Volume One: The Spiral Inscription Chapter Fourteen: The Abyssal Maw, Part Three

Five hours later, they arrived at their destination.

It was a desolate gray island—immense and vast.

As far as the eye could see, the entire world was gray, barren and deathly silent.

The ground was littered with massive stones; almost no trees grew, and even weeds were rare.

His gaze grew heavy instantly, for amid this gray world, a single red light pierced the sky.

“If you leave now, there’s still time. Don’t seek your own death!” Lu Yan turned to him, placing a hand on his shoulder. “Curiosity killed the cat. Don’t you know that?”

Chen Fan met his eyes, sensing that Lu Yan was hiding something, but he feigned ignorance and patted his hand. “Let’s go. Stop hesitating and second-guessing.”

His feet trod swiftly over the jagged stones, heading toward the place where the red light shone.

Lu Yan watched his retreating figure with a complex expression, then followed.

Chen Fan finally approached closely, his expression grave.

Before him lay a massive valley—over a hundred meters high and several hundred meters long.

Looking down, the valley was filled with countless skeletons—an ocean of white bones.

Each skull bore a hole in its forehead—likely the cause of death.

A pungent stench assaulted his senses, making his eyes water.

Swarming black insects crawled over the bones, obscuring the truth.

But at the slightest breeze, they scattered, revealing the grisly reality beneath.

“Is this the work of the Black Rock Organization?” His heart sank; this was a human tragedy.

He seemed to hear the cries for help from these innocent souls before their deaths.

Forcing himself to calm, he looked again into the valley.

Deep within a fissure at the valley’s bottom was embedded a red stone.

It was this stone that emitted the red light, piercing through the gray world.

It was the sole bright spot in this desolate landscape.

“This must be the Thunder Origin Stone, right?” Chen Fan glanced at Lu Yan.

Lu Yan nodded emphatically.

“We’ll split the profits 80/20—80 for me, 20 for you. Soon, you’ll master the Zhen Art within months!” Catherine’s voice rang excitedly in his ears.

“Zhen Art…” Chen Fan admitted he was tempted. It had been a long time since he first encountered it, yet he had made no real progress.

Without a change in circumstances, it might take decades to master.

But that was far too slow.

He couldn’t wait any longer.

“What’s your real motive? Who are you, really?” Chen Fan’s voice turned cold as he looked at Lu Yan.

With a flick of his wrist, the rough pistol’s muzzle was pressed against Lu Yan’s heart. If he made any sudden move, Chen Fan would shoot him instantly.

“You…” Lu Yan frowned deeply, anger swelling within him like never before. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Are you mistaken?”

“At this range, even if you’re a first-level mutant, you can’t escape being shot. Better be honest.” Chen Fan’s eyes gleamed coldly. Though eager to obtain the Thunder Origin Stone, he valued his life most.

Before coming here, he had assessed the variables in this environment. His intuition told him Lu Yan was the greatest unknown.

“I saved you. I brought you back to the base for treatment, even warned you not to come here. When have I ever harmed you? Why treat me so?” Lu Yan’s face darkened, veins bulging on his forehead. He couldn’t fathom that Chen Fan could be such an ungrateful scoundrel.

“If I wanted to harm you, why would I have saved you then? Why not kill you while you were weak? That would be contradictory.”

“How do I know you’re not acting? Maybe dying people are worthless to you. What you need are the healthy!” Chen Fan’s gaze hardened.

“You kept saying this place is dangerous, haunted by remnants of the Black Rock Organization. Then why have you come here so many times without incident?”

“Could it be… you’re one of those remnants?”

Lu Yan snorted coldly. “I don’t know what you mean.”

“I told you to speak the truth. Are you deaf?” Chen Fan’s killing intent surged as he raised the gun to Lu Yan’s head, finger tightening on the dark trigger.

He was tense—ready to fire at any moment.

“I don’t want to be an ungrateful villain, but you have to be honest first!”

He no longer trusted this man named Lu Yan. Just because Lu Yan had saved him once didn’t mean he would show mercy.

To survive, he had to be strong. Knowing the danger, he still came.

To survive, he had to eliminate risks early, hence the gun pointed at Lu Yan’s head.

To survive, even betraying kindness was acceptable.

As long as he lived.

“So this is… the story of the farmer and the snake? Ha!” Lu Yan laughed bitterly, unable to believe how it had ended.

“You’re still pretending, aren’t you?” Chen Fan’s eyes flashed with deadly intent. “If I’m right, this Thunder Origin Stone is a trap designed to lure more living people!”

“Why don’t you call your comrades out?” Chen Fan’s gaze pierced Lu Yan’s.

Lu Yan looked at Chen Fan with profound disappointment, saying no more, turning his head aside.

“What a show!”

At that moment, a voice rang out nearby. Two figures strode forward, each holding a sniper rifle.

One was green, the other blue—like works of art, exquisitely crafted.

They took cover behind a boulder as they eyed Chen Fan.

“Allow me to introduce ourselves. I’m Lin, and this is Mo. We’re both from the Black Rock Organization. Pleasure… to meet you.”

The man on the left stared fixedly at Chen Fan, appraising him from head to toe with a sinister gleam.

A large black birthmark adorned beside his left eye, with coarse black hairs sprouting from it. Perhaps from repeated plucking, the birthmark’s surface had become rough and porous.

He then glanced at Lu Yan and nodded. “Good. You didn’t disappoint me. Bring me a hundred more test subjects, and I’ll give you the antidote. Otherwise, you’re as good as dead.”

“Is that true? Are you poisoned?” Chen Fan looked at Lu Yan, suspecting him to be a member of the Black Rock Organization.

Lu Yan sighed. “I told you not to come here more than once. You didn’t believe me. What else could I do?”

