“Everyone, I’ve got bad news. My duplicate just met with the upper echelon of the Eternal Life Church.”

All the authors knew Rule was a duplication-type author, so no one was surprised.

“I wanted to learn what the Eternal Life Church is really after and try to negotiate with them, but they refused. They said authors aren’t qualified to negotiate with them. Unless…”

“There’s no shortcut to clearing a bizarre event. Unless what?” Old Mo asked.

“Unless I tell the Eternal Life Church where every author is.”

Ji Shuyu and the others all tensed up. “Don’t tell me you…”

“I turned him down.”

“My child, can you say everything in one breath next time? This old Daoist’s heart can’t take it.” Empty was drenched in cold sweat.

“Hehehe, what a wasted opportunity. I like it though,” Owen said.

Xu Fang said, “Because of the whole Bernice thing, there’s probably a trust gap between us. But I still wanted to tell you this.”

Ji Shuyu understood what Rule was getting at. If he’d cut a deal with the Eternal Life Church, he could’ve kept quiet, wrapped up the meeting like nothing happened, or even just made a move. The other authors couldn’t resist anyway. On the other hand, if he brought it up, he’d have to spin more lies to calm their doubts. Aside from alerting the snake in the grass, what benefit was there?

“Thanks for trusting us, Rule,” Ji Shuyu said. “But I’m really worried the Eternal Life Church might’ve messed with your mental state.”

“I checked. For now I haven’t noticed any changes in my emotions or how I think. Of course, if I start acting weird, feel free to call me out anytime.”

“Alright. What else did the Eternal Life Church say?”

“Eliminate Moulin within twenty‑four hours.”

The mood went dead silent.

Moulin was kneeling where Bernice had disappeared, murmuring a prayer. She raised her head in a daze and looked at the other authors around her.

Everyone’s expression was a mess. Some looked half‑skeptical, some frowned, some seemed deeply worried.

The nun realized everyone’s gaze was on her and understood what Xu Fang had been talking about.

“Right now, everyone’s struggling to survive,” Old Mo said. “Miss Moulin, I hope you’ll keep a constant record of what happens around you. We’ll try to help you remotely.”

With that, Old Mo hurried off.

Nameless left without a word.

Ji Shuyu gave Moulin a sympathetic glance, then looked at Xu Fang. “Rule, the Eternal Life Church might have a way to lock onto the nun’s location. This place isn’t safe anymore. I can’t fight, so I’m pulling out first.”

“This poor Daoist will be on his way too, everyone take care.”

“Good luck, poor little nun!” Yoriko walked out of the room like nothing was wrong.

“Find somewhere safe to hide and stay in touch,” Xu Fang told Black Frame.

Black Frame agreed and left as well.

The authors were rational. Aside from Bernice, whose overflowing sympathy had already gotten her killed, no one would stay with Moulin. They knew splitting up increased their chance of survival. Painful emotions would always come after survival, never before.

Emotion made people romantic; reason made them cruel. In front of survival, there was no choice.

In the end, only Xu Fang, Owen, and Moulin were left.

“Why aren’t you leaving?” Xu Fang looked at Owen.

“You should remember I said I wanted to catch a living Eternal Life Church member to experiment on. Isn’t this a perfect chance? …Relax. I’m not afraid of dying, but I’m not gonna throw my life away for nothing.”

“Owen, after you turned into digital life, do you go online a lot?”

“Of course. I often lurk on all kinds of forums looking for my own kind, but no one’s ever replied to me. Why’re you asking? Did you see one of my posts?”

Xu Fang: “…Forget it.”

“So my life’s finally about to end? Hahahaha!” Moulin accepted her situation. She laughed loudly, cheerful yet hysterical, then let out a defeated sigh. “Getting eliminated by the Eternal Life Church… good. I can finally be free.”

“Hey, your delusions are hilarious. You think the Eternal Life Church will let you die comfortably? Bernice from last run’s already been brainwashed into a loyal follower. With that mindset, you might as well kill yourself now. Maybe the real Bernice is waiting for you in hell,” Owen said with a mocking grin.

