Chapter 149: Turning Dark

"How long has she been in this condition...?" Huang Ze asked the staff member curiously.

He noticed the angel's signature, pristine white wings. Whether it was due to a mutation or self-dyeing, a surprising number of black feathers were interspersed among them!

"Mr. Deus, this condition has persisted for about two months now," the staff member replied. "At first, Kyle would secretly pluck out the black feathers, but she later realized that, much like white hair on humans, the more you pluck, the more they grow back. So eventually, she just let it be and accepted her fate."

"Judging by her appearance, her soul is likely undergoing corruption and turning black," Huang Ze speculated. "What on earth did you people do to her? As far as I know, angels are extremely loyal and stubborn creatures. Breaking through her mental defenses and causing cognitive collapse is no easy feat."

"Mr. Deus, we didn't actually do much to her," the staff member answered. "This angel has maintained a thoroughly uncooperative attitude toward us. She refuses to speak with us, won't eat any of the food we provide, and has passed out from sheer self-imposed seclusion several times... We only managed to revive her by forcibly administering electrical energy."

Well... For an angel, falling into the hands of humans is certainly quite miserable and humiliating!

If it were back in ancient times, given how the times are changing, she might have already become the next Weaver Girl!

Huang Ze thought to himself, but aloud he said, "That shouldn't be. Without any apparent reason, why would a fine angel suddenly become corrupted?"

"It's probably because we had quite a bit of contact with radioactive materials around her," the staff member replied.

The base where the angel was imprisoned also served as an advanced research facility, so everyone had obviously analyzed and studied the changes occurring in the angel.

"Angels are transcendent beings. Even though her power is heavily suppressed by the domestic laws, being in close proximity to her still poses a significant danger to us staff members," the staff member explained to the black dragon. "Therefore, before interacting with the angel, we have to take certain preventive measures to ensure our safety."

"However, an angel's physiological functions are extremely robust. It is virtually difficult to sedate her with drugs and reagents, or stun her with electric currents. When dealing with her at close range, we have to wear protective suits and carry some radioactive materials for self-defense."

"That's probably the reason why Kyle's soul unconsciously underwent corruption..."

"..."

Radioactive materials could cause an angel to become corrupted?

Huang Ze pondered for a moment, sensing vaguely that it shouldn't be that simple; there must be some much deeper reasons at play.

However, this was not the time to dwell on that. Huang Ze continued to ask, "Didn't you say earlier that she always refused to communicate with anyone? Then how did you find out her name is Kyle?"

"She told us herself," the staff member replied. "Mr. Deus, in order to get through to the angel ideologically, we have continuously provided her with books and newspapers, and selectively played television for her as well."

"Although she didn't say it out loud, she was clearly still very interested in these things. We also noticed that she has been paying close attention to news concerning you, Mr. Deus, so we catered to her preferences and increased broadcasts in that regard."

"Ever since the news broke about you intending to acquire Chinese nationality, Kyle's attitude began to change, and the blackening of her feathers accelerated rapidly. Four days ago, she even took the initiative to ask us if she could meet with you..."

"That was also when we learned her name is Kyle."

"Did she say... why she wants to see me?" Huang Ze asked. He vaguely felt that this Kyle probably regarded him as one of her own kind, and thus wanted to find some solace and answers from him?

"No," the staff member replied. "We actually asked her, but after uttering those few words, she went back to keeping her mouth shut."

"Ever since the angel's body began to show signs of corruption, have you noticed any obvious changes in her personality and emotions?"

"There are definitely some changes. The strange thing, however, is that these changes seem to be moving in a positive direction. The more black feathers Kyle has on her, the more lively and human she appears..."

Huang Ze conversed with the staff member for quite a while and roughly browsed through the angel's surveillance footage, gaining a certain understanding of her situation.

Just then, a national security staff member ran over to inform them that the preparations were complete, and the black dragon could now go meet the angel.

Upon their meeting, the two transcendent creatures immediately locked eyes in a staring contest, as if whoever spoke first would lose.

Naturally, Huang Ze was not intimidated. He intended to thoroughly study the angel's physique.

Huang Ze had already confirmed that this angel named Kyle was not the same one who had previously driven him out.

However, the two were not entirely unrelated. Their similarities in appearance, temperament, and energy were remarkably high; they were likely coworkers under the command of the God of Light.

In other words, Huang Ze had actually clashed with the forces of the God of Light long ago.

Angels were indeed very perfect creatures. Their faces were almost devoid of pores, acne, or any blemishes. They hardly looked like living beings at all, but rather perfect works of art.

An angel's body temperature was also quite fascinating. It was by no means constant; instead, it matched the ambient temperature outside, rising or falling precisely with the external environment.

Huang Ze also noticed that angels actually did not need to breathe. Their noses were more like decorative features, meant to make their appearance conform better to human aesthetics.

"Judging by her body shape and appearance, this Kyle doesn't seem all that different from the previous angel," Huang Ze scrutinized her closely, unable to help falling into contemplation. "Could it be that these angels of light are mass-produced on the very same assembly line?"

He wondered how many such angels of light were out there. Surely the God of Light didn't actually command several divisions of them, did he?

Being subjected to such an intense gaze by the black dragon placed Kyle at somewhat of a disadvantage. After all, she couldn't glean anything from the black dragon at all, while conversely feeling rather uneasy under the aggressive intensity of his stare.

So, in the end, Kyle was the one who couldn't hold out any longer and broke the silence, speaking to the black dragon, "********"

What on earth? Are you speaking in encrypted comms with me?

Huang Ze didn't understand a single word. Kyle probably really did consider the black dragon a supreme entity, and directly resorted to some advanced language, assuming the dragon could understand.