Ark Undead

"Hehe, great, very satisfied!"

At this moment, the old man seemed to have completely forgotten what had just happened; his face was full of smiles, just like a blooming chrysanthemum.

They then fled the scene at an extremely high speed.

Skadi picked up the wooden frame from the ground and glanced back at the east.

She knew she must have missed something important.

She knew that she had been saved once again by a silent friend.

When the echoes of her hometown reached her ears, the call was drowned out by the burning flames, shielding her from yet another soft murmur.

"What gift should I bring back next time I go back...?"

The white-haired bounty hunter blinked, her mood suddenly improving as she carried the wooden frame away.

Let's turn our attention back to this side.

The bone blade pierced the body solidified by black liquid. But even with such a sharp and powerful thrust, it only penetrated a few centimeters before it could go any further.

The black, viscous liquid remained motionless for a few seconds. As if realizing its plan had failed, its eyes glowed red, and it opened its enormous maw, about to unleash an angry roar.

"Shining! Protect her!"

Just as Shining was preparing to brace himself against the impact of the sound, he heard another magnificent human voice.

In her vision, a warm, dim yellow light appeared, like a bright lamp lit in this pitch-black room.

boom!

A burst of intense flame rose from the undead's right hand and struck it before the black, viscous liquid could even make a sound.

The dark figure was like a crow whose throat had been suddenly grabbed, only able to utter a faint hoot.

As the flames continued to burn it, they melted its hard outer shell, revealing the fragile, wriggling mucus inside.

Kal'tsit seized the opportunity and commanded Mon3tr to launch another attack.

The sharp bone blade tore another large gash in the already softened shell.

When the raging flames touched the viscous, soft substance, it was as if they had touched cotton soaked in gasoline. The flames flared up and illuminated the originally dim room as if it were being directly exposed to sunlight.

Amidst the sizzling sound of burning grease, the black filth rampaged through the cage of flames, trying to escape the crimson of destruction.

The black, soft substance gradually shrank in the flames, and the enormous energy it released poured into the already fierce fire.

Until the last wisp of black disappeared into the flames, the once violent flames calmed down, becoming clear and bright, without a trace of filth.

From the top of the flames, the flames transformed into a stream, accompanied by sparks, flowing back into the undead's body.

The Undead lowered his head, looking at his palm. He quietly felt the sudden increase in power and confirmed a fact once again.

Abyss and fire are each other's sustenance.

The contents of the Ghost Shark's body can only be explained by the abyss.

So the question is, how did Specter come into contact with the Deep?

Was she really infected with Oripathy?

Or perhaps it's something that the white-haired bounty hunter always talks about.

What about the distant hometown, where wanderers yearn to return?

210. Originium, is it conscious?

"So, you think this matter should be blamed on the Iberian side?"

The Undead, Kal'tsit, and Shining. The three involved did not leave the room, but watched as the Undead withdrew the flames and then sat down again on the sofa.

During this time, Kal'tsit also took the time to give Specter a full-body check-up using the current equipment.

Then, based on the existing events, they attempted to reconstruct the truth behind the Specter's rampage.

When discussing the possible reasons for Specter's current state, Kal'tsit offered her unique opinion.

"The Agor people always have some special physical characteristics that others cannot understand. Warfarin and I share the same interest and research on this, and we have also found some special significance in them."

Kal'tsit is still Kal'tsit. Although she enjoys going against the undead, she doesn't dare to cause them too much trouble. But her expertise in her field is enough to justify her attitude towards others.

"The Agorians, represented by Skadi, share the common characteristics of possessing extremely strong and resilient bodies, and in terms of strength, they have an overwhelming advantage that is incomprehensible to land-dwelling races."

"Take Specter for example, she is also a branch of the Agorians, similar to Skadi. Their physical abilities are so strong that ordinary weapons cannot pierce their bodies, and even Originium magic has difficulty causing them substantial damage."

"Here's another piece of information for you: almost no Agorians have been found to suffer from Oripathy. Ghost Shark is the first Agorian we've discovered to have Oripathy. Moreover, her body is still resisting the invasion of Oripathy. Furthermore, the Oripathy solution hidden in her spine is enough to infect an entire small city."

When Kal'tsit mentioned this, Shining couldn't help but look at Specter lying quietly on the hospital bed next to him.

She thought of the nightingale, if only she had the chance...

