Chapter Eleven: Silver Cangque Signal
As the flock of fire crows dispersed, the flight of the airplane gradually stabilized. The economy class was quiet, with only the sounds of breathing breaking the silence.
Everything seemed so serene and peaceful, as if the life-and-d*ath crisis that just occurred had never happened at all.
“……”
The moment Lu Yibei lifted the curtain, he began to regret it. The person holding the bone flute had over a hundred passengers in economy class to use as cover, but he did not.
When he appeared at the aisle of the economy class, he was exposed.
What could have been a covert operation turned into a situation where the enemy was hidden and he was in plain sight.
Very passive.
Moreover, who could guarantee that among these passengers, there weren’t other hostile spiritual ability users?
His gaze lingered on Hu Yue for a few seconds, and Lu Yibei silently sighed.
Although Hu Yue’s clothes were highly similar in color to the shadow that flashed by, with a probability of six or seven out of ten that he could identify him as that shadow, there were still four other passengers wearing similar colors, and they couldn’t be completely ruled out as suspects.
Innocent until proven guilty—there were so many people that it wasn’t worth going around searching each of them just because he suspected they were spiritual ability users planning a terror attack, right?
If they really went to search, there were only three possible outcomes: finding the bone flute and resolving the trouble, not finding the bone flute and resulting in societal d*ath, or discovering some bizarre and unspeakable items that would lead to everyone’s societal d*ath together.
They might not even be targeting him; it wasn’t worth it! Lu Yibei thought, gently lowering the curtain, returning to his seat, and fastening his seatbelt.
Just as Lu Yibei turned, Liu Banxian opened his eyes a crack, glanced at the direction of Professor Ma and Hu Yue, and then closed them again, indifferent, while putting away the bronze river chart turtle shell he was holding into his embrace…
————
Tangcheng, Arrow Tower Old Street, in the attic of a shabby pawn shop, a table filled with various snacks was placed in front of the opened wooden window.
A cold wind wafted in from outside, ruffling the curls at the temples of a young girl dressed in a light gray sweatshirt and light blue jeans that revealed a section of her fair ankle, her bare feet resting on a chair as she gently swayed.
After two or three days of rest, Jumeng’s complexion had improved significantly.
As the king of urban legends over these eight hundred miles, she was quite the seasoned veteran; as long as she wasn’t completely killed nor had the core of her urban legend forcibly extracted to absorb it, under the influence of the earth vein’s energy, she would always find a way to gradually recover.
“Smack—!”
Jumeng slapped away the hand of Yuan Ye reaching for the snacks, casually grabbing a pig trotter and biting into it, mumbling, “Don’t touch! Stealing offerings is such a bad habit!”
“I bought this!” Yuan Ye replied bitterly.
“Hmph!” Jumeng huffed, “You’re my dependent; you bought it for me, so it’s just an offering! Stealing the offerings of the fertility god, be careful of becoming barren in the future!”
“How is it going with what I asked you to handle?”
Yuan Ye stared at the table full of Tangcheng famous snacks, swallowed hard, and bowed slightly to Jumeng, “I’ve informed the East Master; it’s almost done.”
“Everyone who could be notified has been informed, and they should be on their way now. They will all gather within five days.”
Hearing this, Jumeng nodded.
Over the years, many spiritual ability users and urban legends had offended her, but many had also benefitted from her kindness!
Even if there were more people, it didn’t necessarily mean those offenders would win.
“What about that kn*fe? Have you found out its origins?” Jumeng pressed.
In the long years since she became conscious, apart from the kitchen knives from Lu Yibei’s home, she had hardly ever been harmed by spirit energy items.
If it weren’t for the ally mark not reacting, she would think Lu Yibei was secretly causing trouble.
Yuan Ye shook his head, “As for those sealed items… our people have only recovered part of them; the rest are still in progress.”
At this, Jumeng savagely tore off a piece of the pig trotter, her tone serious, “This matter needs to be expedited; those are all my treasures, not a single one can be missing.”
“Besides, if any trouble arises and draws the attention of the Siye Society, it’ll be huge trouble, do you know?”
“……”
If I had known this, why would I have acted at the beginning?
Yuan Ye hesitated, looking at Jumeng, who was enjoying her meal, his gaze somewhat helpless.
Though his East Master smoked, drank, tricked people, and had a tough, proud exterior, she was far too kind-hearted compared to any urban legends he had seen or heard of.
