The drug dealer was taken aback.

What kind of question was that?

He instinctively looked toward the woman, only to find her head lowered as she undid the final restraint, her expression unreadable.

He quickly came to his senses.

Oh—

He understood.

She was showing off.

Big shots were like that sometimes. Even when they were dying to hear some flattery, they wouldn’t lower themselves to ask for it directly; they had to make it seem like the other person felt compelled to speak.

Thinking he had found the answer, the drug dealer’s expression became even more respectful.

“I know a little bit.”

He lowered his voice.

“It’s because the one collaborating with your organization plans to unveil their ‘Masterpiece’ at the auction banquet tomorrow, right?”

The woman gave a noncommittal “Mm.”

The drug dealer was delighted, it seemed he had guessed correctly.

He continued even more fervently:

“Everyone has been looking forward to it for a long time. Never mind the big shots who are actually qualified to attend the banquet; even someone like me, who can’t get in, has heard of the Masterpiece’s great reputation.”

This wasn’t entirely flattery.

He knew very well that the drugs he peddled were nothing more than low-grade experimental products.

Yet even those experimental products could indeed allow ordinary people to awaken abilities for a short period of time.

So what about the Masterpiece?

Would it truly be able to knock open that door, allowing ordinary people to touch transcendent power?

Just thinking about the possibility made the power of the “Masterpiece” feel bone-chilling.

But, at this thought, the drug dealer suddenly felt a twinge of discomfort.

He felt that it was better for there to be a clear order of status between transcendents and ordinary people.

This world was meant to have the capable standing at the top.

If those lowly commoners could access their power, wouldn’t everything fall into chaos?

However, these were ultimately just thoughts in his head.

How the truly important figures decided to use the Masterpiece was not for a lackey like him to comment on.

Moreover, “that person” collaborating with the Radiant Foundation—the man known in the underworld as “The Doctor”—did not seem like a merciful person, whether in rumors or in practice.

Perhaps the Masterpiece wasn’t what he imagined it to be?

In the midst of his chaotic thoughts, the restraints on his body were finally fully undone.

Feeling the freedom returning to his limbs, the drug dealer grew agitated with excitement, nearly falling to his knees before the woman.

“Thank you! Thank you so much!”

He bowed repeatedly.

The woman ignored his gratitude, simply turning to walk toward the door.

“Follow me.”

“Yes, yes.”

The drug dealer immediately followed.

The corridor was quiet. As he trailed behind the woman, he asked cautiously:

“Where are we going next?”

Without looking back, the woman said:

“Since you were interrogated, we need to conduct an investigation on our end to see exactly how much information you leaked.”

The drug dealer’s heart tightened, and he said hurriedly:

“I didn’t reveal a thing! Everything I said was exactly what the organization told me I was allowed to disclose. I didn’t say a single word about anything else.”

The woman didn’t respond, making the drug dealer even more uneasy.

He could only reassure himself in his mind that everything should be fine.

While a small fry like him wasn’t exactly important, he had at least handled plenty of business for them; at most, he’d just receive a bit of a warning.

It was all the fault of those outsiders who didn’t follow the rules.

If they hadn’t intervened, why would he have had to suffer like this?

An impulse even surged within the drug dealer’s heart, what if he went back with the Foundation people right now and flaunted his power in front of those outsiders?

But after a second thought, he suppressed the urge.

Better to avoid unnecessary trouble.

He would have the chance to settle this score sooner or later.

Soon, the two of them went downstairs. A black sedan was parked at the hotel entrance.

The woman jerked her chin toward the car.

“Get in.”

The drug dealer hurried to pull open the rear door.

But just as he was about to sit inside, he heard the woman ask coldly:

“What, do you expect me to drive?”

The drug dealer’s entire body stiffened.

“I wouldn’t dare, I wouldn’t dare!”

He quickly shut the rear door, scurried around to the driver’s seat, and sat down in fear and trepidation.

The woman sat in the passenger seat and slammed the door shut.

“Do you know the place?”

Gripping the steering wheel, the drug dealer asked cautiously, “Is it the warehouse near Wansheng Plaza in the West District? I usually meet your people there…”

The woman glanced at him, her eyes devoid of emotion.

“Do you think that’s likely?”

