Chapter 401: How Enviable

After making the Shadow People Little Demon give up its unrealistic idea, Duan Fei controlled it and headed out.

Thanks to Attribute Enhancement and the effect of his own Talent, Duan Fei found his control over the Shadow People Little Demon had grown much stronger. He could even sense many of the characteristics of the Shadow Person itself.

It felt as if he had become a Shadow Person himself, giving him a deeper understanding of this peculiar existence.

Her essence was a mass of Void Energy. Her true form could draw in surrounding shadows, converting them into her current shape.

Since she was composed entirely of Void Energy, the Shadow Person’s comprehension of the Void surpassed Duan Fei’s. Controlling her allowed Duan Fei to gradually deepen his own understanding of the Void.

The Void itself was a fascinating existence. There was nothing inside it—it was absolute, thorough nothingness.

‘Then how could life possibly be born in such a place?’

Within this nothingness, quantum fluctuations occurred. To put it simply, quanta would suddenly appear and just as suddenly vanish. While at any given moment something was being created from nothing, on the whole, it didn’t violate the laws of conservation of matter and energy.

The creatures of the Void would capitalize on the brief period of a quantum’s existence, borrowing the negative energy generated when it vanished. This was the very source of the Void Energy Duan Fei controlled.

It was a troublesome concept to grasp, but for a creature of the Void like the Shadow Person, it was as simple as breathing.

Noticing Duan Fei pondering this question, the Shadow People Little Demon let out an arrogant laugh. “Big Brother is such a weakling, you don’t even get the Void… Ah! Stop ramming my body into the light fixture! I’m sorry, Big Brother!”

“Pathetic.”

Disdainfully labeling the Shadow Person as such, Duan Fei continued moving through the base, scouting for more intel.

He first slipped into the doctor’s office and found it had already been cleaned up. Two soldiers were placing a pair of corpses into body bags before leaving the area.

Just as they were about to leave, Duan Fei had the Shadow Person slip into the master sergeant’s shadow and follow them.

The two bodies weren’t taken to a crematorium or a morgue, but to the plaza.

The “graduation ceremony” was over. The corpses of more than a dozen cadets hung in the air, swaying gently like kites, while a starfish-like Monster clung to the ceiling, indulging in its delicious meal.

The colossal starfish occupied more than half the ceiling. Its hundred-meter-long body imbued its every move with an immense, oppressive weight. The sucking sounds from the tentacles inserted into the heads of the corpses were utterly terrifying, resembling a grand, blasphemous ritual.

Major Triss, however, gazed piously at the starfish overhead, his hands clasped in devout prayer.

Beside him, a senior officer was frowning as he watched the scene unfold.

He was a lieutenant colonel, and the few soldiers he’d brought in from the outside stood guard by his side, warily scanning the area.

Pointing at the starfish overhead, the lieutenant colonel asked, “Don’t tell me you changed the plan at the last minute because of that… thing.”

“It’s beautiful, is it not?” Major Triss said with a smile. “That is the form of an Angel, and like an Angel, it shall incinerate all our enemies with a flaming sword.”

“You’re insane,” the lieutenant colonel sighed. “We only have a few hundred of these bases, and the money each one burns through annually is enough to build an aircraft carrier. Yet you’re squandering funds on this… monstrosity.”

“Lieutenant Colonel, I must remind you that blasphemy carries a price,” Major Triss said with displeasure.

“To hell with your blasphemy. It’s a genetically modified Monster. Listen here, the purpose of this base is to cultivate agile operatives who can infiltrate and sabotage Superpower User organizations, not produce fodder that’s only good for being torn to shreds. And you’ve turned valuable agents into food for this thing? I have every reason to have you executed on the spot.”

“Is that so?”

Triss nodded. The master sergeant behind him immediately stepped forward and unslung the rifle from his shoulder.

At the same time, the lieutenant colonel’s soldiers, already on alert, immediately raised their own weapons and aimed them squarely at Triss and the master sergeant.

With a faint smile, Triss simply made a gesture. The master sergeant immediately stuck the rifle’s muzzle into his own mouth and pulled the trigger.

Blood bloomed inside his tactical mask, dyeing it red from within. Not a single drop leaked out.

When the master sergeant had first unslung his rifle, the lieutenant colonel hadn’t been afraid; he didn’t believe the man would actually shoot.

But when the master sergeant shot himself in the head, panic finally set in. The man’s action had been far too clean, too decisive.

‘It’s as if he doesn’t care about his own life at all,’ the lieutenant colonel thought. ‘He sees himself as a mere tool. That’s the only way he could pull the trigger without a moment’s hesitation.’

Exhaling sharply, the lieutenant colonel said, “So, soldiers who have no fear of death. Not bad.”

“No, you underestimate them. Master Sergeant, remove your mask.”

The master sergeant who had just shot himself in the head suddenly moved.

He deftly removed his mask, revealing a mangled ruin of a face. Within the remnants of his brain, fat grubs squirmed.

The next moment, the grubs began to shift. Countless grubs changed their forms, reassembling themselves into the master sergeant’s head. The remaining grubs began to multiply, repopulating the inside of his skull.

The lieutenant colonel’s breath hitched as he witnessed the grotesque scene.

He stepped forward and peered through the wound in the man’s skull, watching as the master sergeant’s brain gradually regenerated until not even a scar remained.

“Absolutely astonishing!” the lieutenant colonel stammered, his voice trembling.

He spun around and clapped Major Triss hard on the shoulder, so excited he was practically vibrating.

He gesticulated wildly, flailing his arms for a good while before he managed to calm down and turn his gaze back to the master sergeant.

Then, ignoring the no-smoking sign, he lit a cigarette. He looked at Major Triss and said, “Do you have any idea what you’ve created? A soldier who is one-hundred-percent obedient! An Undying Body! What other special abilities does he have?”

“Telepathy. He can receive commands telepathically from up to ten kilometers away.”

“Telepathy, too!”

“Yes. They also have a collective learning ability. The Angel acts as a storage drive; it can store knowledge within itself. When a new person joins the network, they can instantly master all of that knowledge.”

“A hive mind! Brilliant. So, are there any downsides?”

“The reproduction rate isn’t fast enough. I’m not yet sure why, but they can only be created through the Angel. Only those who have been ‘eaten’ by the Angel can acquire this trait.”

“Then let it eat more!”

“That’s not possible.” Major Triss shook his head. “Lord Angel is a very picky eater. We adjust the cadets’ meat quality daily, treating their brains with various chemicals, and even then, only a small number are selected. However, Lieutenant Colonel, you should be pleased.”

“Why is that?” the lieutenant colonel asked, puzzled.

“Lord Angel has taken a liking to you.”

Slender tentacles descended from above, instantly entangling the lieutenant colonel and the soldiers behind him. Sharp probes pierced their brains, hoisting them toward the ceiling.

Watching them struggle feebly before being consumed, Triss let out a sigh.

“How truly enviable.”