Chapter 81: Let Me Be the Great Evil!
As the first thunderclap of the Zixiao Terrace descended, Jumeng sensed the impending danger, and her instinctive reaction was to rush into the underground space of the Changlekou subway station to take Luxianbei, who was still entangled with the Haze God, away. But soon, her rationality triumphed over her emotions.
She knew that among all the Spiritual Ability Users in the Dachunyang Palace, only that old thing could create thunder of such magnitude.
When she was still in Huacheng, she had heard Luxianbei directly call that old thing’s name more than once, indicating a deep relationship between them.
Combining these two points, she inferred that the old thing would most likely not allow the thunder from the Zixiao Terrace to reach Luxianbei, but she and the flock of magpies she summoned were in a different situation.
In her view, the guardians of the Siye Society couldn’t wait for her to d*e!
In the Peach Source, with the aid of the aura of the earth’s veins, she would fearlessly confront all the guardians of the Siye Society together. But here in Shancheng, without the aura of the earth’s veins, while she could still protect herself, the numerous magpies she called would probably not be so lucky.
These magpies, summoned out of thin air using her authority, had already suffered losses in the battle with that massive shadow. If they were struck by the thunder of the Zixiao Terrace again, it was very likely they would be completely wiped out.
Therefore, before the second thunder could fall, Jumeng left the Changlekou subway station with the flock of magpies. After ensuring they were out of danger, she immediately returned.
On the way back to the Changlekou subway station, the haze enveloping Shancheng gradually dissipated, and Jumeng finally received a message from Yuan Ye through the kinship mark.
“East Master, have you finally escaped danger?” Yuan Ye’s words bore a sense of exhaustion from a narrow escape. “That’s great! If we’d waited any longer, we wouldn’t have been able to hold on.”
Jumeng, “…”
She was quite familiar with her powers and understood well the cost of battling that strange black shadow.
Now, it was time to face the startling menu after enjoying the thrill of spending money.
Fortunately, she was no longer the novice who would regret pulling out her wallet upon seeing the bill; instead, she was now seasoned enough to look at the empty character box and calmly state, “Even a civilian war god can be used!”
After a brief silence, Jumeng took a deep breath and asked calmly, “Speak, Yuan Ye, how much did this cost?”
“Almost all the citizens of the Peach Source contributed their savings…” After a pause, seemingly worried that Jumeng wouldn’t understand how extensive that savings was, Yuan Ye added, “If calculated as Primordial Spirits, it’s at least over a hundred thousand.”
Yuan Ye felt he had already conveyed the seriousness of the situation, as one must understand that transitioning from B Grade to A Grade would require only dozens of Primordial Spirits, excluding necessary alchemical materials. Moreover, most transactions related to Primordial Spirits in the black market did not exceed four figures.
However, Jumeng, who had never used Primordial Spirits before, was like a wealthy heir who had never handled money, seeming to have no concrete grasp of what a hundred thousand Primordial Spirits entailed.
“What’s that… not much…”
Before she could finish, Yuan Ye’s voice floated into her ears again, “If this money was used to spend in the game, it could fully upgrade all of the East Master’s game accounts to premium versions.”
“Well, that…”
“At least a hundred times.”
A sudden sharp pain in her chest caused Jumeng to clutch her heart. After taking several deep breaths, she managed to squeeze out, “That’s somewhat acceptable.”
Based on her experience of observing thousands of marriage bonds, the spending intensity in romantic relationships was definitely higher than in any game.
Until this had happened to her, she didn’t feel it much, but now she had personally experienced the feeling of “heartache that made it hard to breathe” in love.
“East Master, I have something I’m unsure whether I should say or not?”
“Go ahead!” Jumeng rolled her eyes and said, “Anyway, even if I say it’s inappropriate, you’ll still say it.”
This was definitely a master-servant relationship that lacked any sense of distance.
Sometimes, Jumeng even felt that Yuan Ye did not seem like her kin but rather a strict old housekeeper who had raised her since childhood, with less formality and more of a caregiver’s strictness.
“East Master, you shouldn’t be mingling with calamity anymore.” Yuan Ye said earnestly, “In less than two months, it’s the Qixi Festival, and the marriage temple at the scenic area will soon open. You should return early to rally everyone to make money and compensate for everyone’s losses, right?”
Hearing the words “marriage temple,” Jumeng felt a headache coming.
