Forbidden Zone of Deception

Chapter 276 Assassination
Jiang Jin pushed open the door to the men's restroom and came out. Although his face was a little pale, his eyes were unusually clear.

Lin Lu, who had been anxiously waiting outside, immediately came to greet him.

"Officer Jiang! Are you alright?"

Lin Lu looked him up and down with concern, but found that he did not seem to have any obvious injuries.

"Didn't you hear the noise from the toilet?"

"No?"

Hearing this, Jiang Jin took a deep breath and said, "It's alright. It seems the commotion just now... was confined to the contamination layer inside the toilet; the material layer couldn't hear it." He briefly told Lin Lu about the terrifying scene he had seen in the mirror, the truth about Nata's ghost riding on his neck, and the final battle.

Lin Lu was stunned, a chill running down her spine.

She never imagined that the source of the terror had been clinging to Jiang Jin like a shadow all along!
No wonder all the previous rules seemed so strange and inexplicable.

At this moment, Lin Lu's mission was completed, and she obtained 100 Resentment Crystals and a special item—an old-fashioned Polaroid camera.

"This is... the camera Atai used to use?" Lin Lu held the rather vintage camera she had been rewarded with, and the reincarnation system automatically provided the information:

This is a paranormal camera with two effects.

Effect 1: Spirit Sighting. Aim the camera at the target area and press the shutter button; there's a chance to capture an image of a spirit within the Lost Layer (regardless of whether it actively manifests). Each shot deducts 2% of the user's SAN value.

Effect 2: Image Possession. A one-time active ability. Simultaneously aim the camera at a human target and a spirit target, then press the shutter button. Nata's spirit will immediately mount the target's neck. Activation costs 5% of the user's SAN value. The camera has a 24-hour cooldown period after use.

This tool, once used to record evil, has now become a bizarre prop in the cycle of reincarnation.

Later, Seti's body was found by his neighbors in his apartment.

Jiang Jin and Lin Lu returned to "Sweet Home".

The house, which was once filled with oppression and eeriness, now seems to have become much calmer as the truth is revealed.

They found the seventh photograph that had suddenly appeared on the table, containing the ugliest evidence of the crime.

Without hesitation, Jiang Jin lit the photo with a lighter.

The flames consumed Nata's humiliation and pain, and as the photograph turned to ashes, the invisible chill and sense of being watched in the air finally dissipated completely.

The reincarnation system notification arrived on time, and they left the [Ghost Shadow] instance.

Soon, inside the Youxiang Shopping Mall, Jiang Jin and Lin Lu's figures slowly solidified in a secluded corner. They had successfully returned.

……

Meanwhile, at the Bloody Team's base.

Blood Lord looked coldly at Xia Yu, who had just woken up and was still extremely weak.

As she recounted her experiences in the [Ghost Shadow] dungeon in fits and starts—how she was fought against by Jiang Jin and Lin Lu, how Valeria ambushed her and caused Deathstroke to be strengthened, and how Jiang Jin forced her to hand over two precious items in order to escape in a sorry state—Blood Lord's face grew increasingly grim.

"Useless! You're good for nothing but ruining things!" Blood Lord's voice was icy cold. "It's bad enough that the mission failed, but to be humiliated like this has utterly disgraced our Bloody Team!"

Xia Yu trembled and dared not argue.

Blood Lord took a deep breath, suppressing his anger.

Although losing two items was painful, he understood the current situation. He had high hopes for Jiang Jin, and if the two items could be exchanged for his friendship with this person, then it would be worthwhile. Most importantly, Xia Yu had taken the initiative to approach Lin Lu, who had already clearly stated her intention to join the Nirvana team, so she was in the wrong from the start.

If his strength far surpasses Jiang Jin's, he could naturally crush him without any regard for reason. In this world of reincarnators, when the difference in strength between two parties is not significant, "reason" or "rules" become particularly important. But now that the two parties can almost have an equal dialogue, he must abide by the unspoken rules, otherwise it may trigger an uncontrollable conflict.

