Chapter 73 - 70: Searching for the Lost Person

Chapter 73: Chapter 70: Searching for the Lost Person

Shi An stepped out of the azure Space Gate, returning to reality. He rubbed his arms, which still ached slightly. Although using Curse Objects had no side effects, swinging a sword hundreds of times still left him dead tired.

He thought, "But the gains are immense. I have now learned four Curse Arts: Infinite Corridor, Instantaneous Sword, Phantom Step, and Capturing Wind and Shadow."

They were all still at the Entry Level. However, after cultivating Phantom Step and Capturing Wind and Shadow hundreds of times, Shi An was not far from reaching the Skilled Level, where he could use them freely in combat. These two were the main Curse Arts he practiced, for no other reason than to preserve his own life. This was especially true for the support-type Curse Art.

He had never received professional combat training. Under equal conditions, his reaction speed and combat literacy were far inferior to those of the elites from large organizations. Shi An had secretly observed Profound Sword using Instantaneous Sword. Even when he was prepared for it, his brain and eyes still couldn’t react in time. Only while under the effect of Capturing Wind and Shadow could he handle it with ease.

He pondered, "On the flip side, as long as my reaction speed is fast enough, I can completely cosplay as a true powerhouse, even if I don’t have the slightest bit of combat experience. Yes, once these Curse Arts break through to the Skilled Level, I can pull Little Blood out for some sparring."

Armed with four Curse Arts, two Curse Objects, and a ghost, Shi An hummed a little tune as he left the house, planning to grab a quick bite at the roasted meat shop on the next street.

The streets had been rather deserted lately. Shi An took out his phone and scrolled through it, immediately seeing a pop-up warning that a certain vicious gang was still on the loose in Baijiang City, advising residents to avoid isolated areas.

He thought, "In reality, this is the influence of ghosts. It seems that Nightmares invading reality are indeed becoming more and more frequent. The Countermeasures Bureau might not be able to manage all of them."

Furthermore, many ghosts had unique abilities. For instance, Blood Hand Seal’s physical form was normally concealed, and the Nether Robe could change its size. And those two weren’t even ghosts particularly skilled at hiding.

Shi An often browsed through the Countermeasures Bureau’s files. There were Mirror Ghosts that hid within mirrors, only appearing when the person looking at their reflection met the rules for being hunted. There were Shadow Ghosts that disguised themselves as a person’s shadow, slowly devouring the original shadow bit by bit. By the time these ghosts were discovered, disasters had often already occurred. Before that point, even if an expert at the Refining Stage came to investigate in person, it would be extremely difficult to notice anything amiss.

"Here is your combo plate of roast goose and white cut chicken," the server said.

His dinner was served quickly. Shi An dug in while continuing to scroll through the news on his phone.

[A Lanzhou noodle shop on XX Road caught fire, resulting in three deaths and two injuries.]

[The small park is currently undergoing maintenance and is temporarily closed to the public.]

[Due to the flu, Anping High School will suspend classes for three days.]

Shi An cross-referenced the news with the secret information he knew. He had heard that the Countermeasures Bureau was trying to figure out ways to eradicate Nightmares.

He wondered, "Is merely clearing Nightmares still not enough?

"Or perhaps, the scale of my Safe Zone is still too small. If it grew ten or several dozen times larger, its influence could affect the situation of the entire city."

On average, his Safe Zone could clear one or two Nightmares a day, and this number was still rising. However, thinking about it carefully, the Countermeasures Bureau shouldn’t be so incompetent that they couldn’t clear a few Nightmares a day either.

The influence of his Safe Zone was still limited for now. After all, it had only been developing for about ten days at most. But even with only a dozen days of growth, and even though the Safe Zone was still a very loose organization, it was now gradually beginning to possess the ability to influence the broader situation. Shi An already had a plan for the next stage of development.

After finishing his dinner, he took a short walk and headed back home. The moment he returned, he drew the curtains and opened the Space Gate to the Safe Zone, stepping right back into his shop.

He checked on the current situation of the Safe Zone. Surprisingly, the training room wasn’t full. Inside the shop, the Hair Ghost was working in the business area, while the temporary worker, K, had gone to the training room. Profound Sword and Xi Xue had not returned to the Present Realm. They had both taken Dream-Dropping Pearls, and neither was in the shop; instead, they had accepted tasks and were currently exploring somewhere in the Nightmare World.

