Author: Kinky

Sendoff Ch2

Kinky2 Comments

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

Chapter 2: A Cheap Master

The next morning, the wind ceased and the snow stopped.

Yin Ci put on the ghostskin robe and went out to prepare breakfast. Just as the egg drop porridge was ready, that traveling healer appeared again. His eyes were sparkling, without a trace of the disheveled appearance from the previous night.

He approached Yin Ci and spoke in a gentle tone. “I am Shi Jingzhi. Last night… cough, cough!”

Before he could finish speaking, his complexion changed, and he pulled out a handkerchief, spitting out a mouthful of blood.

Yin Ci: “…” He silently moved the porridge bowl a bit farther away.

Shi Jingzhi seemed unfazed, quickly wiping away the blood, and continued as if nothing had happened. “Thank you for your help last night. I have some burn ointment. Please take it.”

Yin Ci nodded and took the ointment. However, Shi Jingzhi lingered. His foxy eyes twinkled, and he was smiling as if the northwest wind carried the scent of spring.

Unfortunately, Yin Ci wasn’t swayed by his charm. He picked up the porridge and left. If he didn’t eat it, someone else would—now that Auntie Li was paid, she was attentive and became more infatuated with the “Ancestral Fox Spirit.”

Yin Ci had only eaten half a bowl of porridge when Auntie Li had been chattering incessantly about him. “He’s a deliveryman from the mountain, not from my shop. This kid has some skill, but he’s unlucky…”

Shi Jingzhi sat across from them, quietly listening to her chatter with a beaming smile that could blind people.

“Well, his father passed away a few years ago, and he dutifully observed mourning for three years. I told him it’s not necessary and he should find work in town early. He could even cook in my kitchen… But this brat doesn’t listen to the advice of elders. He’s twenty years old now and doesn’t even have a sweetheart…”

Yin Ci wished she would continue to publicize his “innocent background”, showing no intention of interrupting her. 

“To be frank with you, I was chased by bandits last night, and I blindly ran to your place. Now I need to leave the mountain, so if this young man doesn’t mind, I would like to pay him to guide me…” Shi Jingzhi looked up at Yin Ci.

“Sure.” Yin Ci stretched out his chopsticks to pick up a side dish.

“Thank you.” Unexpectedly, Shi Jingzhi grabbed his hand. His expression was sincere to the point that it made one’s teeth ache, and his palms were burning.

Yin Ci furrowed his brows and discreetly pulled his hand away. “No need to be so polite.”

Yin Ci thought that with Shi Jingzhi’s enthusiastic behavior, he would use the opportunity to inquire about Ear Cutter. However, after they finished breakfast, Shi Jingzhi didn’t ask a single question. Instead, he brought a stool to the entrance and enjoyed the snow, as if he truly came for leisure.

Before the two of them left the mountain, Auntie Li called Yin Ci over and sighed as she handed him a bag of steamed buns.

“The food I make is not tasty. Please don’t mind. Ah, once you leave today, it’s probably going to be three to five years before you come back… I saw the luggage in your bag. Even without this incident, you had planned to leave the mountain, right?”

She rambled on for a while, then took out a handful of money from her pocket and stuffed it into Yin Ci’s hand. “There are many thieves out there. Don’t let them trick you… When you have time, come back and visit this old woman.”

Yin Ci took the steamed buns but declined the coins. To make it more convincing, he should have shed a few tears, but he couldn’t squeeze out even a single drop.

“Got it.”

“You’re fortunate to be able to descend the mountain with the Ancestral Fox Spirit. Just don’t covet his fur coat and be cautious of causing trouble.” With a serious tone, Auntie Li earnestly cautioned him, looking as if she had seen the Shi Jingzhi’s foxtail.

Yin Ci smirked. He had undoubtedly caused countless troubles, so this one wouldn’t make much of a difference.

Unfortunately, Demonic Lord Yin’s calculations wouldn’t come to fruition—

Just as they left the inn, they were surrounded by a group of Chigou Sect assassins.

Since Eat Cutter hadn’t returned last night, the Chigou Sect had sent ten assassins this time. Yin Ci was about to step back when Shi Jingzhi grabbed his waist. He lifted Yin Ci and fled with remarkable agility.

The Chigou Sect assassins weren’t to be underestimated, and they immediately gave chase.

With no snowstorm at the moment, the assassins lightly stepped on the snow, pursuing with elegance, while Shi Jingzhi was like a plow in the field; half of his body was sinking into the snow as he struggled forward, leaving Yin Ci’s face stuffed with snow. If it weren’t for Shi Jingzhi carrying him, Yin Ci suspected the man would be rolling and crawling in his escape.

No wonder his shoes were lost last night.

Yet, with this seemingly ineffective escape method, Shi Jingzhi managed to leave all ten assassins behind. When he was certain the assassins couldn’t catch up for the time being, Shi Jingzhi released his grip on Yin Ci and plopped down in the snow. “They’re really persistent.”

Yin Ci, who was forced to eat snow along the way, was in a rather bad mood. “They were chasing you last night? They wore white clothes and masks, not like ordinary bandits.”

Shi Jingzhi clicked his tongue. “Those were the assassins of the Chigou Sect. I stole a few trinkets from them. Speaking of which, you didn’t panic at all when you saw them coming at you with knives. You’re quite courageous, little brother.”

Yin Ci narrowed his eyes.

The fact that the Chigou Sect had mobilized to such an extent meant that Shi Jingzhi was no ordinary person. Yet, despite knowing that there were pursuers behind him, he specifically brought along Yin Ci, an “ordinary commoner”. He didn’t seem like someone trying to use him as a scapegoat before dying, so there were only two possibilities.

Either Shi Jingzhi was strong enough to ensure his safety even under the pursuit of assassins, or Yin Ci had inadvertently revealed something, and Shi Jingzhi was testing him.

Regardless of the situation, this person was intriguing.

Yin Ci continued to feign ignorance, pretending to be clueless. “Why did you steal from the Chigou Sect? Do you think you can live a long life?”

Shi Jingzhi didn’t seem annoyed. “Well, that thing isn’t really theirs… Have you heard of the ‘Ghost Tomb’?”

“No.”

Shi Jingzhi suddenly became more spirited, sitting up straight. “Then you must have heard of the ‘Ling Sect’. The first Hierarch of the Ling Sect was extremely tyrannical, plundering treasures and divine weapons everywhere to be buried alongside him. His tomb is called the ‘Ghost Tomb’.”

Yin Ci nodded. The Ling Sect was the first demonic sect a century ago, and its leader at the time was notoriously wicked. It wasn’t surprising that mountain dwellers knew about it from frequent appearances in folk stories.

Shi Jingzhi continued enthusiastically, “Last year, the Ghost Tomb emerged, causing a stir in the martial world. Everyone wanted a piece of the action. But think about it, if anyone and everyone could enter the tomb, it would be overcrowded and explode.”

“So the Jinyu Group took charge. The group leader personally carved 108 jade beads and hid them in various locations as tokens to permit entry into the tomb. I stole one of these jade beads. In order to reduce competition, each sect collected their own, and fighting over them is within the rules.”

Yin Ci: “Isn’t it unfair for the Jinyu Group to be the gatekeepers when they know where the jade beads are hidden?”

Seeing Yin Ci’s interest in the Ghost Tomb, Shi Jingzhi smirked. “The Jinyu Group can’t enter the tomb. They are merely a merchant alliance, and their members’ martial arts skills aren’t remarkable. They prefer to accumulate wealth through trading the rare treasures inside the tomb… As long as they can get one treasure, it guarantees a comfortable life for the rest of their days.”

Yin Ci replied calmly, “Why not just sell the jade bead directly? It would bring in money more quickly.”

Shi Jingzhi exclaimed in surprise, “That would be so boring!”

Observing Shi Jingzhi’s excited demeanor, Yin Ci was certain that he was relatively new to the martial world. This person was indeed connected to the Ghost Tomb, which meant he would live a few more days. Yin Ci chose not to respond and took out a steamed bun to eat.

After a while, Shi Jingzhi brought up another topic. “Little brother, do you have a destination for this trip down the mountain?”

Here it comes. This kid was dragging him into muddy waters with a clear purpose in mind.

“No, I plan to wander around first and then find a decent place to work.”

“Or you can follow me,” Shi Jingzhi pleaded earnestly. “To be honest, I’ve been traveling outside for so long, and I haven’t had a meal as delicious as last night’s. If you can prepare meals, you’ll receive two taels of silver per month. And…”

“And?” Yin Ci asked.

“Your aptitude isn’t bad. You might as well become my disciple. You can learn martial arts from me in the future, strengthen your body, and prolong your life.” Shi Jingzhi smiled even more warmly. Unexpectedly, he suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood.

Yin Ci: “…”

It seemed that this person was not only a newcomer to the martial world but also a swindler. Yin Ci, at the age of “twenty”, was considered too old to start learning martial arts. Moreover, apart from the disgraceful dog-like escape, this person hadn’t shown anything worth learning.

He was just deceiving ignorant mountain dwellers.

A mouthful of blood spurted out after the words “prolong your life”, leaving Shi Jingzhi feeling embarrassed. He forced a couple of awkward laughs and quickly wiped away the blood. Yin Ci didn’t pay attention to his embarrassment; his focus shifted elsewhere.

Two breaths were approaching.

Yin Ci had long sensed their presence. Those two assassins had been lurking nearby for quite some time, waiting for them to lower their guard. According to the style of the Chigou Sect, the hidden weapons were about to strike.

Meanwhile, Shi Jingzhi resumed selling himself. “If you become my disciple, in case something happens to me, all my wealth will be yours. I have a small medicine shop in Yidu, worth quite a bit of silver…”

“Alright. But you’re only a little older than me, so I won’t kneel. If you don’t mind, I will become your disciple.”

“Huh?” Shi Jingzhi didn’t expect Yin Ci to be so straightforward. He stood there in astonishment, taking a while to regain his senses. “I’m seven years older than you. You don’t need to kneel. Just a ceremonial meal for the master-disciple ceremony will do.”

Seeing the other person still in shock, Yin Ci smiled.

He had originally planned to infiltrate a small sect that could enter the tomb, act low-key, and reap the benefits. Shi Jingzhi was quite attention-grabbing, capable of diverting others’ attention so this was an excellent cover.

If Shi Jingzhi had the strength to survive under the Chigou Sect, following him wouldn’t be a bad idea. If he died here, Yin Ci wouldn’t have any losses either.

The assassins finally made their move, and several flying knives came whistling through the air. Yin Ci’s pupils contracted as he closely observed Shi Jingzhi’s reaction.

After struggling for a while, Shi Jingzhi shifted forward, narrowly avoiding one of the flying knives. “Although it’s not my place to say… Little brother, becoming a disciple is a significant decision. Do you really not need any more consideration?”

Yin Ci: “…No need.”

“Really no need? I—ouch!”

Several more flying knives were shot, with one grazing Shi Jingzhi’s shoulder. He sighed, stood up, and casually threw the blood-stained cloth to the ground. “I’ll give you one more chance to change your mind. Pay attention.”

Failing to assassinate their targets, the two assassins revealed themselves; their swords gleamed with a cold light. Shi Jingzhi reached out his hand—

“Wait, wait a moment, let’s talk things through.”

Assassins were most wary of underestimating their opponents. Seeing their target’s peculiar evasive maneuvers, they hesitated and looked at him with caution.

“I heard that your sect has a rule. Unless there is an intense blood feud, you will only send assassins three times. If they fail, you will stop. The Ear Cutter last night was the second attempt, so you should be the third wave, right?”

“I’m just a nobody. If you admit defeat and let us go, the punishment won’t be too severe. How about we part ways here? What do you say?”

One of the assassins couldn’t hold back any longer and drew his sword, stepping forward. “What bullshit!”

This time, Shi Jingzhi didn’t flee. He took advantage of the situation and grabbed the assassin’s arm, hurling him dozens of meters away and directly shattering two white pine trees.

“The Chigou Sect had no shortage of jade beads, and the competition for them is a legitimate rule. It’s really boring to die for the sake of face. I advise you both to leave now.”

Having said that, Shi Jingzhi swept away the banner with the words “Medicine Cures Illness” and made it clear that he was ready to fight with the flagpole. The assassins didn’t give up and disregarded fairness as they attacked with their swords.

Yin Ci watched intensely with great interest for a while—

Shi Jingzhi’s moves lacked any form or technique. He swung the flagpole so haphazardly that it could make people cry, as if he were a child who had just started learning swordsmanship. His footwork was also quite floaty, crooked and twisted—not at all convincing.

Interestingly enough, even though his staff techniques and footwork were abysmal, the assassins just couldn’t lay a hand on him.

After fighting for a short while, one of the assassins was bewildered by Shi Jingzhi’s sloppy moves, which threw off his timing. At that moment, Shi Jingzhi let out a light sigh.

“Excuse me.”

He raised his hand and lightly patted the opponent’s chin with his palm, causing the person’s head to explode like a watermelon, splattering red and white all over the ground. The other assassin was startled and was met with the flagpole that came whistling towards him. Half of his head was obliterated by the impact.

The words “Medicine Cures Illness” on the flag were splattered with specks of blood. The two corpses emitted steam in the cold wind, filling the air with a strong smell of blood.

Yin Ci furrowed his brow.

This person’s external martial arts1 and qinggong2 were terrible, without any redeeming qualities, but his internal martial arts3 were like that of a monster. From his previous escape to the fight just now, Shi Jingzhi had only used inner force.

1Characterized by fast and explosive movements and a focus on physical strength and agility. Practitioners of external martial arts typically train their bodies through rigorous physical exercises, such as strength training, endurance training, and conditioning drills. They focus on developing powerful strikes, kicks, blocks, and grappling techniques that rely on muscular strength and speed. External martial arts styles often include techniques like punches, kicks, joint locks, throws, and combinations of these moves.
2Ability to move swiftly and lightly at superhuman speed and perform gravity-defying moves such as running on water surfaces, traversing across rooftops, and even balancing on a stalk of grass.
3Is characterized by soft and flowing movements, focusing on mental or qi-related aspects. It places more emphasis on the cultivation of internal energy, relaxation, and using the mind and body connection to generate power. Internal martial arts styles include Tai Chi, Baguazhang, and Xingyiquan. These styles focus on developing internal strength, balance, and harmony, and their movements are often characterized by softness, circularity, and flowing motions.

This was truly astonishing.

Unlike external martial arts, internal martial arts couldn’t be achieved through talent or comprehension alone. It required years of practice. Even if one sought guidance from a master, not only would the progress be slow, but they would also be unable to freely utilize their inner force. The fact that Shi Jingzhi possessed such refined and pure inner force meant that he had cultivated it himself.

He was only twenty-seven years old.

Even for a once-in-a-millennium martial arts prodigy, they would have had to focus solely on cultivating inner force from a young age—and tirelessly practice day and night—to reach such a level. However, such a practice was meaningless. It might be fine against a few Chigou Sect assassins, but if Shi Jingzhi encountered top-notch masters, he wouldn’t gain any advantage.

Where did this strange guy come from?

“How about it?” Shi Jingzhi leaned on the flagpole and walked up to Yin Ci with a wry smile on his face. “I always fight like this. Do you still want to be my disciple?”

“Of course.” Yin Ci’s gaze brightened a bit.

…He hadn’t had this much fun in a long time.

The author has something to say:

Shi Jingzhi: Well done, I’ve fooled him.

Yin Ci: Well done, I’ve fooled him.

(〃^ω^)人(=ω=〃)

The setting related to external martial arts, internal martial arts, and qinggong are all nonsense made up by me, so don’t compare them with the classic settings. (^ρ^)/

Kinky Thoughts:

Well, basically, Nian Zhong is drawing on some common concepts in wuxia and xianxia but applying her own thing to them. Nevertheless, I will still try my best to explain things as they draw from both real (the martial arts stuff derives from reality) and fictional aspects.

Though… I wish I had read that note before I did all this research. This chapter is sending me… Maybe I need a sendoff.

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Sendoff Ch1

Kinky8 Comments

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

Chapter 1: Chicken Noodle Soup

Winter night, Kushan*.

*Ku Mountain/Mount Ku.

Heavy snow had been falling all day, completely burying the mountain path. An emaciated old man struggled forward, breaking the smooth snow crust into pieces.

Regret gnawed at Ear Cutter as he thought about his current task. He had some reputation, after all, but here he was, braving the bitter cold to chase down an unknown thief—only to fail to catch even a strand of the thief’s hair, while his own legs were freezing.

The little thief didn’t look like a formidable opponent, but unexpectedly, he possessed astonishing stamina and managed to escape for three hundred li*. When he got his hands on the thief, Ear Cutter wouldn’t just settle for just his ears; he wanted to skin the kid’s face too.

*Traditional Chinese unit of distance that vary considerably over time but it’s about 1/3 of an English mile (500 meters, 0.311 miles).

But fate would always find a way*. Suddenly, the wind and snow eased up a bit, revealing a man ahead. He was dressed like a hunter, slightly stooped, with a backpack filled with mountain goods and furs and several plump pheasants that hung by his side.

*Heaven will always leave a door open. (天无绝人之路) Idiom referring to the idea that even in difficult or seemingly hopeless situations, there’s always a path out or a path forward for those who persevere and have faith.

Ear Cutter took a few steps forward, trying to get a closer look.

The hunter was young, with half of his face covered by rough cloth. His long hair was hastily combed, forming icy strands with melted snow water. Both his ears were bright red, clearly lacking inner force*.

*[Neijin] (内力) or [neigong] (內功) is commonly used in martial arts and Chinese medicine. It’s considered a source of energy, strength, and agility for combat and can be harnessed through cultivation. || In wuxia and xianxia context, it’s basically energy that gives cultivators superhuman powers.

Feeling relieved, Ear Cutter quietly positioned himself behind the hunter.

“Young man, is there an inn ahead?” he asked, his mouth speaking while his eyes continued to assess.

