Curse Return: Swordsmith Start

Chapter 210 Strange Objects

A dilapidated building stood on the open ground, looking like an abandoned factory or warehouse. The exterior walls were mottled, and the windows were covered with dust, making it impossible to see what was inside.

But what's most striking is the air surrounding that building.

Even though it was nighttime, the light in that area seemed distorted, as if something was twisting the light itself. Yue Ren squinted and vaguely saw a huge, semi-transparent barrier covering that open space, like an upside-down bowl.

"A barrier that conceals one's presence and creates a unique environment..."

"Account?"

"It doesn't seem like that; it's more like a modified version. To be fair, he does have some talent."

With the number of curses and cursed spirits gradually decreasing, the pressure on sorcerers has been greatly reduced, and related scientific research inspired by the Yue people has also begun, but so far there have been no mature results.

Now, seeing a successful case in what should be called an enemy stronghold, even Gojo Satoru couldn't help but sigh.

"Talent is accumulated gradually, there's no need to be sentimental, there's plenty of time now, isn't there?"

Gojo Satoru's expression improved.

"You're right."

"So, should we just push straight through?"

"That's possible, but I'd still like to know how far their research has progressed, since this is different from simply exorcising cursed spirits."

Logically speaking, with their strength, they should have no problem easily sweeping through the enemy lines. However, just as Gojo Satoru worried, it's easy to deal with the immediate threat, but if they lay a trap for the future because they don't understand the situation thoroughly, it would make them seem brainless.

The man from Yue smiled slightly.

"Then come on."

Seeing the outstretched hand of the man from the Yue family, Gojo Satoru paused for a moment, then smiled.

"I almost forgot about that. Has your ability been developed to this extent?"

"If you don't resist, you should be able to last about half an hour."

The person from Yue was referring to the duration of the "Floating Light" effect on Gojo Satoru. For an ordinary person, it would probably last about a day.

The state of being unaffected by the physical world is naturally the most suitable for infiltrating something.

"You really are a genius. I'm the one who possesses the 'Six Eyes,' but you're making it sound like I'm a failure as a 'genius.'"

"Hmm? Isn't this just a matter of you putting more effort into it? You should consider moving behind the scenes, shouldn't you? You should trust the newcomers, shouldn't you?"

The Yue people didn't hesitate to criticize.

Someone like Gojo Satoru should be a pillar of strength, right? But this guy is on the front lines all the time, which greatly reduces his strategic value.

It's important to understand that people have limited energy. If you get bogged down in trivial matters and are in a state of fatigue for a long time, you'll be distracted at crucial moments.

This is probably why he didn't achieve a comprehensive improvement. As the strongest head of the Gojo family in history, his talent is not something to be taken lightly.

"I've learned an undeniable lesson; it won't be long."

Upon hearing this, Yue Ren smiled slightly. The reason why the two got along so well was largely due to their compatible personalities.

The closer you get to that building, the heavier the air becomes.

Upon entering the barrier, the Yue people immediately felt a stench that hit them, like a mixture of rotting meat, moldy wood, and some kind of chemical agent.

The building appeared abandoned from the outside, but it was brightly lit inside. Several emergency lights hung on the walls, emitting a stark white glow that illuminated the entire space. Various pieces of equipment were piled on the floor: test tube racks, beakers, microscopes, and other instruments that the Yue people couldn't identify.

But what's most chilling are the things kept in cages.

The cages varied in size; some were iron cages, some were glass tanks, and some looked like cages woven from cursed bonds.

Each cage contained some kind of creature; some were rats, some were rabbits, and some were no longer recognizable as their original shapes, having become some kind of deformed mass of flesh, wriggling in the cage and making faint squeaking sounds.

The Yue man's pupils suddenly contracted.

The magical energy fluctuations emanating from these creatures were unlike any he had ever seen before.

It wasn't a curse, nor was it ordinary magical power; it was something far more disgusting—chaotic, violent, and full of aggression.

"Sure enough, when it comes to venting malice, people really don't change at all," he muttered under his breath.

Once desires get out of control, they can produce all sorts of terrible consequences.