Chen Fan grabbed his arm, pulling him back behind the boulder. “The Black Rock Organization was destroyed, wasn’t it? Why are you still obsessed with human experiments? What’s your real goal?”

“What else but to restore the Black Rock Organization’s former glory!” Mo’s face was scarred, each mark resembling a red centipede, giving him a terrifying visage.

“What was the Black Rock Organization’s original aim? Was it just to destroy the world?” Chen Fan frowned, looking at them both. “You have guns, and so do I. If it comes to a fight, you two won’t necessarily win.”

Lin crouched lower behind the rock, exposing only his eyes. He knew Chen Fan was right; victory in a gunfight could be decided in a heartbeat, regardless of firepower.

His heart pounded nervously. Though armed, he’d never truly engaged in a firefight before.

Their enemies usually wielded only cold weapons—long knives, battle axes.

Mo also lowered himself. Though obsessed with human experiments, he had little interest or skill in gunfights.

Both looked at Lu Yan with frustration and resentment, wondering why he had brought such a ruthless ally.

Seeing their hesitation, Chen Fan exhaled slightly. “If I’m right, neither of you were born this way. You were once test subjects. How did you become official members?”

Lin’s eyes darkened with a savage gleam. He instinctively covered his black birthmark—a place he was most ashamed of and never wanted others to see.

That was a time that could crush a man’s spirit.

Since then, he vowed never again to be a victim—he would become the predator.

The more pain his victims suffered, the more satisfied he felt. He saw nothing wrong with this, as it was his main source of accomplishment.

His eyes flickered with murderous intent. With a wave of his hand, a ghostly shadow dashed toward Chen Fan.

The surrounding space distorted, and moments later transformed into a sea of maggots and shredded flesh.

Amid the carnage, Lin and Mo’s heads appeared, staring fixedly at Chen Fan.

As the wave surged, a twenty-meter-high tide of flesh and bones crashed down upon him.

Chen Fan frowned. He recognized this as the work of a vengeful spirit.

He raised his left hand, summoning a talisman of exorcism, while aiming his gun at the two men.

The talisman transformed into a great sun, shooting countless golden rays. Amid the ghost’s agonized screams, the sea of flesh vanished like smoke.

Seizing their momentary hesitation, Chen Fan looked at Lu Yan beside him. “Sorry.”

Lu Yan met his gaze and sighed. “Forget it. If not for carelessness, I wouldn’t have come to this. Honestly, I kind of admire your character.”

“Besides those two, are there any other Black Rock members?” Chen Fan asked seriously.

“No, just these two.”

Chen Fan nodded, confident in his own strength. In a gunfight, he would not lose. He turned back to Lu Yan. “Don’t worry, I’ll get you the antidote. Those two are no match for me.”

Far away, Lin’s mood darkened. His trembling right hand gripped his weapon’s handle, sweat slick and sticky.

He crouched lower, revealing only his eyes, and glared at Lu Yan. “Why haven’t you taken him down yet? Don’t want the antidote anymore? Want to die?”

He had never been this nervous before. He could not bear to lose his great cause or his current life.

Deep in the lab, a woman awaited his favor. He would never throw his life away here.

Beside him, Mo urged with threats, “Hurry up! Don’t you know the pain of poisoning?”

Growing frustrated at their failure to capture Chen Fan, his hatred for Lu Yan deepened. Why had he brought such a ruthless man?

He preferred bullying the weak; those stronger than him he avoided, unwilling to fight.

If he fought every time he caught someone, he wouldn’t be alive today.

He was already reconsidering backing down.

Chen Fan’s eyes narrowed as he watched Lu Yan for any sign of attack. Meanwhile, he took cautious steps back, retreating thirty meters to hide behind a sharp boulder.

“You don’t need to listen to their threats. After I kill them, the antidote will be found,” he reassured Lu Yan, preventing any impulsive betrayal.

A first-level mutant was no easy foe—just as troublesome as an armed man, if not more.

In fact, those with guns were easier to handle.

“Ultimately, you still don’t trust me,” Lu Yan sighed again. Not angry, he rather respected Chen Fan more and hated himself all the more.

A month ago, Lin had reduced him to a pitiful, dying state. By chance, Chen Fan saw him and helped out of goodwill.

Lin was cunning. Using a piece of roasted venison, he poisoned Lu Yan.

Afterward, Lu Yan lost his freedom and had no choice but to obey Lin’s orders.

He did whatever Lin commanded; he had no choice.

Chen Fan said nothing—not because he distrusted him, but because Lu Yan was too dangerous.

Someone who could kill you in an instant, friend or foe, must be kept at arm’s length. Otherwise, you never know how you’ll die.

Often, “friends” are the most fearsome, stabbing you when you least expect it.

After a brief look at Lu Yan, Chen Fan turned to the two crouching figures, their eyes the only things visible—clearly extremely nervous.

He considered how best to kill them, how many bullets to expend. Heavy losses meant a hollow victory.

Every bullet was precious.

If possible, he’d prefer not to fire at all.

But now, he had no choice.

He stole a glance at the red light. If he had mastered the Zhen Art, perhaps he wouldn’t be in such a desperate state.

The vengeful spirit had not died; its rotting body floated in the distance, staring intently at Chen Fan.

Under Lin’s control, it drifted left and right.

Lin’s furious voice repeatedly urged Lu Yan and the spirit to attack Chen Fan.

But each, for their own reasons, dared not strike yet.

“She’s beyond saving now. The poison is so unique, it’s almost certainly fatal. At best, the antidote can only temporarily suppress the pain, not remove the toxin,” Catherine whispered in his ear.

Chen Fan’s eyes narrowed. After a moment, he sighed and looked at Lu Yan nearby.

In this world, misfortune and suffering might be the norm.

Everyone’s pain differs, but it all remains excruciating.