The recoil of the high-frequency particle gun made Jiang Lijin's wrist numb. The high-energy beam met no resistance, instantly melting through flesh and hard skull.
Kieran didn't even have time to let out a scream, the flattery from a second ago still lingering on his face. Right in the center of his forehead, a scorched, gaping blood hole appeared, its edges still smoking with faint white vapor.
The foul stench of instantly charred flesh rushed into her nose. The hand Kieran had used to grip her tightly completely lost its strength and dropped heavily.
Jiang Lijin abruptly let go, the miniature particle gun slipping from her fingertips and dropping onto the cold metal floor.
Her stomach instantly churned. She bent over sharply, hands pressing hard on her knees, and began to dry heave violently and uncontrollably.
This was her first time killing someone.
Even though she silently repeated to herself ten thousand times that the other party was a scumbag who deserved to die, having a living person get their head blown off right in front of her eyes—that highly impactful, gruesome sight—still made this soul from a peaceful era feel a profound shudder.
In her mind, Xiao Yi's voice sounded timidly, carrying a slightly aggrieved nasal tone: [Host... are you okay? Don't be afraid, don't be afraid. This kind of scumbag deserves to die. You were just acting in self-defense.]
Jiang Lijin's sudden, furious shout in her mind just now had really given it a good scare, and it still hadn't fully recovered.
Jiang Lijin took a moment to recover and replied in her mind: [The original owner's residual memories and obsessions suddenly surfaced just now. I was almost controlled by them.]
As soon as these words came out, Xiao Yi immediately realized the meaning behind Jiang Lijin's previous curse of [Idiot].
Its originally timid mechanical voice shot up an octave, filled with absolute tension and disbelief: [What?! That goes against the laws of transmigrating into a book! Once this crisis is resolved, I will immediately apply to the main system for a comprehensive deep scan! But Host, now is not the time to worry about this. Quickly check on Baal! He can't hold on much longer!]
Baal's name acted like a shot of adrenaline, forcibly dragging Jiang Lijin out of the fear of killing. She took a deep breath, fought back her nausea to stand up straight, and stumbled toward the quarantine wall.
As soon as she pressed the button to open the door, the air instantly became incredibly viscous, as if even gravity had changed. With every step Jiang Lijin took, it felt like heavy lead weights were strapped to her legs, and breathing became extremely difficult.
This was the spiritual pressure of a 3S-rank powerhouse on the verge of going berserk.
Inside the quarantine wall, Baal had sat up at some point. He clutched his head tightly with both hands, veins bulging on the backs of his hands. He gritted his teeth, letting out suppressed, guttural roars from his throat, clearly locked in a life-and-death tug-of-war with his berserk levels.
That black python rolled on the ground in agony. Its sheer size was so massive that the entire area trembled with its movements.
Jiang Lijin couldn't even get close to that snake.
[How do I do this?] she panted, leaning against the glass wall. [Before I can even touch it, I'll be smashed into a bloody pulp by its tail.]
Xiao Yi quickly scanned the battlefield: [Host, the spiritual entity is currently completely out of control, don't touch it. Start directly with Baal himself. His main body is currently pinned down by the berserk levels, so his physical body is actually relatively quiet.]
Jiang Lijin paused and froze for a moment.
[Start with him? But I only know how to purify spiritual entities. That's all there is in the original owner's memories.]
Xiao Yi seemed to glitch for two seconds before letting out two highly unnatural mechanical coughs: [Ahem... um, Host, do you know how to kiss?]
Jiang Lijin's head was full of question marks: [Don't I have AoE purification abilities? Can't I cast it from a distance?]
[That's only for low-rank males at S-rank and below!] Xiao Yi explained rapidly. [Baal is 3S-rank! And a high-rank on the verge of total loss of control! Releasing spiritual energy from a distance won't be fast enough! You must establish a direct physical connection channel!]
[Good lord, S-rank is considered low-rank in your mouth. If Kieran heard that, he'd probably crawl up from the floor to fight you to the death.] Jiang Lijin couldn't help but retort, trying to ease her nerves that were stretched so tight they were about to snap.
But she didn't continue to dither. In this kind of situation, being coy would only result in two corpses and three lives—no, if Baal went completely berserk here, everyone in the entire base would be buried with them.
She dragged her heavy legs to the bedside, looking at the man panting in pain on the bed: [So, I just need to kiss him directly on the mouth, right?]
