Chapter 467: A Storm of Fear and Corruption

Clack clack clack…

The girl’s terror seemed to spread to everyone nearby.

They all held guns, their eyes burning with hostility as they aimed at Lu Xin, fingers resting on the triggers.

Back when Gao Yan once stabbed a longtime friend over a trivial disagreement, Lu Xin knew that if he even made the slightest move, these people wouldn’t hesitate to open fire.

Yet he remained motionless.

Facing so many gun barrels, he just stood silently, watching the girl’s expression.

But that very look sent an indescribable wave of dread through her. Though she appeared fragile, a cold, sinister determination lurked beneath. Confident enough to control everyone present, she believed it was enough if all the gunmen in the yard were on her side—even if Lu Xin remained unfazed.

Yet inexplicably, that confidence was evaporating fast…

The calmer Lu Xin stayed, the more uneasy she became.

Suddenly, she realized the source of the problem: hidden beneath her delicate exterior was a twisted, vindictive streak.

That man’s calm facade concealed a terrifying madness.

…

…

“Quick… someone protect me!”

She instinctively cried out, her voice breaking with sobs, “I… I’m so scared!”

Those affected by her presence erupted into a commotion.

Their protective instincts surged, layers of inner frenzy piling on.

Yet they were confused.

After all, they were there to protect the girl, with guns already trained on the threatening figure. What else could they do?

Even though their sympathy for her had been amplified—sometimes overpowering reason—they still remembered who they were and why they had come. Seeing her, their compassion overflowed; they even risked pointing their guns at Lu Xin, although he had harmed her not at all.

It was just like back when Gao Yan forcefully tried to take her. Had her boyfriend not rushed in, Gao Yan wouldn’t have stabbed her.

“Her ability merely influences people’s empathy, which in turn affects their character,”

she explained, “It doesn’t go far enough to issue direct orders—it can only beg…”

“So, although her method of corruption is despicable, its impact is…”

“So feeble…”

“She’s like a little girl pouting and begging for someone to buy her things…”

“Her strength depends on the strength of those around her…”

“…”

Beneath Lu Xin’s placid expression, a mocking sneer grew ever more distinct.

Dealing with this Pollution Source was most troublesome, especially when it came to handling her Pollution Entity.

After all, Lu Xin didn’t want the yard to become a bloodbath.

To avert the worst-case scenario, the solution was oddly simple.

So he stood his ground, unmoving, while his Sister suddenly appeared by his side.

She took Lu Xin’s hand willingly, looking up at him as though asking a silent question.

“Let me handle this!”

A gentle voice spoke.

Mom, moving gracefully from behind Lu Xin, emerged. She carried a small white bag, dressed in loose black trousers and low-heeled leather shoes, and softly tread across the grass as she passed a row of armed figures, smiling warmly as she approached the girl.

Lu Xin was momentarily taken aback.

There were many ways to deal with a Pollution Source.

At that moment, even his Sister looked as if she had been denied her favorite toy, sulking in quiet discontent.

But why had the usually languid Mom taken the initiative?

As Mom gracefully moved through the crowd, the girl’s expression grew increasingly terrified.

She seemed to sense a danger drawing near.

Yet when she looked around desperately, she saw Lu Xin still standing in place, a smile playing on his lips—part mockery, part taunt.

He hadn’t approached her at all, so where did this sense of peril come from?

“Protect me…”

“I’m so scared…”

“Protect me…”

“…”

Her feigned terror soon gave way to genuine panic, her cries and sobs relentless.

Yet her body writhed with anxious agitation.

Influenced by her, those around felt a matching restlessness. With guns in hand, they scanned the area for a visible foe, ready to discharge at anything that might dispel their growing tension.

But they could see no enemy—Lu Xin continued to stand silently in place.

Like a powder keg longing for a spark to ignite a storm.

But Lu Xin never sparked it; he remained remarkably calm and gentle.

Thus, under an invisible shroud of fear, both the girl and those corrupted by her influence trembled in the yard.

Amid that tense atmosphere, Mom approached the girl and said, “Long time no see…”

“My dear little sister…”

“…”

Lu Xin froze for a moment, puzzled as he glanced at his Sister.

His Sister, equally bewildered, clearly hadn’t heard of this Aunty.

Whoosh!

At the sound of Mom’s voice, the girl’s expression changed dramatically.

