Chapter 157: The Fatal Core of the Life-Abhorring Beast

As the chief data archivist of the Lighthouse, Gordon had recorded a vast amount of information and data. Even though he could not comprehend some of the advanced technological data, he was certainly knowledgeable and well-traveled enough to earn the title.

Moreover, he had recorded an extensive amount of historical records.

He had recorded the tragic plight of the surface survivors, the casualties of the Dusters, the changes in the Mana ecology, the enactment of the three major laws, and detailed accounts of how normal human family relationships turned into taboos overnight.

Having recorded all these things, his hair was gray, but his eyes were exceptionally bright.

From the very first moment he saw Zhou Shu, he knew that Zhou Shu was no ordinary surface survivor. He had seen plenty of surface survivors—far more than Instructor Elon of the Dusters—and had been in close contact with many of them.

He had listened to those survivors complain, witnessed their arrogance, and seen their numbness, but someone of Zhou Shu's caliber was exceedingly rare.

If he had to compare him to anyone, it would be that silver-haired woman who came to the Lighthouse more than thirty years ago.

The same solitary survivor, the same supreme combat capability, except that Zhou Shu lacked a specialized "heavy-duty armored rig."

However, he said nothing, nor did he report it to anyone else. Having lived on the Lighthouse for so many years, his guiding principle was: speak less, do more.

Especially for a data archivist like him.

He only recorded objectively and never made subjective remarks.

Therefore, upon hearing Zhou Shu ask about the archives room, he frowned and initially intended not to reply. But thinking of his upcoming "long journey"—that the day he would leave the Lighthouse was fast approaching—he instead grew curious about certain special matters.

"Little brother Zhou Shu, why are you inquiring about the location of the archives room?"

Originally, Zhou Shu had not expected Gordon to say anything to him. Since the two of them were sitting opposite each other in silence with no phones to play with, it felt a bit boring, so he had just asked casually.

He didn't expect Gordon to answer right away.

Zhou Shu noticed that Gordon was missing a tooth. Could that be why he had a "lisp"?

Still, this was a good thing; as long as communication was possible, Zhou Shu replied cheerfully, "Naturally, it's to acquire knowledge. Did you think I was here to cause destruction?"

"By the way, Elder Gordon, do you have any records regarding humanoid mechanical equipment in your archives? Combat gear similar to the heavy-duty rigs, or perhaps even larger?"

Gordon pondered for a moment upon hearing this.

Considering Zhou Shu's combat strength, he ought to tell him.

Others might not believe it because they had never seen it, but Gordon had seen such things, so he believed it.

Even if he didn't say anything now, Zhou Shu would surely ask someone else later or even resort to extreme measures.

Besides, he was well-informed about the affairs on the Lighthouse. Seeing the green badge on Zhou Shu's chest, combined with the gossip he had overheard from the central command room that morning, he already knew what had happened.

Charles was once again using the Light and Shadow Church to disrupt the normal operations of the Lighthouse.

Ever since the founding of the Light and Shadow Church, and as Charles grew older, he had truly become increasingly unbridled.

As an elder of the Lighthouse and a man of wide experience, he knew what religion truly was. If the Lighthouse were truly allowed to be controlled by the Light and Shadow Church, humanity might truly be finished.

Now that his time to leave was near, such a figure had suddenly appeared on the Lighthouse. Perhaps...

He thought for a moment, looked at Zhou Shu, and said calmly, "The location of the archives is easy enough to tell you, but getting inside is not so simple. Without authorization, unless you can silently break through that steel door, you are bound to trigger a chain reaction. If you're truly here to acquire knowledge, I imagine you wouldn't want that."

"As for information on humanoid combat equipment, naturally, it exists. Humanoid combat gear larger than heavy-duty rigs is called 'mechas.' However, the Dusters have only ever recovered partial data and fragments. The Lighthouse lacks the corresponding manufacturing equipment, so it cannot build them."

"They are gigantic in size and have extremely high maintenance requirements. With the surface reduced to its current state, there probably aren't any intact mechas left on Earth, and the manufacturing center likely doesn't have a complete one either."

"If you're hoping to build a mecha here, you might end up disappointed."

As the chief archivist of the Lighthouse, Gordon knew a great deal. He was even one of the very few who knew that the humans on the Lighthouse were not the last of humanity.

He knew there were people on the surface, and he also knew there were people on the moon.

