Chapter 86 - 85: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Across from Jinkang Pharmacy, in a certain mahjong parlor.
An old farmer-like man with graying hair was sitting by the window, sipping hot tea and watching the commotion.
When Wu had just rushed into the pharmacy, the old farmer was clearly taken aback. It was earlier than planned, and a few of the invited "distinguished guests" had not yet arrived.
And why was a young man chasing after him...
After a moment of thought, he ventured a guess and sighed inwardly. ’Young people are just too impulsive...’
’He probably knows he’s going to die today and wants to contribute one last bit for the organization...’
But the overall direction hadn’t gone wrong. That group of newcomers from the sea had been successfully awakened, and the seeds of Martial Arts Psychosis had been activated within them...
As Jinkang Pharmacy was enveloped by a strange black sphere, the old farmer clicked his tongue in amazement:
"This group... they have some tricks up their sleeves. Our understanding of them is still insufficient. I’ve never seen a technique like this..."
Across the mahjong table was the girl from earlier in the day called Long Jiu. However, she didn’t seem to know how to play, merely arranging the tiles in a long, straight line, her gaze vacant.
"It’s likely some kind of method to seal off a space. Everyone’s application of ’Source’ is truly different... The so-called ’Curse Technique’ they’ve mastered does have some merits."
"It seems they want to buy some time, let their people regain their senses, and then continue to lie low..."
The old farmer watched the passersby cry out in alarm at the sudden appearance of the black sphere, and he suddenly smiled:
"But this is even better. The more miraculous they appear, the more attention Cyan Blue will pay! A new Exotic Realm with unique ’Source Technology’... and it just so happens to be outside any nation’s borders, out in the ocean."
A sharp glint flashed in his eyes. "It’s enough to divert the attention of all the nations of Cyan Blue for ten, or even several decades!"
A perfect bait... it will win a reprieve for all the other Exotic Realms.
The more peculiar things this group showed, the more chaos they caused... the happier he was!
As for exposing the Rebel Species’ involvement in this matter...
Did they not have enough stains on their name already? When you’re deep in debt, you stop worrying about it. They were already the number one most-wanted reactionary organization in the world.
There was nothing they wouldn’t dare to do.
The old farmer saw from afar that a single, strangely dressed person had escaped. It seemed they ran fast enough to not be affected by the Martial Arts Psychosis.
The passersby on the street were too slow to react. Although there were undoubtedly Martial Artists among them, they didn’t understand what was happening at the moment. With their attention focused on the giant black sphere, they actually let that "freak" get away.
A golden light flashed in the old farmer’s eyes. He spoke to the person behind him, "Long Jiu, go and intercept this person... try to take them alive."
Long Jiu rose, her face devoid of expression, and walked toward the door.
The old farmer, meanwhile, continued to watch the scene outside the window.
From the outside, it was impossible to see what was happening inside the black sphere. To practitioners of Witchcraft and Gu Technique, "Curse Technique" was an equally unfamiliar method.
But he knew one thing: Cyan Blue’s foundation was terrifying...
’They actually think... that by sealing off a space, they’ll be temporarily safe? Ridiculous!’
As the place with the most abundant and vast Source, Cyan Blue had given birth to countless strange and ingenious skills over thousands of years, but in the end, only Martial Arts was chosen...
It was not to be trifled with.
————
Inside Jinkang Pharmacy, everything seemed to have faded to black and white.
A visitor from an Exotic Realm with unknown strength, after the plan went awry, chose to use his own life... to fight for one last chance.
After everyone in the pharmacy was covered in gray, they all fell into a "paralyzed state," motionless, as if time had stood still.
Among the freaks, one sacrificed himself, and one escaped, while the remaining fourteen quickly descended into madness.
The power of the [Black Luo Curse Realm] was of the same origin as their own people, so it wouldn’t restrict their movements. On the contrary, it possessed a power to soothe the mind, which was the tall freak’s last hope.
He hoped his people could calm down, then plot to scatter and escape, rather than going on a killing spree the moment they landed.
It was both a form of protection and a cage.
However, "Martial Arts Psychosis" was not so easy to deal with, after all.
Between different "Power Systems," it’s difficult to grasp the principles in a short time. Even Cyan Blue found "Martial Arts Psychosis" to be a thorny problem; it wasn’t so easily suppressed!
The remaining fourteen people did not regain their senses. Instead, they clutched their heads, gradually losing their last shred of sanity. The Secret Technique the tall freak had used at the cost of his own life had failed to quell his people’s madness.
