Cthulhu Panel: One organ mutates every day

As the coffin lid was opened, a pungent smell of spices mixed with the stench of decay wafted out.

Wayne didn't peek out immediately; he simply covered his nose and glanced at his wristwatch.

Reality deviation: 6%

The chilling aura emanating from Matthew dissipated from his body.

The previous sobbing and wailing "thump thump thump" knocking sound also disappeared.

They saw that the coffin had been pried open by Wayne.

Matthew and Lillian stepped forward to meet him, while Ethan gestured for the Blood Gang member to leave. The Blood Gang member, being quite sensible, nodded and bowed repeatedly before quickly leaving the cemetery.

Wayne gripped the crowbar tightly, remaining alert, and peered into the coffin, following the beam of the flashlight.

Surprisingly, there was no body or facial symbol inside the coffin.

There was only one large gray rat, and a dark hole in the bottom of the coffin that seemed to connect to the underground, big enough for an adult to pass through.

Startled by the beam of the flashlight, the mouse squeaked and scurried around, eventually squirming into the hole in the coffin floor.

"What's going on? Could all those strange noises have been... made by this rat?" Wayne frowned, staring at the black hole at the bottom of the coffin.

"Wayne, how is it?" Lillian stepped forward and looked inside the coffin. "Huh? Benjamin's body isn't there. Something's definitely wrong."

Matthew and Ethan also seemed to be exchanging information.

But Wayne could no longer hear what was being said around him; he stared intently at the black hole that led underground.

The mouse scurried into the hole.

What's inside?

That mouse looks familiar.

The familiar stench of decay, the familiar searching motions, so familiar…

Just like the rat that appeared at the end of Benjamin's house.

Is the problem with this mouse?

The mouse crawled into that hole. Could it be a mouse nest inside?

Did Benjamin die or not?

We need to see him alive or dead, but we can't find a body. Does that mean Benjamin is still alive?

Or perhaps Benjamin's body was eaten by rats?

That's not right either. If it were eaten, it would leave behind bones and clothing, so it couldn't be that clean.

But what if Benjamin is down in this hole?

The same rats, the same pungent smell, and the hole big enough for one person to pass through—it's highly likely Benjamin is down there.

Shall we go down and find out?

There are probably a lot of rats inside.

Yes, there must be a lot of rats inside, because I can already hear the rats' sounds.

Wei En was focused on his thoughts, and the sounds he heard were dominated by the creaking and groaning coming from the depths of the cave.

The "squeaking" sound was very delicate, at first like flowing water gently touching the ear, tickling, and slowly it began to gather into a stream, swirling and condensing, turning into waves.

It seemed as if I had been distracted for a moment, or perhaps I hadn't been distracted at all. The dense "creaking" sound quickly transformed back into whispers with the waves, the chaotic syllables wriggling into indistinct semantic fragments.

Are the rats inside the hole actually talking?

But I couldn't hear what they were saying at all.

Or perhaps it wasn't the rats talking, because the sounds from the hole already conveyed some complex meanings, making it unlikely that they were coming from rats.

Could it be Benjamin speaking?

Benjamin, being a crazy old man, spoke in such an indistinct tone?

That's possible.

If it really was Benjamin speaking, then is he really not dead?

If someone who died ten years ago was still active last week, there's a high chance they're still alive.

No, that's not right either. Judging from that sound, it's possible that his corpse is talking.

Does a corpse speak like this? I don't think I've ever heard that before.

What if it is?

Tearing open the neck or cutting off the head should produce that sound.

No, no, what am I thinking? That's not a human voice at all.

What kind of creature was making that sound?

Wei En felt a tremor in his brain, unable to distinguish whether he was identifying this information through hearing or touch. In short, everything was pouring into his mind, echoing, and crawling.

Regardless of what kind of creature made the sound, there must be crucial clues at the bottom of the cave.

Clues, clues...

A face icon! That's right! I haven't seen a face icon yet!

The human face symbol is a key element of Bob's death and an important component of the sacrificial ritual, so why haven't we seen it along the way?

Yes, the face symbol must be below the hole.

The mouse and Benjamin were both down there, close to the face symbol.

By getting closer to the face symbol, you can get closer to the answer, closer to the truth, closer to...

The truth, the truth.

There are many truths waiting for you to discover.

Why did I transmigrate? And why did the original owner receive a keepsake from that gray-haired girl?

What about that book, "The Seven Chapters of the Mysterious Lord's Secret Scripture"...?

Gradually, the syllables of the Federal language in Wayne's mind also began to distort and deform, becoming a jumbled mess, overlapping and disorienting, seemingly turning into a chaotic sound similar to Chinese Pinyin.

"The Lord of the Seven Mysterious Chapters of the Scripture", ... Secret Chapters of the Seven Mysterious Chapters of the Scripture"...

The chaotic Chinese pinyin seemed to emanate from a cave, or perhaps from the distant horizon, the pitch-black night, or the endless starry sky…

So the book really was there, in the cave! The truth was in the cave!

"Ah—!" Wayne's cerebral cortex continued to spasm, his face gradually became ferocious, and his hand holding the crowbar trembled incessantly.

At that moment, he had only one thought in his mind.

Once you go down into the cave, you'll be able to figure out why you traveled through time, and figure out that book, "The Seven Lords of the Mysterious Scripture"... oh no, it's "The Seven Lords of the Mysterious Scripture," no, no, none of it is right, yet it seems like it's all right.

