The battle continued. The Dresser’s attack range and hair manipulation were troublesome, allowing her to merge her body into her hair and nullify the trio's attacks.
Lu Zhi observed for a long time and noticed several issues within their team. First, their coordination was lacking. Second, they were unfamiliar with the anomalies and unaware of their weaknesses.
A lack of coordination could be gradually improved during combat. However, knowing an anomaly's weakness was the most difficult. If this continued, the trio would be in trouble if their stamina ran out.
"Hmm? Something's not right," Hao Yunyi flapped his wings. "The Dresser is about to ascend to a Level Five anomaly."
Lu Zhi was surprised. "How can you tell?"
Hao Yunyi pointed his wings toward the Dresser's scalp. "When a Level Five anomaly gains 'human rationality,' it will also birth its own Ghost Artifact."
Lu Zhi carefully tracked the Dresser's movements. Indeed, from the top of the Dresser's head, covered in black hair, a section of a red wooden comb was slowly emerging. It was the half-arc-shaped comb found on a bride's dressing table in ancient times, but its blood-red hue seemed like congealed blood.
Suddenly, the moment the Dresser raised her hand to touch the comb in her hair, Lu Zhi caught a fleeting glimpse of crimson lips beneath the thick black hair, pulling into a cruel and sinister curve.
Lu Zhi's pupils contracted. Without thinking, he shouted towards the trio, "Dodge!"
The three were startled simultaneously. A dangerous and chilling aura swept over them, as if the Sword of Damocles hung above their heads. Their attacks stopped abruptly, and they instantly retreated.
Within three seconds of their retreat, amidst the Dresser's piercing shriek, she forcefully pulled out the red comb from her hair. Accompanied by dense whooshing sounds, her black hair shot out like steel needles.
"Ice Shield—"
"Fire Wall—"
Luo Shiyu and Jiang Yue simultaneously erected defenses in front of Gu Weiyu. The ground, trees, and rock walls were pierced like hedgehogs.
If Lu Zhi hadn't reacted quickly to warn them beforehand, they would not have had time to deploy defenses against the bullet-like stabs at such close range.
Not only the three in the battlefield but also Lu Zhi outside the battlefield couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat for them.
"You're in trouble now. The Dresser really did ascend," Hao Yunyi said with surprise. "But this has also revealed the Dresser's weakness."
Lu Zhi nervously watched as the three, who had initially suppressed the Dresser, were now being overwhelmed by her after she ascended to a Level Five anomaly. Especially the comb in the Dresser's hand, its bladed edges leaving marks that could slice through metal with ease. One wrong move would lead to a river of blood!
"Hahahaha..." Beneath the Dresser's black hair, a crimson vertical pupil appeared in a black eye socket. She stared intently at Gu Weiyu's face with a chilling gaze, chuckling sinisterly. Her black tongue licked the red comb in her hand, muttering excitedly and maniacally, "Face, give it to me, give me a beautiful face..."
Gu Weiyu's scalp tingled. Without any decorum, she cursed, "Being targeted for my face by an anomaly, should I be happy or sad?"
Jiang Yue said angrily, "She looks down on my face? Beat her!"
Luo Shiyu: ...Isn't that the main point?
The tense atmosphere was completely diffused by the conversation between these two.
Lu Zhi listened to their complaints and couldn't help but laugh and cry. "Be careful, the Dresser has upgraded to a Level Five anomaly."
Luo Shiyu asked seriously, "So, this anomaly is calculated as 3 points, right?"
Lu Zhi: ...
Are your priorities always so clear-cut and unconventional?
...
On the transcendent website, within the national live broadcast platform, Fan Coin guessing was initiated for the first time. This was a simulated currency on the transcendent website used for tasks. The exchange rate was 100:1, meaning one hundred yuan of Chinese currency could only be exchanged for one Fan Coin.
The dozen or so live broadcast windows dominating the homepage were marked with team and individual guessing. Individual odds were 1:10, and team odds were 1:100. For the top three finishers, regardless of team or individual, the odds were 1:1000.
The most popular live broadcast room was the full-screen mini-window where one could see the progress of all teams and their accumulated points. The guessing deadline was tomorrow.
The massive traffic pouring into the live broadcast rooms consisted not only of transcendants but also of ordinary people.
This was the first time the country had directly announced the existence of transcendants through video, and consequently, it was subtly informing the entire nation of the existence of anomalies.
Amidst the dense bullet comments in the live broadcast room.
[Shocked! Am I living in a sci-fi world?]
[Upstairs, not sci-fi, but fantasy!]
[Ahhh~ this young lady is so cool, can I also have such awesome skills?]
[Holy crap, what kind of ghost is that? It's so disgusting!]
[I knew it, spiritual energy is reviving, and the era of cultivation is about to begin!]
[Wake up, upstairs, the underdog counter-attack trope is outdated!]
And amidst these dense bullet comments, a conspicuous red text hanging above the live broadcast room read: **【In three days, free ability check-up points will be opened nationwide. The National Special Department and the Non-natural Management Academy welcome you.**】
Overseas transcendent websites.
"How is it? What did the higher-ups say?"
"Let's wait and see what that S-grade boss is really about."
"China is simply seeking its own destruction. Broadcasting the existence of anomalies nationwide will undoubtedly cause national panic."
"No, you're wrong. China is the country with the highest tolerance and acceptance. Look at these bullet comments, are they scared?"
Scared? No, they were only excited!
"Regardless, China opening free ability testing points is not friendly to our future."
The number of transcendants was still relatively small. Once their numbers increased, their status in the country would inevitably decline.
However, it also indicated that China had developed technology capable of detecting human ability talents. They had already lost in this regard.
With a population of 1.4 billion, even if only ten million were tested... what a vast and astonishing number!
"No, I need to report to the higher-ups again!"
...
Inside the Non-natural Management Academy.
Shen Lu stared at the massive traffic flooding the website backend and clicked his tongue. He kicked Xue Jinhuai with his foot, "Playing a clever game."
Xue Jinhuai, wearing black gloves, pressed down on his leg, which was moving erratically. "For the past decade, we've been researching the fluctuations of the Tree of Life that stimulate human abilities. Progress was finally made this year. During this period, Loci have appeared frequently, and personnel are severely insufficient. Humanity... must learn to stand up on its own."
Shen Lu knew this well. He glanced at Shen Qi, who was intently watching Lu Zhi's live broadcast, and murmured, "After the rules of the Loci changed, even ordinary people, as long as they aren't too stupid, can find a way to survive against all odds."
The previous descents of the Loci had resulted in the sacrifice of an extremely large number of ordinary people, which had been suppressed from being announced.
The change in rules was not a bad thing, but rather a new hope.
Humanity must defeat anomalies and protect their world through their own efforts.
Because the creators of anomalies, from beginning to end, were humans themselves.