# 1609
Chapter 1609: Dungeon
Mist.
Two figures emerged slowly from the gray world as waves swept through a narrow valley, thundering like roars.
"Is this the location you chose?" From beneath a black hood, An Qingyu's cheeks lifted slightly. Without her scholarly black-framed glasses, her demeanor was somewhat cold and stern.
"No choice—Nicholas's arrangement was destroyed, so we had to create a new space." Chaos shrugged, a helpless expression flickering across his dark features.
Chaos raised his palm toward the center of the valley and made a gentle clenching gesture.
Invisible waves of air compressed and scattered. The churning sea waves in the valley suddenly stilled. In the next instant, the entire howling sea region fell silent, like a deep green mirror reflecting the jagged cliffs on both sides.
As Chaos descended onto the sea surface, a ripple spread outward, transforming into a swirling vortex that shattered the mirror-like surface, extending endlessly into the dark depths below.
He grabbed the Black Goat's remains, leaped lightly, and vanished into the vortex. An Qingyu's gray eyes narrowed slightly as she too stepped into the swirling waters.
The deep-sea vortex swept past An Qingyu's body. A moment later, their forms bizarrely emerged from another inverted sea surface.
Mist, ocean surface, valley—everything mirrored the real world. The only difference was that this world had no sun or moon. Chaos's sky pressed down upon the sea and cliffs, giving off a suffocating sense of oppression.
"You created a mirror world?" A flash of gray flickered in An Qingyu's eyes as she instantly deciphered the nature of this realm.
"Of course." Chaos smiled faintly. "The Black Goat is barely clinging to life. Before the Key to the Gate revives, you can't do much except sacrifice to the Gate of Truth, and I'm not back to full strength yet. If they join forces to encircle and suppress us, it'll be quite troublesome.
Though this place isn't as good as a true divine realm, it's extremely difficult to discover. It can serve as a place for us to slowly recover."
An Qingyu nodded. Her gaze swept across the two towering black straits facing each other before her, and she walked alone toward one of them.
"Parting waters, each to our own—this half is mine."
"Hold on." Chaos raised an eyebrow.
An Qingyu stopped, frowning as she turned back.
"Taking that half is no problem, but you'd better give me a precise answer. When will the Key to the Gate revive?"
"The Gate of Truth's repair isn't complete yet. It'll take some time."
"How long is 'some time'?"
"About four or five years, give or take."
"Are you joking with me?" Chaos narrowed his eyes, a chilling intent flickering across his dark features.
An Qingyu met his gaze for a long while before slowly speaking:
"Do I look like someone who's joking?"
The words fell. The atmosphere between the straits instantly froze.
"What about the Migo? Can't they sacrifice their lives to accelerate the Key to the Gate's revival?" After an unknown duration, Chaos spoke again.
"Did you think the Migo were infinite in number?" An Qingyu retorted. "They were my faithful Believers. To accelerate the Key to the Gate's awakening, they've sacrificed almost to the point of extinction. Even combining everything the remaining ones have left won't push it forward much.
If you think I'm lying, go ahead and kill me. Let's see if the Key to the Gate has any chance of revival."
An Qingyu's words grew increasingly sharp. A cold wind swept through the valley, ruffling her black robe violently.
Chaos's brow furrowed tightly. He stared at An Qingyu, as if trying to peer directly into her thoughts, but under the gaze of those gray eyes, it had absolutely no effect.
After a long while, he slowly spoke: "Four years. Within four years, I must see the Key to the Gate revived…"
An Qingyu gave no answer. With both hands tucked inside her black robe, she turned and vanished into the strait on her side. Swirling gray mist, like a tornado, enveloped half of that strait, forming a wall as dense as stone.
Chaos withdrew his gaze and returned to his own strait. He sat cross-legged on a massive boulder, opened his palm, and a miniature model of a hospital appeared in his hand.
"Next, I need to completely take control of you…"
…
Asylum of the Gods.
Dungeon.
The originally empty cells were now filled with countless blue-gray figures. A Zhu curled on the damp ground, face pale, as if sleeping.
In the cell across from him, a blood-soaked figure leaned against the wall's edge, life or death uncertain.
"Chief... Chief..."
A voice came from the neighboring cell.
The blood-soaked figure's eyes snapped open. He turned and gestured a shushing sign toward the neighboring cell. "Keep it down! That guy can hear!"
The voice from the neighboring cell immediately fell silent. A moment later, a hand reached through the bars, dipped some water, and began drawing on the ground:
—Chief, A Zhu is going to starve to death.
Seeing these words, Li Yifei's blood-stained face trembled slightly. He sighed and wrote back:
—Our souls have been signed to Qiye. With this hospital's protection, even if we die we can be revived... The worst we'll endure is some pain.
As the panel stated, "As the one who personally slew these mythological creatures, you hold the right to decide their souls' fates." Those who killed them were Lin Qiye, and the one who hired them as orderlies was also Lin Qiye. Even though Chaos now controlled a part of the hospital, he couldn't decide their life or death. So he could only lock them in the Dungeon.
—Chief, when will this end?
Seeing these words, Li Yifei shook his head and continued writing:
—I don't know.
—If He takes complete control of the hospital, will we be completely annihilated?
—...I don't know.
—Will the Director come to save us?
Li Yifei gave no answer. In his mind, the scene of Lin Qiye's soul being struck out of his body by Chaos replayed... Based on that situation, whether Lin Qiye was even alive was uncertain.
Who could have imagined that the most kind and approachable Yolanda would actually be Chaos in disguise?
Could it be that besides waiting to die here, there was nothing they could do?
Li Yifei's fists clenched tightly. Discontent and fury filled his heart. He raised the hand covered in scabs and slammed it against the bars, but they didn't budge.
After an unknown time, in the darkness, Li Yifei let out a bitter sigh…
Hunger and pain gradually consumed his mind. His consciousness grew fuzzy. He knew death was approaching once more.
In a daze, it seemed he dreamed a dream. He saw a young man in Han Dynasty Confucian attire walking slowly toward him…
The young man crouched before him, gently patted his shoulder, and smiled:
"The time to answer the Holy Covenant has come… Li Yifei, don't forget the mission that大人 entrusted to you."
As Li Yifei's eyes were about to close, he saw a shadow slip from the young man's palm into his hand…
It was a white chess piece.