Chapter 665: The Web of Chaos

Wuwuwu…

As the ground emergency unit of Flame City—or rather, the only active law enforcement in town—rushed into action under orders from the underground base, racing to every corner of Flame City, Lu Xin sat on a long bench inside the Security Hall. Beside him, about seven or eight people were curled up together, while on the floor lay a yellow-cloth-wrapped baseball bat, a fruit knife etched with mysterious runes, and other scattered items.

He sensed the roar of armored vehicles speeding past and heard gunshots bursting like firecrackers.

Despite having just been attacked by a gang of thugs, he remained calm and gentle.

He hadn’t killed anyone either.

He only watched as his Sister twisted them into a heap.

The calmer he became, the clearer he could see what was unfolding in Flame City.

In his perception, Flame City was like a sea turned to chaos.

Amid that chaos, certain wills were rapidly spreading, attempting to contaminate the entire ocean.

But once he and the other members of his Club intervened, the spread was halted.

Yet the momentum only slowed slightly, and the contamination threat remained severe.

So he repeated the question he’d asked upon entering the Security Hall: “So, will you act or not?”

…

“Is this guy…crazy?”

Inside the Security Hall, the atmosphere was eerie. Outside, the noise of chaos and clamor seeped in continuously, yet behind the glass wall, the specially attired law enforcers in protective suits stared blankly at Lu Xin, who was sitting properly on the bench.

None of them knew how to respond…

What was going on? He’d even reported an incident?

At first the Security Hall staff had genuinely assumed he was filing a report, so no one paid him any mind.

They figured he’d soon be snatched away by the frenzied crowd on the streets.

But unexpectedly, a team of crazed street attackers burst in. They didn’t even approach him; their limbs twisted into contorted knots, forming bizarre shapes that were left neatly arranged in the lobby.

“The situation outside is serious. As enforcers, you need to say something,”

Lu Xin waited a few seconds politely, then slowly stood up and asked the law enforcers one last time.

“Clack, clack…”

No one answered. Instead, faint sounds of bullets chambering echoed from behind the glass.

Lu Xin sighed and squinted his eyes slightly.

“Attention all departments: an invasion incident has erupted at Qingshi Street Intersection. The emergency unit is to proceed immediately…”

“A suspected ‘Dancer’-type intruder has been spotted near the Fire Broadcast Hall. The nearest armed forces are to provide support and neutralize immediately.”

“At the South Nuclear Power Station…”

“…”

In that heavy silence, a flurry of orders burst from the belt of one of the armed personnel—mentioning several names that sounded vaguely familiar to Lu Xin. He shook his head. Then, behind the glass wall, the Captain of the law enforcement team suddenly snapped into action, shouting, “We only follow orders from the Flame City Executives. Before 18:00, we received an emergency command to withdraw all forces.”

“You broke into the Security Hall and attacked innocent civilians right before our eyes. You have violated the Flame City regulations!”

“So… execute him immediately! Everyone, open fire!”

“…”

The final order was directed toward the other team members.

At that same moment, a small window in the glass wall slid open, and a muzzle poked out, spewing a burst of flame.

“Sigh…”

Lu Xin shook his head in resignation and murmured, “At a time like this, rather than handling those terrifying gatherings and contamination incidents, all they care about is clearing out anyone trying to stop these assemblies… Flame City’s rules are impossible to uphold…”

“…”

While he was talking, a bullet whistled toward him. He tilted his head and dodged.

In the very next moment, his figure blurred and abruptly appeared in front of the glass wall, face-to-face with the people inside.

“You…”

The people inside were stunned. They recoiled rapidly, and in panic, some instinctively fired their weapons.

Yet the bullets hit the glass wall, leaving only faint white traces.

“Since you won’t act…”

Lu Xin stood behind the glass, silently watching as his hand slowly rose.

In a quiet tone he said, “Then we’ll have to take matters into our own hands…”

In the next moment, his hand pressed against the reinforced glass wall. In his eyes, tiny black particles stirred before suddenly sending a violent tremor through the entire wall. With a crisp ‘crack’, the glass shattered into shards no larger than fingernails.

“Woof woof…”

Just as the law enforcers behind the glass moved to retaliate, a fierce bark erupted.

A skinless dog leaped at them with astonishing speed. Its exposed, well-defined muscles formed solid lines as it vaulted onto the adjacent wall and charged into the midst of the officers, snapping wildly.

Every officer bitten by it felt their emotions spiral into disarray.

Some plunged into despair, while others became agitated and enraged.

“Open fire…”

The Captain, reacting quickly despite being affected, raised his gun and hollered at Lu Xin.

But after pointing, he stood frozen as if he’d forgotten his next words.

“So that’s how it is…”

At the same moment, Lu Xin returned the Memory Hourglass to his black bag.

He noticed that the sand within it had quietly increased by one grain.

It suddenly dawned on him: when he used the hourglass to erase someone’s memory, its sand would accumulate; but if he modified or completely overwritten a memory, the sand would decrease. All this time, he’d been using it to scramble others’ memories, which is why the sand had gradually dwindled… No wonder he’d once thought it could be used indefinitely without maintenance.

Tucking the hourglass into his pocket, Lu Xin whispered, “Sister, it’s our turn.”

Hearing his words, his Sister excitedly rubbed her two little hands together. “This time, can we really go all out?”

Lu Xin turned to his excited Sister with a smile and shook his head, “You always play so small-scale.”

“This time, we’re going all out…”

“…”

“Whoosh!”

