Though reluctant, Luoshu stepped forward.
Why?
Because he had the Anomalous Item Catalog—along with three milestone abilities and over a dozen anomalous powers.
With this kind of strength, he had nothing to fear.
Entering the factory floor surrounded by Epsilon-11 operatives, the first thing he saw was piles of chains.
But upon closer inspection, they weren't just chains—they were humanoid figures made of chains, and worse, people in the process of transforming into chains.
Nearest to Luoshu, the corpse of a Epsilon-11 field operative was mid-transformation.
His facial features had been pierced through, chains worming their way into his body like some grotesque marionette soaked in blood.
His muscle fibers were visibly blackening and hardening, turning into metallic links before Luoshu's eyes.
Behind the corpse, a chain-linked figure was meticulously crafting a chain knot, its focus akin to an artist perfecting a masterpiece.
After taking in the scene, Luoshu retreated and turned to Big Beard Jack.
"Did you try attacking it?"
Jack grimaced. "Of course. That operative you see turning into chains? That's the price we paid. Bullets don't work—it just uses the chain-linked victims to fight back."
Now Luoshu was sure—this was an anomaly he remembered: The Chainmaker.
He didn't recall its SCP designation, but that didn't matter. He vaguely remembered how to deal with it, and that was enough.
Using reverse reasoning, he began convincing Epsilon-11 of his plan—enhancing his persuasiveness with his persuasion ability.
"I have an idea. Look—its body is entirely made of metal chains. Bullets won't work, but strong acid? That'll melt it."
Jack immediately grabbed his radio. "Get me acid sprayers—now! And bring every corrosive solution we've got. Emergency deployment!"
Seeing how easily the commander was convinced, Luoshu decided to lay out everything he knew—no need to justify himself further.
"We need to sever the central Chainmaker's connections to the others—it's the core! And look how obsessed it is with that knot. If it attacks, we target the knot—force it to defend itself!"
Under the influence of his persuasion, his plan was fully adopted.
Soon, the third squad delivered the requested equipment—not just acid sprayers, but hazardous material suits as well.
The assistant had done her job well.
The Epsilon-11 assault team suited up and launched their second attack.
Under the acid's corrosive assault, the chains controlling the victims dissolved rapidly.
The freed chain-linked figures collapsed, lifeless.
In retaliation, the Chainmaker lashed out with new chains, attempting to convert the assault team.
"Aim for the knot!" Luoshu shouted from the doorway.
The operatives redirected their sprayers—
And the Chainmaker panicked.
It threw itself over the unfinished knot, shielding it with layers of chains.
"Don't destroy my work! Let's talk!" it pleaded.
Luoshu stepped forward. "Promise you won't attack humans again, and come with us peacefully—or we obliterate your 'art.'"
"I wasn't attacking! I was creating!"
Its voice was venomous, its gaze locked onto Luoshu with pure hatred.
This human dared threaten its masterpiece.
Luoshu didn't care. He knew its weakness.
"No excuses. Your time's up. Three. Two—"
"Fine! I agree! I'll comply!"
The Chainmaker surrendered.
Luoshu glanced at Jack, letting him make the final call.
He could have used persuasion to stop the assault himself, but overstepping would only breed resentment. Better to let Jack issue the order himself.
The Foundation's motto was Secure, Contain, Protect—not Destroy.
Jack gave the command: "Cease fire!"
A truce was struck.
The Chainmaker agreed to containment under one condition: Let it finish its work.
Luoshu stayed silent, but Jack agreed.
If the Chainmaker needed human materials, that was easy—the Foundation had plenty of D-class to spare.
On the way back, the Chainmaker happily resumed crafting its knot.
Meanwhile, Luoshu—hooded and in darkness—pondered:
Was the Foundation's mission truly just?
To achieve Secure, Contain, Protect, was it right to sacrifice D-class to appease anomalies?
Were they protecting humanity—or the anomalies themselves?
The Chainmaker could regenerate, drawing energy from its victims.
But if they really wanted it gone, dumping it in an acid vat would do the trick.
Not that Luoshu sympathized with D-class.
Most were death-row inmates who deserved their fate.
But using humans as test subjects, fodder, materials—where was the humanity in that?
Before San Quentin halted executions, lethal injection was the norm—painless death.
But handing D-class to anomalies?
Their deaths were anything but painless. Many would never find peace.
Was this right?
Maybe he should hear IR1901 out.
Maybe the Chaos Insurgency had a better path for this world.
…
Wait.
What am I thinking?
Since when did he start playing messiah?
Surviving was hard enough.
Shaking off these thoughts, Luoshu refocused.
Once the Chainmaker was contained, what ability would he gain?
If it turned him into some tentacle-chain abomination, he'd pass.