Chapter 580 – Turns Out You’re a m.a.s.o.c.h.i.s.t
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Knowing full well they were undercover—and likely there for revenge—this person still kept them around, even close at hand, to do his bidding…
Such behavior was simply… Mu Chen felt a surge of awkwardness; he could find no words to describe this feeling.
Playing with fire?
If Ling Mo were to lift a rock only to drop it on his own foot, that could be called playing with fire, but what about now?
It could only mean Ling Mo didn’t see them as much of a threat, confident as he was.
But soon enough, Mu Chen realized something else.
In a situation where the enemy operated in the open and they hid in the shadows, Ling Mo could easily treat them like rats he’d cornered, to be dealt with in one fell swoop…
So why didn’t he strike first?
“You…” Mu Chen asked awkwardly and curiously, “Knowing what I’m here for, why didn’t you take the initiative to strike first?”
“…” Ling Mo looked at him in surprise and then said, “Oh, turns out you’re a m.a.s.o.c.h.i.s.t.”
“d.a.m.n it! Who’s a m.a.s.o.c.h.i.s.t!” Mu Chen instantly freaked out. Talking to this guy, why couldn’t he ever stay serious!
“It’s surprising to me that you only realized this now,” Ling Mo immediately followed with a cruel jab.
“And if I hadn’t shown myself, you probably still wouldn’t know, right?” he continued.
As for Mu Chen, he was left without the energy to retort…
Indeed, if Ling Mo hadn’t appeared, he certainly would have ended up empty-handed today.
Ling Mo’s presence was faint when he did appear…
“But I would have found out eventually!” Mu Chen thought indignantly.
“But you managed to find this place today, you must have used some kind of method, right? Care to share?” Ling Mo then asked.
“Enough already…” Mu Chen continued in his sullen state, “Even if I did, I couldn’t tell you!”
“Oh, then never mind.” Ling Mo suggested, “Shall we have a proper talk then?”
If Mu Chen hadn’t come tonight, Ling Mo would have made a move tomorrow anyway.
The current situation was unexpected, but it didn’t change the course of events.
Or rather, it was now even better…
Xu Shuhan and Xia Zhi were not there at the moment, dealing with Mu Chen alone first was much easier than handling all three at once.
Seeing Mu Chen’s current state, it was clear he had sneaked out, and the other two were unaware.
“Do I have the option not to talk?”
Mu Chen said somewhat helplessly.
He had already realized that he was unwittingly surrounded.
Those three girls were hidden around him; even if he couldn’t see them, he could feel eyes watching him.
Looking at Ling Mo’s calm demeanor, Mu Chen suddenly realized that this man wasn’t as transparent as he seemed.
At least he was cautious. From the moment he decided to show up today, he was prepared, even if there was only Mu Chen to face.
“I think we can have a very pleasant talk,” Ling Mo said.
“Alright…” Mu Chen glanced around and then slowly raised his hand, rubbing his temples with a hint of a headache…
…
“Number Zero is reacting!”
In a laboratory of the Niepan Branch, a voice suddenly rang out.
“Information feedback!” someone immediately shouted.
“Go call Mr. Ai! This is special information!” another person called out.
Just then, the laboratory door was suddenly pushed open, and a man with a face full of scars rushed in with urgency.
Ai Feng had been very anxious these past few days, eagerly awaiting news from Mu Chen and his team, but no intelligence had come through.
Since their departure, they seemed to have vanished into a sea of zombies, leaving no trace.
Dead? Impossible, they were adept at self-preservation.
Killed by Ling Mo? That was a possibility, but even in death, there should have been some feedback…
Yet there was nothing, nothing at all…
This left Ai Feng quite frustrated, to the point of losing sleep and appet.i.te.
If he knew that the very people he was worried about were laboring away for someone else unknowingly, one could only imagine the look on his face…
Fortunately, Ai Feng was unaware, so he still spent every spare moment outside Room Zero, waiting for any possible messages.
And today, the message finally arrived.
“They’ve found Ling Mo!”
After receiving information from Room Zero, Ai Feng excitedly said, “Keep a close watch on Room Zero, there should be follow-up messages coming through any moment now!”
The laboratory staff immediately crowded around, all staring intently at Room Zero.
