Rules-related weird stories: 4016.

Chapter 663 "The Furnace"

Kuai Hongji glanced at it, then silently turned around and continued walking towards the celestial globe.

The countless large eyes on the mural opened again and looked at him.

And so, Kuai Hongji would turn back every few steps, but each time, the mural would hide the anomaly, and Kuai Hongji never noticed it.

Of course, from an angle that they cannot observe or perceive, there are also some subtle changes in Kuai Hongji's expression under his hood.

Kuai Hongji quickly arrived in front of the armillary sphere.

Then, he stood still like a statue, silently waiting for Mao Feiyang to return from the "principal's office".

Before long, the armillary sphere began to tremble slightly again. After being overused by Mao Feiyang, the armillary sphere, which already had a short lifespan, was on the verge of being scrapped.

The current celestial sphere is like an aging master swordsman whose internal energy is gradually depleting. It only has the power to launch a single flying knife, but once this knife is launched, the enemy dies, and so does the celestial sphere.

"..."

Kuai Hongji looked at the armillary sphere, then at the surrounding environment and the sky, and his lips twitched imperceptibly, as if he were an old friend looking at a dying peer on a sickbed.

Before long, a wisp of energy was suddenly activated through the celestial globe.

"Buzz——"

The armillary sphere trembled slightly, like the sound of a sword, and its ring-shaped structures began to rotate slightly once again, while a shimmering light, like ripples on water, began to flow beneath the copper patina.

Soon, guided by the armillary sphere, the "Starry Night" on the circular stone wall also resonated, and countless stars slowly unfolded in the layers, illuminating the starry sky.

Kuai Hongji squinted and slowly tightened his grip on the handle of the old kerosene lamp.

At that moment, however, he felt no joy whatsoever.

Because he had already foreseen what was going to happen next.

Deep within the layers, streaks of starlight are displayed in a completely illogical manner. Between the overlapping jagged edges, countless coordinates scroll and flash, much like the dense code that scrolls across the screen in The Matrix.

Kuai Hongji held his breath, waiting for Mao Feiyang's return.

At this moment, countless eyes appeared densely on the eerie mural on the circular stone wall, staring intently at the unfolding and changes of the "Stars and Night" layer from different angles and levels, trying to find the coordinates of the fleeting star trail when Mao Feiyang returned.

Kuai Hongji couldn't predict when Mao Feiyang would return, so when the star trails began to unfold in the layer, he placed his hand on the armillary sphere and used it to spread the secret patterns into "Starry Night" to cover the star trail coordinates and prevent them from being exposed.

His actions finally made the strange creature lurking at the observatory—the "High-Ranking Alien Angel"—unable to sit still.

When Mao Feiyang escaped right under its nose, it had calculated that he would return, which is why it waited for him on this observatory. Now that its scheme had been exposed by Kuai Hongji, and Kuai Hongji had made the first move, it naturally decided to break off all pretense of civility on the spot.

Otherwise, once Kuai Hongji sets up the secret patterns and conceals the aura at the crucial moment, his scheme will fail again.

"boom--!!"

Within the "Starry Night" layer, the "High-Rank Alien Angel" made a ruthless move, with countless layers surrounding Kuai Hongji's will from different times and spaces. Each layer was filled with cracks, and if Kuai Hongji's will accidentally fell into one of the cracks, it would be doomed forever!

At the same time, on the circular stone wall, the eerie mural with countless eyeballs popping out also suddenly erupted, the layers of the image twisting wildly, and the figure of the "high-ranking alien angel" was about to break out from it!

Kuai Hongji noticed this mural from the very beginning, and it seems he observed many unusual things. It is clearly the hiding place of some of the forms of "high-ranking alien angels" that have infiltrated the art building!

At this very moment, the "High-Ranking Alien Angel" unleashed its full power, simultaneously targeting Kuai Hongji from both the layer and reality!
However, this layout was originally intended for Mao Feiyang and his team.

"snort--!"

Kuai Hongji snorted coldly, and the dark gray mist suddenly burst out from his body. Part of it penetrated into the "Starry Night" layer, bypassed the layer blockade of the "High-Rank Alien Angel", and covered the star trail. The other part swirled around his body, forming a protective layer.

In the observatory, countless large eyes of the "High-Ranking Alien Angel" burst out of the mural. Behind those eyes, there were lamprey-like fleshy tentacles, some of which had shriveled humanoid outlines growing on them.

