Chapter 50: Chapter 50: The God-Level Effect of the Inverted Cross
Seeing that Gao Tian had no intention of dealing with her, Ling Feifei, who had been throwing a tantrum on the floor, felt her mind start to whir.
’That’s right.’
Ling Feifei’s eyes suddenly lit up.
How had Gao Tian killed her boyfriend? After boarding the bus, he did something very strange: he poked the male corpse a few times, then simply took the rusty longsword from its hand without triggering any of the killing rules.
Ling Feifei was no longer a rookie when it came to the supernatural; she certainly knew some of the world’s most basic rules. For ordinary people to survive, they had to collect various Supernatural Artifacts—some were rewards from apartment missions, others were dropped by ghosts.
This Gao Tian had stolen a powerful weapon from the male corpse on the bus, which was how he’d killed Zhou Yan in a single strike.
’He’s nothing special in himself. He just got extremely lucky and didn’t trigger any rules after stealing the weapon.’
’If he can do it, why can’t I?’
At the same time, the bone flute around Ling Feifei’s neck was amplifying the emotions of the surrounding ghosts, constantly bombarding her mind. It infinitely magnified the negative emotions in her heart—greed, hatred, jealousy, and anger.
She had long noticed that strange inverted cross stuck in the old lady’s head.
It was radiating wave after wave of a lonely, dilapidated, and despairing aura.
Ling Feifei keenly perceived that the old lady’s corpse was not the ghost’s true form, but merely a host. The inverted cross plunged into her head was very likely a new Supernatural Artifact.
’Gao Tian got the rusty greatsword, so why can’t I get the inverted cross?’
Ling Feifei had no idea that the reason Gao Tian dared to touch the Terror Blade in the tall male corpse’s hands was because he had seen fragments of the future and knew that it could be safely removed after performing a specific ritual.
If any random person who boarded the bus had tried to snatch the Terror Blade, they would have long ago triggered the tall male corpse’s killing rule and died on the spot.
To try and snatch something from a ghost without any preparation was no different from having a death wish.
While Ling Feifei was lost in her delusions, Gao Tian feigned rest in his seat, but in reality, his peripheral vision was constantly fixed on the figure behind him.
He saw her every subtle movement with perfect clarity.
Back when Gao Tian had taken the Terror Blade, Zhou Yan and Ling Feifei, who had been mocking him, had flown into a rage out of shame, spouting sour remarks like how they would have done just as well if they had been the ones to get it.
At the time, it may have just been sour grapes. But now, with Zhou Yan dead, Ling Feifei had lost her mind. The odds of her risking it to pull out the inverted cross had become very high.
This was all within Gao Tian’s expectations.
He too had noticed that the inverted cross in the old woman’s head might truly be a Supernatural Artifact, the kind that could be wielded by humans.
But the inverted cross wouldn’t be easy to take. Its effects, side effects, and killing rules were all currently unknown. Gao Tian couldn’t see the inverted cross’s future; if he rashly tried to take it, he could be killed by it instantly.
’But Ling Feifei is willing to try. It would be perfect to let her walk into the trap for me, to clear the mines.’
When this woman made a move to pull out the inverted cross, there were two likely outcomes:
First, she triggers the inverted cross’s killing rule and dies on the spot.
’That would conveniently rule out one of the killing rules for me.’
Once the rules of the inverted cross were clear, perhaps Gao Tian would have a real chance to acquire another Supernatural Artifact.
Second, Ling Feifei actually manages to pull out the inverted cross and, even without seeing the future or possessing the Human Skin Gloves, miraculously figures out its abilities.
Never mind how infinitesimally small the probability of that happening was.
’But even if it did happen, it would be even better for me.’
Once they arrived at the stop, he would simply get off the bus, sacrifice Ling Feifei to the Terror Blade, and claim the Supernatural Artifact she had risked her life and worked so hard to figure out.
The Terror Blade’s effect on the living was ridiculously overpowered. It could sacrifice anyone within a certain range to the blade without their consent.
In a fight among the living, Gao Tian was invincible with the Terror Blade.
From the moment Ling Feifei started scheming, Gao Tian was guaranteed to profit, regardless of the outcome.
’Of course, some unforeseen accidents could still happen. But you can’t expect a reward without taking any risks.’
’I must get stronger, no matter the cost. Once this mission is over and I’m back at the apartment, I have to go with the managers to explore the fourth floor. In this cruel world, the powerless don’t even have the right to survive.’
Thoroughly blinded by the belief that ’If Gao Tian can do it, so can I,’ Ling Feifei, sitting in the back row, glanced one last time in Gao Tian’s direction. After killing Zhou Yan, he hadn’t even turned his head, not deigning to give her a single look.
It was a silent contempt; from start to finish, Gao Tian had never considered the couple to be his equals.
But it was precisely Gao Tian’s contempt that made Ling Feifei feel this was the perfect opportunity. The next stop was approaching. She felt she couldn’t waste another second and had to act now.
Immediately, she tiptoed down the steps and headed toward the back of the old woman with the inverted cross.