The pitiable, mournful look twisted into something contorted.

She likely couldn’t hear Mom’s words—Mom had already reached her, unseen as she kept glancing around. But when Mom smiled and spoke those words, then produced a pair of Scissors from her bag, a sense of danger shot through her.

Suddenly, her body contorted and the bugs beneath her skin began writhing violently.

Her entire body tensed and twisted unnaturally, and she sprang upright from the ground.

Barefoot, her two feet snapped straight with tremendous force.

She leaped one or two meters high, her body curving before forcefully catapulting forward.

She charged toward the Wall on the east side of the villa, as if trying to escape.

“Why are you in such a hurry to leave?”

But after just three or four meters, an overwhelming wave of fear crashed over her.

It felt as though she wasn’t fleeing danger at all, but barreling right toward it.

She couldn’t explain what was happening. From afar, Lu Xin noticed that Mom had multiplied her shadows, each standing in a different spot, all smiling as they slowly drew out a pair of Scissors.

Now, the girl was completely surrounded.

Panic twisted her muscles, and a faint, insect-like buzzing began from within her.

Suddenly, marks of crawling insects appeared under her skin as her body erupted with power—she leaped two meters high, grabbed at the hanging branches of a large tree, and dashed into its canopy.

Realizing she was trapped, she tried desperately to escape the dangerous area.

Clack clack clack…

At the unfolding chaos, the Police Officers and Vice President Xiao turned their heads, their expressions stricken with alarm.

Their faces flickered between confusion and pity.

The girl’s abnormal, twisted behavior stood in stark contrast to the pity they felt.

This left even those already tainted by her influence questioning everything.

It seemed the girl would never reveal her true self in front of her Pollution Entity.

After all, that would weaken her power.

…

Mom watched as the girl suddenly sprang upward, a faint look of disdain on her face.

Like an elegant lady looking down on an overdone little imp.

She didn’t chase after the tree.

Being a refined and dignified woman, Mom wouldn’t stoop to scurrying after a Pollution Source.

It would ruin her image.

She softly said, “Let go of my Sister.”

“Huh?”

Hearing this, Lu Xin quickly released his Sister’s hand.

Mom wouldn’t climb trees, but his Sister clearly could.

“Hee hee…”

In an instant, his Sister’s eyes lit up and she broke free from Lu Xin’s grasp, dashing off like lightning.

Under the power of the Spider-type ability, few creatures could escape.

With a whoosh, his Sister leaped onto the tree, quickly vanishing behind the dense canopy.

When the girl clambered up a branch and reached the tree, two small hands suddenly shot out from the thick leaves.

“Hee hee…”

Caught off guard, they immediately clung to her. In that instant, her view shifted abruptly to reveal a hideously ugly little face peeking from behind the leaves, their faces nearly pressed together.

She saw a pair of eyes, mostly the whites, and a mouth bared to reveal sharp teeth.

That grotesque face even wore a mocking expression.

“Ah…”

The sudden, horrifying sight made her scream in terror as she fell from the tree, desperate to flee.

But her Sister’s body immediately split into several parts, completely entangling her.

Her slender form emitted a cracking sound as her arms, legs, shoulders, neck, and even her features contorted into grotesque shapes; ripping sounds tore through her pajamas.

“Who are you?”

“Let me go! Hurry, let me go…”

“Waaah, please let me go, I know I was wrong…”

“…”

Under the influence of her Sister, her body began to warp, though she felt no pain.

Yet the terror still made her scream, now with cries filled with tears.

“You all, please protect me…”

“…”

In the end, she spared nothing as she once again pleaded with those tainted by her influence for protection.

But all she received were horrified stares.

The Big-Bearded Captain and Vice President Xiao, along with the others, looked at her in terror, their bodies trembling.

The girl’s abnormal behavior drastically undermined the pollution’s effect on them.

Even though they were still under its influence and eager to protect her, in their eyes she appeared deformed—a twisted acrobat performing a grotesque act. How could they possibly protect her?

To prevent her from breaking her own bones, should they just kill her?

“Hee hee hee…”

Throughout the yard, everyone was gripped by terror, their hearts heavy with dread.

Only his Sister grew ever more excited, cheerfully saying to the girl, “I love playing with you…”

“The harder you cry, the more I like it!”