Kapitel 04 Ordinary Man

Foreword:

When the lights go out, it's just an empty stage.

--Oz Osborne

[Part 1: Sharpening the axe won't delay the woodcutting]

A blazing flame pierced through the thick, dark fog, shooting from the hotel rooftop toward the inky sky.

Walking along the path from the bay in East Horse Port towards the city, you can see the Sky Garden of the Tequila Sunrise Hotel just by looking up – the flower room on the sixth floor. From here, the raging psychic tide is like an active volcano that has fully erupted.

Jason Megan pulled off his raincoat and led the new generation of [Spirit Cloud Squad] members onto solid ground. Before they could even catch their breath, all the psionicists present immediately looked toward the Tequila Sunrise Hotel.

"This is unbelievable!"

Hail had already fallen in East Horse Port. The dark clouds resembled a Death God draped in a large cloak, wielding her icy scythe at will. Nearly two thousand businesses along Huacheng Bay Street suffered from the ice storm. At the same time, another malevolent and vicious spiritual pressure erupted like a volcano, bursting into a brilliant lava formation in the direction of the Tequila Sunrise Hotel.

"Is this really Shambhala?" A Hao sidled up to Uncle Jason, his face full of disbelief. "This is amazing!"

Even during the era when the Madness Butterfly raged, and even in human settlements teeming with demons during the expeditions, passengers rarely witnessed such a scene.

The psionic indicators on Xiao Min and Jason both beeped simultaneously, indicating that the level of Spirit Calamity concentration had exceeded 100. Liu Xiaomin's device was relatively inexpensive and had a more traditional, conservative round dial; the pointer circled the reading three times.

Mr. Jason was preoccupied. Given the lifespan of Homo sapiens, he had never seen such a scene in his more than forty years of life. He took out the Spirit Calamity indicator and carefully examined it. His location was at least 1,600 meters away from the core areas of the two Spirit Calamity, but the Spirit Calamity concentration reading had already far exceeded 100%, reaching four times the red line standard.

"Kids," the elder brother Qingjin said solemnly, speaking to the younger generation about the enemies they might encounter next, "Mythical creatures inhabit this godforsaken place."

"Looks like this is a high-level match." Daniel was already prepared.

A Hao couldn't wait. "Let's go?!"

Jason was both amused and exasperated, and asked his attendant Katusha to bring him a compendium of mythical creatures.

"High-level matches? Do you think you're still playing professionally, Daniel?"

"This level of Spirit Calamity is enough to kill the spiritual worms in the indicator."

As he said this, Half-Wolf snatched the makeshift indicator from Liu Xiaomin's hand.

"--Chaos has given us more than just POS machines as a psionic tool."

He skillfully opened the instrument panel, unlocked the torsion spring and power mechanism, and took out the core component of the Spirit Calamity concentration indicator, which was a petri dish of spiritual insects.

The so-called Spirit Elemental Worm is a more rudimentary and simplified form of the Chaos Egg —a form of calamity beast.

--It's like a psionic wet device, a logic gate structure driven by biomass circuits (also called psionic circuits). It uses numerous chaotic sub-entities to conduct psionic power and complete the input and output of psionic signals.

The Spirit Worms do not possess the computing power of the Chaos Egg, nor are Chaos Egg as strong. As the cheapest small units of the Chaos Beasts, they become like Pixar in Western mythology, turning into little elves who can be combined with various electrical mechanisms to become modern devices with "spiritual energy".

In a translucent petri dish, there was a cluster of tiny fireflies shimmering with a deep blue light.

Their shapes are tiny. Jason Megan took out a microscope and observed them carefully. From the chart, he could see a large group of fleshy clumps that looked like immortal tardigrades constantly rising and falling, rolling up and down in the culture medium.

They were like startled fish; many insects had already died and sunk to the bottom, and most of the insect swarm had entered a slow-growth state of dehydration and mummification, trying to sever their meridians and consciousness to resist the abnormal spiritual pressure in the environment.

These psionic worms are extremely sensitive to psionic energy, and the basic functional components of psionic probes are made up of them.

"Bu Liuxing is dueling with a mythical unit."

Jason Megan put on the Lapis Lazuli bracelet, and the twenty-four pyroxenes began to work simultaneously. Blood gushed from his mouth and nose, but thanks to his half-wolf essence, he didn't faint immediately.

"I find it hard to describe this feeling."

"Young men and women."

"We might encounter angels and demons from mythology, or all sorts of enormous creatures."

"Giants or Leviathan? Flash Butterfly and apostles?"

"The direct bloodline of the Original Seed exists here; even the Spirit Elemental Worm cannot survive here."

The light in the petri dish flickered, eventually fading completely, with only the psionic probes, standard equipment for the Lapis Lazuli Guards, still functioning normally in Jason's arms.

"Um," Kaycee asked softly, "Is it too late to turn back now?"

"It's too late." Jason wiped the blood from his nose, took off the spirit bead bracelet to prevent the radiance stone from damaging his brain. "I can feel the General of Tears's spiritual pressure; he's in a fierce battle in the city."

That direction.

Jason pointed to the hotel in the far distance.

