Chapter 51

The Metaphysical Society and the Paranormal Incident Management Department have had a long-standing grudge, and their relationship is highly complex. On the surface, they maintain a harmonious facade, and the Metaphysical Society assists in incidents involving malevolent entities. However,

While they typically unite against external threats, they take every opportunity to undermine each other. This hostility stems from historical grievances and the personal rivalry between Zhou Jingshen and Bo Jingyun.

The Metaphysical Society has existed since ancient times. With its long-standing traditions and strong familial ties, it holds considerable power among domestic ability-wielder organizations, essentially acting as a formidable leader. Even official departments must tread carefully around them.

Many of the unspoken rules followed by ability-wielders in the country today were originally set by the Metaphysical Society, such as the prohibition on revealing the existence of malevolent entities to ordinary people. At that time, the Paranormal Incident Management Department even had to seek their assistance.

Then, ten years ago, Bo Jingyun’s arrival changed everything.

Zhou Jingshen’s confident smile faded slightly at the Vice Minister’s words, sensing that something was amiss. Still, he didn’t grasp the gravity of the situation, assuming Bo Jingyun was merely angry about being outmaneuvered.

Seeing Bo Jingyun’s darkened expression, he laughed, “Are you worried that with Yue Yin joining the Metaphysics Society, and us gaining two S-class ability wielders, the Paranormal Incident Management Department will lose its leverage over us?”

The Metaphysical Society once dominated domestic ability-wielder organizations, so much so that even the Paranormal Incident Management Department had to seek their help and give them concessions. Back then, the Society was at the height of its power.

But then Bo Jingyun, with his reformist zeal, joined the Paranormal Incident Management Department. Through sweeping reforms and a so-called “contract” with Zhou Jingsheng, he indirectly weakened the Metaphysical Society’s influence, shifting the balance of power.

Recalling this, Zhou Jingshen cursed, “Bo Jingyun, you pompous hypocrite! Acting all high and mighty—if you hadn’t hesitated, I wouldn’t have had to step in and act in your stead!”

Once Yue Yin joined their ranks on the island, Zhou Jingshen was confident she’d naturally see the advantages of joining the Metaphysical Society.

The Vice Minister laughed bitterly. Even now, Zhou Jingshen’s mind was fixated on the petty rivalries between the organizations.

Is Yue Yin powerful? Certainly.

If Yue Yin were merely an S-class ability-wielder, the Vice Minister would try every means possible to recruit her and leverage her abilities.

But the issue is, Yue Yin is an evil god, a capricious entity with no moral compass or distinction between right and wrong.

After days of observation and research, the Vice Minister had almost fully understood Yue Yin’s character. She’s immensely powerful, passionate, and unpredictable, a wholly uncontrollable force.

This is why, upon learning Yue Yin’s true nature, the Vice Minister immediately erased the memories of everyone who knew about her.

He kept a safe distance, wisely avoiding any unnecessary interaction. For Yue Yin is like an unrestrained nuclear bomb, and one can never predict her next move.

One moment she’s begrudgingly attending an early morning class, the next she might be wielding a knife in a violent rampage at the plaza, or crouched on a street corner, grinning as she eats grilled cold noodles with a new friend.

The Vice Minister stayed in City A precisely to monitor Yue Yin, ready to intervene at the first sign of any drastic change.

And now, that fool Zhou Jingshen had taken this volatile, explosive presence to the Surina Trench, dragging her into a human conflict.

The Vice Minister gritted his teeth, “You idiot, Zhou Jingshen.”

“All you know is that Yue Yin is strong, capable of slaughtering malevolent entities like dogs, but you have no idea that Yue Yin is a complete lunatic!”

After receiving the notification about the disturbance in the Surina Sea, his research revealed that the appearance of these malevolent entities coincided almost exactly with Yue Yin’s presence! Considering her identity as an evil god, it was hard to believe the two weren’t connected.

The S-class malevolent entity lying dormant in the Surina Trench was highly likely to awaken because of Yue Yin. But then, whom would she side with?

The Vice Minister almost fainted at the thought, glaring at Zhou Jingshen. “Do you think you’re clever? By sending Yue Yin to Surina Island, if she starts killing, you won’t even know if she’s targeting the entities or her teammates!”

Zhou Jingshen, stunned, stammered for once, “She…she’s near-sighted?”

Otherwise, how could she not tell friend from foe!

…

Meanwhile, over the South Atlantic, near the Surina Sea.

A luxurious aircraft flew steadily with about seven or eight ability-wielders on board, men and women of various nationalities, mostly A-level.

This was a team of ability-wielders from across the world, assembled for an investigation.

Overnight, a dense fog had enveloped the Surina Islands, disrupting the magnetic fields and cutting off all signals in the area, allowing entry but not exit. Upon detecting the anomaly, international ability-wielders quickly organized a team for investigation and rescue.

