Tang Ning brought No. 1 to the location where the first dean mentioned the strengthening would take place.
This is the fourth underground floor of the First Research Institute.
Tang Ning had been to the basement of the Fourth Research Institute before. To be honest, he felt that it was a cold and gloomy place. However, when Tang Ning and the First Dean came to the bottom floor of the First Research Institute, he discovered what it meant to be like falling into an icy cave.
An extremely dense yin energy is locked here.
There were no guards here. Tang Ning thought that one reason was that the First Research Institute itself was heavily guarded and not many people had the opportunity to enter the bottom floor. The other reason was that the Yin energy was so strong that even if the guards were fully armed, they would easily be infected by the Yin energy and become monsters over time.
When Tang Ning was wearing the special protective clothing but still felt very cold, No. 1, who was beside Tang Ning, suddenly wrapped his tail around Tang Ning.
Compared to the cold and chilly aura all around, although No. 1's tail was icy cold, the strong contrast actually gave Tang Ning an illusion of warmth.
No. 1 consciously absorbed the negative energy around him. With the help of No. 1, Tang Ning could walk forward calmly without having to stop to relieve the cold like before.
"The bottom layer of the First Research Institute has sealed a portion of the original power of the Monster King." The First Dean explained to Tangning, "Once No. 1 consumes that power, he will be able to enter the next stage. Since the power left by the Monster King is very strong, No. 1 will need 1 to 2 days to digest it."
"During this transition period, No. 1 will be in an unprecedentedly weak state, and we can use this opportunity to implant the chip into its body."
"You don't need to go in now. Even wearing protective clothing can easily cause contamination in the innermost part."
"You will come with me to observe No. 1."
"… "
Following the First Dean's instructions, Tang Ning stopped in front of a door.
The first dean pressed the door button, and the door opened a crack. In an instant, an overwhelming chill seemed to surge in, mixed with shrill cries, as if countless ghosts were wailing and cursing.
Even though Tang Ning had prepared himself mentally, he still felt as if his soul was frozen by the bone-chilling cold.
"Tangning, let No. 1 in quickly!" Dean Tangning urged.
Tang Ning finally came out of his frozen state. He heard a rustling sound coming from inside, as if something had collided.
"No. 1, go in and absorb the energy inside." Tang Ning issued an order to No. 1.
"father..."
No. 1's tail rubbed Tang Ning reluctantly before turning around and walking into the place where the origin of the Monster King was sealed.
Tang Ning saw that when No. 1 turned and entered the cold darkness, the sharp metal tail slowly rose up, filled with high fighting spirit.
The door slowly closed.
The negative energy that had been continuously flowing out also stopped.
Although Tang Ning's body was not as cold as before, he was still restless. He was like a parent sending his child to an exam room. He wanted to rush in and help his child take the exam, but going in would only cause more trouble.
Tang Ning and the First Dean returned the same way they came. They came to the monitoring room on the third underground floor. Tang Ning found a seat and sat down. He saw a faint red light on the pitch-black screen.
When Tang Ning looked more closely, he found that it was a heart emitting a faint glow.
It was secured in the center of the room with chains on all sides. The heart was like a peeled red peach, its color was eerie red, and it was covered with nerves. Although it was separated from the body, it continued to beat as if it were alive.
Is this the original power left behind by the Monster King
Tangning felt his scalp tingling as he watched the beating heart. Even though he didn't see the heart in person, but was only observing it through the screen, he felt an endless fear rising from within, as if some hand was tightly gripping his heart.
A slender black hand grasped the enchanting red heart.
In the darkness, No. 1 blends in with the surrounding light. Only when it gets close to the heart will the faint red light reveal No. 1's location.
The heart struggled violently in No. 1's hand and flew out the next second. However, when it was about to escape No. 1's control, a sharp metal tail suddenly pierced the monster's heart!
Blood spurted out.
Clusters of enchanting red blossomed beside No. 1, and that heart seemed to be enraged, and suddenly began to wantonly pollute No. 1 with its own blood!
The chain wrapped around the heart continued to tremble, and lightning flashed for a moment. With the help of the lightning, Tang Ning saw that the entire room was actually filled with green poisonous fog.
No. 1 uses all his strength to devour the heart at all costs!
