He was a Great Martial Master Fifth Rank, but an accident during his martial cultivation had left his mind unstable—lucid one mont and violently insane the next. The terrified students in the museum didn’t dare to move.
Just then, a nearby elevator chid, signaling its arrival.
DING—
A sliver of light illuminated the hall. Martin Archer imdiately dragged Hannah into the elevator with him.
"What do we do? He’s taking her to level B1."
The student watching from the monitoring room turned pale with fright.
Seeing his own son and his classmates still fumbling around on level B1, Wayne Sterling couldn’t sit still any longer. He imdiately shot to his feet, ready to head down there himself.
But a student stopped him. "Professor Sterling, people from The Martial Affairs Bureau are coming up."
The monitoring room was on the museum’s top floor, and sure enough, agents from The Martial Affairs Bureau arrived just then.
Wayne Sterling imdiately opened the door to the monitoring room and let them in.
"Are you with the university?"
"I’m Wayne Sterling from the archaeology departnt. The hostage is one of my students. They’ve gone down to level B1, where there are five other students..."
Hearing this, the investigator’s expression hardened. He imdiately looked at the monitors and demanded, "Why are you all still here so late?"
"It was... the archaeology departnt’s orientation..."
"This man is extrely dangerous! He’s a C-level criminal on our list. He has a split personality, and his strength is at the level of a Great Martial Master Fifth Rank. The darkness is a major trigger for his second personality to erge. Your students are in grave danger..."
Upon hearing this, the color drained from Wayne Sterling’s face. He looked completely stunned and collapsed to the floor with a THUD.
"Professor Sterling—"
***
Compared to level B2, level B1 was massive. It was divided into six exhibit halls, serviced by two elevators and two stairwells. Martin Archer was holding Hannah in the east wing, while Aurora Sinclair and the others were still wandering through the west wing, completely unaware of the impending danger.
Danny Archer even started mocking Seth Sterling. "See? There’s nothing scary on this floor, it’s just big—"
But he didn’t get to finish. Aurora suddenly hooked an arm around his neck and clamped a hand over his mouth.
It was the first ti a girl had ever held him, especially this close. Danny Archer’s heart started to pound.
But Aurora whispered, "Shh... Soone’s coming..."
***
anwhile, Hannah had already fainted from terror, a small rcy that spared her from what was to co.
The darkness caused the bloodlust within Martin Archer to swell.
His sharp, predatory eyes seed to gleam in the dark.
A smile played on his lips as his light footsteps carried him west.
As a Martial Artist, his hearing was incredibly sharp; he could detect even the faintest breath.
Back in the monitoring room, the investigator’s face fell. "It’s over," he said, his voice taut with tension. "His unhinged personality has surfaced!"
"What... what will happen?"
"The darkness is his hunting ground, and he’s the only hunter..."
Terrified, Wayne Sterling grabbed the investigator by his shirtfront. "Where are your n?" he yelled furiously. "Get in there and arrest him—"
"We can’t risk tipping him off. They’re heading down the stairs now."
Wayne Sterling was on the verge of losing it. "It’s a fifty-ter drop from the first floor to B1, and you’re taking the stairs?"
"What? Why didn’t you say so earlier?"
Furious, Wayne Sterling shoved him aside and made to storm out.
His son was still in there.
"Quick, stop him—"
"Let go! My son is still in there..."
"Calm down. Our team will be down there in about six minutes. He enjoys playing the hunter in the dark, so he’s unlikely to kill imdiately. If you take the elevator, the light from the car will instantly send him into a complete frenzy..."
***
Level B1.
Aurora Sinclair led them in a slow retreat.
Just then, the sound of a man whistling echoed through the silent hall. It startled Seth Sterling so badly that he was about to scream again, but Aurora quickly clapped a hand over his mouth.
"Little kitties, where are you hiding? Co out and play with ..."
The man’s voice rang out again, and the color drained from the four boys’ faces.
In the pitch-black darkness, only Aurora Sinclair could see the man’s position. The other boys were stumbling backward as if they were blind.