From a distance, it looked as if the mural was twisting and sprouting countless tentacles, like a swarm of snakes surrounding Kuai Hongji.

These tentacles instantly wrapped around the dark gray mist surrounding Kuai Hongji, binding him and the mist together, as if he were trapped in a thick quilt.

Within the "Starry Night" layer, the "High-Rank Alien Angel" held the home-field advantage and became even more unrestrained when it rioted. Seeing that Kuai Hongji had dispersed the dark gray mist in order to protect the star orbit coordinates, it seized the opportunity to launch a diversionary attack on Kuai Hongji's will at the layer level.

Furthermore, on this basis, it was even able to allocate a significant amount of its will to hunt down Kuai Hongji's dark gray mist.

The more advanced the bizarre creature, the stronger its extraordinary characteristics, and the greater its power at each level.

Countless secret runes floated around Kuai Hongji's will. The existence of these runes prevented him from sinking into the layer rift, but he could not withstand the real will attack from the "High-Rank Alien Angel".

Kuai Hongji's will quickly became riddled with holes.

Finally, as the star trail continued to unfold, the coordinates "Star Trail-4-0-1-6" appeared, and Lin Yi's will emerged from it!

At the same time, the "High-Rank Alien Angel" that sensed the change in the "Starry Night" layer went berserk without regard for anything else. All its power was gathered together and it attacked the black and gray mist that Kuai Hongji used to cover up the coordinates of the star trails like a drill.

"Empty, empty, empty...!!!"

Terrifying fluctuations erupted continuously between the layers, spreading out layer by layer like air waves. However, the dark gray mist remained entangled there like a gloomy haze, unable to make any effective progress no matter how it tried to break through.

It failed to succeed even after the star orbit coordinates disappeared.

"ah--!!"

The "High-Rank Alien Angel" flew into a rage and frantically stirred up the "Starry Night" layer. Countless layer fluctuations erupted from its will, like chaotic undercurrents in the depths of the ocean, entangling the wills of Kuai Hongji and Lin Yi from countless levels.

"Stay here!! All of you stay here!!"

Under its relentless and frenzied onslaught, the dark gray mist finally began to loosen slightly. However, as the dark gray mist dissipated, what was revealed was a scene that nearly drove the "High-Rank Alien Angel" to the brink of collapse—Lin Yi's will appeared in a semi-transparent form among countless star trails.

They had already left the "Principal's Office," and the star coordinates that appeared and disappeared in an instant were finally successfully concealed by Kuai Hongji. The "High-Rank Alien Angels" had not made any effective breakthroughs at all!

On the other side, Lin Yi's will also sensed Kuai Hongji's presence.

"Kuai Kuai?!"

"Kuai? I'll fuck your mother!!!" Before there was even time to be surprised, the "High-Rank Alien Angel" erupted with unprecedented rage, and its overwhelming fury began to destroy the "Starry Night" layer like a tsunami!
At the same time, on the observatory, a dazzling white light suddenly appeared from the frantically spinning armillary sphere. Within the light, countless threads extended from nothingness, weaving together as if to form a pair of hands holding the armillary sphere...

After the palm appeared, the silk threads continued to intertwine, weaving together bones and muscles like weaving cloth... In the blink of an eye, Mao Feiyang's body was "regenerated" in the armillary sphere as if molecules were being recombined.

Upon seeing Mao Feiyang's safe return, the "High-Rank Alien Angel" immediately began attacking Mao Feiyang inside the celestial globe. At this moment, it wanted to fight to the death—since it couldn't obtain the coordinates of the star trail, it would destroy even the person who was about to return!

Lin Yi's will in the "Starry Night" layer, and Mao Feiyang's physical body in the astronomical instrument at the observatory, it doesn't want to let either of them go!

must die!
They all must die!!

However, at that moment, Kuai Hongji let out a rare, low, and sinister laugh.

"Ho ho ho ho ho..."

"finally……"

"I'm finally back..."

"Old Lin, you fucking...you've really kept me waiting..."

As Kuai Hongji laughed, the endless black-gray mist that had seeped into the star trails in the "Starry Night" layer frantically contracted into his will body.

Meanwhile, on the observatory side, the countless fleshy tendrils of the "high-ranking alien angel" extending from the eerie mural, which had originally bound Kuai Hongji and the blackish-gray mist together, were now showing signs of loosening.