The shape of the young hunter’s ears was quite good.

“There’s an inn below the cliff over there.” Suddenly engaged in conversation, the young hunter remained calm and gave a lukewarm answer. “It’s the only one on the mountain.”

A smile of delight appeared on Ear Cutter’s face, making his old features look even more sinister.

It wasn’t advisable to descend the mountain during nighttime, especially with heavy snowfall. If the thief stayed outside overnight, he would turn into frozen meat. So he could simply wait for him at the inn. After all, a thief was just a thief, digging his own grave, which saved him a lot of trouble.

Why not celebrate in advance? The young hunter had such beautifully shaped ears; they were truly worth cutting.

Ear Cutter grabbed the hunter’s shoulder, preparing to pull him over and crush his throat. But before he could exert any force, the scenery in front of him suddenly changed. He glanced down and didn’t see his own chest, but instead saw his own back.

Ear Cutter’s eyes widened in shock as his decapitated head fell into the snow.

Half an hour later.

“Little brat. You finally came.” The innkeeper wiped her hands and greeted him with a gruff voice. “I’ve been waiting at the stove for you.”

The young hunter from before—Yin Ci—responded with a mischievous smile while he untied the pheasants from his waist.

On his side, the pheasants were cooked, and the innkeeper finished ordering the goods. She slapped a few bundles of money on the table and said, “As usual, the extra is considered hard-earned money. It’s freezing cold outside, and I’m counting on this bowl of soup.”

The proprietress’ surname was Li, but the mountain folks just called her Auntie Li.

Auntie Li had lost her husband early on and had been running this old inn with her two children. Her daughter had married early, and her son was working in town, so only she remained at the inn. Fortunately, the barren mountains were so poor and desolate that not even bandits could be seen. Auntie Li had a strong build and a loud voice that could be heard for miles. Over the years, she hadn’t encountered any trouble.

Yin Ci had tasted the inn’s food before and quickly understood why the two children had run away—Auntie Li’s cooking skills were extremely poor. The appearance of the food was passable, but the taste was strange. It seemed like it was fit for feeding dogs, and even dogs would gag a few times if they ate it.

The inn managed to stay open solely relying on the guests’ desperate hunger.

Naturally, Yin Ci didn’t want to eat such food. He intended to teach Auntie Li how to cook, but unexpectedly, she was willing to pay for his dishes. So every time he delivered the mountain goods, Yin Ci would stay for an extra night and enjoy two hot meals before leaving.

Now, the wind and snow were howling, and it was as dark as the bottom of a pot. Not to mention ordinary people—even the old mountain folks didn’t want to go out. Auntie Li lit a lone lamp in the front hall and didn’t even bother making the cheapest pancakes. She heated up the leftover porridge from breakfast, which would serve as the guests’ meal.

On the other side, the plump pheasants were simmering with various mountain delicacies in the clay pot. The fragrance was so enticing that it made one’s heels go soft. When the time was right, Auntie Li lifted the lid, revealing the golden fat floating on the soup and the tender pheasant meat bobbing up and down. Paired with freshly cooked noodles, even a deity wouldn’t trade it for anything on such a freezing day.

As soon as the bowl of noodles was ready, a creaking sound came from the front hall.

A figure stumbled into the room, barely making it to the light. Only then could the two people clearly see the guest’s appearance—he was dressed as a wandering healer with a chinless mask fastened to his face. His clothes were disheveled and covered in mud, and he was missing a boot.

At the moment, he was panting heavily as steam rose from his body, having traveled several lis in the snow.

Through the hole in the mask, the man pitifully looked at the two people, particularly at the bowl in Auntie Li’s hands. Then, he suddenly collapsed to the ground without making a sound.

Auntie Li: “Is he dead? Heaven forbid, don’t die in my inn. Hey, brat, help me take a look.”

Yin Ci regretfully put down the ladle and said, “Okay, bring a basin of warm water.”

When the water was brought, Yin Ci casually lifted the mask and wiped the dirt off the man’s face. After checking his complexion, he felt his pulse and said, “Exhausted, weak from hunger, which is probably why he fainted.”

However, Auntie Li didn’t respond. She stared blankly at the man’s face, almost stepping into the basin.

Unexpectedly, this uninvited guest was oddly handsome.

He appeared to be under thirty, without any feminine features, yet extraordinarily beautiful to the point where his facial features had a touch of exoticness. Even Yin Ci, who was accustomed to seeing beauties, was momentarily surprised. The impact on Auntie Li was even greater—in this barren and remote place, she had hardly seen any handsome young men. This man’s appearance was indeed excessive, and her admiration turned into shock.

“Oh, Ancestral Fox Spirit*!” Auntie Li’s voice became sharper.

*Immortal/God/Fairy/ect. (仙) It refers to a person or entity having a long life or being immortal.

Before Yin Ci could interject, she gritted her teeth and scooped a bowl of leftover porridge, gesturing for Yin Ci to feed it to the man.

“Consider it an offering. Consider it an offering,” Auntie Li muttered to herself, rubbing her palms together.

Having lived for over three hundred years, Yin Ci had only heard of “Fox Spirits” who could transform into humans in storybooks. Seeing Auntie Li getting nervous on her own, he didn’t bother to explain. He took the bowl of unappetizing porridge and, with a heart of stone, scooped a spoonful and brought it to the man’s mouth—after all, he himself had eaten it, and it didn’t kill him.

Unfortunately, the “Ancestral Fox Spirit” seemed to have good discernment. The man weakly gagged twice, turned his head away, and clenched his teeth tightly.

Seeing the offering being instantly rejected, Auntie Li suddenly became furious. “Forget it. Drag this fox out. Don’t let him die inside the inn.”

As one of the unscrupulous folks bred in these poor and dangerous mountains, Auntie Li’s respect for celestial beings was clearly limited.

Yin Ci tactfully pointed out the key point. “I saw his money pouch. He should be able to afford a few nights’ stay.”

Auntie Li may have been hard-hearted, but she also wanted to save money and accumulate virtue for her children. When she heard the potential profit, her nameless anger instantly dissipated. “Oh, Ancestral Fox Spirit’s clothes are so wet. It must be uncomfortable. I have a few old garments of my son in the back room. You can clean his body and change his clothes properly.”

Yin Ci naturally smiled and agreed.

While Auntie Li went to fetch the clothes, Yin Ci stripped the man like a white fish and wrapped him in dry animal hide. In just a few movements, he had a clear view of the man’s personal belongings—

A signboard of a wandering healer with bold and powerful characters that read “Medicine Cures Illness” and beneath it, slightly faded small characters of “potent pills” and “healing ointments”. The medicine box was somewhat worn-out. Yin Ci sniffed each bottle, only finding ordinary medicines and no poison. A bell and a mortar for grinding herbs were placed together, showing signs of extensive use.

In addition, there was only one money pouch, containing a string of five coins*, tightly wrapped in layers of broken silver. Not to mention weapons, Yin Ci didn’t even find a self-defense dagger; only a small knife used for cutting herbs.

*5 Emperor Coins. These refer to copper coins with round, square holes in them. Usually, five copper coins are strung together (like this case) to symbolize the five elements (wood, fire, earth, metal, and water) and are used to ward off evil spirits and attract good fortune.

How strange.

That person hurried through the snow-covered night, with thin ice forming on their clothes, yet their skin showed no signs of frostbite. It was clear they were a martial arts cultivator. Yin Ci recognized Ear Cutter that he had killed earlier—Chen Qu, one of the powerful assassins of the Chigou Sect, specialized in targeting enemies of their sect.

These two individuals, braving the snowstorm, definitely didn’t come up the mountain for leisure.

In recent months, a ghost tomb containing precious treasures had emerged, causing a great uproar in the martial world. The Chigou Sect, being one of the top demonic sects, was currently occupied with the matter of the ghost tomb and wouldn’t bother with an unknown figure like this mere wandering healer.

Taking ten thousand steps back, even if one of their elders had taken a male pet, they wouldn’t resort to using Ear Cutter for such a trivial matter.

While Yin Ci pondered, the person regained their breath and slowly opened their eyes—a pair of beautifully upturned phoenix eyes, with clear amber irises that resembled a fox. However, his gaze seemed vacant, and the eerie aura around him diminished slightly.

Yin Ci, still puzzled, decided to maintain his facade as a kind person. He brought over a bowl of chicken noodle soup and offered a spoonful of hot broth. “You’ve caught a chill. Have some hot soup.”

Seemingly famished, the man took a sip of the flavorful broth, and his gaze suddenly became clear. He then eagerly focused on the bowl of noodles. Yin Ci fed him the noodle soup while observing his complexion turning rosier.

Auntie Li approached with some clothes, but once again, her eyes were dazzled by the person’s beauty, causing her to accidentally knock over a lamp. Yin Ci quickly shielded the lamp oil and pretended to sigh. “Your change of clothes is here. Can you manage on your own?”

The person nodded and glanced at the scalded back of Yin Ci’s hand.

Yin Ci pointed at Auntie Li. “Then I’ll go rest. This is the innkeeper. You can settle the bill and room fees with her.”

With the mountain pass blocked by heavy snow, that person wouldn’t be able to escape anytime soon. Yin Ci, posing as an “inexperienced hunter”, felt that it would raise suspicion if he hurriedly engaged in conversation.

Knowing his habits well, Auntie Li had already prepared a bathtub in the guest room, and steam was still rising from the hot water. Yin Ci removed his clothes and stepped into the hot water. In the next moment, the rough “skin” peeled away, revealing the cold white underneath.

The ghostskin robe, one of the rare treasures Yin Ci had discovered in an ancient tomb. It was as thin as a cicada’s wings, woven from the silk of ghost silkworms from the Western Regions and soaked in secret medicine. It perfectly adhered to the wearer’s skin, matching not only their facial features but also the complexion, moles, and calluses of their body. Even the body hair was indistinguishable from a real person’s.

Ordinary disguise techniques usually focused on altering the head, neck, hands, and feet. However, the ghostskin robe consisted of three parts, extending from the waist, abdomen, and thigh, covering a large portion of the body. Unless Yin Ci deliberately ran around naked, there was no chance of exposure.

Carefully peeling off the facial ghostskin, Yin Ci breathed a sigh of relief. He picked up a vial, mixed the liquid medicine and pigments, then placed the ghostskin robe on the edge of the tub, using a fine brush to depict the “injury” where the lamp oil splashed.

Upon contact with the liquid, the ghostskin robe obediently expanded, forming a few fake blisters. Yin Ci hummed with satisfaction, then adjusted the facial features on the ghostskin, starting with the eyes, nose, and mouth.

Amidst the misty water vapor and dim firelight, his actions alone resembled the rumored painted-skin demon*.

*Referencing “The Painted Skin” by Pu Songling from his work Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio. You can read the story by going to the Wikipedia. TLDR: Demon put on human skin and try to seduce a human.

…However, the effect of this painted skin was precisely the opposite.

The fake face on the ghostskin was neither beautiful nor ugly, lacking any distinctive features. In a crowd, nine out of ten people would forget it at a glance. But if Auntie Li were to see Yin Ci without the ghostskin, she would likely exclaim, “Oh, Ancestral Fox Spirit!” again.

The person outside possessed a passionate, handsome beauty, while the one in the bathtub leaned more towards being “gentle like jade”. It was truly difficult to compare. Unfortunately, this person’s eyebrows and eyes were filled with an aura of death, turning the finest jade into a jade cicada in the mouth of a corpse, sending shivers down one’s spine.

Yin Ci’s body soaked in the hot water, but his thoughts were unusually cold.

He needed to thoroughly understand the background of that traveling healer. If that person had a connection to the ghost tomb, he could spare their life. If not, he would have no choice but to let them die in the desolate mountains. Getting involved with the Chigou Sect too early would only lead to unnecessary trouble.

The plan had just taken its first step, so it was best not to make any mistakes.

The author has something to say:

Oh my, my traditional skills have disappeared. Demonic Lord Yin is the first protagonist who hasn’t suffered a physical crit in the first chapter!

And although it’s a beautiful person × beautiful person pairing, the characters’ appearances aren’t inflated (…). Their looks are influenced by objective factors, and most people are still of average appearance. It’s related to the worldbuilding, but I won’t reveal everything~

——

[Note] This story is set in a completely fictional era [Note]. The purchasing power of silver tael references the Tang Dynasty, where 1 qian is equivalent to 5 yuan. 1 tael (liang) of silver = 10 qian of silver = 1,000 copper coins, which is roughly equivalent to 5,000 yuan.

In reality, the value of 1 wen during the Tang Dynasty seems to be around 4 yuan (some sources mention around 10 yuan), and 1 tael of silver is worth much more than I imagined…

Kinky Thoughts:

As Nian Zhong is my favorite author, I have decided to pick up the last of her work I haven’t translated. Actually, I have been planning this project for some time, but given the setting (xianxia/wuxia/xuanhuan), much more work and research had to be done before I released it.

I am aware it is also being worked on by someone else under the title Sending the Divine, but I personally like the title Sendoff better. Regardless, I encourage you to check out their version as well.

Speaking of the title, it is [Songsheng] (送神). I won’t go into too much details about it since it is related to the plot and don’t want to give out any potential spoilers, but the title references a few things, one of which is “sending off the gods after the offering of sacrifices” (as a reminder to the gods to leave at the end of sacrificial activities). In another sense, it’s like driving away the ghosts and gods.

——

Couple of things to note about this novel. It’s xuanhuan (fantasy) that draws on both wuxia and xianxia elements, though Nian Zhong has changed some things around to her own interpretation. Nevertheless, it does borrow many elements so for some clarity (for those not familiar with the genre):

When you see things mentioned of “demonic”, such as a demonic sect, it doesn’t actually mean they worship demons, but they follow the “evil/unorthodox” path vs the “righteous/orthodox” path. In cases of wuxia novels, moreso a “sect” (like the Chigou Sect) they’re really known as a cult (basing it off of this glossary). However, I’ll keep them all as sect since I don’t think the association of “cult” in terms of western definition really fits in this setting.

In a sense of the “evil” path; it means they disregard laws and ethics to achieve their purpose and pursue great power at all cost. However, even within each demonic sect, they have their own rules and integrity (as you will see later when reading). This is why I don’t really want to label them as a cult (and also to move away from the idea that they worship demons because they are a “demonic” sect).

Leaders of the sect will be translated as either Sect Master, Patriarch/Matriarch (for current leaders), and Hierarch (for founder), depending on the context and what address is being used (based on the speaker). There are ton of different titles and addresses which will be noted as they appear down the line.

——

This is a first for Nian Zhong. Her protagonist didn’t end up in an unfortunate situation during the first chapter. You can also check out other works I have done by Nian Zhong, which I highly recommend: Stray, Happy Doomsday, Access Denied, and Evil As Humans.

|| Table of Contents || >>>

Criminal Psychology Ch224

KinkyLeave a comment

Author: 长洱 / Chang’er

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

Chapter 224

Lin Chen didn’t know when he fell asleep or if he had slept at all, but he was awakened by a phone call.

In a daze, he picked up his phone and glanced at it. Outside, the weather was gloomy, casting a hazy blue hue.

Lin Chen didn’t answer the phone right away because he didn’t recognize the number. He checked the time and realized that Xing Conglian, Wang Chao, and Huang Ze still hadn’t returned.

He suddenly became alert and hesitated for a moment before pressing the answer button and sitting up in his hospital bed.

“Hello, Mr. Lin… This is Zhan… Zhan… The person you left your number with yesterday.”

Lin Chen quickly pictured the young man’s anxious face and rubbed his eyes, exhaling deeply. “Hello, Mr. Zhan, what can I do for you?”

“I’ve run into a problem, but I don’t know who to talk to. I… I…”

“Is it a problem with your factory’s emulsifier?”

There were noises and voices in the background of the phone call, including footsteps and car honks.

“What happened?”

“I… I checked our factory’s emulsifier last night, and I couldn’t find any impurities. I want to talk to Zhourui’s people about this problem to find out what’s going on and how we can solve it.”

Lin Chen didn’t know why Mr. Zhan called him specifically for this issue, but he patiently replied, “It’s only 7 in the morning. Even if you contact the person in charge now, it’s unlikely that the problem can be solved so quickly. You might have to wait a bit longer.”

“No, no, Mr. Lin, I’ve been calling Zhourui’s Pharmaceutical contacts all night. I even went through my dad’s contact list, but no one told me what’s going on. Some people blocked me after I called them twice. There must be something wrong, right?”

“It could be related to business reasons. It’s hard to say. Also, did you call them in the middle of the night?”

“I… I really don’t know what to do…”

Mr. Xiao Zhan hesitated, and Lin Chen didn’t know how to advise him either. He felt that Mr. Xiao Zhan calling him about this matter was already awkward enough.

Sighing, Lin Chen asked, “So, why did you call me specifically for this matter?”

“It’s like this, Mr. Lin… Today, there’s a promotion event for Zhourui’s Pharmaceutical’s new drug, Nordron. Can you… Can you help me by accompanying me to the event?”

Lin Chen was even more surprised by this request. Although he had called Xing Conglian yesterday to express his interest in attending the event, after everything that happened with Shen Lian and last night, he had almost forgotten about it. So now, Mr. Xiao Zhan’s sudden request caught him off guard. “Why me?”

“I saw what you said at the hospital gate… It was online… I just thought you…”

“You think I’m good at talking and can help you argue?” Lin Chen felt that this reason was too reasonable.

“No, no, I really can’t find anyone. I’m sorry…” Mr. Xiao Zhan’s voice was almost crying. “Although Zhourui is not our biggest customer, I’m really afraid that Zhourui Pharmaceutical will sue us. With Chairman Zhan already like this, I really need to know where the problem is before they will replace us suppliers.”

Xiao Zhan’s tone was servile, but it didn’t make people feel any disgust. Lin Chen sighed deeply, but suddenly thought of something. He felt that at that moment, there seemed to be something that could connect everything together.

