Chapter 77: Psychological Shadow Area
Under Sha's guidance, Su Xiao traversed a nearly half-kilometer-long alley before arriving at a sparsely populated area. Few contractors or workers came here, and most Arbiters' exclusive rooms had their entrances in this zone.
As he exited the alley, Su Xiao spotted Violent Rat holding a wine bottle, sitting on the street steps and drinking. Every time he saw this guy, he was clutching a bottle of alcohol. According to Violent Rat, this was a habit left over from following some great figure on campaigns.
"Bai Ye, long time no see."
Violent Rat raised his wine bottle. He wore a vest-style black alloy combat suit, with an energy shotgun hanging at his waist.
"The stuff you requested, Toad has it ready. When do we start? The little cutie's situation isn't good. She was half-comatose from dark matter erosion a few days ago."
Violent Rat laughed unkindly. It was him who had told Saber that going to the Abyssal Dragon Depths to undergo the Dragon Trial would yield Black Maple Tree branches. When Violent Rat said that, he never actually expected Saber would really go.
Back then, because Saber needed Black Maple Tree branches, Toad wanted to get some through his own channels. But those contacts were all killed by enemies, which gave Toad a major headache. He had seen the Black Maple Tree Yield in the Honor Store before but didn't buy it, and later someone else purchased it.
When Toad and Violent Rat were drinking and chatting, Violent Rat casually said, "Why not go to the Abyssal Dragon Depths and get some Black Maple Tree branches?" Toad immediately refused. He knew what kind of existence the Abyssal Dragon was.
The speaker had no intention, but the listener took it to heart. Saber felt she owed Toad too many debts of gratitude. After hesitating for a long time, she decided to try her luck at the Abyssal Dragon Depths, leading to the current situation.
"That's basically how it is. Her excessive sense of justice has improved a bit, but her stubbornness is hard to change."
Violent Rat took another gulp of wine. Just then, a door appeared in the air—someone was opening their exclusive room.
"You still have the nerve to laugh. You know she's not too bright, don't you?"
Toad hopped out from inside the door. Although Toad and Saber had no formal relationship, after teaching her for so long, Toad had long regarded Saber as a disciple.
"She's awake?"
"She's awake. I got her some good food, but... can eating really relieve pain? Is that some kind of talent?"
Toad muttered to himself, deeply puzzled. In all his time teaching Saber, he'd discovered one major advantage of hers: no matter how severe her injuries, as long as the food was delicious enough, she could crawl out of bed to eat, and she'd eat quite heartily.
"The talent of a foodie."
As Violent Rat and Toad chatted, they walked toward the door. Su Xiao, along with Bubu Wang and Baha, also entered.
"Sha, thanks this time. I'll pay you the reward later."
Toad greeted Sha and was about to close the door when Sha's hand grabbed the doorframe, a meaningful smile on her face.
"What's this?"
Toad looked confused, not understanding Sha's intention.
"Consider it... mutual sympathy between 'fellow patients,'" Sha said, then changed the subject. "I'm very interested in how to treat dark matter erosion. If I ever get eroded, at least I'll know first aid."
Hearing this, Toad grew even more puzzled. Sha directly kicked him through the door. Amid Toad's shout of "What the hell," Sha walked into Saber's exclusive room and slammed the door shut with a bang.
Saber's exclusive room was quite spacious. The overall style was serious yet tinged with the flavor of daily life. Many murals hung on the walls, each depicting a knight with a blurred face.
A figure wrapped entirely in bandages, wearing a black dress, leaned against the bed. She was nearly mummified. Her golden hair was somewhat disheveled, and a pair of emerald-like eyes peered through the gaps in the bandages.
As it turned out, even after experiencing "darkening" or "personality rampage," as long as one gets a harsh dose of reality, recovery is still possible.
"Little cutie, this is your doctor. Say hello."
Toad spoke and subtly nudged Saber with his hind leg.
"H-Hello... Long time no see."
Altoria's emotions were extremely complicated right now, but she knew one thing: she was the one being saved. Even if there had been any unpleasantness between them before, that was in the past. Since the other party had come to treat her, she needed to be grateful.
