Chapter 424: Lu Yibei’s PLAN B

When Lu Yibei returned to Chunfeng Residence to meet up with Jiang Li, the people sent by Gou Meng had already arrived.

Four young men, each possessing the Spirit Pattern of Chimei, Meimei, Wangliang, and Wangxiang, a female psychic skilled in Fuji, and two hauntings whose origins in haunting legend were unknown-all were selected by Gou Meng based on Jiang Li’s analysis, chosen for their traits to impersonate Hu Yue’s trusted followers.

The Spirit Patterns of Chimei, Meimei, Wangliang, and Wangxiang, as well as the epidemic ghost Spirit Pattern of the Hu brothers, all belonged to the evil spirit type, and their forms originated from ancient legends of little evil spirits.

As for the female psychic, although she mastered the art of Fuji, her Spirit Pattern had nothing to do with Lady Zi and could be trusted.

It’s true that Fuji originated from the mythical type haunting Lady Zi.

However, after this occultism skill spread from Country Z overseas to Country R and even farther to the Americas, it fused with local cultures and changed divination methods, giving rise to many related hauntings.

This change matches the conclusion reached by The Midnight Watchers Society’s research: hauntings change as their believers change. In fact, the decline of Lady Zi’s power, once at its peak, is likely related to the dilution of power that comes with such changes.

The one impersonating The Painted Skin Haunting was a haunting possessing the power of yee naaldlooshii, a haunting born from Navajo legend, also known as the Skin-walker, with abilities similar to the Painted Skin ghost.

As for the last haunting, Jiang Li still hadn’t figured out how a scamp could impersonate a haunting like the Cranial Breaker Beast.

After Lu Yibei distributed the tokens scavenged from Hu Yue’s group to the four men and two hauntings, Jiang Li pulled her aside and whispered, “Seems like there’s one extra? Won’t that be a problem?”

As she spoke, her gaze discreetly swept over the four short, thin young men with dark, reddish skin.

“No, where’s the extra?” Lu Yibei replied nonchalantly. “The Hu brothers are three but actually four, just like how the Four Heavenly Kings are actually five. Isn’t that common knowledge?”

“…” Jiang Li was momentarily speechless, staring at Lu Yibei in contemplation before asking, “And the scamp? What does it have to do with the Cranial Breaker Beast? One’s an evil spirit type, the other’s an aberrant type.”

“There is a connection, don’t worry. I just asked about it.” Lu Yibei said, sneaking a glance at the nearby green-skinned haunting holding a small brass hammer. “Their ‘scamp’ isn’t the kind you’re thinking of.”

“Not the same?” Jiang Li tilted her head.

“Their ‘scamp’ isn’t about being mischievous, but about smashing things.” Lu Yibei explained. “Chicken eggs, duck eggs, fish eggs, human eggs…”

“Human eggs?” Jiang Li was stunned.

Ps: The term “Human eggs” has multiple meanings in Chinese; it can refer to male testicles or a person’s face/cheeks.

“Yeah, human eggs are on the human body…”

Before Lu Yibei could finish, Jiang Li expressionlessly raised her hand between them, cutting her off.

“No need to explain, I get it.”

“As long as you get it.” Lu Yibei shrugged. “So, using a haunting whose power is especially effective at attacking the faces of humanoid creatures to impersonate the Cranial Breaker Beast shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Otherwise, it’d be hard to find a haunting with a more similar ability in a short time. What do you think?”

Face? I thought it was… A faint blush flashed across Jiang Li’s cheeks. She nodded seriously, “Mm, no problem.”

“If there’s no problem, let’s get moving. It’ll take a bit to reach near Taoyuan.” Lu Yibei said, pulling out her phone to check the time, then as if remembering something, she asked, “By the way, can you drive a big truck?”

“I can. I learned to drive armored vehicles and tanks before, so the principle should be similar.” Jiang Li glanced sideways at Lu Yibei, her tone cool. “But why do you want me to drive?”

Main operators like Jiang Li, who trained at The Midnight Watchers Society headquarters before being assigned to various cities, often had to lead special task forces, so driving military vehicles was almost a required skill.

As if guessing Jiang Li’s thoughts, Lu Yibei rolled her eyes at her. “You don’t think I’m trying to slack off, do you?”

Jiang Li didn’t reply, but her gaze at Lu Yibei clearly drifted.

