Chapter 635: Shadows of Hell and the Price of Survival

Xia Chong?

How did she end up here?

……

The moment he saw Xia Chong, Lu Xin’s focus wavered; the black particles in his eyes quickly faded.

Even the shadow by his side calmed instantly, as his Father, like him, looked on in curiosity.

“Hurry up…”

Noticing Lu Xin’s dazed expression, Xia Chong stamped her foot anxiously, “If we delay any longer, we won’t make it…”

“Oh, oh…”

Only then did Lu Xin snap into action. He glanced at the tide of black mental entities surging in, along with the Negative Zero Unit members who mechanically battled them with no trace of emotion. Silently dismissing his earlier thoughts, he advanced quickly toward Xia Chong under their protection.

“Grab my hand…”

Half-visible, Xia Chong swiftly grabbed Lu Xin’s hand and pulled him back past the door.

Creak…

The moment the door closed, countless black mental entities and the chaotic, murky force field vanished instantly.

The world outside had turned into a blood-red ruin. Lu Xin and Xia Chong darted through the debris—scaling crumbling walls and cracked roads—until they reached an intact door, which they quickly opened and stepped through.

After a brief moment, Lu Xin adjusted to the room’s lighting.

He found himself in a dim, cramped room lit only by a few weak, yellow bulbs.

Guns and computers were haphazardly piled into every corner, creating utter chaos.

In a corner near the wall, two cots held two people.

One, his good friend from Central City—an ability user whose body was wrapped in bandages and who once gifted him an antique lighter—turned out to be the Scalpel. The other, a Beast Tamer, sat on the bed amid a small mountain of tissues.

“Huh…”

The Scalpel’s nearly sealed eye shimmered with a spark of excitement as he heard the door open.

Straining, he raised his hand toward Lu Xin while the bandage around his mouth twisted incessantly, exuding a peculiar enthusiasm.

“Oh dear…”

Lu Xin hurried forward and grasped the Scalpel’s hand, asking, “How did you get so badly injured?”

The Scalpel’s mouth kept twisting as he squeezed the bandage enough to reveal a small gap, whispering as faintly as a mosquito.

Lu Xin leaned in to catch him saying, “Hello.”

Quickly shaking his hand, Lu Xin added, “Hello, hello—how did you get so hurt?”

The Scalpel’s voice trembled as he muttered something inaudible.

Leaning in closer, Lu Xin heard him ask, “How did you get here?”

……

Lu Xin repeated, “Investigator Xia Chong brought me here.”

The Scalpel’s trembling mouth spoke again; Lu Xin leaned in to hear, “How have you been lately?”

Lu Xin, slightly exasperated, let go of his hand and adjusted the bandage, saying, “With wounds like these, there’s no time for chit-chat.”

……

Ignoring the Scalpel’s flailing mouth, he turned to the Beast Tamer and cheerfully said, “Hello.”

The Beast Tamer forcefully blew her nose, wiped it with a tissue she tossed aside, and tearfully replied, “I’m not well…”

Lu Xin asked in astonishment, “What’s wrong?”

“It’s just so pitiful.”

The Beast Tamer continued, “Those people—those who have died—are so pitiful. I feel their pain, and I pity them, but I find I can’t help at all. Honestly, I feel so useless… Life seems meaningless…”

……

At a loss for words, Lu Xin turned to Xia Chong and asked, “What’s going on?”

Xia Chong had just closed the door and quickly surveyed the room before turning back, saying, “Forget about them. One got badly injured while dueling with the High Priest of the Black Box—so much so that only his eyes and mouth still move—and the other has been contaminated by the stench of Hell, his emotions in utter chaos and not yet stabilized.”

……

Lu Xin looked at them with mild surprise and asked, “So what exactly happened?”

“How did you end up here?”

……

“Actually, it’s more like why you are here, right?”

Xia Chong eyed Lu Xin curiously before seating herself on a shabby sofa.

Crossing her legs, she pulled out some alcohol to clean the wound on her leg.

While cleaning her wound with a wry smile, she said, “We were tracking a soul trading deal, hoping to follow the trail to Hell’s entrance, but ended up clashing head-on with Flame City and took a heavy hit…”

“And you? Weren’t you already back in Qinggang?”

……

Then, suddenly remembering something, she looked at Lu Xin warily and asked, “Are you here to collect those two million?”

“No, no…”

Lu Xin was momentarily stunned before quickly shaking his head.

Facing her suspicion, he chuckled, “How could I possibly come to Flame City just for two million?”

Even though those two million haven’t been transferred yet, I’ve already asked Han Bing to collect them for me.

“I think so, too.”

Xia Chong glanced at him and said, “I can see you love money, but come on—you wouldn’t risk going to Flame City for a mere few million.”

She continued, “But seeing you here really took me by surprise. When I first sensed the Hell Regiment in action, I thought the entrance to Hell was about to open, only to realize you were out there taking on the Hell Regiment all by yourself…”

Her expression darkened as she chided, “You’re insane! Don’t you understand how terrifying the Hell Regiment is?”

Lu Xin explained, “I really didn’t know before the fight…”

After a brief pause, he added, “But those creatures we encountered were indeed formidable—what exactly makes them so terrifying?”

