"This guy is already out of his mind, so I thought Iâd bluff him to test the waters, and to my surprise, I guessed right," Lin Xian said.
The last two questions, though not offhand remarks, were indeed guesses. First, because he knew the candle couldnât be contained by lighting it or by touch. Before Zhou Lei picked up the candle, the black candle had been contained by Old Ghost. He reckoned that it was through this method that Old Ghost made Zhou Lei his puppet.
Another point is that since Old Ghost knew there were three Taboo Items on the Infinity and also had a detection device, he first came to the Queen Mo to find Zhou Lei. But the problem is, Monicaâs vehicle didnât have a Taboo Item, so Lin Xian speculated that Old Ghost might be able to sense Zhou Leiâs presence through some connection with the black candle. The most likely reason he came here was to confirm whether Zhou Lei was dead or not, which was extremely important to him. And it was Old Ghostâs initial shock upon seeing Zhou Lei that gave Lin Xian this idea, and surprisingly, it turned out to be true.
He looked back at Zhou Lei and couldnât help but chuckle.
This guy truly has a great destiny; the candle goes out, yet he survives. Lin Xian might think it has something to do with the Star Abyss space crossing they experienced, but whether itâs due to the Silver Dragon Ten Thousand Mistakes or the Fish-tailed Lion Statue is unknown. However, now that Zhou Lei has lost that characteristic, it precisely indicates he has escaped the influence of the black candle.
At this moment, standing inside the isolation chamber, Zhou Lei was also dumbfounded. Looking at Old Ghostâs corpse, he was in a daze. Just because someone had a Taboo Item, a smart and cunning person like himself was subdued by such an idiot. Thinking of this, Zhou Lei couldnât help but want to laugh, but he couldnât. Then he looked up at the surveillance in the compartment, and as he realized he was free from the candleâs threat, he laughed again, but instantly thought of how he had lost his stealth ability, becoming an ordinary person once more, and being reduced to a prisoner, he couldnât laugh again.
KIKI looked at this guy, laughing one moment and not the next, rolled her eyes, and said to Monica, "Hereâs another one gone mad. Youâre right, this organization really is a mix of hidden talents."
Snap.
Monica snapped her fingers, and the isolation chamber holding Zhou Lei instantly turned black, blocking sight and sound, then she said to Lin Xian,
"Seems like heâs no longer of use. How do you plan to deal with him?"
Lin Xian scratched his head, then said, "Heâs been monitoring those replicas in White City for quite some time, so he might know quite a bit. Itâs a bit uncanny how this guy survived all the way here; letâs just keep him locked up. If itâs inconvenient for you, Iâll hand him over to Mochizuki Masashi; Silent City has plenty of cells."
"Better to keep him here," Monica crossed her arms. "I like to have uncertainties under my control."
"Alright then."
Lin Xian said, glancing at the box in his hand and Old Ghostâs body, taking a deep breath. "Now itâs clear, both Holy Revelation and Deep Red World have set their sights on us. What an honor."
"Let them," KIKI said coldly, "These Descent Faction members are enemies of all humanity and deserve to die."
"I agree," Monica said to Lin Xian, with a playful interest, "Lin Xian, right now, amidst the Star Abyssâs siege, humanityâs continental regions are moving from chaos to order. The darkness forces humanity to unite. The roving bandit car gangs that used to loot and camp independently are now decreasing. In the face of absolute survival threats, scheming has no meaning. Anyone sane wants to collaborate and form alliances to head to the Polar region. The European Storm Alliance, North American United Front, Dawn City, Silent City, and the Arctic Wind Alliance, Wanderer Alliance are the same. The Phoenix Society stands for the direction of permanence, so arenât you interested in forming your own force?"
Lin Xian turned back to her, smiling, "Do you really want to join me that badly? Your personality doesnât seem like one that likes to be subordinate."
Monica smiled charmingly, "Firstly, I recognize you as a person. Also, Iâm very interested in that giant Sky Dome level train capable of flying into the stars."
After speaking, she stepped down from the vehicle. As she passed by Lin Xian, she stopped, leaned in closely, and whispered,
"Besides, who says being under someone means being subordinate? What if itâs really enjoyable?"
Lin Xian turned back, watching Monicaâs graceful figure descend the vehicle, smiling wryly.
This woman really doesnât make sense. Used to being a queen, why would being underneath me make her happy?
After disembarking from the Queen Mo, Lin Xian stored the black candle and prepared with KIKI to head to the upper deckâs transport ship berth to find Lao Hu. If he could devour that Dragon Transport Ship, just the nuclear power engine and propulsion equipment alone would likely give him thousands of Mechanical Source Points. This could significantly boost his Mechanical Heart, possibly even advancing it to Level 6 to complete a second awakening.
Next stop is Jin Hai, which is already Dawn Cityâs territory. Considering what Zhou Lei mentioned, Deep Red Worldâs headquarters might also be there. With Silent Cityâs massive scale, it canât be overlooked, so he must seize every moment spent in Silent City over the next two days to enhance his Mechanical Heart.