He understands this principle, but saying it and doing it are sometimes two completely different things. When he actually sees these things, he still feels disgusted and angry.

Footsteps came from deep within the building.

The two of them huddled inside the wall.

The footsteps grew closer, accompanied by the sound of two people talking.

"

Subject number 37's behavior was very unstable; he almost went berserk yesterday and needed immediate injection of inhibitors...

'

"Then increase the dosage. As long as it can last until the completion stage, it's fine. If the test subject dies, we can cultivate another one. Time waits for no one."

"But sir, many test subjects have died during the cultivation process... the mortality rate is too high, and we don't have that many materials."

"That's your problem, not mine. You need to understand that what we need most right now is time. If those guys on the committee find out, you know what will happen to us, right?"

Peeking through the crack, Yue Ren saw two well-dressed men walking out of the corridor, carrying notebooks and talking as they went.

Walking in front was an old man in his fifties, almost bald, wearing a pair of gold-rimmed glasses. He looked like a serious scholar, but his eyes revealed an unsettling gloom.

The young man following behind was probably in his twenties, pale-faced, with cold sweat on his forehead, and looked somewhat nervous in the face of the angry old man.

Judging from her appearance alone, she really doesn't look like a curse master. No wonder she's been able to live so long; she must be very good at disguising herself.

They silently memorized the two people's appearances, and only after the two had walked far away did they emerge from the wall.

They exchanged a glance.

"continue?"

"certainly!"

Walking deeper into the corridor, you come to a large door at the end, which is sealed with a curse.

Places that would normally require considerable time to enter silently were no problem for the Yue people.

The space behind the door was unexpectedly large, like an underground laboratory.

The ceiling was high, with several stark white fluorescent lights hanging from it, illuminating the entire space. The floor was covered with white tiles, giving it a bright and eerie feel, like a brightly lit hospital at night.

The most eye-catching feature is the huge culture tank in the very center of the laboratory.

The culture tank was about two meters tall and about one meter in diameter, filled with a pale green liquid that was bubbling away.

In the very center of the liquid floated something that looked like a human, but not quite. Its body was covered with a layer of grayish-white carapace. It had no facial features, only a huge mouth filled with countless sharp teeth.

Yue Ren looked at the object and frowned slightly after sensing the basic information.

So, does the progress of the times mean that malice is also escalating?

If this thing were actually developed, it would be the beginning of a catastrophe.

That's a cursed spirit.

Or perhaps it is something with the aura of a cursed spirit, an artificially cultivated malice, and it seems to be almost complete.

"Has it really gotten this bad? Trash is trash no matter where it goes; it only causes trouble."

Gojo Satoru, standing to the side, already looked utterly disgusted.

"This is probably the deepest part..."

""

Before he could finish speaking, he suddenly heard a voice behind him.

"I knew something was off today, turns out there were rats... Ha... Hmm? You're, Gojo Satoru!"

"How is this possible? How did you get here...?"

A man in a black robe, probably in his forties, had a scar that ran diagonally from his forehead to his chin. His left eye was cloudy and white, as if he were blind.

Of course, their true identities are not very clear, because it was an image on a screen; otherwise, they would have noticed if someone approached them.

He had originally planned to show an arrogant smile, but after seeing the figure of the strongest white-haired man next to Yue Ren, he immediately showed fear.

It seems I didn't expect to see him here.

"Let's get started. Just leave a few people for me to interrogate."

The Yue man said casually.

Perception spread out, and all living beings within the building were perceived.

That's exactly what I was thinking.

Without saying a word, a pale blue energy ball appeared in Gojo Satoru's hand.

"Tch, don't even think about it."

""

Recovering from the initial shock of the sudden arrival of the big boss, the man wasn't paralyzed with fear; instead, he displayed a fighting spirit ready to risk everything.

His hands also seemed to be making some kind of movement.

As if sensing something, Yue Ren suddenly turned his head to look at the huge culture tank.

The pale green liquid in the culture tank began to boil violently, with bubbles rising to the surface. The humanoid cursed spirit suspended in the liquid began to wriggle, and cracks appeared on its grayish-white carapace, from which a dark red liquid seeped out, resembling blood, but not quite blood.