Shi An closed his eyes. He could vaguely sense the locations of his members. One was in the shop. One was about two Nightmares away. The other had already gone to a location four or five Nightmares away.

Profound Sword was in a group by himself. Xi Xue, on the other hand, was grouped with Peaches. The tasks they had accepted were all to "draw a map."

It wasn’t just them. There weren’t many commissions posted on the Safe Zone’s task platform, but there were a few long-term ones. Drawing a Nightmare Map was one of them. Providing information on Nightmare Areas and Nightmare Passages that had not yet been recorded by the Safe Zone would not only reward them with Dream Dust, but also grant them Contribution Points, which everyone coveted at this stage. These Contribution Points were the sole method of obtaining membership. Even for existing members, accumulating Contribution Points would allow them to raise their member Tier in the future.

Shi An had another idea. He thought, "After all, people like Profound Sword, Xi Xue, and Jiang Peng belong to the Present Realm. Even with the Dream-Dropping Pearls, the time they can stay in the Nightmare World is limited.

"So, why don’t I go recruit some Lost People?"

He hadn’t felt this way before, but now he realized that having a permanent employee like the Hair Ghost was truly quite handy. If he could get two more permanent employees for the shop, his manpower would be much more abundant. His Safe Zone held an immense attraction for Dream Descenders, and for those who were already lost and destined never to return to reality, the appeal was even greater!

He mused, "Not only that, but the Lost People all have their own unique abilities. Basically, every single one of them is an expert among experts.

"The problem now is, where do I go to find Lost People?"

Shi An could only drop hints to his own Dream Descenders. However, since the Dream Descenders of his Safe Zone were currently exploring various Dream Realms and had the support of Witchcraft Flying Eyes, the possibility of discovering traces of Lost People wasn’t actually that low. If they were merely cowering and surviving within the Nightmares, they might not encounter one even after dozens of Nightmares.

In a certain Nightmare.

Two elites from the Countermeasures Bureau were exploring cautiously. This was already the third Nightmare they had explored during their current Fallen Dream. Three Nightmares was just about their limit. The two planned to seal the Dream-Dropping Pearls they were wearing as soon as they finished investigating this Dream Realm. They had been in the Fallen Dream state for several hours; as long as they removed the item’s influence, it wouldn’t be long before they returned to the Present Realm.

"Based on the results of our exploration so far, this Nightmare is also within the scope of the Nightmares we need to clear," one of them said.

"Be careful," the other replied. "The ghosts in the previous two Nightmares were a bit abnormal. I can’t help but feel they weren’t exactly following logic anymore. I hope it’s just my imagination."

Naturally, these two were no ordinary Dream Descenders; they were both experts at the Control Stage. Only upon reaching this Tier did one become part of the Bureau’s core strength for clearing Nightmares. As part of the grand strategy, they were members of the Guidance Squad, currently executing preliminary investigation tasks.

However, if you walk by the river often enough, your shoes are bound to get wet. Just as an ominous premonition rose in their hearts, they saw a Butcher ghost holding a Giant Machete, having appeared nearby at some unknown point. The machete was seeping blood. The Butcher grinned hideously.

He walked toward them step by step, and his eyes contained more than just the instinct to hunt. It was as if he had completely ignored the hunting rules, his speed increasing as a bloody wind rushed at their faces.

"Flee! Flee! Flee!"

"What’s wrong with this ghost? It’s completely unreasonable!"

"Perhaps we crossed through three Nightmare Worlds in a row and triggered some sort of killing intent?"

They were both at the Control Stage and had items to protect themselves. Yet, when a ghost was unhindered by restrictions, even those at the Control Stage were nothing more than slightly stronger ants. In less than a few dozen seconds, the two were pushed to a dead end. They had already placed their Dream-Dropping Pearls into their Sealing Boxes, but exactly when they would be able to break free from the Nightmare wasn’t something they could decide.

At that exact moment, Profound Sword passed through a Nightmare Passage and arrived in this Dream Realm. Unfortunately, his position placed him right between the two men in black trench coats and the Butcher ghost. He was less than ten meters away from the Butcher ghost!

"Brother, run!" one of the Bureau agents shouted.

"It’s too late!"

The bloody wind slammed into his face.

Just a few days ago, Profound Sword would never have entertained the thought of clashing head-on with a ghost. But today, right now, watching the Butcher’s figure draw closer and closer, a thirst for battle actually surged in his heart.

He thought, "Let’s test my sword!"