Chapter 757 - 113: Relentless Haunting
Su Changxing ignored the woman’s thanks and instead said, "You know me? But you shouldn’t, you weren’t conscious at the time."
The woman showed an awkward expression and quickly said, "My daughter told me your appearance, so I recognized you. I’m Annika."
Su Changxing sized her up and tentatively accepted this explanation, smiling, "Hello, Annika."
He could tell this was a lively and cheerful woman, always wearing a faint smile on her face.
Annika hesitated for a moment, showing a hint of shyness on her face, and smiled, "To repay you for saving me, I want to invite you to dinner at my home, and now is just the right time."
Normally, Su Changxing would definitely not agree, but seeing Annika’s gentle face under the streetlamp, he nodded, "Alright, it’s hard to refuse such hospitality; where’s your home?"
Annika pointed to the intersection ahead, "Just a little farther, over there on Rose Street."
Su Changxing looked in that direction, remembering that area as a noble residential district, mostly spacious and luxurious homes, typically three stories.
"So, madam is actually a noble?" Su Changxing pursed his lips and smiled.
Annika showed an embarrassed expression, "My husband was a marquis, but he passed away."
"That’s truly unfortunate."
"He liked to indulge himself outside, and when he died, he was stark naked. This was last year." Annika said bluntly, her expression calm, neither happy nor angry.
Here they had moved away from the bustling street, with few pedestrians on the road; the gentle lights made it seem tranquil.
This might be Maelon’s true appearance—comfortable and leisurely, everyone here enjoying the convenience brought by technological advancements.
Annika’s home was indeed a mansion with a red-painted large door, and a thick clump of vibrant red roses beside it.
"This is the place."
Annika pushed open the partially-shut door and stepped inside. After two steps, she suddenly stopped, realizing Su Changxing hadn’t followed, and turned back, "What’s wrong? Come in, no need to be polite."
Su Changxing pursed his lips and smiled, casually saying, "Another day, I suddenly remembered something important, I’m very sorry."
Deep blue pupils flickered with a silvery radiance, the world appeared more real to him, its basic structure, basic logic, and the information obtainable from these connections.
Not a single living person was in the room; at the corridor entrance, a maid was suspended from the ceiling by a rope, having just died, with blood still dripping.
He didn’t know what had happened, but this Annika was certainly problematic; following her inside was definitely not an option.
Annika looked at Su Changxing’s six eerie eyes on his face but still maintained a charming smile, "I really want to properly repay you, as long as you’re willing."
Bang～
Bright flames flashed through the darkness, Annika’s head exploded entirely, flesh splattering onto the ground, Qi Hong’s door, and the vivid red roses.
The surrounding space visibly twisted; distant pedestrians turned blurry, seemingly entering another realm.
Though Annika’s head was blown apart, her body remained standing, swaying imperceptibly like a living person.
Su Changxing fired again at Annika’s chest, blasting a huge bloody hole; the bullet hit the wooden door behind but was deflected by something.
"I’m sorry, though I saved you, I ultimately harmed you."
This sentence was addressed to the real Annika.
Because Su Changxing and she had contact, such an encounter ensued.
He felt a bit angry that inexplicably someone got killed because of him, "You vile divine spirits can only use such sordid methods? Greed, envy, evil—these are your true manifestations. What qualifies you to call yourselves divine spirits?"
"You despicable, weak half-god, what qualifies you to say such things! Don’t apply evaluations of humans onto divine spirits."
A sharp, eerie voice emerged from Annika.
Indeed.
Su Changxing’s heart sank, originally unable to confirm, but the other party now admitted it.
These lingering entities!
He initially believed eliminating Eric and the pink tumor would remove the divine spirits’ shadow from Maelon.
But it seemed not; through endless ages, divine spirits left too many marks in this world, all manner of traces, which they could exploit.
Even if unable to directly intervene, they could still indirectly affect the world.
[Peripheral Vision: Some entity is observing you from a strange angle; you can’t detect its true presence, true location, or true information]
Can’t see it.
Even with the Eye of Data’s ability, it can’t analyze divine spirits’ methods; the gap between them remains too vast.
This is purely a tremendous gap in life levels.
"You’re a human with exceptional talent, but mortals remain mortals, unable to become divine spirits. I can offer you the chance to become one, if you’re willing."
