Chapter 208: It’s the System, Idiot!
After experiencing a brief moment of anger from being slandered, Gu Qiqi gradually calmed down. She followed Fang Ji’s direction and looked at the gruesome scene resembling a demon’s ritual, squinting her eyes as she began to consider Fang Ji’s proposal seriously.
If she could seize that guy’s flesh and bl**d and devour it, would the system really come back?
Although she was very resistant to the idea of a group of people “bullying” one individual, and would never have done so in the past—she would have stood in front of the person being “bullied” to protect them, as a hero who saves the world should—if it was for the sake of the system, she was willing to do something “bad” this once.
That’s right, I am willing!
After a brief hesitation, Gu Qiqi made up her mind, withdrawing her gaze from the struggling golden figure and looking down at Fang Ji, using the fiercest tone she could muster, she said, “Let’s put faith in you for now. I’ll be back soon. You must not run away, or I’ll smash your head!”
The intimidation from Gu Qiqi’s earlier strike still lingered, making Fang Ji, who was somewhat dizzy and nauseous from a mild concussion, realize that this headstrong girl really planned to go devour Him.
Watching Gu Qiqi’s figure retreating, his lips trembled, and just as the thought of wanting to dissuade her arose, he couldn’t say a word before her figure had already become blurred in the golden mist.
Is this really okay? Fang Ji thought heavily.
Although he did feel that as long as Gu Qiqi could obtain the flesh and bl**d of the First Generation Miracle Saint, she would miraculously bring her friend back, and he could escape the fate of having his skull smashed by the iron rod, but…
Miracles are like addictive poison; once you experience the joy they bring, it’s hard to quit.
Fallen desires grow vigorously in unseen spaces, eventually leading to an abyss of no return.
Just as Fang Ji worried about Gu Qiqi’s fate, heavy footsteps suddenly sounded in his ears. When he turned his head with difficulty, his expression changed.
Gu Qiqi had turned back, lifting a stone lion—standing as tall as a person—that she had found from who knows where, and approached him while saying the most terrifying words in a pure tone.
“I still don’t feel at ease, always thinking you might be lying to me. To prevent you from escaping while I’m occupied, I’ll just place these two little lions on you.”
From her tone and demeanor, she didn’t seem to be joking…
Fang Ji was utterly shocked upon hearing Gu Qiqi’s words, his eyes wide open.
Is it me with the problem, or her? Does she call this thing “little”?
What the hell?! Why, after experiencing that level of shockwaves, is there still a complete stone lion existing with over an eighty percent integrity?
Fang Ji’s expression was extremely ugly, but Gu Qiqi didn’t care. She just acted according to her thoughts and placed the two stone lions, each weighing over a thousand pounds, on Fang Ji’s body.
From the standpoint of A-Class Spiritual Ability Users, two stone lions wouldn’t crush a person.
Although Gu Qiqi was always stubborn, she was capable in the use of strength and estimation.
The combined weight of the two stone lions was just about the limit that Fang Ji’s body could endure…
“Boom! Boom!”
With two heavy thuds, the two stone lions settled firmly on the ground.
In Fang Ji’s eyes, amidst the rising smoke, Gu Qiqi’s departing figure appeared exceptionally ruthless…
————
On the other side.
The General took Bai Kai and weaved through the remnants of buildings toward the central area of Yumen City Gate—the residence of the Nanling County King.
“Are you sure the core operation of the God Realm Yumen is in that residence?”
“Do I need to lie to you?” Bai Kai rolled his eyes at the General. “Don’t worry! I never lie to men. After digesting a part of that guy’s power, I can already sense it…”
“I’m not exaggerating; as long as we find the operational core and connect with the spiritual energy, I will be the second-in-command of this Yumen God Realm!”
“Better be so!” The General retorted scornfully, “Besides, even if you are, you’ll still be second.”
In fact, Bai Kai’s statement had a degree of credibility.
First of all, under normal circumstances, the rank of the Nanling County King doesn’t conform to the ceremonial standards of building such a large residence.
Secondly, that small palace was the only place guarded by a relatively rational urban legend before the First Generation Miracle Saint awoke.
