**Chapter 42: The Evil God Is Actually Myself?**
“Bang——!”
Accompanied by a pain so intense it nearly made her faint, Lu Xianbei fell from mid-air, crashing heavily to the ground, her petite body convulsing and twitching.
“……”
Why? Why did the coat stab me in the back? Did it somehow inherit the power characteristics of the beast of inheritance, starting to interfere with me? Lu Xianbei thought in confusion.
Crimson bl**d seeped from beneath the coat, staining the azure dress a deep red.
“Drip… Drip…”
The bl**d dripped to the ground, colliding with the dark red flesh on the floor, two streams of spirit energy fluctuations clashing, stirring up a flurry of scarlet sparks.
Soon after, the dark red flesh adhering to the walls of the basement, sensing the smell of bl**d, swarmed towards her.
“Poof—Poof—Poof—!”
The muffled sounds of flesh exploding echoed continuously in the small underground warehouse.
The flesh crept closer to Lu Xianbei’s body time and again, and each time failed, exploding apart.
The rancid bl**d plasma blossomed around Lu Xianbei like clusters of crimson dahlias.
Very quickly, she felt something crawling into her body, burrowing within her.
Must be that strange flesh, right? This is going to be a big problem. Lu Xianbei thought in terror.
Under the covert influence of Beres and the continuous supply of spirit energy, these flesh masses transformed from instinctual replication urges into predatory invasions.
Fearless!
After entering Lu Xianbei’s body, they ruthlessly cut through her bl**d vessels, tearing muscles, gnawing on bones, wrapping around her spine, penetrating her intestines and stomach.
Like a carpet search for replicable powers.
It felt like a group of refugees had stormed into a fertile wilderness, delighted by the bounty and determined to settle, then began to transform the wilderness into their desired shape.
However, like poisonous bugs injecting neurotoxins into their prey during the hunt.
Lu Xianbei did not feel a trace of pain throughout the whole process, only a series of icy, slippery, and tingling sensations coursing through her body.
Soon, she felt her body shake violently, as the flesh crashed harshly within her chest cavity, breaking into her lungs.
Noticing the anomaly within her body, Lu Xianbei widened her eyes in terror, instinctively wanting to shout, but as soon as she opened her mouth, a strong metallic taste surged up her throat.
Immediately, she broke into a fit of uncontrollable coughing.
“Cough cough cough——!”
Accompanied by the coughs, a pile of shattered internal organ fragments and writhing flesh erupted from her mouth, splattering everywhere.
Her lips, stained crimson with bl**d plasma, sharply contrasted against her increasingly pale complexion.
【No problem, I won’t d*e. This damage is nothing compared to what the power of the Hundred-Armed Giant could cause.】 A voice in Lu Xianbei’s mind comforted her.
What a joke, my lungs are already punctured, and you call this no problem?
Do I have to lose half my body and get hung up on a tree for this to be called a big problem? Lu Xianbei thought fiercely.
She exerted all her strength, but could not draw even a breath into her lungs, as if her chest cavity were filled with concrete.
The flesh surged forward, finally wrapping itself around her heart, like a python, preparing for the last and most brutal strangulation.
Invasion complete, replication begins!
In an instant, Lu Xianbei’s body began to spasm violently, a spiraling dizziness enveloping her.
Then, her vision blurred, her sight narrowing from the outside to a point of white light, which gradually dimmed.
A strong sense of weakness made Lu Xianbei feel as though she was about to d*e, yet at this moment, she astonishingly felt no fear whatsoever.
【It should not have attacked the heart; it… has violated the taboo.】 Like a hallucination, these words flashed through Lu Xianbei’s mind.
So, when the light before her extinguished like a candle blown out by the wind, plunging her vision into complete darkness, she heard the fierce beating of her heart resonating within her chest.
It felt as if something had awakened.
At first, it merely beat gently, but soon grew more intense.
“Thud thud—— thud thud——!”
The sound emanating from within her tore through the silence, reverberating in Lu Xianbei’s ears like a mighty river surging.
A chilling aura, carrying the deadly chill of winter, spread from the deepest part of her heart, gradually encompassing her entire body, as if intending to freeze all the flesh rampaging inside her.
