Shapeshifters

Chapter 18

Shui Sheng and Su Ying walked in. At that moment, a bearded man who looked like a worker ran out from the alley across the street, went straight to Lu Yun, stared blankly, said "It's open," and then ran out again.

"Okay." Lu Yun straightened his clothes. "We can go out now."

I asked Lu Yun, "Bewitching? That's just a trick to worry people!"

Lu Yun smiled sweetly at me.

I suddenly felt dizzy, and I thought that smile was so beautiful that it made me forget everything. When I came to my senses, I realized that I had almost been bewitched by Lu Yun again and become just like that worker.

I suddenly realized that her beauty was the perfect medium for her illusions. I couldn't believe anyone could remain unmoved by her. Even women would be astonished by her beauty. I estimated that if those superhuman sea creatures were to see Su Ying again, they would surely regret it. Their hearts would flutter, and this master of illusion would seize the opportunity.

During the short walk, I asked Lu Yun, "Do you have any ideas? Are you going to use illusion magic as usual to take care of everyone at once?"

“It’s not that easy!” Lu Yun smiled bitterly. “Judging from their gait and eyes, the people there are all highly trained and experienced professionals. Illusion is not omnipotent for people with strong mental strength and determination. Back then in the human cave, we were able to do it only by borrowing the power of the formation.”

"Then Shui Sheng and I will go in and just take them all down," another underwater person said impatiently.

"No!" I quickly stopped them. "Those people inside are all from our country's X agency. If you cause trouble like this, something bad will definitely happen. It will get out of control, and Su Ying and Shui Sheng will be in big trouble. Lu Yun, you have to be careful too. We can't afford to take this responsibility."

"I'll be careful," Lu Yun said, then saw Ruan Xiuwen in the distance and whispered, "Something's wrong."

"What's wrong?"

"I didn't notice just now, but that person's glasses are special; they have a special resistance to illusions and other spells." I couldn't help but think to myself, "No wonder he's from the Ruan family," and at the same time, I secretly admired Lu Yun.

"What should we do?" I couldn't help but glance at the anxious Shui Sheng and Su Ying, who was clinging tightly to him.

“I believe I can control him one-on-one. But it’s almost impossible to keep an eye on the people around him at the same time,” Lu Yun said solemnly.

“Now that things have come to this, we have no choice but to take a gamble,” Shui Sheng said. “If we miss this opportunity, there may not be another one.”

We walked into the alley, and Lu Yun stood alone at the front, blocking us from behind.

Ruan Xiuwen turned around and was startled when he saw Lu Yun. He then stared intently at Lu Yun, seemingly oblivious to us behind him.

Shui Sheng and another underwater person were about to attack when Lu Yun stopped them. The people from the X Organization were far too dangerous; they were likely carrying high-tech weapons. The other people nearby looked at us in surprise and stopped what they were doing.

Lu Yun and Ruan Xiuwen remained locked in a fierce stare. Ruan Xiuwen seemed fully aware of his predicament, desperately trying to look away but to no avail; his head felt stiff, his neck cracked, and beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. Lu Yun, however, smiled faintly, his eyes sparkling, seemingly relaxed but actually menacing, for if the illusion failed, the caster would suffer the consequences. Ruan Xiuwen, true to his lineage, fiercely guarded his mental defenses; even his glasses reflected a dazzling light. The two were locked in a deadly battle in their mental world. A few seconds later, with a loud crack, Ruan Xiuwen's glasses shattered.

The situation had reached its most critical point. I saw someone taking a machine out of their pocket, and everyone's eyes were on us. If Lu Yun couldn't immediately deal with Ruan Xiuwen and subdue the others, we were finished. Beads of sweat were forming on my forehead, and my fists clenched tightly.

However, the situation was far from optimistic. Ruan Xiuwen, true to his prestigious lineage, actually took a step forward. Even Lu Yun was sweating profusely. I think all of our hearts sank; over there at the construction site, someone was already dialing a phone number.

As fate would have it, just when my heart was about to leap out of my throat, I suddenly felt dizzy and the world spun around me before I lost consciousness.

"Get up, Nado!"

I opened my eyes and saw Lu Yun.

"What's wrong?" I quickly sat up.

Looking around, to their surprise, everyone from the X organization, including Ruan Xiuwen, was lying haphazardly on the well, all fast asleep. Shui Sheng and his companions were helping Su Ying up.

"Did the instrument suddenly malfunction?" I asked Lu Yun.

"Yes. And this was an extremely powerful burst of energy. No one but me and your underwater friends could have survived," Lu Yun laughed. "Thanks to our good luck this time, otherwise I probably wouldn't have been able to take it."

"Oh." I let out a long sigh of relief. "Thank God!"

"It must be fate. My skills still need further improvement."

"Will he remember us or your things?" I asked Lu Yun, pointing to Ruan Xiuwen who was sleeping motionless.

"No. I made him only remember the illusion that he was bewitched by the thing in that well. People with strong wills are hard to be influenced by illusions, but once their defenses are broken, they are just as likely to believe what they see in the illusion."

"It turns out that once people are bewitched by it, they will slowly walk towards it. If that underwater man hadn't run over and put the lid back on, this group of people would have already blocked the well by now."

I was greatly relieved to hear this: "Then let's get down to business!" At this moment, Su Ying had also woken up and walked to the well with the two underwater people. We moved the unconscious person away and then opened the well cover.

Then another underwater person went down into the well to look for instruments. To me, he seemed to slide down slowly like a liquid rather than climb down.

Before long, he emerged from the well, reverting to human form. To everyone's surprise, what he held in his hand was merely a dark, unremarkable iron rod, thinner than a wrist. Two seemingly different patterns appeared to be engraved on either end, and a large earthworm was coiled around one end.

"This is that advanced, mysterious instrument!" the sea creature announced excitedly, peeling off the earthworm with one hand. "And this is the culprit caught red-handed."

Looking at that seemingly ordinary instrument, I couldn't help but think of a trendy saying: "Simplicity is beauty." I think that no matter who made this instrument, its advanced and simple design is indeed something that modern human technology can hardly match.

“It’s been a long time,” the sea creature said, stroking it with a sigh.

"Na Duo!" Shui Sheng snapped me out of my reverie. "Could you... do me a favor?"

I was taken aback, then it dawned on me: "You want to use me as a model to become human?"

Shui Sheng nodded somewhat shyly.

“Of course I have no problem with it. I wonder if Su Yingle would be willing?” I said with a smile.

“Of course! I would be very happy to hear that,” Su Ying said immediately.

“But this instrument seems to be malfunctioning. Generally speaking, the blueprint should be fine, but we can’t be entirely sure,” another sea creature warned.

I felt a little nervous when I heard this, but seeing the expressions on Shui Sheng and Su Ying's faces, a sense of heroism welled up inside me. In addition, Lu Yun said, whether intentionally or unintentionally, "Be careful!" which made me feel triumphant. I resolutely said, "Let's go!" I thought that even if something went wrong, it would just be a change in lifestyle. What was the big deal?

I held the end that had been wrapped with earthworms, and Shui Sheng held the other end. Guided by the underwater people, we twisted the iron rods in opposite directions. Our forces did not cancel each other out, but instead became the energy for the instrument to operate.

Driven by this primitive action, the instrument emitted a faint light and began to operate.

My hands felt slightly numb, and I noticed that Shui Sheng's appearance was beginning to change. Although I didn't feel anything unusual myself, I couldn't help but feel a little nervous. I glanced at Su Ying, who immediately covered her eyes in nervousness, not daring to look at me.