"Hmph," Blood Lord sneered, "This time it was your incompetence. Those two items are gone, so be it. Consider it a lesson learned. I won't cause trouble for Jiang Jin."

He paused, then gave the order: "You set off immediately and report to the regimental headquarters. Do not return without my orders! Reflect on your actions and solidify your resolve! If you cause any more trouble, you know the consequences!"

Xia Yu felt both relieved and deeply humiliated, and quickly bowed her head in agreement. She knew that her status in the main group had plummeted, and if she couldn't improve her strength and achieve some results in a short period of time, she would probably find it difficult to regain the Blood Lord's favor.

Jiang Jin, with Lin Lu, successfully returned to the Yi Hai camp.

When he introduced Lin Lu to the group leader Yu Tianlun and core member Xu Yinqiu, both of them could not hide their excitement.

Yu Tianlun carefully sensed Lin Lu's condition, especially her unusual affinity and adaptability to the corruption of rules, and his eyes gleamed: "Welcome to Nirvana, Lin Lu! Your physique is very special, and you are exactly the kind of talent our team urgently needs! Don't worry, here, we will do our best to help you grow and face this chaotic world together."

Xu Yinqiu warmly took Lin Lu's hand, her smile radiant: "That's wonderful! Our team finally has a new member, and such a beautiful and promising young lady at that! You can call me Sister Yinqiu from now on. We're family now, so feel free to ask me anything you don't understand!"

Looking at the sincere Yu Tianlun and the enthusiastic Xu Yinqiu in front of her, Lin Lu finally relaxed her tense heartstrings, her eyes reddened slightly, and she nodded vigorously.

Afterwards, Yu Tianlun explained the team's rules to Lin Lu: as a newcomer, especially a reincarnator with a special constitution like hers, she needed to undergo a period of observation within the camp, mainly to monitor the stability of her own memetic contamination. Once her SAN value decline potential stabilized, ensuring that she wouldn't suddenly lose control or cause unpredictable contamination to the surrounding area, she could apply to go home to visit her parents.

This news made Lin Lu very happy, giving her a clear goal and hope.

In the days of adjusting to team life, Lin Lu unexpectedly got along exceptionally well with another female member of the team—Murong Yan.

Murong Yan's profession is a LV1 Grass Witch under the witch branch. She is skilled in using herbs, paper figures, and some basic folk witchcraft. Her cultivation path is somewhat similar to that of the sorcerer profession. One of them studies sorcery, and the other studies grass witchcraft. Although their systems are different, they both have some knowledge of powers such as "yin," "resentment," and "gu." They often exchange ideas and have become close friends who can talk about anything.

And so, a few days passed peacefully and full of hope.

……

Bloodstained Team Headquarters, Training Room.

Blood Lord suddenly opened his eyes, and the surging energy around him instantly dissipated.

His face was as pale as paper, and his eyes were filled with indescribable exhaustion and...despair.

"Failed again...it still doesn't work..." he muttered to himself, his voice hoarse.

This was already his umpteenth attempt to reach the LV5: Thousand Faces realm.

Each time, he felt he had touched that barrier, but each time, he failed at the last moment. It was as if an invisible chasm was blocking his way.

Difficult! Extremely difficult!
It was an incredibly difficult and despair-inducing ordeal!
Failure to advance to LV5 means his life is nearing its end.

Although powerful, LV4 Reincarnators cannot completely escape the erosion of memetic pollution. The potential for their SAN value to decrease is like the Sword of Damocles, which will eventually reach zero.

Sooner or later, he is destined to go mad, become alienated, or die in some terrifying instance.

What drove him to despair even more than death was that he had once been hailed as a genius among the reincarnators with a high chance of advancing to LV5, displaying astonishing talent on the path of the Soul Reaper. If it weren't for Bai Yewei and her daughter, he would never have taken this path to this point!
"Does this mean... I really have no hope?"

Blood Lord leaned against the cold wall, letting despair consume him.

After a long while, he struggled to stand up and decided to go out alone to clear his head and get some fresh air.

He didn't bring anyone with him; he drove his luxury RV out of headquarters and aimlessly headed towards the suburbs.

