MMPS Ch. 52

Chapter 52: Kill Rewards

The multi-handed monster deflated like a leaky balloon, slowly flattening into a pancake, its gurgling vibrations shaking the boat’s planks.

The collapsed ribs of the Parasite of the Dead Lake jutted out of the water like the fossilized remains of a Jurassic dinosaur.

Yu An tiptoed, stepping on the gaps between the multi-handed monster’s outstretched hands, nimbly hopping across the skeletal remains a few times before leaping onto the wooden coffin lid floating on the water’s surface.

Inside the coffin left behind by the Parasite of the Dead Lake lay a bounty of kill rewards.

Piles of golden game coins were extravagantly stacked at the bottom of the coffin, automatically deposited into the character’s account. A total of 30,000 coins. In the game, gold coins were an important resource, used to purchase items. Killing a single carnivorous tadpole by the lakeside would only net you 25 coins.

Aside from the money, there was also a silver Advancement Badge, which provided an all-around boost to the character. Advancement Badges were rare equipment that could be used across all scenarios, and finding one required a fair bit of luck.

The final item filled Yu An with anticipation. No one had ever killed the Parasite of the Dead Lake before, so naturally, no one knew what the kill rewards would be.

Unlike the other rewards piled at the bottom of the coffin, this one floated in mid-air.

It was a black half-face mask, its material resembling a perfect blackbody, with not a single hint of color visible at first glance. It seemed as if it were made of pure black water, its surface subtly flowing, occasionally dripping shadowy droplets.

Name: Mask of the Dead Lake 

Description: Wear it and become one with the darkness. 

Background: A violent white bone wandering the border of death, born from flowing malice, believing itself still alive, guarding the peace of the souls lost in the lake, like a tragedy lurking in endless darkness.

Effect: Perfectly hide in any shadow.

“Top-tier equipment.” Yu An murmured, his eyes gleaming.

This mask carried the essence of the Parasite of the Dead Lake’s third-phase skill, “Eclipse,” which allowed the Parasite to quickly close in on enemies during moments of darkness and launch surprise attacks. The mask, however, enabled the wearer to hide in shadows, allowing them to slip past enemies unnoticed or deliver a fatal blow when least expected.

A bold idea formed in Yu An’s mind.

If he could use the Picture Within the Painting Core to bring real-world equipment into the game, was it possible to take game items back into reality?

If he could have the Mask of the Dead Lake in reality, it would be a game-changer.

However, the mask’s irregular shape made it difficult to replicate perfectly. It would take a long time to practice drawing it accurately, and it might be easier to find a skilled micro-sketch artist.

The interviewer had a wide network. He could definitely find someone.

Yu An spent so much time organizing the rewards that he almost forgot about the multi-handed monster.

The multi-handed monster swam closer, climbing onto the edge of the coffin and slowly crawling inside. Sitting in the shaded, cool interior of the coffin, the monster regained some energy, pressing close to Yu An and gurgling softly.

“Ah.” Yu An sighed, looking at it. He jumped into the coffin, sitting on the soft silk cushion inside, and patted the large ball of hands. “You’re so strong. I don’t see any chance of winning. If you really come to Hongli City to find me, once the cocoon phase begins, I’ll probably be killed by you inside the cocoon.”

The multi-handed monster sat at the other end of the coffin, dejectedly curling its hands into a ball, listening to Yu An.

“Whatever. I have nothing to lose anyway.”

In reality, the only person Yu An had any connection with was Zhao Ran, but even that relationship wasn’t great. Zhao Ran kept him at arm’s length, never openly acknowledging their relationship. He rarely kissed Yu An or expressed affection in other ways during intimate moments, always insisting on turning off the lights. Maybe Yu An’s face wasn’t to his liking, so he didn’t want to look at it.

Yu An gradually accepted that Zhao Ran was just a superior with a preference for younger men, using his experience to manipulate him. Yu An could handle it, so he didn’t care. He was attracted to Zhao Ran’s body, and as long as he got what he wanted, it was a win.

So, between the interviewer and the multi-handed monster, who was stronger?

Yu An guessed the multi-handed monster was stronger because the interviewer could only embed one core in his left hand, while the multi-handed monster had clearly demonstrated abilities that suggested it had more than one core.

Even Zhao Ran might not be able to kill it easily and likely only managed to take one core from it at great risk.

“Whatever. Come if you want. I’ll accept any outcome.”

Yu An stood up, jumped onto the coffin lid, and stood with his back to the multi-handed monster for a moment. Then, stepping on the towering skeletal remains protruding from the water, he ran toward the exit of Lost Town.

The multi-handed monster peeked out from the coffin, a few hands resting on the edge, watching the small black figure grow smaller and smaller in the distance. Its gurgling gradually ceased as it slowly tried to understand his meaning.

