Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Li Yao was refreshed and crawled into the ‘sand’.
Countless glittering streams, guided by the mental devil, congregated and created an illusionary picture.
They seemed to have entered a mottled ancient scroll, or they seemed to have snuck into someone’s twisted dream. They could not see the clear and complete video, but they could capture the pieces of data and the human figures that seemed to be made of endless electric arcs.
“Jiang Xue, Jiang Xue!”
Li Yao seemed to hear the roars echoing in the sky from the center of the lightning-shrouded figure.
Even though it had been shattered and purged half a month ago, this passionate and sorrowful cry still pierced through Li Yao’s soul, causing him to recall the first time he and Ding Lingdang parted in life and death.
Such intense emotions were hundreds of times more intense than the source of the virus. The man who seemed to be made of electric arcs must be Gao Huan!
The so-called ‘circling electric arcs’ were not his real appearance in the real world, either. It could only be said that he was in a weird state where his fire of life was burning and his emotions were so intense that they were about to explode.
“This is… incredible!”
Right then, Li Yao suddenly heard someone else’s voice from the other side of the picture. “Tell me, who are you exactly? What kind of strength is supporting you? After three rounds of brainwashing, you are still unable to completely erase your past memories. Do you still remember this woman named
‘Jiang Xue?”
Li Yao was dazed for a moment.
In the data recovered by the mental devil, there was another person standing opposite of the real Gao Huan.
It was not hard to guess that the man was either the puppet king or one of his subordinates who had been lurking in the temple.
The man’s voice was as calm and tranquil as that of other members of the Star Glory Federation. But when one listened to it carefully, one would feel that it was indescribably evil and charming. Every word was stimulating the deepest and most primitive part of the human brain.
The voice sounded familiar. Li Yao was certain that he had heard it somewhere before.
In the picture, Gao Huan struggled hard and shouted, telling his identity intermittently.
Although he had lost most of his memories and did not know what he was talking about, Li Yao still recognized the key to his story. He was indeed a special forces soldier of the Star Ocean Imperium from the garrison of the Deep Earth Army. His wife, ‘Jiang Xue’, used to be a member of the Star Ocean
Imperium, but she had gone missing in a battle a few years ago. He suspected that his wife had become a captive of the Star Ocean Imperium and even believed that he had seen her in the battle. Therefore, even though he had been captured by the Star Ocean Imperium and sent to the Psychic Temple to be
brainwashed, he did not give up the hope of finding his wife. He believed that he would find ‘Jiang Xue’ and escape with his wife so that they could live a happy life again.
“Ah, so that’s howit is. What a touching and sad love story.”
The voice that seemed to be the puppet king chuckled. “No wonder the deep brainwashing failed to turn you into a muddle-headed idiot. Love is the deepest and strongest feeling for human beings. No power in the universe can wash it away!
“Who are you?”
In the picture, Gao Huan asked solemnly, “Who are you exactly? What do you want?”
“Hehe. 1 am a human being just like you. A proud human being.
The voice of the puppet king said casually, “As for my purpose… I want to trigger the emotions and desires of all human beings so that I can gain unparalleled strength from the self-detonation. I want to blow up the goddamn Holy Accord Alliance and crush the pretentious guys into powder.
“believe that the life form of human beings will be elevated to a higher level during the process, and we will be able to truly understand our essence, limits, and destiny. Of course, if your wife ‘Jiang Xue’ is not dead but a warrior of the Fire Clan of the Sanctuary, maybe I can help you rescue her, too.
“Really?”
The electric arcs that represented Gao Huan’s life force field shrank into a cluster before they exploded violently. He shouted in disbelief, “Can you help me? Can you really help me?”
“Of course, but you have to help me, too.”
The puppet king-like voice chuckled in a low voice. “Or rather, you must help yourself. Whether or not you can destroy the Holy Alliance and rescue your wife, ‘Jiang Xue’, is all in your own hands. It all depends on whether or not you are still willing to fight for yourself, your wife, and the proud human
beings.
“Of—of course I’m willing!”
Gao Huan’s vitality field stretched out like an octopus before it dimmed down again. “But—but I’m just an ordinary low-level warrior. I’m trapped. I can feel that my memory is getting worse and worse, and my thinking ability is diminishing, too. Those damn lights and sounds are bothering my brain all
the time. I don’t know what to do. There’s nothing I can do!
“Don’t underestimate yourself. Human beings are the strongest fighting species in the universe. None of us are ordinary dust or ants. Our real strength is buried deep inside our souls. When you activate it, all the deities and devils will flee in fear.
