21: Chapter 21 The Terrifying Nature of S-Rank Forbidden Things, Half-Asleep
Faced with this sudden scene, several high-ranking officials of the New Federation were inwardly shocked.
"This is... Xu Lan!!"
"Her mind seems to have been utterly destroyed by some kind of power..."
"What exactly did she encounter?"
Beside the conference table, a Federation high official stood up and supported Xu Lan.
The others were also filled with confusion.
One must know that although Xu Lan was only a C-rank Ghost Controller, she had mastered three C-Class Abominations!
Even some B-Ranked Anomalys might not pose a threat to her,
let alone the fact that she carried several powerful anomaly items on her person.
"Silence."
Just as everyone was whispering, a gentle and calm voice suddenly rang out.
Immediately after, from the head seat of the council table, a man wearing a Daoist robe and a mask slowly rose.
He was tall and slender, with an elegant, scholarly air, like a well-read scholar.
This man was none other than the supreme leader of the New Federation — the Guardian!!
As he spoke, he slowly descended the steps, approached Xu Lan, and looked down at her.
"Poor child."
"You have suffered for the Federation, for the future of humanity."
The Guardian's voice was filled with compassion, like a merciful priest.
But his eyes beneath the mask were cold and devoid of any emotion.
"Let me see what exactly happened."
Standing before Xu Lan, the Guardian retrieved a half-burned red candle from his wide sleeve.
This candle emitted a nauseating stench of corpses, and its wick was an eerie black.
However, this was a strategic-grade anomaly item — the [Retrospective Ghost Candle]!!
It was an experimental product created in a Laboratory by a certain mad 'Anomaly Scholar' during the Great Xin Dynasty!
Lighting it allows one to see everything that happened in the past.
Whoosh!!
When a lighter ignited the candle, a black flame blazed up fiercely.
The candlelight gave off no warmth; instead, it brought a chilling cold that caused a layer of frost to form on the entire hall's floor!
Under everyone's gaze, scenes gradually materialized within the flame.
From Xu Lan leading her team to Rebirth City, to her arrogant every move, to the numerous Ghost Controllers being killed by Xu Lan's own hand... until finally, they saw the eerie Buddha statue seated deep within the main hall of the temple in Rebirth City.
"This is..."
When they saw Lin Chuan's Buddha statue body, all the B-Rank Ghost Controllers present felt an inexplicable palpitation.
"A B-Ranked Anomaly?"
"No... the oppressive feeling of this Rule Ability seems even stronger than an ordinary B-Rank..."
The images continued to flow.
They saw Xu Lan fall into an illusion, personally slaughtering her own team members.
They saw her break down, despair, and finally have her memories forcibly Peeped by that Buddha statue.
"Such terrifying Rule Ability."
"Even the [Delusion-Breaking Ghost Lamp] was useless..."
A rough voice sounded from behind the Guardian.
The speaker was a middle-aged man with a thick beard.
His name was Executive Officer Han Dang, one of the four Great Executives of the New Federation, a B-Rank Ghost Controller who had mastered a [Mountain-Moving Ghost] possessing a 'brute force rule'.
At this moment, a seductive young woman opposite him giggled.
"My, this Buddha statue is quite interesting."
"It suits my taste..."
"Driving someone mad before killing them, such delightful flavor, I quite like it."
The young woman was called Water Exquisite, also one of the four Great Executives of the New Federation, who had mastered an eerie [Charming Ghost].
The other two Executives, a taciturn youth named Bai You, and a burly middle-aged man named Li Zhen, remained silent, their expressions grave.
Having watched all the scenes, the Guardian casually snuffed out the candle flame.
"Sigh..."
He sighed softly, his tone filled with regret and sorrow, as if mourning Xu Lan, or lamenting the chaotic and broken world.
"An Evil Buddha brings calamity to the world, deludes people's minds, harms our Federation's citizens..."
"This is a grave sin!!"
"The laws of our New Federation shall judge all of this!"
Saying this, the Guardian turned to face everyone, his voice becoming impassioned and sanctimonious.
"Gentlemen."
"What is the purpose of our New Federation?"