Immediately, her eyes began to warm, seeming to ignite, bursting forth with volcanic-like, fierce, and unruly power, as if attempting to turn the invaders to ash.
Perhaps part of her power was allocated to countering the vile “parasites” within her, thus releasing the suppressed power of the Hundred-Armed Giant to a certain extent, as several strands of dazzling silver lightning surged through her veins, causing violent explosions along the way.
Finally, even the long-dormant Spirit Pattern of Ifrit stirred in response, initiating a plunder of the spirit energy contained within those flesh masses.
In the end, all this power converged into a violent torrent that swept away everything in its path.
Those flesh masses, after all, were not the true body of the inheritance beast, and subjected to the diverse powers surrounding Lu Xianbei in chaos, they were gradually suppressed until they approached annihilation…
————
The wind and snow outside the small town intensified.
The old but tidy small inn was brightly lit.
A woman sat at her desk, staring intently at the Polaroid photo on the table, which kept changing its images. After a long time, the corners of her mouth lifted slightly as she sighed in relief.
“I told you! This child has been healthy since she was young; she didn’t lose her pregnancy after three tries. How could she be hurt by a mysterious ghostly thing?” the woman waved her hand dismissively.
However, although she spoke nonchalantly, her body was quite honest.
As she spoke, she straightened her back and inspected the ever-changing image in the photo with more seriousness.
“But… why does this child have so many mixed powers inside her?”
The powers and energies within Lu Xianbei were truly chaotic and complex, to the point that even the worldly-wise Mrs. Wang Meili could not help but exclaim, “d*mn it, this is too bizarre!”
Lu Xianbei’s body was like a war-torn nation, with factions rising, each occupying their territory, all wanting to obliterate one another, yet they could do nothing against each other, temporarily reaching a delicate balance.
However, precisely because of this, when the flesh bearing malicious powers invaded her body and attempted to replicate her powers, all their abilities and powers would temporarily set aside their disputes and unite against the intruder.
It felt like an apartment being cohabited by three monstrous bandits and a strong man, where the relationships among them were not particularly friendly but could barely coexist, their daily routine being eating, sleeping, and bullying the strong man.
Yet, one day, a despicable habitual thief broke into the apartment to steal, just as he climbed through the window, he saw three bandits fiddling with individual combat rocket launchers, casting a smile that forecasted nuclear cancer and hydrogen.
What followed was a scene of gruesome violence, terrifying even the parents accompanying children.
Even the usually passive fitness enthusiast took the opportunity to throw in a sidekick while the thief was being beaten.
“Foolish child, even if they’re all good things, you can’t absorb everything into your body! Aren’t you afraid of exploding? How can your small frame handle…?”
Mrs. Wang Meili supported her chin with her hands, pondering for a long time how Lu Xianbei had withstood burdens she should not have borne at her age, finally arriving at a conclusion.
Of course, it’s because she inherited my excellent genes!
Exactly so!
It’s got nothing to do with that dog man Lu Ming; he just did a bit of physical labor. Mrs. Wang Meili thought confidently.
Although his work… was outstanding.
After a long while.
When the image in the photo became clear, frozen on the scene of the girl asleep, Mrs. Wang Meili breathed a sigh of relief, slowly exhaling a breath of turbid air, stretching her limbs, yawning, and turning to head toward the bedroom.
“Ha-hey—! Early to bed and early to rise, exercise, and in two days, I should be able to pass the exam…”
————
Even without a familial mark or any other binding contract, the coat never thought to harm Lu Xianbei.
How could it hurt its dearest witch lady?
But those “little bugs” clinging to it made it lose control.
As soon as it struggled slightly, the dark red flesh attached to its body would corrode into a large area of rot, bringing unbearable pain.
Watching Lu Xianbei fall to the ground, her breath weakening, all it could do was writhe anxiously and silently cheer her on.
What else could it do?
When it could do nothing, it could only shout “666” from the sidelines?
Go, big sister in the long dress!
(ง･`Д･´)ง
……
The coat fervently cheered Lu Xianbei on in its heart, writhing continuously, and the bl**d of Lu Xianbei gradually seeped deeper into its being, touching the core of its urban legend body, causing its spirit energy fluctuation to gradually change slightly.
