Blind Spot

BANG!

A dull thud echoed as the halberd shaft bowed slightly; the Guard's arm went numb, forcing him to retreat half a step.

Simultaneously, the tip of another Guard's halberd whistled through the air, lunging toward Chen Jin's heart!

Chen Jin moved as if he had eyes in the back of his head, sliding into a low crouch. The halberd tip grazed his back, tearing a long gash through his coarse cloth tunic.

He followed through with a sweeping leg kick, targeting the nearest Guard's stance.

The Guard nimbly hopped back to evade, shouting, "I represent the judgment of Great Qin Law! Your resistance shall be met with the punishment of Stagnant Feet!"

Chen Jin felt his legs suddenly sink as if into a quagmire, his movements sluggish by more than a beat. The halberd directly in front seized the opening, thrusting straight for his chest!

Squelch!

The halberd tip sank three inches into flesh, but Chen Jin's robust muscles and bones clamped down on the blade like a vice.

He remained expressionless, even using the momentum to lunge forward. He let the blade slice through his body, blood spraying from the wound, yet the moment he broke free from the tip, the flesh began to heal at a rapid pace!

He closed in on the halberd-wielding Guard, one hand slamming onto the shaft while the other, fingers stiffened like a blade, struck toward the man's throat with lightning speed!

The Guard scrambled to release his grip and lean back, barely dodging the lethal strike, breaking into a cold sweat.

The battle spilled from the inn onto the street.

The rain grew heavier, washing away the blood on the ground. Chen Jin fought while retreating, using narrow alleys and discarded debris as cover.

He constantly probed the boundaries of the rules and the rhythm of the Guards' coordinated attacks. At times, a wound would appear on his body out of thin air, or his movements would turn sluggish, but the terrifying regenerative power of the Flesh of Vision turned him into an unkillable monster. He forcibly endured the rule-based penalties and physical strikes, leading the battle toward a secluded dead end dense with buildings and low-hanging eaves.

Here, the sensation of being watched by those massive "Blind Spots of the Law Eye" in the sky weakened significantly.

Once they entered this visual blind spot, the power fueling the Guards' rule-based abilities seemed to suffer interference, fading noticeably. The potency of their law-enforcement weakened, forcing them to rely more on their own martial arts and coordinated halberd strikes.

"This is a Blind Spot of the Law Eye!" the Squad Leader warned, "Spread out and search! Don't let him escape!"

Four Guards dispersed in response.

"Heifu! You go to the left! Ji! You circle around to the back! Ju! You stand guard here!"

"Understood!"

The Guards scattered, feeling their way through the cluttered residential area.

The Guard named Heifu quietly locked his gaze on another companion searching cautiously not far ahead.

It was the sturdy Guard named "Ji."

...He was alone.

...The Law Eye couldn't see this place now.

A malicious thought grew wildly in Heifu's heart.

It was this guy who had played the Leaf Game before the mission, winning every last one of the dozen Spirit Coins he had painstakingly saved!

That was money he had been saving to go have a good time at the Red Silk Pavilion!

And then there was... Ji's wife, who had just been married. He had caught a glimpse of her in the market once; that figure, those eyes...

At the thought of that woman alone in an empty room, Heifu felt a surge of wicked heat rush to his lower abdomen. He couldn't help but swallow, his Adam's apple bobbing violently.

Now, the Law Eye couldn't see... the power of the rules was weak... If he struck him from behind, he could just say the culprit had ambushed him... who would know?

Greed and lust instantly overwhelmed his sense of duty.

Once the murderous intent took root, it was hard to suppress.

He lightened his footsteps, approaching like a ghost toward Ji, who was back-turned and fully focused on investigating a dilapidated house ahead. His right hand slowly reached for the short dagger at his waist, his eyes glinting with malice.

Just as he raised the dagger, the very moment he was about to strike—

The shadow behind him seemed to come alive!

Chen Jin had seized the perfect opportunity! His movements were fast as lightning; one hand caught Heifu's wrist with pinpoint precision and gave it a violent, reverse twist!

CRACK!

The crisp sound of a snapping wrist bone was masked by the roar of the rain.

Heifu's sinister grin froze on his face. Just as he opened his mouth to scream, a cold, massive hand clamped over his nose and mouth from behind, choking all sound back into his throat!

Following that, a heavy, hammer-like hand-blade struck the vital point at the back of his neck.

Heifu's eyes bulged, and his consciousness snapped like a severed cable.

His body went limp, collapsing to the ground like a pile of mud. The short dagger intended for his companion clattered onto the wet stone floor.

Chen Jin stepped fully out of the shadows, his cold gaze sweeping over the unconscious Heifu on the ground before glancing at the Guard Ji, who remained unaware and continued his cautious search nearby.

He crouched down, placing his palm over Heifu's face.

[Metamorphosis]—the ability of the Flesh of Vision activated.

His body began to squirm and reshape like flowing clay. His bones emitted a faint crackling sound, his skin darkened, and his facial features became rugged and coarse... In the blink of an eye, he had become identical to the Heifu on the ground.

Then, he raised his left hand, stiffened his right hand into a blade, and struck down with a violent chop!

The severed wrist hit the ground, yet instead of bleeding, it writhed violently as if possessing a life of its own, the surface shifting to form the contours of Chen Jin's original face.

It scurried rapidly toward the unconscious Heifu, slapping firmly onto his face with a wet thud. Fine, granular flesh sprouted like living roots, drilling frantically into his eyes, ears, mouth, and nose, burrowing deep into his cranial cavity to dismantle the neural structures of his brain.

Heifu's body convulsed violently a few times before going completely limp. His eyes turned hollow and vacant, and saliva mixed with rainwater trickled from the corner of his mouth—he had been reduced to a drooling, mindless husk.

Meanwhile, a new left hand had already sprouted from Chen Jin's wrist.

Chen Jin quickly swapped clothes with Heifu, hanging the wooden Identity Tablet engraved with the man's name at his own waist.

He then took a deep breath, mimicked Heifu's voice, and shouted triumphantly toward the alleyway:

"Someone! Come quickly! I've caught him! He's passed out!"

Rapid footsteps approached, and three other Guards rushed in, seeing "Heifu" panting heavily as he pointed at the "suspect" lying on the ground, unconscious and dressed in Chen Jin's tattered rags.

"You... took him down alone?" The Squad Leader looked at "Heifu," a flicker of suspicion in his eyes.

"Pure luck! The bastard tried to ambush me, so I risked my life to knock him out!" "Heifu" spat, his face contorting into a complex expression of pain and greed. "Damn it, this guy was a handful... brothers, give me a hand, let's carry him back!"

"Well done, Heifu. I'll make sure to record this merit for you personally," the Squad Leader said coolly.

"How could I? This is a collective effort. It's thanks to you brothers working together to exhaust this dog's strength earlier that I managed to take him down; this guy's strength is terrifying!"

The three Guards were momentarily stunned.

Since when had the greedy Heifu changed his tune?

But as they looked at the round, glistening Southern Pearls scattered from the arms of the unconscious "suspect," their doubts were washed away by the joy of such a massive reward.

"You're a sensible one!" The Squad Leader snorted, his expression softening. "Come, lend a hand, let's carry him back to finish the job! Be careful, this criminal is wicked!"

Two men stepped forward to lift the mindless "suspect."

"Heifu"—now Chen Jin—lifted the suspect's left leg and followed at the rear.

He adjusted the Identity Tablet at his waist, the symbol of his new life, and silently melted into the leaden, rain-swept curtain of Great Qin.