Tang Ning held his breath as he watched this on the screen. He saw a thick darkness enveloping the heart that was emitting red light. When the darkness was strong, there would not be a trace of light on the screen. However, it would not be long before the red light would light up again, as if suppressing the darkness.
The two monsters were fighting to the death in the most heavily guarded bottom layer. No. 1, who was invincible against all monsters in the past, was now helpless against that heart.
"Teacher, how can we help No. 1?" Tangning asked nervously.
He thought that the energy left by the Monster King was like Yin Qi, which could be absorbed by No. 1 at will. However, what Tang Ning did not expect was that this heart also had the ability to attack others.
"Help? How can we intervene in the fight between monsters of this level?" The First Dean shook his head and adopted an attitude of waiting and watching the situation.
"What will happen if number 1 fails?" Tangning asked.
"Death." The First Dean said calmly.
What?!
Tangning's heart was in turmoil. He turned to look at the First Dean and said, "Teacher, why didn't you tell me in advance?!"
"I thought you knew." The First Dean said in a matter-of-fact tone. Tang Ning was actually stuck after hearing this, because the original Dr. Tang would know these things.
"Don't worry, if No. 1 is really in danger, we will release it then." The First Dean comforted.
Compared to the monster heart covered with chains, No. 1 can move freely. If they get out in time, No. 1 will not be in danger. After hearing what the old dean said, Tang Ning calmed down.
The two monsters in the video are still fighting.
Tang Ning saw that No. 1 had a broken hand, which was absorbed by the heart. The severed part of the wrist grew on the heart. Under the control of the monster's heart, the hand turned to strangle No. 1's neck.
And No. 1 was not completely defenseless. Its sharp tail pierced the heart at a speed that could not be caught by flesh, leaving the heart full of holes. Blood flowed out from the wound in the heart and contaminated No. 1's body.
This blood seemed to be extremely harmful, causing No. 1's tail to swish around in pain.
An hour passed.
The wounded No. 1 was still struggling with the heart. A large part of its tail was broken, leaving only a short root. However, a sharper metal tail had grown on the monster's heart. It kept attacking No. 1 with this tail. Every time the tail stabbed No. 1, Tang Ning's heart ached.
His eyes were already bloodshot because during the past period of time, his eyes had never moved away from the screen.
Even though Tang Ning didn't understand the fight between monsters, he could see that No. 1 was at a disadvantage. During this fight, No. 1's strength was constantly weakened, while the heart of the Monster King continued to gain strength from No. 1.
"It is worthy of being the original power of the King of Monsters. Even if only a heart is left, it still has a natural inhibitory effect on other monsters." The First Dean sighed.
It is difficult for No. 1 to devour the monster's heart, but the monster can continue to harvest No. 1.
If this continues, a humanoid monster might grow on that heart...
Tang Ning was so distressed by his own imagination that his scalp went numb and goose bumps appeared all over his body.
Should we ask the First Dean to release No. 1 now
But if that’s the case, wouldn’t No. 1 have suffered so many injuries in vain
Or...
Tang Ning thought of his own picture album. He had used it to help No. 1 deal with a monster frog once before. That time, he sealed the monster frog for three or four seconds.
The heart of the Monster King is much stronger than that of the Monster Frog. Tang Ning definitely does not have the ability to seal it for 3 or 4 seconds.
In these high-level battles, even an advantage of just one or two seconds is likely to have a huge impact on the outcome of the battle.
But Tang Ning remembered that this album had a minimum standard, which was to seal the monster for at least one second.
Tangning looked at the First Dean who was sitting next to him. He was also sitting in front of the screen like him, but he kept writing on paper from time to time, apparently recording something.
If he had been stiff for just one second, the First Dean would not have noticed anything unusual.
Tang Ning gritted his teeth, took out the folder in his arms, and pretended to record something like the First Dean.
The First Dean obviously didn't even look at Tangning.
Tang Ning stared at the strange heart, and the tip of the pen touched the paper. Tang Ning's hand trembled as he sketched the first outline. The moment he touched the paper, Tang Ning felt that all the strength in his body was rushing towards the tip of the pen!
The speed of consumption was astonishing, almost dozens of times faster than when Tang Ning was drawing the monster frog.
