Chapter 785: The Enigmatic Performance
by xennovel1: The circus performers—whether pushing a cart or riding on an elephant—slowly drifted away.
2: Lu Xin stood quietly at the back, watching them. On the elephant’s back, atop a cart pulled by a strongman, were the magician performing his tricks with his assistant, a two-headed beauty showcasing song and dance, a dwarf collecting money, an elegant lady twirling with serpents, and even, inside a cage shrouded in black cloth on the cart, a serpentine beauty gently peeking out her head. Each of them smiled in his direction.
3: They waved slowly as they faded from view.
4: In that moment, Lu Xin felt a peculiar sensation fill his chest, and his gaze lingered for a long while.
5: ……
6: ……
7: After quite some time, Lu Xin opened the ticket envelope and found that the ticket indeed had no time printed on it.
8: Instead, it bore the name of a show called ‘The Final Performance’.
9: This was a performance for which the audience never knew when or where to watch.
10: But recalling how those people had departed, Lu Xin suddenly felt a strong sense of anticipation.
11: As if some mental sense had been stirred, he had a faint premonition that this might turn out to be an extraordinary show.
12: “From a safety standpoint, this ticket should probably be discarded,”
13: Doctor An’s voice reminded Lu Xin. She looked indifferently at the receding circus and softly said, “Because no one can predict what this ticket might bring—things handed over by Ability Users often wield strange effects.”
14: “But keeping it wouldn’t hurt either.”
15: “After all, it’s a token of appreciation from them. Discarding it might be seen as ungrateful.”
16: “Besides, although these people are peculiar, I haven’t sensed any hostility from them.”
17: “……”
18: “……”
19: Lu Xin nodded and smiled, “Yes.”
20: As he spoke, he tucked the ticket into an inner pocket of his jacket.
21: He was a man who rarely discarded things thoughtlessly.
22: Besides, this was one of his rare extravagant moments, so he valued their gratitude enough not to part with it.
23: As for any strange effects or other issues, Lu Xin hadn’t given them much thought.
24: All he needed to guard against were sudden acts of contamination or covert influences from abilities.
25: For something that stayed close at hand, it was unlikely to affect him.
26: Or rather, it probably wouldn’t dare to have any effect at all.
27: ……
28: ……
29: “Let’s go. We have a long journey ahead,”
30: Doctor An smiled as she saw him stow away the ticket, saying nothing more.
31: In truth, each member of their investigation team had noticed some strange, mysterious details. However, the direction taken by the circus was different from theirs and seemed to belong to outsiders, so they had no plans to focus on them.
32: After all, heading to the Old Research Institute Site was the most important matter.
33: “Also, the deeper we go, the more cautious we must be.”
34: Leading the way into the dense forest, Doctor An advised everyone, “We’re now inside the forbidden line.”
35: “Countless investigation teams dispatched by the Research Institute have disappeared inside this line. It’s certain that some mysterious force inhabits this area—one that can make people vanish without a trace.”
36: “And we are almost destined to encounter that force.”
37: “……”
38: “Ahem, this gloomy place… talking about it just makes it scarier…”
39: Lu Xin inwardly grumbled as he walked silently among the group, entering the thick woodland surrounding the open plain.
40: Once they ventured into the forest, the Nomadic Tribe and the circus each took a different path.
41: Suddenly, an eerie silence fell over the area.
42: The forest was dim, its towering canopy blocking the sunlight, making them feel as though they were moving inside a shadowy cage.
43: They could barely hear the cries of beasts—only their own breaths and the crisp sound of snapping dry branches accompanied them.
44: According to the map, it was still several dozen kilometers to the Old Research Institute Site.
45: In theory, the Research Institute had existed long before the Red Moon incident, so there would have been proper roads leading to it.
46: However, after the catastrophe, the institute had collectively relocated. The area remained deserted for years, the roads crumbling from neglect, with mudslides and occasional earthquakes breaking bridges and blocking mountain passages, making travel even more difficult.
47: That is why Doctor An chose this route.
48: They followed a relatively gentle slope through the northern section of the Sleeping Mountains’ dense forest, heading straight for the institute’s old site.
49: Since it was mostly downhill and almost a straight shot, it was actually more convenient.
50: ……
51: ……
52: Because of Doctor An’s warnings and previous disappearances of investigators, everyone remained on high alert.
53: Long periods of silence fell over the group.
54: Even Doctor An, normally quite talkative and unbothered by a few disapproving glances, said little.
55: They would only stop, about every half hour, to check their equipment.
56: This forest certainly did not let anyone down.
57: After the first half hour of travel, Doctor An noted that there was absolutely no signal here.
58: Even when she began recording the investigation log with her recording pen, the playback was filled with chaotic electrical hums.
