Defend the Carrot (Middle)

Carrot was a little surprised, but she was clever and did not ask any further questions. After a moment's thought, she took two documents and a bank card from her bag and handed them to the two of them in turn.

"The first document is a legally binding security contract. It states that Party B must provide Party A with security services for three days. After three days, the contract automatically ends, and the payment will be deposited into this dedicated account. The second document is my complete itinerary for the next three days. How you provide security is up to you; I won't restrict your freedom."

A very sincere Party A.

Su Bai took the two documents and casually asked, "Are the dozen or so bodyguards standing outside standard equipment when a big star goes out?"

Carrot shook her head slightly. "No. Even though I'm stylish and trendy on screen, in my private life I'm a homebody who rarely goes out. Whenever I do go out, it's for work-variety shows, concerts, fashion shows and things like that. I only need to bring my driver, makeup artist and assistant. But I've been especially scared these past few days, so..."

Lin Luo glanced outside and said, "Send them all away, including your assistant, driver and makeup artist."

Carrot hesitated. "All right, but... why?"

Lin Luo frowned. "There's no reason. Do as I say."

"..."

Su Bai signed his name on the contract, picked up the itinerary and said thoughtfully, "You have a concert at Mangrove International at six forty this evening. It's three fifty-seven now. We can leave."

Carrot stared at him for a moment, then fished her car keys out of her bag and handed them to Su Bai.

After taking the keys, Su Bai passed them straight to Lin Luo. "I don't have a driver's license."

Lin Luo gently placed the keys in Carrot's hand. "I don't know the way."

"..."

At six thirty that evening, the setting sun sank toward the horizon.

Mangrove International was a sea of people.

Before the car could enter the parking lot, the media swarmed in and blocked its path.

Carrot tapped the brakes and turned to the two "bodyguards" resting with their eyes closed. "The organizers said it'll take them another ten-odd minutes to get here, but the concert is about to start. If it's convenient for you..."

"It isn't."

"All right."

Carrot sighed, opened the car door and got out to deal with the media.

Inside the car.

Lin Luo opened his eyes and spoke slowly. "If it were just a matter of moving objects out of thin air, plenty of Oracles could do that. But considering what those two 'letters' said, I don't think it's as simple as moving objects out of thin air."

"That's right." Su Bai nodded slightly. "No matter what the Oracle is, it can only take effect within an x (unknown) range. That x (unknown) range gradually expands as bloodline rank rises. Even a fourth-rank Transcendent like Captain Li can only expand the x (unknown) range to thirty meters at most."

Lin Luo picked up where he left off. "Let's assume the two 'letters' that appeared out of thin air in Carrot's bathroom were the work of some Transcendent creature. Then, when that creature used its Oracle, it must have been within thirty meters of Carrot."

Su Bai smiled faintly.

"But the letters said, 'I'll come find you. I want to be with you.' If that Transcendent creature had been near Carrot at the time, it would already have found her, and it wouldn't have sent a letter like that. So there are only two possibilities. The first is that Carrot has been lying to us from the very beginning."

Lin Luo lowered his head, his expression growing cold. "The second possibility is that what she encountered wasn't a monster at all, but... a ghost contaminated by some kind of Transcendent power!"

Ghosts had three characteristics.

First, they had no physical bodies (immune to physical damage).

Second, they had neither bestiality nor divinity (distorted consciousness, unpredictable).

Third, their actions followed only the nine Transcendent laws (within the rules).

Su Bai slowly breathed out and said softly:

"Ghosts have been contaminated by Transcendent power, so they also fall into the Transcendent category. Although they don't have physical bodies, they do have bloodlines and Oracles. Their behavior follows only the nine Transcendent laws, and judging by the Transcendent Devouring Law, they should only target Transcendent creatures. Take Novelist, for example. She came to me to raise her bloodline rank. But after observing Carrot carefully, I can tell she isn't a Transcendent. Why would a ghost come after her?"