Lin Chen raised his voice slightly and said, “Wait, what did you say?”

“Huh?”

“Zhourui Pharmaceutical replaced their suppliers? What happened?”

“I don’t know what happened. Before, I called several uncles and aunts to help us talk to Zhourui Pharmaceutical…”

“And then?”

“One of the uncles specializes in raw materials, and he said they had been replaced by Zhourui a long time ago. We were the last supplier to be replaced.”

Lin Chen’s heart was beating very fast. Although he didn’t know where the problem was as it was understandable to switch suppliers, but if they started replacing suppliers a long time ago, then there must be some unspeakable problems…

“Do you know how to drive?” Lin Chen suddenly asked.

“Huh?”

“Come to the Municipal Hospital and pick me up.”

Lin Chen hung up the phone.

He got up and walked around the ward for two laps, picked up his phone, and dialed Xing Conglian’s number.

“What’s wrong, baby? Are you awake?” Xing Conglian’s tone was overly sweet, and he had never called him those words before*. But Lin Chen suddenly realized that Xing Conglian was probably with Huang Ze now, so he was acting mushy.

*Clarity: He’s calling Lin Chen baby/babe/darling/sweetie/ect. [baobei] (宝贝) which is generally used between couples or children.

“What about Wang Chao?”

“Wang Chao has been helping to adjust vehicle data at the Transportation Department. The files you wanted will be delivered later.”

“What about you?”

“That big idiot Huang Ze and I are conducting surveillance at the bureau.” It seemed Xing Conglian had no scruples towards Inspector Huang’s feelings as he said “idiot” so straightforwardly.

“The information in the Duan Yang beanbag?”

“We found it last night,” Xing Conglian answered decisively.

Lin Chen hesitated for a moment and finally asked, “Wang Chao is still at the Transportation Department, and you’re still conducting surveillance, so Shen Lian…”

“We haven’t caught her yet.”

“How is it possible to have no clues?” Lin Chen asked.

“It seems she planned for this day a long time ago, so she has already prepared her escape route,” Xing Conglian said.

“If she really planned so far ahead, then although the route may be hidden, there should be traces that can be followed. She should have a destination and can’t just escape aimlessly. People like Shen Lian should know that the longer they stay exposed to the sun, the more likely they are to be discovered.”

“Yes, but now the capture of Shen Lian is being carried out in secret. According to your statement, we still have a chance to make her let her guard down and think that we are not targeting her, and then see if there is a chance to trick her into exposing her tail,” Xing Conglian said.

“Understood.” Lin Chen hesitated for a moment, and finally said, “I want to go to the new drug promotion conference of Zhourui Pharmaceutical later.”

The other end of the phone fell silent, with only noisy background sounds. It was apparent that Xing Conglian was presiding over the entire surveillance operation. He considered for a moment and said, “I can’t leave right now, but I’ll arrange for a police officer to accompany you.”

Lin Chen appreciated Captain Xing’s straightforwardness and smiled. He lowered his head and said to the person on the other end of the phone, “No need. He’s the son of a raw material supplier of Zhourui that I met yesterday. He just called me and revealed a situation. Zhourui Pharmaceutical has been gradually replacing suppliers for a long time, so there may be some problems involved, which is why I want to go to the promotion conference and see what’s so special about Nordren that Zhourui has put so much effort into promoting.”

“Okay, be careful.”

“Don’t worry.”

……

Although Mr. Xiao Zhan was soft-spoken, he was highly effective.

After a quick wash downstairs, Lin Chen saw Mr. Xiao Zhan waiting for him in a dusty gray Jetta parked outside the hospital.

“Mr. Lin, my… My car isn’t good. Please don’t hold it against me.”

Lin Chen looked at the dust on the car, which looked exactly like the dust on Xing Conglian’s Jeep, and said, “It’s okay, I’m used to it.”

Zhourui Pharmaceutical’s new drug promotion conference was held at the Hongjing Intercontinental Hotel.

The conference was supposed to start at exactly nine, but half an hour before that, the lobby of the hotel was already bustling.

There were industry elites dressed neatly, as well as elderly residents from nearby neighborhoods who looked quite ordinary.

Some of the elderly people were limping with crutches, but with hopeful eyes, they looked at the guide signs of Zhourui Pharmaceutical’s new promotion conference in the lobby. This reminded Lin Chen of the scene when he first met with Duan Yang, who took him to the hospital to see some things.

Mr. Xiao Jan touched him and asked puzzledly, “Mr. Lin, what’s wrong? Let’s go this way.”

Lin Chen looked at Mr. Xiao Jan’s face and felt a sense of unspeakable nostalgia. “Nothing, just thinking about something.”

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s just that suddenly I realized that drugs are a good thing.”

“Of course, drugs are good.” Mr. Xiao Jan became excited when it came to his profession. “If it weren’t for generation after generation of drug research and development, it would be impossible for Chairman Zhan to survive his problems ten years ago. But now, there shouldn’t be any major problem with maintaining his life.”

“Yes.”

They walked and talked, quickly arriving at the promotion hall. To be honest, this was the first time Lin Chen had attended a pharmaceutical enterprise promotion event. The atmosphere was similar to that of a common academic conference, with scholars, doctors smelling of disinfectant, and even some college or graduate students.

However, when they arrived at the entrance, Lin Chen realized one of the most important issues.

Two security personnel were checking invitation letters at the entrance of the promotion event. Lin Chen looked at Mr. Xiao Zhan and then at the entrance.

Mr. Xiao Zhan said in confusion, “Why are we not going in, Mr. Lin?”

Lin Chen asked, “How do we get in?”

“Huh?”

Lin Chen said helplessly, “Did you bring your invitation letter?”

Mr. Xiao Zhan suddenly realized. “Consultant Lin, even if I’m stupid, I won’t forget this!”

“I’m sorry, but please keep your voice down.” Lin Chen shook his head and led him to a corner.

Mr. Xiao Zhan quickly took out the crumpled invitation letter, and Lin Chen noticed a woman standing in the corner of the promotion event, who looked quite domineering.

The woman was wearing professional attire, casually scanning the room, but her eyes were sharp like a hawk’s, indicating that she had extraordinary strength. She was the former head of security and current public relations manager at Zhourui Pharmaceutical, and the troublesome woman that Xing Conglian had encountered before. Even around the entire promotion event, there were seemingly casual security personnel who guarded the entrances and exits, as if they were guarding against something.

Even earlier, when Lin Chen and Mr. Xiao Zhan entered the event, they encountered bag checks and metal detectors.

For a normal pharmaceutical promotion event, this level of security was somewhat intriguing.

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Bu Tian Gang Ch146

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Author: 梦溪石 / Meng Xi Shi

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

Chapter 146

Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, Black Tortoise, known as the Four Symbols.

Since the establishment of the Special Administration Bureau, this lamp had been kept in the deepest corner of the warehouse, numbered 001, covered in dust for a long time. It wasn’t that others didn’t want to bring it out for use, but because it couldn’t be used before. Among the Four Symbols, only three were in place. It was only when Zong Ling infused her own divine essence that this Four Symbols Star-Setting Lamp truly came to “life”.

Zong Ling was the Black Tortoise among the Four Symbols.

“The Four Symbols determine the stars, the myriad gods gather their troops. The North Star burns the bones, the mysterious water cleanses impurities. With this lamp, extinguish a thousand evil spirits, eliminate all demons, begone!”

As Long Shen chanted the spell, each word enunciated from his mouth, the bronze mythical beasts on the corners of the lamp slightly moved, and four rays of light shone from their corners, converging into a rainbow in the center of the lamp, transforming into starlight, and condensing into a brilliant flame in an instant. Before the demonic qi had a chance to escape, it seemed to be held firmly by an invisible hand, unable to move.

The radiance of the Fixed Star Lamp grew brighter and brighter, like moonlight illuminating the night, dispelling the darkness. Long Shen released his hand, and the lamp remained suspended in mid-air, unwavering.

Otowa Yasuhiko, who was outside, immediately sensed that something was amiss. He had already sensed the demonic qi entering Long Shen’s body, indicating that the great task was about to be completed. In the next moment, an ominous premonition connected to his flesh and blood emerged. Otowa Yasuhiko hesitated for a second before deciding to retreat immediately. But it was already too late.

Just as this thought arose, he saw a surge of light in front of him, breaking through the oppressive demonic qi and rushing towards him.

Without saying a word, Otowa Yasuhiko turned around and ran!

His path was blocked.

It was a white tiger formed from condensed white mist. Its front half crouched down slightly, while its eyes were fixed on him, exuding a dangerous aura ready to strike. On his left, right, and behind him were a dragon, a phoenix, and a turtle, all formed from the same white mist. They guarded the four directions, blocking all of Otowa Yasuhiko’s escape routes. No matter how the demonic qi raged and howled, it couldn’t break through the encirclement of the Four Symbols.

Above his head, an overwhelming sword intent surged, rushing toward him with a killing intent!

Otowa Yasuhiko looked up and saw a sword light descending from the sky with unstoppable force. Wherever it passed, the demonic qi wailed and dispersed, turning to dust and disappearing in a puff of smoke. His eyes turned bloodshot as he shouted and raised the Kusanagi no Tsurugi high above his head. Black demonic qi erupted from his body in an instant. Even if the Longyuan was formidable, his demonic sword was the strongest!

The earth shook, and the mountains crumbled. People who were sound asleep in the middle of the night were awakened, but they soon became unfazed. For this island accustomed to frequent tremors, earthquakes were nothing out of the ordinary.

However, at the Atsuta Shrine, Wu Bingtian, Li Ying, and the others were filled with alarm.

The clash between the demonic qi and the sword qi caused a massive explosion. The ground cracked, bricks and stones were sucked into a vortex, and the sky was filled with lightning and thunder, as if everything in the world was about to be destroyed.

“The enchantment is about to break!” Wu Bingtian exclaimed.

The inevitable shattering of the enchantment was at hand, but breaking at this moment might not be a good thing. Under the shockwave of the explosion, no one could escape unharmed. Wu Bingtian and Li Ying hid in a relatively safe corner, watching the surroundings transform. Finally, the true world that had imprisoned them for countless days and nights was revealed. In the corner of his eye, Yin Buhui saw Tang Jing still clutching a dilapidated ancient qin, kneeling there, about to be engulfed by the explosion. He quickly rolled and crawled over, forcibly pulling Tang Jing away.

Just as he dragged him away, the shockwave swept through the spot they had just been, destroying everything in its path.

The powerful explosion quickly spread. As far as the eye could see, the trees and buildings within the shrine were reduced to ruins. Even Wu Bingtian and the others, who reacted swiftly, could only take refuge in the narrow space between two collapsed pillars.

In the distance, panicked cries for help could be heard, but Wu Bingtian and his companions were too preoccupied to attend to others. Moreover, this was Otowa Yasuhiko’s territory, and the shrine priests and shrine maidens outside must have known his true identity. They were reaping what they had sown.

Compared to the distant screams, what echoed in everyone’s ears was Otowa Yasuhiko’s unwillingness and resentment as he was forced to retreat inch by inch.

“Long Shen, do you think that defeating me will make everything fine?” accompanied by the thunderous sound of collapsing buildings, a wicked laughter resounded. Otowa Yasuhiko’s voice was hoarse as he spoke, enunciating each word. “Did you really think that all eight stone tablets had to be destroyed in the Eight Directions Demon Suppression Array to cause complete destruction? You are gravely mistaken!”

He realized that the sword qi that had trapped him and prevented his movement suddenly paused. This was undoubtedly because Long Shen had heard his words and harbored doubts.

Otowa Yasuhiko couldn’t help but laugh aloud. “You Chinese have a saying, ‘Attack the east while striking the west.*’ I lured you all here, from beginning to end. It was all part of a plan! Killing me is useless. The Abyssal Passage will open soon, and when that happens…”

*Idiom referring to a strategic tactic where one deliberately creates a distraction or diversion in one direction to mislead or confuse the enemy while the actual attack takes place from another unexpected direction.

As he spoke, the demonic energy qi from his hand holding the Kusanagi no Tsurugi engulfed his entire being, transforming into a tumultuous mass of demonic qi that merged with the sword light!

Terrifying killing intent broke through the demonic qi and surged towards Otowa Yasuhiko. His face changed dramatically as he realized in horror that his own demonic qi was gradually being consumed by the sword light. Even when he used his entire body’s demonic qi, he couldn’t mount a counterattack. It started from his limbs, then his body. The powerful demonic qi and vitality he had painstakingly cultivated and maintained every day with fresh hearts were devoured bit by bit by the sword light, leaving no trace of remnants.

No!!!

Since his transformation into a demon, he had believed that he had obtained the power of eternal life. At this moment, he truly realized that he was about to disappear completely from this world. He felt the fear that comes before death. He hadn’t witnessed the complete arrival of the dark world, he hadn’t gone to the Abyssal Hell to obtain supreme power. He didn’t want to disappear. As the one who opened the Abyssal Passage, he deserved to be rewarded!

How many people died because of him, and he took pleasure in it, enjoying the superiority of watching others struggle in pain. He had once mocked those who were cowardly and afraid of death, ridiculing them for lacking courage and integrity. However, it was only at this moment that Otowa Yasuhiko realized that he too feared death, feared disappearance.

With wide eyes and a distorted face, he exerted all his strength to struggle, but it was futile. He could only remain conscious and watch as his body, transformed by demonic qi, was torn apart bit by bit and crushed into pieces. The pain made him involuntarily scream at the top of his lungs, but amidst the explosions of the surrounding barrier, his voice seemed so insignificant.

In the intense light, Otowa Yasuhiko opened his mouth wide as tears streaked down his face. He gradually disappeared until there was nothing left. The residual demonic qi was trapped by the four divine beasts, futilely struggling, and eventually was completely crushed by the sword light, reduced to dust.

The light slowly dimmed, and the four divine beasts roared silently as they transformed into rays of light and flew back into the lamp.

Long Shen landed on the ground and bent down to pick up the lamp. The brilliant starlight on its surface had vanished, and the Four Symbols Star-Setting Lamp had returned to its old, unremarkable appearance, weathered and mottled.

The commotion of the explosion finally subsided.

Wu Bingtian’s chest heaved heavily, and a buzzing sound seemed to echo in his ears. He struggled to get up but was hindered by Li Ying’s leg pressing on his abdomen. The smoke and dust choked his nostrils as Li Ying coughed a few times. “Boss Wu, it feels like my leg is broken.”

Wu Bingtian forced a pale smile. “It’s fine. I still have an arm. As long as we’re alive, everything will be alright!”

Yu Buhui also dragged Tang Jing over. Tang Jing was already seriously injured and was now in a semi-conscious state. However, he still clenched his fist tightly, and no one could pry it open. Inside was Ding Lan’s lingering soul that Ming Xian had entrusted to him.

Seeing this, Wu Bingtian sighed. “Don’t try to force it open. Let’s take him back first and then deal with it.”

As the smoke cleared, the few of them sat or stood, looking at the courtyard that was once an enchantment had now been razed flat.

With no buildings to obstruct their view, their sight became wide open. They easily noticed that not far away, Kitaichi Eiko was lying on the ground, lifeless. Since the moment she was possessed by the demonic qi, she was no longer herself. Just now, when the sword light absorbed all the demonic qi, she died in the explosion. Fujikawa had spared no effort, sacrificing a life to revive her, but ultimately failed to realize his dream of reviving his legacy.

It wasn’t meant to be his; it never was.

As for Asaka Yasuhiko, he finally paid the blood debt he owed.

This executioner of the Nanjing Massacre somehow evaded legal judgment after the war without paying the appropriate price for the hundreds of thousands of lives he took. He even transformed into a demon, assuming a new identity, and continued to enjoy wealth and luxury in the mortal realm.

The vengeful spirits of the unjustly killed lingered day and night, crying out for justice in Nanjing, where the imbalance of karma remained unrectified. Before the tombstones, no amount of flowers could soothe the vivid memories of the mountains of corpses and rivers of blood, unable to pacify the souls beneath the earth who died with grievances. But now, this demon had finally received the retribution he deserved. He was reduced to dust and ashes, his soul completely extinguished in the manner he feared the most. From then on, he would cease to exist in the world, neither in heaven nor on earth, not even in the abyssal hell he yearned for.

Not a single thought of his remained.

A cold night wind blew across their faces, brushing past them. The calm after the great battle felt more like the beginning of a storm.

Long Shen stood silently, devoid of any joyous expression.

“Did you hear what he said before he died?”

“I heard it.” Wu Bingtian wiped his face, as if trying to wipe away the dust and exhaustion.

“I heard it too.” Yu Buhui frowned. “His implication was that he intentionally lured us to Japan and had made other arrangements against the Eight Directions Demon Suppression Array?”

“I think it’s just his nonsense talk. When a person is about to die, they will always try to grasp at any straw to save themselves!” Wu Bingtian spat. “That son of a bitch should count himself lucky for not leaving a corpse behind. Otherwise, I would bring his ashes back to Qingcheng Mountain and perform rituals every day, so that he would never find release for eternity!”

It was rare to hear Director Wu, who always spoke officially, curse so vulgarly. Li Ying couldn’t help but want to laugh.

Every part of their bodies reflected pain, but what made him slightly uneasy was not his own injuries. He couldn’t help but raise his head. The night sky was silent, the mist dispersed, but dawn was still far away.

……

Thousands of miles away, on Kunlun Mountain.

The moon reached its zenith, casting a bright light on the snow-covered mountain top, making it as bright as daylight. Zong Ling and Che Bai walked along the steep mountain road, leaving behind long footprints. This was a path that had never been artificially opened. The mountain walls were almost vertical, but the footsteps of Zong Ling and Che Bai remained steady and unhurried, as if they were strolling in a leisurely courtyard.

They had been on Kunlun Mountain for quite some time, guarding it almost day and night. However, this mountain range was vast beyond imagination. Even they couldn’t explore every corner. Until now, they had just finished traversing two peaks and were preparing to climb to the summit of the third.

