Chapter 677: Falling to the Ground
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Amidst the gunshot, Anderson’s body suddenly collapsed to the floor, using an amusing manner to dodge the bullet.
As for Klein, who didn’t fully understand the situation, he jumped to the side and activated his Spirit Vision while pulling out his revolver.
At that instant, his first reaction was that Anderson had gone overboard in his hunting last night and was now the target of revenge. He only wished to shout, “I don’t know him! It has nothing to do with me!”
At the table beside Anderson Hood, a stout man dressed in a s.h.i.+rt with rolled-up sleeves threw forks and knife, and he suddenly drew an already loaded double-barreled hunting rifle, aimed at the ground, and pulled the trigger from a commanding height.
These series of actions were nearly simultaneous with the hotel’s boss, but they were simply one step slower due to the many steps involved.
Bang!
The scattershot sprayed out countless tiny shrapnel, riddling the ground with holes. Although Anderson had dodged in time and avoided most of the blast, he was still struck by a portion of the shrapnel as his sides were immediately left mangled.
Just as Klein was about to kill the stout man with the double-barreled hunting rifle to help Anderson Hood get out of danger, he realized that the man suddenly turned blank, just like the hotel’s boss. He was then filled with alarm and horror as though he had jolted out of his stupor.
That’s not right. They’re not the true a.s.sailants… Klein rationally stopped attempting to pull the trigger. He quickly swept his gaze across the restaurant.
Discovering nothing with his Spirit Vision, he tapped his left thumb on the first segment of his index finger twice, activating his Spirit Body Threads vision.
At this moment, all the ladies and gentlemen in the restaurant had stood up in a fl.u.s.ter due to the sudden shootout. All of them were rus.h.i.+ng for the exit.
When pa.s.sing by the tumbling Anderson, an elegantly-dressed lady with pretty good looks suddenly paused. She released the dark-colored gla.s.s bottle she held in her hand and poured it at the Strongest Hunter.
Sizzle!
Anything that was splashed by the liquid rapidly turned black as it suffered intense corrosion. Anderson covered his face and leaped up, dodging this attack once again.
Immediately following that, a gentle and cute lady, a gentleman with newspapers, a red-vested waiter, and a five-year-old child whose hands were stained with sweets attacked Anderson Hood in all kinds of manners.
Flour, lit matchsticks, fruit knives, boiling coffee, and concentrated alcohol beverages inundated him as almost everyone in the hotel’s restaurant seemed to have one goal—kill Anderson Hood!
In this abnormally dangerous situation without any Beyonder powers involved, Anderson, who had been surrounded with no way to escape, employed an array of actions—leaping up, sending tables flying, igniting items ahead of time, barely managing to avoid suffering damage to any vital spot—and didn’t suffer any serious damage.
Meanwhile, Klein also noticed something abnormal.
In a corner of the restaurant which was blocked by a decorative cabinet, there was clearly thin, illusory black Spirit Body Threads extending from it, but it was silent over there.
In this chaotic and panic-stricken restaurant, it appeared especially abnormal!
The true a.s.sailant who planned the “pa.s.sersby murder case” is sitting over there? From the confusion, puzzlement, horror, and fl.u.s.ter that the hotel’s boss, waiters, and guests exhibited after attacking Anderson, they didn’t become marionettes. This is another kind of control… An illusion, an emotion seed of a Desire Apostle, or could it be an influence on one’s psyche? Klein suddenly had an idea light up in his mind. He immediately took two steps forward and sent a customer who still had b.u.t.ter on the corner of his lips flying, opening up a pathway for Anderson Hood.
The Strongest Hunter immediately somersaulted out of the encirclement via the path that was opened up, and he ran up to the hotel’s second floor. Then, with his back to the wall on the corner of the staircase, he gasped for air.
“Has my provocative powers reached this level? Even the ordinary residents that I don’t know wish to kill me and have actually rose to arms? Man…” Just as he spoke, Anderson pulled his right rib and nearly cried out in pain.
No, no, no. The real circ.u.mstance is that a person plagued with bad luck shouldn’t do things like hunt pirates… The reason why Klein had abandoned approaching the target to attempt to control them with Spirit Body Threads was because he had thought of a possibility.
The pa.s.sersby were implanted with psychological cues or had suffered manipulation on the psyche level. Only then would they attack Anderson in an orderly fas.h.i.+on. This didn’t match the Beyonder powers of a Desire Apostle, as the attacks by the manipulated pa.s.sersby were targeted and precise, without showing any observe signs of preparation. And Klein had formerly heard of the name of the potion formula of a Sequence 4—Manipulator!
In addition, according to the Psychiatrist released from Creeping Hunger, Klein always suspected that Toscarter Island had a mission or figure related to the Psychology Alchemists.
In addition to the psychological cue and the control on the left side of the mind, it was rather similar to that of the Spectator pathway. Klein had long believed that a Manipulator very likely belonged to the Spectator or dragon pathway; thus, making the outline of the matter relatively clear.
The Psychology Alchemists really does have an important base in Toscarter Island. They also sent a Sequence 4 demiG.o.d go watch over it. This demiG.o.d influences certain pirates and makes them unknowingly do his bidding, but these pirates had unfortunately ended up as Anderson Hood’s sponsors last night. Hence, their true investor came knocking!
