Chapter 23 The Will Inheritor of the Explosion Maniac
At a little past three in the morning, a cold wind swept through the air, carrying tiny snowflakes.
On a small hill two kilometers away from the Huacheng Ceramic Factory, a petite girl stood atop a tall tree, gazing in the direction of the factory.
In one hand, she held a hand-drawn simplified map, and in the other, a pen, looking down occasionally to sketch something on the map.
After a long while.
Looking at the map filled with chaotic lines, Luxianbei sighed silently and tucked the map back into the open seam of her guitar bag.
“That should be enough. We can start now.”
According to the urban legend event directory that Jiang Li had given her, while the Huacheng Ceramic Factory didn’t contain anything too powerful, it had a considerable number of urban legends, rivaling the Yin Street.
Therefore, in order to avoid the situation where the urban legends surged out from the dark after she vented her energy the last time in Yin Street, she had selected a relatively concealed spell release location in advance and also planned the most efficient escape route in case of any unexpected occurrences.
Although the urban legends that had erupted from Yin Street last time were no match for her, and she had easily slain them while fleeing, it’s always better to be prepared!
What if something terrifying were to emerge from the factory?
Lost in thought, Luxianbei unknowingly arrived at the first location she had planned.
Standing between two dilapidated buildings, slightly over a meter apart, she took advantage of the cover to look five hundred meters ahead at the dark and murky Huacheng Ceramic Factory. She then pulled out a potion from her coat pocket and swallowed it.
“Uh, yawn—!”
The pain from swallowing the potion made her let out a soft m*an.
As familiar whispers echoed in her ears, the power inside her began to boil. She raised her hands, aiming forward, her gaze sharpened, and quickly began to chant the spell.
“Water surges, fire blazes, wind and rain follow, vast and fierce… Flowing Bell Throw Fire!”
Accompanied by the chanting of the spell, a dazzling light instantly filled the already narrow gap, and two unusually thick beams of light, like two dragons fighting for their lives, twisted and flew through the deep night, heading straight for the roof of the ceramic factory.
“… Ignite the horn and shine, behold calamity, crimson blazing fire!”
“Dim sky, cold wind rises, tearing apart the cloud curtain…”
“…”
Before the beams of the Flowing Bell Throw Fire could land, Luxianbei immediately chanted other spells, and a massive fireball shot after the two beams of light, resembling a miniature sun, with a shimmering crystalline mist trailing behind it.
However, just as the overwhelming and densely clustered high-level spells were about to smash down, their speed suddenly slowed.
A faintly visible semi-circular dome shield enveloped the ceramic factory.
A few urban legends and spiritual ability users hiding within the ceramic factory detected the wave of unknown explosive attacks and joined forces to unleash large-scale defensive spells.
Continuous strikes on the opened shield were delayed, the blasts unable to shatter the thin layer of protection.
But the entire ceramic factory began to tremble, and the semi-circular light shield, like a rubber ball being squished by rowdy children, was continuously deformed, with massive cracks appearing, quickly repairing themselves.
However, no matter how powerful a defensive spell is, it cannot withstand attacks indefinitely, and there must be a critical threshold.
Finally, as four shining beasts, resembling creatures falling from the bright moon, slammed down, that critical threshold was reached.
The energy from the Four Beasts Bright Sky Cannon merged with the dissipating defensive spell, resulting in a violent explosion above the Huacheng Ceramic Factory.
“Boom—!”
Accompanied by a deafening roar, the ground trembled, and a gust of wind erupted above the factory, shattering the long-neglected rooftop. A few screams faintly pierced through the sound of the explosion.
The entire process took only seconds. By the time Luxianbei regained her senses from casting the spell and the pain from the medicinal effects, she looked towards the ceramic factory and saw the building that had been blown off its “head,” her eyes brightening.
Hehe, it’s time to collect the bodies!
She thought joyfully, ready to enter the factory to seize the fruits of her labor for the night, when a sudden roar echoed from inside the ceramic factory.
“Who is it!? Who is—!”