“It’s been a long time since I came here.”

Che Bai stopped and looked at the contours of the mountains illuminated by the moonlight below, with a slightly nostalgic tone in his voice.

“I once thought of visiting Kunlun again before I died. I didn’t expect this wish to be fulfilled ahead of time.”

The two of them smiled at each other, sharing a smile that held countless memories and precious moments. Humans always lamented that their time was too short, wishing to go back to the past and make up for all their regrets. But people like them—how could they not have regrets? Precisely because life was long, some regrets not only wouldn’t fade away with time but would become even clearer, etched deeply in their hearts.

That was why when Zong Ling saw Long Shen struggling internally, she couldn’t help but remind him not to follow in her own footsteps and leave regrets for the rest of his life.

“My lifespan is coming to an end. I had thought that when that day approaches, I will return…”

Che Bai’s tone was calm, even with a hint of anticipation. The end of life, for them, wasn’t a regretful period but an inevitable conclusion. Being able to cultivate into human form, living for thousands of years, witnessing countless changes in the world, they were already much luckier than most creatures in the world.

But before he could finish his words, a puzzled expression suddenly appeared on his face.

It wasn’t just him; Zong Ling’s expression also froze. Both of them instinctively turned their bodies towards the southern peak.

A bright light rose there, followed by a sound.

A tremendous explosion echoed through the entire valley, creating numerous reverberations that reached them from a distance.

The magnitude of the sound wave shook even the mountain beneath their feet.

An earthquake couldn’t cause such commotion. Both of their faces changed drastically, instantly having unfavorable associations.

“What is that place?” Che Bai asked.

Zong Ling took a deep breath and slowly said, “If I’m not mistaken, it should be the Lengele Gorge.”

The moon, at some point, had been obscured by dark clouds. Thunderclouds rolled in the sky, illuminating it momentarily, but there was no storm, only consecutive dry thunderclaps. The lightning struck precisely at the locations of the recent explosions.

“This is bad,” Zong Ling murmured, gazing in that direction.

“Who was responsible for inspecting that area? How could they miss it?” Che Bai smiled wryly. “I’ll go and take a look first!”

After saying that, he didn’t retrace their steps down the mountain. He leaped directly into the shadows of the mountains and disappeared.

In the night breeze, Zong Ling seemed to let out a low sigh. The sound of her sigh blended into the wind and quickly dissipated. Then, she also followed suit and leaped down.

……

The radiant sun slowly rose from the sea surface, dyeing the dark blue water with a golden and sparkling hue, as if it had been sprinkled with a layer of gold.

Dong Zhi played with the small and exquisite golden apple in his hand, lifting it high and allowing the sunlight to cast a halo upon it.

Below him was a reclining chair with a soft cushion, a sunshade above his head, and a pair of sunglasses hanging on his forehead. If it weren’t for the lingering pain from his previous injuries, he would have thought that everything that had happened before, including the zombies on Diana Island, the octopus monster in the labyrinth, and the ancient sea serpent that formed the island, were all just a midday dream during his vacation on a ship.

“You seem unhappy.” One tentacle reached the end of the reclining chair, and the head of Octopus Meika slowly emerged.

Its eye, which had been damaged by Dong Zhi, had already healed, wrapped in a pink membrane. It was said that after a while, when the membrane falls off, its eye would grow back.

Dong Zhi smiled bitterly. “Can you give a warning before appearing next time? Showing up so suddenly, you almost scared me to death!”

Recently, the octopus had been learning Chinese. Liu Qingbo and Zhang Song didn’t have much patience and couldn’t be gentle and persuasive teachers. This responsibility fell on Liu Si’s shoulders. Li Han’er and Yang Shouyi occasionally took part as well. According to them, the octopus had a stronger language learning ability than ordinary people. Once it learned Chinese Pinyin, it could remember vocabulary and short phrases after hearing them once. It had already started using its tentacles to practice writing square characters for heaven, earth, and humans.

Dong Zhi felt that before long, the octopus might even learn how to draw talismans. At that time, perhaps he could recommend it to join the Hezao Sect as a named disciple and enhance the reputation of the sect.

As for the Ice Demon Elizabeth, she had no interest in exploring knowledge like the octopus. When she heard that Meika was going to China with Dong Zhi and the others, she immediately waved her hand and returned to the Arctic Ocean. Of course, before parting, she didn’t forget to threaten the organizing committee, demanding that they send her reward to the Arctic Ocean as soon as possible. Otherwise, she would personally go and claim it without further delay.

Perhaps due to the excessively long lives of spirits, there was no trace of melancholy between Meika and Elizabeth’s parting. Perhaps it would only be after Meika truly achieved human form that it could gradually experience human emotions.

“Su, dden, ly*.” The octopus imitated his tone, always eager to learn. “What does that mean?”

*Clarity: Dong Zhi’s comment about showing up [suddenly], the Octopus is asking what [leng bu ding] (冷不丁) means.

“It means sudden and by surprise,” Dong Zhi explained.

The octopus asked, “Then what does ‘sudden and by surprise’ mean?”

Dong Zhi sighed. “…Why are you asking countless ‘whys’?”

The octopus inquired, “What are countless ‘whys’?”

Dong Zhi’s mouth twitched. “Alright, let’s not discuss these kinds of questions. Why did you come to find me?”

The octopus replied, “No reason. I came up to bask in the sun and found you staring at the golden apple. Didn’t you win the championship? Why are you still not happy?”

Dong Zhi said, “I’m not unhappy. I just miss home.”

Wherever Long Shen was, that was his home.

He missed Long Shen.

The octopus tilted its head and looked at him, then sighed. “Humans are truly complex beings.”

Dong Zhi replied, “You have started to yearn for human society. This curiosity of yours is already similar to humans. The seven emotions and six desires are not exclusive to humans; you also have them. It’s just that because your living environment is relatively simple, your emotions won’t fluctuate as much.”

As he said this, Dong Zhi suddenly realized that the explanation he just gave actually applied to Long Shen’s change of mood. He couldn’t help but laugh.

The octopus blinked its remaining eye. “Can you slow down? I didn’t understand.”

Dong Zhi was about to tell it that it would understand in the future when he saw the American William walking over from the other side.

“Sorry to interrupt your leisurely vacation time. The organizing committee sent people to investigate, but they haven’t found any escaped zombies yet. They will continue to intensify the search,” William said as he sat down on a nearby reclining chair and let out a comfortable groan.

“I envy you Chinese the most. After winning the competition, you don’t have to worry about anything. The whole journey back is filled with eating, drinking, and relaxation. On the contrary, we still have to continue working!” William exclaimed.

Dong Zhi shrugged. “Well, you’re the host country. You chose such a place to hold the competition, yet you didn’t even know that the island was a sleeping sea serpent. You caused the trouble, so you have to deal with it. How are the Russians doing?”

William sighed. “We searched for a long time and still haven’t found any survivors. Anna is really lucky!”

This year’s competition ended in chaos, as everyone was involved in the upheaval. The death of the sea serpent didn’t mean the complete end. For the organizing committee, there were even more troublesome things waiting for them.

First, there were the zombies on Diana Island. Although Dong Zhi and the others had killed those zombies, nobody knew if any zombies had rushed into the sea when the sea serpent caused the tsunami and flooded the islands. Those infected zombies carried both demonic qi and viruses, and ordinary attacks couldn’t eliminate them. If they bit any sea creatures, and considering that the world’s oceans were interconnected, it could lead to an even greater disaster.

It was all caused by the organizing committee, so naturally, they had to clean up the mess. It was said that the Americans had almost completely sealed off the area near the incident and were conducting a thorough salvage operation. It was expected that the work would take several years to complete.

After the news of the invasion of demonic qi, which Dong Zhi and the others had brought in advance, the organizing committee didn’t pay much attention to it. They treated it as an experience during the competition. Little did they know that the remnants of the Heavenly Demon had already infiltrated their ship to the Senluo Archipelago, becoming the biggest variable in the competition. If it weren’t for Dong Zhi’s desperate effort to attract the Heavenly Thunder to kill the sea serpent, they would have all been devoured by the sea serpent by now, let alone lying here enjoying sunbathes.

Despite their efforts, all the teams suffered heavy losses. While both the United States and China had their own share of casualties, at least they were still alive. The Russian team, on the other hand, was nearly wiped out on Rose Island when Anton was possessed by the demon. Only Anna managed to escape with injuries, boarding a speedboat and surviving in the end.

It is said that due to the frequent accidents in this competition, various organizations from countries and regions have protested to the organizing committee. It is expected that the number of participants in the next competition will be significantly reduced. However, in stark contrast to this, Dong Zhi’s reputation soared.

Although Dong Zhi himself was well aware that it was the combined efforts of everyone that ultimately led to the sea serpent’s destruction by the Heavenly Thunder, including the coordinated use of forbidden techniques by Zhang Song, who was currently resting in bed, others didn’t know all the details. In their eyes, it was as if they were being overturned in the waves, exhausting all their strength, and on the brink of despair when this Easterner descended from the sky, summoning thunder and ultimately saving their lives.

After this incident, not only did the British and the French dare not pick a fight with Dong Zhi and the others again, but even during their return journey, there were always people coming over to thank Dong Zhi or invite him to their hometown as a guest. Aside from gratitude, the strong, relying on their abilities, could earn the respect of their opponents. Everyone preferred to have a powerful friend rather than an enemy or rival.

“Dong, to be honest, I’m lucky to know you.” William suddenly sighed and leaned toward him.

Dong Zhi quickly moved away before the other person could rest his shoulder on him and said with a shudder, “Your sigh makes me feel like something bad is about to happen.”

William protested, “How can my noble character be so fragile in your eyes!”

Dong Zhi:  “Just say what you want to say!”

William suddenly changed his expression to a cheerful one. “I just wanted to ask you to speak well of me to Han’er before I come to China!”

Dong Zhi was surprised. “Are you serious?”

William protested, “What makes you think I’m not?”

Dong Zhi coughed. “I thought you were joking.”

“Of course not!” William exclaimed. “I can open up my heart and show it to you!”

After he finished speaking, he realized something was wrong. There were still many people on the deck, and they all turned to look at them with strange expressions.

“William, you change your mind faster than the weather at sea. Weren’t you talking about liking Miss Li yesterday?” Lilith raised an eyebrow.

Next to her was Li Han’er, who had come to the deck with her for fresh air, and she gave William a smirk.

William was taken aback. “No, no, no, Han’er, you have to let me explain! The words I just said were not meant for him, Han’er!”

Kinky Thoughts:

Knowing William’s luck, he’s probably going to come to China right when the Earth Demon awakens…

<<< || Table of Contents || Lore Glossary || >>>

Evil As Humans Ch165

Kinky4 Comments

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

Chapter 165: A Strange Person

Zhong Chengshuo sat in the middle of a group of evil creatures, looking like a big red date surrounded by steamed cakes.

He sat lightly, not wanting to put too much weight on the shell of Yin Ren. Countless evil creatures ran around him, occasionally carrying small things that he didn’t know what they were but they would certainly cause bleeding.

Not far away, Yellow Millet’s version of Huang Jin was lying on the ground like a sack of potatoes, too lazy to move. Ge Tingting found a shady spot under a tree and took a nap in the cool mountain breeze.

Waiting in place was indeed the most basic response. But something about it didn’t feel right to Zhong Chengshuo.

Although investigating the data of the Evil Spirit from a thousand years ago was important, the ultimate goal of this trip was to figure out what Yin Ren was. Their center of observation was bound to be Yin Ren, the “Great Celestial Master”.

But now the protagonist, the Great Celestial Master, was sitting still, not doing what he was supposed to do, and the memory environment was inevitably going to deviate. A small deviation was still manageable, but if there was a big mistake, who knew what would happen?

After all, the original plan was for Yin Ren to personally guide them and for everyone to peacefully observe together.

After a moment of contemplation, Zhong Chengshuo’s eyes scanned the evil creatures, picking out the types that roughly spoke human language. Seeing the Great Celestial Master consciously approach, a hairless, monkey-like evil rubbed affectionately on his calf.

“I have a headache and can’t remember things,” Zhong Chengshuo said, turning his head like he was trying to remember. “How far away are we from that place?”

“Just down the mountain, sir.” The evil creature bent over, and it responded in a hoarse and unpleasant voice. “But it’s only the seventh today, sir, and your village needs to prepare. We’ll have to wait two more days. If you’re hungry, we can go into the mountains and get some wild fruits—they’re sweet in the autumn and very filling.”

After speaking, the evil creature looked at Zhong Chengshuo with puppy-dog eyes, like the expression of a child begging for candy.

It was probably asking for a reward.

Unfortunately, though Science Post Zhong Chengshuo had the intention, he lacked the ability. He forced himself to nod calmly and walked towards the mountain as if nothing had happened. The bald, monkey-like evil didn’t get what it wanted and let out a whimper in its throat.

There were no trees to block the view at the edge of the cliff, and in the rolling mountain mist, Zhong Chengshuo could vaguely see a small village.

Behind the red veil, Zhong Chengshuo’s pupils shrank.

He recognized the layout of the buildings; he had seen this village just a few months ago in Yin Ren’s memory in the Archive. Both the dirt road outside the village and the sparse houses at the village entrance were identical to what Yin Ren remembered.

It was definitely the same village.

On September 9th, the Great Celestial Master Zhong Yi would return to that village. According to what the evil creature said, today was September 7th…

September 7th.

Zhong Chengshuo closed his eyes. Countless records about Divine Descent and Evil Spirit flashed through his mind, finally settling on a short record.

In the last year of the Gong Dynasty, on the 9th day of the 9th month, an Evil Spirit was born in Yin Village—the birthplace of the Great Celestial Master Zhong Yi in legends. Fortunately, Zhong Yi returned home at that time and sealed the Evil Spirit directly in the village, making it a sealing operation with the fewest casualties in human history.

However, legends often didn’t mention that Yin Village had already been massacred by the Guluo Army before Zhong Yi faced the Evil Spirit.

All the dust, death, and evil were buried deep in history in just a few short lines.

Under layers of red cloth, Zhong Chengshuo opened his eyes.

He caught a strand of long black hair. Despite the erosion and pain from the Evil Force on Yin Ren’s body, no wing cluster had grown. Yet, Zhong Chengshuo still subconsciously grasped it as if his lover were still by his side.

This was a logical destination.

Lu Xiaohe and Fu Xingchuan were both clever people who knew about these metaphysical secrets and would come sooner or later. Yin Ren… He probably knew the importance of this place too. If he wanted to meet with Zhong Chengshuo, he would also choose this place.

Even if it was likely the worst memory for Yin Ren at this time.

…However, to face the Evil Spirit… Zhong Chengshuo felt apologetic as he searched Yin Ren’s body.

He pulled out a short knife that was very similar in shape to the “Evil Fruit”, but the blade was plain iron-gray. Judging by the usage marks on the metal, this was probably Yin Ren’s knife that he used to eat meat with.

At present, he had no weapons or equipment and didn’t know magic. The pain also restricted his body movements, making it difficult to move.

Zhong Chengshuo took a deep breath and still headed in the direction where Unit 9 was.

“I found a village,” he reported truthfully without saying more.

If this were in the past, he would definitely not take such risks. But now…

For some reason, Zhong Chengshuo felt an unscientific confidence. He knew Yin Ren must also be looking for him, so there would be a way to handle the situation.

At least there was still Fu Xingchuan. Even if nothing else, he had a lead this time!

……

“Dogs barking? Our dog hasn’t barked. Speaking of which, my second aunt lost her big yellow dog. Have you seen it?”

Fu Tianyi used an illusion spell to disguise himself as a Taoist boy and went out to ask the villagers. Fu Xingchuan was transformed into white using magic, giving him a faint, immortal-like aura.

“Haven’t seen it,” Fu Tianyi said nervously, glancing at Fu Xingchuan. “Auntie, think again. My master has heard that sometimes Yin Village will have a hundred dogs barking at once, which made him curious.”

“Are you kidding me? I don’t know what you’re talking about, but if you want to talk about the king of dogs, there’s one in our village.”

The auntie immediately stopped beating her clothes when she had some gossip to share.

“See that ancestral hall? There’s a divine dog inside. It was brought by the guardian of our village a hundred years ago, and it was just a puppy then! It has guarded our ancestral hall for a hundred years and has saved many drowning children. If someone’s family is lost in the mountains, they will also ask it to find them, and it always does!”

Fu Tianyi: “It truly is a divine dog.”

To be precise, it was probably an evil cub that the Great Celestial Master caught somewhere and, seeing that it was docile, gave it to the village.

“That’s right. The last time we had torrential rain, there was a mudslide, but luckily it barked in advance and warned us. Otherwise, the family at the east end of the village would have been buried in the mud… Oh, you’re not talking about this. When it barks, all the dogs really bark along.”

The aunt suddenly came back to her senses.

The white dog stepped on Fu Tianyi’s shoe, and his expression twisted. “Thank you, Auntie. I will go find my master for instructions.”

After contacting Lu Xiaohe, the three of them rushed to the ancestral hall.

When it was in its Evil Spirit state, its mind was like a pile of loose sand, and Shian could only extract an environment that was relatively comfortable for it. Now, with Yin Ren’s memory as a “solid framework”, the memory of the Evil Spirit itself was like a grapevine, winding and filling in the gaps.

At first, Shian could only determine that the prototype of the Evil Spirit was a “dog.” Now, it seemed that the underground Evil Spirit was most likely the evil dog that the villagers had worshiped for hundreds of years.

Although Lu Xiaohe was wearing old-fashioned shoes and socks, she still walked as fast as she could and didn’t forget to take out a charcoal pen and paper from her pocket.

Fu Xingchuan ran the fastest. He quickly became familiar with the use of his four legs and ran like an arrow, leaving the bow. No matter what situation the so-called divine dog was in, the earlier they controlled it, the more advantageous it would be for them.

