed clear intelligence and social behavior. The monsters of the Chaotic World weren’t so scary; what was truly terrifying was that these monsters had culture.

Not long after landing, Shu Bao and the others were surrounded by these creatures. The monsters did not initiate attacks but seemed to be pushing other dark creatures to attack as if testing the strength of the three of them.

Shu Bao and the others did not disappoint them. With overwhelming power, they crushed all the dark creatures that came to attack. This display of strength made the monsters wary, and it seemed that they abandoned their plans to attack. However, they still followed the three of them at a distance, likely wanting to figure out what Shu Bao and his companions were doing there.

“Do you think they really have intelligence?” The creatures trailing behind them gave Lan Qing an odd feeling. He couldn’t quite define what it was.

“Since the chaos of darkness began, time and space here have been in disarray. I don’t even know how many years have passed. Perhaps, to those monsters, we, with our four legs and human heads, are the true monsters.” Fu Qing’s homeland was also a strange and fantastical land. He had encountered many bizarre creatures there, so the impact these monsters had on him was not as great.

Lan Qing stopped pondering this question. He feared the answer might be too heavy. When the chaos began, it must have been so sudden that many people on this planet had no time to evacuate. Those who stayed behind either died or survived. In the disordered time and space, the dead, the living, animals, and humans were all mixed together, creating the current situation.

Shu Bao and the others did not find any clues in the ruins, but they unexpectedly encountered a few small monsters. These little creatures, probably out of curiosity, daringly approached Shu Bao and his companions to quietly observe them. After being discovered, they quickly fled.

The three of them said nothing and immediately left the area, continuing their search for relics on the planet while flying.

“According to legend, the entrance to the Core Research Institute is inside a volcano. I have a holographic map of this planet from before the disaster.” Lan Qing projected the map, but no matter how they looked at it, it seemed completely unrelated to the scene before them. Under the attack of the mechanoids, whether it was mountains or volcanoes, everything had been flattened.

The three of them continued to explore various relics on the planet’s surface while searching for the entrance to the Core Research Institute, as described in the legends.

While they were essentially searching for a needle in a haystack, one day, as they flew through the air, an arrow suddenly appeared on the ground. Following the direction of the arrow, they soon discovered several more guiding signs.

These guiding arrows had been drawn with conspicuous white powder. Ultimately, the arrows pointed toward a hollow area.

When the three of them landed near the hollow, a voice emerged from a device in the ground. “Are you here to find the Core Research Institute? The entrance is below.”

It had been so many years since the chaos began, and Shu Bao and the others never expected to hear a human voice or see a human technological device.

“Who are you? How do you know what we’re looking for?” Shu Bao asked the device.

“Hehehe…” A laugh echoed from the other side. “On this disaster-ridden planet, what else would attract you besides the research institute? Don’t worry about who I am; you wouldn’t want to meet me anyway.”

“Can you be more frightening than those monsters?” Shu Bao asked, continuing to probe.

“Well, that’s hard to say. After all, those monsters are my children, and maybe… you are too.” The voice laughed again, sounding somewhat strange and uncomfortable.

Such nonsensical words, combined with the eerie laughter, felt quite pathological. Shu Vao could understand, considering how many years had passed. Even if someone survived, they would surely have fallen ill after such a long time, perhaps suffering from something like tonsillitis, with a hoarse voice.

As this thought crossed his mind, the voice laughed even louder, as if it could read Shu Bao’s thoughts. “Go ahead. The research institute is below. No matter what, the situation in this world can’t get worse than it is now.”

Clearly, this was also the reason the strange person guided Shu Bao and his companions. After all, in his view, the universe could not possibly get any worse.

Whether it was a trap or not, this was the first clue they had obtained after arriving at the Heart of Darkness, and of course, the three of them wouldn’t give up. Fu Qing spread his wings and flew downward, carrying the little fluffball. Lan Qing followed closely beside him. When they reached the bottom of the hollow, Shu Bao couldn’t help but glance back at the edge of the hollow.

Then, the mouse saw something standing there, looking at them. The reason it was called “something” was that Shu Bao could hardly associate it with a human being. It didn’t even look as cute as the spliced monsters outside.

Standing at the edge of the hollow was a writhing mass of flesh, somewhat resembling a brain but not quite. The mass of flesh was connected to many hands, allowing it to move. In addition to the hands, there were many eyes—360 degrees, with no blind spots.

The mouse was unable to accurately describe what it had seen. Apart from the extreme strangeness, there was also a strong sense of mental impact.

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