28. The Seventh Level

"My arms and thighs—is this the price I must pay?" Li Fen asked, standing before the ruler of the seventh floor. "Frankly, I don't find it to be a very good bargain."

Opposite her stood a man who appeared tall and obese, yet beneath his bulging skin lay not fat, but layers of muscle piled high from bottom to top, giving him the appearance of a heavy mountain of flesh.

The two had just engaged in a brief skirmish. Despite her exhausting every technique at her disposal, she had failed to inflict any meaningful damage. In contrast, he had effortlessly snapped off three of her fingers and, with a calm expression, shoved them into his own mouth.

Li Fen gently rotated her newly sprouted fingers. These new limbs, tipped with sharp claws and possessing both strength and agility, were the only reason the Cannibal King hadn't consumed her entirely.

"Yes," he replied gently, his tone unusually rational. "I can understand your fear, but look at me—there is little left of this body that remains as it once was. This is the path we must all tread."

In truth, she knew well that she had no choice. According to the company's intelligence, being appreciated by the Cannibal King was already a fortunate outcome.

Li Fen had never imagined that the mission would go awry. She had carried out numerous field assignments in the past, facing all manner of enemies, and had resolved them all smoothly and with ease.

Although the company had invested ample personnel and resources into those past missions, this time, while the other teams had failed to arrive on schedule, the corresponding intelligence and resources had not been reduced; they had actually been increased. Even the Forecasting Department, usually reserved for commercial competition and investment, had been mobilized in hopes of bypassing the sanitarium’s regulations to eliminate Xu Wen.

The company was so invested because of what Xu Wen possessed. Mimic fungi were already frequently used in the company’s pharmaceuticals, and the second-generation mimic fungi—developed by Xu Wen through his doctoral advisor in collaboration with several biologists—held potential far exceeding anything they had seen before.

Among them was a young, obscure professor who, according to intelligence gathered later by the company, had played a leading role in the development. He had displayed astonishing talent and ability, acting as an indispensable factor in this success. Had he not been carelessly killed by Xu Wen, the company certainly would have done everything in its power to recruit him.

The second-generation mimic fungi were a priceless treasure to any faction, and in the hands of the company, their value would be immeasurable.

Furthermore, because the company frequently needed to capture mimic fungi for pharmaceutical use, they were well-versed in the dangers and weaknesses of these organisms. If they had encountered them elsewhere, they would have brought specialized equipment to avoid accidental infection by spores.

It was precisely for this reason that Li Fen had never dreamed Xu Wen could see through her transformation. Their shapeshifting spies had always been safe when interacting with mimic fungi in the past; such a situation had never occurred before.

Regardless, the company’s arrangements had been flawless, and the methods provided by the Forecasting Department had been correct. The true failure did not even lie in her own underestimation of Xu Wen.

If she had truly obtained the notebook, he would never have had the chance to target her.

The error lay with Ma En.

***

Initially, Li Fen had viewed him as the one with the least background among the patients capable of reaching Xu Wen, thinking that even if she used him to death, there would be no cost. She never expected him to cause such massive trouble.

It was not that Li Fen hadn't considered that Ma En might be wary of her; that was precisely why she had maintained such a pleasant attitude when using this persona to approach him.

She only allowed her true emotions to show when she transformed into the thin, gaunt woman.

Logically, even if Ma En held a grudge, he should have felt some affinity for her in this guise. Yet, whether out of short-sightedness or stupidity, he had failed to hand over the real notebook, and the lock-pick had failed to perform its intended function.

The Forecasting Department could not be wrong; the method to deal with Xu Wen had to be inside that notebook.

Because Ma En had not surrendered the notebook to her, they were both doomed to lose to Xu Wen.

Just as Xu Wen had promised, Li Fen believed she would see Ma En here before long. If not for the confinement of the sanitarium, this mere madman could never have influenced her or Xu Wen in the slightest.

"Fine, I am willing to work for you, but I have one small request," Li Fen said, making up her mind. "I have an enemy, and it is highly likely that he will end up here as well. If possible, I want to finish him off completely before he can acquire any power."

She looked forward to what Ma En would say when they met again. Would he regret not cooperating with her?

The Cannibal King replied:

"If you perform the ritual and become one of us, once we find him, I will allow a few other lieutenants to share in devouring this little enemy of yours. Once that happens, his personality will be erased forever.

"However, that is contingent upon us finding him, and you being the one to catch him."

Li Fen said:

"That will certainly not be a problem. I measured his mental strength; even if the instrument had a margin of error, he could not possibly exceed Tier I. Even if he has truly stepped into Tier II..."

She brandished her sharp claws:

"Didn't you say that I have great potential?"

***

This point made Li Fen particularly happy. Not only had she not died, but her destiny had opened up a new path—the possibility of attaining status on the lower floors.

The Cannibal King nodded slightly:

"Of course, otherwise I would have already eaten you. I have seen many ability users, and your bestial nature is among the best. Moreover, your ability is particularly well-suited to beast-transformation itself."

This also implied that her inner self was likely quite dark, far worse than what she displayed on the surface.

However, this was an absolute boon for them. In time, if Li Fen could consume enough fresh flesh, she might be able to resist this inner, frenzied beastly nature, and perhaps even have the opportunity to step into Tier III.

The Cannibal King valued her so much because he had a formidable rival.

The madwoman on the third floor—simply because she had suffered a setback on the seventh floor in the past and held some entirely trivial grievances against him—viewed him as a sworn enemy to be challenged, trying every means to kill him.

After several exchanges, he realized the danger she posed. Her current combat ability was somewhat behind his own, but that would change if she continued to undergo beast-transformation.

Fortunately, this tribal madwoman had a fatal flaw.

The nascent faction she had founded had not yet gained full recognition from the other floors in such a short time, and, compounded by her belief in using blood and slaughter to suppress her beastly nature, the other rulers had long been dissatisfied with her.

This was not his idea alone.

The fresh flesh of same-tier ability users was a crucial resource for all beast-transformers.

However, that was not the primary reason. They were doing this because, by all rights, the second floor underground should not stand idly by and watch such things happen, and that was exactly what they wanted to know...

Would they watch?