"--Several different spiritual pressures emerged, intertwining with each other, appearing and disappearing intermittently."

"Moreover, this phenomenon is intensifying. If East Malaysia weren't still peaceful, I would have thought that the Flash Butterfly had appeared here. Only the Flash Butterfly can summon so many Spirit Calamity creatures at once."

"Daniel is a studious and patient child," he asked in a low voice.

"Mr. Jason, what should we do? As you said, Master Meteor is fighting a mythical entity to the death. How can we, the psionicists who are still in the process of emerging from our cocoons and pupae, help him?"

"I can't sense Berloberg's spiritual pressure." Jason stripped naked on the beach in front of the students, changed into his Flash Butterfly Armor, and became fully armed. "The warrior needs the sword's help; we must set off immediately."

"Don't underestimate yourself, Daniel Fragerak."

"I believe the General of Tears's enemy should be a demon from the Netherworld —his spiritual pressure is distinctive, like a foul-smelling, sulfurous flame."

"The ever-changing spiritual pressure characteristics are subordinate to the devil's summoning; we must find the vessel through which he maintains his physical body in the material plane,"

A Hao, a poor student, asked, "What is that?"

Daniel explained, "Similar to the soul-summoning banners and life-protecting artifacts in your Eastern Daoist metaphysics—powerful Evil Spirit Body need to possess them to maintain their evil intentions, just like the exorcism method that the gunsmith teacher once talked about."

"If you encounter a haunted house, use a shredder to fish up an iron ball and smash it to pieces, then it will stop being haunted," Kaycee immediately added.

Daniel: "That makes sense."

"That's right, the little devils rely on bewitching people to obtain physical bodies in the material plane." Jason changed into his battle suit and led the students along the path. "They like cultists with weak minds, and construct their new bodies by possessing them."

"The Great Demons are different. Earls, dukes, and high-ranking officials in the Demon Cabinet prefer a shortcut."

"Build your own magic pool to store the flesh and blood of Homo sapiens. This way, even if you are killed ten or more times, you can still be resurrected. The magic pool is not only the gate to hell, but also a medium for demons to reshape human bodies and cast transformation and disguise spells."

"Is the opponent very strong this time?" Liu Xiaomin followed Uncle Jason, still worried about Teacher Meteor's safety. "What if Teacher Gunsmith is here too?"

"That man slaughtered his way through the Netherworld," Jason scoffed. "But he's illiterate, so he probably doesn't know the origins of this devil—I couldn't stop laughing when he told me about Saladin's journey."

"It seems this guy knows nothing and is completely clueless, yet he rushed into the Nine Hells in spirit form."

"This outsider possessed the essence of the Taowu and had the blessing of the BOSS. He didn't know what kind of demons and monsters he encountered, but he just beat them all up one by one and escaped unscathed."

"You should strategically despise the enemy, regardless of whether they are marquises, earls, or demons from the Netherworld. The gunsmith should have taught you this: can you kill them? Can they move? Do you need to revive them? Is there a second stage? Find their weaknesses and execute them accordingly."

"As for their background and origins, these can be thoroughly investigated after the war."

"If the gunsmith were here, the demons in the city could sense his spiritual pressure and would scream and flee back to the Netherworld immediately—"

"--They have many tricks up their sleeves. The General of Tears's spirit isn't as enduring as Fragrant Dream, nor does it possess such powerful destructive force. It's easily bogged down by all sorts of strange and unusual spells and summoning techniques."

[Part 2: Walking the Dog]

"Kaycee and Daniel."

At this point, the group had arrived at the market at Huacheng Bay Wharf, and ice shards were gradually falling from above, caused by Axue from the Church of Dionysus.

"Your marching ability is excellent; I need you to go immediately."

Jason paused for a moment, then took out his binoculars and carefully examined the tall buildings in the distance.

"The Tequila Sunrise Hotel is right on the top floor--"

"--Go support General of Tears. This godforsaken place has no radio. Send me a telegram using the Summoning Bell."

Daniel and Kaycee were both in armor, not in their Flash Butterfly Armor, but in modern weaponry.

Kaycee: "How do we provide support?"

"Find Berloberg." Jason Megan pushed Wendy next to them. "My Soul Power will help you, and this too."

A gleaming dagger was handed to Daniel; it was one of Berloberg's leftovers.

"They sense each other's presence by moving close together, find the Berloberg Greatsword, and then find the General of Tears."

Daniel: "Give a sword to the teacher?"

Red spots started appearing on Kaycee's face, but she didn't seem nervous or scared. She cautiously speculated, "What if Teacher Meteor has already been defeated?"

Jason grinned and said, "Then congratulations to you two! In peacetime, you might just get the HELLCAT Gold Star Medal! A glorious expedition to Shambhala to slay the Demon Marquis!"

"I'll go! I'll go!" A Hao immediately protested, "Let me go!"

"You have more important things to do, so you have to come with me," Jason instructed. "East Horse Port has a very sophisticated and modern sewage system. I'll go through the sewers with you and walk twelve kilometers along the city."

He opened his phone and saw a set of drone aerial photography data of the East Coast Bay Area. It was all preliminary work done by the brothers of Gate of Wonders.