If she were a little more ruthless, there wouldn’t have been so many messes created.
Just like when she initially contended with Qunyang, forcing herself into hundreds of years of deep sleep yet not exterminating his followers but merely expelling them.
In the past few Hundred Demons Walks, she had also not slaughtered all challengers cleanly.
Some like indigenous deities or more benign urban legends, she could expel those who could be expelled, and for those who couldn’t be, she casually sealed them in some jars from the Peach Source.
Although Jumeng endlessly insisted it was a reserve stock, kept for when she needed to extract and absorb the urban legend’s core later, just like pickling vegetables.
Yuan Ye knew that was just because she felt sorry for them, unwilling to be cruel, wanting to give them a chance for “good reform and to become urban legends anew.”
In fact, Yuan Ye himself had once been sealed within a certain turtle shell until he swore allegiance to Jumeng and signed a contract for dependency to be freed.
Those offenders likely couldn’t dispel the curse on the sealed items that Jumeng had placed herself and wouldn’t be able to unleash the urban legends inside, becoming their assistance.
Or perhaps they didn’t even know what those things were, feeling that the totems depicting Jumeng were unsightly, and simply discarded them as garbage in the Peach Source.
But those were harmful and non-recyclable trash!
Years had passed, and the urban legends that could be released had long been liberated by Jumeng. Now, those still confined within sealed items were either quirky or had twisted and fallen.
Just the other day, Jumeng had joked about opening two jars of “pickles” during the New Year to treat everyone to some snacks!
Now that was fine.
If those things were to fall into the Peach Source outside, it wouldn’t be a problem if nothing happened, but if one of those urban legends broke free, it could take dozens or hundreds of lives, and at that time the Siye Society would certainly not just sit back and watch.
Once the Siye Society started moving, tracing the source, and seeing “Good heavens, you brat is the one causing trouble?” Jumeng would likely find herself in a predicament, attacked from both sides.
As one of the top urban legends on the Siye Society’s wanted list.
Though the local Siye Society had maintained peace with her due to her overwhelming strength, if the Siye Society learned that she was severely injured, whether they would take action was another matter.
“Burp—!”
With a sound like a windstorm sweeping away clouds, Jumeng polished off the table of snacks, burped contentedly, rubbed her round little belly, leaned against the armchair, and looked towards Yuan Ye, as if guessing his thoughts, and said earnestly, “Yuan Ye, I know what you’re thinking, but I’m really not what you think I am.”
“I, as the king of urban legends over eight hundred miles of Peach Source, how could I have the tenderness of a woman? Don’t you know? My hands are stained with bl**d! Tsk tsk, I am truly a woman deeply steeped in sin!”
While she had indeed killed quite a few, she had also let go of more, Yuan Ye thought in silence, his expression unchanged as he nodded, “Mm-hmm, go on, what else?”
“I sealed them just to collect them, like collecting figurines, while letting them starkly watch me have fun and suffer!”
The more Jumeng spoke, the redder her face became, and she simply turned her head away, no longer looking into Yuan Ye’s eyes.
“Continue,” Yuan Ye said plainly.
“Moreover, don’t you think it’s very stimulating to let them see their own followers become my followers? Just like how my husband does…” Jumeng said, her voice noticeably softening.
“Good point.” Yuan Ye nodded again, “Continue…”
Jumeng’s little face was already flushed bright red, her head buried in a cushion, pointing at Yuan Ye, “! Have you handled everything I asked you to? If not, hurry up and do it!”
Yuan Ye bowed towards Jumeng, “Since that’s the case, I’ll take my leave first.”
After saying that, he turned and left the attic.
“Thud thud thud——!”
The sound of footsteps on the wooden stairs came, then fell silent.
After Yuan Ye walked far away, Jumeng slowly put down the cushion and sighed silently.
The world of urban legends has always been one of the weak preyed upon by the strong; this was something Jumeng understood the moment she first opened her eyes to this world.
To many people and urban legends, the Peach Source was a piece of succulent meat; unless she disguised herself as a ferocious demon, there was no way to lead everyone to survive, Jumeng thought.
At this moment, a familiar voice came from behind her.
“East Master, you are really not suited for the role of a bloodthirsty killer.”
“Also, I suggest you come up with some new phrases next time; I’ve heard those almost a hundred times.”
Yuan Ye leaned half his body out of the wooden window, hands grasping the window ledge.
