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

With his left thumb pressed against the groove in the center of the magazine, a sliver of reason seeped in.

[Sanity: -1...99/140]

The central sanity bar lit up, and a pure white bullet appeared out of thin air in the center of the magazine, its surface covered with fine inscription patterns, emitting a soft white light in the dim light of the hall.

The chamber clicks into place.

Lu Yuan raised his gun.

The gun was pointed at the two Gray Pact members who had lost their supernatural abilities. They were still crouching against the wall.

Pull the trigger.

The central bullet goes first.

boom.

The white flame from the muzzle tore through the air, and the pure white bullet flew out with a trail of light, piercing through three dead branches and a cloud of suspended spores along the way.

The pierced branches all burst into a faint white flame, and the spores instantly carbonized and dissipated along the path the light tail had traversed.

Lu Yuan did not pause.

The finger pulled the trigger repeatedly, one shot, two shots, three shots, orange flashes exploding at the muzzle. The spent cartridges tumbled in the air.

Seven shots...ten shots.

The fire-filled chambers were emptied in one go.

All ten copper-cased incendiary rounds were fired, the muzzle emitting scorching white smoke, and the surface of the copper barrel still retained a rare touch of warmth.

The gunshots echoed several times in the sealed hall before dissipating.

The bullets fired by the flames didn't kill them, but the vines did half the job for Lu Yuan.

The sealing disc suppressed their extraordinary abilities and stripped them of their control over the vines. The moment they lost their authority, the root network no longer recognized them as "masters".

One of them reacted too slowly.

He was still crouching against the wall, trying to understand what had just happened. The vines above his head had drooped down and wrapped around his shoulders and head. He struggled, but his body, lacking supernatural abilities, couldn't break free.

A swirling branch pierced through the top of his head.

The scream lasted only a moment before he was hoisted upright, his legs twitching in the air. He was clearly not going to die anytime soon.

The other one is much smarter.

The moment he lost his supernatural abilities, he moved without the slightest hesitation or even turning his head, lunging directly at the wooden figure in the center of the altar.

The out-of-control vines hesitated noticeably as they approached the wooden figure, their branches avoiding the kneeling wooden structures.

He huddled among the wooden figures, where he was temporarily safe.

Lu Yuan's central bullet and ten copper-cased incendiary rounds all hit the two original positions of the third tier.

The white alchemical flames and orange-red scorching burned a patch of charred earth at the base of the wall, but unfortunately only one was killed.

"You... dare."

The sound of "9" came from the depths of the insect swarm.

Lu Yuan turned his head.

In the accelerated world, the ashen face of "9" is emerging from the gaps in the branches. His eyes are fixed on the corpse hanging from the vines, a hint of disgust flashing in them.

"How slow-witted. It's useless as fertilizer, but it might be somewhat useful as a sacrificial offering."

His tone showed no concern whatsoever for his dead men.

Then he looked at Lu Yuan.

The smile disappeared.

The speed of "9" increased dramatically again.

Even though Lu Yuan was already accelerating, he could still see the number "9" approaching him at a normal jogging speed.

The gap remains.

Lu Yuan did not retreat.

The magazine is empty, but the central sanity bar does not require physical bullets.

Press your thumb back into the center of the magazine.

[Sanity: -1...98/140]

The second white bullet materialized.

He raised his gun and aimed it at the approaching "9".

Pull the trigger.

boom.

The pure white bullet flew out, its initial velocity more than twice that of the copper-cased incendiary bullet, leaving a blinding white trail in the dim light of the hall.

But "9" did not hide.

He reached out and gripped the bullet tightly.

It was accompanied by a muffled thud.

White alchemical flames exploded in his palm, and light leaked out from between his fingers.

"9's" entire arm, from palm to elbow, was instantly charred black. The grayish-white skin was carbonized and cracked, revealing the equally charred muscle tissue underneath.

His hand trembled slightly.

"That's really interesting."

"9" glanced at his charred arm.

Clearly, at this moment, he finally put away his playful attitude and became serious.

The vines that had been covered and suppressed by the Rek insect swarm erupted again the moment the will of "9" was injected.

This is on a completely different level from the previous two third-tier control experiences.

"9" personally took control of the entire root network, and the growth rate, strength, and coverage of the vines all increased several times over.

Countless thick branches fell simultaneously from the dome and the ground, and from all directions, cutting deep into the interior of the Rek insect swarm.

The gray surface of the insect swarm was torn apart by branches, and gray-green and gray intertwined, devouring each other.

A wall of branches took shape in just two seconds.

From the dome to the ground, from the left wall to the right wall, a living barrier woven from dozens of thick vines divides the hall in two.

Lu Yuan was placed on the side closest to the altar.

Together with "9".

Beren was on the other side of the iron gate, separated from the outside by the branch wall and the swarm of insects.

Rek's swarm of insects violently slammed against the branch wall on the other side.

Insects gnaw and dissolve, but new branches grow even faster as they are destroyed; the rate of destruction cannot keep up with the rate of growth.

Rex couldn't break through in a short time.

