Chapter 031: This Creature Is Called a Core Worm

“Shian Pest Control Company?”

Li Tianque’s face was filled with horror. He reached up to his empty head and instantly felt a mingling of shock and rage. Unable to contain himself, he slammed his fist into the cabinet beside him.

“Damn it! What kind of freakish place is this? Change my head back, now!”

Lu Mou cast him a sidelong glance, then picked up a pitch-black pipe from the desk and clamped it between his teeth. He said, in an eerie tone:

“You’d best not touch anything in this room. Besides… flaring your nostrils and glaring won’t solve anything.”

Li Tianque grew even angrier and was about to retort when he suddenly noticed something amiss.

He realized that when he smashed his fist against the cabinet, his hand had involuntarily splayed open, and all five fingers had twisted into a V shape, as if someone had broken them apart.

Strangely, he felt no pain at all.

Li Tianque stared wide-eyed at the uncanny cabinet. It looked like any ordinary brown standing cabinet, though its grain was sharper and the material very solid, with a slightly aged appearance.

On top of the cabinet sat two vases and several books. Both vases were oddly U-shaped, with an opening at one end, from which two snake plants grew. The books were all laid open, each page standing rigidly upright, separated from the others. If not for the bindings, these pages might have flown off entirely.

Li Tianque quickly realized that this cabinet was far from ordinary. Everything that touched its surface seemed to twist into a V shape, assuming a peculiar state.

He swallowed, still feeling unsettled, but with an effort managed to calm himself.

Li Tianque understood at last: though he was in a bizarre place, shouting and flailing would accomplish nothing; nothing would change.

So, suppressing his fury, he sat down opposite Lu Mou, flexing his fingers as he asked,

“What exactly do you want?”

“What do you hope I want?” Lu Mou retorted.

“Obviously—to save me! And… restore my body to normal!” Li Tianque snapped.

“To save you would be an act of mercy. But if you expect it as my duty, you’re thinking too much.” Lu Mou puffed on his pipe, exhaling a curl of smoke, then gently placed the test tube he was holding onto the rack.

“You’re no cop, you bastard!”

Li Tianque raised his other fist, intending to strike Lu Mou, but Lu Mou didn’t even try to dodge.

He simply inhaled deeply from his pipe, then blew a cloud of smoke into Li Tianque’s face.

Li Tianque inhaled the thick smoke and immediately felt faint, his body numb, frozen in place.

Lu Mou stretched lazily and rose to his feet.

“My friend, if you want someone’s help, even if you’re not polite, at least let me finish speaking…”

“You… you…”

Lu Mou chuckled lightly, pipe in mouth, and continued at leisure:

“This is Shian Pest Control Company. As the name suggests, we eliminate pests.

But our work is rather special. The pests we deal with aren’t cockroaches or bedbugs, but far more dangerous creatures—they’re called ‘Nuclear Bugs.’

Perhaps you’ll say, whatever we’re dealing with, it has nothing to do with you, right?

But you should realize, I brought you here precisely because you have a connection to this place.”

As he spoke, Lu Mou walked over to the cabinet Li Tianque had struck. He donned a shimmering mesh glove and stroked the cabinet’s surface, saying:

“Nuclear Bugs are a species that appeared before humanity. They’re composed of three highly toxic elements—tritium, radium, polonium—and carbon. Depending on the ratios of these four substances, each Nuclear Bug has unique properties.

They are incredibly resilient and adapt to environmental changes through evolutionary mutation. In some ways, physiologically, they surpass humans.

But due to their structure, they can only survive in environments of intense nuclear radiation. Originally, they couldn’t reach the surface.

They live deep in the earth’s core, where radiation is strongest, breeding for generations.

But as nuclear energy has been exploited and developed in recent years, surface radiation levels have risen, providing them with a habitat.

Through evolutionary mutation, some Nuclear Bugs have gained the ability to survive on the surface. Most resemble insects, arthropods, annelids, and so on, hence their name.

We at Shian Pest Control specialize in handling cases involving Nuclear Bugs. Though we’re called pest control, some Nuclear Bugs are kept here for research or other reasons.”

Lu Mou tapped gently on the cabinet. His glove twinkled with iridescent light, and the cabinet responded with an eerie sound, reminiscent of a frog’s croak.

Pointing at it, Lu Mou continued,

“This cabinet is actually a Nuclear Bug called ‘Reverse Oar.’

It can parasitize any wooden surface and merge completely with its host.

When struck violently, it causes the contact area to twist, usually in a V shape. After the twist, there’s no obvious pain, but the deformation can cause actual harm. Your fist is a case in point.”

Li Tianque was paralyzed, his throat stuffed as if with burlap, unable to speak, glaring furiously at Lu Mou as he listened.

Lu Mou moved away from the cabinet and approached Li Tianque, his expression suddenly grave. He picked up the test tube again and said to Li Tianque,

“By now, you should have guessed—the creature in your head is also a parasitic Nuclear Bug.

That bug is called ‘Night Eye.’ It’s powerful; according to our danger scale, Night Eye ranks at 67.

It parasitizes the brainstem. Once infected, you gain the ability to foresee death, seeing others’ death shadows and predicting their demise.

Of course, it’s not much of a blessing. Once Night Eye drains enough energy from you, it will induce you to see false death shadows—your own.

When these false death shadows appear, they fill you with fear and provide misleading information about your death, driving you toward suicide.

Simply put, the death shadow and imminent danger you saw at the plaza were hallucinations. Your leap into the pool to escape the explosion was, ironically, the real risk of drowning.”

With that, Lu Mou rubbed the test tube’s wall against Li Tianque’s lips. A viscous white smoke seeped out from between his clenched lips, and Li Tianque opened his mouth, finding himself able to speak again.

“You… you mean… there’s a monster inside my head?”

“Yes.”

“So after I jumped, it was you who saved me? There was no tanker or anything?”

“Correct. To keep you from losing your mind, I brought you to Shian Pest Control. Now, the black mist on your head is a substance called ‘Active Iodine,’ which temporarily suppresses Nuclear Bugs. It’s currently the most feared substance among them.

Unfortunately, the Night Eye in your head is already mature and fully adapted to your body. Expelling it is nearly impossible. And if you destroy it, you’ll die as well.”

Li Tianque felt as if struck by lightning. He swallowed hard and asked,

“So… I just have to live with this black mist forever?”

Lu Mou laughed and said,

“Hah, wishful thinking. Active Iodine is far rarer and more precious than you imagine, and it’s impossible to buy. If you want to keep living through it, you’ll have to earn it!”

Li Tianque knew Lu Mou was up to no good, but by now, he had no choice but to trust him.

“So what do you want from me?”

(End of chapter)