Invasion [Sentinel/Guide] — Chapter 40

The monster on the roof did not appear again. It seemed to have sensed the threat and retreated a safe distance away.

However, the metal ceiling of the restaurant was slowly deforming, bubbling in numerous places and oozing a rust-colored liquid.

That giant human-headed monster was exceptionally cunning.

It no longer launched direct attacks. Instead, it had smeared a massive amount of highly corrosive saliva across every surface it had crawled over.

Having been struck in the face repeatedly, it was consumed with resentment and intended to pry open the entire roof of the airship, peeling back a corner of this tin can.

It wanted to let all the aberrations swarm inside, allowing the people who had brought it such pain time and again to taste its revenge.

Drip.

Parts of the roof had already been eaten through, and thick acidic liquid began to drip down.

The liquid struck the dining table, immediately generating a wisp of pale smoke and corroding a small circular hole into the surface.

Drip.

The sound felt as though it were echoing directly in everyone's hearts, scorching a hole named terror right into their souls.

Everyone stopped what they were doing, raising their heads to look at the ceiling above. They wondered when it would be completely corroded and collapse.

And then expose this cabin full of defenseless guides to the monster's sight.

"Perform a mental stabilization on the sentinel and wake her up."

Lin Yuan said suddenly. Maintaining her firearm-ready posture, she reached out and gently rubbed her shoulder.

"Mental stabilization? Right here?" Shu Jingtong pointed at himself, "Y-you are talking to me?"

The mental realm was a vast yet extremely fragile domain.

When guides entered a sentinel's mindscape, they always proceeded with extreme caution, walking on thin ice and exercising utmost prudence.

A single misstep could cause severe damage to the sentinel's psyche, or cause the guide to become lost forever within the labyrinth of the sentinel's mindscape, never to wake up again.

Therefore, most guides chose to conduct mental stabilization therapy inside dedicated, specialized counseling rooms.

Those high-end counseling rooms specially designated by the Empire would be decorated warmly and comfortably, fitted with gentle-colored carpets, soft loungers, facing sofas, and top-tier soundproofing on the walls.

Before a mental stabilization session began, most guides would observe certain rituals. For instance, sitting quietly to regulate their emotions, playing soft and soothing music, or diffusing light and comforting fruit aromas.

Upon entering a sentinel's mindscape, the guides would also remain gentle and polite, never venturing deep without caution.

They would only carefully pluck away the mental pollutants accumulated on the periphery without being overly crude, prioritizing safety above all else.

There was no precedent for this. Nor would anyone ever perform mental stabilization in such a blood-soaked, crisis-ridden environment.

Especially not for a sentinel who had just suffered severe injuries, whose mindscape was undoubtedly in absolute chaos.

"That's right." Lin Yuan turned her head, looking at him with an expression of absolute certainty, "Your mental stabilization score was first in our class, if I remember correctly."

Although she didn't know her classmates very well, she still retained some impression of the name that took first place in the semester evaluations year after year.

Shu Jingtong's face flushed red. One moment he suspected Lin Yuan was deliberately mocking him, and the next he felt she might actually be right.

Indeed, Lin Yuan's mental power was formidable—so much so that it was utterly out of reach.

Yet when it came to meticulous work like mental stabilization... well, he truly was the top-ranking student in the school.

Shu Jingtong took a deep breath, found a clean spot on his clothes, and hastily wiped his blood-stained hands dry.

As he reached out to place his palm on the sentinel's forehead, he couldn't help but glance up.

Nicole and another female guide had bright, shining eyes and gave him encouraging thumbs-up gestures.

In the corner of his vision, Lin Yuan had already turned her head back, her gaze locked firmly on the roof, as if she knew without looking that Shu Jingtong would take action.

She remembers my grades, too.

Shu Jingtong regulated his breathing, calmed his mind, and gently pressed his warm hand over the sentinel's icy eyes.

...

Lin Yuan felt someone tugging at her clothes.

Turning her head, she saw that the sentinel with the long braided hair had already woken up.

White gauze was wrapped in layers around half of her body, and her face was completely devoid of color. Yet the moment she opened her eyes, she reached out to pull at Lin Yuan.

"You..." She pointed at the rifle Lin Yuan was carrying on her shoulder, "That gun doesn't suit you. Trade with me."

Her initial voice was raspy, but by the time she reached the last word, she had managed to sit up, taking off a smaller Scorpion submachine gun from her waist to exchange with Lin Yuan.

Lin Yuan handed back the heavy assault rifle, took the much lighter submachine gun, and reached out to rub her aching shoulder.

Beneath her oversized deep-blue sportswear, a large patch of inflamed, reddened skin was exposed.

Half of the sentinel's shoulder was completely ruined, yet she used her only movable hand to lift the heavy metal weapon and hoist it onto her own shoulder.

"Y-you can't fire a gun anymore." Shu Jingtong reached out to steady her.

He was the one who had personally bandaged the wound, so he knew how severe the injury truly was. If this person weren't a sentinel, but a guide or an ordinary human, such an injury would have been fatal two or three times over.

That clumsy temporary stitching could not withstand the slightest jolt, let alone the powerful recoil of a firearm.

"If I don't shoot, I wait to die." The girl, burdened with heavy dark circles under her eyes, brushed her blood-stained braid behind her back