Rhodes Island does not exist.

What about that abandoned prison cell?

In fact, whenever the doctor thought about the fifth-floor cell, a somewhat unpleasant feeling would well up in his heart.

As if in response to the Doctor, when he was overcome with this emotion, the lavender wrapped around his right hand would awaken him from his reverie with a slightly tingling, stinging sensation.

Looking back now, the managers on the fifth floor are probably no longer around.

This is how it should be, given that its current state perfectly matches the description of the interlocking circuit.

We've already mentioned the sixth and seventh floors; now let's look at the eighth floor.

As for the situation on the eighth floor...

The doctor's thoughts suddenly froze.

He was extremely familiar with the eighth floor.

There was nothing there except a bunch of weird creatures that nested in the bed like slugs. And certainly no manager.

However, perhaps we can slightly reverse our way of thinking about them.

To give an analogy, if each slug is like a neuron, then all the slugs in the eighth-floor lobby connected together might form a considerable intelligent entity.

And this intelligent agent may be the administrator of the eighth layer.

...You're overthinking it.

The doctor couldn't help but shake his head with a wry smile, banishing the obviously far-fetched idea from his mind.

Although I can't think of any clues about the managers on the eighth floor, I can't just deal with it like this.

So, next up is about the ninth floor.

Actually, the doctor had a plan for the ninth floor for a long time.

He believed that the towering, mountain-like monster might not have come from the tenth floor, but from the ninth floor.

Because the collector's diary never recorded anything about that strange mountain, it suggests that it may never have existed on the tenth floor in the first place.

But there is another approach.

That is, the strangeness that is as high as a mountain may be the collector himself.

-

Thank you segment.

Thank you for the monthly pass.

Chapter 213, Part 212: Reunion with Mingqi

So what are you planning to do now?

The dialogue that Skadi and the locked-in circuit established interrupted the doctor's thoughts.

"Kill her! Use the power of friendship, the power of unity, to defeat her! Kill her!"

Clearly, the locking circuit has reverted to its original state.

It seems that the previous low and calm state of mind was only intermittent... or rather, it needed some switch to be activated.

Just like the key questions the PhD student asked earlier.

"The Reaper will surely try to invade again this time! She will definitely come! But I'm not afraid anymore, because I have friends, I have your help—you will help me, won't you?! Won't you?!"

The locked circuit stood up, leaning its upper body towards the doctor. Its empty face showed only the curve of its lips, without any eye contact.

She was waiting for a reply.

A definitive answer.

yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!

The answer is, of course, yes.

Having already achieved his only recent goal, the doctor has no reason to reject a new one.

Moreover, this goal may also be related to his final destination.

He can't afford to miss any intelligence within Rhodes Island, so it would be best if someone could assist him.

The doctor hoped that he could establish a cooperative relationship with the locked-in circuit, just like he had with Lavender before.

Rather, he hoped to avoid conflict in Rhodes Island, where everything could be resolved through words.

After all, in a sense, his ultimate goal and that of these oddballs should be the same.

He had already proven this through his time with lavender.

So, the problem he now faces is the woman currently hovering over the monitor.

Reaper.

She has the same human appearance as herself and Skadi, but does strange things.

What exactly is her identity?

With the help of this collaboration with the locked circuit, the doctor decides to uncover the secrets of the Reaper.

-

So, in a simple and straightforward manner, the doctor and his group prepared to pack their weapons and head out to meet the Reaper.

Guided by the interlocking circuit, they moved straight toward their goal without any hesitation or pause.

"So you brought that pickaxe? It's too old and worn out, it doesn't look impressive at all!"

She examined the black iron weapon in the doctor's hand and shook her head violently. "If it were me, I would never use such a weapon in battle!"

"Really?" The Doctor glanced at the pickaxe in his hand. "I find it quite handy, and..."

"puff."

He suddenly couldn't hold back and burst out laughing.

"Huh?" The locked circuit heard the Doctor chuckling and its face instantly filled with displeasure. "Why are you laughing? What's so funny? Your weapon is terrible! You won't admit it but you still laugh, it's incomprehensible!"

“Yes, you’re right.” The doctor withdrew his slightly impolite smile. “Whatever you say is right, so what? Since you hate this pickaxe, can you give me another weapon?”

"No." The locked circuit turned its head and looked ahead again. "Why should I give you a weapon? I'm not your mother. Even if I were, I wouldn't want a son like you. You're such a nuisance, hehehehehe."

Such casual remarks are generally not heard.

Only by entering a closed loop where one often gives up thinking can one feel this kind of relaxed, almost passive, feeling.

“I’m sorry to interrupt your conversation, but I have a question.” Skadi weakly raised her left hand and pointed to the tall tombstones connected by pipes around them. “I was a little curious when we came here. What exactly are these black tombstones?”

“It’s a storage device, or rather, a hard drive.” The voice of the locked circuit returned to its deep tone, presumably having switched to rational mode. “They store the footage captured by all the surveillance cameras on the six floors, and can play back past footage at any time.”

