Forbidden Zone of Deception

Chapter 243 Soul Imprint Authority
At this moment, the atmosphere on the VIP floor of Tianyang Hospital was completely different from before.

Although the security was still tight, it was completely different from before.

Ye Xiu's wife, Lan Li, led Ye Yinghuo quickly into the ward area.

She only managed to escape back then thanks to a precious return-to-city item; otherwise, she would most likely have been left behind at Lanruo Temple.

Lan Li's face was filled with barely suppressed excitement and tears. When she and Ye Yinghuo saw that not only had her husband woken up, but his complexion was also rosy and his breath was even better than before, they could no longer hold back and both burst into tears of joy. However, because of the [Turtle of Achilles], they were unable to hug Ye Xiu.

The reception area outside the ward has now become a top-level event for the reincarnators of Muxu City!

Upon receiving news of Ye Xiu's awakening, the leaders or core figures of various top teams rushed to visit him in person or by sending important envoys, or rather, to confirm the change in attitude and structure following the return of this giant.

After all, many people were dumbfounded and incredulous when they heard that Ye Xiu had instantly defeated Mo Xiu, who was at LV4!

When Long Mingzhang and Xiao Tianze arrived in person, they found that Ye Xiu's strength seemed to have improved even more, and their eyes also contained a trace of solemnity that was hard to detect. Even they were somewhat wary of Ye Xiu's method of devouring Mo Xiu's soul. The reason why they did not lend a helping hand when Ye Xiu's wife and daughter were expelled was because they saw that Ye Xiu had little chance of waking up. This was tantamount to tacitly allowing the near-LV5 Mo Xiu to take over Yongmeng, and they planned to use this to exchange for Mo Xiu's loyalty to them.

Li Hao brought Jiang Jin to rescue Ye Xiu because he thought that even if Ye Xiu woke up, he would be lucky to avoid being demoted, and would likely be severely weakened. The main reason for sending Li Hao was to ensure that the Reincarnators had more reliable combat power. However, the current situation is far beyond his expectations.

Blood Lord also arrived, standing silently in a corner. Ye Xiu's awakening and powerful return had completely caught him off guard. Jin Shumei had also brought back some memetic entities, but unfortunately, their memetic components were insufficient, making them unreliable memetic carriers and failing to synthesize resentment crystals. Conversely, Jiang Jin was clearly receiving extreme favor from Ye Xiu at this moment. However, hearing that Jiang Jin had repelled Bai Mia did bring him some satisfaction.

Su Yuan, the leader of the Dawn team, arrived with a friendly smile and all her team members to offer their congratulations. At this moment, she still harbored resentment towards her ex-husband, Yu Tianlun—how could he have allowed him to recruit someone as talented as Jiang Jin?
Even more surprisingly, Shen Mohan, the Grand Master of the Black Sparrow Pavilion, also made a personal appearance! He was dressed in a well-tailored black Zhongshan suit and spoke calmly with Ye Xiu, Long Mingzhang, and others, seemingly on equal footing.

The imperial envoy delegation led by Wen Jinsong, along with Li Tianshi, CEO of the Panshi Group, also arrived! Li Tianshi came to plead guilty, his face pale and his posture extremely humble. He kept explaining to Ye Xiu that he knew nothing about the actions of his rebellious son, Li Yuanxiu, and was willing to pay any price to make amends.

The most eye-catching person was a tall, blond, blue-eyed Western man in a sharp suit. Shen Mohan solemnly introduced him; he was actually an envoy from the Duncan Club named Raysell Tully! The fact that an envoy from the Duncan Club had come to Muxu City was quite puzzling.

After paying their respects to the various dignitaries, Lan Li, accompanied by her daughter, tightly grasped Jiang Jin's hand, tears streaming down her face, her gratitude overflowing: "Mr. Jiang! Your kindness is beyond words! From now on, you will be the greatest benefactor of our Ye family! We will do anything you ask of us, even at the cost of our lives!"

Ye Xiu looked at his wife and daughter, then turned his gaze to Jiang Jin, his eyes filled with unquestionable admiration and support.

Just then, Ye Xiu's gaze shifted and landed on a trembling figure in the crowd—the tattooed man who had blocked Jiang Jin at the ward door earlier with an arrogant attitude.

"Yao Jin." Ye Xiu's voice was calm, but it instantly silenced the entire lively reception area.

The tattooed man, Yao Jin, suddenly stiffened, his face turning deathly pale. He knelt down in front of Ye Xiu and Jiang Jin with a thud, trembling like a leaf.