[That’s right, you would. (heart emoji)]

A dense barrage, just like a chat group spam.

“I’m telling you, I’m not that kind of person. I just want to use the trip to Taoyuan to get familiar with the data from the haunting chat group and prepare for PLAN B.” Lu Yibei said seriously.

“Data from the haunting chat group? PLAN B?” Jiang Li tilted her head, her eyes darkening.

Lu Yibei hadn’t mentioned any of this to her earlier.

“Well…” Lu Yibei scratched her head guiltily, explaining, “You always need a backup plan! I only thought of it on the way to meet the inspector, haven’t worked out the details yet, and might not even need it. If we do, I’ll tell you everything.”

“…”

What kind of trick is she up to now?

Jiang Li was silent for a moment, didn’t ask further, and turned to walk toward the big truck.

–

Five minutes later, on the highway from the center of Tang City to Taoyuan, a large truck sped by.

In the back of the truck, five psychics and a haunting were crammed into the narrow space in an extremely uncomfortable posture, squeezed together as tightly as the No. 9 subway line in Hu City during the morning rush hour.

Actually, they didn’t want to be packed together like this either, but when the Four Brothers of Demons and Monsters climbed into the cargo hold and saw thousands of Paper Cicada Immortals inside, then heard Lu Yibei’s offhand explanation, “Don’t be afraid, they’re just Alchemical Bombs,” they all felt unwell and even considered getting off to run alongside the truck.

If it weren’t for Gou Meng’s presence, and the fact that Lu Yibei’s psychic energy fluctuation was indeed stronger than theirs, the already short-tempered scamp would have long since wanted to jump up and smash Lu Yibei’s face in with a single punch.

Jiang Li gripped the steering wheel, driving the truck, and calmly withdrew her gaze from the rearview mirror, frowning as she looked at Lu Yibei.

What exactly is she researching?

Since getting in the truck, her eyes hadn’t left her phone.

Jiang Li grumbled inwardly, stealing a glance at Lu Yibei’s phone screen out of the corner of her eye. After seeing the content displayed, she couldn’t help but be slightly stunned.

[What are the untouchable taboos of the Eclipse Society?

According to current intelligence, the Eclipse Society was not truly an evil organization at its inception. They control vast resources, enjoy investing, hope for technological progress, and operate very low-key in the shadows.

They believe in a possibly fictional deity who wields primordial power, but they do not pray for Its descent, only pursue Its existence, hoping to gain Its recognition.

Denying Its divinity and existence is the greatest taboo of the Eclipse Society.

Example: “Hey, everything you’re talking about is fake. How could such things exist in real life? Why do you even like this stuff? I just checked Baidu, and based on your description, It’s probably just a natural phenomenon like a total solar eclipse.”

Recommended emotional reference when speaking: [Voice]]

After Lu Yibei tapped the voice file, the phone immediately played the voice of the Online Old Pervert, sounding one part pitiful and seven parts mocking, so annoying that just hearing it made you want to hit someone.

“Heh, there’s no such thing as Ultraman in this world!”

After listening, Lu Yibei nodded thoughtfully.

She was familiar with this trick and could easily empathize with the feelings of Eclipse Society members.

If someone told her that Bai Xiaohua didn’t exist in this world, she’d lose her temper too.

Grumbling inwardly, Lu Yibei continued scrolling.

[How to infuriate a Miracle Order member in one sentence?

Answer: “Isn’t it just a cult?”

“When you were being hunted by The Midnight Watchers Society, why didn’t a miracle happen for you?”]

[The unspeakable dirty secrets of solitary psychic small group leaders…]

Jiang Li, “……”

What kind of nonsense is she reading?

Isn’t she afraid those illegal psychic organizations will gang up and kill her?

Wait! Could it be that she’s planning…

After a brief moment of thought, Jiang Li seemed to have a pretty good guess about Lu Yibei’s unspoken PLAN B. She gave Lu Yibei a meaningful look, then sighed silently.

If it really comes to it, I’ll just have to run away with her.

When it comes to speed, I’m pretty confident. Jiang Li thought.

–

Meanwhile, over three hundred kilometers from Tang City, on a deserted highway.

“Cough, cough, cough-!”

In a cloud of thick smoke, Bai Kai coughed violently, pulled Li Xuan’s newly bought G-Class over to the roadside, then jumped out and gave the tire a hard kick.