"It is protection! It is order! It is to allow humanity to see the light of hope once more in this era of despair!"
"And this Evil Buddha, along with that Zhao Linfeng who abets the evildoer, are cancers of civilization, traitors to humanity!"
"For justice, for those children who died tragically."
"We must... purge them!"
His words were spoken with righteous indignation, as if he himself were the embodiment of justice.
"The Chief is wise!"
Executive Officer Han Dang was the first to stand up, his eyes filled with fanaticism.
"I volunteer to lead a team to raze that broken temple and twist that Evil Buddha's head off to use as a ball!"
Water Exquisite also lazily stretched, her eyes seductive.
"Since the Chief has spoken, I'll join in the fun too."
"Coincidentally, I'm quite interested in that Buddha statue, hehehe..."
Seeing everyone's declarations, the Guardian nodded slightly.
"Good."
"Then Executives Han Dang and Water Exquisite shall lead the team."
"Additionally, assign three C-Rank captains, ten D-Class Ghost Controllers, and twenty E-rank team members from the Special Operations Team to accompany them."
"Ensure the sins are settled!"
"We absolutely cannot allow such evil forces to continue spreading!"
"Yes!"
Everyone accepted the order.
Watching Han Dang and Water Exquisite lead their teams away, a meaningful arc curled at the corner of the Guardian's mouth beneath his mask.
He turned his gaze to Xu Lan, still twitching on the ground.
"Attendants."
"Take her to the Laboratory."
"Although her mind is ruined, her Physical Body is still viable, and the three C-Class Abominations within her remain."
"She will serve perfectly as material for the 'Perfect Fusion' experiment."
"Yes."
Two staff members in protective suits entered, dragging Xu Lan away like a dead dog.
The Guardian straightened his Daoist robe, clasped his hands behind his back, and slowly walked out of the great hall... to the New Federation Base City.
Before the Terror Resurgence, this place was a bustling medium-sized city.
Now, although the high-rise buildings in the city still stand tall, they have long lost their former vitality.
The streets were filled with survivors in tattered clothes, gaunt and sallow.
Some were rummaging through trash bins, others were curled up in corners waiting to die.
Still others were forced into labor.
Squads of fully armed soldiers patrolled the streets.
"Hurry up! Get moving!"
"If the city wall reinforcement task isn't completed today, no one eats!"
Several soldiers brandished their rifle butts, driving a group of survivors to carry heavy construction Materials.
Among those survivors were the elderly, women, and even children.
The slightest resistance earned them a vicious beating.
In another corner of the city.
Several Ghost Controllers in New Federation uniforms were teasing a young girl.
"Hey, little girl, you're quite pretty."
"Want to play with us?"
The girl retreated in terror, but one of them grabbed her by the hair and dragged her into a nearby alley.
"Help! Help!!"
The girl's cries echoed through the empty street.
But the passersby around all lowered their heads numbly and hurried past.
No one dared to intervene.
Nor dared they.
Here, Ghost Controllers were the law.
They held the power of life and death.
The Guardian stood on a high observation deck, overlooking all of this.
His gaze was calm and indifferent.
As if all this suffering had nothing to do with him.
"Order..."
"This is order."
He murmured softly, his tone carrying a sick sense of satisfaction.
"The strong prey on the weak, survival of the fittest."
"This is the truth of the world, and the true compassion!!"
With these words, he turned and leisurely entered a heavily guarded building.
This was the core area of the New Federation — the Biological Laboratory.
The entire Laboratory was permeated with a strong smell of blood and formaldehyde.
Huge glass containers held various kinds of "specimens" immersed in fluid.
There were dogs with human heads, lumps of flesh covered in eyes, and... humans forcibly stitched onto anomalies.
"Ah!! Kill me! Please kill me!!"
"Guardian! May you die a horrible death!!"
On an operating table, a man with his belly cut open was cursing wildly.
His internal organs had been removed, replaced by a still-beating black heart.
The Guardian walked to the operating table, looked at the man, his eyes beneath the mask still gentle.
"Shh..."
"Be quiet, child."
You don't know what a momentous occasion you are witnessing.
