Matrix Survival: I Get A Random Chest Every Day

Chapter 1122 - 822: My Fate Is Mine, Not Heaven’s

"This is..."

Li Zheng stared at the immense structure before him, utterly shocked: "This is Summer Fei’s mental world?"

It was an incredibly massive black palace, with blood-red, sinister eyeballs and twisted, winding filaments growing outside. The thin lines wrapped the entire palace like ivy, while the eyeballs resembled vivid flowers bloomed on the ivy... or perhaps, fruits?

"No, this isn’t his native mental world, but a power within the Sin Domain!" Li Zheng circled the palace, but as he moved, the palace seemed to rotate too, always maintaining one side facing him.

The countless sinister eyeballs rotated in sync, ensuring their gaze was constantly locked onto Li Zheng. They seemed eager for Li Zheng.

Suddenly, the palace walls split open, slowly revealing a pitch-black door, the eyeballs beside the door closed, as if inviting Li Zheng to enter as a guest.

Li Zheng hesitated for a moment and then floated inside through the door.

Inside the pitch-black door, it wasn’t sheer darkness but brightly lit. The interior of the palace was richly decorated, exuding an aristocratic atmosphere with red carpets and luxurious lamp posts.

However, in this eerie ambiance, the palace hosted no others, only a variety of entertainment facilities.

Li Zheng saw the gambling machines Hu Er had played with during his pledge to quit gambling, along with very familiar pool tables, fishing machines, arcade games, computers, and specialized gambling facilities like baccarat and roulette.

Going further inside, Li Zheng found dance machines, racing simulators, basketball shooting games, and claw machines typical of amusement parks.

This was akin to a large amusement park, only housed inside a grand and peculiar palace.

All these machines seemed to emit a kind of temptation, urging Li Zheng to reach out and manipulate them.

Li Zheng ignored them, proceeding inward swiftly arriving at a half-open door. Through the half-open door, Li Zheng saw Summer Fei’s spiritual power had reached the doorway, struggling to restrain himself from stepping into the palace, his foot raised but never setting down.

Li Zheng opened the door, appearing before Summer Fei. Seeing him, Summer Fei’s eyes suddenly went blank in confusion: "Who are you? Why do you look exactly like me?"

He looked around, his face showing panic: "What is this place? Why am I here?"

"I am Li Zheng. Steady your will, don’t panic!" Li Zheng shouted, seeing Summer Fei frightened and losing composure, that suspended foot slowly descending.

Li Zheng had a premonition that if Summer Fei stepped in here, he’d be doomed forever!

"Li Zheng!?" Summer Fei halted: "Is this my mental world? What is this building? Why do I feel so compelled to enter it upon seeing it?"

Li Zheng’s entrance triggered a strange mechanism within Summer Fei’s mental world, allowing him to view the mental world within, a first-time sight of this bizarre palace.

Similar phenomena had occurred before, like when Lu Li was infected by sloth, Li Zheng’s presence in his mental world allowed fragile Lu Li to see his mental world through a spiritual body perspective.

Li Zheng conjectured that such a mechanism might be a special ability attached to his spiritual body, akin to how others see only a reflection of themselves when seeing him. Perhaps the ability to see the mental world stems from a similar "reflection" mechanism.

"This might be the true culprit of your transformation into a twisted creature." Li Zheng looked behind Summer Fei, seeing a small area of bizarre trees forming a grove, appearing very clean.

"The true culprit?"

Summer Fei was taken aback, candidly admitting: "I feel a strong compulsion to enter this building, but my instinct warns that there’s no going back once I do. Yet... these feelings never existed before seeing the building, why?"

"Because essentially, it’s imperceptibly changing you," Li Zheng explained: "You ate those tentacles before, there must be some unique manifestations; check for things that should never appear in your mental world."

"Things that should never appear in my mental world..." Summer Fei searched, taking a bag from his waist, opening it and glancing inside, his expression sharply changed: "Does this count?"

Li Zheng looked in, spotting a sticky, flat round object resembling some coin or chip.

"I understand now." Li Zheng turned to the entertainment facilities, finding coin slots as expected: "These facilities are tools to destroy human spiritual will, and engaging requires chips, which are generated in the mental world after consuming those tentacles."

He attempted to take the bag, and Summer Fei released it, transferring it to Li Zheng.

"Moreover, this thing seems effective for all spiritual bodies, not directly bound to a master?" Li Zheng pondered and said: "Just stabilize yourself first, I’ll try those devices."

"Don’t!" Summer Fei was horrified: "Such unknown entities, it’s too dangerous to interact with them recklessly. You should leave, as this might be a destined calamity for me; I mustn’t drag you into it."

Li Zheng laughed: "Your race still believes in destiny? You’ve surely heard the saying ’I am the master of my fate, not heaven.’ If there’s a glimmer of hope, why give up? Let me try so I can tailor the solution for this building."

The palace architecture had integrated with Summer Fei’s mental world; Li Zheng couldn’t forcibly separate it without risking a collapse of the mental world, resulting in soul loss.

"I am the master of my fate... not heaven?" Hearing this, Summer Fei was enlightened, laughing heartily: "I understand now! I finally get it! Hahaha..."

His spiritual body dramatically grew, consolidating into solidity, snatching the bag back from Li Zheng: "You’re right, I am the master of my fate, not heaven. Thus, this matter should be resolved by me!"

With determination, he stepped into the palace.

The door silently closed behind Summer Fei, severing his connection with the mental world entirely.

Li Zheng frowned, sighing inwardly.

Now, whatever happens next is unpredictable.

His expression shifted, showing disdain: "Annoying thing, corroding me on both spiritual and physical levels simultaneously? Hmph!"

Outside, Li Zheng abruptly opened his eyes, channeling a portion of spiritual power from the Dark Realm into his body.

Blue-green flames burned silently, the terrifying heat instantly turning the fine tentacles winding around him to ashes.