"Commander...Commander...This subordinate...This subordinate deserves to die!" He kowtowed repeatedly before Ye Xiu and Jiang Jin, blood instantly streaming from his forehead. Where was the imposing manner of a near-LV4 Reincarnator?

Now that his soul imprint has been restored, his life and death are entirely in Ye Xiu's hands!
Ye Xiu didn't even glance at the blood he had spilled, but said gently to Jiang Jin, "Brother Jiang, wasn't it this watchdog who blocked your way and even spoke rudely to you earlier?"

Jiang Jin nodded.

Ye Xiu smiled slightly, but that smile sent chills down the spines of everyone present who knew his methods.

With a flick of his wrist, a short, jet-black staff, about three feet long, appeared in his hand from the Reincarnator's Watch—

[The Soul-Capturing Wand]!
This was a magical artifact he frequently used in his early years; it could directly lash out at the soul, causing pain far exceeding that of the physical body.

"This little gadget is quite handy, so I'll give it to Brother Jiang as a small gift." Ye Xiu casually tossed the magical artifact that countless reincarnators coveted to Jiang Jin, then pointed at Yao Jin, who was trembling on the ground, "Now, this beast is yours. Brother Jiang, don't be polite. Today I'm going to clean house and make an example of him. You can beat him however you want, even if you kill him, it's fine. I'll take the blame, and you can keep the key."

hiss--!
A collective gasp of astonishment filled the air around them!
This is Yao Jin! One of the core combatants of the Yongmeng team, a half-step LV4 powerhouse!
After all, he's been imprinted with a soul mark, so he can't possibly rebel again. Ye Xiu is actually going to hand him over to a Level 2 player to be disposed of at will? He wouldn't even care if he were killed?
Of course, Ye Xiu had the confidence to back it up. Look around, the court officials are still here; does any of them have any objection to the statement "it's okay if they die"?

Upon hearing this, Yao Jin was terrified, tears and snot streaming down his face. He frantically kowtowed to Jiang Jin, pleading, "Master Jiang! Grandpa Jiang! I was blind! I deserve to die! Please have mercy! Just let me go! Please!!"

He was incoherent, having lost all dignity in his struggle to survive.

Some people around looked on with pity and tried to plead for him: "Commander Ye, Yao Jin was also coerced by Mo Xiu and was acting under orders. His crime does not warrant death..."

"Yes, Commander Ye, the memetic contamination situation is severe right now, and we need manpower at this crucial time..."

Ye Xiu's eyes turned cold as he swept over the people pleading for mercy. The murderous aura that had just devoured Mo Xiu was slightly revealed, instantly silencing everyone.

"He must be severely punished!" Ye Xiu's voice left no room for doubt. "How could a mere watchdog dare to make things difficult for my benefactor? Anyone who pleads for him again will be making an enemy of me, Ye Xiu."

He turned to Jiang Jin and smiled, but his tone was chilling: "Brother Jiang, go ahead and fight, don't worry about anything. He and his companions all have 'soul imprints' planted by me, so they can't resist or hold any grudges against you. If you're not sure, killing him directly is the easiest way. I told you, I'll give you the skull key he drops for free."

He paused, looked at Yao Jin, and his tone turned icy: "Yao Jin, listen carefully. Today, Brother Jiang is beating you to give you a chance to atone for your sins. How many times he hits you, whether you live or die, depends on your fate. If he doesn't kill you, consider yourself lucky, and this matter will be wiped clean. If Brother Jiang is soft-hearted and doesn't hit you even once..."

A cold glint flashed in Ye Xiu's eyes: "Then I'll take care of it myself. I'll send you to keep Mo Xiu company and let you experience what it means to wish you were dead."

Yao Jin was utterly terrified upon hearing this!

To keep Mo Xiu company? To have one's soul devoured by the leader? That's worse than being annihilated, body and soul!
He immediately grasped at this last straw and could only frantically beg Jiang Jin, "Master Jiang! Hit him! Please hit him! Hit him hard! Don't hold back! Please don't hold back! I beg you!"

The scene was utterly absurd and comical. A near-LV4 reincarnator was like a fish on a chopping board, desperately begging a LV2 person to hit him hard, fearing that the other person wouldn't.

Long Mingzhang glanced at Ye Xiu; this guy's personality hadn't changed at all. He was trying to establish his authority this time.

Looking at this dramatic scene before him, Jiang Jin couldn't help but recall the line from Fang Tangjing in "Hail the Judge," a character who was asking for trouble: "Hit me! Hit me!"

