The battle raged from the west to the east of Jin Yun Road.
Zheng Fan's hand transformed into a blade, rapidly clashing with Luo Ye's dual weapons. Luo Ye switched between various weapons, making Zheng Fan very curious about how many Illusions she had hidden in her stomach.
However, no matter how many special effects she switched to, her attacks on Zheng Fan were difficult to be effective.
Zheng Fan himself couldn't understand what his body was made of now; it was like a self-replicating piece of play-doh. Currently, there was no concept of "injury" for him.
He would merely be attacked, change shape, and then transform and fill back in—it was that simple.
Luo Ye also regenerated, which must have been provided to her by some Illusion within her body, ensuring her endless combat power. Zheng Fan had once directly bisected her, and she still regenerated, which was a bit tricky. But clearly, she didn't have Zheng Fan's unresolvable body structure.
That Illusion Art was not without cost.
Shredded bit by bit, in the end, she would probably die.
As for the Earth Tremor catfish, although it was like a scene element often inserted into casual fighting games, affecting both of them, it could be easily dismissed.
It was just that this thing was also thick-skinned and tough, and the vibrations were very strong when approaching it, making it difficult to ignore, so people didn't really want to deal with it.
Once too much thought was put into dealing with it, it would be easy for the other side to find a weakness.
However, no matter what, keeping this thing was more beneficial to Zheng Fan.
Zheng Fan wasn't afraid of this little fish making a fuss, but Luo Ye would easily be caught by Zheng Fan and suffer more injuries whenever she was disturbed.
Luo Ye pulled back, creating some breathing room for herself.
Zheng Fan's arm, which had turned into a blade, returned to normal: "You're really fighting hard, and it feels like you're very used to fighting so hard."
"Heh, if you don't fight hard in the Black World, it's very easy to be completely devoured..." Luo Ye managed to squeeze out a sentence.
"If you like the Black World so much, why come back to reality? It's so boring here."
Luo Ye did not answer.
Zheng Fan chuckled: "You knew these dangerous individuals were from the Earth Tremor Society all along, which is why you accepted the commission from Xixikeke District. You're not short on money, there's no fun in reality, and you won't find any enjoyment here. Considering your moral standards aren't great either, and with the hero complex removed, your reason for seeking out the Earth Tremor Society is..."
"I already said it's just to pass the time, your guess isn't funny at all," Luo Ye straightened her back.
"I think it's funny enough," Zheng Fan covered his chin with one hand, "The pride of someone who isn't good at expressing themselves, I can somewhat understand."
Luo Ye suddenly moved, her longsword, transformed from property Illusion, swung out and was caught by Zheng Fan's outstretched hand. The two faced each other at close range.
Zheng Fan smiled.
One hand instantly thrust out and plunged into Luo Ye's abdomen: "I've always been curious, how much stuff do you have in your stomach!"
He lifted his foot and fiercely kicked Luo Ye flying, but she still had something left in Zheng Fan's hand.
Zheng Fan pulled hard, dragging Luo Ye back, and directly wrapped his straightened arms around Luo Ye's fair neck.
"Although your coat is torn, this still suits you quite well."
Luo Ye tried to break free, but she couldn't resist Zheng Fan's strength. She could only reach up and with difficulty hook her neck, then open her mouth and bite through!
Once free, she launched a close-range kick, her slender leg directly soaring over Zheng Fan's head.
Zheng Fan pointed a finger and severed her leg with a red thread.
Luo Ye lost her balance, falling forward, towards Zheng Fan.
And at this moment, she opened her mouth.
Zheng Fan saw... an eyeball in her throat.
Pfft!
A pale spear shot straight out of Luo Ye's mouth, piercing through Zheng Fan's symbolically blocking palm and then through his chest.
"I never thought I'd have a day where I played Jesus," Zheng Fan said.
He had to praise how beautiful this counterattack was, but knowing that this level of attack had no effect on Zheng Fan, it was meaningless, accomplishing nothing but venting emotions...
