Embers Ad Infinitum

Chapter 161: Dealing an Unusual Hand

In the dark environment that was filled with the smell of antiseptic, such a painting, such a symbol, and such words instantly outlined a strange and horrifying feeling. It made the hearts of everyone who saw it tremble. They even had the subconscious urge to avoid it.

At this moment, Shang Jianyao suddenly turned around and spoke in a deliberately deep voice. “The effects would be better if the door were to suddenly close now.”

Jiang Baimian followed his gaze and thoughtfully said, “This is an electric shutter. If one is prepared, they can control it remotely.”

When he heard this baffling conversation, Oudick—who was a little affected by the atmosphere—immediately felt the situation turn on its head.

They were actually discussing how to enhance the current atmosphere.

Before Oudick could think of anything else, he heard rumbling.

The aluminum-white shutters at the entrance automatically lowered themselves, quickly isolating them from the outside world.

The few rays of light that illuminated the hall halved in number, making the place dark and gloomy.

At the same time, lamps in the darkest corners lit up one after another, scattering a pale glow.

On the corresponding illuminated walls were stick figures in different poses, which looked like a child’s scrawls.

The thing that these stick figures had in common was that they had no facial features and were blank.

Under the gazes of such faces, white noise emitted from the LCD screen that hung in the middle of the hall. After a few flashes, a person appeared on the screen.

This person wore a black trench coat and a pale mask without any facial features. Only two holes were dug out near the eye area to reveal a pair of eyes.

His eyes were as deep as an ancient lake in the forest, and vortexes seemed to be spinning at the bottom.

Upon seeing the person on the screen and meeting his gaze, Oudick, Jiang Baimian, and Shang Jianyao couldn’t take their eyes off of him.

The person in the pale mask opened his mouth, and his voice sounded through the loudspeaker in different places. “There is no truth in the world. Please believe in God with all your body and heart...”

This voice seemed to have a strange rhythm that echoed in Oudick and the others’ minds.

Shang Jianyao suddenly interrupted and asked seriously, “Don’t you feel uncomfortable and suffocated when wearing such a mask?”

There were no holes for his mouth or nose!

On the screen, the black-robed man in the pale mask froze as if he had forgotten what to say next.

Oudick and Jiang Baimian immediately escaped the indescribable atmosphere. They felt like they had returned to reality; it seemed as though their feet were firmly on the ground.

Jiang Baimian didn’t feel any lingering fear. She quietly looked at her left arm and nodded slightly.

Oudick came to a realization and questioned in a deep voice, “Did you deliberately lure us here? The abnormal behavior along the way, combined with the decorations here, is equivalent to a large-scale hypnotic ritual!”

Oudick knew that an ability like Hypnosis could have its effects enhanced through external arrangements. It could also increase the ability’s effective range to a certain extent.

On the screen, the pale-faced Father in the black trench coat warped and dispersed into white noise.

His voice still sounded from the loudspeakers everywhere, making it difficult to determine his exact location.

“If I can’t hypnotize you, who will be the key character to get close to Xu Liyan and deliver the fatal blow? Unfortunately, I encountered an unconventional person... But it doesn’t matter; it will only take a little more effort...”

Before he could finish his sentence, Oudick had already taken out a light-blue object, which was the size of a walkie-talkie.

Oudick clicked the item and lit it up; it seemed as though he was about to speak to a designated target. However, only rustling and sizzling static sounded from the receiver.

Father’s words echoed in the hall again with a mocking tone. “Knowing that Xu Liyan has a deep relationship with Mechanical Paradise, how could I not prepare the equipment needed for electromagnetic screening?”

After hearing this, Shang Jianyao regretfully clenched his right fist and punched his left palm. “What a pity.”

Jiang Baimian completely understood what this fellow was pitying.

Shang Jianyao found it a pity that he was out of range and couldn’t use Inference Clowning through the electronic conversation. Otherwise, given Father’s loquaciousness, Shang Jianyao could make him willingly kneel down and call him ‘Daddy.’

Oudick’s expression didn’t change in the face of Father’s mockery. He only stuffed the electronic item back into his pocket and took out another item—it was a black grenade.

Oudick quickly pulled out the grenade’s ring. He then braced his back, swung his arm, and threw it at the glass window beside the door.

After a crisp, cracking sound, a loud explosion sounded from outside as a fireball rapidly expanded.

In midair, a drone—which originated from Mechanical Paradise and had been following Oudick—silently captured this scene. The drone then sent it back to the controller to let the corresponding people know that something had happened.

When Oudick took out the grenade, Shang Jianyao and Jiang Baimian had already begun running in the hall. They each found a pillar to seek cover.

