His composure stood in stark contrast to the frantic behavior of the other powerful ghosts in the Spiritist Ghost School.
Chang Wenyu's single eye widened to the point of nearly tearing the socket apart. The fourth top-tier Red Dress she had counted on never appeared. She drove the three-headed evil spirit pattern behind her with desperate abandon, no longer clinging to any hope, gambling everything she had in a last-ditch effort to destroy the Gate.
The patient-gowned man who controlled the blood mist was still reeling in confusion, but once Chang Wenyu resumed her assault, he snapped back to his senses immediately. He stopped paying attention to Chen Ge and concentrated all his power on besieging Chang Wenyu.
Among the three top-tier Red Dresses, the Painter was the last to come to his senses. He stared at the scapegoat ghost in his canvas, blue-black veins bulging across the backs of his hands, black fire seeming to burn deep within his eyes.
Every time he used his special ability, he paid an enormous price. Each painting was a trump card.
The mere thought that such a precious ability had been wasted—on a scapegoat ghost, no less, thanks to a web of misdirection—filled the Painter with an urge to tear Chen Ge apart with his bare hands.
That audacious bastard had fooled everyone with a single scapegoat ghost!
His heart bled. The Painter forced himself to look away from Chen Ge and the several Red Dresses surrounding him. The priority right now was stopping Chang Wenyu. He could not afford to waste his strength on anything irrelevant.
Yes—in the eyes of many, Chen Ge had become irrelevant.
Apart from the three top-tier Red Dresses, the other Red Dresses who were hostile toward Chen Ge and those who had gathered to protect him all wore complicated expressions.
An ordinary person, using a single scapegoat ghost, had managed to run circles around a group of Red Dresses. It was too unbelievable—something none of them would have dared to imagine.
The blindfolded man's expression was frozen, and the East Campus Red Dress locked in combat with him wore much the same look.
The students who had followed Chen Ge were stunned, and Director Lei, who had rushed over specifically to deliver his warning, was equally dumbfounded.
"So it was all a lie…" Director Lei stared blankly at Chen Ge. "You used me! From the moment we entered those forbidden zones in the girls' dormitory, you were using me!"
Director Lei was seething with frustration. He truly had sensed a terrifying aura from Chen Ge at one point, but the Painter had made his move, the truth was laid bare before them, and there was nothing he could say to dispute it.
"I'm sorry. I did deceive you—I deceived all of you. There is no top-tier Red Dress hidden in my shadow." Chen Ge's tone was earnest. "I did it only to bind everyone's strength together into one force. No one wants to be a lamb led to slaughter. Alone, any one of us is too weak. Only by gathering together do we stand even a sliver of a chance of putting up a fight." He paused. "I meant no harm. You could call it a well-intentioned lie."
"Being deceived doesn't feel great," Wang Yicheng and
"You two are leaving?" Chen Ge's eyes narrowed slightly. "The Supernatural Research Association was only just established."
"We were the Painter's friends from the beginning. We're simply returning to his side." Zhou Tu's injuries were gradually mending. "Tricking you was never easy. Fortunately, things turned out well enough in the end."
"Actually, I sensed something was off about you two quite some time ago—I just never said anything. Your performance in the East Campus art studio was far too theatrical. Then there was how Zhu Long and Zhang Ju were ambushed by Red Dresses when they used the mirror to enter the Ghost School, and just now, your quiet whispering to tip off the Painter." Chen Ge sighed softly. "I always knew the Painter had people among us. I simply chose not to expose it, because I believed you would eventually realize who was truly right—who truly had your best interests at heart."
Though Chen Ge's words appeared to be directed at Zhou Tu and Wang Yicheng, they were really meant for the other Red Dresses standing around him.
Within the gray mist,
The headless female ghost, her arms broken, stood guard behind Chen Ge. The foul-smelling boy who had just reclaimed his body and his heart positioned himself directly in front.