Meeting Gift
"Hell, it really is the Ghost Mockery Abyss?!"
Seeing the streaks of black shadows surging from deep underground in the distance, Chen Ling's expression instantly became strange.
He should have thought of it earlier. The Scarlet Heaven Cultist's suicide ritual was right in front of him. Since the "Audience" intervened in the Performance at this time, with their temperament, it couldn't just be simply for watching the fun...
But they actually directly stole the lungs and swapped the heart, twisting the Scarlet Heaven Cultist's ritual, turning the originally designated "Sighing Wilderness" into the "Ghost Mockery Abyss"?!
In the Gray World, Chen Ling didn't know whether the "Ghost Mockery Abyss" and the "Sighing Wilderness" bordered each other... But in the Red Dust Domain, under the situation where the surroundings were completely shrouded by the "Sighing Wilderness", a patch of "Ghost Mockery Abyss" area suddenly appearing in the center and converging with it was tantamount to suddenly dropping an iceberg into a churning sea of fire, turning the originally chaotic situation of the Red Dust Domain into a dual heaven of ice and fire.
Of course, the Convergence Point area of the "Sighing Wilderness" was so large now, relying solely on a patch of "Ghost Mockery Abyss" was definitely difficult to contend with it... But Chen Ling guessed that the [Mockery] Calamity actually didn't care about these at all. It didn't even care how many casualties the Calamities of the "Ghost Mockery Abyss" suffered. After all, when in the Aurora Domain, these Calamities were merely sweet and delicious meat chickens in its eyes.
The reason why it modified this ritual, producing a "Ghost Mockery Abyss" within a patch of "Sighing Wilderness", was in all likelihood just wanting to disgust the World-Ending of the "Sighing Wilderness".
This kind of behavior was like jumping onto the dining table where someone was preparing to move their chopsticks and suddenly taking a huge dump. The harm wasn't high, but it was extremely insulting.
[Current Expectation Value: 84%]
Under the gaze of those pairs of teasing scarlet pupils, a large number of black shadows crawled out from the Gray Realm Convergence. They didn't even spare a glance at the Red Dust Domain residents on this street, but after circling in mid-air for a moment, swarmed towards the surrounding "Sighing Wilderness", as if they had sniffed out some extremely loathsome Aura!
Seeing this scene, Chen Ling was temporarily unable to judge whether this situation was good or bad... He shook his head helplessly and pulled Li Qingshan up from the ground.
"Brother Lin, just now you killed that Scarlet Heaven Cultist with a wave of your hand... How did you do it? Is it a Path skill?" Li Qingshan looked at Chen Ling's sleeve, which was close at hand. The previous scene surfaced in his mind, and he couldn't help but ask.
"No, that's a Theatre Dao Secret Method."
"Theatre Dao Secret Method?"
"It's four kinds of secret methods extended from the basic skills of the Theater Dao... The one just now was [Sleeve-Hand Pushing Heaven]. Simply put, it's erupting with astonishing power in an instant through the soul resonance between oneself and The Role."
"Sleeve-Hand Pushing Heaven?"
Li Qingshan murmured these four words, staring blankly.
"Let's not talk about this first, Brother Li. You should get the medicine and quickly go back." Chen Ling glanced at the sky outside. "Right now, the Calamities of the 'Ghost Mockery Abyss' and the 'Sighing Wilderness' are slaughtering each other. This block is currently at its safest... If you go back now, you shouldn't encounter a Calamity surprise attack."
"Oh! Right!"
Only then did Li Qingshan remember that he came to get medicine for Kong Baosheng, and immediately began rummaging through the dim pharmacy.
He packed all the medicines related to lymphoma, and feeling it wasn't enough, he took another large batch of painkillers, fever reducers, antibiotics, and other common drugs. Then he backhandedly left a silver note on the broken counter.
"The clerk is gone, why are you still paying?"
