Death Notice-Book 3: Chapter 16: The Phantom Demon Disaster
“Is it a solar eclipse?” The gradually darkening sky made pedestrians on the streets of Paris involuntarily look up.
Gazing at the massive black-green vortex high in the sky that blotted out the sun, everyone’s hearts were shrouded in an ominous shadow.
“This can’t be! Today is only May 6th!” Lü Kuang looked pale as he stared at the sky, muttering to himself, panic mixed with a hint of shame and annoyance. Remembering his confident words from last night, he felt his face burn even more, his heart filled with extreme embarrassment.
“Don’t worry, the Phantom Demons just appeared early. The main plot you mentioned still matches, which is very advantageous for us!” Qin Lun said with a smile, comforting him, which made Lü Kuang’s expression improve considerably.
This young man dressed like a college student loved to show off, but his heart wasn’t bad. Most youths his age shared the same dreams and vanity. Superpowers, status, money, beautiful women, the admiration of companions—who could truly rise above such worldly desires?
At that moment, he and Hill sat in the second row of the business van. The driver was Xiao Dao, and beside Xiao Dao was Qin Lun. When they got into the van, Qin Lun and Hill consciously sat on the right side of the front two rows. Since roads in France drive on the right, this position allowed them to open the door and jump out at any time, facing directly toward the sidewalk.
If the business van were blocked by Phantom Demons, the most inconvenient seats for escape would be the back row, as there were no doors there. To get out, one would have to move to the middle section. Currently, Liza and her daughter, along with Jonathan, were sitting in those two seats.
“It looks like the newly bought Paris map came in handy. Xiao Dao, turn left ahead, we’re going straight to the police station!” Jonathan took out the Paris map from his bag, checking it while giving Xiao Dao directions.
At that moment, a new change occurred in the massive vortex in the sky. A huge castle slowly emerged from the large vortex. The castle had multiple stacked watchtowers and upturned eaves with bracket sets—it was a large castle from Japan’s Warring States period, a Tenshukaku.
This enormous Tenshukaku floated in the air, with vine-like black tentacles waving beneath the castle. Countless black dots were thrown out from the Tenshukaku, like an early summer drizzle, scattering and falling to every corner of Paris.
Shortly after the Tenshukaku appeared, the large vortex finally began to shrink and close. However, the vortex’s disappearance did not bring anyone a sense of relief, because more medium and small vortices appeared in the sky.
From the centers of some medium-sized vortices, large Sekibune with tall bow and stern towers, as well as multi-storied ships bearing massive pavilions, slowly sailed out. From their holds, countless black dots were likewise ejected, falling toward the city below.
The crowds running frantically on the streets of Paris gradually came to a stop, staring fearfully at the sky, the ominous feeling in their hearts growing heavier. People had realized there was nowhere to escape; the entire Paris was under the cover of those black dots.
“Has the apocalypse finally come?” a down-and-out street musician muttered to himself, holding his guitar.
“Maybe it’s just a paratrooper drill!” a middle-aged man in a suit grumbled, uttering words even he didn’t quite believe.
“Perhaps it’s just a mirage…”
“Beep!” With a shrill sound tearing through the air, a black beam as thick as a bucket shot from the bow of the lowest floating multi-storied ship, striking the top of the nearest skyscraper.
“Boom!” A loud explosion erupted from the skyscraper, the walls groaning horribly. The entire building broke off from two-thirds of the way up, bricks and rubble raining down like a downpour.
“Ah…” Screams rose one after another on the streets of Paris. The sudden disaster finally shattered all of people’s illusions.
People scattered like frightened birds, panic-stricken, hiding in shops on both sides of the street, pulling out their phones to call for help. All around, there were bustling shouts and curses.
“Dammit, move out of the way!” Watching the crowd jammed in front of the business van, Xiao Dao’s veins bulged on his forehead as he leaned out the window and shouted loudly.
“Xiao Dao, sit properly!” Just as Xiao Dao was furious and flustered, Qin Lun’s calm voice reached his ears.
“…Should we go on foot?” Xiao Dao pulled back into the car and slammed the steering wheel hard.
“Walking would be suicide. Those Phantom Demons are about to land soon!” Qin Lun tilted his head with a strange expression, smiling as he slammed the Mercedes’ accelerator to the floor. “Hold the steering wheel steady, we’re charging through!”
“Vroom…” The engine, with over 200 horsepower, roared ferociously. The large body of the Mercedes van shot forward. The people blocking the front of the vehicle were sent flying in all directions, like bowling pins hit by a ball.
“Thud!” A young French man hit the front of the van, tumbled over the body, and fell off behind the vehicle, leaving a bright red streak of blood on the Mercedes’ windshield.
“Ah!” a French girl screamed in terror, vanishing after a flash in front of the van, her scream cutting off abruptly.
“Clatter!” The Mercedes jolted violently twice, the body tilting sideways, but it soon stabilized, as if it had just run over a large log.
“I… we…” Xiao Dao’s face turned ashen, and he subconsciously moved to step on the brake, but Qin Lun kicked his foot away from below.
