Chapter 25: Spiritual Consciousness Sea Transplantation

Poppy.

Her blood holds a lethal allure for Sentinels. Once a Sentinel catches its scent, their psychic power is stimulated to surge, often triggering the manifestation of aberrant traits. Just as Karl smelled the scent of blood when he first held her on the battlefield, his beast ears had emerged instantly.

Conversely, blood imbued with a Guide’s psychic power acts as a purifying agent. The effect is even more potent than direct entry into the mental sea. Once Yueli consumed it, his mental sea was cleansed, and his iron-eating beast spirit manifestation gained the ability to resist the contamination core.

The reason Wen Li feared that nightmare so deeply was that her experimental reports showed there was something wrong with her blood; she was terrified that one day, she might truly be consumed. Whether this was a blessing or a curse, she could not say. Wen Li had to keep this secret; no one could ever know.

Leaning into the burrow, she found a young iron-eating beast lying on bamboo leaves, breathing slowly. The round, fluffy creature curled up, its small nose twitching as it caught a familiar scent, and it opened its eyes.

"Ying~ Ying~"

The milky-voiced ball of fluff rushed toward Wen Li on its short, stubby legs. Wen Li knelt on the ground and caught the little beast. The creature in her arms kept wriggling, nuzzling against her and whimpering incessantly, as if venting all the grievances its master had suffered these past few days. Wen Li’s heart melted. She stroked the beast’s little belly and cradled it like an infant.

"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid. I'll deal with the bad guys."

Adding two layers of protective barriers, Wen Li floated in the air, scanning for the least contaminated area within the mental sea. She set the iron-eating beast down, reinforced the barriers further, and began her observation. This spot was not far from the contamination core, yet the bamboo forest remained largely unaffected, with only a few leaves showing signs of pollutants.

Having confirmed the location, she prepared to plant her psychic power here. After nights of painstaking research, she had finally found a way to mitigate the contamination. She had discovered it in a guidebook on Guide psychic usage that had been banned since the 164th year of the Federal New Calendar. Angus had given her this book on her first day at the White Tower, and today, he had brought her the next volume.

There was a reason for the ban; the method Wen Li was about to employ was incredibly risky. It involved carving out a portion of her own mental sea and grafting it into the Sentinel’s. If no rejection occurred, this fragment would continue to radiate psychic power until it was completely exhausted. This way, the contamination core would prioritize eroding the fragment Wen Li left behind, sparing the Sentinel from agony and eliminating the need for sensory dampeners. It would also give the Sentinel time to recover and resist the contamination core.

The price, however, was that Wen Li’s already fragmented mental sea would become even more fractured. Her subsequent regimen of restorative care would have to become far more frequent.

Wen Li did not care. Guides were born with the ability to heal; since the White Tower had already mapped out a plan for her, she might as well put it to use. At worst, she would just have to take on more missions and see Lin Zheng more often. Surely, secretly carving out a small piece wouldn't matter.

Lin Zheng had been draining Yueli’s psychic power, keeping the contamination core stable by depriving it of nutrients. Now was the perfect time for her to plant.

Wen Li opened her mental channel. The violets at her feet swayed in the wind, as if welcoming their mistress. The golden-haired girl stood amidst the sea of purple flowers, surrounded by small, floating blue orbs of light. Little Flash landed on a violet petal, flapping one wing, yet it could not fly. Wen Li stroked the blue butterfly’s remaining wing with guilt, then lifted it onto her shoulder with her fingertips.

"Little Flash, I'm sorry."

"Yueli saved my life twice. We are friends; I couldn't just..."

The blue butterfly rubbed affectionately against her cheek, telling its mistress: *It’s alright, Master. Little Flash is more than happy to help you.* It tapped her cheek with its tentacles, signaling that she could begin the extraction.

Wen Li chose the two most vibrant violets and began to dig the soil out with her bare hands. Her fair fingers were soon stained black. Stabs of pain shot through her mental sea—the sensation of having her own derivatives forcibly stripped away was agonizing, but Wen Li gritted her teeth and pressed on. Finally, she held the two violets, roots and soil intact, in her palms. It took a long moment of recovery before she could stand.

Without delay, Wen Li dragged her weakened body into Yueli’s mental sea. Lin Zheng watched as the golden-haired girl holding the Sentinel grew visibly pale, her soft lips drained of all color. His golden eyes darkened, hiding emotions that were impossible to decipher.

Wen Li arrived at the iron-eating beast’s location with Little Flash. The blue butterfly kept turning toward the contamination core, so Wen Li gently twisted its body away. "Don't look, Little Flash. It’s an eyesore."

The contamination core: "..."

Seeing Wen Li return, the iron-eating beast looked up and chirped happily. Landing, Wen Li broke off a bamboo twig to start digging, and the beast joined in to help clear the dirt. Soon, a pit appeared. Wen Li carefully planted the violets inside, praying that there would be no rejection.

The flowers, having lost the nourishment of her mental sea, hung their heads lifelessly. The violet petals began to wither. Just as Wen Li feared that rejection had set in and the transplant had failed, the blue butterfly dove into the flowers.

The two violets instantly came to life, unfurling their delicate petals. Beads of dew dripped from the nearby bamboo leaves into the hearts of the flowers. As the crystalline dew was absorbed, the flowers grew even more brilliant.

*Thank goodness, the transplant was a success.*

Wen Li happily picked up the iron-eating beast and spun around, with Little Flash on its head forced to endure its master's ecstatic twirling. The power of purification spread; this area would not be eroded by contamination for quite some time. Yueli would no longer have to wear that wretched helmet.

The Guide opened his eyes and met the black eyes of the other man, which held a hint of a smile. "Well done, Xiao Li."

Whether it was out of joy for Yueli’s freedom or the excitement of her long-term experiment finally succeeding, the girl’s eyes were brimming with tears about to fall.

Lin Zheng withdrew his psychic power to assess the Sentinel. Yueli appeared perfectly normal—no psychic volatility, no signs of aberration, and he was even able to utilize his psychic power. Once they left, no one would ever guess that the Sentinel before them harbored an SS+-level contamination core!

Wen Li was truly formidable. She dared to think, dared to act, and refused to follow convention; her flexible mind was nothing like the Guides protected in their ivory towers. Those old fossils really ought to see what a brilliant pearl she was.

Lin Zheng took Wen Li’s hand to transfer some psychic power to her. "Small in stature, but full of big ideas."

Wen Li needed the replenishment and did not resist the Sentinel’s forceful psychic flow. Once the blue thread entered Lin Zheng’s mental sea, it playfully coiled around his black panther. Wen Li was grateful to the icy-cold but warm-hearted Admiral: "Thank you. When I return, I will certainly help you complete your mission."

Seeing the girl’s complexion gradually flush with color, the Sentinel disconnected the link. "Take your results and show them to Angus. Maybe that old snake will be so shocked his eyes will pop out."

With that, he turned and returned to his monitoring room.