Finally, amidst the chaotic battles, the rampant spiritual energy had swept through Yumen City Gate like a meat grinder; nearly all buildings suffered varying degrees of damage except for that small palace, which remained intact.
With these three points, along with Bai Kai’s sensing ability, it wasn’t hard to deduce that the operational core of the God Realm Yumen was indeed in that palace.
At this moment, affected by the power of the First Generation Miracle Saint, the giant urban legend guarding the small palace had temporarily left, making it an excellent opportunity to enter.
As the General and Bai Kai bickered, they quickly scaled the walls of the small palace. Using the elevated wall position, they saw the scene around Zawen Temple that resembled a painting from hell.
Amidst the ruins, the First Generation Miracle Saint lay on the ground, bl**d flowing from a wound in His abdomen, pooling onto the ground, rising into golden mist, filled with bizarre sights emerging within the mist.
Thick, liquid-like gold that refused to take shape, foul-smelling liquor, carcasses of livestock spreading disease, rusty weapons, and countless fleeting visions that seemed close yet unattainable like dreams.
Figures, whether human or urban legend, seemed to be bewitched by some strange power, their eyes glinting with enraged crimson, constantly gathering toward His side.
Bathed in the mist, they reveled in ecstasy, cheering and writhing in a grotesque manner, immersed in an unreal sense of joy.
Under the self-defensive spiritual energy shock of the First Generation Miracle Saint, those figures fell one by one, like wilted straw blown over by the wind, until only a few reached His side.
They tore and gnawed at the body of the First Generation Miracle Saint, drinking His bl**d, and with the bl**d and flesh that contained the brilliance of miracles entering their bodies, more figures soon succumbed to that force and fell to the ground.
After falling, their bodies first shriveled like withered plants, then their skin began to collapse, revealing chilling cavities, and thick golden juices flowed from these voids, growing into twisted plants.
However, the figures following didn’t seem to notice the gruesome deaths of their companions, or perhaps didn’t care, continuing to gather like moths to a flame. Once the number of figures around the First Generation Miracle Saint reached a certain threshold, chaos ensued.
In the confusion, those figures could no longer distinguish whether the flesh and bl**d they had plundered came from the First Generation Miracle Saint or from their fellow companions that had fallen before them; they were only focused on devouring.
That sight made one wonder whether they remembered the wishes they originally wanted to achieve or if their hearts were only filled with anger from unfulfilled desires, or simply the primal urge to k*ll…
“That must be the power of the Shaman Queen,” Bai Kai murmured, glancing toward the chaotic center where the Shaman Queen pursued.
Standing at a distance, holding a black spear, she quietly observed, crimson flames roiling fiercely around her body.
“Yes!” The General nodded, “Those people should have been influenced by the Shaman Queen, probably…”
“Probably when your arrow collided with her spear and the shards scattered on the ground?” Bai Kai remarked, “Now I somewhat understand why you are so resistant to resonating with that guy’s power.”
Even if one could complete their power, if the cost involves adding some madness and brutality into one’s own powers, it would be more than not worth it.
Moreover, the General was already “crazy” enough.
————
After ensuring Fang Ji was settled and confirming the “after-sales service,” Gu Qiqi lifted her metal bat and aggressively approached the golden figure surrounded by attackers, whose name she didn’t know.
The closer she got, the heavier her heart felt.
A sufficiently powerful spirit energy fluctuation allowed her to temporarily resist the Shaman Queen’s influence, giving her a completely different state from those blinded by desire and losing their rationality.
In fact, though she wasn’t very good at social interaction, her perception of the surrounding world had always been very keen.
Living in that small broken house under the bridge, she could sense the sprouting grass in spring, hear the cicadas crawling out of the soil in summer, feel wild fruits ripening in autumn, and recognize the arrival of migratory birds in winter. She even sensed the joys and sorrows of the white pigeons returning home to lay eggs after circling the square…
This was also one of the crucial factors supporting her extraordinary combat talent. Without the spirit patterns, this ability could likely evolve into severe Nightfall Syndrome over time, ultimately driving her insane from the constant cacophony ringing in her ears.
And now, from a distance, Gu Qiqi felt the pain of that golden figure—or perhaps it should be described as… sorrow?
He was quietly moaning, but it seemed not due to the pain radiating from his body.
He was trembling, but not seemingly from fear or anger.
