NABC Page 412
Page 412
Then, something even more incomprehensible happened.
The offspring of the Three Corpse Demonic Insects collapsed on their own in the face of extreme fear, before he could even give the order to retreat. They weren't killed or purified; rather, like a piece of program code that encountered a fatal error, they chose to delete themselves. The dark energies that constituted their bodies instantly disintegrated, turning into the purest particles that dissipated into the air.
Along with them, the controlled bystanders shuddered violently, and the black aura in their eyes completely dissipated. They stared blankly at the weapons in their hands, then at Zhou Ye standing close by, completely bewildered. They then let out terrified screams, dropped their weapons, and scrambled away from the scene.
The entire process was clean and efficient, without even a trace of energy collision.
The smile on Tu Jun-fang's face vanished completely.
He felt as if his heart was being gripped by an invisible hand.
His Three Corpses were demonic creatures he nurtured from the depths of his soul, the source of his power, and the art he was so proud of. They fed on the dark side of people's hearts, nested in the cracks of the soul, formless and intangible, yet invading everything. He had seen countless steadfast masters of the Dao reveal their ugly side before his Three Corpses, ultimately succumbing to their inner demons and becoming mere walking corpses.
But now, his insects couldn't even get close to the other side; they self-destructed out of fear.
What in this world could instill such pure fear in a monster that feeds on evil?
"This is your Three Corpses? A parasite that amplifies the host's negative emotions and pollutes the mind, while also eroding the body and physically manipulating it." Zhou Ye stood up, placed a few banknotes under the bowl, and then walked step by step towards Tu Junfang, whose expression had drastically changed. "The idea is good, but too low-level. What you're playing with is just the pitiful greed, anger, and ignorance in the hearts of mortals. Have you ever seen true evil?"
He paused, then walked up to Tu Junfang, the two of them less than three meters apart.
"Or rather, have you ever seen... a soul that embodies the collective goodwill of seven billion people?"
Zhou Ye didn't exude any aura or mobilize any energy. He simply stood there calmly, like an ordinary tourist chatting with someone.
But Tu Junfang felt like he was suffocating.
The Three Corpse Mother Worms, which he was so proud of and kept within his body, now let out an unprecedented, piercing scream from the depths of his soul. They were no longer ferocious demons, but had transformed into three pitiful worms thrown into lava. They writhed and trembled frantically, even trying to tear apart the soul link between them and escape his body.
What they sensed was not "holy light" or "righteous energy," but rather things that could be resisted and corrupted.
They felt an absolute crushing defeat in terms of "quality".
If Tu Junfang and his three corpses were a patch of mold growing in a sewer, then Zhou Ye's soul was a sun hanging high in the sky.
The sun doesn't even need to deliberately "purify" the mold.
Its very existence, its light and heat, are enough to make it impossible for mold to survive, causing it to evaporate on its own.
Tu Junfang's prized power to manipulate people was nothing more than a child's toy in front of this other party. It was like a madman trying to light the sun with a candle, appearing utterly ridiculous and pathetic.
Cold sweat trickled down Tu Junfang's forehead. For the first time, he felt the same powerlessness and fear that he had inflicted on others, a fear that came from the depths of his soul.
Zhou Ye walked up to him and stopped.
He extended his hand, a gentle, even friendly smile on his face.
"Don't be afraid."
he said softly.
"I just want to borrow your insects to do a small experiment."
Chapter 381 The Conceptual Experiment of Erasure
Tu Junfang's facial muscles twitched uncontrollably. He wanted to back away, to create distance, to hide in the shadows he knew best. However, his body felt as if it were filled with lead, every joint rusted shut, unable to move. This wasn't restraint, nor was it oppression; it was a deeper, soul-deep tremor that made him lose control of his body.
Zhou Ye's fingers had already gently landed on his forehead.
The touch of his fingertip was warm and smooth, without the slightest energy fluctuation, like a friendly older brother patting you on the head. But Tu Junfang felt as if that finger was the singularity of an entire star, containing a terrifying mass capable of completely evaporating him from the level of existence.
This time, Zhou Ye didn't use the core of the Herrscher of Reason to analyze it. He had better tools to deal with this kind of "technology" that relied purely on the soul and negative emotions. A barely perceptible power was drawn from the merit jade pendant deep in his sea of consciousness, and slowly flowed into Tu Junfang's brow along his fingertips.
There was no dazzling golden light as expected, no hissing sound that often accompanies the purification of evil spirits, and not even the slightest energy clash occurred.
Tu Junfang felt a warm current begin between his brows and instantly flow throughout his body, seeping into every bone and cell, ultimately gently enveloping his soul. It was a warmth that defied description, like a baby returning to its mother's womb, like a lost traveler returning to the fireplace of their homeland. In this warm current, his soul even felt a slight longing for 507 to melt away and return to silence.
