The Clown

The energy cannon shell fired by Bai Wanyang tore through the air.

Just as the energy shell was about to hit, a distorted and brilliant colored light screen suddenly unfolded in front of the person dressed as a clown in the back seat.

The energy shell crashed into the light screen, vanishing without a trace like a pebble thrown into the surface of an interdimensional pond.

A second later—

Boom!

The open ground outside the car exploded, dirt and dust flying everywhere, leaving a large crater in the ground.

"...It was redirected? What's going on?!" Bai Wanyang was shocked. He suddenly remembered that the car they were driving had also passed through a dazzling array of colors before moving from the streets leading back to the Investigation Bureau to this wasteland.

It was certain now—this clown was the one behind it!

"I didn't expect you to have abilities like this besides skinning people," Bai Wanyang said, glaring at the clown.

Hearing this, the clown froze for a moment, his eyebrows arching high beneath the greasepaint.

Clearly, Bai Wanyang thought he was the human skin monster.

At first, Yue Shi also thought this clown might be a new form for Boss Pi, but his Insight vision showed that the information on the clown was not 【A Human Skin】, but simply 【The Clown】.

Furthermore, he possessed four abilities—

【Mask Trick】: Observe a target and disguise oneself as them using light and shadow. The deeper and more comprehensive the observation, the more perfect the disguise.

【Kaleidoscope Veil】: Unfold an illusory curtain of distorted and brilliant colors. Any object or living being passing through the curtain will be randomly teleported to a location the caster has recently visited.

【Grotesque Contamination】: By creating or amplifying a target's cognitive dissonance, the user implants 'grotesque' and 'absurd' elements into their mind, gradually dismantling the target's reason and logic until they fall into madness or submission.

【Tragic Finale】: Can only be activated once. Sacrifice all personal abilities and attributes to permanently fix the Mask Trick onto a specific target form, becoming the final disguised image and truly turning into 'another person.'

Looking at the large blocks of text and annotations, Yue Shi quietly breathed a sigh of relief. This clown was strong, but he wasn't a threat to him.

Though four abilities were many, they paled in comparison to Yue Shi's own arsenal.

"Are you talking about 'Boss Pi'? Little friend, you've got the wrong person. I'm not that filthy merchant who deals in secondhand human skins~" the clown said, looking at Bai Wanyang with utmost seriousness.

"I am an artist!"

As he spoke, his tone was very solemn, but his expression was exceptionally comical, the greasepaint on his face twisting into a grimace.

The clown's voice and expression were severely disconnected, creating a form of cognitive dissonance that made Bai Wanyang feel a wave of dizziness.

"Boss Pi? A merchant dealing in human skins?" Bai Wanyang pondered the information in the clown's words. His body, already uncomfortable from being frozen, felt even worse.

The clown was up to something.

Yue Shi was completely unaffected. He directly activated Raven's Secret Whispers, his voice carrying a sense of compulsion. "Answer me. Who exactly are you? What is your relationship with Boss Pi? Is everything we encountered today your doing?"

Insight vision didn't show that the clown had the ability to "set special rules." The horror incident in the cold storage might not have been the clown's doing; someone else was likely involved.

And as for this so-called "someone else"...

Whether it was the "setting of rules" or the existence of the "clown," both made Yue Shi think of one place—Qingshan Sanatorium.

Back in the cold storage when Bai Wanyang mentioned Rules Horror, Yue Shi had felt a strange sense of familiarity. Now, the appearance of the clown completely confirmed it. It was Qingshan Sanatorium!

During his last visit to Qingshan Sanatorium, the "patients" inside had mentioned that a clown had snuck in to cause trouble.

And the director of that sanatorium could set all sorts of institutional rules!

Hearing Yue Shi's questioning, the clown seemed entirely unaffected by the hypnosis. He grinned and crossed his legs, his evening dress tracing lines that were both comical and elegant. He tilted his head to stare at Yue Shi's face and asked back:

"Your eyes and features feel very familiar to me. Have we met before?"

Beside him, Bai Wanyang had already begun to fall into a trance.

Yue Shi didn't answer. If the clown before him was the one from Qingshan Sanatorium, then the two of them had indeed met, though Yue Shi had been wearing a mask and glasses at the time, entering the sanatorium in disguise.

Even though Yue Shi remained silent, the clown suddenly clapped his hands and laughed exaggeratedly, speaking with absolute certainty. "That's right, we've definitely met. I wouldn't mistake someone."

【Mask Trick】 granted the clown unparalleled observational skills, making him especially adept at observing people.

Yue Shi neither admitted nor denied it. He softened his tone slightly, adding a hint of subtle guidance. "Mr. Clown, why are you in our car? Does it have something to do with Boss Pi?"

The clown seemed very satisfied with the way Yue Shi addressed him. He leaned forward, his eyes glinting with cunning beneath the greasepaint as he spoke in a strange, chanting tone:

"Relationship? You could say there's a little bit of one."

"If I had to put it simply, he's a clumsy tailor, and I'm a great actor."

"He collects skins; I create surprises."

"Occasionally, we cooperate for the same stage, the same play..."

He began to cackle, his voice echoing through the car.

Bai Wanyang's gaze became increasingly vacant, and the corners of his mouth began to curl upward uncontrollably into a stiff arc.

"Cooperation?" Yue Shi's brow twitched slightly. "Are you here to help Boss Pi take revenge on the Amber City Investigation Bureau?"

"Revenge? No, no, no!" The clown wagged his finger exaggeratedly, as if he had heard something incredibly ridiculous.

"My dear, you underestimate Boss Pi. He has always loved mingling in human society, playing with the world and living life with ease and freedom wherever he goes. But in this city, he actually met his match in the gutter! Hahaha!"

The clown grew happier as he spoke, even slapping his thigh. "Boss Pi isn't angry or vengeful right now. Instead, he finds it interesting. This city, and especially you—"

The clown's finger pointed at Yue Shi's impassive face. "You are the most interesting variable he has encountered in his long 'career'! He sees this place as a brand-new playground full of surprises!"

Yue Shi's expression remained devoid of emotion as he tried a different angle. "If that's the case, then why did you interfere? Did Boss Pi give you something in return?"

The clown didn't answer directly. Instead, he swayed his head and asked back, "Guess why people call him 'Boss' Pi?"

Yue Shi's pupils shrank slightly. A flash of insight crossed his mind, as if he had caught onto something crucial.

Before he could think it through, the clown continued on his own, "The 'business' Boss Pi runs... although it can't see the light of day, it's spread almost all over the world~"