The group went in. Master Liaorahe group towards the dire from which the voices of the guards came. As they got closer, Marcus made out three distinct voices, all of which were slightly muffled.

  The group stopped, just when the voices came from behind a er. There was a straight path forward, while the voices came from another path to their left. Master Liaoran raised his hand, ready to strike these guards, while signaling the group to go past the er and tinue.

  Gloria took a deep breath, befoing past the er and into the other side of the opening. She turned around and made a “e, e” gesture to the rest of the group.

  Marcus sigo Kevin and Mick, telling them to go . Both of them hesitated, but still moved forward at the same time. Kery , then Marcus.

  The guards were in some kind of coffee room located on the side of their hallway. From their ahey could barely see anything ierse. No wo was safe.

  Master Liaoran walked over to their side, everyohen tinued leading the way. They were apparently walking in a pathway that encircled the exterior of the building, as they walked past several windows fag outside. There might be some air ditioning in the building, because the further they went in, the chillier the air became. Even for Marcus, he could feel his skin surface temperature dropping the longer he remained.

  The interior design and decor of this building did not help either. The lighting ale and flickering, everything was gray and very crudely painted, with some patches even showing signs of water corrosion or solidified paint droplets dripping down from higher pces. The floor was mostly cold hard marble and obsidian but at times they ran into sticky tar-like substances scattered around, like old gum, but more stickier and worse smelling.

  Master Liaoran checked the hand dra and passed it around a few times, signaling others where they could go. He was way too familiar with this area, for even at pces that seemed fusing to Marcus and Kevin, he could still make the decision oo go in an instant.

  “This entire building was built like a giant array. The first array that gives life and power to the rest of the substations. Each wall, each pathway was designed acc to his design.” Master Liaoran expined as they headed up the sed floor through a narrow and dim staircase. “He didn’t live to see his visions e to life. He surely didn’t pn on his iy to be misused and abused like this.”

  “So - that means you would know where its ter is right, Master?” Marcus asked.

  “In theory, yes. But acc to his own manuscript, he desighis array specifically to be durable and highly avaible - that means there would be several ‘ters’ that could be used either indepely or all together. Four of them - if this monk remembers correctly.” Master Liaoran nodded: “Now - whe to the sed floor, we would o be careful - because our path would be through one long straight pathway, and find the right pce to put this - EMP.”

  “Alright, so we o prepare to fight.” Marodded.

  “Will they be armed?” Keryn asked.

  “Possibly.” Master Liaoran nodded and stopped before a gate at the end of the staircase: “Alright, this monk will go in first, you follow. Detectives, one of you should stay behind, and o the front. Should there be anything ued, you would be able to handle everything.”

  “I’ll go to the tail.” Keryn hen patted Kevin on the shoulder: “Be careful, duck if there’s anything wrong.”

  “Alright.” Kevin took a deep breath before nodding back.

  “And you, be careful, use the gun if necessary.” Keryn Mick.

  “Of course.” Mick swallowed, before cheg his holster. They did not have many guns or bullets, both Mid Kevin were given one handgun and two full magazines.

  Master Liaoran tinued leading the way. The long straight hallway was going straight towards the ter of the building, and thus all of the group could directly feel the ge of temperature as they made their way through it.

  Apparently, the creeping chillingness and even ess was more than just the atmospheric effects of the enviro on their minds. Frost was gathered on some of the windows and doors. As they went further in, spots of dark tar were distributed more and more densely around them.

  Marcus looked up at the ceiling. The ceiling used to be pale white or pale gray like the walls oer parts. But right now, the ceiling above their heads was covered in spots of bck tar. It was almost as if the rooms above were flooded, and it was seeping through the floorboards.

  “What is that?” Marcus couldn’t help but ask, pointing at a big bck spot of tar at the foot of a wall on their right side, o a closed metal door: “It’s everywhere.”

  “Liquified malice.” Master Liaoran and Tae Kuo answered at the same time.

  “In pces of foul Fengshui or toxic Qiyun flow, energy of all kinds could be corroded and absorbed by dirt, waste, water or other substances like t, asbestos and rubber, or even glue.” Tae Kuo proceeded to expin what he knew on behalf of the master: “Yeah I noticed this from the moment we came in. I am now 90 pert certain that we are at the right pce.”

  “90 pert? What was yuess before?” Gloria chuckled.

  “Maybe at most 70 pert, because I couldn’t see or smell much foul energy from out there. Hell, I ’t even feel anything now.” Tae Kuo shook his head, frowning: “How is this possible? Unless it’s in - ”

  “Internalization.” Master Liaoran sighed: “This is somethiold me before - it’s when the ter of evil energy became so dehat energy around it could no longer escape, but be pulled ba, thus f a more hardened ter of energy.”

  “Fug hell.” Tae Kuo gasped and rubbed his temples: “Alright. 100 pert.”