Su Xiao crouched in front of Saber and snapped his fingers twice near her ear. "What did you hear?"
"Snapping sounds?"
"Hahaha, I suggest seeing a neurologist first."
Baha laughed heartlessly. Violent Rat and Toad looked as if they were already used to it.
"I didn't ask you to describe the sound. Listen again."
As Su Xiao spoke, he snapped his fingers near Saber's ear again.
"This is... a vibrating sound with a backflow?"
Saber was uncertain. She looked around at everyone in confusion. Violent Rat, Toad, and Sha all wore solemn expressions, but in truth, they didn't understand either—wasn't that just a finger snap?
"It hasn't eroded the brain yet, but it's close. Auditory perception is weak, and there are signs of pupil dilation."
Su Xiao made a preliminary judgment. The reason he came here was mainly for the reward. He wanted to try having Dragon-Slaying Flash "devour" a piece of another Law Destroyer's blade tip and see what changes would occur.
Su Xiao picked up an injection gun on the table, drew a composite agent into it, and told Saber to turn around. The needle tip pierced the center of Saber's spine. Saber showed no reaction—this level of pain she could ignore, and she knew the treatment had begun.
The composite agent was injected into Saber's spinal cord. To remove the dark matter, it first had to be driven out of the cervical spine and surrounding nervous system. Otherwise, the moment the removal began, Saber would fall unconscious.
This was a very bad situation. Once consciousness was lost, what would be removed wouldn't just be the dark matter, but also part of Saber's soul.
The agent was injected. Saber sat on the bed. For the first few seconds, she felt nothing—in fact, she felt quite relaxed. She tried to remove the bandages from her face. On her fair cheeks, the previous black markings had disappeared.
"A miracle doctor, Bai Ye."
Violent Rat looked Saber up and down, but he was very puzzled. Was the first cycle of treatment already complete? Surprisingly simple.
Su Xiao didn't speak. Just then, Saber fell from the bed with a thud. Her body nearly curled into a ball. In her wide-open eyes, her pupils contracted to the limit.
"It's okay... I'm... okay."
Saber pressed her forehead to the ground. She felt as if countless tiny hands had appeared around her, each grabbing one of her nerves and pulling in all directions. Her entire body was numb and in excruciating pain, as if her nerves, muscles, and bones were being torn into thousands of pieces.
Because many people were watching, Saber sat up, gritting her teeth fiercely. She desperately wanted to scream to vent the unbearable sensations that couldn't be avoided.
"Hey, Bai Ye, she's not going to die, is she? She's already rolling her eyes back."
"Not at this stage."
Su Xiao sat on the sofa, picked up a few test tubes from the coffee table, and began a simple preparation.
Sure enough, Saber's pupils quickly lost focus. A few seconds later, she regained consciousness. The moment she felt her body again, she closed her eyes. Crying would be too embarrassing—she had to endure.
Saber fainted every 3 to 5 seconds on average, then woke up a few seconds later. After repeating this several hundred times, Saber looked as if she had taken a bath, her dress completely soaked.
Half an hour later, Saber's body trembled slightly, and she slowly opened her eyes. She was contemplating: Who am I? Where am I? What did she just experience?
All memories flooded back. Saber fell to her knees with a thud, covering her mouth with both hands, letting out a deliberately suppressed and muffled wail.
After a moment, Saber wiped the sweat from her chin and looked up to ask, "How many days was I unconscious?"
"Well..."
"The total time you were in and out of consciousness was 31 minutes."
"Is... that so."
Saber stood up from the ground and let out a long breath. She knew it was over—her first treatment was done. As for gratitude, please let her recover for a moment. She really didn't dare to turn her head and look at a certain person.
"Commendable. You only fainted a few hundred times."
Su Xiao spoke with a smile.
"Mm."
Saber responded with her head down. Her heart was now filled with both fear and joy. Fear that she would have to endure that hellish experience several more times, and joy that she had made it through the first treatment.
"The preliminary work is ready. We can begin the formal treatment."
Hearing Su Xiao's words, in an instant, Saber felt her legs go weak.