[Sanity: -3...95/140]

Lu Yuan stood in the altar area, holding the "flame" of an empty missile pod in his hand.

The opponent was a fourth-tier mutated superhuman with one arm charred black, yet still capable of killing him ten times over.

On the other side of the vine-covered wall, the sound of Rex's impact was dull and rapid.

Further behind, the inscriptions on the path of Buren's burning retreat hissed, it was unclear how much of them had burned.

Lu Yuan ran his thumb along the edge of the empty magazine.

He took a copper-cased incendiary round from the ammunition belt and pressed it into the magazine.

We have to fight this hard.

Lu Yuan knew he had to fight to the death.

The branch wall separated Rex from Buren, locking him alone on this side of the altar, the space still being compressed by the vines. The vines, personally controlled by "9", wriggled and gathered from all directions, leaving less and less room for him to stand.

The Time Boost feature is still running, consuming sanity every second.

The advantage brought by acceleration is only enough for him to see the trajectory of the movement when facing "9". Due to the limited space, it is even more difficult to create distance.

You have to work hard in the right place.

Lu Yuan's consciousness probed deep into his left eye along the symbiotic connection.

The knowledge insect responded.

The symbiotic connection that had been half-dead since the Tower of Knowledge suddenly throbbed clearly at that moment.

The Worm of Knowledge had been fully awakened the moment it entered the underground space, but Lu Yuan was too busy fighting to confirm it.

At this moment, the symbiotic connection responded with a curious tone.

It is interested in the number "9".

More precisely, it was interested in the dark yellow aura emanating from the number "9".

Lu Yuan transmitted a command through the symbiotic connection.

Get ready and wait for my signal.

"That's a really interesting ability of yours."

The sound of "9" came from the space filled with spores. Lu Yuan could no longer see him. The choking gray-green dust blurred everything ten meters away into blocks of color.

The inscription hanging close to Buren's body was still active, its pale gold patterns shimmering slightly on the surface of his clothing, filtering every breath of air he took.

"Having lived in this city for so long, this is the first time I've met someone like you who can defeat me in an instant."

The shape of "9" flickered briefly in the spore mist.

It flashed twice.

Lu Yuan raised his gun.

He only had two copper-cased incendiary bombs that he had just loaded into the chamber.

The figure of "9" froze for half a second in front of him.

Lu Yuan pulled the trigger.

boom.

An orange-red flash exploded at the muzzle, and the bullet pierced through the spore mist, tearing a clearly visible trajectory.

The bullet went right through it.

Nothing was hit.

It's an afterimage.

A soft laugh came from behind Lu Yuan.

They were very close.

As the laughter subsided, his breath almost brushed against the back of his neck.

Lu Yuan did not turn around.

His body made two movements in that instant.

First, he tilted to the right, causing himself to fall out of the attack range directly behind him. At the same time, Lu Yuan activated Time Response Stasis.

[Sanity: -40...50/140]

The world froze.

Centered on Lu Yuan, within a spherical region approximately three meters in diameter, the velocity of all matter was forcibly reduced to near zero. Spores suspended, vines froze, and the air became viscous.

A pair of grayish-white hands reached out from behind.

The fingers are long and slender, with faint dark yellow veins visible beneath the skin.

The speed of the hand drops sharply the moment it enters the static zone, going from being imperceptible to moving at a very slow pace.

But it didn't stop.

Even after overcoming the stagnation and slowing down, the force of "9" continues to propel it forward.

The speed was reduced to the level of human walking, but step by step, it crossed the stagnant outer layer, passed through the middle layer, and approached the core.

His hand landed on Lu Yuan's shoulder blade.

The effect was not significant.

But Lu Yuan felt it; the moment that hand touched him, the Time-Stasis structure emitted a faint cracking sound.

The force of the fourth order directly shattered the time barrier.

Lu Yuan's left eye flashed.

The insect of knowledge has stirred.

It didn't emerge from Lu Yuan's eye socket.

It swam at an extremely fast speed along the contact surface between "9's" palm and Lu Yuan's shoulder, the colorful glimmer flashing briefly at the point of contact before disappearing beneath the grayish-white skin.

At the same moment, the other hand of "9" clapped over.

Lu Yuan was sent flying.

The moment "9"'s palm touched his back, a force exploded from his palm, blasting him toward the altar.

Lu Yuan did a half-flip in the air, and his back hit something.

The pain traveled from the spine to the limbs.

The vines closed in from four directions the instant he landed.

Lu Yuan rolled twice on the ground, dodging the nearest branch, and sprang up half a meter with his feet, only to be swept in the calf by another vine from the side.

There was no chance to stand up.

The vines are closing up.

Lu Yuan activates Defense II.

Without hesitation.

[Defense II (Temporary): Consumes 20 points of maximum sanity.]

[Sanity cap: 140 → 120]

[Sanity: +50...100/120]

Deep within the dried-up river of reason, a sluice gate was forcibly opened, and a torrent of reason surged forth, filling the already cracked riverbed.

My vision became clear again.

The strength in my limbs has returned.