"Dong Qichao is still guarding this place even after death…" I repeated Yang Jun's words, my eyes already fixed on the Soul Husk lying at Zhang Rantian's feet. After a brief pause, I continued, "This Soul Husk… could it be Dong Qichao?" I was about to press further when Sun Fatty cut me off, lowering his voice as he said, "Lazi, whatever questions you've got, save them for later. You can book a one-on-one with Yang Jun after we're out of here." Then he turned to Yang Jun and said, "Big Yang, we've got more pressing matters right now. Not saying you're wrong or anything, but what do we do? Maybe we retreat and let Director Hao and your buddy Yang Xiao deal with this when they arrive."
Yang Jun shot Sun Fatty a cold glare, then said, "Thinking of leaving now? Too late. Zhang Rantian—this Nyeh—has already taken form. The only thing missing is his consciousness. All it takes is the thinnest veil to break, and his mind will awaken. Any sudden movement from us could trigger it. A sneeze might be all it takes for him to achieve 'sudden enlightenment.' Even if all of you backed out to the upper level, he might notice the sudden drop in numbers and still snap awake."
Sun Fatty blinked a few times, then suddenly caught something in Yang Jun's logic. He lowered his voice and said, "Hold on, Big Yang—if you knew we couldn't leave, then why were you asking Director Hao's big brother if he had any explosives? You're not planning to die together with this Nyeh, are you? I mean seriously, we've got six people here including you, and we're supposed to die with one monster? That's a terrible trade."
Just as we were caught between staying and fleeing, the Soul Husk at Zhang Rantian's feet suddenly twitched. A piece of armor slipped from its arm and fell to the ground with a dull clang. The sound drew Zhang Rantian's attention. He turned to look at the Soul Husk. His body shuddered slightly, as though something had dawned on him. He lowered his head, his eyes locking onto the armor plating.
We thought he'd just glance a few times, lose interest, and return to his vacant state like before. But this time, something had clearly changed.
After staring at the Soul Husk for a few seconds, Zhang Rantian suddenly stepped forward and crouched down beside it. With one hand, he grabbed the armor on the Soul Husk's chest and—without much effort—tore the breastplate clean off.
The Soul Husk let out a shrill screech and leapt up, but only made it halfway before Zhang Rantian caught it and slammed it back to the ground. He stomped down on its exposed chest and began ripping off the armor, piece by piece. The plates had been fused to the Soul Husk's flesh over centuries—ripping them off meant tearing skin and muscle with them. Unlike the Soul Husk armor we'd seen at the ancient ruins beneath the desert, this one was engraved with soul-gathering and spirit-nurturing spells, making it impossible to remove by normal means. Yet Zhang Rantian peeled it off like stripping bark from a tree.
As more armor was torn away, the Soul Husk's screams grew weaker and weaker.
"Not saying you guys shouldn't watch, but maybe now's the time we consider a tactical retreat?" Sun Fatty couldn't hold back anymore. He shouted at Yang Jun, no longer caring whether Zhang Rantian would be provoked. But Yang Jun didn't even blink. He was staring wide-eyed as Zhang Rantian stripped the Soul Husk bare. By now, it was no longer resisting. It lay on the ground, naked and mangled, twitching every now and then—still alive, but barely.
And then Zhang Rantian did something truly horrifying.
He leaned over, opened his mouth, and bit down on the Soul Husk's throat, crunching through the neck bone with his bare teeth. I could hear the bones crack and grind in his mouth, and the sound made me sick to my stomach. My whole chest tightened with disgust.
The Soul Husk twitched weakly a few more times, then went completely still. Zhang Rantian remained on top of it, devouring its flesh, organs, and even bones. Watching this grotesque feast, my stomach churned. If there had been anything in my gut, I would've thrown up then and there.
"Not saying—" Sun Fatty had just begun his usual phrase when a sudden creaking sound came from above. I looked up to see a massive stone slab sliding into place, sealing off the entrance we'd come through.
Panic swept over us.
All of us—except Yang Jun—rushed to the entrance and tried to push the slab open. No luck. It didn't budge. Sun Fatty lost it. He turned and shouted at Yang Jun, "Big Yang! What the hell is going on?! The exit's sealed—how the hell do we get out?!"
