Leveling Up by Executing Monsters

Chapter 75: Chapter 75: Overtime by 3 Minutes?

’Actually, I’ve never had any professional training with my subconscious, nor do I know how to control it, yet I was able to activate Wind Spirit Moon Shadow and instantly kill this Demon...’

’Is it because the Thought Realm isn’t exactly the same as the subconscious, just closely related to it? Or am I just exceptionally talented and don’t need training?’

’And... my previous knowledge of the Thought Demon was just a few scraps of information from a book. Why did I suddenly know so much about it?’

’Also, when I first walked into the cell, the one who spoke to me... was it really this Demon? Or something else entirely?’

Lloyd mentally listed three Unsolved Mysteries. He had plenty of other questions about the details, but now was clearly not the time to dig deeper. There were other things that needed his attention.

He prepared to leave the Thought Realm and return his consciousness to reality first.

Just then, his gaze inadvertently caught something unusual.

On the lush green meadow, a blade of grass that was different from the rest had appeared. Though slender, it was a hand’s-breadth taller than the surrounding grass, making it stand out.

Its shape and color were also unique. It was grayish-white all over, looking like a lifeless tentacle.

’Could this be...’

Lloyd quickly approached and crouched down on the grass, observing it cautiously.

It didn’t seem strange at first glance. Aside from its peculiar shape and color, it had no other reactions and wasn’t emitting any Spiritual Contamination.

Then, he mentally scrolled back through the pile of system notifications he had received earlier and found one with a particularly eye-catching number:

[Ding~ Madness Value +700]

This indicated that the Thought Demon was well and truly dead.

’Is this the corpse left behind by the Thought Demon? A Demon that only exists in human consciousness can actually leave a corpse?’

Lloyd made a simple deduction. He was about to wave his hand and get rid of this ’corpse.’

But he immediately had a second thought and stopped.

’The corpse of such a dangerous Demon must be highly valuable. It might even be a priceless treasure that money can’t buy.’

’I should keep it for now. It might be useful later. Besides, this is my absolute home turf. Even if it’s not completely dead, I can just instantly kill it again...’

’Of course, I can’t skip the necessary precautions. I’m a patient, meticulous, and cautious young man, after all.’

Lloyd raised his hand and drew a circle on the grass. Then, he materialized a slender glass cover out of thin air and placed it over the tentacle-like blade of grass, sealing it inside. It now looked like a rare plant living in a petri dish.

With the protective measures in place, Lloyd finally left the Thought Realm. His vision first blurred, then went completely black.

???

Lloyd paused, stunned. He then reached up and took off the mask on his face, and his vision suddenly cleared.

He found himself in the dim Cell 704. In front of him was a corpse hacked to pieces by a sharp blade, revealing all sorts of dry, fibrous matter. Beside it, a head had rolled onto the floor, its face so withered it was almost a skull.

But the floor was surprisingly clean, without a single trace of blood.

This showed that the initial execution procedure had indeed been completed as planned.

But the Thought Demon hadn’t died according to plan. Instead, it had suddenly spoken, tempting Lloyd to act, then tried to invade his consciousness by following the inspiration that leaked out when he activated his ability.

This Demon was indeed unreasonably dangerous, and yet it was only Danger Level 7...

’What kind of terrifying monster would a Danger Level 8 be?’

’And Tower Nine has 13 underground floors in total. If each floor corresponds to a danger level, doesn’t that mean the highest is Danger Level 13?’

’Can’t think about it, can’t think about it... Don’t think too much, Don’t Ask Too Much...’

Lloyd silently recited this rule in his mind as he pulled out the earplugs that were making his ears feel stuffy.

Then he heard an urgent, indignant cry from outside:

"Move! I’m going in to save him!"

"Are you crazy? Do you want to get everyone killed again, just like three years ago?"

"I said, move!"

’What’s going on? It sounds like they’re about to fight.’

Puzzled, Lloyd opened the cell door and walked out. He saw Meditis in a standoff with the plain-faced Executioner. They had also removed their masks and earplugs.

The man with the triangle eyes stood beside them, trying to mediate, a look of helplessness and frustration on his face.

The four scholars from the Saint’s Favor Court were gone. According to the plan, they were supposed to have evacuated first. But the four Executors responsible for sharing the Spiritual Vision with Lloyd’s team were also missing. Only the four Executioners were left on Floor -7.

Lloyd glanced toward the center of the room. Previously, in the Spiritual Vision, there had been a massive, indescribable, and unspeakable thing there that had left a deep impression on him.

Looking at it with his naked eye, it was slightly better. At least he could barely describe it. Hmm... a giant ball of yarn? But its constituent material was more like a mass of blood vessels, tendons, and nerve bundles. Disgusting...

Lloyd quickly averted his gaze and walked toward Meditis and the others, giving a light cough to announce his presence.

"Ahem!"

When the three of them turned their heads, they immediately let out a series of startled cries:

"Whoa?!"

"Huh??"

"Ah!!"

They immediately brandished their Spiritual Light Blades at Lloyd and tightened their grips on the ’X’-shaped pendants in their hands, looking ready to attack.

Lloyd quickly stopped in his tracks and waved his hands repeatedly, a look of exasperation on his face.

"What are you doing? Oh, come on..."

"You... How could you possibly walk out of there unharmed?"

The plain-faced ’farmer’ asked sharply, his expression a mask of disbelief.

Lloyd shrugged, then spread his hands in a gesture that was both exasperated and amused, showing he was unarmed. Only then did he humbly ask in return:

"Why not? Have you never met anyone as outstanding as me before?"

The three of them were speechless for a moment. After a two-second pause, the triangle-eyed man finally answered:

"You were three minutes over the scheduled time. We were debating whether or not we should pull you out."

’I felt like I was in the Thought Realm for a long time, but only three minutes passed in reality?’

Lloyd mused to himself.

In the end, it was Meditis who lowered her weapon first. Her sarcastic tone returned as she said:

"Alright, haven’t you noticed he doesn’t have any Spiritual Contamination on him?"

But the other two still looked wary. They kept their weapons raised, not allowing Lloyd to get any closer, ready to lash out at any moment.

The awkward standoff was only broken when the Chief Judge’s voice echoed in the minds of the three Executioners.

"That’s enough. Lloyd is fine. You all performed very well. Although there were some minor complications during this mission, it was ultimately a complete success."

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