The Three Corpse Demonic Insects within him, deeply bound to his soul and long since becoming a part of him, were also bathed in this warm current. They did not struggle, did not roar, and did not even show the slightest pain. They simply... fell silent.
Just as ice and snow melt into spring water, and ink stains disappear into clear springs.
They disappeared quietly, completely, and without a trace.
Tu Junfang's eyes widened suddenly. The trembling that had paralyzed him disappeared, replaced by an unprecedented and profound emptiness emanating from the depths of his soul.
He could feel that the connection between himself and the Three Corpses had been severed.
No, it's not "broken." "Broken" means that the remnant of the link still exists, meaning there's still a possibility of reconnecting. The current situation is that the link itself, along with the concept of "three corpses," has been completely "erased" from his life.
He subconsciously tried to activate his power, which was his means of livelihood, the foundation of his existence, and the sole basis for his becoming "Three Corpses" Tu Junfang. However, his mind went blank.
How do I control it?
What is it like to use the Three Corpses to spy on, tease, and amplify the dark side of other people's hearts?
What is it like to attach your will to an insect and erode the body and mind of another?
He couldn't remember.
Like a person born blind, no matter how you describe the color red to them, they will not understand. Tu Jun-fang is in this state now. He knows that he once possessed an ability called "Three Corpses," but what exactly this ability is, how to use it, what kind of experience it brought him... all related memories have become an undecipherable, meaningless jumble of gibberish.
He lost it, and with it, the ability to remember it.
"Yes, it works well."
Zhou Ye withdrew his finger, looked at the man whose eyes were gradually losing focus, and nodded in satisfaction. In his mind, the core of the Herrscher of Reason faithfully recorded everything that had just happened.
[Experimental Subjects: The Three Corpses (Original Version)]
[Experimental tool: Merit Jade Pendant (a micro-aggregate of faith power).]
[Experimental Procedure: "Merit" energy is injected into the target body that is highly bound to negative emotions and soul power.]
[Experimental Results: The target underwent "conceptual annihilation." This was not an energy counteraction or forced purification, but rather a fundamental logical overwrite of the target's constituent elements at the level of existential laws, reducing it to meaningless energy particles.]
[Conclusion: The energy of "merit" based on the power of faith does indeed have a conceptual erasing effect on this kind of evil magic that relies on negative emotions and the soul. Data recording complete.]
Tu Junfang's legs gave way, and he collapsed to the ground. He didn't scream, nor did he break down; he just stared blankly at the ground, muttering something unconsciously. He had lost his power, lost his identity as a Quanxing demon, and lost his most prized possession: "art."
This feeling of being completely negated at the level of existence is a thousand times more cruel than simply killing him.
He was now just a useless person, his body hollowed out by wine and women, unable even to properly utilize his Qi. An ordinary person...
Zhou Ye didn't even glance at him again, turning and walking towards the street corner. He didn't care what became of Tu Junfang. To deal with someone who took pleasure in manipulating people, stripping him of what he was most proud of was the most appropriate punishment.
He walked along, making plans in his mind.
"The Divine Machine Refinement is in hand. Its core is matter transformation and pseudo-life commands."
"The Three Corpses test is complete. The Merit Jade Pendant's ability to counter attacks on the soul and conceptual sides has been confirmed."
"So, the next goal... well, the Reverse Rebirth Triple Technique. I've heard that in Longhu Mountain, it's a technique that can restore a person to their peak condition, or even reverse aging. It involves the reversal of life forms, and it has great research value."
He raised his head and looked up at the night sky, as if his gaze could penetrate thousands of miles and reach the ancestral temple of Taoism.
"It seems I have to make a trip to the Celestial Master's Mansion."
……
The chaos in the food street had already attracted the attention of the outsiders of Na Du Tong. But when they cautiously approached, all they saw was Tu Junfang, who was slumped on the ground looking like a madman, and the crowd that had scattered and fled before gathering again to watch the spectacle.
Across the street, in a dark alleyway, several figures remained motionless for a long time.
Xia He's alluring smile had vanished without a trace, replaced by a deep-seated apprehension she herself was unaware of. Her captivating peach blossom eyes were now filled with terror. Her proud innate Qi, capable of captivating men, was essentially a means of manipulating hearts. But what had just happened sent a chill down her spine.
What if that man touched his own forehead with his finger?
She didn't dare to think about it.
"He...he formatted Tu Junfang?" Lü Liang adjusted his glasses, his eyes behind the lenses gleaming with disbelief. As an expert in manipulating memories and souls, he understood better than Xia He how terrifying what had just happened was. That wasn't just crippling martial arts; it was directly deleting the martial arts manual from your world, along with all memories and concepts related to the manual, erasing them all.
