Your Life Is Under My Protection, Zhou Meng's
It was Zhou Meng's voice!
Down on one knee and at a loss, Lin Qiye felt as though he had found a lifeline.
He was just about to speak when Zhou Meng cut him off.
"Don't speak yet. Hear me out. I know what you want to do. I have a way, but there's a small price to pay. Are you willing?"
"A price? What price?" Lin Qiye asked instinctively.
"Let me take over your body."
Let a god in the mental hospital take over his body?
Lin Qiye was stunned for a moment, but his gaze quickly grew resolute.
"I'm willing! Come on! As long as you can save Zhao Kongcheng, I'll agree to anything you want to do!" Lin Qiye said firmly.
Zhou Meng hadn't expected Lin Qiye to agree so quickly.
He hadn't come prepared with the idea he had just proposed. Rather, after Lin Qiye used the trait Zhou Meng had lent him, bringing Zhou Meng's degree of mental illness down to 99.9%, a trait called [Parasitic Avatar] had naturally appeared in Zhou Meng's mind.
With Lin Qiye's permission, the [Parasitic Avatar] trait allowed Zhou Meng to briefly occupy Lin Qiye's body and control its movements while retaining all his own trait abilities.
In other words, it was much like logging into someone else's account and playing for them.
It could only last three short minutes, though.
But for Zhou Meng, who already held the status of a god, three minutes was enough time to do a great deal.
Although Zhou Meng wanted to save Zhao Kongcheng, Zhao Kongcheng's death would actually have no effect on him. His real reason for asking Lin Qiye was to test what kind of person Lin Qiye was.
How strongly did he want to save Zhao Kongcheng, and how far was he willing to go for his benefactor?
Now, Zhou Meng had the answer he wanted.
Lin Qiye was indeed worth using the [Parasitic Avatar] trait for, and Zhao Kongcheng was worth saving too.
Zhao Kongcheng rubbed hard at his increasingly blurry eyes with the back of his hand and tightened his grip on the steel blade.
One last strike. I can still make one last strike. As long as I hit the white ghost face of the monster in front of me, I can kill it for good!
Come on!
"Watch closely, kid! This strike is going to be cool! Even cooler than that move you just pulled!"
"Save it. It's not time for that strike of yours yet." An unfamiliar, somewhat languid voice rang out behind Zhao Kongcheng.
Zhao Kongcheng was startled, but he couldn't turn around to look. As it happened, the Ghost-Faced King in front of him also seemed to be distracted by something happening behind him. It lost its desire to attack, and its white ghost face stared behind him in some confusion.
Zhao Kongcheng felt a hand pat his shoulder. He instinctively turned his head and saw that Lin Qiye had gotten up, but the expression on his face was completely different.
He also gave off a powerful sense of pressure. Zhao Kongcheng felt that the man beside him was at least in the Boundless Realm, perhaps even the Klein Realm!
"Who are you? Where's Lin Qiye?" Zhao Kongcheng asked, panting.
"Qiye's gone to rest. I'm on duty for the time being."
"Remember this, Zhao Kongcheng. Your life is under my protection, Zhou Meng's!" Wearing Lin Qiye's face, Zhou Meng gave a gentle tug with the hand on Zhao Kongcheng's shoulder and pulled him behind him.
"Ghost-Faced King, the [Ghostface Spatial Aspect] Forbidden Ruins is a blue trait, huh? Hand it over. I'll borrow it for now!" Zhou Meng pointed his other hand at the Ghost-Faced King and crooked a finger.
This Forbidden Ruins' ability was to deceive the senses of every living being within a certain range whose realm was equal to or lower than its user's, overturning their concept of space.
In Zhou Meng's hands, that meant he could deceive the spatial perception of any being whose divine status was no higher than his own!
The Ghost-Faced King suddenly pitched forward as though it had lost its balance.
Zhou Meng beckoned again, and the straight blade in Zhao Kongcheng's hand appeared in his. He thrust it fiercely toward the spot where the Ghost-Faced King was falling.
With a soft squelch, the straight blade in Zhou Meng's hand pierced clean through the ghost face on the Ghost-Faced King's chest. The face let out a savage howl.
But no matter how it howled, it was no use. Zhou Meng had already stolen the Forbidden Ruins it was so proud of.
And so its life came to an end at Zhou Meng's hands.
The white ghost face twisted into a lump, solidifying into a wrinkled, semisolid mass. No trace of the face remained.
Zhao Kongcheng, who had fallen to the ground, could hardly believe what had just happened before his eyes.
Lin Qiye had clearly exhausted his mental power behind him, so how had he suddenly gotten back up? And it was as though he had become a different person. His fighting power had soared, and his realm had gone from just entering the Cup Realm to the Boundless Realm, perhaps even the Klein Realm!
The captain of their 136th Squad, Chen Muye, was only in the River Realm! Yet even he had only managed to seriously injure the Ghost-Faced King inside its Ghost-Face Spatial Shift Forbidden Ruins, not kill it outright.
And this person before him, who looked like Lin Qiye but had something else inside him, had somehow taken control of the Ghost-Faced King's Forbidden Ruins and turned it to his own use, killing the Ghost-Faced King in a single strike?
There's definitely more to Lin Qiye than being Michael's God's Agent. He must have more secrets no one knows about! I have to tell the captain about this!
Zhao Kongcheng forced himself to his feet. He had wanted to ask the man calling himself "Zhou Meng" a few more questions, but the side effects of Ghost-God Guidance had left him completely drained.
His wounds also seemed to be getting worse and worse, and his vision was gradually blurring. The power and Forbidden Ruins he had just gained also seemed to be slipping away as his life force drained from him.
Damn, I can't hold on much longer!
Still, even though I ended up dragging Lin Qiye into this, I managed to stop the Ghost-Faced King in the end. I haven't failed our Nightwatchers' oath!
Zhao Kongcheng swayed and began to fall forward, but the "Lin Qiye" in front of him caught him.
"Oh, I almost forgot about you. There's still a little time, so let's take care of your situation too." Zhou Meng casually patted Zhao Kongcheng.
Zhao Kongcheng's consciousness had already faded completely. The last thing he saw was a smiling "Lin Qiye."
The life force gradually draining from his body seemed to stop.
When he opened his eyes again, he found a sea of white before him.
"Where am I? Am I in heaven? Wait, why does heaven smell like disinfectant? Ow!" Zhao Kongcheng blinked in confusion and sniffed. He was just about to get up when he cried out in pain.
His body felt as though it had fallen apart. Right after that, Zhao Kongcheng saw the faces of Chen Muye and the other members of the 136th Squad.
"Old Zhao! You're finally awake!" The squad members crowded around him, their excitement plain to see.
For a moment, Zhao Kongcheng couldn't figure out what had happened. I'm not dead? This isn't heaven, but the squad's infirmary?
But how is that possible? I definitely used Ghost-God Guidance, awakened the Life-Extinguishing Flashing Moon Forbidden Ruins, and faced off against the Ghost-Faced King. Then Lin Qiye seemed to become a different person.
At the thought, Zhao Kongcheng abruptly turned to Captain Chen Muye, who stood nearby dressed in black.
"Captain! I definitely used Ghost-God Guidance. How did I survive?"