Her eyes lit up instantly as she flung her small hands forward with excitement.

The panicked law enforcers had no chance to resist.

Her outstretched hands clutched two armed personnel, whose bodies immediately contorted and then reached out to grab two more. It was as if layers of iron rings were linking together into one mass.

“Hee hee, this is too much fun…”

Her excited eyes narrowed as a twisted force radiated outward.

Affected by her power, the officers were thrown into the air, grabbing onto the bundled crowd in the lobby as they were hurled toward the street.

In the ensuing chaos, their hands instinctively reached out, and amidst the bedlam they collided with countless people.

One after another, people linked arms and hooked ankles.

They soared off the ground, ultimately forming a gigantic spider web.

Half of it clung to a building while the other half hung in the air. At the edge of the web, people continued to fling their arms outward. Her Sister clearly understood Lu Xin’s intentions—even those people caught in the pursuit were nothing more than frenzied zealots who, when pulled aside, became part of the web.

The spider’s web made by ordinary spiders was just a web, but the one her Sister wove was…

“Fame isn’t important.”

With every person she tugged, the web grew larger, extending its coverage ever so slightly.

Up above the street, she climbed excitedly through the web and then looked down at Lu Xin, asking, “Brother, how big will it be?”

“As big as it can be…”

Lu Xin replied, “As long as you don’t get tired, we’ll weave a web that seals every intersection…”

“Mm!”

His Sister nodded excitedly.

In no time, the enormous web spread rapidly, covering several intersections.

“Bang bang…”

In the midst of the chaos, some people fired at the web.

Others, terrified, wildly swung their knives at it.

Every part of the web was made up of people; they could be injured or even killed. Yet, with the spider-type ability users linking them together, their vitality and mental power were shared collectively—even the self-healing ability of the spider-type extended across the entire web. Consequently, everyone in Flame City witnessed this massive human web woven at the city center.

An ‘indestructible, inseverable, and unburnable human web.’

At the same time, buoyed by his Sister’s ability, Lu Xin felt an extremely bizarre sensation.

His senses—sight and hearing—extended along with the growing web.

…

He saw countless intersections where the violent enforcers of Flame City were charging toward designated targets. In response, the web spanned across, sealing off major roads and key junctions. Heavily armed armored vehicles and other combat vehicles barreled in with tremendous force, only to be swept away by the web; one vehicle toppled after another.

Some individuals were even wielding special weapons.

Yet even when enhanced special bullets struck the web, the damage was diffused and collectively borne by the entire structure.

…

He observed a group armed with special weapons, clad in protective suits, surrounding the Broadcast Hall. In an instant, the web enveloped them, stripping their protective gear and turning them into part of its mass.

Through the myriad eyes within the web, he even saw a red-dressed woman dancing inside the broadcast studio.

He noticed some were encircling the Nine-Headed Serpent, so he casually relieved its siege.

He saw a sports car wildly speeding down the street, showering money. After a brief pause, the web extended even further.

He witnessed Night Owl driving a tank near the Nuclear Power Station, under siege by a battalion while indiscriminately firing shells…

…He didn’t assist with that, though he did capsize the tank—after all, that thing wasn’t meant to really blow up.

Then he saw a group of Draculas dueling against Flame City’s armed force and simply circled around them.

On a street somewhere, ten Draculas were brawling with Old Wang, their formidable mental power clashing fiercely.

They appeared unbothered, though several nearby altars were completely dismantled. Lu Xin paused briefly, not interfering with his Club mates’ friendly skirmish, and casually eliminated a Sniper before moving on.

He noticed Xia Chong and others desperately fighting amid a group of robed figures. On one side, the web quickly covered them.

Opposing ability users, paralyzed by fear, lashed out at him.

But regardless of their powers, any attack on even one person within the web was instantly diluted by the overwhelming mental strength of everyone—it was rendered utterly ineffective…

…

…

Wherever the web passed, people were either halted or swept into it.

The entire city erupted into chaos. Whether it was the armed vehicles rushing out on orders to provide support, the crazed masses chasing after others in the street, or some hidden faction lurking in the shadows…

They all ceased their actions, dumbfounded, and looked up at the sprawling web overhead.

Twisted and contorted bodies, limbs interlocking in strange, horrifying patterns—yet many of those caught in the web were still alive, each straining and writhing in silent terror, unable to speak and only letting out muffled cries as they dangled high on the buildings lining both sides of the street.

All of Flame City had transformed into a dilapidated fortress, choked with gnarled webs everywhere.

The only difference was that compared to all this, a spider web was as normal as can be.

…

…

“What?”

Among those who witnessed the vast web enveloping the entire city were ability users like Dracula. No matter how fierce the battle or how wild the antics, they were all left stunned when the massive web appeared.

Dracula was especially dumbfounded, even lifting her eyepatch in shock, “What level of ability is this?”

She had slain a high-ranking priest of Black Box and borrowed his powers for a time—she had even woven a web once.

But that web was meant more to augment her mystique; she wasn’t a spider-type and couldn’t be as nimble.

So what does this mean now?

…

“Whose ability is this?”

Xia Chong and his group stared in astonishment at the enormous web, frozen in place.

“Does his contamination spread not require time?”

…

…

“Hee hee…”

Just as they were either bewildered or in shock, the people trapped in the web spoke in unison.

They exchanged knowing glances, their expressions shifting rapidly.

In a voice as cute as that of a little girl, they chorused, “Brother said, if you need help, you can always call me…”