Chapter 320: Wandering Around Seagral Square
Translator: Pluto Editor: Vermillion
The walls, pipes, and ceiling in Seagral Square were illuminated by blue light 24/7. Even though most of this place was lit, there were many spots which could not be illuminated. The weak blue light disappeared a few steps ahead from them. Lin Sanjiu stopped to catch her breath in the blind spot of this particular passageway. When she untied the two Souls, their ruined human suits lost all support and crumbled to the floor. Clearly, these lifeforms didn't have much stamina. After running behind Lin Sanjiu for just ten minutes, the grub-like creatures lay on the ground as if they were almost dying. They couldn't even say a word after a long time.
"I… I have lived so many years. I have taken over the bodies of many different... organisms," Soulsqn lifted her "head" and continued speaking through her multilayered mouth cavity, "This is the first time I feel so pathetic."
Soulsqn probably felt pathetic that she could not defeat Lin Sanjiu. When she wanted to run away, she could bear losing the opportunity that Lin Sanjiu offered. Yet, if she followed Lin Sanjiu, she had to endure these endless hardships.
Meanwhile, Lin Sanjiu wasn't even thinking about Soulsqn so she ignored that comment.
Ever since the first day of the apocalypse, Lin Sanjiu had already slowly acclimatized herself to this sort of unpredictable and chaotic lifestyle. As she was lost in thoughts, she unconsciously converted Walter's body into a card. Then, she took out a few of the skins she had previously kept.
The least she could do was to give Walter a proper burial.
When Soulsqn lay on the ground motionlessly, she looked a little better than when she was squirming around. She seemed to "eye" Lin Sanjiu once before entering the replacement human suit. As the Souls travelled through different worlds, they realized the value of genetic engineering technology. Unlike evolved abilities, Lin Sanjiu certainly gained her wings through genetic modification. Considering many perspectives, what Lin Sanjiu could offer might really the Souls' best hope.
No matter how many times Lin Sanjiu had witnessed that scene, she couldn't bear watching how the Souls filled up their human suits.
Lin Sanjiu sighed after seeing that AYU had finished filling her suit. AYU carried Soulsqn again.
Even though it was common knowledge that Seagral Square was a pursuer's nightmare, quite a few persistent Puppets entered the tower. However, as Lin Sanjiu ran through the multiple complicated routes, she escaped the puppets after numerous turns. Lin Sanjiu had been listening for movements around them for quite some time, however, this section supported by steel frames remained silent.
To be on the safe side, Lin Sanjiu activated her [Higher Consciousness Scan].
"Huh?" she was stunned when she looked at the place through the lens of her ability.
This particular blind spot they were at was much larger than she expected. They were at the outer portion of the section behind a wall. There was still quite a lot of space past the wall. Lin Sanjiu wasn't startled by this, the reason she was hesitant was actually because of those rows and rows of large containers nearby.
They were like those large garbage collection bins. Each of the green containers had wheels and a cover. Some of the covers weren't shut properly so she could see the black shadows of the things that were in them. When she walked over to take a closer look, she was dumbfounded.
She could make out the words "Corpse Disposal Point" in the dimly lit area. She almost wondered if she had misread those words. When she looked down, she realized that the thing that was sticking out from the bin was actually a human's foot.
"Seagral Square… sure provides some great customer service."
Lin Sanjiu did not know how to react. She crossed her arms and stood in the same spot, thinking. She could barely detect the stench of rotting flesh. This would mean that people would periodically remove these bodies...
Meanwhile, the two Souls who followed behind her sauntered over.
"Ah? There are so many bodies here. They just throw them away like this?" Soulsqn, who now had a different face, commented as she sat in AYU's arms. "It is such a waste."
"Why? Can you absorb dead bodies?" Lin Sanjiu shot a sidelong glance at Soulsqn. She didn't mind letting Soulsqn consume dead bodies.
Much to her disgust, the creature was very picky. "If it is a fresh corpse, I don't mind… But, these people have already died for some time. Alright, why don't you open the bin and let me see if there is any suitable corpse? The situation is different after all. You won't want me to be a burden, right?"
Lin Sanjiu had chopped off Soulsqn's legs partially out of revenge and also to better control that creature. However, considering the situation they were in, it didn't make much difference whether Soulsqn had her legs. Even though Lin Sanjiu did not want to admit that the creature was right, she opened a few of the bins.
Dead people of all assortment were piled on top of each other. Their dead bodies showed no sign of life. The bodies at the very bottom of the bins had started to stink. Some of the bodies were intact so they looked as though they were sleeping. Others had fatal wounds on their bodies. There were even some that were just dismembered body parts.