Suddenly—
THUD—
Soone had bumped into a display case, instantly drawing the man’s attention. "Hahaha... Found you."
Aurora Sinclair quickly shouted, "Get back—"
She, however, rushed forward to engage the man charging toward them.
The people in the monitoring room watched, stunned, as two blurry figures clashed in the darkness.
A mont later, a powerful punch sent Martin Archer stumbling back five or six steps, a mouthful of blood spraying from his lips.
He wiped the corner of his mouth, a cruel smile spreading across his face. "Little kitty, you’ve got sharp claws..."
With that, his speed suddenly increased. Aurora’s expression grew serious.
’This man is incredibly strong!’
The two clashed again. They fought for several minutes, and the man was like a cockroach that refused to die. Aurora would send him flying, and he would just get back up again and again to continue the fight.
Aurora was growing frustrated. Her strikes beca heavier, and a savage light began to creep into her eyes.
Suddenly, the man laughed and said, "We’re the sa kind. To think you’re just like ... Hahahaha..."
Then, at a speed visible to the naked eye, the man’s hair began to lighten, and even his pupils faded to gray.
The Power radiating from him grew increasingly frenzied, and his Combat Power felt like it was about to break through to a new level.
Aurora froze. In that single mont of hesitation, the man lashed out, kicking her viciously in the stomach.
Aurora was sent flying. She slamd hard against a display case before crashing to the floor, where she lay for a long mont, struggling to get up.
The man licked the blood from the corner of his mouth and slowly walked toward the prone form of Aurora. "Hahaha... You change color, too. We’re the sa kind, children of God... Hahaha..."
"AAAAH—"
As if erupting, Aurora shot up from the ground and smashed her fist into his face.
The blood boiled in her veins, feeling as though it would burst from her vessels, screaming to be let out.
She clutched her head and sank to the ground, desperately trying to suppress the homicidal urge surging within her.
Her pupils flickered between black and dark gray as a voice in her mind goaded her, a demonic chant against her sanity.
’Why suppress your true nature? You’re different. You have the power of a God inside you...’
She imdiately squeezed her eyes shut and began chanting the Heart Calming Scripture that Master Aerion had taught her, trying desperately to drive the voice from her mind...
An unknown amount of ti passed before the agents from The Martial Affairs Bureau finally arrived.
In the sudden flood of light, they saw the C-level criminal, Martin Archer, lying unconscious in a pool of blood. Not far from him sat the girl he had been fighting, cross-legged and muttering a scripture under her breath.
When they checked Martin Archer’s body, they discovered five or six of his ribs were broken.
***
By the ti Alvin Morgan got the call and rushed over, Aurora was sitting quietly in an ergency room, letting a doctor examine her.
The four boys were laid out on beds next to her, all of them having been knocked unconscious by the Power unleashed by both her and Martin Archer.
"Aurora, are you hurt?"
Aurora shook her head.
Alvin Morgan seed to let out a breath he’d been holding. He turned to go speak with the doctor, but Aurora tugged on his shirt.
"Morgan, that... that man... how is he?"
Seeing her hesitant expression, Alvin Morgan patted her head reassuringly. "Don’t worry, he’s fine. You just knocked him out..."
"So... is he awake yet?"
"No. He took a heavy blow to the head. He won’t be waking up anyti soon."
Alvin saw her nod, but her fingers were still clutching his shirt, as if she were anxious about sothing. His voice softened even more. "What is it? Was there sothing unusual about him?"
Aurora shook her head. "No..."
"Do you want to go ho? Leigh Miles doesn’t know what happened yet."
"Okay..."
Alvin helped her ease off the bed, but her legs suddenly gave out, and she nearly collapsed to her knees.
"Aurora..."
Alvin scooped her up in his arms and placed her back on the bed. "I’ll go get Beta Morgan..."
"Morgan, can you carry ho on your back?"
Alvin pursed his lips, then turned and crouched in front of her.
Beta Morgan, who had been waiting outside, stared in utter shock as his master erged with Aurora on his back.
He blurted out reflexively, "Master, allow !"
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