Chapter 19: Collective Pacification

Not only he, but the sentinels nearby, who had been frantic, also calmed down, their expressions dazed. They stood rooted to the spot for a moment, their gazes wandering as if searching for something.

The uncharacteristic behavior of the sentinels puzzled the support staff behind them for a moment, until their attention was diverted by instruments suddenly lighting up. The console projected a holographic display, scrolling through a series of data. Seeing the instrument emit a blue light unlike anything they had ever seen, a chubby man asked the staff member next to him, "What is this? Is it a signal of approaching xenomorphs or pollutants?"

The staff member stared at the scrolling data for a long time, checking the terminal several times to ensure the instrument was not malfunctioning, before saying in disbelief, "This seems to be... a Guide’s psychic frequency."

Another staff member exclaimed in shock, "The higher-ups sent a Guide? How is that possible?"

The support staff, who had been sitting comfortably, could no longer sit still after seeing the Guide data. They stood up one after another to investigate. "Impossible. If a Guide had arrived, how could we not have received word? The instrument must be faulty. Repair it quickly, or reporting incorrect data will be a nightmare to deal with!"

Upon hearing this, and seeing the nearby sentinels—who had been restless—suddenly calm down and turn in unison to walk toward a certain location, Nyx realized what was happening. His heart skipped a beat. "Oh no!" he cursed, and immediately sprinted back toward the place where Yu Xia and the others were hiding.

At that moment, the sentinels who had settled in the small town not far from the exit, as well as many stationed at the exit itself, had almost all been "netted" by Yu Xia’s psychic power. Most of them were in a semi-dazed state, drawn toward them by that soothing mental energy.

Just as those sentinels were getting closer to the house where Yu Xia was, the door was slammed open by the returning Nyx!

Nyx looked at Yu Xia in Huo Lin’s arms and said sternly to Huo Lin, "Wake her up!" He then corrected himself, "No, wait—don't wake her up abruptly."

Huo Lin saw him reach out to take Yu Xia and dodged, asking, "What exactly is going on?"

Nyx replied, "Find a way to wake Yu Xia, but do it gently! Otherwise, every sentinel in this polluted zone will be summoned here!"

Huo Lin paused, immediately grasping what Nyx meant. Those sentinels outside were being drawn in by the psychic energy radiating from Yu Xia!

Inside the house, the sentinels saw Yu Xia’s eyes tightly shut, sweat beading on her forehead, her breathing slightly rapid. The skin exposed on her body was already showing signs of alienation. A tearing sound echoed, and the sentinels looked toward the source: Yu Xia’s trousers had been ripped apart by her legs, which were transforming into a fish tail. Before their eyes, her legs merged into a long, pink fishtail.

The alienation continued. Scales grew on Yu Xia’s smooth fishtail, reflecting brilliant points of light in the dimly lit room, shimmering like gemstones. Baru watched her beautiful fishtail with shimmering eyes, momentarily entranced. He couldn't resist reaching out to touch it, but the fishtail was highly sensitive; the moment he made contact, it whipped around and slapped him.

The force of the fishtail was not insignificant, but to a thick-skinned sentinel, it felt like a mere tickle. Baru rubbed his face, which had been slapped, and chuckled foolishly.

"What are you touching?!" Nyx grabbed Baru by the collar and hauled him aside.

Huo Lin cast a cold glance at Baru, then walked around the room while holding Yu Xia, calling softly, "Yu Xia, wake up."

Yu Xia’s consciousness was still out there, searching for new targets. Every time her psychic power soothed a sentinel, the fear in her heart diminished, so she sought to continuously appease those turbulent mental energies to find relief for herself. While the others in the room paced anxiously, Huo Lin patiently continued to call her name.

Yu Xia was not merely sleeping; her consciousness was drifting outside. If someone were to wake her forcefully or violently, it would damage her mental state.

Just as the nearest sentinels were only a dozen meters from their house, Yu Xia was finally roused by Huo Lin. As soon as she woke, the sentinels drawn by her psychic power lost their target.

"What happened? Why am I here?" The sentinels were now even more confused. "Strange, I clearly sensed a very soothing mental energy. Why did it vanish?" "My mental state seems to have recovered a little. Was it just my imagination?"

The sentinels looked around at each other, puzzled. They hadn't been unconscious; they had been following an inner craving, searching for the power that had beckoned them. Now that the power was gone, they were left baffled.

"Could it be a xenomorph?" one sentinel warned. Some xenomorphs were known to lure sentinels, only to devour them once they were trapped.

"Would a xenomorph soothe our minds?" another sentinel pointed out the crucial detail.

The sentinels were stumped, but the slight calm in their mental states allowed them to breathe a little easier. With important tasks still at hand, they didn't dwell on it further.

"Something's not right." A few squad leaders huddled together. Most of them had undergone mental stabilization several times and were familiar with a Guide’s psychic power. Their higher ranks and greater experience allowed them to sense that the power that had soothed them was not simple.

One captain said, "Do you think this feels a bit like..." He didn't finish his sentence, as it seemed too incredible.

Another captain continued, "It does feel like a group soothing by a Guide, but it’s strange." The "strange" part wasn't the event itself, but the nature of the power—it was different from the mental stabilization they had experienced before. It was, in some indescribable way... messy.

"Like a novice Guide?" one captain concluded.

The psychic power they had just felt was like that of a novice who didn't yet know how to properly stabilize sentinels, someone who couldn't control their own power and simply rounded up all the sentinels, forcibly suppressing their turbulent minds. It was a simple, blunt approach, with an underlying hint of aggression. Yet, the raw power could not be underestimated.

"This is not something an ordinary Guide could do." The captains exchanged glances. The biggest problem now was: "Where would a Guide even come from here?"

After discussing it, they all decided that their mental damage must be so severe that they were experiencing hallucinations. The pollution level here was nearing Level 2; it was impossible for a Guide to be here. And a novice Guide, even less so. The White Tower wouldn't even consider sending an inexperienced novice to a dangerous, low-level planet, let alone allowing them to perform mental stabilization on sentinels.

"Ogre, where are you going?"

Somewhere on the street, a group of mercenaries was gathered. Watching their captain, Ogre, walk away without looking back, they prepared to follow, only to be stopped by Ogre. "Wait here. I'm going to find someone."