Moreover... Cyan Blue was not as simple as these newcomers imagined.
It had barely lasted a second before the first person in the faded space broke free from the restraints.
It was Yang Shen.
With almost no delay, he had only felt his consciousness blur for a second.
Unlike a pure Martial Arts Practitioner, he had started "Nurturing the Divine Soul" much earlier, so he recovered quickly.
’This also means that their strange ability only targets the mind and the five senses.’
’It makes sense when I think about it. To say it could lock down space and pause time would be a bit ridiculous.’
After breaking free, Yang Shen cautiously surveyed his surroundings.
Others might have only felt that the entire space had faded, but in Yang Shen’s vision, there was a vast gray fog... Source was being used in a peculiar way, covering a large area.
It was like an "Array" from Cultivation General Knowledge.
Before he could think any further, another person beside him returned to normal, less than a second after Yang Shen.
Director Liu, who was wearing a civil servant’s jacket, suddenly shuddered. The color returned to his body, and he looked around with a grave expression.
The Director Level Cultivation Technique within him, the >, began to circulate rapidly. An unfamiliar technique from an Exotic Realm could not restrain a public servant of Martial Arts Socialism!
He looked at these crazed freaks, his expression tinged with a faint helplessness.
’I’ve gotten lax. Although I’ve been diligent about raising my realm for the sake of promotions, my mindset has relaxed, after all.’
’The toughest battles I’ve fought in recent years have all been at drinking parties...’
If he had reacted just now, as a Late-stage Innate Martial Artist, he would have had a chance to stop this group of criminals.
’If I had stopped them beforehand, it would have been a "great merit." Now, fixing the problem after the fact can only be considered a "minor achievement"...’
Seizing the opportunity while this group was clutching their heads, mad but not completely berserk, Director Liu immediately took a step back and threw a punch at the black spherical boundary.
The sensation was strange... like hitting black rubber, but it didn’t break...
’It won’t open? It seems like brute force can’t break it... at least, I can’t...’
Director Liu could only turn his head to look at Yang Shen. "Young man, you’re already at the Innate Realm at such a young age?"
Yang Shen shook his head. "I’m at Marrow Refining..."
"Then you must be very outstanding, and very special."
The commotion from Director Liu’s attack on the black boundary immediately drew the attention of many of the "freaks." A few of the closer ones launched a direct attack.
They had finally gone completely mad.
Witchcraft and Gu Technique wasn’t suited for direct combat, but it was excellent at messing people up.
And these freaks had their own peculiar abilities!
One of the freaks clapped his hands together, and the black tattoo on his neck actually slithered out, solidifying and shooting forth like a sharp arrow.
[Curse Technique: Black Thorn]
In the nick of time, Director Liu snorted coldly, his broad body moving to shield Yang Shen.
Yang Shen only saw a powerful "demon back," with every muscle clearly defined, as if carved from marble.
’Truly a Yanhua public servant!’
Director Liu said heartily, "Young man, stay behind me..."
....
Meanwhile, on the second floor of Jinkang Pharmacy.
In a certain VIP client consultation room.
A figure trembled slightly and broke free from the strange fluctuation’s influence.
Liang Shen, the Dean of Nanliang High School, looked around in confusion... Everything around him was gray and white.
The young lady who had been serving him tea was still frozen in a bowing posture.
Director Liang thought for a moment with a blank expression. "It’s not a spatial effect, more like a suppression of the five senses..."
"A Martial Dao Will Infection? No... it’s too weak."
Director Liang tucked the thick red envelope from the table into his pocket and calmly walked outside, intending to see what was going on.
Just as he stepped out, a strange noise came from the hallway. A strangely dressed person was standing at the far end, panting heavily.
In the gray and white field of vision, a pair of scarlet eyes was revealed.
The next moment, he charged forward violently. The black tattoos all over his body rapidly converged on his right hand, and as he ran, his entire arm swelled several times in size out of thin air, becoming pitch-black and ferocious.
The exaggerated iron fist swung forward with immense force.
BOOM!!
Director Liang calmly raised his right hand, without even turning his head... and caught the punch.
"A strange move..."
No matter how ferocious the freak became, his massive black fist couldn’t advance an inch.
Meanwhile, Director Liang adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses...
"More Martial Arts Psychosis...? It was such a pain last time."
DING.
The black arm, made of an unknown material and operating on an unknown principle, shattered inch by inch, turning into a cloud of fragments.
Director Liang: "Only with social stability can one make money in peace..."
"Why do some people never understand..."