Monster Dismantling Company

Chapter 21 Exchange

"Oh...is that so?"

Why do you seem a little unhappy?

"It's nothing, I just suddenly feel a little...lost. I feel like I've missed out on something."

The more perfect the meat, the more precious the captured test subject, the more it indicates that the gift has been prepared. In a sense, he has rendered the meaning of this gift a mere illusion.

Master Wang was about to ask more questions when his communicator suddenly rang:

"What? Such a thing actually happened?"

"What happened?" Li Lin asked.

"We found a strange area inside the monster's body. It was furnished like a home, with carved beds, tables, and chairs. They even found a girl's dress in the pool. The dress was floating on the water; it looked like a school uniform. Tsk, this is really bizarre. Did someone get eaten and end up living in there...? Hey? What's wrong with you?"

For the first time ever, Li Lin was clutching his chest with his hand.

"Are you alright? Did you eat something bad?"

"It's nothing...it's nothing...it's just that I suddenly feel a little...a little tense, and a little short of breath."

He didn't know if it was because his senses were heightened, or something else. He felt very tightness in his chest.

at the same time.

"Li Lin, you're out too? Thanks a lot this time." After finishing some work handover, the colonel came as soon as he had some free time.

He arrived just as Li Lin was experiencing a heart attack.

"Are you alright? You seem a little...unstable?"

"You can even tell my blood pressure?" He had been treating patients for years, but he never expected that someone would be able to treat him today.

"Your eyes have been blinking. It wasn't so noticeable when you were wearing protective gear, but now that you're only wearing sunglasses, it's very clear."

Taking a deep breath to calm himself down, Li Lin replied, "You... needed something?"

"I was thinking, if I hadn't come to find you, you probably would have needed to talk to me about something."

The colonel was prepared, after all, he seemed to know quite a lot now.

Li Lin just revealed his obviously unnatural eyes, but remained composed. This indicates that Li Lin has already tacitly acknowledged that he is in the know.

So, what is the cost of knowing the truth?

"Then, let's talk about your situation."

"Wait a minute," the colonel suddenly spoke up, "There's something I want to confirm—when we were fighting the dragon maggots inside Taba, blood rained down from the sky. Before that, there was a force manipulating us. And you... I seem to have noticed that you weren't sucked away with us. So, you handled the whole thing in the end?"

"You can think of it that way. I solved it."

"Then, this item should be your spoils of war."

He looked around, made sure no one was watching, and took a...

Tamago

The bright red bead sat there quietly, its outer shell seemingly polished to an impeccable shine. Deep blue seeped from within, rising and falling like tides, its shimmering frequency mirroring a heartbeat—in sync with Li Lin's. And at the center of the deep blue, a flickering crimson flame danced like a living fire.

Li Lin knew what this was.

He held the beads close to his face, closed his eyes, and the information was perceived by his senses:

Dragon Ball (The Pearl of the Earth)

Dragon Balls are the core of power that all dragons, including Taba, possess.

The difference is that a "quasi-monster" like Taba does not actually possess a real Dragon Ball; it is too small to be detected.

The dragon pearl in Li Lin's hand belonged to the girl who called herself "Ren." Only a true dragon could possess such a pearl.

Li Lin himself also had it; it was in his mind. To him, it was something as important as life itself.

He had never seen his own Dragon Balls before. He also never expected to see the Dragon Balls in their true form here.

Without a doubt, the Dragon Ball would be of great use to him, granting him immense power. Just looking at it gave him the urge to swallow it whole. This urge was almost instinctive—an instinct to yearn for transcendence and evolution.

This was also the first Dragon Ball he had ever seen, from a dragon that had just started courting him.

His eyes began to flicker again.

"Hmm." The colonel noticed Li Lin's expression. "It seems this really should be yours."

Li Lin opened his eyes: "Where did you find it?"

"You should have heard that we found a place with signs of habitation inside. The Dragon Ball was found there, in the center of the pool. I was the first one there, and nobody else saw it when it was picked up. It looks like this is the loot you left behind."

"What about that room?" he pressed.

"It dissolved. After I picked up the bead, the entire space dissolved. Others just thought it was Taba's self-degradation."

He looked directly into Li Lin's eyes, offering an explanation for his actions.

He didn't explain his motives, but simply recounted his actions in detail. He had observed over the past few hours that Li Lin lacked patience. He didn't like listening to what people said; that was too troublesome. He preferred to hear "what was done," which he could then judge for himself.

Li Lin shook his head: "Tsk, you've really picked up a formidable one. So, Colonel, what can I do for you?"

He knew from a young age that if you take something from someone else, you have to give something back.

"First of all, don't kill me just because I know too much. I know you've shared some information with me."

Perhaps to save time, or perhaps because he thought the colonel was a dying man, Li Lin revealed some information—the colonel also knew that he seemed to know something extraordinary.

"Don't worry. Let's not even talk about how murder is illegal. If I didn't want you to know, I wouldn't have told you in the first place, right? So, this doesn't count."

He looked at the colonel:

"I'll ask one more time. I'll accept this bead. Is there anything I can do for you?"

The colonel spoke without hesitation: "I want to live! Please heal me! I still have so much to do. I'm just a colonel; I want to be a general in the defense force!"

"I can't interfere with the general's affairs. I can't cure you either. But I can save your life."

He took two steps to the side, pulled out Master Wang's dagger, and cut open his own palm, blood gushing out.

Take out the test tube containing the biological sample from the bag and catch it; a stream of fresh blood flows into it.

When he thought it was about time, he clenched his fist. When he opened it again, the wound on his palm had healed, leaving only some bloodstains.