Volume 2

95 Disappearance of the Western District

I turned back to look at Nie Zun, who was also looking towards me. His eyes gleamed, but he did not look surprised.

Jiao S sighed. “I knew it. I’ve been suspecting this for a while, but I still don’t get it. If it was simply like this, everything can be unravelled. I don’t know what Du Yue’s experiment is about, I know nothing about her, and much less about you soul splitters. There’s only one thing I can be sure of, Si Luo’s deteriorating condition is extremely unusual, and I will find a way to save him.”

Rong Jin’s languid voice sounded in the darkness, “Heh heh heh, since it’s already known, let’s reveal everything. I can tell you what Du Yue wants to achieve through the experiment. Her goal is to find a method to kill soul splitters, and she’s not targeting normal people like you. Heh heh heh, and we have Ta Lai to thank for all this.”

Ta Lai pursed his lips.

I looked at Ta Lai in surprise, never have I seen such an expression on his face. At the same time, I noticed that Gaoqin Jiuye had the same kind of expression!

The ghostly voice continued lazily, “You know that right, Ta Lai? Because of you, Du Yue is trying all ways and means to look for a method that can kill soul splitters who never die, and then kill the one you love – Bian Ying!”

Bian Ying… The name Ta Lai called out to in his nightmare?!

A rivalry of love? Meaning Bian Ying is a soul splitter too, they are all soul splitters, and since soul splitters almost never die here in the Split Zone, Du Yue wants to find a way to kill Bian Ying with such a cruel experiment?

During his nightmare, Ta Lai seemed full of anguish. Where is Bian Ying now?

The people of our district were taken away to be experimental subjects just because of this trivial rivalry?!

I was incensed, and terrible images of Song Lu throwing up poison leech spawn flashed through my brain once again!

Ta Lai sighed. “Rong Jin, is this your goal? Working with Du Yue to find a way to save Si Luo? Aren’t you too naive… even if such a method exists, do you think that Du Yue will let you have it easily? You will forever be controlled by her once you work for her…”

Gaoqin Jiuye was slightly agitated. “Du Yue is not like what you think, she…”

He frowned, not completing his sentence, almost as if there was something he could not say.

My gaze lingered on his sharp facial features, unable to move my eyes away from his perpetual downcast face.

“Hahahahahahahaha, Gaoqin Jiuye, someone as pompous as you would defend a woman like her?”

Gaoqin Jiuye’s face crinkled. “Rong Jin, didn’t you also choose to work together with her? Ta Lai is right, aren’t you too naive? Why would she have a way to save Si Luo?”

The ghostly voice chuckled. “How about Mi Fu? Mi Fu’s older brother was a special case in the Split Zone, and the only case before Si Luo where one’s body had symptoms of deteriorating, and at the time, Si Luo was desperate to uncover the truth behind it. But he died in an incident while protecting Huan Qing, becoming the first and only soul splitter in the Split Zone to die an unnatural death. Funny thing is, Mi Fu does not have the body constitution of a soul splitter! How would you know that the secret to saving Si Luo lies with Mi Fu then?”

Gaoqin Jiuye gave a humourless smile. “If she knew a method, would her brother have died?”

“That’s not because she does not have a method, she is the method herself! Anyway, I’m not going to give up in unravelling this mystery, and in finding out why the Western District became like this. I suspect it’s due to some sort of technique that can contort space. No matter what, as long as it can save Si Luo, I’m willing to give it a try! Even if I’m being used by that Du Yue woman!”

I was deeply shaken by such remarks, even when spoken in Rong Jin’s shrill and piercing voice.

He did all this for Si Luo…

Gaoqin Jiuye also had a bleak expression… He did not usually look like this…

Si Luo… These people are willing to risk everything for you. What kind of person are you exactly?

Nie Zun spoke up beside me, “You’re saying that Mi Fu is not a soul splitter? But an old woman once told us that she is one.”

Gaoqin Jiuye interrupted, “That might have been an illusion created by Huan Qing to protect Mi Fu. Huan Qing had always felt guilty about the death of Mi Fu’s older brother, since it was to protect him. Because of this, he tries his best to protect Mi Fu, and probably thought that she’ll not be harmed if you thought she was a soul splitter.”