“You guys are too close… Room Zero will be uncomfortable,” Ai Feng reminded them helplessly.
“Oh, oh…” Everyone quickly backed off but continued to watch Room Zero closely.
Three minutes pa.s.sed…
Five minutes… Ten minutes…
After a full fifteen minutes, as the group’s eyes grew tired, Room Zero’s second feedback still hadn’t come.
Finally, one of the staff members couldn’t help but speak up cautiously, “Maybe… that’s it?”
“…”
Ai Feng was silent for a few seconds before suddenly punching the wall: “Mu Chen, d.a.m.n it! Are you playing me?!”
…
“I guess your boss is cursing you out right now,” Ling Mo said, sitting in a chair and looking at Mu Chen across from him.
Mu Chen, with a troubled expression, replied, “I guess so… How did you find out?”
He gestured towards his own head.
“That move,” Ling Mo referred to the gesture of rubbing the temples, “You don’t usually do that, and it’s typically a habit of mental ability users, done to relieve a headache. It’s strange for you to suddenly do it.”
“You’re very observant…” Mu Chen said in surprise.
Ling Mo chuckled and glanced at Ye Lian standing beside him.
In fact, the real observing eyes were Ye Lian’s. With the zombies’ unforgettable memory, such details were easy to observe.
Ling Mo always trained with them, not just to be with them at all times, but also to have them monitor Mu Chen and his team.
“But what really tipped me off was just a moment ago when I sensed a mental fluctuation. It was faint, but I still caught it. You were sending a message then, weren’t you?” Ling Mo asked.
Mu Chen didn’t bother to deny it and simply nodded: “Yeah. But just after I sent a sentence, you cut me off.”
Mu Chen was genuinely shocked by Ling Mo’s sensitivity to mental power; it was no wonder he was capable of inflicting damage on Subject Zero in reverse. His mental power was indeed formidable.
He had only managed to send the message “Found Ling Mo” before Ling Mo forcefully interrupted him, leaving him dizzy even now.
The most crucial point was that he didn’t even have a chance to resist the moment Ling Mo made his move.
Truly monstrous! Ling Mo’s control over mental power must be at least not weaker than Subject Zero’s, if not stronger in certain aspects.
Considering how Subject Zero was created, and then looking at Ling Mo…
A word popped into Mu Chen’s head: “Monster.”
“Did you use it to find me?” Ling Mo asked again.
“Yes…” Mu Chen simply admitted the truth, realizing by now that even if he didn’t confess, Ling Mo would have guessed it anyway.
“But you’re not a mental ability user, are you?” Ling Mo persisted, determined to get to the bottom of things.
“You really don’t give up, do you…” Mu Chen lost his patience and just said it, “This is a small cl.u.s.ter of mental power left by Subject Zero. Since it has a strong impression of your mental power, it can sense it whenever a similar mental fluctuation appears.”
“It can’t be that simple, right? I’d guess it’s probably some kind of ace up your sleeve,” Ling Mo added.
Mu Chen clammed up, but the fleeting fluctuation in his eyes already told Ling Mo that he had guessed right again.
“After all, you’re sitting here alone, not worried at all, which made me think you definitely have some means to save your life,” Ling Mo said with a smile.
Mu Chen rolled his eyes, thinking to himself that no ace up his sleeve would be of any use here—this was Ling Mo’s territory…
Moreover, although Ling Mo seemed to be the closest to him, he had been tensed up all along, probably ready to put distance between them at the slightest sign of trouble.
Dealing with someone who appeared honest but was actually very experienced in action was nothing but frustrating for Mu Chen, without any other feeling.
He even began to suspect whether Ling Mo was intentionally releasing mental power in the middle of the night to lure him out…
“What exactly does ‘Niepan’ mean?” Ling Mo suddenly leaned forward and asked with a smile.
At that question, Mu Chen also tensed up, his expression immediately serious.
Ling Mo had been probing for so long and finally got to the point.
“What about you? What’s your story?” Mu Chen leaned back and narrowed his eyes as he asked.
“That depends on you guys,” Ling Mo continued to smile.
That response… was quite arrogant.
Mu Chen glanced at Ling Mo with a blank expression but was on high alert internally.