Endless Debt-Chapter 959 - 55: Anxiety and Envy (Part 3)

The slender light trails extended from Bologue’s palm, until the Alchemy Matrix of Bologue stretched over the Void Realm of Fog Abyss Fortress.

The command of Bologue had a significant difference from the regular command, where others used Ether to control matter, Bologue expanded the Alchemy Matrix across the matter he needed to command, turning them into a part of his body, and thus controlling them.

The Secret Energy·Commanding Decree was the same; when Bologue activated the secret energy, his Alchemy Matrix would invisibly expand outward, enwrapping Bologue’s Ether, and filling the entire area covered by the Secret Energy, like a mist.

Concentrating on penetrating the Void Realm, just as he thought, not all Void Realms were as powerful as the Cultivation Room. Although it was a bit strenuous, Bologue skillfully chiseled a gap through the layers of defenses and used this gap to expand, opening a passable door in the Void Realm defenses of Fog Abyss Fortress.

"Alright, it’s your turn to perform, Church."

Bologue stepped aside, and under his command, a stone door slowly opened, and the deep and dark Fog Abyss Fortress was within reach.

...

At the tunnel entrance, Hart and his two companions stood guard, suppressing their breath to an extremely low level, almost as if they didn’t exist, vigilantly watching the swirling thick fog around, wary of any possible surprises.

Hart carried a large shield, Kemp’s hand was always on the handle of his blade, and as for Shelley, she kept her eyes tightly closed, her Ethereal Perception spreading outwards like a tide.

This place was located at the bottom of the wandering crossroads, filled with buildings abandoned and decayed by the fog, the mist thick enough to condense into droplets, with a visible range of no more than five meters.

In such a scenario, Shelley could only exert her Ether control to the fullest, monitoring the surroundings like a radar.

In the silence, Hart moved his neck a bit, his peripheral vision sweeping over Kemp and Shelley, all three coming from the Sixth Group, and all at the Prayer Believer Tier, but in comparison, Kemp and Shelley were considered newcomers. Having been in the profession for longer, Hart was the leader among the three.

"Since we left, you seem a bit off, what’s going on, Kemp."

In the long silence, Hart’s voice suddenly resonated in Kemp’s mind.

Kemp paused for a moment, explaining, "It’s nothing."

"Is it really nothing?" Hart asked again, "The way you look at Bologue seems a bit off, did something happen? Maybe I can help mediate."

Hart didn’t enjoy the current task, like reconnaissance work, but preferred the mainstay of the Sixth Group, suppression and riot control on the front lines.

This mission required no conflicts, just to get Church into the Fog Abyss Fortress. For this reason, Hart wasn’t as vigilant, perhaps it was the composure of veterans.

"Don’t lie, Bologue might not have noticed, but I saw it, sometimes the way you look at him seems like you want to eat him."

Hart chatted with Kemp, the silence in the thick fog was somewhat unbearable, chatting with Kemp helped relieve the pressure.

After a long silence, Kemp slowly said, "I’m a bit jealous of him."

"Oh?" Hart asked, "Jealous of what?"

Kemp struggled to overcome his psychological barrier, pouring out his emotions. In the Sixth Group, Hart had a very good rapport. His seemingly fierce, furry appearance was actually easy to let one’s guard down with once familiar, and more importantly, Hart was also very good at listening. When Kemp first joined the job, it was Hart who led him.

"I... I’m not sure if this counts as jealousy... I’m a very competitive person," Kemp said, "I can’t help but compare myself to others."

Kemp said vaguely, "Honor, achievements, things like that... I guess."

"You consider Bologue as a comparison?"

Hart understood Kemp’s troubles, feeling quite surprised.

Kemp simply admitted, "Yes."

Hart shook his head, "Then you’ve chosen the wrong person."

"I’ve realized it... Haven’t you compared yourself to him?" Kemp said, "We’re all field staff, don’t you want to perform better than him?"

"Thought about it, and not comparing myself is impossible," Hart also honestly shared his thoughts, "But unlike you, my competitive spirit isn’t as strong. Once realizing the vast gap, I let it go."

"Can you endure it?" Kemp asked, "The voice constantly echoing in your heart, urging you on."

"I don’t have such a voice in my heart, or maybe I did, but it quickly got numb."

Hart paused, advising, "Kemp, there’s no need to compare, comparing makes many things dull."

"Even if you think of competing with Bologue, there will always be someone stronger than Bologue. If we talk about the achievements of the Order Bureau, I think no one can surpass any past directors.

If you enlarge this comparison to the entire world, the history of humankind, from my perspective, no one can surpass King Solomon."

Hart turned his gaze to Kemp’s face, Kemp wore a mask, so Hart couldn’t see his expression.

"So, do you still want to continue the so-called comparison, or, upon realizing you can’t catch up, fall into utter despair?"

Kemp fell silent, the reason he chose to compare himself to Bologue was only because Bologue was the closest person to him. He also understood that surpassing Bologue would mean there would be another Bologue, bringing him anxiety and jealousy.

Just as Kemp was weighed down in thought, Hart spoke again.

"I think anxiety and jealousy can be a good thing."

Kemp thought he had misheard, "What?"

"Anxiety and jealousy can become your drive to move forward, scaling new heights, unlike me," Hart said unreservedly, "Honestly, I think it’s not bad being a Prayer Believer, drifting along until retirement. That’s already tiring enough; who knows what kind of madman I’d have to battle if I got promoted to a Negative Power User in a few years."

"Of course, once anxiety and jealousy become uncontrollable, they turn into wildfires, consuming you."

Hart said, "I can’t help you with that, you can only manage it yourself, leveraging these negative emotions instead of letting them affect you."

Kemp and Hart locked eyes, and under such prolonged gaze, he was thankful for this senior’s help. His twisted and distorted mindset got somewhat eased, like a tangled ball of yarn, with the tightly intertwined threads finally loosening to some extent.

But before Kemp could enjoy the tranquility for long, a violent tremor emanated from the rocky mass behind them, followed by fierce gusts of wind pouring out from the tunnel as if a monster was shrieking.

"Prepare for battle!"

Hart ordered in a resonant voice.

Kemp drew his blade, Shelley also released her Ethereal Perception. The tremor came from the end of the tunnel, the Fog Abyss Fortress, beyond Shelley’s perceptual range, and even she was uncertain about the situation.

Before the group could take action, a series of Ethereal Shocks surged from within the tunnel. Just as Kemp was about to charge into the tunnel, Hart abruptly stopped him, and then the ground shook violently, and the tunnel collapsed section by section, crushing everything along the way under thousands of tons of pressure.

Kemp stood at the now ruined entrance, shivering in fear. Without Hart’s intervention, he would have already been buried in the rubble.

With a blank mind, Kemp looked at Hart. Now, their distance from Bologue was too far, the whistle communication was difficult, and the two groups were completely disconnected.

"Go!"

Hart tapped Kemp on the shoulder, indicating they weren’t planning to retreat but to run directly towards the Fog Abyss Fortress via the previous route.