Chapter 114: Cut Off Their “Roots”!
After realizing Gu Qiqi’s true intentions, the leader of the Tuo Wuali Lei Clan suddenly found that things had become much easier.
Isn’t it just about eating? We’ll make sure she’s full!
After all, he had just procured a large amount of supplies from the Gu Zheng Tribe.
This calamity lady, no matter how much she could eat, could she possibly finish off hundreds of pounds of grain, several large vats of fine wine, five cows, and more than ten sheep by herself?
“No way! Just for me to eat is not enough!”
While the leader of the Tuo Wuali Lei Clan was “enthusiastically” arranging a grand meal for Gu Qiqi, she suddenly remembered her fellow inmates.
“You have to prepare food for the people who were locked up with me earlier. I said I’d come out to find food for them, so I have to bring something back for them.”
“What to feed those guys…” The Tuo Wuali Lei Clan leader had only said half of his sentence when he saw the bloody metal bat in Gu Qiqi’s hand, and immediately swallowed the rest of his words, turning to Fang Ji with a look of helplessness.
As if to distance himself from the matter, Fang Ji took a step back, shaking his hands with an innocent expression, “Don’t look at me. I’m just her partner in this, not her superior. I can’t control her. If she gets angry and knocks your head in, I can’t help you.”
Hearing this, the Tuo Wuali Lei Clan leader clenched his teeth, his expression dark as he looked at Gu Qiqi. “Fine, we’ll do it your way. I’ll have someone prepare it right now!”
To be honest, he really didn’t want to give the better food to those prisoners.
The able-bodied men and women abducted from outside or other tribes were, for the Tuo Wuali Lei Clan, just like livestock.
The men were somewhat better off; as long as they survived while dealing with urban legends, they could be kept for various tasks later. The women, however, were at risk of dying in childbirth any moment after becoming pregnant, and even if they managed to give birth, they might not survive the nursing period.
Overall, those “prisoners” were almost disposable, and it was already good enough to feed them. It would be a waste to give them good food.
But what could he do?
Seeing Gu Qiqi, in high spirits, following the clan members to the kitchen, the Tuo Wuali Lei Clan leader sighed silently.
Before leaving, Gu Qiqi shot Fang Ji a disdainful look.
It’s not a big deal; why spend so much time fussing over it!
Look how capable I am. A few whacks and everything’s resolved.
I was right about him; he’s not very smart, Gu Qiqi thought.
Fang Ji, “…”
In silence, once Gu Qiqi was far away, he stepped forward, gently patting the shoulder of the Tuo Wuali Lei Clan leader.
“Leader, you don’t have to be so down. Once you rescue the Shaman Queen, everything will be fine. And once the Hong Bian Holy Monk is awakened, if you pray sincerely, you will also gain the favor of miracles and fulfill your wishes.”
The Tuo Wuali Lei Clan leader turned around, looking at Fang Ji’s profile, narrowing his eyes slightly.
In the dim space, illuminated by candlelight, his smile was inscrutable.
“What exactly do you want to say? You wouldn’t be trying to recruit me into your cult under the guise of this opportunity, would you?”
The half-urban legends and the Miracle Cult were inherently two opposing forces; before the Miracle Cult was expelled from Z Country by the Siye Society, the conflicts between the two powers exceeded even the conflicts they had with the Yumen Sands Sea Branch.
Trying to make half-urban legends join the Miracle Cult was like asking the Crusaders to give up Jerusalem.
Not attacking anyone was already a good outcome.
“You misunderstand,” Fang Ji said. “I meant to say, shouldn’t you contact the leaders of other tribes? Such a big matter, you can’t handle it alone, right?”
“…” The Tuo Wuali Lei Clan leader was momentarily speechless. If Fang Ji hadn’t brought it up, he originally intended to monopolize the benefits from this situation.
While it was impossible for him to solely rely on the Tuo Wuali Lei Clan to rescue the Shaman Queen, he and his clan could perhaps become the first to pledge loyalty to her.
There’s a saying that people always remember the first; being the first in the Shaman Queen’s mind would be immensely significant for their clan.
“What if I refuse?”
“Then forget it!” Fang Ji said nonchalantly, turning to look in the direction Gu Qiqi had left, “But if calamity still wants to smash your head in, I can’t stop her.”
The Tuo Wuali Lei Clan leader, “…”
“By the way…” Seeing him silent, Fang Ji continued with a smile, “Since you’ve already told my companion the location of the Yumen Pass entrance, why not tell me as well? Otherwise…”
“Otherwise what?”
“Otherwise, she’ll smash, regardless,” Fang Ji said.