“Stealthily ambushing isn’t real skill; come out and fight me face-to-face!”
A creature resembling a monkey with the head of an eagle jumped out from the ceramic factory, standing amidst the ruins and howling at the sky, swinging a massive stone and smashing it everywhere, with a few unextinguished flames flickering on its slick feathers from its head to its waist.
Following closely behind were several figures cloaked in black robes, searching for something.
Meanwhile, Luxianbei, observing this scene from a distance, sensed a strong spiritual energy fluctuation from the urban legends and spiritual ability users, and she had already made her escape according to her planned best escape route.
“Looking at their attire, they seem to be affiliated with the black-robed individuals I encountered at the half-finished building on Fuchun Road last time?” Luxianbei grumbled as she ran.
The thought of possibly being targeted by that gang of black-hearted forces made her anxious.
“WDNMD, how did such tough characters blow up around here? What a cursed fate!”
“I’m scared, I’m scared, if I can’t provoke them, I can at least hide! I’ll report this gang’s hideout to the Siye Society when I get the chance!”
However…
This was not some cursed fate as Luxianbei imagined.
As the saying goes, those who walk the night road will surely encounter ghosts.
In the past few days, she had already blown up every urban legend hotspot in Huacheng, which had no owner and was located in remote areas; meeting these guys was only a matter of time.
Even if it didn’t happen at the ceramic factory, it would happen at another hideout.
———
Meanwhile, in a remote villa area on the outskirts of Huacheng.
Old Seated was sitting in front of his computer, tinkering with a new version of a translation program while chatting with a certain hentai localization group’s expert.
At that moment, a vintage icon on the bottom right of the screen began to bounce, and when he clicked it open, he saw a highly stylized video of a spell bombardment, in which Wang Buliu appeared.
“…”
After a brief silence of a few seconds, Old Seated rushed to forward the video to his boss.
Network Old Seated 00: “Boss, take a look at this!”
Void: “I’ve already seen it while you were receiving the video.”
Void: “Stealing homes? I didn’t expect that this is Wang Buliu’s response to the Mu Se Society’s Hundred Demons Walk. Enemy advances, I retreat; enemy encamps, I disrupt… Truly impressive!”
Void: “Every attack is deliberately using spells and not the inherent abilities of the urban legends to avoid being tracked by residual spiritual energy fluctuations. Tsk tsk, clever!”
Network Old Seated 00: “So boss, what should we do now?”
Void: “You should imitate her method and steal homes too! Take the opportunity to gain some benefits. If anything happens, just blame it on Wang Buliu; after all, she initiated this.”
Void: “She eats the meat and bears most of the risk while you drink the soup and bear the lesser part of the risk; that’s only reasonable!”
Network Old Seated 00: “Boss, you’re brilliant!”
Thus,
After this day, Luxianbei temporarily halted her “Explosion Maniac” activities, and the urban legends that joined the Mu Se Society’s Hundred Demons Walk also breathed a brief sigh of relief.
But soon, a group of individuals who inherited her will appeared.
They were not as violent, but their movements were more bizarre, and after explosions, they also committed robberies. These explosive attackers appeared in Huacheng, causing the black-robed figures and urban legends to tense up once again.
———
Two days later, early morning.
The light snow that fell last night was slight yet continued throughout the entire night, covering the alley at the Huacheng Folk Culture Research Management Bureau with a thin layer of silver.
“Creak—Creak—!”
After finishing his night shift and having breakfast, Li Xuan walked over through the accumulated snow, a hint of worry on his brow.
He couldn’t reach his master. Ever since he sent over the video clip of Luxianbei casting the spell that day, he had tried to contact his master several times and finally confirmed that he had indeed been blocked.
“Sigh, once the investigation of the Hundred Demons Walk is finished and Jiang Li returns, I might have to take a leave to properly ask my master.” Li Xuan muttered to himself.
As an outstanding talent sent by Dachunyang Palace to the Siye Society, he always considered himself to be his master’s pride, but now, this situation made him very sad.