Having been stuck at the intersection of the dual Illusion Chambers for too long, Yu An had completely lost track of time. He felt that if he didn’t disconnect and rest soon, things would get bad.

After defeating the Parasite of the Dead Lake, a door opened at the end of the Dead Lake. Yu An slipped inside, and after a blinding flash of white light, he entered a safe room.

It was like the interior of a double-door elevator, with two doors facing each other. The door on the left, which he had entered through, slowly closed. Yu An glanced back and saw the multi-handed monster swimming toward him, its skin turning pale and dry under the sunlight. But the door closed before it could reach him.

A message appeared: [Lost Town] progress completed. Game saved.

Yu An was silent for a long time, feeling a pang of loss. He had left many places before, always treating farewells as mundane, everyday occurrences. But no one had ever tried to keep him the way the multi-handed monster had.

After the save prompt appeared, Yu An sent a signal to disconnect. His brain had been running at high speed for too long, and he needed to rest. The plan was to take a one-hour break after thoroughly clearing each scenario.

But something was wrong.

Why couldn’t he disconnect?

*

Outside the Circus Illusion Chamber

Zhao Ran sat under a broken sink in a public restroom, patiently listening to his older brother’s lecture.

“Yes, I know. This is the last time. I’ll only try this once.” Zhao Ran said lazily, nodding.

“How’s your injury?”

“It’s fine, it’s fine. Stop worrying so much.”

“I really don’t want to lecture you.” Ha Bai turned around, sighing in frustration. “You’re not a kid anymore, always chasing unrealistic fantasies. If you fell for a human special forces soldier, would I stop you? In our entire family, who in their right mind would think of forming a bond with a human child?”

Zhao Ran grinned, his elongated mouth splitting his cheeks to reveal a row of sharp teeth. He made a face, but Ha Bai’s third eye, hidden under his knit cap, suddenly opened and glared at him: “Look at you, look at you! Can’t you act like an adult? Do you act like this in front of him too?”

Zhao Ran immediately closed his mouth. “Of course not. I’ve done my research. Kids from broken homes usually prefer mature, older partners.

Ha Bai’s stomach churned with anger.

“Earlier, you mentioned Yu An’s left eye core slot and the ability to swap cores. Has that information leaked?” Zhao Ran asked.

“Hmph, do you even need to ask? As long as there are no leaks within your company, this secret won’t get out.”

“A streamer named Huang Qi knows about it. He saw Yu An take out his eye.”

“I know. I made him swear. If he breathes a word of it, he’ll die on the spot.”

At that moment, the communicator on Zhao Ran’s collar lit up with a red light, flashing rapidly to indicate an emergency.

Zhao Ran’s expression turned serious. He signaled for Ge Bai to leave quickly and opened the communicator as he hurried outside.

He rushed back into the Circus Illusion Chamber, where several intern investigators and Ji Nian were lying on the linking platforms, apparently already immersed in the scenario.

“What’s going on?” Zhao Ran asked urgently.

Yong Zheng, who was manning the computer, looked pale. He turned the monitor toward Zhao Ran, showing a live broadcast of the game Gray Crow: Toy House on a large screen in the city’s central pedestrian street.

“I’ve hacked and locked the screen for now, so there’s no need to worry about that. But someone is maliciously spreading the game scenario. Streamers on major platforms are all broadcasting Gray Crow: Toy House, and the number of viewers is skyrocketing.”

The J.S brothers fed on fanaticism and fear. As long as there were viewers, their power would skyrocket. Someone was trying to wipe out the new generation of Underground Metro interns in one fell swoop. If they succeeded, these talented young people would suffer brain damage, leaving them permanently disabled at best, or trapped in a vegetative state, their consciousness stuck between reality and the virtual world, living a fate worse than death.

The virus aberration, J.S brothers, were hired by the rival company, Drift Racing. It seemed this operation had been planned for a while. By bribing major streamers to broadcast the game across all platforms, their goal from the start was to take these young lives without shedding blood and easily evading legal consequences. This would force Underground Metro to compromise and hand over control of the southern district of Hongli City. Otherwise, losing nearly ten trainees in one go would not only cost a fortune in compensation to their families but also severely damage the company’s reputation.

The opposing boss was shrewd. The CEO of Drift Racing, Xiong Zhe, was a burly, 6’6″ man with a hot-tempered and suspicious nature. A direct, no-nonsense assault would be more his style. This meticulous, underhanded plan had to be the work of his wife, Qi Jingshu.

The couple had built their small team from the ground up, and now their ambitions were growing larger by the day.

The situation was urgent. Zhao Ran immediately informed a young lady.