Yet these secrets would rot away in his heart because he was merely an archivist, and he knew that speaking of them was useless—the people gathered on the Lighthouse were, in truth, the abandoned ones.

His words carried a high degree of credibility. But no matter how high, he could never know where Zhou Shu truly came from, or what he actually was.

To Zhou Shu, having the data was enough; he had no intention of building mechas here anyway.

Besides, just because there were none on the surface did not mean there were none on the moon. Zhou Shu still held high expectations for those big shots up on the moon.

One day, he would piece together a spaceship on the surface and go up to the moon to take a look.

After finishing this conversation, Zhou Shu realized that this old gentleman was a living database, and since he was so easy to talk to, he could have a good chat with him first.

However, before they could discuss anything else, Mark arrived. Because he was the closest—the Dusters' training hall was located on the outer ring of the Lighthouse, far from the core residential area of the marksmen—he rushed over the moment he received the notification.

"Zhou Shu, do you really know a way to completely kill the Gu-ji beasts?"

Mark was extremely anxious. He truly wanted to wipe out all the Gu-ji beasts and allow people to return to the surface to live.

As long as they could return to the surface to live anew, people would no longer have to abide by the perverted three major laws.

Yet, despite killing a fair number of Gu-ji beasts, they had never truly managed to completely kill a single one; even if they cut off their heads, those monsters always managed to regenerate.

"Yes."

Zhou Shu leaned back against the chair and motioned for him to sit down and not be so anxious.

Mark was very obedient; told to sit, he sat, and then he listened as Zhou Shu said, "We fought against the Gu-ji beasts for a long time and discovered that there is an energy core inside their bodies. That thing is the key."

"A Gu-ji beast is like a network transmission device. What you call 'killing' is actually just scraping the exterior paint off the thing without damaging its foundation. The energy core of a Gu-ji beast is equivalent to the 'network cable'; you have to sever the 'network cable' to cut off the external signal so that they can truly die."

Zhou Shu paused here. Gordon was rapidly taking notes, while Mark furrowed his brows in confusion and asked, "If that's the case, then why was the Gu-ji beast you killed during the last battle able to regenerate?"

"That is precisely what I am about to explain, and it is just as important as the Gu-ji beast's core."

Zhou Shu raised a finger. "First, the location of the energy core varies in every Gu-ji beast, and the core can even shift its position within a small range. To hit the core, you must pre-target its location."

"To pre-target it, you either pin it down so the core cannot move and then kill it, or destroy the core with the utmost speed before it has time to shift."

Having said that, Zhou Shu raised a second finger. "Second, the flesh of a Gu-ji beast after it truly dies will rapidly melt into black water and detach from the skeleton. You must never let this black water come into contact with human blood, or the casualties among those present might be even greater."

"What do you mean?" Mark grew even more anxious, pressing directly against the glass partition.

Instead of answering directly, Zhou Shu posed a question to him: "You know what Breath Soil is, right?"

"I know. It usually appears near Mana Flowers, especially large-scale Mana Flowers."

Mark answered quickly. After all, he had spent years fighting on the surface and had witnessed plenty of things.

As soon as he finished speaking, as if realizing something, he stared at Zhou Shu in shock: "You mean, Breath Soil is actually the black water left behind when a Gu-ji beast melts after death?"

Hearing this, Zhou Shu shook his head. "Black water is just black water; it only turns into Breath Soil after it comes into contact with human blood. People were already injured on the battlefield at that time, and blood was beginning to spill randomly. If I had completely destroyed them then, it would have truly come down to pure luck for the Dusters."

Hearing Zhou Shu put it that way, Mark could already picture the scene in his mind.

Indeed, if Breath Soil were to erupt, they would simply have to rely on whoever was lucky enough to scramble onto a vehicle and flee.

Having figured this out, Mark breathed a sigh of relief, broke into a smile, and said, "This intelligence is far too important to us. With it, we might truly be able to return to the surface."

"By the way, Zhou Shu, how do you determine the location of their energy cores? Is there some kind of equipment?"

"No, I rely on my senses," Zhou Shu looked at him helplessly. "You guys might need to research a targeting device from scratch."

Mark: "..."

"Uh, haha," Mark said awkwardly, "Fortunately you can tell the difference. For us, it's still good news."

"Hard to say," Zhou Shu shook his head. "I still have work to go back to."

Upon hearing this and catching sight of Zhou Shu's green chest badge, Mark's face instantly darkened.