However, when they arrived at the temple, they only found a broken piece of silk and a bowl of untouched pig’s head meat.

The divine dog was gone.

The ancestral hall itself was very simple, with local specialties from the mountain village on the altar plus a few bowls of rough, cold food. The setting sun went down, and the red light passed over the low wall as if everything had been sent into a furnace.

“Damn it.” Fu Tianyi gritted his teeth. “Someone beat us to it… I’ll go ask around!”

As soon as he stepped out of the temple, he saw men carrying farm tools back to their homes, and the quicker ones were already using bark to seal their windows.

The women carried buckets of water and carefully poured them into the water tank in their homes. The elderly hung red and green paper lanterns from poles on their doors. The children looked like they were preparing for New Year’s Day, playing and laughing in the yard with snot dragging behind them.

“When the red light is on and the green light is burning, every household closes their door. At midnight, when the fruit ripens, be careful what you say with your back to the door.”

They sang out of tune, grinning with their mouths open.

“Pray for tranquility, wish for good fortune, and shut your eyes so you can’t see. The rooster crows, with footsteps far away, that comes back next year to report the peace.”

The originally quiet village became lively with people coming and going, their faces filled with smiles.

“What are you doing, folks?” Fu Tianyi’s heart was burning with fire, but he could only force a relaxed smile as he stared with the shell of “Fu Shangliu” of Huajisi.

“We’re preparing sacrifices to welcome god.”

The man closest to them offered two wild rabbits and eagerly responded.

“Our village’s guardian comes to help every year. The god is good at everything but can’t be looked at directly with your eyes. This isn’t just to prevent the elderly and children from wandering around. We seal our homes and prepare offerings a day in advance, which is also a holiday.”

At this point, the man’s expression became serious.

“Even if you are immortals, don’t stay here and look around. Our god is very powerful. If you look around casually, you might get hurt… Alright, I’m going back!”

Watching the man’s figure disappear into the distance, Fu Tianyi felt like a lead weight had been added to his stomach.

No wonder the entire Yin Village was thoroughly massacred in the past.

The villagers all waited happily indoors, anticipating the arrival of their guardian god. But what awaited them wasn’t their god, but only the iron hooves of invaders.

Unfortunately, the tragedy was imminent, and they couldn’t even shout out to warn these people.

This was an irreversible past, and interfering would only make things worse. These villagers who hummed songs, nailed doors and windows, and prepared offerings, and these children who ran around laughing and playing, were already long dead skeletons buried in the smoke of war a thousand years ago.

The lively scene in front of him suddenly changed its tone, the originally bright red turning blood red in an instant.

It wasn’t until a secret tug on his pants leg that Fu Tianyi snapped back to reality.

Fu Xingchuan raised his head and shook it slowly.

Fu Tianyi looked at Lu Xiaohe, who also had a bitter expression on her face, and took a deep breath. Finding that divine dog as soon as possible was what they needed to do now.

And this search took several hours.

The sun set, and the starry sky lit up. Each house was sealed tightly, and the small mountain village became even quieter. The three of them searched the village in circles, with Fu Tianyi using all the exploration methods at his disposal, but still to no avail.

It was at that moment that they returned to the ancestral hall again…

At the edge of the village, the warm candlelight in the windows turned into flames that engulfed the sky, and the gentle voices turned into continuous screams. The sound of hooves mixed with shouts, bringing chaos and blood all the way to the center of the village.

Amidst the black smoke and wailing, the doors of the houses were kicked open, and the offerings in front of them were trampled on. Half of the red and green lights rolled to the ground and were trampled into dirty, mud-covered scraps of paper.

Lu Xiaohe couldn’t bear to look any longer. She retreated further into the ancestral hall, looked up, and saw their target for this trip—

That big black dog floated with hidden charms all over its body. In the midst of the chaos, it crouched on top of the shrine, its black and mysterious eyes reflecting the light of the flames.

There was a strange mockery in its expression.

And not far away, the desperate villagers had nowhere to escape. People carried their injured relatives and instinctively ran towards the ancestral hall.

“Great Master, help us!”

The villagers’ bloody footprints stained the stone steps of the temple, and their desperate cries pierced through the night.

“Great Master, please save us—”

The author has something to say:

Yin Ren’s past, loading (?

Kinky Thoughts:

Oh, no wonder why this was Yin Ren’s worst memory…

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Access Denied Ch95

Kinky1 Comment

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

Chapter 95: Melee

The fire in the factory area lasted for four days without any sign of stopping. As the new elections approached their end, doubts began to emerge within Y City. After four days, the situation showed no improvement, and the staff of the United Government even set up tents and increased security guards. Regardless of how anyone looked at it, the rebellion of the synthetics didn’t seem like a minor incident.

“Now that the factory is burned down, how will my children find work?”

“I still have many valuable items that haven’t been collected. Is the outer wall safe? What if the synthetics break in…”

“Seriously, what is Zhu Sheng doing? He can’t even handle the weapons he created himself.”

The alley was crowded with people. During the election campaign, it had been lively, but now it only brought annoyance. Public restrooms always had long queues, and hot water could only be obtained at specific locations. The United Government had arranged several independent bathing facilities in the city center square, but even with water recycling systems, it was always in short supply. The environment couldn’t compare to the steaming hot bathtubs at home.

Most people were averse to trouble. Since the weather wasn’t hot either, many people chose to reduce their bathing frequency and endured it reluctantly. Sensing the oppressive atmosphere, the itinerant candy and snack vendors were nowhere to be found. The Tang family started selling box meals at reasonable prices, while the Old Fourth continued to fill the void, selling cheap yet tasteless nutritional supplements.

Children no longer ran around. They could no longer buy delicious candies and snacks, so they clutched their clothes tightly and stayed close to their parents. With the collapse of the factory and the city under lockdown, the supply of goods for various businesses ceased. This led to a sharp decrease in the advertisements on the light screens in the city center square, and now the continuous broadcasts only reported on the situation outside the city. The serious tone of the broadcasters made it impossible for people to relax their nerves.

As for those who originally lived in the city center, they closed their doors and windows tightly. They used all their connections to purchase nutritional supplements and preserved food. The more pessimistic ones even bought water purifiers and generators.

The dark clouds in the sky seemed to seep into the land, and an ominous silence spread among the people.

As the central hub of the entire continent, the once vibrant Y City gradually fell into silence. Given the current situation, people were no longer fixated on who would be the leader. Anxiety and fear slowly sprouted, and the most frequently asked question changed from “Who do you support?” to “When will this situation end?”

Four or five days passed, and both small businesses and high-end entertainment came to a halt. The Xia family’s nightclubs decisively closed their doors and securely sealed them with metal shutters.

The handsome host kept repeating on the light screens, “Everything will be alright,” but there was no sign of things getting better. Instead, they seemed to be heading in a worse direction.

“In the recent period, you must control the emotions of the people in the city,” Zhu Sheng said with a serious expression. “Put aside those petty tricks and find every possible way to suppress potential outbursts of riots. Medical supplies, food, and other resources are limited. Once a conflict erupts, the situation will only worsen.”

“Yes.” Yi Ning lowered his head.

“As for how to appease them, that task is entrusted to you. If you can’t even handle this, then don’t bother thinking about being the next leader.”

“…Yes, sir. However, I must clarify, how long will this blockade last?”

“At the shortest, it’s unclear. At the longest, it will be a month. Even synthetic beings consume food and medication. Even if they feed on humans, they won’t last more than a month.” Zhu Sheng didn’t look at Yi Ning as his gaze remained glued to the report in his hand. “On the other hand, the number of people in the city center is currently more than four times the usual amount. The infrastructure and resource pressure are immense. Considering the livelihood of these people, delay is not a long-term solution. Based on the current situation, it will last a maximum of two weeks. As long as…”

“As long as?”

“Nothing.” Zhu Sheng took a sip of his tea. “You may go now and manage those people well. Once the external fire is extinguished, I will personally take a team to provide assistance in designated settlements.”

“Understood.”

For a brief moment, Yi Ning felt a sense of relief. But the next moment, that feeling got stuck in his throat—in that moment, he couldn’t deny his own thoughts.

He had done his best in rescuing people. The one issuing this cruel order wasn’t himself, and he felt a weight lifted off his shoulders.

However, it was really unsightly, he thought in a daze.

The synthetics were indeed racing against time. After burning down the factory, they split into two groups and began attacking the outer defensive wall of Y City.

The unaffected humans wreaked havoc west of the city, while the synthetics utilized their abilities to hurl countless rocks and sandstorms towards the city wall, attempting to destroy the purifiers on the wall. The Y City military attempted to use weaponized purifiers, but due to their short range, they couldn’t reach the players operating from a distance. The inertia of the rocks prevented them from being dispersed by the purifiers.

After a few days, half of the purifiers west of the city were destroyed. As the concentration of the erosion increased sharply, the players’ abilities also became stronger. The alloy protective wall was twisted by metal manipulators, and the foundation was left in disarray by earth and stone ability users. The wall occasionally emitted a grating friction sound, and numerous cracks silently crawled up the base of the wall.

The front of the city was led by the monstrous synthetic leader. The massive creature, accompanied by heavily contaminated synthetics, tirelessly attacked the defensive wall. Those individuals seemed to have lost their sense of pain, repeating the same action regardless of the bullet rain or the immensely powerful purifiers they faced—installing explosives, protecting the explosives, igniting them, and then retreating.

Since bullets were ineffective, the human military had considered using grenades to blow them to pieces. However, when the grenades were thrown, they instantly ignited the explosives on the synthetics side. The explosives hadn’t been properly landed on the ground yet as they detonated directly in the air, nearly throwing the soldiers on the wall off with the terrifying wind blast.

“Mr. Zhu, if things continue like this…”

“The defensive wall has been treated for explosions; this is just a diversionary tactic. Squadron One and Squadron Three will go to the west side of the city to provide support, while Squadron Two and I will stay here to defend.”

“But, how do we defend? Bullets are ineffective against those heavily eroded monsters—”

“Explosives are effective.” Zhu Yanchen issued the order coldly. “Control the explosion point at a distance of fifty meters. The protective wall won’t sustain significant damage. Those synthetics that have been heavily eroded are more dangerous, so it’s better to eliminate them early on.”

“But that monster will go berserk.”

“You will relocate to the interior of the city wall and use long-range launchers to bombard it. The synthetics west of the city haven’t been affected by erosion, so theoretically, they still have an escape route.”

“Is it for deterrence? Understood!” The commanding officer who spoke stole a glance at Zhu Yanchen.

Previously, they were under Zhu Sheng’s command, and Marshal Zhu usually led the synthetics. Now, they were working under Young Master Zhu, and this person seemed to not be as useless as the rumors claimed—Dong Lao wasn’t with him right now.

“For the synthetics west of the city, exercise caution and don’t push them to desperation. The squadron in the front can freely engage and clear them out.”

Zhu Yanchen emphasized once again with a stern tone.

“Once the wall in the west is breached, use the pocket formation as a buffer, then focus on repairing. No matter what happens, those people must not be allowed inside.”

“Yes!”

At the same time, outside the city.

“The power of explosives has been discovered. They will carpet bomb the front of the city. You all retreat from the west side of the city, and I will continue controlling the ‘fake soldiers’ here.” Shu Jun controlled the monster and lowered its head as he gave orders to Chai Xuyang hidden in the dust. “The enemy’s main force has shifted to the west side of the city, and Hu Yan will face significant pressure. The city wall is about to be breached. Your close-range combat abilities will be helpful.”

“…Are you planning to stay here alone?”

“I have witnessed the power of their ammunition. Their attacks alone won’t harm me.” Shu Jun’s voice came out hollow and muffled from the monster’s mouth. “But you all will be in danger.”

“But can you be sure? In your current appearance, you can’t even contact anyone. Isn’t this just your speculation? What if you misjudge…”

“Then you can stay here and accompany me to eat explosives.” The monster grinned, revealing sharp teeth. “I just find it a pity—I can create a scene of carnage myself, but you’re willingly sacrificing yourself for the visual effect. That kind of determination is quite remarkable.”

Chai Xuyang abruptly shut his mouth and obediently led the detachment team to move towards the west.

As a result, as soon as they left the range of the ammunition bombardment, numerous missiles trailing smoke exploded. A cloud of smoke enveloped the front gate of Y City, and the exploding mud spots scattered like a downpour.

If they had stayed there, they would have been blown to bits. Chai Xuyang swallowed his saliva and hurriedly led the team towards the west side of the city—

“Today, we’ll be able to blast open the wall. Be careful and don’t kill anyone. If you really itch for it, capture a few and keep them imprisoned.” Mr. Chai encountered Hu Yan’s operational meeting as soon as he arrived west of the city. “Shu Jun said that with his presence, the humans inside won’t be too ruthless towards us. They will likely focus on persuading us to surrender.”

“If we really surrender, will they let us go?”

“Bullshit! When have we, the Blackbirds, ever surrendered! …Even if they say so, don’t believe them. They’re just luring everyone in to kill us.”

“…Then why should we hold back from killing? They’re being shameless first!”

“Do you think I sympathize with them? But these soldiers are all from Y City. If we kill them, the resistance from the people of Y City will only increase. And don’t forget, Zhu Sheng is inside, waiting to stoke the flames. Do you understand? Compared to a bunch of indiscriminate humanoid weapons, principled resistors are more likely to gain goodwill.”

Hu Yan rubbed his head and felt that he was making a lot of sense. His face even brightened a little.

“Think about it, if the public sentiment outside doesn’t rise, Zhu Sheng will have to deal with the mess himself. The more chaotic it is inside Y City, the better it is for us to act. Being a human, you need to have some foresight—”

“Shu Jun told you all this, right?” Chai Xuyang grimly interjected.

“I just arrived at the critical moment, and what nonsense are you spouting? …Eh? Why are you here?”

“The front gate was bombed, so it’s no use for us to stay there. Shu Jun’s timing is precise; I’m afraid you will encounter big trouble here.”

“Tsk.” Hu Yan clicked his tongue softly. “This couple really started fighting with real guns and knives.”

“What couple?”

“Nothing, never mind. Okay, let’s follow Shu Jun’s arrangements.”

That night, the breach in the defensive wall was successfully opened. The defensive wall west of the city was the oldest and couldn’t withstand the relentless use of numerous abilities. It cracked open, leaving a one-meter-wide gap.

Meanwhile, in the less intense area east of the city, a human team sneaked out to rendezvous with the designated settlement of the synthetics.

No one noticed that within that small team, there was a young man who bore a striking resemblance to Marshal Zhu—Xia Yufeng carried supplies and belongings on his back as he quietly left Y City.

Under the same night sky, at a dark seaside, Luo Duan gently touched the Corpse Parasite messenger that came to deliver a message and fell into deep contemplation.

“Should I intervene?” The whisper of his lover echoed in his mind. “Shu Jun is besieging Y City.”

“I have a feeling something isn’t right.” Luo Duan sighed softly. “With his abilities, he shouldn’t let his own people get eroded.”

“But he wouldn’t joke about war. For the synthetics, once their resources are depleted, there’s no way to replenish them.” The voice continued gently. “There are many unexpected things in this world, aren’t there? Perhaps Shu Jun’s abilities aren’t that strong, and he just wants Zhu Sheng to compromise…”

On the gray sandy beach, twenty-one graves were neatly arranged. Luo Duan hopped off Sigma’s finger and sat in front of one of the graves.

“We can’t act recklessly.” His voice was gentle yet resolute. “Shu Jun might genuinely want war, or it could be a feint to lure Sigma out and join forces with the humans.”

“Perhaps they have already officially joined forces.”

“That’s not possible. I know Shu Jun; he wouldn’t be foolish enough to be deceived by the humans’ sweet talk. After entering <Erosion>, he has always acted together with the Blackbirds and wouldn’t have any true friendship with humans.”

Besides, compared to Shu Jun, he was the one who enjoyed analyzing the storyline of <Erosion> and actively interacted with the NPCs. However, even he, who had “cooperated” with Yi Ning, was merely using him.

“First, send an Alpha Erosion Swamp with sentience to investigate the situation. Given Yi Ning’s temperament, he will definitely try every means to bring the people from the settlement into the city… Since they are enjoying the killing so much, we might as well intervene.”

The author has something to say:

The hail of bullets exploded into loneliness.

Shu Ge: Aren’t these balloon people made by me especially lifelike? (/ω＼)

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Access Denied Ch94

Kinky1 Comment

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

Chapter 94: Flames

The first shot rang out in the night.

The synthetic humans didn’t attack the defensive wall immediately. Shu Jun led the interception team to target the factories outside the city first. Zhu Sheng completely sealed off the city, and there were no workers left in the factories, only the sound of operating machinery.

Facing the steel jungle, Shu Jun was the first to act—a more exaggerated hurricane than before, comparable to an explosion. In an instant, there wasn’t a single intact window left in the vast factory area. When the wind subsided a bit, Chai Xuyang took over the relay. Dust madly poured into the building through the broken windows, and the surrounding machinery soon began to emit smoke.

Players with close-range control over water, rocks, and metal quickly mobilized, making the damp factory area incredibly dry. The intricate structures inside the machinery were forcibly distorted. Within an hour, the factory area was engulfed in flames, and thick smoke billowed into the sky.

Shu Jun carefully adjusted the wind direction, and the spread of the fire was as fast as lightning. The players who controlled the earth and stones had preemptively protected the factories with biohazard risks, preventing the players from harming themselves in the process. The air around Y City became scorching hot and murky, with sparks occasionally cutting through the night. The sky was tinted grayish red by the flames, making the surroundings of Y City even brighter than in daylight.

As Shu Jun had guessed, not a single team emerged from Y City to protect the factories. The human military forces were stationed on the other side of the defensive wall, witnessing the destruction of the industrial area that had developed over several decades.

Zhu Sheng had completely abandoned the maintenance of the surrounding areas and was determined to protect Y City itself.

