Forbidden Zone of Deception

Chapter 173 Yu Tianlun VS Qin Mei
"Captain," Liu Yan asked Yu Tianlun anxiously, "If... you and Qin Mei were to face off one-on-one, who would win?"

“It’s hard to say,” Yu Tianlun replied. “A medium is a profession that relies heavily on talent. A level 3 medium can successfully control a ghost to possess them and use the ghost’s abilities. However, how much of the ghost’s curse power they can unleash depends on the medium’s abilities. In this process, their SAN value can easily drop drastically. If they are not careful, the ghost can take over their soul and they will eventually become a real ghost.”

Liu Yan naturally knew this; the profession of psychic medium was very similar to the ghost tamer in the [Terror Resurgence] instance!

"Qin Mei isn't actually particularly talented, but she's lucky. She's been able to consistently maintain a balance between the ghost within her and her own life force, and even after advancing to LV3, she still retains most of her sanity. This is quite good among LV3 mediums. But precisely because of this, mediums are often not good at prolonged battles. Putting aside everything else, I'm confident I can win in terms of sanity depletion alone."

In other words, Yu Tianlun has a chance of winning if he were to fight Qin Mei one-on-one.

"But the problem is... Qin Mei is the leader of the Shadow Blade team. Although she joined the Bloodthirsty team and was parachuted into this branch team leader not long ago, the Bloodthirsty team's treasure trove will definitely give her a lot of good stuff."

As for what treasures she possesses... precisely because she hasn't been the leader of the Shadow Blade Guild for long, she lacks sufficient information on this matter.

“I’ll deal with Shirakawa Rin,” Liu Yan said coldly. “I will get rid of her as soon as possible.”

"Moreover, there's a major problem. Once we face each other, the balloons will be exposed to the other's effective killing range." This is what Yu Tianlun is most worried about. "Our balloons have absolutely no defense against each other."

"I didn't expect that my Gu worms would be completely countered by Qin Mei. As a result, my professional skills will be difficult to use against her."

It's understandable that Liu Yan didn't anticipate this; the number of witchcraft reincarnators is extremely small, and information about witchcraft versus LV3 mediums is even scarcer. Most importantly, because medium reincarnators control different ghosts within their bodies, they are likely to develop different professional skills.

"The reason Qin Mei can serve as the leader of the branch is not because she is strong enough, but because... mediums are a profession that many people are wary of." Yu Tianlun continued, "Level 3 mediums are also quite rare."

Just as a Soul Reaper can unleash a massive backlash of resentment upon death, enough to curse and kill a reincarnator alive, a medium's death can potentially revive the ghost within them. A Level 3 medium will always have a ghost possessing them, and often more than one. Once a medium is killed, the ghost within them, driven by resentment, will attack the reincarnator. This is one of the key reasons why Yu Tianlun didn't want to kill Qin Mei. If Qin Mei released the ghost within her at the moment of her death, the battle would become extremely difficult.

Therefore, both Soul Stealers and Spirit Mediums are professions that reincarnators do not want to fight to the death with.

“Also, Shirakawa Rin,” Xu Yinqiu said, “we shouldn’t underestimate her just because she’s a Level 1 shrine maiden. Shrine maidens can manipulate paper dolls on one hand, and control all sorts of strange poisons on the other.”

Then, they all looked at Tomie.

The text message I just received also mentioned that Tomie should be present.

"Okay, I have to go too, right?" Tomie stood up and stretched. "I don't care, no one can kill me anyway... Ah!"

Tomie suddenly felt a sharp pain inside her body.

Liu Yan said coldly, "Some things are more terrifying than death. Don't do anything unnecessary later."

Liu Yan knew very well what kind of person Fu Jiang was, and never let her guard down around her.

Then they set off to keep their appointment.

The abandoned textile factory is located in a relatively remote area of ​​Black Crow Town. There are few people here, making it a very suitable place for combat.

The factory's iron gate creaked in the wind, and the rusted hinges were easily broken by them.

Yu Tianlun walked at the front, having already taken off his outer garment, revealing a Taoist robe underneath.

The iron gate opened, and Yu Tianlun stepped in, the hem of his Taoist robe sweeping across the cotton wadding and broken glass scattered on the ground.

Xu Yinqiu followed closely behind, activating her Zhuyou Eye—she was scanning for vital signs within a radius of 100 meters.

