The Eldritch Files

”He’s gone? He just left like that?”

Staring into the empty night, Han Su was utterly astonished. He took two steps forward to give chase but stopped.

A deeply unsettling feeling welled up inside him. ’He must have sensed something.’

The sheer number of questions in his mind felt overwhelming.

The whole point of leaving the city was to lure him out and find a chance to kill him.

But how did he seem to know more about the ambush than I did?

He mentioned Miss Ai, Song Chushi, and some plan... but I don’t even know about any of that...

Remembering the venomous look in his eyes before he left, Han Su couldn’t help but tense up. ’What is his goal?’

Amidst this anxiety, Wei Lan was urgently forming a crystal surface, using the reflection of light in the space to check on the movements of the Mechanical Ghosts.

The white monster was too strange; Wei Lan couldn’t find him in the darkness. However, the horde of Mechanical Ghosts was massive and impossible to hide. Looking at them through the mirror, Wei Lan’s expression instantly turned to one of bewildered shock.

”He’s heading toward the temporary containment center!”

”Is his target... the Mother Divine Tree?”

...

...

At the temporary containment center for those infected with red-eye disease, the sealing of the black notebook was finally nearing completion.

Realizing they had been played by the Rong Family of Seawall City, Red Windbreaker, Night Lamp, and Green Hat were extremely anxious.

They wanted to finish the sealing quickly so they could check on how Drunkard was doing.

But just as Green Hat, drenched in sweat that had soaked through his clothes, finally managed to close the black notebook with great effort, suppressing the active spiritual properties within bit by bit, he was about to breathe a sigh of relief when he heard Rong Qiyue’s cry of alarm:

”Something’s happened! Watch out!”

...

The shout startled the three, whose nerves were already stretched taut. They hurriedly checked the black notebook, only to find it perfectly intact. They immediately glared at Rong Qiyue. ’You just tricked us, and you’re trying it again?’

Rong Qiyue, who had just woken from a drowsy state, glared right back at the three of them.

”Why the fuck are you looking at me? I’m talking about outside!”

...

Night Lamp and the other two were startled again. They rushed forward a few steps and suddenly felt that the air was filled with some abnormal substance.

The lamps hanging over the temporary containment center began to flicker erratically. Immediately after, the shadows all around seemed to come alive, to boil, as if some abnormality within them was growing agitated, or perhaps, excited.

”What is that?”

BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.

But before they could react, alarms blared from the direction of the infected containment center, immediately followed by the sound of intense gunfire. It was as if the armed forces stationed there had already engaged something in the darkness.

There hadn’t even been gunfire this intense when they were sealing the Mother Divine Tree...

Realizing something was wrong, they crouched down simultaneously, pressing their palms into the shadows.

It was as if they had gained a pair of eyes in the darkness. They looked in all directions, and their faces instantly turned deathly pale.

Mechanical Ghosts!

They were coming one by one, wave after wave—an unknown number of Mechanical Ghosts, a black tide crackling with arcs of blue electricity, surging mightily toward the containment center.

It looked just like an army, already close and about to storm the entire temporary containment center.

”This is bad!”

Green Hat was the first to react. His expression went slack for a moment, then he charged forward.

”We’re in deep trouble this time!”

...

An instant later, Night Lamp and Red Windbreaker also snapped to their senses. Without another word, they rushed toward the edge of the battlefield.

Back where they were, the Doctor pushed up his glasses with his middle finger and asked Rong Qiyue, ”What is going on?”

”How should I know what’s happening in Qinggang?”

Rong Qiyue shot him an irritated glance, his brow tightly furrowed as he looked at the black notebook.

”All I know is that the source has just been sealed, but the infection remains. If it’s impacted now, then your Qinggang...”

He paused, then said in a low voice, ”It might really be gone for good.”

Amidst everyone’s stunned gazes, Rong Qiyue suddenly spoke in a deep voice, ”Miss Sisi!”

Beside him, the female secretary in black-framed glasses immediately raised her head, looking at him with a cold gaze.

Rong Qiyue gave a slight nod, and the secretary’s body twisted slightly.

The sound of her bones cracking and popping could be heard. The next moment, with a RIP, a gash was forced open in the flesh of her back, and another secretary split off from it.

Then another followed.

They kept splitting from the first secretary’s ruptured back. Their bodies began as milky-white masses, then writhed as they grew limbs, hair, and facial features.

Finally, they formed identical office suits and black glasses.

In an instant, the secretary had split into dozens of identical clones. They looked like a makeshift army as they quickly dispersed one by one, surrounding the group.

Such a horrifying scene made both the Doctor and Black Tiger freeze for a moment.

Rong Qiyue glanced at them coolly. ”What? As a scion of the Rong Family, did you really think I’d dare to venture out with just one person?”

