Chapter 410: A Chaotic Convergence

“Huh? What is this supposed to mean?”

Lu Xin was stunned by the sudden twist of events.

How could that helicopter marked with the Qinggang insignia appear so suddenly? Wasn’t it said that a Death Field existed here, making it forbidden to come?

The arrival of the helicopter was one thing, but how did the Doll just fall off it…?

If it weren’t for her ability to forcibly siphon the mental power of the dead, or rather, if these dead weren’t different from any other corpses, even after death they would still wield enormous psychic power—by now the little girl probably would have been killed from the fall.

Then there was the Drunkard. What she unleashed was essentially an ability that distorted mental perception.

Because the mental perception that had woven itself into the Death Flower went haywire, it bypassed the Doll and surged toward those behind her.

What on earth was she muttering about…?

And then there was Gecko.

This guy, armed with such an absurdly long gun, had taken down only a single Death Flower—and still acted like he was incredibly cool.

……

“Single Soldier…”

A hoarse voice crackled from the in-built earpiece on the glasses frame.

Due to the overwhelming mental radiation in the area, even at this close range the sound came through all broken and warped, but it was unmistakably Chen Jing’s voice, anxiously repeating:

“Do you copy… We’re on our way…”

“Support… don’t panic… you’re currently…”

“…are you alright?”

“…”

Lu Xin exhaled deeply and turned to look at Mom.

Mom was now steadily returning; judging by the situation, she no longer needed to shield anything.

“Those who work hard…”

She smiled softly, her eyes meeting Lu Xin’s as she said, “Your Leader’s here now—why aren’t you giving it your all?”

“Alright.”

Lu Xin nodded.

Although he couldn’t understand why the Qinggang colleagues who were originally supposed to come later had arrived, he was secretly delighted.

He gathered his courage, ready to charge out.

But then Mom said, “Hold on.”

She scrutinized Lu Xin up and down and added, “Let those tattered clothes you got sliced open hang a bit more; don’t let your wounds heal too fast.”

Lu Xin: “……”

He gave Mom a long, deep look and then complied.

“Section Chief Chen, I copy. Can you hear me?”

“There are two individuals here—two formidable Ability Users. I’m about to take care of them…”

“I haven’t heard your reply, so I’ll head out first.”

“……”

After carefully reporting through his headset and receiving no response, Lu Xin set it down.

Then he took a deep breath and glanced at his Sister.

Originally, this was meant to be a learning opportunity, but with the colleagues already here and the opponents’ focus seemingly shifted elsewhere, there was no point in dragging it out any longer—after all, learning amidst a heap of corpses…

…does seem a bit perverse, doesn’t it?

……

“Crash…”

Father was the first to charge ahead.

Lu Xin, hand-in-hand with his Sister, felt a creeping chill spreading through his body.

As that chilling sensation enveloped him, Lu Xin sensed that the wound split open by the Death Flower was coming to life—slowly closing in and merging, its edges sticking together as it healed.

Though the pace felt slow—at least subjectively…

In truth, the speed at which this adhesion and healing occurred was nothing short of astonishing.

“Don’t let it heal completely…”

Lu Xin urged his Sister, then bolted forward.

During this moment, his Sister peered out from over his shoulder and complained, “I can’t control it.”

Lu Xin forgave her immaturity.

Focusing intently, his figure became a dim shadow in the dark night as he dashed ahead.

“Swish, swish, swish…”

Earlier, he had broken through a string of Death Flowers by sheer force.

But now, the Doll’s appearance had completely altered the battle’s balance.

More and more Death Flowers were being drawn in by an unseen force—a force that defied the field’s natural order—which irresistibly drove them toward the Doll, while her continuous mental impacts obliterated the surrounding blooms, leaving the area around Lu Xin increasingly clear.

He could bypass them entirely without even making contact.

“Bang, bang, bang!”

Gunshots erupted both ahead and around him, accompanied by bursts of blue electrical arcs.

It was Gecko, relentlessly firing from the helicopter.

His precision was uncanny, shattering every Death Flower that blocked Lu Xin or threatened to come too near.

Under normal circumstances, even enhanced special bullets couldn’t take out a single Death Flower in one shot—each one wielded around twenty to thirty thousand units of psychic power, a truly terrifying force.

But since the Death Flowers themselves were extremely unstable and teetered on the brink of collapse,

an utterly bizarre scene unfolded.

Gecko in the helicopter bared a tight smile, his face cold as he decimated a Death Flower with a single, stylish shot.

He probably wished he could flash a cigarette for extra flair.

Yet, noticing Chen Jing in the pilot’s seat, he dared not get too extravagant and stayed crouched on the floor, shooting steadily.