That temple was rebuilt based on the original Fusang temple in the scenic area after she changed her powers, primarily for facilitating worship by the citizens of the Peach Source and for generating revenue.
However, for her, the type of urban legend that she was, spending time daily “on duty” at the temple made her feel uneasy just thinking about it.
Not only would she be like a matchmaker at a marriage agency, but there was also an inexplicable feeling of being an obstetrician, which was just too bizarre!
But after all, as the master of the eight hundred miles of Peach Source, she was the object of worship for countless believers and guardians of urban legends, as well as the one prayed to by many tourists with the beliefs of “seeking marriage” and “seeking offspring”. She was destined not to be away from the Peach Source for too long.
The pleasant vacation time was over; it was time to return to work.
Jumeng, “…”
“East Master?” Seeing Jumeng fall into silence, Yuan Ye urged, “Are you listening?”
“I’m listening!”
“As long as you are listening…” Yuan Ye continued, “When you set out earlier, you said you found someone disrupting the calamity marriage bond and, under the influence of your powers, you would go to stop the malignant events from happening.”
“But now, it’s been so long, the calamity’s marriage bond should have restored to normal, right?”
“…”
It hadn’t!
Her marriage bond not only hadn’t returned to normal, but there was also an unformed marriage bond added.
Guess whose it was?
Jumeng thought, looking up at the direction where the thunderclouds were gathering, her brows knitted slightly.
It was strange, she had thought that after the events created by Huaxie Yu ended, Luxianbei’s marriage bond would stabilize, but the reality was just the opposite.
When Luxianbei left Huacheng, an abnormal marriage bond appeared, and when that massive shadow emerged, her numerous marriage bonds had many slender ones snap, leading to a large-scale chaos in the remaining marriage bonds, with several intertwining, which meant…
A few marriage candidates Luxianbei had never met would develop some quite subtle feelings for her as an intermediary.
Fortunately, Luxianbei hadn’t interacted with those marriage candidates yet. If she had already interacted with them and clearly expressed that they couldn’t be together, then perhaps it would have led to the birth of strange alliances like “The Heartbreak Alliance” or “The Calamity Cutting Group.”
In fact, using marriage bonds to disturb fate’s trajectory could be seen as a pioneering and unconventional operation, but it also came with great risks.
Luxianbei’s already changed unknown fate was like a raging flood, while the individual marriage bonds were like reservoirs managing the flood; once the dam broke, the disasters that erupted and the damage caused would likely be far more terrifying than the flood itself.
What would she do then?
If that situation occurs, would she still have the ability to help Luxianbei?
As Jumeng was thinking, she noticed the Changlekou subway station coming into view ahead, pulling her thoughts back. She said to Yuan Ye, “I understand now, Yuan Ye, I will return as soon as possible.”
“Before I return in the next few days, you should plan the Qixi Festival activities well with everyone. Follow the guidelines I mentioned before.”
“Uh…” Thinking of the proposals Jumeng had laid out, Yuan Ye momentarily fell silent. After a brief pause, he asked, “East Master, won’t those plans be a bit…”
“Rest assured!” Jumeng said confidently. “Those mobile games all use this approach. We just change the skin and apply it. As long as we can accurately stimulate the visitors’ sweet spots, would we fear that they wouldn’t pay?”
“Furthermore, it’s the Qixi Festival. Isn’t it natural for those seeking marriage and offspring to offer me tributes?”
Although Jumeng didn’t know her exact birth date, to the extent that she didn’t even know when her birthday was, being a marriage deity in the form of a magpie meant that, in a sense, the Qixi Festival was nearly the same as her birthday.
It was okay for the great deity Jumeng to celebrate her (5318) eighteenth birthday and collect gifts, right?!
“Alright, we’ll discuss the details when I return in a couple of days.”
After finishing the conversation with Yuan Ye through the kinship mark, Jumeng shifted her focus ahead and was shocked by the sight before her.
With a mesmerizing thunder, the third thunderclap created by the Zixiao Terrace descended with violent fluctuations of spirit energy, connecting heaven and earth with a brilliant blue line.
However, just as that thunder was about to strike the massive shadow, a moment of daze overcame Jumeng, and the part of her powers that “refuted fate with money” seemed to vibrate like a plucked string, just as the massive shadow disappeared from her line of sight.
