Chapter 55 The Invisible Man

"Ankalu" had always hated sleeping.

But just as a person must eat when hungry, sleeping when tired is inevitable; even if one hates it, one will fall asleep when extremely exhausted.

Sleeping itself was not a big deal.

But not everyone could bear the consequences of sleeping.

Take him, "Ankalu," for example.

In Ankalu's vague memories,

he used to fall asleep in bed and wake up in bed.

But one day, after he slept, he inexplicably found himself on a strange street in an unfamiliar town, and from then on, Ankalu's life was completely different.

After that, every time Ankalu slept, he would find himself far from his original location—either a dozen kilometers away, hundreds of kilometers away, or even thousands or tens of thousands of kilometers away.

Besides waking up far away,

Ankalu also discovered that everyone seemed unable to see him, as if he didn't exist.

For instance, he would eat fruit from a fruit stall right in front of the owner, who would act as if he weren't there.

Moreover, the owner wouldn't remember the eaten fruit, as if the fruit itself had never existed.

He would slap a passerby hard, and the passerby would act as if nothing had happened.

They wouldn't even realize they had been slapped.

Furthermore,

Ankalu would rob rich people's wallets.

He would take weapons from超凡者 (transcendents) right in front of them.

He would take advantage of beautiful women.

He would even stab someone fatally, killing them.

All such actions would go unnoticed by others, or be rationalized by some mysterious force.

It seemed he was completely unable to interact with any self-aware life form in this world.

Not being discovered didn't mean there were no repercussions.

Ankalu had plenty of experience and insights on this matter.

Whenever he did something that interfered too much with others—like killing, causing large-scale injuries, or creating widespread effects, or even committing suicide—

then for a period afterward, he would be especially unlucky.

For example, his legs might be blown off by a collapsing wall.

He might wake up in a scorching desert, dying of thirst.

He might find himself in a frozen wasteland, feeling himself freeze to death bit by bit.

Or he might be swallowed by a giant whale, watching himself be digested.

He might fall into a blazing fire and be burned alive.

And after death, it was like waking up.

He would return to a healthy state and reappear in a strange place on the continent of Oya.

These painful experiences made Ankalu's boring life not too dull.

At the same time, they made Ankalu more and more law-abiding, after all, no one would seek discomfort or trouble for themselves.

Once the novelty wore off, it was a misery that made each day feel like a year.

Occasionally, someone would notice him and have a conversation with him.

But most people who talked to him thought he was crazy, and once they turned away, they completely forgot him.

Over time, Ankalu grew more and more accustomed to being alone.

After all, he couldn't die; even if he died, he would return to a waking state, and over the years, he had remained young and strong.

The only thing that dissatisfied Ankalu was that he was not a超凡者 (transcendent); he was just an ordinary bricklayer.

Although he had once tried to obtain a超凡 (transcendent) profession, he had failed, no doubt.

After many failed attempts, he had almost given up on the option of becoming a超凡者 (transcendent).

This time, Ankalu woke up.

And then Ankalu found himself in a peculiar passage.

The environment was strange, like a vast, wide crystal glass corridor.

After examining it carefully, Ankalu realized he was trapped here.

Normally, that wouldn't be a problem; he would leave after sleeping.

But this time was different.

Ankalu was truly trapped here.

He had already starved to death three times.

After starving to death, he would wake up again in this long, rugged, wide corridor, just in a different spot.

Leaning against the invisible energy barrier on one side, Ankalu felt a fierce hunger pang.

But Ankalu knew that once this hunger passed, he would gradually stop feeling hungry, and then he would be close to death.

Finally, at that moment, Ankalu saw a person.

A person who could fly.

After careful confirmation, Ankalu roughly recognized the guy.

Guné Lawrence.

This guy was a celebrity; he was said to be a master alchemist, a super spellcaster, and a follower of a terrifying existence, extremely powerful, a transcendent genius, and also a great being about to become a god.

His fame had spread to every corner of the continent of Oya; his story was like the protagonist of those biographical novels.

It was hard for Ankalu not to recognize him.

But this Guné Lawrence seemed a bit strange.

His expression was extremely listless.

On his face, thick, dark golden blood kept seeping out.

As he flew forward, blood dripped continuously, even forming a small stream, leaving a trail of blood on the ground.

"Hey! Lord Guné Lawrence!" Ankalu shouted loudly, waving his hands.

Although he knew it was likely the other wouldn't see him,

but what if he did?

After all, there were still people who could communicate with him briefly.

"I'm here! Can you see me? You're bleeding, haven't you noticed?"

The guy named Guné Lawrence acted as if he didn't see him.

Ankalu was used to this; he had been through this for so many years.

However, when he saw the other open an energy door, Ankalu was overjoyed.

Although this guy couldn't see him, he clearly had a way to get through the invisible barrier.

Compared to being seen,

it was more important for Ankalu to leave here. He didn't want to be trapped forever, starving to death over and over.

But to his dismay, as he weakly tried to slip through the opened door,

Guné directly sealed the door shut, leaving Ankalu trembling with rage.

"Bastard! Why are you closing the door so quickly?" Ankalu shouted furiously.

Enraged that the hope that had just appeared was cut off, Ankalu viciously slapped the guy whose face was turned toward him.

As the slap landed, Ankalu felt his hand hit a steel plate.

Blood splattered from the other's cheek.

"Ah!" A miserable scream burst from Ankalu's mouth.

Ankalu saw his palm, stained with the other's blood, rapidly corroding.

The blood seemed to have a terrible property that made it untouchable; touching it meant disaster.

In moments, Ankalu's hand was completely rotted away.

"This guy's blood is terrifying!" Having seen much, Ankalu immediately recognized the danger of the other's blood.

Enduring the pain, Ankalu saw the other gently touch his own cheek.

This sight made the pained Ankalu's heart skip a beat.

In the past, no matter how he slapped others' cheeks, they acted as if nothing happened, not feeling a thing.

But this time, this guy named Guné Lawrence actually felt it.

Then, Ankalu saw the other staring at him—definitely a look that showed he saw him.

Ankalu was overjoyed.

"You see me, right?" Although Ankalu wanted to shake him hard,

seeing the other covered in blood and his own corroded hand, Ankalu dared not touch him again; the other's blood was too powerful for an "ordinary person" like him.

"Say something, will you!"

But unfortunately, Guné Lawrence stared at him for three to five seconds, then looked away.

Then, after pondering for a few seconds, he got up and flew away.

"Bastard! Don't fly away! I'm starving! Give me something to eat!"

Ankalu's angry voice came, but Guné seemed not to hear at all and left directly.