I Contracted Myself

Nighttime.

Zhang Ping and Wang Jieming returned to the dark chamber once more. The corpses of the two Tianchang Foxes had already been cleaned up.

"Zhang Ping, what on earth is going on? How could there be Mutated Beasts in Mingzhu City? And... are they really Mutated Beasts?" Wang Jieming immediately asked.

Zhang Ping nodded and then shared the information he knew with Wang Jieming. After hearing it, Wang Jieming was stunned, and his face grew increasingly pale.

"What's wrong? Don't worry, we've killed those two Tianchang Foxes, and someone has already helped us cover it up. The other Tianchang Foxes won't find us," Zhang Ping comforted, noticing Wang Jieming's troubled expression.

Wang Jieming shook his head and said blankly, "I'm suspecting that my mom was eaten by a Tianchang Fox."

"Your mom?" Zhang Ping frowned.

Wang Jieming said seriously, "Really, she's been acting very strange. I didn't realize it until you mentioned it. She's always teaching me things I already know and doesn't cook anymore, often buying ready-made food from outside... Could it be that those ready-made foods are actually... ugh..."

"Wait, don't scare yourself. I'll go to your house to check it out later. For now, don't overthink it," Zhang Ping quickly said.

Wang Jieming, with a mournful expression, said, "Zhang Ping, if my mom was really eaten, what should I do?"

"What else can you do? Of course, you avenge her and kill that Tianchang Fox," Zhang Ping said sternly.

He thought of the Tianchang Fox that had eaten Su Jingyao. He, too, wanted to avenge that beautiful girl.

Wang Jieming fell silent.

After a moment, Liu Sishan appeared before them, startling Wang Jieming once again.

"Sister Sisi," Zhang Ping greeted.

Liu Sishan said calmly, "If you have any questions, ask them now. I've received intelligence that the Mutated Beasts outside the city seem to be showing signs of unrest. The Patrol Guard has been slaughtered by the Tianchang Foxes, and the city defenses are virtually non-existent. If other Mutated Beasts invade Mingzhu City, the consequences will be unimaginable. I might not have time to look after you."

"I know about this. The king of the Tianchang Foxes has entered a false sleep. Previously, Mingzhu City wasn't attacked by other Mutated Beasts because it was guarding the city. Now that it's concealing its presence, the other Mutated Beasts are starting to stir," Zhang Ping explained.

He had learned most of this from the Wind Whisperer during the Tianchang Foxes' meeting.

"So, the Mutated Beasts will inevitably invade Mingzhu City next," Liu Sishan said with a frown.

Zhang Ping nodded, "Not only that, but the prince of the Tianchang Foxes will also take the opportunity to observe and attack the Awakeners who resist the Mutated Beasts, focusing on those they believe might be members of your organization."

"I see, they want to disrupt the order in Mingzhu City and target the strong ones specifically," Liu Sishan quickly grasped their intention.

It was indeed a clever plan.

Ordinary people couldn't resist the attacks of Mutated Beasts, so the Awakeners would have to step in.

With a population of millions, Mingzhu City couldn't rely solely on the Tianchang Foxes to identify all the Awakeners, especially since some Awakeners would deliberately hide their strength, and some weren't even registered.

The existing records in Mingzhu City couldn't possibly cover everything.

Zhang Ping looked at Liu Sishan and asked, "Sister Sisi, does your organization have a way to stop this plan?"

"It's an open scheme, but that's better. As long as their king doesn't move, we can do a lot," Liu Sishan said.

Without waiting for Zhang Ping to ask further, she continued, "Alright, you two go back for now. I'll report this to the organization, and we'll discuss the specifics later. In the short term, there shouldn't be too many Mutated Beasts invading Mingzhu City. It's still safe."

With that, Zhang Ping and Wang Jieming were sent back to Iron Soul.

"Zhang Ping, can I stay at your place tonight?" Wang Jieming asked weakly, glancing at the dark night outside the window.

He didn't want to go home.

After all, he didn't know what he would be facing at home.

"Alright."

Zhang Ping understood that feeling well, having been inspected by the Moon Prince before.

To be honest, although the Tianchang Foxes were eerie and terrifying, they were ultimately just Mutated Beasts. The truly horrifying thing was the human skin pasted on their foreheads.

That blood-stained human skin was both infuriating and chilling.

Under Zhang Ping's arrangement, Wang Jieming slept in the guest room, which was right next to Zhang Ping's.

After Zhang Ping left, Wang Jieming closed the door and let out a slight sigh of relief.

He had known Zhang Ping for a while and knew that Zhang Ping wasn't the type to joke around.

The problem was that everything Wang Jieming had experienced so far was based on what Zhang Ping and Liu Sishan had told him.

He hadn't seen the Tianchang Foxes himself. Even though Liu Sishan had killed those two Tianchang Foxes, they appeared as ordinary people to him.

So, was it possible that those two were actually assassins, and everything Zhang Ping said was just to fool him?

It was possible.