“Don’t push me too far!” the Tuo Wuali Lei Clan leader angrily retorted.
Can’t you change your threat tactics?
As if seeing through the Tuo Wuali Lei Clan leader’s thoughts, Fang Ji shrugged, “I understand what you’re thinking. To be honest, it’s a bit tedious to keep using the same line, but isn’t it effective?”
The Tuo Wuali Lei Clan leader, “…”
While the Tuo Wuali Lei Clan leader was in doubt, Fang Ji leaned closer and whispered, “Leader, I know what your worries are, but you need to think clearly. Relying solely on your Tuo Wuali Lei Clan, you definitely can’t rescue the Shaman Queen. Sooner or later, you’ll have to cooperate with other tribes…”
“And right now, if you want to collaborate with those tribes, if you want someone to gain the honor of being the first to meet the Shaman Queen, the decision lies in your hands. In this matter, our Miracle Cult will fully support you.”
“Now that I’ve said this, I hope you understand my meaning?”
Upon hearing this, the Tuo Wuali Lei Clan leader pondered for a few seconds before his eyes lit up. He waved to summon a nearby clan warrior and instructed, “Go, inform the leaders of all tribes to gather tonight. Tell them I have urgent matters to discuss!”
————
The half-urban legend tribes in the Gobi Desert had limited resources and low demands for food, so their food preparation methods were relatively simple.
Using clean water and some spices to stew the food until cooked, then adding some condiments was already the highest standard of dishes.
If it weren’t for Gu Qiqi, the calamity star overseeing, even the chefs of the Tuo Wuali Lei Clan wouldn’t bother adding spices.
Thus, half an hour later, Gu Qiqi returned to the spherical cages carrying two large bowls of cooked beef and some fresh-baked naan.
As soon as she arrived in front of the cages, she was surprised to find that the “prisoners” who were locked up with her had not left after she tore the cages apart.
Not only had they not left, but they had retreated deep into the cages, hiding in the shadows, completely motionless.
“Look, I brought you food!”
“Come on, let’s eat together; it smells so good!”
Gu Qiqi smiled as she lifted a bowl of beef and waved it toward the cages.
However, to her surprise, her gesture not only failed to coax the prisoners out of the shadows but instead caused a commotion.
Almost instantly, all the prisoners in the spherical cages seemed frightened and retreated deeper into the shadows, trembling.
Typically, food as good as this would only be given to them when the Tuo Wuali Lei Clan captured a new urban legend and needed to combine with it.
The clan members even had the dark humor to call such a feast a wedding banquet.
However, it was unclear whether the banquet dishes would belong to them or to the feast itself.
Those who could be caught and bred successfully by the Tuo Wuali Lei Clan were usually only low to mid-level aberrant urban legends; no one knew what those urban legends were thinking.
But one thing is certain: their desire to eat was definitely much higher than their desire to reproduce. Even if they were given special alchemical potions, the ratio of those two desires might barely balance out.
Gu Qiqi had no idea what a “lavish” feast meant to these prisoners.
She was just being kind.
And now, she was filled with doubts.
“…”
What’s wrong with them?
After eating that kind of food for so long, wouldn’t they be happy to see delicious beef suddenly placed before them?
Could it be that being tormented by those bad guys for too long made them unable to adapt to normal food anymore?
Gu Qiqi frowned, picking up a large bowl with one hand, she walked into the cages, stopping at the far edge of the light and attempting to gently push the two large bowls into the shadows.
The next second, a muffled sound echoed.
With a “bang!” the two bowls were sent flying, hot beef scattering all over the ground.
“How could you do this!” Gu Qiqi, saddened for the wasted beef, became angry and scolded with her hands on her hips. “You can’t waste food no matter what! How despicable! Too despicable!”
As she spoke angrily and was about to shout, she suddenly noticed a pair of eyes staring at her intently from the darkness.
Those eyes were filled with resentment and terror.
She had seen that kind of gaze before, when she had just taken over the Bamboo Slips Illusion and had tried to interact with the villagers who were oppressed by the Great Serpent God.
After a brief silence, Gu Qiqi asked sternly, “Those guys are bullying you, right?”
She couldn’t stand seeing others suffer.
Because of this personality, she had many times, disregarding the system’s advice, run off to help others attacked by urban legends while on a mission.
“Wait, I’ll go help you…”
Just halfway through her sentence, she suddenly realized that even if she beat everyone in the Tuo Wuali Lei Clan, after she left, those “prisoners” would still be abused, or even more severely mistreated.
She had encountered such situations before.
