chapter 136 part 2
"Between ten and fifty meters, I should be able to dodge it with full concentration. But if there are other distracting factors, it's hard to say."
Zhao Yingkong could now unlock the second tier of the Gene Lock. Combined with her Flash enhancement and years of combat experience, Ren Arakawa wasn't surprised that she could dodge it.
"Beyond fifty meters, it shouldn't be much of a problem. Of course, I don't know the actual circumstances, so I can't be too sure."
Ren Arakawa nodded. "Understood."
Seeing Ren Arakawa's still-pleased expression, Zhao Yingkong was a little curious. "I already said I could dodge it. Why aren't you the least bit disappointed?"
"Who would just use their ultimate move right off the bat? Have you ever played King of Fighters?" Ren Arakawa rolled his eyes at Zhao Yingkong. "Except for grabs and a few specific characters, what ultimate move can't be blocked? I'm not stupid enough to just start by throwing a Lightning Feather."
He touched the feathers on his ukaku. "The key is that this thing isn't that easy to use. First I have to imbue it with Armament Haki, then with lightning-attribute chakra, and then I have to pluck it. Even an idiot would know what I'm about to do."
"Then you..." Zhao Yingkong suddenly froze, then remembered the situation she encountered when she fought Ren Arakawa in his room after they had frantically returned to the Main God Space.
Once the Sharingan's hypnotic eye was activated, even Zhao Yingkong had to stand frozen on the spot.
If Ren Arakawa shot at her then, how could she possibly dodge?
Zhao Yingkong realized that to avoid being killed by Ren Arakawa's Lightning Feather, she would have to exchange for a shield, some defensive gear, or something. Otherwise, anyone who could be hypnotized by the Sharingan would basically find it difficult to escape the fate of being pierced through.
First hypnotize.
Then shoot.
Completely satisfied, Ren Arakawa retracted his feathers and went upstairs.
The perspective changes.
Following the camera's path, one could see the destruction caused by the Lightning Feather Armament Enhancement, as well as the feather's final destination.
It was a small house.
The glass was shattered. The person by the window was trembling, a wooden cup in their hand pierced by Ren Arakawa's feather.
By this time, the feather had already lost its lightning-attribute chakra, and the Armament Haki had long since dissipated.
But its hardness alone was enough to make Teacher Cang, the Psyker of the East Sea Team who was drinking tea, almost wet herself in fright!
Where had she ever seen such a tough weapon?
The captain of the East Sea Team, Tian Cangmu, comforted her, "Don't be afraid! The enemy's attack should be over! A long-range skill like that can't possibly be used a second time! Jing Kong! Pull yourself together!"
Teacher Cang trembled and nodded, but her condition was still not very good.
She had just tried to use her psychic powers to scan and analyze Team China's current situation and member distribution. Not long after she started, she was met with the pinpoint attack of the Lightning Feather.
The shock this brought her was immense.
It was a bit like she had taken out a telescope in the middle of the night to spy on the building across the street, only to see someone aiming a sniper rifle at her window, and the next second, her own vase was shot to pieces.
Xiao Gou Zhen Xiong, who had exchanged for the Younger Toguro bloodline, tensed up and looked at the empty street outside, slowly letting out a breath. "The information from the North Ice Continent Team was right. Team China has an extremely strong expert!"
Tian Cangmu gripped his katana. "He's not easy to deal with! At such a distance, the moment Jing Kong started her scan, the enemy sensed it. That means their team's Psyker must be a veteran of five or more horror movies."
Sweat beaded on his forehead. "I'm afraid... all the details of our team are already known to them, but we know nothing."
Teacher Cang shivered and shook her head. "He... he almost killed me!"
Tian Cangmu shook his head. "Not necessarily. From what I see, this time, they meant to give us a warning... I understand now! He wants to..."
"Ally with us to annex the North Ice Continent Team!"
Just as Ren Arakawa returned to the second floor, he bumped into a woman.
Zhan Lan said anxiously, "The enemy's presence has disappeared. I didn't feel any psychic scanning, so they must have given up on scouting us. Captain, how do you have psychic abilities too?"
Ren Arakawa frowned. "What are you on about? What nonsense are you spouting?"
"It's just... didn't you sense the malicious intent within your psychic range and then make your move?"
Ren Arakawa was stunned for a moment. "You're saying there were other team members where I just threw that thing?"
Zhan Lan swallowed. "Mhm..."
Seeing Ren Arakawa's confusion, Zhan Lan's tense mood relaxed. "Maybe... maybe it was just your sixth sense."
Ren Arakawa didn't answer.
Because he felt it was related to his Observation Haki.
But was that distance within the range of his current Observation Haki?
As they were talking, the communicators on their waists rang simultaneously.
"Everyone, prepare for battle in half an hour."
Chu Xuan's almost emotionless notification made Zheng He, who had just relaxed, unable to resist asking, "Battle? Don't we just have to deal with the last two Ghostface killers and then we can return? Do we still need a team battle?"
"Of course." Chu Xuan's tone and attitude were like a teacher instructing a hopeless student. "Do you think we haven't been attacked all these days because the East Sea and North Ice Continent teams are planning to take the loss, give up the reward points and side-story plots, and seek a stable return to the Main God Space?"
Zheng He: "Mhm... you tell me."
Chu Xuan was silent for about five seconds before continuing, "These past few days, I've gone through all the case files. All the cases have been solved, but only six killers have been captured. So I started looking into the town's death records..."
"The result was the same. It's as if this world only left six Ghostface killers for me to catch, and the remaining two don't exist."
"Or perhaps, the conditions for them to kill have not yet been met."
"So I tried recalling all police officers, turning off all public cameras, and opening up underground illegal trades."
"No matter how much I turned this place into a criminal's paradise, no more Ghostface killers appeared."
"I tried to create a Ghostface killer through psychological suggestion. After capturing him, the count didn't increase."
"I also tried wearing a Ghostface mask myself and killing a passerby. After being arrested, it still had no effect."
At this point, Zhang Jie couldn't help but interrupt, "Wait, you said you were arrested? Then how did you get cleared?"
Chu Xuan explained as if it were the most natural thing in the world, "I silenced everyone who knew about it and deleted the case file."
There was a burst of static in the communicator; no one responded.
Chu Xuan continued, "Now, I have the final answer."
Ren Arakawa couldn't help but ask, "What is it?"
"The final killers... are likely to be born from the other two teams."
"I have already deduced the mission of the North Ice Continent Team, only the East Sea Team remains unknown."
"That means the last two killers will emerge from the East Sea Team. And as outsiders, their targets must be members of our team and the North Ice Continent Team."
"Only when the two killers have killed members of our team or the North Ice Continent Team, and we then capture them, will our mission be considered complete. Only then can we return to the Main God Space."
After hearing the analysis, everyone was silent for a long while, slowly digesting it.
Ren Arakawa, however, lowered his voice, connected to Chu Xuan on a private channel, and plotted loudly right in front of Zhan Lan, "Speak. Who in our team are you planning to send to the East Sea Team?"
Without a moment's hesitation, Chu Xuan replied, "Li Shuaixi." He paused, then continued, "The other one can be anyone."
(end of chapter)