The Seven Secret Scriptures of the Mysterious Lord, the Seven Secret Scriptures of the Mysterious Lord, the Seven Mysterious Scriptures of the Mysterious Lord...

Haha! All correct! All correct! That's exactly what I wanted – all correct!

All the secrets are there! There lies all the truth, the ultimate truth of the universe…

What is the ultimate goal of the universe?

I don't know! But I do know! It must be extremely important!

Haha! I never imagined it would become so easily within reach!

"If I hear the truth in the morning, I can die content in the evening." How many people yearn for a chance to learn the truth, yet they cannot find the way.

Now, all he needs to do is rush into the hole at the bottom of the coffin, go deep underground, and he can see everything he desires!

Haha! And it's only a few more steps!

Reality deviation: 9.9%

Wayne had already drawn his revolver from his waist, and was about to jump into the pit at the bottom of the coffin, through the dark cave passage, and directly to the truth!

He grinned, his eyes were fervent, and his whole body was almost convulsing, yet he was determined to risk everything and take that step!

Suddenly, Ethan grabbed his arm and pulled him back.

Before Wein could react.

Lillian stepped forward and supported Wayne's back with one hand, wisps of gray flame spreading from her fingertips and flowing over Wayne's entire body.

There was neither warmth nor coldness, not even a tactile sensation; the gray flames seemed illusory.

But Wayne felt the chaotic syllables in his mind dissipate, replaced by leaping gray flames.

He gradually regained his senses.

The distorted threads before my eyes are clear.

[Perception Lv.1 - Observation of the Microscopic] Progress 36.8%

The fervor in Wayne's eyes turned to confusion. He froze for a moment, then turned to Lillian and Ethan beside him, weakly asking, "I...you...didn't you hear anything?"

Ethan patted Wayne on the shoulder: "You're braver than I expected, but it's okay, this situation isn't enough to threaten our team."

Seeing that Wayne had recovered, Lillian gradually withdrew her hand, took a few steps back, gently brushed a strand of hair behind her ear, and said with concern, "Wayne, why don't you go and rest first? We'll handle things here."

Matthew, leaning on his black umbrella, glanced at his wristwatch; the reality deviation was 9.9%. He then gave the order:

"Ethan, go and check around the cemetery. Try to find out where the pit under the coffin leads. Lillian, you stay here at Benjamin's cemetery."

There might be a Class B mutant beneath the tomb. Eliminating a Class B mutant will be a tough battle. Once the Intelligence Section and Logistics Section arrive, we'll contact the Operations Section and leave everything to them.

"The team leader is right," Ethan said.

"Received, team leader," Lillian replied.

Matthew helped the weak Wayne up: "Wayne, let me take you back to the car to rest."

"Okay." Wayne nodded and put the revolver and crowbar back on his waist.

Supported by Matthew, we followed the path through the cemetery back to the main road in the woods outside the cemetery, and finally returned to the car.

Wei En slumped weakly in the back seat, let out a long sigh, and, recalling what had just happened, asked, "Team leader, what was I doing just now...?"

Matthew stood at the car door and spoke frankly:

"It's nothing serious. It's normal that you were overwhelmed by the pollution and can't recover yet. Once you're promoted to a full investigator, you'll just need to do some willpower training."

"I see. So there's no medication this time?" Wayne remembered the tranquilizer Ethan had fed him last time.

Matthew explained:

"Taking drugs won't solve all the problems, and Lillian is naturally good at purifying pollution, so it's convenient for her to help you along the way."

"Understood." Wayne's eyes were vacant.

"You stay in the car and rest. I'll go back and make the rest of the arrangements," Matthew instructed.

"Okay, team leader." Wayne forced a tired smile.

Matthew turned and walked toward the depths of the cemetery, toward Benjamin's grave.

Wei En lay alone in the back seat of the car, feeling weak all over, with cold sweat still on his back, as if he had just had a high fever of 40 degrees Celsius. His mind was foggy and he was in a daze.

A gentle autumn breeze was blowing in the early morning, and the sky was already beginning to lighten. The car was filled with a faint mixed smell of leather and engine oil.

Wayne cranked the brass handle, rolled down the car window, and gazed at the tree-lined path in the distance.

As the autumn wind swept by, withered yellow leaves rustled down on both sides, and the shady path meandered in the morning mist.

The faint sounds of many cars approaching could be heard, along with heavy footsteps rushing deeper into the cemetery, and shouts of things like "Predict the B-level alien species, seal off the surrounding area, send the operations department," and so on.

It must be colleagues from the intelligence and operations departments who are present and anxiously coordinating the next steps.

The team leader predicted it to be a Class B mutant, with a 10%–20% deviation from reality. That's going to be a tough battle.

Alas, it's a pity that Ethan and the others have achieved a symbiotic balance with some kind of pollution and possess the characteristics of pollution, while I, as a trainee investigator, do not. I can't help much, can't get involved, and am somewhat of a hindrance.

Moreover, they didn't see any clues with their own eyes.

The answer to the mystery likely lies beneath Benjamin's grave.

Even if it's not the answer, it almost certainly signals a major breakthrough in Bob's death case.

The team leader said that once the case is closed, I can prepare to be promoted to a full-fledged investigator.

When the time comes, it will be equipped with the corresponding pollution characteristics, and it won't be a hindrance like this anymore.

Sigh, I'll just take a nap first. When I wake up, it'll probably be another complicated process.

Exhausted and with his mind blank, Wei En fell into a deep sleep in the car.