He pressed, “You, who just barely escaped thanks to the Negative Zero Unit after dueling with the Hell Regiment, are asking me what makes them terrifying?”

Xia Chong felt his logic was off.

Still, after a moment’s thought and prompted by Lu Xin’s question, she replied instinctively, “The Hell Regiment is essentially that kind of mental turbulence—a byproduct born when Flame forged Hell.”

She continued, “Since you saw the mental monsters, you must have noticed—they’re a type you’ve never seen before.”

She explained, “They’re composed of individual mental entities; none are human, and their emotions remain locked in a state of intense crisis—as if frozen on the brink of death.”

“Because they remain in this state, they’re almost immune to other influences—as if in a burst of uncontrolled anger one forgets sorrow and fear.”

“That’s the Hell Regiment—a force assembled from souls in perpetual mental flux.”

“They can’t be tainted; in fact, they are the nemesis of ability users.”

……

Lu Xin listened intently, nodding subtly.

Xia Chong’s explanation helped him make sense of the bizarre incidents they’d just encountered.

Meanwhile, with her brows furrowed, Xia Chong continued, “Our investigation into the soul trades revealed that Flame was behind them. We confirmed that some of the traded souls were molded into this very Hell Regiment. The first encounter nearly cost us everything—luckily, the Negative Zero Unit was with us; otherwise, we might have been wiped out.”

“Negative Zero Unit…”

Recalling the scene, Lu Xin curiously remarked, “They didn’t seem to struggle much against them.”

Based on what he had seen, he felt that the Negative Zero Unit handled the regiment even more effortlessly than he could.

Xia Chong acknowledged, “You noticed as well.”

She added, “In a way, the Negative Zero Unit and the Hell Regiment counteract each other.”

After a brief hesitation, she explained plainly, “Flame’s Hell Regiment is made up of dead bodies, forever trapped in extreme emotional surges. In contrast, the Negative Zero Unit consists of living people who have somehow suppressed their emotional— or mental power—fluctuations, making them largely immune to the contamination affecting other ability users.”

After a pause, she continued flatly, “After all these years, you should know about D-Level personnel.”

She stated, “The Negative Zero Unit is the strongest D-group.”

……

“Hmm?”

Lu Xin listened to Xia Chong’s calm explanation, feeling a deep, hidden shock.

Hell Regiment, Negative Zero Unit…

Before Flame appeared, he had always believed that ability users were unpredictable yet powerful.

It was as if a tiny memory hourglass could effortlessly snatch away the most precious—often the only—things ordinary people had.

But now, he had learned of the terrifying existence of both the Hell Regiment and the Negative Zero Unit.

Evidently, the world held far more than he could ever imagine.

He fell silent for a moment.

Surprisingly, Xia Chong seemed to understand his thoughts without pressing him.

Every ability user who learns about the Negative Zero Unit falls silent for a while—that’s only natural.

Lu Xin’s expression shifted from surprise to thoughtful contemplation, then softened into a smile as he asked, “Since you’ve got the means to fight the Hell Regiment, why are you still sticking around here?”

“Phew…”

Xia Chong let out a soft sigh, setting aside her alcohol-scented leg, and said, “The Negative Zero Unit merely keeps the Hell Regiment in check.”

She continued, “In terms of individual combat strength, the Hell Regiment is obviously inferior to the Negative Zero Unit, but against their endless numbers, the Negative Zero Unit stands no chance.”

“Moreover, due to certain limitations, the Negative Zero Unit can’t enter the Abyss—so many of our plans can’t be executed. We have no choice but to wait here for reinforcements.”

……

“Reinforcements?”

Lu Xin was somewhat curious.

“Yes.”

Xia Chong nodded seriously, “We traced the trail and confirmed that Hell is in Flame City—we even secured concrete evidence. By all accounts, our mission was complete, but when we learned that the entrance to Hell was about to open, an event that could change the world order, we chose to stay and investigate further.”

She added, “Unfortunately, while investigating the entrance, we ran into the Hell Regiment, suffered heavy losses, and realized our strength was lacking. We then requested support from the Research Institute—and they agreed…”

As she spoke, her usually composed face lit up with rare excitement, “Reinforcements have been dispatched.”

They say it’s the strongest mercenary according to the Research Institute…

……

“Wait a minute…”

Noticing a hint of anticipation in her expression, Lu Xin suddenly sensed something amiss and asked, “Who is this person you’re talking about?”

She replied, “I’ve never seen him, don’t know his strength, or how many underlings he has.”

Xia Chong gave Lu Xin a strange look and continued wistfully, “But I do know his codename…”

She revealed, “The legendary figure from the Alliance Mercenary Market—Dracula!”

……

“Hold on, hold on—it’s getting confusing…”

Lu Xin, looking visibly shaken and gesturing with his hands, finally said in an exasperated tone, “If I’m not mistaken, the Research Institute must have paid a fortune to hire this top mercenary, right?”

“Of course…”

Xia Chong nodded, “As far as I know, this mission is classified at the highest level.”

She continued, “The commission alone amounts to…”

After a brief pause, she said solemnly, “One hundred million!”