Hmm?
Zheng Fan's head rotated one hundred and eighty degrees to look behind him.
The Earth Tremor catfish was originally located not far behind Zheng Fan. This white long spear, which had pierced through Zheng Fan, extended further and also pierced into the catfish's body.
"Gurgle Oh!" The catfish was enraged, fiercely unleashing its power.
Terrifying vibrations washed over Zheng Fan and Luo Ye along the spear without reservation.
Zheng Fan was shaken so much that his vision violently blurred, and Luo Ye was bleeding profusely, but she bit down on the spear, her golden eyes still shining brightly, swaying her body and shaking her neck.
"Ah!" With a shout, the spear emitted a dazzling white light, lifting both Zheng Fan and the Earth Tremor catfish.
They were launched towards the horizon.
Whoosh!
Zheng Fan watched himself move away from the ground, the catfish monster still venting behind him, but both of them began to become faint.
"This spear is..." Zheng Fan realized the purpose of this weapon upon seeing it.
It was similar to the special firearms and bullets used by the Processing Bureau to disperse Illusions.
"I surrender, you're too strong, I can't control you..." Luo Ye's voice came from across the distance, "So, I can only send you back where you came from..."
The white spear had already disintegrated, but Zheng Fan and the catfish monster's ascent did not stop.
"An unprecedented depth also makes this attraction even stronger for you. This is a trap built for your excessive power."
It wasn't the spear that caused them to ascend, but the gravitational pull from the deep Black World after the spear dispersed them on the reality side!
"You're right, I didn't expect an Illusion to be so articulate... I am indeed self-centered and not good at expressing myself, which only makes situations more awkward. But... this is good. Without you, Lin Yilin can't do anything. This is enough."
Luo Ye's body had completely regenerated, but she still knelt on the ground, exhausted, looking up at the sky.
The determination on her face was completely gone, replaced only by a sense of loss.
Zheng Fan came into contact with the black ripple he had wanted to go to. It was like a dark quagmire hanging in the sky, pulling him, dragging him, and swallowing him.
When he came to his senses, he found himself floating in a chaotic void.
Since arriving in Dadu, an unprecedented sense of fulfillment filled his entire body. He felt as if he had returned to his true self.
He looked at his hands; his dark hands were slightly rough, their skin rippling like water, like the Black World itself, more like non-human claws than hands.
The chaotic Black World was filled with nothingness.
But in Zheng Fan's eyes, he could vaguely see beams of light with strange colors, coming from the depths of the darkness, projecting various "information" into this world.
These pieces of information, upon approaching the reality side, would begin to condense into vague forms, infected by the fragmented human consciousness deposited in the boundary layer, and finally break out of their shells and go to reality.
Zheng Fan felt his consciousness constantly expanding along the black ripples. For a moment, it was as if he had countless selves.
Even he couldn't see clearly.
A twisted, endless black vortex, a horror that couldn't be looked at directly, even startled him at first glance.
Going deeper, time and space would completely lose their meaning.
A call was telling Zheng Fan to "go back."
...
Lin Yilin walked deep within the Closed Community office, in the room where historical records were stored.
Just then, she saw a figure walking out of it.
The person's gait was casual, but their steps were strong. Their figure was tall, nearly two meters, and although muscular and robust, they didn't appear bulky. In close-fitting clothing, their figure seemed slender and capable.
The man, clad in a black hooded cloak, immediately noticed Lin Yilin after he emerged.
"Processing Bureau, no, looks like a random person. Little mice seem to react to details more easily than the wealthy and powerful, don't they..." The man's tone was flat, but paired with his arrogant eyes, it gave off a faint hint of mockery.
He flashed the seemingly ancient machete in his hand, but Lin Yilin's gaze was fixed on the badge in his other hand.
Finally, her gaze returned to his face.
This face... she remembered it.
Lin Yilin's mind raced. He was one of the individuals on the unconfirmed deceased list she had seen in the Jacob Family documents. An insignificant "minor character," a very distant collateral relative, with a simple description and shallow information. If she hadn't been paying close attention to that document, she wouldn't have remembered him so quickly.