Liu Yan's Gu worms had spread throughout the factory, while Tomie followed closely behind her, his eyes filled with resentment as he looked at Liu Yan.

"We're here." Yu Tianlun stopped in front of a workshop, his pupils slightly contracting. "Qin Mei! We're here, aren't you coming out?"

Knowing full well the threat of the human head balloon, Qin Mei still arranged to meet in an open, spacious place, clearly intending to destroy their balloon.

The workshop door was pushed open, and Qin Mei walked out, her white dress gleaming coldly.

Shirakawa Rin followed closely behind, with paper figures floating around like snowflakes.

Jiang Jin, his hands bound by anti-magic shackles, sat against the wall in the workshop, with dried bloodstains on his forehead.

"Release them." Yu Tianlun's voice wasn't loud, but it echoed throughout the factory area.

Qin Mei chuckled softly, finally managing to get Yu Tianlun to come out.

You should know that they first appeared in this factory, and Duan Pei died here.

Now it's time for an eye for an eye.

"What's the rush? We haven't even discussed terms yet." She was wrapped in the silver thermal blanket. "The effects of our medicine will gradually wear off over time, and our SAN value will drop once war starts. Until then..."

Her gaze swept over Yu Tianlun and Xu Yinqiu's heads: "Our balloons won't come to take our lives."

Tomie suddenly burst out laughing: "Oh my, is this some kind of Russian roulette game? Let's see whose balloon launches the attack first?"

"Shut up." Yu Tianlun commanded without turning his head, his eyes fixed on Qin Mei. "What exactly do you want to do? Let me make it clear, I can destroy your balloon at any time."

Yu Tianlun's Bagua Mirror allows him to see the location of balloons. He can also use his professional skills to destroy the opponent's balloons.

However, he also knew that killing Qin Mei would mean confronting the ghost within her. Moreover, Jiang Jin was covered in paper figures, and the witch could kill him with a single thought.

"I want you to hand over the investigation data about the balloons."

Yu Tianlun was puzzled: "Investigation data? Where would we get such a thing?"

"Why are you pretending to be stupid? Yukiko Oda has already told me everything." Qin Mei deliberately lied to him.

Yu Tianlun was stunned and asked, "Oda Yukiko? Who is she?"

"You don't know her?" Qin Mei began to sense that something was wrong.

Yu Tianlun's expression certainly doesn't look like he's acting; otherwise, he would definitely win an Oscar.

Qin Mei suddenly realized that perhaps Tomie's arrival was just an accident?
If that's true, then Yukiko Oda's death was far too unjust.

But things have come to this point, there's no other way but to fight.

"Liu Yan, take the things out," Qin Mei said. "Han Wei told me everything, what kind of things are in the shared space of your and Jiang Jin's Reincarnator watches."

She didn't say it directly, after all, the temptation of more than thirty fragments of resentment was too terrifying, and Yu Tianlun would probably be tempted to snatch them.

"What did you say?"

"You didn't know, did you? Han Wei has a unique professional skill."

Some reincarnators can acquire unique professional skills through their own talents or by completing hidden quests. These skills are often surprisingly effective because the other party has no information about them.

"His professional skill is that he can see what's inside the Reincarnator's Watch."

Upon hearing this, Liu Yan suddenly realized!
It turns out that the resentment crystals she and Jiang Jin obtained in the [Terror Resurgence] instance were what brought this terrible disaster upon the Nirvana team!
"I see." Liu Yan gritted her teeth and said, "If I give you the things, will that settle our feud with the Bloodthirsty Team?"

If exchanging the shattered resentment crystals for the Bloodthirsty Team to stop hunting down the Nirvana Team, then it would be worthwhile.

"None of us are newcomers to this world, so let's not be so naive."

After thinking about it carefully, Liu Yan realized that the other party was right.

Letting Jiang Jin and Liu Yan leave alive would be tantamount to revealing that the Bloodthirsty Team had acquired more than thirty Resentment Crystals. Moreover, the Blood Lord would certainly want to know how they collected so many Resentment Crystals.

Of course, the results of the battle in the [Terror Resurgence] dimensional library cannot be replicated. That was on our wedding anniversary, when we used the [Insect Hunting Festival] skill, which effectively killed a large number of rule-based evil spirits. In addition, the wedding anniversary increased the drop rate of Resentment Shards by 20%, which is why so many Resentment Shards were dropped.

