Chapter 612: A Meeting Gift

"Hell, it really is the Ghost-Mocking Abyss?!"

Seeing the streaks of black shadows surging from deep within the earth in the distance, Chen Ling’s expression turned strange.

He should have guessed it. The Jiangtian cultists’ suicide ritual was right in front of him. Since the "Audience" had intervened in the performance at this moment, given their nature, it couldn't be as simple as just watching for fun...

But they had actually stolen the lung and replaced it with a heart, twisting the Jiangtian cultists’ ritual and turning the originally designated "Sighing Wilderness" into the "Ghost-Mocking Abyss"?!

In the Gray Realm, Chen Ling didn't know if the "Ghost-Mocking Abyss" and the "Sighing Wilderness" bordered each other... But in the Red Dust Realm, with the surrounding area completely shrouded by the "Sighing Wilderness," the sudden appearance of a "Ghost-Mocking Abyss" area intersecting in the center was no different from an iceberg suddenly dropping into a churning sea of fire, turning the already chaotic Red Dust situation into a world of ice and fire.

Of course, with the intersection area of the "Sighing Wilderness" being so large, a single "Ghost-Mocking Abyss" certainly couldn't compete with it... But Chen Ling guessed that the [Mock] disaster didn't care about these things at all. It didn't even care about the casualties of the "Ghost-Mocking Abyss" disasters. After all, back in the Aurora Realm, these disasters were just delicious, succulent chickens in its eyes.

The reason it modified this ritual, creating a "Ghost-Mocking Abyss" amidst a "Sighing Wilderness," was most likely just to disgust the "Sighing Wilderness" apocalypse.

This behavior was like jumping onto a dining table where someone was about to eat and taking a massive dump. It didn't cause much damage, but the insult was extreme.

[Audience Expectation +3]

[Current Expectation: 84%]

Under the gaze of those playful scarlet eyes, a large number of black shadows crawled out from the Gray Realm intersection point. They didn't spare a glance at the Red Dust residents on the street, but after circling in mid-air for a moment, they swarmed toward the surrounding "Sighing Wilderness," as if they had caught the scent of some utterly loathsome aura!

Seeing this, Chen Ling couldn't judge whether the situation was good or bad... He shook his head helplessly and pulled Li Qingshan up from the ground.

"Brother Lin, you killed that Jiangtian cultist with a wave of your hand just now... How did you do that? Is it a Path skill?" Li Qingshan looked at Chen Ling’s sleeve, which was close at hand, the scene from just moments ago flashing in his mind, and couldn't help but ask.

"No, that’s a secret technique of the Theater Path."

"Theater Path secret technique?"

"It’s one of the four secret techniques derived from the basics of the Theater Path... The one just now was [Sleeve-Hand Heaven-Moving]. Simply put, it’s about unleashing astonishing power in an instant through the soul resonance between oneself and the character."

"[Sleeve-Hand Heaven-Moving]?"

Li Qingshan murmured the four words, lost in thought.

"Let’s not talk about that for now, Brother Li. You should take the medicine and head back quickly." Chen Ling looked at the sky outside. "Now that the disasters of the 'Ghost-Mocking Abyss' and the 'Sighing Wilderness' are fighting each other, this neighborhood is at its safest... If you go back now, you shouldn't run into any disaster raids."

"Oh! Right!"

Li Qingshan remembered he had come to get medicine for Kong Baosheng and immediately began rummaging through the dim pharmacy.

He packed up all the medicine related to lymphoma, and feeling it wasn't enough, he took a large batch of painkillers, fever reducers, antibiotics, and other common drugs, then left a banknote on the broken counter.

"The clerk is gone, why are you still paying?"

"If I take the medicine, of course I have to pay. It has nothing to do with whether anyone is here... If I don't pay, wouldn't that be theft or robbery?" Li Qingshan replied as a matter of course.

Seeing Li Qingshan being so earnest, Chen Ling shook his head without saying more and walked with him to the pharmacy door.

"Brother Lin, I’ll be going then." Li Qingshan said solemnly, "Take care of yourself."

"Mm."

Li Qingshan took two quick steps, then suddenly remembered something and looked back at Chen Ling.

"If that Bureau Chief asks why you didn't come back, what should I say?"

Chen Ling paused, only then remembering that Wang Jincheng was still at the theater. If he and Li Qingshan had gone out to get medicine, but only one returned, it would indeed be hard to explain...

Chen Ling pondered for a moment. "Just say we ran into a disaster on the way and got separated."

"Got it, I’ll keep that in mind."

Li Qingshan nodded and ran quickly toward the theater, carrying a large bag of medicine.

Chen Ling watched his figure disappear at the end of the street. In the end, only he remained standing alone in his red robe at the dilapidated intersection.

The sighing wind brushed against his hem, and Chen Ling rubbed the corner of his eye helplessly.

"Didn't leave a single survivor, and the leads are all broken... Now, where am I supposed to find those Jiangtian cultists?"

If Chen Ling had left the theater earlier purely because the [Mock] disaster was too annoying and he wouldn't have peace until he solved the problem of the Sighing Wilderness apocalypse descending, the situation was completely different now... The [Mock] disaster had made such a huge commotion. If that apocalypse really was summoned, it would probably be so furious it would tear Chen Ling to pieces. Facing an apocalypse in such a state of rage, even ten lives wouldn't be enough for him.

In any case, he couldn't let the Jiangtian Sect summon the apocalypse. Otherwise, the day it descended would be the day Chen Ling dropped dead!

But with the Gray Realm intersection range being so large, Chen Ling didn't know where those Jiangtian cultists were. The only choice before him now was to search bit by bit, relying purely on luck.

"Why isn't this Emperor's Fate working at a critical moment?" Chen Ling sighed deeply.

"If only I could make those Jiangtian cultists bump into me on their own..."

As he stood at the intersection, intending to pick a direction at random, a breeze brushed against Chen Ling’s cheek.

On the other side of the intersection, in the opposite direction from where Li Qingshan had left, crystal-clear black dance shoes stepped over the ruins and dried blood. A black dress, like rose petals dancing in the wind, walked toward him lightly and firmly.

She walked quietly, her misty, rain-like hair draped in the wind, as if she weren't walking on ruins, but treading on a red carpet, preparing for a grand performance.

The believer, Liu Qingyan, dressed for the occasion.

The moment he saw that face, Chen Ling was stunned, not expecting to run into her here...

As Liu Qingyan was about to reach him, Chen Ling finally came to his senses. He opened his mouth to ask something, but the girl’s gorgeous skirt suddenly swayed, and half a blood-stained head fell out from beneath it, rolling to Chen Ling’s feet.

Liu Qingyan’s delicate body suddenly trembled.

Chen Ling looked blankly at the half-head on the ground, its eyes still wide open in death, then at Liu Qingyan, who looked like she wanted to shrink her head into the ground, and couldn't help but ask:

"This is..."

Liu Qingyan pursed her lips, silently lifted the half-head of the Jiangtian cultist with both hands, and offered it to Chen Ling, not daring to look him in the eye.

She spoke with some embarrassment,

"It... it is a meeting gift for Lord Chen Ling."