Chapter 72: The Missing Person

"Susu, Mr. Yang. You're here." Inside the Bronze Coffin, Murong Mengli had reverted to her usual aloof demeanor. Every movement perfectly matched the elegant, composed persona of a noble, save for that unchanging nickname.

Yang Dongqing, already in low spirits, felt even worse the moment he heard the name "Susu." His gaze swept between the two of them, and his misery deepened.

It was exactly like getting your heart broken and seeking out a friend for comfort, only to discover that your friend had just landed a stunningly beautiful girlfriend. A double critical hit!

Being miserable was bad enough, but realizing your friend was living his best life made it so much worse.

"Is something the matter, Mr. Yang?" Murong Mengli asked, noticing his strange mood.

"It's nothing. Just a broken heart."

A strange look crossed Murong Mengli's face, but she didn't pry. She got straight to the point. "I kept the purpose of exploring the Abandoned District a secret until now, mainly to prevent any leaks. But since the operation is about to begin, I'll be direct. Please, take a look at this."

She reached into her handbag and pulled out a leaf that appeared to be cast from solid gold. The veins on its surface were distinct and incredibly lifelike. It didn't look like a handcrafted trinket; it looked exactly like a naturally grown Gold Leaf.

"I bought this Gold Leaf from a scavenger in the Abandoned District," she explained. "I carefully compared it against my family's ancient records. This should be a leaf fallen from the Gold Tree, and the Eye of Gold is exactly the fruit of that tree. Therefore, I suspect the Abandoned District holds clues to finding the Eye of Gold."

Su Mu nodded. He had already guessed her true objective. If it wasn't for the Eye of Gold, why else would she insist on exploring the Abandoned District?

He took the Gold Leaf from her hand and noticed its strange texture. It looked like solid metal, yet it felt exactly like a real leaf to the touch.

"What about the nightmare apostles? Are they here?"

"All seven have arrived. Not a single one backed out," Murong Mengli replied, offering a rare, teasing joke. "Your words must have struck them right to the soul, Susu. It seems they really went home and reflected on their actions."

Their perfect attendance didn't surprise Su Mu. His spiritual power had been growing day by day, and ever since he obtained the Immaculate Heart and Myriad Phenomena, it had skyrocketed. Hypnotizing seven nightmare apostles who were essentially still ordinary people was effortless.

"I am curious, though. Why insist on bringing these seven ordinary people along? Even if they are nightmare apostles, their actual combat strength is probably worse than a professionally trained mercenary."

"It's true that their combat ability is weak, but our goal this time isn't to fight—it's to search for clues. The biggest difference between nightmare apostles and regular people is their unique sensitivity to the monsters and items of the Nightmare World. It's a bit like a woman's intuition. It will make your search much easier."

Soon, Murong Mengli led them down into the underground base, where they met up with the seven nightmare apostles from before.

While Murong Mengli briefed them on the mission, Su Mu pulled down his Tinted Glasses. A flash of azure light flickered in his eyes as a wave of formless spiritual power surged into the seven individuals, reinforcing their hypnosis.

"Susu, this is the route map dictated by the scavenger," she said, handing it over. "The area circled in red is where the Gold Leaf was found. That will be your primary objective for this expedition."

Su Mu pocketed the map. Not wanting to waste any time, he led the group out while the sun was still up. Two commercial vans headed straight for the Abandoned District.

The moment they entered the Abandoned District, it felt as though they had stepped into another world.

A thick, grayish haze filled their vision. Beneath the smog lay endless stretches of ruined walls and shattered rubble. The human architecture was incredibly dilapidated, with skeletal frames of reinforced concrete swaying dangerously in the wind.

On the faintly visible streets, shattered glass and abandoned vehicles were scattered everywhere. The trees lining the road grew wildly, twisted and crooked as if they had undergone some bizarre mutation, their trunks covered in fleshy, tumor-like bulges.

The vans drove deeper, swallowed by the dense fog, until towering piles of rubble blocked the street completely, forcing them to slowly come to a halt.

"Everyone out," Su Mu ordered, and the five nightmare apostles all stepped out of the vehicles.

"This smog is so heavy. It wasn't like this when I came here last year," said a heavily tattooed man among the nightmare apostles, waving his arms vigorously to fan away the foul air.

Su Mu swept his gaze over the group and realized someone was missing. "Yang Dongqing," he called out with a frown.

A moment later, a highly reluctant Yang Dongqing stepped out of the vehicle. It was painfully obvious that the heartbroken man had zero desire to do anything right now.

"Let's go. Yang Dongqing, you lead the way." Su Mu pulled out a pristine white handkerchief to cover his nose and mouth. Although the pungent smog couldn't harm his immaculate body, the stench was still incredibly foul.

The group began their trek through the haze. Terrified of the Abandoned District, the five nightmare apostles were visibly on edge, their hands involuntarily gripping their firearms tightly.

Su Mu carefully observed their surroundings. As a transcendent, his visibility in the dense fog far exceeded that of an ordinary person. He saw that the signboards of the roadside shops had long since faded, their lettering blurred into nothingness. The doors bore marks of being pried open, and the display windows were caked with thick layers of dust and cobwebs.

Moss and creeping vines crawled up the walls of a few abandoned factories.

It was a forgotten urban district, so quiet it was practically dead.

"There's something here!" Yang Dongqing suddenly stopped in his tracks at the front of the group. Everyone looked over to see the corpse of a baby lying on the ground just a short distance ahead!

The infant was pale and chubby, looking remarkably cute, except for the bloody hole punched straight through its little head by a bullet.

A female nightmare apostle's face turned ghastly pale. "This is completely inhuman! Why would anyone shoot a baby!?"

"That isn't a baby." Su Mu pushed up his Tinted Glasses and led the group closer. When they finally got a good look, everyone instantly understood why he had said that.

Attached to the chubby infant's lower body were eight pitch-black, hairy spider legs!

Su Mu dabbed his handkerchief against the monstrous infant's wound, immediately staining the white cloth with yellow-green blood. He checked the dryness of the blood and said, "This thing hasn't been dead for long. A day or two, at most. It's highly likely that someone else beat us here."

Just as he was about to toss the soiled handkerchief away, his eyes narrowed. He stared fixedly at one corner of the cloth!

A single word was written on that corner! Written in fountain pen ink.

"Remember."

Su Mu frowned deeply, staring at the word "Remember" on the handkerchief. He had absolutely no idea how it had gotten there. After all, he carried this handkerchief on his person at all times.

Because he used to suffer from frequent nosebleeds, he kept it with him every single day.

Yet somehow, someone had secretly written on it without him noticing. To be able to do something like that without triggering the senses of his immense spiritual power... just what kind of terrifying strength did that person possess?