National Guardian's Gone and We're Done

”Ghhh... ghhh... ghhh...”

Zhang Jiancheng’s body, as if controlled by an invisible force, trembled more and more violently.

His hands clamped tightly onto his own face, fingertips digging deep into his skin as he tried to break free from the cage that bound his sanity.

His body bent into a bow, back arched and legs trembling weakly. His entire posture was twisted and agonized, like a large shrimp thrashing about as it’s boiled alive in scalding water.

As the ”ah” sound from his mouth twisted into a low, hoarse gurgle, a sense of foreboding filled the air.

The sound was like a wail from the abyss, filled with helplessness and despair.

Zhang Jiancheng’s throat was being strangled by an invisible hand. Every breath was a pained gasp, as if some force was frantically crushing and tearing his throat from the inside.

The reflection in his bloodshot eyes was no longer one of fear, but of utter madness and a grim determination for self-destruction.

His hands, like sharp blades, raked across his own face again and again. Each motion was accompanied by the sound of tearing flesh.

His nails dug deep into his flesh, and fresh blood gushed from between his fingers, staining his hands and the front of his shirt red.

Witnessing this, Huang Qiucheng and the middle-aged woman were horrified beyond belief, their eyes filled with utter disbelief and terror.

Zhang Jiancheng’s hands, like tireless machines, continued to ravage his already unrecognizable face.

Blood and tears mingled, blurring his vision and the boundary between him and the world.

Under his frenzied assault, his face became a mangled mess of flesh and blood. Ghastly wounds crisscrossed it like winding rivers, flowing with a lament for his life.

Finally, even his last agonized scream was replaced by silence.

Zhang Jiancheng could only open his mouth in a silent scream, his vacant eyes devoid of any spark of life.

On the floor, his blood pooled into small rivulets, mingling with the Yellow Paper that had fallen earlier to create a truly gruesome scene.

As the last piece of flesh peeled away from Zhang Jiancheng’s face, a horrific sight beyond all reason slowly revealed itself to them, causing even the worldly Huang Haibo to suck in a sharp breath of cold air, an unprecedented shock and chill rising in his heart.

The face that had once belonged to Zhang Jiancheng was gone. In its place was a visage meticulously woven from paper. It rested quietly upon the bloody, mangled contours of what was left, looking both bizarre and absurd.

This Paperman face wore a stiff, twisted smile.

The smile seemed to contain endless pain and struggle, but to an onlooker, it held a strange, inexplicable joy.

The corners of its mouth were turned up in an exaggerated curve, as if it were a puppet acting out a silent tragedy.

On both cheeks, blush as crimson as blood was smeared, creating a stark contrast with the pale paper and adding a demonic, ominous air.

This color, which should have been a symbol of vitality, now looked like dried blood, sending a chill down one’s spine.

The Paperman’s smile and the blush intertwined, creating an indescribable atmosphere of terror that seemed to make the very air tremble.

Zhang Jiancheng’s hands hung limply at his sides. Bits of flesh and gore still clung beneath his nails, dripping slowly to merge with the Yellow Paper already covering the floor.

His clothes, also soaked in blood, formed a bizarre harmony with the Paperman face, making it impossible to tell whether this was the collapse of a living person or an elaborately designed, terrifying trap.

At this moment, Zhang Jiancheng no longer possessed any human characteristics. His skin had turned an abnormal, sallow yellow, its texture shockingly similar to the Yellow Paper drifting around him. He was no longer a living person, but a part of this bizarre scene.

Inside the villa, the lights still flickered and the Yellow Paper continued to fall, but none of that mattered anymore.

All eyes were fixed on Zhang Jiancheng.

The man he once was had now become a horrific existence beyond description.

The air, thick with the stench of blood and a sense of dread, was nearly suffocating.

In that instant, time froze. The entire world was submerged in this irresistible atmosphere of terror.

’So that’s how it is.’

A sudden realization hit Huang Haibo. ’The true culprit must have anticipated our actions and turned them against us long ago.

’Zhang Jiancheng was no longer the real Zhang Jiancheng.

’His body had already been turned into a Paperman, numbly and rigidly carrying out the mastermind’s orders, and I didn’t even notice.

’To think this kind of Paperman can even seize a living person’s consciousness... It’s simply inconceivable.’

Having witnessed the entire process, Huang Haibo now completely understood his opponent’s methods.

Huang Qiucheng’s composure had completely shattered.

She covered her mouth and sobbed, large tears rolling down her cheeks.

Huang Qiucheng had never imagined that she would one day witness her beloved husband lose his life in such a cruel and brutal way.

’So this is how agonizing the process of a living person turning into a Paperman is.’

”So, you Demons feel pain too?”

A mocking voice echoed throughout the villa.

The voice seemed to come from every sheet of falling Yellow Paper, and at the same time, from every sheet on the ground.

”Demon? You’re the Demon!”

Huang Qiucheng roared, ”If you have the guts, then show yourself! I’ll make you regret ever being born!”

Her features twisted into an extreme snarl as she glared viciously at the Yellow Paper all around her.

”As you wish.”

As the androgynous voice echoed through the villa, the chaotic, fluttering sheets of Yellow Paper were awakened by an invisible force, instantly halting their ceaseless descent.

The Yellow Paper, as if granted life, reversed its trajectory against the air currents, swirling backward at an incredible speed—like fallen leaves caught in a gale, but far swifter and more orderly.

In this sea woven from Yellow Paper, a mysterious power began to converge and take shape.

The sheets of Yellow Paper attracted one another, sticking together as if performing a silent dance.

As their spinning intensified, they began to weave a complex pattern. The rotation grew faster and faster until they formed a massive whirlwind made of Yellow Paper.

This whirlwind was not the rampage of the Power of Nature, but was imbued with some ancient, mystical energy that inspired awe.

Under the influence of this power, the Yellow Paper gradually lost its original form.

The sheets merged and pieced themselves together as if being meticulously sculpted.

As time passed, an astonishing sight began to emerge.

A lifelike young girl slowly walked out from the whirlwind.

She wore a dress woven from Yellow Paper, so light and airy it seemed it might blow away with the next breeze.

The girl’s face was as exquisite as a painting, her features radiating an air of innocence and sweetness.

She looked to be seventeen or eighteen at most, as approachable and charming as the girl next door.

However, in this bizarre and terrifying environment, the girl’s appearance was utterly jarring.

Her sweetness and charm stood in stark contrast to the grim, terrifying atmosphere all around.

She was like a glimmer of light in the darkness—one that offered a sliver of warmth, yet made one doubt its authenticity.

The girl’s eyes were clear and bright, as if she could see right into a person’s heart.

But in this atmosphere, even her smile seemed to hold some indescribable, deeper meaning, making people afraid to get too close.

Inside the villa, the flickering lights added a hazy, uncertain quality to the strange scene.

The girl’s appearance made the already tense and oppressive atmosphere even more complex and unpredictable.

”It... it was you?!”

This time, Huang Haibo was truly shocked.

”Father, you know her?” Huang Qiucheng asked, bewildered.

”The number one genius of the entire Huamen Martial Arts Academy!” Huang Haibo’s expression was complicated.