He was struggling, yet it seemed he had no intention of bringing harm to the attackers…
…
This shouldn’t be happening; something feels off! Gu Qiqi thought, stopping in her tracks.
The assault on the golden figure should have been a punishment for the calamity he brought upon himself, a judgment, yet she caught a whiff of a terrible scent from this judgment, the taste of bullying and brutal killing driven purely by desire.
And she herself was about to become one of those madmen.
This violated everything she had consistently upheld in her heart; it was profoundly, profoundly wrong.
But… it was all for the system to return.
Gu Qiqi thought, her resolve strengthened, clenching her metal bat, taking another step into the increasingly red-tinged, nauseating bl**d-scented light mist.
As if descending from reality into a dream, everything in front of her suddenly turned hazy.
In her daze, Gu Qiqi felt as if two voices had arisen in her mind.
One voice was very unfamiliar, carrying a tone of command, urging her to fight, to k*ll, to plunder, to feast on flesh and bl**d like a beast, somewhat terrifying yet enchantingly seductive.
The other echoed words that the system had once said to her.
The system told her, “Gu Qiqi, sometimes it’s okay not to be smart, or even to be foolish for a lifetime; you just need to understand what you should do and what you shouldn’t.”
In the next moment, that terrible voice arose again forcefully.
“Now is the time to act! Don’t you want to realize your wish?”
That’s right! Now is the time to act! For the sake of the system, Gu Qiqi thought, her clear eyes seemed to have been tainted, tinted with a faint crimson hue, but as the system’s voice echoed in her mind once more, they returned to clarity.
“Gu Qiqi, there are some things you must never do; once you do, it will become a scar etched in your bones. Even if healed, it will leave an indelible mark.”
“Go, fight! The opportunities to realize your wish are limited; only by fighting and defeating your opponents can you gain victory in this brutal competition.” Another voice chimed in.
“……”
The two voices echoed continuously in Gu Qiqi’s mind, causing her a throbbing headache, almost driving her mad.
She didn’t want to do the “wrong” thing, yet the desire to have the system return to her side, nurtured by some strange power, grew wildly in her heart, becoming stronger and stronger.
Amidst her hesitation and struggle, relying on her formidable brute strength, she finally squeezed her way to stand before the golden figure, half-covered in flesh and bl**d and half merely skeletal, lifting her metal bat overhead, then froze as if pressed by a pause button.
Perhaps sensing Gu Qiqi’s sincere and strong emotion to summon the system back or perhaps feeling threatened by her, the First Generation Miracle Saint cast his gaze toward her, their eyes meeting at a single point.
At that moment, a voice echoed from deep within her mind, resonating and reverberating.
“Are you… just like them?”
As that voice rang out, Gu Qiqi saw disappointment, desolation, anger, and a hint of weak plea in the jewel-like eyes of the golden figure.
That feeling was as if He had thought that among thousands of people, there would be someone different, someone who could understand His thoughts, yet what returned to Him was disappointment.
Unable to bear being gazed upon by such eyes, Gu Qiqi closed her eyes, squeezing out a sentence through gritted teeth, “Sorry, I want the system back!”
After saying that, she unleashed her most forceful blow toward the golden figure.
Spiritual energy enveloped the metal bat, erupting with a thick earthen-colored brilliance. The air compressed sharply, creating a pressure wave as if intending to turn that area into a vacuum, directly sweeping away dozens of figures gathered nearby.
However, just as the metal bat was less than five centimeters away from the golden figure, a sudden chill and slick sensation traveled across the back of Gu Qiqi’s hand.
“Stop, Gu Qiqi, that’s enough…” that voice sounded in her ear.
She was taken aback and blurted out, “Huh? Ji Yunpei? Why are you here?”
“I ran… What are you…” The voice stuttered, struggling to articulate several times before grinding her teeth and saying, “What Ji Yunpei?! It’s the system, it’s the system, idiot!”
Upon hearing this, the light surrounding the metal bat in Gu Qiqi’s hand suddenly dissipated, and she abruptly turned her head to see that half-illusory, half-real shadow resembling a skatefish on her shoulder…
In an instant, tears welled up.
The metal bat slipped from her grasp, crashing to the ground with a clatter.