Before Yang Jun could answer, a cold, unfamiliar voice echoed from behind us:
"Since you're here, why the rush to leave? Stay a while… Let me finish eating first. After that, I'll return the favor for all your 'kindness' earlier."
There was no need to look back. That voice could only belong to Zhang Rantian. He had regained full awareness. His head rose, and he looked straight at us. As he spoke, thick black liquid oozed from the corners of his mouth. But even then, he wasn't done. After speaking, he lowered his head again and resumed devouring the Soul Husk's remains.
His appetite for its flesh was clearly stronger than his interest in us.
"Not saying we're being disrespected here, but this guy's acting like we're not even a threat!" Sun Fatty muttered. "Big Yang, seriously—you five can't take down one Zhang Rantian?!"
He said this while putting away his crossbow and gripping his twin short swords with both hands. Then he started hacking at the stone slab overhead. The blade sliced through iron like paper—but the stone was too thick. Despite all his furious chopping, Sun Fatty couldn't even chip a corner off it.
I watched anxiously from behind, slashing at the stone slab above with my dagger alongside Sun Fatty. Shards and dust pelted my face painfully, but I didn't care. Behind us, Hugo held up the flashlight to illuminate our efforts. As the stone above our heads gradually cracked under our blows, Sun Fatty and I started to get in each other's way. Finally, he handed me his dagger and let me work both hands freely. The gap widened and widened until I carved out a hole about the size of a rice bowl.
Just as the hole looked big enough for someone to crawl through (not counting Sun Fatty), Yang Jun suddenly said from behind, "I'll hold him off for a bit. You guys speed up." I turned around and saw that Zhang Rantian had already risen from the remains of the Soul Husk and was slowly walking toward us. Hao Zhengyi glanced at Yang Jun but said nothing, stepping aside to clear the path for him. Surprisingly, it was Hugo who moved forward and said, "Yang, I'll go with you. Let me also manifest the power of the Lord." Yang Jun looked at Hugo and replied, "No need. At the very least, he won't find it so easy to hurt me." With that, he gripped the greatsword tightly and descended the steps. He glanced down at the broken remains of the Soul Husk, sighed, and continued walking toward Zhang Rantian.
"Lazi, I'll cover this side. You stand behind me," said Sun Fatty. "Not to jinx it, but if something happens, I'm counting on you." As he spoke, he handed over the crossbow and a bolt. Even he could tell—this Zhang Rantian was no longer the same as the "President Zhang" from before. The Soul Husk, which even Yang Jun, Hao Zhengyi, and Crow together couldn't handle, had been devoured piece by piece right before our eyes. We could only hope that Yang Jun's direct intervention would buy us more time.
At that moment, Hao Zhengyi and Crow were communicating rapidly with hand signs, seemingly locked in a disagreement. Crow appeared about to act, but Hao Zhengyi caught him and furiously motioned for him to stop. Crow gestured in protest again and again, until Hao finally lost his temper and smacked him—smack!—so loud and crisp that even Sun Fatty paused his chisel work. "Come on," Sun Fatty barked. "Can you two cool it? Is this really the time to flirt?"
Of everyone, Hugo remained the most composed. He had already taken off his coat, revealing only his priest's cassock beneath. Judging by the bulge at his waist, he was probably hiding something underneath.
Despite our little episode, neither Zhang Rantian nor Yang Jun seemed to take notice. The two of them had already met face-to-face in the darkness, the stark black and white of their figures standing in contrast. As Zhang Rantian approached, his eyes kept glancing toward the greatsword in Yang Jun's hand, seemingly recognizing it.
Yang Jun twirled the sword in a flourish and kept his gaze on Zhang Rantian. "Recognize it?" he asked. "I'm surprised. Didn't think you had the eyes to know where this sword came from."
"Yours?" Zhang Rantian glanced back at the remains of the Soul Husk and paused before returning his gaze to Yang Jun. Rubbing his stomach, he said, "No... it was his, right? He meant to use it on me. Who would've thought—he became my first meal after transcendence."
