Under the leaden sky stood a city of deathly stillness.
Countless structures of steel rebar and concrete formed a vast and boundless dark silhouette, emanating an ancient air, becoming a behemoth capable of devouring innumerable people.
Like the dead city out of a horror movie, yet somehow still bearing a breath of modern civilization.
It was City Z, which after being consumed and merged by Deceit City, had now become the current ’host’ of Deceit City!
Just beyond an abandoned bus stop, a pair of headlights shone through.
An old bus slowly made its way in, coming to a halt at the edge of the platform.
Yue Shan was the first to protect Yue Qin, speeding off the bus as they jumped down.
And Chu He touched his eye patch, pulled open the window, and flipped out from his seat beside it.
Murong Hong had already dashed to the bus doors, but then she saw a few other passengers disembarking and approaching.
With expressionless faces and grey pupils, just one look at them made her body stiffen.
Murong Hong’s expression was resolute as she pulled out an item imbued with supernatural properties from her bosom and threw it on the ground, trying to buy herself some time.
But in the next moment, the bus doors slammed shut.
Darkness enveloped everything.
Using a supernatural item on bus number 444 could invite unknown changes.
And those truly terrifying creatures wouldn’t be afraid of the presence of a mere Defective Deceit, just like the master of that ancient house!
A shrill scream escaped from the bus, blood splattered on the windows, dripping down incessantly.
The bus did not pause for even a moment but continued on its journey, departing peacefully.
"We just arrived in Deceit City and Brother Bing and Sister Hong are already..."
Yue Qin’s face was filled with sadness and fear.
Among the remaining three, she was the only one without a transplanted Deceit, with the lowest resistance to the supernatural.
In other words, she was the easiest to die!
But there was no other way.
Originally, Yue Shan’s thought was that having the power of Deceit was like taking a slow-acting poison, which would one day lead to dire consequences.
He himself had transplanted Deceit Hand, so he could protect his sister. He was ready to risk his life to ensure his sister’s escape; it was the best outcome.
However, the development of events had completely exceeded the brother’s expectations.
"Protect yourself well! Keep all those supernatural items safely."
Yue Shan reminded his sister, thinking of Yue Qin’s death prediction.
It was a figure on a road, crushed and shattered by the wheels of a vehicle.
He swore in his heart that he would never let his sister end up like that!
As for his own predicted death, that didn’t matter to him.
Chu He surveyed the surrounding environment.
Deceit City was like a city from more than a decade ago, except the overall color tone leaned towards the dark, the sky was perpetually overcast, and occasionally, grey snowflakes would drift down.
The phone’s notification tone rang out, and he took out his phone to see the latest text message:
[Dear employee, welcome to the company’s annual event!]
[You are required to enjoy yourself here for three days, wishing you a pleasant time!]
[After three days, you may leave!]
Yue Shan and Yue Qin also received the message, exchanging glances: "Hang on for three days?"
They had made all the necessary preparations. A supply of emergency food was available; they had no problem lasting for three days.
"Even if we don’t have food or water, in such a large city, we should definitely be able to find supplies, right?"
"No, just to be safe, it’s best not to carry anything from this Deceit City on your person, let alone eat it..."
Chu He shook his head. "This time, we need to be aware of not just Deceit City itself but also various accidents, like... other people and Deceit!"
Within Deceit City, there could also be Deceit.
Take that bus, for example, which occasionally brings in quite a few ’tourists’, plus the employees who came this time, and even ordinary people occasionally drawn into Deceit City.
Although their overall number is very small, scattered across such a large city like sesame seeds, there was always a possibility of encountering them.
Judging from previous behaviors, meeting those half-mad company employees was probably not a good thing.
"In summary, let’s first find a place to settle down..."
Yue Shan began. "And, try to stay away from the scenes of death prophesies, like alleys, railings, and roads..."
He saw Chu He carefully examining his own death prophecy and couldn’t help asking, "What are you looking at?"
"From the background, it seems that all three of us are supposed to die within Deceit City. This creepy, dim sky is quite distinctive..."
"I think if I hold out until the end, just before death comes, I should give some hint to my past self..."
Chu He said with a slight smile.
As they talked, the trio walked along the deserted streets.
This was a bustling commercial street, but now, the surrounding shops were in disrepair, with many glasses smashed to pieces.
And there was not a soul in sight, not even small creatures like mice or cockroaches.
This was a city that had completely died.
"Wandering aimlessly is too dangerous, and staying put also feels a bit like sitting ducks. In this Deceit City, what could be the greatest danger?"
Chu He was pondering when Yue Shan suddenly lunged out, charging into a convenience store: "Who’s there? Come out!"
With a fierce smash of his left hand, he demolished half a wall.
This was not his innate Divine Power, but evidence of him being incessantly transformed by Deceit, indicating that he was moving further from humanity, ultimately to lose himself.
"Hey, hey, brother, don’t be aggressive!"
A disheveled figure with his hands raised high emerged from the dust.
He wore a shabby suit, his face covered in messy stubble, resembling a recently bankrupted hobo, and he was holding a bag of compressed biscuits: "We’re all people who’ve wandered into this city by mistake, we should help each other, I... my name is Leon, I’m a securities manager. You... are you a superman?"
Obviously, Yue Shan’s previous display of strength had made a deep impression on him.
"No, my friend here just works out a lot. Your English is very good."
Chu He said with a smile, "We three are tourists who’ve also wandered here by mistake. How long have you been living here?"
"I can’t remember. There’s no day or night here... at least half a month, damn it..."
Leon’s deep blue eyes and well-defined facial features made him potentially a very charming man, but now he emitted a rank odor that made him utterly unattractive.
"We’ve just entered. It seems this is a bizarre city..."
Chu He and Yue Shan exchanged a look: "Can you take us to where you’re staying?"
Deceit City occasionally lured people from the real world and slowly tormented them.
A place that allowed such an ordinary person to live for half a month was obviously relatively safe, without the fear of accidentally dying.
As long as they could get through these three days, then what needed to be considered was only how to leave.
"Sure... I’m almost going crazy."
Leon said, a bit neurotically.
He was so desperate for human contact that he showed not even a shred of wariness. His sanity was clearly not always online. He first looked around vigilantly and then cautioned earnestly, "You have to be careful. This city is haunted by resentful spirits..."