“Didn’t Brother Lü Kuang say it already? This world is just a game; they’re just NPCs in a racing game!” Qin Lun’s face beamed with a smile as he approvingly patted the gangster’s shoulder. “You did right. We have to break through to save everyone! Just a few dozen meters more, keep it up, I believe in you!”
Xiao Dao’s face went from green to white, his mind blank. He numbly held the steering wheel, momentarily thrown into confusion.
“Thud! Thud! Thud!” He had only zoned out for a few seconds when several violent impact sounds came from the front of the van again.
As one figure after another disappeared under the wheels, Xiao Dao’s eyes finally changed. He felt an intense urge to vomit surge up. However, after the nausea, a tingling warmth flowed from his tailbone. The heavily secreted adrenaline made his hands tremble slightly, but his eyes gradually grew bright and red, completely discarding his last shred of hesitation.
Looking at the screaming crowds scattering in panic on the street, the Mercedes fell into silence. Apart from Qin Lun and Hill, everyone else was still in shock. However, the way they looked at Xiao Dao now carried a hint of strangeness.
They couldn’t see Qin Lun stepping on the accelerator. Combined with his later comforting words, everyone thought Xiao Dao had done all this on his own. Yet, no one was willing to speak up about it; even the usually righteous Jonathan kept his mouth shut.
Xiao Dao was also trying to save everyone, and perhaps this really was just a game world—it was just too realistic! Although they faintly felt something was wrong, no one was willing to dwell on the issue further.
After the Mercedes broke out of the blocked street, the crowd ahead had thinned considerably. Accompanied by attacks from the ancient warships high above, explosions were continuous. No one dared to stay on the open streets anymore, all hiding in shops or cars.
“The next corner is the police station. We’re almost there!” Jonathan suppressed his excitement and exclaimed in a low voice. Xiao Dao breathed a sigh of relief, and the nearly frozen atmosphere in the van eased slightly.
“Clang!” Just then, two black shadows darted out from an empty side alley, slamming heavily onto the front of the van.
Everyone froze, staring intently, and immediately gasped sharply.
They saw two terrifying humanoid creatures clinging to the hood, one on the left and one on the right. These humanoids resembled Zombies, wearing sleeveless hemp shirts and bamboo hats. Their muscles looked like dehydrated jerky, showing a dark red hue. Their faces had no flesh; gray skulls with two intimidating crimson lights flickering in the eye sockets.
These two Zombies held samurai swords, the sharp blades almost half embedded straight into the hood, fixing their bodies onto the front of the van. Wisps of white smoke rose from the holes in the hood.
“They’re Blade Ashigaru!” Although Lü Kuang had fought this lowest level of Phantom Demon countless times in the game, he couldn’t help trembling all over now, completely unable to control himself.
“The engine’s broken, get out quickly!” Xiao Dao stepped on the accelerator a few times, then his face changed drastically, and he shouted in fear.
“There’s still momentum; don’t brake. All of you jump out; I’ll control the steering wheel!” Qin Lun held the steering wheel with one hand, narrowed his eyes, and as he turned sideways, he and Hill exchanged a glance, whether intentional or not.
Hill nodded slightly, bent down, pushed open the door beside Lü Kuang, and kicked the college student out. Then he opened the door on the other side and jumped out of the van.
The priest rolled on the ground and stood up immediately, without hesitation grabbing Lü Kuang by the collar and dragging the bewildered college student forward. They had to take advantage of the two Blade Ashigaru being dragged by the Mercedes to escape into the police station.
“You get out too!” The smile had vanished from Qin Lun’s face as he spoke calmly to Xiao Dao. “Hurry up!”
“You… be careful!” Xiao Dao gritted his teeth with a complex expression, pushed the door open, and leaped out of the vehicle.
This young gangster wasn’t stupid; he had begun to vaguely realize that Qin Lun had set him up earlier. However, he was the driver; originally, the last person to jump should have been him. Now that Qin Lun took on this task at a critical moment of life and death, the resentment he had accumulated instantly vanished.
“Liza, give Emi to me!” Jonathan yelled wildly, snatching the infant girl from Liza’s arms with one hand while dragging the nearly paralyzed Liza out of the van with the other.
“Crack!” The blond young man, holding the baby with one arm and protecting Liza with the other, landed shoulder-first. His right calf was badly scraped by the door as he jumped out of the Mercedes. He vomited blood heavily while tumbling, leaving patches of bright red blood on the street.
“Hurry, run!” Xiao Dao, who had already run some distance away, hesitated and looked back at Jonathan and Liza. Seeing that Liza couldn’t possibly support the severely injured Jonathan alone, he gritted his teeth, stamped his foot, and ran back to help them.
“Only we are left!” Qin Lun looked at the two Blade Ashigaru being swung back and forth by the Mercedes, unable to stabilize themselves for the moment, and revealed a charming smile. “Come on, let me see your resolve!”
“Boom!” The business van, speeding forward with its momentum, suddenly swerved sharply, crashing violently through the rolling shutter door of a shop, and disappeared from everyone’s sight with Qin Lun and the two Blade Ashigaru.
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Book 3: Chapter 16: The Phantom Demon Disaster
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