The voice of the puppet king seemed to be encouraging him. “For you, the most powerful weapon is your love for your wife. I’ve waited for a long time, and I’ve finally found a devoted lover like you. Come on. Memories of your time with your wife. Let the most precious pictures and laughter be ignited.
Release your feelings and detonate your soul. Let out your love for your wife and your hatred for the gods. Then, lend me your strength and your compatriots so that we can perform the most glamorous miracle together!”
“AHHHHHHHHH!””
Bewildered and stimulated by the puppet king, Gao Huan’s vitality surged out like an undersea volcano.
Even though Li Yao had experienced hundreds of battles and seen many experts detonate their deepest strength, he had rarely seen a low-level warrior in the Building Foundation Stage who could burn the vitality magnetic field to such a brilliant degree.
For a moment, Li Yao felt that his eyes were about to be blinded. He did not seem to be facing a low-level warrior but a Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator or even a Divinity Transformation Stage Cultivator who was launching a shocking attack at the cost of his own life!
“Human emotions
The voice of the puppet king seemed to be exclaiming in satisfaction while enjoying the rain, before it burst into wild laughter amid the expansion of its strength. “Haha. Hahahaha. Hahahaha. This is what a human being should be like. A human being beyond the control of gods and devils!
The data ended there.
Perhaps the emotional power released by Gao Huan in his excitement was so overwhelming that no monitoring magical equipment could withstand his destructive brainwaves.
It was also possible that the puppet king deleted the process of refining the ‘Favorite Virus’ with Gao Huan’s deep love in a more complicated and mysterious way.
Li Yao and the mental devil were deep in thought in the darkness of the Spiritual Nexus.
“see. Everything is clear now!”
Li Yao said solemnly, “Love is indeed one of the most complicated and intense feelings for mankind. Since the puppet king’s specialty is the production of ‘brain viruses’, there’s no reason why he wouldn’t set his sights on love.
“However, in order to refine a brain virus that is based on love, such as the ‘Favorite Virus’, we will need a ‘catalyst’ that is of paramount importance, because most of the people of the Star Glory Federation have never experienced the feeling of love. They don’t know what it means to be in love with each
other at all. How can we make them be deeply attracted to each other?
“After all, love and appetite are different. Appetite is a very primitive biological instinct. Anyone can tell the difference between delicious food and synthetic food as soon as they taste it. But love is a more advanced and complicated emotion that requires a… template.
“It is estimated that the puppet king has finished most of the designing and refining of the ‘Favorite Virus’, but he is still missing the most crucial part. Therefore, he has been waiting for a special person, a devoted man—Gao Huan!
“Gao Huan was just an ordinary low-level warrior, but he managed to resist three to four rounds of brainwashing without completely forgetting it. Such an anomaly was immediately discovered by the puppet king or his subordinates who were lurking in the Psychic Temple. After further communication,
it was confirmed that Gao Huan was the ‘catalyst’ that he desperately needed. That’s why the temptation and stimulation were triggered and the broken audio and scanning records of the vitality magnetic field were discovered by us!
“That’s right.”
The mental devil added, “Gao Huan is indeed a rarely-seen ‘love seed’. His deep love for his wife has turned into a powerful weapon after the refinement and enhancement of the puppet king, which has infected thousands of people of the Star Glory Federation. It is evident of the puppet king’s sharp eyes.
He did not risk being discovered in vain and picked Gao Huan carefully.”
“However.
Li Yao pondered for a moment and said, “Why does the voice of the puppet king sound more and more familiar to me? No, no, no. Not because of the tone, but because of the tone and the choice of words. ‘Set off the emotions of human beings, break the limits of human beings, and figure out our real
destiny’. I seem to have heard similar words before. No. I’m sure of it!”
“Right now, we have many screening conditions.
“Firstly, from the Star Glory Federation,” the mental devil said. “Secondly, he should have a grudge against us. Thirdly, he has the marvelous ability to corrupt the Spiritual Nexus and the brain. He can also refine all kinds of bizarre brain viruses. Fourthly, just like the extraterrestrial devils, he worships
emotions and believes that emotions and desires are the source of strength for human beings. Fifthly, even so, he still considers himself a human being and prides himself on being one.
“There shouldn’t be many people who can search our memory banks and meet all five conditions, right?”
Li Yao’s soul stagnated for a moment. Then, it suddenly rippled out and crashed into the mental waves of the mental devil brutally.
In the collision of the ripples, they both thought of a name:
Lu Qingchen!