He chose the new southern suburbs.

The closer to the suburbs, the more severe the impact of memetic contamination, the more unstable the space, and the higher the frequency of appearances of various bizarre "ash humanoids," ominous objects, and memetic evil spirits.

But this posed no threat to the Blood Lord.

He even deliberately drove into heavily polluted areas, recklessly hunting down the Ash Dolls.

His terrifying power at LV4 was on full display. The horde of ash-like humanoids that struck fear into the hearts of others were easily shrewdly cut down like paper in his hands, turning into pure crystals of resentment that fell into his grasp.

But the fleeting pleasure brought by this killing could not dispel the gloom in his heart.

Finally, he arrived at Lansheng Lake, a famous fishing spot in the new South District.

Blood Owl found a secluded corner, took out his fishing gear, and began fishing.

However, his mind was not on the fishing rod at all.

Even as he gazed at the shimmering lake, his heart remained restless.

The shadow of failure to advance haunted him like a ghost. The ticking of the countdown to his death seemed to echo in his ears.

Just as he was feeling agitated, the phone rang.

The caller was a close friend of his, Lin Zhen, the leader of the Reverse Light Reincarnator team. Lin Zhen was also a Level 4 powerhouse, and his profession was priest.

"Blood Captain, I heard you've been on a picnic lately. Where are you going to relax? If you're feeling down, don't keep it to yourself. Come visit my villa in Pingdong District! I just got a batch of good 'goods,' I guarantee it'll make you happy!" Lin Zhen's voice was warm and slightly ambiguous.

Blood Lord needed something to numb himself at that moment, so he accepted the invitation.

"Okay, where is your villa?"

"However, let me make this clear first, this villa is one of my secret properties, you know..."

“I understand, I understand…” Blood Lord understood: “I won’t tell anyone about this. Don’t worry.”

Then, he drove his RV to Lin Zhen's luxury villa in Pingdong District.

He admired Lin Zhen; this villa was far too close to the nighttime amusement park in the restricted area.

Upon entering the gate, one is greeted by a huge outdoor swimming pool. Lin Zhen, already dressed in beach shorts, is lying on a lounge chair by the pool, with two hot Western beauties in sexy bikinis nestled beside him.

Seeing Blood Lord enter, Lin Zhen stood up with a smile: "Blood Lord, you've finally arrived! I knew you had this kind of taste, so I specially prepared it for you! It's all fresh stuff that just arrived from Yaochi Club, absolutely top-notch!"

He pointed to the two women beside him and introduced them: "This is Madeleine from Brazil in South America, passionate and fiery; this is Kateeva from Eastern Europe, cold and charming. Judging from the names, you can tell she's either a Belarusian or Ukrainian beauty, a genuine Russian girl!" These two women were indeed stunning beauties, their curvaceous figures perfectly displayed in their bikinis, and their looks were exceptional. At this moment, they were looking at Blood Lord with provocative eyes.

“Tonight it’s my treat, let’s have a wild party,” Lin Zhen said, stroking the bikini-clad woman’s body with a lewd grin. “Then, you can go all out and have a blast.”

Even a fool could guess the theme of this so-called party.

Blood Lord forced a smile, his suppressed emotions easing slightly.

Enough, let's just enjoy the moment and be merry.

He changed into his swimming trunks and jumped into the pool; the cool water temporarily dispelled some of his irritability.

Lin Zhen arranged for Madeleine and Kateyeva to go into the water with Blood Lord, saying that they would have a wild party that night.

……

At the same time, on a street near Pingdong District.

Jiang Jin was leading his twelfth patrol team on a routine patrol. After the last incident, the team's garrison duties were changed to routine patrols.

"Captain, I heard you cleared another high-difficulty dungeon a few days ago? And brought back a new team member?" Cai Xiaoyu asked curiously while cautiously observing his surroundings.

"Hmm." Jiang Jin responded simply, his sharp gaze sweeping over every corner of the street. Pingdong is currently considered a rather dangerous area, with memetic contamination everywhere, and vigilance must never be relaxed.

