Chapter 161: Good Sir, Good Sir!
That’s right, the system believes that calamity is the easiest to deal with among the seven major factors that destroy the world.
Not only because it has confronted calamity more than once and knows her growth trajectory very well, allowing her to deliver a lethal blow at critical moments.
But also because calamity is the only urban legend transformed from a human, which means her starting point is much lower than the other six.
In fact, the system had previously set its sights on nightmares, the void, blasphemy, and several other factors, but the outcomes were quite…
Some barely made it to the conclusion, while others didn’t survive past three episodes.
The worst time, it couldn’t even determine if the target was the one it was looking for, and the host was captured by the enemy’s subordinates, resulting in a “game over” after more than thirty pages, disappearing on the spot.
Compared to those who could casually wield A-grade spirit energy from birth.
Calamity, which requires a long period of growth, can only unleash its full power at the cost of her own life or someone else’s. This clearly makes it the easiest target to succeed against, doesn’t it?
Moreover…
There’s also a fixation here that almost succeeded once before.
That kind of fixation is like the FLAG set while staying up late gaming—”I’ll sleep after I win one round”—it has an indescribable enchantment.
“System…”
After hearing the system’s answer, Gu Qiqi fell silent for a moment and called out softly, somewhat melancholic.
“Huh?” The system snapped back from its reminiscing state and asked, “What’s wrong?”
“Hey—!” Gu Qiqi sighed, “You’re really useless, scared of the weakest one.”
“……” The system fell silent for a moment, suppressing its anger and said, “Just to clarify, it’s the easiest one to deal with, not the weakest one. The two can’t be equated.”
“System…”
“What now?! Gu Qiqi, how come I never noticed you were this troublesome?”
Gu Qiqi stiffened her neck, furrowed her brows into a knot, her expression fierce as she gulped several times, her lips slightly parted as she breathed heavily.
Seeing Gu Qiqi look like she might faint at any moment, the system was startled.
Is this calamity poisoning the grilled fish? If Gu Qiqi dies from grilled fish poisoning, she might become one of the most embarrassing hosts in history.
Worried about the host passing out, the system quietly drifted to the scattered fish bones on the ground and sniffed.
There is indeed a hint of calamity’s aura, but it seems to have no poison whatsoever!
How could Gu Qiqi possibly…
“Cough cough cough—! System, I think I got a fishbone stuck in my throat…”
The system, “……You might as well choke to d*ath directly! This way, it’s even more embarrassing.”
“System… think of a way to help me out!”
“Super sorry for your super beautiful girl demon-slaying system…”
Before the system could finish its mechanical prompt, Gu Qiqi tilted her head in surprise and said, “Huh? Did you disconnect?”
How did you learn to answer so quickly… the system thought silently and replied lightly, “Yeah, I disconnect.”
After answering, it fell silent.
Before Gu Qiqi got up to leave, stubbornly seeking more “food,” it sniffed the scattered fish bones on the ground again, and couldn’t help but shudder.
But unlike other times, this time it didn’t feel fear but rather some other feeling.
Perhaps.
It was reminded of a home-cooked dish eaten long ago, one that was incredibly delicious, or something else…
……
After about an hour of rest, Luxianbei was awakened as scheduled by the coat calling service.
As the coat squirmed back into shape, she got out of bed, pocketed a dozen charms, hid the ornate kn*fe in her sleeve, and set out lightly to find that strange old man Meng Raoze.
Earlier when Meng Raoze left, Luxianbei had observed carefully; he seemed to be living directly in the main hall of the dilapidated temple. For the past hour, there hadn’t been any strange noises in the small courtyard, so it should be fine to go there to find him.
Leaving the thatched cottage, she cautiously avoided the oddly large water jars and walked to the front of the main hall of the dilapidated temple, just about to knock on the door when suddenly she remembered Meng Raoze’s previous rambling reminder and retracted her hand.
In horror novels, those who ignore the mysterious NPCs’ warnings usually don’t survive past three volumes!
The old man said not to knock after dark, so…
“Cough cough—!” Luxianbei cleared her throat and shouted, “Good sir, good sir, it’s about time to wake up and relieve yourself!”
“Good sir, good sir, it’s about time to wake up and relieve yourself!”
“Good sir, good sir…”
……
Inside the main hall, before the crumbling statue, Meng Raoze lay dazed on a two-meter-long, one-meter-wide hard plank, half-awake and half-asleep. With his aged, waxy face sprinkled with silver hair, he looked just like a corpse.
Suddenly, a fine, pleasant, yet particularly annoying voice invaded his ears, and he bolted upright from the plank as if resurrected.
In the darkness, his murky, dilated eyes surveyed the direction of the sound with uncertainty. Seeing Luxianbei showing no signs of stopping, he finally sluggishly got up to open the door.
……
The essence of humanity is repetition, even though Luxianbei is no longer human now, she still hasn’t lost this traditional skill.
Standing outside the door, when she repeated the same words for the seventeenth time, the wooden door of the main hall finally creaked open from the inside.