"But strength often has its drawbacks. Despite their exceptional physical strength, the Agors have almost no Originium adaptability, which means they are virtually unable to use any Originium products. Even the most convenient Originium circuit products are unusable."

Kal'tsit thought for a moment, then added.

"Of course, tools that can be powered independently using Originium can be used. For example, vehicles and communicators."

"Therefore, when Ghost Shark's body was resisting the Originium solution in her body, her body's rejection reaction was so severe, which caused her mental problems as well, resulting in a long period of unconsciousness, and she could only communicate with us rationally for a short time."

"You might not believe it, but Specter is very easy to get along with when she's in her sanity state. We even have an operator who blushed after seeing her smile."

The Undead tilted its head. What Kal'tsit wanted to express was simply that Specter's mental state had been forcibly altered by the Originium solution, and that Specter in its normal state was definitely not so unapproachable.

Perhaps because of her agreement with Skadi, Kal'tsit has been speaking up for Specter.

Of course, it's also possible that this is the only case of infection among the Agorians, and Kal'tsit doesn't want the Undead to destroy this case so easily, as it still has extremely high research value.

"However, I can't say I've never heard of cases where someone has been tormented by Oripathy to this extent, even to the point of developing a second consciousness. I have seen it before. But that was based on the premise that the patient already had a mental illness before being infected with Oripathy."

Kal'tsit frowned. A second consciousness like Specter's, which was entirely induced by Oripathy, is unprecedented in the entire history of Originium.

"Where is the nightingale?"

Shining couldn't help but ask a question.

"What is Nightingale's mental state like?"

"Miss Nightingale and Ghost Shark are not quite the same."

Kal'tsit shook her head and explained.

"Miss Nightingale was tormented by both illness and her past, which led to the closure of her self-awareness and the resulting amnesia. You can see her as the Nightingale from a few years ago, because in essence, she is still herself. But Ghost Shark's appearance clearly shows that she is a different person."

Shining opened her mouth slightly, as if she wanted to ask something else.

Just then, the Undead spoke.

Have you ever considered one possibility?

The Undead leaned back on the sofa, looked at Kal'tsit, and asked cautiously.

"Does Originium itself possess consciousness?"

"..."

Kal'tsit opened her mouth, her expression shifting from surprise to calm before returning to stillness.

"This is a topic of discussion, Mr. Undying. How do you know about these things?"

The fact that this white-haired lynx was willing to use a respectful term when addressing the undead suggests that what the undead said had indeed caused her to waver and reconsider.

"You two have both thought, more or less, that I do not belong to this era."

The immortal clasped his hands together and said.

“Back then, I also saw something similar, very similar to the current Oripathy.”

"Saying too much will only make it harder to explain. You just need to know that at that time, this thing itself wasn't actually a disease. You could say it was a... mutation, or parasitism."

The undead tried to explain themselves in a language they could understand.

"Human beings themselves are the source of this kind of thing. But once these things appear in humans, they will plunder human vitality in a very short time and transform into a new kind of life."

"Just like the situation with Ghost Shark?"

Kal'tsit frowned.

"But how do you explain the symptoms of those ordinary operators? Some of their symptoms are simply crystallization, which is completely different from Specter's case."

"I do not know."

The immortal shook his head.

"Perhaps it's the concentration? Or the quantity?"

"Anything is possible. What you said is very valuable for research, Mr. Undying."

Kal'tsit rubbed her temples as she memorized the undead's words.

“If I have time, I will check the literature again, and I will ask you if I have any questions later. But right now, we have a more urgent matter to resolve.”

At this point, Kal'tsit looked at Specter beside her.

Is she still able to wake up?

Upon hearing this, both the Undead and the Shining fell silent.

Shining herself only protected the ghost shark's physical body and did not engage in any research on its mental aspects.

If she had her own research, she wouldn't have come to Rhodes Island to seek Kal'tsit's help.

The undead simply lack experience in this area.

He would never have imagined that he could simply resolve the mystery without harming the body it was inhabiting.

Who wouldn't be burned to ashes with a single cut?

"Although the emergency has ended, my examination just now showed that the Originium solution in her spine has hardly changed. Only the Originium content in her body has returned to the previous normal level, and there are no crystallization characteristics."

Kal'tsit handed the document she had been holding to Shining, who was standing next to her.

Shining checked it over and nodded; she could understand the data.

"The Originium solution content in the blood is 0.19 u/L, and the fusion rate of somatic cells with Originium is...7%?"

Shining looked up in surprise.