Lin Sanjiu walked around aimlessly looking at the dead bodies of many strangers before she suddenly heard a slurping sound. She instantly felt goosebumps all over her body. When she heard that sound, she immediately recognized what it was. At that time, she didn't know what it meant but now Lin Sanjiu was very clear what it was. When she turned around, the human skin that Soulsqn was previously wearing was now slumped on the ground. A pretty and slim girl with two ponytails was now standing beside AYU. She was arranging her face. The original owner of the body looked no older than fifteen. Her two slender legs under her purple dress were serving Soulsqn well.
"This was the freshest." When Soulsqn saw Lin Sanjiu frowning, she thought the woman was unhappy with something else. She blinked her deep black eyes and said, "Don'tworry. What we wear doesn't affect our ability."
Soulsqn's ability to adapt was clearly far superior to the other Souls. After a short while, she already looked more and more like a normal human. Just for assurance, Lin Sanjiu bound both Souls' necks with her black leather rope and continue leashing them around. She wouldn't say it would stop them from doing anything funny but at least she could keep them within sight.
At least, they solved one problem. Lin Sanjiu found it quite a stroke of luck too. After thinking for some time, she converted all the skins she had collected, except Walter's, back to their original form. Then, she placed them in an empty bin.
She actually still had two bodies which she had not buried. One was Ren Nan's and the other was Er Dao's. When things settled, she planned to find a place to bury all of them.
After they got out of that small area, Lin Sanjiu made an effort to remember the serial number of that sector.
RECYCLE-FL3-T120.
"From the looks of it, your kinspeople have high regards for Soulsqn." After they ditched the puppets, the three people slowed down. Lin Sanjiu looked around as she continued walking. After she brought this up, she had a sudden thought, "Since you are caught by me, why do they still treat you as their leader?"
She pointed to AYU, "Take her for example. Why didn't she just abandon you and leave? Wouldn't that be easier?"
The teenage girl showed a very disconcerting expression. Lin Sanjiu couldn't pinpoint what was exactly wrong with it. "I am biologically determined as their Queen. It isn't political. I can't believe you didn't figure that out."
Lin Sanjiu certainly figured that out long ago. After she got the answer she expected, she couldn't help smiling at Soulsqn. While Soulsqn was distracted, Lin Sanjiu quickly added, "Since you have confirmed that… I thought of an idea to deal with them."
Soulsqn quickly kept quiet and narrowed her eyes as she waited to listen to Lin Sanjiu's idea.
"Should I call you bold or stupid?" After Lin Sanjiu concluded that sentence, Soulsqn's eyes darted all over Lin Sanjiu's body. She had many thoughts and wanted to say more but Soulsqn finally said, "I'll have you know. If I decide to do something, you might not maintain your dominance over us."
"I know."
"You trust us?"
"Of course I don't." Lin Sanjiu replied. No matter how much time had passed, Lin Sanjiu would always be wary of Soulsqn. However, she didn't say anything more than that.
"You're honest," Soulsqn winced her face which lacked the authenticity of youth. Lin Sanjiu wasn't sure if that was a compliment. "Actually, you don't need to threaten me with my life. As long as you provide a little deposit, I will be very cooperative."
Lin Sanjiu raised one of her brows.
"What deposit?"
"I need to know that your so-called friend exist," Soulsqn said slowly. "I also need to know that you can convince her to help us."
This matter wasn't that simple. Even though Lin Sanjiu knew that Nüwa would certainly be very interested to meet such a species of sentinel beings, how was she going to prove that Nüwa's existed? Lin Sanjiu didn't even know where that woman was now.
After contemplating for some time, she suddenly had an idea.
"There is a certain shortcut I can take to prove to you that she is real," Lin Sanjiu's furrowed her brows. "But, I need to reveal something about one of my abilities before I can do that… I can't show you while we are walking. When we find a place to rest, I will show you."
Lin Sanjiu was, in fact, talking about her [Consciousness Mimicry].
Without knowing, it had already been more than a year since she last used that ability. But each time Lin Sanjiu recalled her memories about Nüwa, she would remember her icy smile which came with a hint of strange pity. It was as if it was carved into her mind. After confirming with Mrs. Manas that she had sufficient Higher Consciousness in her "reserve", they came to a fork with a direction sign.
Not all routes in Seagral Square were marked. It was as if the designer had a firm belief that a person had to lose their way before they could actually escape their pursuers. Following the sign, Lin Sanjiu found a column of rooms along the side of an elevator. They used the elevator to reach one of the rooms. After inserting some red crystal, they could buy the rights to occupy the room for a period of time.
Lin Sanjiu inserted the last five middle-sized red crystal and bought a fifteen-minute slot for them.
"Is fifteen minutes enough?" Soulsqn had her misgivings after Lin Sanjiu dragged her into the small metallic room. Both AYU and herself stood in the middle of the room as she watched the door closing before them.
"What is your ability—" Soulsqn turned to Lin Sanjiu and asked.
Before she could finish her sentence, she stopped speaking.
The woman who looked the same as before was smiling at them. She wasn't far from them. The woman had a look as if she had waited for them for a very, very long time.