Attack

Lu Yuan understood what it was.

The seal of the Bronze City.

The city itself is a giant alchemical Formation, suppressing almost all Transcendence or other related powers.

The young man's body stopped twisting.

He stood there, his eyes vacant.

Then he turned around and, as if drawn by something, walked towards the door.

The man in black robes followed behind him.

The image began to shatter.

It's getting increasingly blurry.

It's getting darker and darker.

Finally, it completely dissipated.

At the edge of my vision, the gray-white text flickered again:

[Sanity: -5...54/120]

Lu Yuan suddenly opened his eyes.

He was still standing in the room.

A fine layer of cold sweat appeared on his forehead.

"What's wrong?"

Raymond's voice came from the doorway.

"You were standing still for quite a while."

Lu Yuan remained silent for a few seconds.

He hesitated whether or not to reveal what he had seen.

But those images were too blurry.

The face of the man in the black robe was not clearly visible.

The specific form of that "thing" cannot be described either.

Even if you say it, it can't be used as evidence.

"I sensed the remaining aura," Lu Yuan shook his head, "But it's too faint; I can't discern anything useful."

Raymond glanced at him but didn't ask any further questions.

After all, he was only First Order Eerie Knowledge Transcendent. The fact that he could detect the residual aura already showed that Lu Yuan's chosen path was extremely powerful.

"Let's go," Raymond said, "Back to base."

After saying goodbye to the butler, the two left the Baron's Residence and returned to their Inner-City Outpost by carriage.

As soon as I entered, I saw Karl and Helen talking to two other people.

A man and a woman, both unfamiliar faces.

The man's name was Ryan, he was in his early thirties, and he was taciturn.

The woman's name was Amy, and she was about the same age as Helen, but much more lively.

Seeing Raymond enter, Amy quickly stepped forward, holding up a note.

"Captain! We've found something!"

Raymond took the note and glanced at it.

It had an address and a sentence written on it.

"The Hall of Knowledge awaits here."

"It was found in Allen Victor's room," Ryan said quickly, stepping forward. "Hidden in a secret compartment in his desk."

"Could this be a trap?" Helen frowned. "Are they deliberately leading us there?"

"It's hard to call it a hoax." Amy shook her head. "We didn't find this note; it was given to us by Allen's father."

"What's the meaning?"

"That Merchants' Guild representative was much calmer than the other two," Ryan said, placing the note on the table. "After his son went missing, he immediately searched his son's room and found this note."

"But he didn't make a fuss; instead, he waited for us to come to him."

Raymond's eyes narrowed slightly.

He left himself a backup plan.

"Yes." Ryan nodded. "He said if the Night Watcher can't find it, he'll find it himself. This address is his only lead."

Everyone fell silent.

A businessman is a businessman after all.

"Where's the address?" Raymond asked, unfolding a map of Bronze City.

"Outer City," Amy pointed to a relatively remote location on the map, "A secluded house."

Raymond glanced at the note, then at the others.

"Report it first, then go check it out."

After going out with Amy.

The six people rode in two horse-drawn carriages and headed towards the Outer City.

The further you go, the narrower the streets become, and the more dilapidated the houses become.

Finally, the carriage stopped at the end of a small alley.

Ahead was an old, dilapidated house.

The building is two stories high, with a wooden structure, mottled exterior walls, and windows covered in a thick layer of dust.

It looks like it's been abandoned for a long time.

The six people got off the bus and approached cautiously.

Lu Yuan walked in the middle of the group, his eyes scanning the surrounding environment.

This location is indeed remote.

There are almost no residents around, and the nearest house is more than 100 meters away.

If something happens here, it's hard for anyone to notice.

The door wasn't locked.

Karl walked in front and reached out to push the door open.

The door creaked open.

It was very dark inside, with only a little light coming in through the broken windows.

A musty, stale smell permeated the air.

The six continued deeper into the area.

Passing through the foyer, I entered a dimly lit corridor.

At the end of the corridor was a half-open door.

A faint light shone through the crack in the door.

Raymond gestured for everyone to slow down.

He pressed himself against the wall near the door, then suddenly pushed it open.

It was a spacious room.

Intricate runes were drawn on the ground, extending from the edge of the room to the center, the lines complex and eerie.

Strange patterns hung on the walls, resembling symbols used in some kind of ritual.

In the center of the room, right at the very center of the rune, lay a person.

A man.

His body was stiff, his posture contorted, and his skin had an abnormal sheen, making him resemble a piece of Human Form wood.

But that's definitely not how a living person should be.

Lu Yuan's pupils suddenly contracted.

At the edge of vision, grayish-white text appeared:

[Detection target: Unnamed (lignified)]

[A unique and bizarre entity, or perhaps more accurately, Source of Pollution, that has been infected by some strange substance, causing it to transform.]

Weird.

Something's fishy here.

In the Bronze City.

The way they live is bizarre.

"This is..." Helen's voice trailed off.

She saw it too.

Everyone saw it.

The "person" lying on the ground was emanating an unsettling aura.

That was an eerie aura.

Intense and clear.

"Impossible!" Karl's expression changed. "This is Bronze City!"

Just then, a voice came from the corner of the room.

"Wow, you came really fast."

Two figures emerged from the shadows.

A man wearing a dark gray coat, with a lean build and obvious signs of mechanical modification on his arms.

They are members of the Ascension Society.

Another person, dressed in a black robe, stood a little further back, their face obscured.

The Gray-robed Man looked at the man in black, his tone somewhat mocking.

You lost.

The man in black robes remained silent.

"Hurry up and take it and leave!" the Gray-robed Man urged.

Raymond had already drawn his knife.

"The Night Watcher is investigating a case; you are suspected of..."

He didn't finish his sentence.

The Gray-robed Man moved.

The speed was astonishing.

Lu Yuan almost instinctively activated the Time Bestower on his chest.

The world slowed down at that moment.

It's not that the outside world has slowed down—it's that it itself has sped up.

At the edge of my field of vision, gray and white text flickers:

[Sanity Consumption: -1...53/120]

The Enchanted Revolver has been pulled out.

The first shot was aimed at the Gray-robed Man's leg.

Pulling the trigger, Flame spewed from the muzzle, and the bullet slowly left the chamber, then drifted forward at an eerie, slow pace, as if it had sunk into a swamp.

The second shot was aimed at the Gray-robed Man's head.

The same trajectory, the same slowly drifting bullet.

[Sanity Consumption: -1...52/120]

Lu Yuan did not stop.

He turned the gun towards the wooden body on the ground.

The third shot... the sixth shot.

Six bullets hovered in the air, slowly drifting toward their respective targets.

[Sanity Consumption: -1...-1...-1...-1...48/120]

Lu Yuan then slipped to the back of the group.

Then turn off Time Bestower.

"Bang bang bang bang bang bang!"

Six gunshots rang out almost simultaneously.