182: Chapter 182 Total Annihilation

"Tang Zheng: In the early stages, I got into a conflict with the Resurrection Society, which caused my mission ratings to be exceptionally low many times, slowing down my pace of getting stronger. Otherwise, the Chu Huan that appeared in your previous dreams might not have been my match."

Chu Xuan: "I already instructed the past you to get a tattoo that says 'Regardless of life or death, must reach Level 10.' Did you do it? You should be far stronger this time than the previous times, right?"

"Tang Zheng: I am indeed a bit stronger, but very limitedly so, because I stayed in that mysterious place for too long, causing me to miss several mission progressions later on. Perhaps this is fate."

Chu Xuan furrowed his brows deeply.

"Tang Zheng: The world is on the verge of destruction. I don't have much time left now, and I am about to participate in a mandatory mission. Do you have any other questions?"

Chu Xuan pondered for a moment and sent a message: "Does the 'Never trust anyone' you sent me earlier have any special meaning?"

This was what Chu Xuan wanted to know most, because every time he entered a dream, he would also hear this sentence. However, Tang Zheng's subsequent reply left him stunned on the spot.

"Tang Zheng: Because of the Specter invasion, not only are there many Night Demon Clones mixed in the crowd within the dormitory building, but there are even more Specters outside. It is too difficult to distinguish who is human and who is a Specter. Besides that, there are flaws in the System, and so on... At that time, I was about to die and couldn't give you more hints, so I could only give you this advice to keep you alert at all times. This sentence might be a bit ambiguous, but my life was about to end, so I had no other choice."

Chu Xuan frowned slightly and sent again: "Is that all? I hear this sentence every time I enter a dream."

"Tang Zheng: I see. No wonder you couldn't trust me immediately back in the dormitory and instead found the flaws yourself at the last moment before deciding to kill Chen Qing. It seems this sentence caused you trouble. However, you don't need to dwell on it. The voice you hear should be related to your Awakening, a kind of early warning given to you by your Awakening. I told you before that self-awakened talents absorb scattered rules, so they are more powerful than those awakened later, and it is normal to have some unique features. The sentence you hear every time you enter a dream is like that. Its function is the same as mine; it is not really telling you to never trust anyone, but more of a warning to keep you vigilant toward everyone in this era of Specter invasion."

So that was it... Chu Xuan let out a soft sigh of relief.

"My friend, you must absolutely not believe his words!"

The Phantom Demon's voice drifted over: "Although everything he told you is the truth, and the voice you hear in your dreams is indeed meant to keep you alert at all times, he missed one point, and that is... the person you should be most vigilant against is not someone else, but him himself!"

Chu Xuan raised an eyebrow slightly: "Don't you think such sowing of discord is too low-level? Is it because he just told me that you successfully parasitized me in the future, so you are now sparing no effort to slander him?"

"My friend, I have to confess to you, that is indeed part of the reason, but I am not slandering or sowing discord; I am telling you the truth."

The Phantom Demon's voice sounded exceptionally sincere: "I might as well tell you, although your Awakening was formed by absorbing the overflow after the collision of rules, these overflow parts are not limited to your world; they also belong to the Divine Light World. So, do you still believe this Future Tang Zheng is really Tang Zheng? Perhaps even he himself doesn't know that he doesn't truly come from the future, but is merely a manifestation of a part of the rules. His ability to accurately tell you the future trajectory is just a part of your Awakening manifesting. Your Awakening is the result of a game between two worlds. You are just an insignificant grain of sand in the storm. Within it, there are opportunities, and naturally, there are dangers! Your ability to preview the future in dreams and retain your spirit in reality is the opportunity, while this Future Tang Zheng is the danger. If you really listen to him, you will definitely end up dying miserably."

Chu Xuan chuckled: "So, you are the only one who truly has my best interests at heart?"

"That is a given, because there is no conflict of interest between us. I am just the most loyal follower of the Final Phantom God. Other than that, the so-called world game has nothing to do with me."

"No conflict of interest?" Chu Xuan's lips curled up slightly: "But you have always wanted to occupy my body. The so-called changing vessel is just a lie to deceive me."

The Phantom Demon sighed: "You see, you have fallen into a misconception again. It was Future Tang Zheng who told you that the vessel could not be changed, so that is naturally untrustworthy."

"Hmm, I believe you. You are my truest partner." Chu Xuan nodded, then sent a message to Tang Zheng: "Do you know the origin of the Specter in the Xingchen Building?"

"Sigh! I have misplaced my trust after all..." The Phantom Demon sighed deeply.

Chu Xuan ignored the Phantom Demon because Tang Zheng sent another message at this moment.

"Tang Zheng: You and Bai Yunfei are exploring the Xingchen Building? How is that possible? Leave quickly; there is an A-Rank Specter inside that has lost its sense of self!"

An A-Rank Specter? Chu Xuan's heart skipped a beat.

"Tang Zheng: In my memory, you and Bai Yunfei did not explore the Xingchen Building that day, but merely passed by. On the morning of June 15th, under the witness of Ming Xiucheng, the building was demolished. A parasitized mouse escaped, and even with Ming Xiucheng's methods, he didn't catch it. This shows that it is similar to the Night Demon; it was chosen by him, a potential stock waiting to be harvested after promoting to S-Rank!"

Chu Xuan only glanced at it hastily and did not send a message back to the other party. Because at this moment, he suddenly felt that something was not quite right! The surroundings were too quiet; there was not a single rustle of wind or grass, and no one was speaking...

And it had been over five minutes since he got out of the car. Given the importance Bai Yunfei had shown toward him, how could he not have gotten out of the car to check?

Chu Xuan looked back at the convoy. It was silent in the darkness. With his eyesight, he could easily see through the car windows and clearly see the people inside, either with their heads tilted or hanging low, as if they were asleep.

Inside one of the military off-road vehicles, Bai Yunfei was sitting in the back seat. The car door was pushed open, and one foot had already stepped out, but his whole body was leaning against the car seat. His dirty face made it impossible to see his expression, but from the slightly raised corners of his mouth, it was not hard to see that he seemed to be sleeping extremely peacefully.

A sense of horror spread from his heart. "Squeak, squeak." A barely perceptible sound rang out from the roadside green belt not far away.

Chu Xuan turned his head abruptly to look. He saw a huge rat crouching in the bushes in the darkness, its pale green eyes staring straight at him, grinning to reveal dense, fine teeth, as if it were laughing.

The next second, his heart contracted sharply, and a sharp pain came. "Not good!" Chu Xuan secretly thought that something was wrong. His whole body went limp and weak. He immediately endured the discomfort and used the skill [Teleport] to appear ten meters away, wanting to get as far away from the rat as possible.

But when he reappeared, he was shocked to find that in the rat's open mouth, a heart that was still beating thump-thump had appeared out of nowhere. As it took a bite, bright red blood flowed down the corners of its mouth, looking incomparably eerie.

Chu Xuan's vision went black in waves. He slowly raised his hand to touch his left chest; his heartbeat was already gone...

In the last moment before losing consciousness, only the Phantom Demon's angry roar echoed in his ears: "Damn it! This is the authority of the God of Thieves, best at silent Stealing. It actually deceived me! Beast! You beast!!"

[You have received fatal damage.]

[Your health points have been depleted.]

[You are dead.]