"..."

The doctor's mind went numb, as if it had been struck by a hammer.

He must have heard that sentence correctly.

all?

"May I ask a question?" The doctor suppressed his trembling voice and asked the locked circuit, "Just how far back is this 'past image' you're referring to?"

"Huh?" The voice of the locked circuit returned to its usual tone. "It was once upon a time! Once upon a time, a long, long time ago, so long that I can't even remember, so long that Rhodes Island had just been established. But I certainly don't know what it was like when it was first established. Anyway, it's all the same thing."

Again.

They always fail at crucial moments.

Now I can't ask anything I want to ask.

"Have you seen those images stored on the hard drive? The old ones." But the doctor still asked hopefully, "Anything from back then is fine."

However, the interlocking circuit shook violently to the left and right, like a rattle drum.

"How could I possibly have the time to watch something like that? Who would do something so boring? Huh? You? As my good friend, how could you bear to make me do such a pointless thing repeatedly?"

"I can't bear it, I really can't bear it." The doctor replied, following her words, and then changed the subject, making a request indirectly, "Then, to avoid making you do this kind of thing, let me look at the past images for you."

"Ok?"

Upon hearing the doctor's words, the locked circuit's expression froze for a moment.

She then nodded.

"Sure, it's not like it's some kind of treasure. You're my friend, and you're willing to help me share my boredom and pain, so why wouldn't I accept it? Go ahead and look if you want."

"That's great!"

"But!" the locked circuit shouted, forcing the doctor's secret joy back. "You have to be organized, one thing at a time! Finish what you're doing before you think about anything else! If you're forgetful, Mom will be very sad!"

"Didn't you just say you didn't want a son like me..."

The professor muttered to himself.

"So, after we defeat the Reapers with the power of friendship, let's go back and watch the old footage! If I was happy back then, I might even watch it with you, hahaha!"

She laughed again, completely oblivious and tasteless.

However, the situation is not too bad for the PhD student. This means he has one more short-term goal.

After dealing with the Reapers, you can return here to investigate the past events on the sixth floor, and you might even see yourself passing by in the past.

Therefore, it's more accurate to say that this was a meeting with oneself rather than a meeting with the harvesters.

Chapter 214, Part Two Hundred and Thirty-Three: thelobsterquadrlle

Pushing open the door, the doctor left the place he had entered just a few minutes earlier.

Incidentally, the broken door panel got them a severe dressing-down from the lockout circuit team.

"Oh, looks like you're planning to take everything from this supermarket." Standing in front of the fast food restaurant, Closed Circuit noticed the bundled packages in the direction of the supermarket. "This is robbery! This is robbery! Taking things without permission is theft!"

"..."

The doctor couldn't say anything.

After all, these things are not ownerless, and their behavior is indeed unreasonable.

"But you're my friends, so it doesn't matter if I give them to you. Take them, the more the merrier!"

But the locked circuit forgave them, and appeared quite magnanimous.

Well, maybe this was to be expected.

For someone like her, this kind of thing should be irrelevant.

"Anyway, I don't need to eat, I don't need to go to the toilet, I don't need anything. All I need to do is kill that woman who tried to trample on my pure garden! That reaper!" She spread her arms and shouted to the sky, "This time I have the help of my friends, so I must kill her!"

Since meeting her, she has emphasized the word "friend" countless times.

It seems that friendship is probably an important thing to her.

Or perhaps it's not friendship, but simply affection.

"cut."

As she spoke, she suddenly spat on the floor.

Because of its enormous size, the way it spits out saliva looks particularly fierce, completely unlike the posture a woman should have.

"That woman, the Reaper, is heading towards the food area," Closed Circuit said through gritted teeth. "I designed the sixth floor as a maze that changes its paths and layout over time specifically to deal with her, but she still manages to find the right way so easily... Damn it, damn it, damn it! I'm so unhappy!"

"Huh? How did you know she was coming this way?" Skadi asked.

“Because I saw it and heard it, isn’t that obvious?!” the locked circuit retorted. “I don’t need to look at a big screen like you do to see what’s happening on the sixth floor. To me, all the surveillance cameras on the sixth floor are an extension of my senses, so I can see whatever I want!”

“That’s truly awe-inspiring,” Skadi said with a dry compliment. “By the way, what would happen if your security cameras were removed?”

“That won’t happen, absolutely not!” Locked Circuit said angrily to Skadi. “As long as I’m alive, nothing on the sixth floor will be changed!”

Listening to the conversation between the two, the Doctor figured out something else besides the fact that the camera was the eye of the main body of the closed loop.

—The six-layered maze design was created entirely for the Reaper.

It seems that the feud between these two has a long history.

Thus, facing this inevitable and destined meeting, the doctor couldn't help but feel a little uneasy.

When your three members meet with the opposing side, what should you do to get them to negotiate instead of fighting each other outright?

He wanted to refer to his previous experience with lavender, but the lavender clinging tightly to his right arm pinched him hard.