Chapter 769: Into the Abyss of Shadows

Since we’ve reached our destination, should we go in?

Lu Xin nodded slightly at his noticeably tense Father, slowly flexing his fingers.

Meanwhile, his Sister, distracted, kept glancing around at the Undercover Units and even spun 180 degrees to inspect her little backpack.

The group of Undercover Units exchanged knowing looks.

The oppressive darkness and mystery ahead weighed heavily on them, but a quick look with the man in the red pointed cap confirmed that this was indeed the destination of Lu Xin’s family. They nodded to each other and, without the Scissors-Wrapped Hammer this time, advanced together toward that mysterious, dark area. They even removed their hats and squared their slight chests…

…Hold on, is this a collective suicide pact?

Lu Xin hurriedly stopped them, sternly commanding, “Wait here.”

He added, “No suicide.”

The Undercover Units stared at him blankly, their eyes gradually welling up with tears…

Lu Xin took a deep breath and glanced at Mother.

He saw her also fixated on that dark expanse. After a moment, she gently nodded and said, “Courtesies first, then force…”

Lu Xin smiled broadly and nodded back—this was exactly what he liked.

……

……

His Fantasy Ability retracted, and the surrounding Undercover Units no longer formed a circle around the family but instead lined up in a row.

A sense of the Abyss’s repulsion suddenly surged in him, and Lu Xin felt the scene before his eyes flicker rapidly.

“Phew…”

A sudden, chilling gust blew past, making Lu Xin shudder involuntarily.

“Time to add a layer,” he thought, glancing ahead.

Raising his head, he looked forward.

Within the Abyss lay a dark, dead, lifeless shadow.

Yet in reality, ahead lay a damp, winding stone-paved path leading to a densely built Small Town. Scattered black streetlights silently illuminated the buildings and narrow alleyways on either side.

A briny sea breeze blew by, chilling him to the bone.

An ever-present, chilling fog hung over the town, lending it a desolate air.

For a moment, Lu Xin thought he had stepped into a pre-Civilization Era town.

It was clean, orderly, and well-equipped—without high walls or suspension bridges—yet it had clearly been forgotten by time…

“Let’s go in and take a look,” he said.

Mother stepped forward quietly, joining Lu Xin side by side as they moved ahead.

Father faithfully followed behind them, his sharp gaze occasionally sweeping over the town.

His Sister glanced back longingly at the spot where the Undercover Units lingered by the Abyss before happily skipping to catch up.

……

……

The town wasn’t large, yet it pulsed with life.

Unlike the deathly silence of the Abyss, plenty of people actually lived in this Small Town.

Walking slowly along the slippery stone path, the family observed that the buildings on each side were constructed from large blocks of bluestone, with barely a trace of mortar, lending them a strangely quaint, unique beauty.

In a nearby alley, a tilted, dilapidated fishing boat bore marks of long-forgotten times.

Under the eaves of the houses, a few flowerpots, with wilted plants and a smattering of small blooms, could be seen.

Through the low and high windows of the surrounding buildings, they could even glimpse the lives of the town’s residents.

“Wah wah…”

Behind one window, an unclothed infant lay on a bed, flailing his little arms and crying loudly.

In a nearby living room, young parents numbly ate their meal, completely unresponsive to their child’s cries.

“Pfft…”

On a rooftop ahead, a girl in a white dress, resembling a pale, ethereal sprite, slowly turned. With her back facing the alley, she spread her arms wide before collapsing straight onto the stone path like a fallen log.

Vivid blood oozed from beneath her disheveled hair, and her little skirt spread out on the ground.

At her landing spot, someone poked their head out, expressionless as they watched her.

Pedestrians, clutching their raincoats tight, cautiously avoided her blood and hurried on.

In a dim, cramped room, a High School Student slowly handed his school report to Father.

Father scanned the scores without a word, carefully setting down his bottle of alcohol.

Then, he stood up and began unbuckling his belt—with its stainless steel buckle.

The High School Student kept his head down, catching only the flash of cold glint from the belt buckle as his body began to tremble.

In a messy, gloomy bathroom, an Injured Woman cowered behind a door, leaning against it with her shoulder while covering her mouth and crying.

“Open the door, it’s alright…”

“Don’t worry, I won’t hit you this time…”

Outside the bathroom, a drunken Man spoke in a gentle tone while slowly clenching the knife in his hand.

……

……

As Lu Xin’s family walked through the town, every scene of life there unfolded before their eyes.

The sea breeze grew even chillier, penetrating right into the heart.

The entire town resembled a kaleidoscope filled with diverse vignettes of life.

Peering through every window, one could see a distinct slice of life.

Within these scenes, the town’s residents lived out their lives in myriad ways.

An oppressive chill pervaded their existence, with an intangible dread lurking close by.

A presence even chillier than the sea air seeped out from these lives, draping the town in an eerie, bone-chilling hue.

……

……

“Heh, that’s the spirit…”

After a long while, Father was the first to break the silence, murmuring, “It really is here.”

