Chapter 9: You've Got the Best Quality
The tough guy Buster was an absolute master of his craft. His movements were smooth and decisive—a truly pleasing sight to behold. In a mere five minutes, he had completely and cleanly processed the massive monster.
The recyclable parts and trash were sorted into two separate crates, while the chains and spikes that had bound the monster were gathered up and hung back on the wall. Only the residual dark green blood stains on the floor served as proof that a bizarre creature had just been locked up here.
After cleaning up the scene, Buster closed his eyes, wiped his hands clean, rubbed his temples hard, and shook his head, trying to shake off the lingering dizziness in his brain.
Just as he was about to turn and leave, he noticed an unfamiliar face standing behind him—and the guy actually wore an expression that suggested he hadn't seen enough yet?
Buster paused, blinking, and asked:
"I haven't seen you around. What's your name?"
"Hello, my name is Lloyd. I just arrived yesterday... Your performance just now was simply fantastic!"
Lloyd answered with a deadpan expression of absolute sincerity.
Buster hadn't expected this fellow to be a newcomer at all. And not only had he managed to watch the entire execution process from start to finish, but his mental state actually looked better than his own?
Moreover, from the way the guy carried himself, he didn't seem like one of those pampered scions who had already completed their Enlightenment and were just here to pad their resumes.
As for the other guy who had gritted his teeth and forced himself to stay earlier, he had bolted out of the room clutching his head the moment the execution started.
Buster's mind raced with countless thoughts for a moment, but he generously offered a compliment aloud:
"You're not bad at all. Out of all the newcomers I've seen, you've got the best quality."
Lloyd's expression shifted slightly, and he hurriedly offered a modest reply:
"You flatter me."
"I'm Buster. I basically execute a Level 2 hazard entity every single day. If you're interested, you can drop by, and feel free to ask me if you have any questions."
"Thank you so much!"
"Don't mention it. You're bound to walk out of this place someday—and of course, so am I. So this is just a bit of early networking."
Buster spoke with blunt directness, seeming completely incapable of empty pleasantries.
Lloyd didn't find this approach repulsive; on the contrary, he appreciated it quite a bit.
Chatting casually like this, the two men stepped into the elevator.
Buster originally intended to pull the lever to the 6th floor, needing to visit the Prayer Room there for a medical session to dispel the Mental Pollution he had suffered during the execution.
Instead, Lloyd beat him to it and yanked the lever straight to the 2nd floor.
Buster paused yet again.
"You... aren't going to the Prayer Room?"
"Hm? I plan to go to the library to read some books."
"You... are you really new here?"
"Yeah, what's wrong?"
While they were talking, the elevator reached the second floor. Lloyd smiled, bid his farewell, and stepped into the library.
Buster watched his brisk, unhurried pace, feeling slightly dazed.
"Maybe this is just one of those gifted prodigies whose brilliance shines from birth?"
He muttered to himself under his breath, then shook his head with a self-deprecating chuckle.
***
Lloyd found a copy of *Introduction to Monsterology* on the bookshelf. Its weight and tactile feel were slightly better than yesterday's *Overview of Occultism*.
Having temporarily observed an execution process today, he wanted to strike while the iron was hot and make up for his shortcomings in this area. Occultism could take a backseat for now; anyway, he had already learned his most desired skill, [Divination], even if the level was a bit low...
Before opening the book, however, he silently recited in his heart:
5 points of [Spirit Power], apply points!
[Ding! Point allocation complete.]
[User: Lloyd]
[Status: Normal]
[Madness Value: 30/500, Cap: 1700]
[Sanity: 17]
[Spirit Power: 6]
[Inspiration: 3]
[Cognition: 14]
[System: Incomplete Enlightenment]
[Mastered Skills: Efficient Learning; Divination LV1]
Yesterday's accumulation combined with today's observation had earned him another opportunity to allocate points.
However, the interface no longer recommended how to distribute the points, leaving it entirely to personal discretion, which gave Lloyd a brief moment of hesitation.
Then he reconsidered: he aspired to be a well-rounded youth of the new era who kept pace with the times, so he certainly couldn't have lopsided stats or weak points. He needed to develop in an all-around manner!
With that, his stat allocation strategy was set: build an all-rounder first and talk later!
As the point allocation finished, Lloyd instantly felt a clearly perceptible surge of power within his body. He could now distinctly sense the presence of [Spirit Power] distributed evenly across every part of his physical form, filling his entire body with a wonderful sense of comfort.
It felt as refreshing as putting on a brand-new pair of clean underwear right after waking up in the morning.
"Mmm, compared to reading books to farm Skill Fragments, allocating points feels way more satisfying... But since I've decided to develop in an all-around way, I can't let my studies fall behind either. I have to balance both sides."
Lloyd muttered a brief summary to himself, then forced his mind to calm down as he opened the copy of *Introduction to Monsterology* in his hands.
[Ding! Madness Value +1]
[Ding! Madness Value +1]
[Ding! Madness Value +1]
To Lloyd's slight surprise, reading this book didn't yield any Skill Fragments; instead, his Madness Value shot up quite rapidly! It increased by one point roughly every minute or so.
Perhaps it was because the book was printed with exquisite detail—especially the various lifelike illustrations of monsters, complete with full-angle, all-around minute details—that simply looking at the pictures was enough to make one's scalp tingle. It was no wonder one would suffer Mental Pollution from them.
But gaining Madness was secondary; the primary goal was to acquire knowledge.
According to the book, monsters came in a dazzling variety of types: Yao-gui, Out-of-Control, Karma Demon, mysterious creations, Thought Demon, Anomalous Derivatives, and so on.
Among them, the most common were the Yao-gui, like the one executed today, and Out-of-Control entities, which were humans who had completely plunged into madness and mutated.
Yao-gui were particularly detestable. Most of them evolved by continually hunting and devouring humans as they transformed from wild animals and fierce beasts. As their hazard level increased, their degree of anthropomorphization would also grow higher and higher.
Although their external appearance would never truly become human—retaining only a general humanoid shape—their internal organs, circulatory systems, and neural conduction pathways would grow increasingly close to those of humans. Even their thinking, intelligence, self-awareness, and emotions would begin to resemble human traits.
Yao-gui were passionately obsessed with hunting humans, treating them as food and a channel for evolution. They were absolute, irreconcilable enemies of mankind, as well as extremely troublesome foes who inflicted much stronger Mental Pollution than other common monsters.
What disgusted and mentally corrupted humans the most were these things that looked human yet weren't...
Lloyd still remembered that his parents in this world had been devoured by a Yao-gui on their way home from work. They were the root cause of the hardships of his childhood!
Such monsters deserved to be put to death by all!
With that, Lloyd shifted his primary focus to the knowledge concerning Yao-gui, reading and memorizing intently, even subconsciously ignoring the notification chimes sounding by his ear.
[Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!]