No strange things are allowed to evolve!

"What was found?" the doctor asked.

"The needle," the deputy replied. "After you left, we were cleaning up the lab and found that one of the needles we took from this person was missing. We couldn't find it anywhere, but we've found it now. It must have been shaken here by the aftershocks of your battle. Doctor, could you please take a look?"

The doctor didn't think much of it at first, and simply said, "If you find it, just pick it up."

But his deputy insisted that he go over and take a look. Helpless, the doctor, who was examining Huang Helou's injuries, had no choice but to put him down and come closer.

Then, the doctor also learned how that thing had suddenly appeared.

It seems that it was this needle that broke the seal on the glass jar.

At that time, the Yellow Crane Tower was also overturned by the shockwave and crashed onto this side. At its weakest moment, it happened to encounter the thing that escaped from the seal, which gave the thing an opportunity to take advantage of it.

It matches up now, everything matches up.

The doctor, having discovered the truth, looked at Jiang Shu with a strange expression.

The latter was busy secretly digesting the handful of sand he had just swallowed and was unaware of what was happening.

He had this idea when he heard that the sand in the glass jar was actually the source of various types of gravel with different effects, such as sand-enriching sand.

Therefore, whether it's the high-purity cinnabar injected into one's own bones or the low-purity cinnabar used by Snow Queen and the others, they are actually just products of the processed contents of the glass jar.

And what's inside the glass jar is essentially just a sand golem, isn't it?

If you want to obtain the power of the desert, why bother with the conventional method of using sand-giving materials?

Why not just use sand golems?

The real key to freshness is to serve the original broth and food directly.

This matter is also recorded in Chaoshan beef.

As expected, after the Heart of the Wilderness removed the substance with strong curse attributes, what remained was pure, natural, and harmless desert power.

As he pondered, Jiang Shu turned his attention to the other glass jars.

Meanwhile, seeing that Jiang Shu wasn't paying any attention to him, the doctor coughed twice in an attempt to get his attention.

Jiang Shu still didn't react.

It wasn't until the doctor's cough grew louder that Jiang Shu noticed something was wrong.

"Are you going to cough up your lungs?" Jiang Shu rolled her eyes with concern: "If you're sick, go get treatment."

"Well, why don't you come and take a look?" the doctor said with an awkward smile.

Jiang Shu was puzzled, so she curiously went over to investigate.

When he saw the familiar steel needle, he suddenly realized and exclaimed "Whoa!"

Then he said, "So that's how it is. It must have been because your punch was too powerful. The shockwave sent the needle flying and it just happened to get stuck inside, causing the sand to leak out. Oh dear, I didn't expect you to be the real culprit!"

Upon hearing this, the doctor was suddenly taken aback.

"No, how can you put all the blame on me? Aren't we both responsible?"

"Nonsense, I didn't want to fight in the first place, you insisted on it. Besides, I didn't make a big fuss at the time, I was very restrained the whole time. Don't misunderstand a good person."

Jiang Shu shook her head decisively, distancing herself from the matter.

"this..."

The doctor was surprised that Jiang Shu was not affected by the pressure at all, and that he had such a good memory, remembering the situation clearly.

But he clearly forgot about the Yellow Crane Tower, a living person, in the lab.

Damn it, selective amnesia...?

“So,” Jiang Shu patted the doctor on the shoulder, “don’t even think about dragging me down with you. As the saying goes, brothers are in the heart. If you can’t get through on the phone, you’ll have to bear it yourself.”

"But..." The doctor felt a little uncertain.

With something this serious happening, he definitely had to report it to the falcon.

But how should I put it?

They got into a fight with the lab rats, but before they could win, they damaged the facility, and the things inside escaped and destroyed the strategic resources.

Even the falcon wouldn't believe what the PhD student said.

If he hadn't discovered the truth, or if someone had shared the blame with him, he would have felt better. But now that he realized he was the culprit, the doctor suddenly felt guilty, and a strong sense of remorse welled up inside him.

"It's all my fault..."

Seeing that the doctor was actually a responsible person, Jiang Shu couldn't help but feel compassion.

He thought for a moment and asked, "Speaking of which, these glass jars must be quite old, right?"

The doctor was puzzled, but nodded nonetheless: "It's been quite a few years."

"So, the guy who destroyed these jars and let the sand golems escape must be pretty amazing, and also very patient, enduring hardship for so many years just to wait for this one opportunity."

"Objectively speaking, that's true." The doctor first agreed, then added tactfully, "But could you please not praise it so much? After all, it's an enemy."

"I know, what I mean is..."

Jiang Shu paused:

"Such a capable and patient fellow, it's hard to believe that he's been doing nothing in the jar all these years. So is it possible that all of this is due to his hard work?"

It wouldn't make sense to say that the container that could seal the sand golem was of poor quality, but it was punctured by steel needles, so I think it must have been tampered with inside.

Moreover, it's quite strange that someone like you, who has the ability to turn into sand but rarely uses it, would suddenly decide to fight me. How could it be such a coincidence?

I think it might be able to manipulate people's minds through the glass, or at least through psychological suggestion; it's all its fault.

"If you put it that way..."

The doctor's mind suddenly opened up, and he followed Jiang Shu's words:

"It seems that's really true."

Then, the doctor asked the other researchers, "You all saw it controlling that poor guard lying on the operating table now, didn't you?"

The group exchanged glances, then nodded knowingly.

"I saw it."

"It really can control people's hearts."

"This has absolutely nothing to do with us or you, Doctor."

Upon hearing this, the doctor finally felt relieved and said indignantly, "As expected! Humph, these evil heretics are truly wicked!"

