151. Expedition into the Abyss

Chen Entropy awoke with the first ray of morning light, then dressed in his school uniform and checked his appearance and the phantom spirits lingering in his room through the full-length mirror beside the cabinet.

"I hate this so much..."

"Do you think your hands are clean and innocent just because they aren't stained with blood?"

"All of this is your fault!"

Two days had passed since the riot in the Wasteland District.

Ever since that day, Chen Entropy found that even more ghostly phantoms had appeared around him, and strange, eerie murmurs began to echo frequently in his ears.

Most of these phantom spirits appeared as corpses killed by bullets or sharp weapons, gazing at Chen Entropy with boundless resentment, as if they had come to claim his life.

Yet, perhaps influenced by the "Will of Destruction," Chen Entropy was no longer frightened into a state of mental exhaustion by the spirits. Instead, he waved a hand impatiently, signaling them all to scram.

He could feel that this passive skill had made his state of mind much braver than before, yet it would ultimately drive him deeper into madness.

If he looked closely into his own heart, Chen Entropy would find that his mind was being occupied by hatred and rage, rendering him utterly fearless. Even when recalling the absurd monsters he had encountered in the Abyss, he only wanted to laugh out loud and tear them apart with his bare hands.

Although the Honkai Core assured him that the "Will of Destruction" would not affect his sanity, he clearly had no intention of believing the core's nonsense. The energy contained within the Honkai Core was not something a mere mortal like him could control; as he reaped power, he was bound to pay an exponential price.

After all, while Chen Entropy wished to bring destruction to this pathetic world, he hoped it would all stem from his own free will rather than being blinded by hatred and fury.

"If my mind is acting up, I suppose I'll still have to go see that psychiatrist..." Chen Entropy yawned, saying helplessly:

"After running around in circles, I still have to go see him in the end? What a hassle. If I had known, I would have let Xiao Hei dismantle the core."

[F*ck me, don't!]

Just as Chen Entropy muttered to himself casually, a line of projected text popped up before his eyes.

"Where did you learn to talk like that?" Chen Entropy furrowed his brows slightly, wearing an expression resembling an old man staring intently at a smartphone.

[Learned it on the internet... No, wait, this core wants to warn you, you must never excise me!]

The Honkai Core flashed another string of text.

"Why?" Chen Entropy narrowed his eyes instantly, shooting back: "Am I your father? Do I have to keep you close to my heart?"

[If you excise this core, you will die.]

The Honkai Core explained.

"I'll die?" Chen Entropy showed a hint of disdain: "Even if I have the best doctor in the city replace it with a mechanical heart, I'll still die?"

[That's right! Please believe this core and stop entertaining such dangerous thoughts!]

"Speaking in riddles again, are we?" Chen Entropy clenched his fist and knocked against his own chest, muttering offhandedly:

"By your logic, does this make me Chu Jianlai's sworn brother from another mother? What are we? The Mechanical Core Duo?"

Chen Entropy did not dwell further on the Honkai Core, as he had no immediate plans to extract it anyway. Naturally, he was not about to believe the core's claim that "removal means death."

After a simple wash, Chen Entropy went to the living room to have breakfast with his younger sister before heading to school together.

Upon arriving at school, Chen Entropy noticed that the students around him were mostly discussing the "Abyss." Most of them were talking about the Consortium Federation preparing to raid the Abyss, with quite a few students expressing admiration for the consortia's "leading by example" behavior.

Through the all-out whitewashing efforts of the Federation and the major consortia's public relations departments, the riot in the Wasteland District from two days ago had been beautified into a minor conflict with fewer than twenty casualties, and the Consortium Federation had acted in pure "self-defense."

Naturally, the survivors of that riot and the internet trolls wouldn't buy these whitewashing lies. However, after a smooth and practiced series of massive bans and hired assassinations across major platforms, the voices of the mockers quickly vanished, and brainless paid trolls praising the consortia swiftly occupied the high ground of public opinion.

Chen Entropy was actually somewhat surprised by the handling speed of this incident. He hadn't expected the major consortia to unite so rarely, ending a malicious incident that could have easily fermented for over a week in less than two days.