59: When replayed, the sounds were distorted and stretched out.
60: Consequently, she had to switch to manually typing notes on her notebook, then sealing them inside a small black box.
61: Lu Xin figured that she had prepared this in case of her death, so that future generations might find her records.
62: At the second half-hour checkpoint, they discovered that their portable Mental Radiation Detectors had lost effectiveness. The high concentration of mental radiation caused all devices to flash red incessantly.
63: Their warning function was thereby nullified.
64: One thing was certain—the area was permeated with strong mental radiation.
65: “How strange…”
66: Doctor An stopped once more, quietly writing in her notebook and reciting aloud.
67: It seemed this was her way of sharing intelligence with Lu Xin and the others.
68: At the same time, by speaking aloud, she hoped they could immediately catch any discrepancies in her records:
69: “In a deserted area, it’s rare to see such dense mental radiation. Even if it were present, it would dissipate.”
70: “Yet here, mental radiation is abundant, and it’s unclear how long it has existed.”
71: “After verification, this place no longer allows entry into the Abyss, nor is there any perceptible presence of Mental Monsters around.”
72: “An inexplicably high concentration of mental radiation might be the key to unlocking forbidden secrets…”
73: “We must be cautious, as mental radiation can cause hallucinations or lead to misdirection…”
74: “……”
75: “……”
76: After recording her observations, Lu Xin and the others resumed their journey.
77: Listening to Doctor An, Lu Xin suddenly wondered why none of them were wearing protective suits.
78: It might be because wearing them would hinder movement in the forest.
79: But from another perspective, it suggested that everyone in this investigation team was no ordinary person.
80: He shook his head slightly, saying nothing more as he obediently followed along.
81: After all, this level of mental radiation barely affected him; in fact, he found it rather pleasant.
82: It felt just like a fish returning to water.
83: The pervasive mental radiation felt like gentle, quiet strands of silk.
84: He could easily weave his way through them without disturbing a single sleeping insect, or even pull them in one sweeping motion…
85: …that scene would be simply magnificent, wouldn’t it?
86: Lost in thought, Lu Xin let his imagination wander as they trudged through the arduous, silent journey.
87: “Oh dear…”
88: Suddenly, a sharply high-pitched voice startled Lu Xin from his reverie.
89: Everyone paused. Doctor An and Lu Xin turned in unison toward the sound.
90: Meanwhile, the silent girl in the middle of the group turned her head slightly.
91: “There’s…”
92: “There are dead people here…”
93: “……”
94: The exclamation came from none other than Doctor Li, who stomped timidly with distinctly feminine steps. He backed away while pointing at the front with a grimace; his face had turned somewhat pale, and he nearly lost his balance in panic.
95: Behind him, two other researchers quickly moved forward, trying to catch him.
96: But just as they were about to grab him, they exchanged awkward glances and withdrew their hands.
97: Consequently, Doctor Li fell to the ground, scattering dry twigs everywhere.
98: Yet no one seemed to worry about his bruised rear; all eyes anxiously followed his gaze.
99: There, pointing ahead, was a dark, indistinct object that resembled the remains of a child.
100: A chill ran through everyone’s hearts. Upon closer inspection, they realized:
101: It wasn’t an actual corpse but rather a massive, rotten fruit.
102: It was the fruit of some unknown tree, its dark, uneven skin and raised patches vaguely forming the smiling visage of a human face. In the murky light, it was all too easy to mistake it for a person.
103: “What kind of fruit is this?”
104: “Why does it look so human…?”
105: “Was it crafted by someone, or is it a natural growth?”
106: “……”
107: With trepidation, everyone began discussing in hushed, uneasy tones.
108: “It’s not man-made—it naturally grows this way.”
109: Doctor An moved closer, scrutinized it for a moment, and said quietly, “As for its characteristics, we still can’t tell.”
110: “Heh, after the Red Moon incident, many mutations have appeared in the Wasteland.”
111: “Not only humans or animals, but many plants have … mutated as well.”
112: “Especially here, where high concentrations of mental radiation persist year-round, any change is hardly surprising…”
113: “……”
114: “I think I know which tree this fruit comes from…”
115: At that moment, Lu Xin’s voice sounded softly from further back in the group.
116: The others hastily turned their heads. Following his gaze upward, their hearts pounded in unison.
117: ……
118: ……
119: Hanging from the treetops some twenty to thirty meters high were clusters of round, jet-black fruits. Each one bore a bizarre face on its surface that, like the one on the ground, gazed eerily at them.
120: Throughout the vast forest, countless of them hung densely, their numbers immeasurable.
121: It was as if, from some unknown point, these fruits had been growing all along, silently watching their every move.
122: “Hee hee hee…”
123: Faint laughter echoed from all around the forest.