Infinite Nightmares

Hu Maomao didn’t make a rash move as she watched Zhang Wenda suddenly start wrestling with thin air. She had no idea what he was truly capable of.

’Under these circumstances, a normal person wouldn’t be making such pointless-looking moves,’ she thought. ’He must be using some ability I’m not aware of.’

This inadvertent hesitation gave Zhang Wenda a moment to breathe. Battered and bruised, he finally managed to subdue the Wai Mouse, and that’s when he spotted the tinfoil hat not far away.

Recalling Hu Maomao’s earlier words and her habit of always wearing a hat, a thought struck Zhang Wenda. ’Perhaps...’

The thought had barely formed before his body was already sprinting toward the hat.

But with a flick of her pinky finger, Hu Maomao, still some distance away, sent the hat flying toward her through the air.

Zhang Wenda had only been testing a theory, but now he knew for sure: that hat was the key to breaking this stalemate!

Seeing the hat about to get away, Zhang Wenda gripped the red mouse in his right hand, wound up, and hurled it at Hu Maomao. "Go get her!"

Following the principle of attacking the nearest target, the completely irrational Wai Mouse lunged unhesitatingly for Hu Maomao’s face.

As Hu Maomao scrambled backward, Zhang Wenda finally saw his opening. He made a break for the tinfoil hat, refusing to give up even as he was tripped and attacked several times.

Just as Hu Maomao finished luring the invisible Wai Mouse onto Song Jianguo and flew back, she saw Zhang Wenda excitedly slap the tinfoil onto his head.

The moment the tinfoil was on his head, the invisible hostility surrounding him almost vanished. At last, his thoughts could no longer be read.

As Zhang Wenda, now wearing the tinfoil helmet, looked at Hu Maomao, he suddenly began to understand why she’d done it.

"So, you’re saying that while you’re using this power, you’re also being affected by it? Is that why you need this thing, to block it out?" Zhang Wenda speculated.

Hu Maomao said nothing, but her pursed lips betrayed her feelings. She raised her hands, and blood instantly began to trickle from Zhang Wenda’s eyes, ears, nose, and mouth.

But Zhang Wenda, his mobility restored, wasn’t about to stand around and wait for her to attack. He charged toward her at incredible speed.

As he moved, Zhang Wenda raised his flashlight and shot out a beam of Blue Core light, trying to immobilize her.

Just as Zhang Wenda was closing the distance, he saw that Hu Maomao made no move to dodge. Instead, she raised her right hand again.

A blue arc of electricity shot from her fingertip and struck him square in the chest. ’Holy shit! This little brat can shoot lightning!’

The combination of "electricity" and "child" made him subconsciously recall something, but this was a development he hadn’t anticipated. The shock instantly left his entire body numb.

WHOOSH. Hu Maomao dropped from the air and landed on the ground. Thin iron chains snaked out from her pant legs, scraping against the floor with a rasping sound as they shot toward Zhang Wenda.

She raised both hands toward Zhang Wenda again and thrust them downward. The closer she got, the stronger her power became. The intense arcs of electricity were so strong they nearly made Zhang Wenda smoke.

But just when she thought victory was hers, the smoking body of Zhang Wenda flickered and reappeared right in front of her. The next instant, three sharp scythes were pressed against her neck.

He was still twitching from the electricity, yet somehow able to move freely. Zhang Wenda snarled through clenched teeth, "There is nothing I hate more in this world than being electrocuted!"

Hu Maomao’s neck was incredibly slender, like a fragile reed. A single twitch from Zhang Wenda’s hand would be enough to decapitate her.

"Are you out of tricks? Believe me, I can kill you before you can even blink."

Zhang Wenda’s words didn’t make Hu Maomao submit. She only glanced at Liu Jianming, who was still entangled with Song Jianguo’s great aunt, before saying, "Friday’s thought wave."

The words sent a jolt through Zhang Wenda. This was the contact phrase 2826 had told him. He had imagined many ways Bureau 507 might make contact, but he had never expected this.

"You won’t get far with him. I’ll get Liu Jianming out of here in a minute. You take the child back to Thought Wave One, find any Xinhua Bookstore, and just leave him there. Someone will take him to a safe place."

"A safe place? So you can take him back for more experiments?" Even knowing Hu Maomao’s true identity, Zhang Wenda didn’t lower the scythes from her neck.

"You’ve been deceived. Did you really think your first mission for the Big Circle was as simple as finding a child? The ones abusing that boy were a group of Third Line traitors, hired by the Big Circle to play the part!"

Hu Maomao’s words came in a fast, urgent rush. She wasn’t speaking with her mouth but projecting the thoughts directly from her mind. It was clear she believed every word she was saying.

"The whole point was for you to make contact with the boy. They wanted you to uncover the Third Line’s dark history from his own mouth. You’d never suspect a child who can’t even tell boys from girls of lying to you. And while a child might not lie, misleading one that naive is incredibly easy."

"Rescuing the child was never the objective. After what you’ve been through, whether you’re a Third Line agent or not, a seed of doubt about them would be planted in your mind. That was the real goal of this mission!"

Hu Maomao’s words rocked Zhang Wenda. Her explanation was completely different from what he’d pieced together, but he wasn’t ready to believe her just yet. "And why should I believe you?"

Glancing again toward the distant battlefield, Hu Maomao grabbed the blade of the scythe Zhang Wenda held and pressed it into her own skin. "You can wait for your second mission to decide. The Big Circle will give it to you soon. The objective will almost certainly be to attack Third Line personnel or a Third Line location."

"It’s to force you to prove your loyalty. They want you to make an irreconcilable enemy of the Third Line, leaving you with nowhere to turn except the Big Circle. Only then will they truly accept you."

"Besides, a four-year-old’s grasp on reality is hazy at best. With a little coaching, you could get him to claim he burned down the Yuanming Garden."

Seeing Song Jianguo struggling behind the Cat Shield in the distance, Zhang Wenda began to walk in that direction, keeping Hu Maomao in his grasp. He lowered his voice and said, "Even if you’re telling the truth, if we end things now, I’ll have no excuse to go back to the Big Circle."

"Don’t worry. You won’t have to go back to the Big Circle; they’ll come looking for you. They went to too much trouble to recruit you to just give up that easily. We’re running out of distance. For your next move, the bookstore will contact you."

"Stop talking once we’re within 50 meters. Liu Jianming has sharp ears. Don’t let his carefree attitude fool you; he’s incredibly meticulous. He’s the one masterminding this whole affair, so don’t let him notice anything’s wrong."