Just as Li Xuan was feeling gloomy over his master’s indifference, he suddenly heard a call from the alley accompanied by the sound of heavy objects being dragged.
“Brothers, be careful, don’t let the machine oil splash onto you; that stuff is toxic!”
Following the sound, he saw a trailer parked on the side of the road, dragging a bus shell, while several members of the Special Action Team were hauling it in through the cargo entrance of the Huacheng Siye Society under Bai Kai’s direction.
The corpse of the hearse attendant was discovered early this morning at a car recycling yard. An Qing received a tip from the hospital, stating that the management staff of that remote recycling yard, totaling seven people, all exhibited a bizarre condition where their skin turned to hard cardboard last night.
In this world, it’s not uncommon for someone to inexplicably contract Nightfall Syndrome, but for multiple individuals to show symptoms at the same time and place, there must be a “source of infection.”
Upon receiving the notice, An Qing took tools to check the “corpse” pile formed from automobiles in the recycling yard and quickly found what appeared to be the corpse of the hearse attendant.
When he found the corpse, black bl**d, resembling machine oil, was spilled everywhere, clearly the source that caused multiple cases of Nightfall Syndrome.
After briefly handling the scene, An Qing contacted Bai Kai, asking him to bring people to drag the corpse of the hearse attendant back.
A corpse of an urban legend with a spiritual energy fluctuation and toxic bl**d, if not handled properly, could easily lead to a surge of Nightfall Syndrome nearby, or might even fuse with a potential spiritual ability user or urban legend, birthing new urban legends.
And the hearse attendant’s corpse was not the first high-level urban legend corpse discovered recently in Huacheng.
The Mu Se Society has killed wildly.
———
Looking at the bus covered in black machine oil, with four missing wheels, then glancing at Bai Kai, Li Xuan froze, the first thought that flashed through his mind being, “Did he really puncture an entire bus?”
Infringing on private property is one thing, but vandalizing public property is serious.
Soon after scrutinizing the bus, he noticed a weak spiritual energy fluctuation on it, and his expression grew serious instantly.
He had heard about a large urban legend that lured urban legends and potential spiritual ability users by disguising itself as a bus, active in the early morning hours, but he never expected that it would be the first time he encountered the corpse.
While lamenting, Li Xuan stepped forward.
In the alley, an old man who lived on Mudan Street and was out early to buy vegetables stopped by them, curiously asking, “Little Bai, what are you doing?”
“Oh, Uncle? This bus is a cultural heritage; we’re dragging it back for protection, research, and restoration.”
“Ah? Isn’t this a bus from the 50s or 60s? How can that be considered cultural heritage? Little Bai, when are you going to collect my family’s Phoenix bicycle?”
“…”
While Bai Kai was at a loss for how to explain to the old man that they were a cultural relic protection unit and not a recycling station, Li Xuan arrived beside them.
A cunning glint flashed in Bai Kai’s eyes as he put his hand on Li Xuan’s shoulder, “Oh, Section Chief Li, good morning! Have you eaten? If not, let’s have breakfast together!”
Seeing him so suddenly friendly and enthusiastic, Li Xuan felt a tightness in his chest, secretly wondering if he was up to no good, but quickly sneered in his heart.
Ha, I walked here today! Didn’t expect that, did you?!
“By the way, your repair shop is at Jinrong Repair Factory, right?”
Li Xuan, “???”
Noticing his change in expression, Bai Kai smiled, “Don’t panic, I was just casually asking. Let’s get back to business.”
“Speaking of which, when the Huacheng Barrier was set up, didn’t it have the participation of the head of Dachunyang Palace? If possible, could you trouble him to operate it?”
“…”
Li Xuan was taken aback for a moment, then quickly understood Bai Kai’s meaning, his expression turning grave, “You want to apply to close the city? Is the situation serious enough for that?”
The barriers set by the Siye Society between cities not only act as independent fortresses to isolate urban legends between cities and prevent cross-city events like the Hundred Demons Walk but can also be actively activated to seal off specific areas when necessary, minimizing damage to the cities during large-scale urban legend hunts.
