"He must have gone back to find A-Yan."
The rickshaw rattled along the gravel road, carrying Chen Ling, whose expression was grim.
He didn’t know which part of his plan had gone wrong to make Han Meng suspect him so quickly. The officer had even gone so far as to pay out of his own pocket to send Chen Ling away, just so he could interrogate Chen Yan alone.
The problem was, all of Chen Ling’s options were now blocked.
Even if he turned back to find Chen Yan, there was no guarantee he could reach home faster than the law enforcement officers. And if he left the rickshaw, Han Meng would know immediately, making it nearly impossible to clear his name.
Now, everything depended on how Chen Yan handled the situation…
Still, Chen Ling had already made up his mind. If his identity was exposed, he would flee directly from District Two. After all, it would take Han Meng some time to get there from District Three.
As for Chen Yan, he was an ordinary person. He didn’t know about Chen Ling’s identity as a Fusionist—he didn’t even know what a Fusionist was. Even if Chen Ling got into trouble, Chen Yan wouldn’t be implicated.
"Brother, you said you were broke," the rickshaw puller panted, glancing back. "But even Officer Han Meng is covering your fare. You must be someone important."
Chen Ling’s mind flashed to Han Meng’s face, and a surge of frustration welled up in his chest. He asked, "How much longer?"
"Almost there. About ten more minutes."
"No need to hurry. Take a few more laps around this street."
"...Huh?"
"Just do it. He’s paying by the kilometer anyway," Chen Ling said with a cold smile. "Since he’s so generous, I’ll help him spend a bit more…"
"Alright, if you say so…"
"Go where there are more people. Make sure they see you, so he can’t back out of paying."
"Got it!"
The rickshaw puller enthusiastically took Chen Ling on over a dozen laps around the busiest streets in District Two. The man was clearly thrilled—the extra distance alone would earn him what he usually made in two or three days.
By the time Chen Ling got off the rickshaw, the puller was grinning from ear to ear, almost ready to kneel and worship this walking money tree.
Since Chen Ling was the only one "forced to depart" early, Wu Youdong wouldn’t arrive for a few more hours. Chen Ling had no choice but to head to Ice Spring Street alone to meet up with the District Two law enforcement officers stationed there.
As soon as he entered Ice Spring Street, Chen Ling’s brow furrowed.
Yellow police tape sealed off almost the entire street. The air still carried the faint scent of blood. The small, dilapidated buildings on either side were empty, devoid of life, save for a few gruesome bloodstains splattered across the white walls.
Chen Ling ducked under the alert line, stepping over shattered stones as if a ferocious beast had rampaged through the area, slaughtering everyone in its path.
"What happened here…?" Chen Ling muttered, his eyes filled with confusion.
In the distance, several figures in black-and-red uniforms moved among the ruins. Spotting Chen Ling crossing the alert line, they approached him directly.
"You’re the reserve officer from District Three? Why are you here so early?"
Chen Ling handed over his transfer order, blaming Han Meng for sending him ahead of schedule.
The officer nodded. "Well, since you’re here early, you can lend a hand. I’m Qian Fan, the officer currently in charge of Ice Spring Street. You’ll be working with me for the next couple of days."
"Understood." Chen Ling paused. "Brother Fan, what exactly happened here?"
"You haven’t heard?" Qian Fan asked, surprised.
"Two nights ago—the night of the Gray Realm’s convergence—a Calamity broke into District Two and killed half the people on this street."
Chen Ling was stunned. "Two nights ago?"
"Yeah," Qian Fan nodded. "Didn’t Officer Ma Zhong from your district tell you? This time, during the Gray Realm convergence, two calamities escaped—one Level Five and one Level Three.
"The one that appeared in your district was the Level Five, but it didn’t seem to cause much destruction. The casualties were minimal… The Level Three one here in District Two, though, wasn’t as high-level, but it was far more brutal…"
Chen Ling’s mind was reeling.
He had always thought that the Calamity in his mind was the only one that had escaped from the Gray Realm… But now there was another?
"What about the Level Three one? Was it caught?"
"If it had been, would we still be here?" Qian Fan sighed. "After the massacre, the Calamity just vanished… But some officers saw it heading toward the back mountain."
The back mountain…
Chen Ling remembered that the back mountain lay between District Two and District Three.
"These two calamities are strange… Usually, after causing a big scene, calamities are quickly captured. They’re either too large to hide or can’t stop themselves from killing… But this time, both calamities disappeared without a trace, as if they’d vanished into thin air!"
Chen Ling’s heart stirred, and he casually asked, "I’ve heard of something called… Fusionists?"
"Fusionists…" Qian Fan shook his head. "Do you think fusing with a Calamity is easy? To fuse with a Calamity and survive, you need to meet three conditions. First, you have to ensure the Calamity doesn’t kill you. That alone rules out 99% of calamities, since most have no self-control.
"Even if you manage to weaken it to near-death, the next problem is ensuring your body is compatible with it… And that’s completely unpredictable.
"Humans and calamities aren’t even the same species. For the two to be compatible is like picking up a random rock and finding your name naturally carved into it—it’s almost impossible.
"Even if you’re lucky enough to meet the first two conditions, you still have to make sure you don’t go insane from the Calamity’s will after fusion… From what I know, most Fusionists are insane and don’t live more than a few years."
Chen Ling frowned. "So, the probability of a Fusionist appearing is close to zero?"
"Exactly," Qian Fan nodded. "But I’ve heard that the Fusionist faction is researching ways to increase the success rate… How far they’ve gotten, I don’t know."
Chen Ling had always thought of himself as a Fusionist, but after hearing Qian Fan’s explanation, he wasn’t so sure…
His connection with the "audience" was entirely tied to the theater. There didn’t seem to be any fusion process involved… Although the "audience" did occasionally drive him mad.
At the same time, a thought flashed through Chen Ling’s mind.
If he wasn’t a Fusionist…
Could it be possible for him to forge his own path… to godhood?