Kisaragi Station || Apocalypse Paradise #3

201: If You Don't Heed the Advice of Your Elders

The question sparked immediate panic. Reno leaped to the elevator's side, startled. "Didn't you say that?"

Rena reacted similarly. Lin Sanjiu didn't know if that perfect coordination was developed through nature or nurture. "Bullshit! If I had said that, would I ask that question?!"

This was likely the siblings' first encounter with such a situation. They appeared flustered as they turned to the grayish brain beside them, though not because they suspected it could suddenly speak. Lin Sanjiu was the sole observer in her current form. After floating around the elevator for a moment, Lin Sanjiu spelled out two words: NO ONE, causing anxiety for all.

After a moment of silence, Reno muttered, "That voice belonged to a woman!"

"Yeah, I think so too... But why can't we see her? Is she outside?"

Lin Sanjiu wished she could hit them both on the back of their heads. They seemed brave on the train because they could see the duoluozhongs, but encountering this invisible intruder threw them off. However, this wasn't the time to dwell on that.

She concentrated her Higher Consciousness at the front of her brain and pressed against the elevator buttons. The buttons below the 20th floor lit up simultaneously, relieving her. With a portion of her Higher Consciousness restored, she refrained from using her full strength.

'Is the curse from the almanac over?'

The siblings only reacted then. Regardless of who said those words, it was best to avoid going to the 26th floor if the entity wanted them there. Reno scratched his head, realizing he had lost his cool. He coughed and complimented Lin Sanjiu reservedly, "Um, you did well. But honestly, I wasn't afraid."

'I need to sigh.' Without her body, Lin Sanjiu could only think about this silently.

Even though the kids weren't that reliable because of their lack of experience, they had the basic instincts of every posthuman. When the elevator stopped with a ding on the 15 floor without any weird occurrence, Reno had already called out a page of his almanac while Rena was mumbled something. Her gloves immediately glowed.

[Hehe. We are the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (SARFT)]

The name of this organization sounds foreign. No one in Red Nautilus has ever heard of it before, so they don't know which dimension it's from. However, it seems to have a powerful influence, as it can provoke negative reactions from billions of consumers.

At this stage, it has two parts- 1. [No depiction of body parts below the neck]; 2. [Superstition was banned after the founding of our country].

When part 1 is activated, the target will be treated by the SARFT as a book or any sort of literature. When the target wants to move any part of their body below their neck, the ability will cause some interference, such as the target's movements being impeded. During any combat, this can almost be considered a cheat. However, the problems or interference caused by the ability are entirely based on chance. It is advisable that the user first uses a page from her brother's almanac to boost her luck before using this.

Part 2 is used to counter non-human targets, covering gods and deities to common houseflies. However, the strength of the ability is dependent on the target. The user can imbue part of her body with this ability to attack non-human entities.

An important thing to note is that if the non-human entity has a very clear concept of themself being born before 1949, part 2 of the ability would be nullified.

The siblings had just prepared themselves when the door slowly opened.

They encountered the number 15 on the wall, the faded red paint peeling. A yellow light bulb illuminated the corridors, carrying the scent of years of cooking oil and the unclean aura typical of old buildings.

Despite the surroundings, they didn't see any duoluozhongs.

"Bro, let's go, okay?" Rena suddenly blurted out as she stepped out of the elevator. She glanced back nervously at the empty elevator, which looked like a metal box, before exiting. Surprisingly, they left the elevator safely, finding nothing out of place.

The siblings, accompanied by the grayish brain, proceeded down the empty corridor, their footsteps echoing in the silence. The houses lining the corridor were all tightly shut. With no specific goals in mind, they had come to this world simply to train, so they carefully surveyed their surroundings without any sense of urgency.

Despite lacking eyes, Lin Sanjiu's Higher Consciousness provided her with a clear mental image of her surroundings, perhaps even clearer than actual vision. Using her Higher Consciousness Scan, this image encompassed details that she wouldn't have noticed with her eyes alone, such as vague outlines around corners. As she neared a corner herself, she had a strange feeling that someone was there, despite there being no logical reason for her to think so.

Just before the siblings reached the corner, the grayish brain suddenly sunk to the ground and spun forward, colliding with them and causing them to stagger. With their enhanced posthuman abilities, they quickly regained their balance and came to a stop.

"Why did you trip us?" Rena demanded, remembering the punch to her nose.

Lin Sanjiu spelled two big words: THERE'S SOMEONE.

The siblings were startled and exchanged glances before they peered at the end of the corridor together.

Despite the silence, there was no movement around them. After a few seconds, Rena came up with an idea. She retrieved a small mirror from the pocket of her Tulle dress and cautiously extended it toward the edge of the wall.

The mirror only reflected another dark corridor.

"You're just scaring us," Reno said, striding over before Lin Sanjiu could signal him to stop.

Before he vanished around the corner, nothing unusual occurred.

Rena moved to follow him, but the grayish brain blocking her path rammed into her shin, eliciting a hiss of pain.

"What are you doing? It's starting to piss me off," Rena said, turning to frown at Lin Sanjiu. Suddenly, the grayish brain floated into the air, spinning, transforming into a long arrow pointing toward the corner.

Rena followed its direction and saw something black peeking from the corner ahead.

Slowly, a person's scalp emerged, adorned with black hair. Rena recognized Reno's face, angled unnaturally as it protruded from the corner of the corridor, his body supposedly still on the other side.

Rena's eyes widened. Before she could shriek, the disembodied face flashed a smile. Lin Sanjiu recognized it well—a perfect, large grin. Then, Reno whispered, "Come here."