Chapter 65: Wait, Miss Qiu
On the Taoyuan Grand Bridge, the river wind blew gently as more than a dozen members of the Miracle Cult hurried along, whispering to each other.
“Do you know what the current bounty for Jumeng and Qunyang’s powers has reached?” The leading member said mysteriously.
Seeing the others silent, looking at him with questioning eyes, a hint of a smile appeared in his eyes hidden beneath his hood. “Latest news: a complete power is worth 1.5 billion dollars, or 200 cores from urban legends of C grade or higher, or equivalent alchemical materials. For partial powers, the value is proportionally reduced.”
“This time, as long as we can find a way to obtain more than 10% of the powers, the revival of the cult will be hopeful.”
“We can definitely do it!” An excited member of the group waved a fist. “The Heavenly Father is with us, miracles are with us. Recasting the brilliance of miracles is our duty!”
“Recasting the brilliance of miracles is our duty…” The members of the Miracle Cult shouted enthusiastically in unison. Just as they finished speaking, a girl’s high-pitched scream echoed from not far away.
Accompanied by the scream, a speeding truck rushed past, and in an instant, several members of the Miracle Cult were sent flying like bowling pins struck by a ball.
After colliding with a few members of the Miracle Cult, the almost uncontrollable truck continued forward, crashing into the steel frame of the Taoyuan Grand Bridge with a loud boom.
“Boom—!”
The impact twisted the steel frame, pulling on cables thick as a bowl, making a sound so sharp it felt like a toothache. In an instant, two cables snapped, flying wildly like a raging dragon, whipping across the bridge and leaving deep furrows while sending debris and dust flying.
The truck broke through the aluminum frame’s supporting glass curtain wall, scattering glass shards everywhere, and crashed into a very solid wedge-shaped support pillar in the entrance hall.
The entire bridge shook as if it had experienced a small earthquake, and the members of the Miracle Cult fled in panic, hiding behind the structure of the bridge.
After a while, when the vibrations caused by the truck’s collision gradually settled down, one member of the Miracle Cult poked their head out from behind a stone pillar, looking at the truck.
The front of the truck was already twisted and deformed from the crash, sparks were flying from the engine, and the water tank had completely burst, enveloping the area in white steam, but the cabin was pitch black and empty.
“Did you see who attacked us?” the lead member asked quietly.
“The truck… no one was inside…”
“No one? How is that possible?” The lead member expressed confusion.
Surely a runaway truck didn’t just drive itself here?
A runaway truck, like a beast, trying to hunt humans? Could this be some kind of weird urban legend?
At that moment of confusion among the Miracle Cult members, a swift wind swept above their heads, and a slender figure holding a broken sword descended from the sky, landing right in the midst of five members of the Miracle Cult hiding in the shadows.
With the sound of landing footsteps, the five froze in place, just as they were about to turn around to retaliate, they felt a fierce blow to the back of their heads.
“Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang——!”
Five muffled sounds almost formed a straight line, and the five fell to the ground in response.
“A group of spirit energy fluctuations from 0.5 to 0.7 old rabbits came to join in the fun?” Lu Yibei rolled her eyes at the five members of the Miracle Cult that had fainted.
“Tsk, I really want to know how you managed to be so ordinary yet so confident?”
As she was speaking, she suddenly turned her head to look at a stone pier a few meters away. Raising an eyebrow, several paper cicadas suddenly soared from the truck’s cargo compartment and shot towards the half-hidden figure at the stone pier.
The next moment, the sound of a violent explosion and terrified screams erupted almost simultaneously from behind the stone pier…
The roar of the explosion filled her ears, and Lu Yibei shrank her neck, then looked around quickly. Seeing that there were no witnesses regarding her unlicensed driving and hit-and-run, she immediately took action, hiding a dozen or so members of the Miracle Cult, applying several sealing spells on them.
After completing the necessary cleanup process, she climbed up the bridge’s steel cables to a previously observed inspection platform located several dozen meters high, concealing her spirit energy fluctuations and figure.
The spirit energy fluctuations of those Miracle Cult members she had knocked out were obviously weak. Lu Yibei felt confident in a direct confrontation, and with her emotions slightly heightened, she chose to drive the truck into them.
Who knew what kind of enemies would appear next!
With the terrain advantage, enemies in the light and her in the dark, and with the paper cicadas conducting remote attacks, wasn’t it foolish not to take advantage of these points?
I’m not a member of the Miracle Cult… Lu Yibei thought.
———
Under the night sky, the cold wind blew through Tangcheng, snowflakes danced like white butterflies, fluttering down and covering the city in a layer of purity.
Outside a bank vault in the suburbs of Tangcheng, a desolate street echoed with a piercing sound.
In the midst of the white snow whipped up by the fierce wind, a figure shouldering a massive golden gourd stood out. The gourd was suddenly thrown forward, landing heavily, causing a crackling sound to reverberate through the street like glass shattering.
Along with the sharp sound, the snow-covered street scene shattered in an instant, revealing a dozen strange figures that had been hiding, all holding spells ready to strike.
“One person? One person dares to intercept us, a dozen brothers?”
“Hahaha, the Siye Society seems to be getting more and more arrogant!” A grim man with yellowed skin and unkempt hair scoffed, provoking a loud laugh from the other spiritual ability users and urban legends.
In the next moment, a dozen spells shot forth.
Colored streamers flew like arrows, illuminating the face of Gold Horn, yet he merely curled his lips, lazily resting the golden gourd on his shoulder, pulling out the cork and chanting.
“Spirit of heaven and earth, little treasure gourd, hurry and awaken, spirit of heaven and earth, little treasure gourd, hurry and awaken…”
With Gold Horn’s murmurs, the air in front of him suddenly trembled, as if it was about to tighten, the next moment a golden vortex appeared at the mouth of the gourd, and with a “swish!” the streamers of spells vanished before him.
“Bang, bang, bang—!”
Gold Horn lightly tilted the gourd, producing a series of dull thuds, as if something hard was rolling around inside. He then slapped the gourd forcefully, and with a viscous sound, the opening suddenly widened to reveal crimson flesh and white fangs.
In the next moment, an eye-blinding golden light erupted from the gourd, quickly engulfing the area before rapidly retracting, like a beast devouring delicacies as it opened and closed its mouth.
Under the golden radiance, a violent boom resonated through the street.
Wails erupted, followed by a series of horrifying screams of crushed bones and the splatter of bl**d.
When those horrifying sounds died down, the street was empty, and the dozen spiritual ability users and urban legends had vanished, even the accumulated snow along the street was swept away.
“Burp—!”
A deep, satisfied belch emanated from the gourd that Gold Horn held.
Gold Horn wiped the bl**d and tissues from the gourd’s opening with disdain, spitting, “Tsk, what use is it to have so many people!”
“If the Siye Society isn’t arrogant, would it then be your lot of dog-like opportunists who would be?”
As Gold Horn spoke, he gently stroked the gourd in his arms, muttering to himself, “Thirteen remain, and of them, one is a level B wanted criminal. If I can take care of them, I will be one of the top ten operatives this year, how wonderful…”
———
After Lu Yibei lay in hiding on the inspection platform for about ten minutes, finally, a second wave of personnel appeared at the head of the Taoyuan Grand Bridge.
On the bridge appeared a hunched figure exuding a foul stench, with three pairs of scythe-like arms on its torso, crawling rapidly like a spider, followed by a group of bizarre spiders with human heads, numbering over fifty.
The larger ones fluctuated at level 2 old rabbits, while the smaller ones sat at 0.3 old rabbits…
I probably need fifty paper cicadas; just to be safe, I have to use eighty.
Lu Yibei calculated the strength of the enemy in her mind, and with a thought, dozens of pale paper cicadas soared from the cargo area of the truck, diving into the crowd of urban legends.
“Boom——!”
With a loud roar, flames rose, smoke covering the bridge.
Utilizing the cover of smoke, Lu Yibei quickly leaped from the inspection platform, dashed down the bridge’s cables, and rushed into the throng of urban legends, anticipating their actions and swiftly executing those urban legends that survived the explosion.
After two rounds of slaughtering among the urban legends, confirming there were no survivors, she swiftly tossed two enhanced red flame flashes, incinerating the bodies of the urban legends, then quickly returned to the inspection platform and hid again.
It must be fast; every ambush needs to be decisive.
Otherwise, while fighting against the enemies on the bridge, you might be seen by incoming enemies and find yourself surrounded.
Even if you finish off one wave of enemies and then get discovered, you risk losing the initiative and placing yourself in danger, Lu Yibei thought.
