Wow! The item-dropping rate is really high!

"Why did you attack me?" Bai E got straight to the point, he could only see the obvious malice in the other's eyes, but he never understood why someone he was meeting for the first time wanted to put him to death.

Even in the words he heard during his "death" when he was split in two by a high-energy ray, there was no clear indication of this.

Rose stared at Bai E quietly, her cold demeanor somewhat eerie, like an invisible monster roaring inside her petite body, "To… eat you."

Before Bai E could ask any questions, Rose explained first, "Genetic extractor."

It was also one of Grey Iron City's cybernetic enhancements, yet most of the warriors could hardly endure the surgery, so not many warriors knew about it.

Only she... someone born with an "undying physique," could successfully undergo the surgery and allow her body to finally get used to that sinister and powerful special ability through a long series of regenerations and dissolutions—

Devouring.

By devouring the organic tissue of the target, one could gain the abilities the target excelled in, and even memories, knowledge, and so on; the theoretical effect was incredibly powerful, but there always seemed to be something lacking in practice. Anything extracted was almost always a damaged version, but with enough substances absorbed, it could lead to subtle and pervasive improvements.

"As far as I know, I'm the only one in the entire city who has successfully completed this surgical transformation and survived," Rose said quietly as she watched Bai E, "so I'm of great value to them, and they will spare no expense to track down and retrieve my body."

Bai E narrowed his eyes, "Are you threatening me?"

"No," Rose said earnestly, shaking her head, "I hope you can appreciate the significance of this and provide the technical support to help me remove the tracker inside my body. I can't do it myself… and I can't rely on them."

Rose glanced at the two survivors beside her while she spoke. They didn't understand Rose, but Rose, who had the memories, understood them.

Their stance was quite chaotic, their minds disturbed by cybernetic enhancements, always on the verge of doing something unexpected impulsively, capable of anything.

Unreliable.

"But you just attacked me," Bai E said, staring intently into her eyes. Eyes are the windows to the soul; they also speak.

"It's the brand the doctor etched into me; I couldn't resist."

"And now?"

"The repeated deaths and resurrections in a short period seem to have diluted the brand's hold over me; that's the only explanation, otherwise, it would be difficult for me to sit here and talk to you calmly now."

"How can I trust someone who just attacked me? Even under the assumption that we are comrades…"

Rose smiled, like a cloud floating in the sky.

She stood up slowly and carefully in the least suspicious way possible, bowed seriously to Bai E, "As a form of atonement, after I have fulfilled my responsibility, I will vanish completely. All the sins of the past will have nothing to do with the next master of this body. I only wish to give the next successor absolute freedom."

"What if I intend to pursue this to the end?"

"Although I don't believe Your Excellency to be a person of such cruelty, if you really can do it, an eternal calm, I suppose, is something every transient guest of this body would like to see."

Rose's gaze was calm, and her quiet recitation of these facts made her as trustworthy as the most rational sage.

"…" Bai E said nothing more.

It was clear what Rose meant; she wanted to follow him and have him help her completely escape the control of Grey Iron City.

He might gain a subordinate with endless potential, but at the same time, a ticking time bomb.

Grey Iron City placed great importance on her; they would surely pursue her relentlessly.

If the hiding was good, then all was well, but if it was not and they were exposed...

The variables involved in an inter-city conflict were too numerous.

With his current status, he couldn't even judge what stance Blackwater City would take towards a neighboring ally.

And if he didn't wish to take her in, walking away after a slap on the backside probably wouldn't be a problem... provided that the big wigs of Grey Iron City didn't mind everything that happened since Rose attacked him.

Probably... they wouldn't mind, right?

As long as he didn't take away Rose, whom they valued greatly...

"What should I do?" Bai E whispered softly, as if seeking advice.

Only Rose, who was close at hand, heard his voice and turned her head, her bright eyes focusing on Bai E's profile, "You know what kind of person you are, don't you?"

What kind of person am I…

Bai E let out a snort of laughter and sighed.

Looking at the white-haired figure sincerely gazing into his eyes, Bai E asked, "Will your successor remember all this?"

"Bits and pieces, all unclear; anything is possible."

"How do you plan to ensure that your successor can achieve true freedom?"

"Spiritual Energy…" the white-haired one asserted firmly, "That's the only power I can control freely. I will use a part of my Spiritual Energy to eternally seal the current indistinct branding. I'm not sure if this attempt will be effective, but it's the only effort I can make."

"…"

A marvelous world where anything can happen.

Everyone is taking risks.

Bai E nodded and finally asked, "I could carry a few words for you, to your… successor."

"…" The question seemed to stump the white-haired one, as if she had never considered this.

After a long pondering, she looked at Bai E seriously and spoke word by word.

As if standing opposites her was the same body being manipulated by another stranger's soul—

So her gaze was soft, as tender as water.

"Milk tastes good, so do chicken, duck, and fish, and synthetic food is nice at first, but it gets tiresome after a while.

Exercise regularly, ensure you rest, and remember to brush your teeth. Don't trust others too easily, but don't give up on trust; having someone you can fully rely on is very fulfilling.

Read more, think more. Regardless of what you study, what you think about, just ask yourself one thing—what's the fact.

Never let what you want to believe, what others want to believe, or what is beneficial to the majority influence you, but simply scrutinize, what's the fact.

And last, but most importantly, remember this—love is wise, hatred is foolish."

The white-haired one pursed her lips, looking at the other self's apparition, and said goodbye: "Farewell…"

In the slight quiet, Bai E spoke softly, "What if I suddenly change my mind? You could go on living…"

The white-haired one blinked, smiled with a spectral sort of misery, "I still remember the thing about the branding… I have to disappear completely. Only a thorough and clean rebirth can possibly bring about real freedom."

"What is your name?"

"I have no name…" the white-haired one's eyes were filled with confusion, "They always called me Alpha, or Captain. But… Feier Ade, you can call me Feier Ade. It's the name I gave myself."
Your journey continues at My Virtual Library Empire

Also called… "Freedom."

"I ask of you… don't let this body's next owner die again, it really hurts."

"…I promise."

"Heh~" The white-haired one smiled brightly and then collapsed thunderously.

When the persistence that drove her actions disappeared, Spiritual Energy could no longer sustain this soul's "life."

…

"Hiss hiss hiss… it hurts, it hurts~" Not long after collapsing, the white-haired one woke up again, holding her head and grimacing in pain every few minutes.