Jiao S abruptly said, “Since everyone seems to be on the same page on the matter of saving Si Luo, let’s all work together in finding a solution. When Jie Pa and Tao Lie returned to the Eastern District, they informed me of the situation in the Western District. During the past few days, Jie Pa and I were able to sense some remnants of MF in the ruins. Together with other remaining traces and clues, I have a daring conjecture to make.”

“What is it?” Rong Jin asked in a sharp voice, as if he could not wait any longer.

Jiao S cracked her neck. “Just as you said, Jie Pa and I both suspect that this is some sort of spacial contortion technique, probably some kind of transference technique.”

I looked at Jie Pa, puzzled.

Jie Pa adjusted his glasses and nodded at me. “Miss Ah Shen, I suspect this is Old Man Fan’s doing. Something major might have happened in the Western District, and Old Man Fan might have used all his MF to try and change that using a transference technique. As you all know, we use our MF in the Split Zone, derived from the mental strength of our comatose bodies in the real world, to maintain our existence and appearance. The power of our subconscious is infinite, it is only limited by how we use it.”

Jiao S nodded, adding, “Put simply, Old Man Fan has great mental strength, and whatever happened in the Western District caused him to activate all of his MF for this transference technique. Of course, all this was at the cost of depleting his mental strength. Although his mental strength has been depleted completely, he is still alive in the real world, and thus he will not die in the Split Zone. However, since all his MF has been used up, unlike Huan Qing’s case, he might not be able to recover from it, and this caused him to become just like a petrified statue.”

I cried, “What? What happened? Why did it become like this!”

I moved forward and grabbed Jiao S’s arms tightly, looking at her in disbelief. I asked, “You mean Old Man Fan completely depleted his MF to use this technique? What kind of technique is this? Why would he do that?”

I heard You Ji’s voice close by. “What else? Probably to protect you, Li Shen! That old man is pretty loyal to you, he refused to betray you no matter what I said. Why did that old geezer drag my Seven Demons to hell with him using this technique?”

Bam!

I activated my MF and flicked my wrist, producing a blinding ray of violet light which streaked towards You Ji’s face!

As I triggered my MF, I looked like I was engulfed in angry flames as my red hair flew up!

I stared at You Ji, outraged. It looked like she could not dodge in time, and the violet ray was about to slice her head off!

“Ow!”

A gigantic lion then appeared out of nowhere in the black night!

Boom!

The violet ray sliced into the lion in front of You Ji, cutting it into two halves!

Blood sprayed everywhere!

With a blood-splattered face, You Ji said in a dazed manner, “Thank you, Rong Jin.”

My gaze was chilly as I flicked my long hair, saying, “You Ji, if I ever find out that Old Man Fan became like this because he confronted your Seven Demons in order to defend me, I, Li Shen, swear that I won’t let you live!”

Anger rising in my throat, I kept my gaze steely and enunciated each word clearly!

You Ji gave a bitter smile, but it was difficult to hide how astonished she was at my attack. “You care about Old Man Fan, I care about my Seven Demons too!”

She then turned and stared at Jie Pa. “What kind of technique is this?”

Jie Pa looked at her impassively. “We are not sure how such a transference technique works, but what we can be sure that since Old Man Fan used all his MF to freeze and move everyone in the Western District. It’s possible that there is a Western District still intact somewhere, except that it’s stuck in another space!”

I pressed, “What does this mean? The Western District still exists somewhere? Just that we don’t know where it is?”

Stiffly, Jiao S reached out to gently pat me on the arm. “That’s right. Everyone in the Western District should have been frozen at the same moment, and moved to some unknown space, except we don’t know where it is. Apart from the real world and the Split Zone, we’re not sure if a third dimension exists here in this world.”

Rong Jin’s sharp voice sounded leisurely, “So it’s like this, not disappointing at all, very spectacular. Seems like more secrets of the Split Zone will be unveiled once we find out why the Western District disappeared, and we might even find a way to save Si Luo!”

I looked over at Gaoqin Jiuye, who remained quiet, and looked over at Ta Lai, who was silent all this while and had a perpetual smile on his face.

I suddenly felt like I could not trust either of them.

There are too many secrets in the Split Zone, and all of these people have separate goals. No matter what their goals are, be it to save Si Luo, to save Bian Ying, or something else, I am sure that their goals do not align with mine!

I am only here to save my friends and to protect them!

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