———
In Tangcheng, at the Quan Sheng Apartment complex, inside one of the residents’ homes.
A young woman, having burned the midnight oil to complete her work, collapsed onto the bed in exhaustion.
Tonight, like thousands of nights before, it was a very ordinary night for her. After turning off the lights, habitually placing her phone by her pillow, she began to drift into sleep.
About five minutes into the silence, just as the woman was close to falling asleep, her phone suddenly emitted a SIRI response alert tone.
“Deng deng——!”
“I’m happy to see you too!”
Why did the phone suddenly… The woman frowned slightly while half-awake, struggling to lift her eyelids to glance at the phone in the darkness beside her, but she was simply too tired and closed her eyes again after just a look.
Forget it, it should be nothing? Maybe I heard it wrong.
While the woman was thinking, a mechanical voice came from the phone again.
“You, still, haven’t, realized, it?”
In an instant, something flashed through the woman’s mind, and she woke up, scrambling to the other end of the bed, staring at the phone shrouded in darkness beside her, fully awake.
At that moment, a figure dashed past the window.
“Report, the urban legends around the Quan Sheng Apartment have been eradicated, a total of thirteen urban legends killed…”
In the howling cold wind, someone whispered as they moved away.
———
At Tangcheng Fifth People’s Hospital, on the 5th floor.
The empty corridor filled with a faint smell of disinfectant as a doctor in a white coat hurried by, looking like he was preparing to go home.
Upon reaching the elevator, a series of footsteps were heard approaching. A nurse rushed in after him, and the two entered the elevator together, heading down to the first floor.
However, when the elevator reached the first floor, the indicator light turned off, and the doors did not open, instead continuing downward. When it unexpectedly reached the second basement level, the elevator doors suddenly opened, and a woman in white appeared before the two, her head lowered, wanting to board the elevator.
Seeing this, the doctor’s face changed instantly, and he hurriedly closed the elevator doors.
“Doctor? Why didn’t you let her in?” the nurse asked in confusion.
The doctor wiped the sweat from his forehead and said, “The second basement level is our hospital’s morgue; every corpse in the hospital has a red string tied to its right hand; that little girl’s right hand has a red string…”
Upon hearing this, the nurse grinned and her face gradually turned pale, then she slowly extended her right hand. “Doctor, is it like this…”
“Creak——!”
Before the nurse could finish her words, a rust-covered dragon-marked shackle snapped onto her wrist.
“Dear, it should be this one!” The doctor revealed a gentle smile towards the nurse, “Although your spirit energy fluctuations aren’t strong, you are still a well-known urban legend, so you must know what’s going to happen next, right?”
She tilted her decaying head, staring at the doctor with her sunken eye sockets, her face filled with white maggots looking confused.
“Still don’t understand? To put it simply, the Siye Society is on the case! Please keep it down; if someone at the hospital hears, I would be very troubled.”
Nurse, “…”
“The Broken Dragon Lock, open!” The doctor roared, and the rusty dragon-marked shackle emitted brilliant golden light in an instant.
“Ah——!”
With a piercing scream, the doctor gently brushed the mourning gray owl badge hidden inside her white coat, and spoke in a serious tone, “Report, Tangcheng Fifth People’s Hospital, mission accomplished.”
———
After Lu Yibei dealt with the fifth wave of enemies, the one situation she didn’t want to see still occurred.
She was spotted by the enemy while cleaning up the scene.
This was because of those bizarre mutant urban legends with colorful mushroom heads she had just killed; they didn’t seem to know what materials their bodies were made of. They looked ugly, but under the flames ignited by the spells, an appetizing smell emanated, wafting through the air.
It was a scent of mushrooms mixed with minced lamb, seasoned with garlic paste, ginger, green onions, a pinch of fennel seeds, cumin, and pepper powder, roasted with bamboo charcoal, with an underlying hint of black truffle. It made one’s mouth water.
How could she identify so many of these fragrances?
As the only successor of Luxi Chuancaiguan, Lu Yibei’s sense of smell was exceptionally sharp; she sometimes felt that if she were born in a world where culinary skills ruled, she might be able to earn the title of “Huacheng’s God of Nose,” becoming a steady stumbling block on the protagonist’s growth path.
She knew very well that even if those mutant urban legends were well-cooked, they couldn’t be eaten. Even if they could be, this wasn’t the time to eat. But upon sensing that rich aroma, the chef’s soul within her stirred, making her unable to resist moving to sniff the aroma like a chemist, her consciousness becoming a bit hazy.
In those brief two or three seconds of her mind wandering, a rapid sound of footsteps suddenly approached from the bridgehead.
Lu Yibei raised her head suddenly and regained her focus, seeing several figures dressed in black entering her line of sight.
“……”
d*mn it, she was momentarily affected by the tempting aroma of those mushroom monsters and didn’t manage to hide; this was bad news. Lu Yibei thought, her eyes narrowing slightly.
That group of black-clad spiritual ability users, spontaneously collaborating through secret channels of the illegal spirit energy organization, were bounty hunters, with the highest energy fluctuation barely at a B rank. They initially thought they could take advantage of the chaos to sneak into the Peach Source and fish in troubled waters.
They had long heard that the Peach Source was filled with treasures, and even if they couldn’t steal the legacy of Jumeng or Qunyang, managing to grab some other goodies would yield substantial profits.
However, what they didn’t expect was that halfway through, they would encounter such a terrifying presence.
In the snowstorm, a graceful figure emerged, adorned in frost—a girl—with heightened perception sensed that she possessed at least B rank spirit energy fluctuations. Around her, the dead bodies of urban legends with mushroom heads littered the ground, their deaths brutally gruesome.
Even more frightening was that she held a roasted human arm, the aroma wafting from it detectable from a distance…
This… something seems off?
She wouldn’t be eating corpses, would she?
Holy sh*t, oh no! She’s coming!
Seeing the girl with chestnut hair and a round face coming closer, the bounty hunters’ pupils slightly shrank, and then someone shouted, “Run!” They all turned and fled frantically.
Lu Yibei, “？？？”
———
On the urban highway of Tangcheng, in a black SUV, a report came in about the completion of certain tasks, and Xing Yuan quietly let out a sigh of relief.
So far, letting Gold Horn lead a third of their forces into Tangcheng to pursue and hunt down the urban legends and spiritual ability users hiding in the city seemed to have been successful.
Although most of the urban legends and spiritual users infiltrating the city sought to profit during the confusion and had relatively weaker energy fluctuations, to Xing Yuan, they posed no less threat than desperate fugitives heading straight for the Peach Source.
After all, those desperate fugitives posed a significant danger to the Peach Source but inflicted relatively limited damage to the city. However, allowing opportunists to run wild in the city could easily result in over a hundred homicides by the morning.
Previously, under Jumeng’s reign, incidents of urban legends consuming potential spiritual ability users hardly ever occurred, and as such, the number of potential users in Tangcheng was several times greater than in other cities.
Now, the news of Jumeng’s fall had long spread, and with urban legends entering Tangcheng, it was as if they were at a buffet, gorging themselves greedily.
Fortunately, the scattered operatives in the city continuously reported excellent completion of their tasks. This made Xing Yuan feel much more at ease, finally having the mental space to deal with the ruthless characters heading towards the Peach Source.
“Yuan’er, let me explain! I truly was on a road trip, and it’s not my fault; he dared me to try it…”
Listening to Bai Kai’s rambles, Xing Yuan gave him a side-eye and interrupted, “If not you, then who?”
“It’s Li Xuan’s fault!” Bai Kai threw the blame onto Li Xuan without hesitation, “He was flaunting his new car in front of me, saying it was perfect for road trips and urged me to give it a try.”
“He just told you to give it a try, and you drove it all the way to Tangcheng?” Xing Yuan said coldly.
“I…I didn’t mean to drive this far…” Bai Kai replied, sounding half-baked.
Xing Yuan looked at Bai Kai, her lips opening slightly as she prepared to speak when suddenly the mourning gray owl badge on her chest vibrated violently, and Silver Horn’s voice came through.
“Inspector General, we’ve gathered intelligence about the infiltration during the cooling period of the city barrier just ten minutes ago. A total of one hundred seventy-seven spirit users and urban legends have infiltrated Tangcheng, fluctuating at a level of B rank or above, and all have been successfully located. We’ve captured one hundred forty-eight and killed twenty-nine.”
“For spiritual users or urban legends above level A, there are sixteen total, with six eliminated and seven controlled…”
Xing Yuan, hearing Silver Horn’s report, couldn’t help but interrupt, “Wait!? What about the other three? Are they out of our control?”
