Chapter 195

Chapter 195: Dark Boundless Realm Part 50

Ambereye was startled. “You sense the mental coordinates? Is this just coincidence?”

If the ‘Angel’ in the Resistance Army was akin to a group administrator who planted mental coordinates in everyone’s minds, then Ghost was like an administrator with management permissions, while those without such permissions were mere members.

“There’s no mistake,” Ghost said. “I know every Resistance member in this city; those operating within the Midnight District should only be Yefim.”

Ambereye thought — Yefim must have been controlled by someone. It’s impossible for him to appear near a casino. Who could this person holding the mental coordinates near the casino be?

The face of the homeless man that Ghost possessed had inscrutable expressions. That face, dirty, haggard, and full of stubble, radiated an eerie quality that seemed out of place.

“Should we chase after?” Ambereye asked.

“Not advisable. We can’t rouse suspicion. The person is playing a game of cat and mouse with us,” Ghost replied. “Control a small creature like a rat or a bat to scout ahead. If we can identify them without alerting our presence, that would be ideal.”

Ambereye walked to a street drainage lid, and a little rat soon emerged from the gap and ran into the darkness.

“Head three o’clock,” Ghost focused on the mental coordinates, directing Ambereye to guide the rat.

Two minutes passed; as the rat approached the designated spot, the mental coordinates in Ghost’s mind suddenly vanished.

He frowned. “Gone. Did they notice?”

“It’s unlikely. My rat hasn’t reached there; unless they have some kind of perception ability,” Ambereye stated. “Even with superior perception, they couldn’t accurately discern the rat’s issue. There are plenty of rats around at night.”

Ghost pondered for seconds, unwilling to give up this opportunity. Whoever held the mental coordinates clearly had something amiss, and he must find out who this person was. If he was correct about who it was…

“Keep moving forward.” Ghost and Ambereye advanced roughly ten meters down the three o’clock direction when the mental coordinates reappeared in his sense.

His frown eased slightly as he paused. “Continue guiding the rat forward. We’re close.”

But then the coordinates vanished again.

“What’s going on?” Ghost looked perplexed.

“Stop, keep advancing. The person is playing hide-and-seek with us,” he said, leading the way forward by about twenty meters. Sensing no coordinates, they changed directions and attempted other routes. Finally, at eleven o’clock, he sensed the mental coordinates once more.

Before Ghost could command Ambereye to continue pursuing with the rodent, the coordinates disappeared again.

This happened several times. They advanced as the opponent retreated, and the chaser remained distant from catching any trail.

Ghost’s lips tightened, his tone resolute. “They’re toying with us. They can track our movements. It’s like kite-flying where we approach and they evade.”

“Seems they’re avoiding head-on conflict,” Ambereye observed. “Yet, they don’t leave. Why adopt such tactics?”

“Maybe a trap… Or she wants to toy with us.”

“Do you recognize her?” Ambereye noted something amiss. “You seem especially familiar with her. She’s implanted with mental coordinates; thus, you can sense her. Could she be our target traitor, perhaps the ‘Lady Fortune,’ the ‘Bluebird,’ or the ‘Ferryman?’”

“I suspect so,” Ghost chuckled. “Just her style.”

“What do we do now?” Ambereye asked. “How do we take her out?”

“Now, we can’t. I need a fit body. We arrived but haven’t set the plan,” Ghost responded slowly. “Let her roam the city for a spell.”

“If she left ‘Mechanized Dawn,’ why come here where ‘Mechanized Dawn’s’ branch operates?” Ambereye questioned. “This doesn’t make sense. She’d be smarter to flee, yet intel says ‘Lady Fortune’ is a wanted criminal of the entire organization who must be killed on sight.”

“There are two possibilities. Something in this city attracts her, forcing her risk. Or… she never left ‘Mechanized Dawn.’ She could have killed Shali on their orders. Thus, she came to the branch, fearless because ‘Mechanized Dawn’ wouldn’t hurt her. Alternatively, she might want retaliation, hence coming here.”

“Unlikely unless—”

Cold night enveloped them as only Ghost and Ambereye stood on one side of the street.

Ghost announced, “I need a new body; this one’s too weak.”

Ambereye nodded faintly but noticed a laser sight dot appear on Ghost’s form.

Eyes widening, Ambereye shouted, “Sniper! Watch out!”

Ghost, reacting slowly, felt an explosion in his chest; heated liquid splashed on Ambereye.

Coughing blood, Ghost staggered, grabbing Ambereye’s wrist, gasping desperately, “Don’t resist!”

Confusion flickered in Ambereye’s eyes but was gone.

The body Ghost possessed collapsed lifelessly onto the ground.

The laser dot appeared again, targeting Ambereye!

Swiftly, Ambereye rolled to safety, evading a bullet that gouged the ground beside him.

Stuck in a blind spot, Ambereye stood behind a wall. The sniper couldn’t pinpoint his position accurately.

Brushing off dust from his shoulder, Ambereye arranged his attire in a slow manner, “Close call…”

Yet pain gripped him. He rubbed his forehead, struggling. “Don’t battle control. Just possess me temporarily…”

Taking a breath, he continued. “Find me a new body. I won’t need yours then.”

Mental Ability holders resisted Ghost’s possession. Higher-grade individuals fought harder, but despite Ambereye’s resistance, Ghost could still forcefully take over.

“You can possess only touching the body…” Ambereye realized.

“Right. A weakness of sorts,” Ghost agreed.

“Quickly, it’s dangerous,” Ghost suggested. “Sniper is southeast…”

Ambereye queried, “Any mental coordinates?”

“Not sensed. They’ve vanished.”

“Stay low, move covertly…” Ambereeye concealed himself, skirting walls.

Halfway through, a distant gunshot echoed. The sniper’s bullet locked onto Ambereye, piercing his hiding spot.

Caught unawares, one bullet grazed his cheek, drawing blood. Shots struck Ambereye’s bulletproof vest, bruising his skin beneath.

The gun emptied. Ambereye seized his chance, diving out with his firearm, shooting back. Hidden in an alley, the gunner toppled down.

Ambereye kept wary, checking the body.

“Looks like a gang member,” Ambereye noted.

Kicking the corpse, a bomb hidden within exploded, tossing Ambereye several meters.

Regaining balance, ambushing eyes searched the area vigilantly.

No more noise.

In a dilapidated structure nearby, Kai Xin clung to the wall.

She crushed a remote detonator, brow deeply furrowed.

“Pity,” Adam remarked, “but knowing their range was unexpected.”

“Hmm,” Kai Xin responded.

She changed tactics mid-confrontation, throwing Ghost and Ambereye into wild pursuit. From this, Kai Xin inferred much.

Remembering surveillance devices in Ye Feim’s office, she wondered why she didn’t deploy more elsewhere. With resources aplenty from recent heists, securing more tech posed no challenge.

Adam commented, “Your puppet control strategy’s quite crafty, did you think of it yourself?”

“No,” she dismissed. “Learned it from ‘Mechanized Dawn.’”

Her battle with the Python Sphere acquainted her with his control tactics, which she applied herself. Unfortunately, time ran short.

Realizing the Ghost’s detection radius, she relied on spatial warps and hypnotic sounds, manipulating enemy thugs successfully.

“He’s out of casino range,” Adam reminded. “Follow him?”

Turning the tables, she decided if she’d track the Resistance or not.

“Keep going,” Kai Xin ordered coolly. “As long we don’t lose them, we’ll ‘kite’ all night.”