Chapter 52 - Role Playing the Dark Horse Character

Chapter 52: Did You Hold Him Back? A black line pierced through the darkness, deeply embedding itself into the ornamental trees lining the road, drilling six small holes into the trunk. The branches swayed, and leaves fluttered to the ground. Time seemed to slow, as the wind carried the verdant leaves in a circle through the air. A dark navy silhouette flitted by behind the falling leaves. Time resumed its normal flow. The black line withdrew from the tree trunk, and a man with purple hair turned his head without hesitation, looking towards the empty path on his right. There was nothing—no shadow, no sound of insects signaling the transition from spring to summer. "Over there." Yet the man with purple hair spoke with certainty. In the silence, he decisively commanded the black lines, diving from above towards that direction. This was oxidized blood, fine black lines, and simultaneously, weapons endowed with special abilities. Red and black interwoven, the purple-haired man's ability was to control them. Like Qu Shi, he was a Mimic-type. A Mimic-type ability couldn't conjure something from nothing; he controlled the blood of others! Along the path, footprints in blood pulsed like springs, blood droplets seeping into the air, weaving in flight through the red and black lines. "Run, it's no fun if you don't escape." He said. But is that all there is? Someone in the silence curved their lips, letting out a soft laugh. At the same time, Pale fingertips, as if facing poor contact, flickered momentarily, touching the purple-haired man's shoulder from a blind spot in his vision. "What are you looking at?" A whisper, as if murmured in his ear. The illusion laughed softly behind him. The black lines in the air suddenly paused; the purple-haired man was momentarily taken aback, as if suddenly realizing that a person had appeared behind him. But in that instant, the long black lines in the air twisted, drawing a sinister arc like a black snake, striking back in the original direction. The man with purple hair didn't attack the person behind him, stubbornly choosing a patch of air. His actions weren't wrong. Behind him was an illusion, but the direction he chose—there stood a dark-haired young man, a smile playing on his lips. The special ability cloaked Li Li's body with a layer of false imagery, rendering her invisible, blending seamlessly into the background. But her true self was here; her heart beating in her chest, the blood actively coursing through her veins, constructing her entire being. Ah, so that's it. She thought. Her illusion had been 'seen through.' Li Li looked at the bloodline, slipping her hands into her pockets, her smile deepening. The bloodline reached her! In the next moment, the bloodline passed through as if traversing a pocket of air, capturing nothing before stabbing into the stone bench behind. A snap of fingers echoed, prompting a switch between body and illusion. Simultaneously, the man with purple hair turned and stepped back, bloodlines on the ground rising like a cage, imprisoning the young man with sunglasses. Behind the sunglasses, those red pupils narrowed slightly, while black and red ribbons danced before her, wrapping around the shadows of the lamppost, spiraling in the air. "Is that how you're going to run away?" The man with purple hair expressed slight dissatisfaction. In his eyes, the prey had willingly stepped into its cage. But Li Li softly said, "Why run?" She understood Yue Qing's intention. Just now, the illusion behind her and the seemingly empty path—the man with purple hair accurately pinpointed the location of her true body. And when she swapped positions with the illusion, he quickly noticed her movement. This individual could dispel illusions, accurately locating her true form. Yue Qing sought a method to counter illusionists by finding someone capable of breaking illusions and directly identifying the true body. Once confirmed that the illusory is indeed illusory, then against higher levels, her ability's effectiveness would diminish. Illusory Reality would succumb entirely to being mere illusion, unable even to confuse the enemy. This was her natural nemesis. At the top of the cage, the blackness protruded downward; sharp needles stabbed from above. But Li Li felt incredibly relieved. How fortunate. She considered. She had obtained this intel in advance, now only facing a mere Grade C opponent! Illusory Reality activated at full capacity; this ability-formed cage couldn't impede her steps at all. She lifted a foot, the long boot passing through the bloodlines as if walking through air. Under the lamplight, those eyes shimmered like dazzling red gemstones. Yet, to anyone gazing into them, they appeared as an endless vortex enclosing their heart, suffocating them! "Let me run?" She cheerfully asked. "Do you even deserve that chance?" ... He Shasha collapsed on the ground, unable to continue running. She twisted her head to look at the back of the dark-haired young man, unable to see his expression. What she did see was the shock twisted into the expression of the man with purple hair as he retreated. The bloodlines swirling in the sky went berserk. The man with purple hair yelled out loud, veins bulging in his neck. The speed of the bloodlines increased, extracting the blood from bodies of those within a hundred meters he had killed, weaving them into his control. Then, from various angles, they lunged at the navy-clad back of that man. Ineffective, ineffective, completely ineffective! The bloodlines driven from behind grew thin. Meanwhile, the surging threads couldn't inflict the slightest harm on that man. The bloodlines severed. The black long lines resembled a life-stealing demon in the night, yet the dark-haired young man regarded them as nothing, strolling forward leisurely. One step, and though the man with purple hair was clearly the one attacking, he retreated one step. Yet the distance between them kept closing. And then he spoke. He Shasha heard a pleasingly low, magnetic male voice, teasingly, carrying an irreverent nonchalance. The young man said, "You see those you once murdered." He Shasha couldn't grasp what this meant. But she saw the man who