“Um…” Silver Horn hesitated and explained, “Inspector General, those three went west. The west side has been compromised with considerable losses, and no operatives are there! Also…”
“Also what?” Xing Yuan urged.
“Cough, cough…” Silver Horn cleared his throat and lowered his voice. “Inspector General, I’ve just received a rumor that nearby the Taoyuan Grand Bridge in the west, a terrifying urban legend that feasts on human flesh has appeared, hunting down spiritual users and urban legends. I think it should belong here, and if they’ve already made their move, perhaps we shouldn’t interfere?”
“……”
They say rumors can’t be trusted, so how reliable can this be?
Muttering to herself, Xing Yuan sighed lightly, “Forget it, send the information about those three to me for review before making any decisions.”
Soon, Xing Yuan received the materials sent by Silver Horn, and frowning, she read through them.
【Fallen Flower Cave Woman, Qiao Lian, Energy Level A】, 【Scarlet Circular Saw, Gaspar, Energy Level A】, 【Shadow Man, Unnamed, Energy Level A】…
———
“Taihe Gentleman Sword · Jun Tian Zou!”
With a graceful shout, Lu Yibei unleashed the Ling Tai Purification, scattering brilliant sword light.
Under the sword light, a head soared into the air, accompanied by splattering bl**d flying high.
After over an hour of fierce battle, the fifty-second enemy fell.
Since the appearance of the thirty-ninth enemy, one skilled in detecting spirit energy fluctuations, which forced Lu Yibei to reveal her position, she had decided to give up on hiding. Changing from using paper cicadas to a combination of sword techniques and movement to engage the later enemies instead.
All her paper cicadas had been deployed, and the cargo area of the truck was empty.
So far, the spirit users and urban legends appearing on the Taoyuan Grand Bridge had the highest energy fluctuations at barely 0.5 new rabbits, and they didn’t seem to possess any particularly strange abilities; they were mostly cannon fodder characters.
In Lu Yibei’s view, to break through the encirclement of the Siye Society and dare to infiltrate the Peach Source to rob the powers of Jumeng, the enemies’ strength certainly wouldn’t be at this level—they would at least be of the level of Miss Rabbit.
She was waiting for the real enemies to arrive, to serve as a warning to others.
“Bang——!”
The headless corpse fell with a muffled thud.
Just as the heavily-scaled muscular man fell, a figure suddenly flew from dozens of meters away towards Lu Yibei, descending swiftly wielding a blade aimed at her face.
Anticipating this attack, Lu Yibei’s expression darkened, gripping her sword with one hand and swiftly hooking upward, blocking the trajectory of the descending blade.
The sound of metal clashing was deafening, as the sparks ignited by the colliding energies illuminated Lu Yibei’s other hand, which rapidly lifted up, launching the Four Beasts Bright Sky Cannon that had been charged in her palm; the radiant beam, with its shocking force, sent the figure flying, crushing it into ashes mid-air.
Finally, at the moment when the sixtieth enemy fell, the “real” enemies had appeared.
“Waaaaah——!”
A chilling cry resonated, accompanied by a strong spirit energy wave from the bridge’s head, and with that crying, an inexplicable killing aura filled the air, as if something was decaying unseen in the background.
Looking over, the grinning, half-human and half-green skin creature, dressed in ceremonial garb, staggered as it walked forward, carrying a bl**d-red palanquin. Within it sat a woman draped in a scarlet wedding gown, with hideous decayed flesh visible beneath her skirt like tendrils coiling around the palanquin. Upon closer inspection, even the four green-skinned creatures holding the palanquin were formed from that decayed flesh.
“Buzz——!”
Amidst the wails, a noise resembling a chainsaw suddenly erupted from above, and a figure dropped to the center of the bridge, revealing itself.
It was a towering figure over two meters tall, bare-chested with tattered jeans and barefoot. bl**d-red wounds resembling wide mouths marred the exposed parts of his body, within which the bl**d-soaked circular saw spun slowly, emitting a humming sound akin to that of a chainsaw.
Just the sight of this twisted creature was enough to give an unsettling feeling of spiritual contamination.
While Lu Yibei stared at the two enemies, both possessing energy fluctuations of around 1 new rabbit, a flash of intuition crossed her mind.
【It appears from the shadows, revealing itself behind you.】
In an instant, a strong spirit energy fluctuation surged from behind, as if quietly rising from the shadows, Lu Yibei’s pupils twitched slightly, and she hurriedly shifted to the side. The moment she did, she saw a shadow-congealed blade slashing downward from where she had just stood.
Turning quickly, before she could clearly see the face of the ambushing urban legend, she saw the figure disintegrate, merging back into the shadows below.
That was the only impression the urban legend left on Lu Yibei, akin to the “little black” from Detective Conan…
As three urban legends appeared, a cold mist silently drifted across the bridge, and the air hummed with sinister mutterings.
“Three…” Lu Yibei cautiously observed the urban legends encroaching upon her and asked in a low voice, “Is three all that you have?”
As her words fell, the cry of the red-clothed woman abruptly ceased, her murky eyes hidden beneath the veil began to assess Lu Yibei silently without uttering a word.
The chainsaw giant took a step forward in the silence, grinning wickedly as he said, “You’re Gu Qiqi, right? I’ve heard of your great reputation—the cunning chestnut-haired girl, harboring murderous intent in the shadows, a bloodthirsty witch that devours urban legends. You’ve made quite a name for yourself tonight!”
“…”
Oh really? Who the hell gave Gu Qiqi this pile of cringeworthy names?
Did I cross the line? Am I about to accidentally get Gu Qiqi killed?
No, no, no, at the end of the day, the debts must find their rightful owners. After today, you can find Gu Qiqi, just don’t look for calamity!
After two seconds of silence, Lu Yibei turned her face to the chainsaw giant, acting aggressively as she coldly shouted, “Shut up! It’s you who called her Gu Qiqi?!”
“Ha…” Facing Lu Yibei’s unfriendly demeanor, the chainsaw giant casually snorted, continuing, “I appreciate your character, but it’s nearly time, isn’t it? Your energy fluctuations are comparable to our three combined. Going one against three, you probably stand no chance.”
“In fact, we arrived nearby long ago; we’ve been watching you from the shadows. Your energy and those nifty little toys of yours are likely expended by now.”
As he spoke, a figure cloaked in dense black mist materialized from the shadows towards Lu Yibei, lingering just outside her view.
Seeing this, the chainsaw giant’s buzz saw began revving up, threateningly saying, “I’m declaring dominion now: you have two choices—to move aside obediently or…”
“Who told you that more people means less strength? And who told you I ran out of paper cicadas?” Lu Yibei interrupted.
As her voice fell, the entire Taoyuan Grand Bridge shook violently, followed by a continuous stream of piercing sounds. Countless white figures surged from the back of the bridge, swirling around Lu Yibei’s head—a total of five hundred.
Lu Yibei had always believed that any method used should at least conceal half of its intent. So from the very beginning, when utilizing the paper cicadas to ambush those spirit users and urban legends, she had controlled just half of the paper cicadas flying from the truck’s cargo area, hiding the rest behind the bridge. By the time the cargo area was emptied, a thousand paper cicadas had flown out, leaving precisely five hundred behind.
Looking at the paper cicadas swirling around her, the previously confident chainsaw giant now seemed to lose some of his conviction and spoke in a low tone, “So, Gu Qiqi, you’re ready to take action against me? Then let’s see what you’ve got.”
“Wait!” Noticing that the chainsaw giant was eager for a brawl, Lu Yibei lifted a hand, interrupting him, “If possible, I still want to wait a bit longer.”
The chainsaw giant was momentarily stunned by Lu Yibei’s actions, instinctively asking, “What are you waiting for?”
Lu Yibei forced a smile through her strained facial muscles and replied, “Wait, Miss Qiu…”
I’m begging for a vacation…
@@
Today, I’m attending a friend’s wedding out of town, and I only managed to write half a chapter. I don’t know if I’ll have time to finish a whole chapter tonight; I don’t want you all to wait too long, so I’m asking for an early leave today. If I don’t update today, I’ll make it up with more chapters tomorrow. @@
Epilogue: Up
Miss Qiu? What on earth is that?
The chainsaw giant didn’t comprehend Lu Yibei’s meaning, staring blankly at her for a moment, and his expression gradually darkened as he sternly shouted, “Don’t try to be mysterious. Since she doesn’t want to cooperate, let’s proceed with our previous plan… let’s attack!”
