Chapter 123: Spider Maker

After hearing Lin An's last word, Gao Tian couldn't help but freeze in place.

The tea cup brought to his lips stiffened, and the woman sitting opposite at the table lowered her head in silence, only slowly lifting her gaze toward Lin An.

"Why... would you say that?"

"Don't you think your statement is ridiculous?"

The spider on her body, like flowing sand, stopped, as if frozen in place.

Lin An turned his wrist, adjusting the blade's angle, as if gauging which direction could behead the woman, then slowly spoke:

"It's simple."

"I believe most of what you said earlier is true, but there is a crucial loophole."

"That is Wang Teng!"

"According to your account, you and Wang Teng only became Awakened Ones after the marrow-sucking spider appeared."

"That is definitely wrong."

"Wang Teng possibly became an Awakened One after the marrow-sucking spider appeared, but you certainly did not."

"So the question is, why are you covering up the facts here?"

"There is only one answer."

"You want to imply that the marrow-sucking spider appeared before you became an Awakened One and has nothing to do with you."

"The marrow-sucking spider hatched from a mother egg in the woman's brain, and the spider eggs are produced by the marrow-sucking spider's reproduction."

Upon hearing this, the woman couldn't help but let out a scoffing laugh, and the spider on her body resumed its flow.

"Don't you think your guess is naive?"

"Isn't this obvious? You also said before that the marrow-sucking spider definitely hatched from a mother egg in the woman's brain, and that it mutated due to eating contaminated crab."

"What, do you now think your earlier speculation was wrong?"

"Moreover, even if I had become an Awakened One earlier, what does that have to do with the marrow-sucking spider?"

Gao Tian came to his senses, harboring the same doubt in his heart.

"Brother Lin, based solely on this, concluded that the marrow-sucking spider was created by the woman, which is overly arbitrary."

"But this time he chose not to voice his questions to Lin An, after all, one side is his own people, the other side is the suspicious 'Awakened Ones.'"

"Of course it's related."

"First, you and Wang Teng must have known each other before the Apocalypse broke out."

"You mentioned Wang Teng three times, although you didn't clarify your relationship, but the last time was when you brought him up."

"(If it weren't for me secretly helping him...)"

"If you didn't know him, would you help him?"

"If you wanted to help him because you're both Awakened Ones, why not just send him food?"

"You clearly know there are marrow-sucking spiders in the mall, which poses an extreme risk to them, and Wang Teng even deliberately used his skill as a means of detection to guard against monster ambushes."

"This shows he is actually afraid of the danger here."

The woman lifted her tea cup, took a sip of some unknown tea, and replied with a hint of mockery:

"I can't get out of this floor, so I can't provide food for them. Does this answer satisfy you?"

"Otherwise, I wouldn't need your help; I could leave on my own, worst case just wrapping myself in a cape and bandages."

"Furthermore, as you said, it's possible I only met Wang Teng after the Apocalypse broke out."

"I'm not close with him; I'm just giving him a little extra attention as a fellow Awakened One."

"Who stipulated that Awakened Ones must wholeheartedly help each other? I can't even manage that for myself!"

Lin An gave a slight shake of his head.

"Why bother struggling?"

"You are a restaurant owner, Wang Teng is a salesperson. Your restaurant's supplier and the seafood area on the third floor are from the same company."

"That's why I guessed you knew each other before."

"This shipment was very likely arranged by Wang Teng as an intermediary for you."

"Moreover, lies only produce more loopholes the more they are told."

"It's a simple question: you are the earliest Awakened One in the mall."

"So why was it you, not Wang Teng, who was captured by the marrow-sucking spider?"

"Your strength is greater than his."

"When you mentioned Wang Teng's skill, you unconsciously showed contempt. (If it weren't for me helping him...)"

The woman impatiently began to explain, and the spider on her body flowed faster:

"Alright, I admit I became an Awakened One earlier. As for being captured by the marrow-sucking spider, it was because I wanted to protect everyone at the time."

"But I didn't expect that monster to be so formidable..."

Lin An suddenly spoke up to interrupt her:

"Protect everyone?"