He no longer held back, gripping the icy-cold Soul-Sealing Staff tightly. Since Ye Xiu was giving him face and establishing his authority, he naturally couldn't back down.

He, Jiang Jin, is not Xia Ziwei from "My Fair Princess," and he has absolutely no saintly tendencies.

"Alright, since you've asked so sincerely," Jiang Jin cracked his knuckles, a cold glint in his eyes, "then I'll mercifully... grant your request!"

Before he finished speaking, Jiang Jin swung the Soul-Sealing Staff and lashed it hard across Yao Jin's back!

"Snapped!!"

A sickeningly sharp crack! It wasn't the sound of flesh being struck, but the eerie sound of the soul being torn apart and lashed!

"Agh—!!!" Yao Jin let out a shrill scream that was completely inhuman. His whole body convulsed violently as if he had been electrocuted. His eyes almost popped out of their sockets, and veins bulged on his forehead. The extreme pain that came from the depths of his soul was far beyond what physical pain could compare to!
His clothes on his back were intact, but his soul beneath his skin had been severely damaged! His SAN value plummeted!
Without pausing for a moment, Jiang Jin continued to strike relentlessly, one blow after another!
"Clap! Clap! Clap!"

"Aww! Ah! Ah—!"

Yao Jin's screams made the usually aloof and powerful figures around him twitch at the corners of their eyes and feel a chill in their hearts.

Especially Blood Lord, whose face was extremely ugly. Ye Xiu was making an example of Yao Jin! By showing everyone Yao Jin's miserable state, he was clearly telling everyone—Jiang Jin was under Ye Xiu's protection! To touch Jiang Jin was to touch Ye Xiu!
A single piece of vermilion jade seems insufficient to make amends! The Blood Lord now begins to devise a plan to completely mend his relationship with Jiang Jin!

Jiang Jin only stopped when Yao Jin was beaten to the point of near death, barely breathing, convulsing and limp on the ground, too weak even to scream. His soul fluctuations were extremely weak, and his SAN value was locked at 30%. After all, he wasn't a bloodthirsty person. Ye Xiu had given him enough face and authority, so he knew when to stop. Sparing Yao Jin's life not only demonstrated his authority but also slightly eased the overly bloody atmosphere.

Ye Xiu looked at Yao Jin lying on the ground like a dead dog and nodded in satisfaction: "Not bad, Brother Jiang was very careful. Hmph, since you've survived, consider yourself lucky. We'll let bygones be bygones."

Then, Ye Xiu made a decision that shocked everyone once again, and even moved Long Mingzhang, Shen Mohan, Lei Sai and others!
He raised his hand, and a dazzling point of soul light, containing supreme soul power and rule runes, condensed at his fingertips. Then, with a gentle flick, he shot it into Jiang Jin's brow!

Jiang Jin felt a warm and vast power flow into his soul, and at the same time, a large amount of information about the Yongmeng team's personnel, resources, branches, and strongholds flooded into his mind.

"Brother Jiang," Ye Xiu's voice resounded throughout the entire venue, every word clear and carrying unquestionable authority, "From this day forward, I will share the highest 'Soul Imprint' authority of the Yongmeng team with you! You, Jiang Jin, are now the second authority holder of the Yongmeng team!"

"Seeing you is like seeing me! The Eternal Dream Team headquarters and all its branches and affiliated forces must obey your orders! As long as your orders do not directly endanger me, Ye Xiu, or my family, even if your order is for them to commit suicide immediately, they must obey unconditionally!"

"This permission will remain valid indefinitely as long as I, Ye Xiu, live!"

boom!
These words were like a bombshell, exploding in everyone's hearts!

Blood Lord gasped in shock!
Nima!

Han Wei, you bastard! Why did you tell me that Jiang Jin had so many resentment crystals on him?! Why was I so greedy as to provoke Jiang Jin?!

Yongmeng is the top-tier team, and the quality of its reincarnators far surpasses that of Xuexing. Moxiu is not the only LV4 reincarnator! If Jiang Jin wanted to seek revenge on Xuexing and mobilized Yongmeng's people to ambush him in the dungeon... wouldn't his own forces suffer heavy casualties?
The second-in-command! This means that Jiang Jin, the newly promoted LV2 reincarnator, has overnight become the de facto number two figure in one of the top teams in Muxu City! His power and status are so great that he can even sit on equal footing with Blood Lord!
What an enormous gift of power and what a precious trust this is!