She had helped a girl ensnared by an urban legend; after chasing the urban legend away and looking at the girl who was tearfully grateful, she thought they could become good friends. However, the next time she saw that girl, it was in the morgue of Huacheng Central Hospital.
According to the system, to fundamentally solve such problems, there were only two methods: either directly eliminate the source of the problem, or keep the people with her, preventing the bad guys from creating tragedies.
Staring at the shadows, Gu Qiqi activated her clever mind, thinking for a while before making a decision.
“Let’s go, I’ll take you away from here!”
“What are you waiting for? Don’t be afraid, they can’t stop me!”
Saying this, she squatted down and reached out to the figure in the shadows closest to her.
A number of “prisoners” cautiously scrutinized Gu Qiqi, their eyes filled with distrust.
Some of them had already been imprisoned by more than one half-urban legend tribe.
They had changed “masters” multiple times amidst one raid or transaction after another, like goods…
Who could guarantee that following Gu Qiqi would yield a different result?
Such half-urban legends using sweet words to deceive hadn’t been uncommon.
After waiting for a moment and seeing those “prisoners” still unmoved, Gu Qiqi sighed silently, stood up, quietly opened the passage to the Bamboo Slips Illusion, then stepped forward and, much like picking up chicks, grabbed the “prisoners” and tossed them into the Bamboo Slips Illusion.
At that moment, she suddenly hoped she really was a calamity.
If she were indeed a calamity, she wouldn’t be as tongue-tied as she was, not knowing how to persuade them!
Once they experienced it firsthand, they would know she wasn’t lying!
Right, in the Bamboo Slips Illusion, there were the villagers too, who had similar experiences. They’d surely find common topics to talk about, right? A chat should be enough!
I’m so clever! Gu Qiqi thought proudly, completing one cage before happily moving on to the next.
On the other side, the leader of the Tuo Wuali Lei Clan, who was deeply engaged with Fang Ji, never expected that Gu Qiqi not only wanted to eat but also wanted to take people…
This was practically cutting off their “roots”!
————
Departing from the blocked area of Ma’er Well and reaching a small oasis over twenty kilometers away was not an easy journey. Lu Xianbei and Nanling Yaohua took nearly two hours to arrive at their destination.
Upon arrival, Nanling Yaohua skillfully began inspecting the area surrounding the small oasis.
Lu Xianbei, fearing that a “calamity” might suddenly jump out from the shadows and stab her, stuck closely behind Nanling Yaohua, like a shadow, not leaving her side for a moment.
After completing the inspection around the small oasis, Nanling Yaohua turned around and looked at Lu Qingyi, who was almost about to jump into her arms, and stated her conclusion.
“There are no signs of half-urban legends having been active in the vicinity; they haven’t come here.”
“Haven’t come?” Lu Xianbei pondered, “Since they haven’t come, should we just go back?”
“Absolutely not!” Nanling Yaohua replied. “This small oasis is one of the important trading places for those half-urban legends; for certain tribes, it might even be the only trading place. Just because they haven’t come now doesn’t mean they won’t come later. We need to wait here.”
Besides, if we returned now, you wouldn’t be afraid and wouldn’t stick to me…
Her demeanor was just too cute! Hehe! Nanling Yaohua thought.
“So how long do we have to wait?” Lu Xianbei frowned and asked.
“At least…” Nanling Yaohua thought for a moment, “At least until tomorrow morning, right? You should have participated in the Dachunyang Palace trials before and hunted urban legends after descending the mountain, right? You should know that lurking like this may seem a bit foolish, but it’s often very effective!”
“This…” Lu Xianbei was momentarily at a loss for words.
She really wanted to tell Nanling Yaohua that she had never actively lurked for urban legends; they always came looking for her, and either she killed them in turn or reported them to the Siye Society.
But she didn’t dare to say that.
Just as she was thinking of how to deal with Nanling Yaohua,
Nanling Yaohua’s ears suddenly twitched slightly. Then, she quickly pressed Lu Xianbei’s head down and pulled her into the bushes.
“Shh! Conceal your spirit energy fluctuation; someone is coming.”
The timing couldn’t be worse… Nanling Yaohua silently added in her heart.
Hearing this, Lu Xianbei followed Nanling Yaohua’s gaze and saw two figures appearing on the distant sand dunes.
As they gradually approached, once she saw the faces of the two figures, her pupils trembled.
One man and one woman were approaching; she didn’t recognize the woman, but the man she had seen before, in the Siye Society’s files, in the surveillance of the Three Gorges Psychiatric Hospital, and the intel gathered by Lin Nian and the online old perverts…
The man was none other than Dailin, who had kidnapped Jiang Li!
