All she could see was darkness. Even when she conjured a ball of white light, she couldn't see a glimmer of light. After a moment's thought, she guessed it was a problem with her own eyes, just like the time she was deprived outside the research institute before. The principle was probably similar.
However, given what Old Man Xing said beforehand, Cangming must have used some other means, not light.
"What's wrong?" Ning Jue asked, noticing her unusual expression.
The voice was right next to him, and Lian Han turned her head. By the light in her hand, Ning Jue noticed her eyes; her golden pupils were completely devoid of any reflection.
“It’s sensory deprivation,” Zhan Qi said in a deep voice upon seeing it. “This is the monster’s most effective method.”
"The five senses?"
“First they deprive you of your sight, then your hearing, smell, taste, and touch, until finally, you have nothing left. You won’t even know if you die,” Zhan Qi said through gritted teeth. “My master—was treated like that.”
His master can only be His Majesty Juecheng. Ning Jue frowned, "How do we break this?"
Zhan Qi said helplessly, "I don't know. Although the master experienced it firsthand, he didn't tell us the details because our cards don't deprive us of our five senses."
Lian Han frowned and tried to call out to Old Man Xing, but there was no response.
Then she remembered that when she last met Cangming, the old man had completely shut down his mental energy and refused to communicate with her. Although he had just spoken to her, that conversation took place before Cangming's power attacked her.
Lian Han didn't think the old man was just trying to protect himself, so he used the same tone Cang Ming used when mentioning Old Man Xing—if Old Man Xing were exposed, they would probably really be killed by the other side together.
Even though the Butterfly Shadow Card is a god-level power, it's not a power she obtained herself, so her control over it is limited, and there are requirements for its energy output.
She was far inferior to Cangming, a fact that Lian Han recognized with absolute clarity.
Zhanqi asked with concern, "How well do you control your own power?"
Lian Han pursed his lips, "I don't know myself. Those people before were too fragile, and god-level beings are rare."
Zhan Qi was speechless. How did this girl become so carefree as to run around like that?
"Could you concentrate your power on..." Ning Jue's voice rang out, but the rest of the sentence could not be heard.
It's probably because they've been deprived of their hearing.
Lian Han frowned. "I can't hear you anymore. Now try again. Good luck to you two."
Blue-purple butterfly wings sprouted from her back. Ning Jue exclaimed in surprise that it was indeed her, while pulling Zhan Qi away. A god-level being, even one who couldn't fully control their power, was not someone they could withstand.
In the end, we were still one level behind.
As for Lian Han, she was currently communicating with Card No. 1, trying to borrow some of his power. As for the mental backlash that would result from this, that was a matter for later.
The deprivation is irreversible, so she must at least leave Cangming's territory before her sense of touch disappears. If I'm not mistaken, once her sense of touch is gone, her control over her power will likely vanish as well, leaving her truly at the mercy of others.
The elfin girl cupped her hands together, and a point of white light emerged from her palms. It wasn't as powerful as before, but everyone who saw it felt as if they were bathed in a gentle breeze, as if they had returned to their mother's embrace.
Ning Jue was stunned.
A muffled groan echoed through the space.
A dozen or so black chains snapped one after another, and the figures that had been stuck in the air for a moment turned into beams of light of different colors that shot into Lian Han's brows.
Just as I suspected. Zhan Qi understood, but he was also a little worried. This girl obviously didn't want the general to know her identity, but the general—he came here specifically for these cards.
The light remained dazzling, and Cangming's voice, once calm, now carried a sinister and eerie quality, "You're quite something. I finally managed to capture these cards for myself. You can leave if you want. I'll be waiting for you in the Underworld Palace by next year at the latest!"
Cards rushed into her mind and were quickly taken away by the system. Then, Lian Han felt a spatial fluctuation, someone grabbed her shoulder, and then she was probably taken to another place.
Ning Jue and the other person stared speechlessly at the porcelain doll-like girl. Although it seemed that Cang Ming had been injured, the deprivation of her five senses had not been lifted. How could this be resolved?
A thought struck Zhan Qi: "How about I take care of him for now?"
General Ning glanced at him, only to see Lian Han grab his hand haphazardly and place it in his own palm. "You're out? Write it down for me if you have anything to say. I'll think about how to break the deprivation."
Her hands are so soft.
Ning Jue wrote a few words in her palm, "Still in the Demon Abyss. Do you want to leave together?"
Lian Han nodded. Although she was very curious about the energy systems of these natives, given her current condition, it was really not suitable for her to explore this place.
"Is there anywhere to go after this?"
Lian Han pondered. She didn't know anything about the system Xiao Mei had. She didn't want to reveal her identity to An He and the others, nor did she want to trouble them. There was no need to mention the Ling family again.
Thus, she had nowhere left to go.
Seeing the girl's silence, Ning Jue knew she had nowhere else to go. He rubbed his temples and wrote, "Leave the Demon Abyss first, then stay with me for now."
"Thank you for your help."
Zhan Qi's expression darkened for a moment; Ning Jue didn't believe him. Normally, he wouldn't care if she didn't believe him, but this girl was different.
If she's kept with this remarkably sharp-minded general, it won't be long before her secrets are exposed. At that point—
"The general is very busy, let me do it."
Ning Jue acted as if she hadn't heard, and wrote in Lian Han's palm, "You and Zhan Qi knew each other before?"
I don't know what they were talking about, but Lian Han replied, "I don't know them. Maybe I've seen them before but I don't remember them. There are only a few I can remember."
Seeing her sincere appearance, and recalling her ruthlessness when facing Cangming, Ning Jue knew that she might not be as innocent as she seemed, but that didn't matter.
Ning Jue then asked, "Can you fold up the butterfly wings?"
Lian Han suddenly realized and retracted the butterfly wings on her back. It wasn't entirely her fault; when she went all out, she would inevitably reveal the true form of the Butterfly Shadow Card, partly due to her lack of skill and perfection in controlling her power.
"You said before that you didn't have a name?"
"Hmm, no." Lian Han nodded; in fact, she was too lazy to think of a name.
"Butterfly, how are you?"
That's simple and straightforward. Lian Han's lips twitched, and he said, "Whatever."
"Then we'll..."
Lian Han's composure gradually disappeared. Even when it was written on his hand, he could no longer feel it. Sight, hearing, smell, touch—was it already time for touch?
Ning Jue naturally noticed the change in her expression and tried to write on her hand again, but the girl broke free. "Now it's time to use your sense of touch."
Ning Jue remained silent, diverting his spiritual power to try and probe into her sea of consciousness, but was quickly repelled. He heard Die say, "There's no need to waste your energy. Forcibly using the power of purification will result in the closure of your sea of consciousness."
This also meant she couldn't communicate with the system or Old Man Xing at all. From now on, she truly had to rely on herself, and with the Butterfly Shadow Card only at 30% energy, Lian Han felt even more troubled. Cang Ming truly lived up to his reputation as the one who killed the old man…
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