No sooner had he finished speaking than the spiritual energy fluctuations from the red-clothed woman surged powerfully, causing the chainsaw giant to notice her anomaly. He turned and saw her slowly raise a hand, and a frail, ashen hand protruded from beneath the scarlet gown, pointing at Lu Yibei.
The legend had it that the Fallen Flower Cave Woman was a girl who foolishly fell for the mountain god. She spent her days enveloped in happy fantasies, for her beloved was a divine being. Therefore, she would never be drawn to any mortal men, only waiting for divine selection to marry her.
When she wouldn’t wait for her mountain god to come for her, she would retreat into the depths of the mountains, neither eating nor drinking, simply crying until the leaves around the cave fell, and the hundred flowers wilted, and then she would return home and d*e within days.
Lu Yibei’s witch-like urban legend core contained Lilith’s powers, and while the urban legends’ backgrounds were completely different, both were witches and their powers were tied to “girl’s bizarre tragic deaths,” thus intuitively, they shared a high compatibility.
If she could consume Lu Yibei’s urban legend core, the Fallen Flower Cave Woman’s core would surely undergo significant enhancement.
This was something the woman in red sensed when she first encountered Lu Yibei’s spirit energy fluctuations emitting a bloody aura.
She was craving Lu Yibei’s urban legend core.
“Ha, I get it!” The chainsaw giant coldly chuckled, reading her thoughts from the red-clothed woman’s movements, and coldly sneered, “You want her? Fine, as a trade, once we enter the Peach Source, you can pick anything good for yourself.”
“Creak——!”
With a faint cracking sound, the red-clothed woman’s head tilted ninety degrees to the right as if her neck had snapped, tilting her head, she silently stared at the chainsaw giant for a few seconds before gently responding.
“Mhm!”
Lu Yibei was truly waiting for Miss Qiu to arrive; half of her attention was devoted to sensing Miss Qiu’s distance while the other half remained alert for shadows that might suddenly arise.
As such, when the chainsaw giant and the red-clothed woman discussed how to deal with her, she remained unresponsive. Under normal circumstances, she would at least criticize their malicious deeds involving the casual control of others’ lives for at least thirty-two pages of dialogue.
However, she needed to wait for Miss Qiu to arrive before she dared to stand proud and speak loudly.
However, without that devastating weapon imbued with the world’s malice to assist her, she assumed that facing these three formidable urban legends would only give her a win rate of two or three times. She would find herself walking into a d*ath sentence.
After Soulang Baimo was injured by the paper cicada, it was as if his evasion and luck stats had been reset. During their subsequent encounters, he hardly displayed the capabilities expected of an A+ ranked spiritual ability user.
Lu Yibei speculated that the reason Soulang Baimo turned out like that was likely due to the bl**d within the eyeball used in the alchemical ticking bomb, which carried traces of the world’s malice, had some effect.
Twenty seconds.
Just about twenty seconds more, and Miss Qiu would arrive…
However, even with Miss Qiu coming, the win probability was only around eighty percent; I could say I’m risking it all to help Stinky Sister; it has to count as true love.
After things settled down, I hope that she wouldn’t make me be her servant to repay her debt; at the very least, she should help me gather the alchemical materials needed for the completion potion, Lu Yibei thought.
As though realizing her master was about to enter a fierce battle and that she would likely have no chance to escape, her coat began to shift, transforming from a little cloak and skirt into a more practical black rubber bodysuit; then, under Lu Yibei’s admonition, changed into a more subtle sports outfit.
A rubber bodysuit like that would not do—it was absolutely too embarrassing; plus, the fabric at her chest felt like it was about to burst, squeezing so much it was hard to breathe, leaving her uncomfortable! Lu Yibei thought.
Her coat, “……”
Then… good luck, Lady Witch! (ง•̀ㅂ•́)و
As Lu Yibei awaited, the chainsaw giant and the red-clothed woman reached a consensus and then used some unknown secret means to relay information to the shadow figure behind Lu Yibei. In the next instant, the three urban legends launched a simultaneous attack on her.
“Waaaaah——!”
A chilling sob echoed from beneath the red veil, bringing an intense cold sensation, accompanied by the weeping, something incomprehensibly eerie and ominous began brewing, and the air thickened with moisture and the stench of bl**d.
As the fog deepened, visibility on the Taoyuan Grand Bridge significantly decreased.
In front, it was as if some heavy engine had suddenly started; a buzzing sound erupted, and a rush of fierce wind barreled toward Lu Yibei with a painful sting on her face.
In the blink of an eye, the chainsaw giant had closed the distance to Lu Yibei, his muscular arms swinging a massive fist, accompanied by a squelching sound of flesh writhing. The terrifying wounds on his arms suddenly gaped open, revealing the sharp circular saw which began spinning rapidly.
Fifteen seconds…
Lu Yibei mentally counted down the time while retreating, watching the serrated arm crowded with metallic teeth sweeping past her face, and smashed heavily into the ground, issuing an enormous crash.
The power of the ability attached to those saws seemed to possess a shattering effect akin to that of the Hundred-Armed Giant power, as they cut through everything in their path instantaneously.
With one collision, a transparent giant hole over three or four meters in diameter was dented into the thick bridge surface.
If only I could fully control the Hundred-Armed Giant power, I could give him a fair fight, but unfortunately, I can only suppress it for now, I can’t utilize it yet… Lu Yibei thought.
As the bridge began to break, smoke and dust rose, obscuring her view.
Thirteen seconds…
Lu Yibei continued counting down, with two predictive thoughts flashing through her mind simultaneously.
【Three circular saws shot from the front.】
【It revealed itself from the shadows.】
As soon as that thought flashed through Lu Yibei’s mind, a whoosh of wind blasted past her ear.
Three rapidly spinning circular saws shot toward her like some kind of hidden dart, and the power of the abilities on them began to propagate, exposing cracks akin to thin strands, rapidly cutting through large amounts of smoke and fog as they thundered through.
Lu Yibei retreated desperately, her eyes locking onto the chainsaw giant’s eyes, using her charm ability, yet it yielded minimal effect; the chainsaw giant appeared hardly impacted as he charged forward.
“……”
They say mutants are thickheaded and resistant to mental abilities; turns out it was true!
Lu Yibei thought, redirecting her gaze toward the red-clothed woman. Just as she was about to utilize her charm ability, she suddenly saw the hulking figure of the chainsaw giant charging straight toward her, like a rampaging bull.
As the chainsaw giant drew near, she quickly unleashed her movement skills, her footwork akin to a dance as she swiftly evaded through the onslaught of strikes, wielding her Ling Tai Purification to flourish ahead of her in a sweeping arc.
Simultaneously, several paper cicadas descended overhead, shielding her back. As the shadow figure sallied forth with its shadow blade, she flashed a few times, triggering a violent explosion.
From the spirit energy fluctuations emanating, the red-clothed woman clearly belonged to a rather sinister witch type, while the chainsaw giant was a destructive mutant. As for the shadow figure, Lu Yibei couldn’t quite ascertain its methods and was hesitant to block its advances with her Ling Tai Purification.
Considering the potential incorporeality of the shadows, she felt it was safer to defend with the paper cicadas.
The only ones capable of breaking magic, besides magic, sometimes include art!
“Clang——!”
“Boom——!”
The sound of the blade clashing against the chainsaw resonated, while the explosive clash with the paper cicadas erupted at nearly the same time, producing a conjoined sound as the scalding heat surged from behind, causing her palms to ache painfully, as if her flesh were being torn apart.
In that split second when she used the explosion’s pressure to create distance, Lu Yibei impassively switched the Ling Tai Purification from her right hand to her left hand.
This Gu Qiqi truly had some skills, slick as an eel, and remained calm even during such tense moments, but that alone wasn’t nearly enough! The chainsaw urban legend furrowed his brow, a twisted smile forming on his scarred face.
Nine, eight…
As Lu Yibei silently counted down, another predictive thought flashed through her mind.
Predicted movements of the chainsaw giant and the shadow figure dominated her focus, and her gaze sharpened as she gripped her Ling Tai Purification tightly, cautiously preparing herself.
However…
Just as Lu Yibei moved to tilt her sword and deflect the chainsaw flying toward her, the cry of the red-clothed woman intensified, and with that disheartening wail, a chilling sensation erupted from the fog, enveloping her.
That biting coldness was somewhat akin to the guileless energy exuded by the witch-like urban legend core, but it differed, as the chill radiating from the red-clothed woman carried a palpable decay.