Lu Xin took a while to catch on and then asked, “Where exactly?”

“I can’t say precisely…”

Father, gritting his teeth and with a somewhat ferocious expression, said, “It’s well hidden.”

“But I know it’s here—I just can’t pinpoint it any closer…”

“…”

“Then…”

Lu Xin hesitated, glancing at Mother.

“Don’t stress over it,” she whispered.

Mother replied softly, “Just follow your intuition.”

Lu Xin nodded, taking a couple of slow steps forward before crouching down and pressing his palm onto the stone path of the town.

“Hum…”

A dense ripple of Mental Power trembled lightly beneath his palm, and then an uncanny force rapidly spread out.

Though this outpouring of Mental Power did not affect anything in the real world,

it quickly surged like a stream, reaching every nook and cranny.

In that moment, many of the town’s windows trembled briefly before settling, and the usually dim lights in various windows brightened warmly.

The chilling fog that draped over the town seemed to react, contracting as if distancing itself.

“Oh…”

Within the Abyss, the Undercover Units outside the town gaped in unison.

They observed a faint light piercing through the vast darkness ahead.

It was as if, amid that dead, shadowy void, a gigantic heart had suddenly emerged.

Thump…

The heart, like a muted drum, emitted a tremendous beat.

As the sound spread, the age-old, ice-like gloom began to loosen and shatter.

This level of power inspired their reverence.

Especially the one with the red pointed cap, whose expression turned unmistakably proud.

……

……

“Clap clap…”

A slight crisp sound resonated as Lu Xin’s Fantasy Ability expanded.

It was reminiscent of ice shattering.

In this seaside town, countless residents abruptly lifted their heads, as if awakening from a deep dream.

“Ouch…”

Young parents leaped in alarm, scattering their bowls and chopsticks. They rushed into the bedroom, cradling an infant who had been crying alone on the bed—his body turning blue from the cold—as they anxiously wrapped him in thick blankets and hurriedly warmed his formula. Their faces betrayed a mix of lingering terror and sudden shock.

“No, no…”

A glass door was forcefully pushed open as a Young Man burst out, grabbing the Girl lying on the ground and shouting in agony:

“What are you afraid of?”

“I told you I’d always take care of you—I’d even marry you…”

“So why are you still so scared? Why do you keep doing this…”

“…”

The badly injured Girl’s lips quivered as she whispered something. Leaning in, he could barely catch her murmurs:

“Hurry, take me to the hospital…”

“…”

“Oh?”

The Young Man suddenly snapped back to reality—this was just a fall from the third floor. There was still hope.

In a panic, he clutched the Girl’s body as a figure in a raincoat dashed out from afar to help him.

Inside a dim room, a Child with a face smeared in blood from being struck with a belt cried suppressedly.

His silence and endurance only fueled the Adult’s relentless assault.

The Adult grew increasingly frenzied, unable to stop hitting; his eyes turned bloodshot, seemingly reveling in the violence.

The Child finally realized that he might be beaten to death…

Then, an outburst of fury erupted within him. With a deafening roar, he leapt up.

He forcefully shoved Father, toppling him to the ground.

In Father’s shocked gaze, he snatched up the bottle of alcohol from the table.

“Come on, then…”

He screamed wildly, brandishing the bottle.

In the bathroom, a Woman listened as the men outside began forcefully kicking the door, her crying gradually subsiding.

A steely glare flashed in her eyes as she retrieved the hidden Gun from the bathroom, carefully loading bullets.

“I’m about to open the door—please, don’t hit me anymore…”

She spoke in a frail voice, slowly pressing the gun against the door.

……

……

Amid a flurry of chaos and violent clashes,

the oppressive, murky mist in the town concealed countless eruptions of intense emotions.

Lu Xin used his Fantasy Ability to alter everything—not through pollution or external influence,

but purely through the force of his Mental Power.

This town had long been steeped in a fear that had permeated its very bones, leaving some numb while others sank deeper into terror. All Lu Xin did was submerge the town with his Mental Power, diluting the omnipresent dread that had plagued them for ages. Every change stemmed from the town itself.

“Found it…”

As the oppressive chill over the town eased slightly, Lu Xin slowly stood, raising his head to gaze ahead.

While his Mental Power washed over the town, diluting every trace of fear, every reaction was absorbed into his mind.

But there was one place where dread remained inviolable.

Even his Mental Power was thwarted at that threshold.

That place, of course, was where he had to find what he was looking for.

……

……

“Alright, time to get to work…”

Mother shot a quick glance in the direction Lu Xin was looking and nodded subtly.

In the next moment, a moist, heavy fog mixed with a chilly sea breeze swept past, and the family’s figures vanished.

When they reappeared, they were at the edge of the town, standing before a church near the sea.

This was an old church left over from the pre-Civilization Era, clearly long neglected and showing signs of decay.

In this quiet town, the church exuded a striking stillness.

Yet if you listened carefully, you could hear disordered winds swirling around it, carrying countless murmurs that flowed through the town and seeped into every ear that heard them.