Chapter 26: A Distant Journey

"Number 4048's ambitions go far beyond this. He has formed a clandestine group, and the number of conspirators is not small. They are attempting to overthrow the Lighthouse’s existing perfect system and are even trying to erase the future of humanity. Most terrifying of all, these people view life as worthless. To them, whether one is a Lighthouse Upper or a Dust-dweller, everyone is merely a pawn to be killed or used. As long as you are a part of the Lighthouse, no one can remain unscathed."

Charles finished in one breath, panting slightly. His gaze was as sincere as light, and he showed no hesitation as he spouted nonsense before the eyes of the crowd.

"They are hiding among us, but please rest assured: under the protection of the Lord of Light and Shadow, the Lighthouse will surely prosper for eternity. As the Head of the Lighthouse, I will definitely root out these traitors!"

He finished speaking, and Luo Ke understood.

Charles went through all this trouble to pave the way for purging his opponents later, laying the foundation for so-called justice.

If Ran Bing and others who favored Mark were to discover Charles's dirty dealings one day, they would surely rise in revolt. At that point, he could stand on the high ground of humanity, morality, and law, label them as the 4048 rebel group, and then brazenly clear the obstacles.

"Execute them!" Charles said indifferently, the corners of his mouth curling up after he turned away.

Flames rose, and the six were burned to ash. They were blind, loyal followers of the Lighthouse, dead soldiers ready to sacrifice themselves for Charles at any moment.

"Deeply calculating, yet in the end, you are submerged by jealousy and greed for power." Luo Ke turned and left, guessing that Jia Li was already preparing to act.

Charles had ability, courage, and perseverance, but his vision and perspective were too narrow and biased. There were countless better options, yet he stepped onto a road of no return and, damn it, refused to turn back.

As for what the others thought...

Morgan remained silent throughout, while the Dust-dwellers had limited horizons; many believed him, triggering a subtle wave of panic.

As for the Uppers, they cared more about results than the process.

Unfortunately, the result was that Mark’s life or death was unknown, the appointment of a new City Lord was nowhere in sight, and Charles, who was about to lose his real power, was once again showing off his might, even showing signs of taking control of the Lighthouse.

Even if they suspected something was wrong, few dared to speak up. What would saying it change? Not only would it change nothing, but they might also get themselves killed.

...

In the operating room, almost all of the Lighthouse's high-ranking officials were gathered, watching the surgery below with tension.

"I have been dealing with the fatal wounds on Mark's body, but when I tried to remove the spinal parasite, I realized that Mark’s life was already tethered to it."

"If I rashly remove the spinal parasite, Mark's remaining vitality will completely dissipate. But a new problem has arisen: the parasite wants to escape. Once it leaves, Mark will die... Currently, the only option is to let the spinal parasite replace Captain Mark’s spine." Jia Li sought the opinions of those present.

"Because Mark's body is reverse-consuming the parasite, the roles of hunter and prey are shifting," Jia Li said solemnly.

The crowd was stunned. Morgan kept a straight face. "Do your best. Ask Ran Bing for her thoughts."

Following the treatment with the medicine Mark had brought back, his condition had improved, but he remained in a wheelchair, extremely weak.

"I... agree." Ran Bing bit her lip and clenched her hands.

Having received permission, Jia Li began the procedure. After a series of stimuli, the head of the spinal parasite was severed, the remaining part slowly sank into Mark's body, and the skin began to be sutured.

At this point, everything went smoothly, and everyone couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

"Heh, who knows if the future Captain Mark will still be the person we know," Charles sneered, his eyes extremely sinister, his tone flippant. "It would be ridiculous if he turns his back on us then!"

His thoughts churned. If Mark truly survived, he would have to strike again before he woke up and frame 4048 for it.

Having a non-existent scapegoat was truly satisfying!

...

Morgan, who had not spoken for a long time, said coldly, "What else did those murderers confess?"

"Nothing. They kept their mouths shut. Nothing deeper could be dug out," Charles replied.

Suddenly, an anomaly occurred.

Mark’s vital signs fluctuated sharply, and after a spasm, they turned into a flat line. No matter how many times Jia Li applied electric shocks, it was to no avail.

After all, it was the first fusion between a spinal parasite and a human; to put it bluntly, it was a reckless adventure without experience, and death was to be expected.

The crowd was horrified, their eyes filled with grief.

Only Charles, his face pressed against the glass, gradually grew ferocious. An uncontrollable smile stretched across his face. At this moment, the man he had been jealous of for years had finally fallen, and every cell in his body was cheering.

He strode out the door, walking with a brisk, triumphant air, leaving the others frozen in place.

