Chapter 102: This Thing Doesn’t Work on Me!

"Little Mustache, weren’t you so cocky when you were hunting me down? Why so quiet now?"

On the second floor of the internet cafe, amidst the rubble of a collapsed wall—

The Human-Faced Spider stood there, nearly unscathed, brimming with arrogance.

In the corner, the bearded guy sat slumped, leaning against a cracked cleaver, his entire body drenched in blood.

He had been right.

This Lost One was indeed Combatant-Rank.

Just one rank above him—yet the gap was like a chasm.

The bearded guy lifted his head with difficulty, his vision swimming in a sea of red.

That guy—

He had once been a normal Awakened.

He had gained the ability to control and mutate spiders.

But when he refused to join the Demon Slayers Bureau, they had been forced to keep him under surveillance.

Then one day—

The informant who had been monitoring him vanished.

When the bearded guy finally tracked the guy down, he found that this once-human Awakened had turned into a spider monster—

And the informant?

His body parts were scattered across the entire living room.

Some of them were inside the spider’s belly.

Monsters like him had a specific name within the Bureau’s leadership—

Aberrant Lost Ones.

These special cases had only started appearing after the "Black Coffin Rises to the Heavens" Awakening incident in Changbai Mountain three years ago.

There wasn’t solid proof that the two events were linked—

But the Bureau was nearly certain.

The truth was—

Their understanding of Awakening Events was still shallow.

They hadn’t even fully deciphered the earliest case—

"Kunlun Immortal Palace", from a decade ago.

All they had gotten from it was a breathing technique engraved on a stone tablet at the base of the thousand-layer staircase outside the palace—

The "Primordial Return Technique."

And even that had taken them ten years to decode.

"If this were two days ago, this whole branch of the Demon Slayers Bureau might’ve been wiped out."

"...What?"

The Human-Faced Spider narrowed its eyes at the bearded guy.

The man’s head drooped, his body weak and near collapse.

Yet—

A grin split across his bloodstained, unshaven face.

Slowly—

The bearded guy stood up, lifting a trembling hand.

The spider tensed, sensing something amiss.

With explosive speed, it lunged forward like a cannonball, razor-sharp legs slashing.

A severed arm went flying.

But the bearded guy just laughed.

From his remaining hand, he suddenly yanked out a bloodstained talisman—

And slapped it onto the spider’s forehead.

His lips moved.

"Boom."

Silence.

Nothing happened.

The Human-Faced Spider twitched, then slowly peeled the talisman off its face.

It tossed it on the ground and kicked the bearded guy over with a sneer.

"Boom what, you dumbass?"

The bearded guy stared, dumbfounded.

The hell?

Was the talisman fake?!

No way—

He had seen the radiant, golden aura of righteous energy on it!

But then—

He glanced down at the talisman again.

The once-brilliant aura—

Had completely vanished.

"...Hey, little mustache."

The spider mockingly patted his face, voice dripping with sadistic delight.

"When you pulled that thing out, I almost panicked."

"Thought it was some kind of trump card."

"But this?"

"This is just comedy."

Memories of being hunted by this man surged through the spider’s mind.

The humiliation—

The anger—

Letting the bearded guy die quickly would be too easy.

No—

He needed to savor this.

With a cruel chuckle, the spider whispered,

"How should I torture you?"

"Maybe I’ll wrap you up in webs, leave only your head exposed—"

"Then slowly inject digestive fluids into your feet."

"Let your body melt away, bit by bit—while you watch me eat you alive!"

"Ke-ke-ke—"

Suddenly—

A soft breathing sound came from behind him.

Very close.

The spider’s hair bristled.

He whipped his head around—

And found himself staring at a ridiculously handsome, buzz-cut young man.

Standing just two meters away.

Holding a talisman.

Identical to the one he had just thrown away.

"...Who the hell are you?"

The spider’s instincts screamed danger.

How had this guy gotten so close without him noticing?

Had he been too focused on the bearded guy?

The young man said nothing.

He just moved closer, lifting the talisman.

The spider stepped back, eyeing it cautiously.

Then—

He snorted.

"You think that cheap-ass talisman can do anything to me?"

The young man took another step forward.

"Then try it."

"You seriously think I’d be dumb enough to slap that thing on myself?"

"I think you’re too scared to."

"...Heh. You little shit—fine! I’ll do it just to shut you up!"

"Then do it!"

"Fine, I will!"

"DO IT—!!!"

The spider lifted a leg, ready to slap the talisman onto itself—

But at the last second—

He hesitated.

"...Wait a second."

"You really think I’m that dumb?"

A twisted grin spread across his face.

His scarlet eyes gleamed with sinister intelligence.

"If I had to guess—"

"The moment I put this thing on, there’s gonna be a smoke bomb effect or something."

"Blinding me—"

"Letting you grab mustache-man and escape!"

The young man remained silent.

Then, without warning—

He casually poked the spider in the face with a laundry pole.

Then—

He dove under a desk, curled into a ball, and grabbed a chair cushion as a shield—

And covered his ears.

‘Good luck, bearded guy.’

He sighed sympathetically.

Then—

Light.

Thunder.

Fire.

BOOM—!

A blinding white explosion ripped through the entire second floor.

When the dust settled—

The second floor was practically destroyed.

From the wreckage—

A tiny, palm-sized, charred spider scurried toward the cafe’s entrance, frantically trying to escape.

Run. I have to run!

That bastard’s talisman was REAL!

How the hell did he get a talisman THAT powerful?

Was it related to the Demon Slayers’ breathing technique?!

Its mind was a chaotic mess.

But one thought was crystal clear—

If it didn’t run, it was dead.

Dodging overturned computer desks—

Evading collapsing debris—

Jumping over burning keyboards—

It leaped toward the exit—

Only for a girl to step into its path.

No problem.

She wasn’t an obstacle.

Except—

She raised her hand—

And slapped a talisman onto the door.

The spider’s six eyes widened in horror.

"OH F**K, NO—!"

BOOM—!

Under the desk, Chen Huai’an closed his eyes in pity.

A soft chime rang from his pocket.

His game interface had a new message.

【Target Eliminated: Spider Demon】

Rewards:

Demonic Cultivation Fragment x1

Spider Silk Armor x1 (Delivered)

…

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