This was good. Shu Jun didn’t need to pretend to be a “monster” in front of ordinary players and cause unnecessary panic. Apart from the high-level personnel who knew Shu Jun’s situation, most players treated those scenes as special effects.

The smoke was thick, and if it weren’t for Shu Jun’s ability to control the wind and water, as well as the presence of many players with similar abilities, the high temperature and dense smoke alone would have forced the players to retreat. In such an environment, human reconnaissance machinery couldn’t get anywhere near, giving the players much more freedom to act.

“The focus is on the factories that produce food and purify water,” Shu Jun calmly instructed. “Check the underground areas to ensure that nothing is missed. Destroy any transportation or purifiers you come across.”

“Yes!”

People left the center of the fire and began to search for any remaining targets in the area. Chai Xuyang didn’t immediately walk away. He stood on the charred ground wearing thick protective clothing, gazing blankly at the sparks floating in the air.

“Feeling a bit more at ease?” Shu Jun kicked aside a burnt piece of metal by his feet.

“Not really. I feel somewhat conflicted after actually taking action.” Chai Xuyang didn’t look at Shu Jun; his gaze was fixed on the direction of Y City. “To be honest, there are times when I still think about going back home, thinking about the captain calling for a post-match review… Now, fighting against Y City feels like popping a soap bubble.”

“I apologize on behalf of Lao Hu for what he said before.”

“There’s no need for an apology. I also feel sorry for our comrade who was killed for no reason.” Chai Xuyang waved his hand, and the sand tapped against the charred surface of the machinery. “Since there aren’t many people around, Shu Jun, I’ll ask you directly. Your battle plan has always kept you separated from the rest—why? Don’t you want others to know your situation?”

“Take a guess.”

Chai Xuyang rolled his eyes. “The Blackbirds didn’t have this mysterious style before, did they?”

“To you all, I’m also a ‘monster’. Not everyone may accept my true situation, including you,” Shu Jun responded succinctly. “Although I don’t agree with Luo Duan’s approach of cutting off your retreat directly, some of his thoughts are valid. At this point, if our own people can’t unite, then we’re truly done for.”

Breathing heavily and struggling, Chai Xuyang’s breath felt burdened amidst the crackling sounds of the fire.

“I will lead you to victory, and that’s enough.” Shu Jun pulled down his mask, revealing a brilliant smile. “Xiao Chai, Groundwater and Blackbirds are old rivals. You should know that I won’t boast about this matter.”

Chai Xuyang sighed heavily, turned away, and continued destroying the surviving machinery that still emitted electric sparks. After a while, he muttered a few words in a sullen tone.

“I trust in your abilities, that’s for sure. It’s just that when you brought us to the cultivation stronghold last time, all the players were experienced ones. Seeing you in that state caught us off guard for quite a while. If everyone sees you like that, even after the war ends, you might not be accepted. It would be better to work on this aspect earlier, like boiling a frog in warm water*…”

*Idiom refers to a strategy where changes or negative situations are implemented gradually or subtly, so as not to alarm or raise resistance in the beginning.

“Thank you for your concern.” Shu Jun’s smile became even more radiant. “I will consider it.”

According to Chai Xuyang’s perspective, he might just had survived his erosion and experienced a mutation in his abilities. Even if players may feel fearful they would still consider him a member of the synthetic humans, but once he revealed his true power, he was destined to disappear in this war, whether viewed from the perspective of humans or the interests of the synthetics.

But that was fine.

Y City, Command Center.

Even though Yi Ning was in the city center, he could still see the glow of the fire outside the city. Y City was surrounded by a reddish-gray light, and the air seemed to have heated up. With the facilities around the city destroyed like this, the signals transmitted to the settlements were likely to be affected.

…If there were any survivors left in the settlements.

There was still a slight erosion contamination around the city. Those factory areas represented the hopes built by generations of settlement residents and Y City citizens, with their blood, sweat, and hard work. The factories had stood for a hundred years without falling, but now they were destroyed in a single night. Even if they won the war, the reconstruction work alone would be enough to wear down the human population.

At that time, Zhu Sheng’s praised “player system optimization” might be more easily passed through. However, the destruction of the settlements was imminent, and he had to first ensure everyone’s survival before considering the potential treatment issues in the future…

As Yi Ning thought about this, he paused for a moment. He sat silently in his chair for a while before finally turning on the camera device and began delivering the speech according to the script given to him by Zhu Sheng.

“In recent times, there have been frequent acts of resistance from the synthetic humans, but there is no need to panic. Most of them have been contaminated by the Erosion Swamps and are now on their last legs. It is recommended that during this period…”

Yi Ning gritted his teeth before continuing with the rest of his words.

“It is recommended that during this period, you do not leave your homes and stay away from the settlements. Once the situation with the synthetic humans stabilizes, we will send specialized teams to bring everyone into the city. The current acts of resistance from the synthetic humans are still under control, so please remain calm.”

No, these were all lies. The settlements that needed to be rescued had already been determined. Zhu Sheng just wanted to keep these people stable and prevent too much panic from spreading, causing internal chaos in Y City.

But he had to continue reading.

“Finally, regarding this election. I understand everyone’s support for me, but given the current circumstances, I hope you can set aside your biases and choose Marshal Zhu Yanchen, who has more tactical experience. In the face of this calamity, I will serve as Marshal Zhu’s deputy and provide the settlements with the utmost protection. As a war-time figure, three years later, I will once again participate in the leadership election…”

As he reached the later part, Yi Ning’s vocal cords trembled mechanically, ensuring that the words wouldn’t leave a trace in his mind.

This was necessary, he repeated to himself. This was necessary. It was the only way to ensure the survival of the settlements as much as possible. Besides this, he couldn’t do anything else. Just like at this moment, facing the burning fire around him, he could only mechanically read a speech prepared by someone else from a cold, lifeless device.

Yi Ning’s young assistant stood at the corner, clenching his fists tightly, with bloodshot eyes.

In another room of the same building, the atmosphere was completely different.

“You’re going to the front lines?” Xia Liang, dressed as an old man, asked skeptically. She crossed her arms and scrutinized Zhu Yanchen from top to bottom. “Oh, so you’ve finally come to your senses and decided to personally win some favor?”

“If you go, you may not understand Shu Jun’s intentions. We have collaborated for a long time, and we can devise the most reasonable tactics together. Even if we need to calculate Sigma, I don’t want any soldier to die just for the sake of a show.”

“Tsk, my teeth hurt just listening to you. Fine, I have the chip anyway, so I’ll take charge of the defense in the city center. But let me make it clear, the work on ‘Xia Liang’s’ side is not finished yet, and I’ll have to command in the identity of ‘Dong Lao’. My time is quite tight…”

“So?”

“So, I don’t want to manage the Fourth Squadron anymore!” Xia Liang’s voice became sharp. “Ai Xiaoxiao is doing a good job as the team captain. Why do I have to report to her? They only recognize their own people, and I’m just a clueless person who dropped from the sky.”

“They are merchants, and their main battlefield is not in Y City. They may not be familiar with the customs of the three major families. This group of people doesn’t like being controlled and rejects the three major families, which is why we have Ai Xiaoxiao. This group of people has big ambitions and is used to stirring up trouble, which is why we have you. Why did you suddenly bring this up? Did something go wrong with your meeting with Ai Xiaoxiao?”

“No, it’s nothing. Just complaining about having too much work,” Xia Liang muttered. “When it comes to fighting, why bother with the Old Fourth? It would be better to gather together for shelter.”

“Oh, you’re worried about them,” Zhu Yanchen said casually.

“…You’re thinking too much.”

“If you’re not concerned, it will only take a short time for you to point out the issues in the reports. Unfortunately, the activities of the Old Fourth are necessary. The lockdown in the city will only become tighter. Many things that cannot be traded openly will have to be handled by the Old Fourth.”

Xia Liang tightened her hood. “Alright, I’ll keep an eye on them.”

“Thank you for your hard work.”

“…Zhu Yanchen.”

“Hmm?”

“Over these years, as your subordinate, I am aware of your abilities. There is something I must say here—given the current situation, it’s only a matter of time before you become the leader. And for Shu Jun to protect the synthetic humans, he must win this war.”

“I know.”

“Even if the synthetic humans manage to avoid blaming ordinary people, they will definitely hold a grudge against the three major families, especially the Zhu family, which has been responsible for the player system. It’s impossible for them not to take action. In the current situation, it’s highly unlikely that they will be willing to shake hands and make peace with humans.”

“I know.”

“…When it comes to that point, how do you plan to end it?”

Zhu Yanchen glanced at Xia Liang but didn’t answer.

Xia Liang sighed as if having a headache, covering her face with one hand. “Fine, I understand. It’s another matter that needs to be kept secret, right? I won’t say anything else. I just hope that you won’t do anything foolish that sacrifices my happiness and the happiness of millions of families.”

“I won’t.”

After speaking, Zhu Yanchen lowered his head again and looked at the documents in front of him. However, Xia Liang’s words seemed to sting him. Marshal Zhu furrowed his brow. His gaze became unsteady, and he appeared noticeably distracted.

“I hope you say those words to Shu Jun instead.”

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Evil As Humans Ch164

Kinky7 Comments

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

Chapter 164: Enemy Attack

Without eyes, without limbs, without senses. The things of the outside world to him were just one ripple after another, big and small.

Yin Ren had experienced this state before.

When he fought with the sniper—no, perhaps he should call him “Mr. Qiu”—and turned into pure essence, his perception of the outside world was the same as it was now. It was more accurate to say that his current perception was even purer.

Like a lifeless sea.

The outside world was like a drizzle, stirring up one ripple after another. Besides that, everything in the world was nothingness. There was no color, temperature, weight, and Yin Ren couldn’t even feel his “own” body.

In the vast solitude, his thoughts were like sugar cubes thrown into water, gradually dissolving and becoming loose and blurry. Even when he was asleep under a seal, Yin Ren had never felt such a terrifying emptiness.

Like a never-ending free fall.

Did Shian’s memory spell fail?

No, that’s not it.

That memory spell had been confirmed by Li Nian and Fu Xingchuan. There were no problems with either the design of the spell or the underground Evil Spirit used as an auxiliary. Even if there were major issues, it shouldn’t have caused such a fierce Evil Spirit like himself to enter an unknown environment.

He must have obtained some kind of “role identity” from this era.

But now, Yin Ren couldn’t even guess what kind of creature he had become in this state.

Yin Ren tried his best to stay conscious and attempted to move. But with no sensory perception, he didn’t know how to exert force, nor did he know where to exert it. After flailing for several hours, Lord Ghost King collapsed mentally and began to despair.

What kind of role was this? Was he turned into moss in some cave?

Despite his despondence, Yin Ren set himself a countdown timer. After five minutes of listlessness, he regained his composure and continued to struggle and explore.

Zhong Chengshuo was still technically a “flesh puppet”. Even if the man could adapt to his situation, there were still very few things he could do.

He had to get back to the team as soon as possible.

While he was thinking of a plan, a particularly tumultuous ripple caught Yin Ren’s attention. That ripple was different from the others, and it was very close to him.

[I really want to go home…]

An external thought surged into Yin Ren’s mind.

This feeling was very strange. That train of thought didn’t contain any language, but he could understand it. What the other party conveyed was the most basic and simplest “idea”.

[I really want to go home…]

That unknown thought ruminated pitifully.

[Who are you?] Yin Ren repeated this question in his mind, trying to direct it towards the direction of the transmitted thought. To be honest, he didn’t know if this method would work.

[…] The thought of that thing was blank for a few seconds.

[Siren.] It responded.

It was Dog Thing.

Yin Ren was taken aback. He did put his phone under his pillow, but his intention was to keep Dog Thing with him, to avoid any unnecessary complications. He never thought that this insignificant little thing could be affected by the spell.

[Who are you? Where is this place, and what are you doing here?] Without any language barriers, Dog Thing’s thoughts were clear and easy to understand.

It was a strange feeling, as if it had become a part of him.

[I am Yin Ren. There was a small problem with the spell, and we are trapped in a memory illusion.] Suddenly, having someone to talk to in this emptiness lifted Yin Ren’s spirits.

He roughly explained his guesses about the magic to Dog Thing. As he had anticipated, he didn’t need to organize them into words. Dog Thing smoothly understood his thoughts.

[You are too powerful. I might have been judged as a part of you.] Dog Thing tried hard to think. [Just like when copying a phone app and it contains junk data.]

[I see. That’s good. At least it won’t be too boring…]

Halfway through his thought, Yin Ren suddenly realized something.

[Let me see your memories!] He launched a barrage of thoughts at Dog Thing.

The biggest obstacle to their communication was the inability to express thoughts. Now that he was unlucky enough… No, that he finally had the opportunity to directly experience “thoughts”, he couldn’t let this go.

[No!] Dog Thing was resolute. [If you do that, you won’t need me anymore. You will eat me!]

Strangely, during their exchange, the outline of a vague image gradually emerged in Yin Ren’s mind—

It was a small, black, four-legged, cylindrical creature. Its appearance was blurry, as if behind frosted glass. In the blurry image, the thing was skinny and looked like a bat’s shriveled corpse. It curled up and trembled all over.

[You don’t look tasty, so I won’t eat you,] Yin Ren said sincerely. [Besides, this is not my body, and I have no way to find a mouth to eat you. When we leave here, you will definitely return to the phone, and I won’t eat such things.]

[Really?]

[I can also thank you by giving you some Evil Force. If you’re still not at ease, I can let you see my thoughts.]

[…] Dog Thing weighed for a long time. [Okay.]

[But I want a promise. You have to promise to send me home.] It finally said.

[No. I don’t even know where your home is.]

[You will go back.] The thin figure was very determined in its thoughts. [Strong people always go back.]

Upon further reflection, Yin Ren realized that his pursuit hadn’t changed much. After he solved the mystery of the Primordial Elementals and the mysteries around the Evil Force, he would immediately seek a special job position from Shian—after all, his identity had already been exposed, so he might as well earn some more money.

Since Zhong Chengshuo wasn’t human, they would have more time to study the truth, stroll along the road, and share the same snacks. Whether their future lives were smooth or rough, they were all the joys and sorrows of the human world.

Yin Ren had little interest in the so-called path of the strong.

But it was still doable to just send Dog Thing back home. After pondering for a moment, Yin Ren packaged his thought process and threw it to Dog Thing as a show of sincerity.

And Dog Thing delivered on its promise—

The heavy memories instantly engulfed Yin Ren.

……

The moment he touched those memories, Yin Ren understood the difficulty of communicating with Dog Thing.

The sensation it had when it was still at “home” was really difficult to describe in words.

Suppose humans didn’t have eyes, then the noun for colors wouldn’t exist. Dog Thing was like a person who only had hearing in their life, trying to communicate with someone who only had sight. The meaning of language and the definition of nouns were all mismatched, and even the most basic conversation became incredibly difficult.

It seemed that it wasn’t that this thing’s brain wasn’t functioning properly; in their previous conversation, it should have tried its best.

Yin Ren “saw” another world.

If it had to be described in human terms, countless vibrations and fluctuations swept in. He clearly didn’t see any colors, but he could feel the world’s vibrancy. The external information was like the thought exchange just now, delivering the most essential meaning into his body.

Countless information rushed in, and Yin Ren’s thoughts were in chaos, almost shutting down.

But in this pure ocean of information, Yin Ren swam freely from Dog Thing’s perspective.

Until a certain day twenty-eight years ago.

The information in the ocean suddenly turned violent, and the vibrations and fluctuations almost crushed Dog Thing’s body. Dog Thing quickly followed the rest of its kind in a mass escape, and several clusters of information were thrown back and forth in its group.

They said that the “Disgust” was moving.

Just as it received this information, a corresponding memory quickly grew in Dog Thing’s mind—”Disgust” was a predator that had only grown up in the past one or two thousand years and was the least worried about food supply in this area.

It was a massive creature covered in information, with human hands on its surface.

In Dog Thing’s memory, perhaps it had been daydreaming for too long, so its escape speed was a bit slow. Soon, the creature moved in front of it—

That thing stuck out a human-sized hand from its surface and frantically pounded in a certain direction. At the same time, there was a vague tearing sound coming from far away.

Yin Ren concentrated his mind, intending to carefully savor this memory. Who would have thought that this “inside-out” event would take twenty-two years to play out? Dog Thing didn’t dare to move. It stayed motionless at close range, not moving for twenty years.

Yin Ren had nothing to say.

Fortunately, this was a memory, and he only needed to receive everything in an instant.

Six years ago, with external cooperation, “Disgust” finally tore open a gap that didn’t belong to this world. It first stuck out an “arm”, but its body was still left in the ocean of information.

It was just Dog Thing had worked so hard to avoid it.

As space tore apart, external information poured in, mixed with a very tempting fluctuation, like a self-service buffet for a starving ghost.

Dog Thing was already weakened from hiding for more than 20 years and now completely lost its sanity. It didn’t care where the crack led, and it rushed straight towards it.

As a former Great Celestial Master, Yin Ren could recognize that crack, which was known in the human world as a “gap”.

As a former human, he could also taste the information represented by that fluctuation—it was an emotion called “anxiety”, and it was unusually intense.

The weakened Dog Thing rushed towards the source of that emotion, completely unaware that it had passed through the crack and arrived in another world.

Dog Thing collided with a flying bird first. Unfortunately, that bird seemed unable to bear such a strange “creature”. The bird fell from the sky, its dying eyes glimpsing for a moment, and the next second, its small head exploded, and its body scattered into several pieces of flesh.

The glance from the bird possessed by Dog Thing almost made Yin Ren’s thoughts stop.

At that moment, within the still-existing gap, a huge “human hand” emerged. Snow-white bone structure, black-gray metal, all kinds of wriggling texts filling the seams, and an overall dark, dead flesh-like hue.

He had fought against it before.

It was the sniper, or rather, a part of Mr. Qiu’s body.