Just like that? Was I just fighting with air? Wouldn’t that make me seem like a fool after spending over a hundred thousand Primordial Spirits to fight with air?
Jumeng briefly fell into a daze before snapping back to reality. Seeing that Luxianbei was right below that massive shadow, and now that the shadow had vanished, Luxianbei became the target of attack. Her heart tightened, and her expression changed.
Without a moment’s hesitation, she made a decision. With a blast of sound and a rushing wave, she flew towards the Changlekou subway station, preparing to endure the thunder of the Zixiao Terrace and take Luxianbei away.
She was already mentally prepared to be badly injured, as long as Luxianbei was safe.
What were a few minor injuries?
After all, she was about to return to the Peach Source for her “imprisonment,” so she could treat it as going back for recovery!
The fierce wind hit her face, and the night-draped city transformed into sprawling shadows in her vision.
Jumeng was flying at full speed, going so fast that she even broke the sound barrier. Yet, even so, she was still slower than the descending lightning. Before she could reach the Changlekou subway station, the dazzling blue lightning surged into the underground space.
On the asphalt road, the opening connecting to the underground space was filled with swirling blue arcs, as if a door to the realm of thunder had been opened.
Jumeng’s heart momentarily stopped, and an uncontrollable sourness welled up in her nose.
With Luxianbei’s caliber, being directly struck by the thunder from the Zixiao Terrace was nearly certain d*ath.
However, before she was fully immersed in sadness, she sensed something was off.
Those seemingly formidable thunders did not emit the levels of spirit energy she had imagined, and… Luxianbei’s spirit energy fluctuations were not bathing in the lightning as she had expected, evaporating instantly.
Could it be… the dog wasn’t harmed?
Holding onto a streak of luck, Jumeng leaned forward, hovering in mid-air, looking down through the opening towards the underground, and her lips trembled uncontrollably.
Through the dazzling lightning, she could see a petite figure in the underground space, deftly maneuvering under the incessant lightning bombardment, moving in the not-so-large underground shelter.
Upon closer inspection, the trajectory of movement was almost entirely evading the Haze God’s offspring as the bolts of lightning first pierced through the offspring’s body before striking her.
Ah, what is this… like Qin Wang circling the pillar?
If she didn’t know the backstory, Jumeng might even suspect Luxianbei was temporarily serving as the target for the Zixiao Terrace to strike the Haze God’s offspring.
What a close call; she almost shed a tear for her sister!
However, since she was fine, do I still need to exert myself?
Hmph, a person like her deserves to be struck by thunder!
Just as Jumeng was thinking, she suddenly sensed something and felt a wave of spirit energy fluctuations that made her unable to control a sense of fear invading her spiritual awareness.
Pausing for a moment, she looked in the direction of the spirit energy fluctuation and saw a figure clad in a dark robe with a jade crown, radiating unmatched authority amidst the lightning.
The head of the Dachunyang Palace, the strongest guardian of the Siye Society, the Black Emperor…
In an instant, a series of titles flashed through Jumeng’s mind.
Why did this old thing appear?
No, this wasn’t his main body…
Shooting a glance at Zhang Hainan, Jumeng quickly discerned that the figure here was merely a projection of him summoned by the Zixiao Terrace.
When an urban legend or a Spiritual Ability User reaches the Cataclysm Grade, their powers become a symbol, allowing them to use the corresponding phenomenon to project their presence.
She could do that before changing her powers, but since she lost the authority of Jumang, her powers over the spring breeze aren’t complete, making it challenging to achieve that; showing up at a delivery room or wedding venue is convenient, though.
Now that the projection of this old thing has appeared, the dog should be safe, right?
So, does that mean I can just sit back and watch now?
Jumeng thought, glancing surreptitiously at the only Spiritual Ability User within Z Country that she held some fear for, then furrowed her brows and silently moved away a bit.
Whether it was just her imagination or not, she noticed the old thing was secretly observing Luxianbei and occasionally casting her strange looks.
Logically, it should be perfectly fine for the master of the eight hundred miles of Peach Source to encounter the guardian, the Black Emperor, and observe each other.
But this was only a projection, and even if his eyes burst with killing intent, Jumeng would not be afraid in the slightest.
The problem was, at this moment, Zhang Hainan’s gaze held no hostility at all.
On the contrary, apart from the authority that accompanied the spirit energy fluctuations, there was a hint of… kindness and indulgence.
