The former can still be avoided, but the latter can only be left to fate. Let's hope it's not the latter.”

“There’s a small temple next to a cake shop on the street, its light shining in a way completely different from the eerie red glow of the lanterns. How come I never noticed a temple there before? Next time I enter the simulation, I need to check out that temple first.”

The Calmness talent, for the current Adam Carter, could be called a god-tier talent.

Even though this talent is only of green quality, it still allows him to trace countless clues and, by combining them with the situation, make the most reasonable deductions.

So he used a Talent Upgrade Talisman (blue) to upgrade the Calmness talent to blue quality.

Calmness (Blue): One who has thunder in their chest but a calm face can be made a general. You possess a caution unmatched by ordinary people, and the insight of a famous general of old, able to quickly deduce the most advantageous choice for yourself in extremely chaotic situations.

After the talent upgrade, Adam Carter only felt his mind clear, with no other sensations.

He composed himself and, from the items that could be brought out of the simulator, spent 50 yuan jade to select a talent: Koi Possession (White).

The earlier this talent is obtained, the sooner its benefits can be seen.

Through the verification of the Gang Hole and the Imperial Bell, it can be confirmed that mysterious items provide real, tangible improvements.

After obtaining the Koi Possession (White) talent, Adam Carter also used a green Talent Upgrade Talisman to upgrade this talent.

Koi Possession (Green): Your luck stands out among ordinary people, making it easier for you to obtain mysterious items.

Actually, the remaining “Pain Transfer (White)” talent in the simulator is also very useful, but since nothing strange has happened in reality yet, its effect isn’t as prominent.

In fact, after Adam Carter exchanged for the Koi Possession (White) talent, he still had 54 yuan jade left, enough to exchange for the Pain Transfer talent as well.

But if he did that, his yuan jade would be stretched thin, leaving him with a very low margin for error.

So he planned to run a few more simulations, accumulate some more yuan jade, and then exchange for “Pain Transfer (White)”.

Collecting his thoughts, Adam Carter stared at the dial in the darkness and said aloud, “Start simulation!”

……

“Huff—huff—”

Adam Carter stood in front of the apartment building’s entrance, panting, sweat streaming down his face.

In this simulation, he climbed three floors and encountered seven people trying to escape, but none of them were properly prepared.

Either someone’s phone suddenly rang, or a young guy went out with a flashlight in hand—either way, they all died horribly.

If Adam Carter hadn’t been thoroughly prepared, pausing at every stairwell corner, keeping silent, and only moving on after they were killed, he could easily have been dragged down with them.

Through these people’s deaths, Adam Carter discovered a perfect tool for framing others: a high-powered flashlight.

A high-powered flashlight can instantly shoot out a straight beam of light, and wherever it shines, large shadows appear. The shadow wraith will 100% emerge from the illuminated shadow and kill the person next to it!

That young guy used this method to kill his parents and sister, and finally got himself killed as well.

A regular flashlight doesn’t focus the beam enough; the light spreads in all directions, casting shadows that actually get the user killed first.

Noting this detail, Adam Carter didn’t hesitate any longer. He pulled open the apartment building’s door and dashed out!

With plenty of experience, he ran smoothly this time.

As soon as the smell of corpses appeared, he immediately blew the Gang Hole—right before blowing it, a thought flashed through Adam Carter’s mind: would shaking the Imperial Bell directly also immobilize the shadow wraith?

But in the end, he followed his usual routine.

The moment the Gang Hole sounded, a surge of red energy gushed from the hole, and a human bone arm wrapped in sinew emerged from the red mist, suddenly slashing open the shadow wraith’s shroud!

Adam Carter took the opportunity to slip through the crack, his other hand already gripping the Imperial Bell—if the hand bone and the shadow wraith’s fragment combined, he would immediately ring it!

However, this time things didn’t go as Adam Carter expected.

The arm swinging in the red mist didn’t tear at the shadow wraith or cover itself in a black membrane. Instead, it suddenly twisted, and the joint at one end of the hand bone clamped tightly under Adam Carter’s ribs!

A pain like having his bones and marrow sucked shot straight to Adam Carter’s head!

In that instant, even his Calmness talent was useless, and a scream of agony burst from his throat: “Aaaahhh—”

Such pain is beyond human endurance!

Adam Carter deeply regretted not exchanging for the Pain Transfer talent.

Regret, regret, regret!

Pain, pain, pain!

The sinews of the hand bone spread from under Adam Carter’s ribs throughout his body, and amid the agony, it felt as if countless slender blood leeches were writhing in the wound, making it hurt even more!

That hand bone kept twisting under Adam Carter’s ribs.

In the midst of the excruciating pain, Adam Carter noticed that when he trembled, the hand bone trembled with him!

It could even—follow the commands issued by his brain—

Swish!

The shadow wraith, which had just been torn open with a huge crack, reformed into a humanoid shape, instantly crossing several steps to envelop Adam Carter!

At this moment, the hand bone under Adam Carter’s ribs extended again, tearing another crack in the shadow wraith, ripping off a piece of black membrane and wrapping it around the bone.