Nightmare Emblem

The bloodstained Nightmare Emblem lay in Fang Gang's palm, icy to the bone. Its pupil-less eye, formed from countless twisted vortices, seemed to mock all the light in the world in silent contempt. The Grudge Eye Mark on his left arm throbbed relentlessly, greed and desire nearly bursting from his body, only to be firmly suppressed by his newly enhanced mental strength.

True Mirror Still Water Heart Sutra (Basic Chapter): Minor Mastery (0/500)

Mental: 25 (Sturdy Barrier)

Within his sea of consciousness, the clear and resilient heart mirror rippled faintly, sealing the mark's mad thoughts outside. Fang Gang's gaze was as cold as iron.

His phone screen lit up at that moment with a message from an encrypted number:

"The emblem points to the 'Starlight Charity Gala.' Tomorrow night at eight, Hilton rooftop. Organizer: 'Starlight Group,' suspected Nightmare outer circle. Target: Phantom Nightmare Priest. Old Smoker."

Starlight Charity Gala? Starlight Group?

A cold curve tugged at Fang Gang's lips. They had hidden themselves deeply, yet their methods were so cliché. Concealing a flesh-and-blood altar beneath the glamorous facade of charity—that was exactly these rats' style. Phantom Nightmare Priest? A piece of trash who manipulated illusions!

"The Hilton... rooftop, huh." He put away his phone and looked toward the brightly lit cluster of skyscrapers in the city center. Tomorrow night, the light from those crystal chandeliers would have to change color.

The following day, exactly eight at night.

Hilton Hotel, top floor, Starlight Ballroom.

The enormous crystal chandelier poured down brilliant yet gentle light, illuminating the entire space as brightly as day. Elegantly dressed men and women held champagne glasses, wearing perfect smiles that ranged from reserved to warm. The air was filled with expensive perfume, the scent of food, and insincere compliments.

Perfume and finery, glasses raised in endless toasts. This was a stage for money and high society, the glamorous heart of the city.

The ballroom's heavy carved doors silently swung open.

A figure stepped into this dazzling world.

There was no extravagant formalwear, only a faded black tracksuit. There was no carefully styled hair, only a bald head reflecting an almost metallic, cold gleam beneath the brilliant lights.

Resting casually on his shoulder was an ancient, heavy Bronze Battle Halberd, utterly out of place in this luxurious setting. Its blade had no edge, yet it radiated a terrifyingly vicious aura.

It was Fang Gang.

Dressed like that, he was like a rhinoceros charging into a flock of swans, instantly drawing every eye in the room!

Shock, disdain, curiosity, disgust... all kinds of gazes converged on him like searchlights, while whispers spread like a rising tide.

"Security! Where's security? Who is this?"

"Oh my God, what is he carrying? Is that a weapon?"

"Where did this lunatic come from? How did they let him in?"

"That bald head... it's so blinding..."

Several capable-looking security guards in black suits and earpieces quickly surrounded him, their wary, sharp gazes fixed on him as their hands rested on the stun batons at their waists.

"Sir, please show your invitation! This is not a place you should be!" The head of security was broad and burly, speaking in a hard tone that carried an unquestionable command. The guards behind him subtly formed an encirclement.

Fang Gang did not stop. His gaze swept through the room like a scanner before finally locking onto a figure surrounded by wealthy businessmen and social elites at the far end of the ballroom.

It was a middle-aged man in a tailored silver-gray suit. His hair was meticulously combed, and he wore gold-rimmed glasses. A gentle, refined smile hung on his face as he chatted amiably with others, while a low-key yet luxurious watch gleamed on his wrist.

The president of Starlight Group, Lin Yaoming.

Yet in Fang Gang's perception, an exceptionally obscure, cold, nauseating mental fluctuation lingered around him! It came from the same source as the aura left behind in Lost Alley and Fu Shou Yuan Cemetery! It also resonated faintly with the Nightmare Emblem in his palm!

Phantom Nightmare Priest! Found him!

"Move." Fang Gang's voice was not loud, but it carried an unquestionable force that cut clearly through the surrounding noise.

"Sir! Final warning! Leave immediately, or we won't be polite!" The security captain's face darkened as his hand gripped the handle of his stun baton.

Fang Gang finally shifted his gaze away from Lin Yaoming and looked at the guards blocking his path. His eyes were calm and still, as though he were looking at a few inconvenient stones.

"Too noisy."

Before the words had even faded, he moved!

There were no flashy movements, only a slight twitch of his shoulder! An invisible, irresistible force erupted from him like a tsunami!

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The several capable guards who had surrounded him were like men struck head-on by a speeding truck! Before they could even react, an irresistible force slammed violently into them. Their vision went black as they groaned and flew backward, crashing hard into distant buffet tables and decorative pillars! The sound of shattering cups and plates mixed with sudden screams!

The entire ballroom fell silent for an instant!

Every smile froze, and every whisper came to an abrupt halt! Only the crystal chandelier's light continued to flow, though it now seemed to carry a chilling coldness.