[Theoretically speaking, engaging in the deepest level of negative-distance physical exchange yields the best results.] Xiao Yi adopted a serious academic tone. [However, given his current dangerous state where he could tear you to pieces at any moment... it's recommended that the Host first conduct preliminary energy transfer through mucous membrane contact. Wait until his spiritual entity calms down before proceeding with deep spiritual purification.]
Jiang Lijin ignored the system's endless chattering. She bent down, reached out with both hands, and unceremoniously cupped Baal's face, forcing it upward.
Baal's complexion was a healthy wheat color from year-round exposure to the wind and sun, not pale at all. But Jiang Lijin used so much force that she actually pinched two red marks onto that sharply contoured face. There was absolutely no tenderness to speak of.
She stared at the man's tightly shut eyes and high-bridged nose, frantically giving herself a pep talk in her mind.
This was the highest-ranking commander in the galaxy, so handsome and with such a great body. Kissing him was definitely a win for her.
Not to mention, legally speaking, he was her rightful husband. Saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda. Kissing him to save so many people—she was practically the embodiment of righteousness, radiating a saintly glow!
Having finished brainwashing herself, Jiang Lijin put on a look of facing death with equanimity, closed her eyes, and leaned in.
[You can do it, Host! The deeper the contact, the better the energy transfer effect... Eh? Wait! Why did my screen go black? I need to provide live guidance!]
Jiang Lijin had no time to pay attention to it; her lips were already pressed against Baal's.
The man's lips were dry and scalding hot. She was still pondering what Xiao Yi's phrase "the deeper the better" actually meant in practical terms, when she felt the peaceful energy within her body flowing continuously into Baal's body through their touching lips.
She grumbled inwardly: How is this purification? This is purely sucking out my life force!
In the half-second she was distracted, Baal's tightly shut eyes opened without warning.
Those were eyes completely stripped of reason. The originally brilliant golden pupils had now contracted into extremely thin vertical slits, oozing an aggressiveness that was about to overflow.
Jiang Lijin's heart skipped a beat, and she instinctively tried to pull back.
A large hand suddenly clamped onto the back of her head with astonishing force. His five fingers threaded through her hair, forcefully pressing her retreating head toward him, turning the tables and deepening the kiss.
"Mmph—!" Jiang Lijin's hands instinctively pressed against Baal's burning chest, trying to push him away, but that was the absolute strength of a 3S-rank male on the brink of going berserk!
Furthermore, the high-tier coercion radiating from Baal, mixed with an indescribable tingling sensation, surged into her nerves through the intertwining of their lips and teeth. Jiang Lijin felt as if all the bones in her body had instantly melted; she could not even lift a single finger.
Baal's Adam's apple bobbed, and he let out a low, muffled groan. Reaching out with his free arm, he wrapped it around her waist, the muscles beneath his skin suddenly flexing with power.
In a dizzying spin, Jiang Lijin's vision blurred. Before she knew it, she had been scooped up by his single arm and placed onto his lap, straddling his waist.
Their posture instantly became dangerously intimate.
But Baal did not go any further. He simply closed those terrifying vertical pupils again, instinctively prying her teeth apart to frantically draw in her cool, purifying spiritual energy.
Jiang Lijin's eyes widened, her hands forced to cling to his shoulders. Her mind had been racing to figure out an escape route, but she soon realized that aside from holding her and kissing her as if his life depended on it, Baal had no intention of tearing her apart.
With the continuous influx of energy, his tense muscles slowly relaxed, and even his heavy, ragged breathing gradually steadied.
Even the giant black python beside them, which had been thrashing madly just moments ago, quieted down. It obediently coiled itself into a circle, resting its massive head on its tail. Its tongue flicked in and out as a satisfied hiss rumbled from its throat.
Jiang Lijin was exhausted from the struggle.
Her waist was held in an iron grip she could not break, fighting him off was completely out of the question, and the continuous drain of energy from her body was bringing on a heavy, intoxicating drowsiness.
She simply threw in the towel and let him do as he pleased.
Setting aside her initial fright and the lingering awkwardness, to be completely honest, the experience really was not that bad.
Resigning herself to her fate, Jiang Lijin closed her eyes and slowly relaxed her stiff body.
Meanwhile, in the pitch-black system space, Xiao Yi, who had been forcibly locked in the dark room, was pacing around in absolute distress.
Ugh... what on earth is going on! What is wrong with taking a little peek? I just want to see what is happening! It is all just data anyway, do I not get it? Host, are you actually doing the purification properly or not! Say something!