Still, this incident was merely an impromptu interlude of Chen Entropy's, and the outcome didn't really matter. If anything, he wished the consortia would hurry up and focus all their attention on raiding the Abyss.

After all, with Chen Entropy's strength alone, trying to enter the Abyss by himself to find that goddess was still far too difficult, which was why he needed to borrow a bit of the Consortium Federation's power.

After school, the moment Chen Entropy stepped out of the school gates, he saw a giant screen on the street broadcasting the news:

"The 'Abyss Expeditionary Army' formed by the Consortium Federation has begun pushing toward the first region of the Abyss, naming the area the 'Dead Crypt District'."

On the video screen, soldiers wearing uniform silver mechanical armor and holding firearms marched in neat rows as they entered the Abyss.

Meanwhile, the enigmatic mechanical bartender in the Abyss bar had completely given up, slumped entirely on the floor with the lights on his mechanical mask flashing wearily.

"Moving pretty fast, huh~" Chen Entropy whistled, expressing his appreciation for the consortia's execution speed.

However, the Abyss was no easy bone to chew; the ghosts and deities within the Abyss would definitely teach them a lesson.

Rather than caring about the Consortium Federation's raid progress, Chen Entropy was currently eager to find an opportunity to test the skill "Corrupted Mode" he had acquired two days ago.

This skill was said to increase all his abilities threefold while granting immunity to fear and mental anomalies, but the side effects were also extremely obvious, with the Honkai Core even warning him that he could only activate this state for ten minutes a day.

"Are you free? Meet me in the underground district in half an hour." Chen Entropy made a phone call to Chu Jianlai before heading to the underground district alone.

Stepping into the mildew-scented underground streets, Chen Entropy ignored the menacing gazes of the thugs by the roadside and walked straight toward an abandoned factory.

"Planner—!" The moment he pushed open the factory doors, Chen Entropy was ambushed by a white-haired, fox-eared young woman who leaped into his arms, almost knocking him and his chest-to-chest impact down to the ground.

"Long time no see, Miss White Fox." Chen Entropy was held by White Fox as she rubbed her cheeks against his; the smooth, soft texture of her skin and fur lifted his mood considerably.

"Mr. Chen, do you have any instructions this time?" Chu Jianlai propped a cheap street-stall iron sword against the ground, his expression as calm as stagnant water.

"I'd like you to spar with me," Chen Entropy said.

Hearing this, Chu Jianlai widened his eyes in surprise, then pinched his chin, a distinct perplexity showing in his obsidian-dark eyes.

Chen Entropy thought for a moment and added, "I've acquired a new ability and need you to help me test it."

"I see. I thought Mr. Chen was looking to commit suicide," Chu Jianlai breathed a sigh of relief.

"I was just wondering what I should do with my revenge after Mr. Chen died."

"Really? Am I that weak in your eyes?" Chen Entropy asked seriously in return.

Chu Jianlai glanced away, clearly reluctant to answer that question.

"That's right! The planner is super weak!" White Fox rubbed Chen Entropy's head and replied with a deadpan expression, "Every time we protect you, it's like a mother hen protecting an egg~!"

"Cough, cough..." Chen Entropy choked slightly on White Fox's words, barely holding back a laugh:

"White Fox, step back a little. Let's begin."

"How much of my strength should I use?" Chu Jianlai gripped the hilt of his sword tightly, asking in a deep voice.

"Just make sure you don't kill me," Chen Entropy replied.

At that, Chu Jianlai simply dropped the iron sword to the ground. Seemingly worried that this would hurt Chen Entropy's dignity too much, he pulled a crude, pocket-sized fruit knife from his pocket and muttered, "I'll use this to fight you then."

"That'll do." Chen Entropy didn't feel humiliated at all; after all, this undead sword saint wouldn't be someone he could match even if he used a fruit knife.

White Fox sensibly sat to the side, cupping her chin to watch the battle: "If you hurt the planner, I won't let you off!"

"Don't listen to her, go ahead!" Chen Entropy stretched his limbs, a series of popping sounds like firecrackers echoing from his body.

[Do you wish to activate "Corrupted Mode"?]

"Let's start!" The corners of Chen Entropy's mouth curled uncontrollably into an enigmatic, wicked smile.