Deep in the Living

Chapter 566 (Fragment)
Lakeside cabin

The white-haired youth's head lay on the table, his eyes showing no sign of life.

He has been executed deep within his soul, and even a part of his body is imprisoned in a lunar dungeon. Although his head is intact, it is beyond repair.

Through the fierce battle just now,

During the carnage, Roddy's tentacles absorbed enough "fish flesh" to bring back to the pituitary gland for analysis. Unexpectedly, they made contact with the corner and obtained a special personal information file.

<Monster Information Acquired - Aegir>
Fear type: [Green Door - Common Monsters]

Fear subclass: Ocean, giant shark, stealthy predation.

Personal Information: Primarily active in the middle level of the Corner area, formerly a special slave of the Monster Trading Company in the City of Sin, without a Corner residence. Accidentally selected by a comic book store and given a special comic book*, the individual offered no resistance, willingly succumbing to depravity and turning away from the Corner.

*Owner of the fragments of the comic book "Fish".

Promotion path: Regular clerk (4 people)
Pituitary grade: early maturity

Pituitary Plant Comprehensive Ranking Index (BFQ): 228*
*Individuals may have come into contact with comics and integrated into other systems by the time the plant matures, which may lead to inaccurate rankings.

Related to abilities:

The deep sea* - an individual can form an ocean under any conditions, even in an environment without any water.

Megalodon's physique* - greatly enhanced strength, speed, aura perception, and stealth combat capabilities, doubled in the ocean.

Fish infection* - Detailed information cannot be obtained for out-of-domain attributes.

Abnormal metal* - Detailed information cannot be obtained for out-of-domain attributes.

……

Roddy didn't care much about most of the above information, and he only learned about the opponent's abilities during the fight.

There was only one thing he cared about most: the comic books that didn't belong in the corner.

Roddy had not deactivated his divinity; he was currently poking and prodding the other man's head with his ten fingers, trying to find a way to obtain the comic book.

But the problem was quickly discovered.

Once he tries to touch the inside of his brain, the pituitary gland, which is like a water tank, becomes extremely unstable.

Ju-on also tried to help, but the result was the same.

This head will disintegrate on its own if not handled properly, and the comic book fragments hidden inside will probably be recovered through special means.

How can I extract the comic book separately? Do I have the skills to do that?

Roddy's analytical mind was working at breakneck speed, considering all his current abilities, methods, and related experiences.

Suddenly, he remembered something.

"Since I encountered a corrupted monster in the alienated dungeon, others should have encountered similar situations."

These monsters, corrupted by comics, can be "summoned" here to target us normal dungeon explorers.

This suggests that the comic book store has a specific purpose: to distribute comics to certain monsters who will gradually become corrupted and stray from the corner as they come into contact with the comics.

It can even gradually assimilate the entire corner through this gradual permeation.

but,

Teacher Guo and his students did not fall into depravity, but instead mastered comics, using them as a double-edged sword.

They even created an organization specifically for this purpose, with its base located above the alienated dungeon. This operation was also a way of proving their loyalty to the corner.

Although Teacher Guo is exceptionally talented, he has only recently become a monster. The fact that he can take such purposeful actions suggests that someone is guiding him.

Mr. Kraft...

It is very likely that Mr. Kraft helped him completely curb the comic book phenomenon and taught him how to help other comic book readers curb it.

Hua Yuan's ability to control herself, to climb out of the so-called abyss and maintain her individuality, is partly due to her own actions, and possibly also to my own.

I stayed with her throughout her sleep, and my pituitary essence is Mr. Kraft's color.

If that’s the case…”

Roddy abandoned his killer persona, no longer displaying any form of murderous intent, and removed his mask.

The special axe, constructed by devouring fingers, had completely disintegrated after the battle, and the hellish hilt was no longer usable.

While maintaining divinity,
Roddy focuses solely on the most basic pituitary release.
There is no hell, no slaughter.

Only pure, gray tendrils grew from the fingertips.

With precise manipulation, slender tentacles burrow into the skull of a white-haired youth, reaching his brain.

The gray tentacles are highly adaptable, instantly blending into the brain and making the other party see them as one of its own.

Continuing inward along the sulci of the brain, touching the pituitary gland... Buzz!

Roddy's consciousness instantly teleported over along with the tentacles.
The next second, they arrived at the pituitary space belonging to the fish-man, Egil. It was not the sea, but a pond.

Various dead fish floated on the surface of the water.
A certain heavy metal component gave the pond a dark green, oily sheen.

The stench has long been an inherent characteristic of this place.
The edge of the pond is a shallow area, but if you walk a little further in, you will reach the edge of a deep abyss structure.

"Do all individuals who accept comics develop such an abyssal structure within themselves? Are comic books located beneath this?"

Go down and take a look. If all else fails, use the "ring" to forcibly return to your original body.

The distant behemoth to which the ring is connected has already anchored my mind; there should be no problem.

I must seize every opportunity to take the initiative.

Roddy was unwilling to miss any opportunity, so he decisively threw himself into the water and swam towards the bottom.

In reality, he didn't need to swim at all. The moment he fell into the abyss, his body began to sink rapidly, and there was no way to stop it.

……

United States, Earth City, World Headquarters, Containment Center.

The innermost compartment,
Mr. Kraft is writing his novel here. In the process, half of his body is stained yellow, even his ordinary pajamas are stained yellow and hang down like a robe.

Suddenly, he seemed to sense something, and his train of thought was interrupted.

The yellow robe thus disappeared.

He frowned slightly, but wasn't angry. "This kid did something dangerous right after meeting Mr. Guo... However, I was also reckless in pursuing opportunities when I was young."

He walked to the water dispenser and poured himself a full glass of water.

No drinking.

Instead, they placed the glass of water on the ground.

Suddenly, Mr. Kraft's face turned gray, devoid of any facial features or hair, and real gray tentacles grew from the back of his head.

The tentacles spread down into the water glass, seemingly retrieval something from the very bottom.

……

Whew~ Whew~ Whew!
lakeside cabin,

Roddy sat in his seat, his whole body exuding a gray aura, with even some gray mud staining his clothes.

He was panting heavily.
His eyes were filled with shock and fear.

However, he also held a fish swimming in the abyss in his hand. This fish was very strange; it not only had the appearance of a fish, but also had punk-style mechanical legs on its belly.

Roddy quickly disassembled the mechanical structures and cut open the fish's belly.

A pale yellow, foul odor poured out.

He didn't care at all, reached into the fish's body, groped around for a while, and then pulled it out.

As this thing was removed,

Both the strange fish itself and the white-haired head on the table turned to dust and disappeared.

And what was in Roddy's hand

It was just a few incomplete comic book fragments, but you could clearly see the words he could read printed in the header - "Fish".

Do not know why,

The hell metal within Roddy's body began to stir.
The buds of the victim within his pituitary space also trembled.

After this battle, the plant has fully bloomed, and the palm-shaped flowers are now all raised high, as if wanting to accept this comic book page.

(End of this chapter)