The heart on the screen that had been fighting with No. 1 suddenly stiffened, and it "looked" towards the camera strangely.
It was clearly a heart without eyes, but when it turned, Tang Ning's heart beat heavily, as if it would leap out of his chest and explode in the air at any time.
— "Humanity..."
-"die… "
-"die… "
Countless crazy whispers emerged in Tang Ning's mind. He couldn't tell whether they were male or female, old or young, or even what language they were speaking. The crazy, violent, and unbridled malice touched Tang Ning's fragile nerves.
At that moment, Tang Ning felt his eyes go dark. This did not mean that he had entered the world of the album, but rather that his body was too weak and he was about to faint.
No, I can't just fall down like this!
Tang Ning held the pen in one hand and secretly took the clear pool water from the empty ring with the other hand. He did not care whether the First Dean noticed his abnormality or not. Tang Ning quickly drank the healing item that was said to have the effect of clearing the mind and calming the thoughts.
A stream of cool spring water flowed down Tang Ning's throat, washing away the mumbling that kept echoing in Tang Ning's mind.
Tang Ning actually took this precious opportunity to draw again. A lifelike and strange heart appeared on the paper. The heart was riddled with holes, and had a pair of black hands, a pair of black legs, and half of a strange metallic tail.
Tang Ning's pupils kept shrinking as he stared at the things in the album. The overwhelming darkness covered everything he saw like ink. Tang Ning's soul seemed to be torn apart and spun into the horrifying world of the album.
"Die... die... die...!!!"
The malicious voice continued to echo in this world. Every word seemed to transform into a terrifying monster. One by one, the monsters surrounded Tang Ning. Tang Ning was in the center of the monsters. He had no ability to resist. After holding on for the minimum standard of the album for one second, he was sent to the album.
"Puff—" Tang Ning covered his chest and spat out a large mouthful of blood.
The sticky blood spilled onto the album, not only covering the heart that Tangning had drawn earlier, but also splashing all over the surroundings, even onto the old dean.
"Tangning?!" The First Dean heard what Tangning was saying. He didn't care how intense the fight between the two monsters on the screen was. He walked over to Tangning and asked anxiously, "What's wrong with you?!"
Tang Ning covered his mouth and tried to shake his head to prove that he was fine. However, his current condition was not good. Shaking his head made Tang Ning want to vomit blood even more. Strands of blood flowed out from between Tang Ning's fingers.
Tang Ning felt like he had vomited blood all over his face. He weakly put his hand down and saw large patches of bright red on his hand.
The First Dean wanted to pick up a handkerchief to wipe the blood off Tang Ning's hands, but one handkerchief was far from enough.
"What's going on? I'll take you to the infirmary." The First Dean tried to help Tang Ning up.
"No need..." Tangning said weakly, "I didn't, maybe I've been a bit irritated lately..."
He had just said a few words when he felt a slightly fishy and sweet taste in his throat.
Damn, I want to vomit blood.
Tang Ning tried hard to hold it back. His mind was blank and he didn't care what the First Dean said to him. Tang Ning leaned back in his chair blankly. It took him a long while to suppress the urge to vomit blood.
It hurt a lot, but Tangning had gotten used to the pain.
He couldn't help but think that fortunately this was a body in the game. Once he left the game, he would be able to recover to a safe and sound state in reality. If he had suffered such a serious trauma in the real world, his body would definitely have suffered from a serious illness that would not have been cured.
This monster king is really too strong. He even drank the healing item in advance. He only imprisoned the opponent for one second, but he was seriously injured. No wonder No. 1, who always crushes others, suffered a loss... By the way, how is No. 1 now
Tangning thought of Zheng. He looked at the screen with difficulty and saw that it was completely dark.
When the red light does not appear, it means that No. 1 has the upper hand.
Can No. 1 successfully suppress the heart of the monster king
Tang Ning's heart was in great tension.
The First Dean also stopped talking to Tangning at this moment and looked at the screen like Tangning did.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three seconds.
…
A full minute passed and the screen was still in deep darkness!
No. 1 had never suppressed the Heart of the Monster King for such a long time before.
The first dean waited for a while before staring at the dark screen and muttering in disbelief, "Number 1 won."
When Tang Ning heard the First Dean's words, his tense mood suddenly relaxed and he fainted.