Owen didn’t pity the weak. He mocked people who’d given up on themselves. Moods were contagious. It was exactly these fragile types who ruined everyone else’s game experience.

“The Eternal Life Church doesn’t care if authors kill each other. Suicide won’t save you. The only thing they care about is the result: an author’s ‘second‑phase death.’”

[Why’re you staring at me? You expecting me to give you the answer? If I said no, would you believe me?]

“I’m just speculating. No matter what you say, it won’t change my judgment.”

[Is that so? Heh.]

“Let’s move to another spot,” Xu Fang said to Moulin. “I don’t want the Eternal Life Church’s troops blocking us at the door.”

The three of them found a car in the city and drove toward the outskirts.

An hour later, the city noise faded away.

“We going into the forest?” Owen peered out the window, trying to spot Eternal Life Church members.

“We’re going somewhere remote with complicated terrain. Even if they find us, it’ll be hard to chase us down.”

Xu Fang drove, Moulin sat in the passenger seat.

“Fine, but I still want to go back into the city later and grab a few test subjects. No, forget later, let’s grab someone now!” Owen in the back seat locked onto a homeless guy lying beside a ruined shack.

“Don’t cause trouble now.”

“Hahaha, nothing can hold me back. Not the Eternal Life Church, and not you either!” Owen laughed, kicked open the car door, and jumped out.

Xu Fang glanced at him and slowly pulled the car to a stop in the shadow of the roadside.

Owen hit the ground, rolled to kill his momentum, then pulled the gun from his waist and walked toward the homeless man.

“Eternal Life Church cultist, show your true face! Admit this world is fake!”

The homeless guy looked up with bleary eyes, wondering where this lunatic had come from.

Owen grabbed him by the ear and shouted, “You don’t remember me?! Who are you!!”

Terrified, the homeless man fumbled out a bottle of liquor, swung it to fend Owen off, and started ranting angrily in a drunken slur.

“You’re really committed to this act, huh!” Owen curled his lip and jabbed a tranquilizer needle into the man’s neck.

Already dead drunk, the homeless guy sank into deep sleep.

Owen dragged him over.

“He’s just an ordinary person,” the nun whispered. “You shouldn’t drag innocents into this.”

“Worry about yourself first, Miss Moulin‑who’s‑about‑to‑die‑within‑twenty‑four‑hours.”

“What do you want to do?” Xu Fang asked.

“Induction experiment.” Owen grinned. “I want to see if I can deliberately nudge this guy into becoming an Eternal Life Church believer. Sounds fun, doesn’t it?”

“Eternal life or endless reincarnation, this world… coming apart, on the edge of the abyss, I…” Moulin started rambling again, then suddenly screamed, “Aaah!! Cough, cough!!” She coughed up a mouthful of blood.

“It’s just a tiny experiment. Look how worked up you are,” Owen said, pointing at her and laughing.

“No. Something’s wrong with her condition.” Xu Fang reclined the passenger seat and laid Moulin on her side, then used a damp handkerchief to wipe the blood from her nose and mouth.

He checked the stains.

Black blood, with tiny clots.

Xu Fang’s eyes narrowed. Something about it felt familiar. He’d seen these symptoms before.

It was a sign of total systemic collapse.

Moulin was shaking all over. She didn’t even have the strength to sit up.

“Isn’t it possible the Eternal Life Church’s way of eliminating Moulin is this?” Owen took out a small medical kit he always carried. “Let’s give her a nice open‑chest surgery, see how her organs are doing. If they’re trash, we’ll replace them. I’m a bio major, but I’ve got plenty of clinical experience too.”

“Killing her won’t get you anything.”

“Whatever. I’m out. Ping me if you need me~” Owen shook his head, bored, hoisted the tranquilized homeless man over his shoulder, and disappeared into the forest beside the road.

Owen had followed Rule thinking that when the Eternal Life Church’s troops attacked, he could score some assists. But after seeing Moulin’s condition, he understood they didn’t need to physically eliminate her. They had a more efficient method. He was interested in dissecting an author, sure, but clearly Rule wouldn’t allow that.

Might as well go study something else.

Xu Fang watched Owen leave, then closed the car door again and drove to a deserted, abandoned house nearby.