After the explosion subsided, Oudick—who was leaning against a wall—shouted, “Two people are approaching! From both sides of the corridor! I’m not sure if Father is between them!”

Oudick sensed two human consciousnesses by relying on his Awakened abilities. But since Awakened can disguise themselves and deceive such senses, he can’t determine if Father is between the two? Father might have hidden himself while quietly approaching us. It’s also possible that he does the opposite and deliberately mixes himself among his companions to pretend to be an ordinary person...

Since Oudick didn’t directly force the target to sleep to deal with them one at a time, it means that the distance now exceeds his limits of forcing people to sleep. However, it’s within the range of his dream influence or another ability... Many thoughts flashed through Jiang Baimian’s mind.

She then looked at Shang Jianyao.

Shang Jianyao nodded hard, indicating that Oudick was right.

Jiang Baimian didn’t waste any time. She held the Ice Moss pistol and adjusted her posture. At the same time, she removed the dark-green grenade hanging from her belt with her other hand.

Bang! Bang!

Gunshots sounded from both sides of the corridor, producing sparks on the walls.

The enemy seemed to be worried about Oudick’s abilities. They didn’t dare to get too close and only attacked from afar.

Oudick was forced to change his position as he counterattacked with his pistol. Suddenly, he slapped his face with his empty left hand.

A clear, soft sound sounded. However, it sounded like a muffled thunderclap to Shang Jianyao’s ears.

His ears buzzed from the shock, and his head spun. Shang Jianyao also seemed to lose his balance.

Similarly, the gunshots on both sides of the corridor stopped. They were clearly affected as well, and they felt as if they were standing on violently shaking ground.

On the other hand, Jiang Baimian only tilted her head slightly. She felt that the sound was a little loud as if there was a sudden clap of thunder in midair. Apart from that, she didn’t show any abnormalities.

This was because she had hearing problems.

This was one of Oudick’s Awakened abilities; it was called Auditory Control. He could freely make all humans within a certain range have extremely sharp hearing, or it could deteriorate to the point of having severe hearing problems.

He had just used a technique to enhance the hearing acuity of others.

The only problem with this ability was that it couldn’t distinguish between friend and foe. It just didn’t affect himself.

Taking this opportunity, Oudick rolled and closed the distance between him and one of the enemies.

At this moment, Jiang Baimian suddenly raised her hand and fired at the stairwell not far away from Oudick.

With a bang, a figure—which had swooped down from above—suddenly pounced to the side, appearing very hasty. However, he reacted the moment Jiang Baimian raised her hand, so he still dodged the sudden shot.

The stairwell was relatively narrow. The figure pounced at the wall and bounced back before tumbling and changing directions.

It was only then that Jiang Baimian saw the person clearly.

He propped himself up with one hand and half-squatted on the ground. He wore a black trench coat, and he had slightly messy short hair. His face was pale as if he had just recovered from a serious illness.

Father.

A dangerous figure from the Anti-intellectualism Church, Father.

Father looked at Jiang Baimian with slight surprise in his eyes. He didn’t know how she had discovered him.

He had always believed that his main opponent this time—and the only one he could consider an opponent—was Oudick.

Unexpectedly, in the ordinary Hunter group, the man had a strange train of thought and could always ruin the atmosphere, while the woman seemed to have a special perception that allowed her to sense him in advance.

It was only now that Oudick realized that an enemy was hiding in the stairwell.

At this moment, he didn’t have the time to make his target—who was not far away—’fall asleep.’

After Father dodged the shot, Jiang Baimian didn’t waste any time. She quickly threw the grenade that she had prepared in advance.

This time, she didn’t have the time to pull out the ring.

Elsewhere, Shang Jianyao had already raised his hand and aimed, prepared to fire at the grenade.

Given the stairwell’s half-sealed state, it was almost impossible for Father to dodge the shockwave once the grenade exploded inside. Unless he could jump down the stairs in time and lie prone on the ground, he would be seriously injured even if he didn’t die.

But before Jiang Baimian could actually throw the grenade, her left arm suddenly couldn’t help but rise toward her face as if she wanted to slap herself.

This was like An Ruxiang stabbing herself.

Body Automation!

Bang!

The grenade’s trajectory was higher and more slanted than planned. It landed elsewhere, and Shang Jianyao’s shot undoubtedly missed.

However, Shang Jianyao wasn’t disappointed or depressed at all. Before the grenade landed, he rushed out of the pillar and dashed.

He then pounced forward and followed it up with a roll, quickly closing the distance between him and Father.

Just as he looked up, he saw a pair of eyes that were as deep as an ancient lake in the forest. Shang Jianyao then smiled and made a face at Father.

A face.

This didn’t stop him from raising his hand, aiming, and firing.