I was straining to hear what they were saying, hoping to glean something useful, when Sun Fatty suddenly flicked a pebble at my back. I turned around, and he whispered, "Lazi, stall him a bit, say something to drag this out." I looked at the now considerable hole he'd carved and said, "Da Sheng, it's big enough—we can squeeze through." But Sun Fatty rolled his eyes and replied, "That's you. For me, I still need one twice that size."
Just as I was about to open my mouth and throw a few nonsense lines toward Yang Jun and Zhang Rantian, the latter suddenly bared his small, blackened teeth and cackled. "You think you can just bust through the top and leave? Don't bother. Let me tell you something," he said, gesturing toward the Soul Husk's remains. "He bound a shred of his Celestial Soul to the trap array embedded in this Yin Convergence Point. Once that shred dissipates, it'll trigger the entire system. Every trap in this place will activate—not just here. There are over a hundred devices within this Yin Convergence Point. Even if you make it through this hole, what's waiting for you out there won't be just a falling stone slab."
Sun Fatty didn't even pause in his chipping, but he answered back, "And you think you'll get out if we don't? I'm guessing most of those Xie bastards have already sailed away from this island, haven't they? Heard a bunch of them emigrated. Soon enough, they'll be flying to the other side of the world. You gonna sit here and watch them all die peacefully, one by one?"
Zhang Rantian looked calm at first, watching Sun Fatty with an idle expression. But the moment he mentioned the Xie family, Zhang's facial muscles began twitching uncontrollably. By the time Sun Fatty finished, his face was a contorted knot of rage. Sun Fatty didn't seem to care, but I was close enough to see his leg trembling like mad. In a voice so low only I could hear, he muttered, "Lazi, if he charges us, I'm counting on you…"
I cursed silently. If you're scared, then don't provoke him! If Zhang Rantian lunges now, Hugo's probably useless, and Hao Zhengyi and the others will likely just dodge to preserve themselves—maybe get in a sneak attack at most. That leaves me to take the hit.
Sure enough, just as Sun Fatty finished, black worm-like veins began wriggling across Zhang Rantian's face. With a shriek, he launched himself three or four meters into the air. Yang Jun didn't understand his intent and instinctively raised the greatsword to defend, stepping back.
In midair, Zhang Rantian twisted his body sideways and spread his arms wide—revealing thin, membranous wings beneath. The visibility here was so poor we hadn't noticed this mutation before. With a screech like a bat, he glided straight toward us.
Only now did Yang Jun realize his target. He slashed upward with his sword, but he was a beat too slow. Before the blade connected, Zhang Rantian had already swept down toward us.
I didn't have time to think. I raised the crossbow and loosed a bolt straight at Zhang Rantian's forehead. The arrow struck true, piercing him right between the brows, and sent him crashing to the ground.
The shot hit so cleanly that it stunned me. Was it really that easy? If I hadn't seen the bolt sticking from his skull, I wouldn't have believed I was the one who took him down. Hugo and Hao Zhengyi stared in shock too, baffled by the outcome.
Even Sun Fatty stopped his chiseling. Eyeing Zhang Rantian's twitching body, he muttered, "All bark and no bite. If I'd known he was that soft, I'd have gone for him myself… Lazi, not to brag, but this credit should be mine…" But midway through his sentence, his eyes widened and the rest of his words caught in his throat.
Zhang Rantian had suddenly stopped twitching. His eyes stared straight at the ceiling, and his chest began to rise and fall with eerie rhythm.
Moments later, he slowly pushed himself up from the ground. The bolt was still embedded in his forehead, the tip protruding from the back of his head. From the wound, thick black fluid oozed out.
My heart sank. I'd seen my share of monsters that could survive headshots, especially since joining the Bureau. But this time, something was different.
That crossbow bolt was from Wu Rendi.
Up until now, nearly all our close calls had been resolved thanks to Wu's dagger and his custom bolts. Almost everyone outside the Sixth Division—Hao Zhengyi included—had, at one point or another, asked if Sun Fatty or I were willing to part with our gear. The most generous offer came from Qiu Bulao, who told Xiong Wanyi to pass along a message: aside from the Division Two airplane (which he couldn't give away), anything else was ours if we'd trade for the dagger. He even offered half of Division Two's annual budget (minus aircraft expenses) for either the dagger or a single crossbow bolt. Even Ouyang Pianzou drooled when he saw Sun Fatty's crossbow.