Chapter 194: Express Card
Without giving the cultists in the lobby any chance to speak, Lin Ye decisively smashed their heads with his fists.
Even without being able to use mental energy, Lin Ye could predict everyone's movements with his keen senses and crush their skulls before they could act.
Spiritual energy flowed within Lin Ye's body—without needing control, it naturally accompanied his movements.
Lin Ye ventured deeper into the massage parlor, eliminating every cultist he encountered along the way. Although he couldn't use the Power Gauntlets, he had learned some basic boxing techniques, making it easy to take down these cultists with single punches.
The troublesome ones were the technicians. Since he couldn't use mental energy, Lin Ye had to personally pull the parasites from their mouths before stabbing their vital points with the mutated dagger.
At first, Lin Ye needed to carefully examine them before making his move, but after handling several technicians, he gradually familiarized the process. Now he could basically complete the procedure within five seconds per technician.
In comparison, the cultists were much easier to deal with.
Relying on his senses, Lin Ye quickly found the hidden door leading underground.
This time, the stronghold leader wasn't waiting for him in the corridor, but Lin Ye could faintly hear eerie sounds coming from deeper below the hallway, from the building's depths.
It sounded somewhat like singing, or perhaps someone chanting a ballad—the voice was intermittent and mixed with screams. Lin Ye carefully inspected the entire first underground level. Aside from two middle-aged men lying corpse-like on operating tables, there was no one here.
The operating room had the same layout as the previous massage parlor's surgical space. Lin Ye pushed aside the full-length mirror attached to the wall, and a flood of insects with human organs growing on their bodies surged out, lunging at Lin Ye.
Not only that, but from his diagonal rear, the two middle-aged men who had been playing dead on the operating tables suddenly exploded. Two insects emerged from the flying flesh and blood, charging toward Lin Ye's back and the back of his head respectively.
This was a pre-prepared trap.
Unable to use mental energy, Lin Ye had to dodge sideways to avoid the pincer attack from front and back, but the insects nimbly changed direction using their limbs, continuing to assault Lin Ye.
The operating room had limited space, preventing Lin Ye from continuously evading.
Lin Ye's eyes flickered, locking onto each insect's vital points before drawing the two Spiritual Energy Pistols from his waist.
Pfft pfft pfft pfft pfft pfft pfft pfft pfft pfft!
The bullets precisely struck each insect's weak spots—mid-air, they had no way to dodge projectiles fired from the Spiritual Energy Pistols.
After clearing the attacking insects, Lin Ye directly crushed a green card, and a spiritual energy spear gradually took form, charging in his hand.
Lin Ye stood sideways at the entrance to the underground space, addressing the spiritual energy user who had already merged with the insect tree:
"Before you die, can you tell me which deity you believe in?"
Even now, Lin Ye didn't know what kind of monstrous thing he was fighting.
"...Damn it, I don't know either."
The insect tree person barely managed to produce a hoarse voice.
"You're not a participant too, are you? Why are all your initial identities cult stronghold leaders? Wholesale identity cards?"
Lin Ye felt somewhat speechless. He had already dealt with two cult strongholds, but only eliminated minor players—both mid-level cult members turned out to be participants.
'Could it be that all cult stronghold leaders are participants?'
"...You're a participant too? Had I known, I would've waited before using the card... But since I've already used it, I can only ask you to die here."
The insect tree person was extremely confident, not considering a second-tier spiritual energy user with most abilities sealed as a match for itself.
But it clearly failed to notice the spiritual energy spear Lin Ye was charging while hidden behind his side profile.
It wasn't just Lin Ye who couldn't use mental energy.
"Then goodbye."
Lin Ye didn't waste words, directly throwing the fully charged spiritual energy spear into the underground space.
The insect tree person reacted quickly, beginning to evade when Lin Ye revealed the spear, but Lin Ye predicted its reaction. The spiritual energy spear accurately struck its thick, towering body.
Boom!
Lin Ye followed the spiritual energy spear into the underground space. The spear had only blasted apart the insect tree person's body, failing to completely kill it.
Having charged into the underground space, Lin Ye naturally wouldn't let this opportunity slip. He continuously pounded various parts of the opponent's ravaged body before finally decapitating the human head growing atop the insect tree.
Only when a white card materialized above the corpse did Lin Ye stop his right hand from continuing to dismember the body.
【White Card--Unlock】
【Randomly unlocks one item from loot space (1/1)】
【Note: Hope you don't have too much junk in your loot space】
Lin Ye directly crushed the card. This time, the unlocked item was a short sword with a blurred blade.
Night Blade, mid-tier spiritual energy item.
'Speaking of which, it seems like it's almost nightfall...'
Lin Ye stored the Night Blade and began searching for loot. The underground space only contained some half-human, half-insect corpses—nothing particularly valuable. Finally, he found a blue card and a pink card on and within the insect tree person's body respectively.
【Blue Card--Support】
【Using this card can randomly teleport to near a participant (1/1)】
【Note: Essential card for professional delivery personnel】
'Using this card would likely teleport me inside enemy territory—truly easy to become delivery service.'
Lin Ye suppressed the impulse to crush the card. Other participants should still be in their development phase currently. If he didn't have unfinished business, he would definitely test it out.
The pink card was still a loot card with identical description.
Storing the cards, Lin Ye left the massage parlor and drove to the next suspicious location.
On the way to the next massage parlor, Lin Ye took time to explain the event handling process to the two students. The driver listened very attentively.
Ten minutes later, the sports car stopped outside another massage parlor.
"Let's pause here for now. I'll continue when I return."
Lin Ye entered the massage parlor and quickly discovered this wasn't a cult stronghold.
Although it didn't seem entirely legitimate either, that wasn't his concern.
Lin Ye left the massage parlor under the front desk staff's strange gaze.
"This one isn't it. To the next one."
Returning to the car, Lin Ye continued instructing the two students.
"This one isn't? One of our association members disappeared here, I thought..."
The driver found it somewhat strange but didn't elaborate, only muttering to himself before turning around to head to the next location.
"Wait, let me take another look."
Lin Ye got out and scanned the surroundings. This place was very close to the city outskirts, with few residents living nearby—the area was extremely quiet.
'A massage parlor opening in such a location is indeed somewhat strange... Could it be because they're afraid of Precinct inspections?'
Lin Ye's judgment that this massage parlor wasn't a cult stronghold was based on only two points.
First, the shop had no strange odors or sounds.
Second, the front desk and service staff were all normal humans, not cultists.
'But cults could also hire ordinary people, and odors and sounds can be concealed. If this really is a cult stronghold, then it must be important enough to require careful disguise.'
Considering this, Lin Ye glanced at the darkening sky, drew the Night Blade, and re-entered the massage parlor.