I can see experience bars after being transported to another world.

once.

twice.

three times.

Every time he tried to focus, a throbbing pain would come from behind his eyeballs, as if some mechanism was protecting him from seeing what was inside.

But Lu Yuan still managed to capture the fragments.

An outline that is wrapped up.

Curled up, enormous.

It does not belong to any living organism.

It does not belong to any conceivable species.

The curve of that outline was twisted, like a piece of paper being folded.

The outline remained unchanged.

But Lu Yuan knew it was alive.

Because the chains were trembling.

Then it turned its head.

It noticed.

Separated by countless layers of chains, by an endless city.

Through a fading dark green gap

It saw itself.

You have glimpsed something forbidden.

[Brave humans dared to look directly at His silhouette with their own flesh and blood.]

Your human identity is changing...the change has failed...

[Rationality: -20...-15...60/120]

The moment Lu Yuan saw Him, the runes of the Bronze City, which had been dormant for who knows how long, burst forth with astonishing light.

Immediately following was a violent tremor, and this ancient city, which had stood on this plain for an unknown amount of time, unleashed its power at that moment.

Majestic and enormous.

A pure and holy aura enveloped the entire city.

But the ground tremors did not stop.

A loud bang followed.

The dim light reached its peak and then dissipated.

At the same time, Lu Yuan's gaze irreversibly stopped.

Then a voice came.

It wasn't heard through the ears; it appeared directly in the mind.

"Save me...get out of here..."

Low-pitched, slow.

Each word was separated by a long silence.

"I can...give you...everything...you want..."

Lu Yuan stood still.

Expressionless.

He felt no fear.

There was no wavering.

He just stared coldly in that direction.

[Forbidden Studies - Seeker of Knowledge: +1...+1...]

Taboo studies began to surge the moment the sound rang out.

Lu Yuan knew what he was facing.

This could be an opportunity, or it could be your downfall.

The outline bound by chains was still writhing.

Those eerie green eyes are still burning.

That voice kept echoing in my mind, over and over again.

"...everything..."

Lu Yuan's lips twitched involuntarily.

[Rationality: 30/120]

[Taboo Studies - Seekers of Knowledge: 11/100]

The image is shattered.

Like a puncture in the water, the entire scene shattered into countless pieces in an instant, and then vanished.

Lu Yuan closed his eyes.

The feeling of dizziness surged back into my mind.

The intense nausea made Lu Yuan quickly leave Sandworm Town and retrieve the last bottle of sanity potion given to him by Captain Morris, the Pathfinder.

Without any hesitation, I drank it down.

[Sanity: +15....45/120]

As soon as the medicine was taken, a feeling of clarity immediately arose.

This barely suppressed the physical discomfort.

Lu Yuan slowly lay down.

The scene I had just witnessed still lingered in my mind's eye.

It was quiet for a long time.

"...I see."

Morris's so-called organization approached taboos, and his pursuit of the void was not out of a desire for knowledge.

It's a transaction.

They found something that was locked.

Then they made some kind of exchange.

"Oh."

Lu Yuan sneered inwardly.

It sounds like an ideal.

It's a business transaction.

He is not surprised.

From Grimport to Bronze City, from the Night's Watch to the Tower of Erudition, every organization he encountered ultimately revolved around the same issue.

To make deals with things beyond human comprehension, and then pretend that's called a "mission".

Morris was no exception.

However, his trading partner was locked in a city.

"temporary."

Lu Yuan glanced at his right palm.

Clean and tidy.

The power from the City of Chains was not written into his body.

It wasn't because he refused.

It's because something else took the spot first.

"A forbidden thing, locked away, tried to leave its mark on me, but was blocked by another unknown entity."

Lu Yuan closed his eyes.

"Whose pawn am I, really?"

There is no answer to this question.

At least not tonight.

Meanwhile.

Inside the Bronze City, countless figures swept through the darkness.

Countless hissing sounds rang out.

Immediately afterwards, a foul stench spread.

'Knock knock'

"Lu Yuan, get up quickly, something seems to be wrong with Bronze City..."

Laurina's somewhat anxious voice rang out from outside the room.

Lu Yuan turned his head and glanced at the curtains that were still drawn, with a faint light still shining through the gaps.

"Um?"

Lu Yuan opened the door, looked at Laurina standing outside, and gestured for her to come in.

Laurene was wearing a silk nightgown and holding a small box in her arms.

He walked in looking somewhat nervous.

"The runes in Bronze City just lit up completely!"

Laurina looked at Lu Yuan and continued.

"I read in the book that the last time Bronze City experienced something like this, it was to defend against something."

"Are all the runes in Bronze City lit up?"

Lu Yuan strode to the window and pulled back the curtains.

The Bronze City, which should have been shrouded in darkness, was now illuminated by streetlights.

Not far away, one could see the Night's Watchmen constantly rushing into the darkness.

The pale blue light still clung to the ancient city walls.

Before Lu Yuan could even figure out what it was...

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

A series of gunshots rang out around Bronze City.

Upon seeing this, Lu Yuan instantly realized something.

"Let's go! Light the lamp first!"

Lu Yuan took out his revolver from under his pillow, strode downstairs, and quickly retrieved a bottle of refined sandworm oil.

Pour it onto the kerosene lamp.

A pure white light illuminated every corner of the alchemy workshop.

Lu Yuan finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Laurene, who followed, looked at the lamp with some heartache.

What a waste...

As the light illuminated the surroundings, Laurinda noticed that Lu Yuan's previously normal complexion had become extremely unpleasant.

His skin was almost entirely pale, and cold sweat could be seen on his forehead.

"What did you do?"

Laurina's expression changed as she looked at Lu Yuan.

"Aren't you afraid of losing control by pushing your rationality so far?"

Lu Yuan waved his hand.

"It's alright. My extraordinary abilities have given me some resistance to this kind of situation."

Lu Yuan's statement was half true and half false.

But Lu Yuan's expression immediately turned serious.

[Environmental Sensing: A large amount of trace pollution has been detected... A massive amount of trace pollution has been detected; it is recommended to stay away.]

A very abrupt gray-white notification appeared.

"Take the lamp upstairs, and bring the sandworm oil with you. Remember, whatever you do, don't come down!"

Lu Yuan's sudden seriousness made Laurinna realize that something was wrong.

Laurina took out two small, round bottles of medicine from the box in her arms and handed them to Lu Yuan.

"It's very effective against strange creatures, but you must never use it against the wind. The range is about five meters."

After speaking, Laurinna divided the sandworm oil into two small bottles and placed them on the table. Then, carrying the remaining sandworm oil and the lamp, she quickly went upstairs.

Lu Yuan quickly placed the medicine and sandworm oil that Laurinna had taken out onto his belt.

[Detection Target: Addiction Potion (Created by Laurinna)]

[A special potion made with eerie blood and special materials through eerie alchemy. It can cause considerable damage to any low-level eerie entity. Be careful not to poison yourself.]

Lu Yuan's eyes lit up when he saw the prompt.

[Target for detection: Unnamed (created by Laurinna)]

[A modified "invisibility" agent, seemingly capable of blocking perception?]

He quickly filled the potion, counted the silver-plated bullets, and put several bottles of perfect-quality sanity potions into his waist pouch.

A knock on the door followed.

"Lu Yuan, emergency assembly! Quickly!"

(One more chapter, to come later)