Lin Luo smiled. "It seems the only explanation is..."

Just then, Carrot opened the car door, sat down in the driver's seat and asked curiously, "What are you talking about?"

Lin Luo closed his eyes and resumed resting.

Su Bai yawned and waved his hand, signaling her to drive.

Carrot stepped on the accelerator and drove into the parking lot. "Am I protecting you, or are you protecting me?" she asked indignantly.

No one paid her any attention.

Carrot's chest heaved violently, her full peaks appearing and disappearing from view, as she gritted her teeth and said:

"I-I'm the hottest artist signed to Starlight Entertainment! My fame is among the very highest in all of Great Xia! So many fans chase after me for autographs, so why are you two treating me like this? Haven't you seen any of the TV dramas I acted in?"

Su Bai spread his hands and remarked, "Miss Wang Luobo, I've seen your TV dramas, but your acting was painfully awkward. I even used an alt account to roast you back then. So, strictly speaking, I'm not your fan. At most, I'm an anti-fan."

Lin Luo pointed at Su Bai and said lazily:

"If you want to compare fame, I can tell you with complete confidence that you're only famous in Great Xia. This brother of mine has long since attracted international attention. He has plenty of fans too, and the way they chase him is much crazier than anything your fans do. It's just that these fans don't want his autograph..."

They just wanted his miserable life.

Carrot sang beautifully, her voice clear and her dancing captivating.

Dozens of cameras projected her beautiful face onto screens dozens of meters wide. Below the stage, fans waved glow sticks and screamed wildly, their voices ringing throughout Mangrove International.

The VIP seating area was a glass walkway suspended in midair, offering a view of the entire venue.

Su Bai leaned on the railing and looked down over the stage. "If she didn't act in films and TV dramas and just focused on singing and dancing, I might actually become her fan."

Lin Luo lay in a massage chair, a smile touching his lips. "Would you chase after her for an autograph?"

Su Bai shook his head. "No matter what happens, I'll remain absolutely rational."

Lin Luo said, "Absolute rationality also means absolute madness."

Su Bai frowned slightly. "What do you mean?"

Lin Luo sat up and looked at Su Bai. "A piece of advice: don't use your Oracle until your bloodline reaches the sixth rank."

He fell silent for a while, then continued, "The Oracles we possess are gifts from some great will. Fate is fair. Since we accepted the gifts, we must pay a price for them."

"What price?"

Su Bai asked.

Lin Luo shook his head gently. "I don't know. No one knows, but we'll find out eventually."

Su Bai took those words to heart and pondered them carefully.

Snap!!

A massive camera mounted on steel cables was moving slowly across the air when it suddenly tilted above the center of the stage. The four cables holding it snapped one after another without warning, each breaking with a tremendous report.

Carrot was completely immersed in the atmosphere at the venue and cast a provocative look toward the VIP seats.

The audience below shouted Carrot's name, cheering themselves hoarse for their idol.

The staff adjusted the various camera angles, precisely controlling the footage of the event.

The sound of the cables snapping was drowned out by the crowd's screams.

The massive camera, weighing several hundred jin, finally fell from the steel frame, straight toward Carrot on the stage below.

In that hairbreadth moment.

Su Bai smashed through the railing with a sudden kick and leaped toward the stage. "Lin Luo!!"

Carrot finally noticed the enormous shadow hanging above her head, and her mind went blank.

The instant the camera was almost against her face.

Su Bai finally reached her. He knocked Carrot to the ground with one shoulder, shielding her with his body. With no time to change direction, he could only jerk his other arm down, driving his elbow viciously into the massive camera.

Boom!!

After the thunderous crash, the stage was plunged into darkness.

The audience erupted, people pulling out their phones to film the incredible scene.

The flashbulbs kept going off, but their light could not penetrate the dense darkness.

Lin Luo slowly stood up. "The sky has gone dark."