"Actually, you could have survived." Qin Mei looked at Yu Tianlun. "If you were willing to become a branch of the Bloodstained Team, you would naturally become one of us, and the Nirvana Team would no longer have to face today's disaster."

“I’m sorry,” Liu Yan replied coldly, “I don’t want to have my soul imprinted by the Blood Lord, have my life and death controlled by others, and then become a lackey of the devil.”

Qin Mei didn't intend to persuade them; she merely wanted to sow discord. Seeing that words weren't working, she gave up. "Commander Yu, you've seen it too. If you dare destroy the balloon behind me, Jiang Jin will die instantly. Therefore, we've made an agreement not to attack each other's balloons, but to use only the Reincarnator's class skills in a one-on-one fight."

"One-on-one? Is it a fight to the death, or a battle to the finish?"

"If you're so capable, you can certainly take my life too." Qin Mei didn't expect to use a hostage to force Yu Tianlun to die.

“Yes,” Yu Tianlun emphasized, “but it must be one-on-one. You and I, the shaman and the medium, will not use any external force.

He pointed at Shirakawa Rin: "If this priestess dares to interfere, Liu Yan's Soul-Eating Bees will instantly devour her brains."

Qin Mei then pointed to Xu Yinqiu behind Yu Tianlun: "In exchange, when we start fighting later, Miss Xu will not be able to replenish your SAN. Of course, Miss Liu's Gu worms should also stay away from us."

"A word is settled!"

Yu Tianlun unbuttoned his Taoist robe, revealing a white inner garment—embroidered with a Tai Chi symbol on the front and back, and the cuffs were densely covered with cinnabar runes.

Qin Mei's medium eyes began to glow with a ghostly blue light, a sign that she was beginning to undergo demonic transformation.

"Did you know?" Qin Mei suddenly spoke up, "I checked your records, Commander Yu. You used to be an imperial censor, but before you became a reincarnator, someone took off your official robes."

Liu Yan didn't react for a moment, but then she realized that "censor" referred to the prosecutor.

Yu Tianlun's hand seals remained perfectly in place: "So?"

"So I've been thinking," Qin Mei's fingernails suddenly grew longer, "what makes someone within the system ultimately risk their life rather than return to the imperial court system?"

why?
Yu Tianlun couldn't help but fall into memories...

Once upon a time, Yu Tianlun was a spirited and ambitious censor in the Muxu City government. He had gone through an incredibly difficult bar exam to finally put on this uniform, and he always firmly believed that the law could bring justice.

That day, he received a murder case.

The victim was a wealthy businessman, while the suspect—an ordinary worker named Xu Ming—broke down in the interrogation room and confessed that he killed the man due to a wage dispute.

"I didn't, I really didn't."

Xu Ming eventually recanted his confession, his voice hoarse, "They beat me. They wouldn't let me sleep until I confessed."

Yu Tianlun was initially surprised. Could this be a wrongful conviction caused by torture and forced confession by the constables?
Yu Tianlun frowned and noticed a detail while reviewing the case file—on the night of the incident, Xu Ming's coworkers had witnessed him working the night shift at a construction site in the east of the city, while the crime scene was in the west of the city, twenty miles away.

Alibi.

He immediately reported to his superior, Imperial Censor Zhou Zhengde.

“The evidence is conclusive, and he has already confessed. Why is he still changing his story?” Zhou Zhengde waved his hand impatiently. “Don’t create any more trouble.”

"But what if there really was torture to extract a confession—"

"Yu Tianlun!" Zhou Zhengde slammed his fist on the table. "This case has already made the news. Don't you know how much public pressure there is? This is a case I personally prosecuted. Now you're trying to overturn it. Do you know the consequences?"

The government's reputation is more important than a person's life.

No, strictly speaking, it is the Censor-in-Chief's official hat that is more important than the innocence of a commoner.

Yu Tianlun did not give up. He conducted a private investigation, found the construction site records from that night, and even obtained the testimony of Xu Ming's coworkers.

However, when he stood in front of Zhou Zhengde again, the other party only gave him a cold look.

"The case is settled, don't cause any trouble."

"But this is a miscarriage of justice!"

