The Ghost in the Office, Violet's Despair!

Light's eyelid twitched.

Who?

What about the guards outside? Were they all dead?

Countless thoughts flashed through her mind.

But years of training made her calm down instantly.

Killing intent rose in her eyes.

Without a word.

The moment she saw Lin Xuan's face clearly, her body reacted before her mind could.

She swiftly retreated.

Her right hand reached for her waist.

Drawing the gun, chambering a round, raising it, aiming.

The motions flowed in one seamless sequence.

Bang!

Muzzle flash burst forth.

The bullet flew straight for Lin Xuan's forehead.

A cold smile curled across Light's lips.

At this distance.

This intruder was as good as dead.

Yet the next second.

The expression on her face froze.

The bullet missed.

The man merely tilted his head slightly, and the lethal bullet grazed past his temple before embedding itself in the wall behind him.

How was that possible?

Light's pupils contracted.

That wasn't luck.

It was prediction—pure prediction.

Before she could think further, she flicked her wrist and aimed again.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Three shots rang out in quick succession.

They targeted Lin Xuan's heart, throat, and legs respectively, sealing off every possible route of escape.

But the bizarre scene happened again.

The instant before Light pulled the trigger, Lin Xuan moved.

He did not retreat. Instead, he took a step forward.

Just that one step.

He avoided the two bullets aimed at his heart and throat.

As for the shot at his legs, he merely lifted his foot. The bullet skimmed beneath his sole, leaving a scorched bullet hole in the floor.

Throughout it all, he did not even blink.

He continued walking toward Light at an unhurried pace.

The gun in her hand was nothing more than a toy to him.

"Monster... monster..."

For the first time, the word "fear" surfaced in Light's mind.

What had she just seen?

A ghost that could stroll through a hail of bullets.

She pulled the trigger like a madwoman, emptying every remaining bullet in the magazine at once.

Bang bang bang bang bang!

The rapid gunfire echoed through the office as smoke filled the air.

Bullets shattered the vase, punched through the mahogany desk, and left holes scattered across the walls.

Yet not one of them touched that man.

Lin Xuan shifted within a small range. His movements were slight each time, yet he always appeared half a second in advance where the bullets could not reach.

There was a terrifying composure to his movements.

Click.

The crisp sound of an empty chamber dry-firing.

Lite's last sliver of hope shattered.

The bullets were gone.

And that man had walked to within three meters of her.

"Guns are useless against me."

Lin Xuan finally spoke, his voice calm and utterly flat.

Lite's whole body trembled. Yet extreme fear instead brought out her savagery.

With a shriek, she hurled the scorching-hot pistol at Lin Xuan's face as a weapon, while her right leg lashed out with astonishing force at his lower body.

Discard the gun! Close combat!

She intended to use the fighting techniques she excelled at most to tear this monster apart.

However, what she faced was Know Cause Upon Thought.

The instant Lite raised her hand, every move that would follow appeared in Lin Xuan's mind.

He merely extended two fingers and lightly pinched.

Smack!

The heavy pistol was caught firmly between his fingers, unable to advance even an inch further.

His body shifted slightly to the side, and Lite's whip kick—powerful enough to snap steel plates—swept past the hem of his clothes and struck nothing.

Her first strike missed, and Lite's heart skipped a beat, but her assault did not stop.

She twisted sharply, chopping a hand blade straight at Lin Xuan's neck from an unnatural angle while her other hand formed an eagle claw and clawed at his eyes.

Every move was vicious, every move lethal.

She had honed this fighting style through countless life-and-death battles. No one knew how many people had died beneath these hands of hers.

In Lin Xuan's eyes, he did not even need to use his special ability. His formidable mental strength alone was enough to reveal every flaw.

Lite's every movement, every point where she exerted force, every possible follow-up change—all of it was crystal clear in his mind.

Lin Xuan could not even be bothered to block.

He simply kept stepping, turning, and shifting aside.

With the smallest movements at the most precise moments, he caused every one of Lite's attacks to strike empty air.

Elbow strike, missed.

Knee strike, missed.

Throat lock, missed!

Inside the office, Lite moved so fast that gusts of wind rose around her, knocking the surrounding furniture askew.

Yet Lin Xuan remained completely unmoving.

"No! Impossible! This is absolutely impossible!"

After dozens of attacks all missed, Lite finally broke down.

Her strength was draining away rapidly, but what truly drove her to despair was the crushing mental pressure.

Her opponent could see through every thought she had.

She was like a puppet, every movement already anticipated by him.

The feeling of being completely seen through and completely controlled was ten thousand times worse than being killed!

"Why... why..."

Her movements began to lose form, her breathing turned ragged, and her rhythm fell into chaos.

Now.

A cold gleam flashed in Lin Xuan's eyes.

At the instant Lite's attack missed and her mind revealed a flaw.

He moved.

For the first time, the man who had only been passively evading took the initiative to attack.

There was no astonishing technique, nor any world-destroying aura.

He merely extended one finger.

A fair, slender finger.

That finger did not appear fast, yet Lite could not react to it. It passed through her final flurry of wild punches and lightly tapped the center of her brow.

Lite's body suddenly stiffened, and all her movements stopped.

Her eyes widened, filled with horror and confusion.

There was no pain.

But she felt an indescribably vast power surge from his fingertips into her mind.

That power was utterly unstoppable.

The unyielding will she had always been proud of was utterly helpless before it.

In an instant, it collapsed and was washed away without a trace.

"Mind Probe."

Lin Xuan's voice sounded at the very last moment before her consciousness faded.

This was the first time he had used Mind Probe since breaking through to the Dust-Cleansing Realm.

He had no need to interrogate her.

Whatever he wanted, he would take himself.

Lin Xuan's fingertip rested against Light's brow as the power of his divine soul surged straight in.

Light's memories were forcibly pried open.

Scene after scene flashed rapidly through his mind.

[Scene One: The base's complete defense layout, including the locations of every visible and hidden sentry post, armory, and energy room.]

[Scene Two: A massive underground vault piled high with gold and treasures looted from nearby villages.]

[Scene Three: Enslaved villagers being driven by whips to perform inhuman labor in the mines, with anyone who showed the slightest resistance shot dead on the spot.]

[Scene Four: Reporting the progress of the treasure search to their superiors.]

Everything—about this base, about the Red Ribbon Army's crimes, about how they had ravaged this land—

Lin Xuan read it all in just a few seconds.

Lin Xuan withdrew his finger, his gaze turning even colder.

The light in Light's eyes vanished completely.

Her eyes rolled back, and her body crumpled backward.

Her mind had been shattered. Even if she woke up, she would be nothing more than an idiot.

Lin Xuan did not spare her another glance.

He turned, his eyes falling on the broadcasting equipment in the corner of the office.

There was a red button on it.

It was connected to every loudspeaker in the base.

Lin Xuan walked over, reached out, and pressed the button.

He was ready to pronounce judgment upon this fortress of evil.