Immediately exposed to this ice-like aura, Lu Yibei felt weakness wash over her; the flow of energy within her body stalled, and her joints felt as if they had aged severely within moments, emitting painful moans as she attempted to move.
Lu Yibei, “……”
d*mn it, why at this moment…
Is this what they refer to as a big move taking longer to prepare?
The red-clothed woman’s curse-like ability suddenly struck Lu Yibei without warning, its effects proved much more effective than the destructive power of the chainsaw and shadow blades.
Her predictive capabilities barely had time to react.
This weakening of her spirit energy to bodily functions left Lu Yibei in disarray regarding her control over strength.
As if foreseeing Lu Yibei’s unexpected predicament at this very moment, the shadow figure’s mist-wrapped hand shot out from the shadow beneath her feet, delivering a kn*fe-edge strike to her ankle.
As Lu Yibei had suspected, the attack from the shadow figure indeed carried something peculiar; this strike painfully penetrated her flesh, affecting her very bones.
“Creak——!”
With a sharp crack, Lu Yibei’s ankle screamed in pain, her eyes widened as her pupils quivered, before her form staggered violently.
The chainsaw giant spotted the opening in her defenses, his eyes flashing with a cruel glint. With a ferocious swing of his bulging arm, he sent three chainsaws buzzing in from varying angles to land a finishing blow.
“Puff——!”
The ripping and cutting chain-saws streaked by Lu Yibei’s back, where she first felt the jacket contract and convulse before suddenly experiencing a sharp pain and a warm tide of bl**d spilling forth.
Long, jagged wounds appeared on her back, bl**d as red as ink spattering everywhere and dying her clothes.
Her jacket, “……”
God, that hurts! _(´ཀ`」∠)_
The intense pain radiating from her back caused Lu Yibei to stagger. Her high-speed movement halted abruptly, making her body lurch towards the ground as if it had reached a sudden standstill, unable to avoid collapsing.
In that split second, her gaze steadied, as if a decision struck—her remaining five hundred paper cicadas began to move in an instant.
Twenty paper cicadas flew downward, supporting her weight and keeping her suspended in midair, close to the bridge surface, deftly pulling her out of danger.
“Whiz—whiz—whiz—!”
The sounds of slicing air constantly rang out, as the remaining four hundred eighty paper cicadas split into three groups, racing toward the three urban legends.
“Boom——!”
Flames erupted, drowning out the sounds of violent explosive booms, causing the Taoyuan Grand Bridge to tremble violently as if it might collapse at any moment.
Those four hundred eighty paper cicadas triggered explosive blasts that bought time for Lu Yibei, creating distance between her and the three urban legends.
Six, five, four, three, two…
After silently counting down five numbers, she steadied herself against a stone pillar, gazing back at the three approaching urban legends, narrowing her eyes slightly while glimmering with mischief, her pale lips forming a light smile.
“One, here!”
“？？？”
Seeing “Gu Qiqi,” who had been in a previously suppressed state, suddenly stop and utter what sounded like nonsense, the three urban legends were momentarily stunned.
Is she confused under pressure?
At that moment, the sound of wind whispered as a figure suddenly landed between Lu Yibei and the three urban legends.
It was a woman of humble appearance, slightly plump, with a pallid, absent expression, dressed in a garish outfit of red and green, looking particularly festive.
“……”
Is “Gu Qiqi” bringing help?
Ha! Even if she has help, it would still be three against two, giving us the advantage.
The chainsaw giant weighed the situation and exchanged glances with the red-dressed woman and the shadow figure. As they pressed forward, Lu Yibei suddenly cheerfully called out.
“Hey, Miss Qiu, time to step up!”
Saying that, she leaped backward, off the bridge, her figure falling rapidly into free-fall, then stretched her arms wide as the twenty cicadas chasing her kept her suspended as if gliding like a bird towards the riverbank.
Seeing “Gu Qiqi” jump off the bridge to escape, the three urban legends instinctively took a few steps forward. At that moment, the front of “Miss Qiu” suddenly glimmered with stunning light.
The radiance pulsated and suddenly enveloped “Miss Qiu.”
Then, with a heavy quake, the world fell into a stilled silence.
In that silence, terrifying spirit energy rippled forth, ruthlessly ripping through the surrounding air as it wildly concentrated toward a singular point.
A chilling sense of crisis inexplicably surged within the consciousness of the three urban legends.
After a brief contraction, as the energy dissipated in the air seemed to tighten one last time, with an eruption akin to a mountain tumbling down, the flames began to spread.
“Boom——!”
The grand bridge shook harshly, the steel and concrete erupted with roaring sounds, fracturing apart.
Before the three urban legends could react, they were swept into a searing storm laden with malicious energy, as if they were intertwined with the debris of the bridge post-destruction, desperately twirling, being pulled apart, and colliding.
Under the corruption of the malevolent energy, each collision, scorching, or tearing directly hit their critical points, leaving them no time to evade…
In less than a minute, the energy fluctuations from the three urban legends disappeared beyond Lu Yibei’s detection with her spirit abilities.
———
Two minutes later.
At the riverbank, several hundred meters away from the Taoyuan Grand Bridge.
Lu Yibei gazed at the purple-red flames from the Taoyuan Grand Bridge, first fluctuating violently before rapidly forming a dazzling, multi-colored mushroom cloud releasing an overwhelming spiritual pressure, reminiscent of an old film titled “The Bridge,” making her involuntarily sigh.
“So tragic!”
Yeah, I’m talking about the bridge…
People, or rather urban legends, may be at fault, but the bridge was innocent. A perfectly good river bridge was destroyed because of these three jerks—it’s such a pity.
I wonder if selling their urban legends’ cores would be enough to repair the bridge; if so, I might just get a bit less for myself this time… Lu Yibei pondered earnestly.
Moments later, as her nerves began to unwind from the high tension, the intense pain from her back and the broken bones in her ankle became more pronounced.
“Ugh, d*mn it, that hurts…”
Sitting on the riverbank, drenched in sweat, Lu Yibei emitted a grunt without expression. As she spoke, as the spider’s web tightened around the caught prey, she suddenly felt a trembling in her spirit perception and looked up, her pupils jolting.
“!!”
What’s going on here?
Aren’t these guys afraid of d*ath?
d*mn it, had I known I should have brought “Hua Qianshu” with me this time.
Lu Yibei’s complexion turned pale.
In just about five minutes, an accumulation of shadows gathered once more at the ruined head of the Taoyuan Grand Bridge, their numbers steadily increasing.
While it was true that no urban legends or spiritual users with energy fluctuations above A had appeared since those three formidable foes, she was aware of the adage that many ants can k*ll an elephant.
Moreover, these spiritual users and urban legends were not ants; they were a pack of hunting dogs drawn by the scent of bl**d, and she was nothing more than a wounded elephant.
“…”
After a period of considerations and reasonable analysis, Lu Yibei reached one conclusion.
Maybe… I should make my escape first?
———
In a state of chaos, Jumeng’s consciousness drifted like a ghost, gradually forgetting past and future, forgetting her whereabouts, and even her own existence.
Casting off the tremendous burdens accumulated by the Fushang Sacred Tree over the years, her spirit energy was reduced to a pure essence; the unidentified powers yet to fully form could not be condensed.
In a daze, she thought she could hear Yuan Ye calling her name, but when she strained to listen, all she heard were indistinct whispers.
It felt as though someone had called her the wrong name, unable to stir the slightest response in her—let alone her powers.
———
In the depths of the Peach Source.
Yuan Ye lay before a deep pit, his spirit energy vibrating and burning within him, producing a resonant sound that pierced through the soul as he repeatedly attempted to awaken Jumeng.
“In the month of Mengchun, its spirit Jumang…”
“In the month of Mengchun, its spirit Jumang, all are like the spring moon, the holy spirit succeeding heaven to establish the pole, ruling the world by the virtue of wood, and benefiting the people.”
“……and benefiting the people.”
After reciting the power descriptions of Jumang dozens of times, when Yuan Ye saw that Jumeng remained unresponsive, he fell silent for a moment before shifting to recite the power descriptions of Lesser Fate.
“Enter without words, exit without leaving, riding back winds, carrying cloud flags…”
“…..In all the hall, the beauties, suddenly, will meet my eyes.”
“……”
Minutes later, sensing his spirit energy depleting, Yuan Ye slowly exhaled a breath, adjusting himself before continuing his recitation.
At that moment, a shadow suddenly fell from the sky, landing beside him.
Yuan Ye turned and saw the figure of the incoming person, immediately feeling tensely alert, pouring all his energy into focus.
