Chapter 238: Chapter 238: World of Shadows

Hearing Xu Qingsui’s words, Lu Jingyu immediately frowned.

What kind of situation were they in right now? How could anyone laugh under these circumstances?

Knowing his team as he did, Lu Jingyu immediately dismissed the possibility. And this conclusion directly confirmed the anomaly Xu Qingsui had been mentioning.

"What exactly did you see just now?"

"When you warned them to be careful of the shadows, I noticed a few people smile. Although it was only for a split second, I definitely wouldn’t misread that gloating, snickering look."

Lu Jingyu’s gaze grew cold. Gloating at a time like this? His team members would absolutely never do such a thing!

"It seems there really is a problem. We need to do something!"

Meanwhile, a squad systematically checked all the rooms in the corridor they were responsible for. When they reached the final room, a team member suddenly cried out in alarm.

"Look, what is that on the ground?"

At his shout, everyone looked down at their feet. Immediately, the sight of multiple silhouettes waving their hands back and forth caught everyone’s eyes. Seeing this scene, everyone froze for a moment. Compounded by their initial shock, everyone completely threw Lu Jingyu’s earlier warning to the back of their minds.

Watching everyone stare blankly at the shadows on the ground, the man who had just cried out revealed the smug smile of a successful scheme. He watched the dazed team members as his mouth began to split open at a bizarre angle, the tear instantly stretching all the way below the roots of his ears.

"My compatriots, you may descend into this world! From this day forward, we shall no longer be shadows!"

An agonizingly grating voice emerged from the man’s mouth. After speaking, he burst into maniacal laughter. His face was full of anticipation as he waited for his companions to appear before him. However, as the minutes and seconds ticked by, what he expected did not happen. His smile gradually froze on his face, replaced by an expression of bewildered anger.

"Are you exasperated because your companions failed to show up?"

Just as he was about to explode, a gloating voice rang out. The man turned around to see Lu Jingyu and Xu Qingsui standing at the doorway, looking at him with the expressions of amused spectators.

"How did you find out?"

At this point, the man naturally understood that his scheme had been exposed. But his ability was replication. He could perfectly copy humans on a one-to-one scale without any flaws. How was he discovered just now? He felt that his proudest ability had been challenged; he had to ask and understand why.

Lu Jingyu smiled coldly. When he turned his head to look at Xu Qingsui, however, his eyes were filled with warmth. "How could your little tricks ever deceive Qing Sui!"

Realizing that it was Xu Qingsui who had seen through his plan, the man immediately glared at her viciously. He had previously wanted to replicate Xu Qingsui, but Lu Jingyu had ruined his attempt. Worried that he would be interrupted again, he had played it safe and switched his target to the team member he had just copied.

If he had known Xu Qingsui would see through him in the end, he would have risked it all back then. If he had successfully replicated her, no one would have been able to see through his plan. The man stared fiercely at Xu Qingsui, waiting for her answer.

Xu Qingsui’s lips curled up in a smirk as she critiqued, "Your ability to mimic humans has indeed reached a level of perfection. However, merely replicating a person’s appearance and personality traits isn’t enough; you also need to maintain your composure.

"You thought you had executed it flawlessly and no one had noticed. That part was true. Your mistake was being too conceited, thinking that reaching this step was enough, so much so that you failed to control your emotions and smiled prematurely to celebrate.

"And in this current situation, what normal team member could still manage a laugh?"

The man’s face immediately darkened. Perhaps because he had already been exposed, he no longer maintained his disguise. His entire body gradually turned pitch-black, standing before them like a shadow—only it was not the shadow of a human, but the shadow of a Mermaid.

"Since I’ve been discovered, there’s no need to say anymore. Prepare to face our boundless wrath!"

As if accepting its fate, the Shadow Mermaid suddenly let out a deafening roar. Its voice carried an aura that transmitted a signal. After roaring, it looked at Xu Qingsui and Lu Jingyu smugly, calculating that its companions outside would come rushing in at any moment. Yet, the only response it received was a pin-drop silence.

Realizing something had gone wrong again, a nervous expression could vaguely be seen on its pitch-black face.

"Don’t waste your energy," Xu Qingsui said. "I know you aren’t the only one who succeeded. The other teams have also been infiltrated by your forces. Since I’ve already discovered this, how could I not take precautions!"

Hearing Xu Qingsui’s words, the Shadow Mermaid became even more irritable.

"Impossible! Even if you noticed, how could you possibly stop the reinforcements of my brethren?"

Looking at the Shadow Mermaid’s demeanor, it seemed that if she didn’t give it a proper answer, it probably wouldn’t be able to sleep all night.

"I’ll let you die knowing the truth!" Xu Qingsui sneered. "After discovering you all, I naturally had to guard against you striking out in desperation.

"So before coming here, I had already made advance preparations. I’ve tampered with this room; anyone who comes in will have to pay the price."

Realizing that Xu Qingsui had completely and thoroughly dismantled its plan to call for backup, the Shadow Mermaid could no longer hold back. It immediately raised its right hand, and a similarly pitch-black giant battle-axe materialized in its grasp. It then swung the axe and charged straight at Xu Qingsui.

But just as it reached Xu Qingsui, Lu Jingyu stepped in front of her. Tan Lang was already in his hand. He held it horizontally in midair, squarely blocking the Shadow Mermaid’s attack.

The moment Lu Jingyu intercepted the Shadow Mermaid’s strike, Xu Qingsui seized the opportunity to inject her spirit body into the Shadow Mermaid’s Sea of Consciousness. However, the second she entered the Sea of Consciousness, she felt a blindingly harsh sunlight that stung her eyes so badly she couldn’t open them.

As expected of a Shadow Mermaid’s mental Sea of Consciousness—as long as someone stepped in here, they would be bathed in sunlight. Once their shadow appeared, everything would be entirely under the Shadow Mermaid’s control.

Briefly marveling at this in her mind, Xu Qingsui failed to notice that a shadow perfectly identical to her own figure had already crawled out from beneath her feet.

The shadow silently materialized behind Xu Qingsui, a cold smirk touching its lips. Simultaneously, a dagger-like weapon materialized in its hand. The weapon conjured by the shadow was just as pitch-black, but even so, it exuded a bone-chilling aura.

The shadow raised the dagger high, aimed the sharp blade squarely at the center of Xu Qingsui’s back, and viciously thrust it down.

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