The dark gray mist suddenly surged, causing cracks to appear in the countless fleshy tendrils.

"Crunch, crunch..."

These fleshy tendrils loosened like rubber tubing, and wisps of flame began to seep out from the cracks between them, as if they contained not some living creature, but a blazing fireball.

"Black flames?!"

"You...?!" The "High-Ranking Alien Angel" was filled with rage mixed with fear. "What exactly are you...?!"

"boom--!"

The fleshy tendrils were completely shattered in the flames, but the "High-Ranking Alien Angel" still stubbornly bound him.

In both the "Starry Night" layer and reality, the "High-Rank Alien Angel" unleashed deadly attacks on Kuai Hongji and his will entity.

However, this time Kuai Hongji did not choose to endure it. He kept laughing coldly and sinisterly. A thin figure slowly appeared behind him, as if it were the law of heaven and earth, stretching across the stars!

That thin figure, half-naked, was emaciated yet covered with well-defined muscles, somewhat resembling Bruce Lee.

"You...this...god...'divine craftsman'?!"

The image of Kuai Hongji could be seen in the layer. The "High-Rank Alien Angel" trembled violently, and all its flesh and blood shuddered. Every inch of it exuded a sense of fear.

"What are you yelling about...?!" Kuai Hongji sneered and reached out, grabbing the fleshy whiskers of the "High-Rank Alien Angel". Then he raised his hand, and the black and gray mist intertwined like a net, forming a black hammer in his palm.

"...A 'smelting furnace'!"

Kuai Hongji murmured and brought the hammer down.

"Ding!"

A crisp sound resounded throughout the universe as a pillar of fire enveloped the countless fleshy tendrils of the "High-Rank Alien Angel." Then, as if something had been ignited, each of those tendrils burst forth with dazzling specks of secret runes.

These secret patterns were all carved on it by Kuai Hongji when he was pretending to observe the strange murals with an old kerosene lamp. Now, he has just ignited them all!

On the observatory, the image of the "Higher Alien Angel" was engulfed by the furnace fire and burned continuously. Within the layers, the countless layers projected by the "Higher Alien Angel" also collapsed continuously as if in a chain reaction!

"ah--!!!"

"No--!"

"I'm not reconciled! I'm not reconciled!!"

"Go and wallow in your resentment..."

Kuai Hongji muttered to himself as the phantom of the "divine craftsman" slowly dissipated behind him, while he looked at the celestial globe with his old kerosene lamp in hand.

……

On May 12, X023, at 2:42, the "Starry Night" layer slowly returned to the main body of the circular stone wall, and the twinkling stars gradually dimmed.

Beneath the starry sky, the frantically spinning celestial sphere slowed down, and when it had almost stopped, Mao Feiyang stepped out.

Lin Yi's will has now returned to Mao Feiyang's body.

Although he sensed Kuai Hongji's presence in the "Starry Night" layer, he did not linger, because he knew exactly what time it was and what the violent fluctuations in the "Starry Night" layer meant.

Upon finally reuniting with Kuai Hongji, Lin Yi was overjoyed. However, before he could even speak, Kuai Hongji threw the chains binding him at him and shouted in a deep voice, "Grab the chains and come with me! Quickly!"

Mao Feiyang's expression hardened, and he immediately used his senses to scan the environment of the observatory. He quickly understood the general situation and rushed towards the chain, grabbing it in one swift motion.

“Clatter!”

The chain wrapped around Mao Feiyang's hand several times before stopping, and then the glow of the old kerosene lamp, like a layer of breadcrumbs, enveloped Mao Feiyang along the chain.

"go!"

Without saying a word, Kuai Hongji led Mao Feiyang directly into the shadows of the circular stone wall, a scene reminiscent of the Black and White Impermanence taking lives.

"Rumble... Rumble..."

On the observatory, the bodies of the infiltrated "higher-level alien angels" writhed wildly, while in the night sky outside the art building, the true forms of the "higher-level alien angels" angrily attacked the invisible protective shield erected by the quantum giant clock "Sanctuary".

Atop the clock tower, "Night Watchman-02" instantly locked onto the "High-Ranking Alien Angel's" movements. In a flash, he roared like thunder, his booming voice drowning out the night's thunder, exploding above the art building—

"How dare you, you demons and monsters, invade the Black Moon Outpost?!"

(End of this chapter)