You are contributing to the evolution of human civilization.
Your sacrifice will become the stepping stone to a new world.
You should feel honored.
The man's eyes widened, and he spat a mouthful of bloody froth onto the Guardian's mask.
"Madman... You madman..."
The Guardian was not angered.
He took out a pristine white handkerchief and elegantly wiped the bloodstain from his mask.
"Madman?"
"No."
"I am... the savior."
"And I will also be this world's new god!"
At the same time.
Rebirth City.
It was completely different from the New Federation's base cities.
Although there were no towering skyscrapers, the place was brimming with vitality.
People's faces were filled with smiles. Although the food wasn't lavish, everyone had enough to eat.
There was no excessive oppression, nor bullying and chaos.
Inside the main hall of the Rebirth Temple.
Lin Chuan was checking his panel.
[Power Of Will: 320,000.]
[fear value: 30,000.]
[evolution points: 30.]
[Current Rank: B-Rank (Requires 5,000,000 evolution points to evolve to A-Rank).]
"Three hundred and twenty thousand Power Of Will..."
Lin Chuan pondered for a moment.
The incident with Xu Lan made him realize that in this world, besides those terrifying Abnormals, the surviving human Ghost Controllers were also rapidly growing stronger!!
Especially that "Guardian," who gave him an extremely dangerous feeling.
Furthermore, with Xu Lan's escape, even if she had gone mad, the New Federation might still be able to locate the coordinates of Rebirth City through some special artifacts!
That so-called New Federation was clearly not a normal organization or power either!
Having dealt with Xu Lan and the others this time, the New Federation would definitely not let the matter rest!
"I must strengthen my means."
Lin Chuan opened the panel's shop.
A dazzling array of anomaly abilities and anomaly artifacts immediately overwhelmed him.
Finally.
His gaze settled on an ability named [Ghost Dream].
[Ghost Dream (Rule Ability): Consume 100,000 Power Of Will to exchange.]
[Ability Description: Constructs an absolutely real dream world, capable of pulling targets (Abnormals or Ghost Controllers) into it for long-term imprisonment. Note: The Terror Level of the imprisoned target cannot exceed the host's.]
"This is it."
Lin Chuan chose to exchange for it without hesitation.
Boom!!
A strange fluctuation merged into Lin Chuan's consciousness.
He felt as if a hazy, gray space had appeared in his mind.
Whenever he wished, he could materialize that space at any time, transforming it into any scene he desired.
"With this, even without activating the Second-Layer Ghost Domain, I can contend with A-Rank Abnormals or A-Rank Ghost Controllers..."
After consuming one hundred thousand Power Of Will, Lin Chuan didn't keep the remaining thirty thousand fear value either.
He opened the fear value shop again and began selecting items to exchange.
[Blood Crow Servant (C-Class anomaly item): Consume 30,000 fear value to exchange.]
[Description: Summons a blood crow composed of pure curses. It possesses no offensive power but has extreme speed and penetrative ability. It can ignore most physical and spiritual obstacles, even capable of penetrating B-Rank and A-Rank Abnormals' Ghost Domains for reconnaissance.]
[Life-Saving Doll (B-Rank item): Consume 150,000 fear value to exchange!]
[Description: At a critical moment, can take the place of a living person to die once.]
[Seductive Ghost's Bellyband (A-Rank item): Consume 3,000,000 fear value to exchange! After use, can make any Abnormality not exceeding A-Rank absolutely loyal to you!]
[...]
In the end, Lin Chuan exchanged for the Blood Crow Servant.
The reason was simple: he couldn't afford any of the other powerful anomaly items.
After exchanging for the Blood Crow Servant, Lin Chuan willed it, and it materialized directly.
With a fluctuation of anomaly rules, a crow, entirely blood-red with ruby-like eyes, appeared out of thin air.
"Go!!"
Lin Chuan controlled the Blood Crow Servant. It flapped its wings and soared, instantly piercing through the roof of the Buddha Hall and disappearing into the sky.
Immediately after, Lin Chuan switched his perspective to that of the Blood Crow Servant.
