The Aquarium

The abyss crashed into the aquarium. Han Fei’s mental corruption fell into the safe zone for the first time. He used his full power because he knew he could rely on the support of the other teams.

The doors and windows were blown open. The bottles that contained fish specimens shattered. The ghosts that swam in the dark were consumed by the abyss. The fifth awakening was not the limit. Han Fei wanted to try to reach the end.

The large sign of the aquarium fell to the ground. With the pressure from the headmaster and Executioner, the lobby of the aquarium collapsed. The glass shattered in the dark water. The pools used to display various fish cracked. Water ghosts and mutated ghosts resided inside them now. The glass displays were like wombs to breed new mutated babies.

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“The aquarium is used to show underwater creatures, but now it’s used to display mutated humans.”

In real life, everyone had a normal appearance. But in the aquarium’s dark displays, everyone shed their disguise. Their appearances matched their hearts. Some were incredibly flawless, and others were ridiculously ugly. This showed the great difference possible within humanity.

The twelve teams were still waiting outside when Executioner stepped through the ruins and arrived at the entrance to the deep sea tunnel. The aquarium had Xin Lu’s large underwater display. It reached underground for more than 25 meters. It was more than 8 floors tall. It had a visitor’s elevator and three sea tunnels. Before the tragedy, the aquarium had more than 1800 types of sea creatures. The workers needed to snorkel three times every day to complete cleaning and feeding. This place was once the fairy tale world for many children. Many people had good memories here. The cursed posters still had pictures of couples kissing before the giant fish tank and kids chasing after schools of fish in the tunnels. It was like a dream. The mad lingering spirits tore up the posters. All the beauty was destroyed. The aquarium was not a Strange Building. Xin Lu’s largest underwater display was dominated by black water. The greed abyss consumed all the small ghosts. Just as the Executioner planned to enter the tunnel, human faces appeared on the dark water. They wore the uniform of the aquarium, but they had fish-like bodies.

“I’m curious. What is underneath the endless water?” The workers swam like fishes. The aquarium lights were switched on. More figures appeared. The aquarium bustled again.

“Teacher Gao, we’ve detected the presence of Pure Hatred and illusions!”

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The leader of Team Two, Ning Pan’s voice came from the black band. He had a determined persona. Nothing could shake him. He was immune to most illusions. “Let me find out where it is.” Han Fei tossed the coin of fate. The greed abyss wanted to consume the illusions too.

“The entrance of the Deep Sea Tunnel! The Pure Hatred is a kid!” The voice came from the band. The twelve teams had surrounded the plan. Han Fei turned to look. An inconspicuous kid in the crowd caught Han Fei’s attention. The kid stood alone in the tunnel. She was distracted by the glowing jellyfish above her. She didn’t realize that her mother had abandoned her and walked away forever. She was abandoned at the prettiest place.

“It’s so pretty…” Her small hands touched the glass. The girl’s eyes were like the sea. It looked azure but full of dangers. Cracks appeared on the glass. The girl’s hatred spread through the aquarium. The illusions came from her mind or, rather the, scene where her memories were frozen.

“If I am fearful with twelve teams protecting me, then I’ll be a disappointment to myself.” Han Fei also wanted to see how powerful he’d be if he gave it his all. “Even when I was at my weakest, Mad Laughter used my body to kill a Pure Hatred. I should be able to do the things he can.” Ever since the conversation with Li Xue, a thorn was stuck in Han Fei’s heart. “If Mad Laughter really sacrificed himself, then I need to carry on for him. I can’t rely on anyone else. I need to prepare for the worst.” The body radiated greed. The more he ate, the more powerful he’d become.

“Speed up!” Using Cursed Words, Han Fei buffed his body. “I have the world’s sharpest knife. This Pure Hatred is nothing compared to Butterfly.” Han Fei was ready. His mental corruption rose. He had about 30 seconds.

“Teacher Gao! We detect that Pure Hatred’s presence is spreading! Retreat! Distract it and retreat!”

“Be attentive to our mission! It’s to identify the Pure Hatred!”

The team leaders warned. The Center would kill Pure Hatred, but that was through great coordination. Han Fei appeared like he wanted to do this alone.

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“Teacher Gao, the Pure Hatred has targeted you! Retreat! Lure it away!”

