43: Chapter 43 The Ghost of Time Lag (Part 1)

Deep within the Reversal Tunnel, Chen Mo stood where he was, staring at that floating orb of light.

The ten-second Time Anchor had passed, and the time core turned to ash, drifting through his fingers. That orb of light—the Time-Lag Ghost—was slowly reconsolidating its form.

The surrounding air began to warp.

It wasn't a visual distortion, but rather... a temporal one. He could feel time slowing down in some areas, speeding up in others, and coming to a complete standstill in some.

Chen Mo activated Time Perception.

Within a thirty-meter radius, those warped boundaries became clearly visible—like transparent barriers cutting space into countless small fragments. Some barriers were moving, some were static, and others were slowly rotating.

He had to avoid them.

Because once he fell into a Time Deceleration zone, his seven-second Prediction would drop to zero point seven seconds.

Zero point seven seconds was not enough to do anything.

The Time-Lag Ghost had fully formed.

It still looked like that middle-aged man, wearing an old-fashioned suit and glasses. But this time, his eyes were pure gold, with no pupils or whites.

"You killed my past," he spoke, his voice sounding as if it came from a great distance, "but you cannot kill my present."

He raised his hand.

The surrounding Time Barriers simultaneously began to move, closing in on Chen Mo.

Chen Mo retreated.

As he retreated, he observed the movement trajectories of those barriers. Within his Time Perception, their movements followed a pattern—alternating between fast and slow, sparse and dense, like some complex dance.

He was looking for a gap.

A gap that would allow him to approach the Time-Lag Ghost without being slowed down.

But the barriers were becoming denser, and the gaps smaller.

Finally, he was trapped in a space less than two meters in diameter.

He was surrounded by Time Deceleration zones.

If he stepped out, he would be caught.

The Time-Lag Ghost slowly drifted over, stopping outside the barrier.

"You are strong," he said, "but not strong enough."

He reached out, passing through the barrier, grabbing for Chen Mo's neck.

As that hand passed through the barrier, its speed suddenly slowed—not because of the barrier, but because it was inherently within a Time Deceleration state.

But Chen Mo could see it clearly.

The seven-second Prediction was still active.

He sidestepped to dodge, simultaneously slashing his blade at the hand.

The blade struck.

But the sensation was strange—like cutting into congealed glue, slow and sluggish.

The hand retracted, passing back through the barrier to the Time-Lag Ghost's side.

There was a wound on the hand, from which golden liquid was flowing.

But the Time-Lag Ghost showed no expression of pain.

He simply looked at the wound and then smiled.

"Interesting," he said, "you can actually wound me."

He raised both hands.

The surrounding Time Barriers began to shrink.

Chen Mo's space grew smaller and smaller.

Two meters.

One and a half meters.

One meter.

He couldn't wait any longer.

Chen Mo activated Infiltrator and vanished from the spot.

Seven seconds of invisibility.

He charged out of the small space, passing through a layer of Time Barrier—

Instantly, the world changed.

It wasn't a visual change, but rather... a change in speed.

His movements slowed.

So slow it was like swimming in water; every step required his full strength.

Prediction failed.

Seven seconds became less than one second.

All he could see was the present.

Chen Mo gritted his teeth and continued to charge forward.

He knew he only had seven seconds.

After seven seconds, the invisibility would end, and he had to break out of this deceleration zone before then.

One step.

Two steps.

Three steps.

In his Time Perception, he was still five meters from the exit.

But his movements were too slow.

Four steps.

Five steps.

Six steps.

Seven seconds were up.

Invisibility ended.

Chen Mo appeared in the center of the deceleration zone, three meters from the exit.

The surrounding Time Barriers were closing in on him.

He stood there and did not move.

Because he knew he couldn't escape.

The Time-Lag Ghost drifted over and stopped in front of him.

"It's over," he said.

He reached out, grabbing for Chen Mo's chest.

The moment his hand was about to touch, Chen Mo moved.