"Wow! Captain is amazing!" Shi Mitao's eyes immediately lit up. "What's the new team member like? Is she pretty?"

Jiang Jin glanced at her helplessly: "Focus on patrol."

Shih Po-hsuan silently followed his sister, vigilantly watching for anything that might threaten her safety.

Unbeknownst to them, in the nearby luxury villa district, the Blood Lord was trying to numb the pain of his failed advancement with alcohol and women.

As night fell, the party atmosphere at Lin Zhen's villa gradually heated up.

The poolside lighting was dim, and the air was filled with a mixture of alcohol and some kind of special incense.

The deafening rock music drowned out other sounds and fueled a sense of unbridled indulgence.

Blood Lord, Lin Zhen, and two foreign beauties, Madeleine and Kateeva, raised their glasses and drank heartily, seemingly in a scene of revelry.

It must be said that Blood Lord is a womanizer, so he could tell at a glance that Madeleine and Kateeva were definitely professionally trained and extremely good at reading people and providing emotional value.

Although their Chinese was halting and heavily accented, they could communicate without any problems using gestures and alluring eyes. They could easily come up with all sorts of flattering and flirtatious words, which pleased Blood Lord and Lin Zhen quite a bit.

After a few drinks, the conversation became more relaxed.

With a touch of melancholy, Kateeva recounted her "experience": her homeland in Eastern Europe was engulfed in war, forcing her to flee to Western Europe, only to find the memetic contamination there even more bizarre and terrifying. After many twists and turns, she finally arrived in the relatively stable China to seek survival. This story, coupled with her captivating expression, easily aroused a man's protective and possessive instincts.

Lin Zhen was clearly satisfied with the atmosphere. He lit a rare incense with a slight hallucinogenic and relaxing effect, making the atmosphere of the entire space even more enchanting.

The rhythm of the rock music grew increasingly intense, as if it were about to shatter all reason.

Blood Lord was immersed in this brief numbness built with alcohol, beautiful women, and music, trying to forget the pain and despair of failing to advance.

The vigilance of a LV4 powerhouse was lowered to an unprecedented level due to continuous mental attacks and a deliberately created relaxed environment.

Just as a song reaches its climax, at the moment when the drumbeats are at their most intense—

A sudden change occurred!

Kateeva, who had been nestled beside the Blood Lord and appeared to be alluring and boneless, suddenly had a cold glint in her eyes!

Her movements were as fast as a ghost, and a jet-black, non-reflective dagger that had been hidden under a towel by the poolside appeared in her hand in an instant!

Without the slightest hesitation, with an almost mechanical precision and ruthlessness, she gripped the short knife and plunged it viciously into the Blood Lord's unsuspecting side abdomen!

Pfft——!
"Ugh!" Blood Lord let out a muffled groan, the excruciating pain accompanied by disbelief!
He turned his head sharply and looked at Kateeva's face, which had instantly turned as cold as ice.

But something even more terrifying happened!

The moment the dagger pierced his body, he felt the immense LV4 power within him bursting out like a punctured balloon!

An extreme sense of weakness, where one's foundation has been shaken and one's realm has been shattered, instantly swept over the entire body!
A notification came from the Reincarnation System: he had actually dropped from the peak of LV4 back to LV3?!
He actually turned back into a Level 3 Soul Refiner!
Although it was displayed as a "temporary fall", this unprecedented situation instantly plunged Blood Lord into extreme shock!

That short sword... it can directly attack and temporarily disintegrate the core of a Reincarnator's resentful ash?!
"You...!" Blood Lord was both shocked and furious. He tried to unleash his power to break free and fight back, but his LV3 power had lost its absolute suppressive force in front of Lin Zhen, who was at LV4!
Moreover, a strange numbing sensation came from the wound in his abdomen, as if it was hindering the gathering of his power!

After landing a successful blow, Kateyeva immediately withdrew her knife and retreated, her movements as agile as a water snake, instantly disappearing behind Lin Zhen.

Madeleine had long since stopped her charming smile and stood expressionless on the other side.

