Nearly half the people in the restaurant were Chen Ge's people, so naturally they had no objections to his decision. The remaining half dared not voice their displeasure—even if they disagreed with Chen Ge's views, there was nothing they could do about it.
"Since no one has any objections, let's get moving right away. If we wait any longer, even more strange things might be attracted here." After speaking, Chen Ge placed the red high heels from the counter into his backpack, then called the white cat and Scissors over before walking toward the restaurant's entrance.
"Have you noticed how well he fits in here? While all of us feel uncomfortable, he seems completely at home—as if this chaotic, bloody little town were a stage designed specifically for him," Jia Ming whispered to Li Zheng.
"What are you trying to say?" Li Zheng furrowed his brow.
"It's obvious! He's the Shadow. He lives here—this is his home!" Jia Ming had been trying to persuade Li Zheng all along. "I don't think he's leading us to find an exit at all. He wants to kill every last one of us. You don't have to believe me, but time will prove it. I just hope you'll keep your eyes open, so you don't drag me down when the time comes."
"Before you start accusing others, you'd better clean up your own suspicion first. The Shadow escaped from you—of everyone here, you're the one with the most reason to be suspected." Li Zheng had dealt with many cunning and ruthless criminals, and he understood one thing: the more psychopathic the criminal, the less they possessed ordinary human emotions. Their brain functions were impaired—their cold cognitive abilities far outstripped their emotional cognition. A true psychopath could spin an incredible lie out of thin air without showing even a flicker of guilt or remorse.
Jia Ming, who carried multiple murder charges on his back, and the Shadow clearly belonged to that category.
"You'll regret believing him sooner or later, and I'm sure that day will come very soon." Jia Ming stopped trying to persuade him. He had realized it was nearly impossible to sway Li Zheng—the head of the Criminal Investigation Division was a tough nut, far harder to crack than he had imagined.
"I've already cleared out most of the dangerous locations listed on the black phone. Next, I need to go check the door."
Chen Ge led the other passengers out of the restaurant, with the tattooed man following close behind.
"Are you sure you want to bring all of them along?" The tattooed man eyed the long procession and felt deeply uneasy.
"What else can I do? Kill everyone who doesn't listen?" Chen Ge replied flatly.
"Well, I suppose that's true. Keep them around, and when we run into danger, they can serve as cannon fodder." The tattooed man comforted himself with this thought. He still didn't know whether partnering with Chen Ge had been the right call or not.
There was no turning back now. All he could do was follow Chen Ge and walk this road to the bitter end.
"You lot, pick up the pace! Stop dawdling—every second you waste shrinks our chances of getting out alive!" the tattooed man shouted over his shoulder at the others, his gaze lingering on Li Zheng. Liwan Town had its share of psychopaths and criminals, but what it didn't have was police officers. "I don't care what grudges you have against each other or what brought you here—I hope you'll settle all of it after we get out. Right now, we're in this together. If anyone insists on dragging us down, we'll have no choice but to cut them loose."
As the tattooed man spoke, the five women's heads on his arm bared grotesque smiles, as if yearning to be drenched in fresh blood.
Everyone filed out of the restaurant. The high school student and the woman trailed reluctantly at the back of the procession.
"Is everyone here?" Chen Ge glanced back and noticed that Red Raincoat had already left at some point. The rest—including Smiling Face—were all following behind him.
"The more people, the stronger we are. I'll get you out—all I ask is that you don't do anything foolish."
If not for his concern about Fan Cong's safety, Chen Ge would have been tempted to sweep through the entire town, leaving no room unchecked.
If he did that, he was confident he could turn every resident and vengeful ghost in the whole town to his side.
"A shame there isn't enough time—I can only focus on the important targets first. But for now, the initiative is still in my hands." Chen Ge stole a glance behind him. His shadow had completely changed shape. After devouring the Gluttonous Female Ghost's heart,
"As long as she can hear my voice, everything is under control."
Chen Ge had the courage to face any difficulty, but he wouldn't be blindly overconfident either.
With the Gluttonous Female Ghost devoured, the balance of power had shifted. The Shadow would surely react. Unable to target Chen Ge directly for now, it would most likely turn its attention to Chen Ge's allies.
The group emerged from the restaurant in a large procession. In the blood mist, dark shadows lurked and watched from all around, but perhaps because Chen Ge's group was so numerous, none of them dared to approach.
"Hey, look ahead."
At the first intersection, the drunkard carrying the doctor on his back pointed in a certain direction and said softly to Chen Ge.
On the other side of the road, a figure bearing an eight-or-nine-tenth resemblance to the drunkard was waving at them.
"That guy again. I wasn't even going to bother catching you, but you've gone and delivered yourself right to me." This time, Chen Ge didn't hold back. He immediately pressed the replay button.
As the crackling static filled the air, Chen Ge pointed at the shadow across the street and spoke two words: "
A faint scent of blood drifted past his nostrils. Xu Yin positioned himself protectively in front of Chen Ge and didn't rush out recklessly—he seemed to sense danger.
After only a few seconds, a second blurred figure appeared on the far side of the road. This new figure bore a striking resemblance to Scissors in build.
"A second one? No—there are more behind them!" The drunkard already had a deep-seated fear of those waving monsters. Now, seeing figures pop up one after another, his legs went weak with terror.
In the blink of an eye, several figures materialized across the road. Everyone except Chen Ge had been imitated.
"What kind of monsters are these?" The drunkard, still carrying the doctor, hid behind Chen Ge.
"They're called Soul Hooks. They can shift their shape to match the silhouettes of living people. They're scattered off from the Shadow's main body, formed from the excess negative emotions within it. Whatever you do, don't stare at them for too long—or your soul might get hooked out, and then we'll really be in trouble." The tattooed man kept his head down. "This many appearing at once... it means the Shadow has already spotted us."
"Soul Hooks? Creepy things. But..." The drunkard looked at Chen Ge in puzzlement. "Why aren't they imitating your shadow?"