Chapter 540: Infiltration

A strange, ear-piercing screech, like the sound of a large piece of metal being violently torn apart, suddenly came from deep within the corridor. Yu Sheng looked up and saw that the space ahead, already in a bizarre state of fragmented superposition, was now filled with even more cracks, and a shapeless 'substance' like mud was surging between those cracks, desperately trying to enter the real world.

Several dazzling blobs of light instantly flew across the corridor and landed in the middle of that pile of 'mud', scorching it full of holes.

The Black Dot soldier hiding behind the cover instinctively turned his head at the loud explosion, then looked up nervously at the direction of the fissure before continuing, '...We were trapped in the lab—outside were the space station's defense forces that had already mutinied, around us were hysterical technicians and lab security guards firing wildly like madmen. After Zolda Blackstone disappeared, the collapse tore several large gashes in the lab ceiling, and through those openings we could even see the stars outside...

"Then something fell from between the starlight, like mud, like a viscous shadow, like...'

The soldier gestured with his hands, his tone filled with fear and hesitation, as if he could not find a more fitting description for the mad and grotesque scene he had witnessed. After several attempts to organize his words, he finally continued, 'It was like pus oozing from between the stars, falling onto the dome of the space station. The whole station rang like a great bell being struck, and every crack began to seep with something.'

'But just then, a passage appeared where the "Blackstone" had vanished—we don't know how it opened. The fissure generator in the lab had already been destroyed, but it looked at least more stable than elsewhere, and we could see figures on the other side of the passage. The guard captain led us charging through, and then... this is the situation now. Those "things" followed us here.'

The soldier took a breath and looked at the blonde-haired elf standing next to Bai Liqing.

'Boss, what the hell is going on?'

Luo's face was grim, but she did not answer the soldier's question.

After a long while, she said to Bai Liqing, 'The lab personnel and the space station defense forces have been in prolonged contact with the Blackstone. They... might be even more deeply affected than I am.'

Yu Sheng silently watched the space station structures that had fused with the corridor in the distance, as well as the bizarre projections beyond those structures—projections whose original forms were unrecognizable, perhaps not even from the real world.

The scene described by the Black Dot soldier was extremely absurd and bizarre. The torn space station was understandable, but the 'shadow of pus dripping from between the stars' sounded like something happening beyond the boundaries of reason. More crucially, why did all this erupt so suddenly? Although Zolda Blackstone had always had a strong urge to escape, at least until today it had been firmly controlled by that Black Dot lab... Was it because Luo's guard captain ordered an increase in the suppression level, making the Blackstone feel 'threatened'?

Or was it because of his own 'invasion'?

Yu Sheng sank his mind into thought, sensing the distant connection established through blood.

It was the mark left by his two deaths in the Blackstone Space Station.

The feedback from the blood was fragmented, a hollow and strange howl echoing in the depths of his heart.

Something was off.

Yu Sheng frowned. He felt that the blood he had left in the space station seemed to be interfered with. The information coming back had obvious gaps and discontinuities, as if part of it was no longer in the real dimension—perhaps no longer in this world at all.

Yu Sheng closed his eyes. In the darkness, he tried to reconstruct the current state of the 'Blackstone Space Station' based on the limited information from the blood.

In the darkness, a huge, broken disc-shaped phantom slowly emerged.

But the next second, an icy and dangerous sensation struck violently. Yu Sheng saw the phantom vanish, and countless black spider threads filled his vision out of nowhere, descending like a giant net—

'Yu Sheng! Ah, what the hell is this again...'

A clamorous cry from Ai Lin came through his mind, followed by a powerful force pulling at him. Yu Sheng's body swayed, and he snapped his eyes open to see two mass-produced dolls hanging on his arms, shaking vigorously, and another had already climbed onto his shoulder, raising its little hand, swinging it in a full circle, ready to land a big slap.

As soon as Yu Sheng opened his eyes, the Ai Lin on his shoulder, who had been swinging her arm, quickly pulled back, then let out an 'Ah ma!' and fell off. Fortunately, Yu Sheng was quick and caught her by the back of the neck just in time.

'I have to go over and take a look,' Yu Sheng said quickly.

'Go over?' Ai Lin, dangling in the air, swayed for a moment before realizing, 'Oh oh! The space station, right...'

Bai Liqing also quickly caught on. Even she widened her eyes slightly at this bold idea: 'That's too dangerous. That space station is probably completely overrun. If you open a door and go there...'