The warm smile on Lin Zhen's face had vanished, replaced by a cold and mocking expression of shrewdness.

He waved his hand, and the deafening rock music stopped, leaving only the incense burning silently.

"Blood Leader, how are you feeling?" Lin Zhen slowly picked up a glass of wine and gently swirled it. "This 'Breakthrough Blade' isn't a pleasant experience, is it? I went to great lengths to lure you into this trap."

Blood Lord clutched his bleeding abdomen, his face deathly pale, his eyes filled with betrayed rage and a hint of fear: "Lin Zhen! You... what exactly do you want to do?!"

"What do you want?" Lin Zhen sneered. "I believe that the Old Nuclear Organization's idea that memes are sacred is correct. The imperial court is overestimating itself, trying to hinder the overall situation of memes leading human evolution with its own strength, and even slandering it as some kind of pollution that will inevitably lead to destruction. And Lady White Night of the Insect Hole also really wants your head, and the price she offered is not low... Tell me, why do you just refuse to change your lecherous and flirtatious nature?"

He sized up the weakened Blood Lord, his eyes flashing with greed and murderous intent: "A Blood Lord who has fallen to LV3... is a walking treasure trove. The wealth, intelligence, dungeon secrets, and all the women you've accumulated over the years... oh, and your women, I've been eyeing them for a long time. Don't worry, I'll take care of your wives, so don't fret!"

The two Western women couldn't understand this Chinese text, but Blood Lord's heart sank to the bottom!
He never expected that he would be defeated at a seemingly ordinary party, and by Lin Zhen, who had always been so polite to him! That "Breakthrough Blade" that could temporarily lower one's level was definitely a rare treasure, and Lin Zhen had probably been planning this for quite some time!

At this moment, he was seriously injured, his level had dropped, and he was in the enemy's lair, which could be described as an unprecedented predicament!
Despite his bizarre drop in rank to LV3 Soul Refiner and the strange "Breakthrough Blade" still embedded in his abdomen, Blood Lord's survival instinct still unleashed astonishing power.

The intense pain and the weakness of his declining cultivation level crashed over him like a tidal wave, but he mustered his strength and unleashed a burst of dark red residual soul power, violently shaking away Lin Zhen who was trying to capture him!
"Lin Zhen! You're asking for death!" Blood Lord's eyes were bloodshot as he gripped the hilt of the short knife in his abdomen and ruthlessly pulled it out!
As a trail of blood appeared, the eerie effect of the disintegrating power seemed to weaken slightly, but the trend of his realm falling did not stop. He could feel the resentment ash still slowly dissipating, and he probably wouldn't be able to hold on for long before dropping to LV2!

He dared not linger in the fight. Using the force of the outburst, he smashed through the villa's floor-to-ceiling windows and rushed into the night, covered in blood!

"Chase him! We can't let him get away!" Lin Zhen's face was ashen. He hadn't expected the Blood Lord to unleash such power despite his serious injuries. He emanated the powerful aura of a Level 4 Priest Swift Walker, a divine and swift power enveloping his entire body, instantly boosting his speed as he chased after the Blood Lord like a streak of light!
Fortunately, he had already taken precautions, and all signals in this area were cut off!
Meanwhile, Jiang Jin was leading the 12th Patrol Team.

Cai Xiaoyu was still telling jokes non-stop, Shi Mitao looked at Jiang Jin's back with admiration, while Shi Baixuan silently and warily observed his surroundings.

Suddenly, a figure covered in blood, breathing erratically, yet still exuding a terrifying aura rushed out from the front!

"Blood Lord?!" Jiang Jin's pupils shrank, but he found that Blood Lord's condition was obviously wrong. His aura was much weaker than rumored, and he seemed to be fleeing for his life.

Before Jiang Jin could react, another, even more terrifying figure, filled with chilling killing intent, swept in like a whirlwind!

Lin Zhen's cold gaze swept over Jiang Jin's team, finally settling on Blood Lord.

