System vs Rebirth

"NO!" The woman screamed, tears streaming down her eyes. She was struggling to get up, but the chains shackled her entire body. "Why are you doing this?"

"You don't have to be afraid, little lady. This is going to end pretty soon." Gaston brought a small jar to the operating table.

He casually opened it and took out the content, which not only shocked the woman but also Anna.

"!!!" Anna shuddered, thinking, 'Is that a demon in its original form?'

'According to the knowledge we have, it's indeed a demon in its original form.'

'Should we help her? Stopping Gaston and getting information from him.'

'I'm not sure about this. Gaston is Old Jade's disciple, so he will surely want to handle this himself. We should probably report it so that Old Jade knows about it and gets the justification. If we recklessly attack Gaston here, we might end up making Old Jade our enemy.'

Anna knew that Old Jade couldn't be their enemy in this sensitive time. At the same time, if they didn't save the woman, the woman would be killed.

The original Anna was much calmer. While it was true that she had changed, she wasn't influenced completely, which meant she retained her ruthlessness from the past.

The original Anna said, 'In our previous lives, we'll definitely leave that woman be. It's true that a life is important, but if you don't help her right now, you can retain Old Jade as your ally, get more information, and investigate the Dark Lord without any interference.

'On the other hand, if you attack him right now, Old Jade might even become a demonic human. He has worked in the mine as well as a part of our research pillar. If we lose Old Jade, we might experience a big drawback.

'In addition, the Tower Association will realize that we've been sniffing around. They might immediately point their sword to attack us. Even if we have the strength, they can crush our allies. That's why we have to be careful in making a decision.'

The original Anna gave a reasonable input. It was a woman they didn't know, and there were still a lot of people that Gaston could use.

Anna bit her lips. If it was in the past, she would probably decide it in an instant.

'You should steel your heart. Instead of helping, you should see this through, know what is going to happen to other people, and do something to prevent it. Don't help her right now because we'll be clueless as to what is going to happen if a human swallows a demon. For example, that Gaston might already be a demonic human who manages to camouflage himself like a real human.

If that is correct, we can expect that demons have truly been living among us.'

Anna gritted her teeth.

"NO!"

"Please!"

"Don't!"

The woman continued screaming, agonizing her heart. She had never thought she had changed so much that hearing them scream like this pained her heart so much.

Anna clutched her chest, knowing that she would get the retribution for this. That woman could hate her for not saving her.

But the moment Gaston shoved that demon into her mouth, her body convulsed violently as the demon made its way inside of her.

Her eyes rolled back, instantly losing control over her body.

Her skin was being peeled from the inside, especially her hands. It was similar to what happened to the corpse they found earlier. Instead of her legs, it was her hands.

The flesh kept expanding until it was four times its original size. Then, the skin was reinforced and stopped for a moment. The other parts of her body began to transform as well.

"Hmm…" Gaston observed her while taking note. "Talk to me, demon."

"Y…Y… Yes—Haaa!" The woman uttered a single word before it spat a mouthful of blood. Its throat burst as if it were unable to contain the demon power.

"One word, huh?" Gaston contemplated. "As expected, a stronger body is needed to host a demon. A normal person becoming a demonic human will just end up becoming this grotesque creature. Animals have higher durability and lower consciousness, so they don't resist as much as humans.

"It seems that I have to find a spirit apprentice and a spirit practitioner next to see whether they can succeed or not.

"It seems that the demons have absorbed the knowledge from the human's mind and are able to talk. If it works, they might be able to live among other humans."

Gaston looked satisfied. "Now that I think about it, that human has gone there. Is he going to be the next specimen?"

"!!!" Anna widened her eyes in shock. The way Gaston worded it was as if he wasn't a human anymore. In that case, he must have indeed swallowed a demon and still retained his consciousness.

The problem was what he said earlier. A new specimen? For Gaston to think of that person highly meant he was strong. And there was only one person he would mention and one place he could go, it was Old Jade who visited the Dark Lord.

'Not good.' Anna's heart sank. All those words had forced her to make a decision. This time, she knew what she had to do.

Gaston suddenly turned around as if he sensed a presence.

"Hmm?" Gaston furrowed his eyebrows as he walked back outside the cell, checking what was going on with this basement. No one could be seen inside the corridor.

"Is it just my feeling?" Gaston spread his spiritual energy to check the entire basement, counting the number of people inside. "All of them are there. It seems that I've mistaken. Maybe I've become a bit too excited with this new subject."

Little did he know, Anna had exited the basement.

"Ha… Ha…" Anna was gritting her teeth, hating herself for having to escape.

"Is there something wrong?" Melissa was worried, wondering what happened inside the basement.

"We only have several hours. We need to go to the Dark Lord's mansion right now and find Old Jade. Something might happen to him."

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