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Translator's note: In China, red is not just a symbol of festivity. Similar to Western culture, red in China can also represent terror and bloodiness, obviously because it easily evokes the association with blood.
"Manager Cheng, if I'm not wrong, your power isn't just strength, right?"
Cheng Xinyuan was truly shocked by Fang Xiu's perception. 'Is it really perception? Or omniscience?'
He numbly nodded and said, "You're right, my power isn't just strength. Strength is just a by-product of my real ability."
As he spoke, he took off his shirt, revealing tattoos all over his body. A tiger descending a mountain was tattooed on his chest, and a dragon over his shoulder on his back. These dragon and tiger tattoos looked incredibly lifelike as if they were real animals.
"My ability is to control the dragon and tiger on my body. The strength is just something they give me."
Suddenly, from the deep fog in the street, numerous non-human roars interrupted their conversation.
Everyone looked toward the sound and felt a tightness in their chests.
From the fog, hundreds of "people" charged out.
To be precise, they were no longer people but Specter Slaves.
With green faces and sharp teeth, their faces were fierce, and their nails had grown into sharp claws.
They moved on all fours, like wild beasts, roaring as they rushed towards the vehicles.
They were the transformed citizens of Greenvine who had died.
"What do we do now, Fang Xiu?" came a voice from the walkie-talkie. It was another psychic asking from another car.
"Drive through them," Fang Xiu replied calmly, a strange crimson light flashing in his right eye.
With a thunderous roar, the psychics drove their cars, stepping hard on the gas.
"Shen Lingxue, Cheng Xinyuan, move!" commanded Fang Xiu.
Without any hesitation, the two sprang into action.
Shen Lingxue released bright, hot flames, hurling fireballs through the fog at the Specter Slaves. The fireballs exploded among the Specter Slaves like grenades.
Cheng Xinyuan also took immediate action, his skinny body bulging with muscles.
As his muscles expanded, the tattooed tiger and dragon on his body seemed to come to life, flying off his skin.
Transforming into a black dragon and white tiger, they roared toward the Specter Slaves, clearing the way like tanks.
The other psychics in the cars also took action, continuously making a path.
Under the attack of the psychics, the hundreds of Specter Slaves couldn't stop the vehicles' progress.
In just a moment, Fang Xiu and the others broke through the encirclement.
There were some minor damages to the vehicles but no casualties.
This initial victory greatly boosted the confidence of the psychics; some now believed that Nightmare was not that formidable.
Then, Fang Xiu's command suddenly rang out in all the cars.
"Stop the cars."
Confused but compliant, everyone stopped their vehicles.
Fang Xiu quickly stepped out of the car, and the other psychics followed, puzzled about what he planned to do.
Once everyone was outside, Fang Xiu made a startling announcement, "Up ahead, we'll encounter creatures called Head Lanterns. They have eyes that shine red. If their red light hits you, you will instantly lose your head. Follow me closely if you don't want to die. And remember, do not attack the Head Lanterns. If you do, it will trigger their killing moves, and they'll swarm us."
Everyone was stunned by this news. Some even asked him, "How can you know this? It's one thing to sense the presence of Specters before they appear, but to know their killing moves too? Are you sure this is just sensing, not foreseeing the future?"
Someone else asked, "If there really are Head Lanterns ahead, why don't we take a different route?"
"There's no use," Fang Xiu replied calmly. "Head Lanterns have surrounded us. The only way is to go through them. It's up to you to believe it or not."
He didn't bother explaining how he knew; the important thing was to act. Ignoring the commotion, he started walking forward.
Fang Xiu had thought about going alone to avoid being slowed down. But after careful consideration, he decided to stick with the group.
Nightmare had changed; it controlled all of Greenvine City, and many Specters were on the loose. In this situation, it was hard to succeed alone. For Fang Xiu, these psychics were like tools in a game, essential for helping him defeat the boss.
Zhao Hao followed Fang Xiu immediately, trusting him without question.
Shen Lingxue knew more about Fang Xiu than others, and she silently followed Fang Xiu too.
Then came Cheng Xinyuan. He didn't believe Fang Xiu could predict the future, but he trusted him because of their past interactions.
Seeing the others following, the rest of the group hesitated but chose to trust Fang Xiu too. After all, if the head of the Investigation Bureau and a third-tier psychic like Yang Ming trusted Fang Xiu, they thought it would be foolish to doubt him now.
Before long, everyone was following Fang Xiu.
After walking about a hundred meters, the group suddenly noticed that lanterns had mysteriously appeared in the dense fog ahead.
These lanterns emitted a red light, floating in the sky like clouds drifting with the wind.
Recalling Fang Xiu's earlier warning, everyone tensed up.
Fang Xiu kept moving forward without pause. As they got closer, the group could finally see what the lanterns actually were.
They were human heads floating in the sky. The necks were severed cleanly as if cut by some sharp instrument.
Each head was smiling with eyes open, looking almost alive.
There were old and young, men and women, a dense mass floating in the sky, forming what seemed like an ocean of thousands of heads. This sight sent chills down everyone's spine.
"Everyone, stay to the right," Fang Xiu said calmly. He swiftly moved to the right side of the street.
Zhao Hao, Shen Lingxue, and the others followed him without hesitation. The rest, after a moment of surprise, quickly reacted and followed.
As they moved, the closest Head Lantern turned its head towards them.
It was the head of a young, lively girl with a bright smile. Fresh blood dripped from her severed neck, indicating she hadn't been dead long.
As her head turned, everyone clearly saw the red light shining from her eyes, like two flashlights casting beams on the ground, quickly sweeping toward the spot where the group had been standing moments before.