"The Reverse Light Team is on duty. Any bystanders will be killed without exception!" Lin Zhen didn't waste any words. To silence them, he directly targeted Jiang Jin's team!
He raised his hand and drew a long spear, which shot towards Shi Mitao, who was standing at the front, with a sharp whistling sound as it tore through the air.

"Watch out!" Jiang Jin was horrified, but it was too late to help!

Before Shi Mitao's adoring smile could even turn into terror, the spear of light had already pierced through her chest!

A level 4 expert's furious attack was something she couldn't possibly withstand!

"Sister!!" Shi Baixuan roared in anguish, his eyes instantly turning bloodshot! He charged madly towards Lin Zhen!

"An ant dares to shake a tree?" Lin Zhen snorted coldly, without even using his main skills. He simply slapped his hand, and a tremendous force pressed down like a mountain!

boom!
Shi Baixuan's attack vanished like a bubble. He was sent flying, crashing into a distant wall, his bones shattered, and he died on the spot! From the moment his sister was killed to his own death in battle, the entire process took less than a minute!

"Bastard!" Jiang Jin's eyes were bloodshot, and the shrieking shotgun instantly appeared in his hand, firing wildly at Lin Zhen!
Cai Xiaoyu was also terrified and turned pale, but she still mustered up the courage to use her abilities to interfere.

However, the difference in rank is like an insurmountable chasm!
Lin Zhen was surrounded by the protective aura of the Divine Walker, and Jiang Jin's bullets could only create ripples when they hit him.

He casually swept a beam of purification light across, instantly breaking Cai Xiaoyu's interference skill. Cai Xiaoyu himself was also hit by the aftershock, screamed, and collapsed to the ground, clearly not going to make it.

In just a few exchanges, Jiang Jin's patrol team was almost completely wiped out!
Blood Lord cursed inwardly upon seeing this.

He hadn't expected Lin Zhen to be so ruthless and decisive, even killing members of the official patrol team without hesitation.

But he was in dire straits himself at that moment, and he yelled at Jiang Jin, "Jiang Jin! He's a Level 4, you can't beat him! If you don't want to die, come with me! To the night amusement park!"

Jiang Jin felt his heart breaking as he looked at his teammates who had died tragically, but he knew that staying would mean certain death!
He gritted his teeth, put away his hunting rifle, turned around and followed Blood Lord in a desperate sprint toward the night amusement park!
"A desperate struggle!" Lin Zhen's face revealed a cruel smile, like a cat catching a mouse. He used the extreme speed of the Swift Walker to chase after him at a leisurely pace. He enjoyed the process of hunting down his prey, especially the Blood Lord, whom he once looked up to!

On his escape, Blood Lord endured the excruciating pain and the dizziness of his fallen cultivation level, and began to try to utilize his reduced LV3 Soul Refiner abilities. Although he had lost many of the powerful skills of the Soul Prison Lord, the Soul Refiner's professional skills might offer him a glimmer of hope.

He first activated his core skill, [Forge of Vengeful Fire]!
A ball of eerie green flame appeared in his palm, and he threw the remains of a low-level wandering soul into the flame, quickly forging it into a bone knife that exuded a chilling aura!

The moment the bone knife took shape, twisted runes appeared on its blade, significantly increasing its damage to spirits, but also imbuing it with an ominous curse.

At the same time, he endured the excruciating pain in his meridians and tried to nurture another spare soul weapon fragment in preparation for activating [Soul Weapon Resonance], but due to the short time, the effect was minimal.

Jiang Jin, while running wildly, switched to a shotgun and fired backwards in an attempt to slow Lin Zhen down, but the effect was minimal.

He looked at the Blood Lord beside him, who had once been arrogant and sent people to hunt them down, but was now in a sorry state, and felt complicated emotions.

But his survival instinct forced him to choose to seek help from a tiger.

The two had a clear objective—the restricted area of ​​the amusement park ahead!

Only by escaping into the terrifying dungeon can one possibly escape the pursuit of LV4 Swift Walker Lin Zhen!

However, Lin Zhen clearly saw through their intentions and increased his speed again, closing the distance. The shadow of death loomed tightly behind the two fleeing men!
(End of this chapter)