The world turned crimson in his eyes.
The blood crow was extremely fast, flying beyond the boundaries of Rebirth City in the blink of an eye.
Lin Chuan controlled it, beginning to patrol the surrounding areas.
Lately, Lin Chuan always felt that something terrifying was reviving in the vicinity!
That faint, elusive aura of rule power made Lin Chuan inexplicably uneasy.
Sure enough.
When the blood crow flew to a remote mountainous area three hundred miles east of Rebirth City.
Lin Chuan's gaze abruptly sharpened.
There... was an area of absolute darkness.
Even sunlight couldn't penetrate it.
And in the center of that darkness.
Floated a... human head.
The head was only fist-sized, resembling an infant's skull.
Its eyes were closed, and a strange smile curled at the corners of its mouth.
But from its seven orifices, a viscous, dark red blood was continuously flowing out.
The blood dripped onto the ground but did not seep in.
Instead, like a living thing, it spread outwards.
Wherever it passed.
Rocks decayed, plants withered, and even space itself twisted slightly.
[Warning! High-risk target detected through Peeping!]
[Detected S-Rank First Order taboo — Weeping Blood Head (Semi-Dormant State)!]
[Warning! Warning! Evacuate immediately!]
A blood-red prompt flashed frantically on Lin Chuan's panel.
"S-Rank... taboo?!"
Lin Chuan's heart constricted violently.
In his understanding, Abnormals were classified from F to A-Rank.
Those surpassing A-Rank were called S-Rank.
But the definition provided by the panel was — [taboo]!
Just as Lin Chuan was pondering, another piece of information popped up on the panel in his consciousness:
[taboo: Existences that surpass conventional Abnormals. They no longer passively follow rules but are the source of rules. They can construct rules, distort reality, and even... create life.]
[taboo Classification: S-Rank, SS-Rank, SSS-Rank. Each Rank is divided into nine orders.]
Merely glancing at that "Weeping Blood Head."
Lin Chuan felt as if his consciousness was about to be torn apart.
An indescribable contamination, following the blood crow's line of sight, frantically eroded his true body.
"Pfft!!"
Inside the Rebirth Temple, a deep crack suddenly split open on Lin Chuan's Stone Buddha Body.
"Sever it!!"
He acted decisively, not sparing a thought for the thirty thousand fear value he had just spent, and immediately severed the connection with the Blood Crow Servant.
Boom!
The moment Lin Chuan severed the connection with the Blood Crow Servant, the servant far away three hundred miles began to convulse violently, as if torn apart by countless rule forces, and exploded into a cloud of bloody mist.
Regarding this, Lin Chuan only felt a lingering fear.
Too terrifying.
That thing was only in a semi-dormant state, and he had merely looked at it, yet he almost suffered contamination.
Is this... the power of a taboo?
Moreover.
The moment he saw that "Weeping Blood Head."
The image of the Mysterious Old Man who had once appeared in Qingquan Village involuntarily surfaced in Lin Chuan's mind.
That old man who disappeared with the Heart Spring Ghost.
His rule aura... seemed somewhat similar to the "Weeping Blood Head."
"Hiss..."
Just as Lin Chuan was carefully recalling that Mysterious Old Man.
Suddenly, he felt a burning sensation on his chest.
Using his 360-degree vision to look, he saw that the bloody handprint, which had always been imprinted on the chest of his Buddha statue body, had now become vividly crimson, as if about to ignite!
Moreover, the edges of that handprint seemed... slightly larger than before?
Clearly, it was spreading!
"Damn it..."
A strong sense of unease rose in Lin Chuan's heart.
"What did that old man... do to me?"
"Did he also mark me as... 'crops'?"
In an instant, a deeply unsettling, hair-raising sense of dread enveloped Lin Chuan's heart.
But he quickly suppressed this emotion.
"No matter who you are."
"No matter what you intend to do."
"As long as I become strong enough..."
"Even if you are a taboo... I will devour you!"
With this thought, the eyes of Lin Chuan's Stone Buddha Body flashed with red light, blood-colored radiance surged, causing the entire Buddha Hall to tremble slightly!