He jimmied open the front door and settled Moulin on the bed. He hadn’t taken her to a hospital. Even ignoring whether the Eternal Life Church had an ambush near one, Moulin’s organs were rotting at a terrifying speed. She obviously didn’t have long.

“Moulin, did the Eternal Life Church poison you? How did they do it?”

“I don’t know, I don’t know anything… It’s dark again, I fell into the abyss again.” Moulin stared blankly upward into nothingness, babbling, her clothes stained black with blood.

[Heh. Didn’t you say you wouldn’t believe anything I told you? So what difference does it make whether I talk or not?]

Even without an answer, Xu Fang had a guess. Last run, when the Eternal Life Church captured Bernice, there was no way they’d let Moulin, who was traveling with her, off the hook.

Maybe everyone had clung to that tiny hope, thinking Bernice’s death wouldn’t affect anyone else. But Moulin had already been neck‑deep in it.

[How does it feel, watching your teammate die in front of you? Here’s a tip: organ transplants and blood changes won’t help with this one. Its mortality rate is one hundred percent.]

Natural Disaster Raid Group.

Owen: “@Rule has the nun died yet?”

Empty: “What has happened?”

Owen: “Oh, Rule and I drove the nun to the outskirts, then out of nowhere she started vomiting blood. She’s about to drop dead.”

Yoriko: “Ugh, first thing I see when I open chat is this.”

Ji Shuyu: “Owen, you’re not with Rule anymore?”

Owen: “The Eternal Life Church troops are nowhere in sight. Why should I keep waiting there? Better to grab some live test subjects.”

Rule: “Right now it’s just me and the nun. She’s in very bad shape, might not last an hour. Symptoms: decomposition of internal organ tissue, organ failure, high fever. Can’t yet confirm if it’s a virus, bacteria, or toxin.”

Ji Shuyu: “That… sounds a lot like a viral infection!”

Owen: “Ebola cranked up a hundred times? Heehee. Everyone, go check your own bodies.”

Old Mo: “Doesn’t seem like a virus. At least I don’t feel anything off yet. Don’t go to hospitals casually, you might be spotted by the Eternal Life Church. Anyone feeling unwell, report it in the group immediately!”

Empty: “This poor Daoist’s got back pain, sore waist, and leg cramps.”

Yoriko: “My shoulders feel heavy and my back hurts!”

Ji Shuyu: “Can you two be serious? We need to figure out how to save her.”

Owen: “She’s beyond saving. The Eternal Life Church has already sentenced her to death—oh wait, eternal death.”

Ji Shuyu: “No healing magic… I really feel powerless right now. Sigh…”

Xu Fang turned off his phone. He’d just given Moulin some antibiotics, but they’d done nothing. Her life was slipping away at a steady pace, heading toward the end. Maybe because the pain was too intense, her mental state had also gone to extremes.

“I… I see it again. It’s looking at me too.” Moulin weakly flailed her hands, struggling as she spoke. “Please… just let me die. Stop torturing me!!”

“Who is ‘it’?”

“It’s all a dream, still looping, still looping. I’m gonna die hahaha… hahaha!!” She stuck her fingers into her eye socket.

“Calm down… who is it?” Xu Fang grabbed her hand.

“Rule… it just now… told me… give you my eyes, then I can… rest… thank you for taking care of me… may God guide your path…”

Xu Fang was silent for a few seconds, then let go of her hand.

The nun used the last of her strength to pull out her own eyeballs. A satisfied smile spread across her face.

Her body shattered into fragments and vanished from this absurd world without a trace—leaving behind only that pair of eyes.

…

Was “it” really there, or just in the nun’s imagination?

Xu Fang picked up the eyeballs and examined them.

Gray‑blue irises, smooth sclera. Because Moulin’s body had disappeared, the attached blood vessels and blood had vanished too. The vitreous looked crystal clear.

For a moment, he saw his own reflection inside them. He could feel it: some strange connection had formed between him and these eyes.

He slowly moved the eyeballs’ line of sight elsewhere.

In that instant, the mosaic in the Destruction’s view spread across the entire world.

At last, Xu Fang saw “it.”