He pulled something out of his pocket—

A b-grade stabilizer.

He swallowed it in one gulp.

Instantly, those golden lines within his body began to flow frantically.

It wasn't deceleration; it was acceleration.

The sensation was strange—like someone had lit a fire inside him. The fire burned brighter and brighter, those lines grew more radiant, and finally—

His speed was restored.

No, it wasn't just restored; it became even faster.

Faster than normal.

[b-grade stabilizer in effect]

[Side effects temporarily suppressed]

[All attributes temporarily increased by 30%]

[Duration: 10 minutes]

Chen Mo didn't waste a single second.

He sidestepped the Time-Lag Ghost's hand and simultaneously slashed his blade at its chest.

The blade cut in.

Deeper than before.

The Time-Lag Ghost was stunned.

It didn't understand why this person had suddenly become so fast.

Chen Mo didn't give it time to think.

Second strike.

Third strike.

Fourth strike.

Every strike hit the exact same spot.

The Time-Lag Ghost's body began to tremble, more and more golden liquid gushing from the wound.

It tried to flee.

But Chen Mo was faster.

Fifth strike.

Sixth strike.

Seventh strike.

The Time-Lag Ghost's body finally couldn't hold out any longer.

It began to disintegrate, starting from the edges, turning piece by piece into golden fragments.

Those fragments scattered in the air, finally condensing into three transparent crystals.

[Killed C-grade Ghost Shadow 'Time-Lag Ghost']

[Obtained: time core fragment ×3]

[Current Fragments: 248]

[Memory Corridor Deep Trial Completed]

[C-grade Promotion available]

Chen Mo stood there, gasping for breath.

The ten minutes weren't up yet, but his body was already shaking.

The side effects of that b-grade stabilizer were still there—only suppressed, not gone.

He had to leave this place as soon as possible.

Chen Mo collected the three crystals and turned toward the exit.

Behind him, where the Time-Lag Ghost had finally vanished, a sentence remained:

"You will be back."

"Everyone will be back."

Chen Mo did not look back.

He continued forward, walking into the darkness.

Outside the tunnel, the sunlight was blinding.

Lin Wei was standing by the pickup truck; seeing him emerge, she was momentarily stunned.

"Your face..."

Chen Mo touched his own face.

It was cold.

Not the coldness of body temperature, but rather... the coldness of a dead person.

"Side effects," he said. "It'll be fine in a while."

He sat in the driver's seat and started the engine.

Lin Wei got into the passenger seat.

The pickup truck drove onto the highway, heading toward the Farmhouse.

Chen Mo gripped the steering wheel, his eyes fixed on the road ahead.

Ten minutes passed quickly.

The side effects began to kick in.

His body was shaking, those golden lines inside him running wild as if they were going to burst through his skin.

Chen Mo gritted his teeth and pulled the car over to the side of the road.

"You drive," he said to Lin Wei.

Then he pushed open the car door, walked to the roadside, and crouched down.

Lin Wei followed, wanting to support him.

"Don't touch me," Chen Mo said. "It will hurt you."

Lin Wei stopped in her tracks and watched him.

Chen Mo crouched on the ground, hands propping himself up, his body shaking like a leaf in the wind.

Those golden lines surfaced under his skin, vanished, then surfaced again.

Each time they appeared, they were accompanied by intense pain.

But he didn't cry out.

He just gritted his teeth and endured it.

He didn't know how much time had passed.

Maybe a few minutes, maybe half an hour.

The lines finally calmed down.

Chen Mo stood up and let out a long breath.

[Side effects subsided]

[b-grade stabilizer effect ended]

[Current Status: Normal]

He turned to look at Lin Wei.

"Let's go."

Lin Wei looked at him, her eyes holding something unidentifiable.

"Is it like this for you every time?"

Chen Mo did not answer.

He simply sat in the driver's seat and started the engine.

The pickup truck continued forward.

In the rearview mirror, the highway grew more and more distant.

Ahead, the outline of the Farmhouse loomed faintly.