Chapter 476: Role Reversal

"What decisive judgment," Chen Ling couldn't help but praise upon seeing the scene.

At this moment, Ying Fu had probably realized something was wrong. Not only was this calamity extremely difficult to kill, but its power would also increase over time. The "Mockery" calamity, currently at 14, already possessed the power to suppress him. The longer this dragged on, the more disadvantageous it would become for him... Once this calamity advanced to Level Six, he might even lose his life here.

In this situation, avoiding combat was undoubtedly the best choice. However, Chen Ling had initially thought that given Ying Fu's dominant personality, he wouldn't choose to retreat... It seemed he had underestimated Ying Fu.

Blindly fighting to the death purely out of spirit was the mark of a reckless and brainless "foolish general." Only someone who could constantly analyze the situation and make the wisest decisions was a qualified "emperor."

However, it was clear that the "Mockery" calamity had no intention of letting Ying Fu go.

Even though Ying Fu had pushed his speed to the limit, streaking across the shattered earth and dust towards the depths of the mountains, the surging red cloud remained hot on his heels. Countless red paper strips wove together into colossal tentacles, coiling around his figure from all directions!

A cold glint flashed in Ying Fu's eyes. He raised a hand and pressed into the void. The surrounding trees, amidst shimmering electrical arcs, transformed rapidly, changing into an unknown material and growing wildly towards the sky. Their branches and leaves intertwined, instantly engulfing the entire mountain peak, and his own figure completely vanished within it.

The swirling red cloud paused above the mountain peak. The red sun, like an eye, stared down at the mountain, still searching for traces of Ying Fu.

Meanwhile, inside the theater, Chen Ling's eyes gleamed brightly.

"It's time."

A 14 on the audience expectation meter was almost his limit. If he dragged it out any longer and the expectation dropped to 13, he wouldn't be able to reclaim his body on his own... Inciting the "Mockery" calamity to fight against the Imperial Divine Dao was already a risky move for Chen Ling, and now he had to know when to quit.

Chen Ling stood at the center of the stage, abruptly reaching behind the curtain. His fingertips touched the "performance" projection, and he felt a resilient, hard surface. It was extremely difficult to penetrate, almost indistinguishable from a wall...

Chen Ling suddenly recalled the Fourth Wall mentioned by Mojiao earlier – the critical point that separates story from reality. Could this mysterious barrier in the theater be the Fourth Wall?

When he performed on stage, the audience couldn't interfere with the show. However, when their expectation dropped below 20, the Fourth Wall could potentially be broken, allowing the audience to cross the boundary between story and reality, possess his body, and continue the performance... Similarly, he also had a chance to cross this Fourth Wall and reclaim his body, though it would be much more difficult for him compared to the Mockery calamity.

One wall separated "performance" from "reality," but ultimately, both he and the Mockery calamity were contenders for this stage.

At that moment, Chen Ling seemed to understand part of the theater's mechanism, and the doubts in his mind were suddenly resolved... But this was not the time to delve deeper into its workings. He had to cross the Fourth Wall as quickly as possible and reclaim his body!

"Vermilion."

Chen Ling slowly closed his eyes. When he opened them again, two streaks of apricot-red appeared at the corners, instantly giving him a mysterious and demonic aura.

The moment this mask was summoned, Chen Ling clearly felt the Fourth Wall's obstruction weaken. If it had originally been an unyielding half-wall, it now felt like viscous mud, allowing him to slowly pass through.

As Chen Ling had predicted, a Fourth Wall expectation of 14 was his limit. If it dropped to 13, even with "Vermilion," he wouldn't be able to pass through... at least, not with the current "Vermilion."

At the same time, the red cloud that obscured the sky suddenly trembled violently!

On the surface of the strange, crimson sun above the red cloud, a small opening suddenly appeared. A hand, as if reaching from another world, firmly gripped the gap in the rift...

Chen Ling's voice came from behind the gap:

"You can exit the stage now... For the next act, I am the protagonist."

As Chen Ling's words fell, the red paper monster's body began to disintegrate from the rift's center. Countless red papers fluttered down like dancing butterflies, and its form immediately withered... A second hand reached out from the rift, tearing it open forcefully, and a figure draped in red robes returned to reality!

Two streaks of apricot-red adorned the corners of his eyes, making him look like an actor who had just stepped onto the stage, standing amidst a cascade of red butterflies, his theatrical robes billowing in the wind.

Actor, audience, on stage, off stage—the roles were reversed once more!

"This is Search and Rescue Team One. We haven't found any trace of the exploration team yet!"

"Search and Rescue Team Two: No trace of the exploration team found yet!"

"Search and Rescue Team Three: No trace of the exploration team found yet!"

Several well-equipped search teams ventured deep into Shennongjia from different directions. These individuals were mostly military personnel, with hardly any researchers among them, all dressed in identical camouflage uniforms, moving in an orderly and agile manner... After the rain, the mountains were still shrouded in thick mist, and everything looked hazy in the distance.

"How could this happen? How could this happen?!"

At the base camp at the mountain's entrance, Wang Xinye, the person in charge of this expedition, gripped his walkie-talkie tightly, pacing anxiously inside the tent.

He steeled himself, pressed the button on the walkie-talkie, and spoke with resolute determination:

"Communications have been restored. I don't care what methods you use, you must rescue all nine doctors! They are elites in their respective fields of research and pillars of national development! Spare no expense! Even if you have to search every inch of Shennongjia, you must bring them back!"

After speaking, he slammed the walkie-talkie onto the table, his gaze fixed on the hazy mountains in the distance, his expression extremely grim.

Seven hours had passed since the exploration team of nine doctors went missing in the mountains. Approximately an hour ago, the mysterious magnetic field affecting all of Shennongjia suddenly vanished, and all communication devices returned to normal. However, Wang Xinye still couldn't contact the exploration team.

Wang Xinye didn't know what had happened in Shennongjia, but he was certain that the disappearance of the mysterious magnetic field was related to the exploration team. They might have made some breakthrough discoveries... but their lack of response to communications indicated that something unexpected might have occurred during the process.

The moment communications were restored, Wang Xinye immediately dispatched several more well-equipped search and rescue teams into the mountains. However, strangely, after following the initial tracks of the exploration team for several kilometers, all their footprints vanished...

These people seemed to have evaporated into thin air, disappearing amidst the continuous mountain range. Three search and rescue teams fanned out in three different directions, searching for over an hour, but found no trace of them.

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