The Doctor showed a hint of surprise. ”You actually keep a Pseudo-human with you?”

”An uncontrollable anomaly that has penetrated reality is called a Pseudo-human.”

Rong Qiyue said coldly, ”A controllable anomaly is called a tool!”

Listening to this, the Doctor’s eyes lit up slightly. He looked at Rong Qiyue with an expression of deep admiration and envy.

Rong Qiyue clearly enjoyed the reaction. He said to the two of them and Li Yiting, ”Stick with me, and I’ll keep you alive!”

The Doctor was taken aback for a moment, pushing up his glasses with his middle finger. ’I thought you summoned so many Pseudo-humans to protect the temporary containment center. Turns out it was just to save your own skin?’

Rong Qiyue, keenly sensing someone was cursing him in their thoughts, scowled and said coldly, ”It’s unstoppable. That’s the rational conclusion my knowledge has led me to!”

...

...

In the dead of night, endless Mechanical Ghosts crawled through the vast, wild grass and across the pitch-black highway, converging on the temporary containment center from all directions.

The armed personnel had already started sounding the alarm and were firing at the Mechanical Ghosts.

But it was no use. A volley of gunfire swept over them, yet the enemy showed no casualties as a large group of Mechanical Ghosts charged forward.

At a time like this, facing such abnormal creatures, only a large-scale blocking formation could stop the Mechanical Ghosts’ advance. But the number of Investigators and Senior Executors at this temporary containment center was far from enough. They could only form a few small blocking positions, which was of no help.

”Contract your fire! Get behind us!”

Just as countless armed personnel were overcome with shock and anger, they heard a sharp cry from behind them. Looking up, they saw three gray figures rushing over at high speed.

”Triangle blocking formation!”

Night Lamp shouted loudly as his figure flickered.

They all understood that while they didn’t know where this horde of Mechanical Ghosts had come from, Drunkard had caused a huge disaster.

In theory, the containment center should not only have had four major Investigators present, but twenty-four Investigators in total. Not to mention the Investigators’ assistants, Senior Executors, and the armed defense forces from Qinggang’s various departments.

Even facing an army of Mechanical Ghosts, they could have immediately established a twelve-point blocking formation, a nine-pointed star blocking formation, and a triangle blocking formation, then set up a perimeter of defensive fire.

No matter what, they would have been able to protect the containment center.

But at this moment, the containment center didn’t have anywhere near that many people. Drunkard had sent them all away, and not a single one had returned yet...

Now, they could only manage the triangle blocking formation, which required the fewest people.

Facing the countless, ever-advancing Mechanical Ghosts, Night Lamp and the other two chanted Spells aloud as they ran, already summoning various forms of Mysterious Power that surged toward the Mechanical Ghosts.

With every step Night Lamp took, he left a footprint crackling with blue electrical arcs. The series of footprints linked together, forming a massive tide of electricity that rolled across the ground toward the Mechanical Ghosts.

He was attempting to use the power of the Mechanical Ghost Sequence to deactivate the attackers’ Activity.

The Lady in the Red Windbreaker’s figure became a gray blur as she summoned the Banshee’s Shadow. She then stirred up a gale, trying to stop the Mechanical Ghosts’ assault.

The powers of the Banshee Sequence seemed to be suppressed by the Mechanical Ghosts. The Encrypted Spell she cast was the most grandiose, but it had the least effect on the Mechanical Ghost attack.

Meanwhile, Green Hat cursed resentfully as he ran with great strides. He raised both hands, and the sound of crashing ocean tides echoed in the night. Great swathes of foul-smelling seaweed grew ceaselessly, entangling the Mechanical Ghosts one by one.

The impact of the three on the Mechanical Ghosts’ charge wasn’t very significant, but they finally managed to reach the three blocking positions before the Mechanical Ghosts truly hit the containment center. They then raised their hands outward in unison:

[Thought is the boundary!]

[...]

Three voices rang out from three different directions, yet formed a strangely unified whole.

Dense Spiritual Power filled the air, weaving together. Faintly, it could be seen that all the Mechanical Ghosts charging the containment center seemed to slam into an invisible wall.

Their expressions were savage, ferocious, and terrifying, but it was as if they had hit a wall of air, completely unable to take another step.

From the distribution of the Mechanical Ghosts, it looked as if a massive, triangular air wall had been erected perfectly around the perimeter of the temporary containment center, blocking the momentum of every charging Mechanical Ghost.

But Red Windbreaker, Night Lamp, and Green Hat, facing this immense impact, all showed grim expressions, looking as if they were about to collapse.

Yet amidst their difficult struggle, a figure appeared in the depths of the night, dressed in a white suit with a golden wig. An insidious and disdainful expression appeared on his face as he looked toward the temporary containment center from afar and clenched his fist fiercely.

”This is our game. What are you trash doing, trying to join in on the fun?”