Infinite Terror: Infinite Reversal

Chapter 253 Mental Power Shield

Mu Xiang and Zheng Zha both have strong self-healing abilities. By the time they arrive at Zhang Jie's stronghold, their energy levels may be uncertain, but their physical injuries will definitely have healed.

Once Zhan Lan returned to her side, many things became much simpler. With Zhan Lan around, bringing the entire city of New York under surveillance was a piece of cake. After all, this wasn't a team battle; much of the information didn't need to be too detailed, and blurry surveillance would suffice.

According to Zhan Lan, Zhang Jie had no intention of hiding anything; with his mental strength, he could have easily concealed himself without leaving a trace.

"The mental shielding I'm talking about isn't a specific exchange skill, but rather a technique. The principle is to compress the range of mental energy scanning and use a high-density mental energy field to shield others from detection," Zhan Lan said in their minds. "The range that needs to be compressed to take effect depends on the level of mental energy... The higher the mental energy, the larger the range after compression, and within this range, the shielder's own mental energy scan will still be effective."

Zheng Zha asked curiously, "Then, is it impossible to control what's outside the compression range?"

“That’s basically it,” Zhan Lan replied. “Mental shielding is a passive defensive behavior. It can be considered as giving up the acquisition of intelligence in exchange for concealing one’s own intelligence. When I fought against the mental controller of the Beiyanzhou team before, she was completely suppressed by me. She could neither conceal her own situation nor find the possibility of searching for intelligence.”

"That's true. Not every mental power controller would throw all their money into increasing their mental power stats... Besides, that mental power controller is constantly being manipulated by Angro, so improving their mental power is probably severely limited. They can only buy skills and equipment. It would be strange if they could win in a head-on mental power contest."

Mu Xiang smiled inwardly, while Zheng Zha asked, "Why did she adopt a passive defense, but still couldn't conceal the information?"

Zhan Lan's voice rang out: "This is what I wanted to say... After compressing the range of the mental energy scan, the mental energy field cannot be completely invisible. We are all mental energy controllers, so even if we cannot break through that shield, we can still sense the range."

"Uh, like a video frame with a mosaic over it?" Zheng Zha was taken aback. "Although you can't see the specific content, you can see the things that have been pixelated?"

Zhan Lan paused for a moment: "Don't look at the same things as Zhang Heng..."

Zheng Zha was stunned by what he heard. Before he could realize where the ambiguity was, Zhan Lan continued, "Just think of it this way: for a mental power controller, the strength of the shield is also linked to their mental power. Do you understand? If it's too weak, it will be like the mental power controller of the Beiyan Continent team, losing the initiative, and their shield will be easily broken, creating a vicious cycle."

"Yes, you mentioned that." Mu Xiang smiled. "You said that with your mental strength, even if you broke through the mental shield of the Beiyan Continent team, as long as you didn't make a big fuss, they wouldn't even realize that their shield had been broken. I guess you wanted to say something else?"

Zhan Lan smiled, but Mu Xiang and Zheng Zha didn't detect much of a smile. "Conversely, if one's mental strength is strong, the shield cannot be broken. For others to break the shield, it's not only difficult, but they might even be knocked unconscious by the backlash. But if one is strong enough, the shield is truly completely blocked."

"Calling it shielding is inaccurate... it's more like misdirection. In this situation, if the shielder wishes, they can make everything else appear normal, undetectable; they can even simulate illusions elsewhere, giving the enemy false information. This is a fatal misdirection for mental controllers, who are unaware of the shielding zone's existence."

Hearing Zhan Lan's words, Zheng Zha couldn't help but gasp. He certainly knew the power of mental controllers, and he understood that this kind of misdirection could be easily dispelled by sight... But the problem was, any team in the Main God Space with a mental controller would prioritize mental scanning. By the time they noticed something amiss with their naked eyes, the misdirector would have plenty of time to do what they wanted. On a small scale, they could escape far away; on a larger scale, they could even set traps... leading the enemy's mental controller to their own death.

"You don't mean to say that Zhang Jie can do it, do you?" Zheng Zha hesitated for a moment.

Zhan Lan said helplessly, "That's right. With his level of mental strength, it would be easy for him to do that... because this isn't a skill he exchanged for himself. Any mental controller with mental strength scanning can do this. You've all witnessed Zhang Jie's overall monitoring, haven't you? I don't believe that he has the ability to monitor the whole situation without mental strength scanning."

Zheng Zha couldn't help but gasp, turning to look at Mu Xiang, only to see Mu Xiang remain silent, staring at the distant building... the CBS building, the center of the shielded zone reported by Zhan Lan.

“So Zhang Jie has been waiting for us all along. He never tripped us up during the process.” Mu Xiang sighed. “These rules of the game weren’t his idea; they were definitely related to the team leader election… but he was actually pushing us forward the whole time, whether it was using the truth as bait or constantly having you attack us.”

Zhan Lan was silent for a moment: "Zhang Jie's mental energy field compression radius is five kilometers, with the CBS building at the center. This shielding effect is so clumsy that it's like something a mental energy controller with only 500 mental energy would do... It's the limit for him, but for Zhang Jie, it's probably as easy as drinking water."

Mu Xiang knew Zhang Jie was strong, but Zhan Lan's description made that strength even more concrete. He felt a little nervous, an emotion he hadn't felt in a long time... not because Zhang Jie was difficult to deal with, but because the consequences of defeating Zhang Jie would be difficult.

Ultimately, this is an unprecedented attempt, and who knows if it will work?

Mu Xiang touched his breast pocket, where there was a cigarette that had long been damp. It was given to him by Zhang Jie during the filming of "Resident Evil." Mu Xiang didn't smoke, but he had kept it all this time.

After all, whether or not one smokes is a matter of ability, while whether or not one accepts bribes is a matter of attitude.

Although the mental chains remained connected, Zhan Lan said nothing more, and Mu Xiang and Zheng Zha also fell silent. The two walked side by side toward the building they could already see, as if they were attending a banquet together.

Mu Xiang initially wanted to suggest that Wang Xia take off his power armor. However, upon closer reflection, while the power armor might bring unexpected problems, removing it would also present Wang Xia with various other unforeseen circumstances... He could manage if he didn't remove it, but it would be even more difficult to deal with if he did. Weighing the two evils, he decided against it.

"Zhan Lan, keep a close watch on the sanatorium," Mu Xiang instructed, before he and Zheng Zha arrived at the foot of the building.

They exchanged a glance, then simultaneously took to the air and flew upwards.

(End of this chapter)