Meng Raoze, with a dark face, looked Luxianbei up and down, and ominously said, “Outsider, you should go to bed quickly, or something bad might happen, and you needn’t trouble an old man like me.”
After being rejected, Luxianbei didn’t mind at all, responding expressionlessly and blandly, “Oh, alright!” and turned to leave.
Meng Raoze watched her return to the thatched cottage, closed the door, and fell silent for a moment before gently shaking his head. He lay back down on that hard, coffin-like plank.
But this was fine; it was a lot better than those overly curious outsiders trying to uncover the village’s secrets. Looking at the dark ceiling, he thought to himself.
However…
What he didn’t expect was that this was merely the beginning.
……
Half an hour later, as Meng Raoze was about to fall asleep again, Luxianbei’s voice sounded from outside once more.
“Good sir, good sir! I suddenly remembered I have an ancestral secret recipe for treating rheumatism and bone pain at home. Would you like to hear about it?”
“Good sir, good sir…”
Hearing Luxianbei’s calls, Meng Raoze quickly got up and came to the front door, fiercely warning, “Outsider, I advise you not to shout, or something unexpected might happen, and I won’t take responsibility for it!”
“Oh, alright!”
……
Half an hour later.
“Good sir, good sir, I’m hungry. Do you have anything to eat?”
Perhaps due to heeding Meng Raoze’s warning, this time Luxianbei spoke in a much quieter tone.
However, her lively and melodious voice, lowered in volume, sounded like some eerie whisper in one’s ear, making it quite unsettling.
“Good sir, good sir…”
“Nothing! Get lost!” Meng Raoze was too lazy to get up anymore and growled from his bed.
“Oh, alright!”
……
Half an hour later again.
“Dormammu, I am… uh, wait…”
“Good sir, good sir, are you asleep? It’s so dark in the thatched cottage, and there seem to be bugs crawling in the corners, rustling around. I’m so scared!”
Meng Raoze, “……d*mn it, why is this girl so annoying?”
Do you have any idea why you’re here?
An outsider who comes here is actually afraid of the dark? I’d never believe you!
Ignore her, ignore her, ignore her…
……
After who knows how many half-hours later.
“Good sir, good sir, are the things in those jars fish? I brought some food; can I feed them?”
Hearing Luxianbei mention the light from the small courtyard, Meng Raoze’s expression changed, and he shot up from the plank, pointing toward the door and shouting.
“Shut up! What do you want?!”
“Good sir, please don’t be angry, I’m just… just scared. If it’s inconvenient for you, I’ll just go back.”
Such a response came from outside the door, leaving Meng Raoze momentarily speechless.
Go back and then wait a while to come again? Or mess around with the water jars and wake up those sleeping things?
He knew what Luxianbei wanted; she was merely seeking the hidden secrets of this village, this forest, and this hopeless place, like those long-lost outsiders.
Since she was so eager to know those secrets, it wouldn’t hurt to tell her. Besides, she could never leave here alive anyway.
That thought flashed through his mind, and he immediately got up, opened the door, and welcomed Luxianbei inside.
With my good intentions, you could live a few more days, yet you don’t appreciate it! You want to d*e, can I stop you? Meng Raoze thought indignantly as he watched Luxianbei walk into the main hall.
……
As Luxianbei stepped into the main hall, the air suddenly became murky, and a strange, indescribable smell penetrated her nostrils.
The roof tiles tightly sealed off the sky, and there were no windows on the walls, with cold, murky air floating around, resembling an underground cave, dark all around, making it hard to see, until Meng Raoze lit a bl**d-red lantern.
Under the somewhat eerie glow, the bizarre appearance of the dilapidated temple gradually presented itself before her.
The architectural style of this temple deviated greatly from the traditional aesthetics of Z Country, instead adopting a peculiar construction method.
Rudely built with pillars and beams, clay was piled up to build the four walls, making the temple look like a sealed wooden box.
On the grayish walls, shadows clad in armor were depicted, high above, holding ritual vessels in unison, their lower bodies—a mix between legs and tails—moving in a writhing manner through the dark, eerie forest and the flowing black river.
On the simple altar, what was enshrined was not any deity Luxianbei recognized but a writhing black serpent.
The serpent raised its head, and its emerald eyes, supported by some gem, glimmered with a faint light, gazing angrily and maliciously into the distance.
The lifelike details—the gleaming fangs, the vivid red tongue, and every scale—seemed utterly out of place with this dilapidated temple.
This was entirely unlike the rudimentary craftsmanship of the villagers; modern lathes might be able to replicate the shape, but would definitely lack that eerie spirit. Luxianbei thought.
If someone told her that this statue would breathe at some point, she wouldn’t be surprised.
Just as Luxianbei was entranced by the sight, Meng Raoze’s voice suddenly rang out behind her.
“Speak, what do you want to know?”
Luxianbei was taken aback for a moment, turned around, and expressionlessly said, “Good sir, no rush, no rush, let’s talk slowly; tonight’s time is still long!”
Hearing the word “slowly” come from Luxianbei’s mouth, Meng Raoze’s wrinkle-filled mouth twitched for a moment, and something resembling fear slowly rose within him…