The entire culture vessel began to vibrate, and cracks appeared in the glass on its surface.

"Gojo Satoru, enjoy yourself..."

"6

Before the man on the screen could finish speaking, the culture tank exploded.

A pale green liquid gushed out like a flood, carrying a pungent odor, and instantly flooded most of the laboratory.

The humanoid cursed spirit slowly rose from the broken jar, its two-meter-tall body casting a huge shadow under the pale light.

Its "mouth" opened, and it let out a sharp hiss.

The screech was like a sharp knife, piercing directly into the Yue man's brain, causing his brows to furrow even deeper.

"Leave this to me, you go find someone."

Staring at that thing, Yue Ren spoke, but the other party had already disappeared from the screen, clearly intending to escape.

"Be careful not to crash."

"5

""

After watching the man leave, Yue Ren refocused his attention on the "filthy thing".

On that face devoid of features, where the eyes should have been, two slits split open, revealing blood-red pupils that stared intently at the Yue people.

Yue Ren sighed, gripped Yuan Hong tightly, and assumed a fighting stance.

Before that, the foreign object had already lunged at them.

The speed was astonishing, not at all like a half-finished product that had just been forced into existence, or like it was burning its life force.

Yes, this is a physical being completely different from a cursed spirit, which is why Yue Ren has those feelings.

Regardless, the two-meter-tall body displayed an agility disproportionate to its size at this moment, appearing in front of the Yue people almost as if by teleportation.

A thick arm covered in grayish-white armor swept across, the resulting gust of wind sending scattered debris flying and crashing against the wall.

The Yue people did not retreat; Yuanhong met them head-on.

The moment the blade collided with the carapace, a crisp metallic clang was heard, and the foreign object's limbs flew off.

Dark red liquid seeped from the wound, but it was far from enough to cause fatal damage.

Yue Ren frowned slightly; this sensation was rather ominous.

The grayish-white carapace was much harder than the Yue people had expected, its hardness almost comparable to that of a top-grade cursed spirit's skin.

A few of these are fine, but if they were to be mass-produced, that would be a real problem.

The cursed spirit let out a roar, and its other arm followed suit, slamming down with its five fingers spread open. Five bone spurs grew from the tips of its fingers, each more than ten centimeters long, gleaming with a chilling light under the lamp.

The Yue man did not dodge, and swung his sword again, severing the opponent's only remaining arm from his body.

However, the Yue man frowned and stepped back to create distance.

Blood dripped onto the ground, leaving the tiled floor pitted as if it had been eroded, and there was also a misty substance of an off-color appearance.

It's also poisonous!

The strange creature, its arms severed, lunged forward again as if nothing had happened. Clearly, it was no normal creature; even cursed spirits hesitate and recover when injured. This thing was simply a killing machine.

During the process, its body changed, it shot out spikes, and opened its mouth full of fangs.

The Yue people did not panic because of this, or rather, such an enemy was not enough to make them panic.

The only reason I didn't completely eliminate the opponent was simply to see just how badly things had progressed.

As he could see, the strange creature rushing towards him had its severed arm writhing with flesh, seemingly on the verge of recovery.

The Yue people were puzzled.

And how did they create such a recovery ability?

Oh well, we'll find out soon anyway.

Facing the opponent who was already within arm's reach, before the opponent could react, Yue Ren casually waved his hand.

The movement was swift and elegant; a flash of cold light, and the foreign object was split in two.

This time, life activity completely disappeared, so it seems that the fatal wound was effective.

The entire laboratory fell silent.

Only the hum of the ventilation ducts and the hissing of the breaking equipment were particularly clear in the silent space.

The Yue man sheathed his sword and stepped forward to check the condition of the foreign object.

During this time, there was quite a tremor in the surrounding area, it seems that Gojo Satoru was having a lot of fun.

Not long after, the white-haired figure reappeared in the room, carrying a guy in his hand—the guy from the screen earlier, who was now unconscious and his limbs were twisted.

"Ugh, when did you develop this kind of interest? How disgusting!"

Seeing Yue Ren staring blankly at a pile of rotten flesh, Gojo Satoru showed a look of disgust.