“Yes, yes,” the deputy chimed in. “It’s utterly wicked, not only cunning but also incredibly selfish. It only thinks about itself and its compatriots being imprisoned, losing only their freedom. But with its antics, we’ve lost valuable samples and desert resources.”

“Uh…” The doctor gestured for him to tone it down: “That was a bit much.”

"Did we pass?" The deputy toned down his impassioned tone and apologized earnestly, "I'm sorry."

In short.

The doctor instructed:

"Put away the steel needles, and just smash the damaged parts. Then send someone to report to the falcon that the enemy is too cunning and we cannot defeat them despite our best efforts."

"Yes!"

Watching from the side, Jiang Shu appeared outwardly calm, but inwardly she sighed.

Sigh, I've done something terrible again.

Just after his deputy left the lab to report the situation to Falcon, Jiang Shu planned to take Huang Helou back to the cell to lay low for a while. After all, Falcon would definitely come over in person soon, and it wouldn't be easy to explain if the two of them stayed here.

But just as Jiang Shu greeted the doctor and walked out of the laboratory carrying the Yellow Crane Tower,

Yellow Crane Tower, however, slowly awoke.

His eyes, which he slowly opened, were filled with confusion. When he first saw Jiang Shu, he murmured in a daze, "I think I had a bizarre dream. I know it's a dream, it's fake, but I just can't wake up."

"Awake?" Jiang Shu asked casually upon hearing this. "What, did you dream about the national football team winning the championship?"

Perhaps Jiang Shu's guess was too sensitive and too impactful, because Huang Helou, who was in a daze and dreaming, suddenly woke up.

"It's not that bizarre or outlandish."

Carried on Jiang Shu's shoulder, Huang Helou frowned and said:

"I saw... the beginning of the desert..."

I don't know if this is the right way to put it, but it is indeed the origin of all things. Everything started from it. From it, the desert was born, the power of the desert was born, and then the sand demon was born.

"What is that?" Jiang Shu asked curiously.

"A grain of sand, at first it is just an ordinary grain of sand, but in the end, it becomes a storm that sweeps across the land, and the land it touches will eventually become a desert."

As he spoke, the Yellow Crane Tower involuntarily trembled:

"I saw a very strange-looking creature in the desert, and it even spoke to me."

"What did you say?"

"It said I was a thief, and that it would wait for us and make sure to get back everything I stole."

It's clear that Huang Helou was under considerable pressure in his dream; his voice is tense as he speaks, and he even seems to be breaking down as he talks.

"But I have no idea what I stole. I was either beaten or locked up, and I was tied up and given injections. What did I steal?"

But just as he got to the point of getting excited...

"Ho!"

Jiang Shu simply threw him out.

The Yellow Crane Tower was immediately thrown into disarray.

When he came to his senses, he found himself thrown back into the cell.

Jiang Shu was standing outside the door, clapping his hands and saying, "Calm down."

Having just woken up, Huang Helou had no idea what was going on. Coupled with his preconceived prejudice against Jiang Shu, he naturally questioned Jiang Shu, who was about to have the cell door closed, "Wait a minute, you've betrayed us?!"

"What betrayal? Watch your mouth. While you were fast asleep, I was the one carrying the burden." Jiang Shu retorted righteously.

Startled, Huang Helou finally remembered what had happened before he lost consciousness and angrily said:

"You think I wanted to sleep?! You didn't count how many knives they stabbed you, but I counted how many nails they stuck in me!"

Chapter 157 The Snow King's Contrast Since Childhood

"Calm down, calm down."

Jiang Shu closed the door to the cell where Huang Helou was located, and then returned to his familiar single cell. The two of them began their tearful conversation behind bars once again.

After closing the door, Jiang Shu recounted everything that happened afterward, including the story of the Yellow Crane Tower being possessed by an evil spirit.

After listening to Jiang Shu's account, Huang Helou was skeptical.

"You mean, that curse that even I find troublesome has no effect on you, and that it destroyed the lab and even fought you in my dream?"

“To be precise, it’s not you, it’s the sand puppet that’s controlling you,” Jiang Shu explained.

"So who won in the end?" Huang Helou asked curiously.

Jiang Shu found the question quite humorous and immediately retorted, "If you win, can we still have a proper conversation here? Wouldn't you be manipulated into killing us all?"

"That's true." Huang Helou nodded, then asked, "So how did you win?"

"He was defeated in one move, what's there to say?" Jiang Shu said casually.

"Is it really that simple?" Huang Helou seemed somewhat skeptical.

But Jiang Shu said confidently, "It's that simple."

Noticing Huang Helou's disappointment, Jiang Shu laughed and said, "Otherwise, what do you think should have happened? Did you become ten times stronger after you turned evil, and I was no match for you at all? In the end, I had to exert all my strength, and even with the help of the Doctor, we could only barely fight you to a draw. Then you exerted your power in the dream, overcame your inner demons, and we worked together from the inside and outside, finally defeating the powerful enemy thanks to our strong bond?"

Jiang Shu took it as a joke, but after not receiving a response from Huanghelou for a long time, his smile gradually disappeared.

"You don't... really think that way, do you?"

"Um..."

"..." Jiang Shu didn't know what to say, and could only say, "Try watching less action-packed anime..."

"Uh..." Huang Helou also felt awkward, but fortunately the two were not face to face, so Jiang Shu did not see his embarrassment. In order to ease the awkwardness, he took the initiative to change the subject: "Then what about the curse?"

Jiang Shu was about to speak when Huang Helou added, "Don't try to fool me. I can also sense that curse. It's definitely not below the level of a calamity. I barely managed to deal with it and almost got caught."