Chapter 99: Only One Door Symbol Left

“Boss, we’re trapped here now. What should we do?” The speaker was a young man in his twenties, with fair skin and prominent features, instantly recognizable as someone from the Jindar Empire.

Quincy Augustus appeared decisive, but over these past seven or eight days, he had witnessed the terror of this monstrous world firsthand—the horrifying and helpless deaths those caught in events faced.

Each incident reinforced the belief that surviving with Jasper was more likely, despite Jasper’s often cold demeanor and difficulty to approach.

However, Quincy had received elite education since childhood, instilling him with rationality and a drive for self-interest. He knew better than to stubbornly argue with someone who could potentially save his life. In fact, Quincy, being slightly older than Jasper by one or two years, didn’t hesitate to call him “boss,” displaying his thick-skinned pragmatism.

At this moment, both Jasper—more accurately Yue Fei—and Quincy were feeling somewhat weary.

They had been trapped in this mirror space for about two days already. While their supply of food and water remained adequate, enduring within this confined area of less than twenty square meters, alongside five others, created immense pressure due to its cramped conditions.

Even more embarrassing was that over these two days, someone had to relieve themselves, and they could only do so by squatting within this limited twenty-square-meter area. For individuals accustomed to cleanliness and civilized behavior, it was truly challenging.

“Just wait a bit longer, there must be a way to win this game.”

Quincy sighed, “Playing rock-paper-scissors against our reflections, with three ties resulting in a loss. The loser has to die, but those mirror images are just ourselves. How can we possibly win?”

Compared to others’ worries, Yue Fei remained less anxious. He possessed far greater confidence than anyone else here, fearing only that revealing his identity after leaving might lead to its exposure. Consequently, he dared not show it openly. Moreover, he had already acquired five badges, which served as tokens from the Hermit Union’s Westphalian branch. Eventually, the nine individuals with the most badges would become license holders.

Nader and others had taught Yue Fei valuable lessons about human nature. Therefore, when he woke up in a filthy environment, he didn’t act hastily. Instead, he discreetly gathered information on various matters.

Solving a monster incident earned one badge, while submitting a ‘mutant’ or ‘mystic item’ to the Universal Church also granted a badge. Additionally, badges could be subject to theft or private trading, with very few restrictions.

After familiarizing himself with all the rules, Yue Fei swiftly collected five badges within just a few days. According to his estimation, even the official Chosen from the Jindar Empire, who had the largest contingent here, likely wouldn’t amass more than ten badges collectively.

It wasn’t that Yue Fei underestimated others; based on current circumstances, possessing merely five badges would already secure him a spot among the top nine. However, Yue Fei still aimed to acquire as many badges as possible within reason, believing it’s better to be prepared for any eventuality.

Yue Fei now fully trusted the Hermit Union’s capabilities. Upon entering this world, they witnessed the growth of the Universal Church, which, according to Mr. Nelson of the Universal Church, involved some level of collaboration with the Hermit Union. Similarly, in Hanming Country, the Hermit Union cooperated with martial arts families in the small world there.

These patterns clearly demonstrated that the Hermit Union indeed aligned somewhat with their proclaimed motto: “No borders, no governments, only striving for ordinary people to harness mystical forces.” It also confirmed that the Hermit Union has existed for a long time, entangled in complex relationships with various mysterious major powers.

However, the more chaotic these connections, the better for Yue Fei, allowing him to navigate and benefit amidst the confusion.

Not only did Yue Fei seek revenge against Nader and his group, but he also remembered the other gate symbol owner from Hanming Country, suspected to be collaborating with its government officials. He knew he needed to rapidly strengthen himself and devise a plan to seize that additional door symbol from them.

Over the past couple of days, while logically unafraid of the monster incidents here, Yue Fei unexpectedly felt a faint sense of urgency and impending danger. It constantly urged him to become more powerful quickly, as time was not on his side.

“Boss?”

Noticing Yue Fei’s troubled expression, Quincy hesitated before offering him a bottle of water.

Yue Fei slowly opened his eyes, drained the water in one gulp, and then turned to face the mirror ahead. “I’m ready for the competition.”

Quincy jumped back, stopping others who were about to approach. “Boss, have you figured out a solution?”