But now, meeting him in person and making eye contact, Lin Yilin felt a sharp pain in her mind.
Earth-shattering tremors, amidst a sea of fire and ruins.
She wandered aimlessly through the ruins of Xixikeke, and then a tall figure brushed past her. Dressed slightly differently, but with an identical face, especially those empty eyes.
Murderer.
These two words naturally surfaced in Lin Yilin's mind, followed by a tearing pain. It left her unable to raise her gun towards him.
The man had just raised his knife when he suddenly turned his head and glanced out the window: "As expected, a barely useful fish still couldn't stop that Illusion hunter..."
With that, he turned and vanished into the darkness of the corridor.
The next moment, the window along with the wall were completely shattered. Luo Ye stepped on the rubble and landed in the corridor, immediately glancing towards where the man had disappeared.
But only residual aura remained.
Luo Ye turned to Lin Yilin: "How did you find this... never mind, Hong Yijia called me here, so there's nothing more to say."
"Nothing more to say?" Lin Yilin spoke, her voice more agitated than ever. One hand covered her head, revealing one eye filled with an indescribable emotion as she looked at her.
Luo Ye looked at her with some surprise.
"Just now, that was the murderer," Lin Yilin's voice trembled, whether from the intense headache or emotional agitation, "The murderer from ten years ago, the criminal Dadu has been pursuing for ten years..."
"Probably," Luo Ye replied calmly.
"That's also my goal, the origin of my 'interest'... I don't know why my memory is so blurry, but that person has reappeared. After so many years, he must be planning something."
"Yes, but that has nothing to do with you."
"My life was completely changed by that earthquake, and you're telling me it has nothing to do with me?"
"So what? There were too many victims of that earthquake. Besides... you no longer have that ability."
"...What did you say?" Lin Yilin's eyes widened.
"I sent that guy away," Luo Ye said calmly.
Bang!
A bullet flew towards Luo Ye and was deflected by her sword.
Luo Ye continued: "I'll take care of things from now on. I'll kill that murderer. You should rest well, go home and get some sleep. July will be just another ordinary month. Continue running that office, solve a few cases, and let everyone praise your intelligence..."
"That's enough," her words were coldly interrupted by Lin Yilin.
...
Zheng Fan looked at the chaos before him, suddenly feeling a slight sting in his mind. He instinctively looked back: "Lin Yilin?"
...
"It's always like this, you talk to yourself, thinking you can solve everything. I've known you for years, and whenever I invite you for your birthday, you always have an excuse not to be there. Then, when I've almost forgotten, you offer compensation, and that satisfies you."
"In the end, for all your mistakes and wrongs, you never even gave us an apology."
...
A strong connection from the reality side formed another pull for Zheng Fan. Although it was very faint compared to the depths of the Black World, Zheng Fan was more interested in this side at the moment.
He reached out his hand along this "beam of light" extending from himself.
...
"'Give up the office, or give up Illusion.' I finally found someone who could stay with me for a very, very long time... and you're starting again..."
"Illusion is not..."
"How much more trustworthy are you than Illusion!?" Lin Yilin loudly interrupted Luo Ye.
"I've had enough," Lin Yilin's eyes were red, but without tears. Dark tear streaks spread down from the corners of her eyes.
Behind her, a distorted vortex gradually took shape.
The tear streaks weren't the only change; intricate vine-like patterns appeared on Lin Yilin's skin, and her hair grew, becoming waist-length.
Her gray eyes, half furious and seeking release, and half with a mocking amusement after grasping the situation.
Luo Ye actually took a step back in a panic: "Impossible..."
"Luo Ye."
"Lin Yilin's" tone returned to its usual calmness.
Her shadow spoke along with her, their voices overlapping, indistinguishable.
"Today, I will make you kneel, and from the bottom of your heart... sincerely apologize for everything that has happened."