Chapter 764: Giant Shadow

'The Red Building Obsessions really have attached themselves to the tenants of Room Four. Their memories are awakening now, which is definitely not good news for me.' I hid beneath the straw mat. I was at an absolute disadvantage with no hope of turning the tables; my only wish was to escape this realm safely.

In the center of the Ancient Building, the "lords" of Longchang moved aside on their own, clearing a path two or three meters wide.

As the monsters from Room Four drew closer, I saw them with increasing clarity.

The three of them had bodies caught between human and pig. Parts were pig and parts were human, as if they had been forcibly stitched together. They looked grotesque and repulsive.

"This place is truly fascinating. I don't even want to go back," the leading monster said, touching its pig face. It exuded a foul stench, but its voice and tone were exactly the same as the Doctor's from the Red Building. I could be certain this monster had already been taken over by an obsession.

The soul of the Doctor had fused with the obsession, birthing an entity that was neither human nor ghost—a thing ruled by desire and completely devoid of conscience.

"Don't forget why we came here. It's easy to be a pig, but hard to be human. If you want to be a ghoul for the rest of your life, I have no objections. But if you dare act on your own and ruin our grand plan for reincarnation, no one in Longchang will tolerate you," another pig-man beside it retorted, showing the Doctor no respect.

The Doctor turned to glance at the two pig-men behind him. One was nearly 2.8 meters tall, an anomaly even among the monsters in Longchang. The other was gaunt and withered, retaining very few pig-like features; most of its body had already transformed back into a human.

"Rest assured, you two. I know what matters most. It's just that whenever I think about how all these ugly freaks right in front of me used to be living human beings, I get a little excited. I really want to eat them all."

"These beasts are still useful for now. Once we reincarnate, we will sever our ties with the Pig Cage Apartments and will never be trapped in one place again. You can eat as many as you want then." The gaunt pig-man, who hadn't spoken until now, stepped out from the Doctor's shadow. His face was ruthless, and his features were arranged like a vulture's. This was none other than the Security Guard from the Red Building. "We schemed for decades just to lure a Phantom Pig out of the Animal Realm, using the essence of its flesh and blood as a vessel to finally return here. If this plan fails, I'm afraid we'll have to wait another few decades. So all of you better stay alert. If anyone disobeys, don't blame me for showing no mercy."

Once the Security Guard spoke, the Doctor fell silent. He seemed extremely terrified of this frail-looking man.

I took in everything from a distance and pondered. 'These obsessions have schemed for decades to reincarnate as humans. What role does the Old Granny play in all of this? She is also a Red Building Tenant. It's highly unlikely that she is completely ignorant of everything.'

I knew the obsessions' goal, but I didn't know their exact method. All I knew was that the Old Granny's soul played a crucial role, and she absolutely could not be allowed to fall into their hands.

The three pig-men in the middle of the path walked right past me. Unaware of my presence just a wall away, they headed straight for the rear exit of Longchang.

My heart was in my throat. Only when they were over ten meters away did I dare peek my head out to continue observing.

To the "pigs" who originally lived here, the outskirts of Longchang were a forbidden zone of death they couldn't set foot in. A voice in their heads constantly reminded them that it was dangerous outside and that leaving meant certain death. Over time, this had practically become an instinct.

However, the Doctor, the Security Guard, and the others who had returned from the Red Building had no such reservations. They stepped out of the rear exit to look around. The Doctor and the towering pig-man even ran straight toward the dense forest.

"The footprints have all been wiped away. It's hard to tell which direction the escapee ultimately took."

"This scrap of cloth on the tree belongs to a woman's clothing. Could the escapee be the person we're looking for?"

"I vaguely recall that the old woman seemed to have escaped once, decades ago. Because someone died in her place, the matter wasn't pursued."

"Are we this unlucky? The reincarnation happens to be today of all days? Fuck, does that mean we have to go out and look for her?"

The monsters of Room Four, possessed by the Red Building Obsessions, conversed back and forth as they stopped just outside Longchang.

"Who even remembers what happened back then?" The gaunt pig-man wore a sinister expression. "To disrupt reincarnation is already intolerable to the will of heaven. Encountering variables is completely normal. Do not panic."

"Who could remember things clearly from decades ago?" The Doctor ordered the towering pig-man to retrieve the scrap of clothing while he stood beside the Security Guard. "What do we do now? We can only deceive heaven's will by using the soul of a living person. That old hag is the sole survivor from Longchang's past, and only her soul can return to this place. If we can't find her, how are we going to seize her chance at reincarnation?"

"See that path in the middle of the forest?" The Security Guard pointed. "The shrubs are trampled, vines snapped, and trees toppled. I wager only an adult Phantom Pig charging at full force could forge a trail like that. Even for the few of us, facing a Phantom Pig alone would mean certain doom—let alone for her, a defenseless soul."

"Are you saying the old woman's soul has likely met with a disaster? Doesn't that mean all our efforts were for nothing?"

