Era of Magic and Martial Arts

Zuo Bai held his breath, the blue light flickering coldly in his one eye, staring intently at the result of the experiment.

He saw in the glaring silver light, the enchanting smile of the [Mask] beginning to collapse.

The silver light shone down, and the gold-rimmed glasses frame was the first to melt into golden droplets, which slid down the bridge of the nose, and the golden droplets turned black, staining the pale skin of the entire face like ink.

The [Mask]’s cheeks gradually blurred, the features twisting and deforming, like wax melting under high temperature, starting to dissolve rapidly.

Finally, the whole face collapsed into a whirlpool, asphalt-textured black liquid gushing out from it, flowing down the chin and neck.

In the blink of an eye, the entire suit, the playing card on the chest, the cloak on the back, right down to the pant legs and shoes, all visibly wriggling and transforming into viscous black liquid.

Then, with a "plop," the liquid fell into the sewage.

Underneath the water’s surface, the winding "serpent shadow" was similarly swallowed by the intense light.

The "serpent shadow," which had been continuously circling around the [Mask], seemed to freeze, becoming dim and thin, narrowing and shortening bit by bit, and under the silver light, it actually shimmered like dried ink.

Falling into the sewage, the black liquid seemed to want to repeat the trick, burrowing back into the shadow to escape the deadly light.

However, the shimmering silver light blocked any contact.

Immediately, the black liquid twisted frantically on the sewage surface like a fish out of water, unable to dive back in.

It kept shrinking and narrowing, trying to regroup, but could only struggle in vain.

Then, its color faded more and more, its volume decreasing, thin wisps of black smoke rising from its surface, like a monster being incinerated in a cremator.

Though still struggling, the [lifebar] representing its life continued to deplete, and total disintegration was just a matter of time...right?!!

"That’s right, this [Mask] is the real body, all the others are illusions he replicated."

Zuo Bai observed and concluded this.

As the true body of the [Mask] dissolved, with the "serpent shadow" underfoot being driven away, the surrounding [Masks] also dissipated one by one, like bursting bubbles.

The only regret was that Zuo Bai never heard the wailing of the [Mask], leaving him with a feeling of watching a silent film.

"The end of the experiment is ultimately less than perfect."

Zuo Bai felt a tinge of regret inside, there were still some questions in this experiment that he couldn’t unravel.

And on his retina, a ring of [Masks] was dissipating before his eyes, each turning back into air.

According to this sequence of dissipation, the last to dissipate should be the [Mask] behind him on his back, the one directly opposite the light shield, and the true body of the [Mask] being melted.

According to this sequence, the last to disappear should be the illusion of the [Mask] behind him facing the light shield.

"Five left!"

Zuo Bai silently counted in his heart, the blue light in his one eye flickering more urgently.

"Three left!"

In the silver-lit sewer, the speed of illusion disappearance grew faster and faster.

"The last one...the illusion of the [Mask], vanish into the air along with your true body!"

At the instant the last remaining illusion of the [Mask] behind him was about to dissipate, like a precision-timed event, the true body of the [Mask] before Zuo Bai was finally burned out, disintegrating to ash under the silver light.

Yet, the confident smile on Zuo Bai’s face abruptly froze, the blue light flickering on his retina seemed to still, solidifying.

He was horrified to see the [Mask] illusion behind him not only did not disappear but rather took another step forward.

Each step was three meters, ghost-like, appearing behind him.

A cold, eerie sensation seeped into his spine through his clothing, causing his back to break out in goosebumps.

That sensation was so real—not a phantom projection, nor a ghostly shadow, but a flesh-and-blood..."person"?

Thud—

Then, Zuo Bai’s ears caught up a beat too late, that vanished and then reappeared...the footsteps of the Death God!!!

Zuo Bai’s heart pounded with fright, the chip in his skull emitted a scorched smell, a tempest roared in the depths of his mind:

"So, the footsteps weren’t the shadow’s, but his?"

"The true form of the shadow wasn’t a shadow, so, the [Mask] could be a shadow, but not all shadows are the [Mask]?"

Zuo Bai’s brain raced, weaving together details he had overlooked or had unresolved doubts about:

"No wonder the shadow could be devoured yet revive—because the shadow was never the real body! Since it wasn’t the true body, it could naturally revive a million times if it died a million times!"

"No wonder the first shadow had to use ventriloquism...shadows are inherently silent, the speaker always hid in the dark. That shadow probably hid a walkie-talkie or something inside?"

"And...no wonder the footsteps appeared after the ’resurrected’ shadow...no wonder the second shadow felt subtly different..."

"That’s because...the second appearance wasn’t a shadow at all, but the true body of the [Mask]! It was the true body replicating and controlling the illusion!"

"So...the real [Mask] isn’t a single one, but a duality, two in one?!"

This conclusion plunged Zuo Bai into an ice cave.

He suddenly realized he had made a fatal mistake—from the very start, all along, the one performing with him was the shadow·Mask, while the true·Mask had never shown itself.

No, more accurately...the true·Mask had always been on stage, just invisibly like a bizarre magician in front of him.

And now, he finally saw the magician’s true face, yet it was also the end of this magic show nearing its curtain call!

"You..."

Zuo Bai’s throat went dry, thousands of words stuck in his throat, yet he didn’t know where to start asking.

And as if to confirm his final guess, he saw clearly—the shadow on the sewage surface under the [Mask]’s feet, which was originally just water ripples, was coalescing anew.

That shadow squirmed, gradually emerging into a humanoid outline.

When the outline fully formed, another identical [Mask] emerged from the shadow.

The two [Masks] stood side by side, with the only subtle difference being their eyes.

One was pitch-black as an abyss, without a hint of luster, as if born to consume all brightness;

The other’s pupil, with a mysteriously scarlet hook jade faintly visible, slowly rotated, exuding an unnerving evil.

The two [Masks] simultaneously raised their palms, movements perfectly synchronized.

One palm suddenly cracked open, revealing a bone blade, sinister and white, glinting with a cold metallic sheen under the silver light;

The other palm turned into a black satin, silently coiling upward, wrapping the bone blade surface with a spiral of dark patterns.

The two palms melded in a bizarre posture, piercing together into Zuo Bai’s back—precisely following the path of the initially torn-through wound.

"You said before, the same trick doesn’t work on scientists, I don’t believe it..."

At the same time, the two [Masks] grinned like mirrors, their lips moving in unison to utter just one voice.

The sound, starkly different from the one Zuo Bai had previously heard, lacked the eerie suffocating pressure from another dimension, instead more bone-chillingly, coldly ruthless like steel:

"Additionally, your way of wielding bone is too crude, let me teach you the correct usage of bone!!!"