"Oh?" Li Wenhao raised an eyebrow in mild surprise. "It seems, Mr. Fang, that you are already acquainted with some knowledge regarding Spirit Masters."
Without probing further into how Fang Xiu had acquired such information, Li Wenhao simply continued his explanation. "Since you are aware of Spirit Masters, I assume you also understand the concept of spirituality, so I won't dwell on that."
"The hierarchy of a Spirit Master's power is determined by the percentage of spiritual energy they have awakened. For someone like yourself, a newly initiated Spirit Master, the standard level of spiritual awakening is typically around one percent. We refer to this as a First-Tier Spirit Master."
"Those who have awakened between one and twenty percent of their spirituality remain within the First-Tier category, characterized by the initial manifestation of their abilities—rudimentary yet growing stronger in direct correlation with spiritual development."
"At twenty-one to forty percent, one ascends to the Second Tier, where abilities undergo significant enhancement, evolving from mere manifestations into formidable powers."
"Between forty-one and sixty percent, one reaches the Third Tier. The specifics of this stage are classified beyond my clearance level."
"The progression continues, leading up to the Fourth and even the elusive Fifth Tier."
"What happens if someone reaches one hundred percent spiritual awakening?"
Li Wenhao shook his head. "No one knows. To the best of my knowledge, no individual in the world has ever reached full spiritual awakening. The difficulty of advancing increases exponentially with each step forward."
"A Spirit Master must continually seek out and confront increasingly powerful anomalies, enduring countless brushes with death. Only in the crucible of life-and-death encounters can one achieve breakthroughs. However, the stronger the anomaly, the higher the risk of perishing in battle. To date, no entity has emerged capable of propelling a Spirit Master to full awakening."
"In essence, Spirit Masters and anomalies are natural adversaries, yet their fates are intrinsically intertwined. The more formidable the anomaly, the greater the potential for a Spirit Master's growth. However, anomalies in their current state lack the magnitude required to birth a being of ultimate power."
"Thus, not only has no Spirit Master attained full spiritual awakening, but even those of the Fifth Tier remain purely theoretical."
"As for Fourth-Tier Spirit Masters, rumors persist across nations, though their existence remains shrouded in uncertainty. They are spoken of as legends—phantoms of speculation, never truly confirmed."
"For now, the highest publicly acknowledged power in the world belongs to Third-Tier Spirit Masters."
"Third question..."
Fang Xiu was about to pose another inquiry when Shen Lingxue cut him off, her tone edged with impatience. "I don't have time for your endless questioning. Li Wenhao, give him the link to the Global Anomaly Forum. Let him find his own answers."
Li Wenhao sighed, handing Fang Xiu a slip of paper with a web address. "This is a dark web forum—the largest global database on anomalies. Basic information is freely available, but anything classified will cost you. A word of caution: since this is an open, unregulated platform, do not trust emails from strangers."
Fang Xiu nodded in acknowledgment.
"Now it's our turn to ask questions. Tell us everything about your experience in the Bai Liu Academy anomaly, down to the smallest detail. If you dare to falsify or omit crucial information, any resulting consequences will be yours alone to bear." Shen Lingxue's tone carried an unmistakable warning.
Ignoring her threat, Fang Xiu remained calm. "I have one final question."
Shen Lingxue's brows furrowed, her eyes darkening. "Are you done or not?"
Unfazed by her glare, Fang Xiu pointed to his side. "Can you see my wife?"
A stunned silence fell over the room.
Shen Lingxue, initially poised to lash out, froze. She glanced at the empty space to Fang Xiu's right, then swept her gaze around the room, finding nothing.
Li Wenhao, equally bewildered, frowned. "What are you talking about, Fang Xiu? According to our records, you've never been married. You don't even have a girlfriend."
"Can't see her? Or are you pretending not to?" Fang Xiu murmured, his expression unreadable.
The atmosphere in the room shifted, becoming thick with an inexplicable tension.
Li Wenhao felt his heart skip a beat. Something was wrong.
It had seemed impossible—unnatural, even—that Fang Xiu could maintain such absolute composure after surviving an anomaly. He had endured its corruption and emerged a Spirit Master, yet exhibited none of the psychological instability characteristic of survivors.
Now, he was asking if they could see his wife?
A wife who, according to every available record, did not exist?
A chill crept up Li Wenhao's spine.
This wasn't just denial—this was full-blown delusion.
"Fang Xiu, are you playing games with us?" Shen Lingxue's voice turned sharp.
Fang Xiu regarded her cold fury with indifference. She didn't appear to be lying. Not that it mattered. He had prepared for this.
Turning to his side, he locked eyes with his "wife."
"I can see you."
"You can see me?!" A voice, filled with equal parts agony and euphoria, rang out.
Boom!
Shen Lingxue and Li Wenhao shot to their feet, their eyes widening in sheer horror.
For at the very spot that had been empty just moments ago, a woman now stood—clad in a silk nightgown of pale moonlight.
But she was far from human.
Porcelain-white skin fractured like delicate ceramic, jagged black cracks spreading across her form. In the blink of an eye, an intricate web of fissures covered her entire body, as though she had been shattered from within.
From the depths of those cracks, a grotesque sound of rushing water gurgled forth, thick rivulets of crimson seeping like writhing worms through the fractures.
Her long, silken hair writhed—no longer strands of human beauty, but serpentine tendrils, wriggling and twisting through the air.
And her mouth—
Her once-delicate lips had stretched unnaturally wide, splitting open to her ears. Her teeth, sharp as serrated blades, gleamed in the dim light.
Yet the most terrifying sight lay beyond her lips.
Nested within the abyss of her throat was another mouth, layered within the first—jaws within jaws, waiting to consume.
"An anomaly!" Shen Lingxue shrieked. "D*mn it! Fang Xiu, what the hell are you?! Your wife is an anomaly!"
Fang Xiu frowned slightly. "Only now can you see her?"
So it required his acknowledgment—his "seeing" her had activated some kind of trigger, drawing her into tangible reality.
Much like the Qing Shan Asylum anomaly.
At first, only he had been able to perceive it. But when it breached reality, integrating itself into the real world, it became visible to all.
Which meant... visibility had nothing to do with being a Spirit Master.
Whether one was an ordinary human or a Spirit Master, neither could see anomalies lurking in plain sight.
If Zhao Hao had failed to perceive them due to weakness, then what of Shen Lingxue? Someone from the Investigation Bureau, yet still blind to them?
Perhaps...
Perhaps he was the only one in the entire world who could see them.
A weight settled in Fang Xiu's chest.
He did not want this kind of uniqueness.
No one would.
To walk the streets, fully aware of the horrors lurking unseen—to be the lone soul trapped in a world infested with death.
It was like treading through a jungle of knives, where the slightest misstep meant certain destruction.
"Hehehe... humans."
His "wife" released a bone-chilling giggle, a sound like nails on glass.
Shen Lingxue didn't hesitate.
With a flick of her wrist, flames roared to life in her palms, distorting the air with their heat.
The temperature in the room skyrocketed. The nearby curtains, the couch, even the wooden floor—ignited in an instant.
The inferno roiled as she hurled two blazing orbs toward the creature.