“What a piece of junk! Only ran at 180 for eight hours and it’s already acting up? Just because I forgot to add antifreeze before leaving? Tsk, just as useless as Li Xuan!”

After a round of sarcastic complaints, Bai Kai pulled out his phone, contacted the nearest auto repair shop, prepaid part of the repair fee, then looked in the direction of Tang City, his gaze sharpening.

Then…

He stretched his slightly tired muscles, took a deep breath, and started sprinting toward Tang City.

Although Bai Kai couldn’t rely solely on Spirit Pattern power to run all the way from Hua City to Tang City, with only a little over three hundred kilometers left, it would take just over twenty minutes-no big deal for him.

So, a burst of excited shouting echoed through the empty mountains at night.

“Yibei, don’t be afraid, I’m coming to protect you! Yahoo-!”

–

Taoyuan is doomed.

Looking at the terrifying scene in Taoyuan, Ms. Rabbit had this thought in her heart.

Fortunately, the Council of Elders of the Eclipse Society was rarely wrong in their judgment. Before anything happened in Taoyuan, she and Shu E had already withdrawn to a safe distance.

In the distance, a dazzling light shone atop the mountain hiding the Fusang divine tree, as if something was about to break through the earth. The soil, rocks, and vegetation at the summit were melting.

Suddenly, a loud boom echoed from the rift valley where Taoyuan was located.

In that instant, the mountain cracked open, and sunlight-bright golden light shone on one dazed face after another.

As the mountain split, a giant tree of flesh and blood burst from the ground, blinding light erupting from its thick branches, and astonishing heat poured out like a flood. Dozens, even hundreds, of dazzling spots quickly appeared on the snow-covered ground, igniting raging fires.

At the top of the giant tree, a rotten, swollen, grotesquely growing flesh egg pulsed like a heart, emitting thunderous sounds.

“That thing is about to awaken,” Shu E said calmly. “Just as the Council of Elders predicted.”

What on earth is that? Ms. Rabbit wanted to ask, but before she could speak, someone interrupted her.

“Hahaha! Beautiful, truly beautiful! As expected of my creation!”

Following the laughter, her gaze fell on the man traveling with them, and undisguised disgust flashed in Ms. Rabbit’s eyes.

This man named Berses looked to be in his thirties, with black hair and red eyes, wearing a fierce bronze mask that covered half his face, ruining the slightly androgynous handsomeness of his features.

On his back was a silver, alien-looking spine made entirely of alchemical materials, supporting his body while making his figure extremely hunched and twisted.

Before meeting Berses, Ms. Rabbit had never expected that the other group from the Eclipse Society Shu E mentioned would be led by him.

Ms. Rabbit had long heard of Berses’s reputation. He and the old man responsible for her experiments were once partners in a subordinate organization of the Eclipse Society. Six or seven years ago, that organization was almost wiped out by a ridiculously strong operator from The Midnight Watchers Society, and very few escaped.

The old man responsible for Ms. Rabbit’s experiments was left badly injured in that attack, while Berses’s bones and flesh were nearly completely crushed. He barely survived, but could only languish in a glass incubation tank for the foreseeable future.

Ms. Rabbit had thought this pitiful man, known only by name, would stay in that tank until his last breath. She never expected him to miraculously appear here.

She’d heard before that the reason Berses survived was that he possessed a mysterious substance with extremely strong vitality that could also replicate haunting powers.

Today, with Fuyang’s power eerily revived and Berses appearing here, that rumor was all but confirmed.

Sensing the odd look in Ms. Rabbit’s eyes, Berses turned to her, a disturbing smile on his face.

“Oh, you’re that old friend’s prized experiment, aren’t you? I’ve heard of you, and I’m very interested. If you don’t mind, after we return, you can come visit my lab. I guarantee you’ll come with high hopes and leave satisfa-“

Before Berses could finish, Shu E suddenly stepped forward, blocking him from Ms. Rabbit and cutting him off.

Ms. Rabbit, “……”

Although this move touched me, if nothing unexpected happens, he was about to say something that would piss me off, right?

Tsk, I stopped expecting anything long ago, Ms. Rabbit thought.

However…

Shu E just stood there quietly, gazing into the distant valley, silent and upright, like a monument guarding her safety.