Jumeng, “…”
d*mn, does he see me as a child?
I’m over five thousand years older than this old thing, alright?
Rascal, rude old thing!
————
In the underground space of Changlekou.
Under the watchful eyes of two pairs of mocking gaze, Luxianbei had a moment of inexplicable doubt, wondering if the meaning of “calamity” was to take pleasure in others’ pain.
Some say that sometimes watching others suffer brings pleasure to oneself.
The essence of torment lies in taking away others’ joy.
Thus, after enduring the baptism of lightning for about five minutes, Luxianbei dove into the God Realm Prototype before getting burned to a crisp.
Since you’re enjoying it so much, I’ll naturally have to take away your joy!
After all, the thunders now were no longer capable of breaking through the defenses of the Ling Tai Purification…
Then I won’t play with you anymore; there’s a whole bunch of Solar Eclipse Society members in the God Realm Prototype waiting for me to deal with! Luxianbei thought.
Therefore, accompanied by the golden light that opened the passage to the God Realm Prototype, her petite figure vanished in the blink of an eye.
The Haze God’s offspring, tormented by the pain from the thunder, immediately saw the enemy “open a portal” to escape and hurriedly followed, only to be kicked out by Luxianbei controlling the God Realm Prototype.
Access to the God Realm Prototype denied. You need permission to perform this operation!
“…”
Want to enter my God Realm Prototype without my permission?
Dream on!
Enjoy the thunder; I’ll come out later to collect your corpse! Luxianbei thought.
————
At the Dachunyang Palace, lightning surged above the Zixiao Terrace.
Suddenly, alongside the violent tremor of the thirty-six enormous stone pillars on that colossal platform resembling a thunder pool, shadows in iron-gray battle armor appeared atop the pillars.
In a breath, the thirty-six figures surrounding them quickly gathered towards the center, then merged into one on the altar at the center of the Zixiao Terrace, revealing an elderly man with his upper body bare. A hint of regret flashed in his slightly cloudy eyes.
Watching that tormenting little… guy suffer was definitely a delightful thing for him, even more so than seeing Luxianbei eat twenty jin of raw cucumbers.
What could be more enjoyable than seeing a mischievous child getting punished?
However, just as he was about to relish it fully, Luxianbei escaped, and the joy abruptly halted.
It felt as though a beautiful dream was interrupted, never reaching a fulfilling conclusion, summarily awoken.
Zhang Hainan came to Shancheng to project primarily to intimidate the Haze God and prevent it from taking advantage of the situation, while his secondary motive was to witness Luxianbei’s suffering firsthand.
Now that the Haze God had sensed the danger and fled early, and with Luxianbei diving into the God Realm Prototype, Zhang Hainan, unsatisfied with the enjoyment, could only return to the Zixiao Terrace with a dissatisfactory mood.
As his figure reappeared on the altar of the Zixiao Terrace, countless lightning bolts quickly converged into his body and then flowed into the Zixiao Terrace through him.
In a breath, the lightning dissipated.
The moment the last lightning bolt entered Zhang Hainan’s body, he seemed to sense something, and a look of surprise flashed across his brow.
As someone who deeply studied divination, he sensed a strong ominous sign!
Closing his eyes and contemplating for a moment, he took out three copper coins, performed a brief divination, and suddenly opened his eyes, his complexion turning a bit pale.
While divining, through the hexagram, he saw a horrifying scene.
He saw someone releasing all the spirit energy contained in the Zixiao Terrace, enveloping a vast area in eternal thunder, solely to imprison a certain urban legend.
The imprisoned urban legend was the Pink Fluffy Rabbit.
And the person releasing the spirit energy of the Zixiao Terrace was none other than himself…
Zhang Hainan, “……” How strange! Clearly, this is an absolutely impossible occurrence; why would I see such a scene?
That vision shattered his long-held understanding of the art of divination for many years…
————
While Luxianbei was enclosing the Solar Eclipse Society members within the God Realm Prototype, relying on her increasingly proficient control, she deliberately opened a small area at the edge of “Huacheng,” drawing a confinement circle to temporarily restrain them.
Although those guys had low spirit energy levels, none of them were benevolent, and executing them all might lead to a wrongful execution; however, if she executed one and let them go, there was bound to be an error. If she just threw them into the God Realm Prototype and left them unattended, it could cause a major mess.
