Super Gene

Han Sen’s pupils shrunk. He saw a mysterious, blue shelter residing atop the peak. Its presence there was like a castle, perched in the heavens.

The blue shelter looked rugged, though. Many parts of the building had fallen and crumbled. Even the gate of the front wall had fallen, succumbing to mounds of dust. The place looked as if it had been abandoned a long time ago.

”Shelter? How can there be a shelter out here? I wonder, is it a human or spirit shelter?” Han Sen observed the distant shelter as best he could, but did not see too much. Although it seemed to have decayed over time’s relentless march, it still looked solid, perhaps even operable.

”It looks like the shelter isn’t home to any humans or creatures. If it is, why would it be in the state it currently is? But then again, why would the blood centipede be so afraid of it? It won’t even ascend the measly foothills of this mountain. Does a scary creature reside in the shelter, maybe?” While Han Sen pondered the stockpile of questions that now occurred to him, he saw the blood centipede start moving again. After the broken shelter had revealed itself, the blood centipede possessed what seemed like a renewed courage, and it rabidly climbed the mountain after Han Sen.

Han Sen froze, and when he thawed soon after, he quickly took off running up the mountain. The monster had most likely believed the shelter was whole, which held off its initial advance.

But now that it knew the shelter was an abandoned ruin, it ascended the mountain without fear.

Han Sen had no other choice but to ascend. He hastened his brisk steps to ramble and climb his way up to the shelter. It was a decayed structure, and it didn’t look like anyone lived up there, but if there was still a teleporter inside—and it was still in working condition—he could escape by returning to the Alliance.

But before Han Sen could teleport away, he thought it would best to eat the egg first.

The blood centipede was quickly catching up to Han Sen, who was now standing in front of the blue shelter. He noticed that the structure had been composed of blue metal. With such sturdy construction, Han Sen pondered what events may have led to its ruin and downfall.

A twenty meter tall, few meter wide metal wall extended for a few miles. Along its length, it was broken and ruined in a number of different locations.

Han Sen observed the dust-cloaked shelter and pondered the number of years it had been since a person last set foot inside it.

Han Sen was quite ecstatic at his discovery of an abandoned shelter. All he would have to do now was find a teleporter and leave. No matter how powerful the centipede was, it couldn’t follow him through.

Han Sen ran inside the shelter and strode across the thick dust that had gathered so deeply that it felt like snow.

The blood centipede followed Han Sen to the front of the shelter. It hesitated before the entrance for a moment, but still decided to follow him inside.

The blue metal shelter had many toppled buildings, and many structures only had one or two disheveled walls remaining. Some had been cut in half or even had their rooves shaved off.

Han Sen’s run kept him weaving left and right between the remains of old buildings and constructs, to avoid the centipede’s pursuit. But by now, he was getting exhausted. He summoned the little angel and gave her the egg, bidding that she fly away from him to the other side of the shelter.

The blood centipede shrieked at Han Sen, but turned around and gave pursuit to the little angel now instead.

Han Sen had finally achieved a moment’s reprieve. He moved around the decayed shelter in search of a teleporter that may have fared better than the rest of the area.

He had searched through a number of ruined buildings and was still in awe of the devastation. The entire area was a mess, as shrapnel and bits of twisted metal lay strewn about every corner. But thus far, unfortunately, he was unable to find a teleporter that was in good shape.

In his search, he stumbled into a plaza which contained a half-toppled bell tower in its center. The bell was composed of blue copper, and it exuded an aura of mystique. Strange carvings were etched into the metal of its composition, with many of the drawn shapes resembling bugs.

Han Sen saw this blue bell and wondered, if this place had indeed been abandoned, why had six bells rung out earlier?

Han Sen looked around, observing the thick dust that coated each crevice of the lost shelter. He didn’t see any footprints or marks that suggested occupation. Even the blue bell was covered in dust and ash. He believed it must have been years since a person last touched the bell.

”The tolling bell could not have been this one.” Han Sen flapped his wings and flew onto the bell tower to take a closer look.

Han Sen was then hit with a sudden surprise. There was a body inside the bell tower that looked like a human in rugged clothes. Through decay over time, the body was little more than a dust-covered skeleton.

Han Sen summoned a lance to poke the clothing that once dressed the deceased. With little effort, the clothes and bones fell apart into ash.

”Was this a human shelter that got attacked by some fearsome creature?” Han Sen came down from the bell tower and treaded the shelter with a little more care this time.

Han Sen summoned his super armor, in case something unfortunate was about to happen. Since there weren’t any other humans around, no one would see or recognize him.

The fallen metal buildings were everywhere, and he couldn’t find a single building that had been left untouched. Most of the houses did not contain teleporters, and the ones Han Sen found were broken and had ceased to function.

Han Sen later discovered many other skeletal remains that were similar to the first one. For some reason, all it took was a little touch for the remains to crumble and wholly collapse.

Han Sen had searched through half the shelter so far and had yet to find a single working teleporter. The little angel was on the other side, keeping the blood centipede busy. He didn’t fancy venturing that way.

”Strange. Aside from the blue copper bell, there aren’t any other bell towers here. There aren’t any other bells, at all. What tolling bells did I hear?” Han Sen thought, puzzled.

While Han Sen was deep in thought, he heard the mystery bells ring once more like thunder. The shock was so strong, he almost collapsed.

Han Sen quickly ran his Dongxuan Sutra to quell the energy inside him. He raised his head and saw the bell in the bell tower was ringing, all by itself. Not even a stiff wind brushed it, yet it tolled.

”Why is this happening to me? Why does the bell ring itself?” Han Sen tried his best to calm the energy inside him, as he stared at the bell.

The little angel and the blood centipede stopped fighting, as if they were both affected by the bell, as well.

Dong!

The blue bell rang again, at an even scarier tone than before. It was loud, like an explosion detonating right on Han Sen’s eardrum.