Ch. 112 - Perishing Together
Die, Replay, RepeatThis chapter is broken. Please report this on discord.
Notes
Translator's note: Wow, I think the candlestick is now the most powerful weapon in the story. It works better than Fang Xiu's scalpel.
This chapter is broken. Please report this on discord.
Translator's note: Wow, I think the candlestick is now the most powerful weapon in the story. It works better than Fang Xiu's scalpel.
Some people were slow to act. Two psychics, who hesitated to follow Fang Xiu's commands, were still far from safety.
The head spun quickly, and the red light in her eyes moved along rapidly. It caught the two psychics who couldn't get away in time. They tried to run, but it was too late.
The two psychics felt scared, thinking their end was near, as the red light from Head Lantern seemed ominous.
However, when the light passed over them, they appeared unharmed and kept running toward the group. Then, they noticed something weird—their view was getting higher.
Originally about 1.7 meters tall, they realized they were getting taller as they ran, eventually reaching over two meters. It kept increasing to three, four, five meters. Everyone else looked tiny, as if they were standing atop a tall building, looking down.
Feeling strange, the two psychics lowered their heads and understood what happened. They saw their own headless bodies running, which then fell down, with blood coming from their necks.
They had turned into Head Lanterns.
Realizing this, they lost their sense of self and completely became Head Lanterns, floating in the sky. Their faces bore blissful smiles, with red lights shining from their eyes.
"Run!" Fang Xiu yelled, alerting everyone. This time, they followed him quickly, like loyal followers behind a leader, scared to be left behind.
Fang Xiu moved in a strange way, like he was drunk, but no one laughed. To them, his moves were nothing short of a miracle.
No one could guess when the Head Lanterns in the sky would change direction or how they would move. But Fang Xiu seemed to know their next moves, narrowly avoiding the red light.
Once, when five Head Lanterns looked their way, sending out ten red lights and almost blocking every path, Fang Xiu still found a way to escape. In a moment of extreme danger, he suddenly leaped into the air, avoiding a circle of red light that was forming around him.
The others, amazed by his incredible ability, stuck close to Fang Xiu, copying his every move. When Fang Xiu jumped, they jumped; when Fang Xiu rolled, they rolled.
It was fortunate that this group was made up of psychics, who were much faster and more reactive than ordinary people. If they had been just regular people, even knowing how to survive wouldn't have been enough to make it through.
But even as psychics, they couldn't mimic Fang Xiu's actions perfectly. There was a slight delay between actions—Fang Xiu moved, and only then could they follow, causing a tiny gap in timing. Normally, this half-second wouldn't be important, but in this critical situation, it was the difference between life and death.
In just two minutes, three more people died. Their heads transformed into Head Lanterns, making escape even harder. Yet everything seemed to be within Fang Xiu's expectations, including how many would die and how many new Head Lanterns would appear, dodging them all flawlessly.
"Stay close to me. The final wave is coming up!" Fang Xiu said calmly, moving quickly. The others followed silently.
The so-called final wave was hundreds of Head Lanterns crowding the sky. They were young men and women, looking fashionable with a lot of makeup.
They looked like they were dancing in the sky, shaking their heads from side to side. They had actually been dancing in a nearby nightclub when a Head Lantern turned them all. Now, even in death, they continued their last dance, nodding and shaking their heads rapidly, making it even harder to get past them.
"Light the bronze candlestick!" Fang Xiu commanded.
"Got it!" Liu Shuai replied, cutting his palm and lighting the candle.
A faint green light spread out, covering them all. They ran through the swarm of Head Lanterns under this green light. Red ghostly lights hit them but were stopped by the green light of the candle. This strange green light brought them all a feeling of unmatched safety.
Liu Shuai, however, didn't feel as secure as the others. His face was white, and he felt like all his blood was being sucked away.
Fortunately, Fang Xiu had chosen a path with the weakest red light. If they had faced hundreds of red lights, Liu Shuai might have been completely drained.
Fang Xiu had learned the safest route by experiencing multiple deaths and rewinds. Under the protection of the bronze candlestick, they were close to escaping the terrifying swarm of Head Lanterns. But just then, something unexpected happened.
A young and beautiful woman in the group suddenly grabbed her chest and fell down. It wasn't a heart attack but a mental breakdown. The constant running and fear of dying had overwhelmed her, causing her to lose control of her Spiritual Energy.
The state of her Spiritual Energy could have been manageable under different circumstances. If they had spiritual incense, it would have calmed her energy, and she would have been fine. But there was no chance to light such incense in their current situation.
As everyone continued to flee, she fell outside the protective green light.
"No, no, no!!" she screamed in terror, watching the green light move away from her. She felt utterly vulnerable, like being exposed to dangerous radiation without any protection. "Stop and save me!"
Her cries went unheard by most of the psychics, who kept running forward, while a few looked back with pity. Just then, a pair of Head Lanterns turned toward her. As the red light targeted her, a look of madness mixed with despair appeared on her face.
"If you won't save me, then let's die together!"