“Copy that!” Han Fei replied and then used Art Appraisal on the girl. “Since there’s no weakness, then I’ll create one.” A normal Lingering Spirit wouldn’t dare go after a Pure Hatred but the Executioner was different. This crazy ghost just wanted to kill everything. Han Fei gave it the order, and the giant axe swung at the girl’s head!

The headmaster followed up the attack. They tore apart the girl’s illusion. The visitors who were laughing became howling souls.

“This kid is unrelated to Gao Xing, but her experience is similar to his. The illusion created might be her last day alive. She was abandoned at the aquarium. Gao Xing’s parents probably signed the contract to trade the eyes to Gao Cheng after visiting the aquarium.

“Abandoned at the most beautiful place, that is the last thing they see.”

Han Fei grabbed Rest in Peace. The shine of humanity combined with his heart. He looked into the girl’s memory, trying to find her weakest point. The starlight shone. Han Fei’s world started to change. Threads of hatred unspooled from the girl’s body. The threads then combined with binding the aquarium. In this space, the safety door on the west was left alone. The girl once saw her mother leave that door, but she didn’t choose to follow her.

“Let me heal you.” The headmaster and the Executioner held the girl. Han Fei bent down and used his power. Light shone through the dark. It saw the weakness in the girl’s hatred. Han Fei charged forward.

“Teacher Gao! Retreat! What are you doing? Retreat!”

“Team 13! Retreat now!”

Han Fei was like a piece abandoned by fate. He bet everything and swung at the chains!

The blinding light cut through the darkness and into the girl’s neck. The hands reached out to grab the knife. It cut through the girl from her neck to her waist.

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The coin flipped in the air. When it landed, the blood slid down the blade. The girl’s cut body couldn’t heal. The 12 teams forgot to urge Han Fei. Everyone thought Han Fei’s power came from the greed persona and the ghosts, but he had personally cut the Pure Hatred into two!

The black flame core on the girl’s back was shattered. The flame hadn’t had the chance to spark before it was extinguished. “Unfortunately, I didn’t really kill her. I’ve found the spot where her black flame burns, but I was still slightly too weak.”

The aftereffect of using Cursed Words appeared. Han Fei’s body couldn’t move anymore. The greed mist started to fade. Han Fei finished his job and retreated. “My job is done. Now is your turn.”

From other people’s perspectives, Han Fei heavily injured the Pure Hatred. He didn’t fight for the contribution points.

“You only needed to distract it, but you almost killed it!”

“I’m at my limit! Be careful! There are other Pure Hatreds inside the aquarium.” Han Fei noticed something when he was inside the aquarium. Other than the Executioner, none of the other ghosts dared to get close to the deep sea tunnel. Something scarier hid down there.

“Move out!” The twelve teams recovered from the shock. They were different from Han Fei. Everyone followed their orders. Everyone was hand-picked. They worked well together. This was similar to Class Seven. With Han Fei’s contribution, the battle was easy. The twelve teams entered the aquarium. Han Fei saw the ability of the teams. Every team leader had at least awakened three times. The silent leader of Team One had awakened seven times. He was the strongest member of the center. Without Han Fei’s help, they could kill the Pure Hatred too but about 40 percent of them would die.

“This girl is related to the kid the director wants to investigate. Let me keep her!” Han Fei used the greed abyss to pull in the girl. Different from the headmaster, the girl had the black flame of hatred. Even though she was weak now, as long as she was provided with yin energy, she would soon recover. The greed abyss was satisfied. Once the girl recovered, Han Fei’s greed persona would probably awaken again.

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Normally, all Pure Hatreds had to be killed so that humanity had a better survival chance. However, Han Fei had contributed a lot, so no one said anything.

“Team 3, 4, 5 set up the perimeter! The other teams can rest for five minutes!” The girl was consumed by Han Fei, but the danger wasn’t yet over.

“During the last few moments, the girl kept trying to escape into the deep sea tunnel. There should be another Pure Hatred hiding there.” Tou Qi grabbed the souls of the aquarium. “The weaker ghosts are all afraid. Their fear came from the deep sea.”

The members surrounded the large aquarium. They looked at the dark water and didn’t know what to do.

“This is not good.” Han Fei analysed. “The girl was used to guard the door. This aquarium is where young Gao Xing and Gao Cheng’s fates met. If my hypothesis is correct, Gao Xing’s adoptive parents gave his eyes to Gao Cheng after visiting the aquarium.”

The deep sea Aquarium was where Gao Xing hid his real memory. The resentment he had could breed the most dangerous kind of monster.