'If things go wrong, I'll come back immediately,' Yu Sheng interrupted Bai Liqing. 'With the current situation, the number of monsters coming through the fissure is almost endless. Using conventional methods to close the fissure, who knows how long it will take. But I can try to close the thing from the other side—maybe the success rate will be higher.'

Bai Liqing looked seriously into Yu Sheng's eyes. After confirming his firm resolve, she slowly nodded. 'I understand. We'll increase the firepower on this side and do our best to hold as many enemies as possible on this side of the fissure.'

Meanwhile, Luo finally realized from Yu Sheng and Bai Liqing's conversation the suicidal plan of this 'door-opening weirdo'. Following that came great shock and astonishment—she stared dumbfounded at the man who had broken into her base several times. Her original prejudice and hostility were greatly shaken, turning into admiration and awe.

After a brief hesitation, she stepped forward. 'I'll go with you.'

Yu Sheng looked at the blonde-haired elf with some surprise and quickly waved his hand. 'No, your combat strength is even lower than Ai Lin's. If you go, you'll likely die quickly.'

Luo was choked for a moment, but seeing the circle of mass-produced dolls staring at her with dead fish eyes, she opened her mouth several times but couldn't voice a retort. She could only try to keep a straight face. 'You're willing to risk yourself. I have no reason to stay here—after all, that's my space station.'

'Uh,' Yu Sheng twitched the corner of his mouth. 'Mainly because I'm not afraid of death.'

Luo said calmly, 'I'm not afraid of death either.'

Yu Sheng: 'I don't think we're on the same page...'

Luo: '...?'

But soon, Yu Sheng had a change of heart and gave up persuading. 'But come to think of it, it might be okay for you to come along. You know the layout of that space station better than I do.'

Luo nodded, puffing out her chest slightly.

'But once we're over there, you have to follow my orders,' Yu Sheng emphasized, glancing at her. 'You know now that that "stone" is related to the Dim Angel. I'm the only expert in this area. Can you obey commands?'

'Of course,' Luo said without hesitation. 'I know what's important.'

'Good,' Yu Sheng nodded. Then he looked down at the Ai Lin he was still holding, thought for a moment, set her on the ground, and casually grabbed a mass-produced doll from nearby, tucking it under his arm. 'You come with me too. I'll just bring a mass-produced one. At least they're sturdy.'

The mass-produced doll tucked under Yu Sheng's arm lifted its head slightly in a daze. Its dead fish eyes without highlights rolled once and instantly became lively. 'Oh, okay.'

A phantom door took shape in Yu Sheng's hand and was slowly pulled open.

'I'll leave this side to you all,' Yu Sheng looked back at Bai Liqing. 'If I'm not mistaken, that "Blackstone" shouldn't have truly disappeared. It's still influencing the space station on the other side in some way. Once I start trying to close the fissure, the Blackstone will definitely feel threatened and try to stop me. You must keep those monsters here—don't let them go back and cause trouble for me.'

'Alright,' Bai Liqing nodded immediately, then added with some concern, 'I can send an elite squad with you...'

'No need. Bringing too many people will only hinder my performance,' Yu Sheng waved his hand. 'Besides, if I really need help, I can always call for reinforcements myself.'

Bai Liqing said no more, simply nodded calmly and took half a step back.

Yu Sheng, with Ai Lin and Luo, turned and stepped into the phantom door.

As if instantly crossing an entire world, the environment on either side of the door was completely different. The roaring gunfire and cannon shots suddenly faded away, leaving only distant, muffled explosions as if coming through layers of walls, from some unknown direction.

The air around them carried a slight chill, along with a faintly trembling atmosphere of fear.

Ai Lin quickly climbed onto Yu Sheng's shoulder, stretched her arms around his head, and stared wide-eyed at their surroundings. '...Is this the space station?'

She saw an alloy corridor with dim lights stretching crookedly into the distance. Cracks of all sizes covered the station interior, and strange, other-dimensional landscapes occasionally flickered through the darkness. Suspicious and unsettling black substances, like viscous shadows, coated the walls on both sides—and among those 'viscous shadows', black threads crisscrossed in all directions.

Considering that the core lab module of the space station was completely contaminated by the Blackstone's power, and barging in would likely result in instant death before doing anything, Yu Sheng did not open the door directly into the lab. Instead, he opened it into a connecting corridor near the lab.

The eerie scene here was expected, but the degree of silence was unexpected.

Yu Sheng glanced back at the elf beside him.

Luo's face looked terrible.

She seemed unable to accept that her perfectly fine space station had turned into such a polluted nest in the blink of an eye.

But in just a moment, Luo had adjusted her emotions.

'Let's go,' she breathed softly. 'I'll lead the way.'