Before him stood a half-human half-bird creature; it appeared as if a gigantic bird had just broken free from its shell, its whole body coated in black feathers. From the disheveled feathers protruded three stout human arms, dragging behind it a bony long tail.
Black feathers, three legs, and a bony tail… these were all the traits of Qunyang.
The urban legend embodying Qunyang had suddenly appeared here, and with Yuan Ye having no means of resistance, this could spell great trouble!
No way—Old man, even if I have to sacrifice my life, I must protect the master! Yuan Ye thought.
Sensing Yuan Ye’s spirit energy fluctuations suddenly intensifying, coupled with the killing intent emitting from his oversized eyes like lanterns, Mao Sanyou was taken aback and quickly shouted, “Don’t make a move! We are all on the same side!”
“Who’s on the same side with you?!” Yuan Ye bellowed like a thunderous roar, swinging his front legs sharply toward Mao Sanyou, nearly shaking the mountain.
Mao Sanyou rolled and dodged, exclaiming loudly, “Old man, don’t make a move! I’m serious! I’m on your side! I’m not with Yuan Ye and his lot. I’m a genuine descendant of Qunyang! How could I harm my own dear aunt?!”
“I’m here to help, not to cause trouble!”
A descendant of Qunyang… Yuan Ye paused for a second, slowly lowering his front legs, pondering deeply at Mao Sanyou as he observed him.
“Just a distant relative…”
Mao Sanyou, “……”
d*mn, how have you masters and servants been so in sync in your rhetoric over this?
“However…” Yuan Ye surveyed Mao Sanyou closely, wanting to say something yet hesitating.
Why does he call the master his aunt?
In terms of general ethical relationships, shouldn’t he be calling her his aunt by virtue of relationship?
Yuan Ye pondered for a while, shaking off the distracting thought, returning to the topic at hand. “You say you want to help? What do you mean you can awaken the master?”
“While I have no methods…” Mao Sanyou said weakly, prompting Yuan Ye to frown and press for an explanation, “What do you mean?”
“……”
Like he had suddenly remembered something past and painful, Mao Sanyou’s expression darkened, and after a moment of silence, he sighed deeply and said, “My father died from a similar situation.”
Father? Shouldn’t it be the mother…? Whatever, that’s not important! Yuan Ye agreed, nodding, “Go on.”
Mao Sanyou glanced towards the bottom of the deep pit, continuing, “My father gave up the Qunwu power, departed from this place, and experienced a phase similar to what the master is in now. He was ultimately awakened because Yuan Ye and his former followers repeatedly prayed and recited his powers’ descriptions.”
Upon hearing this, Yuan Ye scratched his head in confusion. “According to you, what I did just now wasn’t correct?”
“You listen to me finish!” Mao Sanyou snapped, rolling his eyes. “Do you not understand what happened after my father’s awakening?”
“I don’t know…?” Yuan Ye said at a loss.
“Not knowing is the point!” Mao Sanyou arrogantly held himself upright. “After awakening, my father found that the powers he once abandoned had regained much of their strength. The corruptive forces within him had not vanished at all; in fact, they grew stronger.”
“So…”
“So what?” Yuan Ye pressed.
“Oh!” Mao Sanyou turned to face Yuan Ye, letting out a long sigh of exasperation. “To prevent himself from decaying into a severe threat, on the thirty-third year after awakening, he asked my mother to consume his urban legend core…”
Yuan Ye, “……”
“To speak frankly, since I can remember, my father has suffered greatly from the ailments derived from the corrupt powers. I believe it was unbearable for him that led him to make such a choice.” Mao Sanyou faked a bitterness in his smile.
“… This…” Yuan Ye fell silent for a moment.
Based on his not inconsiderable experience, after listening to Mao Sanyou, he had a rough idea of what happened to Qunyang.
Gods can grow stronger due to their followers’ faith or decay due to corruption, which isn’t particularly unusual. Although Qunyang’s situation is somewhat special, it still falls within this spectrum.
However, if they continue calling Jumeng with the old power descriptions, Qunyang’s tragedy might just repeat on her.
But…
Currently in a precarious position, without Jumeng awakening in a timely manner, how would they resolve this crisis before enough operatives from the Siye Society could effectively guard the Peach Source? Yuan Ye thought with concern.
“……”
Yet, he still couldn’t understand why that silly girl, who referred to herself as his wife, had her own children.
———
On the ruined Taoyuan Grand Bridge.
Lu Yibei and dozens of spiritual ability users and urban legends stood on opposite ends of the broken bridge, facing each other.
Yes, she ultimately chose not to escape, not that she didn’t want to, but she didn’t think she could.
Not long ago, in the plains outside the Dream Come True Entertainment City, she had secretly issued a deadly vow that if she encountered a similar situation again, unless someone broke her legs, she would not hesitate to run. She did not expect that a curse would come true.
Tonight, facing a familiar situation once more, her leg had truly been broken.
Not only was her leg broken, but the chainsaw also gashed deep, jagged wounds on her back.
“You dare? Come at me! See if Gu Qiqi can blow you all to pieces today!” Lu Yibei shouted toward dozens of spiritual ability users and urban legends on the other side of the broken bridge.
“Blow us to pieces?” A small-framed urban legend wrapped in black dog hide scrutinized the twenty swirling paper cicadas around Lu Yibei, growling, “With just these, are you sure that’s enough? Though we aren’t at the level of those three from earlier, we have numbers on our side!”
“Correct! We have numbers, and a rush at her would leave her badly outnumbered!”
“Exactly! Everyone, charge!” The black dog-headed urban legend shouted forward and rushed a small distance but noticed the absence of footsteps behind him and turned back to ask, “Why aren’t you coming along?”
A crowd of spiritual ability users and urban legends, “……”
“Ha!” Lu Yibei laughed coldly, “You’ve probably seen someone from the shadows. That larger paper cicada flew down from above.”
“To be honest, those things aren’t portable. I’ve sent them a radius of two kilometers above to circle. Whenever I need them, they can come at my call. If you don’t believe it, you can give it a shot.”
After Lu Yibei finished speaking, she discreetly wiped the sweat off her palms on her coat.
“Come at your command? Believe you? Nonsense!” A dark-skinned spiritual user shouted, “Everyone, don’t fall for her lies. Maintaining such a large cicada circling overhead isn’t as simple as she claims. She’ll tire from energy consumption first!”
“Exactly; she’s just bluffing!” another voice echoed, and the crowd of spiritual users and urban legends began to stir.
Seeing this, Lu Yibei’s heart raced as if she were beating a drum, fortunately her expression suffocatingly remained calm, demonstrating a mastery of looking steady while feeling wildly nervous.
Watching the multitude of spiritual users and urban legends opposite the broken bridge, Lu Yibei took a deep breath silently, steadied her emotions, and with a blank expression, cast a mocking laugh.
“Ha!”
With a laugh, she stopped speaking and discreetly unleashed her charm ability to its pinnacle.
She was somewhat worried that during such a moment, she would end up shouting something idiotic like “spare me, brave hero,” making all her earlier act pointless.
“……”
A cluster of spiritual users and urban legends, upon seeing “Gu Qiqi” become momentarily grimmer—seeming to showcase a stance of “I don’t want to bother with you; if you have any backbone, come at me!”—had fallen into silence.
There’s a saying: even as a tiger dies, its fierceness lingers.
“Gu Qiqi” had already spread her name around from earlier. Her earlier performance, where she eliminated three A-level urban legends with one move, had been observed by some in shadows. Uncertain of her capabilities, none of those present dared to step forward over the broken bridge and test their luck.
What if?
As the collective hesitations among the spiritual users and urban legends intensified, a commotion suddenly erupted behind the majority, and following the sound, indeed, several figures donning gray and white garb dashed toward the edge of the broken bridge in a rush.
Upon recognizing the “Miracle Flower” embroidered on the long robes of the individuals, Lu Yibei’s right eyelid twitched violently, her heart exclaimed just how unfortunate this was.
d*mn it, how come these Ironhead lads haven’t been cleaned out yet?! Lu Yibei thought.
In the current situation, while other spiritual users and urban legends might temporarily be scared of her “intimidation,” not daring to take risks and allowing her to drag things out long enough, the brothers from the Miracle Cult wouldn’t care about that at all.
In fact, even if Lu Yibei truly had that kind of devastating explosive paper cicada, they would dare to approach her and gamble against her miracles.
What if they survived?
Realizing that the miracle society’s members were trying to cross the broken bridge to take her on, Lu Yibei smacked her forehead, frowning deeply.