There had even been cases where Awakeners with illusion abilities had deceived a woman, causing her to live in a fantasy for the first half of her life. She only saw the truth after the Awakener died unexpectedly.

Zhang Ping had an organization behind him.

This organization was very powerful, especially 'Sister Sisi,' who could easily kill him.

Wang Jieming silently summarized. At least these two pieces of information were true. As for the rest, he would believe it for now but wouldn't make any judgments without absolute evidence.

Before sleeping, he thought of his mother, and the strange feelings made his heart ache.

He wished it was all just a lie.

...

Elsewhere, Liu Sishan also shared the information provided by Zhang Ping with Situ Shibai.

In the Sweep Team meeting room, Jin Bo, Chen Ming, and others were present.

Situ Shibai smiled and said, "The Tianchang Foxes are trying to muddy the waters in Mingzhu City. What do you think?"

"Hmph, those filthy beasts just want to eliminate any potential human talents. I say we take this chance to kill as many Tianchang Foxes as we can," Jin Bo sneered.

Chen Ming frowned, "That's not wise. Although my abilities are being interfered with, I have a feeling that if we act too aggressively this time, many people will die."

His ability was to foresee the future.

With this ability, he became the strategist of the Sweep Team, essentially its second-in-command.

However, due to the high rank of the Moon King, his visions of the future were often false. But as a high-level Awakener, his intuition was highly accurate.

"Chen Ming, do you know something?" Jin Bo asked suspiciously.

He knew that even after joining the Sweep Team, Chen Ming had a bad habit of being overly secretive, often withholding crucial information until the last moment.

"If I say it, it won't come true," Chen Ming said with a smile.

"Always the same line," Jin Bo grumbled.

"Some things might seem bad now but are important for the future. My intuition tells me that the Sweep Team shouldn't act recklessly for now," Chen Ming said, looking at Jin Bo.

Situ Shibai smiled, "But we can't let those foxes have it easy. Since their king is asleep, let's have the Barrier Group use the Illusory Light Sky to divide Mingzhu City into eight regions. If the foxes want to observe, let's make sure everything they see is fake."

"Man Ni is currently supporting Sisi," Chen Ming said.

Situ Shibai nodded, "I'll inform Sisi. Man Ni won't be able to support her for now, but once the Illusory Light Sky is activated, she won't need to hide anymore."

"Understood," Chen Ming nodded.

The Illusory Light Sky was a combination technique, activated by Man Ni, Chen Luowei, and Xu Jie from the Barrier Group.

Man Ni's ability was 'Black Curtain,' with advanced abilities of Black Passage and Black Chamber. The dark chamber where Liu Sishan and Zhang Ping met was provided by her. She also covered Liu Sishan's actions.

Chen Luowei's ability was Light and Shadow Transformation, with advanced abilities of Dynamic Transformation. She could change the color of light and shadow. Humans see things through light reflection, and she often worked with Man Ni to maintain the Sweep Team's base security and occasionally provide invisibility for Liu Sishan.

Finally, Xu Jie's ability was Solar Charging, with an advanced ability of Energy Sharing. She was the power source for Man Ni and Chen Luowei, allowing them to use their abilities for extended periods. Without her, they couldn't sustain their powers.

Once the Illusory Light Sky was activated, the three couldn't rest and could only maintain it for a week.

After that, they would have to shut it down to rest, or risk sudden death.

...

Deep into the night.

While most of Mingzhu City's residents were still asleep, an invisible black curtain began to descend from the city center, dividing the entire city into eight regions. The black curtain was quickly filled with various images.

The shape of the black curtain gradually changed, and so did the images.

Mingzhu City started to look different.

...

The next day.

Mingzhu City operated as usual, with no one realizing that the city had changed.

Even the Tianchang Foxes in the City Lord's mansion were unaware.

Yue Yi, Yue Er, and Yue San walked out of the City Lord's mansion.

They were responsible for providing food for the other Tianchang Foxes in the mansion, so they had to go out daily to hunt.

This wasn't difficult, but it had become dangerous with human Awakeners lurking in the shadows. However, they were sent out because they were powerful, far stronger than other Tianchang Foxes.

Their strength was second only to the Moon Prince.

"Yue Yi, do you feel something's off?" Yue San asked as they walked, looking at the passing pedestrians.

Yue Yi scanned the surroundings and shook his head, "No, did you notice something?"

"No, just a strange feeling," Yue San replied.

Yue Er laughed, "You're just being paranoid."

At that moment, Jin Bo and other fighters stood on the side of the street, watching the three Tianchang Foxes walk by.

Although the Tianchang Foxes appeared human to them, they knew they were Tianchang Foxes.

"Follow them."

Jin Bo told his teammates and then followed the Tianchang Foxes, who were oblivious.

In the Tianchang Foxes' view, everything seemed normal, with people coming and going, and no one behind them.

In reality, the Illusory Light Sky had already encircled the three Tianchang Foxes.

Everything they saw was an illusion.