The outline of the giant hand dissipated in the air, pointing directly towards the direction of the city with dense buildings—the direction of the Haigu Municipal Hospital. Dog Thing realized it was in trouble and wanted to turn back home, but the crack had already closed, leaving it with nowhere to go.

It struggled desperately along with the bird’s corpse, like a dehydrated fish. However, Dog Thing didn’t find another suitable “carrier” and fell to the ground with the bird’s corpse.

Yin Ren could clearly sense that Dog Thing was dissipating along with the bird. The bird’s cells were dying, and its whole nervous system was stopping. Dog Thing was struggling to hold on.

Until someone walked by.

The young man was holding a brand-new phone, humming a song while playing games. He didn’t even glance at the bird’s corpse next to him, but something “saw” it.

Dog Thing struggled and pounced towards that person.

In its view, the person’s brain emitted a deadly seductive force. At that moment, its thoughts were completely blank. This behavior wasn’t the result of thinking, but more like the most basic response under survival instinct.

Unfortunately, Dog Thing, which was already on the brink of death, missed its target.

From the perspective of the memory, the person suddenly paused. Dog Thing pounced too quickly and hit the screen of the brightly lit phone.

In the next moment, it seemed to be able to breathe again, but it was quite difficult. If Dog Thing was compared to a fish, “the other side” was like nutrient-rich, pristine seawater. Once it entered the phone, it was like being thrown into a distillation tank, which wasn’t even the size of a palm.

It could barely survive, but it was very uncomfortable.

Frail connection, weak fluctuations, and extremely low-density information. Other than the environmental pattern being somewhat similar, everything else was completely different.

Dog Thing didn’t dare move around anymore. The explosion of the bird caused psychological trauma. It didn’t know if it could attack other living beings and make it back safely. After all, it wasn’t clear how it managed to survive entering the phone.

Maintaining this state, it gradually learned those unfamiliar information bit by bit. Dog Thing still remembered the tempting power that day. If it could eat and drink enough there and become stronger, it could definitely go back home!

At the very least, if it could find other beings like itself and consume them, it could ease its situation.

Unfortunately, it tried to head in the wrong direction, acted recklessly in front of humans, and was sent to the Shian storage warehouse as a “spirit weapon”.

It was close to its target prey, the “Evil Spirit”, but it was still out of reach.

Roughly speaking, this was just the story of a silly little animal’s suffering. If this were earlier, then surely, Yin Ren would have hummed a tune of <The Little Mouse Climbing Up the Lamp Post>* for it.

*Chinese nursery rhyme and children’s song. It tells the story of a little mouse that climbs up to the top of a lighthouse to see the world. The song is often used to teach young children about the importance of being curious and exploring the world around them.

However, Yin Ren didn’t have the leisure to do so now.

In a flash, the past fragmented clues were like pearls that connected into a string—

[They can affect people’s emotions, causing them to shout and laugh…]

These things seemed to be particularly sensitive to emotions. On the other side of the rift, they didn’t refer to the sniper as “Mr. Qiu” or anything like that. They called him “Disgust”.

[An old man said before that if you go to an inexistent place, you will see them. If you dream too deeply, you will see them.]

They lived on the “Other Side” beyond the gap. Does the interstitial space in the gap count as an inexistent place? And does the “Archive” environment, which is used on the brains of the insane as its stage, count as a “deep dream”?

[Carelessly contacting them will destroy one’s soul… The elders in our region call them the ‘Primordial Elementals’.]

If their previous speculations were correct, then “Divine Descent” was the scattering of the flesh of a large-scale Primordial Elemental in the mortal world…

The Evil Force, which was converted from the “flesh”, could provide people with the ability to interfere with the Other Side, such as “Charon”, and the power to control emotions, such as “Resonance”. Then it wouldn’t be strange if these Primordial Elementals themselves had stronger abilities.

Yin Ren savored Dog Thing’s memory and poked at the small, cowering shadow with his mind.

If he had a mouth, Yin Ren would wryly smile.

So it seemed that humans weren’t directly on the menu of these beings. Then why did these Primordial Elementals, who lived on the distant Other Side and fed on emotions, set their sights on the mortal world?

In order to squeeze an arm through, Mr. Qiu dug for twenty-two years, which shows that the other side wasn’t a sieve. How did the bloody “Divine Descent” come about? And how were the Evil Spirits and other evil creatures produced?

Yin Ren attempted to ask about the distinction between “strong” and “weak” and the hierarchy of the “food chain” on the Other Side. But once it involves judgments that were close to instinct, Dog Thing couldn’t transmit clear thoughts.

It seemed that the intelligence of Dog Thing had reached its limit.

Yin Ren still didn’t understand the essence of the Other Side and Primordial Elementals. He realized that such deep research should be left to his innocent accomplice to explore.

Yin Ren decisively stopped thinking.

If he gave these pieces of intelligence to Zhong Chengshuo, that guy would be quite happy. He could already imagine how the expression of “surprise” would appear on his serious face, and Yin Ren was looking forward to it.

He rolled up his sleeves in his mind and gave Dog Thing a light kick.

Dog Thing: [?]

[Let’s find a way out together,] Yin Ren said. [I’m different from you. I’m not just ‘wanting to go home’. I ‘will definitely go home’.]

……

Fu Xingchuan sat on a wooden chair, watching Lu Xiaohe

 and Fu Tianyi.

This time he wasn’t just putting on airs and sitting back to relax. It was really because the things that a dog’s paw could do were quite limited. He couldn’t interfere with the two younger ones, who were busy. Fu Xingchuan used his paw to play with the dry tobacco on the table and occasionally took a bite.

Following the excellent tradition of Shian, the two of them quickly transformed this room into a temporary base.

After everything was done, Fu Tianyi sat on a stool with a gloomy expression. “How wretched. I finally became the boss of Huajisi, but I can’t even direct a subordinate.”

In order to maintain the “logical coherence” of the memory environment, Fu Tianyi told Huajisi that he was conducting dangerous research with the scholar Li Heyan and didn’t let anyone follow.

This directly resulted in their only available forces being one man, one woman, and a dog.

“Pack up and ask the villagers for some information this afternoon. It’s best to leave before nightfall. It’s the end of the Gong Dynasty now—it’s troublesome to encounter bandits and wild beasts at night, even if we don’t run into any evil creatures.”

Lu Xiaohe had already prepared paper, pen, and charcoal and was working hard to wrap the charcoal into a usable makeshift pen.

“If necessary, we can call some people to help. Just don’t cause any trouble—this village’s environment is so vivid that it’s definitely not a memory of Yin Ren’s. The Evil Spirit that remembers this place so clearly is probably nearby. The sooner we leave, the safer we’ll be.”

They came to investigate the chaos; not to swim naked in the center of it.

During the end of the Gong Dynasty, war and monsters were rampant. Historians could study human wars, but as a biologist, Lu Xiaohe didn’t want to become a witness. Moreover, the current highest fighting force was a dog, and she didn’t want to experience the close-range feeling of an Evil Spirit strolling around.

“It’s been okay for the past two days.” Fu Tianyi tried to avoid eye contact with the dog. “I just saw someone outside making things like fresh fruit and sugar melons, saying that they were going to worship on September 9th, so they had to prepare a few days in advance—there’s so much leeway, so the war is probably still far away from here.”

Fu Xingchuan suddenly jumped off the chair and shouted twice.

The dog suddenly bit off half of the dry tobacco stick and held it in its mouth. It used a spell to light the tobacco, and smoke quickly circled around its mouth as it asked a question.

[What day of the lunar calendar is it today?]

“Uh…the seventh. Why do you ask?” Fu Tianyi stared at the smoking dog, a bit tongue-tied.

[What’s the name of this village?]

“Yin Village.”

Upon saying this, Fu Tianyi realized something, and his complexion suddenly turned pale.

“It should be a coincidence. In the late Gong Dynasty, Yin was a common surname…”

[Do you believe your own bullshit? This is the memory of an Evil Spirit!] Fu Xingchuan wished he could spit out the cigarette and bite a mouthful of Fu Tianyi’s calf.

Lu Xiaohe stopped making her homemade pen, and her face gradually turned ugly.

Fu Tianyi became as white as a snowman. “In the evening of September 7th, the Goulou Army raided the heartland of the Gong Dynasty. They first occupied the mountainous areas that were easy to defend and difficult to attack, hoping to establish a large camp… Yin Village, Hezhuang, and Chenjiakou were the first to be massacred.”

“At dawn on the eighth day, an Evil Spirit was born. No one on the scene, whether it was the Gouluo Army or the local residents, survived.”

[On the ninth day, the Great Celestial Master Zhong Yi returned to his hometown and sealed the Evil Spirit in his homeland.] Fu Xingchuan helped him complete the ending of the story.

“No, that’s not right,” Lu Xiaohe said.

She put on a serious face that belonged to Li Heyan, and a layer of sweat appeared on her forehead.

“I looked at the data before I came here. Many villagers went into the mountains before the army attacked. According to their account, all kinds of dogs in Yin Village started barking frantically early in the morning on September 7th. These people felt uneasy and decided to leave.”

“But we’ve been here for so long and we haven’t heard a single bark,” Lu Xiaohe added with a dry voice.

Everyone fell silent.

Lu Xiaohe and Fu Tianyi had been acting discreetly, trying not to affect the ability to maintain the established memories. Besides, they didn’t arrive in the village until later in the day. Fu Xingchuan had also turned into a normal, common dog without the ability to manipulate the larger environment.

[If the time and place are correct, then it must be the ‘people’ who are wrong.]

The dog spoke up and blew a line of smoke rings.

[Let’s not leave yet. We’ll stay here.]

“Why? Wouldn’t it be more dangerous to stay here?” Fu Tianyi exclaimed.

But Lu Xiahe remained silent, rubbing her chin and furrowing her brows.

[First of all, the disrupted memory is that of the Evil Spirit. In its memory, the Great Celestial Master will still come on September 9th. This Great Celestial Master is our primary observation target, and Yin Ren himself must remember this. We happen to meet here.]

[Second, the spell I designed won’t have this kind of loophole. The character confusion already has me stumped. Now, I can be certain…]

Fu Xingchuan drooped his tail and puffed more rapidly.

[This is an enemy attack.]

At the same time, inside the ancestral hall of the Yin Village.

A slender black dog stood up and sniffled. Its neck was tied with a finely embroidered silk ribbon, and its fur and paws were clean, indicating it was well taken care of.

It looked disdainfully at the pig’s head in the bowl, and a hint of human resentment flashed in its eyes.

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Evil As Humans Ch163

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Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

Chapter 163: SOS

Time reversed a little.

When Zhong Chengshuo woke up, his whole body was in pain.

It was a very intense and piercing pain. It wasn’t like the pain he felt when he was running in the underground corpse vault—despite being damaged countless times, at that time Zhong Chengshuo was like a corpse. All his senses were numb from the coldness of his body, and in the end, everything felt a bit itchy.

But this pain was different. It was persistent, as if his whole body was suffering from a toothache. Zhong Chengshuo lay flat on the grass, longing for a modern painkiller to magically appear.

He wasn’t sure what kind of shell he would be stuffed into.

He had previously discussed with Yin Ren and had come up with a plan to conceal his identity—the first rule being that no matter what kind of identity Zhong Chengshuo turned into, he must take off his communication earphones as soon as possible and disguise himself as an ordinary character.

This way, he could act together with Yin Ren without having to constantly conceal his identity. After all, Shian would only know that a flesh puppet had been brought in but had no idea where it went. Yin Ren could come up with a random excuse to get past it.

But now, Zhong Chengshuo’s palms were in so much pain that he couldn’t even lift them up.

It was too strange.

Was he stuffed into the body of someone who was crushed by a giant creature?

Zhong Chengshuo opened his eyes with difficulty and saw red all around him. Long black hair hung behind his head, and a beautiful, pale hand was open in front of his eyes. Zhong Chengshuo recognized that hand. He had kissed it intimately when he was practicing pure theoretical mating skills. He remembered every detail of it.

It was Yin Ren’s hand.

Zhong Chengshuo sniffed suspiciously and smelled Yin Ren’s unique scent.

He immediately forgot about the pain and carefully observed the body under the red cloth. The palm, arm, body shape… He had seen every detail before, and they were familiar yet unfamiliar.

Finally, Zhong Chengshuo looked at the pair of feet covered in grass and dust, which he assumed were his “own.” He could roughly figure out the situation, but he didn’t know why he was controlling this body.

This was Yin Ren…Zhong Yi’s body from a thousand years ago.

Did the former Yin Ren live in such pain? And where did the real Yin Ren go if he was in Zhong Yi’s shell?

Zhong Chengshuo endured the pain and looked outside through the red cloth. He saw a group of evil creatures resting in the forest, as well as several human children running around and playing.

But still no Yin Ren.

Their second plan was that after Yin Ren regained consciousness, he would immediately send out a visible magical signal into the sky. The requirements for that spell were extremely low—as long as Yin Ren wasn’t turned into a plant, he could definitely send the signal out.

In this way, Zhong Chengshuo could find Yin Ren as soon as possible and carry out his plan to pretend to be dead.

But now things were complicated.

If Zhong Chengshuo had become another character, he could have acted alone and looked for Yin Ren. Unfortunately, he was stuffed into the authentic “main character” body, and every move he made would be watched by everyone.

Zhong Chengshuo could see that Yellow Millet was communicating with a little girl not far away, and both of them had obvious communication devices on them.

After thinking quietly for a moment, Zhong Chengshuo walked towards the two of them.

……

“…I’m Zhong Chengshuo,” Zhong Chengshuo said confusedly.

As expected, the little girl’s movements suddenly stiffened, and Yellow Millet also trembled and shivered for a while.

The reaction was too awkward, not like Fu Xingchuan or Fu Tianyi.

If it were Lu Xiaohe, her reaction would be more curious. These two people could only be Ge Tingting and Huang Jin—the little girl adapted well to her “role” and her performance was still natural. So, the person in Yellow Millet’s shell was probably Huang Jin.

Zhong Chengshuo quickly judged the identities of the two.

“Yin Ren… You are Yin Ren, right?” The little girl stood on tiptoe, and a worried expression gradually appeared on her face.

Ge Tingting’s thinking was actually very direct—

Yin Ren was the Great Celestial Master Zhong Yi, the hero who sealed the Six Evil Spirits, and was also an evil that Shian couldn’t contend with. Because of Zhong Chengshuo’s death, Yin Ren was so sad that he made a flesh puppet of him in order to numb the pain. Shian would certainly be willing to cooperate in preparing a bed for the flesh puppet to create the illusion that Zhong Chengshuo was still there.

The cost was low, and it made the Great Celestia Master happy, so why not? In her opinion, this trick was similar to a waiter at Haidilao* putting a doll in front of a single customer.

*Hot Pot restaurant chain.

Zhong Chengshuo died—killed in front of everyone. As a science post, he wouldn’t return as a ghost.

The person opposite could only be Yin Ren.

Perhaps Yin Ren was just temporarily impacted, and his head wasn’t very clear. Ge Tingting gathered the courage to throw off her headgear and stagger forward. “Yin Ren, wake up! We are in an array right now!”

Zhong Chengshuo introduced himself sincerely, “I am Zhong Chengshuo.”

Ge Tingting turned to Yellow Millet. “You—can you think of a way too?”

Huang Jin in Yellow Millet’s shell: “…Puff.”

Ge Tingting stomped her foot anxiously.

Huang Jin lay despondently for a while, then tried to suck up a clean patch of ground with his round body and began to scratch on the dirt.

Soon, a row of words that were worse than dog scratches appeared on the ground: [I am Huang Jin.]

Ge Tingting: “…Pfft.”

It was clear that she was trying hard to hold back her laughter, forgetting about being anxious for a moment.

Huang Jin ignored her and became more and more dispirited in his scratching: [What’s your last memory, Yin Ren?]

Here it comes.

Zhong Chengshuo breathed a sigh of relief in his heart. He was waiting for this question.

“I remember that Yin Ren set up a spell for me and even gave me some of his flesh and blood,” Zhong Chengshuo answered smoothly. “He said he didn’t want to be separated from me just because of this mission. He also said that my name is Zhong Chengshuo, and he told me to remember that.”

Huang Jin made a couple of sounds and wrinkled his skin: [You can’t bring in spirit weapons, and without a master, a flesh puppet has no ability to speak autonomously.]

Zhong Chengshuo summoned the universal answer. “I don’t know.”

[Do you remember anything else?]

“Just this.”

[Do you know who we are?]

“You’re Huang Jin. You wrote it just now.”

Huang Jin became still, holding the branch in his mouth, lost in thought.

“That’s the Great Celestial Master Zhong Yi.” Ge Tingting pondered for a moment, clapping her dirty hands together. “He created many techniques, and he may have made improvements to the flesh puppet. Ordinary spirit weapons cannot enter, but evil things can!”

Yellow Millet: [I don’t get it.]

Could it be that he was able to see the thoughts of the “flesh puppet” before because Yin Ren created a special evil… In this age where AI could answer phone calls, perhaps the Great Celestial Master gained new inspiration.

The “Zhong Chengshuo Evil AI” and “Zhong Chengshuo Resurrection” were both so unbelievable that he couldn’t distinguish which was more absurd.

Oh well, things were what they were, so why worry about it? The young spirit smith quickly let go.

Huang Jin: [Forget it] He didn’t even want to write out the word “forget*”.

*Clarity: Instead of writing [suan le] (算了) Huang Jin wrote (suan了) in his response.

Ge Tingting quickly fell into a daze. “Then what do we do?”

Huang Jin’s body swayed. [Wait here for the others.]

This hurdle was finally passed. Zhong Chengshuo stood up and walked towards the group of evil things not far away. As expected, the two newcomers from Unit 9 didn’t intend to stay with the “flesh puppet” all the time.

He had to find out the current situation as quickly as possible.

And then find Yin Ren.

