Neuron Sync Initiation

A horrifying fissure slowly split open from the center of her forehead, revealing the terrifying barbs and tentacles hidden within.

"Heeheeheehee— Leave it to me— I was really— angry yesterday— Heeheehee—"

Her eyes shone with an increasing frenzied excitement, her entire body quivering with anticipation.

Seeing this display, Lynne instantly realized that the Blood Clad Evil Spirit had entered her wild combat mode.

"I'll count on you!" Lynne shouted. Without further ado, he quickly distanced himself. His left arm rapidly retracted with a snap, returning to his side.

"This hunter is ours to handle! Left hand, bite it!" Lynne commanded.

His left hand swiftly elongated, its maw gaping wide in a (〝▼皿▼) expression as it retorted, "You don't need to tell me!"

Like a striking serpent, the left hand lunged fiercely at the hunter.

Boom—

A deafening sound.

The terrifying power of the left hand instantly created a vast crater at the hunter's position. But the hunter's speed was incredible. Almost as the left hand launched its attack, the hunter agilely turned, its body springing upward like a gecko. Its sharp, blade-like spider legs thrust into the walls.

The red glow in its eyes pulsed rapidly.

"Target analysis… Unknown organism… Initiating hunt…"

Vrrrr—

The dual mantis blades in its hands burst forth with sharp electrical sparks. In the next moment, its entire body started to whirl like a bladed cyclone, rushing at an alarming speed toward Lynne.

Zzzz zzzz zzzz—

The cobblestones on the street were sent flying by the terrifying bladed whirlwind.

Without hesitation, Lynne gritted his teeth, rapidly sprouting four tentacles from his body which propelled him backward. Simultaneously, he pulled the trigger with force.

Bang bang bang—

One after another, the demon-hunting bullets rained down upon the fearsome blade storm.

Under the bullets' attached holy damage, the hunter's speed was instantly curbed, showing a significant reduction.

[Ding! Your Firearms Mastery +1]

[Ding! Your Firearms Mastery +1]

"Left hand!" Lynne shouted.

"Leave it to me!"

The left hand swiftly retracted and gaped open its enormous maw. Its long tongue split instantly into two, then four, and in a blink transformed into hundreds of lashing tongues that shot forth like swords towards the blade storm.

Clang—

Clang—

Clang—

The massive sound of metal clashing echoed, accompanied by a myriad of bursting sparks. Those seemingly soft tongues, upon contact with the blades, exhibited a toughness rivaling steel.

…

Hanged Tower.

In a grand hall, an inverted amalgamation of machinery and flesh, a man with ashen skin, draped in a black robe and whose face was covered with intricate mechanical structures, stepped in flanked by guards. His gaze was somber, his voice cold as ice.

"Have we made contact with the three hunters dispatched to Wandering Soul Lane?"

Several attendants in the hall turned, thumping their chests in salute, declaring solemnly, "The signal has been established! Vice-Chairman Mech-Demon, we can assume control of the three hunters at your command."

Mech-Demon indifferently approached the central screen in the hall, demanding, "Project their visual feed. I want firsthand information from Wandering Soul Lane at once!"

The attendants began their swift operations.

A soft red glow emanated from the screen in front of him, interspersed with flickers. Soon, three distinct feeds appeared, displaying the ongoing battle between Lynne, the Blood Clad Evil Spirit, and the hunters.

Mech-Demon's eyes narrowed instantly. His gaze was immediately drawn to the frenzied figure in the feed - the terrifyingly excited, red-clad specter. Her wild movements seemed to completely suppress the two hunters.

"Kill kill kill kill— Heeheeheehee—"

Her deranged laughter combined with her manic dance evoked the imagery of a grand feast of slaughter.

"Blood Clad Evil Spirit?! It's her!"

Mech-Demon's brow furrowed momentarily, his expression turning grave. He recognized this spirit. Especially in the Sinful City, this solitary madwoman was renowned. Because she was a ghoul that killed whimsically, her frenzied excitement in battle, and an unyielding bloodlust, made her a figure many didn't wish to confront.

"It can't be. She alone cannot possibly defeat the Type 3 Blood-Flesh Puppet."

His eyes narrowed in contemplation. Apart from the Demonfolk Association's chairman, he was the direct orchestrator of this internal purge.

Over the past few days, through coercion and incentives, he had killed and absorbed dozens of the elder members who were once the driving force of the Demonfolk Association. And the parts of the colossus, once divided and guarded by them, had mostly been retrieved in these recent hunts. According to the resonance of the colossus fragments, one piece was in Wandering Soul Lane, guarded by Bloodsaw. And the Flesh Puppet from yesterday, he had personally dispatched.

His gaze grew darker. Soon, he shifted his attention to the third hunter's visual feed. And then, he saw the peculiar, gun-wielding youth with the bizarre left hand.

"Could it be... him? A... human?"

His eyes darkened further. Unlikely. At a glance, he discerned that apart from the boy's odd left hand, his true strength seemed lacking. But then, his gaze settled on the demon-hunting revolver in the youth's grasp, and only upon recognizing the weapon did his expression subtly change.

"Demon-hunter's revolver?"

Only now did he give the young human a modicum of consideration. For it was evident to him that the usually solitary Blood Clad Evil Spirit seemed to be siding with him. And this seemingly fragile youth possessed the revolver that the infamous man never parted with. This alone spoke volumes.

"Establish a neural sync with Hunter #3."

Closing his eyes, Mech-Demon forcefully extracted a viscous mechanical interface from the back of his head and plugged it into the flesh interface in the hall.

"Yes, Vice-Chairman!"

"Neural synchronization in progress... Identity verification... Mech-Demon... Highest authority granted..."

"Successful neural source synchronization with Hunter #3... Link initiation—"

Vrrrr—

In an instant, when Mech-Demon reopened his eyes, he was already in control of the body of Hunter #3, his gaze immediately fixated on Lynne, a few dozen meters away.

Almost simultaneously, a system prompt resonated next to Lynne's ear.

[Ding! Warning! Warning! Danger escalating rapidly!]

[Ding! You've triggered an emergency special task: Survive. Task Rewards: Experience x1000, Skull Coin x1000, Special Item x1.]