They held documents, gazing at the blue waters below, discussing their mission.

“The Surina Sea comprises several islands, with the main one covering 671 square kilometers and a population of around 3,000—like a small town.”

“Historically, Surina’s people relied on fishing until tourism emerged as the island’s economic backbone. It’s worth mentioning that despite modernization, many older locals still blindly worship a mysterious deity, firmly believing in the existence of merfolk.” (Merfolk are mythical sea creatures with human upper bodies and fish-like tails, often depicted as either benevolent or dangerous in folklore.)

“Of course, they’re entitled to believe that. After all, the world’s first mermaid was supposedly found in the Surina Sea. Though that mermaid was far from beautiful—ugly enough to cause insomnia!”

A blond young man, looking at a photograph, cursed, “What an ugly monster.”

Yue Yin, playing on her handheld console, peeked at the photo and said, “It’s not so bad. I think the fish looks kind of cute.”

“Cute?!” the blond man swore again, pointing at the picture in disbelief. “You call this thing cute?!”

The photo depicted a creature with a large fish head and bulging eyes, its grayish-green, slimy body covered with raised scales along its back.

Annoyed, the blond man muttered more curses, “Disgusting malevolent entity, disgusting merfolk.”

A short-haired girl in a vest also looked repulsed but said fairly, “Malevolent entities are often grotesque. Compared to others, this merfolk isn’t that offensively ugly.”

Yue Yin nodded vigorously, cheering on the maligned merfolk. She then couldn’t resist asking, “But why do you all call it a malevolent entity?”

The blond man, named Andre, replied coldly, “Of course it’s a malevolent entity. These merfolk have intelligence, prey on humans, and are nearly impossible to kill… don’t tell me you think it’s some new species?”

Seated beside Yue Yin, Zhou Zicheng, one of the Metaphysical Society members accompanying her to the Surina Sea, frowned and interjected, “It’s not impossible.”

The Metaphysical Society had taken a keen interest in merfolk and had even bought property on the island a decade ago to research their peculiarities.

“In the legends of Surina, merfolk are said to reproduce and have extraordinarily long lifespans, nearly immortal. Eating their flesh is rumored to grant eternal life.”

This ability to reproduce distinguishes species from mere malevolent entities. Andre sneered, “Legends, just hearsay. Stories of Surina Sea merfolk have circulated for centuries, yet aside from the first one that was photographed, we’ve found no further trace. It’s as if they vanished. If international organizations hadn’t classified them, I’d question if they even existed.”

Zhou Zicheng stood up, animatedly saying, “It’s more than just legend. There’s a case of an ability-wielder named Edward, who regained his youth overnight and had his wounds heal rapidly after eating merfolk flesh!”

Andre rolled his eyes. “So Edward ate some fish and supposedly gained immortality? Then why haven’t we heard anything about him recently?”

Zhou Zicheng fell silent, while Yue Yin gazed at him with an intrigued expression.

Andre gave Zhou Zicheng a disdainful look. “So you’re here to look for merfolk? Believe that nonsense if you like, but I have no words for thrill-seekers like you.”

The idea of longevity is compelling for both ordinary people and ability-wielders alike. Discovering merfolk’s peculiarities has lured many ability-wielders to Surina, hoping to uncover the secret of extended life.

They would step onto Surina Island with high hopes, only to find themselves aging rapidly and dying within three months, for reasons no one could explain.

Even S-level ability-wielders, powerful as they are, couldn’t escape this fate, often evacuating the area within the same three-month period.

Without an identifiable cause, rumors of a curse afflicting the area began to spread. Later, when it was discovered that an S-level malevolent entity might lie in the depths of the Surina Trench, these theories seemed validated.

It’s common knowledge that powerful malevolent entities can create domains unique to themselves.

A malevolent entity sets its own rules within its birthplace domain. For example, an A-level entity killed by Yue Yin in City A used its domain to enrage all lower-level malevolent entities within its range, sending them into a berserk frenzy.

Each entity’s domain rule differs, affecting any entity or ability-wielder below its strength indiscriminately. In these domains, the entity reigns like a king.

Thus, when they identified an S-level malevolent entity beneath the Surina Trench, it was widely believed that this entity’s domain rule had been responsible for the deaths of so many ability-wielders before.

The prevailing theory? The entity’s rule was a curse.

The curse spares ordinary people but indiscriminately kills any ability-wielder weaker than the entity within the sea’s range. Those who had been driven mad by the prospect of merfolk immortality sobered up as they witnessed the deaths of their comrades, gradually withdrawing from the area.

No one expected that the island would suddenly be shrouded in fog, forcing the team to approach a place where they risked death within three months.

With heavy hearts, Andre added with a forced optimism, “Well, look on the bright side. Maybe we’ll not only uncover the cause of the island’s anomaly but also get to meet the legendary merfolk that supposedly grants eternal life.”