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Chapter 410: Chapter 410: The Deceased: Rodiya

"Wow!" He spat out a mouthful of blood.

A Qi Sword had pierced a large hole in his stomach, intestines mixed with blood flowing out. He tried to hold back the spilling contents with his hands, but his efforts were barely effective.

Chen Xuan scrutinized the young man with curiosity. Anatomically, he was still human, but his Spiritual Qi had been demonized. Even this ability bore some resemblance to the Shadow Demon he had previously fought.

The conclusions from scanning with his glasses were the same.

There was no display in the ability frame, indicating that he had no tradable abilities, which matched the characteristics of demons.

The problem is... although the Shadow Demon harms people in dreams, it’s a long-term consumption process. Even if this person can drag people into dreams, what good is it?

He couldn’t possibly hope to scare someone to death with nightmares.

"Abigail, are you okay?" A concerned shout from Honglian came from behind.

Chen Xuan turned around to see his partner had already run to Abigail’s side, supporting her unsteady form. Using the Celestial Mist Skill to scan, he saw that the Spiritual Qi of Abigail, Reid, and Honglian had all returned to a stable state, with no major issues overall.

"Cough, cough, cough... why... could you defeat yourself so quickly?" Meng weakly asked.

"Huh?" Chen Xuan frowned, confused, "Defeat who?"

"Didn’t you— encounter it?" He raised his head in surprise, "How... is that possible..."

"I don’t understand what you’re saying." Chen Xuan sighed, "I only know you’re about to die."

A few pills wouldn’t save his life.

The Celestial Thunder Order had completely torn apart his Spiritual Qi circulation. Now, he was like a punctured balloon, leaking air rapidly, and even blocking the wound wouldn’t improve his condition.

Meng shook his head and struggled to raise one hand, his fingertips seemingly calculating something.

Chen Xuan couldn’t help but be stunned at this sight.

Was he fortune-telling?

Seconds later, an expression of shock appeared on Meng’s face. He looked at Chen Xuan incredulously, "Could it be you’re a nameless being?"

"Of course, I have a name." The latter moved closer to him, "Where did you learn this technique?"

"No... I can’t figure it out, your foundation... never... existed..."

His voice gradually weakened, and by the last word, it was as soft as a thread. But even at the moment of death, his gaze never left Chen Xuan, his wide eyes filled with nothing but fear, as if in his last moment, he glimpsed something indescribable.

Meng breathed his last.

"...Crazy," Chen Xuan summarized, knowing his identity was registered in Jiang City.

A moment later, he smacked his forehead, "Damn, I forgot to ask him about Rodiya."

He hurriedly used his Heart Method to scan the scene, discovering a compartment behind the warehouse that still housed a few survivors. Noticing a particularly bright spot of light that remained still, Chen Xuan felt slightly relieved.

"How was the nightmare?" He returned to the three of them.

"You... killed him?" Abigail glanced at the spot where the enemy had fallen.

"Yes, the situation was critical, and I couldn’t keep hiding. Though this is a feud between the Bureau and the Evangelical Association, you’re, after all, a classmate of Honglian’s."

Chen Xuan’s words made it clear—his rescue was entirely for Honglian’s sake.

"Thank you." She forced a bitter smile, "I thought I’d never wake up again."

The other two were equally shaken.

Looking at the three of them, their expressions filled with lingering fear, Chen Xuan quirked an eyebrow, "Was it really that serious? It was just a dream. If there’s external stimulation, people would wake up immediately."

For example, a simple fall or even a tiny prick.

If the opponent wanted to perform a combo of entering dreams and executing, theoretically it could be done, but first, they would have to significantly increase their reaction speed, otherwise, the dream’s control would naturally break if someone fell in their sleep.

Of course, against someone like Abigail, just putting them to sleep wasn’t enough. As long as the barrier remained, outsiders could hardly harm her body.

"No..." Abigail shook her head, "It wasn’t an ordinary nightmare; he truly made me encounter another self."

"Yeah, I felt my chances were slim." Honglian said, disheartened.

"..." Reid remained silent, his face ashen, indicating how deeply the experience affected him.

"What are you all talking about?" Chen Xuan asked, puzzled.

"Didn’t you encounter it?" Honglian wearily rubbed her forehead, "It was like experiencing another life. In the dream, I didn’t join the Bureau but ended up on the streets, learning to use my abilities for theft and deceit, and then..." She paused, not continuing, "Generally, that experience was as unpleasant as it could get. I was so desperate I nearly contemplated suicide. But every time the thought of suicide emerged, there was a voice in my head stopping me, and then, suddenly, I woke up."

"Opting for self-denial would likely mean never waking up again." Abigail said solemnly, "No wonder my ability didn’t work. In a sense, it wasn’t him attacking me, but the filth buried in my heart."

"It’s nauseating." Reid said through gritted teeth.

It was unclear if he was judging his experience or blaming the ability for being excessively sinister.

"So that’s what happened." Chen Xuan nodded thoughtfully, realizing the dream was merely a medium. The true target of the enemy’s attack was one’s spirit... or perhaps the soul?

If that’s the case, having one’s Spiritual Qi stripped and body controlled makes sense for those unable to resist—according to Liu Shuyue, Spiritual Qi is part of one’s soul, and a soulless person cannot maintain self-control, naturally allowing external wills to invade.

If this is true, the move does indeed have its uniqueness.

Facing oneself was essentially letting people fight themselves, trapping victims in a cycle of negative consumption, thus circumventing disparities in raw power, making it possible for the less to defeat the greater.

"May I ask how you escaped from that experience?" Abigail asked sincerely.

Her words drew expectant gazes from the other two as well.

"Uh..." Chen Xuan hesitated slightly.

"I felt that life was almost real, just that everything was heading in the wrong direction, dragging one deeper into their fall." Her eyes showed newfound respect and admiration for him, "Your faith must be incredibly strong to see through the flaws in this life trial."

No, he hadn’t experienced anything.

The moment he entered the dream, the Dream Maker took control of everything.

"Cough, cough... my advice is: stay optimistic, never despair about the future." Chen Xuan coughed twice, speaking seriously, "But that’s not important right now; don’t forget we haven’t found Rodiya yet."

"Right!" Honglian hurriedly rushed towards the pile of bodies, "She hasn’t been possessed by the Evangelicals, has she?"

"Rodiya isn’t among these people; I confirmed that beforehand." Chen Xuan pointed to the isolated door on the opposite wall, "There are survivors behind that door."

The door was locked.

Perhaps they arrived too quickly, not giving the enemy time to unlock it.

"I have authorization." Abigail approached the door, entered a password, and the inset lock clicked open.

Following that, Reid slowly pulled open the heavy steel door.

Inside was the last room of the basement 2nd layer storage.

The shelves on both sides had toppled over, suggesting a struggle had occurred here. Chen Xuan immediately noticed the bloodstains on the ground, and at the end of the trail sat a person. This person had short, curly green hair, a petite figure, leaning against the wall, hands fallen at her sides, with dark red blood pooling beneath her.

His heart leaped to his throat.

"No way..." Honglian caught up from behind, "Is that person..."

Chen Xuan took steps forward, crouched in front of her, and lifted her head. At the moment he saw her face, he felt a chill in his heart.

The person was Rodiya from the photograph.