"Let's find the Demon Pool, starting with the sewers of this hotel. Then, the two of us, Katusha, and Liu Xiaomin will deliver the fatal blow."

Having arrived in East Horse Port less than twenty minutes ago, Jason Megan, with his astonishing psychic abilities and vast knowledge base, completed the most basic tactical arrangements.

To be honest, he wasn't very confident or sure about the rescue operation.

But then I thought, when these young people faced the terrifying spiritual pressure in the city, just like the nameless people who first climbed the Red Star Hill beach, with only a morpho butterfly to guide them, they were still full of expectation and courage, and embarked on their adventure without hesitation.

Daniel and Kaycee have already gone far away.

Jason led A Hao and Xiao Min, along with Katusha, to the sewage outlet into the sea on one side of the Huacheng Bay Siyaoju Dike.

He kissed the Great Wolf emblem, put the Lapis Lazuli bracelet on again, and could feel the stench emanating from the depths of the underground passage, as well as the psychic tides of the Demonic Sign's source that resembled a heartbeat.

Let's go!

On the other hand, just as Jason Megan guessed.

Meteor was in a tough fight; he was almost completely outmaneuvered by the devil Fret's tricks, being played like a puppet. In short, he was completely under Freyt's thumb.

In the living room of the suite on the sixth floor, Meteor had already fought several rounds with Fret. He was still trying to get close to the old mage, but getting close to Fret was just too difficult.

We've reached the thirty-first round of the duel.

After adjusting her breathing slightly, Meteor's pajamas were tattered, and her overall mental state was not quite normal.

In this spiritual pressure environment, he was like a dog on a leash, being walked around by Fret.

The General of Tears had just taken a step forward in his charge!

"Watch out!" Fret made a hand seal and clenched his fists. The invisible and formless psionic hand lifted the carpet and wrapped around the General of Tears's ankles, like a giant python coiling around his thigh.

The meteor fell flat on its face, but instead of collapsing immediately, it used its body to push itself up from the floor.

Fret remained calm, crouching down to carefully observe the warrior's movements in the air, and casually tapped twice.

Two thick love stories flew onto the bookshelf, one called "The Secret Life of Empress Dowager Cixi" and the other "Dancing Wildly with Bears," both repackaged works by Wang Damin.

The two books, imbued with spiritual power, immediately unfurled their covers and transformed into the possessions of strange beasts and demons, sprouting sharp teeth and claws as they pounced like mad dogs!

They pounced on the General of Tears's rump, losing their balance and tumbling to the ground along with the burly man. Taking advantage of any opportunity, they bit their way up his spine, continuing to gnaw at his flesh.

[Wham Mr. Wei Meng] fiercely protected Bu Liuxing's mortal body. The one-horned warrior punched each of the two strange beasts into pieces, but it was as difficult as climbing to heaven for Liuxing to take another step forward.

These bizarre summons and magical spells became psionic traps, allowing Fret to silently cast spells while screaming and laughing, inflicting both magical damage and mental harm.

He doesn't need to chant spells or cast spells—his abilities alone make him stronger than many morphing butterflies with soul power.

Undeterred, Meteor remained focused on attacking. With the help of the spirit, she quickly regained her balance and approached Fret Caesar once more.

He sprinted forward, using his spirit form to fight and shatter the demonic bats that swarmed from both sides. The moment these Netherworld beings were shattered by his iron fist, the burst of light almost set Meteor's hair ablaze.

After overcoming seven major obstacles, I finally found a chance to get cheek-to-cheek with Fret!

A Xing threw a powerful punch—

--Fret looked alarmed as he saw the General of Tears's steaming fist coming at him.

When this whole combo was unleashed, Meteor felt like he was hitting cotton.

Lord Fret dodged in all sorts of strange and bizarre ways, then reached out and pressed his hand to his head. Meteor's fist pierced through the wooden door, and the devil's head vanished into thin air.

The vicious low sweeping kick also hit empty air. Upon closer inspection, Fret was seen holding up his trouser leg, his entire body suspended in mid-air, his lower body completely gone!

Then, with another sweeping strike to force him into position, Meteor's fist struck out, causing Fret to stagger in a disheveled manner.

Those hands seemed to possess a Magic Power to "compress space," just like the comical characters in children's cartoons. They could directly change the position and shape of anything their hands could touch.

Tuck your head into your stomach, press your lower body into your chest cavity, and make your arms and legs disappear!

They fought their way from the living room to the flower corridor, smashing through door frames, shattering mirrors, and turning the wooden bed frame into pieces, but they couldn't even touch a hair on Fret's head.

The red-skinned devil patted and struck, adjusting his body, touching wherever he had been hit, and for a moment, Meteor advanced, pressing closer. Fret slammed his palms onto the floor, quickly drawing two lines—

--The General of Tears felt the whole house tremble slightly. The target, which had been within arm's reach, suddenly shifted a little distance away, causing him to lose his balance and fall over. Fret seized the opportunity and ran four meters away!

That tiny distance is Fret Caesar's innate ability.

It is the spiritual power of [Helping Hand].