Lin Ye hastily took a step back, but Jesse had already vanished, just like that monster, without leaving a single trace.
"...Damn it!"
Lin Ye turned and started walking back. If that D-Class Personnel hadn't been lying or insane, then the anomaly in this tunnel was likely related to time.
Lin Ye had never encountered anything that could alter time, but just imagining it felt incredibly troublesome.
*No, I can't jump to conclusions yet. It's not necessarily a temporal anomaly; there could be other possibilities.*
Lin Ye walked back the way he came. He didn't know how long he'd been walking, but it was definitely far longer than the time he'd spent going in. Ahead of him was still the long tunnel; the entrance had vanished.
*Oh boy, I'm screwed. Don't tell me I'm going to be trapped here until I die?*
Lin Ye tore off some scraps of his clothing and threw them on the ground, continuing to walk toward the entrance without stopping. After walking for a while longer, his vision suddenly went black.
Having experienced this twice now, Lin Ye was getting used to it. Something had probably just passed by in front of him.
He took a step forward. The darkness vanished, and a figure appeared diagonally ahead in the tunnel.
It was the other D-Class Personnel.
"Why did you turn back?"
Reynold looked at Lin Ye strangely. He felt that something was a little off about the person in front of him.
"What number are you? How long have you been in here?"
Lin Ye didn't answer, asking his own questions instead.
"I'm Number 3, so of course I was the third one in. As for how long I've been walking, probably a few hours. I don't have a watch, so I don't know the exact time."
Reynold watched Lin Ye warily. He had a very bad feeling about him.
Lin Ye said no more, leaving Reynold behind as he continued forward.
"Wait! Are you trapped too? I tried changing directions a few times, but I can't get out no matter what I do. The markers I left behind are gone too. Why did the lights go out just now? Do you know how to get out of here?"
Even though he didn't like Lin Ye, this was the first person Reynold had met in this damn tunnel, and he didn't want to be trapped here to die.
Lin Ye ignored him and just kept walking forward. His vision went black for a moment, and the other man vanished.
"Heh, I knew it."
Lin Ye quickened his pace. He didn't know if walking forward would do any good, but he couldn't just kill himself or wait around to die. After all, even if he had to do it all over again, he still wouldn't know what to do.
He didn't know how much longer he walked. Lin Ye just kept moving forward mechanically. Strangely, he didn't feel tired at all, nor did he feel the need to eat or drink.
"What's going on? I actually feel a little happy."
Lin Ye muttered to himself in the empty tunnel, his walking speed increasing. After a long time, the tunnel went dark again.
This time, Lin Ye didn't pause. The darkness flashed and was gone. Looking diagonally ahead, Lin Ye froze.
He saw himself.
Although the other person was wearing a helmet, Lin Ye was certain from the body shape, skin tone, and familiar orange jumpsuit that it was him.
The Lin Ye opposite him turned and ran. Lin Ye hurriedly gave chase, shouting for him to stop, but his vision went black, and that Lin Ye vanished.
Lin Ye stood frozen in place. The scene felt somewhat familiar.
He hastily looked down at his own body. Writhing strips of flesh, elongated limbs, bone spurs growing from his waist... He didn't know when it had happened, but he had already turned into a monster.
The monster he had seen before was himself.
*The Abyssal Egg... When was I affected? I didn't notice at all...*
*As expected of an item from the Abyss. Just carrying it is enough to turn me into this.*
Lin Ye didn't feel anxious about turning into a monster. After all, this was just a simulation. The important thing now was to figure out how to get out; nothing else mattered.
*A Time Loop? But how does it loop? Is it related to direction? The number of people? If I kill the other two D-Class Personnel, will this place collapse? Should I just kill myself and report the situation here directly to the captain?*
The moment that thought appeared, Lin Ye dismissed the option. Unless his simulation attempts ran out, he wouldn't risk reporting directly to the captain.
First, his Innate Ability was the D-Class Personnel. If he didn't resolve the anomaly, he might not be able to return at all.
Furthermore, Lin Ye was extremely wary of the so-called "Organization." It was a group that constantly used human lives to deal with anomalous events. He couldn't imagine the Organization's methods, and if he drew their attention, the consequences would be unpredictable.
In the worst-case scenario, the Organization might trap him in the simulation, unable to return to the Sanctuary.
He still wasn't sure about the state of his physical body. If he was just lying in a bed in the Sanctuary, he would die of thirst in a matter of days.
Therefore, he had to rely on himself to resolve the tunnel's anomaly.
Even as he thought, Lin Ye's steps never faltered. After turning into a monster, his physical constitution was terrifyingly strong, and he couldn't feel a trace of fatigue.
Before Lin Ye could figure out the principle behind the loop, the tunnel went dark again.
"Why so soon?"
Lin Ye took a step forward. The lights illuminated the tunnel, and standing diagonally across from him was a monster.
Its build was even more robust than Lin Ye's current form, its body covered in all sorts of twisted, Aberrant Organs. It looked far more terrifying than the current Lin Ye.
This time, Lin Ye didn't run. He knew very well that the monster before him was the him from the next loop.
The two monsters approached each other in the middle of the tunnel. Lin Ye tried to say hello, but all that came out was a bizarre screech.
The Lin Ye from the next loop had already considered this possibility. He tore off a strip of flesh, and a large amount of dark red fluid splattered onto the ground.
Then, the Lin Ye from the next loop began to use the strip of flesh to write on the ground, dipping it in his blood. The monster's fingers were twisted and strange, so he could only barely grip the flesh strip and write out misshapen characters as if he were painting.
Kill me quickly
This is the last chance
I can't hold on much longer
If you miss this chance
you won't be able to start the next simulation
After managing to write these words, the Lin Ye from the next loop forcefully tore open his own chest, exposing his vital point.
Without the slightest hesitation, Lin Ye plunged his forelimbs into the other's chest, completely destroying 'his own' vital point.
He trusted himself. Besides, the other him had written about the simulation. No matter what, killing him would start the next simulation.
Afterward, Lin Ye struck a few more times to make sure 'he' was completely dead before leaving the corpse alone.
Just as Lin Ye was about to continue forward, he suddenly noticed some scars on the corpse's skin. Perhaps due to the monster's strong regenerative abilities, the wounds had already healed, but they still left faint marks on the skin.
They were three mathematical symbols for infinity. The three symbols intersected, forming a bizarre symbol.
For a moment, Lin Ye didn't understand what 'he' was trying to express. It couldn't just mean that this path was endless, could it?
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Even if that were the case, there was no need to draw three infinity symbols. One would have been despair-inducing enough.
But soon, Lin Ye realized. Those weren't three infinity symbols. They were three Mobius Strips.
Proofreader: Peter Pan