Keeping his expressions in check, Klein looked at Anderson and indifferently said to him, “It’s likely that one or several of the pirates from last night is involved with a hidden demiG.o.d on this island.
“Do you think something like that can be done by a Mid-Sequence Beyonder?”
“I can’t be that unlucky, right…” Anderson’s voice grew softer before it turned into a mutter. “Indeed, those people were controlled and are innocent. Thankfully, I didn’t attack back, or I would become the main suspect of a shocking murder case and be given a bounty! When that happens, I’ll be in trouble and could only become a pirate.”
“…”
The corners of Klein’s mouth twitched slightly.
“If the ones being controlled had been pirates with Beyonder powers, or Mandated Punishers, or priests of the Church of Storms, how would it develop?”
“I would already be dead.” Anderson threw up his hands as he said in realization, “You mean he doesn’t want me dead and only wants to give me a warning?”
Klein nodded in a serious manner and said, “So, you still have a chance.
“Yes, to apologize.”
Go see what that demiG.o.d is up to.
“Apologize?” Anderson’s face wrinkled immediately. Placed in a difficult position, he said with great difficulty, “I have quite a reputation in the Fog Sea.”
Klein didn’t say a thing. He stood up, patted his coat, and prepared to walk off.
At this moment, Anderson lunged forward and rushed to the entrance of the staircase ahead of Klein. He yelled, “I’m sorry! It was my fault!
“We can talk about anything!”
He paused for a second and repeated again, “I’m sorry! It was my fault!
“We can talk about anything!”
Clap! Clap! Clap! A series of slow claps sounded on the first floor as a figure appeared at the staircase.
Amidst the light footsteps, this figure slowly walked to the bend, but Klein instinctively moved his gaze away as though he didn’t wish to know what that person looked like.
In addition, he realized that he didn’t have any intentions of raising his arms or aiming his gun. It was as though he had been cued and had lost the intention of resisting.
This is terrifying… Yes, it’s not a face-to-face hypnosis, which is why I could detect it. But if I was directly targeted, the repercussions would be unimaginable… I can be influenced now. In the way Miss Justice would explain it, the other party will use the sea of collective subconscious to silently arrive beside my island of consciousness, and then they would do something to a certain extent? Klein came to a realization as he had the sudden urge to leave and return to his room.
This is the silent “instruction” given to me by the demiG.o.d? Klein roughly understood that the other party wished to communicate with Anderson in private; hence, he didn’t resist and walked to the stairs before returning to his room.
In less than five minutes, Anderson knocked on his door, his face grimacing.
“Done talking?” Klein asked without much surprise.
Anderson gave a heavy nod.
“Phew… Yes, he got me to help him do something. As for what is it, I can’t tell others.”
“Do you still remember what he looks like?” Klein deliberately asked.
Anderson thought carefully as he suddenly frowned.
“I don’t remember…”
As expected… Look at you. For 1,600 pounds, you offended a demiG.o.d. It wasn’t worth it at all… Klein silently sighed and then said, “Can we leave tomorrow?”
“Yes. There’s no rush for that matter. Let’s resolve the problem with my bad luck first,” Anderson didn’t hesitate to answer.
Klein didn’t speak further as he pointed at the floor.
“Still having breakfast?”
Anderson was first taken aback before revealing a smile.
“Of course!
“No type of frustration can influence eating and sleeping!”
The two went down to the first floor and discovered that the waiter was silently clearing up the shattered items. The boss and the customers had all forgotten what had happened.
…
After breakfast, Anderson continued going out, busy obtaining his bounty rewards and Beyonder characteristics money. He also did some preparations while Klein stayed in his hotel room, converging the spirituality that overflowed from his advancement and using worms to test his Marionettist Beyonder powers.
At half past two in the afternoon, he went above the gray fog ahead of time and began practicing for the upcoming Tarot Gathering. After all, Mr. Fool would very casually and lightly punish The Hermit Cattleya.
Sitting in the chair belonging to The Fool, Klein began playing out the three punishment plans he had decided over the past few days. Two of the plans needed him to borrow some of the power of this s.p.a.ce, and two of them needed to use props. Hence, he needed to decide on the entire process ahead of time. He would then familiarize himself with it, and he couldn’t reveal his lack of fluency at the critical moment.
After an unknown period of time, Klein exhaled and confirmed his plan.
Then, he conjured The World. Without any items, he saw the countless dense black threads that emanated from his body.
Items conjured using the powers of the mysterious s.p.a.ce above the gray fog possess a certain amount of spirituality… So they come equipped with Spirit Body Threads. And in the real world, items without life do not have any. Klein familiarly controlled the black threads and quickly completely controlled The World.
Now, not only could he make The World’s expressions more intricate and have reactions that were more like a real person, he could also make the marionette’s spirituality fluctuations become more natural. It wouldn’t appear as lifeless anymore!
Apart from that, he was like a player who had two accounts, gaining The World’s vision, hearing, as well as his other senses.
After completing all of this, Klein glanced at his golden pocket watch, sent Little Sun a message, and began to silently count his heartbeats.