"?"
Saber looked at Su Xiao, her gaze seeming to hold a hope that he would say the previous sentence was just a joke and that her first cycle of treatment was already complete.
Su Xiao walked to a metal door and pushed it open, revealing a room with a metal surgical bed in the center, surrounded by all kinds of instruments.
"Don't just stand there. Go in."
"Aren't those... things needed for the second cycle of treatment?"
Saber didn't move. This was her body instinctively protecting her.
"Who told you that?"
"I... guessed."
"..."
Su Xiao didn't speak. Seeing this, Saber stepped forward, walking past Violent Rat, Toad, Sha, Bubu Wang, and Baha.
"Stay strong."
"Hang in there. You're the one who eats the most."
"Remember, during the treatment, don't let yourself think your body is being toyed with, or you'll develop a trauma. This is just treatment."
Sha patted Saber on the back. As Saber entered the room, the metal door closed and locked.
A few minutes later, Saber's face was flushed. She lay naked on the surgical bed, her only comfort being the sterile cloth covering her waist.
Su Xiao stood beside the surgical bed. He picked up a mask connected to several tubes and put it on. He didn't want to be eroded by the dark matter during the removal process.
He picked up a thick test tube and poured the semi-transparent agent onto Saber's back. The black patterns on her back became more pronounced.
Su Xiao opened a recorder beside him and began to speak:
"Record 1. First dark matter removal. Time: 2:43 PM. Recipient's vital signs stable. No soul rejection reaction yet. Blood oxygen levels slightly low. Heart rate stable. No extreme mental fluctuations..."
As he spoke, Su Xiao picked up an alloy glove connected to numerous wires and put it on his right hand.
"What are... you doing?"
Saber's body felt no discomfort, but compared to her physical sensations, her heart was already filled with fear.
Su Xiao ignored Saber and continued making records. This was very important. During the precise removal process, his concentration had to be fully focused. For the final treatment, he would combine the previous situations to create the ultimate plan. Either don't do it, or do it to the best.
"Estimated completion within 45 minutes. Recipient's first treatment, commencing."
The alloy glove on Su Xiao's right hand glowed blue, with several rows of indicator lights all lit up. The glove slowly pressed onto Saber's spine. One by one, black threads appeared on her back, gradually being peeled away, very slowly.
"Ahhh!!"
Saber's endurance reached its limit instantly. Tears streamed uncontrollably. All her physiological senses were on the verge of losing control.
Outside the metal door, Violent Rat, Toad, and the others all heard the screams. Just from the sound, they could imagine how desperate the victim felt.
An hour later, Su Xiao pushed open the metal door, looking somewhat fatigued.
"Bai Ye, how did it go? The little cutie didn't die, did she?"
Toad's eyes were full of worry. In truth, he had long regarded Saber as his disciple.
"Hm?"
Su Xiao looked at Toad with confusion. Toad forced a bitter smile. During that hour, in the first few minutes, the little cutie was just screaming—hoarse, desperate screams. Then she suddenly went quiet. Finally, he vaguely heard the stubborn little cutie actually begging for mercy, saying things like "Let me go," "Please kill me," and so on.
Su Xiao walked out of the room. Sha peeked through the door crack and saw the situation inside. Saber was lying face down on the surgical bed, one arm hanging limply over the edge, completely devoid of strength. Semi-transparent liquid dripped from her fingertips. Looking at Saber's face, her pupils were dull and lifeless, with tear stains on her cheeks.
"Even if I die, I won't be eroded by dark matter. Never."
Sha's tone was exceptionally firm. Hearing Sha's words, Su Xiao paused in his steps but ultimately left. In the near future, Saber couldn't see him—her spirit would collapse. She needed some time to recover before the second treatment, which would be even more dangerous and harder to endure.
This time, only one-tenth of the dark matter had been removed. Most of the treatment was for Saber's severely eroded body. Only when her body and spirit had fully recovered could the removal of the dark matter connected to her nervous system begin.
Just as he exited Saber's exclusive room, Su Xiao received a notification.
[Notification: Fate Dominator has been upgraded to Immortal Rank.]