Chapter 549 - 546: The Body’s Guidance

Chapter 549: Chapter 546: The Body’s Guidance

"Senior, do you know where we are?"

"I don’t. I followed you in. Aren’t you familiar with Senluo Island? There’s a lake right here. It’s so obvious, and you don’t know the exact location?"

"I don’t remember... I’ve never been here before either," Ling Xi said, embarrassed.

And so, the two fell silent again.

...

"Can you create a map?"

"What kind of map?"

"An electronic map like the ones humans use. The kind with radar, where it beeps and tells you your location."

"Senior, I can’t do that. I can’t create something if I don’t have a concrete concept of it."

"Then can you create a person to give us directions? What about that administrator?"

"Senior, don’t say such things. A Healer cannot create another Healer. Even if one was created, it would just be a headless corpse..."

As he said this, Ling Xi stopped short.

"That’s it! Only a Healer created by another Healer would be headless. That means the bodies in the Matrix Tree must have been created. That’s why they all look exactly the same."

"They were created from imagination, which is why they all have the same wristband! Senior, you’re a genius!"

Ling Xi rushed over to Mo Ling and began to circle him excitedly.

"Er..." Mo Ling, the one he called Senior, was too embarrassed to say anything more.

After a moment, Ling Xi picked up a smooth, oval stone from the ground and began to rub it in his hands.

Then, he tossed the stone onto the ground.

As soon as the stone hit the ground, it suddenly began to expand. Its surface developed dry wrinkles, and short limbs sprouted from its edges, slowly extending.

Before long, the desiccated body of a Healer lay on the ground.

Moreover, this body also wore that familiar wristband.

"It worked! I was right. This body was created!" Ling Xi exclaimed excitedly from the side.

However, to Ling Xi’s surprise, the moment the body finished stretching out, it began to twitch bizarrely. Then, as if controlled by something, it stiffly rose to its feet.

Its movements were extremely uncoordinated. Its arms flailed about as it shakily turned and started walking toward the shore.

"Are you controlling it?" Mo Ling asked curiously, watching the body’s retreating back.

"No, Senior, it’s not me. It’s moving on its own..." Ling Xi was also shocked. "A body without a consciousness controlling it shouldn’t be able to move. How is this happening?"

"Let’s follow it." Mo Ling was very curious where this body was going, so he gestured for Ling Xi to join him, and they followed behind the staggering figure.

Soon, the desiccated body stepped onto the muddy bank. Its legs sank directly into the thick sludge. The body struggled, straining with great effort to take each difficult step.

During this process, its movements became less stiff. It seemed the consciousness controlling it was slowly adapting to the body. Its pace quickened as it grew accustomed to moving through the sludge.

Finally, it reached the edge of the lake and touched the water.

But it was still unfamiliar with the water. The first splash knocked it off balance, and it fell bottom-first into the mud.

After several failed attempts to stand up, it flailed about clumsily in the shallow water for a while before finally adapting to the new environment. It no longer fussed over how to move; it just spread its arms and started crawling into the lake.

Although its posture was hideous, it kept wriggling its body and crawled farther and farther into the lake, eventually sinking beneath the surface, leaving only a few bubbles behind.

"What is it trying to do? Drown itself?" Mo Ling quickly followed, jumping into the lake as well.

Ling Xi hurried in after him.

In the murky water, Mo Ling saw that the body had vanished. It seemed to have gone deeper. He had no choice but to turn and find Ling Xi.

"Are you sure you don’t remember this lake?"

"I don’t. Senluo Island has many lakes, over a dozen of all sizes. They expand during the rainy season and form swamps that look like lakes. The shorelines change completely, so it’s impossible to tell which one is which."

Listening to Ling Xi’s explanation, Mo Ling once again looked into the turbid lake.

"We have to go down and see."

"I’ll follow your lead, Senior."

Mo Ling slowly walked deeper into the lake, the water gradually submerging his body.

He thought it would be difficult for his Block head to sink, but to his surprise, the seemingly calm lake was full of undercurrents. Before the water was even over his head, an undercurrent pulled him down into the depths.

Swirling eddies stirred up the mud and sand from the bottom, making the water impossibly murky. But the glowing ball of light above Ling Xi’s head was still clearly visible. With a kick, Mo Ling shot over to Ling Xi’s side and grabbed his arm.

"Senior, is that you?" Ling Xi asked, a little scared. He couldn’t see clearly in the murky water either.

"It’s me."

And so, Mo Ling held onto Ling Xi as they slowly sank deeper.

The undercurrents swirled with sand and silt. Dim light filtered down from the surface, blurring everything.

"Senior, I think there’s something up there..."

Hearing Ling Xi’s warning, Mo Ling looked up. Near the surface, he saw a wavering Black Shadow.

The Black Shadow swayed its body, circling endlessly above them.

Although it was very blurry, he could still make out its shuttle-shaped silhouette.

’It’s probably a fish...’ Mo Ling thought. ’But something’s wrong. The "fish" isn’t swimming forward; it’s just swaying erratically in the water. Like... seaweed. And its color seems strange, too. It’s constantly changing.’

Not only that, but through the dim light, Mo Ling noticed faint, hair-like threads around the "fish" that swayed with the undercurrent.

"Ling Xi, do you know if there are any fish on Senluo Island that are covered in hair?"

"A fish covered in hair?" Ling Xi paused, sinking into thought.

After a moment, he answered, "No. Unless... unless other Healers introduced new protected species to the island while I was asleep..."

Before he could finish, the strange fish twitched and drifted down toward them.

The murky silt slowly settled. Sunlight pierced the surface and shone on the strange fish, allowing the two of them to finally see it clearly.

It wasn’t a fish at all! It was a shuttle-shaped mass of tangled, colorful, thread-like strands. The strands writhed ceaselessly, changing color like an octopus, and drifted with the current like long, flowing hair.

The moment he saw it, Ling Xi’s body shuddered and he cried out:

"It’s the Rainbow Virus!"