The old woman was motionless, red blood dripping continuously from the hole in the back of her head. The enormous cross seemed to have a life of its own, standing silently aloft, using flesh and blood as its scaffold, coldly observing the movements of every passenger on the bus.
Shen Nian, in the front row, immediately noticed something was wrong with Ling Feifei.
His peripheral vision never stopped sweeping over the other passengers and ghosts. Upon seeing Ling Feifei furtively approaching the old woman with the inverted cross, Shen Nian immediately turned and shouted a warning:
"What are you doing?
"Stay away from the other ghosts, do you hear me! Or I’ll shoot you dead right now!"
Seeing that she’d been exposed, Ling Feifei dropped the act. She charged toward the old woman with the inverted cross like a shooting star, screaming at the top of her lungs:
"I don’t care anymore! I’m not going to make it out alive anyway, so no one else gets to live either!
"We were told when we left that as residents of the apartment, we should help each other out. But this man, Gao, killed my boyfriend to save his own skin, and the rest of you just watched! All of you cold-hearted people can go to Hell with Gao Tian!
"Once I get my hands on this ultimate Supernatural Artifact, I’m going to complete this mission all by myself. What do I care if the rest of you live or die!"
At that moment, the hysterical Ling Feifei’s hands were already on the cross. Veins bulged on her arms as she pulled with all her might, her savage gaze fixed on Gao Tian.
"Once I get a Supernatural Artifact that’s better than yours, I’ll...
"Once I get a better one...
"Once I get..."
The instant the foolish woman’s hands touched the cross, countless blood-red eyes outlined with dotted lines opened again on its black surface. The eyeballs rolled madly, as if just awakened from the abyss.
"Damn it! Get away!"
Shen Nian drew the gun from under his trench coat, trying to scare her off, but he didn’t dare to actually fire. The rules of the bus were still in effect.
The Ghost Eyes seemed to be alive, staring intently at Ling Feifei, who was clinging to the cross for dear life. It was as if they were testing the quality of their new master.
The old woman, whose head had been pierced through, also seemed to sense someone pulling on the cross. A pained, cracking groan, CREAK... CRACK..., came from her neck as she, while still seated, slowly twisted her head around an impossible one hundred and eighty degrees to look at Ling Feifei behind her.
"Come out!"
Ling Feifei threw all caution to the wind. With a sharp cry, a powerful force erupted from her body, and she managed to forcibly yank the inverted cross straight out of the old woman’s skull.
’Excellent.’
The blood-red, illusory eye quickly unfurled from the top of the inverted cross, bathing more than half of the bus in a crimson glow.
Gao Tian had already retreated to the front of the bus, putting a great distance between them. This way, he could observe the inverted cross’s killing rules while also avoiding getting caught up in the aftermath of Ling Feifei’s death.
BOOM—
As the giant, bloody eye descended, the world went dark. The entire bus vanished. In an instant, Gao Tian’s world became pure, pitch-black darkness.
This place was completely different from the bus. There were no ghosts, no sounds, no ground beneath them—nothing but pure blackness and a blood-red ’sun’ in the sky.
At the same time, Shen Nian and Su Jiu were also inexplicably transported here, both looking completely bewildered.
’This is?’
’Did I overplay my hand?’
Gao Tian looked up and saw, in the pitch-black dome above, a blood-red human eye as vast as a planet, staring down at him.
"57."
A majestic voice rumbled in his ears.
At the same time, Gao Tian once again felt the gaze of the giant eye above him pierce directly into his body, probing his soul.
A Ghost Card, the Three of Clubs, rested upon his soul. It was a Ghost Card he had drawn after a resurrection.
The Ghost Eye lingered for a moment, and then Gao Tian felt his soul empty out again. The Ghost Card etched into his soul had just been... drawn away.
The mark of the Ghost Card was gone.
’How is this possible.’
Gao Tian was stunned, his mind reeling as if battered by a furious storm.
’This blood eye’s ability... it can take the Ghost Card from my soul?’
’Theoretically, a Ghost Card can’t be removed. Otherwise, users could infinitely exploit the bug.’
’So, if I were to master this Supernatural Artifact, would that mean I could combo it with the Ghost Card for infinite revivals, with no penalty?’
After taking the Ghost Card, the blood eye suspended in the black domain blinked and once again let out a low, inscrutable growl:
"57."
Shen Nian drew his gun and aimed it at the bloody eye in the sky, but he didn’t fire. Unsure of the situation, he didn’t dare to attack rashly.
"Don’t move!
"That damn woman pulled out the cross and made it unleash its Ghost Realm.
"We’re inside the ghost’s Ghost Realm now. The slightest wrong move could get us killed instantly."
Su Jiu’s face was deathly pale. Like a frightened chick, she even held her breath.
Only Gao Tian knew that the ability of this blood-eye cross was... unique.
Just then, the scenery around the three of them shifted rapidly. They were back inside the smoothly moving bus, as if nothing had happened at all.
...
...
"Next stop, Old Town. Arriving shortly.
"Will passengers who wish to alight please prepare in advance."
The emotionless, mechanical female voice spoke again. At the same time, the bus’s speed noticeably decreased as it prepared to pull into the station.