was a demon to her, with purple hair, widening his eyes as if they couldn't contain them. Witnessing what seemed to him utterly unbelievable sights, he muttered, "Impossible, impossible..." And that voice continued. "Perhaps they are faceless, perhaps obscured in form." The young man spoke, his tone rising as though narrating a jovial story, "But you see them encircling you, watching you." "Don't come closer!" The man with purple hair tried to flee, attempting to escape the incessant, inescapable voice. It felt like it emerged from the depths of hell. The next second, the dark-haired young man's figure appeared directly in front of the man with purple hair, raising his sunglasses to meet his eyes with those red, murky pupils. "You don't remember how you killed them, but it doesn't matter—they just took up cleavers." "Chopping you to pieces, one cut at a time." The night wind carried these words into the ears of the man with purple hair. "Ahhhh!" He screamed in sheer madness. And He Shasha, terrified, scrambled backward. She saw the man before her, once unbeatable and demon-like, now kneeling on the ground, limbs twisted as if severed by sharp tools. Wasn't this man with purple hair a demon?! If he was, then what was that young man? A reaper, a devil spawned from hell! Terror-stricken, she shrank back, retreating to the lamppost, with nowhere left to run. Wanting to escape, yet unable to rise. The man with purple hair fell silent, while the young man turned around. He paced—step by step—towards her direction. Please, don't come over! Tears blurred her vision, overwhelming fear gripping her. His long boots moved soundlessly on the ground. She saw him approaching from the road, drawing nearer Until finally, halting directly before her. The young man spoke. "Go hide at a friend's house for a while, don't come back." He Shasha didn't react immediately. That tone was slightly different, tinged with a gentle depth. Again his boots lifted, as he brushed past her, leaving through the path he had come. Only then did He Shasha realize—that path led out of the community. She recalled what the man with purple hair had said to him, asking him if he was someone who would help a stranger in need. Was this person really trying to save her? "W-wait!" Propping herself up with one hand, she called out to his retreating back, fear still tugging at her, yet a surge of deep-seated courage flaring up in her chest. Hadn't she tried to pull him away while running? Her voice trembled with gratitude, "Th-thank you!" But he didn't pause like last time, seemingly hearing nothing. Yet He Shasha felt assured he had heard, just that... No one can halt him from traversing his own chosen path, nothing more. ... In the night, crows wheeled over Four-Way City, in the outskirts of a noble’s private residence. An Heyu held a pen, sketching writings on the paper before him. On it lay the division and allocation of his assets in Four-Way City. Although the An Clan's noble ability inheritance had thinned, the old noble family's wealth was substantial enough to ensure that both he and An Huyu could live in affluence for a lifetime. Just then. "Mister Noble, you've been ostracized." The dark-haired young man suddenly appeared on his left, leaning against the table, his eyes cast downward towards him. His face bore a familiar smile that An Heyu recognized—bold and unapologetic, as if nothing could bring this person to concede. In truth, Li Li's smile was broad, filled with a sense of mocking. "?" An Heyu was momentarily taken aback, then looked at Li Li for a long while before taking a deep breath, "What happened?" "The Qu Clan Noble has arrived," Li Li said. "I'm not asking about them." An Heyu set the pen down and stood up, attempting to wear a serious expression, but seeing Li Li's unrepentant smile, he ended up with a bitter grin, "I mean, after you found out about this, what did you do?" "This?" Li Li tilted her head, "Killed a Grade C from the Qu Clan." An Heyu: "..." An Heyu: "Hei Ge, I'm begging you, please, next time, could you at least inform me before acting?" If he were as tear-prone as An Huyu, he would have cried! However, Li Li's smile remained unchanged, speaking with an extremely casual and laid-back tone, "He rubbed me the wrong way, so I took care of it when I ran into him." Hearing this, An Heyu took a deep breath, then held his forehead, sighing, "You're truly insane." ... Li Li considered seeking out An Heyu to be a very good decision. After a brief collapse, An Heyu swiftly switched back to work mode, efficiently tying up loose ends for her. This included utilizing the body for information, arranging follow-ups, preparing to conceal her actions from Yue Qing, and hypothesizing on Yue Qing's preparations based on current conditions. But as Li Li leisurely sipped milk tea, watching An Heyu busy himself, he suddenly turned and asked her, "Hei Ge, do you intend to train Huyu?" Li Li blinked, then replied, "Mm-hmm." She had learned this all-purpose dismissive response from the manga artist; it sounded quite affirmative. Upon Li Li's 'assurance,' An Heyu felt relieved enough to continue his tasks, while Li Li, using a crow illusion, wandered the city, seeking the reason behind An Heyu's query. She found it soon enough. Upon finding it, she couldn't help but sigh: Little Corgi, why are you getting beaten up again! In the nighttime, by a small platform in a park, Yi Ming lay sprawled on the ground, with Tang beside him, administering treatment, while An Huyu crouched behind a stone pedestal, covering his head. A stranger, a burly man, stood before them, puffing out his chest, saying, "Is this really all you’ve got, Hei Ge?" Yi Ming looked absolutely furious: "I told you I'm not!!!" From behind the stone pedestal, An Huyu peeked his head out, cheering, "Yes, you are! Get up and beat him, Hei Ge!" The burly man continued to stoke the fire, even though he clearly had the wrong person: "Get up! Hei Ge!" Only Yi Ming, exasperated, burst out with profanity: "Goddammit!!!" Hei Ge himself, Li Li, watched from a hundred meters away with an uninvolved smile. Come on, little Corgi, it's all part of the experience and growth! And it has nothing to do with paying for the father's debts, honestly.