Symbiosis with an Aberration, Hunting Domain!

Chapter 38

Where had the Aberration appeared?

Wang Meng and the two sisters looked utterly bewildered, unable to grasp what Lin Yi meant.

Liu Chuan explained from beside them, "Who was near the people from the Hope Convoy when they disappeared?"

This time, all three understood. They frowned, trying to remember.

Wang Meng spoke first. "On the first night, a young woman and a married couple disappeared. All three were near the windows. I was on watch by the door, and when I turned around, they were gone."

"Who was near them?"

Lin Yi immediately pressed him.

"Two college students, the middle-aged woman who was killed during the day, and Minister Qian and his woman."

Wang Meng thought hard before confirming, "Those were the only people in that area. Everyone else was some distance away."

Minister Qian and his woman!

Not Wang Xufei?

"Where was your captain, Wang Xufei, at the time?" Lin Yi continued.

"Captain Wang was keeping watch with me that night."

Wang Meng added, "We took turns standing watch. The Shen sisters took the second night."

That meant Wang Xufei had been with Wang Meng, ruling him out.

Were Minister Qian and his woman still the prime suspects?

"What about the second night?"

Lin Yi turned his gaze to the Shen sisters.

Shen Qingqing explained immediately, "It happened near the stairs on the second night. Chuchu and I were guarding the entrance. Five employees disappeared that time."

Knowing Lin Yi would ask where Wang Xufei had been, she volunteered the information.

"Captain Wang wasn't near the stairs. He and Wang Meng were resting in the middle."

"What about Minister Qian and his woman?"

Lin Yi immediately asked again.

"Them? They were... Huh? I don't think I noticed where they were resting that night."

"They were near the stairs. I remember it clearly. Qingqing, did you forget? Minister Qian even talked about forming a convoy and asked us to join them."

What Shen Qingqing had forgotten, Shen Chuchu remembered perfectly.

The people gathered near the stairs that night had all been willing to follow Minister Qian and form a new convoy.

Hearing this, Lin Yi looked at Liu Chuan and nodded to indicate that was enough.

Three possibilities had narrowed to two.

The Aberration had to be either Minister Qian or his woman.

Still uncertain, Liu Chuan pressed further. "What about last night? Were Minister Qian and his woman still resting together?"

"None of us rested last night. The four of us watched from the four corners, and other people even helped keep watch. But people still disappeared. They vanished right before our eyes..."

Shen Qingqing seemed to recall something terrifying.

Shen Chuchu and Wang Meng were no different.

Both were horrified by the memory of seeing living people vanish before their eyes.

"What about Minister Qian and his woman?"

Lin Yi asked through gritted teeth.

"I don't know."

Shen Qingqing shook her head. "We were all frightened by that bizarre sight, so we didn't pay attention to Minister Qian and his woman."

"I think they were resting with Captain Wang."

Wang Meng suddenly spoke up. "Ever since that happened, those two have stayed close to Captain Wang."

Ji Qingcang also understood what Lin Yi and Liu Chuan were getting at.

They had tracked down the Aberration, and it had some connection to a human.

Their suspicions clearly lay with Minister Qian and his woman.

Otherwise, they would not have kept pressing those questions.

Lin Yi took a deep breath and turned, carrying the Soul-Devouring Saw. "Let's go. Better to kill the wrong people than let it escape. I'll send them on their way myself."

As Lin Yi headed toward the service station, Ji Qingcang and the others looked at Liu Chuan, waiting for an explanation.

Liu Chuan sighed. "That Aberration appeared tonight. Lin suspected that either it had turned into a human, or someone was helping it. We suspected Wang Xufei, Minister Qian, and his girlfriend. From what we've learned, Wang Xufei should be in the clear."

"Minister Qian and his girlfriend?"

Shen Qingqing gasped, tightening her grip on her sword. "That's right! They were there every time something happened!"

Ji Qingcang furrowed his brows and said gravely, "Captain Liu, go help him. I'll stay and watch the convoy in case anything happens."

Someone had to keep an eye on the convoy. With his steady temperament, Ji Qingcang was undoubtedly the best choice.

Wang Meng and the Shen sisters followed Liu Chuan toward the service station.

Inside the service station.

Lin Yi's earlier intrusion to search for the Aberration had already left everyone on edge, terrified that it might appear beside them.

Before long, however, Lin Yi returned with the Soul-Devouring Saw, frightening everyone so much that no one dared approach him.

Seeing Lin Yi return, Wang Xufei could not help stepping forward to ask, "Brother, have you found out where that Aberration is?"

"Get lost!"

Lin Yi shoved Wang Xufei aside and approached Minister Qian and his girlfriend with a grim expression.

The Soul-Devouring Saw let out a terrifying roar as flames blazed across it. Its enormous saw blade stopped right in front of Minister Qian and his girlfriend.

"W-what are you doing?"

Minister Qian shouted in terror, "I'm a public official! You can't kill me! You'll regret it if you do! This is illegal! Trampling on the law will only get you killed!"

"Enough. Why bring up the law at a time like this?"

Lin Yi stared at the pair and sneered. "Whether you're an Aberration or involved with one, if you threaten my survival, you die!"

What?!

Minister Qian and his girlfriend were Aberrations?

Everyone in the service station panicked, edging toward the entrance for fear of getting caught up in the fight.

Lin Yi had no intention of holding back. He brought the Soul-Devouring Saw straight down against Minister Qian's neck.

Bzzzz-

The sharp, spinning blade sliced through Minister Qian's neck. His head rolled away as blood sprayed.

Looking at the corpse on the floor, Lin Yi knew Minister Qian was not the Aberration.

In that case...

Lin Yi's gaze fell on the woman beside him, her lips painted a fiery red.

Just then, he felt something tighten around his ankle. A sudden yank sent him toppling backward.

Before everyone's eyes, a slime-covered tentacle coiled around Lin Yi's right leg.

The slimy tentacle extended from beneath the woman's skirt.

"An Aberration! It's an Aberration! Run!"

Someone in the crowd shouted, instantly sending everyone scrambling toward the exit.

But more slimy tentacles emerged from beneath the woman's skirt and lashed out at the people around her, seizing several in the blink of an eye.

"Run?"

The corners of the woman's mouth lifted slightly. An eerie, inky green gathered in her eyes, and she stuck out her tongue to lick her lips.

"I'm so close to breaking through. Just one more person, and I can take that next step!"

Her vicious gaze settled on Lin Yi, who hung in midair from a tentacle. "This is all your fault! Qian was supposed to disappear tonight, but you just had to come meddling!"

"You're not an Aberration?"

Although he was dangling in midair, Lin Yi grew curious about the woman.

The tentacles seemed to emerge from her lower body, but she could speak and had even evaded the [Watcher]'s detection. Clearly, she was more than a mere Aberration.

"An Aberration? If I were an Aberration, do you think Captain Wang wouldn't have noticed me?"

Her lips curled slightly as she said smugly, "I may not be a Sequence Transcendent, but I can obtain their abilities all the same. I can even become stronger!"

"If I eat all of you, I could become an existence on par with a Tier Three Aberration. Who could stop me then?"

"I ate some Aberration flesh, and then I discovered I could live in symbiosis with an Aberration. I even gained a Transcendent Ability. My ability, 'Hunting Domain,' is what keeps you from leaving. In here, you'll all become my food..."

"This world is beyond saving. Only people like me can survive. Symbiosis with Aberrations is true evolution. You're all destined to become my delicacies..."