Jumeng twitched the corner of her mouth, picked up the cushion, and threw it at him, “Get lost! Go away! I don’t want to see you!”
————
“Ladies and gentlemen: the plane has landed at Tangcheng Airport. The outside temperature is minus five degrees Celsius, the plane is taxiing. For your safety and that of others, please do not stand up or open the overhead compartments yet…”
With the announcement in the cabin, Lu Yibei looked out at the desolate tarmac, secretly letting out a sigh of relief. He then took out his phone and opened the Miaomiao Sauce profile on a certain social media platform.
Wang Buliu: I’ve arrived. Encountered an urban legend attack on the way; good heavens, I almost…
Halfway through typing, Lu Yibei grimaced, deleted everything, then re-edited a message to send.
Wang Buliu: “Safely arrived, thanks for the protective talisman [dog head].”
Miaomiao Sauce: “[heart heart emoji]”
Seeing the reply from “Miaomiao Sauce,” Lu Yibei felt a warmth in his heart, but with the next moment, when Jiang Li sent a message, his expression suddenly darkened.
Dog Leader: “You should be here if the flight was delayed less than half an hour. I need to inform you of something.”
Cats tend not to have bad intentions; dogs, on the other hand, have all sorts of bad intentions.
Lu Yibei: “What task do you want to assign me again? I’m attending a research project here! Leader, I’m just an intern operative; please let me off? Someone is waiting for me in Huacheng, and I want to live to go back!”
Dog Leader: “Looks like you’ve arrived? Don’t worry; they are all things within your capability, and it was precisely because you are participating in that research project that I sought you out.”
Then.
Before Lu Yibei could refuse, Jiang Li sent another message, a long text obviously prepared in advance, simply copy-pasted.
Dog Leader: “Now for the serious matter, Huacheng Siye Society reserve operative Lu Yibei, you are invited to assist the Tangcheng Siye Society in investigating the recent multiple urban legend attack incidents due to your outstanding strength and widely recognized character. Approved by the Inspector. Please contact local Siye Society operatives within forty-eight hours of arrival.”
Lu Yibei: “Darn! What does an incident in Tangcheng have to do with us at Huacheng Siye Society?”
Dog Leader: “Originally, it had nothing to do with us, but you know the Siye Society is dwindling, and there are only three people in Tangcheng Siye Society. Recently, there have been sudden many urban legend attack events, and they can’t keep up, so they posted a silver Cangque signal on the intranet.”
The so-called Cangque signal is a request for support signal issued by various Siye Societies in cities when they need volunteers, divided into copper, silver, gold, and red four levels.
The silver Cangque signal means the situation is a bit tricky.
Lu Yibei: “But Tangcheng is much bigger than Huacheng, and nearby there’s the Peach Source—only three operatives? What are they thinking?”
If I were the person in charge of Siye Society personnel dispatch, I’d at least dispatch ten A+ grade spiritual ability users to serve in Tangcheng to keep that Stinky Sister firmly suppressed, so she wouldn’t exploit the common folks, Lu Yibei thought.
Dog Leader: “There are many reasons for this. First, Tangcheng is close to Peach Source; most urban legends are managed within Peach Source, so they don’t trigger urban legend attack events. Second, due to Peach Source’s presence, almost no operatives are willing to serve there; plus, various miscellaneous reasons have led over time to only three operatives remaining.”
Lu Yibei: “So, you helped me submit an application for assistance? But I don’t recall signing anything!”
Dog Leader: “[Image] Isn’t this your own signature?”
Lu Yibei looked at the somewhat familiar form, stunned for a moment, and then twitched the corner of his mouth.
This isn’t my leave request, is it?
Lu Yibei: “Did you set me up?”
In a sense, is this considered m*rder against your husband, you know? Lu Yibei thought.
Dog Leader: “How could this be setting you up? I’m helping you accumulate merits for future promotions. Moreover, if you make a mistake in the future, you can offset it with merits, which can reduce your sentence.”
Lu Yibei: “May I ask, besides me, are there other people who submitted applications for assistance?”
Dog Leader: “Quite a few. So far, seven formal operatives and sixteen reserve operatives have submitted applications and been approved.”
Lu Yibei was momentarily taken aback, typing a reply: “So many?”