Ran Bing was teary-eyed, walking helplessly toward Mark's corpse. Touching his cold skin, she mourned, whispering about the future they had imagined together.

At this moment, she thought of someone, someone who seemed to possess the ability of a prophet.

"Luo Ke, where are you? Was all of this destined to happen? Didn't you say that everyone would live happily on the surface together?"

...

"What! Captain Mark... is he really dead?"

"Sigh, I heard he's going to be cremated later."

Outside the incineration room, the area was also filled with people, both Uppers and Dust-dwellers, all wearing expressions of grief.

Luo Ke leaned against the doorframe, silently watching Mark being pushed into the furnace. The member of the "Tower Demolition" squad was in the making.

The crowd dispersed, leaving only Morgan and a few city defense soldiers standing guard.

But no one knew that Mark's corpse in the furnace was expanding rapidly, constantly undergoing alienation. With the complete transformation of the body, a Mark-beast was born.

One must know that Mark was not a human at all; his true identity was a product of some biological experiment, capable of perfectly merging with the Mana ecology.

Bang!

"Roar—"

The furnace exploded, and a figure slowly stepped out.

It was Mark, reborn through fire!

Luo Ke, who had been lingering nearby, clapped his hands. Everything was proceeding according to the storyline; now, all that was left was the "Long Journey" ceremony!

Mark's newborn body and soul were both traumatized. After waking up, he immediately fainted and was quickly captured and detained by the city defense soldiers.

That night, a disheartened Morgan took Charles into the core of the Lighthouse.

Charles saw the bio-mechanical device known as the CLOTO System. It was a giant, half-brain integrated with a supercomputer, capable of deducing and calculating everything through patterns to achieve the goal of predicting the future.

It was precisely through this that the Lighthouse had found the young Mark.

"Mark is the hope for humanity, guided by the brain," Morgan said, appearing much older. "After all these years, he still ended up on this path."

When Charles learned of Mark's uniqueness, he was furious and immediately flew into a rage, unleashing a torrent of abuse.

In the end, he left the wheelchair-bound Morgan inside and walked out alone.

"Since you’ve told me this secret, it means the transition of the City Lord is at hand. Let me manage the Lighthouse for you."

After leaving, he convened a meeting, dismissed and detained Ran Nan, Victor, and others in the name of the City Lord, and replaced the power structure of the Lighthouse. It could be said that the Lighthouse was now in the palm of his hand.

...

The Hunter base was dim and lifeless, the atmosphere stifling.

Ran Bing and the others were at their wit's end, their faces full of worry.

"Mark has now turned into a噬极兽 (Naga/Monster). What should we do?" Mo Cheng said irritably. "Are we just going to sit here and wait?"

"Who's there!" Feixue spun around sharply.

At the doorway, a shadow was stretched long by the light as he walked in slowly.

"It's me."

"Luo Ke?"

"Luo Ke!"

Everyone exclaimed immediately, as if they had found a second pillar of support.

Ran Bing rushed forward, about to speak.

Luo Ke held up a finger to his lips. "I know about Mark."

Jeff asked, "Charles said Mark was attacked..."

Luo Ke smiled. "Do you believe him?"

Feixue shook her head.

Erika and Mo Cheng looked at each other and also shook their heads.

"If you wanted to harm him, you would have done it long ago," Ran Bing said.

Jeff cursed loudly, "Then that mongrel Charles is making up stories! What is he hiding? Could it be?"

Luo Ke nodded. "Whatever bad things happen on the Lighthouse, you can go ahead and pin them on Charles. Nine times out of ten, you'll be right."

The group was stunned, their hearts shaken, and a surge of murderous intent rose.

Mo Cheng was about to grab his gun and charge out, but Ran Bing stopped him, saying, "Since Luo Ke is here, he must have a plan."

Luo Ke got straight to the point without beating around the bush. "Go to Mor... no, go to Charles and propose taking Mark away to the surface. He will then send Mark on a 'Long Journey.' Agree to it. Don't be impatient; I will avenge Mark."

"A 'Long Journey'? But with Mark's current appearance, what if he's seen?" Ran Bing asked, confused.

"Only by breaking can we build. This aerial prison doesn't need to wander any longer. As for Mark, I want him to achieve a complete awakening of his consciousness through this 'Long Journey.' I want him to personally experience the fickleness of human nature, so that in the future, he can accurately distinguish right from wrong. Only in this way can he grow more rapidly." Luo Ke had done enough as a friend; he was considering Mark's growth from the very foundation.

"I know it's cruel, but being in this apocalypse is cruel in itself."

"Don't worry, everything is under my control."

Coming up in the next chapter—"Tower Demolition"!!! The plot can't drag on too long. There isn't much of the original story left, so let's get straight to the climax!