Shifting World Lines

In the town's central square, following the publicity of the last two days, a massive crowd had gathered.

In terms of the scale of the assembly, only the very first day of arrival could compare.

Under the gaze of the people, Qian Zheng touched the crystal at the center of the square to select [Promotion]. Not long after, accompanied by a flash of transparent energy, Qian Zheng dissolved into points of light and vanished.

"What just happened?"

"Is this [Promotion]? Did he really leave?"

"Can we really leave?"

"That's amazing!"

The gathered crowd was collectively struck dumb, then quickly erupted into a flurry of discussion.

Amidst the chatter, Zhao Gang stepped onto a wooden platform he had constructed nearby.

He did not begin his speech immediately; instead, he displayed his right arm. Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, after a few breaths, his right arm transformed into a massive black serpent nearly ten meters long.

Gradually, the people below ceased their discussions and fell silent.

At this moment, Zhao Gang controlled his right arm to use the serpent's head to shatter a nearby wooden post, drawing gasps of shock from the crowd below.

Zhao Gang took a deep breath and said, "I am not Wang Chen, and I do not possess his eloquence, but you have all seen the power I have displayed."

"We are not trapped here waiting for death; we can leave this place just like Qian Zheng did."

"Not only that, but we can also obtain power—power like mine."

"The mist outside the town is not terrifying. What is terrifying is that we have been numbing ourselves from the very beginning, too afraid to take that step forward because of our fear of death."

"In fact, I could have left just like Qian Zheng."

"However, I could not bear to watch you, my fellow countrymen, stay here and wait for death, so I have decided to remain here for one month."

"During this month, I will do my utmost to help everyone obtain supernatural power and help everyone pass the [Promotion] to leave this godforsaken place."

"Therefore, I hope you will cooperate with me and follow me in taking that step forward..."

Following Zhao Gang's sincere and heartfelt speech, the people below erupted into thunderous applause, and even Feng Buzhi, standing in the corner, gave a few claps.

Feng Buzhi glanced to his side and saw the Shadow staring blankly at Zhao Gang on the platform, as if tears were streaming down its face.

Feng Buzhi asked, "Are you crying?"

The Shadow made a wiping motion, though because its body was not physical, it did not possess tears in the true sense.

The Shadow looked at Feng Buzhi and noticed him clapping.

The Shadow said, "I thought you wouldn't clap. Are you also moved by Zhao Gang's words? This is a pioneer of our Human Race; whenever the Human Race faces a crisis, there will always be people like him who step forward..."

"Boss, so you're here... Move aside, move aside! Damn it, I told you to move, and you dare glare at me? Damn..."

Before Feng Buzhi could reply, the pirate captain from the Caribbean had already squeezed through, relying on his robust physique and fierce temperament.

"Boss, let me tell you, that Zhao Gang is really something else. Last night, he made me proofread his script over a dozen times and kept asking how well he'd memorized it. When I told him it was trash, he wouldn't let me leave. Later, that Qin Chengming wrote him a script, and he made me listen to it several times over, saying my evaluation was objective, but he still wouldn't let me go!"

The bearded Pei Chao spat on the ground and then looked at the Shadow beside him.

Perhaps due to his experience fighting the Tiger Man last night, Pei Chao's mental state had made a slight breakthrough, and in his vision, the Shadow's form seemed a bit clearer.

Pei Chao asked Feng Buzhi in confusion, "Boss, why does it feel like this Shadow is looking at me with such resentment?"

Feng Buzhi said, "It might be because what you just said ruined Zhao Gang's image."

The conversation between Feng Buzhi and Pei Chao once again made the Shadow feel irritated.

It was supposed to be a moving Human Race oath-taking ceremony, but in the hands of Feng Buzhi and Pei Chao, it had inexplicably lost its flavor.

However, this time the Shadow restrained itself. It noticed that it was surrounded by people; if it let go and emitted its supernatural whispers, it would undoubtedly be a disaster for the crowd.

And so, the Shadow stayed to the side, fuming.

Pei Chao seemed to recall something, leaned in toward Feng Buzhi, and whispered, "Boss, it's not convenient to talk here. I have something I want to tell you."

Feng Buzhi quickly followed Pei Chao away from the central square to a relatively quiet street, and the Shadow followed along, puzzled.

Pei Chao hesitated for a moment, then scratched his head and said, "Boss, actually, I didn't want to tell you this—it's embarrassing, after all—but I feel that guy is a bit dangerous, so I think it's better to let you know."

Feng Buzhi asked, "Did something happen last night?"

The Shadow to the side was also full of confusion, as Pei Chao had already used [Repair] to restore his body, so no abnormalities were visible.

Pei Chao said, "Last night, a Tiger Man suddenly appeared in the mist and attacked me. It almost killed me. It looked a bit like the monsters that have been attacking you at night, but there was one difference: it could talk."

"It could talk?"

Feng Buzhi pondered whether he should capture that Tiger Man for interrogation, just as he noticed the Shadow's expression of utter bewilderment.

The Shadow said, "Could it be that an alien race has infiltrated this place? I have never seen such a situation before."

Pei Chao glanced at the Shadow suspiciously. Although he still couldn't fully interpret the meaning of the supernatural whispers, he could hear the confusion and bewilderment in the Shadow's words.

Pei Chao quickly continued, "Boss, when that Tiger Man fought me, he said a lot of things. He said I was some 'Great Pirate'—he seemed to know me—and then he used an ability on me, something called the [Ghost Servant Art], trying to turn me into his slave. If you hadn't been urging me to drink Reagent No. 4 these past few days, I might have fallen to that Tiger Man beast."

Feng Buzhi raised an eyebrow and said, "You mean, it also used an ability that could turn you into a slave?"

Pei Chao said with lingering fear, "Yes, his eyes emitted a purple light, and I could feel him trying to control me."

Feng Buzhi nodded slightly and said, "In that case, we cannot let it escape. You will take me to the place where you fought it shortly so I can investigate."

In truth, Feng Buzhi had not been particularly interested in that Tiger Man initially.

If he happened to run into it, he intended to capture and interrogate it, but if he didn't, he would have let it be.

However, the Ghost Servant Art possessed by that Tiger Man had piqued his interest, and he wanted to learn it.

If he could utilize the Ghost Servant Art during the Deep Abyss Trial, interrogating those alien races within the abyss would surely become much easier.

Feng Buzhi decided to do everything in his power to capture that Tiger Man and force the secret of its Ghost Servant Art out of it.

As Feng Buzhi pondered, he turned his head; some commotion had broken out at the town's central plaza, and a mysterious pillar of blood-red light suddenly descended from the sky, appearing to strike the location of the Town Crystal...