Finally, after accumulating enough quantitative change, its urban legend body core began a qualitative transformation, the spirit energy fluctuations climbing rapidly.
Complex flame-like patterns surfaced on its back, a fervent light ignited, and erupted from the deepest part of its shell, engulfing it from within.
This was a purification as well as an advancement.
The turbulent flow outlined by the spirit energy surged within it, retreating the detestable “little bugs” wherever it went, resulting in a chorus of tragic wails.
The situation called for it; the prey had become the hunter.
Soon after, it that was advancing its urban legend body core began to stir, greedily and ravenously consuming the crushed flesh of the inheritance beast.
Nourishing the urban legend body core with spirit energy, repairing its broken body with fragments of flesh.
Then.
Some similar power traits between the two began to subtly fuse during this process…
————
“Mm… Mm…”
Lu Xianbei woke from her slumber, a wave of intense dizziness hitting her, causing her to involuntarily emit a soft nasal sound.
Upon opening her eyes, she found herself surrounded by darkness, the stale air imbued with the suffocating stench of decaying flesh from the dying flesh of the inheritance beast.
For a moment, Lu Xianbei felt as though she had been thrown into a cellar meant for pickling, where the items being pickled were rotting corpses.
Who am I? Where am I? What am I doing?
After unconsciously posing the three existential questions, Lu Xianbei’s consciousness gradually became clearer, and she finally realized her situation.
I am Lu Xianbei, in the underground warehouse of the West City lime factory, and I am doing…
“d*mn it! I’m not dead?”
Driven by the overwhelming excitement of having survived, Lu Xianbei couldn’t help but curse, quickly searching her body with her hands, confirming she had no missing arms or legs, and sighed in relief.
“Hehe, I told you, no problem, I won’t d*e, this is far less than that whatever giant’s power.”
It seemed she was comforting herself, muttering, and then she sensed a movement on her body.
The coat began to gently writhe, like a small cat rubbing up against its owner, lifting its collar and affectionately rubbing against Lu Xianbei’s cheek.
Witch lady, let’s cuddle!
Ε٩(๑>₃<)
A ticklish sensation brushed her cheek, and Lu Xianbei paused for a moment before suddenly coming to her senses, exclaiming, "Holy cr*p! You... you’re not dead either?"
"Wait! You're not dead, I'm not dead, then…"
She paused, looking around.
At that moment, the half-real, half-illusory dark red flesh that had covered the entire underground warehouse had completely vanished, the scarlet glow dissipating, and the room was swallowed by darkness.
Looking at the scene before her, Lu Xianbei lightly struck her right fist against her left palm, speaking with certainty, "Someone among us must have activated a cheat to deal with those ghostly things, right?"
"Or perhaps chased them away? Whatever..."
The most important thing now is to cleanly leave this d*mn place. Lu Xianbei added in her heart.
She came to the West City lime factory just to investigate the Seek Truth Mutual Aid Society's lair, hoping to gather some clues and intelligence if possible.
But who would have thought there would be so many strange things in the Seek Truth Mutual Aid Society's lair?
Now, having inadvertently caused such a huge ruckus, it's hard not to attract the attention of other Seek Truth Mutual Aid Society members, and when reinforcements arrive, it will probably be impossible to leave, right?
While thinking so, Lu Xianbei quickly climbed to her feet, just preparing to dash out of the small warehouse when a wave of intense weakness hit her, causing her legs to buckle, staggering a few steps, almost falling to the ground.
It felt like just having donated 400CC of bl**d during the day, then fencing with friends all night, and immediately running a half marathon the next morning—her legs felt weak and wobbly, her ears ringing with a bitter aftertaste and seeing stars, as if her body had been hollowed out.
Simply put, two words—dying!
What to do now? Lu Xianbei frowned.
Seemingly sensing Lu Xianbei's weak condition, the coat wriggled a couple of times, suddenly tightened around her slender waist as if to lift her up, and with a "whoosh!" it flew toward the exit of the basement.
Witch lady, I'm taking you out!
(*๓´╰╯`๓)
The sound of wind rushed past her ears, and Lu Xianbei paused for a moment before realizing that she was wearing the evil god's coat.
That coat, belonging to her.
Wait… the evil god is actually myself? Lu Xianbei thought to herself, furrowing her brows.
