Chapter 22: Midnight Danger Zone

Midnight.

A modified armored vehicle and two buses exited the Peace Zone, heading toward the feared Danger Zone.

Inside the vehicle.

Li Yi and Zhang Gao, under Xu Ming’s care, were placed in the same group; the lead spirit-medium cultivator was a man around thirty, smoking a cigarette, radiating the dullness typical of middle-aged men.

“You two haven’t opened your spirit-medium senses yet—you can’t see much. So once we enter the Danger Zone, follow my orders exactly. Don’t wander off. Avoid special areas. Yang Yi’s route is extremely safe—he’s entered the Danger Zone many times and rarely has incidents. Anyone who works for Yang Yi knows those who skip this chance are fools. By the way, I’m Li Tao. Call me Tao Ge.”

“We’re not complete novices, Tao Ge. Don’t worry.” Zhang Gao said with a smile.

Tao Ge nodded: “Good. One last warning—if real danger arises, ignore everything and run immediately. No one will blame you. Yang Yi isn’t narrow-minded—he’s generous and broad-minded. He won’t care about this.”

“Thanks for the advice, Tao Ge. Before joining this mission, I thought the same—us small-timers are just here for the pay. If trouble comes, we run.” Zhang Gao said.

Li Yi stayed silent beside him, listening quietly.

Tao Ge smoked and said: “My strength isn’t much higher than yours. If danger strikes, I’ll run too. But Yang Yi didn’t bring us here to fight—he just needs us as eyes.”

“He only wants our spirit-medium vision.”

He pointed to his own eyes.

In the dim cabin, his eyes glowed faintly, just like the eyes of Lao Ya and the mysterious woman Li Yi had encountered before.

“My job is just to watch one area, report what I see—that’s all.”

Tao Ge said: “Unlike you, you earn eighty thousand per mission. I earn one hundred and twenty thousand. Just for personnel, Yang Yi spent tens of millions. Clearly, he expects big returns this time.”

“If he actually hunts a transcendent creature, this cost means nothing.”

Li Yi suddenly thought of something and asked curiously: “Why do transcendent creatures only stay in the Danger Zone? Don’t they enter the city?”

Tao Ge smiled, exhaled smoke, then said: “You’re wrong. It’s not that transcendent creatures stay in the Danger Zone—it’s that wherever they are, that becomes the Danger Zone. Of course, they sometimes enter the city, but the probability is low. They have territorial instincts and rarely change locations. Also, our world’s environment is complex. Until they confirm their place in the food chain, they won’t expand their range recklessly.”

“But to prevent risks, once cultivators reach a certain realm, they’re forced to handle dangerous incidents and hunt transcendent creatures. Last time, Yang Yi went on a mission and got into trouble—he nearly died in the Danger Zone. His friend risked his life to pull him out.”

“Is that the woman in the custom-fitted suit? Her eyes were unusual—I noticed. They were green, and vertical pupils.” Zhang Gao asked immediately.

Tao Ge nodded: “Yes, that’s her. Her name is Qin Qing. She’s a powerful cultivator too. You noticed her eyes, right? Green vertical pupils—damn, scary. Scientifically speaking, animal pupils fall into three types: horizontal, vertical, and round.”

Horizontal pupils are mostly found in herbivores—they provide a wide field of view, helping them spot predators and escape quickly. Therefore, animals with horizontal pupils are usually lower on the food chain.

“But vertical pupils are different. Their field of view is narrow, but their precision is extremely high, increasing hunting success. Only top predators evolve such eyes—like crocodiles, venomous snakes, and some legendary transcendent creatures, like jiao and qiu.”

Zhang Gao felt a chill: “So Qin Qing evolved vertical pupils—meaning she’s a predator among humans, and we’re her prey?”

“You can understand it that way.” Tao Ge nodded.

Zhang Gao asked again: “What about Yang Yi? Why doesn’t he have vertical pupils? His strength must be high too—he should be more evolved than Qin Qing.”

Tao Ge glanced at him: “How do you know Yang Yi doesn’t have vertical pupils? Do you believe that when he enters ‘hunting mode,’ his pupils instantly contract into vertical slits? Every cultivator evolves independently—each path differs. Just because it’s not visible doesn’t mean it hasn’t evolved. Nature has countless species, doesn’t it?”

“Tao Ge, what about round pupils? Can you explain?”

Li Yi asked curiously, sensing Tao Ge knew far more cultivation knowledge than he appeared—he was humbly seeking answers.

Tao Ge said: “Humans have round pupils. Creatures with round pupils are mostly destined to be mediocre—they see neither wide nor precise. So their survival and hunting abilities are poor. But nothing’s absolute. When an individual’s strength no longer relies on eyes for advantage, such beings become terrifyingly powerful.”

“Lions and tigers have round pupils. Their physical power is so overwhelming they have no natural enemies—so their eyes stopped evolving. They hunt with pure strength, not vision.”

“I see. Thank you for the explanation, Tao Ge.”

Li Yi suddenly understood—he’d learned much. Indeed, older cultivators were different.

As they spoke, the vehicle had left the city.

The roads around them had no streetlights—pitch black.

After driving another two or three kilometers along the abandoned highway, the vehicle stopped.

Ahead, the road had been deliberately blocked with concrete barriers, and warning signs lined both sides, all bearing danger notices.

“Everyone out.”

Someone whispered sharply. The engines cut off, and doors opened.

“Li Yi, Zhang Gao, follow me. Don’t get lost. If you fall behind, turn back and abandon the mission. You’re young—don’t die foolishly in the Danger Zone.”

Tao Ge seemed dull, but he was actually kind, looking out for the two newcomers.

“Understood.” Li Yi nodded.

After disembarking, no one lingered. Each spirit-medium led two cultivators swiftly away from the highway, without uttering a word.

Tao Ge did the same, moving rapidly in one direction.

Li Yi watched the group scatter, realizing the mission had begun—though its details were unknown to them. Only those who had opened their spirit-medium senses knew the full plan. Their silence likely meant they’d signed confidentiality agreements.

“Hurry up. We must reach the designated location within fifteen minutes.”

Tao Ge moved like a cheetah in the night—his speed was astonishing. Even obstacles were cleared with effortless leaps. His agility made him seem nothing like a thirty-year-old man.

Li Yi’s physical condition was also excellent.

His form darted swiftly across the abandoned road, steps light, nearly silent. Even at full sprint, his breathing remained steady, and his eyes glowed faintly—everything in the dark was crystal clear.

Zhang Gao was slightly slower, but his physique was still strong—powerful strides, excellent endurance.

“Detour ahead.”

Tao Ge suddenly warned. Though a wide, clear abandoned road lay straight ahead, he chose to detour, avoiding the easy path.

“Is there danger ahead?”

Zhang Gao whispered. In his vision, everything looked normal.

“Don’t talk. That place is haunted.”

Tao Ge’s face grew grim. In his spirit-medium sight, the abandoned district was eerily strange—red lanterns hung along the streets, red ribbons floated between buildings, as if celebrating some festive event. Faintly, he saw phantom figures moving back and forth along the abandoned roads.

Clearly, it was a ghost domain, occupied by malevolent entities.

“I see nothing.” Li Yi glanced ahead. Though his eyes granted night vision, without opening his spirit-medium sense, he could never perceive the truth.