"Can the mirror that bridges the yin and yang worlds be used yet? Zhu Li is on the other side of reincarnation. If the old woman's soul has scattered, her physical body in the Yang Realm will also die. You can have Zhu Li check on it."

"It can't be used yet. I suppose traversing reincarnation took too much of a toll on it."

On the edge of Longchang, the Doctor and the Security Guard didn't intentionally lower their voices, so I caught the gist of it. 'A mirror that can bridge reincarnation? Could they be talking about the Reincarnation Mirror Fragment? The item the Live Show wants me to find is in their hands? This is going to be difficult.'

Finding the Reincarnation Mirror Fragment was an optional task with a generous reward. I really didn't want to give it up until the very last moment.

The conversation between the Doctor and the Security Guard continued. After some discussion, they decided to drive the surrounding "pigs" to scout the path for them.

The pigs in Longchang all carried at least a trace of obsession in them. This was the sin they had committed in the past, a stain that could not be washed away.

The Room Four tenants possessed by the Doctor and the Security Guard were already entities no one in Longchang dared to provoke. With the added power of the obsessions, the three of them easily drove dozens of monsters into the dense forest.

Those pigs walking upright in human clothes acted like fish out of water the moment they left Longchang's borders. Every single one of them looked tense and anxious, their breathing labored. Some even abandoned walking upright, crawling on the ground like actual pigs and dogs.

The Doctor and his companions seemed to have known this would happen. Unsurprised, they continued to force more of Longchang's residents outside to search.

"At this point, we can only be sure by entering the forest to look. We need to see her alive, or her corpse if she's dead." Just as the Doctor finished speaking, he seemed to sense something dreadful and abruptly looked up toward the north. "How is this possible?! That beast whose roar shook the heavens is actually heading toward us?!"

The Security Guard standing in his shadow also revealed a trace of shock, his pupils contracting. However, he was much calmer than the Doctor. "It doesn't matter. Longchang is shrouded in obsession, and the karma of the Karmic Fire remains undispersed. All beasts will avoid this place; it won't dare come in."

His eyes darting, the Security Guard let out a cold smile. "But the appearance of this beast reminds me of something. It wouldn't go berserk for no reason; something definitely awakened it. The people in Longchang are bound by our lingering will and wouldn't dare step outside, so whoever provoked the beast must be the one who just escaped Longchang. And since the old geezer living on the second floor is merely a soul, it's impossible for her to attract such a beast. Thinking about it this way, there must be someone else who has entered the Animal Realm besides us!"

"Someone else?" The Doctor's expression changed. "Could it be that young man who came to disrupt things tonight?"

"It's highly likely it's him."

"What exactly is this guy's background? We planned for decades just to get one chance to cross reincarnation. He's completely alone, and it looks like he just arrived in Longchang. Where did he get the nerve to follow us into reincarnation!" The Doctor's voice was loud, doing nothing to disguise the shock in his words.

The Security Guard rubbed his hands together, the sound of grinding teeth coming from his mouth. "No need to panic. The living cannot approach reincarnation. Even if he followed us, he's nothing more than a remnant soul right now. He is a person from the Yang Realm, so coming to the Animal Realm means he'll definitely be interfered with by the will of heaven and face endless difficulties. We, on the other hand, have returned here like fish to water. Furthermore, our obsession can already dominate everyone. We now hold all the advantages of time, terrain, and unity. He won't be able to make any big waves..."

Almost the exact moment the Security Guard uttered his last word, a giant shadow that blotted out the sky crashed into the dense forest on the outskirts of Longchang. Swaths of trees toppled as blood sprayed in all directions amidst agonizing wails. In an instant, more than half of the Longchang residents he and the Doctor had just sent out were dead or injured. The most miserable was the pig-man who went to fetch the scrap of clothing. Due to its towering stature, it was the most conspicuous. Caught in the jaws of the giant shadow, it didn't even have time to struggle before being bitten in two and swallowed whole!

The Longchang residents who had just walked out scrambled back several times faster than before. The Doctor and the Security Guard, leaning by the rear exit of Longchang, turned ashen. They didn't care in the slightest if the others lived or died, but the pig-man swallowed by the giant shadow was actually being controlled by a Red Building Tenant. The giant shadow had struck too suddenly. That portion of obsession was devoured before it could even flee the body, and now all traces of it were completely lost.

'There were only a few strands of obsession that crossed over in total. Losing one weakens the power of the Red Building Tenants by that much. No wonder the Doctor and the Security Guard are so distressed.' Lifting the straw mat, I grabbed the girl's wrist and decisively darted out of my hiding spot.

The beast had just arrived at Longchang, multiplying the variables at play. This was the perfect time for me to slip away amidst the chaos.

'It should be getting light in the Yang Realm soon. I have to rush back to the top floor of the main building and hide near the Copper Mirror.'

The beast's appearance had shattered Longchang's day-to-day cycle of reincarnation. Massive changes were bound to occur in this place, but that wouldn't affect me. It was the Red Building Obsessions who should have a headache.

'That giant shadow was lured here by the Black Jade Pixiu. As long as I stay inside Longchang, it shouldn't leave.'