Chapter 401

So that's how it is…

After listening to Li Ang's explanation, the Scorpio Director nodded knowingly, his dog head bobbing.

Not only does it require a massive amount of blood to weaken oneself, but it also demands an anomaly of equal or greater power than the Snow Maiden to force the exchange; from this perspective, the serpent-skin scroll's ability is merely decent, its tactical value far outweighing its practical utility.

Hmm… I didn't pay much attention earlier, but now that I look closely, the demon-skin scroll traded to the Snow Maiden radiates a mad, eerie, and dangerous aura—it's clearly an extremely powerful anomaly.

Judging by its material and aura intensity, it likely seals the soul of a great demon, whose Li Ang value in life probably exceeded 50 points; using this to trade for the Snow Maiden is almost a loss.

"You've got quite a few good items on you—even managed to spare a powerful anomaly just for trading. I doubt there's a Level Three Cleaner more 'luxurious' than you."

After sincerely exclaiming this, the Scorpio Director fixed his gaze on the 【Demon Registry】 in the Snow Maiden's hand and asked with interest:

"What's the ability of this anomaly? If you pour enough power into it, can you unleash the great demon's soul inside to attack your enemies?"

"No…"

Upon hearing the Scorpio Director's question, Li Ang's expression immediately twisted into embarrassment.

You really are… why do you always bring up the most awkward topic?

"It's fine—if you'd rather not say, don't."

Noticing Li Ang's slightly strained expression, the Scorpio Director grinned with his dog mouth, generously saying:

"For Cleaners, anomaly intelligence is a matter of life and death. Given this item's high Li Ang value, it might well be your trump card—I asked too bluntly. It's perfectly normal if you don't want to answer."

"…"

"Actually, there's nothing wrong with saying it…"

Recalling the batch of "powerful anomalies" he'd crafted under the earnest guidance of the third Director, Li Ang awkwardly scratched the back of his head, then instinctively turned his head away, his eyes darting as he replied:

"This thing… uh… once you write your name on it, the sealed great demon's soul awakens and personally translates your name into demon script."

"…"

Translating names… what a bizarre ability.

The Scorpio Director muttered in disbelief, his dog mouth twitching as he pressed:

"And then? What else can this 【Demon Registry】 do?"

"Nothing else…"

"…"

"Nothing?!"

"Yeah… that's the only ability this thing has."

"…"

So, it seals the soul of a great demon—and yet it's only good for translating names? What kind of idiotic anomaly is this? No wonder it was used for trading… wait—used for trading?

Realizing what this item was meant for, the Scorpio Director suddenly sucked in a sharp breath.

My most frequently used 【Injury Doll】 has a high rank, but its Li Ang value is only around thirty-something… so if I were to face this kid, he could use this ultimate piece of trash to directly swap away my most reliable anomaly?

Damn it! That's so cheap!

Imagining himself losing his 【Injury Doll】 mid-battle, forcibly replaced with a super-trash item that does nothing but translate names,

then standing there dumbfounded while the enemy smashes his face with the 【Injury Doll】—the Scorpio Director's scalp prickled slightly, and his estimation of Li Ang's combat power shot up dramatically.

With proper prior intelligence, just this one cheating ability alone would reduce the solo victory chances of my division's Level Two and Three Cleaners to zero—even Level One Cleaners might get taken down!

"Then this thing… uh… is actually quite suitable…"

Having crossed countless barriers between worlds and instantly understood what "unfair play" meant, the Scorpio Director's dog mouth twitched twice, then he deliberately changed the subject:

"By the way, I've faintly sensed your presence—I'm currently submerged in the sea. Tell her to search one layer deeper; she should be able to… no good!!!"

Mid-sentence, the Scorpio Director suddenly seemed to sense something, his dog face snapping upward in shock.

Li Ang followed his gaze upward and saw the River of Nightmares surge violently, crushing the crimson barrier the Director had erected until it sank downward.

Countless nightmares poured endlessly from the River of Nightmares, frenziedly slamming into the red-haired Director's defenses, instantly shredded into fragments, staining the entire night sky of the Wang Capital a deep crimson.

Yet the nightmares' frantic assaults were not meaningless—each relentless wave warped and sank the solid crimson silk net.

The River of Nightmares, held back single-handedly by the red-haired Director, finally tore through its last defense and poured down entirely upon the Wang Capital, while a figure clad in a gray robe and crowned with the Wang Mian descended with it.

"Don't you dare pass!"

At the sound of a familiar shout, the crimson silk net, which had slain countless nightmares, snapped back violently, tearing the Nightmare King apart in an instant, severing even the Wang Mian atop his head into pieces.

But even though the Nightmare King was instantly dismembered and killed, countless nightmares flowing through the River of Nightmares continuously released puffs of gray mist, each time reforming the body anew.

And as the crimson silk net recoiled, the million nightmares previously held at bay seized the red-haired Director's momentary distraction, flooding en masse into reality and diving toward the countless sleeping souls within the Wang Capital!

…

It's too late to stop them…

Watching the battle above, Li Ang drew a deep breath and clenched his fist tightly.

With the River of Nightmares seeping into reality, the Director can no longer catch the Nightmare King; if she stops restraining it, hundreds of thousands of nightmares will pour down—likely causing greater harm than the Nightmare King himself.

Under these circumstances, what the Director will choose is already obvious.

True to form, once she confirmed the Nightmare King could no longer be stopped, the red-haired Director released her suppression of the River of Nightmares, allowing the gray fog giant to slowly leak into reality, while she turned her full force toward eliminating the remaining nightmares; her red hair began to tremble, signaling the call to action.

According to the Director's plan, the Scorpio Director would now take over, hold off the Nightmare King for a while, prevent it from fully entering reality, and wait for her to reduce the nightmare numbers to a safe level before returning to execute a righteous two-on-one strike.

This plan made sense originally—but the Water Bearer Director's 【Insect-Exterminating Thorn】 shattered the Scorpio Director's prepared 【Dream-Eating Armor】, then six Nightmare Envoys joined forces and trapped the Scorpio Director himself.

Although I "bribed" the Snow Maiden and could directly extract the Scorpio Director, locating him within six constantly shifting Nightmare Realms would take some time—and during that time, the Wang Capital and the entire kingdom would be defenseless; with the Nightmare King's power, he'd likely… wait?

Watching the gray fog giant inching toward reality despite the barrage of red hairs, Li Ang locked eyes with its sunken eye sockets—and a sudden chill ran down his spine as an odd thought surfaced unbidden.

Its first target… isn't me, is it?