"Taking medicine, of course one must pay. It has nothing to do with whether anyone is here... If I don't give it, isn't that stealing or robbery?" Li Qingshan answered matter-of-factly.
Seeing Li Qingshan being so serious, Chen Ling shook his head without saying more, and walked with him to the entrance of the pharmacy.
"Brother Lin, then I'll leave first." Li Qingshan said sternly, "Be careful yourself."
"En."
Li Qingshan walked quickly for two steps, and suddenly seemed to think of something. He turned back to look at Chen Ling,
"If that director asks later why you didn't come back, what should I say?"
Chen Ling was stunned for a moment. Only then did he remember there was still Wang Jincheng in the Theater House. He and Li Qingshan came out together to get medicine, but in the end only one returned. It was indeed hard to smooth over...
Chen Ling pondered for a moment, "Just say that we encountered a Calamity on the way, and I got separated from you while running."
"Okay, I have a plan in mind."
Li Qingshan nodded and ran quickly in the direction of the Theater House, carrying a large bag of medicines.
Chen Ling watched his figure gradually disappear at the end of the street. Ultimately, at this dilapidated Crossroads, only he was left standing alone, draped in red clothes.
The sighing wind brushed past his hem. Chen Ling helplessly rubbed the corners of his eyes.
"Not a single one was left alive, and all the clues are broken... Now, where should I go to find that group of Scarlet Heaven Cultists?"
If one were to say that Chen Ling leaving the Theater House before was purely because the [Mockery] Calamity was too annoying, and he wouldn't have peace without resolving the issue of the Sighing Wilderness World-Ending descending, then the situation now was completely different... The [Mockery] Calamity caused such a huge commotion. If that World-Ending was really summoned over, it would probably be so enraged that it would tear Chen Ling to pieces. Facing such a World-Ending in an enraged state, even if he had ten lives, it wouldn't be enough.
No matter what, the Scarlet Heaven Cult could not be allowed to summon the World-Ending, otherwise the day it descended would be the time of Chen Ling's sudden death!
But the range of the Gray Realm Convergence was so large, and Chen Ling didn't know where this group of Scarlet Heaven Cultists was. The only choice laid out before him now was to search bit by bit, relying purely on luck.
"Why isn't this Imperial Fate playing a role at the crucial moment?" Chen Ling let out a long sigh,
"If only that group of Scarlet Heaven Cultists could bump right into my face on their own..."
He stood at the Crossroads. Just as he was planning to randomly pick a direction, a gentle breeze brushed past Chen Ling's cheek.
On the other side of the Crossroads, in the opposite direction of Li Qingshan's departure, inlaid crystal black dance shoes stepped across the ruins and dried blood pools. A black dress, like rose petals fluttering in the wind, walked gracefully and firmly towards here.
She walked quietly. Her long hair, hazy like misty rain, draped loosely in the wind. It was as if she wasn't walking on the ruins, but stepping on a red carpet, preparing to welcome a grand Performance.
Female believer Liu Qingyan, attending in full dress;
The moment he saw that face, Chen Ling froze, seemingly not expecting to run into her here...
As Liu Qingyan was about to walk up to him, Chen Ling finally recovered his senses. He opened his mouth just about to ask something, when the young girl's gorgeous skirt hem suddenly swayed. Half a bloodstained head fell out from under the skirt hem, rolling grumbling right in front of Chen Ling.
Liu Qingyan's delicate body suddenly trembled.
Chen Ling blankly looked at the half-head on the ground that died with eyes wide open, and then looked at Liu Qingyan, who wished she could shrink her head into the ground. He couldn't help but ask:
"This is..."
Liu Qingyan pursed her lips slightly, silently picking up this half of the Scarlet Heaven Cultist's head with both hands, and handing it to Chen Ling. Her gaze fundamentally didn't dare to look him in the eye.
She spoke somewhat embarrassedly,
"It... it's a meeting gift I'm giving to Lord Chen Ling."