Upon transmitting from the underground of Changlekou to the specially opened small area in the God Realm Prototype and locating those Solar Eclipse Society members, Luxianbei saw a chaotic scene from a distance.
A group of Solar Eclipse Society members gathered on grassy lands surrounded by mountains, and she could hear the sounds of disputes and shouts of anger from the crowd. Some members even got into scuffles, while the rest watched on the sidelines, occasionally saying a few provocative remarks.
Standing at a height, Luxianbei spent some time searching, before she finally found Ji Yunpei looking helpless and anxious in a corner, but beside her, there was no sign of Qing Ji.
No, wait! Where’s the Ancestor?
If the Ancestor were involved, these guys should be behaving as obediently as primary school students!
Moreover… Ji Yunpei should have been teleported near Mudan Street; how did she end up here? Luxianbei thought, puzzled.
This scene gave her an inexplicable feeling as if she had eagerly opened a nurturing game, only to find that every character didn’t follow her expectations and everything was in chaos.
In simple terms, the tools had revolted!
Recollecting her thoughts, Luxianbei quickly made her way through the woods to Ji Yunpei’s trembling side and voiced her confusion.
“Ji Yunpei, what’s going on? Didn’t you go to find people at Mudan Street as I instructed? How did you end up here?”
Hearing the voice of “Miss Lan Yi” from behind, Ji Yunpei shuddered slightly, and after a brief moment of daze, she turned to face her, looking bitter as she answered, “I was with that senior at first.”
“And then?” Luxianbei tilted her head.
“Then…” Ji Yunpei glanced around, nervously saying, “He brought me over here to keep the peace for a bit, saying he would come back later.”
Luxianbei, “……” Don’t tell me he went to hang out with those old men at Mudan Street again?
After entering the God Realm Prototype for a while, Qing Ji quickly adapted to old age life, mingling with the old men on Mudan Street, boasting with Wang Ying about their grandchildren, asking Wang Ying to sing a song or tell a story, trying to outshine the other old folks’ grandchildren.
An inexplicable competitive spirit.
“He didn’t tell you where he went?” Luxianbei asked.
“He did!” Ji Yunpei replied, “He said his child caused trouble in kindergarten, and the teacher asked the parents to hurry there. He also mentioned that these cats and dogs couldn’t compare to his own children, so it was fine to leave them hanging for a bit.”
Thinking she could slack off, but now it seems I have to step in myself… Luxianbei momentarily fell silent, rubbed her slightly swollen temples, and pondered for a moment before asking, “I remember you said you were taking over for your father at the Sunrise Biotechnology Company?”
“Uh-huh!” Ji Yunpei nodded, “My father has been working there for nearly twenty years!”
Has he really been there that long? Luxianbei nodded thoughtfully, asking, “So do you have any understanding of your father’s colleagues? You must have come into contact with some, right? Or your father should have told you about them?”
From Luxianbei’s point of view, the Sunrise Biotechnology Company, being a subordinate organization of the Solar Eclipse Society, was definitely not a good place. Any father with a bit of paternal love would give his daughter a heads-up before she started working at such a place.
And what the father conveyed was likely a powerful weapon for dealing with these lawless outlaws.
“Some, some!” Ji Yunpei said. While searching her body, she pulled out her phone, opened her notes, and handed it to Luxianbei. “This is some personal information of senior employees that my father gave me the day before I started my job. He said it could help me handle interpersonal relationships.”
“But…”
Luxianbei took the phone, took a quick glance at the contents in the notes, her eyes brightening slightly, then looking at Ji Yunpei, shaking her head and silently sighing.
With such a handy tool in hand, you still can’t manage these rascals?
Aside from lacking strength, she was still too young!
Since that’s the case, let me be the great villain!
Luxianbei thought, silently urging her powers to connect with the God Realm Prototype, and with a single thought, the ground of the circular valley began to quake violently, followed by the emergence of a “human” shaped mountain, partitioning the bunch of Solar Eclipse Society members into three parts.
First, let’s use the prisoner’s dilemma to break down their psychological defenses… Luxianbei pondered, lifting her gaze to the still dazed Solar Eclipse Society members, ultimately locking her sight on a burly man with a sinister expression.
Glancing at the notes, she nodded.
Wu Gaozhi, is it?
Let’s start with you!
I heard your daughter has been sick recently, right? Luxianbei thought mischievously.