Dog Leader: “Of course, this is a rare opportunity, many want to seize the chance to accumulate merits. Besides, do you really think they’d have you go out as a front-line fighter? The dangerous tasks are all for formal operatives.”
Lu Yibei: “Then I’m relieved.”
Slacking off is something I’m quite good at; if it comes to it, I can just hide at the back and let the allies handle it. Lu Yibei thought.
Dog Leader: “Good luck, all operatives of Huacheng Siye Society are your strong support.”
Lu Yibei: “Except for Li Xuan.”
Dog Leader: “Agreed.”
As Lu Yibei replied to Jiang Li, he dawdled, finally walking down from the plane, and in the distance, saw Professor Ma and Liu Banxian gathered together, chatting and laughing, but Hu Yue was nowhere to be found.
He didn’t sneak off somewhere to do something bad again, did he?
Lu Yibei thought to himself as he walked over, and as soon as he heard Professor Ma and Liu Banxian’s conversation, his face turned green.
“The gentleman is no ordinary person; caught in the shallow water being toyed with by shrimp. Old brother, this trip of yours is dangerous!”
Lu Yibei, “……” Good heavens, Professor is so bold, how can he dare touch anything dirty?
After listening to Liu Banxian’s words, Professor Ma blinked, weakly asking, “Are you saying someone wants to harm me?”
Liu Banxian waved his hand, “Not necessarily that someone wants to harm you, it might also be unintentional; in short, there are petty people sabotaging your trip, making it quite uncomfortable!”
Lu Yibei looked at Liu Banxian expressionlessly, “……” Are you sure that petty person isn’t you?
“Uh…” Professor Ma frowned, “Is there any way to counteract this?”
Liu Banxian shrugged, “How would I know? I’m a fortune teller, not a life saver; I only do fortune-telling, not solving problems.”
“By the way, you bought accident insurance or something, right? If you did, you could leave some money for your family, which is still a worthwhile life; have a safe trip.”
Professor Ma, “……”
Seeing Professor Ma’s fists clenching tightly, Lu Yibei quickly stepped in between him and Liu Banxian.
“Professor, what are you doing here! Our ride is already here; let’s go quickly!”
Professor Ma was momentarily stunned, looking at Lu Yibei, “The car has come? But Professor Hu went to the restroom; he hasn’t returned yet; let’s wait for him here.”
Lu Yibei frowned.
Went to the restroom again?
Isn’t his bladder in bad shape?
Should I ask Stinky Sister for two pills to help him out?
————
Tangcheng Airport, in a certain restroom.
A cubicle door was locked, insidiously a person crouched on the ground, hands pressed against the rim of a shabby white porcelain dish, whispering softly.
“Look ahead and back at night, wife binding grass man, paper powder face, head scarf skirt…”
As the man whispered, the narrow restroom cubicle’s light suddenly dimmed, and behind him, something filthy and unclean wiggled restlessly in the shadow.
After a long while, the white porcelain dish gently trembled, and only then did the man stop his murmuring.
“Sir, the mission has failed; there was a remarkable spiritual ability user on that flight, I couldn’t intercept the one coming to assist Jumeng…”
“Ding——!”
Before the man could finish speaking, the white porcelain dish shook lightly, emitting a crisp sound, and then the light in the cubicle suddenly darkened, shadows like strands of hair twisted out, wrapping around the man’s body, tightening with each word he spoke until he trembled in pain, letting out a low groan.
“Ugh—!”
After a long time, the man leaned against the wall, his face pale and drenched in sweat as he shakily walked out of the cubicle. As soon as he stepped out, he bumped into Lu Yibei, who was washing his hands at the sink, causing his pupils to contract instantly.
Then.
Lu Yibei stepped forward and patted his shoulder, “Professor Hu, constipation is a disease; it needs treatment! If it really doesn’t work, try using a laxative? That stuff works wonders, guaranteed to make you rush to the toilet!”
Hu Yue, “……”
What exactly did he just discover?
If he found out…
Just as Hu Yue was lost in thought, he suddenly noticed Lu Yibei’s hand still rubbing on his shoulder. He paused for a moment, looking at Lu Yibei with a serious tone, “What are you doing?”
Lu Yibei shrugged expressionlessly, “Nothing at all!”
Saying this, he retracted his hand and turned to leave.
Hu Yue squinted, watching as Lu Yibei walked away, until he felt a chill on his shoulder. He looked down and realized the moisture rubbed from Lu Yibei had begun to frost…