With the Bronze Battle Halberd on his shoulder, Fang Gang walked steadily through the stunned crowd, like a reef parting the water, heading straight for Lin Yaoming at the far end of the ballroom!

The gentle smile on Lin Yaoming's face had long since vanished, replaced by offended gloom and a trace of barely perceptible suspicion. He pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses. Behind the lenses, his gaze became sharp as a blade, carrying a condescending appraisal and an icy warning.

"This... friend," Lin Yaoming said, his voice still steady but laced with coldness, "this is not a place for you to make trouble. No matter who you are, leave now, and I'll pretend none of this happened. Otherwise..."

Before he could finish, Fang Gang had already come within ten steps of him!

"Otherwise what?" Fang Gang stopped. The light reflected from his dark-gold bald head beneath the dazzling crystal chandelier was almost enough to make Lin Yaoming squint. "You'll keep using that pathetic illusion magic of yours to give these people nightmares?"

Lin Yaoming's pupils suddenly contracted!

"You... know?!" he snarled in shock. His refined mask instantly shattered, revealing a trace of savagery! He abruptly raised his hand, and the face of the seemingly luxurious watch on his wrist lit up with an eerie dark-purple glow! Rather than spreading outward, the light curled around his fingers like a living thing!

At the same time, his other hand reached behind his back with extreme stealth and drew out a strangely shaped weapon from his waistband!

It was unmistakably a folding fan! Its ribs were black as ink, neither metal nor wood, and radiated a gloomy chill. The fan itself appeared to be made from some kind of deathly pale membrane, painted in dark red with a twisted, chaotic image filled with countless terrified human faces! Just one glance was enough to make someone dizzy and afraid!

The Thousand-Face Nuo Opera Fan! The Phantom Nightmare Priest's signature magical artifact!

"Since you're so eager to die, become nourishment for the 'Thousand Faces'!" Lin Yaoming shouted. There was no trace of pretense left on his face! Dark-purple light blazed in his eyes as he snapped open the sinister pale bone fan in his hand!

Whoosh—!

An invisible, intangible chill carrying intense Mental Pollution swept through the entire ballroom like an unseen tide, accompanied by the shrill screams and wails of the countless twisted faces on the fan!

"Ah—!"

"Ghosts! There are ghosts!"

"Don't come closer! Don't come closer!"

"Mom! Save me!"

The guests who had been so impeccably dressed just moments ago instantly seemed to fall into a bottomless hell! The world in their eyes twisted and collapsed completely! They saw manifestations of their deepest fears! Some clutched their heads, crouching and screaming madly. Some flailed their arms and attacked wildly. Some collapsed to the floor, pissing and shitting themselves! The entire ballroom instantly became a hysterical, frenzied inferno!

Nightmare Domain! Open!

And over ninety-nine percent of that torrent of Mental Pollution concentrated on the sole target in the room—Fang Gang!

Countless twisted ghostly figures, miserable wails, and bone-deep visions of fear surged toward Fang Gang like a tangible tide, seeking to drown and tear apart his consciousness completely!

A cruel, triumphant grin appeared on Lin Yaoming's face. No one could remain conscious within his Thousand-Face Illusion Domain! This bald man would soon become a walking corpse, then be absorbed into the fan and turned into a new "face"!

Yet his smile froze on his face in the next instant.

Fang Gang stood where he was, utterly unmoving.

His dark-gold bald head was like a lighthouse amid the chaotic, crazed crowd! The brilliant light from the crystal chandelier fell upon his smooth scalp, reflecting a strange, clear golden radiance that seemed capable of piercing through all falsehood!

Within his sea of consciousness, the resilient heart mirror formed by the Minor Mastery True Mirror Still Water Heart Sutra shone brilliantly! His 25 points of Mental Strength formed a stable barrier, firmly blocking the surging Mental Pollution outside! Countless twisted ghosts struck the heart mirror like foam hitting a reef, instantly collapsing into nothingness! Under the heart mirror's reflection, the bone-deep illusions of fear revealed themselves as nothing more than cheap shadow puppetry!

"Is that all you've got?" Fang Gang raised his eyes, his gaze piercing the chaotic mental storm and locking precisely onto the drastically changed Lin Yaoming. His voice was calm, yet filled with biting mockery. "All flash and no substance."

The savage grin on Lin Yaoming's face was completely replaced by horror! Impossible! His Thousand-Face Illusion Domain was ineffective?! This bald man... what kind of monster was he?!

"Your act is over." Fang Gang's gaze sharpened as the ultimate yang blood and qi of his perfected Nine Yang erupted from within him! Gold-red magma seemed to surge beneath his skin! A terrifyingly masculine force that could burn away all evil and shatter falsehood soared into the sky!

He did not waste another word and took one step forward!

The expensive marble floor beneath him instantly cracked! His entire body transformed into a burning gold-red afterimage, ignoring the distance between them as he threw a punch with the terrifying force of an elephant holding up the heavens! His target was the sinister Thousand-Face Nuo Opera Fan in Lin Yaoming's hand!

The air warped before his fist! Pure yang fire burned away every evil illusion!

"No—!" Lin Yaoming let out a desperate howl and desperately urged the bone fan to block it!