The members of Yongmeng who have been imprinted with soul marks, including Di Nanyin who was taken away by Li Yuanxiu, will now swear allegiance to Jiang Jin and will do whatever he asks!
As Jiang Jin felt the massive flow of information in his mind and the subtle sense of control over the Yongmeng team, he was filled with boundless pride!
He knew that from this moment on, his own status and that of the Nirvana team would undergo earth-shattering changes!
……

In stark contrast to Jiang Jin, who was riding high at this moment, Gao Gongwei felt as if she were in hell.

The only saving grace was that the strange power of the rules of Lanruo Temple seemed to have inadvertently and completely eliminated the Gu worm that Gu Poshan had planted in his body, giving him the power of revenge and freedom.

Some passersby advised him to quickly find a bomb shelter: "You should leave now! Those B-29 ghost planes... have absolutely no pattern! They could suddenly appear overhead at any moment! Only a bomb shelter is slightly safer!"

However, in a daze, Takamiya Yui walked alone towards Shibuya.

He knew that deep within Shibuya subway station lay the entrances to several extremely dangerous and terrifying dungeons. And through what Kobayama had previously let slip, he learned that many members of the Old Core were active there.

The scene in Shibuya was not much better than in Shinjuku, with ruins everywhere and a deathly atmosphere. Occasionally, panicked survivors would rush by.

As he was crossing an intersection, he suddenly heard a woman's terrified scream and the roar of a motorcycle engine.

Two female students dressed in sailor uniforms were seen running in panic, followed by several bikers on modified motorcycles who were making lewd noises and clearly had ill intentions.

"Hey! Stop right there, little girl!"

"Play with your brothers!"

"You guys are from the Jiangtian Group. If you're with us, we can get you to a safe area!"

Gao Gongwei's eyes turned cold, and she instantly blocked the middle of the road.

"Baka! Get out of here! You brat, do you want to die?!"

The leader of the biker gang grinned and charged forward, his metal baseball bat aimed directly at Yui Takamiya's head!

Gao Gongwei's eyes were icy cold; instead of retreating, she advanced!

In an instant, he drew a katana from his Reincarnator Watch!

"bass--!"

A chilling glint flashed by!

Samurai LV1 Job Skill: Human Slayer!
The biker gang member at the forefront, along with his motorcycle, was instantly cleaved in two by a blade of light too sharp to be seen with the naked eye!

Blood and entrails were splattered all over the ground!
The remaining biker gang members were terrified, slamming on the brakes and staring in horror at Takamiya Yui, who looked like the Grim Reaper.

Takamiya Yui flicked the blood off her knife, her icy gaze sweeping over them: "Get lost. Or die."

The bikers turned their bikes around in a panic and fled.

Takamiya Yui sheathed her sword and said in a deep voice to the two terrified female students, "It's dangerous here. Don't come back. Get to the air-raid shelter as soon as possible." After saying that, she ignored their grateful yet fearful gazes and continued walking towards Shibuya.

Yui Takamiya stopped in her tracks as she passed a Chinese restaurant with a crooked sign but still lit up.

The shop is called "Wangfu," and he used to frequent this shop.

It's unbelievable that they're still open for business under these circumstances.

He opened the door and walked in.

The restaurant was unusually quiet, with only two or three customers.

A Chinese man dressed in a chef's uniform is wiping cups behind the counter.

“Wang Sang?” Gao Gongwei recognized the boss, Wang Qiusen.

"Oh? It's Takamiya-kun!" Wang Qiusen looked up, a surprised expression on his face. "You're still alive! That's wonderful! Please, have a seat!"

He put down his cup, wiped his hands, and came over.

"Why are you still..." Gao Gongwei looked around the deserted store.

"What can we do if we don't open the shop?" Wang Qiusen gave a wry smile, his smile full of helplessness. "We still have to eat, you know. It's just that fewer and fewer people dare to come out these days." He lowered his voice, "And... I also run some 'special' business here, and some of my old customers still come occasionally."

At that moment, a gentle-looking Japanese woman dressed in a simple kimono emerged from behind the curtain. It was Makiko, the king's wife. She bowed slightly to Takamiya Yui and said, "Mr. Takamiya, it's a relief you're alright. Please have a seat. What would you like to eat? Although ingredients are scarce, we do have simple fried rice and noodles."

As Makiko poured tea for Takamiya Yui, she explained softly, "Shibuya is alright. The Dragon Army and the remaining Self-Defense Forces have deployed a lot of anti-aircraft firepower, and the nearby large air-raid shelters are also quite sturdy, so it's relatively... a little safer."

Wang Qiusen suddenly looked at Gao Gongwei's wrist and asked, "Gao Gong-kun, you... have also become a reincarnator?"

(End of this chapter)