After listening, the young lady coldly ordered, “An Lan, you two go to the Circus Illusion Chamber to support the other trainees. Tell Duan Ke and Yuan Xiaoying to bring people and follow me.”

Even over the phone, Zhao Ran could hear the young lady’s barely contained anger.

“Let me link in. These rookies have never faced Aberrants before. They won’t stand a chance.” Zhao Ran said hurriedly, sitting down on the linking platform and attaching the consciousness-linking device to his head.

As Yong Zheng prepared to initiate the link, chaos erupted outside.

Zhao Ran frowned, glancing toward the tent’s entrance. When he looked back at Yu An, he noticed something strange.

A pink balloon dog, twisted from a long balloon, had appeared out of nowhere and landed on Yu An’s chest.

Zhao Ran’s experience gave him a keen sense of danger. Without hesitation, he lunged forward, scooping up the unconscious Yu An and rolling away just as the balloon dog expanded and exploded. Pink goo splattered across the platform, corroding the metal and sending up acrid black smoke.

Yong Zheng hit the alarm, and the patrol team guarding the circus tent rushed in. They formed pairs, standing guard over each unconscious trainee, scanning the area for any signs of danger.

“Team Leader, someone spotted a man in a tailcoat approaching. We can’t pinpoint his location.”

All the other interns were still lying safely, but Yu An… Zhao Ran stared at the corrosive goo, his mind racing. There was a traitor in the company. Drift Racing had found out about Yu An’s ability to swap cores.

The sound of polished shoes clicking against the ground echoed rhythmically from outside the tent. The patrol team readied their weapons, preparing for a fight.

The footsteps were still outside, but suddenly, a scream erupted from inside the tent. Everyone turned to see a long-necked balloon giraffe explode above a patrol member’s head. Orange goo poured down, melting the man into a puddle of blood and gore.

At the tent’s entrance, a balloon figure twisted into the shape of a man appeared silently. The balloon burst, splattering colorful goo everywhere, rapidly corroding anything it touched. Zhao Ran shielded Yu An’s face, dodging the spray. When he looked up again, a magician in a tailcoat and top hat stood where the balloon had been.

“Stay back. Protect the trainees.” Zhao Ran ordered the patrol team.

Drift Racing had hired several highly skilled assassins, and the magician was clearly one of them. This man was known in the industry as a cold-blooded killer who only cared about money. Whoever paid the highest price could buy his loyalty.

He was here for Yu An.

His attack method had a wide splash radius. Zhao Ran cradled Yu An in his arms as two severed hands emerged from the ground, lifting the tent flap for him. He ducked and slipped outside.

“Zhao Ran’s man. The price just went up.” the magician muttered, his cloak swirling as he transformed back into a balloon figure and floated after them.

—— 

Omake:

1

With its courtship target gone, the multi-handed monster searched the water’s surface several times but found nothing. Disappointed, it swam back to the ice cave and flopped onto a giant clamshell, slowly deflating into a puddle of hands, gurgling sadly.

“Huh?” The clamshell cracked open slightly, a row of eyeballs peeking out. It seemed embarrassed and extended two thin nerve tendrils, breaking off a piece of black reef nearby. It tapped the reef against the shell a few times, shaping it into a rough sphere, and handed it to the multi-handed monster.

The multi-handed monster sighed dejectedly, still not cheered up.

The eyeballs grumbled and smashed the reef a few more times, smoothing out the edges.

The multi-handed monster hugged the round black coal ball but remained unhappy.

The eyeballs glared at it, spitting in its direction. The thin nerve tendrils retracted into the shell, rummaged around, and then extended again, holding out a handful of rusty coins.

Just enough for a bus ticket.

The icy sea was rising, and a storm was approaching. Fragile creatures gathered around. Small fish, shrimp, and large carnivorous tadpoles were all seeking shelter inside the giant clamshell.

The eyeballs grumbled at the invasion of their space but eventually closed the shell, protecting the noisy creatures inside.

2

Every year, seven days after the ritual, the shamaness of Riyu Town would visit the ice cave to receive divine guidance.

The old woman knelt devoutly on the ice, facing the clear, warm water, chanting incantations and calling for the true god of Riyu Town to deliver its message.

“Thank you for the light you have brought us. Please guide us on what offerings we should bring next year.”

The water rippled, and a pale, slender hand emerged, holding a red heart-shaped gummy candy in its palm.

The shamaness was startled. After a moment of contemplation, she bowed again, chanting respectfully: “I understand.”

The shamaness stood and murmured to the men behind her: “The true god desires love. We must send a young maiden to wed him.”

The men quickly rowed away, while the multi-handed monster floated to the surface, reaching out helplessly: “No… that’s not…”