“Yes.” Yue Fei nodded.

The mirror initially blurred, and then Yue Fei’s reflection gradually appeared within it. The mirrored image seemed identical to Yue Fei, showing no discernible differences. As Yue Fei moved, so did the figure in the mirror.

“The game begins,” both Yue Fei and his reflection spoke simultaneously.

After shouting “rock-paper-scissors,” Yue Fei immediately chose scissors. As soon as the mirror reflected his choice, Yue Fei swiftly drew a sharp fruit knife from his waist.

Quincy observed Yue Fei’s back tense up, followed by a swift motion of his hand with the knife. Within approximately one or two seconds, Yue Fei severed both his index and middle fingers.

In the mirror, Yue Fei appeared frozen, expressionless, with hands outstretched mimicking the shape of scissors.

“Boss!” Quincy was startled, breaking out in a cold sweat on his forehead. Who could be so unflinching, cutting off their own fingers without even blinking?

What Quincy didn’t notice closely was that after severing his fingers, Yue Fei immediately utilized his genetic modification ability to alter the genes related to his limbs. He directly removed the potential for the growth of his index and middle fingers.

Despite the bloodied appearance, the wounds were healing rapidly. Moreover, the edges of the two cuts were smooth and seamless, as if his left hand had naturally never possessed those two fingers.

Now, Yue Fei’s rock-paper-scissors gesture showed only “rock,” while mirrored Yue Fei still displayed “scissors.”

“I win.”

The reflection’s face distorted, and in the next moment, cracks began spreading across all the mirrors. With a final shattering sound, every participant’s mirror exploded.

Terrified, Quincy immediately covered his head and crouched down to avoid getting cut by mirror shards.

Once the shattering sounds ceased, Yue Fei raised his head and spotted a diamond-shaped object, resembling crystal, quietly hovering before him. He instantly recognized it as a mutant artifact.

Over the past two days, Yue Fei had encountered mutants twice before. The first instance was with an official elected one; he only dared to glance at it without touching, knowing that these were elite of the elites chosen by the Jindar Empire, offering no benefits for confrontation. The second time involved a humanoid dog-headed creature carrying a cloth sack, which itself was a mutant artifact. However, the creature possessed bizarre abilities, swiftly killing seven or eight overconfident real-world elected ones. After some consideration, Yue Fei decided against pursuing this target. It seemed too challenging, not worth wasting time on, ultimately yielding more effort than reward.

This crystal… its capabilities remain unknown.

As Yue Fei reached out to grab it, suddenly the crystal flashed and darted forward.

Instinctively glancing around, Yue Fei noticed other individuals appearing in this desolate area, and his heart skipped a beat as he recognized them.

Four people approached: Nelson, Windsor, Qiao Si, and the young Bern - all familiar faces to Yue Fei, none of whom were ordinary figures. Based on Yue Fei’s speculation, they were likely high-ranking members from the original Night Church, now collaborating with the Universal Church as part of the Hermit Union’s plan to control this world.

These individuals were usually too busy to appear together, but more crucially, they wore expressions of deep respect, almost reverence, towards the young man standing among them.

The young man had long, slightly wavy black hair, features suggesting a mix between those from the Northern and Southern Provinces, giving him a striking appearance with a hint of… divinity. Yue Fei wasn’t sure why he thought of this word; it felt peculiar, yet there was indeed a unique aura surrounding this person.

Involuntarily, Yue Fei took a step back.

“We just resolved a monster incident here. This mutant artifact was intended for trading with Mr. Nelson to obtain badges. It’s truly fortunate to see you here, Mr. Nelson,” Yue Fei quickly composed himself, dismissing any thoughts of further studying the crystal before deciding whether to exchange it for badges. He suppressed his caution, instead projecting relief and joy.

Yue Fei swiftly regained his composure, as if the initial thought of studying the crystal further before deciding whether to exchange it for a badge never existed. Suppressing his caution, he instead displayed a relieved and joyful expression.

Meanwhile, Quincy and the others were unconscious, sprawled haphazardly on the ground.

“Yue Fei.” Duan Wenxuan glanced at Yue Fei’s gloved hands while feeling the sharp pain on his own right hand’s back, becoming highly certain that this person was indeed Yue Fei!