The drug dealer shuddered, sweat breaking out on his forehead.

“Then, then it’s…”

“Somewhere more formal.”

Somewhere more formal?

The drug dealer’s mind raced.

He hadn’t been to many places.

Suddenly, a location came to mind, but it was a place he had only ever heard of.

The drug dealer lowered his voice even further.

“Is it… is it Kiang Wu Hospital?”

On the surface, it was a high-end rehabilitation hospital funded by the Radiant Foundation, primarily admitting patients suffering from aftereffects related to Mana and Calamity pollution.

But rumors had always circulated in the underworld that the hospital was jointly operated by the Radiant Foundation and the organization The Doctor belonged to.

Its true purpose was to collect patient data and conduct certain unsavory experiments.

The woman finally nodded.

“That’s the place.”

The drug dealer’s heart hammered in his chest.

—It really was Kiang Wu Hospital.

Did this mean he might be coming into contact with things at a much higher level this time?

Not daring to ask any more questions, the drug dealer immediately started the car.

Rain pelted the windshield, swept away stroke by stroke by the wipers.

Along the way, the strange woman asked questions intermittently.

At first, the drug dealer was very stiff, answering whatever she asked.

For instance, who gave him the drugs.

Who the drugs went to.

Where the money was placed after every transaction.

Whether he had seen other drug dealers.

He spoke cautiously, yet didn’t dare hide too much.

Because in his view, she was likely asking these to check if he was lying.

However, as he drove, the drug dealer gradually felt something was off.

The road the car was traveling… was not quite the same as the one in his memory.

He was certain he hadn’t taken a wrong turn.

But the scenery on both sides of the street was becoming eerie, bit by bit—

At first, it was still a normal city road at night, with pedestrians, convenience stores, billboards, and residential buildings along the roadside.

But the houses along the street were thinning out, and the road grew emptier and emptier.

The glow of the streetlights turned blurry, as if someone had used their fingers to smear the paint on a canvas.

As he drove further, the buildings by the road even became flat and absurd, like simple pencil sketches drawn by a child.

The windows were crooked.

The doors had no handles.

The streetlights hung from non-existent poles.

Rain fell onto the ground without splashing.

At some point, the clamor of voices and the honking of horns had vanished.

The drug dealer finally realized something was wrong.

“Where… where is this?”

He slammed on the brakes, but the car didn’t stop.

The steering wheel felt as if it were glued to his hands, and the brake pedal felt like it was sinking into a pile of soft mud.

The strange woman in the passenger seat said nothing.

The drug dealer turned his head in terror—

He saw her face begin to blur, like ink soaking into wet paper.

“What on earth are you…”

Before he could finish, a violent headache exploded—

The drug dealer let out a shrill cry as everything before him began to distort!

The street, the rain, the car windows, the lights…

Everything blended together like smeared paint.

A second later, the lights of a hotel room abruptly emerged from those fragments.

The scenery flickered wildly between the inside of the car and the hotel.

He was clearly gripping the steering wheel, yet he could feel his hands tied to the armrests of a chair; he was clearly stepping on the gas, yet he could feel the ropes constricting his ankles.

He heard his own ragged breathing, the sound of a chair being dragged, and a crisp, clear laugh…

“No… something’s wrong…”

The drug dealer trembled all over.

Finally, the world tore apart like a ripped curtain.

To his absolute horror, the drug dealer discovered he was still sitting in the hotel room, the restraints still binding him tightly.

He had never left at all!

Standing before him wasn’t some woman from the Radiant Foundation.

It was that seemingly flustered blonde girl who had knocked him down in the alley.

Except, she was completely different now.

Though her appearance hadn’t changed, her expression, her gaze, and her aura had all transformed.

She leaned down slightly, her crimson pupils like flowing fire, exuding a suffocating pressure.

Those weren’t the eyes of a human at all.

Instead, they brought to mind a Demon King ruling the world from the darkness…

With just one look, the drug dealer felt as if an icy hand had gripped his heart, making even breathing difficult.

The girl lowered her eyes, looking at him with pity, and then let out a soft chuckle.

“Did you wake up after all?”

“In the end, I can’t completely fool someone with an illusion of a place I’ve never seen.”

“A pity.”