……

“This… is almost too easy…”

A thought flickered in Lu Xin’s mind.

He encountered hardly any resistance as he effortlessly sprinted across a vast pit, reaching the edge of the Forest of the Dead.

By then, countless corpse bodies—twisted in unsettling poses—lay scattered on the ground.

Every time a Death Flower vanished or shattered, nearly a hundred dead bodies would collapse, their mental entities fading completely. Up close, one could barely see anyone still standing in the forest—only piles of fallen corpses.

Lu Xin’s pupils contracted, his gaze sliding like a cold snake over the scene until it landed on a spot.

About thirty meters away, amidst the heap of dead bodies, stood two figures.

One was a Red-haired Woman, balancing on one leg and spinning gracefully.

She murmured a tune—an old folk song Lu Xin had heard before—with a light, even feverish tone.

Despite her seemingly carefree voice, when she turned around her vacant eyes and streaming tears revealed her profound pain—and the sole foot supporting her had been worn raw to the point of bleeding, yet she kept singing.

The other was a Pale-haired Old Man, kneeling with a silver case set before him.

His face contorted with fear and anger as he bellowed, “Qinggang, how dare you?”

“How dare you defy the Master’s will?”

“……”

“It must be them, then?”

Lu Xin muttered to himself, leaning forward, his toes navigating between the dead bodies as he lunged ahead.

“That monster…”

“…is it you?”

At that moment, the Pale-haired Old Man also noticed Lu Xin emerging from the pit. His face shifted dramatically, as if Lu Xin’s appearance had jolted him into alertness. In a sudden motion, he grabbed a long pick from the case.

He shouted urgently as he fiercely drove the pick toward his own heart.

Even though Lu Xin was fast, across thirty meters he couldn’t outpace the Old Man’s speed in plunging the pick into his chest.

But then Lu Xin’s expression furrowed.

The shadow at his feet trembled violently, sending forth a dense, eerie surge of black particles that quickly spread out.

“Whoosh!”

Just as the Old Man’s pick was about to pierce his heart, his wrist suddenly snapped.

His bloodstained wrist dropped to the ground, still clutching the gleaming silver pick.

“How is this possible?”

The Old Man stared at his broken wrist, a cold bead of sweat forming on his forehead.

He was utterly flabbergasted, but that didn’t stop him. He immediately reached out with his other hand toward the case.

But this time, the moment his hand grasped the pick, his wrist was seized.

Lu Xin’s figure abruptly appeared before him.

Gripping his wrist, Lu Xin pressed his face against the Old Man’s.

His contracted pupils and the spread of his lips betrayed an excitement he couldn’t hide.

He scrutinized the Old Man as though he found him utterly intriguing.

That very expression even made the Pale-haired Old Man flinch in a moment of sheer terror.

“So, it was you earlier…”

Lu Xin began slowly, adjusting his expression bit by bit.

His pupils gradually relaxed and his smile softened as his excitement subsided into a calm, almost tender look.

He had regained his composure and then continued, “Did you let me feel pain?”

The Pale-haired Old Man mustered every bit of his strength and suddenly roared, “You are…”

Before he could finish, Lu Xin’s grip tightened forcefully on his wrist.

“Crack!”

Lu Xin broke the Old Man’s remaining left wrist, twisting the flesh and ripping it away.

An excruciating pain surged into the Old Man’s mind, cutting his words short and nearly causing him to black out.

“Thank you…”

Lu Xin examined the severed wrist in his grasp, his voice low as he said, “You are… you are…”

Muffled, the Old Man’s throat produced indistinct sounds.

It was as if countless doubts, mixed with panic and astonishment, had overwhelmed him into chaos.

……

“Colleagues are almost here, and we can’t let the scene get too ugly.”

Lu Xin straightened up and, smiling, asked the surrounding Family, “So, what should we do now?”

His Sister, visibly excited and eager to get started, looked on, but Lu Xin just shook his head.

Father let out a hearty laugh, a laugh that carried a disturbingly palpable sense of dread brewing within the shadows, but Lu Xin still shook his head.

Finally, Lu Xin’s gaze settled on Mom.

Mom was appraising the Old Man carefully. Slowly rising to her full height, she said, “It appears he’s had his ability to feel pain severed by some power. Coupled with his unique physical structure and certain medications at work, he can freely use his pain ability to contaminate others without being affected himself.”

“But if that power is cut off, all the pain will come back…”

“…”

Lu Xin’s eyes suddenly sparked with realization, “So…”

Mom nodded with a smile, gently reaching into her satchel and retrieving a small, exquisite pair of scissors.

With tenderness and grace, she walked over to the Old Man.