“……”
d*mn it, they come over and engage me in battle; doesn’t that expose my entire ruse?
I wonder if joining the Miracle Cult now is still an option?
Oh, Heavenly Father of Miracles, I, Gu Qiqi, voluntarily join the Miracle Cult, praying for miracles to materialize and protect my life!
Lu Yibei thought in frustration, just as a horse’s whinny sounded from a nearby hill, where a dozen officers from the Siye Society rode in, following behind a silver-armored “white horse.”
After Lu Yibei had occupied the Taoyuan Grand Bridge, delaying events for nearly two hours, Jiang Li finally resolved her tasks and brought along a group of Siye Society operatives.
Lu Yibei, “……”
A miracle has truly happened here?
Uh, hang on a moment…
The oath I chanted to join the Miracle Cult shouldn’t hold water since I borrowed someone else’s name, right?
Epilogue: Down
“You are under arrest! Please surrender immediately, or face lethal force!”
Accompanied by a loud shout, fifteen Siye Society agents, including Jiang Li, simultaneously displayed their mourning gray owl badges as they charged down the hillside.
Before the commotion among the illegal spirit energy users and urban legends could spread among the assembled crowd, the Siye Society operatives, like wolves hunting, pounced into action.
The Fallen Flower Cave Woman, Qiao Lian, the Scarlet Circular Saw, Gaspar, and the Shadow Man—all three had been taken down—leaving nearly all the spiritual users and urban legends gathered near the Taoyuan Grand Bridge merely opportunistic urban legends seeking to raid the Peach Source amidst chaos, displaying far inferior coordination and capability compared to the elite forces from the Siye Society who responded to the red owl signal for reinforcements.
When the Siye Society operatives charged into the chaotic throng, there was initial resistance among urban legends and spiritual users, with the members of the Miracle Cult showing the most fierce resistance, creating a tumultuous scene.
Yet as time went on, the oppressive strength of the Siye Society operatives became evident, transforming from basic suppression to total cleanup, finishing off within three short minutes.
As numerous illegal spirit users and urban legends fell, the Siye Society operatives methodically retrieved button-sized standard spirit energy items called 【Thousand Machine Locks】; upon activation, they triggered sealing spells, expertly capturing them alive.
“……”
Having crossed the broken bridge, several members of the Miracle Cult who were approaching Lu Yibei, upon hearing the chaos behind them, glanced back toward the Siye Society operatives, then cast wary looks at Lu Yibei before exchanging looks of understanding and bravely choosing to trust in miracles, forging ahead.
“Brothers and sisters, don’t be afraid! The light of miracles protects us! If she can’t stop us, we’ll win!”
Lu Yibei, “…” Another “what if”? They might as well change their name to the “What If Cult.”
Then, hooves thundered from behind.
A powerful white figure burst from the flock, deftly bounding over the shattered bridge supports with a few swift steps, trampling one of the members of the Miracle Cult in shocked disbelief.
In the next moment, before any other members of the Miracle Cult could react, Jiang Li swung her nearly four-meter-long blade, her strikes like flitting shadows avoiding vital points while leaving traces of bl**d on them.
Then…
Spirit patterns unfurled, Hydra toxin released, and the bl**d spilling from the wounds of the members of the Miracle Cult turned purplish-black upon contact.
Piercing cries erupted almost simultaneously, and multiple members of the Miracle Cult began convulsing, collapsing one after another.
Evidently, miracles had not dawned upon them.
At this sight, Lu Yibei felt elated, aggressively retorting toward the fallen member of the Miracle Cult before her, “Deserved it! Let’s see if you’ll pull such illegal acts again in the future.”
“Hey! You dare to glare at me?”
Lu Yibei looked at Jiang Li and seriously said, “This leader here, quickly cuff him! He’s scared!”
“It’s him; he was propagating some sinful cult theories, trying to recruit people! I saw it with my own eyes.”
“……” Jiang Li silently retrieved the Thousand Machine Locks.
“Cling—!”
The click of the Thousand Machine Locks echoed.
“Nice! People like him should be…” Lu Yibei was halfway through her sentence when she suddenly felt a tightness around her wrist and looked at Jiang Li in confusion. “Hey, Leader, why did you cuff me? I’m a good person!”
Jiang Li calmly examined the twisted, deformed ankle of Lu Yibei and then glanced at the bleeding wounds on her back, her expression betraying a hint of concern, but she quickly regained her cool demeanor.
“A good person? Ha ha!”
“Wait, wait!” Lu Yibei exclaimed, “What do you mean by this, Officer?!”
Jiang Li raised her hand slightly and swiftly declared, “You are under arrest.”
Lu Yibei felt her eyelid twitch, voicing her complaint, “I didn’t do anything!”
Jiang Li remained impassive, observing Lu Yibei, then calmly stated, “You are suspected of damaging public facilities, killing dozens of suspected individuals, and indiscriminately using spirit energy in public places, severely jeopardizing public safety.”
“However…”
Jiang Li’s icy gaze softened, her tone shifting. “Considering your injuries, we’ll ensure to prioritize medical aid for you.”
Lu Yibei, “……”
Got it, so the intention is to forcefully send me for treatment?
How annoying; who would have thought that Miaomiao would be into this kind of handcuff game? Thinking about it is making me feel a bit embarrassed.
As Lu Yibei considered, she subtly shot Jiang Li a meaningful glance.
【It’s not yet time to go for treatment; there’s still something I need to finish!】
Jiang Li trained her eyes on Lu Yibei, glancing briefly back at the bustling colleagues of the Siye Society.
【Being in this state, do you think you can easily slip away?】
Though Lu Yibei had participated in prior operations against a slew of illegal spirit energy organization members and had taken down three infamous urban legends, she nevertheless remained an urban legend—an enormous unstable element—and had also blown up the Taoyuan Grand Bridge.
Even if her crimes were all equalized in the end, the Siye Society would still likely take her in first, awaiting the result of prosecution before dismissing her.
In reality, deals like what Lu Yibei made in the past with Xing Yuan were not unheard of between the Siye Society and urban legends; however, such transactions were always conducted secretly; making them public was a severe violation.
“……”
At the mercy of others, who knows what might unfold?
While her principles could barely be lowered further, falling into the hands of the Siye Society meant the possibility of being tortured and consequently breaking past any limits with a slip of misfortune.
After pondering for some time, Lu Yibei turned to Jiang Li and nodded, then alongside her climbed onto the horse, wrapping one arm around her waist.
“Let’s go!”
Noting how effortlessly Lu Yibei mounted her, Jiang Li’s body stiffened for a moment, her cheeks flushing slightly as she hesitated on speaking. After a moment, she incisively turned towards the busy members of the Siye Society, calling out.
“Everyone, there is a wounded suspect here who needs immediate medical attention. I’ll take her away first.”
With that, she kicked into a gallop, her figure sweeping away like wind.
———
“……twenty-three, twenty-four, twenty-five…”
Lu Yibei sat cross-legged atop the “horse,” counting the spoils from intercepting urban legends on the Taoyuan Grand Bridge. Her eyes gleamed like those of a miser managing a cache.
Fifty-nine captured spiritual users and urban legends had been seized by the arriving Siye Society operatives, leaving behind twenty-seven lower-tier urban legend cores. After excluding the two for her coat’s healing, twenty-five remained, plus three A-grade urban legend cores…
After this wave, funds needed for completion potions were nearly tallied. Thus, all that remained was figuring out how to purchase the materials, since, as Fat Second Grandpa had observed, some materials could be very difficult to procure even financially.
When contemplating it, if this collection of nearly a hundred urban legends and spirit users had been turned into a thrilling series, it might take over a hundred episodes at least.
That means “Gu Qiqi” ended up snuffing out an entire series of shows?
Tsk tsk, what a woman laden with sins; so incredibly ruthless! Lu Yibei thought.
After totaling the harvest, Lu Yibei appeared to suddenly remember something; she gently patted Jiang Li’s back, grinning slyly, “Hey, Leader, as a leading operative in Huacheng, I was wondering if you might be interested in some collaboration?”
“……” Jiang Li shot a side glance at Lu Yibei without responding.
“Don’t be silent!” Lu Yibei continued, “You see, with Jumeng’s fall drawing in so many fearless folks, wouldn’t the fall of the King of Urban Legends in Huacheng also attract a few fools?”
“Let’s make a deal. I’ll pretend to be dead and spread rumors, while the Siye Society handles the hunting and capturing. We can split the spoils evenly afterward. What do you say?”