"Didn't you say you didn't want to get involved?"

Many spiders fell into the tea in the woman's hand, and she coldly stared at Lin An:

"After turning into this, I have no mood to look after them—is that not allowed?"

"Moreover, what does this have to do with my creating the marrow-sucking spider?"

"Don't you think you're talking nonsense?"

The woman grew somewhat annoyed, and Gao Tian also momentarily failed to grasp Lin An's meaning.

Lin An didn't care at all:

Just as you said, you want to ask us for help. Why not go ask Wang Teng for help?

The woman gave a cold laugh:

Because that guy is a good-for-nothing; even protecting himself is a problem, let alone entering the city.

After hearing the explanation, Lin An let out a light chuckle and looked with interest at the spider that had fallen onto the table:

Why didn't Wang Teng come to you for help? You are the earliest Awakened One, as you said you stepped in and saved everyone.

As a savior who sacrifices himself for others, what reason does Wang Teng have not to seek your help?

His gaze calm, he turned the question back on the woman.

Because Wang Teng is afraid of how I look! He dares not come see me!

The woman suddenly stood up, the teacup in her hand shattering on the floor. Her whole body trembled:

I've had enough of your foolish, self-righteous guesses—you keep trying to smear me, claiming I created the marrow-sucking spider and killed everyone!

I clearly became like this because I saved everyone!

After saying that, she covered her face, looking extremely indignant and sorrowful.

Drip after drip of 'spider tears' fell to the floor; Gao Tian looked on and inexplicably felt a pang of sourness in his heart.

The woman explained each of Brother Lin's questions very clearly, but I don't know what Brother Lin actually wants to do.

Lin An let out a light sigh, watching the woman's performance without emotion.

You're right, these are all just guesses; I can't possibly prove any connection between the marrow-sucking spider and you.

You've explained almost everything.

But I don't need to prove anything; I only need to verify.

Verify what?

Gao Tian didn't quite grasp Lin An's meaning—is Brother Lin giving up analysis and going straight to action?

Seeing Gao Tian's doubt, Lin An let out a light chuckle.

Gao Tian, do you still remember me telling you that every word of the mission is crucial?

I never intended for these questions to expose her lies.

What I want is to confirm that my earlier speculation was correct; I want her to verbally confirm my guess.

Our mission is to 【find the origin of the spider eggs】.

But we have already found the origin, and we have verified it with her.

The spider eggs come from this 'lady's' restaurant, the supplies come from Kaisi Le Company, and the place of origin is Indonesia.

The first mother egg is in her brain, the second in the woman's body before she turned into the marrow-sucking spider.

The subsequent spider eggs are produced after the mother egg turns into a marrow-sucking spider and reproduces.

I clearly investigated this thoroughly...

But why hasn't the mission been completed yet!?

There is only one answer.

There is an error in the verification question.

But the mother egg existed before the apocalypse, so its origin cannot be wrong.

Then the error can only be that the subsequent spider eggs are not produced by the second mother egg in the woman's brain reproducing.

(Lin An, using the condition that finding the origin would complete the mission, tested this question on 'it.' But since the mission wasn't completed, it shows that the mother egg in the woman's brain on three levels is not the marrow-sucking spider, because if any of the subsequent spider eggs were produced by that marrow-sucking spider, the mission would be judged as completed.)

But Wang Teng once said, (Later, among the spider eggs, a spider kept growing larger and became the marrow-sucking spider.)

He made a mistake—without a marrow-sucking spider, where would the subsequent spider eggs come from?

So.

Where would the three-layer marrow-sucking spider and the reproduced spider eggs appear?

Lin An looked coldly at the woman covering her face, 'sobbing'.

It's from..

The first mother egg hatched in your brain, right?

But you didn't die...

And you can still stand here, repeatedly telling me you were dragged away by the marrow-sucking spider and turned into this miserable state.

Just as his words fell, the system's prompt sounded instantly.

Ding, mission completed.

Next phase mission: kill the mutant organism symbiote—the Spider Creator!

In an instant, the woman's spider-like flowing face became ferocious.