"A wrongful conviction?" Zhou Zhengde scoffed. "Where in the world are there so many wrongful convictions? Who do you think you are? Bao Zheng, the upright judge?"

Ultimately, Xu Ming was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve.

Yu Tianlun was transferred from the Censorate for "unauthorized investigation and interference with judicial procedures".

"The imperial court doesn't care about the truth; it only cares about the stability of the system."

Yu Tianlun once thought that by wearing that uniform, he could protect justice.

But reality told him how ridiculous his idea was.

This is the government!
This is the imperial court!
"You talk too much." Yu Tianlun's Bagua mirror suddenly floated into the air, its surface reflecting seven golden rays, and he shouted, "Heavenly Gang - Soul Locking!"

The Bagua Mirror emitted beams of golden light, which coiled towards Qin Mei like chains, but were quickly swallowed up the moment they touched her skin.

Qin Mei's lips stretched to an impossible angle, and her voice suddenly became a mixed male and female tone: "Spiritual Medium Job Skill - Ghost Transformation!"

Another face appeared below her collarbone—it was the face of a young girl with empty, bloodshot eyes, peering out through Qin Mei's chest.

“The first one,” Yu Tianlun calmly assessed, “is that there are at least two more ghosts inside you.”

Qin Mei, now transformed into a demon, suddenly crawled over on all fours at lightning speed!
She appeared behind Yu Tianlun almost instantly, her sharp claws aimed straight for his back!
Yu Tianlun neither dodged nor evaded; the Tai Chi diagram on the back of his Taoist robe suddenly rotated, deflecting the attack entirely.

"boom!"

Qin Mei was quickly thrown back and crashed into a wall behind her!

She coughed up blood as she got up, only to find that Yu Tianlun had already completed the second round of hand seals: "Earthly Fiend - Burning Yin!"

Suddenly, a burning Bagua formation appeared on the ground, with flames appearing in the Li and Kan trigrams, climbing up Qin Mei's ankles!

As the hexagram rotated, Yu Tianlun's SAN value also began to decrease, which allowed him to vaguely see the phantom of the balloon!
The female ghost inside her let out a shrill scream, and Yu Tianlun took the opportunity to throw out the Five Emperor Coins. The copper coins accurately embedded themselves in Qin Mei's brow, shoulders and knees, pinning her body down!
“The first one.” Yu Tianlun gasped for breath, his SAN value dropping by 15%.

Qin Mei knelt on the ground, and with the help of the Five Emperors Coins, her ghostly state was mostly relieved.

The Five Emperors Coins were returned to Yu Tianlun's hands, and then the Bagua Mirror lit up again.

But this time Qin Mei acted even faster—she released the second ghost from within her body!
A dark shadow emerged from behind her; a headless ghost crawled out from behind her!

A crack appeared in Yu Tianlun's Bagua mirror, forcing him to take out a talisman and throw it away.

"Boom boom boom!"

The talisman collided with the ghostly figure, bursting out with a blinding white light!

When the light faded, Yu Tianlun's Taoist robe was tattered, while Qin Mei had completely returned to human form, her face as pale as paper.

Xu Yinqiu said, "Her SAN value has already fallen into the Lost Layer!"

Qin Mei immediately lowered her head, not daring to look up at her balloon. As long as they didn't make eye contact for more than three seconds, the balloon wouldn't attack her.

"You've lost," Yu Tianlun said firmly. "Release them."

Qin Mei stood up unsteadily, and a line of bloody tears suddenly rolled down her left eye.

Yu Tianlun suddenly realized something—

At this moment, in her medium's vision, Xu Yinqiu and Yu Tianlun's balloons had drifted to within reach!
Qin Mei's left eye was completely stained with blood as she unleashed the medium's class skill, [Wraith's Roar]!
She opened her mouth and began to howl wildly ahead!

Just hearing that howl will cause your SAN value to drop!
At the same time, an invisible shockwave swept across the front!

Yu Tianlun's pupils shrank to pinpoints. His Bagua Mirror had shattered under the influence of the vengeful demon's curse, and his SAN value had dropped below 60%.
But the most fatal thing was that the vengeful demon's roar directly attacked his and Xu Yinqiu's balloons!

This medium's skill is enough to make the balloon burst instantly!
(End of this chapter)