……

Fu Xingchuan lowered his head. His wet nose sniffed above the soil, making a rustling sound.

How many chances did a person have to experience life from a dog’s perspective? Fu Xingchuan became calmer as he ran. The sturdy yellow dog hugged the wall and wandered around the house, even avoiding several villagers who clearly had bad intentions—he didn’t know if being made into a dog meat hot pot in this world would have any effect on his true body.

Of course, as an experienced ace cultivator, Fu Xingchuan wouldn’t just sit and wait for death. He moved even faster as a dog than as a human.

After running in a big circle, Fu Xingchuan found that his judgment was correct. This was an extremely isolated small mountain village surrounded by mountains on all sides, and the villagers relied on self-sufficiency for their daily lives.

Being closed off for so long, the villagers were mostly related by blood or marriage. They had built an ancestral hall in the village. The village wasn’t very big, and the ancestral hall was next to ordinary houses. And he was just a stray dog from one of the nearby houses.

Fu Xingchuan circled around the ancestral hall several times, but the door was tightly closed, and the surrounding walls were very high. It was difficult to sneak in broad daylight.

After confirming that there was no entrance nearby, the great former minister dug at the wall like a pro. After cleaning up the ground, he awkwardly huddled up in the weeds.

The yellow-green grass just covered the dog’s body and provided the perfect camouflage.

The spot that Fu Xingchuan chose was very close to the open space where the villagers smoked and chatted.

“Did you guys see the two immortals who fell in the east of the village just now?”

“What immortals? What immortals?”

“The immortals who flew down from the sky—a man and a woman—both dressed very nicely. They are staying here for now and said they came to pick those who are enlightened.”

“Is there such a good thing?”

“Of course…”

In the grass, the soft ears of the yellow dog moved. Fu Xingchuan quickly stood up, turned his head, and ran in the direction with the strongest human scent.

The location of the immortals was at the village entrance. The two “immortals” came in a hurry, and all the villagers ran to see the excitement. Men, women, old and young, were all crowded together, and of course they didn’t pay attention to a runaway dog.

Fu Xingchuan squeezed through the legs of the people with difficulty and made his way to the front line.

As he had expected. The two “immortals” who were surrounded by the villagers were dressed in the special clothing of Huajisi and had communication earphones hanging from their ears.

Very good. Fu Xingchuan was greatly relieved. The situation hadn’t completely deteriorated yet, and it wasn’t the worst-case scenario.

He took a breath and barked nine times at the two people.

Three short, three long, three short.

Receiving the “SOS” signal, the gazes of the two immortals immediately turned towards him.

Immediately, the male immortal stumbled in place, almost falling on his butt ungracefully.

Realizing that the stray dog was frantically barking Morse code, Fu Tianyi’s heart sank. He confirmed it again tremblingly, and behind the dog’s bouncing ears, there really was a communication device.

And the bloodline divination result coldly told him that a Fu family member was within five steps of them.

It seemed that this mistake was far more than just the separation of personnel!

Fu Tianyi awkwardly smoothed his beard and tried to show his majestic appearance as much as possible. “That dog is quite attune. If you give it to me, I can give you a family protection charm in return.”

Beside him, Lu Xiaohe looked at the dog, then at Fu Tianyi. When she looked at the dog again, her facial expression twisted a little.

Half an hour later, Fu Tianyi moved into the most spacious residence in the village with the big yellow dog. Sitting across the wooden table, the yellow dog solemnly stared at him for a while, then rested its chin on the table.

“If you’re Second Uncle… bark once. If you’re not, bark twice.”

The yellow dog glanced at him indifferently and plunged its paw into Fu Tianyi’s teacup, leaving a trail of watermarks on the table.

Fu Xingchuan: [You dare treat me like a real dog?]

Fu Tianyi quickly shrank his neck.

Watching the yellow dog move its paw on the table, Lu Xiaohe tried to avoid looking. “We’ve lost contact with the outside world, see…”

[Take the initiative, find Yin Ren, and remember this place.]

The yellow dog quickly moved its paw.

[I wouldn’t have been thrown here for no reason. The scenery here is clearly significant, and it must be a key memory point. But the top priority is still to find reliable combat power.]

The yellow dog’s talent was limited, and even if it was controlled by the #1 Ghost General, it could only use the most basic magic at best, making self-defense difficult. Although Fu Tianyi was talented, he was still a rookie, while Ge Tingting and Huang Jin were too far away.

Fu Xingchuan and the Great Celestial Master—of the top two powerhouses of Shian, one had now been abolished.

Fu Xingchuan sighed quietly, looking at his black nose.

Whatever happened, hopefully Yin Ren was still fine.

……

In the deepest depths of the dark abyss.

Yin Ren regained consciousness and tried to open his eyes with an indescribable feeling of wonder.

Then he noticed that he seemed to have no eyes.

Kinky Thoughts:

I recently had Haidilao and have to say it is quite good… although it’s pretty expensive.

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Access Denied Ch93

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Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

Chapter 93: Two Teams

Ai Xiaoxiao bypassed the dark alley and headed towards the Xia residence.

As the leader of the Old Fourth and the captain of the Fourth Squadron, she ingrained caution into her very bones. After infiltrating Y City, she didn’t head straight for her target. Instead, she spent some time wandering through various underground markets. In her own words, she called it “washing off the shadows”.

The city recently held new election activities, and remnants of the gatherings and celebrations of the people were still evident everywhere. Confetti was crushed into the dirt, and partially eaten food was thrown into trash bins. In order to accommodate the urgent influx of residents from the surrounding areas, almost all hotels and basements were filled with people. Despite this, the central square of the city was still crowded with tents, and children ran around screaming.

The atmosphere was still lively. People had lived in a peaceful environment for too long and hadn’t yet realized what was about to happen.

A few children playfully ran around, grabbing paper windmills distributed by Yi Ning’s faction. One of them accidentally bumped into Ai Xiaoxiao, leaving muddy handprints on her black windbreaker. Ai Xiaoxiao lowered her eyes to the dirty handprint on her clothes and glanced at the little girl who was frightened by her gaze. The little girl had been holding half a piece of brown sugar cake, which had now fallen to the ground and collected a ring of dust.

Ai Xiaoxiao immediately picked it up. She carefully peeled off the thin skin of the cake, wrapped it in a handkerchief, and handed it back to its owner.

“I don’t want it! It’s dirty.” The little girl pouted, completely forgetting that she had bumped into someone first.

“Don’t waste food. It didn’t stay on the ground for long, and I cleaned the dirty part.” Ai Xiaoxiao squatted down; her voice as cold as ever.

“But it’s covered in dirt!” the little girl retorted.

“Dirty?” Ai Xiaoxiao opened her palm, revealing the peeled skin of the sugar cake. She squeezed them together into a ball, making it look unappetizing.

The little girl’s eyes darted around, then she made a fake gagging sound. “It’s too dirty! I won’t eat it unless you eat it and show me—”

Ai Xiaoxiao decisively put the cake skin into her mouth and swallowed it. “Only bad kids break their promises. Now it’s your turn.”

The girl and her friends stared in astonishment. After half a minute, the girl finally put the handkerchief-wrapped sugar cake into her pocket and looked at Ai Xiaoxiao with a hint of fear in her eyes.

“That’s right. Wasting is not good.” Ai Xiaoxiao stood upright and continued walking forward.

She knew the city’s fate in the coming days. When the war officially broke out, panic over hoarding supplies would inevitably arise. By that time, she feared that every trash bin would be scavenged clean.

As for whether famine would follow, it would depend on whether Shu Jun would betray Zhu Yanchen. To be honest, Ai Xiaoxiao didn’t have much trust in Shu Jun.

It wasn’t that she doubted Shu Jun’s character, but Ai Xiaoxiao was more aware than anyone else of what humans had done to synthetic humans. If her own loved ones and friends had suffered such treatment, Ai Xiaoxiao believed she would do anything. Zhu Yanchen was currently a “safety net” for Shu Jun, but she understood the level of self-sacrifice that came with that importance more than anyone else.

Now, Shu Jun was like a bomb capable of destroying the world, with a colorful balloon named Zhu Yanchen tied to it. Captain Shu floated in the sky, and who knew when he would come crashing down and explode.

Ai Xiaoxiao looked at the gloomy sky for a while, imagining for a few seconds what it would look like when the bomb named Shu Jun exploded. She walked past the crowded tent area and avoided the area where spit was flying. In the twisted alleyways, a few people sat on the ground, playing chess on plastic sheeting.

…Perhaps all these places would be filled with corpses in the future.

She quickened her pace.

Ai Xiaoxiao’s destination was the backdoor of the Xia family—the back door led to a hidden small courtyard, perfect for conducting business. She knocked on the door three times with just the right amount of force, and a response came from inside. “Dr. Ai.”

“Forty kilograms of refined clear moss. On the market, there’s only air-dried moss, and the Xia family can only obtain partially processed ones. I don’t have the time to handle raw materials slowly.” Ai Xiaoxiao was quite direct.

“Have some tea. No need to rush.” The person she was speaking to—a middle-aged man from the Xia family—extended his arm and made a “please” gesture towards a stone table in the backyard.

Ai Xiaoxiao sat on the stone stool, but she didn’t even touch the cup of tea. “You set the price. Just don’t go overboard.”

“Forty kilograms is not a small amount. I won’t hide it from you. The refined clear moss we have in our hands is also purified by our own people. And recently, there have been rumors from above. This lockdown is going to last quite a while, right? Many factories outside have gradually shut down, and these—”

“Clear moss can’t be used as emergency medicine. Don’t think I don’t know what you guys are doing with this stuff.” Ai Xiaoxiao rolled her eyes. “It’s just a byproduct of lichen acid that you use to dilute in alcohol and drink.”

“After diluting it, it’s considered a high-end health product. It always has some effect, right, Dr. Ai? This idea came from you.”

“Do you really think people will consume this stuff after the lockdown?”

“What if they do?”

“The Tang family doesn’t hoard useless things like this. Unless, of course, you think you have more business acumen than the Tang family.” Ai Xiaoxiao’s voice turned cold. “Listen, if you miss this opportunity, this shop won’t be available anymore. As long as Zhu Sheng remains in power, he won’t be foolish enough to allow you to profit from the lockdown.”

The middle-aged man’s expression turned unpleasant. “Dr. Ai, there’s no need for strong-arm tactics in business, right? I heard that you’ve been away from the city for a while, and now you’re buying these things. You don’t intend to sell them in another city, do you?”

“Uncle Liu.” A sweet call suddenly interrupted the conversation, and Ai Xiaoxiao raised an eyebrow.

The Xia family really didn’t know how to choose a place without any disturbance, unlike the Tang family.

Xia Liang, dressed in a casual plain dress, walked into the backyard with a smiling face. “Auntie Liu has been looking for you everywhere, and here you are, Uncle.”

With that, she glanced at Ai Xiaoxiao, and a hint of displeasure appeared in her innocent expression. “Who is she, Uncle? You wouldn’t…”

“She’s a business client, a business client,” the middle-aged man quickly explained to Xia Liang with an apologetic smile. “Xiao Liang, I’ll be there in a moment. Dr. Ai…. Xiao Ai, let’s go over there and talk.”

“Can’t I listen?” Xia Liang clearly had no intention of letting them off the hook, asking innocently. Ai Xiaoxiao felt a bit sour in her stomach.

“It’s boring,” the middle-aged man said helplessly.

“It’s okay, at least I can help prove, Uncle, that this beautiful sister is really a client. Our Xia family doesn’t engage in illegal business. It’s not like I need to avoid suspicion, right?” Xia Liang smiled sweetly.

Ai Xiaoxiao was well aware of the details of her business partner—this person was called Xia Liu in the industry. He owned several nightclubs in the city and made money by leveraging the Xia family’s advantages in the entertainment industry. But this person was short-sighted and easily influenced, and he didn’t make much money. Although Xia Liang was a younger generation, her identity as a popular singer forced Xia Liu to indulge her.

“Clear moss.” Ai Xiaoxiao couldn’t be bothered to dwell on the troublesome matters of the Xia family. She tapped the stone table. “Sell it or not, give me a definite answer. It’s not the first time I’m buying from you, so don’t drag it out.”

“But before, when you were doing research, you only bought one or two catties. Who would have expected you to buy so much this time…”

“So you’re a researcher. Quite impressive,” Xia Liang approached with a smile, seizing the opportunity to interrupt Xia Liu’s complaint. “Uncle, she’s buying the materials for research, isn’t that great?”

“Xiao Liang, you don’t understand.”

“I know about clear moss. It’s used for blending alcohol.” Xia Liang’s smile didn’t waver. “But it’s just something for blending alcohol. What’s there to hesitate about? The city won’t be sealed for long anyway. You sell these to this sister, take the money, and stock up on things that everyone can use. Isn’t that more satisfying than selling them after the lockdown is lifted?”

With that, she intentionally got closer, lowering her voice. “Grandfather has been craving beef lately. Why not stock up on more meat and show filial respect to him during the lockdown? If he enjoys his meals, maybe he’ll be willing to invest more money once the lockdown is over.”

“Well… yes, Xiao Liang is indeed clever.” Xia Liu was bewildered by her words and turned dazedly to Ai Xiaoxiao. “The situation is special now, so I’ll have to raise the price a bit. Is that okay on your end?”

“No problem,” Ai Xiaoxiao said in a deep voice. “I’ve been scouting the market these days, and if you want high-quality beef, I can make the arrangements for you.”

“Oh, thank you, thank you.” Xia Liu’s face lit up with joy. “That’s settled then.”

This person really had no brains. Stocking up on nutritional supplements and grains would be better than beef. When the city faced a crisis, they could distribute them to win people’s hearts. However… Ai Xiaoxiao couldn’t understand why the empty-headed canary would help speak up for her.

With that thought, Ai Xiaoxiao lifted her head and met Xia Liang’s gaze. Xia Liang smiled meaningfully at her and blew a kiss. “Sister Ai, please help me with that. I really want to eat tender and juicy beef.”

…Perhaps it was just a simple act of whimsy. Ai Xiaoxiao nodded indifferently.

The contract and deposit were quickly settled. Ai Xiaoxiao closed her briefcase and headed to the next battlefield—she had to meet the unlucky Dong Lao.

Although Zhu Yanchen had faked his death, he didn’t reclaim overall command of the Old Fourth. As the leader of the Old Fourth, she still had to report.

Bureaucracy could exhaust an individual. But seeing as she had successfully obtained the raw materials, she could barely control her temper.

Outside Y City.

“Consider this attack as a major mission.” Shu Jun displayed the aura of a team leader. “There’s only one thing you need to do—destroy the protective wall of Y City.”

“The inner wall in the city center?” Chai Xuyang murmured.

“A large number of purifiers are installed near the protective wall, making it difficult to use abilities in that area. Long-range attackers are responsible for throwing attacks at the wall. From now on, you will be the ‘siege team’ led by Hu Yan. The bombs should be ready by now, right?” Shu Jun ignored Chai Xuyang.

“They still have a lot of people,” Chai Xuyang continued to mutter.

“I will hold the front of the city, and you should focus on the weak defense on the west side of the city. We don’t have to destroy the wall in a single day. As the ‘interception team’, you will be led by Chai Xuyang. While the long-range attackers destroy the wall, you will go and sabotage the factories around the city.”

“…Are you really going to push humanity to the brink?” Chai Xuyang couldn’t keep his mouth shut. As soon as he finished speaking, Hu Yan couldn’t bear it anymore and smacked him on the back of his head.

“Do you have a problem with our captain? Or do you want to speak to your captain?”

Chai Xuyang’s face instantly turned pale, and he remained silent.

“Hu Yan!” Shu Jun raised his voice, his tone carrying a warning.

“…I’m sorry.” Hu Yan instantly realized his slip of the tongue.

The fact that Luo Duan had joined Sigma was not known to ordinary members of Groundwater. They only assumed that their team leader had other duties, which was why he handed over the command to Shu Jun. However, as their leader, Shu Jun didn’t hide the true situation from the higher-ups from Groundwater.

Chai Xuyang understood, whether it was the murderer who killed his comrade-in-arms during the Reunion Festival or the outcome after the departure of the twenty-one individuals. Exposed by Hu Yan, he lowered his head gloomily and remained silent.

“Do your best to destroy all the factories around Y City. Not even a single mechanical ant should be spared. You must completely cut off the supply to Y City, understand?” Shu Jun glanced at Hu Yan and continued.

Yu Jin sat in the corner, listening to this group of aliens discuss how to destroy the center of human civilization with a particularly complex expression.

“As for the team with less strength, you’re primarily responsible for reconnaissance and communication. Stay in various settlements and be on standby. You need to recognize the signals sent by your comrades and lead the people in the settlements to safety in a timely manner.”

Shu Jun pointed to the floating map of Y City in the air. “You must consciously guide them to the east side of the city. Within a week, except for the settlements with underground strongholds, I want all the residents of the settlements to gather in the east side.”

“Understood!”

“When the attack team launches the assault, make sure to create defensive fortifications based on the following guidelines… I’ll show you the blueprint first, and Hu Yan will explain it in detail later.”

Shu Jun adjusted his military cap and pressed a spot on the map with his claw. He was wearing the same marshal uniform as Zhu Yanchen, except that he had modified it to be pure black. Since he could simulate clothes with erosion, things had become much more convenient in his life.

However, even though their clothes looked identical, Shu Jun couldn’t emanate the peculiar aura of awe and chill that Zhu Yanchen had. Shu Jun wasn’t particularly concerned about having a leader’s temperament either. He simply rolled up his sleeves and loosened his collar, opting for comfort.

“Any other questions?” Shu Jun went through the attack details once again and poured himself half a glass of water.

“I don’t understand,” Chai Xuyang murmured. “Are you really planning to destroy Y City, or…?”

“Of course I am.” Shu Jun smiled. “A hesitant war won’t bring out Sigma.”

“But what about those humans? Will you kill them all?”

“I have my ways.”

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