Though Jiang Li was used to Lu Yibei’s occasional playful antics, she would never consider partnering in a scheme that undermined the order of Huacheng.
Moreover, such fishing expeditions would put her directly at risk as the bait, casting her in danger.
“Are you not afraid that the Siye Society and those spirit users will collude in this? They might just eliminate you, the biggest unstable factor in Huacheng?”
Lu Yibei, “……”
———
Deep inside the Peach Source, a multitude of urban legends and spirit users gathered around the expansive pit where Jumeng lay.
It was only about four hours since the Tangcheng city barrier began cooling down.
The Siye Society had released a red owl signal, and the news of operations underway around Tangcheng spread rapidly through various illegal channels, much like the news regarding Jumeng’s impending fall.
With the involvement of the Siye Society, aside from a portion of the reckless fugitives looking for fortune, many unsuspecting opportunists seemed to retreat in the face of the Siye Society and the purging power of the Peach Source’s guardians.
As of half an hour ago, the quantities of illegal spirit energy organization members, solitary spiritual users, and urban legends attempting to infiltrate the Peach Source amidst the chaos had significantly diminished, giving the guardians of the Peach Source, predominantly spirit users and urban legends, a chance to breathe.
But this state of peace and stability was only temporary—should Jumeng remain in her dormant state, the Peach Source, deprived of the King of Urban Legends, would face prolonged chaos surrounding its territory until the Siye Society dispatched adequate operatives for guard duty.
Mao Sanyou felt tempted to become a disobedient child, defying the vow made with his father on his deathbed.
“Da-da—da-da—!”
The sound of hooves approached from afar, and Mao Sanyou glanced in the direction of the sound, catching sight of Lu Yibei and Jiang Li.
By the time they reached the depths of the Peach Source, many spiritual users and urban legends had already gathered by the edge of the enormous pit where Jumeng remained.
After hours of fighting, they bore wounds in varying degrees of severity, some needed assistance from their companions to maintain their footing.
These spirit users and urban legends either owed Jumeng a debt, were devoted citizens of the Peach Source, or were of various ages—young and old—completely differing in appearance, with some resembling elite office workers while others looked like rural farmers, along with children that seemed just weaned.
Amidst this motley mix of characters, the spiritual users and urban legends with entirely different backgrounds and appearances had all come to gather around the edge of the abyss-like pit for the same reason, bowing their heads to gaze inward.
It was a silence reminiscent of a final solemnity at a funeral, so heavy that Lu Yibei felt driven to pick up a suona and play a tune to express her feelings.
Frowning, she hobbled over toward Mao Sanyou, who was among the gigantic form of Yuan Ye’s, nudging him with her elbow, asking lowly, “Hey, what’s up? Why does everyone look like they’ve just lost their own mother?”
“Is the Stinky Sister’s attempt a failure? Isn’t she still glowing down there? I think it’s still salvageable.”
“Cough, cough!” Mao Sanyou cleared his throat, trying to maintain his composure, and replied in a low voice, “The situation is a bit complicated now. You could say the master has succeeded, but also has failed.”
“Hmm? What’s with your ‘it’s good but a bit bad’ language?” Lu Yibei interrupted unimpressed and asked, “Then, is she dead or alive?”
“Alive… but also dead.” Mao Sanyou stated.
“……” Lu Yibei pondered Mao Sanyou’s words for a moment, resting her chin on her hand, she replied seriously, “So, you mean the Stinky Sister has gone from being a plant to a ‘vegetable’?”
As soon as her words fell, the surrounding spiritual users and urban legends, including Yuan Ye, cast varying odd glances at Lu Yibei.
Under the heavy gaze of scorn or anger, Jiang Li felt herself acting defensively, gripping her long kn*fe in preparation, stepping forward to guard Lu Yibei and herself.
A moment ago, none of them knew whether her arrival would draw danger, but now it seemed she posed far more danger!
Seeing the discomfort of those around her, Mao Sanyou hastily grinned, signaling for the spirit users and urban legends to calm down while looking back at Lu Yibei, detailing the current predicament surrounding Jumeng.
Jiang Li listened alongside, nearing conclusion of Mao Sanyou’s explanation, deliberated for a few seconds, and solemnly noted, “The situation seems rather troublesome. Sounds a bit like the Ship of Theseus?”
“What the hell is that?” Lu Yibei replied, bewildered.
“It’s a paradox about identity,” Jiang Li explained. “It states that if the wood of Theseus’s ship is gradually replaced until none of the original wood remains, is it still the same ship?”
“Now, Jumeng is in a state where, besides her name still being Jumeng, her powers and urban legend core have transformed, so whether she is still the original Jumeng is up for debate.”
“In this regard, I have first-hand experience…” Lu Yibei quietly supplemented her thought.
She was well aware that after absorbing the Witch’s Egg, her body was no longer the original one—and she had two different urban legend powers within her—but everything she had experienced remained intact, and she felt assured she was still the same Lu Yibei.
By all accounts!
Uh… it’s just that now there are a pile of random titles attached to me, too, which doesn’t influence my identity, right? Lu Yibei thought.
“Moreover…” Lu Yibei raised her head, surveying the spirit users and urban legends gathered near the deep pit, her tone becoming startlingly earnest, “You lot, why are you all NT?”
Mao Sanyou, “!!”
Jiang Li, “……”
In an instance, both Jiang Li and Mao Sanyou nearly distanced themselves from her.
“You all clearly want to recall Jumang and Lesser Destiny with the power descriptions, but that would surely harm her, am I right? She was never Jumang or Lesser Destiny, wasn’t she?”
“Think carefully, who was it that once protected and helped you? Was it Jumang? Or Lesser Destiny? No, it wasn’t, right? Because it was Jumeng who safeguarded and aided you all!”
“Yes, that’s right! It was Jumeng, and that’s all that matters, nothing more!”
At the conclusion of Lu Yibei’s words, the spirits and urban legends near the edge of the gigantic pit fell silent, their expressions morphed contemplatively.
They found Lu Yibei had a point, yet…
“But…” after a long silence, Yuan Ye lowered his massive head, earnestly asking Lu Yibei, “What exactly should we do to awaken the Master?”
Lu Yibei pondered for a few seconds, straightened her back, and confidently stated, “I don’t know!”
I was merely adhering to the usual storytelling storyline, thinking that conjuring up a few words would surely wake the Stinky Sister! Lu Yibei mused inwardly.
“……”
The spiritual users and urban legends who had initially forgiven her suddenly felt an intense surge of fury.
Epilogue: Down
What is it like to be surrounded by prehistoric giant beasts?
Many cannot answer that, but Lu Yibei felt that if anyone asked, perhaps she could give a description.
After she shockingly stoked the spirits of the spiritual users and urban legends, igniting their enthusiasm for “judging” the witch, several entities comparable to prehistoric giants encircled her, the overwhelming shadows overwhelming her form, oppressive enough to make her breath hitch.
A bead of cold sweat trickled down from Lu Yibei’s temple, her eyelids twitching uncontrollably as she unflinchingly raised her head, “Hey, everyone, let’s not get too excited!”
“Uh, I’m not ignorant. Just uncertain whether the idea I have is feasible or not.”
“If you don’t mind, I’m more than willing to give it a shot. What do you think?”
Upon hearing this, these giant-like urban legends turned simultaneously to look at Yuan Ye, and when Yuan Ye subtly nodded, they reduced their fierce hostility toward Lu Yibei.
Sensing the malevolent energy around her dissipate, Lu Yibei secretly sighed in relief and swiftly began gathering thoughts, sifting through her limited mystical knowledge for a more reliable solution.
Her knowledge and experience were as meager as the stature of a small girl; however, the Great Serpent God was quite knowledgeable, and averaging their experiences, she might barely count as a knowledgeable witch.
Just like how “my wealth combined with the rich could exceed a thousand billion,” Lu Yibei thought, slowly closing her eyes and sinking her consciousness into the Great Serpent God’s wisdom.
In an instant, countless colorful, translucent spheres of light floated before her, as if they were illusions.
Lu Yibei’s gaze swept over those shimmering spheres containing the Great Serpent God’s memories. An overwhelming sense of dizziness and mental fatigue washed over her as she received numerous fragments of absurd knowledge flooding into her mind.
“How to possess more female snakes during the mating season,” what the hell is this?
“Three hundred sixty ways to shed skin,” what on earth has this guy been researching in all those years?
“Don’t Guess Human Thoughts”…
As Lu Yibei absorbed the knowledge of the Great Ser