The voice spoke hauntingly, full of allure, even Su Changxing couldn’t help but be swayed.
Bang~
Another loud gunshot, Su Changxing fired, shattering the remaining part of Annika’s corpse, "I also want to become a god, but unfortunately, you have no persuasive power. What should I do?"
"It’s not up to you!"
Then.
Su Changxing saw a large mass of phantoms pouring out from Annika’s body, resembling people walking upside down, slowly approaching him. Their bodies were petite, limbs long and slender, bizarre, freakish creatures.
Su Changxing’s lips curled into a cold smile. He retreated a few steps, extended his left hand, and twisted the silver bracelet on his right wrist.
Immediately, the moon atop the White Tower in the distance lit up, emitting a white light that enveloped Su Changxing and the surrounding space.
"I have no way against you, but this one does."
A wail of agony echoed from the void.
When Eric constructed this White Tower, he borrowed considerable divine power, using genius-level creativity to alter the relational properties of energies, enabling them to harm the divine spirits.
If the divine spirit behind him hadn’t controlled him in advance, it probably wouldn’t have any means against him, as long as he stayed in Maelon.
Among the screams, a black stone ball fell to the ground, rolling slowly to Su Changxing’s feet.
Also controlling the White Tower, due to possessing faith, Su Changxing could unleash even greater power from the White Tower, capable of directly annihilating these illusions produced by divine spirits.
[Divine Script Stone Ball: Rank A Crown, Middle Rank, capable of precisely distorting and severing the surrounding space, banishing the creatures within.
Note: This item requires divine power to activate.]
Divine power?
Su Changxing couldn’t comprehend what could be considered divine power, lacking any related concept.
But this thing is definitely good.
Su Changxing took the stone ball in his hand, tried to activate it, and after several attempts with no response, he tossed it into the Pocket Galaxy, hoping it might be useful later.
With the Divine Script Stone Ball losing its effect, the surrounding space returned to normal. Su Changxing walked over, opened the door, and saw the maid’s corpse.
"Is everyone really dead?"
As Su Changxing was about to leave, he sensed something moving inside the cabinet. He walked over, opened it, and found a little girl curled up inside, motionless.
He lifted the girl out, patted her head, and said calmly, "Your mother is dead."
"I know, I saw a monster crawl into her body, and then it killed everyone," the little girl said with wide eyes, her expression strange, devoid of fear, just speaking dully.
Scared dumb?
Su Changxing sighed, "Someone will come to deal with these bodies later, just wait here."
Turning to leave, he had only taken a few steps when the little girl rushed up and grabbed his hand, "My name is Emily. I’ll be very good, please don’t abandon me."
Su Changxing glanced back at her, didn’t say much, and led her away by the hand.
Walking towards Eric’s mansion, he calmly recounted to Emily on the way, "The monster that killed your mother is called a divine spirit. They are probably the source of all this disaster."
"But you’d better not think about revenge; instead, think about how to survive. Even if you feel humiliated, feel insignificant, feel unfortunate, humans are inherently a weak race, and this world will probably be dangerous in the future."
"Hmm." Emily responded softly, seemingly listening intently, but her expression remained unchanged.
"Your current state is probably due to being scared stiff, with some emotional numbness. I’ll help you see what’s going on later," Su Changxing continued.
Soon, guards ran past them along the way they came, checking to see what had happened.
The light emitted from the White Tower was still very visible; everyone could see it.
Maelon is a very bright city; even at night, the main roads are still brightly lit, just devoid of pedestrians, appearing somewhat desolate.
"Sir."
The manor’s guards recognized Su Changxing; they had seen him during the day before.
Su Changxing led Emily towards the dining hall.
At this moment, Kasmin, Weilian, and all the ship’s crew were having a banquet in the dining hall, celebrating their brief victory.
Kasmin looked at Emily with a strange expression, "Who is she?"
Su Changxing said briefly, "Due to the divine spirits, another family was killed just now. She is the sole survivor."
"I thought she was your illegitimate daughter," Kasmin exhaled, whispered in Su Changxing’s ear, "I didn’t expect you to show such compassion."
Seeing Kasmin’s teasing expression, Su Changxing replied helplessly, "Don’t make me sound so heartless. She is kind of a noble herself; you probably won’t mind taking care of an extra dependent here."