A cruel, twisted madman

After seeing Jianxin off, Tide Sis took out a leaf.

It was no ordinary leaf, but a token Jinhsi had given her.

It still carried Jinhsi's scent... no, the aura of a Tacet Discord.

This leaf had been affected by the Waveworn Phenomena.

"This leaf is like a beacon. The Magistrate must want you to follow its guidance and see something," Yangyang speculated, her eyes fixed on it.

Tide Sis sensed the fluctuations coming from the leaf and looked into the distance.

She pointed in a direction. "I can feel it. It should be over there."

Yangyang looked that way too. "Central Plains, Qichi Village?"

She pondered for a moment. "Something must have happened there. Rover, let's go take a look together."

Hearing that familiar place name, Ling An felt a jolt of alarm.

Qichi Village.

If he remembered correctly, a certain unhinged member of the Fractsidus was waiting there.

His gaze sharpened. He absolutely could not let Tide Sis or Yangyang get hurt.

The two women and the cat continued onward. The closer they got to Qichi Village, the more oppressive the atmosphere became.

"Something seems to have happened here. What my perception of the flowing air tells me feels so oppressive, so... painful." Yangyang's expression was grave, with a hint of sorrow.

Suddenly, she cried out, "A Tacet Field! Be careful, Rover!"

In an instant, countless frequencies fluctuated and converged within the Tacet Field, and several Tacet Discords materialized.

Yangyang and Tide Sis drew the Swiftblades at their waists almost simultaneously, charging at the Tacet Discords from the left and right.

Moments later, the Tacet Discords shattered.

"Rover, are you all right?" Yangyang asked with concern.

"I'm fine. They were just some low-level Tacet Discords." Tide Sis waved a hand.

The Tacet Discords they had just defeated had formed from the converging frequencies in the Tacet Field and were no match for them.

"Rover, do you hear a strange sound?" Yangyang glanced around.

Tide Sis nodded. They continued exploring ahead, and a purple, spherical Tacet Discord appeared before them.

The purple, spherical Tacet Discord unconsciously made sounds, just like a human:

"Chirp, chirp... big brother..."

"Huh? This Tacet Discord seems a little different." Yangyang studied it curiously.

"There are bound to be some special Tacet Discords. I think that's probably normal," Tide Sis guessed.

After all, she had the most unusual Tacet Discord of all right beside her.

"Perhaps this Tacet Discord devoured other people's frequencies, turning their lingering consciousness into endlessly repeated murmurs..."

Yangyang crouched down and placed a hand on the Tacet Discord's head, her expression sorrowful.

She looked toward Qichi Village, her eyes filled with grief:

"It seems to be waiting for release and salvation. I can hear its cries of sorrow... no, the cries of this village."

"Maybe we should investigate first," Tide Sis suggested.

As she finished speaking, a rustling came from a patch of grass nearby.

Yangyang hurried over and abruptly parted the grass.

Ling An, who had been pacing in the grass, froze.

He clearly had not done anything, yet somehow he felt as helpless as someone caught relieving himself in public.

Yangyang patted her chest. "Ling An, what are you doing here?"

Ling An gave her an exasperated glance.

Where else was I supposed to be?

Tide Sis and Yangyang had charged straight into battle with the Tacet Discords without a word, so of course he had needed to find somewhere to hide.

It was not that he was afraid of getting hurt.

His main concern was what would happen if some oblivious Tacet Discord caught him in its attack and triggered his stress response.

Turning back into the Crownless right in front of Yangyang was something he would rather avoid.

After all, even a Tacet Discord that could only repeat a few murmured words had drawn their attention.

What would happen if they discovered that Ling An was a Tacet Discord with self-awareness?

He would probably be greeted with a special welcome package from the Huaxu Academy.

Just thinking about it was terrifying.

"Let's look somewhere else..." Yangyang picked Ling An up, but before she could finish-

A dark red portal abruptly appeared behind her.

Before she could react, the portal swallowed both her and Ling An.

"Ling An! Yangyang!" Tide Sis cried anxiously.

"Don't worry, Rover. They're perfectly safe. I've waited so long for this moment. I wouldn't want anyone interrupting us."

A sinister, teasing voice came from above.

Tide Sis looked up to see a man in a red combat outfit toying with cards, a wicked smile curling his lips.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Scar, an Overseer of the Fractsidus. Though calling me a madman or a pervert wouldn't be bad either!"

"Where did you take them?" Tide Sis demanded.

"Relax. It's just an illusion. I wouldn't want that girl interrupting our conversation..."

As Scar spoke, a flicker of surprise suddenly crossed his face.

Looking down at Tide Sis, he said, "Interesting. Very interesting! It seems my illusion swallowed something rather extraordinary."

He flicked a card, and a dark red space instantly engulfed him.

The next second, Scar vanished.

Tide Sis was left standing there alone, utterly bewildered.

Meanwhile, Ling An and Yangyang were inside the illusion Scar had created.

It was a place with neither sky nor earth, where countless platforms made of piled stones floated in the void.

Yangyang looked anxious. "This handiwork... Rover could be in danger! We have to get out immediately!"

In her urgency, she drew her Swiftblade and began attacking the illusion.

Ling An crouched on the ground, sensing the conditions within the illusion.

A trace of worry crossed his face.

Perhaps because he was a Tacet Discord, Scar's illusion actually exerted a slight suppressive effect on him.

It was not obvious, but its influence was very real.

This was no place to linger.

Ling An jumped to a spot within the illusion and called out to Yangyang.

An illusion was not the real world. Every illusion had weak points.

Those weak points were especially easy to break through when the illusion's creator was absent.

With his keen eye, they were naturally not difficult to find.

"Ling An?" Yangyang asked in confusion. "Are you telling me to attack here?"

Ling An nodded, thinking, You're a quick learner.

Sword in hand, Yangyang slowly approached.

She could more or less tell that there was something unusual about Ling An, but she always reassured herself that anyone connected to Rover was bound to be extraordinary.

Deciding to give it a try, she brought her sword down.

The next moment, a dark red card shot toward her.

The card struck the blade, knocking her Swiftblade off course.

"Oh dear, oh dear. You almost interrupted my date with Rover!"

A hand flipping a card came into view.

"Cards... you're Scar!" Yangyang exclaimed.

She stepped forward, shielding Ling An behind her.

"That's right. I'm Scar, that cruel, twisted madman. To keep you from influencing Rover's decision, it seems I'll have to knock you out."

Ling An had long wanted to poke fun at Scar's way of introducing himself.

Who introduces himself as a cruel, twisted madman?

Unless...

He really is that unhinged.