However, only those involved in the barrier setup know the methods for activating them.
“That’s not it!” Bai Kai pouted, “Those few high-level urban legends have been attacked a few times, and I figure that during the next Moonless Night, the Mu Se Society will take action.”
“But…” Li Xuan frowned, “Why don’t you just submit an application to the higher-ups directly? That would be much more reasonable and compliant than us asking the sect leader to do it, right?”
“…” Bai Kai stared at Li Xuan in silence for a few seconds, then sighed, “Little Li, it’s not that I don’t want to, but do you know who is currently in charge of Huacheng?”
“It’s…” Li Xuan was about to say that woman’s name when he suddenly realized something, and a look of enlightenment flashed in his eyes.
He had heard that Bai Kai had encountered a female spiritual ability user in his youth, who seduced him for both money and s*x, ultimately leaving him dry after using him up.
He also heard that the woman later joined the Siye Society and again, he heard that she seemed to now oversee a vast region including Huacheng.
Seeing the understanding expression on Li Xuan’s face, Bai Kai raised an eyebrow, “You understand what’s going on now? I knew Little Li, as the most curious member of the Huacheng Siye Society, would get it right away.”
Upon hearing this, Li Xuan said angrily, “You’re the most busybody, you…”
“Stop wasting time!” Bai Kai interrupted, “Since I help you change a tire every couple of months, just help me out; it’s just one word!”
Who asked you to help me? I d*mn thank your whole family! Li Xuan cursed viciously in his heart and continued, “It’s not that I don’t want to help you, it’s just…”
“Just what?”
“Just that I’ve been blocked by my sect recently, and for the time being, I can’t contact them.” Li Xuan’s expression was bitter.
“Holy cow?” Bai Kai said in surprise, “I always thought it was my problem for not being compatible with you, but now it seems it’s you who has the problem?”
“What kind of person must you be to be blocked by your sect after nearly ten years of study and life? Little Li, can you be a person?”
“Well, since that’s the case, I’ll just have to think of other ways. Alright, I’ll take my leave.”
As Li Xuan watched Bai Kai chase after the members of the Special Action Team leaving, he hesitated.
“…”
———
In the early morning hours.
On an empty, desolate mountain ridge, a seductive woman dressed in red stood before a mine, staring ahead.
In that pitch-black mine, darkness flowed slowly like gelatin, as if hiding something terrifying, locking eyes with her from afar.
This was a small coal mine on the outskirts of Huacheng, which had been shut down for a long time since a severe gas explosion incident occurred.
The Mu Se Society had practically searched through all high-level urban legends capable of causing explosions in Huacheng before arriving here, preparing to target the urban legend responsible for creating gas explosions here.
In fact, she didn’t wish to come here if there were any other high-level urban legends capable of causing such large-scale explosive events.
The urban legend hidden in the underground labyrinth of the mine had a natural geographical advantage, so entering it to fight didn’t guarantee success.
However, just as she made up her mind to enter the mine, a black beam of light flew from a distance and landed beside her, transforming into a black-robed figure wearing a golden eagle mask.
“Lady Witch, there’s trouble.”
“What trouble?” the Mu Se woman frowned.
“Several hideouts have been blown up again, and at one point, our brothers were injured and robbed of their spiritual ability items.”
“According to observations, the methods used in these recent sneak attacks are the same as the last ceramic factory, and two places were attacked simultaneously.”
“I suspect they are not just one group but are organized and premeditated! There’s likely a large organization behind this.”
While the casualties resulting from these explosions weren’t significant, they severely disrupted the preparations for the Hundred Demons Walk and brought great distress to the Mu Se Society.
She looked at the dark mine entrance ahead, then glanced at the black-robed figure before her, initially thinking she had finally found the last suspicious target and would soon be able to eliminate her troubles, but unexpectedly, she had mistaken the urban legend again, causing her long-suppressed anger to finally erupt.
“Let’s pause the recent expansion of territory; before the Moonless Night arrives, we must ensure to root out those meddling mice!”