In the corner, Gong Qing's face was so gloomy it could drip water. He slowly exhaled a breath of stale air, his voice hoarse.
"I take back what I said before."
Xia He and Lü Liang both looked at him.
“He is not our natural enemy.” A hint of despair, unfamiliar even to himself, flashed in Gong Qing’s eyes. “We, the Quanxing, pursue freedom and breaking the rules. We are like a virus, creating chaos and disease on the body of order.”
“And he…” Gong Qing paused, as if searching for a suitable word.
"He's not a doctor. Doctors study viruses and then treat them. He's more like... antivirus software. He doesn't understand you, nor does he need to. He just detects..."
The program is harmful; then execute the command to completely remove it.
"He's not here to play around, nor is he here to demonstrate."
Gong Qing spoke slowly and deliberately, each word like a piece of ice striking Xia He and Lü Liang's hearts.
"He is disinfecting the entire world of superhumans."
If Zhou Ye were here, he would definitely burst into laughter, saying, "What does it matter to you if I destroy you? Don't take yourself too seriously!"
Chapter 382 The Panic of the Ten Elders' Meeting
In a top-secret conference room at the headquarters of NaDuTong, the atmosphere was so oppressive it was almost frozen.
The conference table was circular, but at this moment, those sitting there were not physical entities, but clear, stable, and incredibly detailed holographic projections. Each face represented the pinnacle of a faction in the world of supernatural beings; they were the rule-makers, the maintainers of order, and the supreme figures—the Ten Elders.
However, today, these giants, who usually keep their emotions hidden, all wore an unprecedented solemnity on their faces.
In the center of the conference table, two top-secret reports, recently marked as "top-level," floated.
A document from NaDuTong's North China region meticulously records the entire Biyou Village incident. From the abrupt appearance of the "tourist," to the purification of the Gu-body Saint Child in one minute, to the "downloading" of the Divine Machine Hundred Refinements in three seconds, and finally, their disappearance into thin air, every word challenges their preconceived notions of the concept of "Outsiders."
The other report came from an informant within the Quanxing organization, who had just risked his life to deliver it. The content was more concise, and even more horrifying—Tu Junfang, known as "Three Corpses," had contact with a target "tourist" at a food street in Beijing. The details are unclear, but the result: he was crippled. Not killed, not seriously injured, but his abilities, the very things that made him famous, were completely erased in an incomprehensible way, leaving him a mentally unstable cripple.
"Everyone, have you finished reading?"
The first to break the silence was Feng Zhenghao, the president of Tianxia Group. Although he was a rising star among the Ten Elders, his tone was the most somber at this moment.
"This person... is beyond our ability to judge by common sense. Purifying the Gu body of the Holy Child can perhaps be attributed to some extremely sophisticated purification method. Scanning the Divine Machine Hundred Refinements can be seen as some kind of super learning or insight ability. But erasing the Three Corpses... has already touched the level of laws. Everything he does is subverting our understanding of otherworldly beings."
No sooner had Feng Zhenghao finished speaking than a cold voice rang out.
"Hmph, who cares if he's a god or a demon! Daring to act so recklessly in the world of supernatural beings means he's an enemy of all of us!" Lu Ci, the head of the Lu family, his face covered in age spots, flashed with a fierce light in his eyes. "What laws, what subversion, it's all bullshit! I don't believe he really has three heads and six arms, invulnerable to swords and spears! Directly use all the company's resources, mobilize the military's special forces, and launch a saturation attack with modern weapons! I don't believe he can still stand after such a barrage!"
Lu Ci's suggestion made the atmosphere in the meeting room even more tense.
"Old Lu, calm down." Wang Ai of the Shu Zi Sect slowly shook his head, a shrewd glint in his always narrowed eyes. "Exterminate him? How? Let's not even talk about whether we can get permission from above to use that level of power. Even if we could, how would you find him? He can ignore space, appear directly in the heart of Biyou Village, and leave silently. Can your missiles lock onto a target that can jump through space at any time?"
He paused, glanced at Lü Ci's ashen face, and continued, "Even if you were lucky enough to catch him, Ma Xianhong's 'Ruhua,' a culmination of the Divine Strategist's Hundred Refinements, was like a paper toy in front of him. Tu Junfang's Three Corpses, formless and intangible, focused on attacking the mind, but he couldn't even resist and became an idiot. Is your Lü family's Soul-Brightening Technique more bizarre than the Three Corpses? Is my Spirit-Binding Technique more robust than Ruhua?"
Wang Ai's series of rhetorical questions left even the assertive Lü Ci speechless.