Locating him wasn’t particularly difficult with only around three hundred individuals present, especially since many had already perished. Among the remaining people, Duan Wenxuan conducted a brief analysis and selection, quickly identifying those who exhibited exceptionally unique traits. By examining them one by one, finding the true owner of the door symbol proved remarkably easy.

As soon as Duan Wenxuan called out his real name, Yue Fei wasted no time, turning immediately to flee.

His legs had undergone significant enhancements, enabling him to run at great speed. It was crucial to note that following Nader’s betrayal and deception, Yue Fei placed immense importance on escape capabilities. His current body modifications primarily focused on facilitating escapes from various environments.

As Yue Fei raced ahead, leaving his pursuers behind, he soon realized something was amiss. With each stride, his body felt increasingly heavy. Eventually, he coughed up a mouthful of blood and painfully collapsed onto the ground, writhing in agony. Simultaneously, his skin rapidly flushed red with visible blisters forming and deteriorating at an alarming rate.

Windsor, following closely behind Duan Wenxuan, winced at the sight of Yue Fei’s suffering. He never expected that someone like the saint, who appeared so compassionate and kind-hearted, could be so ruthless.

Duan Wenxuan crouched down, noticing the hatred in Yue Fei’s eyes.

The massive amount of nuclear radiation contamination stored within Duan Wenxuan’s Greed Pot had been instantly transferred to Yue Fei. Despite his enhanced physique, it was too much for him to withstand.

Duan Wenxuan leaned forward, grasped Yue Fei’s right hand, and effortlessly pulled off his glove, revealing the door symbol mark clearly visible upon inspection.

Yue Fei immediately understood; not only did they know his name, but directly targeting the door symbol meant these individuals were undoubtedly among its owners.

Compared to the naive young Quincy, Yue Fei was far less fortunate. Although he initially lucked out by obtaining Wan Ling’s door symbol, his subsequent misfortunes persisted, making his situation even worse than Quincy’s, who at least managed to develop a gatekeeper.

Yue Fei had no chance against Duan Wenxuan, who already possessed half of the door symbol fragments. Comparing their power, it was effortless for Duan Wenxuan to absorb Yue Fei’s fragment.

The transfer of the door symbol caused some pain; even Duan Wenxuan felt a burning sensation on his hand. After a couple of minutes, Yue Fei’s right hand back became completely devoid of any fragment.

Five out of six fragments now belonged to Duan Wenxuan, with only one piece remaining unaccounted for. However, he could foresee the inevitable outcome—he would become the true owner of the complete door symbol.

Having reclaimed the radiation energy from Yue Fei, Duan Wenxuan decided not to kill him and instead granted him a license holder spot. Yue Fei had utterly failed in this competition, posing no future threat to Duan Wenxuan. If smart enough, Yue Fei knew what course of action would be best for him.

With the license holder status and the enhancements to his body based on existing foundations, Yue Fei still stood a chance to excel when profound spiritual energy re-emerged, surpassing others.

Naturally, Windsor and the others had no understanding of what Duan Wenxuan had done, nor did they question him. As subordinates, their role was simply to assist their superior; there was no need to inquire too deeply.

Yue Fei, still somewhat composed, admitted he felt resentment but not to its extreme. As a modern individual, his mindset was resilient; this wasn’t a situation of avenging parental murder or personal betrayal involving his spouse. In fact, if roles were reversed, he too would have coveted someone else’s door symbol. Moreover, he even harbored a sense of relief that Duan Wenxuan hadn’t killed him.

Duan Wenxuan paid no further heed to Yue Fei. After giving some instructions to Windsor and the others, he swiftly returned to the present world.

With renewed determination, having acquired five out of six door symbols, Duan Wenxuan had a vague feeling about the location of the remaining one. Once back in the present world, he believed he could perceive it easily.

The fragmentation of the gate symbol into six pieces emphasized competition, reflecting the strength of individual civilizations. However, once someone gained significant advantage, it became overwhelming dominance, rendering the final piece unnecessary for further contest.

Duan Wenxuan rubbed his forehead as the gradually complete door symbol triggered another massive influx of information, causing a painful pressure in his head. He had a premonition that upon collecting all fragments, the gate symbol’s capabilities would far exceed his current imagination.